1931-1939
COLONIAL REPORTS-ANNUAL
1
No. 1585
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF
HONG KONG, 1931
(For Reports for 1929 and 1930 see No. 1494 (Price Is. 6d.) and No. 1558 (Price Is. 3d.) respectively)
Crown Copyright Reserved
PRINTED IN HONG KONG
LONDON
PUBLISHED BY HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE
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1932
Price Is. 6d. Net
58-1585
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE COLONY OF HONG KONG DURING THE YEAR 1931.
CHAPTER
CONTENTS
PAGE
I GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY.......
1
II
GOVERNMENT
3
III POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS
4
IV PUBLIC HEALTH
V HOUSING
VI PRODUCTION
VII COMMERCE
VIII WAGES and the Cost of LIVING
IX EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS
X COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT
XI BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS AND MEASURES
6
10
13
14
18
21
24
28
.....
XII PUBLIC WORKS
XIII JUSTICE AND POLICE
XIV LEGISLATION
29
31
34
XV PUBLIC FINANCE AND TAXATION
36
Chapter I.
GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE, AND HISTORY.
The Colony of Hong Kong is situated off the south-eastern coast of China between latitude 22° 9′ and 22° 17′ N. and longitude 114° 5′ and 114° 18′ E. The island is about eleven miles long and two to five miles in breadth, its circumference being about 27 miles and its area 283 square miles. It consists of an irregular ridge of lofty hills rising to a height of nearly 2,000 feet above sea level, stretching nearly east and west, with few valleys of any extent and little ground available for cultivation.
3
4
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
2
2. The island was ceded to Great Britain in January, 1841, the cession being confirmed by the Treaty of Nanking in August, 1842. The charter bears the date of 5th April, 1843. The Kowloon peninsula and Stonecutter's Island were ceded to Great Britain under the Convention signed at Peking in October, 1860, and under the Convention signed at Peking in June, 1898, the area known as the New Territories including Mirs Bay and Deep Bay was leased to Great Britain by the Government of China for 99 years. The area of the New Territories and Islands is about 345 square miles.
3. The importance of Hong Kong has grown with the increase of China's trade with foreign countries. It is now in respect of tonnage entered and cleared one of the largest ports in the world. It is the most convenient outlet for the produce of South China as well as for the incessant flow of Chinese emigration to the Netherlands East Indies, Malaya, and elsewhere. It is also the natural distributing centre for imports into China from abroad.
4. The Colony is not to any extent a manufacturing centre, its most flourishing industries being those connected directly or indirectly with shipping, such as dock and warehouse, banking and insurance undertakings.
5. The climate of Hong Kong is sub-tropical, the winter being normally cool and dry and the summer hot and humid; the seasons are marked by the prevalence of the S.W. monsoon in summer and the N.E. monsoon in winter. The temperature seldom rises above 95°F or falls below 40°F. The average rainfall is 85.50 inches, May to September being the wettest months. In spring and summer the humidity of the atmosphere is often very high, at times exceeding 95% with an average over the whole year of 77%. The typhoon season may be said to last from June to October though typhoons occasionally occur before and after this period.
+
6. The rainfall for 1931 was 80.39 inches. The mean temperature of the air was 72°.4 against an average of 71°.9. The maximum gust velocity of the wind was at the rate of 136 m.p.h. from E.N.E. on August 1st, when a typhoon passed within 50 miles to the S.W, of Hong Kong.
7. Amongst the principal events of general interest in the year 1931 may be mentioned the visit to the Colony in February of the British Economic Mission to the Far East under the chairmanship of Sir Ernest Thompson, and the visit of the Currency Commission under the chairmanship of Mr. W. H. Clegg sent out by the Colonial Office in April to report on the Colony's currency problems,
1931-1939
3
8. There were two disasters entailing serious loss of life. One was a railway accident caused by a wash out' as a result of a cloudburst on the British Section of the Kowloon-Canton Railway on April 20th, when eleven persons were killed. other was the murder by a mob of six ininates of a Japanese household on September 26th during the anti Japanese riots.
:
The
9. The decennial census was held on 7th Màrch. The population was found to be Hong Kong Island, 410,921, Kowloon 264,675, New Territories 98,905, Afloat 75,250, Total 849,751
10. On September 1st the trunk telephone line between Hong Kong and Canton was formally opened by His Excellency the Governor Sir William Peel, K.Č.M.G., K.B.E.
11. The honours conferred by His Majesty the King on residents of Hong Kong included:-
K.C.M.G. Sir William Peel, K.B.E.
Knight Bachelor: Sir William Hornell, C.I.E., Vice
Chancellor of the University of Hong Kong.
O.B.E. (Military Division): Major H. B. L. Dowbiggin,
H.K.V.D.C.
O.B.E. Mr. E. W. Carpenter, Assistant Director oi
Public Works.
Chapter II.
GOVERNMENT.
The Government is administered under Letters Patent of 14th February, 1917, and Royal Instructions of the same and subsequent dates by a Governor aided by an Executive Council, composed of six official and three unofficial members, and by
Legislative Council composed of nine official and eight unofficial members. Prior to 1928 the numbers of the Legislativo Council members were seven and six respectively. The six official members of the Executive Council are the Senior Military Officer, the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney General, the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, the Colonial Treasurer, all of whom are members ex-officio, and the Director of Public Works, appointed by the Governor. The three unofficial members, one of whom is Chinese, are appointed by the Governor. The six official members of the Executive Council are also members of the Legislative Council; the other three official members of this Council, who are appointed by the Governor, are the Inspector General of Police, the Harbour Master, and the Director of Medical and Sanitary Services. Of the unofficial members of the Legislative Council two are appointed by the Governor on
•
5
6
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
4
the nomination respectively of the Justices of the Peace and of the Chamber of Commerce; the Governor also appoints the remaining members three of whom are Chinese. Appointment in the case of unofficial members is for five years for the Executive and four years for the Legislative Council.
*
2. The Sanitary Board composed of four official and six unofficial members has power to make bye laws under the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance in matters appertaining to public health, subject to an overriding power in the Legislative Council.
3. There is a number of advisory boards and committees, such as the Board of Education, Harbour Advisory Committee, Labour Advisory Board etc. composed of both official and unofficial members. They are frequently consulted and are of much assistance to the Government.
4. The English Common Law forms the basis of the legal system, modified by Hong Kong Ordinances of which an edition revised to 1923 has been published. The law as to civil procedure was codified by Ordinance No. 3 of 1901. The Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1890 regulates the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in Admiralty cases.
5. The daily administration is carried out by the twenty- eight Government departments, which are officered exclusively by members of the Civil Service. The most important of the purely administrative departments are the Secretariat, Treasury, Secretariat for Chinese Affairs, Harbour, Post Office, Imports and Exports Office, Police and Prisons departments. There are seven legal departments, amongst these being the Supreme Court and the Magistracies. Two departments, the Medical and Sanitary, deal with public health; one, the Education, with education; and one, the largest of all the Government depart- ments, the Public Works, is concerned with roads, buildings, waterworks, piers and analogous matters.
6. There have been no changes in the system of Govern- ment, in the year under review.
Chapter III.
POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS.
The Census taken in March 1931 gave figures which except in the case of the New Territories were considerably below the estimates made during the previous year. In the case of the urban population the method adopted for estimation was that of multiplying the total houses in a district by an average figure
1931-1939
5
J
per house obtained after counting 100 houses, in that district. In a Colony like Hong Kong where the movement to and fror China is so great such a method of estimation would seem to be more accurate than that of working out the yearly increase of the last intercensal period and assuming that the same rate of increase would persist through subsequent years, and it is surprising that there should be a discrepancy between the Census figures and those estimated.
·
2. With regard to the floating population the census probably understates the actual population as the fishing fleet and the larger trading junks were absent at the time of counting.
3. In order to compare the vital statistics of 1931 with those of 1930 it is necessary to make revised estimates for the urban population based on the Census figures, and for the floating population to increase the census figures to 100,000 to compensate for the absence of the fishing fleets and large trading junks.
4. The following table shows the Census population, the revised estimates for the middle of 1930 and the estimates for the middle of 1931:-
Census
Population.
Estimated Estimoted Population Population for middle for middle
of 1930.
of 1931.
Non-Chinese (mostly resident in
Victoria and Kowloon)
19,369
19,000
19,522
Chinese in Victoria
358,351
355,400
359,819
Chinese in Hong Kong Villages.
41,156
40,000
41,740
Chinese in Kowloon and New
Kowloon
255,095
246,100
259,590
Chinese in Junks and Sampans. Chinese in New Territories.......
68,721
100,000
100,000
97,781
96,800
98,276
7
5. During the year 2,881,479 persons entered and 2,796,222 persons left the Colony, making a daily average of 7,894 arrivals and 7,660 departures. The daily average for 1930 was 7,396 · arrivals and 7,222 departures.
6. Births and deaths are registered in the Colony proper and in New Kowloon but not in the New Territories outside New Kowloon.
The number of births registered was:
Chinese Non-Chinese
12,055
388
12,443
Co
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
6
7. The deaths registered among the civilian population numbered 18,799, giving a crude death rate of 24.08 as compared with 21.37 for the previous year.
Death rate
Estimated
Year.
Dealls.
per mille population. population.
1931 Chinese
18,566
761,149
24.39
Non-Chinese
231
19,522
11.83
""
1930 Chinese
16,082
741,500
21.68
Non-Chinese
180
19,000
9.79
S. The number of deaths of infants under one year was. Chinese 7,443, non-Chinese 24. If the figures for Chinese births registered represented the total births, which they do not, the infantile mortality figure for the Chinese would be 617.42 as compared wiih 557.5 in the previous year. The infantile mortality figure among the non-Chinese was 61.85 as compared with 74.08 in 1930.
1
Chapter IV.
PUBLIC HEALTH.
In the absence of some general system of registration of sickness the only sources of information available for gauging the state of the public health in this Colony are the returns relating to deaths, the notifications of infectious disease and the records of the Government Hospitals and Chinese Hospitals.
2. Judging from the death returns the health of the Colony was not so good as in the previous year. The crude death rate was 24.88 per mille as compared with 21.38 the revised rate for 1930. Respiratory diseases accounted for 42.25 per cent of the total deaths, the percentage for 1930 being 38.95.
3. The principal diseases causing death were broncho- pneumonia, pulmonary tuberculosis, bronchitis, pneumonia, infantile diarrhoea and diarrhoea.
4. The overcrowded houses combined with the expectorating habits of the Chinese furnish sufficient explanation for the prevalence of respiratory troubles.
5. Pulmonary Tuberculosis.-This disease ranks second to broncho-pneumonia as the principal cause of death. It is probable that some of the cases of the latter were tubercular in
1931-1939
7
origin. The total number of deaths was 1,983, that for 1930 being 1,994. The death rate per mille was 2.60 as compared with 2.62 for the previous year. It is estimated that for every death there are at least ten persons suffering from open tuber- culosis which means that during the year under discussion there were 20,000 cases, each spreading infection.
6. There are no sanatoria and no infirmaries other than the Chinese Hospitals where poor tuberculosis patients could find shelter and treatment and where at least they would cease to be a danger to others. During the year the Tung Wah Hospital provided 36 beds. It is hoped that when the new Government Civil Hospital is built there will be accommodation for a number of cases of this disease..
7. Malaria.-Malaria which in the early days of the Colony was the chief cause of sickness and of death has disappeared from the thickly populated urban districts as a result of efficient drainage. It still persists in the suburbs and in the rural areas. The cases admitted to the Government Hospitals numbered 586 of which 8 or 1.36 per cent died. In the Chinese Hospitals there were 1,001 admissions with a case mortality rate of 25.57 per cent.
8. The total number of deaths attributed to this disease was 452, giving a death rate of 0.60 per mille population. The lowness of the rate is, of course, due to the fact that the majority of the population, being outside the radius of flight of malaria carrying anophelines, is not subject to risks of attack.
9. The Medical Officer in charge of Kowloon Mortuary reports that in 399 consecutive bodies sent to the Mortuary for examination 97 or 24.25 per cent had spleens twice the normal size or larger.
10. During the year the Malaria Bureau continued its researches and co-operated both with the Military Authorities and the Public Works Department.
11. It is pleasing to be able to report that during the investigations carried out by the Bureau the staff experienced no opposition from the local Chinese; on the contrary both adults and children showed great interest in the proceedings and were eager to help This is very satisfactory for there were those who predicted that there would be considerable opposition on
on the part of the people, especially those of the New Territories.
12. Infectious Diseases.-There was no serious epidemic of infectious diseases during the year under discussion. There were a number of cases or diphtheria with evidence indicating that the source of infection was a local dairy. Pasteurisation of the milk had satisfactory results,
9
10
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
8
13. Smallpox.-Smallpox which manifests itself every year during the winter months was represented by a few sporadic cases only. There were in all 15 cases and 8 deaths as compared with 270 cases and 249 deaths in 1930. In February the Sanitary Board rescinded its resolution of 1917 whereby cases of smallpox were permitted to be treated in their houses. Following the rescission there was a mass meeting of the Chinese at the Tung Wah Hospital where vigorous protests were made against the decision.
14. During the year the vaccination campaign was continued, valuable assistance being afforded by the St. John Ambulance Brigade whose officers established booths in the streets, and carried out an active propaganda advocating vaccination and revaccination with excellent results. In the last four years there have been 981,241 vaccinations, a number exceeding the present population as enumerated by the Census.
15. The General Chinese Public Dispensaries Committee recommended that the dispensaries should take a more active part in propaganda work. Arrangements were made for the Government Medical Department to co-operate by supplying material for the Committee's use.
16. Among the Chinese the opinion is prevalent that the results of treatment of smallpox by Chinese methods are superior to those by Western methods. An analysis of the statistics of (a) the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital where the majority of cases receive Chinese treatment and of (b) the Government Infectious Diseases Hospital, where Western treatment only is provided shows that. this view is not correct. Calculating on the figures for the last 20 years the death rate in the Tung Wah was 46.77 per cent of the cases treated and that in the Government Hospital 14.33 per cent..
:.
17. Plague. Plague as an epidemic disease has disappeared from Hong Kong and the same may be said of South China. The whole truth concerning the factors which have caused this disappearance is not known. The disappearance from Hong Kong may be, and probably is, to a certain extent due to the sanitary measures which have been and are being taken but this cannot be the case in many of the Chinese towns where the conditions are as they have always been.
18 There were no cases reported in the Colony during either
· 1931 or 1930.
19. Systematic rat oatching and periodical cleansing of houses were carried out during the year. The total number of rats collected was 157,828, of which 11,520 were taken alive as compared with 141,286 and 6,756 in 1930. The number of floors cleansed was 196,912, the number in 1930 being 180,952.
1931-1939
20. Dumping of the Dead.-In spite of the fact that there was no epidemic during the year the dumping of dead bodies continued. The number reported by the Police was 1,295. The number for 1930 was 1,316.
21. Government Civil Hospital.-This hospital consists of three blocks and contains 225 beds in 23 wards. One hundred beds have been placed under the care of the clinical professors of the University who have been appointed respectively Surgeon, Physician and Obstetrician Physician to the hospital. The number of inpatients was 4,744, of which 891 were treated by the University Clinic. The number of inpatients in 1930 was 4,788.
22. Attendances at the outpatient department numbered 43,196 (45,683 in 1930). The greater part of the work of this department is done by the staff of the University.
23. Attached to the hospital is a Maternity Hospital containing 21 beds. There were 796 cases in 1931 and 760 in 1930. With the exception of a few treated by the Government Medical Officers all the cases were under the care of the University Professor and his assistants.
24. Mental Hospital.-Situated close to the Government Civil Hospital is the Mental Hospital which is under the direction of the Medical Officer in charge of the Government Civil Hospital. There are separate portions for Europeans and Chinese. The European section contains 14 beds and the Chinese 18 beds. This hospital is mainly only a temporary abode for mental cases, those of Chinese nationality being sent to Canton, the others are repatriated to their respective countries. There were 322 cases in 1931 and 324 in 1930.
25. Infectious Diseases Hospital.-This hospital situated on the western outskirts of the city contains 26 beds. Five cases were admitted in 1931 as compared with six cases in 1930.
26. Victoria Hospital.-This hospital situated on the Peak consists of a general block and a maternity block. The former contains 42 beds, the latter 32 beds.
27. Kowloon Hospital.-Situated on the mainland this hospital has 58 beds. 1,855 patients were treated in 1931 and 1,691 in 1930.
28. Chinese Hospitals.-(Government aided).-The Chinese Hospitals-Tung Wah, Tung Wah. Eastern and Kwong Wah- are hospitals which are maintained by the Tung Wah Charity
11
12
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
10
Organisation, a purely Chinese body. These institutions. which are assisted by Government are under inspection by the Govern- ment Medical Department. Each has as its medical super- intendent a Chinese Medical Officer who is paid by Government.
29. The Medical Staff consists of Western-trained Chinese doctors and Chinese herbalists. The patient is given his choice of treatment.
HOSPITAL·
No. No. TREATED 1931 No. TREATED 1930.
of
beds Western Chinese Western Chinese Medicine Medicine Medicine Medicine
Tung Wah,......
460
5,701 5,246 5,296 5,548
Tung Wah Eastern,..... 195
2,185 1,345 1,796
854
Tung Wal Infectious
•
Diseases,
60
9
73
...
Kwong Wah,
325
8,201 2,283 7,026 2,751
Chapter V.
HOUSING.
In recent years some evidence has been shown amongst the artizan class of the Colony of a quickening social consciousness and the resultant desire to avail themselves of improved housing accommodation wherever such is inade available. The unskilled labouring classes, however, are still found densely packed in tenement houses deficient in light and air. This class of labour has to find its habitat as close as possible to the scene of its labour, with the result that the Western part of the City of Victoria, which houses the native business quarter and closely adjoins the portion of the harbour handling the traffic from the West River and Chinese Coast Ports, is seriously overcrowded.
2. These conditions are being slowly mitigated by the rebuilding of properties which from time to time are condemned for reasons of structural defects. This process of elimination is however, too slow to create any appreciable improvement. The legislation now being contemplated, which calls for the
1931-1939
11
13
provision of reasonable yard space, when made operative, will hasten the removal or reconstruction of much of the old property. This whilst providing improved housing conditions, will no doubt mean increased cost of living to the labouring classes.
3. Hitherto, the hostility of the property owning class to the introduction of legislation requiring additional open space and per se reducing the earning power of the property has been the chief obstacle in obtaining improved conditions. It can, however, be recorded that this spirit of obstruction is less evident today as a result of education, and of the example set by some of the better class of realty companies whose blocks of tenement houses compare not unfavourably in essential respects with modern European practice.
4. The housing of the Colony is all privately owned, and control is maintained by the operation of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, the provisions of which also mould the character of the housing. Generally the houses are built back to back in rows, separated by a scavenging lane six feet in widüh specified by the Ordinance. These houses vary in height from two to four storeys according to the width of the street onto which they front, whilst the average height per storey is twelve feet, a minimum being controlled by the Ordinance. The houses built prior to the 1903 Ordinance covering the greatest part of the native quarter are of depths varying from forty feet to eighty feet, with often less than 100 square feet of open space provided within the curtilage of the lot. After the passing of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance No. 1 of 1903, the amount of open space per house to be allowed within the boundaries of each lot is governed, and falls under two main heads, viz:-(a) houses built on land bought prior to the passing of the Ordinance in 1903, where the open space must not be less than one fourth the area of the site and (b) houses built on land bought subsequently where the minimum is raised to one third of the. area: On plan the usual frontage of each house is fifteen feet (a dimension owing its origin more to early structural limitations than to economics) and a depth of about thirty-five feet, whilst each storey consists of one large room" with a native type kitchen in the rear. This room is then subdivided by thin partitions seven feet high into three cubicles each of which may cccmmodate a family. A latrine is built at ground floor level, one to each house irrespective of the number of occupants, and
8 common to all.
5. Structurally the earlier houses are of blue bricks (1 native manufacture having a very low structural value) and timber, (usually China fir which is extremely susceptible to the ravages of white ants). Lately, however, reinforced concrete and better quality bricks have been used.
6. In the City of Victoria the major defect of housing is due to lack of town planning, but since a large proportion of
14
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
12
the City was erected in the early days of the Colony, when town planning was little practiced even in Europe, the conditions to-day are a heritage, the elimination of which involves immense sums of money, and probably considerable opposition if attempted on a large scale.
7. Generally many of the old houses suffer from defects which are attributable to the Ordinance of that time. Passed in 1903 the measure was framed to meet existing conditions, both structurally and hygienically as they were then understood and practiced. But, viewed in the light of modern practice and knowledge, many of its provisions are found to be lax and the following are the main resultant defects:-
Note:-
(a) The open space is insufficient, especially with regard to earlier houses, i.e. those built on land purchased prior to 1903.
(b) Latrine accommodation is insufficient.
·
(c) Staircases are too narrow and steep, and often
unlighted.
(d) Means of escape in case of fire insufficient.
(b) In the case of new buildings where owners are able to provide by means of a well or otherwise an adequate water supply, flush sanitation is now usually provided on each floor. This is one of the most important steps forward in sanitation that has been achieved.
(c) and (d) have been provided for by recent amendments of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, which call for any new
staircases in teneinent houses to be of fire-proof construction, with alternate means of egress to all floors more than twenty three feet above the footpath. The remarks above apply more particularly to the housing of the wage-earning Asiatics. The housing for the wealthier classes is provided for by modern flats three or four storeys high, and in the suburban areas by detached or semi-detached houses usually two storeys high which may be occupied separately or as flats.
8. A new Buildings Ordinance is being drafted, which will eliminate many of the present defects and demand a higher standard generally, whilst the building owners are themselves realising the advantages of modern constructional methods. Town planning improvements are being carried out wherever possible in Hong Kong whilst the development of Kowloon is proceeding according to a definite lay-out.
1931-1939
13
Chapter VI.
PRODUCTION.
Hong Kong is the port for South China, and the greater part of the large volume of goods that pass through it is in transit either to or from South China and other parts of the world, including North and Middle China. The Colony itself produces comparatively little, though the shipbuilding, cement, sugar refining and cotton knitting industries are not unimportant. Neither agriculture nor mining are carried on to any great extent, though the former is practised throughout the New Territories. Rice and vegetables are grown, and there is considerable poultry farming, but in insufficient quantities to supply the needs of the urban populations of Victoria : and Kowloon. The cultivation is in the hands of the Chinese villagers. Sea fishing is an important industry, but here again local supplies have to be augmented by importation from outside.
+
2. Reports on the principal industries for the year 1931 are given below:
Refined Sugar. The year opened with large stocks in China which had been rushed in prior to the enforcement of higher Customs Duties as from 1st January. Later, when business was resuming normal proportions, the floods in the Yangtsze Valley led to a diminished off-take. The embroglio in Manchuria also induced nervousness on the part of buyers, new orders being confined to inunediate needs.
3. Preserved Ginger.-It is estimated that 3,000 tons morų of preserved ginger was exported to Europe in 1931, as compared with the previous year, the increase being due to favourable exchange and lower rates of freight. The demand from the United States of America continued to decline owing to industrial depression and its reaction on purchasing power, particularly in respect of luxury commodities. Total value of exports of preserved ginger from Hong Kong in 1931 amounted to $2,347,375.
"
.
4. Cement.-There was a fair demand for locally manu- factured cement during the first nine months of 1931. During the last three months of the year, the demand exceeded the supply due to the greatly reduced importation of the Japanese product. The Green Island Cement Company were, however, able to deal to a large extent with the increased demand owing to their having recently installed an entirely new All-British Plant.
5. Rope Making.-The demand for locally manufactured rope during 1931 was normal and no special features were met with in this industry.
15
16
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
14
.
6. Hosiery. The turnover in locally manufactured knitted goods during 1932 was fairly satisfactory. The increased China tariff has adversely affected local factories which depended on the China market, but business in hosiery with India, Egypt, South America, the Philippines, Netherlands East Indies and South Africa has correspondingly improved. Total value of exports from Hong Kong in 1931 amounted to nearly $2,500,000.
are manu-
7. Flashlight Torches and Batteries.-These factured in numerous local factories and owing to low labour costs and consequent low price they are in growing demand locally and for export. Exports during 1931 amounted to the value of $1.4 millions (torches) and $1 million (batteries).
8. Shipbuilding.-Six ocean going vessels and twenty. smaller craft were built in local dockyards during 1931.
Chapter VII.
COMMERCE.
Despite the continued world-wide trade depression, and several other adverse factors more intimately affecting the commercial welfare of Hong Kong, trade returns compiled by the Statistical Office show that conditions in 1931 were, if anything, slightly better than in the year 1930, the total value of imports of merchandise amounting to $737.7 millions, an increase of $87.7 millions, while exports totalled $542 millions, an increase of $42 millions.
2. Only nine months' figures are available for the year 1930, and it is on the basis of these figures that the value of the total trade' for that year has been liberally estimated.
