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THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
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[April 21, 1906.
enlightened? But the race course is not a good | HONGKONG SANITARY BOARD. place in which to solve problems, and I came away still wondering why."
Caspar was reminded when he pointed out the grisly side of 8 famous victory. INGERSOLL says it is too early in the history of the world to write a creed: it is
All who have the welfare of the Colony at certainly too early in the history of heart will be glad to learn that the railway civilisation to forecast a satisfactory finis; operations in the New Territory are proceeding and as every reform must be in the
space. The greatest progress is seen in the nature of
experiment, it is neighbourhood of Taipo, where several miles of obvious that cocksureness in the refor-completed embankment are to be seen.
If there be there this Eastertide assure me that the work is mer is to be deprecated. one thing in which downright radicalism very substantial, and judging by the expeditious manner in which the line is being made, we seems to be needed, we should say that shall in a comparatively short time be hearing thing was education. We are frequently the snort of the locomotive as it emerges from tempted to wish that the houry, moth-enten Shateen and comes speeding along to Kowloon. traditions that hamper it could be swept away
in a single day, so that our children might start the road of real wisdom unencumbered. Then the yoke of the majority might become less galling to the minority. Let them learn, let us all learn, to realise human limitations. Nature and its law, as overruling all other law, should be studied. We do not mean that the rising generation should be bothered with the fashionable 'petty details about tomtits and taraxacum; but that the essence of human environment, its esoteric philosophy, its ruthless individual-ignoring laws, should be brought home to them. This does not involve, as may be said, a spread of pessimism. Pure knowledge and truth unsmirched, such as we are thinking of, cannot put humanity oat of conceit with life. It will realise that the sun, in spite of its spots, still gives light and warmth; that nature, harsh and stern as she is to the weakling, is beneficent to the type. But it
must never be overlooked that the man who struggles to make a blade of grass grow where none grew before, a metaphor that covers all efforts to reach a buman Utopia, is fighting nature; and he must not grumble if nature, as is her custom, makes a flank attack. To hope to conquer all along the line is to kick against the pricks, to plough the sand, to court dis appointment.
These are
a few of the thoughts that must occur to those who yield their minds to the stimuli concealed in the apparently flippant paragraph to which we re'er;
HONG KONG JOTTINGS.
April 16th,
I am afraid those who witnessed the market
Visitors
I don't mean to suggest that my feelings are hurt, but I should have been better pleased if the committee of the Horticultural Society had not overlooked the fact that the formation of such a society was first made in this journal. Undoubtedly when H.E. the Governor suggested that the old society be resus. citated or a new one formed, the movement received the impetus which carried it to success, and now we have an institution which is likely to do good work in inculcating a greater love of flowers and in effecting improve- ments in market gardening.
In the interregnum between the cessation of winter sports and the beginning of summer pastimes, billiards seems to be claiming the time and interest of a fairly large section of the community. More than once I have beard the question asked--who is the best amateur player in the Colony? I know several young men who are expert cheists, but an inherent modesty makes them diffident about asserting their rights to such a distinction. On the other hand, certain enthusiasts have made bold to say that the championship was to be found in the Hongkong Club. I have no knowledge of any gentleman who can pose as the Roberts of Hongkong, but I should think this sport-loving community would be glad to have the question
enswered.
The fine new house built for the magistrate at Taipo-n portion of which is allotted for the ase of H. E. the Governor-has been completed and gossip has it that there was a pleasant house- warming the other evening.
The Sanitary Board has been freely criticised of late for what some consider its extravagance, not to say waste, and while I have not been able to give my approval to all that they do, I must absolve them from the charge of extravagance, The other day I was handed a communication from the office of that much-malignod authority and was amused to notice at the foot of the cover the words "Kindly return envelope to race at the Gymkhana on Saturday would not M.O.H." Naturally this departure from the form a very high opinion of the housewifely custom of ordinary correspondence led me to accomplishments of the ladies who assisted. seek a reason, and after much cogitation I came Most of them were apparently weak in arith- to the conclusion that the Board had commenced metio, and, though it be ungallant to say so, a policy of retrenchment. No longer would they signally failed in making out the charges of wasteful expenditure be levelled at required bills-correctly. Had the calcula- them with any semblance of truth. No, they tions been other than in vegetables, say, in were determined to economise, and nowhere haberdashery, the results might have been more easily thau in the supply o: stationery. En different. Perhaps their pencils needed point-velopes which cost about ibirty cents a hundred ing and would not figure accurately, or perhaps need never be bought after the first purchase the ladies metaphorically lost their heads. At if a little care and forethought be exercised. any rate the fair sex can always rely on our For instance, what more simple than to indulgence, a feeling which no doubt led a
note on
each that it should be returned certain gentleman to remark that he would to the department from which it was issued ? open a school of arithmetic “for ladies only.”
