462
Then again, according to one of the most important Laws relating to Public Health in force in London (54 and 55 Vic. Chap. 76).
which reads as follows:-
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
•
Õཝོ
[December 15, 1902.
in a much better re ́arn than they are now getting. I recommend this scheme for the consideration of those interested, daring the coming year. Thanking you for the ins rtion of this and evelesing my card.- Yours, etc..
A DISSATISFIED SHAREHOLDER.
4
BEACHCOMBERS."
TO THE EDITOR OF THE DAILY PRESS," Hongkong. 12th December. SR-I have read with alarm your admirable bas-article in to-lay's issue on the subject of beich- comte s, and sincerely wish that it may lead to soma practical steps using takon by the Govern ment to check the ever-increasing evils which inevitably follow the arrival of such mn.
of water. They recognise it as a fair thing and don't complain. If they wasto, the meter shows it, and their supply is liable to te ent off. But Jhu Chinaman, w'o never knew a public 48. An occupied house without a proper water service of any kind in bis own country and sufficient supply of water shall be calmly says: "I mist have wafer and I have an a nuisance liable to be dealt with sum, abiding horror of the mater. I must be allowed marily under this Act, and if it be ato wa to what I like; that is old custom. I dwelling-house, shall be deemed unfil
don't care if the Europeans are wasters or not; for human habitation.
that is not my pidgin. I want water and 1 it is clearly proved that any house, without don't want anybo ly to measure it." If that water being supplied through an efficient
proposition is astounding, what, may we ask, is sarvice, must be condemned as unfit for human the peculiar form that Chinese loyally habitation.
taken on this occasion to gain the powerful support of the Excentive? What, I wonder, would the Hon. Dr. Ho Kai say if it were proposed to give the Europeans an unmetered supply, and meter it to the Chinese? What
Hoogkong is fast becoming, and if nothing answer would the Governor make to that pro effectual ba doze, will soon b’enme the dumping position? And yet everybody must know that ground for the destitute and undeserving from if a short supply were dep ndent ali ne Ou Mauila and from all ports of the Far East. European waste the maius would be full alway. Can to dr.stic mesares batiken to a ert this The qn stion is forced upon us, aro the imminent calamity? Surely it is within the European taxpayers entitled to any considera-
power and ability of the local authorities to tion? Is this Colony run purely in the interests derisa effectual ways and meaus to put an of the Chinese? Are we to lose our birthight; immediato stop to this evil.—Yours, ete, for a mess of potash, and be led around by the nose like a tin duck swimming after a ma net ? That is the quasti n.~'
-Yeurs, etc..
The meter-syst m so strongly supported by "Aquarius" for Chinese tenement-houses has been most carefully considered by all who are likely to be affected by it, and it has been pronounced as absolutely impracticable, for the following reasous :—
1. As the occupants of Chinese fosemen'- houses are migratory, changing about from month to month, there would be great difficulty in collecting the dues for meter-reut and the extra consumption of water.
2. Should one meter ouly be fixed in every house, this difficulty of collecting would be very greatly increased, as a teuemont house may some- times contain from twenty to thirty tenants.
3. If a mater were to be fixed on every flaf. the cost to the Government for metus only would be over a million dollars, besides the service necessary for a regular inspection and the constant repairs.
The reasons, I think, speak for themselves; they are muscular ones. And, as the owners of proporty are to be looked upon by the Govern ment for all these dues, it is not likely many of
them will avail themselves of this troublesome. water-meter system.
On the other hand, if the Government are prepared to undertake the risk of dealing direct with the Chinese tenants, the landlords will be only too pleased to see tho “Aquarius" suggestion adopted and thereby sare their $500.00 con- tribution to the ridez-main scheme, which, I may here state, is only intended in blocks of houses situated on the lower levels. Houses at the Peak and on the upper roads cannot be brought into this scheme on acconut of their isolated positions.-Yours, etc.,
AHMET RUMJAUN,
TO THE EDITOR OF THE DAILY PRESS,'
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AQUARIUS.
