158
314
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841–1941
REPORTS EXHIBITING THE PAST AND PRESENT
Enclosure 9 in No. 39.
Victoria, Hong Kong, January 27, 1851.
Memorandum on the Junk Trade in the harbour of Victoria, from 1st March to 31st December 1850.
A MEMORANDUM furnished in February 1850 explained the difficulty of supplying extensive or accurate data regarding the trade of this colony, and the defectiveness of the means of obtaining information upon that head.
From the return daily made up by a native in the employ of the Chinese Secretary's Office, it appears that there anchored in Victoria harbour during the above period 467 junks loading with stone from the colonial quarries, a slight advance upon the stone junks of 1849, which amounted to but 456.
In the salt trade there is a considerable increase, 456 junks having imported 345,050 piculs of salt in 10 months, while the whole import of 1849 was 335,550 piculs imported in 334 junks.
The monthly average of general traders has continued nearly the same as during the latter eight months of 1849; of the first four months there was no record, but, in the remainder, 596 junks, laden with general cargoes, anchored here, while during the latter 10 months of 1850 there have been 706 at Victoria with general cargoes, moving to or from the east and west coasts of the Canton province, Fuhkien, the islands of Hainan and Formosa, and Singapore and Siam.
From this last port a single junk brought areca-nut, Brazil-wood, rattans, pepper, birds'-nests, leather, and nutmegs.
From Singapore three large vessels, the same cargo as above, birds'-nests excepted, and with it drugs, dried fish, glasses, and biche-de-mer.
Three from Formosa, coal, sulphur, rice, potato-flour, planks, and skin. The rest from various ports of the coast, reaching from Tien-tsin to Hainan Island; pigs, sheep, and poultry, drugs, bark, dried fruits, pulse, grain, sweet potatoes, sugar, sugar-candy, cocoa-nuts, areca-nuts, betel-leaf, dried fish, blubber-fish, rock-suckers, biche-de-mer, hams, bacon, pickled vegetables, eggs, native wine and manufactured tobacco, salt, alum, coal, charcoal, fuel, sulphur, rattans, coarse paper, crockery, cloth, grass-cloth, leather, furs, raw silk, planks, raw iron, and iron ware.
Compared with 1849 there has been a slight falling off in the marine junk trade of some four or five vessels a-month, and there have been none, as in 1849, from Tonquin; but it is impossible to account for this by any of the causes which might ordinarily be supposed to affect a coast trade.
During the last two months when, although the monsoon is fair, the weather is such as to render navigation not a little perilous to the frail native craft, and while there has been more just alarm felt on the score of piracy than since the destruction of the pirates' fleet in September 1849, the number of monthly arrivals has been greater than at any period since May 1849.
In both November and December no fewer than 124 junks have touched here; the greatest number on record before this being in May 1849, when 122 are shown to have anchored here.
T. WADE, Assistant Chinese Secretary.
(Signed)
W. CAINE, Colonial Secretary.
(True Copy.)
Enclosure 10 in No. 39.
RETURN of the Total Number of Felony Cases coming under the Cognizance of the Hong Kong Police, including those in which no Persons were apprehended.
Total Number Year. of Cases. 1847 585 1848 713 1849 956 1850 674(Signed)
CHARLES MAY, Superintendent of Police.
Victoria, Hong Kong, February, 1851.
(True Copy,)
W. CAINE, Colonial Secretary.
158
314
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841–1941
REPORTS EXHIBITING THE PAST AND PRESENT
Enclosure 9 in No. 39.
Victoria, Hong Kong, January 27, 1851.
Memorandum on the Junk Trade in the harbour of Victoria, from 1st March to
31st December 1850.
A MEMORANDUM furnished in February 1850 explained the difficulty of supplying extensive or accurate data regarding the trade of this colony, and the defectiveness of the means of obtaining information upon that head.
From the return daily made up by a native in the employ of the Chinese Secretary's Office, it appears that there anchored in Victoria harbour during the above period 467 junks loading with stone from the colonial quarries, a slight advance upon the stone junks of 1849, which amounted to but 456.
In the salt trade there is a considerable increase, 456 junks having imported 345,050 piculs of salt in 10 months, while the whole import of 1849 was 335,550 piculs imported in 334 junks.
The monthly average of general traders has continued nearly the same as during the latter eight months of 1849; of the first four months there was no record, but, in the remainder, 596 junks, laden with general cargoes, anchored here, while during the latter 10 months of 1850 there have been 706 at Victoria with general cargoes, moving to or from the east and west coasts of the Canton province, Fuhkien, the islands of Hainan and Formosa, and Singapore and Siam.
From this last port a single junk brought areca-nut, Brazil-wood, rattans, pepper, birds'- nests, leather, and nutmegs.
From Singapore three large vessels, the same cargo as above, birds'-nests excepted, and with it drugs, dried fish, glasses, and biche-de-nier.
Three from Formosa, coal, sulphur, rice, potato-flour, planks, and skin. The rest from various ports of the coast, reaching from Tien-tsin to Hainan Island; pigs, sheep, and poultry, drugs, bark, dried fruits, pulse, grain, sweet potatoes, sugar, sugar-candy, cocoa-nuts, areca- uuts, betel-leaf, dried fish, blubber-fish, rock-suckers, biche-de-mer, hams, bacon, pickled vegetables, eggs, native wine and manufactured tobacco, salt, alum, coal, charcoal, fuel, sulphur, rattans, coarse paper, crockery, cloth, grass-cloth, leather, furs, raw silk, planks, raw iron, and iron ware.
Compared with 1849 there has been a slight falling off in the marine junk trade of some four or five vessels a-month, and there have been noue, as in 1849, from Tonquin; but it is impossible to account for this by any of the causes which might ordinarily be supposed to affect a coast trade.
During the last two months when, although the monsoon is fair, the weather is such as to render navigatiou not a little perilous to the frail native craft, and while there has been more just alarm felt on the score of piracy than since the destruction of the pirates fleet in September 1849, the number of monthly aarivals has been greater than at any period since May 1849.
In both November and December no fewer than 124 junks have touched here; the greatest number on record before this being in May 1849, when 122 are shown to have anchored here.
T. WADE, Assistant Chinese Secretary.
(Signed)
W. CAINE, Colonial Secretary.
(True Copy.)
Enclosure 10 in No. 39.
RETURN of the Total Number of Felony Cases coming under the Cognizance of the Hong Kong Police, including those in which no Persous were apprehended.
Total Number
Year.
of Cases.
1847
585
1848
713
1849
956
1850
674
(Signed)
CHARLES MAY, Superintendent of Police.
Victoria, Hong Kong, February, 1851.
(Trus Copy,)
W. CAINE, Colonial Secretary.
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