THE
Hongkong Weekly Press
VOL. LXVIII.]
AND
China Overland Trade Report.
CONTENTS.
Far Eastern News.......
Leading Articles .--
The Proposed New Peak Tramway Mr. Roosevelt.
Portugal and China
Christmastide
Random Reflections
-Hongkong News
Sanitary Board
Governinent House
Hongkong General Chamber of Commerce
Supreme Court
Canton News
I
St. Joseph's College Prize Distribution
The Textile Industry of Bombay
Shipping
Commercial
04102
DEATH.
HONGKONG, SATURDAY, 26т¤ DECEMBER, 1908.
PAGE
463
The extension of the foreign settlement has been mooted again in Shanghai.
ฟา
Dr. Sven Hedin left Japan on the 13th inst. after making a pleasant stay of just a month 461 in the country. The Emperor of Japan ...444 conferred upon him the First Class Order of Merit. Dr. Hedin intended to stay three days in Seoul and expected to be home by 466 January 15th.
465 465 .466
467
.467
467 469 .470 471
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472 471
At Manila, on the 23rd inst., suddenly, WALTER EDWARD CHONYUT, aged 31, son of A P. and Mrs. H. T. Chunyut, Parkside, Kowloon.
In view of the promulgation of a Constitution for China the Government has proposed to fix the annual allowance to the Emperor and instructed the Ministers accredited to the foreign countries to enquire into, and report upon, the law relating to the matter in those countries respectively. The Minister to Japan has already reported by telegram.
The Portuguese gunboat Patria, was at Colombo on the 7th inst bound for Macao. She is described as being about fifteen years old, and is lightly armed, the number of guns being ten four 4-in. guns and six 18-in. guns. Her dimen-
sions are as follows:-Displacément 520 tons, length 1963 feet; beam 27 feet: draught 8 feet. Her maximum speed is 15 knots
Hongkong delechly Dress, The
Hongkong OFFICE: 10A, DES Vœux ROAD C... London OFFICE: 131, Fleet Street, E.C.
ARRIVAL OF MAUS
The French Mail of the 20th November arrived per s.s. Tonkin on the 22nd inst.
FAR ASIERN `NEWS.
Mr. Justice J. F. Tracey of the Supreme Court at Manila has tendered his resignation,
The Mongol Princes have presented to the Emperor some specially selected yellow and white horses.
The C.N.S. Tsinan, according to a telegram dated December 16th from Tokyo to the N.-C. Daily News, caught fire on her way to Yokohama but was able to regain Kobe in safety.
Major General John F. Weston has turned over the command of the Philippine Division to Brigadier General Tasker H. Bliss at Fort Santiago and is proceeding home by the Sheridan
1
A great conflagration took place at Soochow outside of the Chwang Men gate on December 15th, when the hing Lieu Kwoh, a well-known tea house, and more than a dozen new buildings were burnt to ashes.
Mr. W. T. Gracey. American Consul at Tsingtao, accompanied by Mrs. Gracey, arrived in Shanghai by the P. &. O. S. Delta. Mr. and Mrs. Gracey have been in America and Europe for the past eight months.
The Hon. Mr. H. C. Nicolle (formerly Government auditor of Hongkong) was still in hospital at Colombo a fortnight ago. The nature of his illness is enteric fever and the latest newspapers state that the patient's pro- grass "is almost as satisfactory as can be expected.'
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per
hour.
Doyen of the Consular Corps at Shanghai has forwarded to the Wai Wu-pu a resolution passed by the foreign merchants in Shanghai that the unrestricted and unregulated issue of bank notes by the Chinese bankers constitutes a serious danger to financial security and that if the Chinese Government would not guarantee the payment of those notes it should at least regulate its issue. The Grand Council tors and the President of the Board of Finance have had a discussion on the question and have come to the decision that the provisions in the new Banking Law relating to bank notes and orders should remain as they are, but that steps should be taken to prevent the unauthorized issue of bank notes.