TO THE ED TON OF THE “DAILY PRESS," Honkong, 1th December. SIR-Tu my remarks on the all-engrossing water topic, kindly allow me to disclaim any intention of injuring the Chiarse. I havò nu desire to give off nes or inftet hardship on any portion of the community. On the other 1 I am a philanthropist; iniue is purely a slit h molive. I Amp'y do not relish the prospect of being ou a short ali wanes for all time to
come.
}
Land
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CONSERVATIVE.
HONGKONG AND WHAMPOA
DOCK CO., LD.
TE NEW DUCK SCHEME.
A meling of the shareholders in the Hong- kong and Whampoa Dock Co, L., was held on the 8th inst, in the City Hill to consider the proposal of the directors for the construction of a new large dock at Hunguom. Mr. D. E, Brown, chairman, presided, a d there were n'ɛo fir sent Messrs. N. A. Siebs, Hon. C. W. Dick- ion. J. II. Lewis, G. II. Medhurst, C. Michelau,
E Every honsholder knows how difficult a thing it is to prevent wasta by Chinese servauts in his own family, even in times of | direst drought; and these servants are trained in a manner to European methods. If a twenty- four hours' supply were turned on in Chinatown it would take three min to look after each tap. This woul give them eight hours ch of unre- mitting witchfulness. The gentleman who writes ever the quaiului de plume of Rumjalin is a writer of rar · and enviable brilliancy, and I have much pleasura in quoting what I take to be his strongest point in the prov ntion of wast · nuder the rider-main, or intermitteat system. When the water is turned through the rider fr the use of the tenauts, along cones the inspector; he applies his stethes op to deteel the sound of running water.” He finds the a using it end promptly turns off the whole block -say an acre or two. If he doesn't wish to ba arbitrary he can go through the whole Block and find out, if he can. who was runuing it at the time he applied the stotle. scope. Unmetered water to the Chinese moans rast, and waste means famino —Your, etc.,
AQUARIUS.
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Goetz. W. B. Dixon, Chief Manager (Directors), G. A. Caldwell (Acting Secretary), C. Ahmed, G. C. Anderson, A. F. Arculli, A. K. E. Areulli, O. E. Areulli. M. E. Asger, G. Balloch, G. M. Bún, B. J. Barlow, A. Becker, R. Beker, J. W. Bles, H. F. Carmichael, C. de Champeanx, Chan Kwan Hung. Chan Tak Shu g. Chan Tsz Ching, Chau hok Ku, Chan Sin Ki, Chui iu Nam, W. A. C. Cruick- shank. . Danby, E., I. Ellis, I. E. Ellis, II. M. S. II. Esnail, Noel Geo. Evan, J. S. Ezekiel, R. M. Ezekiel, E. Ezra, Fok Lan Ching, Fok Yiu Shek. J. McGregor Forbes, J. A. Fredericks, Fung Mak Heung, C. W. Georg, E. Georg, E. J. Grist, A. R. Gubby, A. S. Gublay, C. S. Cublay, D 8. Gubbay, C. E. A. Hane, Dayal Haskell, John Hastings E, A. Howeit, F. H. Hinds, 0 Fook. 1o Kom Tong, J. L. Houston, John A. Jupp, W. M. Humphreys, E. Howard, J. II. Jessen, E. S. Joseph, S. A. Joseph, E. J. Judah, F. Kiene, Lam Kin Fan, J. J. Leirin, Leung Lui Chiu, D. Law, Long Tit Shan, Li Cheong Pung, Li Oi Ting, Li Sui Sang, Li Yik Sun, Ling Chn Sun, Lo Cheung Ip, Lo Cheung Shiv, Lum Muisang. F. Maitland, Do. a'd Mac- douald, J. P. Mudar W. F. McIntosh, H. A. Meyer, J. R. Michael, M. Michael, M. H. Michael, S. II. Michael, S J. Michael, R. TO THE EDITOR OF THE "DAILY PRESS,” Mitchell, R. H. B. Mitchell, E. J. Moses, S. E, Hongkong, 3rd December. Moses, A. R. Marty, II. M. H. Nemazee, W. SIR,I am a shareholder in the above Com. Parlare G. W. C. Pemberton, J. C. Peter, Pun pany, and I have read with interest your report Chee Tng, H. E Pollock (K.C.), W. H. Purcell, of the annual meeting held on the 25th ul. I W. E. Pücher, E., H. Ray, A. J. Raymond, was unable to be present at the meeting or IT. II. Reid. J. C. dos Remedios, Dr. Alexander should have protested against the distribution | Reuuie, C. W. Richards, A. Ritchie, A. Rodger, of the profits of the Company in the way the C. 11. Rogge, E. W. Rutter, M. S. Sarsoon, directors have thought fit to divide them The C. S. Shap, A. Sharp, A. W. Schellbaz, A. H. shareholders who are non contributors of busi- M. da Silva, A. H. Skilton, ¡1. W. Slade, E. A. ness only get a dividend of $4-which absorbs Snewin, Gershom Stewart, Otto Struckmeyer, 896,0 10 Th, intes'ed funds of the Company, A. G. Stokes, A. M. L. Soa es, C. H. Thomp which belong to the shareholders, bring in son, R. Uusworth. W. M. Watson, W. H. interest amounting to $110,00); and it sets Wickham, W. G. Winterburn, P. Witkowski, to me that the shareholders, who run all the Wong Check Kre, Wong Kin Pak. Wong risks of the business, should certainly receive King Him, Wong Lai Yuen, Wong Leung the whole of that money. Instead of that the Him, Wong Man Hou, Weng Quwan Pak, directors see fit to use some $14,000 of such Wong Tso, Wong U Tio, H. C. Wilcox, and funds for the rnoning expenses of the Company Yiu Ka. or for distribution to the contributors. The principle of giving a return to contributors is sound and one of which all shareholders mast approve, but it appears to me the directors do not give sufficient thought as to what that return should be. The shareholders would be much better off if they decided to liquidate the Company and divide the assets among them- selves. They could invest the proceeds to bring |
Hongkong, 8th December. SIR,-In my letter of the 3rd instant I said that under the rider-main system wo would haro a short supply for half the year, which is equiva. lent to saying we would have a full supply for the other half. This was misleading. It is true we had a full supply for something o:er five mouths this year, say from some time iu May until the end af October, but we cannot count on a season like the last once in ten years. Tytam overflowed early in June, and Pokfolum in May; but ordinarily Tyfam does not fill before the end of September, and too often it does not fill at all. This, then, is how the CHINA TRADERS' INSURANCE CO, LD. rider main system would most probably work out. When the reservoirs were overflowing water would be turned on full, but the moment the overflow ceased this, owing to Chinese waste, would be no longer safe and the intermit tent supply would step in. The Government would take no chance oa having to import water from Kowloon as last season. The inter- mittent supply in the residential distric's meaus an hour and a half per day, and in the more favoured Chinese localities, say four hours. We might therefore reasonably count on a full supply from the middle of September to the end of October, if we were luckly, and an hour and a half for the balance of the year. The resor- voirs under construction may in time be counted on to relieve the situation somewhat, but it will be some years before the big one is ready, and while that would have an independent catch- ment area, yet it must depend for filling largely on the overflow from Tytam. Iu years when Tytam is only three quarters full it would be interesting to learn the Government estimate of the accumulation at Tytam Tak.
But what must strike any impartial observer is the collossil impudence of the whole affair; the superhuman nerve of the proposition! Just think of it for a moment. The Europeans are metered to prevent excessive use, and waste
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The notice calling the meeting baring been road
The CHAIRMAN said --Gentlemen, we have met to-day to discuss and decide upon the question of our acceptance or refusal of the Government's offer of a piece of land for a proposed extension of our docking facilities at Kowlon on the terms set forth in our circulars of September 22nd last and 3rd instant, and as these circulars
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