3. Several factors other than the general depression in world trade combined to prevent any appreciable recovery in trade, chief among which were the following:-
(1) The continued low purchasing value of the silver
currencies of Hong Kong and China;
(2) internal political troubles in China;
(3) serious floods in South China during the earlier part of the year, and in North China during the latter part of the year;
1931-1939
15
(4) increased Chinese tariffs which were enforced on January 1st, and which were later strengthened by an additional impost of 10% on practically all imports for flood relief purposes;
(5) the abandonment of the gold standard by Great Britain in September, causing a sudden rise in sterling exchange which dealers found difficult to assimilate;
(6) further depreciation of Australian currency;
(7) the Sino-Japanese dispute which resulted in a serious boycott of Japanese goods in October, and which persisted with increasing intensity until the end of the year, when there were no indications at all of any early resumption of trade with Japan.
4. Serving as it does as an entrepot for the distribution of Far Eastern, and in particular Chinese trade, it will be readily understood that the Colony is peculiarly sensitive to any reactions in China, with which country it is closely allied both geographically and commercially, and it follows, therefore, that a return to anything approaching normal conditions is almost entirely dependent on a greatly improved state of affairs in China.
5. As stated above, the sterling value of Hong Kong currency appreciated rapidly in sympathy with the decline in the value of the pound sterling, but this rapid appreciation caused considerable confusion in the market, and the full benefit to exporters in Great Britain was not reflected in Hong Kong trade figures.
6. Taken in conjunction with the Chinese boycott of Japanese goods, however, there was a distinct revival in the import trade from Great Britain in the piece-goods group. In -the last quarter of the year imports of piece goods from Great Britain accounted for 30.4% of the total as compared with 18.9% in the corresponding quarter of 1930, while the Japanese share of this trade amounted to only 7.6% as compared with 31.6%.
7. The seriousness of the effect of the boycott can be seen from the fact that during the last quarter of 1931, the total imports from Japan were valued at only $8,018,000 (£515,000), as compared with $22,450,000 (£1,388,000) in the last quarter of 1930, the chief recessions being in the piece-goods group which fell from $10.2 millions to $2.6 millions, and the foodstuffs group (chiefly marine products) which declined from $4.4 millions to $.9 million.
17
18
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
16
8. During the year exchange fluctuated from an average of 1113d. in January to 1s. 51d. in December, and with a view to the better illustration of the trend of the trade of the Colony the following tables have been prepared in terms both of sterling and local currency :-
Imports (in £'s & $'s millions).
1923.
1924.
1925.
1930. 1931.
1st Quarter
£ 14.7
19.3
16.3
X
9.0
$130.7
165.4
139.7
X
186.9
2nd Quarter
£ 15.2
17.1
14.5
9.2
8.7
$131.5
144.0
128.9
131.3
180.1
3rd Quarter
£ 14.3.
19.2
10.1
9.0
$127.1
161.7
X
156.8
182.3
4th Quarter
£17.8
16.5
$155.3
136.6
X X
10.3
11.8
167.4
188.4
Total
£ 62.0 $544.6
72.1
30.8
29.6
38.5
607.7 268.6 455.5
737.7
Exports (in £'s $'s millions).
1st Quarter
1923.
£13.9 18.3 $123.5 156.8
1924.
1925. 1930.
1931.
15.2
6.8
130.3
Χ
140.1
2nd Quarter
£ 16.3
15.2
14.1
7.4
6.4
$140.9
128.0
125.3
105:9
132.5
3rd Quarter.
£ 14.0
14.6
7.3
6.5
$124.4
122.9
113.7
130.6
4th Quarter
£17.2
15.5
8.5
9.2
$150.1
128.3
X
137.2
138.7
Total
23.2
28.9
356.8
541.9
£61.4 63.6 29.3 $538.9 536.0 255.6
x No statistics available from July 1925 to March 1930.
Note: Average rate of exchange 1923-2s. 34d.;
1924-2s. 41d.;
1925-2s. 3zd.; 1930 1s. 3d.;
=
1931-1s. 03d.
1931-1939
17
Treasure Movements.
9. During the year there was considerably less movement of inward Treasure than in 1930 although only nine months' figures were available for the latter year. Imports recorded $66 millions as against $141 millions and exports $122 millions as compared with $96 millions. The following table is self- explanatory:
Imports
$
Exports
$
Bank Notes Copper Cents
Gold Bars
Gold Coins
1,047,045
3,192,004
56,037
2,708,417
6,842,100
50,656,676
270,400
8,280,762
Gold Leaf
672,914
1,293,506
Silver Bars
37,710,863
40,155,252
H.K. Silver Dollar
1,099,341
10,000
Chinese Silver Dollar
13,937,264
10,461,979
Other Silver Dollar
154,220
260,460
Silver Sub. Coins
4,266,956
4,754,824
Total
66,057,140
121,773,880
IMPORTS AND Exports 1924 and 1931
(excluding treasure)
IMPORTS.
EXPORTS.
1924
1931
1924
1931
$
United Kingdom ....
British Dominions
and
Possessions
China'
All other countries
Total British Empire
80,328,000 78,251,000 6,329,00 5,247,000
59,293,000 57,402,000 45,731,000 57,663.000 *****] 200,422;000|| 337,886,000| 295,002,000 473,700,000 | 401,665,000| 151,286,000 | 184,138,000
139,621,000 135,653,000 52,063,000 62,910,000
Total foreign....
Grand Total
473,700,000 602,087,000 489,172,000 479,140,000
613,321,000 737,740,000|| 511,235,000 542,050,000
事
* Not fully recorded.
19
20
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
18
Wholesale Price Changes.
10. During the year 1931 commodity prices in Hong Kong showed increases of 29.8% as compared with the year 1924, 36.6% as compared with the base period of 1922, and an average index figure for all articles slightly more than double that for the year 1913.
11. As compared with the year 1922 world wholesale prices fell approximately 30%, and the increases in the Hong Kong index figures were almost entirely due to the depreciation of local currency which averaged 2s. 6d. in 1922, 2s. 44d. in 1924, and 1s. Od. in 1931.
12. The sterling value of Hong Kong currency showed an upward trend in the last quarter of the year following the cessation of gold exports from Great Britain, this being reflected in a slight fall in prices.
13. The following table shows the course of price changes since 1913.
1913 1922 1924 1931
1st. 2nd 3rd 4th Qtr. Qtr. Qtr. Qtr.
Foodstuffs Textiles
Metals...... Miscellaneous.
Average all Articles.
....
73.6 | 100.0 | 106.1 |144.3 |144.1 |147.3 |142.2 | 143.7 55 1 100.0|112.5 135.8 |147.9 | 143.1 128 7 123,5 63.2 | 100.0 | 102.3 140.9 138.5 | 143.8 | 143.3 | 138.2 61.2 | 100.0 | 106.3 | 125.4 | 129.7 | 127.5 118.6|125.5
1
64.0 100.0 106.8 | 136.6 | 139.8 | 140.4 133.2 | 132.7
Chapter VIII.
WAGES AND THE COST OF Living.
A great proportion of the workers in Hong Kong are paid on a piece work basis and in some trades are engaged and paid on curiously complicated systems involving payment of a bonus or a share in the yearly profits.
+
2. Trade has been dull for the greater part of the year and wages bave, so far as can be ascertained, tended downwards. The building trade however, has been unusually busy as the result of a building boom and the development of newly reclaimed areas. The price of the cheaper grades of rice which is the staple food of the lowest paid workers, has not increased and remains at an average of five to eight cents per lb. The price of fire-wood which is also an important item to the poorer classes remains the same. There has been no apparent move ment in house rents,
*
1931-1939
19
21
3. The low exchange in the early part of the year led to a considerable rise in the cost of articles imported from abroad but the poorer classes are hardly affected by the rise in the cost of foreign goods and local products were not affected to any great extent. An improvement in exchange later in the year has tended to lower the prices of imported foodstuffs.
4. The European resident, unlike the local labourer, purchases many articles of necessity which are imported from countries with sterling or gold currencies. With the rapid appreciation during the last two years of these currencies as compared with the local silver currency, prices of imported articles have steadily increased. On the other hand the abanden- ment of the gold standard by the United Kingdom in September had not by the end of the year been generally reflected in a corresponding fall in the local price of British goods. Until price fluctuations, owing to unstable exchange rates, over a larger part of his expenditure cease, it will not be possible to give accurate cost of living figures for the European resident.
AVERAGE RATES OF WAGES FOR LABOUR.
Building Trade.
Carpenters
Bricklayers
Painters
Flasterers
Bamboo Workers
Labourers (male)
$1.15 per day
1.10 ""
"
1.20 ""
""
1.10
""
1.70
}}
0.80. ""
17
0.50
"
Coolies (female)
Working hours nine per day. Time and a half paid for over- time. Free temporary quarters provided on the building site and communal messing at cheap rates.
Shipbuilding and Engineering.
Electricians
$1.00 to $1.70 per day
Coppersmiths
1.00 to
1.80
19
Fitters
0.80 to 1.85
Sawmillers
0.50 to
1.40
93
11
Boilermakers
0.60 to
1.50
19
Sailmarkers
0.50 to
1.50
,,
11
Blacksmiths
0.80 to
1.20
Labourers
0.50
22
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
20
AVERAGE RATES of Wages for LABOUR.
Transport Workers.
Tram drivers
Conductors
Bus drivers
$36 to $45 per month,
30 to 39
50
"}
Working hours nine per day. Free uniform. Bonus at end of
year.
Railway workers (Government).
Engine drivers
Firemen
Guards
Signalmen
Station Masters
$540 to $1,000 per annum
330 to
480
600 to
1,000
600 to
1,000
1,100 to
1,800
600 to 1,000
480 to
1,000
Bocking Clerks
Telephone operators
Female Workers in Factories.
Cigarette making
Knitting factories
Perfumery
Confectionery
$0.40 to $0.60 per day
Working hours from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
0.20 to
0.50
0.20 to 0.60
0.20 to 0.60
One hour off at mid-day.
Overtime from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at day rates.
Domestic Servants.
Employed by Chinese
$7.00 to $20.00 per month
Employed by Europeans... 15.00 to 40.00
Gardeners
""
15.00 to 30.00
With free lodging and with Chinese employers generally free board.
AVERAGE RETAIL. PRICES OF FOODSTUFFS, ETC.
1930.
1931.
Rice (3rd grade) 9.2 cts. per catty 8.6 cts. per catty.
Fresh fish
26.2
Salt fish
33.7
Beef
49
Pork
54
Oil
23.2
29
Firewood
25
"J
""
11
11
32
""
"I
"
**
11
49
""
19
53
23
•
11
11
""
11
10 cts. per 7 catties 10 cts. per 7 catties
1931-1939
-
21
Chapter IX.
EDUCATION ANd Welfare InSTITUTIONS.
Government Schools.
23
These are either schools where the medium of instruction is English or mostly English or schools where the medium of. instruction is Chinese. The former, sixteen in number, are known as "English" schools, the latter of which there are three as "Vernacular" schools.
2. Of the four English schools, classed as "secondary" schools in the Table below, two are Anglo-Chinese schools for boys and one is for girls. These three schools have primary departments. The fourth school, the Central British School which is a mixed school, has no primary department. Of the twelve English schools, classed as "primary" schools in the Table below, four are mixed schools preparing for the Central British School. In this group are also four "District" schools, including one for Indian boys and four "Lower Grade" schools, three of which are in rural districts. In those English schools which are attended by Chinese the study of English and of Chinese is carried on side by side; the pari passu system requiring that promotion shall depend on proficiency in both languages.
3. Of the three Government Vernacular schools one has a seven years course and includes a Normal department. There is also a Normal school for women teachers and a Normal school on the mainland which aims at providing Vernacular teachers for rural schools.
4. The Technical Institute, classed in the Table below s "vocational", is attended by persons desirous of receiving instruction for the most part
part germane to their daytime occupations.
Grant in Aid and Subsidized Schools.
5. There are twelve Grant-in-Aid English Schools, and four Grant-in-Aid Vernacular-Schools. Of the former, six are schools for boys and six are for girls.
6. One English school for boys and one for girls have primary departments only. The remaining ten, classed in the Table below as "secondary" schools, have primary departments as well as the upper classes.
7. The Vernacular Grant-in-Aid Schools are schools for girls and are classed in the Table as "secondary" schools.
8. The 296 subsidized schools are all Vernacular schools.
24
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
22
Unaided Schools.
9. In 1931 there were 617 unaided Vernacular schools with 30,423 children and 122 unaided English schools with 7,401 children.
TABLE SHOWING NUMBER OF SCHOOLS AND Scholars FOR.
THE YEAR 1931.
GOVERNMENT
GRANT IN AID AND UBSIDIZED
SCHOOLS
UNAIDED SCHOOLS
SCHOOLS
CLASS OF INSTITUTIONS
No. of Institu-
No. of
No. of
On
Institu-
Roll
On Roll
. On
Institu-
Roll
tions
tions
¿tions
ENGLISH :-
Secondary,
Primary,.
Vocational,
2,336
10 1,580
160
12 1,757
398
121 7,241
1 686
Total.......
17
4,779
12
4,978
122 |7,401
VERNACULAR :--
Secondary,
Primary,.
Vocational,
Total,....
262
1,002
296 19,398
617 30,423
2
201
1
146
3 466
301 0,516
61730,423
Grand Total of No. of Institutions..... Grand Total of No, on Roll
The University.
1.072 68,593
10. The University of Hong Kong was incorporated under a local University Ordinance, 1911, and opened in 1912. It is a residential University and open to students of both sexes.
11. The University hostels are three in number-Lugard Hall, Eliot Hall and May Hall. There are also three recognized hostels for men, St. John's Hall, Morrison Hall and Ricci Hall. No University hostel at present exists for women students.
1931-1939
23
25
25
12. The late Sir Hormusjee Mody bore the entire expense of the erection of the main building. Additions have been made through the liberality of benefactors of varied nationality and domicile. The latest addition to the buildings is a School of Chinese Studies, the cost of which was borne by Mr. Tang Chi Ngong a local Chinese merchant and banker.
13. The annual income of the University for 1930 amounted to about $892,000 of which about $290,000 was derived from endowments and $390,000 from Government. Messrs. John Swire & Sons Ltd. gave £40,000 to the original endowment fund and subsequently $100,000 for engineering equipment. The Rockefeller Institute has endowed the University with three chairs in surgery, medicine and obstetrics, the endowment being in each case $250,000. The Government Grant was increased in 1930 from $90,000 to $390,000 to enable the University to meet its increased financial obligations due mainly to the fall in exchange. The annual expenditure in 1930 amounted to
about $846,000.
14. The University included the three faculties of Medicine, Engineering and Arts. Admission to all faculties is conditional upon passing the matriculation examination of the University or some examination recognized as equivalent thereto.
15. The Faculty of Medicine provides a six year course of study in the usual pre-medical and medical sciences, leading to the degree of M.B. and B.S. The degrees of M.D., and M.S. are awarded on examinations but are subject to the proviso that every candidate for the degree shall produce evidence of special post-graduate experience in the subject which he presents. The degrees above mentioned are recognized by the General Medical Council for registration in Great Britain.
16. The Faculty of Engineering provides a four years course in practical and theoretical engineering, leading to the degree of B. Sc., (Eng.). Fourth year students specialize in civil, mechanical or electrical engineering. The degree for post- graduate work is that of M.Sc., (Eng.)..
17. The Faculty of Arts includes departments of pure arts and science, social science, commerce and a department for training teachers. The course, is, in all cases one of four years and leads to the degree of B.A. The degree for post-graduate work is that of M.A.
18. With a view to securing the maintenance of the desired standard-which is in all three faculties that of a British University degree-external examiners are, in all faculties, associated with the internal examiners in all annual final examinations. In the Faculty of Engineering, but not in other faculties, degrees with honours are granted, the standard being assessed by special examiners chosen from amongst the external examiners in the University of London.
19. The degree of LL.D. is granted honoris causa.
26
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
24
Median
Charitable Institutions.
20. The following are the best known Charitable Institutions.
French Convent Orphanage. Italian Convent Orphanage. Maryknoll Convent, Kowloon. St. Louis Industrial School. Po Leung Kuk-Chinese.
Victoria Home and Orphanage.
Society of Precious Blood Hospital.
Home for Aged Poor, Kowloon.
La Calvaire Home for Aged Poor, Happy Valley
Eyre Refuge.
Salvation Army Home.
Industrial Home for the Blind, Pokfulam.
Recreation and Art.
21. Most of the schools contrive to hold Annual Sports either on their own grounds or on grounds generously lent by local Cricket and Football Clubs. Some schools are granted free use of Government Bathing Beaches for four afternoons a week during the Bathing Season. Lawn Tennis, Football, Swimming, Volley Ball and Basket Ball continue to increase in popularity. Cricket is played at a few schools. Physical training is given by qualified instructors. Art is taught in the Government British Schools by Trained Art Mistresses.
Chapter X.
COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT.
The external communications of Hong Kong are excellent both by sea and by telegraph, cable and radio. As regards the former, the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co., the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, the Blue Funnel Line, the Messageries Maritimes, and several other British and foreign companies maintain regular passenger and freight services between Hong Kong and Europe. The trans-Pacific communications are well served by the Canadian Pacific Steamships Ltd., the Dollar Line, the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and other steamship lines. To Australia three steamship companies, the Eastern and Australian. Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and Australian and Oriental maintain regular passenger and freight services. In addition there are direct sailings to Africa, South America, and to New York. There is frequent and regular communication between Hong Kong and other Far Eastern ports in India, Java, Straits
27
22
1931-1939
25
Settlements, Formosa, Indo-China, Japan and the China coast. Local steamship communication is by river steamer from Hong Kong to Canton and the West River ports with several sailings daily. In addition there is a vast traffic between Hong Kong and the adjacent provinces of China by junk and sampan.
2. The total Shipping entering and clearing Ports in the Colony during the year 1931 amounted to 107,262 vessels of 44,150,021 tons which, compared with the figures of 1930, shows an increase of 13,172 vessels and an increase of 1,959,409 tons. Of the above 51,801 vessels. of 41,933,748 tons were engaged in Foreign Trade as compared with 49,609 vessels of 40,511,650 tons in 1930. There was
was an increase in British Ocean-going shipping of 113 vessels and an increase of 183,239 tons. Foreign Ocean-going vessels show a decrease of 735 vessels and a decrease of 87,901 tons. British River Steamers showed an increase of 865 vessels and an increase of 705,564 tons. Foreign River Steamers showed an increase of 678 vessels and an increase of 222,413 tons. In Steamships not exceeding 60 tons employed in Foreign Trade there was an increase of 885 vessels with an increase in tonnage of 187 tons. Junks in Foreign trade showed an increase of 386 vessels and an increase of 398,596 tons. In Local Trade (¿.c. between places within the waters of the Colony) there was a decrease in Steam Launches of 1,895 vessels and a decrease in tonnage of 61,250. Junks in Local Trade show an increase of 12,875 vessels and an increase of 598,561 tons.
•
3. The Eastern Extension Telegraph Company (British) by means of three cables to Singapore, one direct and one each via Labuan and Cape St. James respectively, provides good connections with Europe via India, with Australasia, and with the other British Colonies and possessions. By their cable to Manila connection is made with the direct American cable, thence to San Francisco. Two cables to Shanghai, belonging respectively to the Eastern Extension and to the Great Northern (Danish) Companies, via Foochow and Amoy respectively, give a good connection with Shanghai, North China, Japan and Russia; and the system of the Great Northern Telegraph Company gives-a good service to Europe via Asiatic Russia.
4. The Government operates a commercial radio service with direct communication with Chinese stations, Siam, and the Dutch East Indies. Indirect communication between Hong Kong and Europe is maintained via Manila and the United States of America.
5. The revenue collected by the Radio Office during the year from radio telegrams amounted to $679,028.51, an increase of $247,637.83 on the amount collected in 1930. Advices of vessels signalled at the Lighthouses yielded $1,224.80. Semaphore messages $10.15. The total Revenue from the Telegraph Service amounted to $680,263.46. Ship Station Licences yielded $1.600 25, Amateur Transmission Station
28
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
26
Licences $214.75, Broadcast Receiving Licences $15,664.50, Dealers Licences $2,480.00 and Examination Tee for Operators' Certificates of Proficiency $72.00..
6. The number of paid radio-telegrams forwarded during the year was 214,274 consisting of 1,694,362 words against 132,432 consisting of 1,125,559 words in 1930, and 184,183 were received, consisting of 1,690,206 words against 124,855 consisting of 1,161,115 words.
:
"
+
7. In addition to the paid traffic figures given above the Wireless Service is responsible for the reception of time signals daily from Bordeaux, Rugby, Malabar and Nauen, for the transmission of time signals to ships in the China Sea, the reception of press messages amounting to 499 messages or 273,832 words from Rugby, the collection and distribution of meteorological traffic, having forwarded 6,102 messages 239,574 words, and received 13,766 messages 257,351 words, the reception and dissemination of distress, piracy and navigation messages, the transmission and reception of Government messages, etc."
•
...8. At the end of August 1931, a telephone service between Hong Kong and Canton, a distance of 110 miles was formally opened.
9. Mails. The number of mail receptacles of Hong Kong origin despatched during the year was 48,748 as compared with 48,123 in 1930-an increase of 625; the number received, was 52,568 as compared with 50,424-an increase of 2,144.
-10. Receptacles in transit, including those to and from British and Foreign Men-of-War, numbered 210,217 as against 182,030 in 1980-an increase of 28,187.
11. Registered Articles
Articles and Parcels-The number of registered articles handled amounted to 806,733 as compared with 842,678 in 1930-a decrease of 35,945.
12. The figures for insured letters were 19,522 and 18,887 respectively--an increase of 635.
•
13. Parcels, ordinary and insured, which were dealt with reached total of 382,170 as against 428,849 in 1930-a decrease of 46,679.
14. The Kowloon-Canton Railway maintains a daily service of two express trains each way between Kowloon and Canton. The journey occupies 3 hours. The three new express locomotives obtained in 1930 on behalf of the Chinese Section were put into regular service on May 3rd, 1931, and hauled the express trains between Kowloon and Canton for the remainder of the year. These engines are still in the possession of the British Section, haulage charges being paid by the Chinese Section.
1931-1939
27
15. The total steam train mileage run amounted to 309,292 miles. This includes trains run over the Chinese Section to and from Canton. The Motor Coach mileage was 17,297 miles. 2,002,512 passengers were carried during the year.
16. The general Railway revenues showed a steady increase, and by the end of the year General Revenues had amounted to $1,095,098.77 against $973,128.63 for the previous year. General Revenue exceeded Operating Expenses by the very satisfactory sum of $150,094.76.
17. Additions to Capital were small. A new air compressor and motor was installed in the Workshops, and a short length of track laid in connection with the Sheung Shui Station Extensions.
18. There was a serious wash-out at mile 93 on 20th April causing the derailment of a local passenger train, when eleven passengers were killed and nine injured. The line was closed until 3rd May whilst repairs were effected.
19. There are 377 miles of roads in the Colony, 161 miles on the Island of Hong Kong and 216 miles in Kowloon and the New Territories. Of the total mileage 293 miles are constructed in water bound macadam dressed with asphalt, 12 miles in sheet asphalt on a cement concrete foundation, 13 miles of tar macadam, 17 miles of concrete, 3 miles of granite setts and wooden blocks on a cement concrete foundation and 39 miles of gravel.
20. The public travelling over the Colony's roads increases year by year with a corresponding growth in the number of motor buses, of which there are 56 operating on the island of Hong Kong, and 118 on the mainland. These are gradually replacing the rickshas, the number of which decreases year by
year.
21. The Hong Kong Tramway Company has fleet of nearly 90 double deck tram-cars running along the sea front of Victoria from Kennedy Town to Shaukiwan.
22. Communication between the island and the mainland is maintained by a number of ferry services; the most important of which are the Star Ferry between Kowloon Point and a pier near the 'General Post Office, and the Hong Kong and Yaumati Ferry Company between Yaumati and a pier also centrally situated on the sea front of the island. The number of passengers carried by these two ferry companies in 1931 is estimated at 37,691,700.
29
30
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
28
Chapter XI.
BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS & MEASURES.
The Colony is, well served by banking institutions. There are sixteen principal banks doing business in the Colony who are members of the Clearing House, and in additi.u several Chinese banks and numerous native Hongs deing some portion of banking business. There are no banks which devote them- selves specially to agricultural and co-operative banking. The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation also conducts the business of the Hong Kong Savings Bank on usual savings bank principles.
A
2. The Currency of the Colony is based on silver and is governed by the Order in Council of 2nd February, 1895. The dollar, which is norinally in circulation and which is legal tender to any amount, is the British Dollar of 900 millesimal fineness and weight 26.957 grammes (416.00 grains). Silver subsidiary coins of the value of 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents and one cent pieces in bronze are also legal tender up to the value of two dollars for silver and one dollar for bronze. Bank notes issued by The Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank, The Chartered Bank and The Mercantile Bank are also in circulation, the estimated amount issued at the end of 1931 being. $154,631,822.
