October 8, 1896.1
himself to the dates mentioned in the
Continuing, Mr. Morris said that any schoolboy reading the Ordinance would under- stand that it referred to dressing granite in any street, thoroughfare, or any place adjacent thereto Arthbuthnot Road, where the granite was dressed, was immediately opposite his house and the stone was brought from the quarry in its roughest state.
Mr. Morris then went into the witness box and being sworn said I live at 69, Wyndham Street. On Saturday, the 26th inst., Iwas disturbed by stone breaking and stone chipping which commenced at seven o'clock in the morning in Arbuthnot Road opposite my house The noise irritated and upset me. The nuisance is still going on, and although the bulk of the rough stones was removed to the Police compound on Saturday there are the workmen working on the wall immediately above the road, so that the nuisance is as great BE ever to me
In answer to the Magistrate witness said- I have shipped stones in large quantities for the Manila Government. They have been rough- punched and fine-picked and many of the coping stones weighed three tons. All were dressed at various quarries in the colony. I received very few complaints and those were about the "pitchers." The facing on both sides was fine- picked. I shipped about 10,000 tons. The granite the men were working on the 26th was as rough as when taken from the quarry. On Saturday afternoon I went with Mr. Danby and picked up some of the chips that had been cut off. I then went to the Police Station and saw In- spector Witchell, who, however, could not leave the station, and P.C. Gilmore accompanied me to the spot and picked up more stones.
The witness was not cross-examined. Mr. Thomas Arnold gave corroborating evi- dence. He added that the nuisance had been intensified during the last four or five days; it. was positively unbearable.
Mr. T. I. Rose, who lives at 57, Wyndham Street, and P.C. Gilmore also gave evidence, the latter producing stone chippings which he had piaked up. Five blocks appeared to have been dressed elsewhere.
In answer to Mr. Dennys Gilmore' said there - were no chips alongside those blocks,
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CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT. been private work I have no hesitation in saying it would not have been permitted. I have had experience in dressed stones. On Sunday morning last 50 to 60 large stones, about four feet long and extra fine punched, were landed on the Praya from Shaukiwan without being injured. They were for Messrs. Butterfield and Swire's new offices. I have shipped very large and extra fine punched and with elaborately carved moulding to Singapore. They were shipped from here and they arrived intact. Most of the fine-punched stone. work of the Chartered Bank, Connaught House, and the new Chartered Bank was all dressed elsewhere. You are not allowed to dress in the Street, There is not the least difficulty in having the stones in Arbuthnot Road dressed at the quarry; it was not elaborate work, as they were only dressed on one side. There is more work on a kerb stone than on one of those stones and kerb stones are invariably dressed at the quarry.
In answer to Mr. Morris witness said-I know dressed stone has been landed on the new Praya and carried from there by coolies to the Peak.
275
erence to the
had suffered severely other cases, it was well kn statue was broken. So saved by dressing at the quarry ins the spot. Of course where ther stones, such as shafts or pillars, that carried straight from the quarry and position, the case was different
was
Mr. Clement Palmer was then called Ho said I am a partner in the firm of Palmer and Turner. I have been in Hongkong over four teen years. Speaking generally, during those fourteen years the customary place for dressing granite is on the spot near the building. When doing a small job, such as that in Arbuthnot Road, the noise would be the same whether the stones were dressed on the spot or in the quarry. Of course it would take longer to do the job on the spot, but the noise would be the same. I have been the architect for several buildings in the colony. The stone for the Hongkong and Shanghai bank was dressed near the spot. The granite for the new. Hongkong Club is being dressed on the spot. I am building The Mount at the Peak. Granite is worked on the spot there; certain portions of columns have been dressed elsewhere, somewhere near Kowloon City. They were brought in a junk to Hong- kong and then carried by coolies to the Peak. Special precautions were taken to protect them and they suffered very slightly. They were wrapped round with straw. In my opinion granite dressed in the quarry and sent to Hongkong is liable to injury. If the stones were small enough to be thrown in the junk they would be more liable to injury.
The Magistrate-Why not hand them into the junk 2
•
Witness-We all know what Chinamen are; they would not carefully lay every stone down. If the stone is thrown in it must be broken, especially if there is a sharp edge.
The Magistrate-But suppose ordinary care is taken as is taken with cargo, a case of glass, for instance."
