Sessional_Paper_1895 — Page 391

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the cemeteries have not yet been properly laid out. If this work can only be undertaken by the Assistant Surveyor as soon as he has completed the work he is now engaged on, it will help to put matters on a thoroughly satisfactory footing.

The following are the number of interments which have been made in each of the Public Cemeteries for Chinese, viz. :~

Mount Davis,...

Mount Caroline,..

Kaulung,

Shau-ki-wan,

Aberdeen,

Stanley, Shek-O,

...586

.318

..331

.202

.120

28

8

1,593

The fees collected during the year amounted to $1,753.90 and the cost of the staff, laying out roads, &c. to $1,775.03.

Laundries. Only three of the ten public laundries have been let during the year although the rental is as low as $10 a month. That there is a strong artificial opposition to the using of these buildings by the public washermen is to me clear enough, but beyond the natural obstinacy of Chinese workmen I know of no reason for the opposition. It is quite true that these public washermen receive the tacit support of many of their employers in their obstinate opposition. It is difficult to under- stand why the vast majority of our leading residents of all nationalities should prefer to have their linen washed in an evil-smelling puddle on the hill-side and dressed in the living room of their washermen's servants, who live amongst and sleep upon their clients' linen, rather than in the public laundries. However, so long as such a very peculiar preference exists it is very doubtful if much can be done to improve this branch of the sanitation of the Colony.

Bakeries.-The bye-laws regulating bake-houses are being steadily and persistently enforced. Common Lodging-houses. The bye-laws for regulating these houses did not come into forcë during 1894.

Infectious Diseases.-2,552 deaths were recorded from bubonic plague and 25 from small-pox and choleraic complaints.

Contracts.-The work of the conservancy contract continues to be carried out in a satisfactory manner. It must be remembered that the conservancy contractor has nothing whatever to do with the private night-soil carriers who are the employees of the various householders.

The work of the scavenging contract, as far as street cleansing, the dust-cart service, and the removal of the refuse from Victoria are concerned, has been carried out in a fairly satisfactory manner, but I regret to say that the work of final disposal has been giving a good deal of trouble. The main difficulty is that the place of disposal is outside the boundaries of the Colony and, of course, no action would lie in our Courts for creating a nuisance there. It is true the condition of the contract gives me the power to hire men to do such work as the contractor fails to perform satisfactorily under his contract, and it is this clause of the contract which has enabled me to keep things in some kind of order at the place at which the city refuse is finally disposed of. The work of conservancy and scavenging in the various villages continues to be carried out in a satisfactory manner. The estimated quantity of night-soil removed by the conservancy contractors from Victoria, Hill and Kaulung districts during 1894 amounted to 14,000 tons, and the whole of this was removed from the Colony.

Owing to various causes the approximate quantity of house refuse, trade refuse, street sweepings, &c. removed by the scavenging contractors from Victoria, Hill and Kaulung districts cannot be given

for 1894.

The annexed table (C) gives the names of the various contractors who are working under the Board together with the number of men each employs to carry on the work of his contract.

STAFF.

Owing to prolonged ill-health the Superintendent was absent on leave from 1st January to 31st October during which period the duties of the office were efficiently performed by Mr. E. A. RAM. None of the Sanitary Inspectors had any leave of absence during the year, but two of them were ill and in Hospital for several weeks.

A large increase to the staff of Inspectors was sanctioned towards the close of the year, and the new men were appointed but they did not take up their appointments in 1894. The staff of Inspectors is now, so far as the number to the total population is concerned, equal to that employed in those large. towns in England where municipal sanitary administration, is viewed as being most advanced. In England, it is now almost the invariable rule that before a man receives an appointment as Sanitary Inspector he must have passed the examinations of the Sanitary Institute. In Hongkong men with such a training are not to be had, and I have very grave doubts if it would be a wise proceeding to get such trained men from home as vacancies occur, inasmuch as their utter want of knowledge of the Chinese people and their habits and customs would, to my mind, more than counterbalance their superior training in sanitary matters.