CO129-275 - Governor Sir Robinson - 1897 [1-5] — Page 475

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after Her Majesty, The three resolutions which are now submitted for your favourable, consideration has been carefully drafted and I sincerely hope they will practically meet the wishes of all sections. They read:--

"(1) That the most useful and most befitting manner of permanently commemorating the completion of the sixtieth year of the reign of Her Majesty Queen Victoria will be to erect a Hospital for women and children and the Eining of nurses, to be handed over to the Colonial Government, who have undertaken to maintain it in conjunction with and on the same footing as the Government Civil Hospital, and to subscribe towards the completion of the carriage road round the island, the former to; be called 'The Victoria Jubileo Hospital,' and the latter The Victoria Jubilee Road,' or such other names as may be thought more ap-. propriate by the Committee;

2. That this Committee take immediato steps to raise funds from all sections of the community of Hongkong for the purposes mentioned in the preceding resolution, and for local celebrations;

**(3), That the money so collected, together! with an equal amount promised by the Colonial Government, be deposited at interest in the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation in the name of the Jubilee Committee, and be disbursed by them after paying for the local celebration-one half towards the erection of the Hospital for women and children and the training of nurses and the other half towards the constraction of the first section of the carriage road from Kennedytown to Aberdeen which the Government undertakes to commence forthwith and to carry ou the remaining portion of the road until completed."

The erection of a hospital for women and children of all ranks, classes, creeds, and races, mavaged on the same lines as the Government Civil Hospital, and an institute attached for the training of nurses, will, I think, appeal to Her Majesty's sympathies, ipasmuch as they will tend to alleviates the sufferings of all subjects of whatever bationality resident in this her far distant colony. The construction and the completion of a carriage rond round the island will undoubtedly be of great utility, and will assuredly confere greatest good and benefit upon the greatest number. There are comparatively fow who can afford to live on the higher roads in the City or at the Peak, and the overwhelming majority of the poople are compelled to reside on the lower levels” through- out the year situated on the north side of the island Desing six or seven months out of every twelve the hot and stifling atmosphere of <the lower levels of Victoria is extreinely trying, and often well nigh unbearabio, 88 the breeze during the surroner comes from the south. In his lotter to this Gommittee of 31st March General Black writes I need hardly urge the appropriate- ness of a roat to mark a great occasion; roads are the precursors of progress and civilization; they distinguish a rising from a barbarons state. Roads for recreation and health are one of the great wants in this island, &e." I feel sure you all heartily concur with General Black. The present road to the south owing to its steep gradient is practically prohibitive, Int with a good level carriage road private enter- prise would speedily provide a tramway running round to Aberdeen as a beginning at prices which would enable all classes to avail of the southern breezes and the cooler temperature on the south side during the hot mouths of the your. A really good road 30 feet wide with an easy gradiout would be an inesti- mable boon and would materially advance the welfare of the colonista in addition to develop ing the resources of the colony on the south side of the island. (Applause.)

Mr. GILLIES-Mr. Chairman and gentlemen. it gives me vory great pleasure to second the three resolutions just proposed by the Hon. Mr. Whitehead, I am sure that they require nothing further in the way of commendation to recommend them for your approval. Mr. Whitehead has given us a very able and a very clear idea of the advantages to be obtained from each of the schemes that he has just submitted, and I feel couviuced in my own mind that there is nothing more appropriate or more popular with the citizens of Hongkong than projects which bare just been submitted by Mr. Whitehead. (Applause.) We all know the great interest that Her Majesty takes in the hospitals at home. No doubt they have }

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been brought very prominently Dérőre ter and we all know that she takes a very deep interest in the sufferings and the well being of her loyal subjects. (Applause.) I may also he permitted to say that everything that tends to promote the health and the comfort of her loyal subjects she is also equally alive to and equally ready to support and give hor kindness to; and think the making of a road is a matter that commends itself vorg strongly to the people of Hongkong. (Ap- plause). We have only one docent road in the colony for carvinges and that is out to Shaukiwao, and I think that if we have a road going out to the southern part of the colony it would serve as an outlet not only for the Europeans but to the Chinese, who may seek a little fresh air after the toils and burdens of the day are over. They want a little refreshing breeze, as We ill know that Chinatown is very much cramped and there is very little to be met there in the shape of fresh air. Here on the north side of the island the air certainly does not circulate with that freedom that it does on the south side, and I think that anyous who has made a trip to the south part of the island will bear me out in saying that the air there is most i !conducive to health. It is hracing and more! strengthening than that we get upon the north side. The Civil Hospital, 1 may mention, is a credit to this colony. I do not think you can go to any city in England and find a hospital conducted on better principles than the Civil Hospital in Hongkong. Everything is done to promote the comfort and bring speedy relief to the sufferer. The patients muget with the best of attention and they receive the greatest care at the hands of the medical advisers, and if you look round you will see that the whole building is kept serupulously elean and in a better condition, I think, than any hospital at home. In regard to the nursing institute, I think that will supply a want that has long been felt in Hongkong. We certainly know the great benefit of having a female nurse at our bedside in time of sickness and trouble. In the old days when a China boy used to hand you the medicine you were always afraid to accept it; you did

not know whether he was giving you the medicine the doctor had ordered, neither did you know that he was giving it at the proper time. Now all this is changed and the ladies at the hospital are almost as good as a medical mau himself. They follow the instructions of the medical man and are able to render very great service indeed and their kindness and attention tend very much towards the speedy also recovery of the patient. I would remark that I think that all the three projects submitted by Mr. Whitehead here received more general support than any of the other schemes. We have seen more written on these three schemes than on any other pro- ject, and I think, judging from that, it proves that the community are more in favour of having this road and the hospital and train- ing institute for nurses carried ont than

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have projects been submitted. J therefore have very little further to say. I think that the good points of these projects have been vory favoure ably put before you in the Press and I have now very great pleasure in seconding the ra♦ solutions submitted by the Hon. Mr. White head. (Applause).

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Mr. EDE asked if the nurses were going to be available for the public, because if the nursing institute was going to be on the same principle as the Civil Hospital and roanaged by the Civil Hospital, how were the community going to get the nurses ?

The HON. SECRETARY-It is the intention of the Government to obtain nurses from home who will be available for nursing among the general public, and the services. of these nurses will be retained until such time! as it is found that nurses trained locally are safficiently well trained to be able to take their

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