Thus it may
be used over and over again. In the same way a whole sheet of note- paper should never be utilised to write a com munication which extends only to a few lines. It should be halved, and the other piece reserved for subsequent use. Some may describe this as meanness or parsimony, but without applying any particular name to it I am hoping that this is the small beginning from which great results may be expected.
In the intervals between the races on Saturday I wondered why we were such a favoured people in respect of betting and gambling. Nearly every week I see cases reported in the Press in which the police have made raids on native houses where Chinese were gambling, but at the "pari" we could gamble away to our heart's content or rather to the extent of our pockets and our credit with neighbours. Of course as individuals we bare, the privilege of being inconsistent, but we look for better things from our author- ities. Why differentiate between the native and the European? If gambling for matches and cents be an offence on the part of John, why should the gambling for dollars in tens and hundreds be counted harmless amusement on the part of those who are considered mors ́ furnaces at once.
BANYAN.
It has been ascertained by an expert European assayist engaged by the Hunan authorities that the iron pyrites found in the Hsiugkuo prefecture contain a large admixture of silver, and Viceroy Chang Chih-tung has ordered the Mining Office to erect smelting
A meeting of the Sanitary Board was held on April 17th at the Board Room. The Hon. Dr. F. Clark (president) presided, and there were also present - Dr. W. W. Pearse, M.O.H., Hon. Mr. W. Chatham, Mr. F. J. Badeley, Mr. E. A. Hewett, Hon. Mr. A. W. Brewin, Mr. Lau Chu-pak, Mr. A. Shelton Hooper, Mr. H. Humphreys, Mr. Fang Wa. chun and Mr. G. A. Woodcock (secretary).
THE NUISANCE AT THE POST OFFION. The PRESIDENT said-With reference to the
matter raised by Mr. Hewett at the last meet- ing, you will be glad to know that the Govern ment has given instructions for the basement of the new Post Office to be filled up with clean stone pending the time of its being covered in, I think you will also have noticed that the whole site is covered with a matshed roof so that there is now less probability of water accumulation.
PLAGUE RETURNS.
The following minutes relative to the decision come to at the last meeting of the
Board to try and ascertain the death rate in Canton and Macao from plague and other causes were laid on the table :-
Mr. LAU CHU-PAK-I understand that recently all the houses in Canton were numbered and the number of people living in each house recorded. If the British Conanl General is asked to approach the provincial Government he may be able to arrange for the required information to be supplied.
lu submitting the recommendation to the Government. Dr. CLARKE minuted-We already receive weekly bulletins from Macao. I attach the latest to hid. With regard to Canton, I think that the Commissioner of Customs is the most likely person to obtain the figures the Board requires with regard to the death rate and population of the city of Canton.
The Governor (to the Colonial Secretary): Let the Macao weekly report, be communi- cated regularly to the Sanitary Board and have the annexed printed letter to the Consul General to Canton filed. I fear it is very unlikely that we shall be able to ascertain the Canton rate of mortality with any approxima- tion to accuracy, as I believe that even the total population of that city is not known within a quarter of a million. Mr. Humphreys told me that it was between 1,000,000 and 1,250,000. I
44
gather that was only a guess. Captain Gordon Casserly in his book "Land of the Boxers published in 1893, states on page 236 as follows: In 1874 the population of Canton was 1.560.000, including the floating population, put down at 230, 0, and the inhabitants of Houam, 100,000." He tells us that probably it is largely increased. I do not know, but I am inquiring as to the source of the information. The late Colonel Mark Bell, V.C., in a military report on Chiua printed in Simla in 1881. gives the population of Canton S 1,600,000. From my acquaintance with this officer I am satisfied that these figures were the most reliable available when he inanded them in his work. In "The European Bottle- ments in the Far East," a book anonymously published in 1900, there necurs the following passage on pige 158: The population of Canton is estimated at 2,500,000, which is the last figures given in the Customs Trade report. The native official report in 1893 gave the population as 499,288; but this was exclusive of the boat population and is believed to have beeu incorrect as regards the land population." The same statement is repeated word for word in the Directory and Chronicle for Chion, etc. Details in 1895 report before referred to are given by Madrolle's "Chine du Sud"-
'—a guide book published in 1904-in the following terms : 'L'agglomération de Canton est habités par près de 60,000 habitants, qui d'après le recensement effectué par les authorites indigènes en juin 1895; *6 répartiraient ainsi ; les deux villes murées 161,010 (dont 97,846 daos la vielle cité); Faubourg de l'est 48,540; Faubourg de l'ouest 279,604 auxquels il faut ajouter Honam 30,000 hab.: population_demeurant Bur les barques 20,000; gens de : pasanga 30,000." None of the German books on Chius · that I have be able to consult ventured at any estimate of the population of Canton. Nothing of much use in this matter can be
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