3. The weights and measures in use in the Colony are defined in the Schedule to Ordinance No. 2 of 1885, They consist of the standards in use in the United Kingdom and of the following Chinese Weights and Measures:-
and
1 fan (candarcen)=0.0133 ounces" avoirdupois
1 tsin (mace)=0.133 ounces avoirdupois
1 leung. (tacl)=1.33 ounces avoirdupois
1 kan (catty)=1.33 pounds avoirdupois
1 tam (picul)=133.33 pounds avoirdupois
1 chek (foot)=143 English inches divided into 10 tsun (inches) and each tsun into 10 fan or tenths.
1931-1939
29
Chapter XII.
PUBLIC WORKS.
The activities of the Public Works Department are carried out under the Head Office Staff by eleven sub-departments, viz:-Waterworks, Construction; Waterworks, Maintenance; Drainage; Architectural and Maintenance of Buildings; Electrical and Wireless Telegraphy; General Works, Roads and Transport; Buildings Ordinance; Port Development; Crown Lands and Surveys; Valuation and Resumptions; and Accounts and Stores. The European staff comprises 153 officers and the Asiatic 529.
+
2. Buildings. The following were the principal works completed during the year:-A Printing Shop at Victoria Gaol; Quarters for Wireless Operators at Victoria Peak; Latrine and Bathhouse on Praya East; Latrine and Urinal at Davis Street (30 seats); block of six flats for Married Warders at Lai Chi Kok Prison; Kowloon Tong Market; School at Un Long; and Quarters for Forestry Reserve, Tai Po. In addition the following works were under construction during the year:-No. 2 Police Station; Market at Sai Ying Pun; Market at Praya East Reclamation; Maternity Block at Kowloon Hospital; Kowloon British School Site; and Female Frison at Lai Chi Kok.
*
ཉ་
3. Communications.-The following works were com- pleted:-Road from Causeway Bay to Quarry Bay, section 70 feet wide, opposite M.Ls. 430 and 431; Tong Mi and Kowloon Tong, filling in areas; reclamation at Kai Tak; and Castle Peak Road, section from Cheung Sha Wan to Lai Chi Kok to Town Planning Layout (60 feet wide). The following works were under construction:-Chatham Road extension; filling in area North West of Nan Chang Street; filling in area West of Tai Po Road; and Refuse Dump at Cheung Sha Wan. The erection of Hangar at Kai Tak was under construction and was nearly completed by the end of the year. Portions of Nathan Road and Lai Chi Kok Road were reconditioned and strengthened with 7" reinforced cement concrete surfacing. Alterations to the traffic arrangements at Tsim Sha Tsui were completed. The surfacing of roadway to the Kai Tak Aerodrome was commenced.
:
4. Drainage.-New sewers and storm water drains in Hong Kong were constructed to a length of 6,186 feet. Improvements were effected to the main sewer in Aberdeen Valley. Stream courses were trained to a length of 263 feet. New sewers and storm water drains in Kowloon were constructed to a length of 12,682 feet. New sewers and storm water drains in New Kowloon were constructed to a length of 15,471 feet. One side. wall and invert North of Camp, Shamshuipo and Un Long Nullahs and Improvements were completed.
5. Water Works.-Two steel balance tanks were erected at West Point Filters. The reconstruction of Bowen Road Conduit between Tai. Tain Tunnel and Stubbs Road was completed. 15,923 feet of water mains of varying sizes were laid in Hong Kong and 11,096 feet in Kowloon.
31
32
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
30
·
6. The Aberdeen Scheme Fipe, Line (8,620 linear yards in length) and the connecting tunnel were completed. The Aberdeen Upper Dam was completed and opened on December 15th by His Excellency the Governor Sir William Peel, K.C.M.G., K.B.E. The First Section of the East Catchwater and the Outfall Section of the West Catchwater were completed and the 1st Section of the West Catchwater was commenced. Partial demolition of the Lower Aberdeen, or old Paper Works Dam was commenced. The Upper and Lower Pumping Stations and Depot were completed and occupied. The new Rapid Gravity Filter Plant at Elliot, four million gallons per day capacity, was completed and brought into use. The Aberdeen Scheme was brought into use and the water taken into supply on August 1st, one year and nine months after commencement of the works.
..
J
7. The 3" Fanling supply main was duplicated for a length of 6,900 feet. Further trial pits at Shing Mun Gorge Dam Site were sunk for the Consulting Engineer who visited and inspected them early in the year and reported favourably on the site. The site was later opened up over a considerable width and one of the Consulting Engineers again inspected and reported favourably. The Hong Kong Public Gardens Service Reservoir, the last item of the 1st Section of the Shing Mun Scheme, was commenced and good progress was made. The Kowloon Byewash Reservoir was completed and brought into use, forming a link between the Shing Mun Scheme and the older works.
•
.
· 1
·8. Reclamations.-At Tsat Tze Mui a reclamation of about 2 acres was carried out. An area of 14 acres approximately has been reclaimed for traflic adjoining the ferry pier under construction at Jordan Road...The China Light and Power Co. reclaimed an area of about five acres at To Kwa Wan. The reclamation at Cheung Sha Wan was extended by further dumping of Sanitary Department refuse; the total of the area now formed amounts to about twelve acres.
9. Piers. The piers at Wilmer Street, Mongkok, Sham- shuipo, and the pier in structural steel for the Hung Hom Government Store were completed. A commencement was made with the two piers, one on the mainland and one on the island, for the Vehicular Ferry:
10. Electrical Works.The installation of an additional 100 line switchboard was completed at the Kowloon Government Telephone Exchange, and a new broadcast transmitter was obtained from England and installed at Cape D'Aguilar. In addition electric light and power installations were fitted to certain Government buildings, and the Government's lighting and telephone systems maintained.
11. Buildings Ordinance Office.-Activity continued in all classes of building work throughout the Colony. European residences to the number of 232 were completed during the year. The number of Chinese houses completed was 1,144.
3333
1931-1939
31
12. On the Praya East Reclamation, 360 Chinese tenement houses were completed during the year, while over 200 more were in course of erection. It is noticeable that the improved type of Chinese tenement house which is now being erected has brought with it a demand for modern sanitation, and where sewer facilities exist and an independent and adequate water supply is available, it is now common practice for all new houses to be fitted with a flush system.
13. Several large buildings of a semi-public nature were completed during the year including banking premises, theatres, buildings of a scholastic and religious nature and hospitals. Industrial buildings included knitting factories, canning factories, and an extensive reconstruction of the Green Island Cement Company's premises at Hok Un.
14. A concrete wharf 800 feet in length and 48,000 square fect in area was in course of construction opposite K.M.L. 11, Kowloon Point. A timber pier opposite K.M.L. 90, To Kwa Wan-was completed.
15. Reclamations were completed at N.K.I.L. 971, Castle Peak Road, area in square feet 24,750; and at Tsun Wan M.L. 4, area in square feet 74,900. A reclamation was in progress at I.L. 2918, Shaukiwan Road, area in square feet 102,700.
Chapter XIII.
JUSTICE AND FOLICE
I. The Courts of Hong Kong.
The Supreme Court of Hong Kong consists of a Chief Justice and one or more other judges. At present there is one other judge.
2. The jurisdiction of the Court is regulated by a number of Ordinances but generally it may be said that the Court exercises a Summary Jurisdiction in all actions where the claim does not exceed $1,000 and an Original Jurisdiction in all actions where the claim exceeds that amount.
3. In addition to the above the Court exercises Admiralty, Probate, Bankruptcy, Lunacy, Criminal and Appellate Jurisdiction.
4. The following is a brief summary of litigation and mattera dealt with during the year 1931 :--
1,777 actions were instituted in the Summary Jurisdic- tion and the amounts for which judgment was given totalled $238,617.47,
34
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
32
:: 336 actions were instituted in the Original Jurisdiction and the amounts for which judgment was given totalled $1,406,802.11, skakella eil.
15 actions were instituted in the Admiralty Jurisdiction. 318 grants were made in the Probate Jurisdiction. 80 persons were indicted in the Criminal Jurisdiction of whom 57 were convicted
11 Appeals were lodged in the Appellate Jurisdiction 8 of which were heard during the year.
5. The lower civil courts are the land courts in the Northern and Southern districts of the New Territories, with jurisdiction over all land cases in those districts, and the small debts courts of the same two districts. In these courts the District Officers sit to hear land and small debts cases.
·
6. The lower criminal courts are the magistrates' courts, two for Hong Kong island and a small area on the mainland opposite Shaukiwan, one for Kowloon, including the whole area south of the Kowloon hills, and one each for the two districts of the New Territories, in which the District Officers are the magistrates.
7. The following figures show the amount of work done by the lower courts in 1931:
Civil:
District Officer North,
Land Court ................
Small Debts Court
District Officer South, ́
Land Court
Small Debts Court
Criminal: --
Hong Kong Magistracy, two courts.
District Officer North, one court.
36 cases.
83 cases.
180 cases.
48 cases.
22,628 cases.
15,289 cases.
Kowloon Magistracy, one court
655 cases.
District Officer, South, one court,
13
159, cases.
II. The Police:
8. The Police Force of the Colony is under the control of the Inspector General of Police who is assisted by one Deputy Inspector General and eight Superintendents. The force consists of four Contingents, European, Indian, Chinese (Cantonese) and Chinese (Weihaiwei). The strength of the different Contingents is as follows:
Europeans Indians
Chinese (Cantonese) Chinese (Weihaiwei)
244
680
585
261
1931-1939
33
In addition the Police Department controls the Anti-Piracy Guards, a force consisting of thirty-one Russians and twenty- eight Indian Guards, together with six European Sergeants, eight Indian Sergeants and ninety-five Weihaiwei Chinese Constables, who are included in the Police strength. The Anti-Piracy Guards are employed and paid for by Shipping Companies for service in the China Seas:
•
9. Further, the department engages and supervises 1,129 Indian and Chinese watchmen who are paid by private individuals for protection of private property.
10. The waters of the Colony are policed by a fleet of ten steam launches and three motor boats which employ a staff of two hundred and forty-four Chinese under European officers.
11. There were 5,284 serious cases of crime in 1931 as against 5,681 in 1930, a decrease of 397 or 7.5%. There was a decrease of 56 cases in house breaking, of two in burglaries and of 228 in larcenies. Murder showed a decrease of four cases; robberies an increase of 23 cases, a total of 79 cases as against 56 cases in 1930. There were 17,444 minor cases in 1931 as against 19,250 in 1930; a decrease of 1,806 cases or 9.3%.
III. Prisons.
4
12. There are two prisons in the Colony. Victoria Gaol in Hong Kong is the main prison and includes a section for females. This prison is built on the separate system, but segregation is difficult owing to lack of space and accommodation. It contains cellular accommodation for 644 only and prisoners often have to sleep in association through unavoidable overcrowding. There is a branch prison at Lai Chi Kok near Kowloon, with accom- modation for 480 prisoners. In this establishment all the prisoners sleep in association and only selected prisoners are sent there as the prison was not originally built as a prison. It was converted from a Quarantine Station in 1920, for temporary use pending the building of a new prison.
A new general prison is to be commenced in 1932. A new female prison is in course of construction near the Lai Chi Kok Branch Prison.
13. The total number of persons committed to prison in the year 1931 was 6,767 as compared with 6,493 in 1930. The daily average number of prisoners in the prisons in 1931 was 1,102. The highest previous average was 1,189 in 1927. Over 90% of the prisoners admitted are persons born outside the Colony.
14. The health of the prisoners generally was well main- tained in the prisons. The diet scales were revised and new dietaries approved as from May, 1931. The new dietaries have so far proved satisfactory from a medical point of view.
336
35
36
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
34
15. Owing to reconstruction at Victoria Gaol the prisoners were overcrowded in the workshops at the beginning of the year and there was a certain amount of trouble, but the general conduct steadily improved after the new diets were approved and when the new shops were completed. The agitation in Victoria Gaol was reflected in Lai Chi Kok but the measures dopted restored discipline, which is now good in both prisons.
16. Prisoners are employed at printing, bookbinding, tinsmithing, matmaking, tailoring, carpentering, gardening, laundry work, cleaning and minor repairs to buildings. The bulk of the Government printing and bookbinding is done in Victoria Gaol.
17. A small separate ward is reserved in Victoria Gaol for Juveniles who are kept as far as possible apart from other prisoners. The daily average number of Juveniles in 1931 was 4.5. A school master attends daily to instruct them. In 1929 the daily average was high and a separate hall was set aside at Lai Chi Kok for Juveniles, but the number is now so small that it has been found more expedient to deal with them in Victoria Gaol,
18. With the coming into operation of the Juvenile Offenders' Ordinance No. 1 of 1932 and the Industrial and Reformatory Schools Ordinance No. 6 of 1932, it is anticipated that the number of juvenile prisoners will in future be practically nil. These Ordinances provide for the establishment of juvenile courts, probationary officers, industrial and reforma- tory schools and modes of correction, other than imprisonment, for young offenders.
19. Police Magistrates may, under the provisions of the Magistrates Ordinance No. 3 of 1890, give time for the payment of fines..
20. Lady visitors attend the Female Prison twice weekly to instruct the prisoners in hand-work and to impart elementary education.
21. Visiting Justices inspect and report on both prisons every fortnight,
Chapter XIV.
LEGISLATION.
Forty Ordinances were passed during
during the year 1931. These and also the Regulations, Rules, By-laws and other subsidiary legislative enactments are published in a separate volume in blue book form by the Government Printers. The forty Ordinances comprised two appropriation, two replacement, two incorporation, two consolidation, thirty amendment and two Ordinances which were new to the Colony.
1931-1939
35
37
2. The Appropriation Ordinance (No. 31) applied a sum not exceeding $26,641,787 to the public service for the year 1932, and Ordinance No. 14 appropriated a supplementary sum of $2,486,577.02 to defray the charges of the year 1930.
3. The two replacement Ordinances were the Census Ordinance (No. 4), which was based on the Census Act, 1920, and replaced Ordinance No. 2 of 1881, and the Bankruptcy Ordinance (No. 10), which was based on the Bankruptcy Act, 1914, and replaced Ordinance No. 7 of 1891.
4. Ordinance No. 9 incorporated the Procurator for the time being in the Colony of the Salesian Society and Ordinance No. 19 incorporated the trustees for the time being of the Hop Yat Tong Church of Christ Hong Kong. These Ordinances followed the usual lines adopted in such cases.
5. The Liquors Ordinance (No. 36) and the Tobacco Ordin- ance (No 39) consolidated the Ordinances on those subjects.
יי
6. The Ordinances new to the Colony were the Nurses Registration Ordinance (No. 1), based on the Nurses Registration Act, 1919, and the Betting Duty Ordinance (No. 4) which made provision for the taxation of bets on authorised totalisators or pari-mutuels and on contributions or subscriptions towards authorised cash sweeps, the duty on the former being 3 per cent. and on the latter 5 per cent. of the amount paid, contributed or subscribed.
7. The thirty amending Ordinances, many of which were passed wholly or in part to authorise an increase in fees and rates charged so as to provide revenue to make up in some measure for the fall in the value of the silver dollar, covered a wide range of subjects such as Widows' and Orphans' Pensions (No. 2), Public Health (Nos. 3 and 18), Merchant Shipping Nos. 5 and 11), Estate Duty (No. 6), Deportation (No. 7), Larceny (No, 8), Vaccination (No. 12), Legal Practitioners (No. 13), Suminary Offences (No. 15), Rating (No. 16), Criminal Procedure (No. 17), Supreme Court (No. 20), Magistrates (No. 21), Official Signatures Fees (No. 22), Police Force (No. 23), Liquors (No. 24), Gunpowder and Fireworks (No. 25), Births and Deaths Registration (No. 26), Moneylenders (No. 27), Land Registration (No. 28), Stamps (No. 29), Peace Preservation (No. 30), Civil Procedure (No. 32), Arms and Ammunition (No. 38), Suitors Funds (No. 34), Full Court (No. 35), Public Revenue Protection (No. 37) and United, Kingdom Patents (No. 38).
8. Similarly the subsidiary legislation covered a wide range of subjects including Post Office, Arms and Ammunition, Vehicles and Traffic, Merchant Shipping, Suppression of Piracy, Census, Opium. Public Revenue Frotection, Tobacco, New Territories, Liquors, Suitors' Funds, Dangerous Drugs, Pilcts, Dangerous Goods, Mercantile Marine Examinations, Licensing,
388
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
36
-
Emergency Regulations, Estate Duty, Rating, Prisons, Nurses, Hong Kong University, Stamps, Dogs, Public Places, Telephones, Wild Birds, Asiatic Emigration, Supreme Court, Places of Public Entertainment, Bills of Sale, Bankruptcy, Probates, Births and Deaths, Cemeteries, Public Health and Buildings, Trade Marks, Female Domestic Service, Pawnbrokers, Prospect- ing and Mining, United Kingdom Fatents, Waterworks, Motor Spirit, Entertainment Tax, Gunpowder and Fireworks, Money- lenders, and Volunteers.
9. Factory legislation and legislative provision for com- pensation for accidents, sick pay and old age pensions such as obtains in the United Kingdom has not been adopted in the Colony where the labour population is mainly alien and fluctuates, coming from or returning to China according to the demand for its services.
Chapter XV.
PUBLIC FINANCE & TAXATION.
The following tables show the Revenue and Expenditure for the five years 1927 to 1931 inclusive.
1927
1928
1929
1930
1931
་་
Revenue. Expenditure.
Surplus. Deficit.
$21,344,536
$20,845,065
$499,471
24,968,399
21,230,242
3,738,157
23,554,475
21,983,257
1,571,218
27.818,474
28,119,646
$301,172
33,146,724
31,160,774
1,985,950
2. The revenue for the year 1931 amounted to $33,146,724 being $5,657,965 more than estimated and $5,328,250 more than the revenue obtained in 1930.
:
"
3. Increased Duties on liquor and tobacco account for $1,750,000 of the increase and higher rates of Port and Harbour Dues for $400,000. The assessed taxes (rates) were raised by 4% and resulted in an increase of about $1,600,000 in 1931 over the figures for 1930. Increased Stamp Duties and an Entertain- ment Tax brought in a further $1,100,000 and increased Postage Rates $660,000. Land Sales were also up to the extent of $300,000:
and
4. The expenditure for the year 1931 amounted to $31,160,774, being $1,372,919 more than estimated $3,041,128 more than the expenditure in 1930.
5. Substantial savings were effected in the Harbour Depart- ment, Medical Department, and Sanitary Department by deferring the purchase of new equipment and reducing the maintenance work to a minimum.
1931-1939
37
39
6. On most other heads, however, the expenditure exceeded the estimate mainly as a result of the fall in exchange--the estimates being based on a rate of 1s./4d. = 1 dollar whereas the Treasury rate averaged 1s./-%d. 1 dollar.
7. Debt. The total amount of sterling debt outstanding at the close of 1931 was £1,485,752.16.5; the sinking fund for its redemption amounting to £707,585. There is also the 1927 Public Works Loan of $4,927,000; the sinking fund for which amounted at the end of 1931 to £89,975.
•
8. The Assets and Liabilities of the Colony on the 31st December, 1931, are shown in the following statement:
LIABILITIES.
$
ሮ.
Assets.
A
C.
DEPOSITS :-
Contractors. and'
Officers Deposits....
Suitors Fund
Miscellaneous De-
posits.......
Postal Agencies Suspense Account
Exchange Adjustment...
Trade Loan Reserve Praya East Reclamation Coal Account ..... Crown Agents-Over-
draft....
ADVANCES :-
On account of
415,261.81
290,712.07
...
Future Loan 3,484,014.01 Purchase of three
Locomotives for
2,611,171,02
Chinese Section
1,451.91
Kowloon-Canton
Railway
923,010.85
332,099.29 Miscellaneous 1,045,389,41 | Building Loans
142,642.33 | Imprest Account...........
2,672.68 Subsidiary Coin
447,468.26
83,036.70
1,053,924.31
6,330.31
1,296,805.90
1,357.16 | INVESTMENTS :
Surpins Fund .............. 1,363,434.80
Crown Agents Re-
41,588.44
1,232,579.76
517,248.14.
(Railway).
163,545.31
1,743.26
Total Liabilities ... 6,065,768.53
mittances............
Trade Loan Out-
standing ......
Unallocated Stores,
(P. W. D.),......... Unallocated Stores,
Lorry Haulage Account
CASH BALANCE:
Treasurer
# Joint Colonial
3,588,678.89
Fand...... ............. Fixed Deposits
2,303,999.99 1,828,999.92
Excess of Assets over
Liabilities
11.347,629.47
Total......$ 17,413,398.00
*Joint Colonial Fund £159,000 Os. Od.
Total $17,413,398.00
40
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
38
9. Main Heads of Taxation.-The largest item of revenue is derived from the assessment tax, the sum of $5,814,017 being collected in 1931. This represents 17.5% of the total revenue or 19.4% of the revenue exclusive of land sales. The rates vary from 15% to 17% on the annual value of property and are for police, lighting and water services, etc. Port and Harbour Dues comprising Light Dues and Buoy Dues brought in the sum of $813,922.
10. Duties on intoxicating liquors realised $2,416,839, tobacco $3,364,522, postage stamps and message fees $2,035,939. A considerable sum is also derived from the opium monopoly, land revenue, stamp duties including estate duties and other fees. Land Sales during the year realised $3,177,808. The receipts of the Kowloon Canton Railway which was completed in 1910 amounted to $1,095,099.
11. Customs Tariff.-There is an Import tariff on all liquor, tobacco and light oils imported into the Colony for sale or use therein. There is no Export tariff. The sale of opium is a Government Monopoly, and all importation of opium other than by, the Government is prohibited. The importation of Dangerous Drugs is regulated in accordance with the terms of the Geneva Convention. Arms, ammunition, explosives and dangerous goods are subject to the normal Harbour and Folice Regulations in regard to storage and movement.
12. The duties on imported liquor range from $0.60 per gallon on beer to $1.20 on Chinese liquor and to $10 on sparkling European wines and perfumed spirits. The duties are collected on a sterling basis; the conventional dollars in the tariff being converted at a rate which is varied from time to time according to the market rate of exchange between the local dollar and sterling
13. The duties on tobacco range from $0.70 per lb. on the lowest taxed unmanufactured tobacco to $2 per lb. on cigars. The duties are collected on a sterling basis in the same manner as the liquor duties.
14. A duty of 25 cents per gallon is payable on all light oils imported into the Colony.
15. Ercise and Stamp Duties.-The same duty is imposed on liquors (mainly Chinese type) manufactured in the Colony as on imported liquors.
1931-1939
39
16. Stamp Duties are imposed on various instruments and where a consideration is involved are mainly ad valorem. The following are examples of the duties charged:-Affidavits, Statutory Declarations, etc., $3; Bills of Exchange (inward) and Cheques, 10 cents; Bills of Lading. 15 cents when freight under $5, 40 cents when freight over $5; Bond to secure the payment or repayment of money. 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Conveyance on sale, $1 for every $100 or part; Mortgages, principal security, 20 cents for every $100 or part; Life Insurance Policy. 25 cents for every $1,000 insured; Receipt, 10 cents for amounts over $20; Transfer of Shares, 20 cents for every $100 of market value.
17. No Hut Tax or Poll Tax is imposed in the Colony.
Hong Kong,
May 20th 1932.
(Signed)
WT SOUTHORN,
Colonial Secretary.
41
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
COLONIAL REPORTS-ANNUAL
43
No. 1637
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF
HONG KONG,
1932
(For Reports for 1930 and 1931 see Nos. 1558 (Price 1s. 3d.) and 1585 (Price 1s. 6d.) respectively)
Crown Copyright Reserved
Printed in Hong Kong
LONDON
PUBLISHED BY HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE
To be purchased directly from H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE at the following addresses Adastral House, Kingsway, London, W.C.a; 120, George Street, Edinburgh a York Street, Manchester 1; 1, St. Andrew's Crescent, Cardiff
15, Donegall Square West, Belfast
or through any Bookseller
1933
Price 2s. od. Net
58-1637
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE COLONY
OF HONG KONG DURING THE YEAR 1932.
CHAPTER
CONTENTS
PAGE
I GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY
1
II GOVERNMENT
III POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS
3
4
IV PUBLIC HEALTH
V HOUSING
5
11
VI PRODUCTION
VII COMMERCE
VIII WAGES AND THE COST OF LIVING
14
15
19
1X EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS
21
X COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT
24
XI BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS AND MEASURES
28
XII PUBLIC WORKS
29
XIII JUSTICE AND POLICE
32
XIV
LEGISLATION
35
XV PUBLIC FINANCE AND TAXATION
38.
Chapter I.
GEOGRAPHY. INCLUDING CLIMATE, AND HISTORY.
