CO129-298 - Governor Sir Blake Administrator Major Gen Gascoigne - 1900 [3-4] — Page 229

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Extract from Caplain flade's Report of 7th March 1900.

228

The Chinese guard boats do practically nothing

except carry passengers, and tow at the expense of the Govern-

ment, getting of course, a very good sum out of the people they

thus assist. They also levy a toll at times on all passing

boats.

I went on board one at Kong Mun, and was told that the Captain had not been on board for a long time, and

that they knew nothing, and did nothing except collect this

toll. This was one of the five new steam launches that have

recently been put on the river. I saw three of the others, and

they were all busily engaged in turning an honest penny at

the Viceroy's expense, towing and carrying passengers.

There are a good many rowing and sailing guard

boats, but they never appear to move at all. Most of them are

tied up to the bank with a little matshed on shore, where the

men appeared to live, and with a flourishing garden close to

it.

If the patrol boats only did their work

properly, instead of living on the traffic in the river, there

would be much less complaint of robbery and extortion than

there is now. As things stand at present they only make mat-

ters worse instead of

being