156
BADELEY certainly does not understate the case when he calls it "somewhat serious," and we are constrained to wonder that the sanitary condition can still be described as good. Mr. BADELEY states that the building of a larger prison is receiving the attention of the Government (as urged by Mr. MAY in the 1900 report); we trust for the credit of the Colony that this attention may result in something definite, for it looks exceedingly ill to read in two successive years' reports so grave an indictment of our prison accommodation.
A SUGGESTION FOR THE PEAK TRAMWAYS CO.
(Daily Press, 27th February.) The letter signed "Peakite," which appears in another column to-day, deserves atten- tion, and we hope that the Hongkong High-Level Tramways Company will re- cognise the justice of the complaint con tained therein. The present lack of rain in the Colony will not assuredly continue for long, and the question which our corres- pondent brings forward will become urgent when the summer rains commence. In the early days of the Tramways Company, when it was struggling hard to make its way, the absence of a proper shelter for passengers at the upper terminus of the line was cheer - fully borne, though the inconvenience and discomfort were no less marked than they are now. For a whole decade not a murmur has come from the public at this undoubted grievance. In return for this, the Company, now that it is in a flourishing state, certainly owes a debt to the travellers to and from the Peak which can best be paid by an attempt to study their comfort to every reasonable extent. We cannot believe that the General Managers will dis- regard the appeal of "Peakite." In fact it would be churlish and ungallant to the Peak ladies, who make so large an use of the Tramway to continue unnecessarily to subject them to the caprices of the weather.
盘点
Out correspondent says: The question of
cost need not be considered." As a matter of fact, the cost of a sufficient shelter would be very little and could not affect the Com- pany's finances to an appreciable degree.
THE CRISIS: TELEGRAMS.
[FROM OUR CORRE PONDENT.]
SHANGHAI, 23rd February, 8.28 p.m. A special audience was held at the Imperial Palace to-day by the Em- peror and Empress Dowager. Sir Robert Hart had the first twenty minutes' inter- view, which was spent in respectful con- The Empress Dowager declared that her purpose was
to execute the necessary reform..
verse.
Afterwards,to Bishops Favier and Jarlin, the Empress Dowager expressed her regret for the attack on the Peitang. She stated that she wants to regard Christian converts and others alike as her people, in perpetual harmony.
During the stay of H.M.S. Brumble at Bangkok, a distressing fatality to a British sailor ocenired in the British Legation grounds. Some of the men of H.M.S. Bamble had volunteered to repaint the Legation flagstaff, and George Thomas, an A B., went aloft early on the 7th inst. for the purpose of reeving the necessary tackle. He had reached the top when h: seems to have felt weak after the long climb. At all events he started to come down the wire stays when all at once he let go and fell to The the ground, death being instantaneous. deceased was very popular, and was only 19 years of age.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
HONGKONG LEGISLATIVE
COUNCIL.
A meeting of the Hongkong Legislative ouncil
was held on the 27th ult. in the Council Chamber. Present:-
His EXCELLENCY the ACTING GOVERNOR, Major-General Sir W. GASCOIGE, K.C.M.G. (Commanding the Troops).
Hon. J. H. STEWART LOCKHART, C.M G. (Colonial Secretary).
Hon. W. MEIGH GOODMAN, K.C. (Attorney- General).
Hon. Commander R. M. RUMSEY, R.N. (Harbour Master).
Hon. C. McI. MESSER (Acting Colonial Treasurer).
Hon. W. CHATHAM (Director of Public Works).
;
Hon. A. W. BREWIN (Registrar-General.) Hon. C. P. CHATER, C.M.G. Hon. T. H. WHITEHEAD. Hon. J. THURBURN. Hon. J. J. BELL-IRVING. Hon. Dr. Ho Kai.
Hon. WEI A YUK.
THE SANITARY EXPERT.
PAPERS.
[March 1, 1902.
The statement was as follows:-With regard to the City of Victoria, a re ervoir and catchwater at Wongneichong Gap were com pleted in April, 1899. The maximum capacity of the reservoir is 33,94,000 gallons. No other works for adding to the storage for the City supply have been completed in the years mentioned. One additional storage reservoir at Tytam has been begun and preparations are being made to commence another. The com. bined capacity of these two will be about 100,000,000 gallons. With regard to Kowloon, no storage in the ordinary sense of the term has hitherto existed, the works originally constructed consisting of dams
across the outlets from three, valleys of considerable area →→ to prevent the escape of water underground, provision being also made for conveying the water thus intercepted into wells, from which it flows through pipes to the pumping station. One of the dams was practically structed and was also raised five feet, the A work being completed early in 1899, main was laid and small dams were constructed cross several stream-conrses at Cheung Sha- Wan in the New Territory, the work being completed in 1500, to render the water of the
recon-
The
Mr. R. F. JOHNSTON (Acting Clerk of streams available for waterworks purposes. No Councils).