The Colony of Hong Kong is situated off the south-eastern coast of China between latitude 22° 9′ and 22° 17′ N. and longitude 114° 5′ and 114° 18' E. The island is about eleven miles long and two to five miles in breadth, its circumference being about 27 miles and its area 28 square miles. It consists of an irregular ridge of lofty hills rising to a height of nearly 2,000 feet above sea level, stretching nearly east and west, with few valleys of any extent and little ground available for cultivation.
*
45
46
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
2
2. The island of Hong Kong was ceded to Great Britain in January, 1841, the cession being confirmed by the Treaty of Nanking in 'August, 1842. The charter bears the date of 5th April, 1843. The Kowloon peninsula and Stonecutter's Island were ceded to Great Britain under the Convention signed at Peking in October, 1860, and under the Convention signed at Peking in June, 1898, the area known as the New Territories including Mirs Bay and Deep Bay was leased to Great Britain by the Government of China for 99 years. The total area of the Colony including the New Territories is about 390 square
miles.
3. The importance of Hong Kong has grown with the increase of China's trade with foreign countries. It is now in respect of tonnage entered and cleared one of the largest ports in the world. It is the most convenient outlet for the produce of South China as well as for the incessant flow of Chinese emigration to the Netherlands East Indies, Malaya, and else- where. It is also the natural distributing centre for imports into China from abroad.
4. The Colony is not primarily a manufacturing centre, the most important of its industries being those connected directly or indirectly with shipping, such as dock and warehouse, banking and insurance undertakings. Sugar refining and cement inanufacture are also major industries, and in recent years considerable quantities of knitted goods, electric torches and batteries, and rubber shoes have been produced and exported.
•
.
5. The climate of Hong Kong is sub-tropical, the winter being normally cool and dry and the summer hot and humid; the seasons are marked by the prevalence of the S.W. monsoon in summer and the N.E. monsoon in winter. The temperature seldöm rises above 95°F or falls below 40°F. The average rainfall is 85.62 inches, May to September being the wettest months. In spring and summer the humidity of the atmosphere as often very high, at times exceeding 95% with an average over the whole year of 77%. The typhoon season may be said to last from June to October though typhoons occasionally occur before and after this period.
6. The rainfall for 1932 was 91.47 inches. The mean temperature of the air was 72°.2 against an average of 71°.9. The maximum gust velocity of the wind was at the rate of 79 m.p.h. from E.N.E. on September 17th, when a typhoon passed within 200 miles to the S. of Hong Kong.
7. There were no outstanding events of general interest during the year. The first British Empire Products Fair in Hong Kong was opened by His Excellency the Officer Adminis- tering the Government, the Hon. Mr. W. T. Southorn C.M.G., on 23rd May. The Fair which was held in the grounds and
1931-1939
8
on the first and second floors of the Pensinsula Hotel was open for two days and was an unqualified success. There was an acute water shortage during the earlier part of the summer and for some weeks the mains were turned on for only one and a half hours in the morning and for a similar period in the evening. Fortunately heavy rains early in June eased the situation, and the rainfall for the year slightly exceeded the annual average.
The War Memorial Hospital was formally opened by His Excellency the Governor Sir William Peel, K.C.M.G., K.B.E., on 16th March.
8. During the absence on leave of His Excellency the Governor Sir William Peel, K.C.M.G., K.B.E., from 6th May to 16th November the Honourable Mr. W. T. Southorn, C.M.G., administered the Government.
Chapter II.
GOVERNMENT.
The
The Government is administered under Letters Patent of 14th February, 1917, and Royal Instructions of the same and subsequent dates by a Governor aided by an Executive Council, composed of six official and three unofficial members, and by a Legislative Council composed of nine official and eight unofficial members. Prior to 1928 the numbers of the Legis- lative Council members were seven and six respectively. six official members of the Executive Council are the Senior Military Officer, the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney General, the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, the Colonial Treasurer, all of whom are members ex-officio, and the Director of Public Works, appointed by the Governor. The three unofficial members, one of whom is Chinese, are appointed by the Governor. The six official members of the Executive Council are also members of the Legislative Council; the other three official members of this Council, who are appointed by the Governor, are the Inspector General of Police, the Harbour Master, and the Director of Medical and Sanitary Services. Of the unofficial members of the Legislative Council two are appointed by the Governor on the nomination respectively of the Justices of the Peace and of the Chamber of Commerce; the Governor also appoints the remaining members three of whom are Chinese. Appointment in the case of unofficial members is for five years for the Executive and four years for the Legislative Council.
2. The Sanitary Board composed of four official and six unofficial members has power to make bye laws under the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance in matters appertaining to public health, subject to an overriding power in Legislative Council.
tha
47
48
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
- 4
3. There is a number of advisory boards and committees, such as the Board of Education, Harbour Advisory Committee, Labour Advisory Board etc. composed of both official and unofficial members. They are frequently consulted and are of much assistance to the Government.
4. The English Common Law forms the basis of the legal system, modified by Hong Kong Ordinances of which an edition revised to 1923 has been published. The law as to civil procedure was codified by Ordinance No. 3 of 1901. The Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1890 regulates the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in Admiralty cases.
5. The daily administration is carried out by the twenty- eight Government departments, which are officered exclusively by members of the Civil Service. The most important of the purely administrative departments are the Secretariat, Treasury, Secretariat for Chinese Affairs, Harbour, Post Office, Imports and Exports Office, Police and Prisons departments. There are seven legal departments, amongst these being the Supreme Court and the Magistracies. Two departments, the Medical and Sanitary, deal with public health; one, the Education, with education; and one, the largest of all the Government depart- ments, the Public Works, is concerned with roads, buildings, waterworks, piers and analogous matters.
6. There have been no changes in the system of Govern- ment in the year under review.
Chapter III.
POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS.
Variation in population in Hong Kong is more dependent on immigration and emigration than on births and deaths. Movements to and from the Colony are influenced by events in China and owing to the large numbers who come and go daily it is impossible to give more than a very rough estimate of the actual population.
:
2. The following table shows the estimated population for the Colony for the middle of 1932.
Non-Chinese (mostly resident in Victoria and
Kowloon)
Chinese in Victoria
Chinese in Hong Kong Villages
Chinese in Kowloon and New Kowloon..
Chinese in New Territories
Chinese in junks and sampans ....
Total
19,984
364,279
43,513
273,24-1
100,000
99,776
900,796
·1931-1939
5
G
3. During the year 2,975,258 persons entered and 2,827,449 persons left the Colony, making a daily average of 8,129 arrivals and 7,728 departures. The daily average for 1931 was 7,094 arrivals and 7,660 departures.
4. Registration of Births and Deaths is the rule in the urban districts but in the New Territories generally registration has not been enforced; therefore, in computing birth rates and death rates the population of the New Territories should not be taken into account.
5. The number of births registered was:
Chinese Non-Chinese
13,166 431
6. The deaths registered among the civil population number 19,829 giving a crude death rate of 24.74 per mille as compared with 24.08 for the previous year.
Non-Chinese
Chinese
Deaths.
Estimated Death rate per
Population. mille population.
283 19,546
19,984 781,036
14.16
25.02
49
7. The number of deaths of infants under one year was Chinese 6,916, non-Chinese 38. If the figures for Chinese births represented the total births, which they do not, the infantile mortality figure for the Chinese would be 525.28 as compared with 617.42 in the previous year. The infantile mortality figure among non-Chinese was 97.93 as compared with 61.35 in 1931.
Chapter IV.
PUBLIC HEALTH,
.
•
In the absence of some general system of registration of sickness, the only sources of information available for gauging the state of the public health in this Colony are the returns relating to deaths, the notifications of infectious diseases and the records of hospitals. Judging from the death returns the health of the Colony was not quite so good as in the previous year. The crude death rate was 24.74 per mille as compared with 24.08 for 1931.
2. Respiratory diseases accounted for 43.05 per cent of the total deaths; the percentage for 1931 was 42.25. The principal diseases causing death were broncho-pneumonia, pulmonary tuberculosis, bronchitis, pneumonia, infantile diarrhoea and diarrhoea.
50
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
6
3. The overcrowded houses, the expectorating habits of the people, and poverty furnish sufficient explanation for the pre- valence of respiratory troubles.
•
4. Pulmonary Tuberculosis.-This disease continues to rank second to broncho-pneumonia as the principal cause of death. It is probable that some of the cases of the latter were of tuber- culous origin.
5. The total number of deaths was 2,042; that for 1931 was 1,983. The death rate per mille was 2.54 as compared with 2.60 for the previous year.
6. There is need for more hospital or infirmary accommoda- tion for tuberculosis patients, especially for those of the poorer classes.
7. Malaria.-Owing to efficient drainage methods this disease has disappeared from the greater part of the urban districts. It still persists, however, in the suburbs and in the rural areas. There are parts of the New Territories where the spleen rate exceeds 75 per cent.
8. Malaria not being a notifiable disease the incidence figures are unknown. The cases admitted to the Government Hospitals numbered 334 as compared to 586 in the previous year. The percentage of deaths to cases admitted was 3.29. Among the Chinese Hospitals there, were 942 admissions with a case mortal- ity rate of 19.42 per cent.
9. The total number of deaths attributed to this disease was 455, giving a death rate of 0.56 per mille over the whole popula- tion. The low death rate is, of course, due to the fact that the great bulk of the population residing in the drained urban area is not subject to risks of infection. If figures for local districts were available it would be found that in some areas the incidence .and death rates were very considerable.
10. The Medical Officer in charge of the Kowloon Mortuary reports that among the 288 bodies of 7 years of age and over which were examined 111 or 40 per cent of the whole had spleens which were equal to or exceeded twice the normal size.
...
་
11. During the year the Malaria Bureau continued its in- vestigations into the life history, habits and carrying powers of the local anophelines. The results obtained were both interest- ing and instructive. As in previous years there was no obstruc- tion from the local Chinese; on the contrary they took an interest in, the proceedings and showed their eagerness to be of assistance. The Chinese Inspectors have shown both ability and zeal.
1931-1939
7
-
12. The Bureau co-operated fully with the Military Authori- ties and with the Public Works Department.
INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
13. During the year there were reported 241 cases of cholera, 233 cases of smallpox, 207 cases of cerebro-spinal fever, 205 cases of diphtheria and 202 cases of enteric.
14. Cholera.-The Hong Kong epidemic was part of the pan- demic which affected most of the ports and large inland towns of China. The first cases were those of two immigrants from Canton. Thereafter there were daily notifications.
15. The outbreak which commenced on the 18th June lasted until the third week in September. Altogether there were 241 cases of which 22 were imported. The cases treated at the In- fectious Diseases Hospital numbered 202. The number of deaths among those treated was 99, giving a case death rate of 49.1 per cent
16. Early in the outbreak the Director of Medical and Sani- tary Services went to Canton for the purpose of arranging with the Health Authorities of that city for a scrutiny of all passengers about to leave for Hong Kong with the view to apprehending those showing cholera symptoms.
17. The following measures were adopted:
(1) Special provisions were made at the Infectious Dis- cases Hospital for the reception and treatment of cases. Extra staff was taken on and an agreement made with the Tung Wah Hospital Authorities for cooperation, for the loan of their Infectious Diseases Hospital, and for the employment of a number of their nurses and dressers under the supervision of the Government Medical staff.
T
.
(2) The boats and trains from Canton and the boats from Macao were subjected to inspection on arrival. (3) Vaccine was prepared at the Bacteriological In- stitute and arrangement made for the free examina- tion of all specimens submitted.
(4) Free vaccination was offered to all the hospitals and arrangements made for the vaccination of the medi- cal staff, the Police Force, the Military Establish- ment and others.
(5) Special attention was paid to the water supply and
to the sale of fresh fruits and vegetables.
(6) Close cooperation was maintained between the Medical Department, the Sanitary Department, the Police and the Railway Department.
51
52
52
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
8
18. For the treatment of cases all the methods advocated by modern authorities were made use of but in spite of the most careful attention the death rate was 49.1 per cent.
19. Smallpox.-Every year in the cold season this disease manifests itself in outbreaks which are sometimes sporadic, some- times epidemic. Whatever the prevalence there is always a tendency for the morbidity rate to decline or disappear with the advent of summer. In the year under review there were 212 cases and 175. deaths.
20. The rescission last year of the Sanitary Board's resolution of 1917 authorising the exemption of smallpox cases from isolation under certain conditions did not, as some had supposed. result in a diminution of the notification rate and an increase of concealment. If anything there was a greater tendency for the cases to seek hospital treatment.
21. The vaccination compaign was continued and during the year 276,424 persons were vaccinated. Valuable assistance was afforded by the St. John Ambulance Brigade and by the Chinese Public Dispensaries. Both bodies engaged in active propaganda and through their efforts many were persuaded who otherwise would have kept aloof. The various sections of the Brigade again carried out street vaccination with excellent results.
22. The Chinese have a preference for vaccination in the spring as being the auspicious season, and for a month or two after Chinese New Year the Chinese Public Dispensaries are crowded with children waiting to be done..
23. The majority of Chinese still hold the opinion that the herbalist treatment of smallpox gives better results than the methods adopted by practitioners qualified in Western medicine. An analysis of the statistics of (a) the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital where only herbalist treatment is carried out, and (b) the Government Infectious Diseases Hospital where west- ern treatment only is provided shows that this view is not correct. Calculating on the figures for the last 23 years the case death rate at the Tung Wah was 46.63 per cent while that at the Government institution was 14.86 per cent.
·
24. Plague. For the last three years no cases of plague have been reported in Hong Kong. The disappearance of this disease. not only from this Colony but from the greater part of China, and its decline throughout the world are due to factors which are not understood.
3353
1931-1939
9
25. Systematic rat-catching and periodical cleansing of houses were carried out throughout the year. The total number of rats collected was 174,239 of which 12,792 were taken alive, as compared with 157,829 and 11,520 in 1931. The number collected each year shows that there is no diminution in the rat population. All the rats collected were sent to the Public Mort- ary for examination. None were found infected.
26. Cerebro-spinal Fever.-Coincident with a sharp epidemic in Macao and one of milder nature in Canton there was an out- break of cerebro-spinal fever in Hong Kong which was sporadic in character. Altogether 207 cases were reported with 122 deaths. 61 cases were treated in Kennedy Town Infectious Dis- eases Hospital of which 26 died. No special foci of infection were discovered and few instances where one could trace the source of infection.
27. Sera manufactured at the Bacteriological Institute was used therapeutically both in Hong Kong and in Macao.
28. Diphtheria. With regard to diphtheria there is little to be said: The cases were sporadic and the sources of infection were seldom discovered,
29. Enteric.-What has been said of diphtheria applies to enteric. The incubation period being so long and the possible sources of infection so numerous there is little chance of tracing in any case the source of infection.
THE DUMPING OF THE DEAD.
30. The number of bodies reported by the police as dumped was 1,427 as compared with 1,295 in 1931. In an endeavour to stop this practice chambers for the deposit of corpses have been established at all the Chinese Public Dispensaries. In some cases the top of the table is so arranged that the weight of a body on it closes an electric circuit which rings a bell in the caretaker's room. So far the chambers have not been an un- qualified success and dumping in the street at dead of night continues to happen,
THE GOVERNMENT CIVIL HOSPITAL.
31. The Hospital consists of three blocks and contains 225 beds in 23 wards. About one half the accommodation has been placed under the care of the clinical professors of the University who have been gazetted respectively Surgeon, Physician and Obstetric Physician to the Hospital.
The number of inpatients in 1932 was 4,876 as compared with 4,744 in the previous year,
54
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
10
32. Attendances at the Outpatient Department numbered 47,627 (43,196 in 1931). Exclusive of the V.Î). clinic, the greater part of the work of this department is done by the staff of the University.
33. Attached to the hospital is a Maternity Hospital of 21 beds. There were 885 cases in 1932 and 796 in 1931. With the exception of a few cases attended by the Government Medical Officers all the cases were under the care of the University Pro- fessor and his assistants.
MENTAL HOSPITAL.
34. Situated close to the Government Civil Hospital is the Mental Hospital which is under the direction of the Medical Officer in charge of the Government Civil Hospital. There are separate divisions for European and Chinese. The European section contains 14 beds and the Chniese section 18 beds. This hospital is mainly only a temporary abode for mental cases, those of Chinese nationality being sent to Canton, and those of other nationalities repatriated to their respective countries. There were 307 cases in 1932 and 322 in 1931.
GOVERNMENT INFECTIOUS DISEASES HOSPITAL.
35. This hospital situated on the Western outskirts of the City of Victoria is the only Government Institution of its kind for the whole Colony. Formerly a Police Station it contains only 26 beds. Two hundred and eight-one cases were admitted in 1932 as compared with five cases in 1931.
KOWLOON HOSPITAL.
36. Situated on the mainland this hospital has 84 beds and 8 cots. During 1932 the number of patients treated was 2,132, the number for 1931 was 1,855. In the second half of the year operations commenced on the erection, of, a new, general. diseases ward, a nurses hostel and quarters for a second Medical Officer.
CHINESE HOSPITALS.
(Government aided).
37. The Chinese Hospitals.-Tung Wah, Tung Wah Fastern and Kwong Wah-are hospitals which are maintained by the Tung Wah Charity Organisation, a purely Chinese body. These institutions, which are assisted by Government, are under inspec- tion by the Government Medical Department. Each has as its Medical Superintendent a Chinese Medical Officer who is paid by Government. The Medical staff consists of Chinese Medical Officers, qualified in Western Medicine, and Chinese Herbalists.
1931-1939
-11
The patient is given his choice of treatment.
No. TREATED
No.
HOSPITAL
of
IN 1932
Chinese
No. TREATED
IN 1931
Chinese
beds Western Her- Western Her- Medicine balist Medicine balist
Medicine
Medicine
Tang Wah,..
500
7,800 5,287
5,704 5,246
Tung Wah Eastern,..... 195 3,338 1,928 2,185 1,345
Kwong Wah,
318
9,717 3,462 8,204 2,283
39. Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital.-Situated in Kennedy Town and adjacent to the Government Infectious Dis- eases Hospital is the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital, an institution containing 30 beds where 60 patients could be accommodated at a pinch. The treatment here is left almost entirely to the herbalists.
During the year there were 77 patients, as compared with 9 in the preceding year.
1.
Chapter V.
HOUSING.
In recent years some evidence has been shown amongst the artizan class of the Colony of a quickening social consciousness and the resultant desire to avail themselves of improved housing accommodation wherever such is made available. The unskilled labouring classes, however, are still found densely packed in tenement houses deficient in light and air. This class of labour has to find its habitat as close as possible to the scene of its labour, with the result that the Western part of the City of Victoria, which houses the native business quarter and closely adjoins the portion of the harbour handling the traffic from the West River and Chinese Coast Ports, is seriously overcrowded.
;
•
55
56
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
12
2. These conditions are being slowly mitigated by the rebuilding of properties which from time to time are condemned for reasons of structural defects. This process of elimination is however, too slow to create any appreciable improvement. The legislation now being contemplated, which calls for the provision of reasonable yard space, when made operative, will hasten the removal or reconstruction of much of the old property. This whilst providing improved housing conditions, will no doubt mean increased cost of living to the labouring classes.
3. Hitherto, the hostility of the property owning class to the introduction of legislation requiring additional open space and per se reducing the earning power of the property has been the chief obstacle in obtaining improved conditions. It can, however, be recorded that this spirit of obstruction is less evident today as a result of education, and of the example set by some of the better class of realty companies whose blocks of tenement houses compare not unfavourably in essential respects with modern European practice.
4. The housing of the Colony is all privately owned, and control is maintained by the operation of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, the provisions of which also mould the character of the housing. Generally the houses are built back to back in rows, separated by a scavenging lane six feet in width specified by the Ordinance. These houses vary in height from two to four storeys according to the width of the street on to which they front, whilst the average height per storey is twelve feet, a minimum being controlled by the Ordinance. The houses built prior to
1903 Ordinance covering the greatest part of the native quarter are of depths varying from forty feet to eighty; feet, with often less than 100 square feet of open space provided within the curtilage of the lot. After the passing of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance No. 1 of 1903, the amount of open space per house to be allowed within the boundaries of each lot is governed, and falls under two main heads, viz:-(a) houses built on land bought prior to the passing of the Ordinance in 1903, where The open space must not be less than one fourth the area of the site and (b) houses built on land bought subsequently where the minimum is raised to one third of the area. On plan the usual frontage of each house is fifteen feet (a dimension owing its origin more to early structural limitations than to economics) and a depth of about thirty-five feet, whilst each storey consists of one large "room" with a native type kitchen in the rear. This room is then subdivided by thin partitions seven feet high into three cubicles each of which may accom- modate a family. A latrine is built at ground floor level, one -to each house irrespective of the number of occupants, and is common to all.
.
;
1931-1939
13
5. Structurally the earlier houses are of blue bricks (cf native manufacture having a very low structural value) and timber, (usually China fir which is extremely susceptible to the ravages of white ants). Lately, however, reinforced concrete and better quality bricks have been used.
6. In the City of Victoria the major defect of housing is due to lack of town planning, but since a large proportion of the City was erected in the early days of the Colony, when town planning was little practiced even in Europe, the conditions to-day are a heritage, the elimination of which involves immense sums of money, and probably considerable opposition if attempted on a large scale.
7. Generally many of the old houses suffer from defects which are attributable to the Ordinance of that time. Passed in 1903 the measure was framed to meet existing conditions, both structurally and hygienically as they were then understood and practiced. But, viewed in the light of modern practice and knowledge, many of its provisions are found to be lax and the following are the main resultant defects:
(a) The open space is insufficient, especially with regard to earlier houses, i.e. those built on land purchased prior to 1903.
(b) Latrine accommodation is insufficient.
(c) Staircases are too narrow and steep, and often
unlighted.
(d) Means of escape in case of fire insufficient.
Note:
*---
(b) In the case of new buildings where owners are able to provide by means of a well or otherwise an adequate water supply, flush sanitation is now usually provided on each floor. This is one of the most important steps forward in sanitation that has been achieved.
(c) and (d) have been provided for by recent amendments of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, which call for any new staircases in tenement houses to be of fire-proof construction, with alternate means of egress to all floors more than twenty three feet above the footpath. The remarks above apply more particularly to the housing of the wage-carning Asiatics. The housing for the wealthier classes is provided for by modern flats three or four storeys high, and in the suburban areas by detached or semi-detached houses usually two storeys high which may be occupied separately or as flats.
57
58
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
14
8. A new Buildings Ordinance has been drafted, which will eliminate many of the present defects and demand a higher standard generally, whilst the building owners are themselves realising the advantages of modern constructional methods. Town planning improvements are being carried out wherever possible in Hong Kong whilst the development of Kowloon is proceeding according to a definite lay-out.
Chapter VI.
PRODUCTION.
Hong Kong is the port for South China, and the greater part of the large volume of goods that pass through it is in transit either to or from South China and other parts of the world, in- cluding North and Middle China. The Colony itself produces comparatively little, though the shipbuilding, cement, sugar re- fining...and cotton knitting industries are not unimportant. Neither agriculture nor mining are carried on to any great extent, though the former is practised throughout the New Territories. Rice and vegetables are grown, and there is considerable poultry farming, but in insufficient quantities to supply the needs of the urban populations of Victoria and Kowloon. The cultivation is in the hands of the Chinese villagers. Sea fishing is an im- portant industry, but here again local supplies have to be augmented by importation from outside.
2. Reports on the principal industries for the year 1932 are given below:-
Refined Sugar. The enormously increased duty on sugar imported into. China (which now amounts to 130 per cent of the c.i.f. value) has imposed such a heavy financial burden on dealers that their operations have been greatly curtailed. Business dur- ing 1932 was on a hand to mouth basis, but even so sugar dealers at the end of the year were facing with some trepidation the January, 1933, Chinese New Year Settlement which was very difficult for them in view of heavy credits extended to clients in the interior of South China. Business with Manchuria has prac- tically ceased, Japanese refined sugars having practically mono- polised that market.
Cement.-There was a large demand for cement throughout the year, the market being flooded by the Japanese product which was sold at prices against which it was difficult for other cement "manufacturers to compete.
Rope-A restricted demand and keen competition were the special features met wtih in this industry during 1932;
1931-1939
15
Preserved Ginger.-World economic depression. adversely affected business during 1932 in spite of considerably lower prices. The total value of exports from Hong Kong in 1932 amounted to $1,400,000 as compared with $2,400,000 in 1931.
Knitted Goods.-The turnover in locally manufactured knitted goods (hosiery and singlets) was considerably less than in 1932 owing to unfavourable exchange considerations which were the exact reverse of those obtaining in 1931 when local factories were able to export at very low prices owing to their raw materials having been bought at less than replacing cost at the time of export. The total value of exports of singlets in 1932 amounted to $5,700,000 and that of hosiery, $1,700,000.
Flashlight Torches and Batteries.-The manufactures of local factories are still in good demand, particularly from India, Java and other countries with large native populations. The approximate total value of exports in 1932 amounted to $1,200,000 (batteries) and $1,000,000 (torches).
