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250 feet further from the swamp than the site of the new Hospital.
Dr. HABTIGAN having said a few words in reply the motion was put to the meeting and carried.
THE ALLEGED LANDING ́OF UNEXAMINED CATTLE.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
"Referring to my letter to the Board dated 21st, reporting the outbreak of foot and mouth disease in shed No. 6 at the Sassoon's Vills pre- mises at Pokfulam, the property of the Dairy Farm Company, I have the honour to inform you that these premises may now be declared free from disease."
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The following reply (dated Dec. 10th) from The President minuted :—“ The watchman Mr. C. V. Ladda (Colonial Veterinary Surgeon) or watchmen should be discontinued at once." relative to the landing of unexamined cattle was Dr. BELL said this epidemic of foot and submitted :---
mouth disease occurred and they did not seem "I have the honour to report as follows into get any "forrarder" He did not know much answer to your letter dated 7.12.00. All cattle about foot and month disease, but he knew that which are imported into Hongkong for slaugh- it was an infectious disease, and as an infectious tering purposes are, in the absence of proper disease it must come from somewhere. It did inspection lairs, driven immediately upon being not fall down from heaven. He begged to pro- landed direct to the Government Cattle Depots pose that Mr Ladds be called upon to give thom a at Kennedytown, where they are daily inspected full and minute report of the outbreak and its by me, and any animals which are found to be probable cause. suffering from disease are at once placed in. isolation.
"As regards the importation of dairy cattle, it not being advisable to mix them at the Cattle Depots with animals coming from the mainland, it has been the custom for the owners of such animals to notify me of their arrival in the colony, and they have then been inspected upon the ship before landing-unless they were land- ed without inspection by my special permission. "After being landed they are housed by their respective owners in sheds apart from any other cattle which may already be upon such premises, and are seen by me before they are allowed to mix with the remain- der of the herd. This rule has been in- variably carried out since I arrived in the colony in 1887 with the exception of a few
instances where a European dairy-farm owner and one or two native cattle-owners (in the latter case probably through ignorance of the regulations) have, contrary to my instructions, landed animals without reporting their arrival. I am not aware of any instance in which dis- eased cattle have been landed and walked through the town, and thereby infected healthy cattle, as mentioned by Dr. Hartigan at the Board's meeting on December 6th, and should such a case have occurred it is very improbable that it would have escaped my notice, especially so when enquiring into the source of the alleged outbreak. Apart from any regulations, it is only a matter of commonsense to suppose that no dairy cattle owner would knowingly bring into the colony infected animals, whon by doing so he would ronder himself liable to infect the remainder of the herd. It is far more in the interests of those dairy-farm owners to protect themselves as much as possible from any risk of conveying infection than to expect the Board to safeguard them.
"I do not think for one minute that many cattle are landed in the colony without my knowledge, and even if they were the police would not allow them to run wild all over the city, but would send them off at once to the Cattle Depots (if intended for slaughtering), where I should see them in dus
course."
The PRESIDENT remarked that it did not do to believe all one heard in Hongkong. This was another case of a mare's nest. Mr. Ladds said the thing complained of was impossible, and in fact he made out that such a thing could not possibly take place. THE RECENT OUTBREAK OF FOOT AND MOUTH
DISEASE AT POKFULAM.
The following reply, (dated Dec. 14th) from the Secretary of the Dairy Farm Company, Limited, (Mr. W. Hutton Potts) regarding the recent outbreak of foot and month disease at Pokfulam, was submitted:
Major BROWN seconded, and the motion was carried.
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The fortnightly limewashing return of Mr. J. H. Dandy (Chief Inspector) said that 1,083 houses had been limewashed in the Western District since the previous report.
THE LIMEWashing beTURN.
THE HEALTH OF THE COLONY.
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The death-rate for the colony for the week ended December 1st, was 23-2, against 40 2 for the previous week and 234 for the corres- ponding week last year. The rate for the succeeding wook was 184, against 22:0 for the corresponding week last year.
DEATHS IN MACAO.
The deaths in Macao for the week ended
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[December 22, 1900
THE CRISIS IN CHINA.
·LOCAL MOVEMENTS. H.M.§. Dido arrived from Weihaiwei on the 14th inst.
The British transport Rewa returned from the north.
H. M. S. Terrible returned to Hongkong on the 17th inst., having left Yokohama on the 10th inst.
H. M. 8. Isis left on the 16th inst. for Swatow.
H. M. SS. Pigmy and Algerine left on the 17th inst. for Singapore.
H. M. 88. Undaunted and Aɛtræs went out . on the 17th inst, practice.
The British transport Rewa loft on the 16th inst. for Bombay.
The British transport Loodiana arrived on the 17th inst from Shanghai.
H.M.S. Astræa returned to the harbour from
practice on Tuesday night.
The Lvodiana left on the 19th inst. for Cal-
cutta.
The U. S. transport Sumner arrived on the 20th from Manila.
TIENTSIN AND NORTHERN NOTES. Times of the 1st inst:-
The following items are from the P. & T.
