February 4, 1899.1
The resolution as to inspection lairs was carried. Before that dealing with the manage. ment of slaughter houses was put,
The Hon. R. D. ORMBBY asked if the Blaughter-houses were not already under the control of the Board.. He understood that the question was whether they were to be governed by Mr. Ladds and his inspectors or by a Government department.
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
shan Market and giving the boundaries of the Market site as Bonth by Market Street, North by Kat Cheong Lane, and East by East Street. Mr. Ball having recorded his opinion passed the letter on to him, when he wrote to the Director of Public Works as follows:-"In | answer to your query as to the space likely to be required in the new Taipingshan Market 1 should say that very small accommodation The VICE PRESIDENT said that the slaughter- indeed would enffice, being of opinion that houses were of course under the control of the there would be little or no demand for shops or Board, but the Board leased them out to a stalls in a market which would be so badly farmer, the result being that for all practical situated and so far away from the sus. It purposes they passed under the control of the is, however, very difficult to say anything farmer. The farmer was under the supervision definite upon the subject at all, except that it of the inspectors, but he had his own staff-his is the most unsuitable site which could have butohers and his servante-all of whom were been chosen as far as the market people (both frequently found introducing into the slanghter buyers and sellers) are concerned.” Mr. Ladds houses animals rejected by Mr. Ladds as not added, "The above statement is I think suff fit for human food. It seemed to him that ifoient guarantee to warrant the reference made they had alanghter houses directly under their to the subject in my sunnal report for 1898." own officers and had a proper staff of officers, they safe guarded their food supply and mini- mised the chance of abuses. There was no
A
The Vice-President minuted-"It seems
odd to decide a question of the site of a new market without reference to the Sanitary Board, question that the Board would be able to man- which is chiefly responsible, through its officers, age the slaughter-houses better than they were managed at present, as it did the animal depots duty it is to devote special attention to all ques- for the management of the markets, and whose The Hon. R. D. OBMBBY—With a large portion of food supply, which is one of the principal manent staff? ::
The VICE-PRESIDENT Of course we shall factors in the maintenance of the public health. have to have a permanent staff; so has the think we asked the Government before for farmer, and he pays that staff out of the fees information re the site of a new market to re paid for the cattle slaughtered in the slaughter place the existing Western Market. I should
like to see the correspondence.” houses. There is no real difference between- the running of a slaughter-house and the run. ning of an animal depot which was formerly run by a farmer. We have taken over one and why not take over the other,
Mr. LADDH said they would want an increased staff of course. But last year the farmer made
■ profit of $8,000 or $9,000, and their staff if increased would not cost anything like that
amount
The VICE-PRESIDENT-In other words throngh neglecting to take over these slaughter houses the consumers of food in this colony are taxed to the amount of $9,000 annually..
Hon. B. D. ORMSBY-May I ask Mr. Ladds how he knows the contractor made $8,000 P.
Mr. Lands said that that was a very simple matter. They had the number of animals taken to the slaughter-houses and they know how much per head the farmer was allowed to charge.
Mr. OSBORNE reiterated that they ought to have control of the slaughter-houses, adding that if there was a profit it ought to go to the com-
munity.
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The VICE-PRESIDENT contended that there ought to be no profit. The profit ought to be kept down to what could pay the staff and no more. It was monstrous that in this nineteenth century in a Crown colony they should have their beef and mutton taxed as it was at the present moment. He supposed the Board
would tax bread next.
The resolution was passed, as also was the third one in a modified form.
REPUSE DESTRUCTORS,
A report of the Sanitary Inspector on refuse destructore was submitted, and it was decided that it should be printed.
THE REGULATION OF CATTLE, ETC., DEPOTS.
Bye-laws for the regulation of the cattle, sheep, and swine depots were approved, and it was decided to present them to the Colonial Secretary.
THE PROPOSED NEW MARKET. IN
TAIPINGSHAN,
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of the town. He admitted that an excurs of hawking did take place and that he tolerated It, and he intended to tolerate it until he received instructions from the Governor not to do s any longer. Therefore he personally viewed this proposal to move the Western Market which after all was the principal market resorted to by the Chinese-and the Chinese o of the lower class in the centre of the city—to a site other than that in which it now stood with some con cern. He did not know whether any final de. cision had been come to in the matter. Of course if a final decision had been come to the thing was done and they could not say anything more about it; but if it was not finally settled they ought to lay their views before the Governor. If they did not do this and this market turned out a failure it may be charged against them that when the question was on the tapis they did not make any move to have the market placed in another position. He, therefore, beg ged leave to move That the Board regreta learn that it is contemplated to build a new Western Market in the resumed area of Tai.
pingshan, and desires to place ita views on Government if it is not too late for the Gov- the subject before His Excellency and the
ernment to reconsider the matter."
