PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Sanitary Officer to be placed
in once of
Registrar-
General.
Duties of dis-
424
would also report all matters, respectively technical or medical, on which he required instructions, or on which action had to be taken, such as repairs. new works, &c. Thus, whilst retaining their functions of general supervision and consultation, the Surveyor General and Colonial Surgeon would be relieved of the details of executive duties.
282. 1 propose also that the Sanitary Officer should, to some extent at least, be made a The object of this is not in any way to member of the Registrar-General's office. remove him from the supervision of the officers just mentioned, but to furnish him with a powerful apparatus for enforcing sanitary law, which exists ready made in the Regis- The head district watchmen are I mean the district watchmen. trict watchmen trar-General's office.
proposed by the inhabitants of the district, approved and appointed by the Governor under recommendation by the Registrar-General, or Protector of Chinese, under At present their duties are connected with the whose orders these functionaries are. preservation of order only. I propose that their powers should be extended so as to If necessary, their numbers night be increased, include cleanliness as well as order. and an addition made by Government to their salary, which is now paid wholly by the In addition to his European inspectors, the Sanitary Officer would people of the district. thus be provided with a most powerful organisation for enforcing the orders of Govern- ment, and one which is thoronghly Chinese in character. Indeed, the idea was suggested to me by the Chinese.
to include
cleanliness as well na main- tenance of
order.
Routine of sanitary department.
Advantages
derivable from uniting Bani- tary Officer
with Registrar
General's de- partment.
Limitation of power of inspectors of nuisances detracts from their eficiency.
Supervision of responsible
offer reinovės
objection to extending the power of inspectors of
nuisances.
283. The system would then be-the Colonial Surgeon and the Surveyor General give the Sanitary Officer detailed instructions under the Ordinances. Under the Registrar He will make personal General, he directs the district watchmen to carry them out. inspections himself, and control and verify those of the European sub-inspectors. In any case where his instructions leave him in doubt as to the course to be pursued, he will refer to the Colonial Surgeon or Surveyor General for instructions.
284. To the Registrar-General the Chinese bring petitions of all kinds, they look to him as their father, and he has much influence with them, and so there would be the greatest possible facility for detecting any abuse of power on the part of the subordinates. Moreover, the Registrar-General is at present, and necessarily must be, an officer who can speak Chinese.
285. At present the inspectors of nuisances are instructed not to proceed against a person committing a nuisance, unless a complaint is lodged by an inhabitant, or bonâ No one likes to fide passer-by. This neutralises their powers to a very great extent. lose a day to attend a police court, and such a step is especially repugnant to a Chinese, who above all things, dislikes making himself conspicuous, by taking legal proceedings against a neighbour.
286. Any objection that may now exist to conferring more arbitrary powers, for prompt and summary action on the sanitary inspectors will disappear when they are placed under the management of the responsible Sanitary Officer, without whose sanction, and in serious cases, personal investigation, no penal proceedings will be taken.
The Chinese, it appears, are a most docile people, and are accustomed for countless generations to implicit submission to authority. Once let them see that Government is in earnest about sanitation, and that whilst giving facilities, and interfering but little with their social customs, there is a firm determination to enforce cleanliness, there will be little or no resistance, especially if the orders of the Government are promulgated in the time-honoured manner by proclamations attached to the walls of the houses. I am fully convinced that, with firm yet gentle management, and a little consideration of the wants of the people, a great improvement in general sanitary condition might be speedily effected; and that far from receiving opposition, or causing an exodus of the Chinese, it would meet with their approval.
43
Removal of rubbish.
289. Provisions for removing dry rubbish and dust are required, and effective street Street sweeping is quite as requisite as in the city.
weepings.
290. Near growing villages like Yan-ma-tee, it would be most desirable that roads Ronds should should be laid out, before granting squatters licenses, or selling the land. The formation be laid out prior of irregular groups of houses would thereby be avoided, and the ultimate formation of for building. proper streets would be greatly facilitated.
to letting land
to be guarded.
from buildings
291. The question of foreshore rights also requires consideration. The usual type Foreshore of village consists of a double row of houses facing a street. The back of one row of rights of Crown houses is at or about high-water mark, so that the foreshore is cut off from the street. Inconvenience It becomes virtually private property, and various small jetties and other obstructions close to beach. are made, which tend to cause accumulations of filth. This arrangement is perhaps convenient to those whose properties abut on the shore, but it seems doubtful whether it is beneficial to the community at large, who lose the use of the foreshore, which is usually considered to be public property.
