CO129-593-6 Rehabilitation of Hong Kong University. For extracted photographs see CN 3-45- Advisory Committee papers 1-1-1939 - 31-12-1946 — Page 124

124

14.

HONG KONG UNIVERSITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Confidential

No. HIKUAC 14

Note by Mr. D. J. Sloss on the University of Hong Kong

A College of Medicine for Chinese was established in 1887 and in 1907 was incorporated as the Hong Kong College of Medicine. The institution owed much to the keenness and professional quality of Sir Patrick Manson, one of the founders, and among its early graduates was Dr. Sun Yat Sen, the founder of the Chinese Republic. Teaching was conducted in various hospitals, the College had no building of its own and its success stimulated a desire for a wider scheme of professional and higher education. Between 1907 and 1910 a sum of about a million and a quarter Hong Kong Dollars wes raised for a University Endowment and Equipment Fund. Sir Frederick Lugard (Lord Lugard) took a very keen personal interest in the project and on his initiative in 1911 a University Ordinance was passed at a time when buildings were being erected out of a sum of about three hundred and fifty thousand dollars given by Sir H. N. Mody. Among the contributors to the Endowment Fund were the Governments of China and Hong Kong, Messrs John Swire and Company and other commercial houses, and a considerable number of Chinese professional and business men.

The University began to work in 1912 with Sir Charles Eliot as its first Vice Chancellor. It had classrooms, elementary laboratories and a library planned to accommodate a total of

500 students and hostels for about 250. In 1919 new buildings gave more adequate accommodation for the teaching of Physiology, Pathology and Tropical Medicine and later a small building was provided for teaching in Operative Surgery. A School of Chine se studies and a Chinese Library came later, as did Engineering Laboratories and workshops. These additions were gifts from Chinese residents in Hong Kong. In 1940 new laboratories for Chemistry, Physics, Botany and Zoology were built by the University cut of borrowed money.

The University has throughout its history enjoyed complete Autonomy. Its organization, Court, Council and Senate, follows closely the model of the netcr British Universities. Relations

with the Government and with people generally have been excellent.

There was a very steady increase in the number of students from 1912 to 1936 when the total was 413 (337 men and 76 women) After that, because of the dislocation of civil life in China, numbers increased more rapidly until in 1941 there were over 600 students of whom about 120 were women, The increase would have been much greater but for the rising cost of living in Hong Kong, the lack of nostel accommodation, and the fact that when the American Lingnan University of Canton was suppressed we were able to give them the use of our classrooms and laboratories where they worked from five to ten at night. Lingnan University thus preserved its identity instead of allowing many of its students to drift into Hong Kong University. The thres University hostels built in 1912 and 1913 were supplemented by Men's Halls established and maintained by the Church Missionary Society, the Jesuit Pathers, and the London Missionary Society. Officers of these Halls were included in the teaching staff of the University. For women two small hostels were established by the Church Missionary Society and the French Sisters. In spite of this development accommodation for students continued to be insufficient.

/A