28
our re-
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
(FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT.)
London, June 14th.
I was down at the Honse of Commons on Monday, and in the course of conversation with the member for East St. Pancras had occasion to refer to the Kowloon-Canton railway project, which bas apparently passed out of the hands of the Hongkong Government into the hands of the Crown Agents. The outcome of our con- versation was that Mr. H. C. Les put the follow- ing questions to the Under Secretary of State for the Colonies on Wednesday :--" Whether he can communicate to the House any information regarding the Kowloon-Canton railway project, especially with regard to that section of the line which will pass through British territory; whether, for a period of about six months, rapid and substantial progress was made in the construction of this section of the line by the Public Works Department of the Government of the Crown Colony of Hong. kong; that in the month of April the Colonial Government was relieved of further responsi- dobility in the matter, and that the work is now being continued by a special staff of engineers appointed by the Crown Agents under the sole and direct authority of His Majesty's Colonial Office; and, if so, will he state the reasons for withdrawing the undertaking from the manage- ment of the Government of the Colony of Hongkong?
[July 14, 1906.
Division. This Division · had not been represented by a Liberal sinos 1885; but Mr. Les turned a minority of about 900 into a majority of nearly 2,000 at the last General Election. He takes a prominent part in Free- masonry, and is expected to go far in Parlia- mentary affairs. Mr. Lea is a member of the Junior Athenæum, Reförm and National Liberal Clubs.
CANTON.
{FLOM OUR CORRESPONDENT.]
July 9th
CHINESE MILITARY METHODS.
Admiral Li-tsud, a friend of the Viceroy, has been appointed commander-in-chief of the Kwangtung troops. He knows nothing what- ever of soldiering, and very little of navy work. Recently two Chinese subalterns, for breach of discipline, had each an ear cut off.
CUSTOMS CONTROL.
Twickenham, members of the crew objected, as 】 THE KOWLOON-CANTON RAILWAY. | period he was nursing the East St. Panora 8 the new conditions violated their agreements.
The Harbour Master (Hon. Captain L. A. W. Barnes-Lawrence), interviewed by presentative, said that the adjustment of the load line raised some difficulty, as in vessels which had sailed from Britain prior to these new Board of Trade rules coming into operation the men pointed out that any alteration made on the load line violated their agreements. Doubtless many were making this a pretext for getting clear of the ship and sent home, There was really no question of safety involved. Owners on the one hand were anxious to take advantage of the new conditions at once, but of course be had to point out that unless the alteration was entered in the agreement with the men he could not recognise it. In other words the consent of the men who had sailed under agreement must be obtained, otherwise they cannot be compelled to remain on the ship. Therefore the old mark must hold good until authority is obtained to alter the load line, On the subject of the shipping statistics Captain Barnes-Lawrence remarked that if the ships.could under the new conditions carry more cargo then shippers might with fewer vessels. The tendency nowa- days was to employ larger ships, and this result was not impossible. But the whole thing was very problematical. We might get bigger ships and more of him. Doubtless the return of the tonnage of cargoes in Hongkong will be effected by the alteration, and therefore, indirect- ly, the tonnage of vessels will be diminished. If ships are enabled to carry about 250 or 300 tons more it might naturally follow that the employment of fewer ships might be considered. Mr. Lambert, Lloyd's Agent, did not feel free to discuss the question, but pointed out that as the deck construction of modern vessels gave a greater buoyancy than was possessed by the older ships it was only fair to owners that there should be a greater cargo space commensurate with this greater buoyancy reserve. The alteration of the load line was a perfectly natural sequence to the changes that had gradually been introduced in the construction of ships since the last rules were framed by the Board of Trade.
Our representative's next call was on Mr. W. J. Saunders, manager of the Union Insurance Society of Canton, Ltd. Asked as
to the possibility of an increase in insurance risks in consequence of the adjustment of load lines, Mr. Saunders said there had been no suggestion of putting up rates at present. Possibly, after a few strandings of the deeper draught vessels the rate might be increased, but at present nothing would be done, as if one company attempted to advance rates the business would be passed over to others. The deeper draught would certainly have adverse influence on strandings, as a vessel with the new load line was liable to strike a rock which a ship with the present draught would pass over. ID conclusion, Mr. Saunders jocularly remarked
that the underwriters would like to see more strandings, as it was their only opportunity of making money.
FIRE ON THE TAMING."
About half-past eight o'clock on the 8th July, the alarm was given for a tire оп board the China Navigation Company's steamer Tuming, which runs under the command of Capt. A. W. Outerbridge between Hongkong and Manila. She was lying alongside the Kor- loon Wharres. The chief officer (Mr. A. J. Scott) noticed smoke coming up the main hatch way, and having given the usual alarm and hoisted the fire sigaal, promptly had the ship's hose pouring water on the fire.
