Sessional_Paper_1907 — Page 475

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In 1901 they were overhauled, every rat and mouse destroyed and every possible breeding place filled up, since which the premises have been floo led with light and air daily and every floor cleansed about once a month.

The effect of these measures has been that only one case of plaque has occurred during six plague seasons, notwithstanding that the disease has raged in the neighbourhood.

It takes me one hour per week to inspect 84 floors (they are of course prepared for inspection) and although I do not suggest that the whole City can be treated with the same thoroughness, I see no reason why similar methods in a modified form should not be adopted.

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12. Having given considerable attention to the question of plague in connection with several thousands of employees I claim to possess some knowledge of the subject from the Chinese point of view and I am convinced that only a proportion of plague cases comes within the knowledge of the Sanitary Authorities; indeed as a rule only those unfortun- ates are reported who are without friends to send them out of the Colony and those whose home is in Hongkong.

13. The Colony maintains a large staff whose efforts to cope with plague will never in my opinion be successful without the co-operation of the Chinese and this co-operation can only be obtained by giving the Chinese freedom to treat the sick in their own homes ;. and by applying existing regulations only in such instances where the people will not of their own accord keep their premises clean,

The treatment of sick Chinese in their own homes was I understand tried experiment- ally under Sir Henry Blake's regime and records shew that plague ran more or less through the whole block of houses experimented upon. The deduction made from this is that the disease spread through the block in consequence of the first patients not having been isolated. The deduction which it seems to me may be made with equal justice is that in this instance the patients were not concealed and the real extent of the disease was for once made known,

129.-Hon. Mr. E. OSBORNE sworn:

The Chairman.-Do I understand from you, Mr. Osborne, that the Building Authority and Sanitary Department had practically passed buildings, but because the certificates were not promptly forwarded to you, you lost a fortnight's rent?

A. -We lost rent. The original agreement with the tenants was that they should take possession from the date of passing by the Government, and one certificate from one Depart- ment came in one day, but the certificate from the Sanitary Board did not come in for some days afterward, so that it was not completely passed by the Government, and that interval lost the Hotel Company some hundreds of dollars.

Mr. Shelton Hooper. From your experience, as a past Member of the Sanitary Board, having to do with buildings, and knowing the mode of procedure that takes place, plans have to go to the Building Authority, and separate plans for drainage to the Sanitary Board, and certain plans with regard to the height of buildings have to go to the Sanitary Board for approval. Dont you think that if the Building Authority were done away with alto- gether, or amalgamated with the Sanitary Board, and we had a sanitary and building board, composed very much as it is now, with an Executive Engineer and a Medical Officer of Health who should report to the Board, and the Board masters of the situation, that it would be a deal better than the present mode of procedure, and a better carrying out of the Ordinance ?