Rubber Shoes.-Locally. manufactured rubber shoes are be- ing exported in growing quantities. The rubber is imported from the Straits Settlements and the canvas from America and the United Kingdom. Low labour costs here enable local manufac- turers to compete successfully with shoes of Japanese and Straits Settlements manufacture. The total value of exports in 1932 amounted to over $2,000,000.
Shipbuilding. Four ocean-going vessels and twenty-six smaller craft were built in local dockyards during 1932.
Chapter VII.
COMMERCE.
Although it cannot be claimed that the general economic situation of the Colony of Hong Kong during the year 1932 showed any visible improvement as compared with the previous year, statistics of the Import and Export trade reveal that the situation was not an unsatisfactory one, taking into consideration the heavy contraction in international trade, and, in particular, the Chinese boycott of Japanese products which seriously affected the trade statistics of the Colony.
2. The declared value of Imports of merchandise in 1932 amounted to $624.0 millions (£41.0 millions), as compared with $737.7 millions (£38.5 millions) in 1931, while Exports were valued at $471.9 millions (£31.0 millions) as compared with $541.9 millions (£28.9 millions) in 1931.
59
60
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
16
3. Calculating in terms of Hong Kong currency, Imports declined by 15.4%, and Exports by 12.9% but sterling values showed increases of 6.5% and 7.3% respectively, on account of the appreciation in the value of exchange on other than gold standard countries.
4. In regard to the quantum of trade, it is estimated that there was a decline of from 7 to 10%.
5. Great Britain still further increased its share of the Import trade, accounting for 9.4% in 1930, 10.6% in 1931 and 12.3% in 1932, while the Japanese share fell successively from 12.3%, 9.3% to 3.4%. China, French Indo-China, Siam, India and Australia also increased their proportions.
6. Both imports and exports of Piece Goods and Textiles declined in 1932 as compared with 1931, total imports being valued at $107.3 millions as compared with $131.7 millions, and exports at $66.9 millions as compared with $75.8 millions.
7. The United Kingdom's share of the import trade in piece goods and textiles increased from 32.6% to 38.6%, while the Japanese share receded from 19.1% to 7.0%.
8. Imports of Building Materials fell from $15.3 millions to $12.9 millions; Chemicals and Drugs from $8.3 to $6.6; Chinese Medicines from $28.9 to $19.2; Dyeing and Tanning Materials from $8.9 to $6.0; Foodstuffs from $241.4 to $211.8; Hardware from $5.5 to $5.2; Liquors from $4.6 to $3.7; Machinery and Engines from $9.2 to $6.1; Manures from $13.4 to $11.0; Metals from $44.6 to $38.5; Nuts and Seeds from $8.9 to $7.0; Oils and Fats from $54.3 to $52.2; Paints from $2.7 to $2.5; Paper and Paperware from $16.2 to $15.7; Tobacco from $12.9 to $9.5; Wearing Appearel from $6.3 to $4.4; Sundries from $90.3 to $71.5. Fuels, Railway Materials and Vehicles showed very slight increases.
9. Values of Exports showed a decline in each group. Building Materials fell from $9.6 millions in 1931 to $8.7 millions in 1932; Chemicals and Drugs from $4.6 to $4.1; Chinese Medi- cines from $16.5 to $13.6; Dyeing and Tanning Materials from $6.5 to $5.0; Foodstuffs from $201.2 to $185.2; Fuels from $3.0 to $2.5; Hardware from $3.0 to $2.8: Liquors from $1.5 to $1.0; Machinery and Engines from $2.2 to $1.6; Manures from $16.3 to $11.0: Metals from $34.6 to $30.2: Minerals and Ores from $2.0 to $0.9; Nuts and Seeds from $6.2 to $5.6: Oils and Fats from $43.4 to $37.1; Paints from $2.6 to $2.1: Paper and Panerware from $11.4 to $10.3; Piece Goods and Textiles from $75.8 to $66.9; Railway Materials from $0.44 to $0.43: Tobacco from $10.1 to $7.9: Vehicles from $2.2 to $1.5; Wearing Apparel from $13.7 to $12.8; and Sundries from $74.8 to $60.2.
1931-1939
17
10. The average rate of exchange for the year was is. 32d. as against ls. 03d. in 1931.
Imports (in £'s & $'s millions).
1923. 1924. 1925. 1930. 1931. 1932
1st Quarter
£ 14.7 19.3 $130.7 165.4
16.3 139.7
* 9.0 11.9
* 186.9
170.7
2nd Quarter
£ 15.2
$131.5
17.1 14.5 144.0 128.9
9.2
8.7
10.2
131.3
180.1
164.7
3rd Quarter
£ 14.3 19.2
10.1
9.0
9.3
$127.1
161.7
*
156.8
182.3
182.3 142.4
4th Quarter
£ 17.8 $155.3
16.5
136.6
*
*
10.3
11.8 9.6
167.4
188.4 146.2
Total
£ 62.0 72.1 30.8 29.6 $544.6 607.7 268.6 455.5
38.5 41.0
737.7 624.0
61
Exports (in £'s & $'s millions).
1923. 1924: 1925. 1930. 1931. 1932.
1st Quarter
£13.9 18.3 15.2 $123.5 156.8 130.3
*
6.8
8.8
*
140.1
127.0
2nd Quarter
£ 16.3 $140.9
15.2 14.1 128.0 125.3 125.3
7.4
6.4
7.1
105.9
132.5
115.3
3rd Quarter
£ 14.0 14.6 $124.4 122.9
*
7.3
6.5
7.2
* 113.7
130.6
110.0
4th Quarter
£ 17.2 15.5
$150.1
*
8.5
9.2. 7.9
128.3
*
Total
137.2 138.7 119.6
£ 61.4 63.6 29.3 23.2 28.9 31.0 $538.9 536.0 255.6 356.8 541.9 471.9
*No statistics available from July 1925 to March 1930.
Note:-Average rate of exchange 1923=2s. 34d;
1924-2s. 44d;
1925-2s. 34d;
1930-1s. 31d;
1931-1s. 04d;
1932-1s, 34d.
1
62
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
18
TREASURE MOVEMENTS.
A considerable increase was shown in 1932, mainly on account of heavy transfers of Silver Subsidiary Coin from Canton to Shanghai.
IMPORTS.
EXPORTS.
1931
1932
1931
1932
$
Bank Notes
1,047,045
673,264
3,132,004
1,797,085
Copper cents
56,037
6,370
2,708,417
45,903
Gold Bars
6,842,100
19,508,290
50,656,676
63,715,586
Gold Coins
270,400
80,000
8,280,762
5,787,931
Gold Leaf
672,914
83,333
1,293,506
277,028
Silver Bar
.37,710,863
34,365,025
40,155,252
14,883,018
H.K. Silver Dollar
1,099,341
2,564,512
10,000
40,000
Chinese Silver
.......................13,937,264
3,256,166
10,461,979
11,709,712
Other Silver Dollar
154,220
*
Silver Sub. Coins
4,266,956
24,735,443
260,460 4,754,824
138,657
41,618,911
Total
......66,057,140 85,272,403 121,773,880 140,013,831
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS 1931 AND 1932 (excluding treasure)
IMPORTS.
EXPORTS.
1931
1932
1931
1932
United Kingdom
78,251,178 76,905,373 5,247,416
3,462,248
British Dominions and
Possessions
China
All other countries
57,402,155 56,752,665 57,662,739 200,421,159 169,993,076 295,001,702 279,818,847 401.666,167 320,396,186 | 184,137,981| 145,970,638
42,607,973
Total British Empire
135,653,333 133,658,038 62,910,155 16,070,221
Total Foreign
Grand Total
*
602,087,326 490,389,562 479,139,683 425,789,485
737,740,659 624,047,600 | 542,049,838 461,859,706
Not fully recorded.
63
333
1931-1939
19
WHOLESALE PRICES CHANGES.
Wholesale prices in Hong Kong during the year 1932 showed a decrease of 10.4% as compared with 1931, and increase of 14.6% as compared with 1924, 22.4% as compared with the base period of 1922, and 91.2% as compared with 1913.
There were decreases in each of the four groups in 1932 as compared with 1931: Foodstuffs declining by 12. 3%, Textiles by 7.8%, Metals and Minerals by 9.1% and Miscellaneous Items by 12.5%.
The following table shows the course of price changes since 1913 :-
Foodstuffs
Textiles
Metals
Miscellaneous
Average of all
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 1913. 1922. 1924. 1931. 1932. Qtr. Qtr. Qtr. Qtr.
73.6 100.0 106.1 144.3 126.5 129.6 130.1 124.9 121.4 55.1 100.0 112.5 135.8 125.2 135.6 128.5 118.8 117.8 63.2 100 0 102.3 140.9 128.1 137.0 138.2 121.8 115.4
64.2 100.0 106.3 125.4 109.7 125.7 109.9 103.2 100.2
Articles...... 64.0 100.0 106.8 136.6 122.4 132.0 126.7 117.2 113.7
Chapter VIII.
WAGES AND THE COST OF LIVING.
A great proportion of the workers in Hong Kong are paid on a piece work basis and in some trades are engaged and paid on curiously complicated systems involving payment of a bonus or a share in the yearly profits.
2. Trade was again dull for the greater part of the year and wages have, sc far as can be ascertained, tended down- wards. The building trade however, was still very busy, for though the peak of the land boom had been passed early in the year the resultant effect on building had not become apparent by the end of the year. The price of the cheaper grades of rice which is the staple food of the lowest paid workers, has not increased and remains at an average of five to eight cents per lb. The price of fire-wood which is also an important item to the poorer classes remains the same. There has been no apparent movement in house rents.
3. The European resident, unlike the local labourer, purchases many articles of necessity which are imported from countries with sterling or gold currencies. He is therefore affected by variations in the exchange value of these currencies as expressed in terms of the silver dollar. During the year under review these variations were not sufficiently great to affect noticeably the prices of imported articles.
64
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
20
AVERAGE RATES OF WAGES FOR LABOUR.
Building Trade:-
Carpenters
Bricklayers
Painters
Plasterers
Scaffolders
Labourers (male)
(female)
$1.15 per day.
1.10
1.10
""
1.10
1.70 ""
0.80
•
""
0.50
"}
"?
Working hours, nine per day. Time and a half paid for over- ime. Free temporary quarters provided on the building site and communal messing at cheap rates.
Shipbuilding and Engineering:-
Electricians Coppersmiths Fitters
Sawmillers
Boilermakers
Sailmakers
....
Blacksmiths
Turners
Patternmakers
Labourers
$1.45 to $1.80 per day.
1.20 to 1.80
""
""
0.80 to
1.80
.1.00.to
1.40
"
1.00 to
1.50 **
1.00 to
1.50
""
""
.0.80.to
1.20
1.00 to
1.40 ""
""
1.00 to
1.40
""
0.50 to 0.80
"
Over-time-time and a half. Night work-double time.
Transport Workers:-
Tram drivers
"}
conductors
Bus drivers
,
conductors
$36 to $45 per month.
30 to 39
"
22
50 per month.
20 to 25 per month.
Working hours, nine per day. Free uniform. Bonus at end
of year.
Railway Workers (Government) :
Engine drivers ..
Firemen
Guards
Signalmen
Station Masters
Booking Clerks
Telephone operators
Female Workers in Factories:-
Cigarette making
Knitting factories
Perfumery
$540 to $1,000 per annum.
330 to
600 to
480 "" 1,000
19
""
600 to
1,000
12
.1,100 to
1,800
"
600 to
1,000
"
480 to
1,000
**
Confectionery
0.20 to
$0.40 to $0.80 per day.
0.55
0.20 to 0.50 "
"}
""
22
One hour off at mid- day rates.
0.20 to 0.60
Working hours from-7 a.m. to 5 p.m. day. Over-time from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at
1931-1939
Domestic Servants:-
Employed by Chinese
Employed by Europeans
Gardeners
$7.00 to $20.00 per month.
15.00 to 40.00
"
15.00 to 30.00
""
''
With free lodging, and with Chinese employers, generally free board.
NOTE:-The rates of pay of Government employees are much the same
as those of a similar category in private employ.
AVERAGE RETAIL PRICES OF FOODSTUFFS. ETC.
1932.
1931.
Rice (3rd. grade)
8.6 cents per cattie.
8.4 cents per cattie.
Fresh fish
25
31.5
"
"
>>
"
>>
Salt fish
32
34.6
""
""
""
"
Beef
49
48
""
"
**
""
""
23
Pork
53
55
"
"
"
>>
Oil
23
+
24.2
""
""
""
""
Firewood
10
for 7 catties. 10
for 8 catties.
22
65
Chapter IX.
EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS.
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS.
These are either schools where the medium of instruction is English or mostly English or schools where the medium of instruction is Chinese. The former, sixteen in number, are known as "English" schools, the latter of which there are three
"Vernacular" schools.
2. Of the four English schools, classed as "secondary" schools in the Table below, two are Anglo-Chinese schools for boys and one for girls. These three schools have primary departments. The fourth school, the Central British School which is a mixed school, has no primary department. Of the eleven English schools, classed as "primary" schools in the Table below, three are mixed schools preparing for the Central British School. In this group are also four "District" schools, including one for Indian boys and four "Lower Grade" schools, three of which are in rural districts. In those English schools which are attended by Chinese the study of English and of Chinese is carried on side by side; the pari passu system requiring that promotion shall depend an proficiency in both languages.
3. Of the three Government Vernacular schools one has seven years' course and includes a Normal department. There is also a Normal school for women teachers and a Normal school on the mainland which aims at providing Vernacular teachers for rural schools.
66
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
4. The Technical Institute, classed in the Table below as "vocational", is attended by persons desirous of receiving instruc- tion for the most part germane to their daytime occupations.
GRANT IN AID AND SUBSIDIZED SCHOOLS.
5. There are thirteen Grant-in-Aid English Schools, and four Grant-in-Aid Vernacular Schools. Of the former, seven are
schools for boys and six are for girls,
6. One English school for girls has a primary department only. The remaining schools classed in the table below S "secondary" schools have primary departments as well as the upper classes.
+
7. Munsang College, Kowloon City, received a grant of $6,000.
8. The Vernacular Grant-in-Aid Schools are schools for girls and are classed in the Table as "secondary" schools.
9. The 295 subsidized schools are all Vernacular schools.
UNAIDED SCHOOLS.
10. In 1932 there were 614 unaided Vernacular schools with 31,978 children and 116 unaided English schools with 6,687 children.
1932.
Table showing number of schools and scholars for the year
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS
GRANT IN AID AND SUBSIDIZED
UNAIDED SCHOOLS
SCHOOLS
CLASS OF INSTITUTIONS
No. of Institu-
On Roll
No. of
Institu-
On Roll
tions
tions
No. of Institu- tions
On Roll
ENGLISH :-
Secondary,
4
2,387.
Primary,
11
1,759
1
13* 5,861 210
106
0907
10
160 5,C27
Vocational,
632
...
Total,
16
4,778
14
6,071
116
6,687
VERNACULAR :--
Secondary,
1
251
1
Primary,.
295
1,118 20,005
614
31,978
Vocational,
205
1
130
Total,......
4
456
300 21,253
614 | 31,978
Total No. of Institutions
Total On Roll
.......
1,063 71,223
*This includes Ying Wa College whose primary department receives
a Grant-in-Aid.
1931-1939
23
THE UNIVERSITY.
11. The University of Hong Kong was incorporated under a local University Ordinance, 1911, and opened in 1912. It is a residential University and open to students of both sexes.
12. The University hostels are three in number-Lugard Hall, Eliot Hall and May Hall. There are also three recognized hostels for men, St. John's Hall, Morrison Hall and Ricci Hall. No university hostel at present exists for women students.
13. The late Sir Hormusjee Mody bore the entire expense of the erection of the main building. Additions have been made through the liberality of benefactors of varied nationality and domicle. The latest additions to the buildings are a School of Chinese Studies, the cost of which was borne by Mr. Tang Chi Ngong a local Chinese merchant and banker, and a Chinese Library named after the late Mr. Fung Ping Shan who provided a sum of $100,000 for the building.
14. The income of the University for 1932 amounted to about $1,080,180.60 of which about $494,000 was derived from endow- ments and $375,000 from Government. Messrs. John Swire & Sons Ltd. gave £40,000 to the original endowment fund and sub- sequently $100,000 for engineering equipment. The Rockefeller Institute has endowed the University with three chairs in surgery, medicine and obstetrics, the endowment being in each case $250,000. The annual expenditure in 1932 amounted to about $916,500.
15. The University includes the three faculties of Medicine, Engineering and Arts. Admission to all faculties is conditional upon passing the matriculation examination of the University or some examination recognized as equivalent thereto.
16. The Faculty of Medicine provides a six year course of study in the usual pre-medical and medical sciences, leading to the degree of M.B. and B.S. The degrees of M.D. and M.S. are awarded on examinations but are subject to the proviso that every candidate for the degrees shall produce evidence of special post-graduate experience in the subject which he presents. The degrees above mentioned are recognized by the General Medical Council for registration in Great Britain.
17. The Faculty of Engineering provides a four years course in practical and theoretical engineering, leading to the degree of B.Sc., (Eng.). Fourth year students specialize in civil, mechanical or electrical engineering. The degree for post- graduate work is that of M.Sc., (Eng.).
18. The Faculty of Arts includes departments of pure arts and science, social science, commerce, a department of Chinese studies and a department for training teachers. The course is in all cases one of four years and leads to the degree of B.A The degree for post-graduate work is that of M.A.
67
68
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
24
19. With a view to securing the maintenance of the desired standard-which is in all three faculties that of a British Univer- sity degree-external exeminers are, in all faculties, associated with the internal examiners in all annual final examinations. In the Faculty of Engineering, but not in other faculties, degrees with honours are granted, the standard being assessed by special examiners chosen from amongst the external examiners in the University of London.
20. The degree of LL.D. is granted honoris causa.
CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS.
21. The following are the best known Charitable Iistitutions.
French Convent Orphanage. Italian Convent Orphanage. Maryknoll Convent, Kowloon. St. Louis Industrial School. Po Leung Kuk-Chinese. Victoria Home and Orphanage.
Society of Precious Blood Hospital.
Home for Aged Poor, Kowloon.
La Calvaire Home for Aged Poor, Happy Valley.
Eyre Refuge.
Salvation Army Home.
Industrial Home for the Blind, Pokfulam.
RECREATION AND ART.
22. Most of the schools contrive to hold Annual Sports either on their own grounds or on grounds generously lent by local Cricket and Football Clubs. Some schools are granted free use of Government Bathing Beaches for four afternoons a week dur- ing the Bathing Season. Lawn Tennis, Football, Swimming, Volley Ball and Basket Ball continue to increase in popularity. Cricket is played at a few schools. Physical training is given by qualified instructors. Art is taught in the Government British Schools by Trained Art Mistresses. ·
Chapter X.
COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT.
The external communications of Hong Kong are excellent both by sea and by telegraph, cable and radio. As regards the former, the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co., the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, the Blue Funnel Line, the Messageries Maritimes, and several other British and foreign companies maintain regular passenger and freight services between Hong
1931-1939
- 25
Kong and Europe. The trans-Pacific communications are well served by the Canadian Pacific Steamships Ltd., the Dollar Line, the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and other steamship lines. To Australia three steamship companies, the Eastern and Australian, Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and Australian and Oriental maintain regular passenger and freight services. In addition there are direct sailings to Africa, South America, and to New York. There is frequent and regular communication between Hong Kong and other Far Eastern ports in India, Java, Straits Settlements, Formosa, Indo-China, Japan and the China coast. Local steamship communication is by river steamer from Hong Kong to Canton and the West River ports with several sailings daily. In addition there is a vast traffic between Hong Kong and the adjacent provinces of China by junk and sampan.
2. The total shipping entering and clearing Ports in the Colony during the year 1932 amounted to 104,115 vessels of 43,824,906 tons which, compared with the figures of 1931 shows a decrease of 3,147 vessels and a decrease of 325,115 tons. Of the above 52,359 vessels of 41,794,005 tons were engaged in Foreign Trade as compared with 51,801 vessels of 41,933,748 tons in 1931. There was an increase in British Ocean-going shipping of 180 vessels and an increase of 660,846 tons. Foreign Ocean-going vessels show a decrease of 539 vessels and a decrease of 837,918 tons. British River Steamers showed an increase of 95 vessels and an increase of 41,474 tons. Foreign River Steamers showed a decrease of 199 vessels and a decrease of 11,035 tons. In steamships not exceeding 60 tons employed in Foreign Trade there was an increase of 83 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 6,609 tons. Junks in Foreign trade showed an increase of 938 vessels and an increase of 13,499 tons. In Local Trade (i.e. between places within the waters of the Colony) there was an increase in steam launches of 710 vessels and an increase in tonnage of 22,399. Junks in Local Trade show a decrease of 4,415 vessels and a decrease of 207,771 tons.
3. The Eastern Extension Telegraph Company (British) by means of three cables to Singapore, one direct and one each via Labuan and Cape St. James respectively, provides good connections with Europe via India, with Australasia, and with the other British Colonies and possessions. By their cable to Manila connection is made with the direct American cable, thence to San Francisco. Two cables to Shanghai, belonging respectively to the Eastern Extension and to the Great Northern (Danish) Companies, via Foochow and Amoy respectively, give a good connection with Shanghai, North China, Japan and Russia; the system of the Great Northern Telegraph Company gives a good service to Europe via Asiatic Russia.
4. The Government operates a commercial radio service with direct communication with Chinese stations, Siam, Indo-China, Formosa and the Dutch East Indies. Indirect communication
69
70
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
26
between Hong Kong and America is maintained via Manila and between Hong Kong and Europe via Manila or Dutch East Indies.
5. The revenue collected by the Radio Office during the year from radio telegrams amounted to $680,032.58, an increase of $1,004.07 on the amount collected in 1931. Advices of vessels signalled at the Lighthouses yielded $1,259.40. The total Revenue from the telegraph service amounted to $681,291.98. Ship Station Licences yielded $1,750.00, Amateur Transmission Station Licences $204.50, Broadcast Receiving Licences $20,679.50, Dealers' Licences $2,239.00 and Examination Fee for Operators' Certificates of Proficiency $66.00. ··
6. The number of paid radio-telegrams forwarded during the year was 194,782 consisting of 1,607,233 words against 214,274 consisting of 1,694,362 words in 1931, and 179,382 were received, consisting of 1,653,046 words against 184,183 consisting of 1,690,206 words.
... 7. In addition to the paid traffic figures given above the wireless Service is responsible for the reception of time signals daily from Bordeaux, Rugby, Malabar and Nauen, for the trans- mission of time signals to ships in the China Sea, the reception of press messages amounting to 365 messages or 198,526 words from Rugby, the collection and distribution of meteorogical traffic, 6,583 messages 216,787 words having been forwarded, and 17,083 messages 293,502 words having been received, the reception and dissemination of distress, piracy and navigation messages, the transmission and reception of Government mess- ages, etc.
8. A telephone service between Hong Kong and Canton, a distance of 110 miles is in operation."
9. Mails. The number of mail receptacles of Hong Kong origin despatched during the year was 47,615 as compared with 48,748 in 1931-a decrease of 1,133; the number received was 51,324 as compared with 52,568-a decrease of 1,244.
10. Receptacles in transit, including those to and from British and Foreign Men-of-War, numbered 183,822 as against 210,217 in 1931-a decrease of 26,395. ·
11. Registered Articles and Parcels. The number of regis- tered articles handled amounted to 748,676 as compared with 806,733 in 1931-a decrease of 58,057.
12. The figures for insured letters were 18,595 and 19,522 respectively-an increase of 927.
13. Parcels, ordinary and insured, which were dealt with reached a total of 228,253 as against 382,170 in 1931-a decrease ofi153,917:
1931-1939
27
14. The year 1932 proved a most successful one for the Rail- way. Both gross and net receipts were by far the highest in its history.
15. Conditions in South China were such that no untoward events affected through traffic between Kowloon and Canton, and with the exception of a few days suspension on account of small washouts on the Chinese Section, the through train services were maintained satisfactorily throughout the year.
16. The through journey of the Kowloon Canton expresses, of which there are two each way daily, was reduced to 3 hours and 8 minutes as from the 1st of November, 1932, and notwith- standing the raising of certain of the through fares there was a noticeable increase in through passenger traffic.
17. The three new express locomotives, obtained in 1930 on behalf of the Chinese Section, are still in possession of the British Section, but the Chinese Section made 6 monthly cash instal- ments of $10,000 each in respect of them during the year. Haulage Charges continued to be paid by the Chinese Section.
18. The total steam train mileage run amounted to 315,046. This includes trains run over the Chinese Section to and from Canton. The Motor Coach mileage was 19,502 miles. 2,182,634 passengers were carried during the year.
71
19 The General Railway Revenue showed a marked increase and amounted to $1,295,789.20 as against $1,095,098.77 for the previous year.
General Revenue exceeded Operating Expenses by the very satisfactory sum of $333,412.15 as against $150,094.76 for 1931.