Mr. DYER BALL, in seconding, said he thought this matter of a market was one of the most important with which they had to desi. It concerned the food supply of the colony, and it concerned also the cheap supply of food to the Chinese community He thought they were only doing their duty in saking that their opinion might be expressed on the subject.
for him to vote for the resolution in fact he must oppose it. The Government owned a very large area of land still in the resumed area of Taipingsban. That land, as every oue Was aware, had not been sold very and other small lots were sold last year. He rapidly. Some of it was sold at the end of 1897
had positive proof that the building of a market at Taipingshan would raise the value of the land to the extent of $21,000 an acre at the very least.
The VICE-PRESIDENT said that last summer the opinion was taken of himself, Mr. Brewin (then Acting Registrar-General and represent- ing the Chinese), Mr. Ladds, Dr. Ho Kai, and The Hon. R. D. ORMSBY said he might say Mr. Wei A Yuk with regard to the site of the
for the information of the Board that as far as Western Market, and each one of them expressed he knew the final decision had not been arrived on opinion adverse to the site in Taiping-at. But there were other questions that came in shan. The question of markets and their in connection with the building of a market sites in this colony was one which affected at Taipingshan which made it impossible that Board very much. The Board Con. trolled the markets, and the Board was the guardian of the public health. T'herefore it did everything it could to secure the best possible sites for markets and the best possible arrangements for markets. This question was not only a mere question, of putting a market in one street or putting it in another. It affected a very large question indeed which had always been troublesome, and that was the question of hawking in the colony He had made himself exceedingly unpopular with the Medical Officer of Health and the Director of Public Works predecessor by the policy he had adopted towards hawkers. The Med cal Officer of Health ob jected to his toleration of hawkers because they were great nuisances in the streets and depo- sited a great deal of garbage and rubbish. The former Director of Public Works objected to his toleration of hawkers because they filled his storm water drains with a great deal of rubbish, and there was nothing he knew more evil-smell. ing and perhaps more insanitary than decompos- ing vegetable matter. But since he had been in the police he had adopted one policy towards hawkers, and that policy really derived its origin from a conviction that until the market accom- madation of the city was increased hawking must be permitted, and subject as they were to visitations of plague he knew of no more fatal policy than making the price of the food of the consequence that could ensue from any line of poorer classes dear. They wanted to get the food as cheap as they could in order that the people might have as much of it as they could afford to buy and therefore be well nourished and able to withstand attacks of disease. The question
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The VICE-PRESIDENT said that they as Board had nothing to do with financial consider tions such as the honourable Director of Public Works had advanced. He had not the slightest doubt that those considerations must weigh, and weigh very heavily, but they as a Board of course looked at things from sanitary point of view, and it was in that point of view that they desired, he assumed, to press their views on this subject before the Government.
The PRESIDENT said that in connection with this matter he thought it advisable at that point to call attention to the remarks made in reference to the market by the Colonial Veteri- nary Surgeon in his report.
Mr. OSBORNE said that if there was any value attaching to what the Colonial Veterinary Surgeon said in his report it meant that if for it one in Taipiugshan—if Taipingshan they closed the Western Market and substituted Market
was a failue and people would not go there, it followed that those people who had hitherto used the Western market- the vast boat population and others—would have to go elsewhere,
Correspondence concerning the proposed now of hawking was one which had engaged the at-market he believed, or the way other
market in Taipingshan was submitted.
Aotingo instructions from the Sanitary Board, Dr. Clark had asked Mr. Ladds (Colonial Veter- inary Surgeon) Whether you have received any official intimation from the Government that a new market is to be built in the Taipingshan resumed area in
place of the existing. Western Market, and if not what authority there is for stating in your annual report for 1898 that such
is the case.
Mr. Ladds in reply said that during the month of Septemver last a letter dated 13.9.98 was sent
tention of various Government departments for years. It had been referred to one committee after another, and the result of the policy:he had adopted was that 18 months or two years ago another committee was appointed consist ing of himself, Mr. Wodehouse, and Mr. with the question of hawking as much as with Yuk, and that committee's report dealt the question of the site of the Western Market. The two things went together. He asked them to excuse him for going into such length about hawking,
lown to the Acting Registrar-General by tue Dir, question was not maanted to show that the
oto; of Publio Works stating that he had been just noted by the Hon. the Colonial Secretary enquire of the Acting Registrar-General what space would, be required for the new Taiping,
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a queation of a few hundred yards in one direction or a few hundred yards iu another, but that it was a question which would affect the food supply of the Chinese population in the central part
market to the Western Market, was the Central Market, so that it followed that if Taiping shan market was a failure people would transact their business in
the Central- Market, which he believed crowded, and if a
was already large mass of extra An overcrowded market incant a dirty and in- people went there it would become overorowded. sanitary market, and as it was their business keep the markets in a healthy cleanly state it followed that they would not be able to do this with the Untral Market. He thought the attention of the Government should be to these varions points which had been and perhaps if they had not already arrit a decision they might perhaps fall in wit views of the members of the Board.
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.