292. Some control also should be exercised over reclamations and constructions on
regulated and the foreshore. Private individuals should not be allowed to do as they like, but a cried out on
some general general line of reclamation should be determined on.
Reclamation should be
principle.
general water
from wella.
an ample supply.
wells desirable
293. As the population of the Kowloon peninsula, already considerable, is rapidly Kowloon increasing, it is most desirable that no time should be lost in providing a good supply of peninsula. water. The most suitable source of supply would doubtless be found in the hills of the Necessity of a mainland to the north. Unfortunately they are not in British territory, and therefore it apply. will be well to examine the local supplies before resorting to them.
294. The present supply is derived from wells, the water of which, when not directly Existing supply contaminated, which too frequently happen, is of good quality. From the
porous nature Wella will of the subsoil, pure decomposed granite, I think it probable that a very considerable probably afford supply may be drawn from wells.
295. Even should the construction of a waterworks be deferred for the present, no Immediate time should be lost in fixing the positions of the wells, and determining the number that location of will be required to afford a sufficient supply. In the valleys where the most abundant so that their supply of water will be found, the wells will be shallow, and therefore to prevent con- neighbourhood
may be kept A certain free from tamination, cultivation and dwellings should not be permitted near them.
pollution. area should be set aside for water supply.
296. The valley which enters the sea to the north of Yan-ma-tee, near the village of The valley Joining the The drainage area, the largest single just to the Mon-kok-tsin, seems the most promising site. catchment basin in the peninsula up to the point of junction of the two branches near north of Yan- the sea, is 300 acres. About 11 inches of rain on this area gives 20 gallons a day per to be the most head of a population of 10,000. Therefore, if about one-eighth part of the rainfall be promising site absorbed by the soil, and re-appear in the wells, there would be a sufficient supply. It is useless to pursue these calculations any further; the yield of the wells must be ascertained by experiment. A small perennial stream flows along this valley, indicating the presence of an abundant supply of water underground.
ma-tee seems
for wells.
not probably sanice.
297. It is not to be supposed that one well will yield the requisite amount. Several Single well will may be connected together by a long suction pipe; better still, a long perforated pipe may be laid underground. If this project of water supply be taken into consideration, Underground shall be happy to give the details of the preliminary experiments required to determine collecting pipes the number of wells or the length of underground collector that will be required.
298. From the wells the water should be pumped by a steam-engine to a reservoir Pumping re- containing about 200,000 gallons situated on one of the highest hills, whence it would quired to be distributed by means of pipes.
preferable.
reservoir.
high service
299. Just to the south of Yan-ma-tee is a sort of mud dock, which drys at half ebb, Mud dook iu or little later. This is occupied by many boats, some of which are too old and leaky serviceable to go out, and lie here permanently, being used as dwellings. This causes a serious boats used as
which are un.
dwellings.
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Reference:→→
C.O. 882
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
Observations
PART III.
VILLAGES AND KOWLOON PENINSULA.
287. The observations made on the house construction and drainage of houses in on construction Victoria, apply with almost equal force to those of the villages, several of which are city apply with rapidly assuming the proportions of small towns, and should not therefore be left wholly
to their own devices.
of houses in
equal force to
villages.
Latrines required. Fpellity for removal of night-soil exists.
288. Public latrines of improved construction are required. For some time to come at least, it is probable that no special provision for house-to-house removal of night-soil may be necessary, the demand for this substance for gardens will probably suffice to secure prompt removal.
nuisance.
of Yan--tee
300. To the north of Yan-ma-tee the shore is lined with establishments for boat Villages north building or other trades connected with shipping. A road is much required. Imme- bad state of diately to the north of Yan-ma-tee is an old Chinese village consisting of a double row old villages. of filthy hovels without drainage. The road has been raised by successive accumulations of filth, till its surface is halfway up the walls of the houses on the sea side.
301. I would call attention to the condition of the village of Hung-Nam, close to the Unsanitary dock property on the south-east point of Kowloon peninsula. Here there seems to be total want of any sanitation whatsoever.
state of Hung- a Nam.
Swampy GoD-
a5 00
302. The village of Aberdeen consists of the usual double row of houses facing a Aberdeen; street parallel to the shore. Those on the inland side of the street, are built close up to dition the base of a cliff, from whose foot a great outcrop of water takes place, consequently fever.
F 2
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