storage-reservoir was constructed, as there was no suitable site for one. In 1901, several im. The COLONIAL SECRETARY-Before proceed-provements and modifications were made in the ing to the orders of the day, it may interest Cheung Sha Wan intake and main in order hon. members of this Council to know that to supply the whole districts of Mongkoktsui Mr. Chadwick left, Marseilles on tho 31st of and Yanmati from this source, thus leaving the last month and is due to arrivo here on the 2nd supply obtained from the original works avail. able for the remainder of the Peninsula. This of next month.
arrangement has worked satisfactorily. second part of the question is in a form which does not admit of being answered exactly. The scheme for increasing the supply for the City obtainable by gravitation from Pokfulam and Tytam, towards the carrying out of which the steps mentioned above are being taken, as described in Mr. Cooper's report, is estimated to yield 4,000,000 gallons per day, or sufficient for a population of 266,000 people. The present population is estimated at 213,000. The new scheme for Kowloon, for the carrying out of which tenders are now being invited, is estimated to yield 1,575,000 gallons per day, or sufficient for a population of 157,000 people. The popu lation of the districts to be supplied, as ascer- tained from the census of 1901, amounts to 66,244.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY laid on the table papers referring to the provision of a school for uropean children and an r'nglish school for Chinese of the upper classes; the reports of the Victoria Gaol and the Widows and Orphans' Pension Fund; the returns of the Supreme Court; the report of the Commission on the staffing of the Medical Department; and cor- respondence relative to the immunity from plague of Chinese in Cape Colony.
FINANC, AL.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY laid on the table Financial Minutes (Nos. 1 to 6) and moved that they be referred to the Finance Committee,
The ACTING COLONIAL THEASURER seconded, and the motion was agreed to.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY laid on the table | the Report of the Finance Committee (No. 1: ), and moved its adoption
The ACTING COLONIAL TREASURER seconded, and the motion was agreed to.
OUTBREAKS OF PLAGUE.
Ho. T. H. WHITE HEAD - Sir, I rise to ask the first question which stands in my name.
The question was as follows:-Will the Hon- ourable the Colonial Secretary inform the Coun- cil whether the Government will consider the expediency of amending the Bye-laws annexed to the Public Health Ordinance, No. 13 of 1901, so as to empower the Sanitary Board to take such steps as may be requisite in connection with the periodical outbreak of plague without the necessity of formally declaring any district in the Colony as an area infected with plague
The COLONIAL SECRETARY-In reply to the question asked by the hon. member, I have the honour to state that the matter referred to in the question was referred to the Sanitary Board. The Sanitary Board has considered the matter, and as a result bye-laws made by that Board wril be brought before the Council to-day for its approval. It is only fair, sir, that I should state that it was really owing to the question asked by the hon. member that this matter was taken into consideration.
WATER-STORAGE CAPACITY,
Hon. T. H. WHITEHEAD-Sir. I rise to ask the second question which stands in my name.
The question was as follows:-Will the Hon- ourable the Director of Public Works lay upon the table a statement showing what works, if any, have actually been completed during the years 1899, 1900, and 1901 for increasing the water-storing capacity in the City of Victoria and Kowloon, and how the present water-storage capacity can be augmented and rendered adequate to meet the growing requirements of the Colony in all seasons?
The DIRECTOR of PUBLIC WORKS-I beg' to lay on the table the statement which has been asked for.
PREVE TION OF EP DEMICS.
The DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS made the following motion under section 14 of Ordinance No. 13 of 1901 :- That this Council approves of the Bye-laws for the Prevention or Mitigation of Epidemic, Endemic, or Con- tagious Disease, made by the Sanitary Board on He said-It will the 18th February, 1902"
no
power to
close
any
be within the recollection of hon members that in September last certain bye laws were passed which enabled the Board to take action with a view to the prevention of any epidemic, endemic, It has been found, or contagious disease. however, that the powers under the bye-laws are somewhat limited and that under them the Board has honse or to remove cocklofts or ceilings or other structures of that nature in order to admit of the cleansing and disinfecting being done in an absolutely thorough manner. Any of plague occurring, it was sporadic cases necessary that the Board should declare that place to be infected before it could take these measures; and the powers given now, sir, are simply those which existed before, only they were divided into two sets of bye-laws- one for the prevention of epidemic, endemic, or contagious diseases, and the other deal- ing with the powers which should be taken when an epidemic existed. It has been considered desirablo, in order to obviate this declaration of a place as being infected in consequence of only one or two sporadic cases occurring, that these bye-laws should be com. bined; and the heading of them has been altered to read Prevention or Mitigation of Epidemic, That is the Endemic, or Contagious Disease," heading, I may mention, sir, that occurs in sub-section 33, section :3, of the ublic Health Ordinance. Under that section the Board is given powers to make Lye-laws for the preven- tion or mitigation of those diseases. I therefore move, sir, that the Council approve of those bye-laws.
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.