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THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND means the lives of the five people were saved. It was extremely dark at the time, and the heavy sea and wreckage tossing about on the waves made Constable Counsell's task an exceedingly dangerous one. As it is, the immersion has brought on an attack of cramp, and Counsell is now in hospital. Io is the man who the other day dived into the water after three thieves who were escaping in their sam- pan and who finally took to the water; one of them, it may be remembered, he captured after a struggle. We trust that Constable Cou sell's bravery will not go unrewarded, and that steps will be taken to bring it to the notice of the Royal Humane Society.
HONGKONG LEGISLATIVE
COUNCIL.
and grinding together, tossed bither and thither. like corks by the buffeting waters. many of this mosquito fleet became wrecks, and although yeoman service in the work of rescue was rendered by the police along the Praya, it in feared that several lives must have been lost Under Inspectors Gauld and Riley, police from Yaumati and I simshatsui, carrying boatbooks. life-lines, and life-buoys, were stationed at short intervals right along the Prayn, and succeeded in bringing ashore many of the unfortunate victims. By way of showing clearly the strength of the gale and the irresistible force of the waves, it may be stated that the river steamer Hing On, which was anchored in Yau- msti bay, was driven ashore just off the pumping station, this despite the fact that she had steam up and did her utmost to ride out the storm. She at present lies with her stern submerged. When a steamer was unable to face it, little
A meeting of the Legislative Connci. was wonder that the native craft suffered so severely.held on the 21st inst. in the Council Chamber.
Yaumali, too, furnishes the only serious accident happening on land-the collapse of two honses, with the loss of ten lives. These houses were situated at 30 and 32, Kowloon City Road, and happily only one, No. 32, was occupied, else the casualties might conceivably have been much heavier. The first floor of No, 32 was used as a lodging-house for coolies and the second as a family house. Fifteen people, all Chinese, were known to be inside when the building fell, and of these five were rescued practically unharmed by Inspector Gauld and his men, who were quickly on the spot. The bodies of the other ten, some of them terribly mangled, were unearthed as the day advanced, the lust four in the afternoon. All were removed to the mortuary.
A landslip cccurred at Shankiwan West part of a hillside giving way and blocking the roadway. No lives were lost.
Two unoccupied houses collapsed at Tytam, also without injury to any one.
No. 2 Police Station, Wanchai, reports that in the district patrolled by the officers attached to it a great many young trees planted some time ago by the Afforestation Department have been washed down upon Leighton Hill Road. considerable portion of the sand composing the hill there had also given way and caused an ol struction on the roadway.
The ruins of Sharp's godowns, Nos. 540 and 542. Des Voeux Road West, which were destroy- ed by fire last year, were blown right across the 1oadway, and are now obstructing traffic.
At Chungchow a house collapsed at the height of the storm and one Chinaman was killed by a beam falling upon him.
At Mongkok a water-boat was sunk and one of the crew drowned,
Beyond the destruction of a number of telephone wires, the flooding of streets, and the aprooting of an occasional tree, the damage in the central part of Victoria appears to be slight. The telephone wires which suffered were those in Robinson Road and Des Voeux
Road. The matshed at the Star Ferry Wharf was blown down and overhung the guiding pile, blocking the entrance of the launches to the pier and rendering necessary the temporary use of the opposite side for the embarking and disembarking of passengers. The obstruction was cleared by nine o'clock, and workmen are now er cting another matshed. The gas lamp at the pier was also carried away, A scaffold- ing in Hollywood Road and Lyndhurst Terrace 1 wes blown down and killed a Chinese watch- man. In Seymour Road a retaining wall and
■ gas lamp came to grief. A mulberry tree in the compound of the Central Police Station, which apparently makes a point of coming down at every typhoon, fell, and is now awaiting replanting. Uprooted trees are common- in many parts of Victoria and Kowloon, as also are damaged buildings in course of erection, and scaffoldings.
A CONSTABLE'S HEROIC ACTION. We have pleasure in giving publicity to a brave deed perform d by P.C. Counsell, of the Water Police. At 1a.m. on the 19th inst. a junk in Yaumati bay was seen to be in dis.ress. No means were at hand to rescue the unfortunate occupants, five in number, and it seemed that all hope for them was gone when Constable Counsell, carrying a life-line, entered the water, and, swimming as near as possible to the junk, threw the line aboard. By this
Present:-
HIS EXCELLENCY THE OFFICER ADMINIS- TEEING THE GOVERNMENT, Major General Sir W. GASCOIGNE, K.C.M.G. (Commanding the Troops).
Hon. F. H. MAY (Colonial Secretary). Hon. Sir HENRY SPENCER BALK.LLY, KT. (Attorney-General).
Hon. A. M. THOMSON (Colonial Treasurer), Hon. Commander R. M. RUMSEY, R.N. (Harbour Master).
Hon. W. CHATHAM (Iirector of Fublic Works).
Hon. Dr. F. W. CLARK (Med'cal Officer of Health).
Hon. Dr. Ho KAI. Hon. WEI A YUK.
Hon. C. S. SHARP.
Hon. C. W. DICKSON.
Hon. G. W. F. PLAYFAIR.
