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Literature. If we have a number of pupils here who understand English thoroughly, these young men growing up as British subjects will certainly be as much entitled as any persons in this community to take a part in our public affairs and to attain to any position as mercantile men or as officials that any citizen of Hongkong can aspire to.
Of course you are all aware that the number of British subjects in this Colony is now limited those who have been born under the British flag. This Colony, unlike other Colonies of Her Majesty's empire, has no naturalisation Ordinance, but it has been represented to me by some of the fathers of these boys, that is, by some of the leading Portuguese, and by others in Hongkong, that it would be desirable to have a naturalisation Ordinance. Their views have been laid by me before Her Majesty's Government; and, in a few months perhaps I shall be able to say whether or not it will be possible I for them to become naturalised British subjects. It was, indeed, in this school, two years ago, adverted first to the idea of reviving our Volunteer movement and I now see present a good many gentlemen connected with that movement, one of them an English gentleman, Mr. Justice FRANCIS, who has always been interested in this school and who was recommended to me for a Captain's Com- mission by the suffrages of his brother Volunteers. No doubt there are some here who cannot yet take part in the movement, whatever interest they may feel in the Colony, because they are not British subjects, but I am sure they share with their children and friends loyalty to the Crown.
I congratulate the Christian Brothers on the success of this their first examination under the grant-in-aid scheme. With the exception of what I have mentioned about English Composition, the report of the Examiner has been most satisfactory. I have no doubt that, next year when I may have the pleasure of distributing prizes here, I shall be able to notice an improvement in that important branch of education.
This is now, I think, the third or fourth time within the last two or three months that it has fallen to my lot to say a few words at schools or in connection with schools in this Colony. Not long since an Honourable friend of mine who is present (the Honourable P. RYRIE), Dr. ErTEL, myself, and others assembled at St. Paul's College to assist in inaugurating a high class Church of England and Protestant school which will be principally for European boys. That school, I am happy to say, has Last week I had the satisfaction of been well opened, and it will prove, I believe, a success. presiding at the distribution of prizes at the Central School; and it was only a day or two ago that, accompanied by my friend Dr. EXTEL, I met twenty-six teachers of our other Government schools, when prizes were given, to the children of twenty-nine schools, and rewards to the most efficient teachers. On that occasion I found the interesting fact that in one native school where the Govern- ment allowed it to be optional whether the boys should learn English or Chinese, they all being Chinese, out of about sixty-one attending the school it ultimately turned out that in the cases of sixty, the parents elected that the boys should learn nothing but English. They thought that as far as Chinese went, their children would learn enough of it at home, and they felt the great object of sending their boys to a Government School was to have them learn English. I had much pleasure in examining some of those boys. I found them able to speak English pretty well; they were evidently making steady progress. Therefore, ladies und gentlemen, the state of education in the Colony is briefly this, that Her Majesty's Government have sanctioned a modification of the grant-in-aid scheme under which all classes and all denominations can now obtain the benefit of it.
All classes have now
come under it. The chief education difficulty that I found existing here on my arrival has been set at rest by Sir MICHAEL HICKS-BEACH's wise decision. What seemed to me to be another grave defect in the Government scheme of public instructions in Hongkong too much Chinese teaching and too little English teaching-is being gradually removed. I believe the scheme as it is now worked is a popular and useful scheme and will, in time to come, give a sound English education to the youth of this Colony.--(Applause.)
Another address, thanking His Excellency and the visitors for the interest they evinced in the school, was then read by Master G. JORGE.
