, ནྡྷོ
418
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THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
Now I do not
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December 1, 1902.
a certain time, we have found out that these are called cubicles. Now, the growth of these | for it evident that such additional time has houses are badly designed, and we have also cubicles is not Chinese altogether, for the been well employed, as the new Bill in very learnt that the sanitary science of our
Chinesa learn to make use of the cubicle only many of its particulars shows very great im days is quite different from what it was in Hongkong. If you go to Canton and provement on its predecessor, and I would even before. Then we go up to the landlords see the bonses there, you will find nothing go so far as to say th t what in som particulars was rather an absurd Bill has been turned into and say We cannot allow this to be done; like cubicles ia regular, proper Chinose houses we must ask you to build your house, or But the Goverumeut here, the law here the one of much more reasonable and workable to alter it, after a certain fashion, in order to Public Works Department hero, have permitted character. I fully approve of the spirit of this meet the sanitary requirements of our present the people living iu these long, narrow housee Bill, which I think will be welcomed by the time." Now, landlords and owners of houses to adopt this method of providing accommoda- thinking portion of the community as a step do not dispute that it would benefit the public tion for their families. Now, what is to distinctly in the right direction-the direction health very much indeed if they wore to follow be done to do away with these cabicles ofsetting our house and Colony more in order ont these later plans; but then they have already I understand it is not to be done in the from a sanitary point of view, and thereby assist- built their houses in accordance with the law Bill, which provides for open spaces in the ing in putting a stop to the necessity for the which obtained at that particular time, and had front and back of buildings, and just now heary expenditure entailed of recent years in the plans of their houses sanctioned by the the learned Attorney-General sys he wants to combatting the epidemics which have aufortun- prescribed authority at the Public Works De- limit the house to 40 feet depth, in which case ately visited this port, to say nothing of removing partment, and they say,
the serious disabilities and inconveniences from IE wish us to alter the walls will have to be thickened out a few
you our houses in order to suit or benefit the public, inches. 40 feet by 13 feet-the depth is out which the important commercial interests of we will do so if you give us reasonable compen- of proportion to the width, and you can imag ne the port hav besu suffering from same cause. Eation," anything that tends to the public a room 13 feet wide and 20 feet deep inhabited I am a firm believer in the saving virtues of more light and air as one of the best good must be paid for by the public. We hear, by a number of the Chinese working-class, who
means in assisting to combat and remove of course, of sacrifices for the public good; well, are more of the cleanest, and who will keep it such men as make these sacrifices are beroes. But for the moment up to the full capa-i y of the these epidemics and diseases, of which we It would have been have unfortunately had far too much of recent you cannot expect every landlord in this Colony, house that the law allows. and every Chinese land-owner, to be heroes. much better if the Government had considered years, and this Bill will undoubtedly go They invest their money in houses because they a plan to carry out the improvements at once, far to provide this remedy, but there is an will bring in an incom to them of so much per to give every cubicle a window and proper old proverb thit one may be able to lead a cent. They come to this Colony, relying upon ventilation and light. If that were done, horse to the water, but not be able to force him the justice and fairness of English law and the the great insanitary evil of this Colony would to drink when he is got there, and we shall still protection of the English flag, and invest their be done away with for ever, and I believe that have to see if the occupiers of houses can be money, and they tho ght at the time they invest-plague would disappear from cur midst, and the induced to avail themselves properly of all the ed in these houses that they were built in a- amount we saved every year would simply pay the sanitary measures which will be provided by cordance with the law existing at the time. expense the Governant would be involved in this Bill. It is well, too, to remember that the Now what right has any legislature to turn in granting compensation or in resuming every experience of the past year g osome way to show that with the present existing laws, and a round to them, after making their investment, three houses in the Colony. and say,
Modern sanitary scienco requires think it is recessary in the recoud reading to timely cleansing well ahead of the seasou when you to make certain sacrifices? Suppose go into details of the scheme; that will come in these diseases usually make their appearance, they have bought and paid for all those houses, its
proper place, when hope to be and other sanitary precan ions taken in good out certain matters in time, such as the extermination of rats, &c., are they going to be sacrificed for the good of the able to point
these ontbreaks can be considerably mitigated, public without compensation from the public various parts of the Bill which might be for it all? If any landlord likes to sacrifice his improved. All I can say for the present is this if indeed they cannot be prevented altogether; land for such a public purpose, he must -that since the Government have recognised at all events there seem to be some reasonable be called a philanthropist and a public the grand principle of compensation, s far as grounds for such a belief. Some interests will benefactor, but he can scarely be considered a wo are concerned, as representatives of the undoubtedly ba pinched by the measures in con. business man. Now, the present Bill that has people on this Council, we have no obj ction templation, and no doubt some matters in the - been drafted and submitted by the Govern whatever to the second reading of this Bill, Bill will require amendment or modification in
when the ment gives that compensation, and it is of course,
Council goes into Committee, but the main principles of the B 11, that that we have been fighting for. Our committee on the Bill we shall very likely I think, are to be commended. The question sarlier opposition, sir,
arises whether the measures in contemplation wish to offer a few remarks for the con- sideration of the Government. There is no are of too drastic a nature, and this is a point provision made. for instance, for the spreading to which it will be necessary to give the most of the population, and it seems to me that careful attention. There must undoubtedly te Bill of this kind some attention a point at which the necessary items of expз083 in should be given to the poorer cl ses of the and expediency come in, the cost as weighed people and the prevention of overcrowding in against the advantage proposed to be gained. future. Of course the tramway, when it is Shall we be paying too dear for our whistle? completed, will assist us to a certain extent, but Shall we by driving away Chinese popula. at the same time I think the Government would tion from the Colouy, and thus bring loss to be advised to give its attention to a scheme for the community and all its interests, possibly by the providing of house accommodation for the causing living expenses to go up to such a point that labour will become so much deurer and working classes.
