260
give them a more finished training, and with the grant now asked for from the Government they can maintain a resident Professor, whose presence will give unity and solidity to the in- struction given, and will render the College less dependent upon the members of the medical profession in the colony, and upon their being able to afford the needful time for lectures and demonstrations.
In conclusion, the Court of the College of Medicine for Chinese beg most respectfully to request that His Excellency the Governor will enable them to realize their hopes for the future of the Institution by granting them as an endowment a sum of $40,000 from the public funds, upon the grant of which they will be in a position to claim from Mr. Belilios the land and buildings he has so generously promised. I have the honour to be, sir, your most obedient and humble servant,
JOHN C. THOMSON, Hon. Secretary, College of Medicine for Chinese. The Honourable J. H. Stewart Lockhart,
Colonial Secretary, &c., &c., &o.
Colonial Secretary's Office,
10th February, 1896.
Hon. C. P. Chater,
Sir, I am directed to transmit for the con- sideration of the unofficial members the en- closed copy of a letter from the Hon. Secre- tary of the College of Medicine for Chinese, and to request that they will be so good as to favour HE. the Governor with an expres sion of their views in regard to the application therein made.
J. H. STEWART Lockhart,
Hongkong, 13th March 1896. Sir, I have the honour to inform you that the correspondence regarding the proposed College of Medicine for the Chinese has been circulated among the unofficial members, and I now beg to communicate their opinions.
The Hon. Ho Kai remarks, "I am strongly in favour of a grant of $40,000 from the Government so as to enable the College of Medicine for Chinese to get the benefit of Mr. Belilios generous offer."
The Hon. E. R. Belilios writes, "I am of Mr. Ho Kai's opinion."
I beg to enclose also memoranda from the Hon. T. H. Whitehead and the Hon. J. J. Bell-Irving, with the latter of which I concur.- I have the honour to be, sir,,your most obedient servant,
C. P. CHATER.
Hon. J. H. Stewart Lockhart,
Colonial Secretary.
MEMORANDUM BY HON, T. H. WHITEHEAD IN RE
COLLEGE OF MEDICINE FOR CHINESE.
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THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
cost of construction. When this is done, and if the Hon. E. R. Belilios is not disposed to renew his generous offer, and endow the College to the extent of $40,000, then I would support the incorporation of the College, and, if neces sary, an annual moderate vote from the public funds towards the maintenance of the institu- tion, provided Government will maintain ade- quate supervision over it.
T. H. WHITEHEAD. Hongkong, 9th March, 1896. MEMORANDUM BY HON. J. J. BELL-IRVING,
[March 26, 1896.
the way of extensions and gifts of
money for special objects would be required to make it.a complete success. The subscriptions proposed by Mr. Whitehead would therefore be timely and welcome.
3.-I will assume, then, that a private indivi- dual having given the site and the building, the Government endowed it with the sum of $40,000, the public having subscribed a further sum of $25,000, this would place it on a firm basis, and encourage philanthropists in the future to give it continued support and extend its usefulness.
4. To render the College of Medicine a real success would be a task that the Government, in its present straitened circumstances, could hardly venture to undertake.
Would it not, therefore, be folly to let slip the opportunity of accepting as a gift the share I have proposed to bear in the work? If any other offer of this or similar description were to be made by any other individual I as a tax- payer should feel it my duty to support it.
5.-I think the fact should not be lost sight
colony in the way of provision for the education of the Chinese in medical and sanitary matters, and it will be impossible, I fear, for the Govern- ment to do all in this direction unaided by private munificence.-I have the honour to be, sir, your most obedient servant.
E. R. BELILIOS.
With reference to Mr. Belilios' offer regarding a College of Medicine for the Chinese, while appreciating its liberality, I am not of opinion that it is advisable for the Government to accept it in its present form. If the Govern- ment considers that such an institution is essential to the colony, and if Mr. Bolilios is ready to modify the terms which he has pro- posed, I would suggest that the course, which understand is customary in most parts of the world, should be pursued, namely, that the Government should furnish a suitable site, and that Mr. Belilios should put up the build-of that a good deal is yet required in this ing and provide the endowment. Should, how ever, that gentleman not consent to this, and if, I repeat, the Government after full con- sideration of the matter is convinced that such a College is absolutely necessary to the welfare of the colouy, I would then suggest that they should erect the building and without providing any endowment spend for its requirements from $1,600 to $2,000 per annum, a sum which re- presents Mr. Belilios' proposed endowment capitalized at from 4 per cent. to 5 per cent. I would venture, nevertheless, to remark that while the Post Office and other Government offices are in so dilapidated a state, and will re- quire a large sum for their repair or renewal, it is hardly an opportune occasion for the foundation of new institutions.
J. J. BELL-IRVING.
COLONIAL SECRETARY TO HON. E. R.
BELILIOS.
