Directory_and_Chronicle_1908 — Page 1099

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HONGKONG

The harbour of Hongkong is one of the finest and most beautiful in the world, having an area of ten square miles, and, with its diversified scenery and varied shipping, presents 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, formerly destitute of foliage, but the island slopes are gradually becoming clothed with young forests, the result of the afforestation scheme of the Government The city of Victoria is magnificently situated, the houses, many of them large and handsome, rising, tier upon tier, from the water's edge to a height of over five hundred feet on the face of the Peak while many buildings 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 readily to be forgotten.

Nor on landing are the favourable impressions of the stranger dissipated or lessened. The city is fairly well built, the roads and streets are for the most part admirably made and kept, and many of the thoroughfares delightfully shaded with well grown trees. The European business quarter occupies the middle of the city, from Pottinger Street to the Naval Yard, but with the exception of this limited area almost all the lower levels, especially the Western District, are covered by a dense mass of Chinese shops and tenements. The Botanic Gardens are situated just above Government House, and are tastefully laid out in terraces, slopes, and walks, with parterres of flowers. A handsome fountain adorns the second terrace, around which many European children and their amahs resort daily. There is a band stand, presented by the Parsee community (but never now occupied by a band), some aviaries, orchid houses, and ferneries, and seats are provided in every spot where a view is obtainable or shade afforded by the varied foliage. A fine bronze statue of Sir Arthur Kennedy, Governor of the Colony, 1872-6, erected by public subscription, stands above the second terrace looking down on the fountain. It was unveiled in November, 1887, by Governor Sir William Des Voeux. The chief public building is the City Hall, erected in 1866-9 by subscription; it contains an elegant theatre, numerous large rooms used for balls and public meetings (in one of which known as St. George's Hall, is a fine portrait of the late Queen Victoria, presented by Sir Thomas Jackson, Bart., in 1900), an excellent and valuable Library, and a Museum gradually increasing in importance. In front of the main entrance is a large fountain presented in August, 1864, by Mr. John Dent, a former merchant of the Colony. Eastward of the City Hall is a fine open space or lung in the shape of the Parade Ground south of the road and the Cricket Ground on the north. The latter is furnished with a neat Pavilion, and the turf is kept in perfect order.

The Government Offices, Supreme Court House, and Post Office are very plain and most inadequate edifices, but a new Post Office is being built on a site with frontages on the Praya, Pedder Street and Des Voeux Road. New Law Courts are also in course of erection on a tine site near the cricket ground. Occupying a site on the west of the New Law Courts stands the Jubilee statue of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, the erection of which was postponed until this site became available; it was unveiled on the 28th May, 1896. The statue represents Queen Victoria in a sitting posture and is of bronze under a stone canopy. Close by, formerly stood a fine bronze statue of the Duke of Connaught, presented by Sir C. P. Chater to the Colony. It was unveiled by Sir William Gascoigne on the 5th July, 1902. This statue was removed in February, 1907, to a site on the waterfront near Blake Pier, and H. R. H. the Duke of Connaught, who paid a second visit to the Colony, this time as Inspector General of the Forces, on February 6th, 1907, unveiled in what may in future be designated the Royal Square, a fine bronze statue of H. M. the King, presented by Sir Paul Chater, c.M.G., and one of H. R. H. the Prince of Wales, presented by Mr. James Jardine Bell-Irving. A statue of H. M. Queen Alexandra, subscribed for by the Community as a memorial of the Coronation of their Majesties in 1902, and one of H. R. H. the Princess of Wales presented by Mr. H. N. Mody, are also to be placed in the same Square at an early date. These statues will surround the jubilee statue of her late Majesty Queen Victoria. Government House occupies a commanding situation, in picturesque grounds pleasingly laid out, in the centre of the city. Victoria Gaol is a large and massive structure, with its main entrance from Arbuthnot Road. The Police Barracks and Central Station adjoin the Gaol, as does the Magistracy, a small and inconvenient structure. The strength of the Police Force is 1,018, of whom 133 are Europeans, 382 Indians, and 503 Chinese. A Reformatory was built and opened in 1900 at Causeway Bay, the cost of erection being borne by the late Mr. E. R. Belilios, C.M.G.; but the building has not been used for the purpose, the idea having proved impracticable. The Lunatic Asylum consists of two small buildings, one

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