The Peking Prise Committee will shortly be bringing down large quantities of silk for salo in Tientsin.
December 2nd numbered 38 and for the succeed with Boxers outside Chunliangcheng station a
ing week 56.
THE WORK OF THE YEAR.
The PRESIDENT observed-This being our last meeting for the year I wish to say one or two words before we part. I think we may congratulate ourselves on much good work done in Hongkong during the year 1900. Or. dinance 34 of 1899 came into operation this year, throwing a vast amount of extra work on the Sanitary Staff and not a little on the P.W.D. Under it great improvements have been effected in letting in light into the dark and unwholesome places of the city, in draining, concreting, and lighting private streets and lanes, and in other useful work. In Hongkong it is the fashion to look rather to what still remains to be done than to good work accomplished. The public and the pross are insatiable, always asking for more, pointing out omissions but saying nothing of good work done. Well, this is perhaps as it should be and spurs us ou to fresh efforts. I would like again, as I have done more than once before, to call attention to the fact that we live in what is probably one of the healthiest of large cities in the world. Our death-rate for 1899 was 24.4 per thousand in the Chinese community and over 12.4 per thousand among the white races, comparing favourably with the large towns of the Empire. 1 noticed lately that the death-rate in Singapore was 51 per thousand. I have now, gentlemen, only to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy Now Year. (Applause.)
The proceedings then terminated.
A very enjoyable evening was spent by the large audience of sailors and soldiers who'gather 'ed at the Kowloon Institute on the 18th inst. for the usual weekly concert. The programme was arranged by Mr. J. P. Fonseca, assisted by the orchestra Lusitano, and other friends, and was bright and tastoful throughout. The orchestra opened with a spirited march, and at a later stage gave a selection from "La Sonam bula," earning thereby hearty rounds of ap- plause. Mr. Arthur Osmand sang with great taste and feeling "The ship I love" and "The heart bowed down." Special mention must also Hebe made of the violin solo by Mr. Xavier and a violin duet by Messrs. Xavier and Rosario, which were much appreciated. A novel feature of the programme was a solo by a member of Sir Robert Hart's Chinese band, who was on active service under the Union Jack during the siege of the British Legation in Pekin. Mr. Fisher also gave great pleasure by his rendering of "Killaloe" and other songs. The proceed ings termniated with a vote of thanks to the performers and the National Anthem.
"I referred your letter of 7th, inst to our man- ager, who replies that at present we are obtaining straw from Tasin Wan-the bran and grain comes from Shanghai-but that at the time of the outbreak of foot and mouth disease nons had been received. He was still feeding grass and hay grown and put up on this island. had no idea as to the origin of the outbreak."
The following minutes were appended: Dr. Hartigan:-"What about bedding - none from the mainland P” -
Dr. Clark: This disposes of the theory of infection from the mainland.”
Dr. Bell: When was the last outbreak of this disease at the Dairy Farm ?”
The following letter (dated 11th December) from Mr. Ladds was submitted :--
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The Russians are stated to have had a brush
few days ago.
We hear that Mr. Drow will be succeeded as Commissioner of Customs by Mr. Detring. Mr. Drow leaves for home almost immediately.
The Boxers are still making disturbances around Hoklonfa, but Chinese troops under com- mander Luo have been sotively suppressing them. A few days ago a number of rifles were found stowed away under a stock of firewood in the yard of a man living in Chinchiako, a few miles outside Tientsin City.
A large number of rifles and bayonets have been discovered in the village of Machischwang, a wostern suburb of Tientsin, and search has beon made there for turbulent characters.
The Chih Pao notes with satisfaction that complaints against the foreign soldiers molest- ing Chinese are growing less frequent, and re- marks that the British troops have undoubtedly the cleanest record among the forces hero.
Li Hung-chang is reportel to have recently urged the Court very earnestly to return to Peking, and to have received such a reply that he was driven to tell the Foreign Ministers that the Imperial answer had been "lost on the road.
The Allied Forces have opened the Imperial granaries in Peking and are supplying the people with grain at cheap rates. The Chih Pao suggest that should the Court return they would find Peking as badly provisioned as Haianfu.
The Chih Pao states that it has heard that the foreign Commanders in Shanghai en- deavoured to arrange with the Viceroys for the passage of troops to Shensi vid the Yangtze, promising not to disturb the Yangtao districts; but the Viceroys objected strongly to any such move.
Some foreign troops, nationality unstated, are reported by the Chih Pao to be seizing gangs of Chinese as coolies, and tying them together by their queues. The other day among the men so seized were three foreigners' servants, who tried to resist, and were thrown by the soldiers into the river. What their fate was is not stated.
A very important movement is going forward all over. Chins, and more particularly along the Yangtze basin, in response to special orders from the Viceroys and Governors. Bodies of "volunteers" are being actively enrolled and drilled in the use of fire-arms, nominally for their own protection,, but in reality they form a large and formidable reserve force. Every guild and trade, in addition to all well-to-do gentry, have these "volunteer” bodies, who are paid and armed by the Government. They are not a public in- stitution like regular troops, but are dispersed about in towns and villages without any distin-
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