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THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
ever, I hope that next year we shall have one or two English crews one or two Trish crews competing. (Hear, hear.) There is nothing more enjoyable than a good well-contested race. congra- tulate the Club upon its sailing races, one which I witnessed being as good a race as anyone could wish to see. I was very sorry that at the criti- cal point the junks intervened, but all the same it was one of the closest races I have ever seen. I hope you will have better luck next time in this respect, that the winners of this year will be stimulated to better efforts next year, and that the magnificent collection of trophies which I see before me will encourage other people to compete. (Applause.).
and the President of that day was fortunate in not being prosecuted for all sorts of mis- demeanours. (Laughter) Nothing of that sort will; however, we trust, Sir, happen during your term of Presidency, as owing to the kind offices of Commodore Holland, our staunch friend, and the Commander-in-chief we hope to be located in the future on the Admiralty reclamation just north of this spot, when we trust to be enabled to erect premises worthy of the colony and the good this olub does. (Hear, bear.) We number.now
some 425 members, and we should be glad to include amongst them, as used to be the case until comparatively recently, large numbers of the officers of the Garrison, more of the Naval officers (though they especially of late years have been very uncertain of their time chère), and more of the Civil Servants. Succes- sors are not coming forward as they should to Lockhart, Travers, Master, MacEwen, Potts, Leigh, and many others whose names are to be read in letters of gold on the boards outside. (Hear, hear.) There are doubtless fashions in sports as in bonnets, and it cannot be disguised that rowing is not as strongly supported now. as it was in the seventies and eighties. The English claim to be a race of Athletes, yet not a orew turned out in the International for the honour of St. George and to carry the Rose to the fore; albeit a large fleet is lying in the harbour. Hongkong a British colony, though if might more properly be described as a Scottish settlement. A stranger in the street would hardly be wrong in accosting any white man as "Mao "—(laughter) ;—if he did not answer Mein Herr" would be the next best cue; if that also failed the stranger would be safe in substituting "Don" and find he was speaking to a gentleman from Portugal or Macao. Yet only two of these great sections of the community did battle for the International Cup. Your own countrymen, Sir, of whom there are many more in the colony than in former years, and who are popularly supposed to be always -ready for any "divarshion," from a row in the House of Commons to a brawl at a fair, have - this year failed to fight for the fair fame of the "Shamrock." On the other hand the members of the Lusitano Club, recognizing how their countrymen are coming to the fore. in all sports, have generously presented a cup which is to become an annual event on the same lines as the German Cup. Latterly, as steam supersedes sails, curiously enough the sailing races have become a more pronounced feature in our regattas In all times, in all professions, at all places, one hears of the " good old days," that "the service is now going to the dogs." Fortunately for us we have still some relics of antiquity of the old race of giants lingering in the Committee; it is good for us to have them, they keep us humble and 'meek, teaching us that we pigmies are reaping what they, the old heroes, wrought for those prizes when the people of Hongkong- were accustomed to witness the Homeric struggles of the "old days." We trust, Sir, under your Presidentship a new era of prosperity and keen competition will be inaugurated rivalling and outshining the ancient glories of the past, and that a new Club house worthy of that prowess will rise like the phoenix from the ruins of this old ghanty on the concrete blocks of the Admiralty reclamation. (Applause.)
His Excellency then distributed the prizes. In handing to Commander. Hastings the first prize for one of the sailing races he said there had been some misconception with regard to it. It had not been given by Com- modore Holland exclusively but also by the officers of the Navy, and he was quite sure the Commodore and the officers of the Navy would be well satisfied that an old brother officer had won it and won it well. (Applause.)
In presenting the tea set to Captain Borland, His Excellency said that the captain had not won a race, but all the same he had contributed largely to the success of the regatta, and he as President of the Club had great pleasure on behalf of the lub in asking him to receive a small token of their appreciation of his kindness.
Captain BORLAND said he was extremely grateful to them for their magnificent gift. His wife would highly appreciate it as coming from Hongkong. Should he be in the harbour on the occasion of the regatta next year his ship would again be at their service. (Applause.) Three cheers and a "tiger" having been given for His Excellency the proceedings ter-
minated.
[December 31, 1898.
