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Enclosure to Governer's despatch No
Daily Press.
XG OFFICE: 14, Dr Vaux Road Cl. UFFICE: 131, FLEET STREET, E.C. HONGKONG, 6th April, 1903. Petition signed by "the leading s of every section of the Chinese nity" praying for an extension of of Sir HENRY BLAKE as Governor gkong has naturally excited a good comment and no small amount of criticism among the European ts in the Colony. No one will gain- at the petitioners describe as "an edged truth" that His Excellency mpletely won the confidence, respect ication of the entire Chinese popula. None will dispute the fact that His ucy has taken a very active interest benevolent and charitable institutions at many of these will be perpetual ments of his benevolent Government." sanguine expectations can be enter by the petitioners that their wishes for ension of His Excellency's term will be to. His Excellency indeed has informed the petitioners that "the lation by which the duration of a eror's administration is determined resuit of careful consideration after experience," and we may add that it from which departures are very made. Old residents will doubtless
The way in
which the author of the petition skates over the facts and tries to make it appear that things desired are things accomplished, or in the way of being accomplished, is simply most delusive. Let us take, for example what the petitioners say, with regard to the water question. In paragraph 9 they refer to the increase of the water storeage and the better regulation of the water supply as nanong the measures which will improve the health of the Colony. We quite agree. But it is necessary to point out that these are things still required and not yet achieved. Increased water storage has been a crying need in the Colony for years, and despite this reference to the matter in paragraph 9, paragraph 13 shows that it is still an unsatisfied demand. In paragraph 13 the petitioners show :-
That provision for a largely increased supply of water to the Colony by further arrangements for its conservation and dis- tribution, together with provision for the housing and spread of the Chinese working elusses, is considered by your petitioners to be absolutely necessary for their welfare and the sanitary improvement of the whole Colony, and that your petitioners have good reason to believe that His Excellency the Governor is now devising schemes to meet immediate and future requirements in those respects.
It would be satisfactory to be assured that His Excellency is now devising "schemes to meet the immediate and future "requirements," but having regard to the a similar effort to retain Sirurgency and importance of the matter, we POPE HENNESSEY at Government think the water supply question ought to but it proved unsuccessful.
have been advanced far beyond that stage. ugh His Excellency Sir HENRY Perhaps the paragraph in the petition , during his term of office, has doubt-which excites most comment is No. 9, fisked to promote the interests of the which, among other things, saya: "The it cannot be said that he has proved "improvement and augmentation of the al Governor in the sense of pressing "police and district watchmen forces, the d the many and important adminis
"stern suppression of secret societies, and improvements of which the Colony
"the deportation of hardened criminals and ng stood in need. His Excellency has
"dangerous characters have tended to to be moved by outside agitation and by hamber of Commerce before taking
Reps.
:
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preserve the peace and good order of this "Colony in a manner the most effective and
His Excellency has faile "unsurpassed." These are consummations
By to get public work pushed forward.
is the Post Office?
ere this ?
Where are
devoutly to be wished, but the facts certainly
increase in
do not justify the assertions of the peti-- Courts that ought to bave bationers. The Criminal Statistics published Even the Blake Clock in the Government Gazette only a week stands where it did, a hideous obstruc- ago show that during the last five years the traffic. What about the waterworks?
"serious offences" in the Colony extension of the Taitam waterworks
has been 30 per cent. compared with the But been pushed on with the energy
figures for the previous five years, and right have been; and various other while the return represents a decrease of
21 per cent. in "minor offences' works have languished instead of vigorously proceeded with. Indeed same period, it is notorious that a large we come to read the petition carefully proportion of the crimes in the Colony--- struck by the fact that the vagueness small thefts particularly-are not reported wording is simply remarkable, and to the police. uld indeed be an easy matter for a
to turn what is intended as
a
Ponial into a strong criticism of His
ey's administration.
in the
182 of April 6th 1903.
!
While His Excellency deserves credit for what has been achieved to the advantage of trade on the West River by reason of the maintenance of friendly relations with the local Government of Canton, a few words need to be said with reference to the ad- ministration of the New Territory, which certainly leaves a great deal to be desired. It has so far not been made the source revenue that it might and ought to be be cause of the neglect to collect Crown rents. In a speech delivered in August, 1900, to the committee men at Tiápó and Ping Shan, His Excellency gave it to be understood that the occupiers of land would be accepted as owners, but if the person in occupation was decided upon an investigation of his title not to be the proper owner the amount paid by him as Crown rent would be return- ed, and the rent collected from the person Have the decided to be the lawful owner. rants in the numerous disputed cases been collected" on account" in the manner above described, or is the collection of such rents still being neglected? The latest Report on the New Territory-that for 1901-showed that while the expenditure was $534,260, the revenue collected did not amount to more than $53,890; and we doubt not that the next Report will show that the New Terri- tory is still very far from paying its way. In 1898 Mr. STEWART LOCKHART wrote that
he anticipated no dificulty in raising from the outset an annual revenue big enough to What meet the cost of administration.
would Mr. explanation, wonder,
we LOCKHART offer of the ridiculous failure of his prediction to materialise ?
Coming to the final paragraph in the Petition, the Secretary of State for the Colonies is informed "that owing to the the local "unsatisfactory condition of "monetary currency, and the disturbed and ⚫ unsettled state of Southern China a crisis "may at any moment occur in this Colony "and its neighbouring provinces, which require at this great emporium of trade a "strong Government and a Governor possessed of an intimate knowledge of "affairs and the complete confidence of
the entire Chinese community." CHAMBERLAIN might very well say:
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LC
CL
ད
Mr. "Yes;
this may be so. But how cau any Governor deal with currency?" No Governor, how- ever good, will have it in his hands to deal with currency, which is a measure that can only be dealt with by experts at home. 'The chief value of the Petition, apart from its high testimony to the admiration of the Chinese community for His Excellency the Govornor, is that it serves to point out how much that is necessary in the Colony yet unfortunately remains to be achieved,
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