scarcer, and thus cut off one of the advantages from which this Colony has hitherto derived much of its prosperity as a manufacturing and Hon. C. S. SHARP-I desire to preface the few distributing centre? I confess to having some remarks I have to make n this Bill by some misgivings about this. A very large number of thing in the nature of a complaint, one of what the inhabitants, it seems pretty certain, must bɔ I can't help considering a want of consideration displaced if the provisions of the Bill are to the members of Council, We have had enforced, and the anxious question arises how several editions of this Bill all of which I have the housing of these displaced ones is to be pro- laboriously gone through in order to familiarișe vided for. It can hardly be wise or prudent for myself with their contents, but I was hardly a Government which should, and no doubt does, have the best interests of the Colony at heart to prepared to have a new edition sprung on us alm at at the last moment (Tuesday afternoon) put into force measu es having such effects without sufficiently sure indications of what without at same time taking up the question of changes were embodied in it. There are some providing remedial measures for such effects of portions in italics which I take to show the its legislation, and one would have liked to hear a added matt r, but there is nothing what good deal bearing on this most importaut point, ever to show what portious of the previous and I cannot help thinking it most unfortunate, to put it in the mildest form, that Government edition have been omitted. and personally I am not at the moment sure what the Bill as in this his said nothing on this matter. As to the ast edition really is. I think considering the many technical bearings of the portion of the Bill specially referring to building it is hardly ength of th Bill and late date at whi h this edition was furnished it was only due to mem-possible for a non-expert to say exactly how bera of Council that a memorandum should have these will work out in practice, but we have had been furnished showing exactly where the considerable assistance in forming. some appre- changes had been introduced and the fact that ciation of these from the results of the this was not dous seems to me to argue a want researches the various property owners made of consideration which we can hardly te thought through their professional advisers. One thing to be to captions in making complaint about. I feel sure the community ardeatly desires to My remarks are therefore based on the edition arrive at in regard to these matters, if pos ible, of the Bill handed us before the last one I have is some sort of finality in regard to such legis. lation. I observe that Mr. Chadwick in his just referred to. I think we may well con- gratulate ourselves upon the fact that the last remarks on the Bill he drew up says that his Public Health and Buildings Bill has been with- Draft Ordinance “has for its object the avoid- drawn, and that some time has been spe.t in ance of the necessity for further sanitary devoting attention to the Bill now before us, legislation for the next few years," which
Yas not
becauso or im- we do not desire sanitary reform provement. A large number of my unofficial colleagues in this Council signed the petition to the Secretary of State for the Colonies asking him to send out experts to examine into the condition of this Colony, and to report and make the recommendations to be carried out; and that shows, I think, because we are the representatives of the people, that there is a general feeling in the Colony for an improvement in sanitary matters in this Colony. We are all in favour of that improvement, the only thing we desire in return from the Government is this--that we get just compausation. If the Colony is to benefit by these sanitary improve- ment, it should pay for them. Now, as I say, the Government have recognised this principle, and so meets our principal objection to the Bill, but at the same time I regret to see that there is no provision in the Bill to deal with the win- dowless rooms, as the learned Attorney-General terms them, although they are botter known under the name of cubicles. There is no doubt in my mind, and I do not think there can be in the minds of any ouo who has ben in the Colony a few days and looked round, that the greatest sanitary evil amongst the Chinese is these windowless rooms. They are dark and unhealthy, and yet these cubicles have been permitted by the Government to exist. House after house has been built for years and years with these self-same cubicles, and all these houses have been permitted by the Government. And yet without these cubicles it is impossible for people to live in them with privacy. I say it is a very great mistake. Ordinary Chinese houses are about 15 feet wide; take away the thickness of the outer walls and you will find they are about 13 fret or 13 feet six inches broad and their average depth is about 4 or 50 fest; some go down to 80 feet. Now, what man can make use of a house like that or the flo r of a house like that without cubicles? It is impossible for auy family to do it if they are to have privacy, and therefore the Chinese have got into the habit of turning thess long rooms of 40 or 50 feet, and only 13 feet wide, into a number of small rooms, which
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I think it is in that direction
tht we should proceed. With these few remarks I beg to support the reading of this Bill. (Applause.)
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