By Mr. Dennys-I refer to Jardine, Matheson I have seen & Co.'s place, "The Mount." from my honse in Queen's Gardens the stones being carried up. I do not know whether the stones were injured or what noise was made. The men who blast the stone are not the men who work up the stone; most of them live near the quarries. I have never had any difficulty in getting men to dress the stone at the quarries. All the Praya stones are dressed at the quarries. I do not say that fine-dressed stone is not liable to injury; if they are carefully handled they would not be liable to injury. Small stones like these would not be liable to injury if thrown into a junk. It is inferior work altogether. Putting aside the stones which I saw split the ferty-eight stones I referred to were not cut. They were not square; they were just split at the quarries. I do not think there is so much noise in fine punching as rough punching: Infine punching there is only tapping. The noise made by fine punching is not great, but the noise made by sledge hammers which I saw used is very great. The Hongkong and Shanghai Bank was partly built of granite. I do not think it was dressed, on the spot. To the best of my recollection it was not all dressed on the spot. I built the New Victoria Hotel and the granite used in that building was only trimmed on the spot. It was fine dressed on the Praya. All the columns,
Witness-It would not take, so long on pauels, and mouldings were finished off on the Praya with the exception of the actual sef-side, but there would be a similar noise. Of course you would save labour. There are a ting of the stones. It was the same with the Connaught House. I had nothing to do with certain number of masons in the quarries who dress stone. As a rule they do not dress the the erection of the Jubilee statue. That is
stone. Some of the stones in Arbuthnot Road Government work and the Government can do work that we cannot do.
are in their roughest state.
The Magistrate (warmly)-Please confine yourself to the evidence. I will not have those comments made.
Witness It is a question if you will get it out of the hold unbroken. These Chinamen are not careful. If the corners. are sharp they are bound to be broken when one stone is thrown on the top of another. The stone could not be dressed at the quarry so as to absolutely fit in position on arrival. It would have to be dressed.
Mr. Dennys--Would there be any difference between the noise if the stone was partly dressed at the quarry ?
this.
Mr. William Danby said-I am a civil engineer and have been upwards of twenty years in the colony. I have had experience in the working of granite and the Government regulations with reference to the working of granite. On Saturday afternoon last, at 2.30, I went with Mr. Morris to inspect the work being done on the new steps in Arbuthnot Road. I found a very large quantity of granite, fine-punched, rough-punched, and stonemason's dressings of the stones. There was also a very large number of stones just as
Cross-examined by Mr. Morris-The stones they were cut from the quarry. On the east
certainly could have been prepared at the quarry up to a certain point. They certainly could side of the road those stones measured from about 2ft. 6 in.. to 3ft. in length, and from Continuing, witness said-I do not know have been dressed at the quarry, brought here, about 10 in. to 14 in. square.
There whether the granite work was destroyed. The and fitted in after being trimmed off. The were! nine
stones for the new Club are out at the such stones
that on
side Committee were of opinion that the stone was
about the required gize. interspersed with other stones which had broken in the godown. The stone is very soft quarry just
no one in the vicinity of the been touched. Those nine stones had no marks and different from granite. At home a chisel There is on them except the marks of wedges. is used to dress granite; the Chinese use big Praya to annoy, but I think it is a most On the west side I counted thirty-three stones.punches. It does not necessarily follow that annoying noise at any time; I do not that had not been touched with a tool or there must be a nuisance whenever any build-care where it is. I have never seen it done chisel and on top of the wall there were six ing was put up; there need only be a noise at the quarry before. I admit it can he done if you take the risk. There is an immense lot of more rough stones, all about the same size-a in the trimming of the stopes. total of forty-eight rough stones brought over
dressing done on the spot. from the quarry. There were fourteen masons dressing stones, several of whom were dressing the rough stones. The stones which the men This concluded the case for the prosecution. were working upon I did not count. Several Mr. Dennys, for the defence, submitted that of the stones had been marked out for trimming. the regulation which was published with the I measured several of them. The lines showed Ordinance was absolutely illegal, as it was that it was intended to cut off from 1 inch to not in compliance with the terms of the Ordin- 5 inches in depth. About 8.30 on Monday ance. The Ordinance 10 of 1872 referred to morning I visited the place again and I found rough dressing, whereas there was no regulation that the rough stones had been taken to the top before the Court as to rough dressing. The of an alleyway about five feet wide between regulation contained the words: "Every per- the Superintendent's quarters and the new gon shall be deemed to be guilty of a nuisance elice quarters. I counted eighteen men at who shall dress or cause to be dressed granite upon them, and the noise was deafening, or other stone." There was a vast difference Of more than on Saturday, owing to the work between rough dressing and dressing. g carried on in the narrow alleyway. course the defendant did not wish to rely upon On Monday I observed four men splitting two the legal point. Witnesses would be called to ones with wedges just the same as is done prove, in spite of what had been given in evi- saw no work being done ondence, that it had never been the custom in the and Monday which could not have colony to dress granite at the quarries. In one done easily at the quarry Had the work" case it had been done, but the person doing it
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By the Magistrate-The stones in Arbuthnot Road would weigh when dressed from one to two owt.
Mr. Morris Two wrongs don't make a right. Witness The work could be carried a further stage at the quarry, but it is not that is all.
By Mr. Dennys-There was nothing unusual about the work being done in the street.
The Magistrate Would there be zany liability to damage in bringing
over!
Witness-Yes, if there if
you dropped one heavy stone on to another The Magistrate-Is it ne ssary to the stones in ?*
Witness It is not absolutely necessar there are always accidents in the
Mr H. P. Tooker, executive Public Works Department,” sai nothing special in the way the wo not Road is being done, and there noise there than on other jobs. seven years I have been here it has usual for Government stone worl
but
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