**
The Foreign Ministers at Peking are report- ed to have made a formal complaint to the Wai Wu Pu that it has become quite a practice among the Chinese Banks in the Treaty Ports to issue notes in excess of their capital reserva and when a run is made on the Banks they go bankrupt and the result is that their in- debtedness is enormous. The Foreign Ministers ask the Board of Finance to issue new regulations to prevent such occurrences. The Board has answered that proper regulations are already lai down but the Grand Council has the matter under consideration and has sent despatches to the various Viceroys and Governors instructing them to institute regulations which will more effectually control the Banks.
Ten men of the 18th Infantry at Camp Keithley, Mindanao, died last week from the effects of drinking Columbian spirits." The Manila Cablenews says that by Columbian spirits," the officer forwarding the telegram probably meant columbic acid, the deadly liquid form of the white pulverulent compound obtained by the decomposition of oxychloride or pen- tachloride, known generally among chemists as niobic acide. They drank this fatal camp cup believing most likely that it was nothing worse than bino. The affair is looked upon by army officers high and low as one more awful argu ment against the continued banishment of the canteen, and the fate of the ten duped soldiers and the impossible situation forced upon the army by the Anti-Cauteon Law are deplored in
the same breath.
i
No. 26
No foreigners were present at the enthrone- ment of the new Emperor in Peking on the 2nd inst. consequently the outside world knows little of the details of this ceremony. A Japanesee contemporary, however, gives an account pur- The porting to come from an eye-witness. ceremony took place within the precincts of the Peking Palace. The first step is said to have been the solemn placing of the late-Emperor's Succession Decree on a specially, prepared dias, before which were grouped the most eminent statesmen and scholars in the capital. The little Emperor then entered the Hall, and after hear. ing the Rescript read, received an explanation of its contents from the attending pundits. His Majesty then repaired to an adjoining chamber. and having donned the Imperial robes, bowed the knee three times before the Empress Dowager, in token of filial piety and by way of receiving her Majesty's sanction. Thereafter the child was led to the Throne Chamber and, having been solemnly placed on the Throne, he received the homage of the assembled statesmen and courtiers, who, in accordance with the prescribed customs, bent the knee three times and bowed the head nine times. The Emperor then affixed his seal Rescript of succession, and ordered it to be duly promulgated. This ended the ceremony in the Palace. It had been preceded of course at early dawn by supplications to the celestial and terrestial dieties at the Temple of Heaven.
the
More detailed news is now to hand respecting the Chinese junk Whang-Ho, which, in her time, has been a pirate ship, but is now going about the world on more peaceful business. She was purchased in 1906 by an American syndicate as an exhibition ship and she sailed from Shanghai to California in 85 days. Apparently she did so well as an exhibition ship that it was considered desirable to bring her round to the Eastern
States.
Although over a hundred years old, she left San Francisco with a view of rounding Cape Horn, which, in the circumstances, was a tolerably bold thing to attempt. Some time back the Whang-Ho put in at Tahiti, in the Society Islands, and eventually left there, with Galveston as her destination. Nothing more was heard of her until, when she was 100 days out from Tahiti, a message comes to hand that the junk has suddenly appeared at Thursday Island. Thirty guineas had been paid on herfor re- insurance. Australian Customs officials saw in
the arrival of the Wang Ho an intention to defeat the Immigration Act by the surreptitiouslantling But their suspicions of a number of Chinese?
The
were soon disarmed: They found her in charg. of a white skipper and a white crew. captain's wife and a daughter were also on board. The clumsy old craft had, it appeared, made an attempt to round Cape Horn, but had the misfortune to break her rudder. Whether she was driven towards the Australian coast, or whether, as is suggested, it was intended to take the junk back home to Shanghai, is not quite clear. Anyhow, according. to last accounts, the junk and her crew were quite comfortable in Australian waters. Possibly the vessel may be taken into some Australian port for exhibition purposes, and, after repairs, make another attempt to reach Galveston. It is at least a tribute to the construction of this vessel that ste should so far have moved in safety over some of the stormiest waters of the globe. It was gaid that she might ultimately be brought to London for exhibition purposes, but that expectation now seems a long way off realisation.
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