December 6, 1909.]
HONGKONG LEGISLATIVE
COUNCIL.
A meeting of the Hongkong Legislative Conncil was held on Dec. 2nd in the Council Chamber.
The following were present:
HIS EXCELLENCE THE GOVERNOR, SIR FREDERICK JOHN DEALTRY LUGARD, K.C.M.G., C.B., D.S.Q.
HIS EXCELLENCY MAJOR-GENERAL R G. BROADWOOD, C.B., A.D.C. (General Officer Commanding).
Sir
F.
Secretary).
H.
MAY, K.C.M.G.. (Colonial
Hon. Mr. F. A. HAZELAND (Attorney- General).
Hon. Mr. A. M. THOMSON (Colonial Trea- surer).
Hon. Mr. P. N. H. JONES (Director of Public Works).
Hon. Mr. A. W.BREWIN (Registrar-General). Hon. Mr. F. J. BADELEY (Capt. Superinten- dent of Police).
Hon. Dr. Ho KAI, M.B., C.M.Ġ. ·-
Hon. Mr. E. OSBORNE.
Hon. Mr. E. A. HEWETT.
I
Hon. Mr. MURRAY STEWART,
Hon. Mr. W. J. GRESSON.
Hon. Mr. WEI YUK, C.M.G.
Mr. C. CLEMENTI (Clerk of Councils).
MINUTES.
The minutes of the last meeting were read and confirmed.
FINANCIAL MINUTES.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY, by command of His Excellency the Governor, laid on the table Financial Minutes (Nos. 52 to 54), and moved that they be referred to the Finance Com- mittee.
FINANCIAL.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY, by command of His Excellency the Governor, laid on the table the report of the Finance Committee (No. 18) and moved its adoption.
The COLONIAL TREASURER seconded, and the motion was agreed to.
PAPER.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY, by command of H. E. the Governor, laid on the table a mem- orandum on the Licensing of Public Houses in Hongkong.
BYELAWS.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY moved the ap- proval of the Council to the byelaws under the Public Health and Buildings Ordinances, 1903- 09: (a) Depôts of Cattle, Pigs, Sheep and Goats; (b) Cemetery Byelaws Nos. 6, 10 and 11; (c) Cemetery Byelaw No. 12. In doing so, he said:-The only alteration in the first Byelaw is an alteration of fees- rendered necessary by opening the Matakok depot. The only material alterations in the Cemetery Byelaws were Nos. 10 and 11, which were new and which explained themselves. Cemetery Byelaw No 12 is the result of recent legislation in connection with the Cemetery for Christian religion.
The DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC WORKS Seconded, and the resplation was carried
LIQUORS ORDINANCE RESOLUTION. The COLONIAL SECRETARY-Sir, I rise to move the resolution under section 3 (1) of the Liquors Ordinance, 1909. The duties on native wines and spirits, as set out in this resolution, have been arrived at after careful consideration, and with the advice on the subject of the senior unofficial member and his Chinese colleague, and I understand that these duties are acceptable to the hinese persons engaged in the trade. The last paragraph of the resolution, sir, refers to an increased duty upon
all spirits with the exception of arrack, spirits of wine, native wine and spirits, if they are overproof. This innovation, sir, is partly to protect the revenue, and partly to preclude undue preference to those engaged in the local trade of bottling spirits, as against those engaged in importing spirits in bottle.
The COLONIAL TREASURER seconded. Hon. Mr. STEWART Is it contemplated that cases of whisky should be broken into and the whisky examined to see what proof it is ?
The COLONIAL SECRETARY-I don't think, sir, that any extensive system of examination
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
481
of bottles imported will be necessary. It will be in the case of whisky, and 2 cents for every 1 occasionally necessary to examine a sample of a degree above in the case of any other liquor. consignment, but it is not considered that trade will be interfered with, or that an additional staff will be necessary to carry out the work. overproof spirits are
Hon. Mr. HEWETT-I understand, sir, that never imported from Europe, except in cask. It is not a question of opening cases.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY-That is so, Hon. Mr. HEWETT--That, I think, meets the objection raised by the hon. member who represents the Justices of the Peace.
The COLONIAL SECRETARY-Spirits might be imported overproof in bottles.
Hon. Mr. HEWETT-That is so. The resolution was as follows:- Resolved that the duties on all native wines and spirits referred to in Section 3 of the said Ordinance be repealed and the duties following be substituted therefor:
*1. $0.15 cents a gallon on the native liquors known as Liu Pun and Sheung Ching and on the following sweetened, prepared and medicated wines:
No Mai Tsau. Hak No Mai, Mau Kan, Yuk Lau, Ning Mun Tsau, Tsing Mui, Muk Kwa, Sun Fung, Wa Tan, Shüt Li Tsau, Sam Kat, Lung San Tsau, Tei Kuk, Sam Pin, Tit Ta, Fung Shap and Wai Shang.
All such liquor shall contain not more than 25 per cent. of alcohol by weight.
2 $0.20 cents a gallon on the native liquor known as Sam Ching, containing not more than 35 per cent. of alcohol by weight. 3. 80.25 a gallon on the native liquor known as Fa Tsau and on the following sweetened, prepared or medicated wines :- Ng Ka Pei. Mui Kwai Lo, Sz Kwok Kung, Fu Kwat Muk Fa, Yan Chan Lo, and Ko Leung Kon.