A smart response to the fire signal was made by the captain, officers and engineers of the H. A. L. steamer Ithaka, who brought their hose and rendered most valuable service. Subsequently, other help arrived, including the government firefloat with one large hose. The fire was extinguished befora eleven o'clock, by which time there was four feet of water in the bold, which contained about 150 tons of genera,
cargo.
44
The reply of Mr Winston Churchill, which has already been cabled to you, was as follows:
Negotiations are still proceeding with the Chinese Government for the construction and working of a line from Canton to Kowloon. The British section, which is in active progress, has been constructed from the first under the supervision of the Consulting Engineer, and there has been no change of policy in this respect. All the steps taken have had the full concurrence of the Governor of Hongkong."
It can hardly be said that the reply was satisfactory. Doubtless all the plans for the construction of the British section of the rail. way were sanctioned by the Colonial Office's Consulting Engineer, and the work has pro- ceeded so far without any change of policy in this respect, But the point of the question was whether the work that had been carried on, satisfactorily enough, by the Public Works Department of the Colony was not now being conducted by the Crown Agents. Whether it is in the best interests of the Colony that this work should be undertaken by the Crown Agents and not by the Colony's own officials is possibly a moot point; but Hongkong, like the Straits Settlements and Ceylon, does not care for the Crown Agents, and its officials are, I think, quite capable, of carrying out the con structive as well as the preliminary work in connection with this short railway line.
Neither is it satisfactory to learn that negotiations with China for the construction of the continuation from Kowloon to Canton are only in progress. They have been in progress for a long time now, and it is surely time that a definite understanding had been arrived at.
Mr. H. C. Lea, who put the question to the Under-Secretary for the Colonies, is a new member, and has taken a prominent part already in the discussions of the House A kom- paratively young man, for he is only abont forty years of age, be has seen a good deal of life and a good deal of the world. He was born in East St. Pancras, and was educated in Germany and France. He enlisted in the Oxford Light Infantry, serving for five years and attaining the rank of sergeant. He then went to America, where he entered the army of the United States, taking part, as he mentioned in the House a few nights ago, in the suppres- sion of the riots in Chicago in the early nineties. For a time, he was a sailor ou the great inland lakes of America. Though a rolling stone, he managed to acquire a fair competency before returning to this country to settle down as the proprietor of a trade journal Mr. Le made his maiden appearance in the House as supporter of Mr. Swift MacNeill's protest against flogging of boys in the Navy, a practice that has since been suppressed. He is a Huent speaker, especially on social subjects and acquired a capital platform style during the
8
It is reported that the authorities are officially notified that T.E. Tit Liang and Tong Shan-yu have assumed effective control of the I. M. Customs.
THE HANGFIRE RAILWAY.
Further delay may be counted upon, now that it is known the engineer appointed by the Viceroy is engaged elsewhere, and cannot come. -The Viceroy goes to Whampoa to-day, with a bodyguard of eighty soldiers.
ELECTRIC TRAMS
An engineering student just returned from America has been ordered to survey the recla mation bund for an electric tramway. The Viceroy intends to invite tenders of rolling stock, etc.
į
MACAO.
[FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT.]
AN UNEASY SUSPICION.
July 11th.
The Government has appointed a committee to go from house to house for the purpose of taking notes about the monthly rentals. What is the object of this? Probably to increase the tax. If such is the case it is indeed a hardship which they are imposing on the poor inhabitants of this city. The revenue of Mccao is more than ample to meet expenditure, and no extra- ordinary expenditure is contemplated for the improvement of the city, so the tax on house rents should be reduced instead of being increased.
AN AMERICAN BAR."
A new concern has sprung up in the Rua Central under the above designation. The locality does not seem appropriate for a business of this sort.
•
THE ELECTRIC LIGHT AGAIN. "Hope deferred maketh the heart sick." We are still without good light.
POSTAGE ON LETTERS.
Why are letters from Macao to Hongkong and Canton made to pay three cents postage while those coming from those places pay only two? Some time ago the postage from here was the same as from Hongkong and Canten. Why has it been increased ?
RECLAMATION WORK.
The work on 150 metres of reclaimed ground under the "Boa Vista" Hotel is proceeding very fast, and soon the inhabitants of Macao should have a very pretty “praya" on which to promenade.
DETERMINED ATTEMPT AT
SUICIDE.
On the 9th July as the Heungshan, returning from Macao, approached the wharf, a Chinese woman leaped overboard into the water. P.C. Cooper, who was on the wharf, leaned down and caught the woman by the hair, but she resisted so strongly that a coolie had to enter the water and keep her from going under the wharf. Ultimately she was got on shore, but made another attempt to throw herself into the harbour. Finally, she was taken to the Police Station, and as the medical examination showed she was insane she was removed to the asylum.
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