20. There are 311 miles of roads in the Colony, 161 miles on the Island of Hong Kong and 150 miles in Kowloon and the New Territories. Of the total mileage 227 miles are constructed in water bound macadam dressed with asphalt, 12 miles in sheet asphalt on a cement concrete foundation, 13 miles of tar maca- dam, 17 miles of concrete, 3 miles of granite setts and wooden blocks on a cement concrete foundation and 39 miles of gravel.
21. The public travelling over the Colony's roads increases yearly with a corresponding growth in the number of motor buses, of which there are 56 operating on the island of Hong Kong, and 118 on the mainland. These are gradually replacing the rickshas, the number of which decreases year by year.
22. The Hong Kong Tramway Company has a fleet of nearly 90 double deck tram cars running along the sea front of Victoria from Kennedy Town to Shaukiwan.
72
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
28-
23. Communication between the island and the mainland is maintained by a number of ferry services; the most important of which are the Star Ferry between Kowloon Point and a pier near the General Post Office, and the Hong Kong and Yaumati Ferry Company between Yaumati and a pier also centrally situated on the sea front of the island. The number of passengers carried by these two ferry companies in 1932 is estimated at 39,640,709.
Chapter XI.
BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS & MEASURES.
The Colony is well served by banking institutions. There are sixteen principal banks doing business in the Colony who are members of the Clearing House, and in addition several Chinese banks and numerous native Hongs doing some portion of banking business. There are no banks which devote them- selves specially to agricultural and co-operative banking. The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation also conducts the business of the Hong Kong Savings Bank on usual saving bank principles.
2. The Currency of the Colony is based on silver and is governed by the Order in Council of 2nd February, 1895. The dollar, which is normally in circulation and which is legal tender to any amount, is the British Dollar of 900 millesimal finess and weight 26.957 grammes (416.00 grains). Siiver subsidiary coins of the value of 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents and one rent pieces in bronze are also legal tender up to the value of two dollars for silver and one dollar for bronze. Bank notes issued by The Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank, The Chartered Bank and The Mercantile Bank are also in circulation, the estimated amount Issued at the end of 1932 being $153,611,605.
3. The weights and measures in use in the Colony are defined in the Schedule to Ordinance No. 2 of 1885. They consist of the standards in use in the United Kingdom and of the following Chinese Weights and Measures:-
and
1 fan (candareen)=0.0133 ounces avoirdupois
1 tsin (mace)=0.133 ounces avoirdupois
1 leung (tael)=1.33 ounces avoirdupois
1 kan (catty)=1.33 pounds avoirdupois
1 tam (picul)=133.33 pounds avoirdupois
1 chek (foot)=143 English inches divided into 10 tsun (inches) and each tsun into 10 fan or tenths
73
1931-1939
29.
Chapter XII.
PUBLIC WOrks.
During the year under review the operations of the Public Works Department were carried out under a Head Office Staff by eleven sub-departments. The European Staff comprised 155 officers and the Asiatic Staff 557.
2. Buildings.-The following works were completed during the year:-A new No. 2 Police Station; Market at Sai Ying Pun; Chair Coolie Shelter at Barker Road; Temporary Fire Station at Wanchai; Hut for Police at Bay View Police Station; Garage for the Prison Department in Arbuthnot Road; Altera- tions at the Government Civil Hospital to provide office accom- modation and an Isolation Ward; Blanket Store at the Central Police Station; Female Prison at Lai Chi Kok; Postál Kiosk at Kowloon City; Market at Praya East Reclamation; Latrine at Possession Point; and Motor Cycle Garages at Sheung Shui. In addition the following works were under construction during the year:-Crematorium at Kai Lung Wan Cemetery; Extension of the offices of the Public Works Department; Additions to Kowloon Hospital comprising a new Ward Block; Block of Quarters for Nurses and a House for a second European Medical Office; Venereal Diseases Clinic at Kowloon; New Cattle Lairage at Ma Tau Kok Cattle Depot; Wireless Broadcasting Station at Kowloon and a Medical Welfare Centre in the New Territories. In addition to general maintenance numerous minor alterations and improvements to Government Buildings were also executed during the year.
3. Communications.-The following works were completed: -6" cement concrete foundation with sand-carpeting at Des Voeux Road Central from Centre Street to Western Street; 6" cement concrete foundation for granite setts at Connaught Road, west of Centre Street; Surfacing of Peak Road with non-skid cement surfacing; 4" tar maçadam on Island Road eastward of Stanley Gap; Chatham Road extension; Widening Sai Kung Road north of Aerodrome; portions of Nathan Road, Prince Edward Road and Lai Chi Kok Road were reconditioned and strengthened with 7′′ re-inforced cement concrete surfacing; bottoming and surfacing laid on Chatham Road from junction with Gascoigne Road to Cooke Street; filling in area north of Nan Chang Street; surfacing Lin Ma Hang-Sha Tau Kok Road; improving and strengthening main roads chiefly between Castle Peak and Ping Shan; diversion of Taipo Road near 5 milestone; surfacing and tarpainting road to "Texaco" installation at Tsun Wan; reconditioning Sha Tau Kok Road between Fanling and Kwanti Race Course. The following works were under construction:- -1st Section of New 75' Road between Causeway Bay and Ming Yuen; Refuse Dumps at Cheung Sha Wan and Sung Wong Toi; Children's Playground, Cox's Road; the Strengthening and improvement of road surfaces in the New Territories was continued, an additional 4"
74
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
30:
-
of macadam being laid and tarpainted between the 11 and 12 milestone-Castle Peak Road, and at Mei Po. Approximately 11 miles of tarpainting was carried out in addition to new work, to preserve previously strengthened portions. Approxi- mately 311 miles of road surfaces in the Colony were satis- factorily maintained. Work on the Wong Ma Kow Road was suspended owing to resiting the New Gaol.
.
4. Drainage. New sewers and storm water drains were constructed in Hong Kong to a length of 3,034 feet. Improve- ments were effected to the main sewer in Aberdeen Valley. Short lengths of channelling were done in various districts. New sewers and storm water drains were also constructed in Kowloon to a length of 10,471 feet, and open nullahs were decked-over to a length of 864 feet and in New Kowloon, the length of new sewers and storm water drains which were constructed' was 20,150 feet. Nullah walling was built to a length of 746 feet, and parapet walling to a length of 874 feet. Various minor works were carried out in the New Territories. In connection with the anti-malarial campaign work was begun at Mount Parker, Stanley, Sookunpoo and Lyeemun, and streams were trained to lengths of 4,250 feet as channels, 1,577 feet as culverts, and 200 feet as walled nullah.
:
•
•
1
:
The
5. Water Works.-In Hong Kong the following lengths of new mains were laid to improve the distribution system:-1,706 feet of 12". 900 feet of 8", 972 feet. of 7", 2,070 feet of 6", and 2,181 feet of smaller sizes. 4,207.feet of subsidiary mains of 13"-3" diameter were laid in back lanes. During the water shortage 17,700 feet of temporary wrought iron. piping were laid and 335 temporary street fountains were fixed in congested areas in the city. The first section of the Aberdeen West Catchwater was completed and the second
the second section survey commenced. The partial demolition and reconstruction of the Aberdeen Lower Dam was completed and a considerable quantity of silt removed from the Reservoir basin. The reconstruction of the Main Outfall Nullah and existing Road Bridge at the Paper Mills, Aberdeen, was commenced. Access Road to the Aberdeen Lower Dam was completed except for surfacing. In Kowloon and New Kowloon the following lengths of new mains were laid to improve dis- tribution:-1,020 feet of 18"; 1,895 feet of 15", 1,120 feet of 12", 145 feet of 10′′, 1,200 feet of 8′′, 6,020 feet of 6′′, and 2,305 feet of smaller sizes. 17,439 feet of subsidiary mains of small diameter were laid in back lanes. 10,521 feet of temporary wrought iron piping were laid and 155 temporary street fountains were fixed during the water shortage. 4,750 feet of 6′′ main were laid from Sam Tack Road to the new Hangar at the Aerodrome. The construction of a new concrete service reservoir on Yaumati Hill was commenced. In the New Territories 4,700 feet of: 4" piping were laid at Fanling as part of the scheme to improve this supply. A new concrete service reservoir of 110,000 gallons capacity was constructed at Taipo.
:
1931-1939
31*
6. Universal meterage was adopted and 5,187 meters were fixed in the Colony during the year. Of this total 2,286 were installed in the Rider Main Areas leaving about 3,268 to be fixed in these areas in 1933.
7. Further borings were taken at the site of the Gorge Dam and the results forwarded to Messrs. Sir Alexander Binnie, Son and Deacon, the Consulting Engineers who commenced preparatory work in connection with the construc- tion of this Dam. The Access Road to the site of the Dam was commenced. The 2nd Section of Rapid Gravity Filters
at Shek Lai Pui was completed and brought into use.
115
75
8. The Hong Kong Public Gardens Service Reservoir together with 1,460 feet of 24" supply main and 1,268 feet of 18" distribution main were nearly completed.
9. Reclamations.-At Tsat Tze Mui a further eight acres was reclaimed making a total of approximately ten acres. The reclamation at Cheung Sha Wan was continued bringing the total area now formed to about fourteen acres.
10. Piers. Construction was completed on the ferry pier situated in front of the Fire Station Building between Queen Victoria Street and Jubilee Street. The ferry pier at Jordan Road was also completed at the end of the year.
11. Electrical Works.-The following works were completed during the year:-An underground telephone cable was laid to replace the aerial route between Victoria Gap and Gough Hill Police Station; a 50 line Telephone Switchboard at Taipo Police Station; thirty-five buildings were rewired: an electric power cable was laid at Wanchai Garage; electric light and power installations were fitted to D.O./North's Quarters, Sha Tin Police Station, Taipo Police Station, Tsun Wan Police Station, Sheung Shui Police Station, Taipo Land Bailiffs' Quarters and Au Tau Police Station; the broadcast transmitter was trans- ferred from Cape D'Aguilar to Hung Hom. In addition to minor works the usual maintenance of telephones and Wireless Stations etc. was carried out.
12. Buildings Ordinance Office. The boom in the building industry which was manifest during the year 1931 was main- tained throughout the year under review although a slight falling off in the total number of plans submitted for new works occurred. A satisfactory feature in the development has been the number of factories and industrial buildings completed and in course of erection. Impetus in religious works, social welfare and educational interests is reflected in the construction of many fine buildings amongst which should be noted:-- Church and Schoolrooms at High Street and Western Street; Chapel and School at Shaukiwan; School and Quarters for Salesian Society on Island Road; Chinese Library at the
76
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
32.
University: Po Leung Kuk (Walfare Home for Women) at Leighton Hill Road; La Salle College in Boundary Street; Churches in Prince Edward Road and Austin Road; Chapel in Sai Kung Road and a Nunnery at Ngau Chi Wan. Theatres completed during the year numbered three and three others are at present under construction. Buildings of an improved Chinese tenement type comprise the bulk of the work under- taken but it is satisfactory to note that there is an increasing proportion of good class European type residences, mostly of a detached or semi detached character. The districts wherein the latter form of development is most in evidence continue to be the areas adjacent to Prince Edward Road in Kowloon and Wong Nei Chong Valley in Hong Kong. European type residence to the number of 309 were completed during the year. The number of Chinese houses was 1,121.
1
13. On the Praya East Reclamation 254 Chinese houses with modern sanitation to all floors were completed. More important buildings at present under constructions on this area comprise the Seamen's Institute, the Royal Naval Canteen and a large Chinese hotel.
14. The introduction of water flush sanitary appliances is now common practice in all classes of buildings where facilities for obtaining independent water supplies exist. The number of water flush appliances. fitted during the year was 5,572.
.
15. Nineteen fires occurred causing structural damage to properties which necessitated action by the Public Works department. The most serious occurred at Aplichau Island where fourteen houses were gutted, fortunately without loss of life. A fire involving the destruction of two houses with the consequent loss of eight lives and injury to seven ** persons occurred at Pei Ho Street, Kowloon. The houses affected were three-storeyed buildings with wooden floors and a combined wooden staircase to both houses.
4
16. A concrete wharf 800 ft. in length and 48,000 sq. ft. in area opposite K.M.L. 11 and a concrete pier at Great George Street, 53 ft. long and 2,750 sq. ft. in area were completed during the year.
17. Reclamations in progress during the year were:-I.L. 2918, Shaukiwan Road, covering an area of 102,700 sq. ft. and 138,664 sq. ft. at K.M.L. 52, To Kwa Wan.
Chapter XIII.
JUSTICE AND POLICE.
I. THE COURTS OF HONG KONG.
The Supreme Court of Hong Kong consists of a Chief Justice and one or more other judges. At present there is one other judge.
1931-1939
33
77
2. The jurisdiction of the Court is regulated by a number of Ordinances but generally it may be said that the Court exercises a Summary Jurisdiction in all actions where the claim does not exceed $1,000 and an Original Jurisdiction in all actions where the claim exceeds that amount.
3. In addition to the above the Court exercises Admiralty, Probate, Bankruptcy, Lunacy, Criminal and Appellate Juris- diction.
4. The following is a brief summary of litigation and matters dealt with during the year 1932:-
2696 actions were instituted in the Summary Jurisdiction and the amounts for which judgment was given totalled $497,567.28.
399 actions were instituted in the Original Jurisdiction and the amounts for which judgment was given totalled $1,307,871.47.
25 actions were instituted in the Admiralty Jurisdiction. 443 grants were made in the Probate Jurisdiction.
118 persons were indicted in the Criminal Jurisdiction of whom 83 were convicted.
:
7 appeals were lodged in the Appellate Jurisdiction 5 of which were heard during the year.
5. The lower civil courts are the land courts in the Northern and Southern districts of the New Territories, with jurisdiction over all land cases in those districts, and the small debts courts of the same two districts. In these courts the District Officers sit to hear land and small debts cases.
6. The lower criminal courts are the magistrates' courts, two for Hong Kong island and a small area on the mainland1 cpposite Shaukiwan, one for Kowloon, including the whole area south of the Kowloon hills, and one each for the two districts of the New Territories, in which the District Officers are the magistrates.
7. The following figures show the amount of work done by the lower courts in 1932 :
Civil:-
District Officer North,
Land Court
50 cases.
Small Debts Court...
128 cases,
District Officer South,
Land Court
200 cases.
Small Debts Court...
14 cases,
78
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
34
Criminal:-
Hong Kong Magistracy, two courts......
Kowloon Magistracy, one court
District Officer, North, one court
District Officer, South, one court
II. THE POLICE.
19,155 cases
14,418 cases. 880 cases.
126 cases.
8. The Police Force of the Colony is under the control of the Inspector General of Police who is assisted by one Deputy Inspector General and ten Superintendents. The force consists of four Contingents, European, Indian, and two Chinese viz. Cantonese and Weihaiwei. The strength of the different Con- tingents is as follows:-
Europeans
Indians
Chinese (Cantonese)
Chinese (Weihaiwei)
245
726
594
283
In addition the Police Department controls the Anti-Piracy Guards, a force consisting of thirty-three Russians and twenty- eight Indian Guards, together with six European Sergeants, eight Indian Sergeants and ninety-five Weihaiwei Chinese Con- stables, who are included in the Police strength. The Anti- Piracy Guards are employed and paid for by Shipping Companies for service in the China Seas.
9. Further, the department engages and supervises 1,129 Indian and Chinese watchmen who are paid by private individuals for protection of private property.
10. The waters of the Colony are policed by a fleet of ten steam launches and three motor boats which employ a staff of two hundred and forty-four Chinese under European officers.
11. There were 5,708 serious cases of crime in 1932 as against 5,284 in 1931, an increase of 424 or 7.4%. There was an increase of 87 cases in house breaking, of 13 in burglaries and a decrease of 186 in larcenies. Murder showed an increase of 13 cases; robberies a decrease of 13 cases, a total of 66 cases as against 79 cases in 1931. There were 15,364 minor cases in 1932 as against 17,444 in 1931; a decrease of 1,080 cases or 6.1%.
III.
PRISONS.
12. There are three prisons in the Colony. Victoria Gaol in Hong Kong is the main prison for males. This prison is built on the separate system, but segregation is difficult owing to lack of space and accommodation. It contains cell accommoda- tion for 644 only and prisoners are often kept in association through unavoidable overcrowding. There is a branch male
1931-1939
- 35 --
prison at Lai Chi Kok near Kowloon, with accommodation for 480 prisoners. In this establishment all the prisoners sleep in association wards and only selected prisoners are sent there as the prison was not originally built as such.. It was converted from a Quarantine Station in 1920, for temporary use pending the building of a new prison. A new female prison at Lai Chi Kok was opened on 19th April. A new general prison has been approved and site preparations will be commenced in 1933.
13. The total number of persons committed to prison in the year 1932 was 7,793 as compared with 6,767 in 1931. The daily average number of prisoners in the prisons in 1932 was 1,114. The highest previous average was 1,189 in 1927. Over 90% of prisoners admitted are persons born outside the Colony.
14. The health of the prisoners generally was well maintained in the prisons.
15. The discipline in all three prisons was good.
16. Prisoners are employed at printing, bookbinding, tin- smithing, matmaking, tailoring, carpentering, gardening, laundry work, cleaning and minor repairs to buildings. The bulk of the Government printing and bookbinding is done in Victoria Gaol.
ers.
17. A small separate ward is reserved in Victoria Gaol for Juveniles who are kept as far as possible apart from other prison- The daily average number of Juveniles in 1932 was 3.7. A school-master attends daily to instruct them. In 1929 the daily average was high and a separate hall was set aside at Lai Chi Kok for Juveniles, but the number is now so small that it has been found more expedient to deal with them in Victoria Gaol.
18. Police Magistrates may, under the provisions of the Magistrates Ordinance No. 41 of 1932, give time for the payment of fines.
19. Lady visitors attend the Female Prison twice weekly to instruct the prisoners in hand-work and to impart elementary education.
20. Visiting Justices inspect and report on the prisons every fortnight.
79
Chapter XIV.
LEGISLATION.
Forty-three Ordinances were passed during the year 1932. These and also the Regulations, Rules, By-laws and other subsidiary legislative enactments are published in a separate
80
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
36
volume by the Government Printers. The forty-three Ordin- ances comprised two appropriation, one replacement, two incorporation, eleven consolidation, twenty one amendment, and six Ordinances which were new to the Colony.
2. The Appropriation Ordinance (No. 29) applied a sun not exceeding $27,585,142 to the public service for the year 1933, and Ordinance No. 25 appropriated a supplementary sum of $1,818,307.78 to defray the charges of the year 1931.
3. The replacement Ordinance was the· Industrial・・ and Reformatory Schools Ordinance (No. 6) which is closely modelled on the English law and the Straits Settlements Ordinance No. 47, with only such modification as were considered necessary to suit local conditions.
4. Ordinance No. 16 incorporated the directors for the time being of the Chinese Young Men's Christian Association of Hong Kong, and Ordinance No. 17 incorporated the members for the time being of the Council of St. Stephen's College, Hong Kong. These Ordinances followed the usual lines adopted in such cases.
cases
5. The following Ordinances, viz. Estate Duty (No. 3), Opium (No. 7), Fensions (No. 21), Factories and Workshops (No. 27), Dangerous Drugs (No. 31), Police Force (No. 37), Prisons (No. 38), Companies (No. 39), Summary Offences (No. 40), Magistrates (No. 41), and Registration of United Kingdom Patents (No. 42) consolidated and in some amended the existing law on these subjects. Of these, the Pensions Ordinance (No. 21) is based on the recent pension enactments of similar Colonies, and replaces the former procedure under which pensions, retired allowances and gratuities in respect of the public service were granted by order and in accordance with the directions of the Secretary of State for the Colonies. The Companies Ordinance (No. 39) enacts the provisions of the Companies Act, 1929, (19 & 20 Geo. V. c. 23) as far as they are applicable to local circumstances, and incorporates certain local provisions formerly in force. In the Police Force Ordinance (No. 37), the Summary Offences Ordinance (No. 41), and the Magistrates Ordinance (No. 40), certain provisions were re-arranged and all three Ordinances were enacted to come into force together on 1st January, 1933.
+
6. The Ordinances new to the Colony were the Juvenile Offenders Ordinance (No. 1), based on a Home model, which with the Industrial and Reformatory Schools Ordinance (No. 6, paragraph 3 supra.) incorporated the recommendations of a committee appointed to report on the measures required for the institution of Juvenile Courts in the Colony; the Employment of Young Persons at Sea Ordinance (No. 13), which applied to the Colony the convention adopted by the International Labour Convention of the League of Nations on 9th July, 1920 on this
1931-1939
37
are
subject; the City Hall Resumption Ordinance (No. 22), the Minimum Wage Ordinance (No. 28), which provides for fixing minimum wages in occupations where the wages
wages paid unreasonably low, and so carries out the
the obligations arising from Article 421 of the Treaty of Versailles in respect of the International Labour Convention; the Empiro Freference Ordinance (No. 32), which supports as far as local circumstances permit the conclusions of the Ottawa Conference; and the Divorce Ordinance (No. 35), modelled on the Straits Settlements Ordinance No. 123, with variations, notably the definition of a Christian marriage or its equivalent, derived from Nachimson's case (1930 P. 217) Brinkley's case (15 P.D. 76) Hyde's case (1 P. & M. 130) and Bethell's case (38 Ch. D. 220,, which was considered the appropriate basis of jurisdiction of this kind in a largely non-Christian Colony, and the inclusion of a provision enabling a wife to found her petition on adultery alone or on certain grave offences.
7. The twenty-one amending Ordinances covered a wide range of subjects such as Po Leung Kuk Incorporation (No. 4), Chinese Temples (No. 5), Medical Registration (No. 8), Vaccination (No. 9), Employers and Servants (No. 10). Military Stores (Exportation) (No. 11), Births and Deaths Registration. (No. 12), Importation and Exportation (No. 14), United Kingdom Designs (Protection) (No. 15), Vagrancy (No. 19), Liquers (No. 20), Merchant Shipping (No. 23), Crown Solicitors (No 24), Foreshore and Sea Bed (No. 26), Waterworks (No. 30), Supreme Court (Admiralty Procedure) (No. 33), Marriage (No. 34) and Frotection of Women and Girls (No. 43).
8. In the case of Ordinances No. 1 (Juvenile Offenders), No. 6 (Industrial and Reformatory Schools), No. 27 (Factories and Workshops), No. 35 (Divorce), No. 31 (Dangerous Drugs) and No. 33 (Supreme Court Admiralty Procedure) the date of commencement will be determined by Proclamation after notice of non-disallowance has been received.
·
9. Similarly, thę subsidiary legislation covered a
wide range of subjects, including Merchant Shipping, Tobacco. Liquors, Air Navigation, Importation and Exportation, Vehicles and Traffic, Gunpowder and Fireworks, Dogs, Crown Fees, Post Office, Vaccination, Licensing, Eating-houses, Markets, Crema- tion, Aerated-water Manufactories, Laundries, Bakehouses, Food-preserving Establishments, Dairies, Dangerous Drugs, Passports, Nurses Registration, Wireless Telegraphy, Emergency Regulations, Prisons, Advertisements, Prevention of Disease, Dangerous Goods, Public Places, Ferries, Places of Public Entertainment, New Territories, Waterworks and Merchandise Marks.
10. Legislative provision for compensation for accidents, sick pay and old age pensions such as obtains in the United Kingdom has not been adopted in the Colony where the labour
81
82
82
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
- 38
population is mainly alien and fluctuates extensively, coming from or returning to China according to the demand for its services.
Chapter XV.
PUBLIC FINANCE & TAXATION.
The following tables show the Revenue and Expenditure for the five years 1928 to 1932 inclusive.
1928
1929
1930
1931
1932
Revenue. Expenditure. Surplus.
Deficit
$24,968,399 $21,230,242
$3,738,157
23,554,475 21,983,257 1,571,218
27,818,473 28,119,646
$301,173
33,146,724
33,549,716
31,160,774 1,985,950 32,050,283 1,499,433
---
2. The revenue for the year 1932 amounted to $33,549,716 being $441,794 less than estimated but $402,992 more than the revenue obtained in 1931.
3. Duties on imported liquor and tobacco were less than estimated as they are on a sterling basis and were reckoned on an exchange rate of $1=1/- whereas the average rate throughout the year was over 1/3. Assessed Taxes show a normal increase due to expansion but large decreases were shown by the Opium Monopoly of $685,774 and in Stamp Duties of $280,799. A con- siderable increase amounting to $298,439 was shown under Water Excess and Meter Rents due to general building develop- ment and to the institution of universal meterage. Land Sales were less than estimated to the extent of $379,341.
4. The expenditure for the year 1932 amounted to $32,050,283 being $2,931,378 less than estimated but $889,509 more than the expenditure in 1931.
