CO129-018 - Others - 1846 — Page 477

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REPORT ON

hills, washing the putrifying substance down the deep ravines towards the sea; thus generating a fruitful crop of diseases,

We shall have to consider in a subsequent part of this report whether the objects sought or to be obtained by the possession of Hong Kong, are worth the dreadful sacrifice of life which the maintenance of the present establishment entails.

Population and Social Progress.-Hong Kong was "ceded to the British Crown under the seal of the Imperial Minister and High Commis- sioner Keshen, in January, 1841;" see Captain Elliot's proclamation dated Hong Kong, 29 January, 1841, promising "full security and protec- tion to all British subjects and foreigners residing in or resorting to the island, so long as they shall continue to conform to the authority of Her Majesty's Government, hereby duly constituted and proclaimed in and over Hong Kong," &c.

By the same proclamation natives of China were invited to settle in the island, by promising them that they should be "governed accord- ing to the laws and customs of China, every description of torture excepted." And by another proclamation, dated Hong Kong, 1841, issued by Sir Gordon Bremer, Commander-in-Chief, and Captain Elliot, Her Majesty's Plenipotentiary, it is declared "that the island of Hong Kong has now become a part of the dominions of the Queen of England, by clear public agreement between the high officers of the Celestial and British Courts; and the Chinese are hereby promised pro- tection in Her Majesty's gracious name, against all enemies whatever; and they are further secured in the free exercise of their religious rites, ceremonies, and social customs, and in the enjoyment of their lawful private property and interests. Chinese ships and merchants resorting to the port of Hong Kong for purposes of trade, are exempt, in the name of the Queen of England, from charge or duty of any kind to the British Government." The remainder of the proclamation consists of further inducements for the Chinese to settle in and trade with Hong Kong. A form of Government was organized-a chief magistrate and a harbour-master were appointed-fifty lots of land were sold in June, 1841, to Messrs. Jardine, Matheson, and Co.; Dent and Co.; McVicar and Co.; Fox, Rawson, and Co.; Turner and Co.; Lindsay and Co.; and various other persons; the annual rental of which amounted to £3,224. Each lot was required to have a building erected within six months, of the appraised value of 1000 dollars; and a deposit of 500 dollars was required to be lodged with the treasurer, as a security for the perform- ance of this engagement. Building commenced with great spirit; the Government spent very large sums of money upon the island, and the harbour was filled with ships of war and transports. The island has We shall now had a fair trial of more than three and a-half years. inquire what progress it has made in population.

On taking possession of Hong Kong, it was found to contain about 7,500 inhabitants, scattered over twenty fishing hamlets and villages. The requirements of the fleet and troops, the demand for labourers to make roads and houses; and the servants of Europeans increased the number of inhabitants, and in March, 1842, they were numbered at 12,361. In April, 1844, the number of Chinese on the island was women and computed at 19,000, of whom not more than 1000 are

HONG KONG,

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children. In the census are included ninety-s

-seven women slaves, and female attendants on thirty-one brothels, eight gambling-houses, and twenty opium shops, &c. It is literally true that after three years and a-half's uninterrupted settlement, there is not one respectable Chinese inhabitant on the island.* One man of reputed wealth named Chinam, who had been engaged in the opium trade, came to Hong Kong, built a good house, and freighted a ship. He soon returned to Canton, and died there of a fever and cold contracted at Hong Kong. It was under- stood, however, that had he lived he would have been prohibited return- ing to Hong Kong, the policy of the mandarins on the adjacent coast being to prevent all respectable Chinese from settling at Hong Kong; and in consequence of the hold they possess on their families and rela- tives, this can be done most effectually. At the same time, I believe that they encourage and promote the deportation of every thief, pirate, and idle or worthless vagabond from the mainland to Hong Kong. The Rev. Dr. Gutzlaff, who has been engaged in making the recent census appended to this report, referring to the fishermen who formed the greater part of the population of the island on our arrival, says—

They are a roving set of beings, floating on the wide face of the ocean with their families, and committing depredations whenever it can be done with impunity." "The stone-cutters have been working here for many years before our arrival. The majority of these men are unprin- cipled. They cannot be considered as domesticated, and are in the habit of going and coming, according to the state of trade." "The most numerous class who have, since our arrival, fixed themselves on the island, are from Whampoa; many of them are of the worst charac- ter, and ready to commit any atrocity." The capital of the shop- keepers is very small; most of them live from hand to mouth, and lead a life of expedients, without principle or self-controul.

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"It is very natural that depraved, idle, and bad characters from the adjacent mainland and islands should flock to the colony where some money can be made†.”

The merchants and British residents in Hong Kong, in a memorial to Lord Stanley, dated 13th August, 1845 (after I had quitted the island), fully verify this observation: they say, "there is at this moment, after four years occupation of the island, scarcely one foreign resident, except Government officers, and those British merchants and traders who commenced building before the enforcement of the leases; there are no Chinese merchants, or even shopkeepers, with any pretension to property!"

A writer in the London "Times" of 17th December, 1844, speaking of his experience at Hong Kong, says, "The community is migratory, property most insecure, and life often in danger, from the bands of piratical robbers that infest this and the neighbouring islands. The place has nothing to recommend it, if we except its excellent harbour. The site of the new town of Victoria is most objec- tionable, there being scarcely level ground enough for the requisite buildings; and the high hills which overhang the locality shut out the southerly winds, and render the place exceedingly hot, close, and unhealthy. Many of the worst description of Chinese resort there, and I have seen during one evening at Victoria more open scenes of vice and debauchery than I had observed during my three years' stay in the north of China. So much for the boasted march of civilization ! principal part of the trade is still confined to Canton, and will long continue to be so; that with the north is as yet comparatively insignificant, and the additional expenses charged on shipment and agency have been so great as to prevent much traffic with the new ports. The very high rate at which opium continues to be

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