442
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS 'AND
[December 2, 1901.
in 1899, $2,125; in 1900, $15,000; and in 1901 | upon for the laying of the Waglan cable in the sanitary condition of the Colony. He moved up to the end of October, $67,125.
December last..
The recommendation was agreed to.
PUBLIC WORKS.
His Excellency the Governor recommended the Council to vote a sum of $32,000 in aid of the following votes:-
1. Maintenance of Sewers...
2. Maintenance of Waterworks, City
and Hill District...
3. Maintenance of Waterworks, Kow-
loon *
4. Gas Lighting, City of Victoria 5. Miscellaneous Works
...
6. Waterworks, Miscellaneous . 7. Maintenance of Buildings in the
New Territory
Total...
£850 at 1/114 per dollar, £850 at 2/1
"
..$8,821.62 8,160.00
$661.62
$ 2,000,00 The CHAIRMAN said- Hon. members will remember that this vote was got at a previous 3,000.00 meeting when it was explained that the Telegraph Company had undertaken the laying 2,500.00 of this cable for the Government and by so 2,500.00 doing had saved them a good deal of extra 10,000.00 expense, even if it had been possible to have had 10,000.00 it done otherwise. The vote now brought for- ward is to adjust the rate of exchange of the dollar.
2,000.00
$32,000.00 The CHAIRMAN said In applying for this vote, the Hon. Director of Public Works states that the maintenance of storm-water drains has been paid for out of the vote for the maintenance of sewers, as no provision is made for the service elsewhere. The channel of Albany Nullah, through the Naval Yard, had become much obstructed by material washed down during the heavy rainstorms, and a con- siderable sum was spent in clearing it sufficient- ly to obviate the flooding of the Yard. With regard to the Waterworks, extensive repairs have been made to the Albany and West Point Filter Beds to prevent leakage. The pump and motor for the Peak supply also required repairs, and the pumping to the Hill District and upper levels of the city has been ex- captionally heavy. The necessity of further supplementing the vote for Kowloon Water- works has arisen principally from the large expenditure incurred in putting the pump ing machinery in proper repair. The cost of this alone has amounted to $6,887. Consider able additions have been made to the number of gas lamps in use throughout the city, in consequence of the lighting of private streets and lanes, hence the necessity for supplementing this vote. A large number of miscellaneous works have been undertaken, some of the prin- cipal items being-New Rifle Range, Tai Hang, $8,196; name-plates for streets, $2,000, causeway and pier at Tai Po $1,863; alterations of police telephone service, $1,180; road from Kennedy Road to lower tramwy terminus, adjoining boundary of military property, $2,017; huts for lepers at Sam Chun, $2,300; workshop at Wanchai Store Yard, $2,000. The additional sum asked for under the heading of Water works, Miscellaneous is to cover the cost of catch-waters and channels which are being constructed to divert the waters of any available streams into the City supply. With this object, it was intended to construct a catch water along the south side of Mount Cameron to intercept a considerable stream there and to form small channels alongside the existing catch-waters leading to Tytam and Wongnei- chong Reservoirs. The reason of the latter proposal is that, owing to the large surface of the catch-water bottoms and the very limited quantity of water flowing along them during the dry months, the whole of the water is The either evaporated or lost by leakage. proposed channels will be of small section so as to concentrate the flow and prevent this loss of water.
The recommendation was agreed to.
·
A recommendation by His Excellency the Governor to the Council to vote a sum of $200 in aid of the vote "Incidental. Expenses, Government House was also agreed to.
21
2
NEW TERRITORY "INCIDENTALS.” His Excellency the Governor recommended the Council to vote a sum of $500 in aid of the vote of $1,400 for Incidentals," Land Court, New Territory.
The CHAIRMAN said In applying for this vote Mr. Gompertz points out that the first vote for "Incidentals". is nearly ex- hausted. The expenditure under this head for the next two months will be not less than $500, the reason given for this being the doubling of the field staff.
+
The recommendation was agreed to.
A DEFICIENCY VOTE.
His Excellency the Governor recommended the Council to vote a sum of $661.62 to meet the deficiency in the rate of exchange between 1/114 and 2/1 on £850, being the amount agreed
|
The recommendation was agreed to. This was all the business.
HONGKONG SANITARY BOARD.
on
A meeting of the Sanitary Board was held
the 28th ult. in the Board Rooin.
'The
President (Dr. Atkinson, Principal Civil Medical Officer) occupied the chair, and there were also present the Vice-President (Hon. A. W. Brewin, Registrar-General). Hon. W. Chatham (Director of Public Works), Dr. F. W. Clark (Medical Officer of Health), Mr. F. J. Badeley (Acting Captain Superintendent of Police), Mr. Edward Osborne, Mr. Lau Chu Pak, Mr. Fung Wa Chun, and Mr. G. A. Woodcock (Secretary).
NEW LATRINE AT HUNGHOM.