5. Ordinary expenditure amounted to $29,082,423, Public Works Extraordinary to $1,967,860 and a sum of $1,000,000 was paid to the Admiralty as part payment for the surrender of the Naval Arsenal and Kellett Island. Large savings resulted under Personal Emoluments, compared with the amounts inserted in the Estimates, on account of the higher exchange prevailing throughout the year. Changes in personnel and vacancies in office also reduced the amount but most of this under-expenditure amounting to $2,480,875 was due to the rise in the sterling value of the dollar. Under Other Charges savings were also effected amounting to $479,605. Expenditure on Public Works Extra- ordinary fell short of the original estimate by $205,685 but $378,820 more than estimated was expended on recurrent main- tenance and improvements.
1931-1939
39
83
6. Debt. The total amount of sterling debt outstanding at the close of 1932 was £1,485,732.16.5, the sinking fund for its redemption amounting to £832,751. There is also the 1927 Public Works Loan of $4,927,000; the sinking fund for which amounted at the end of 1932 to £125,792.
7. The Assets and Liabilities of the Colony on the 31st December, 1932, are shown in the following statement;-
LIABILITIES.
$
C.
ASSETS.
$
C.
DEPOSITS:-
ADVANCES
Contractors and
On account of
Office s Deposits
468,375.00
Future Loan ..........
Purchase of three
Suitors Fund
$58,260.25
Locomotives for
4,920,364.85
Chinese Section
Miscellaneous De-
Kowloon
Canton
posits...
3,828,592.95
Railway.
Miscellaneous
387,468.26 85,205.52
Insurance Compan-
ies
Building Loans
1,030,781,45
1.539,050.00
Imprest Account.
6.776.47
Subsidiary Coin
1,225.592.08
Suspense Account ....
976,782.27
House Service
Account
5,740.22
Exchange Adjustment
285,083.27
Investments:-
......
Trade Loan Reserve... 1,081,487.12
Praya East Reclama-
tion
124,657.26 Coal Account
Surplus Funds
1,682,784.92
Trade Loan Out-
standing
752.751.50
1,966.81
Unallocated Stores,
(P.W.D.)........
469,073,88
Unallocated Stores,
(Railway)......
172,327.81
Cash Balance :
Crown Agents...
10,916.39
Treasurer..
Total Liabilities... 8,862,288.12
4,340,036.04
Joint Colonial
Fund......
3,486,117.64
Excess of Assets over
Fixed Deposits:
Liabilities
12,847,062.24
General ...$1,592,366.52 Insurance
Companies 1,539,050.00
3,131,416.52
Total......$ 21,709,350.36
Total ... ...$21,709,350.36
*Joint Colonial Fund £231,500.,Os.,Od,
84
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
40
8. Main Heads of Taxation. The largest item of revenue is derived from the assessment tax, the sum of $6,332,066 being collected in 1932. This represents 18.9% of the total revenue or 19.7% of the revenue exclusive of land sales. The rates vary from 15% to 17% on the annual value of property and are for police, lighting and water services, etc. Port and Harbour Dues comprising Light Dues ond Buoy Dues brought in the sum of $811,860.
9. Duties on intoxicating liquors realized $2,387,257, tobacco $3,476,137, postage stamps and message fees $1,964,593. A considerable sum is also derived from the opium monopoly, land revenue, stamp duties including estate duties and other fees. Land Sales during the year realized $1,370,658. The receipts of the Kowloon Canton Railway which was completed in 1910 · amounted to $1,295,789, a considerable increase being shown under Passenger Service..
10. Customs Tariff.-There is an import tariff on all liquor, tobacco and light oils imported into the Colony for sale or use therein. There is no Export tariff. The sale of opium is a Government Monopoly, and all importation of opium other than by the Government is prohibited. The importation of Dangerous Drugs is regulated in accordance with the terms of the Geneva Convention. Arms, ammunition, explosives and dangerous goods are subject to the normal Harbour and Police Regulations in regard to storage and movement. A special Foreign Registration fee of 20% of the value of a motor vehicle is payable in respect of any vehicle not produced within the British Empire.
11. The duties on imported liquor range from $0.60 per gallon on beer to $1.20 on Chinese liquor and to $10 on sparkling European wines and perfumed spirits. The duties are collected on a sterling basis, the conventional dollars in the tariff being converted at a rate which is varied from time to time according to the market rate of exchange between the local dollar and sterling. A 50% reduction in duty is allowed in respect of brandy grown or produced within the British Empire.
12. The duties on tobacco range from $0.70 per lb. on the lowest taxed unmanufactured tobacco to $2 per lb. on cigars. The duties are collected on a sterling basis in the same manner as the liquor duties.
13. A duty of 25 cents per gallon is payable on all light oils imported into the Colony.
14. Excise and Stamp Duties.-The same duty is imposed on liquors (mainly Chinese type) manufactured in the Colony as on imported liquors.
1931-1939
بس 41
15. Stamp Duties are imposed on various instruments and where a consideration is involved are mainly ad valorem. The following are examples of the duties charged:-Affidavits, Statu- tory Declarations, etc., $3; Bills of Exchange (inward) and Che- sues, 10 cents; Bills of Lading, 15 cents when freight under $5, 40 cents when freight over $5; Bond to secure the payment or repayment of money, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Conveyance on sale, $1 for every $100 or part; Mortgages, prin- cipal security, 20 cents for every $200 or part; Life Insurance Policy, 25 cents for every $1,000 insured; Receipt, 10 cents for amounts over $20; Transfer of Shares, 20 cents for every $100, of market value.
16. No Hut Tax or Poll Tax is imposed in the Colony.
20th May, 1933.
W. T. SOUTHORN,
Colonial Secretary.
85
86
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
42
Appendix.
LIST OF PUBLICATIONS OF GENERAL INTEREST RELATING TO
Title
HONG KONG.
Price
Agents for sale
$
Sessional Papers (Annual)
Blue Book (Annual)
Ordinances-Ball's Revised Edit- ion (In 6 Volumes) 1844-1923. Regulations of Hong Kong 1844-
1925
Ordinances and Regulations
(Annual)...
Administration Reports (Annual)
Estimates (Annual)
Government Gazettes (Weekly)
Meteorological Bulletin (Month-
ly)
Hong Kong Trade and Shipping
Returns (Monthly)..
(Annual)
Do. Hansards (Annual)
Historical & Statistical Abstract of the Colony of Hong Kong 1841-1930.
The Hong Kong Naturalist
(Quarterly).
2.00 Colonial Secretariat and Go-
verment Printers.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers and Crown Agents for the Colonies, London.
90.00
Do.
30.00 Colonial Secretariat.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers and Crown Agents.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat and Go-
vernment Printers.
Do.
3.00
.50 Government Printers and
Crown Agents.
10.00 Government Printers.
per
annum
2.00 Government Printers
Crown Agents.
2.00
Do.
and
5.00 South China Morning Post,
Hong Kong.
4.00 Colonial Secretariat.
2.00
Hong Kong University.
Hong Kong: A Guide Book......
1.00
Kelly & Walsh, Ltd.,
Hong Kong.
Hong Kong: Around and About,
by SH. Peplow & M. Barker. A Hong Kong Sketch Book, by
S. A. Sweet....
History of Hong Kong by Eitel.
5.00
Do.
2.50
Do.
Out of Print.
...
1931-1939
COLONIAL REPORTS-ANNUAL
87
No. 1673
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF
HONG KONG, 1933
(For Reports for 1931 and 1932 see Nos. 1585 (Price 1s. 6d.) and 1637 (Price 2s. od.) respectively)
Crown Copyright Reserved
pense
Printed in Hong Kong
LONDON
PUBLISHED BY HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE
To be purchased directly from H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE at the following addresses Adastral House. Kingsway, London, W.C.2; 120, George Street, Edinburgh a York Street, Manchester 1; 1, St. Andrew's Crescent, Cardiff
80, Chichester Street, Belfast
or through any Bookseller
1934
Price 2s. od. Net
58-1673
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE COLONY OF HONG KONG DURING THE YEAR 1933.
CHAPTER
CONTENTS
PAGE
I GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY......
II GOVERNMENT
1
3.
III POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS .
IV PUBLIC HEALTH
4
6
V HOUSING
11
VI PRODUCTION
VII COMMERCE
VIII WAGEs and the Cost of LIVING
13
15
19
IX EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS
22
X COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT..
26
XI BANKING, Currency, Weights And MEASURES... 29
XII PUBLIC WORKS
30
XIII JUSTICE AND POLICE
35
XIV
LEGISLATION
38
XV PUBLIC FINANCE And Taxation
40
Chapter I.
GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY.
•
The Colony of Hong Kong is situated off the south-eastern coast of China between latitude 22° 9′ and 22° ́ 17′ ́N. ́ ́ and longitude 114° 5′ and 114° 18′ E. The island is about eleven miles long and two to five miles in breadth, its circumference being about 27 miles and its area 28 square miles. It consists of an irregular ridge of lofty hills rising to a height of nearly 2,000 feet above sea level, stretching nearly east and west, with few valleys of any extent and little ground available for cultivation.
89
90
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941.
2
2. The island of Hong Kong was ceded to Great Britain in January, 1841, the cession being confirmed by the Treaty of Nanking in August, 1842. The charter bears the date of 5th April, 1843. The Kowloon peninsula and Stonecutter's Island were ceded to Great Britain under the. Convention signed at Peking in October, 1860, and under the Convention signed at Peking in June, 1898, the area known as the New Territories including Mirs Bay and Deep Bay was leased to Great Britain by the Government of China for 99 years. The total area of the Colony including the New Territories is about 390 square miles.
3. The importance of Hong Kong has grown with the in- crease of China's trade with foreign countries. It is now in respect of tonnage entered and cleared one of the largest ports in the world. It is the most convenient outlet for the produce of South China as well as for the incessant flow of Chinese emigration to the Netherlands East Indies, Malaya, and else- where. It is also the natural distributing centre for imports into China from abroad.
4. The Colony is not primarily a manufacturing centre, the most important of its industries being those connected directly or indirectly with shipping, such as dock and warehouse, banking and insurance undertakings. Sugar refining and cement manufacture are also major industries, and in recent years considerable quantities of knitted goods, electric torches and batteries, and rubber shoes have been produced and exported.
5. The climate of Hong Kong is sub-tropical, the winter being normally cool and dry and the summer hot and humid; the seasons are marked by the prevalence of the S.W. monsoon in summer and the N.E. monsoon in winter. The temperature seldom rises above 95°F. or falls below 40°F. The average rainfall is 85.16 inches, May to September being the wettest months. In spring and summer the humidity of the atmosphere is often very high, at times exceeding 95% with an average over the whole year of 79%. The typhoon season may be said to last from June to October though typhoons occasionally occur before and after this period.
6. The rainfall for 1933
for 1933 was 62.35 inches. The mean temperature of the air was 72°.5 against an average of 71°.9. The maximum gust velocity of the wind was at the rate of 67 m.p.h. from S.S.W. on June 29th, and again of 67 m.p.h. from N.N.E. on September 20th.
7. During the course of the year Admiral Sir Frederic C. Dreyer, K.C.B., C.B.E., took over the command of the China Station from Admiral Sir W. A. Howard Kelly, K.C.B., C.M.G., M.V.O., and the Chief Justice, Sir Joseph Kemp, Kt., C.B.E.,
1931-1939
3-
and the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, Mr. E. R. Hallifax, C.M.G., C.B.E., left the Colony on leave prior to retirement. Among the honours conferred by His Majesty the King were : K.B.E. Sir Thomas Southorn, C.M.G., Knight Bachelor: Sir William Shenton.
8. The Colony's transport facilities were improved by the unification of the omnibus services on the Island and Mainland respectively and the establishment of a vehicular ferry service between Victoria and Kowloon.
9. Among factors helping to develop Imperial trade may be mentioned the appointment of Mr. G. C. Pelham as H. M. Trade Commissioner for Hong Kong and Commercial Secretary for South China and the holding of the second British Empire Fair, which was attended by some 200,000 people.
10. No major Auctuation in the dollar occurred during the year. The average was 1s. 41d., the dollar appreciating gradually from 1s. 31d. in January to 1s. 4116. in December.
Chapter II.
GOVERNMENT.
The Government is administered under Letters Patent of 14th February, 1917, and Royal Instructions of the same and subsequent dates, by a Governor aided by an Executive Council, composed of six official and three unofficial members, and by a Legislative Council composed of nine official and eight unofficial members. Prior to 1928 the numbers of the Legislative Council members were seven and six respectively. The six official inembers of the Executive Council are the Senior Military Offi- cer, the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney General, the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, the Colonial Treasurer, all of whom are members ex-officio, and the Director of Public Works, appointed by the Governor. The three unofficial members, one of whom is Chinese, are appointed by the Governor. The six official members of the Executive Council are also members of the Legislative Council; the other three official members of this Council, who are appointed by the Governor, are the Inspector General of Police, the Harbour Master, and the Director of Medical and Sanitary Services. Of the unofficial members of the Legislative Council two are appointed by the Governor on the nomination respectively of the Justices of the Peace and of the Chamber of Commerce; the Governor also appoints the remaining members three of whom are Chinese. Appointment in the case of unofficial members is for five years for the Executive and four years for the Legislative Council
•
91
92
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
4
2. The Sanitary Board composed of four official and six unofficial members has power to make by-laws under the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance in matters appertaining to public health, subject to an overriding power in the Legislative Council.
3. There is a number of advisory boards and committees, such as the Board of Education, Harbour Advisory Committee, Labour Advisory Board, etc., composed of both official and unofficial members. They are frequently consulted and are of much assistance to the Government.
.
4. The English Common Law forms the basis of the legal system, modified by Hong Kong Ordinances of which an edition revised to 1923 has been published. The law as to civil procedure was codified by Ordinance No. 3 of 1901. The Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1890 regulates the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in Admiralty cases.
5. The daily administration is carried out by the twenty- eight Government departments, which are officered exclusively by members of the Civil Service. The most important of the purely administrative departments are the Secretariat, Treasury, Secretariat for Chinese Affairs, Harbour, Post Office, Imports and Exports Office, Police and Prisons departments. There are seven legal departments, amongst these being the Supreme Court and the Magistracies. Two departments, the Medical and Sanitary, deal with public health; one, the Education, with education; and one, the largest of all the Government depart- ments, the Public Works, is concerned with roads, buildings, waterworks, piers and analogous matters.
:
6. There have been no changes in the system of Govern- ment in the year under review.
Chapter III.
POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS.
Variation in population in Hong Kong is more dependent on immigration and emigration than on births and deaths. Movements to and from the Colony are influenced by events in China and owing to the large numbers who come and go daily it is impossible to give more than a very rough estimate of the actual population.
1931-1939
5
2. The following table shows the estimated population for the Colony for the middle of 1933.
Non-Chinese (mostly resident in Victoria and
Kowloon)
20,446
Chinese in Victoria ...
368,739
Chinese in Hong Kong Villages
45,286
Chinese in Kowloon and New Kowloon
286,896
Chinese in junks and sampans
100,000
Chinese in New Territories
101,276
Total
922,643
93
3. During the year 2,787,436 persons entered and 2,712,389 persons left the Colony, making a daily average of 7,637 arrivals and 7,431 departures. The daily average for 1932 was 8,129 arrivals and 7,728 departures.
4. Registration of Births and Deaths is the rule in the urban districts but in the New Territories generally registration has not yet been fully enforced; therefore, in computing birth rates and death rates the population of the New Territories should not be taken into account.
5. The number of births registered was:-
Chinese
Non-Chinese
14,909
453
6. The deaths registered among the civil population number 18,161 giving a crude death rate of 22.11 per mille as compared with 24.74 for the previous year.
Non-Chinese
Chinese
Deaths.
Estimated Population.
Death rate per mille population.
233
17,928
20,446
11.39
800,921
22.38
7. The number of deaths of infants under one year was Chinese 6,782, non-Chinese 40. If the figures for Chinese births represented the total births, which they do not, the infantile mortality figure for the Chinese would be 454.89 as compared with 525.28 in the previous year. The infantile mortality figure among non-Chinese was 88.30 as compared with 97.93 in 1932.
94
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
6
Chapter IV.
PUBLIC HEALTH.
In the absence of some general system of registration of sickness, the only sources of information available for gauging the state of the public health in this Colony are the returns relating to deaths, the notifications of infectious diseases and the records of Government and Chinese hospitals. Judging from the death returns the health of the Colony was better than that of the previous year. The crude death rate was 22.11 per mille as compared with 24.74 for 1932. ..
2. Respiratory diseases accounted for 41.93 per cent of the total deaths; the percentage for 1932 was 43.05." The principal diseases causing death were broncho-pneumonia, pulmonary tuberculosis, bronchitis, pueuinonia, infantile diarrhoea and diarrhoea.
3. The overcrowded houses, the expectorating habits of the people, and poverty furnish sufficient explanation for the prevalence of respiratory troubles.
4. Pulmonary Tuberculosis.-This disease continues to rank second to broncho-pneumonia as the principal cause of death. It is probable that some of the cases of the latter were of tuberculous origin.
5. The total number of deaths was 2,225; that for 1932 was 2,042. The death rate per mille was 2.71 as compared with 2.54 for the previous year.
6. There is need for more hospital or infirmary accominoda- tion for tuberculosis patients, especially for those of the poorer classes.
7. Malaria.-Owing to efficient drainage methods this disease has disappeared from the greater part of the urban districts. It still persists, however, in the suburbs and in the rural areas. There are parts of the New Territories where the spleen rate exceeds 75 per cent.
8. Malaria not being a notifiable discase the incidence figures are unknown. The cases admitted to the Government Hospitals numbered 482 us compared to 334 in the previous year. The percentage of deaths to cases admitted was 1.66. Among the Chinese Hospitals there were 925 admissions with a case mortality rate of 22.51 per cent.
9. The total number of deaths attributed to this disease was 414, giving a death rate of 0.50 per mille over the whole population. The low death rate is, of course, due to the fact
1931-1939
7
95
that the great bulk of the population residing in the drained urban area is not subject to risks of infection. If figures for local districts were available it would be found that in some areas the incidence and death rates were very considerable.
10. During the year the Malaria Bureau continued its investigations into the life history, habits and carrying powers of the local anophelines. The result obtained were both interesting and instructive. As in previous years there was no obstruction from the local Chinese; on the contrary they took an interest in the proceedings and showed their eagerness to be of assistance. The Chinese Inspectors have shown ability and zeal.
11. The Bureau co-operated fully with the Military Authorities and with the Public Works Department.
INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
12. During the year there were reported 566 cases of small- pox, 191 cases of cerebro-spinal fever, 122 cases of diphtheria and 207 cases of enteric. There were no cholera cases.
13. Smallpox.-Every year in the cold season this disease manifests itself in outbreaks which are sometimes sporadic, sometimes epidemic. Whatever the prevalence there is always a tendency for the morbidity rate to decline or disappear with the advent of summer. In the year under review there were 566 cases and 433 deaths. 194 cases only were treated in hospital the remainder did not come under the notice of the authorities until after death.
14. The vaccination campaign was continued and during the year 545,850 persons were vaccinated. Valuable assistance was afforded by the St. John Ambulance Brigade and by the Chinese Public Dispensaries. Both bodies engaged in active propaganda and through their efforts many were persuaded who otherwise would have kept aloof. The various sections of the Brigade again carried out street vaccination with excellent results.
15. The Chinese have a preference for vaccination in the spring as being the auspicious season, and for a month or two after Chinese New Year the Chinese Public Dispensaries arc crowded with children waiting to be done.
16. The majority of Chinese still hold the opinion that the herbalist treatment of smallpox gives better results than the methods adopted by practitioners qualified in Western medicine. An analysis of the statistics of (a) the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital where only herbalist treatment is carried out, and (b) the Government Infectious Diseases Hospital where
96
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
8
western treatment only is provided shows that this view is not correct. Calculating on the figures for the last 24 years the case death rate at the Tung Wah was 48.25 per cent while that at the Government institution was 15.53 per cent.
17. Plague. For the last four years no cases of plague have been reported in Hong Kong. The disappearance of this disease not only from this Colony but from the greater part of China and its decline throughout the world are due to factors which are not understood..
18. Systematic rat-catching and periodical cleansing of houses were carried out throughout the year. The total number of rats collected was 174.272 of which 17,038 were taken alive, as compared with 174.239 and 12,792 in 1932. The number collected each year shows that there is no diminution in the rat population. All the rats collected were sent to the Public Mortuary for examination. None was found infected.
19. Cerebro-spinal Fever.-There was an out-break of cerebro-spinal fever in Hong Kong which was sporadic in character. Altogether 191 cases were reported with 118 deaths. No special foci of infection were discovered and few instances where one could trace the source of infection. The cases were treated in the general hospitals without any instance of spread of infection'.
20. Sera manufactured at the Bacteriological Institute were used therapeutically.
21. Diphtheria.-With regard to diphtheria there is little to be said. The cases were sporadic and the sources of infection were seldom discovered.
22. Enteric-What has been said of diphtheria applies to enteric. The incubation period being so long and the possible sources of infection so numerous there is little chance of tracing in any case the source of infection.
THE DUMPING OF THE DEAD.
23. The number of bodies reported by the police as dumped was 1,847 as compared with 1,427 in 1932. In an endeavour to stop this practice chambers for the deposit of corpses have been established at all the Chinese Public Dispensaries. In some cases the top of the table is so arranged that the weight of a body on it closes an electric circuit which rings a bell in the caretaker's room. So far the chambers have not been an unqualified success and dumping in the street at dead of night continues to happen.
1931-1939
9
THE GOVERNMENT CIVIL HOSPITAL.
24. The Hospital consists of three blocks and contains 225 beds in 23 wards. About one half the accommodation has been placed under the care of the clinical professors of the University who have been gazetted respectively Surgeon, Physician and Obstetric Physician to the Hospital.
The number of inpatients in 1933 was 5,113 as compared with 4,876 in the previous year.
25. Attendances at the Outpatient Department numbered 51,925 (47,627 in 1932). Exclusive of the V. D. clinic, the greater part of the work of this department is done by the staff of the University.
26. Attached to the hospital is a Maternity Hospital of 21 beds. There were 932 cases in 1933 and 885 in 1932. With the exception of a few cases attended by the Government Medical Officers all the cases were under the care of the University Professor and his assistants.
MENTAL HOSPITAL.
27. Situated close to the Government Civil Hospital is the Mental Hospital which is under the direction of the Medical Officer in charge of the Government Civil Hospital. There are separate divisions for European and Chinese. The European section contains 14 beds and the Chinese section 18 beds. This hospital is mainly only a temporary abode for mental cases, those of Chinese nationality being sent to Canton, and those of other nationalities repatriated to their respective countries. There were 352 cases in 1933 and 307 in 1932. While there are 14 European beds and 18 native beds, the daily average number of patients for 1933 was 35.9.
GOVERNMENT INFECTIOUS DISEASES HOSPITAL.
28. This hospital situated on the Western outskirts of the City of Victoria is the only Government Institution of its kind for the whole Colony. Formerly a Police Station it contains only 26 beds. Twenty-eight cases were admitted in 1933 as compared with two hundred and eighty one cases in 1932,
KOWLOON HOSPITAL.
29. Situated on the mainland this hospital has 84 beds and 8 cots. During 1933 the number of patients treated was 2,321, the number of 1932 was 2,132.
A new general diseases block and quarters for a second Medical Officer have been completed and the new Nurses hostel will shortly be ready for occupation.
97
98
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
10
CHINESE HOSPITALS.
(Government aided).
30. The Chinese Hospitals.-Tung Wah, Tung Wah Eastern and Kwong Wah-are hospitals which are maintained by the Tung Wah Charity Organisation, a purely Chinese body. These institutions, which are assisted by Government, are under inspection by the Government Medical Department. Each has as its Medical Superintendent a Chinese Medical Officer who is paid by Government. The Medical staff consists of Chinese Medical Officers, qualified in Western Medicine, and Chinese Herbalists.
The patient is given his choice of treatment.
No. TREATED
IN 1933
No.
HOSPITAL
Chinese
No. TREATED
IN 1932
of
Chinese beds Western Her- Western Her- Medicine balist Medicine balist
Medicine
Medicine
Tung Wah-General... 414 5,588 4,491 5,918 5,086
Maternity. 24 1,600
1,560
Kwong Wah-General. 269 6,082
3,195 6,190
2,339
Maternity. 57 4,096 Tung Wah
Eastern-General 240 2,560
3,327
2,680 2,690
1,872
Maternity 14
767
588
31. Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital. Situated in Kennedy Town and adjacent to the Government Infectious. Diseases Hospital is the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital, an institution containing 30 beds where 60 patients could be accommodated at a pinch. The treatment here is left almost entirely to the herbalists.
During the year there were 137 patients, as compared with 77 in the preceding year.
99
1931-1939
11
Chapter V.
HOUSING.
In recent years some evidence has been shown' amongst the artizan class of the Colony of a quickening social consciousness and the resultant desire to avail themselves of improved housing accommodation wherever such is made available. The unskilled labouring classes, however, are still found densely packed in tenement houses deficient in light and air. This class of labour has to find its habitat as close as possible to the scene of its labour, with the result that the Western part of the City of Victoria, which houses the native business quarter and closely adjoins the portion of the harbour handling the traffic from the West River and Chinese Coast Ports, is seriously overcrowded.