All such liquor shall contain not more than
45 per cent. of alcohol by weight. 4. $0.35 a gallon on the native liquor known as Fan Tsau, if containing 50 per cent. or under of alcohol by weight with the ad- dition of two cents for every one per centum between 50 per cent. and 55 per cent. of alcohol by weight.
5. $0.50 cents a gallon with the addition of eight cents for every one per centum above 55 per cent. of alcohol by weight on any native liquor containing above 55 per cent, of alcohol by weight.
6. $0.05 per gallon on all native liquor dis- tilled in the New Territories, not including New Kowloon, for consumption in the said Territories."
Further resolved that on native wines and spirits declared or labelled as belonging to any of the above divisions the appropriate duty therein laid down shall be paid except that on any native liquor however declared or labelled found by the Government Analyst or such person as the Governor may from time to time appoint in that behalf to contain more alcohol than is permitted in the division to which it is declared or labelled as belonging, there shall be paid the appropriate duty of the division in which the amount of alcohol found has placed it; each division in such case shall re- present native liquor of the limit of strength in alcohol therein stated and irrespective of any definition or description of such liquor, and on any native wines and spirits not declared or labelled as belonging to any division there shall be paid the duty appropriate to the division in which the amount of alcohol found by the Government Analyst or such person as the Governor may from time to time appoint on that behalf has placed it.
Further resolved that stills in the New Territories (not including New Kowloon) shall be prohibited from sending liquor pro- duced in these stills to Hongkong or to New Kowloon: provided that any licences of a dis- tillery who desires to send such liquor to Hong- kong or New Kowloon may be granted a permit to do so, upon payment of the duties charged in Hongkong or New Kowloon.
Further resolved that on intoxicating liquors, other than spirits of wine, arrack and native wines and spirits, imported into, distilled, made or prepared in the Colony above proof strength there shall be paid an additional duty of 4 cents for every degree above proof in the case of brandy, 3 cents for every degree above proof
UNSIGHTLY GOVERNMENT LAND. Hon. Mr. MURRAY STEWART-I rise to move that “in the opinion of this Council im- mediate steps should be taken to abate the nuisance created by the condition of the plot of Government land between the new Law Courts and the Praya." Perhaps the best way to realise the nuisance referred to is to put oneself in the position of a stranger. Any observant and interested stranger landing on the Praya, opposite Queen Victoria's statue, and looking first to his right front and then to his left would mark a striking contrast. On his right ho would note with pleasure a well-kept grass plot bordered with flowers and enclosed by a handsome railing. On his left he would
see
1
an unsightly conglomeration of ram- shackle and tattered matsheds, piles of rotting poles, odds and ends of old timbers, untidy heaps of granite chippings, weed-grown stacks of bricks; cook-houses-other outhouses all the stagnant squalor which collects in a builder's yard. The fact that the tattered mat- sheds are in the occupation of a certain Chinese contractor is advertised in large letters over the entrance to them, and the observant stranger, noticing this, might imagine that here was a flagrant case of private ownership in land resulting in public wrong. Here," he might say, "is a case where it would obviously be right for the State to step in and to force the owner of this prominently situated plot either to put it to some less unseemly use or submit to a forced sale." He might contend, without going all the way with the Chancellor of the Exchequer, that no rights of private ownership should carry with them such an utter want of consideration for the proprieties of city government, and so imperfect. a sense of the fitness of things, as to lease out for such a purpose land adjoining a public square. If the stranger, as well as being observant and interested, happened also to be distinguished, and had been met and taken charge of on landing by an emissary of the Government, say, by the Hon. the Director of Public Works, how could it be satisfactorily explained that these well-kept gardens were the outward and visible sign of public spirit, displayed by private citizens, and that the hideous spectacle of disorder lying to the left was created and maintained by the govern- ing powers? The Government apologist, re- calling certain answers to recent questions, would say that the nuisance was necessary to the work on the new Post Office, which building would be pointed out in the dis- tance, possibly with pride, as one whose four storys it had taken five years to raise. Passing along the Praya towards the Club the stranger would first note a squat bungalow. He would be told that it is a special drawing office for new Post Office plans, the building being now up. He would make a mental note that such an ugly structure ought never to have been erected in a prominent position on the sea front. Next his curiosity would be aroused by the sight of four lean and rusty iron chimneys sticking up at varying angles, one out of each of the four corners of a small enclosure immediately in rear of the ugly bungalow. He would look in and see that each of these chimneys rose out of a brick oven. He would see sand lying about and small stones in heaps. He would smell coal tar. He might even taste it. He would if we imagine him to have landed before notice of this resolution was given. Two simmering caul- drons stood out in the roadway smoking over the passer-by. Our stranger might have recognised the process of tarring macadam and wondered* what this had to do with the work on the Post Office. It would have had to be explained that this macadam factory is the Public Works Department's separate contribution to the chaos, for which it cannot be claimed that it is covered by any sort of necessity whatever. I do not see how any apologist of the Government can even excuse it. I suppose it, will be said that, as the Post Office contractor had already made an unsightly mess, there was no particular harm in making it worse. But surely the officials of the Public Works Department should restrain, not lead, disorder. They owe this duty to the public, To their immediate superiors they recognise a duty well enough.
They would "re-
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