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A Municipal Band is wanted to play in the Gardens and Statue Square, or Murray Parade Ground might be converted into promenade gardens with a bandstand the same as in Shanghai.
Better Theatres and Pictures Houses should be built, and the Government should give every encouragement for provid- ing ground and facilities on which these could be erected.
Lighting of Streets.-Main streets should be more attrac- tively lighted at night, and private electric signs be encouraged by Government and Electric Light Companies.
Facilities for Refreshments. It should be made easy for private enterprise to establish suitable places where refresh- ment can be obtained. Places like Castle Peak and Big Wave Bay require facilities in this respect, perhaps not at present, but certainly in the near future.
Native Pleasure Gardens and Places of Amusement.-In regard to native places of amusement, the development of pleasure gardens should be increased and recreations provided for the natives on the lines of the "New World" and “Old World" at Shanghai. Such attractions would be more bene. ficial than the doubtful atmosphere of Kennedy Town.
A Municipal Golf Links might be developed at some near future date when the means of access to outlying districts have been improved, or at any rate when access to such places is made less expensive than at present,
Opportunities to inspect Missionary Establishments.— Some of the Missions might be encouraged to throw open their Missions to visitors, or, if they are now open to the public, the fact might be made better known. In Shanghai visitors to the Siccawei Convent have the opportunity of seeing Em- broidery, Woodcarving, and various trades in process, all of great interest to strangers.
In
A Permanent Trade Exhibition.-This we suggest is a most important requirement. We have in raind something after the style of the permanent exhibition of Californian resources housed in the Ferry Building at San Francisco. our case the exhibition might be made practically self sup- porting by renting out to private firms space in which to make a permanent display. One half of the exhibition might be devoted to the display of local products, and the other half to the display of imported articles, so that the exhibits would have attractions for both buyers and sellers of imported and exported goods.
Museum. In spite of the disgraceful state of this institu- tion both in the matter of the way the exhibits are housed and the condition of the exhibits themselves, it is a fact that it is considered by native country visitors one of the great free attractions of Hongkong. This is by reason of the fact that it is a novelty to them, for in the interior no such institutions exist. The time has now come to make the present Museum the nucleus of an institution of real interest and educational value to all. Here again the question of expense comes in, but what is required is a permanent official to be in charge of the Museum. His duties would be to see that the exhibits were properly classified and kept, to encourage local amateurs and professional men to collect specimens and so on. If there were the assurance that a serious attempt would be made to keep specimens in useful and proper condition, the public would respond freely to invitations to contribute specimens and articles of interest from all lands. The Museum, however, is not exactly a necessity and should only come in for re-organiza- tion after more pressing matters have been dealt with.
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A Public Art Gallery. The caretaker of the Museum might also include in his duties the supervision of a small Art Gallery. We presume that in the proposed new City Hall some provision will be made for such a scheme. It could be started on a very moderate scale by the purchase by Government each year of the best two works produced by local artists. There could be a section for Chinese art, and one for foreign work.
The Public Gardens might be made more interesting by keeping a more up-to-date and larger collection of wild animals and birds than at present. Such collections have a very special attraction to the Chinese. What exists at present could not be called a collection, neither does there appear to be any attempt to keep more than a few birds and a couple of animals.
An Air Service.-Every facility should be given to develop- ment in this direction. The Naval and Military will doubtless take care of their own arrangements, but ground should be allotted at once for public and private flying ventures. Every facility should be granted to any person or concern willing to give the public an opportunity of "joy-riding" in aeroplanes or seaplanes. Such would be of great attraction and help to keep the Colony up-to-date in aeronautical matters.
Public Show Fountains. (Not drinking fountains). See- ing that all the year round there is plenty of water coming down the main nullahs, this supply could be used to keep several fountains permanently at work. The one opposite the City Hall, for instance, is in a disgraceful state at present, and no water has been observed there for more than 15 years past.
Fishing. Certain fresh water streams in the New Ter- ritory might be stocked with suitable fish for anglers to try their luck with, and a license be required for fishing these streams. This might well be made part of the work of the experimental farm, provided such is to be established in the New Territory. It is only necessary to point out what is done in Vancouver Island where Government hatcheries are at work, and the streams kept full of fine trout, &c.
PLACES OF INTEREST.
At almost every railway station in Japan there are notices in English and Japanese describing places of interest in the neighbour- hood and giving the distance from the station. A scheme of this kind might well be adopted here. We would even go so far as to say that when the "places of interest" are of doubtful general interest everything should be done to develop them till they really could be called places of interest.
A general list of places of interest might be made and suitably displayed at Blake Pier, the lower Peak Tram terminus and other suitably central and appropriate spots. Such lists would need to be kept up-to-date and additions and alterations made as necessity arose.
At each railway station, tram, or motor terminus a notice could
be erected describing the local sights and attractions.
Following are suggestions regarding "places of interest" which might be developed and advertised in this mannert—
1. The old Cemetery at Stanley should be put in order, madc
easy of access and kept in good condition,
2. The typhoon (?1876) graves near Aberdeen.
3. Tytam waterworks.
4. Kowloon City, old Mandarin quarters, &c.
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