CO129-447 - Governor Sir May - 1918 [1-3] — Page 494

Tytam Tuk Worka

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Second Section.

Speech by D.P.W. at Memorial Stone Ceremony

2.2.18

487

Your Excellency, Ladies and Gentlemen. - We are met herál 18

to-day to commemorate the completion of a work which must ever

rank as one of the most important public works of this Colony.

Notwithstanding the numerous works carried out in the past for

the purpose of affording an adequate supply of water to the

City of Victoria, that essential requirement of every civilized

community remained unfulfilled until the dam on which we stand,

with its contingent works, had been completed.

The construction of Water-Works for the supply of the

City of Victoria commenced in the year 1860 or 19 years after

Hongkong was oeded to Great Britain. In that year, Hr. Hawling,

who was then in charge of Public Works, proposed to construct a

resoavoir with a capacity of 30 million gallons in the Pokfulam

Valley, together with a delivery main and ɗther contingent works,

but a Committee, to whom the project was referred, recommended

that the reservoir should be omitted as they were of opinion

that further provision beyond the construction of a suitable

intake in the stream-bed was unnecessary. In accordande with

their advice, the reservoir was reduced to a mere basin capable

of containing 2 million gallons. Such was the foresight of the

men of that day.

From this humble beginning sprang the waterworks of to-day.

It is unnecessary for me to trouble you with details of the

successive additions made in the shape of storage reservoirs

and otherwise, further than to state that, notwithstanding such

additions, including the original Tytam Reservoir, with a

capacity of 312 million gallons, completed in 1859, the supply

continued to be inadequate to the demand. Up to 1902, the

combined capacity of the reservoira amounted to 510,660,000

gallons and there was then in course of construction a small

reservoir, known as the Tytam Byewash Reservoir, which was

capable of containing 26,301,000 gallons additional, It was

completed in 1904, raising the storage capacity to nearly 537

million gallons.

The