[July 28, 1902
SANITARY BYE-LAWS, The DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WOL 3 moved the adoption of the Sanitary Bye-laws (Depois for Cuttle, Pigs, Sheep and Goats). ́ Ho raid— The alteration in the existing bye-laws proposed here is very small. The present bye-laws provide for a fee of 25 e nts for each pig, sheep or goat housed for export in the Government depot, and the idea of this bye-law was to obtain a reasonable Large for animals which are designedly housed for export from the Colony. Dealers have pointed out that in some cases the animals were simply boused there and then removed to another part of the Colony. It was felt to bi impracticable to adopt any graduated scale of charges that would cover such ca 93 and therefore the charge is now proposed to be reduced to 10 cents from 25 cents; and the wo d ["_r_moval" is substituted for the word “export
Those are the only alterations, and I beg-1) move that the Council approve the bye-laws. The COLONIAL SECRETARY seconded, and the motion was agreed to.
1
PAPERS.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY laid on the table the Statement of Water Account for the year ending 31st December, 19 1; the Supreme Court R turns for 1901; the Report on the Volunteer Corps for 1901; and a paper relative to the rate of exchange for payment of pensions under Wilows and Orphans' Pension Fund.
THE P.W.D. STAFF.
Hon. G. W. F. PLAYFAIR-Sir, unfor- tunately I gave too short notice of a question I wanted to ask at this meeting, so 1 will read it now and it can come up for n xt meeting :-
Mr R. F. JOHNSTON (Acting Clerk of view of Mr. Chadwick's report t at the Public Councils).
NEW MEMBER.
Dr. Francis W. Clark took the oath and was admitted a member of the Council.
THE CORONATION.
П18 EXCELLENCY-Before commencing the business of the meeting. I thought I would just like to ask your advice, gentlemen, on the forth- coming Coronation which we now know will possibly take place on the 9th of Aug. st. Every step that I have hitherto taken about the Coronation which nufortunately had to be post- poned was taken on your advice, and so I should like to go on these lines in the future.. The president and one or two members of the Coronation Committee met me this morning and proposed varions things and I said I would have the honour of meeting you this afternoon and that would be aood opportunity of con salting you on the matter. Their proposals were Es follows: that supposing we learn officially that the Coronation in some form or another will take place on the 9th, which, I think, we may expect, there should be a torch-light procession and a garden party at Government House, and then on Sunday, the 10th, it was suggested that, subject to your approval, the ordinary service in the Cathedral might be turned into a service of thanksgiving for the recovery of the King. I do not see that there would be any occasion to make it a full dress service as we did before. On Monday, the 11th, it was the Committee's idea that the fireworks that were purchased by them and are
still in their hands should be set off-a number of them--and that something of the original programme intended should take place on the Cricket Ground, with, I think, the Chinese fish procession. All these things are now in our hands, and I wanted to know, before. I went any further, whether the proposals meet the views of the Council.
The Council unanimously approved of the proposals.
FINANCIAL.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY laid on the table Financial Minutes (Nos. 32, 33, 34 and 35) and moved that they be referred to the Finance Committee.
The COLONIAL TREASURER seconded, and the motion was agreed to.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY laid on the table the Report of the Finance Committee (No. 8) and moved its adoption.
The COLONIAL TREASURER seconded, and the motion was agreed to.
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To ask the Hon. the Colonial Secretary whether the report of the Commission 011 the P. W. D. recommending an increase in the staff bad been carried out in its entirety, and if not, why no to
Works staff is much undermanned in every branch, both technical and clerical, and in view of the fact that the new Ordinances now before the Council will vastly increase the work and r sponsibilities of the P. W. D. far beyond the requirements advised by the Commission, are the Government making arrangements for a still further increase of the stuff?"
NATURALISATION 1ILLS.
The following Billa were read a first, second and third time and passed on the motion of the ATTORNEY-GENERAL, seconded by the COL ONIAL SECRETARY: -A Bill entitled an Ordin- ance for the Naturalisation of Choy Ya¤, alias Choy Mun Lau, alins Choy Kwong Sum alias Choy Soke Wah; and a Bill entitled an Ordi- nance for the Naturalisation of T'siu Tit Shang, alias Sia Kit, alias Siu Shau Leung, alias Sin Yu Choi.
FINANCE.
The COLONIAL TREASURER mored that the
Council go into committee on the bill entitled an Ordinance to authorise the appropriation of a supplementary sum of five hundred and fifteen thousand two hundred and twenty-fire dollars and seven cents, to defray the charges of the year 1901.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY seconded, and the motion was carried.
On the Council resuming, the Bill was read a third time and passed, in the motion of the COLONIAL TREASURER, seconded by the COLONIAL SECRETARY.
WATER SUPPLY OF THE COLONY. The ATTORNEY-General moved that the Council go into committee on the Bill entitled an Ordinance to provide for and regulate the supply of water in the Culony of Hongkong and for the maintenance and repair of the works in connection therewith.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY seconded, and the motion was agreed to.
The Bill was then considered clause by clause, and sundry amendments made.
Hon. G. W. F. PLAYFAIR moved an addition to clause 20 that all accounts for water supplied in excess to be issued within 30 days.” He drew attention to the delay which occurred in sending out the acounts and said he saw no reason why a Government Department selling water should be in any different position from a company selling gas or electricity. He believed that the Gas Co. had more meters to attend to than the Government, yet they could- regularly send out their accounts within 15 days; there was no reason why a Government
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