to
Mr. BELILIOS then said-Your Excellency and your Lordship,-I am highly gratified and I feel greatly obliged to you for the encomiums you have thought fit to bestow upon me, but I think I scarcely deserve or merit them, as in my belief I have done nothing more than what any citizen is in duty bound to do for his fellow-inhabitants. I can only hope that men of means and capacious hearts will come forward to back up the little beginning I have made by helping to augment my little contri- bution and thus create material support for advancement of learning in the Colony-(Applause.) Ladies and gentlemen, when I came here to-day I hardly expected that I should be called upon address you on the subject now before us. The praise lavished on me has compelled me to speak, and I cannot allow this opportunity to pass without stating a few facts connected with the advantages this The firm with institution has conferred on the community. I landed in the island in the
year 1862. whom I stayed for a short time had preceded me by a few months. On their way to China they were told there was a dearth of clerks here, and they therefore thought it prudent to bring along a Portuguese assistant with them from Singapore. This gentleman left the house after the lapse of a few months, thus constraining the firm in question to again import another young man from Penang. When I commenced business operations on my account I engaged a Portuguese clerk at $75 per month. This young man was a copyist, a inere drawer of figures and letters. He was more a nuisance than a help to me. In the busiest of times, whenever it was found necessary to put a few words of English
copy and
together, he would come to me and ask me to draft them out for him. He did nothing but some landing and shipping for me. Of course the older houses had their staff of Englishmen from Oxford and Cambridge, drawing large salaries, but the minor ones had to content themselves by having an hour or two of attendance from two old gentlemen who made a living by going about distributing th leisure hours at their disposal on several small houses here. Times have altered now, and com- petent young men may be found who are prepared to occupy berths at small salaries, consequently almost every merchant's establishment and every store can boast of a clerk. I have a staff of Portuguese clerks, and I am very much pleased with them. They are steady, attentive, and painstaking, and I suppose I cannot replace them by a set of better men. To whom is all this due? I maintain it is owing to the exertions of the Christian Brothers and to the existence of the St. Joseph's College. The older firms are commencing to employ them and they are finding situations in banks. I have no doubt that the time is not far distant when it will be found necessary to employ them generally. In landing this place of learning I do not mean to detract one single iota from the importance of the sister instituation, the Central School. On the contrary, I contend that if this has done much, the other is destined to do still more for the island. This school deals with a section of the community, whilst the other deals with the mass of the population. I dare say the time will come, when a staff of Portuguese clerks and a European at their head, and, later on, a staff of Chinese clerks and a Portuguese at their head, will be capable of conducting large business establishments satisfactorily. When commerce and trade fail to afford large profits, it becomes imperative to retrench expenditure. In the principal cities of India, if you were to walk into large establishments you will see nothing but swarthy faces and turbaned heads hard at work, with perhaps one Englishman or one Eurasian to direct them. On inquiry as to salaries, you will be told that they range in rupees between the equivalents of ten to a hundred dollars. Education has done this for Indian, and education is certain to do the same for China. Men of business in future will have to be grateful to the managers of these two instituations for the benefits they will then enjoy. -(Applause)
The National Anthem was then played and the proceedings terminated.
GOVERNMENT CENTRAL SCHOOL.
The following is the list of the prizes referred in the last Government Gazette as having been distributed by His Excellency the Governor on the 30th of January, 1880 :-----
NAME.
PRIZE.
DONOR.
Lau Ho.........Morrison Scholarship...Morrison Trustees.
SPECIAL PRIZES. Best Scholar.
Translation.
Composition.
Mr. Jackson,
..Hon. J. Russell.
Ho Tsik Shin Watch.......
W. Wilson......Watch.....
Chemistry.
J. Tanabo......Gold Pencil Case ......Head Master.
ORDINARY PRIZES. 1st Class.
Sin Hon......... Watch.....
Mr. Kwok Acheong. Ho Tuk.........Silver Pencil Case......Mr. Arthur. B, Yasubeiro...Silver Pencil Case......
2nd Class. Wat Pat Tai... Watch.... Chan Shan.....Silver Pencil Case...... M. Alarakia...Dictionary
3rd Class. Wan Kit Sz ...Watch.... Chan U Kwan Silver Pencil Case...... F. X. Jesus ...Dictionary
4th Class. Chan Un Fan Watch. Pang ShanChun Silver Pencil Case......Mr. May. Lau Kwai......Dictionary
5th Class.
Li Ip...........Watch...... Lo Tso Yua ...Silver Pencil Case......
6th Class.
So Wai.........Watel..... Leung Man Kwong Dictionary
7th Class.
Li Tsun Fan... Watch...... Cheng Y. Kwai Dictionary
8th Class.
Chan Wing Kin Watch. Ko Taim Un...Dictionary
NAME.
PRIZE.
PHILOSOPHY CLASS. 1st Division.
DONOR.
Yam Sik Lam Watch..... Cheng Yan Fat Silver Pencil Case..............Mr. McKinney.
2nd Division. Leung In Ting Silver Pencil Case......Mr. Gerrard, Sham Un Lan Ivory Pencil Case
3rd Division.
Yeung ShanTin Ivory Peucil Case .............. Tsang UKwan Ivory Pencil Case
CHINESE CLASSES.-FORTNIGHTLY EXAMINATIONS. 1st Class,
Lo Un Kok ... Watch...... Wong Kwok Fai Dictionary
ORDINARY PRIZES. 1st Class.
Tung Ku Ling Watch...... Lam Tat Chi... Dictionary
2nd Class.
3rd Class.
Yang Him...... Watch.... Leunig Shui Fan Dictionary TseSeung Hung Silver Pencil Case.......... IIo Un In...... Dictionary
4th Class. Tsang Wan....Silver Pencil Case...... Fung Taung ...Silver Pencil Case......
5th Class.
..Mr. Kwok Acheong.
Cheung Un Kwong Silver Pencil Case..... Mr. Kwok Acheong, S. Abram ......Ivory Pencil Case ................
CHINESE CLASS FOR EUROPEANS, &C.
1st Division.
A. Ramjan......Watch......
U. Ramjan...... Dictionary
2nd Division.
S. Mootian......Ivory Pencil Case ...... Abdool .........Ivory Pencil Case ..................
3rd Division.
R. P. Remedios Dictionary....
..Mr. Nelson,
II. Arthur......Ivory Pencil Case......Mr. May.
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