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stumbling blocks, instead of "ordinary steps" towards making the policy of the Government palatable.
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get
that
debate came on.
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[September 28, 1908.
Noes-Captain Superintendent of Police, Registrar Ceneral, Director of Public Works, Colonial Treasurer, Attorney General, Colon- ial Secretary, and the Officer Commanding. His Excellency The resolution is lost by seven to five.
THE BUILDING AUTHORITY QUESTIONED.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
incapable of giving a reasoned opinion, but rather that there was not time to reasoned opinion before the Further, the statement I cannot imagine a better way of making that policy unpalatable in this Colony than by | made by the Under Secretary for the offering reflections on our good name in Colonies that he had dour his best to defence of methods due to the immediate ascertain the views of the people of Hong- needs of Ministers created by the exigencies | kong I confess I do not understand. I am
Hou. Mr STEWART, - In proposing the of debate. The policy will be made more or unaware that any steps had been taken to
second resolution which stands in my name. I less palatable according. as the belief gains or obtain the views either of the Government do not intend to say more than a very few loses ground that it is dictated by higher i or of the people of Hongkong prior to Maywords. The facts upon which it comments motives that those which we associate with ↑ 6th, but perhaps more light may be throwin
are common property and it is unnecessary to mere party strife. The more we are con upon this by some further enumication
to do more than reaptitulate them briefly vinced of this the less, to adopt Sir Houry | from the Secretary of State, or perhaps, as Broadly speaking they may be recapitulated Blake's expression, shall we kick.
the hon. member suggesteel, it may be that thus. [Early in the second half of July a large
Later in! Of course, the Under Secretary could not be! he is inaccurately reported. expected to explain the matter in this way, i Colonel Seely agreed with Mr. Lyttletoner of notices were served upon property owner in the name of the Building Authority, But surely he ought never to have come with that the ordinary steps, which are usually calling upon them to execute various 19 in measurable distance of setting up such a
taken before making such an atonement
pairs. Ou the 14th July tremendous clumsy indictment to do duty as an exeuse,
Consist of consulting the Government of the mains fall, causing considerable damage and No doubt it is open to anyone to contend Colony concerned. He pledged the Caverns that you cannot get a reasoned opinion from ment to act on the advice which they had making a large rall upon the reserve labour of local contraetors, While any large number of people. But I submit obtained and would obtain from the Govern
struggling with the extra work thus entailed He believed he would be able to that it could only be averred of us in the ment.
the Colony was visited by a severe tpyhoon sense in which it would be true of almost any satisfy the House that the best opinion in
which impressedd itself forcibly upon a great community. In one sense it would be true of Hongkong and the opinion of the Glover- London or Liverpool, Manchester or Glasgow, ment coincided with the measures proposed.number of houses in the town, and left But I think that no politician would be likely Since these measures, by the pledge already almost every house at the Peak oulling advice | bonully, through broken windows and gaping I based upon to to make a similar remark about the inhabit- { made. WETT
That was on ants of any English, Scotch or Irish town. percived from Hongkong, the remainder of oofs, for immediate repair.
the th July, as we all have reason to re- He would be likely to hear about it if he did. | his aspersion appears to me to follow mure
From that time onwards for a Are we to conclude that because we are so far or less as a corollary. With the exception member.
month and more it was notoriously impossible therefore of the statement to which 1 away our susceptibilites need not be so care fully considered? Does consideration vary referred as being incompatible with facts sa to execute repairs with any degree of rapidity must have been the experience of with the distance! This would be at un
| far as we at present know then. [consider and t fortunate impression for any Under Secretary the reply of the Under Secretary satisfar everybody whose house or premises stood in need of mending that he had to wait. of State for the Colonies to create.
When I read it the maning it It might tory.
Nodedly liked it, because several typhoons have been expected that he would be careful conveyed to my was that the Under Secret
were distantly reported about this time and to avoid making remarks calculated to arouse Lary of State deemed that the statement of
the prospect of being caught by one was, un resentment in even the most distant of the May 6th was somewhat premature gewing te communities with which for a time he is to be the exigencies of Home polities. He intend.der the Firemstances, distinctly disquieting. But best people took a reasonable "view of officially connected. But perhaps we shall be fed to assure the House that no steps would the position and, realising that every nerve told that he did not say it, that he said some ! be taken to give effect to it without the i thing quite different, that the reporter is to advier of the Government, and pledged the I was feing strained by the architects and
put their tempers under blame. Or, maybe, a meaning will be read into | Government that advies would be followed on thetors, the text which will help the Under Secretary Subject to the general policy of both sides straight and exercised the virtue of patience, I was therefore with something like anaze- out. This has already been done by editors of the House that opinin divans should be and others who like most of the rest of us her closed, Before sitting down I wish to add ment that we read one day in the papers of the issue of a large number of sunumions upon have found it, as an explanation, inexplicable, į that I personally turist
property owners for failure to carry out during this very period the former require- ments of the Building Authority in the of repairs. have been informed that as many as 99 were issued in one day calling upon property owners to appear at the | Police Court, I think the 21st Aughst. It is just this kind of inconsiderate procesling which ruses the ire of the Hon. Mr. WEI YUK seconded the motion.
