The picture is merely entitled, "Hongkong: central portion of the town of Victoria." By careful scrutiny, easier in the original, we are able to establish the part of the seafront represented. The tower of St. John's Cathedral is shown at the extreme left-hand edge of the sketch, just behind the sail of a sanpan in the harbour, and a little more to the right, on a small elevation, is Government House, at the time standing in rather bare-looking grounds. Glancing further and further to the right, we take in the whole central portion of the city, as it was seventy-seven years ago, finishing up at the beginning of the West Point area, at Taipingshan. The upper levels, it is seen, were then entirely bare of houses.
However, it is evident that in this period the Pedder's Hill region, to the east of Wyndham Street, had already been well built over, for in the left-centre of the picture we find the rising ground covered with buildings; and a little more back, to the right, is the old gaol site, practically where it stands detached premises standing in gardens, evidently some of the oldest dwelling houses of the time, occupied, as we know from the records, by the taipans of that day.
Quite a number of what appear to be warehouses are discernible along the seafront, and the whitewashed building almost exactly in the middle, with a flagstaff, is probably the old P. and O. hong, then on the harbour front, at a spot near the present Central Market (see 31-8-33).
To the right of that is, presumably, the Harbour Office of the time, which had moved down to the water's edge; for the Union flag appears to be fluttering in the breeze at the top of its flag-pole.
Looking again to the far left, about level with Government House and to the right of it, we see another flag, atop a fairly tall staff, which is identifiable as the old "Kee Cheong" ensign of Russell and Company, predecessors of Shewan, Tomes and Co. (see 14-12-33), and this gives us the location of their former premises, not very far from the site of the present Hongkong Hotel snack rooms. To the right thereof we can make out what must have been the upper storey of the old Post Office (see 19-2-34) with a small godown between it and the actual seafront.
Perhaps another point of considerable, though melancholy importance, is the location of the site of one of the first cemeteries of the Colony. In the right-centre of the picture, well up the hillside, and a little westward of the detached dwelling houses already mentioned, can be distinctly seen a number of gravestones. There is evidence that much of the Taipingshan area of to-day is built over the oldest cemetery of Hongkong's pioneer days: but there is little definite information as to its exact site, or the steps that were taken to deal with the remains buried there when the land was re-surveyed. It is intended to discuss this matter in more detail at a future date.
The picture is merely entitled, "liongkong: central portion of the town of Victoria. 警器 By careful scrutiny, easier, in the original, we are able to establish the part of the seafront represented. The tower of St. John's Cathedral is shown at the extreme left-hand edge of the sketch, just behind the sail of a sanpan in the harbour, and a little more to the right, on a small elevation, is Government House, at the time standing in ratlier bare- looking grounds. Glancing further and further to the right, we take in the whole central portion of the city, as it was seventy-seven years ago, finishing up at the beginning of the West Point area, at Tapingshan. The upper levels, it is seen, were then entirely bare of houses.
However, it is evident that in this period the Pedder's Hili region, to the east of Wyndham Street, had already been well built over, for in the left-centre of the picture we find the rising ground covered with buildings; and a little more back, to the right, is the old gaol site, practically where it stands detached pre- mises standing in gardens, evidently sone of the oldest dwelling houses of the time, occupied, as we know from the records, by the taipans of that day.
Quite a number of what appear to be' warehouses are discernible along the seafront, and the whitewashed building almost exactly in the middle, with a flagstaff, is probably the old P. and 0. hong, then on the harbour front, at a spot near the present Central Market (see 31-8-33).
To the right of that is, presumably, the Harbour Office of the time, which had noved down to the water's edge; for the Union flag appears to be fluttering in the breeze at the top of its flag-pole.
Looking again to the far left, about level with Government House and to the right of it, we see another flag, atop a fairly tall staff, which is identifiable as the old "kee Cheong" ensign of Russell and Company, predecessors of Shewan, Tomes and Co. (see 14-12-33), and this gives us the location of their former premises, not very far from the site of the present Hongkong Hotel snack rooms. To the right thereof we can make out what must have been the upper storey of the old Post Office (see 19-2-34) with a small godown between it and the actual seafront.
Perhaps another point of considerable, though melancholy importance, is the location of the site of one of the first cemeteries of the Colony. In the right-centre of the picture, well up the hillside, and a little westward of the detached dwelling houses already mentioned, can be distinctly seen a number of gravestones. There is evidence that much of the Taipingshan area of to-day is built over the oldest cemetery of Hongkong's pioneer days: but there is little definite information as to its exact site, or the steps that were taken to deal with the remains buried there when the land was resuried. It is intended to discuss this matter in more detail at a future date.
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