CO129-540-5 Water supply- Shing Mun Valley Waterworks scheme 11-5-1932 - 7-12-1932 — Page 110

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possible to minimise the fact that those discomforts

and difficulties are extremely serious, and they are

being endured with a determination that, at whatever cost, the necessary works must be undertaken to prevent a recurrence of these annual restrictions.

5. Some of the commoner aspects of the shortage

perhaps deserve mention here. The hours of supply being restricted, especially in the houses, every tap is naturally turned on as soon as water is available.

Pressure therefore must fail towards the end of the

line, which tends to be the top floors of houses · many of them four-storied with steep and narrow

staircases.

The residents have to arrange to carry

water from the street fountains, or to buy from the more fortunate occupants of the lower flats, and it is reported that the price has been as high as 15 cents for two kerosene tins full (eight gallons).

In the streets at every fountain queues

stretching to the next fountain, which may be several hundred feet distant, wait patiently, each

individual with two kerosene tins.

Excellent order

is kept by the Police with very little trouble; but progress is necessarily slow, and it may happen that the end of the queue is too late and may have to come

again at the next open period. There are instances where a wait of four hours has been rewarded by one bucketful of water, and where large families have had

to exist on two kerosene tins of water a day.

Exploiting by bullies has been attempted,

but there is good reason to think with practically no

success.

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