Directory_and_Chronicle_1880 — Page 202

HONGKONG.

This, the most eastern of British possessions, is situate off the coast of the Kwingtung province, at the mouth of the Canton river. It is distant about 40 miles from Macao and 90 from Canton, and lies be'ween 22 deg. 9 min. and 22 deg. 1 min. N. lat., a d 114 deg. 5 min. and 114 deg. 18 min. E. long. The name of the island (Heung Kong) s'gnifies Good Harbour. Hongkong is a Crown Colony and was ceded to Great Britain by the Chinese Government in 1841. The Government is admi- nistered by a Governor, aided by an Executive Council of five officials. The Legislative Council is presided over by the Governor, and is composed of the Chief Justice, the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney-General, the Treasurer, and four unofficial members nominated by the Crown on the recommendation of the Governor. The island is about 11 miles long and from 2 to 5 broad; its circumference is about 27 miles. It consists of a broken ridge of lofty hills, with few valleys of any extent and scarcely any ground available for cultivation. It is well watered by numerous streams, many of which ar perennial, and from the waterworks at Pok- folum water of excellent quality but in limited quantity is supplied to all parts of the city of Victoria.

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The harbour of Hongkong is one of the finest and most beautiful in the world, having an area of ten square miles, and is always crowded with shipping, presenting an animated and imposing spectacle. It consists of the sheet of water between the island and the mainland, and is enclosed on all sides by lofty hills, unfor- tunately bare of foliage, except where trees have been planted near the city, but pleasingly green during the south-west monsoon. The City of Victoria is magnifi- cently situated, the houses, many of them large and handsome, rising, tier upon tier, from the wat r's edge to a height of several hundred feet on the face of the Peak, while several bun alows are visible on the very summit of the hills. Seen from the water at night, when lamps twinkle among the trees and houses, the city, spreading along the shore for upwards of four miles, affords a sight not to be forgotten.

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Nor on landing are the favourable impressions of the stranger dissipated. The city is well built, the roads and streets are for the most part admirably made and kept, the Public Gardens almost unrivalled for their beauty, and many of the thoroughfares delightfully shaded with well grown trees. The chief public building is the City Hall, erected in 1866-9 by subsc iption; it contains an elegant theatre, numerous larg rooms used for balls and public meetings, an excellent and valuable Library, and a Museum yearly increasing in importanc The Government Offices, Supreme Court House, and Club are plain but substantial structures. Government House is admirably situated, in picturesque grounds pleasingly laid out, in the centre of the city. The Gaol is a large and massive structure, but the accommodation afforded by it is not in excess of the large demands made on it, owing to the inroads of the criminal population of Kwang ung being so constant and persevering. The Civil Hospital is located in a building very inadequate fo the purpose. The Government Central School, a most important in-titution, having some six hundred pupils, is also very badly housed at present. The Tung Wa Hospital, a Chinese institution, occupies a large and roomy building. The barracks for the garrison are large, and constructed with great r gard for the health and comfort of the troops, and the buildings. belonging the Naval Establishment are substantial and spacious. The Central Market is a dirty and inconvenient place, which isntirely given up to the natives owing to its repulsive condition. The Praya wall, which has been in course of reconstruction during the past year, is now nearly completed, a d is a work of great solidity and strength, reflecting the greatest credit on the Survey Department. It is faced with large blocks of hewn granite and backed with concrete, and presents a good effect from the water. The Clock Tower, near Peddar's Wharf, was erected by public subscription in 1862, and the illuminated clock was presented to the Colony by the firm of Douglas Lapraik & Co.

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