黄色の
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HONGKONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
is not easy of accomplishment. With regard to the German charities, which the hon. member says his colleagues would like to see taken over and run as Hong- kong charities, that, I would remind you, again opens up a very large question with which I cannot possibly attempt to deal. The property is private properly, and the wholesale taking over by the Government of the charities may involve questions of a delicate nature. There is also, of course, the westion of expense to be con- sidered. for with these institutions, as you know, the running cost is not a little. The hon member finally brought to my notica the names of certain gentlemen in connection with the cable and postal censorship, They have rendered very good service, and I can assure the hos member that the services of all, whether Government servants or private indivi duals, who have assisted the Government in this crisis, will not be forgotten. I have already made a note of their names, and many others besides. In connvelinn with the railway, I think the hon. mem- ber who represents the Chamber of Com- merce made a slight slip in his calculation of the percentage which the earnings bora to the capital expenditure, $15,000,000, which is roughly correct The interest he quoted on the Wuchang loan of £1,100,000, was exclusive of that amount. As a matter of fact, it is an inclusive total,
HON. MR. HEWETT-What I said was that the capital expenditure of the railway was $15,000,000, and the net earnings last year were $110,000, which gives less than 1 per cent, on the $15,000.000 invested, and I did not take any notice of the interest paid on the £1,100,000, which has been invested.
HIS EXCELLENCY-It is all one sum. The interest is on $15,000,000, not on $15,000,000 plus £1,100.000. As long as that is understood the matter is quite plain
HIS EXCELLENCY Reverting to the question of reduction of nurses, I find that omitted to deal with the point of the reduction of the nursing staff in the Civil Hospita!. I had the impression that mem- bera feared that we contemplated an inroad upon the maternity staff and the Private nursing staff. It is quite true that we are reducing the nursing staff generally by two, and I would like to remind all hon, members of one fact which I think they have overlooked. The time
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of these highly-trained European nurses for a large part of the period is occupied by-I won't say nursing, because they do not do real nursing as we understand it at Home-the supervision of the nursing of a very large number of Chinese of quite the lover orders-call them Chinese of tho coolie clase. Now I have the greatest respect for the Chinere coolie—he is quito a good man but in his own Tung Wah Hospital, and in the hospitals in Canton and elsewhere, he is not indulged in the luxury of nurses trained in institu- tions like the London Hospital, These nurses get a very considerable salary, and cost the Government a good deal in pass- age and pension. To my mind it is absolutely unnecessary, and in that direc- tion it is proposed to make an economy; that is to say, that while there will be quite sufficient supervision, a great deal of the work done in these purely native words will be taken up by the Chinese dressing staff. In any other Colony of which I have had experience in India, for instance if you ran a hospital on the lines of the Government Civil Hospital you would rapidly go into bankruptcy. I am quite sure the Chinese members of the Council will fully endorse the policy of the Government in making reasonable conomy in the direction I have indicated, I may add that before this unfortunato war broke out I had in contemplation the opening of a hospital in Kowloon. I obtain- ed estimates for building and the cost of running, and the medical department, of course, tacked on this very expensive system of European trained nurses, and sent in a bill which I could not possibly pass. The end can be attained, and I think will be attained, in due course of time, if we start this dresser system, which is quite efficient, and is of very much less cost. I will now put the amendment to the vote.
THE HON. Ma. HEWETT demanded a ballot on his motion, and the voting resulted as follows:-
For the amendment: Hon, Mr. Lau Chu Pak Hon. Mr. E. Shellim, Hon. Mr. Wei Yuk, Hon. Mr. Hewett,
AGAINST: All the official members, The amendment was declared lost by votes to 4.
Council then went into Committee to consider the Bill clause by clause.
On Council resuming,
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