$41
to and from Whampoa was a serious disadvantage to shipping. In 1871 an effort was made to dispose of the Whampoa property to the Viceroy of Canton, with the full consent and knowledge of Captain Minto, Secretary to the Company, for $300,000, but for some reason that was never explained, and without advising me, the disposal of the docks was placed in the hands of Messrs. Deacon & Co., Canton, and the price increased to $450,000, at which figure the Chinese declined to purchase and the property remained on our hands until 1878 when, with the assistance of an influential friend in the Canton Consulate, it was sold for $80,000. Seeing the dock property had been practically sold for $300,000, I was very much surprised that this important matter received no attention from the shareholders when the negotiations occurred.*
There are one or two slight discrepancies in the dates quoted, but Mr. Gillies was probably speaking from memory.
At a time when the world-wide depression (especially in the shipbuilding trade) is having its repercussions out here, one can perhaps take courage from this splendid history of a local dockyard, which grew from small beginnings to be one of the largest and best-equipped concerns of its kind in the Far East.
In yesterday's history of the Kowloon Docks (29-8-33) brief reference was made to Mr. John Couper, who leased the Whampoa mud docks from the Chinese, but was carried off by raiders at the time of the "Arrow" hostilities, and his fate was never known. A correspondent, "Old Timer", sends me the following actual reference to Mr. Couper's "Kidnapping." It refers to him as Mr. William Cowper," and the name in the records is spelt Cowper throughout. The extract is from a newspaper account dated December 25, 1856:
"A most daring and only too successful attempt at kidnapping has been made upon Mr. William Cowper, of Whampoa, an old man of about 65 years of age.
"It had been for some time rumoured that a reward of $2,000 was offered for the person of his son, Mr. John C. Cowper, shipwright and owner of extensive dockyards there: but it is not believed that the capture of the old gentlemen arose out of it, but was merely the act of some idle scoundrels from Whampoa, stimulated by the hopes of obtaining a heavy ransom;
*On Saturday evening, a little before sundown, a sampan pulled alongside the chop and a man held up a piece of paper pretending it was a note for Mr. Cowper. His eldest daughter went out to receive it but the Chinese refused to give it to anyone but Mr. Cowper and he thereupon stepped down to the gangway. When in the act of putting out his hand for the note, he was suddenly seized by three men and dragged into the sampan. His daughter held on to his dress for some time and would have succeeded in rescuing him had he not slipped overboard whence he was lifted into the sampan: there he struggled manfully with the six Chinese in the boat and again jumped into the water was again picked up and ultimately overpowered and carried off. Despite the alarm which was immediately given and pursuit made by boats in the vicinity, his kidnappers escaped and nothing was afterwards ascertained of him.
Page 100
Page 101
5.
$41
to and from Whampoa was a serious disadvantage to shipping. In 1871 an effort was made to dispose of the Whampoa property to the Viceroy of Canton, with the full consent and knowl edge of Captain Minto, Secretary to the Company, for $300,000, but for some reason that was never explained, and without advising me, the disposal of the docks was placed in the hands of Messrs. Deacon & Co., Canton, and the price increased to $450,000, at which figure the Chinese declined to purchase and the property remained on our hands until 1878 when, with the assistance of an influential friend in the Canton Consulate, it was sold for $80,000. Seeing the dook property had been practically sold for $300,000, I was very much surprised that this important matter received no attention from the shareholders when the negotiations occurred.*
There are one or two slight discrepandes in the dates quoted, but Mr. Gillies was probably speaking from memory.
At a time when the world-wide depression (especially in the shipbuilding trade) is having its repercussions out here, one can perhaps take courage from this splendid history of a local dockyard, which grew from small beginnings to be one of the largest and best-equipped concerns of its kind in the Far East.
In yesterday's history of the Kowloon Docks (29-8-33) brief reference was made to Mr. John Couper, who leased the Wham- poa mud docks from the Chinese, but was carried off by raiders at the time of the "Arrow" hostilities, and his fate was never known. A correspondent, "Old Timer", sends me the following aotusl reference to Mr. Couper's "Kidnapping.* It refers to him as Mr. William Cowper," and the name in the records is spelt Cowper throughout. The extract is from a newspaper. account dated December 25, 1856:
"A most daring and only too successful attempt at kidnapping has been made upon Mr. William Cowper, of Whampoa, an old man of about 65 years of age.
"It had been for some time rumoured that a reward of $2,000 was offered for the person of his son, Mr. John C. Cowper, shipwright and owner of extensive dockyards there: but it is not believed that the capture of the old gentlemen arose out of it, but was merely the act of some idle scoundrels from Whampoa, stimulated by the hopes of obtaining a heavy ran som;
*On Saturday evening, a little before sundown, a sampan pulled alongside the chop and a man held up a piece of naper pretending it was a note for Mr. Cowper. Hia eldest daughter went out to receive it but the Chinese refused to give it to anyone but Mr. Cowper and he there- upon stepped down to the gangway. When in the act of putting out his hand for the note, he was suddenly seized by three men and dragged into the sampan. His daughter held on to his doet for some time and would have succeeded in rescuing him had he not slipped over-* board whence he was lifted into the sampan: there he struggled manfully with the six Chinese in the boat and again jumped into the water was again picked up and ultimately overpowered and carried off. Despite the alarm which was immediately given and pursuit made by boats in the vicinity, his kidnappers escaped and nothing was afterwards ascertained of him.
L
Page 100Page 101
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.