Correspondence relative to the erection of a public latrine at the north-west end of the Crown Lot to the South of Hanghom Inland Lot No. 233 was laid on the table.
posi-
Dr. CLARK stated that some time ago the Board selected a site at Hunghom. It was advertised in the Gazette and objection was forwarded by the Land Investment Co., the reasons for that objection being that the erection was to be on the highway from the landing stage to the village of Hunghom and that it was in the immediate neighbourhood of their property. The Board reconsidered the question of a site and recommended that it be removed to a tion where it would not be on the highway from the landing stage to the village. As regarded the second objection, the Land Investment Company were informed that it was not pro- posed to erect the latrine at once, and that if in the meantime latrines were provided for the houses on their property there would be no necessity for proceeding with the erection of a public latrine. To that the Company replied that they still object to the site and that they, do not consider that the houses which they propose to erect should have latrines built in them. In other words, they objected to the provision by the Government of a public latrine and yet did not propose to provide latrines for their own tenants. It was for the Board to consider whether that objection was a reasonable one. Personally, it seemed to him unreasonable, and he was now prepared to move that the Board inform the Government that the site more recently selected should be adhered to.
Hon. W. CHATHAM seconded, and the motion was agreed to.
that the application be granted.
Hon. W. CHATHAM seconded, remarking that he thought the Board would be justified in granting an extension of time in carrying out the structural alterations.
The PRESIDENT-This is a necessary im- provement.
The motion was agreed to.
MORE RAT-CATCHERS.
Dr. CLARK recommended that the Board obtain the sanction of the Government to engage other 10 rat-catchers and a foreman from 1st prox. They had 10 at present, who were being paid at the rate of 3 cents per rat.
Hon. A. W. BREWIN-Does the number of rats caught increase with the number of men employed?
Dr. CLARK We hope it will.
Hon. A. W. BREWIN-We had an increase a few months ago. How many are we getting now?
Dr. CLARK-About 1,000 a week; we never had so many as that before, except during the height of the plagne epidemic. The number caught has ranged of late from 700 to 1,00),
Mr. E. OSBORNE-They are paying the rat- if they are catchers 3 cents per rat in Japan. doing that there we ought, I think, to do it
here.
Mr. FUNG WA CHUN-But we are too near
the Chinese territory for that..
The PRESIDENT-I move that the Board petition or request the sanction of the Govern- ment to engage other 10 rat-catchers, as recom- mended by the Medical Officer, from the 1st of next month. This is one of the anti-plague measures, and now is the time.
Mr. E. OSBORNE seconded, and the motion was agreed to.
THE DEATH RATE.
The mortality statistics showed that the death-rate for the week ended 2nd November was 19:5 per 1,000 per annum of the population, as compared with 25.0 in the previons week and 27.7 in the corresponding week of the previous year.
This was all the public business.
ST. ANDREW'S BALL. Each succeeding year sees the St. Andrew's Ball, which took place last Friday night, be come more and more a feature in the social life of the Colony. It derives additional im- portance, too, by reason of the fact that it serves as an usher to the winter festivities, and is thust doubly welcome-for itself and for that of which it is the harbinger. Its ushership has of course been usurped this year by the Cricket Festival, but that after all seemed to make little difference in the degree of enthusiasm with which the approach of the Ball was hailed or in its ultimate success. Its success was complete. For the genesis of this great Scottish reunion we have undoubtedly to thank the spirit of patriot- ism and brotherliness which pervades all ranks of Scotland's sons and daughters (Southrons call it clannishness) wherever their lot is cast. This spirit, be it what it may, is beneficently crystallised in the form of the St. Andrew's Society, under the auspices of which the grand Scottish Ball is held, and were its function no other than the promotion of the assembly-instead of this being merely
interlude It bore that the proprietors an
in its charitable work-it asked for three months delay in making the would still be doing a great service. As it alterations.
is, the Ball serves the useful purpose of keep- ing the Society and its objects before the public and of affording a pleasant rendezvous for the meeting of old friends and the making And by no means is the fact to of new ones. be overlooked that it gives us almost the only annual chance to see the kilt and sporran in all their glory. There are not many phils- begs in the Colony, but St. Andrew's Ball generally brings out the cherished garments in full strength and undiminished lustre.
BACKYARDS IN WEST STREET.
Correspondence relative to the provision of backyards for Nos. 26 and 28, West Street was laid on the table.
Hon. A. W. BREWIN remarked that it might be argued that these people ought to have known the law which came into force in 1899, and that the alterations should have been made long ago. Of course there was such a large sanitary staff that he thought the Chinese were accustomed to wait until an inspector entered their house and pointed out what was required to be done, if he thought it necessary to do anything. That was not an unreasonable attitude and might be excused. In this building, which was used as a restaurant, there were ten people living, so any delay in making the back. yards would hardly be injurious to health. The next thing was that these were business people asking for a little consideration because of the serious interference that would be caused if the alterations were to be carried out at once. The delay in this case would not cause any serious delay in the general improvement of
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As St. Andrew's Day fell this year on a Saturday the Ball was held on Friday night in the City Hall, as usual. The arrangement of the halls was pretty much the same as in St. George's Hall and St. former years. Andrew's Hall were devoted to dancing, the Theatre was transformed into a supper room, and the Library was set aside for cards and light refreshments. In the Chamber of Commerce was also a refreshment ́bar,
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