bar but apathy to the enrolling of the whole and perhaps the adult British civil male population of the colon 7 in the Navy League. We have succeeded in capturiu about half. Your committee have spent for the education of their fellow nationals, i.e., in printing, of your funds $-31 50 this year. as against $12 lust. or about 1,825 per cent. more. Fer here in China there have not been wanting object lessons to illustrate the teach- ings of the League and point their morals, bringing them home to us in a manner scarcely possible in Britain short of famine, which may God forbid. If in an
an intelligent moderately educated middle class community like that of this colony such expenditure is requisite to effect these results, pro rata how much would the League have to spend at home to enlighten the masses? in the spring of 1897, 462 British subjects in the colony signed a protest deprecating any reduction of the Navy Estimates, yet large numbers of those men have not joined our League, the only Associa- tion that enables them to voice what they alleged then were their honest
st convictions. Gentlemen, we are not children or members of a mutual admiration society; it is therefore idle to blink the fact that in a British com- muuity like that of Hongkong, till your Com- mittee can represent to the head office in Lon- don that the civil community is unanimous the field has not been worked to its utmost ex- tent. We earnestly hope that during the doming year every Leaguer will bring round at least one more man to a sense of his eaty. Let him be as ille or as apathetic as he likes once he has been enrolled. "He that is not for me is against me." Amongst one section of the community our efforts have been singularly unsuccessful and barren of results, and that in a section where such ill success might least be looked for. I mean amongst the seafaring community. If to any one class of men more than to another should be patent the paramount necessity for a strong navy to Britain it would apparently be to the mercantile marine officers. They have grievances; therefore for them to deny their support to the very Association which is working for the removal of those grievances can only be the result of misappreheusion— misapprehension which many of our members are well fitted and peculiarly favourably situated for dispelling. Overspreading the earth and honey-combing as they do the navigable globe the good the mercantile marine officers could do in diffusing knowledge would be incalculable. Were two or three of our journals to go ont in every British ship leaving Hong- kong they would be doing immeasurable service to their country in conveying a just appreciation of the needs of and duties being discharged by the British Navy to their countrymen in all the ends of the earth, know- ledge that could not fail to be reflected and react on our countrymen at home. One more reference to our balance-sheet and I have done. The money remitted to the sufferers by the Norfolk boating disaster was not sent by your committee from the funds of this branch. It was the proceeds of a spontaneous subsoription made up of money-some very small amounts and forwarded through the Hon. Secretary. At our anunnl meeting last year Captain Anderson sugg 'sted that some of our members should give lectures, and gave ns a practical illustration of what he recommended in a most excellent address on the 31st January last, followed by Mr. Machell on the 21st February. The two papers were printed and circulated. On April the 18th Mr. Francis gave a most interesting lecture in a crowded
THE NAVY LEAGUE.
ANNUAL MEETING OF THE HONGKONG BRANCH.
The annual general meeting of the Hongkong branch of the Navy League was held in the Chamber of Commerce Room at the City Hall On the 28th Dec. Commander Hastings presided, and he was supported by Mr. J. J. Francis, Q.C., Mr. M. W. Slade (hon. sec.), Mr. R. Cooke, Mr. H. A. Ritchie, Mr. G. Stewart, and Captain Tillett. There were also present Messrs. T. Jackson J. G. W. King, E. W. Mitchell, F. Henderson. Ng Kwai Shang, H: W. Walfe, F. Smythe, D. Craddock, A. J. May, A. McConachie, H. E. Pollock, R. Mitchell, S. E. Bird, J. Barton. H. Wickham, C. Mooney. J. M. Underwood. B. Layton, G. W. F. Playfair, A. Sinclair, G. C. Anderson, Burnie, Goddard, W. Danby, M. Stewart, J. W. Hanson, W. Hutton Potts, G. P. Lammert, Burnie, Hill, and Skinner.
The CHAIRMAN said-Gentlemen: Before asking you to pass our report, which, having now been some time in your hands I trust you will take as read, I desire to add a few words to the very fall and clear statement of our late honorary secretary. Firstly as to the financial state of our branch, you will note the large in. crease in our numbers, notwithstanding which we His EXCELLENCY, after one or two preliminare only a hundred dollars better off than when ary observations, said—It is natural that the we last presented a statement of accounts to you. amusement of rowing nowadays, when it has to We have so many new members that for their compete with so many other amusements such benefit I may as well tell you that in January as bicycling, polo, cricket, and lawn tennis. last we abolished the $10 entrance fee. In should not be so popular as in days gone by. Great Britain to be a member of the Navy At the same time there is no more valuable League costs a guinea a year; here, we have amusement to a community than that of rowing. reduced the subscription to $5, remitting how-meeting upon It can be partaken of by one or two or four ever all the same 5/3 a head to the parent asso- men, whilst in cricket and in football and ciation. Associates' fees have also been reduced in polo you requiro a considerable number, to 8, of which 1/3 has to be remitted to Lon- and consequently the expense is much don. Last year our printing bill was $12; this greater. I hope the Club will be as prozeroús | year it was $231:50. Last year we paid $40 | Britain, and without being quduly in the future as in the days of yore; and this year $120 for prizes to Schools. that the present state of depression will soon give way to a more prosperous condition, and that you will find in the various communities of the different countries yon have complained of abstaining from the regatta a disposition to hear.) So far as my own
self-
Maban's Life of Nelson and the lessons to be drawn therefrom.” The letter from this branch dated 10th January last referred to in the report was published by the head office in all the great papers in laudatory, we may fairly congratulate ourselves on having been the channel through which cur countrymen were enlightened | as to the necessity for the Kowloon xtension. This single instance illustrates the value of our Association Able men bad for years been advocating this extrusion. Doubtless their
Last year telegrams cost us $22, this year 8221.60, $3.18 of which was, however, repaid by the head office. Last year we remitted to London $204.89; this year our dues amounted to $504.45. To-day we number 272 members and 50 associates, as against 93 members and 20
December, 1897. Gentlemen, your committee -if I may say so —our success. A Department have reduced the fees to the limit of working of State, a few individuals—old China hands- expenses, so that practically there should be no were aware of its desirability—necessity under
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come forward. - {zzear, I can quite under- assoiates at our last aunual meeting on the 3rd | efforts had in great measure paved the way for
countrymen aro stand the reason they have stood aloof. As H rule they are not very fond of water unless there is a little whisky in it. (Laughter.) How.
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