Sir.-I am directed to forward for your con- sideration the enclosed memoranda by Messrs. Chater, Whitehead, and Bell Irving on the subject of the application for a Government grant in aid of the Chinese College of Medicine, and to request that you will be so good as to forward them, after you have perused them, to the Hon. Dr. Ho Kai.
of money
J. H. STEWART LOCKHART.
HON. E. R. BELILIOS TO COLONIAL
SECRETARY.
Hongkong, 18th March, 1896. Sir. I acknowledging receipt of your letter of the 16th inst., enclosing memoranda by my colleagues the unofficial members of Council on the proposal that the Government should endow the College of Medicine for Chinese in the event of the site and building being contributed by myself, I beg, as a member of Council, to offer the following remarks in reply to some of the objections raised :--
1.-There is no suitable site unless on the Praya Reclamation, that the Government could
College of Medicine. Ever since Sir William Des Voeux's time we have been seeking for such a site, but have failed to find one.
A College of Medicine for Chinese is un- doubtedly a very desirable institution, and the gratuitous and invaluable services rendered in connection therewith by the European medical practitioners in the colony are deserving of the most hearty commendation, The College merits support and encouragement, as it is probably the best means of teaching and making progres in Western medicine, but there are public build-grant for the erection of a building for the ings requiring to bo constructed, far more ne- cessary. These have a prior claim to the College of Medicine. I refer to such as the Post Office, which is unsuitable, absolutely inadequate for present requirements, and unworthy of the colony. There are other public buildings in no better condition, such as the Supreme Court House, the Land Office, the Harbour Master's Office, &c. Until the colony's financial position permits of the construction of a suitable Post Office-an absolutely necessary building, which is unquestionably far more urgent, and has a prior claim over all other new public buildings- I am decidedly opposed to the Government granting from the public funds an endowment of $40,000 to the College of Medicine.
I would be in favour of the Government giving for a College one of the many suitable and avail. able sites it has at its disposal, now lying fallow. If a College is considered essentially necessary by the community, while the colony's financial position does not warrant the expenditure of $40,000 thereon, ratepayers would no doubt be found to raise by public subscription the re- quired sum, estimated at $25,000, to defray the
The original proposal was for the Govern. ment to grant the site and for me to erect the building, but owing to the inability of the Government to provide the site, the proposition has taken the present form, namely, that I should give the land and building and the Government furnish an endowment in money equivalent in value thereto.
2.-There is a precedent for the proposed endowment to the College of Medicine in the grant made by the Government to the Po Leung Keuk.
The building being erected by a private in- dividual and endowed by the Government will ensure it a stable and permanent position, whereas if the building were erected by the Government it is unlikely that a private in- dividual will come forward to endow it, either now or in the future.
The proposed offer of land, building, and endowment would not, if carried out, make the institution independent. Further support in
The Hon. J. H. Stewart Lockhart.
Colonial Secretary, &c., &c.
MEMORANDUM BY HON. HO KAI.
I concur generally with Mr. Belilios in his views as expressed in his letter of the 18th in- stant to the Colonial Secretary. I do not agree with my other unofficial colleagues that a new Post Office or a Court-house or any other public building is of as much importance as the College of Medicine for the Chinese. We are daily complaining of the ignorance of the Chinese in sanitary and medical science, and we are trying 'our best by very drastic measures and at enor- mous sacrifice to eradicate from our midst such filth disease like the plague, which is doing im- mense harm to the trade of this colony and its prosperity. It is just such an institution like the College of Medicine we want to aid us in spreading the necessary medical knowledge among the better class of the Chinese, in order to get them to co-operate intelligently with na in advancing the sanitary condition of this colony, and, without such assistance rendered willingly, it would be well-nigh impossible to make any headway. Take, for example, the case of the allowance of 400 cubic feet of air to each
healthy adult as required by law. This allow- ance may or may not be sufficient according to eircumstances. If ventilation is bad, or as is usually the case, especially in cold and wet weather, almost entirely cut off, 400 cubic feet, or even twice or treble that allowance, would not be sufficient, but with free and constant ventilation even 200 cubic feet may be quite sufficient. It is generally admitted that no legislation can make a man religious or moral, and it is equally true that no law can make a man clean or live a sanitary and healthy life. We must leave a great deal of these to educa tion and training. The College of Medicine will educate the Chinese to live more cleanly and healthy lives. It will further teach them to treat their sick with more science, skill, and humanity. Next to the Christian religion I cannot imagine any mission is greater than this, and I hold that it is the duty of the local Gov. ernment, as well as every enlightened man in this British colony, to promote and assist that mission, if not for the sake of the poor and ignorant, at least for their own sake. neglected this duty long enough, and the pre- sent moment is most opportunate for us all to The repair our negligence and omission. College has been inaugurated and maintained, and its works have been carried on, by a small band of philanthropists without any hope of reward and with considerable personal sacrifice. One of this band has come forward with a generous proposal to furnish the ground and build a College for the better accommodation of the increasing number of students, while another member has just gone home with the distinct object of appealing to the well-known humanity and generosity of the English public
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