Directory_and_Chronicle_1935 — Page 877

KONGMOON

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fast during the summer months. The steamer anchorage is in the West River at the mouth of the Creek, opposite the Chinese Maritime Customs, but the town is included in the port limits. The population of Kongmoon is about 55,000, and it has the appearance of being a more populous centre, as it extends for a considerable distance on both banks of the stream. Formerly it was a business centre of considerable importance, but various causes have arisen which appear to have lessened its com- mercial standing and interfered adversely with the general prosperity of the port.

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It was generally considered that the proximity of Kongmoon to Hongkong and Macao and its favourable situation as an outlet and distributing centre for the southern prefectures of the province augured well for its future prosperity and development. This was, to some extent, true, but it should be remembered that facts have arisen which have tended to diminish rather than increase its commercial importance. Formerly it enjoyed direct communication with Shanghai and Foochow and was the real outlet and distributing centre for the south-western district of the delta and the Southern prefectures of the province. The development of Hongkong and the opening of Kiungchow and Pakhoi as treaty ports, however, have seriously interfered with the junk trade and general welfare of the port, and have, besides, opened up other trade routes to districts hitherto dependent upon Kongmoon for their supplies. At present there are no indications that the sanguine expectations, based upon imperfect knowledge, entertained concerning the over-estimated commer- cial possibilities of the place will be speedily, if ever, realized. There is daily steam communication with Hongkong, and considerable numbers of vessels trading under the Inland Waters Steam Regulations arrive and depart daily. There are also several large junks trading regularly to Hong Kong, Macao, and the Island of Hainan. A railway from Kongmoon to Toishan on the coast, a distance of about 80 miles, was constructed in 1909-10 under the supervision of native engineers, trained in America, but it stops short six miles from the sea, as to take the line right down would involve laying out a new town on the water- front and dredging operations. The train now cross the South-West River by means of a pontoon ferry at Ngauwan (** 4), but the construction of a bridge across the river between Tanshuihau (A) and Kungyikfou (A) was commenced in 1931. It was expected that this bridge would be completed at the end of 1934 and the line will then be looped at Ssu Chin () Station: The completion of the bridge will enable freight trains to be run between Kong- moon and Toushan, which the present light pontoon ferry does not admit of. A branch line of the Sunning Railway was opened in 1920 from Sunning City to Paksha (). The Company maintained a regular service between Tou-. shan during 1933 and suffered a loss, of some $260,000 on the year's work- ing. A telegraph office was opened on the 8th December, 1907, in the town, and in November, 1911, in the Settlement, and telegraphic communication is now possible with the Fatshan office. The high road between Kongmoon and Hok- shan, a town some 50 miles away, was officially opened on January 10th, 1932.

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Considerable development has taken place in road-making and the Kongmoon-Pakkai motor road about 3 miles in length and connecting the steamer anchorage with the city itself, was opened to traffic during the early part of 1930, and a motor-bus service was formally inaugurated on the 2nd June of that year.

There is also a motor-bus service running from Kongmoon to the Sunwui City. Long distance telephones on the overland telegraph lines between Kong- moon and Canton, Shekki (7) and Yeungkong (I) were completed in the early part of 1933 and open to communication.

TRADE IN 1933

In the Annual Report on the Trade of China issued by the Chinese Mari- time Customs Service, it is recorded that, although the year was immune from political unrest and piratical infestations on land and water, trade in the district was on the whole very unsatisfactory. The effects from inabilities to pay for the continual large excesses of imports over exports, which were not felt in former years when sufficient covers were found in receipts on account