general public and brings the Administration His EXCELLENCY With reference to the
Hon. Mr. STEWART Your Excelleney, I
into disfavour, In particular it naturally resolution moved by the hon. member for believe I have the right to reply. I inly
arouses the ire of property owners and the Chamber of Commerce, I would point wish to say that I should have felt more
leads them to regaril the Public Health out that Hansard for July 25th, of the Im-confidence in the belief to which you have Ordnances with Something much stronger perial Parliament, has not tracheal this committed yourself, that it
not said, Colony, and we have not therefore any but for the experience of some of the other than disfavour. When the new let
read pissed it was pointed out on all hands and authentic record of the actual words used Colonies, which one has heard and
in this Council that its success mainly de by the Under Secretary for the Colonies about during the last few years. The resolution refers to reports in the local particular debate Mr. Lyttleton was refer.pended upon the spirit in which its pro- visions were interpreted and the discretion the of ring to
treatment of certain other press. I am not aware whether any
with which they were applied. In the de- these reports were copied from the verbatim | Colonies at the hands of ex Under Sverr.
bar on the Third Reading I had the teme- shorthand notes in the House of Commons, | taries of State when he spoke of these but next to the Imperial Hansard, the Colonies ̈so far from peeiving respectables to express the hope that the powers
have received authority which is usually accepted as the treatment, these colonies highest is the Times of London, and that report, as the hon. member pointed out, is a third person report, and does not purport to give the actual words used. However that may be, assuming the Times report to be fairly correct, I must say I did not place upon it when I read it quite the same interpretation as the hon. member who moved the resolution. The statement that it was impossible to obtain a reasoned opinion from Hongkong appeared to be to obviously mean that it was impossible to obtain it in the time which had elapsed
Ipartly
In the meantime as the statement stands the words used by the hon. mimber geak reported in the columans of "The Times" foring to this resolution, that the higher the all men to read, it seems to me that it is the motive which has prompted the policy of
the more WA {{འ* “uti duty of the Unofficial Members of this Commeil the Government,
Vinced that that motive is laserd met on to challenge it, and I therefore bok to my colleagues to support me in voting for the the exigencies of party polities, but on the
best traditions of resolution, which I have designed for that purpose, and which I now move,
likely we should be to kick and the more likely to heartily co operate,
between the succession of the new Secretary of State to office and the date on which the Colonial Estimates were brought for ward in the House of Commons. The new
Government assumed office on April 16th, The Colonial Estimates were to be debated on May 6th, and then, I presume, under instructions from the new Secretary of State for the Colonies, it had been decided that the presentment should be made of the policy of the reconstituted Cabinet. Itlon't therefore think that the phrase was intended to have the meaning that Hongkong was
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Country.
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the less
In this
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entistel to the mysterious abstraction known the Building Authority would in the House of Commons jeers and in
be us with discretion. I understood {sults," I don't myself believe that this
Your Excellency to assure this Council could possibly be so bad in our case, still
and through this Council the community, it creates a doula, anda donht which seems
that it
the Government's desire to to me to make it advisable that we should
ayud universsary friction in carrying out kick against anything of that sort if any provisions of the Act, and. Sir, the thing of that sort is intended. As regards fact that on this matter being represented the argument that he want there was no time to ascertain the views of the people, it seems rather to be begging the question, because our original protest was that they did not give us time. Singapore was ap- proached previously, Ceylon considerably before that, and hudia well; before that, so that, if I may be permitted to say so, and there really does not seen any other polite way out of it the defence is a little
most of these summonses wete
proptly withdrawn. shows that you aged with the general sense of the Com-
un-
ity in thinking that they were wily issued. But that such things can happen in spite of the assurances of Your Excellency, and apparently without the knowledge and consent of the higher off- cials of the Government, suggests a weak lame. In any case an explanation that has link in the chain of responsibility, and with the idea of seeking to remedy this itself to be explained away
defect, in the only way that lies open to the think, be regarded as satisfactory,
Unofficial Members of this Council, namely fore. I do not pro- pose to withdraw my hydrawing particul. attention to the weak motion.
The resolution was put and the division | Cuncil regret the recent action of the That the members of this
resulted as follow:
camet. [
There
Ayes-- Hon, Messes, Shule, Stewart, Gres. son, Wei Yuk, and Hon. 15. Ho Kai.
spot. I move : —”
Building Authority in instituting on a large segle criminal proceedings against propert y
1
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