CO129-561-7 Hong Kong University 4-1-1937 - 22-9-1937 — Page 14

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research or extra mural work.

3. The financial survey at the beginning of

the report, though disappointingly brief and

needing far more facts and figures to make it

convincing to the outside reader, must obviously

be treated with respect and will be useful to

the outside Expert Committee, whose appointment

is a necessary prelude to the reorganisation of

the University. The Engineering section of the

report will also be useful to such & Committee,

and probably the Medical section, though on this

latter Sir Thomas Stanton wili no doubt be con-

sulted. The treatment of the Arts Faculty, as

was to be expected, is deplorably superficial,

and it is to be regretted that the Committee,

constituted as it was, ventured on the few re-

commendations that it has made. One gets the

impression that for financial reasons they gladly

adopted the view which they state to be locally

current that the Arts courses are merely

glorified secondary school courses (see para-

-

graph 56 of report) because such an assumption

gave them an opportunity for recommending drastic

curtailment of expenditure.

4.

The value of the recommendations regarding

University constitution and administration cannot

be estimated without examination of the evidence

on which they are based. For similar reasons

the vague references to unsatisfactory discipline

and over-staffing of some of the Arts Departments

cannot be verified.

5.

The recommendations in regard to salaries

need very careful checking, by persons familiar