2. These conditions are being slowly mitigated by the rebuilding of properties which from time to time are condemned for reasons of structural defects. This process of elimination is however, too slow to create any appreciable improvement. The legislation now being contemplated, which calls for the provision of reasonable yard space, when made operative, will hasten the removal or reconstruction of much of the old property. This, whilst providing improved housing conditions, will no doubt mean increased cost of living to the labouring classes.
3. Hiherto, the hostility of the property-owning class to the introduction of legislation requiring additional open space and per se reducing the earning power of the property has been the chief obstacle in obtaining improved conditions. It can, however, be recorded that this spirit of obstruction is less evident today as a result of education, and of the example set by some of the better class of realty companies whose blocks of tenement houses compare not unfavourably in essential respects with modern European practice.
•
4. The housing of the Colony is all privately owned, and control is maintained by the operation of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, the provisions of which also mould the character of the housing. Generally the houses are built back to back in rows, separated by a scavenging lane six feet in width specified by the Ordinance. These houses vary in height from two to four storeys according to the width of the street on to which they front, whilst the average height per storey is twelve feet, a minimum being controlled by the Ordinance. The houses built prior to the 1903 Ordinance covering the greatest part of the native quarter are of depths varying from forty feet to eighty feet, with often less than 100 square feet of open space provided within the curtilage of the lot. After the passing of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance No. 1 of 1903, the amount of open space per house to be allowed within the boundaries of each lot is governed,
100
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
12
and falls under two main heads, viz:-(a) houses built on land bought prior to the passing of the Ordinance in 1903, where the open space must not be less than one fourth the area of the site and (b) houses built on land bought subsequently where the minimum is raised to one third of the area. On plan the usual frontage of each house is fifteen feet (a dimension owing its origin more to early structural limitations than to economics) and a depth of about thirty-five feet, whilst each storey consists of one large "room" with a native type kitchen in the rear. This room is then subdivided by thin partitions seven feet high into three cubicles each of which may acconi. modate a family. A latrine is built at ground floor level, one to each house irrespective of the number of occupants, and is common to all.
5. Structurally the earlier houses are of blue bricks (of native manufacture having a very low structural value) and timber, (usually China fir which is extremely susceptible tɔ the ravages of white ants). Lately, however reinforced concrete and better quality bricks have been used.
6. In the City of Victoria the major defect of housing is due to lack of town planning, but since a large proportion of the City was erected in the early days of the Colony, wher town planning was little practised even in Europe, the conditions to-day are a heritage, the elimination of which involves immense sums of money, and probably considerable opposition if attempted on a large scale.
7. Generally many of the old houses suffer from defects which are attributable to the Ordinance of that time. Passed in 1903 the measure was framed to meet existing conditions, both structurally and hygienically as they were then understood and practised. But, viewed in the light of modern practice and knowledge, many of its provisions are found to be lax and the following are the main resultant defects:--
Note:
(a) The open space is insufficient, especially with regard to earlier houses, i.e. those built on land purchased prior to 1903.:
(b) Latrine accommodation is insufficient.
(c) Staircases are too narrow and
and steep, and often unlighted.
(d) Means of escape in case of fire insufficient.
(b) In the case of new buildings where owners are able to provide by means of a well or otherwise an adequate water supply, flush sanitation is now usually provided on each floor. This is one of the most important steps forward in sanitation that has been achieved.
1931-1939
13
(c) and (d) have been provided for by recent amendments of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, which call for any new staircases in tenement houses to be of fire-proof construction, with alternative means of egress from all floors more than twenty three feet above the footpath. The remarks above apply more particularly to the housing of the wage-earning Asiatics. The housing for the wealthier classes is provided for by modern flats three or four storeys high, and in the suburban areas by detached or semi-detached houses usually two storeys high which may be occupied separately or as flats.
8. A new Buildings Ordinance has been drafted, which will eliminate many of the present defects and demand a higher standard generally, whilst the building owners are themselves realising the advantages of modern constructional methods. Town planning improvements are being carried out wherever possible in Hong Kong whilst the development of Kowloon is proceeding according to a definite lay-out.
101
Chapter VI.
PRODUCTION.
Hong Kong is the port for South China, and the greater part of the large volume of goods that pass through it is in transit between South China and other parts of the world, including North and Middle China. The Colony itself produces comparatively little, though the shipbuilding, cement, sugar refining and cotton knitting industries are not unimportant. Neither agriculture nor mining is carried on to any great extent, though the former is practised throughout the New Territories. Rice and vegetables are grown, and there is considerable poultry farming, but in insufficient quantities to supply the needs of the urban populations of Victoria and Kowloon. The cultivation is in the hands of the Chinese villagers. Sea fishing is an important industry, but here again local supplies have to be augmented by importation froin outside.
2. Reports on the principal industries for the year 1933 are given below:-
Refined Sugar-During the past year the difficulties of the Chinese merchant have been many. The high rate of import duty in China has rendered the burden of financing large purchases almost insuperable, while ready money has been tight. Nervousness as to price levels, a consistently falling market and fluctuation in the relative value of currencies from day to day have added to the merchant's problems. These and other economic factors have contributed to the continued down-
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
14
ward trend of the volume of sugar imported into China. With the practical withdrawal of the anti-Japanese boycott, the importation of refined sugar from Japan was resumed and to re- establish their share of markets the Japanese refineries quoted prices below the economic value of the commodity.
Cement. As in 1932, the demand for Cement was large throughout the year 1933, the business being to a very great extent in the hands of the Japanese owing to the extremely low prices at which cement manufactured in Japan was offered in this market.
Rope. In spite of keen competition, sales of Hong Kong made rope were maintained.
Preserved Ginger.-Although the demand for Ginger is still adversely affected by world economic conditions, the value of exports from Hong Kong during 1933 was slightly in excess of the previous
previous year's figure ($1,864,869 as compared with $1,757,742 in 1932). Of this amount $841,190 worth was taken by the United Kingdom. $305,114 by Australia, $286,092 by Holland and $168,241 by the United States of America.
Knitted Goods.-South China is normally the largest market for Hong Kong manufactured socks and singlets, but the considerably increased Chinese import tariff has seriously affected this trade. Shipments to the Straits Settlements and Federated Malay States, also to India, South America and British West Indies have been well maintained, but the aggregate output is far below former years. The total value of exports of singlets in 1933 was $3,631,244 and that of hosiery, $908,761.
}
Flashlight Torches and Batteries.-Exports of locally manufactured flashlight torches and batteries were well main- tained and increased quantities have been sold to other parts of the Empire as a result of Imperial Preference. The torch cases are manufactured from imported brass sheets," also from scrap. brass rolled locally into sheeting. Glass lenses are also manufactured from imported glass and some bulbs are also made locally. The value of exports in 1933 amounted to $1,015,969 (torches) and $1,140,928 (batteries).
Rubber Shoes.-As locally manufactured canvas shoes with rubber soles qualify for Imperial Preference, an impetus has been given to shipments to other parts of the British Empire, particularly to the United Kingdom, British Malaya and British West Indies. The rubber used in the manufacture of these shoes is imported from the Straits Settlements. Formerly, most of the canvas used originated from the United States of America, but now a large proportion of British canvas is used. The total value of exports in 1933 amounted to over $1,500,000.'
1931-1939
15
.
Lard.-The manufacture of lard is an important local industry. Live pigs are imported from South China and Kwongchowan and slaughtered in Government abbatoirs, the preparation and packing of the manufactured lard also being supervised by Government officials. Exports from Hong Kong to the United Kingdom increased considerably, 21,839 piculs baving been shipped in 1933. Considerable quantities are also exported to the Philippines and other markets.
Shipbuilding. Four ocean-going vessels and eighteen smaller craft were built in local dockyards during 1933.
103
Chapter VII.
COMMERCE.
The full effect of the depression in world trade, which was first felt in 1929, was not
not reflected in the statistics of the import and export trade of Hong Kong until 1933, during which period the commerce of the Colony slumped to the lowest figure recorded since the Great War; at the close of the year there was no sign of any early improvement in the situation.
2. Several factors combined to this end, chief of which were a still further decrease in the purchasing power of China, aggravated by increased tariffs, a heavy carry-over of stocks from 1932, particularly of piece goods, failures of several business houses, which resulted in extreme reluctance on the part of importers to extend credit facilities, a slump in the building and allied trades, following a minor building boom in 1931 and 1932, a continuance of the Chinese boycott of Japanese goods, though of less severity, and the uncertainty of exchange.
3. The declared value of imports of merchandise in 1933, totalled $500.9 millions, as compared with $624.0 millions in 1932, a decrease of 19.7%; while exports were valued at $403.1 millions in 1933, as compared with $471.9 millions in 1932, a decrease of 14.6%.
4. The share of the import trade enjoyed by the United Kingdom fell from 12.3% in 1932 to 10.4% in 1933; U.S.A. from 7.4% to 6.2%; Germany from 4.1% to 3.8%; British Malaya from 1.5% to 1.2%; Netherlands East Indies from 9.9% to 7.8%; Australia from 1.9% to 1.6%; and Belgium from 2.0% to 1.7%; while the share of China increased from 27.2% to 31.0%; Japan from 3.4% to 5.0%; French Indo-China from 8.4% to 8.5%; Siam from 9.3% to 10.0%; and India from 2.8% to 3.7%.
104
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
16
5. Total imports of Treasure amounted to $38.1 millions in 1933, as compared with $85.3 millions in 1932, and exports to $134.1 millions, as compared with $140.0 millions. The import figures are adversely affected to a large degree by concealed imports of gold and of silver subsidiary coin, which evaded a free export embargo enforced in China. In 1932 total imports of gold amounted to $19.5 millions and exports to $63.7 millions; while in 1933, imports totalled only $6.0 millions and exports $88.9 millions.
6. Imports of Animals (live) totalled $11.4 millions as compared with $12.6 millions in 1932; Building Materials $9.4 millions as compared with $12.9 millions; Chemicals and Drugs $6.7 millions as compared with $6.6 millions; Chinese Medicines $17.9 millions as compared with $19.2 millions; Dyeing Materials $4.4 millions as compared with $6.0 millions; Foodstuffs $166.9 millions as compared with $211.8 millions; Fuels $14.0 millions as compared with $14.7 millions; Hard- ware $4.0 millions as compared with $5.2 millions; Liquors $3.8 millions as compared with $3.7 millions; Machinery $5.6 millions as compared with $6.1 millions; Manures $9.9 millions as compared with $11.1 millions; Metals $38.1 millions as compared with $38.5 millions; Minerals & Ores $1.9 millions as compared with $580,000; Nuts & Seeds $5.8 millions as compared with $7.0 millions; Oils & Fats $35.6 millions as compared with $52.2 millions; Paints $2.0 millions as compared with $2.5 millions; Paper & Paperware $9.4 millions compared with $15.7 millions; Piece Goods $75.1 millions as compared with $107.3 millions; Railway Materials $352,000 as compared with $528,000; Tobacco $6.5 millions as compared with $9.5 millions; Treasure $38.1 millions as compared with $85.3 millions; Vehicles $4.2 millions as compared with $4.6 millions; Wearing Apparel $4.1 millions as compared with $4.4 millions; and Sundries $64.0 millions as compared with $71.5 millions.
as
as
7. Exports of Animals (live) totalled $314,000 as compared with $433,000 in 1932; Building Materials $4.8 millions compared with $8.7 millions; Chemicals & Drugs $3.8 millions as compared with $4.1 millions; Chinese Medicines $12.2 millions as compared with $13.6 millions; Dyeing Materials $3.9 millions as compared with $5.0 millions; Foodstuffs $153.6 millions as compared with $185.2 millions; Fuels $2.1 millions as compared with $2.3 millions; Hardware $2.4 millions as compared with $2.8 millions; Liquors $933,000 as compared with $1.0 million; Machinery $2.0 millions as compared with $1.6 million; Manures $9.3 millions as compared with $11.0 millions; Metals $33.7 millions as compared with $30.2 millions; Minerals & Ores $1.5 million as compared with $871,000; Nuts & Seeds $3.8 millions as compared with $5.6 millions; Oils & Fats $50.4 millions as compared with $37.1 millions; Paints $1.7 million as compared with $2.1 millions; Paper and Paperware $8.0 millions as compared with $10.3 millions; Piece
1931-1939
17
105
Goods $55.5 millions as compared with $66.9 millions; Railway Materials $189,000 as compared with $437,000; Tobacco $5.2 millions as compared with $7.9 millions; Treasure $134.1 millions as compared with $140.0 millions; Vehicles $2.1 millions as compared with $1.5 million; Wearing Apparel $8.5 millions as compared with $12.8 millions; and Sundries $57.2 millions as compared with $60.2 millions.
8. The average rate of exchange for the year was 1s. 41d. as against 1s. 3ąd. in 1932.
1st Quarter
Imports (in £'s & $'s millions).
1924. 1925. 1930.
£ 19.3 16.3
1931. 1932. 1933.
* 9.0 11.9 8.5
$165.4
139.7 ·
*
186.9
170.7
132.8
2nd Quarter
£ 17.1
14.5
9.2
8.7
10.2
8.5
$144.0
128.9
131.3
180.1
164.7
126.1
3rd Quarter
£ 19.2
*
10.1
9.0
9.3
8.5
$161.7
*
156.8
182.3
142.4
122.1
4th Quarter
£ 16.5 $136.6
*
10.3
11.8
9.6
8.4
* 167.4
188.4
146.2
119.9
Total £72.1 30.8 29.6
$607.7 268.6 455.5 737.7
38.5
41.0
33.9
624.0
500.9
Exports (in £'s & $'s millions).
1924. 1925. 1930. 1931.
1932.
1933.
1st Quarter
£ 18.3 15.2
* 6.8
8.8
6.8
$156.8
130.3
*
140.1
127.0
105.3
2nd Quarter
£ 15.2
3rd Quarter
4th Quarter
$128.0
£ 14.6 $122.9
£ 15.5 $128.3
14.1 125.3
7.4 105.9
6.4
7.1
7.2
132.5
115.3
106.2
1
*
7.3
6.5
7.2
6.6
*
113.7
130.6 110.0
95.5
*
8.5
9.2.7.9
6.8
*
137.2
138.7 119.6 96.1
Total £ 63.6
29.3 $536.0 255.6
23.2 .28.9 31.0 27.4
356.8 541.9 471.9 403.1
*No statistics available from July 1925 to March 1930.
Note:--Average rate of exchange 1924-2s. 41d.
1925-2s. 3 d.
1930=1s. 3 d.
1931-1s. Oąd.
1932-1s. 3 d.
19331s. 41d.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
18
TREASURE MOVEMENTS.
Imports.
Exports.
1932.
1933.
1932.
1933.
$
$
$..
$
Bank Notes Copper cents
673,264
6,578,574
1,797,085
5,525,607
6,370
39,513
45,903
43,079
Gold Bars
19,508,290
5,986,917
63,715,586
88,917,365
Gold Coins
80,000
5,787,931
2,777,545
Gold Leaf
83,333
24,864
277,028
244,689
Silver Bars
34,365,025
14,519,263
14,883,018
6,309,042
H.K. Silver Dollars.
2,564,512
2,314,968
40,000
300
Chinese Silver
Dollars
3,256,166
2,846,228
11,709,712
5,250,287
Other Silver Dollars
...
Silver Sub. Coin..... 24,735,443
4,113
5,798,812
138,657
41,618,911
67,691
24,996,979
Total
85,272,403
38,113,252 140,013,831
134,132,584
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS 1932 AND 1933
(excluding treasure).
IMPORTS.
EXPORTS.
1932
1933
1932
1933
$
United Kingdom
British Dominions and
Possessions
China
All other countries
Total British Empire ...
Total Foreign
Grand Total ....
"
76,905,373 52,172,111 3,462,218 4,533,607
56.752,665 46,139.119 42,607.973 36.613.724 169,993,076 155,186,671| 279,818.847| 227,005,202 320,396,186 247,440,893 145,970,638 134,939,637
|
133,658,038 98,311,230 46,070,221 41,147,331
490,389,562 402,627,564 425,789,485 361,944,839
624,047,600 500,938,794 471,859,706 403,092,170
* Not fully recorded.
1931-1939
19
WHOLESALE PRICE CHANGES.
107
As measured at the Statistical Office of the Imports and Exports Department, wholesale prices in Hong Kong during the year 1933, showed decreases of 15.4% as compared with 1932, 24.2% as compared with 1931, 3.1% as compared with 1924, and increases of 3.5% as compared with the base period of 1922, and 61.7% as compared with 1913.
There were decreases in each of the four groups of com- modities in 1933, as compared with 1932: Foodstuffs declining by 10.4%, Textiles by 22.5%, Metals by 15.8%, and Miscellaneous Items by 12.8%.
The following table shows the course of available wholesale price changes since 1913:
Foodstuffs
Textiles
Metals
Miscellaneous
1913. 1922. 1924. 1931. 1932. 1933.
.73.6 100.0 106.1 144.3 126.5 113.4
.55.1 100.0 112.5 135.8 125.2 97.0
.63.2 100.0 102.3 140.9 128.1 107.8
...64.0 100.0 106.3 125.4 109.7
95.7
Average of all
Articles
..64.0 100.0 106.8 136.6 122.4 103.5
Chapter VIII.
WAGES AND THE COST OF LIVING.
A great proportion of the workers in Hong Kong are paid on a piece work basis and in some trades are engaged and paid on curiously complicated systems involving payment of a bonus or a share in the yearly profits.
2. Local trade was dull during the year. This may be attributed to the world depression and to the high tariffs imposed by the Chinese Government. Towards the end of the year, however, a marked improvement was shown in some industries, e.g. rubber shoes, dry batteries for electric torches, leather goods, mosquito sticks, etc., and a new tannery was opened. The close of the year showed a definite slackening off in the building boom which had continued unabated throughout the year 1932. A certain number of people, being unable to find employment in the Colony, have returned to their native districts in China, and the supply of tenement houses may now be said to exceed the demand. There has consequently been a general decline in the rents of tenement houses, flats, offices and shops occupied by Chinese. In the case of premises occupied by Europeans, the decline in rentals is hardly apparent yet. There has been no noticeable change in the average rates of wages for labour, but the prices of all Chinese foodstuffs, except fresh fish, and of fire-wood show a slight decline.
108
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
20.
3. The European resident, unlike the local labourer,· purchases many articles which have to be imported from countries with sterling or gold currencies. He is therefore affected by variations in the exchange value of these currencies as expressed in terms of the silver dollar. The collapse of the American dollar caused a considerable cheapening in the prices of articles imported from the U.S.A., but although the silver dollar showed a gradual improvement in its exchange value vis-à-vis sterling throughout the year, no noticeable effect was apparent in the local prices of articles imported from England. It is a commonplace that the adjustment of local prices always lags behind a rise in the sterling value of the silver dollar.
AVERAGE RATES OF WAGES FOR LABOUR.
Building Trade :--
Carpenters
Bricklayers
Painters
Plasterers
Scaffolders
Labourers (male)
(female)
$1.15 per day.
1.10 ""
""
1.10
"
1.10
•
1.70
0.80
""
""
0.50 ""
"
Working hours, nine per day. Time and a half paid for overtime. Free temporary quarters provided on the building site and communal messing at cheap rates.
Shipbuilding and Engineering :·
Electricians
Coppersmiths
$1.45 to $1.80 per day.
1.20 to 1.80 ""
0.80 to 1.80
Fitters
Sawmillers
1.00 to 1.40
"
Boilermakers
1.00 to
1.50
11
Sailmakers
1.00 to 1.50
Blacksmiths
Turners
Patternmakers
Labourers
0.80 to
1.20
1.00 to
1.40
""
1.00 to
1.40
""
""
0.50 to 0.80
""
11
Over-time-time and a half. Night work-double time.
1931-1939
21
109
Transport Workers:-
Tram drivers
conductors
Bus drivers
""
conductors
$36 to $45 per month.
30 to 39
50 per month.
"1
20 to 25 per month.
Working hours, nine per day. Free uniform. Bonus at end
of year.
Railway Workers (Government):
Engine drivers
Firemen
Guards
Signalmen
........
Station Masters
Booking Clerks
Telephone operators
Female Workers in Factories :-
"}
$540 to $1,000 per annum.
330 to
480
600 to
1,000
""
21
600 to
1,000
""
31
1,100 to
1,800
""
27
600 to
1,000
""
480 to 1,000
""
""
Cigarette making
$0.40 to $0.80 per day.
Knitting factories ****
0.20 to 0.55
"
"}
Perfumery
0.20 to
0.50 ""
""
Confectionery
0.20 to
0.60 "3
"}
One hour off at mid-
Working hours from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
day. Over-time from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at day rates.
Domestic Servants:-
Employed by Chinese
Employed by Europeans
Gardeners
$7.00 to $20.00 per month.
15.00 to 40.00
15.00 to 30.00
With free lodging, and with Chinese employers, generally free board.
NOTE: The rates of pay of Government employees approximate closely
to those of a similar category in private employ.
AVERAGE RETAIL PRICES OF FOODSTUFFS, ETC.
1932.
1933.
Rice (3rd. grade)
8.4 cents per catty
7.6 cents per catty
Fresh fish
.....31.4
.")
"
31.8
•
"
"
Salt fish
34.6
27.8
""
>>
""
"}
""
Beef
48
44.4
""
""
""
""
>>
Pork
55
"}
51.4
??
""
21
Oil
..24.2
21.4
""
""
,,
""
Firewood
.10
for 8 catties
10
"
"
for 9 catties
110
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
22
Chapter IX.
EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS.
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS.
These are either schools where the medium of instruction is English or mostly English or schools where the medium of instruction is Chinese. The former, seventeen in number, are known as "English" schools, the latter of which there are three as "Vernacular" schools.
2. Of the four English schools, classed as "secondary" schools in the Table below, two are Anglo-Chinese schools for boys and one for girls. These three schools have primary departments. The fourth school, the Central British School which is a mixed school, has no primary department. Of the eleven English schools, classed as "primary" schools in the Table below, three are mixed schools preparing for the Central British School. In this group are also four "District" schools, including one for Indian boys and four "Lower Grade" schools, three of which are in rural districts. In those English schools which are attended by Chinese the study of English and of Chinese is carried on side by side, the pari passu system requiring that promotion shall depend on proficiency in both languages.
3. Of the two Government Schools classed as "Vocational" one is the Junior Technical School which was opened in February, the other is the Technical Institute which is attended by persons desirous of receiving instruction for the most part germane to their day time occupations.
4. Of the three Government Vernacular schools one has a seven years' course and includes a Normal department. There is also a
a Normal school for women teachers and a Normal school on the mainland which aims at providing Vernacular teachers for rural schools.
:
■
GRANT-IN-AID AND SUBSIDIZED SCHOOLS.
5. There are thirteen Grant-in-Aid English Schools, and four Grant-in-Aid Vernacular Schools. Of the former, seven are
schools for boys and six are for girls.
6. One English school for girls has a primary department only. The remaining schools classed in the table below as "secondary" schools have primary departments as well as the upper classes.
1931-1939
23
111
7. Munsang College, Kowloon City, received a grant of $6,000.
8. The Vernacular Grant-in-Aid Schools are schools for girls and are classed in the Table as "secondary" schools.
9. The 303 subsidized schools are all Vernacular schools.
UNAIDED SCHOOLS.
10. In 1932 there were 613 unaided Vernacular schools with 33,077 children and 124 unaided English schools with 6,528 children.
1933.
Table showing number of schools and scholars for the year
CLASS OF INSTITUTIONS
ENGLISH :-
Secondary.
.......
Primary.. Vocational,
Total,.
VERNACULAR:--
Secondary,
Primary...
·
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS
GRANT-IN-AID AND SUBSIDIZED
UNAIDED SCHOOLS
SCHOOLS
No. of Institu- tions
No. of
No. of
On Koll
On
On
Institu-
Institu-
Roll
Roll
tions
tions
11
2,380 1,796
13* 6,272
1
10
1.864
212
114
4,604
2
849
...
17
5,025
14
6,481
124
6,528
1
253
303
1,023 20,136
...
Vocational,
..
Total.......
214
1
177
613
33,077
...
3
467
308 21,336
613
33,077
Total No. of Institutions
Total On Roll
1,079
.72,917
*This includes Ying Wa College whose primary department receives
a Grant-in-Aid.
112
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
24
THE UNIVERSITY.
11. The University of Hong Kong was incorporated under a local University Ordinance, 1911, and opened in 1912. It is a residential University and open to students of both sexes.
12. The University hostels are three in number-Lugard Hall, Eliot Hall and May Hall. There are also three recognized hostels for men, St. John's Hall, Morrison Hall and Ricci Hall. No university hostel at present exists for women students.
13. The late Sir Hormusjee Mody bore the entire expense of the erection of the main building. Additions have been made through the liberality of benefactors of varied nationality and domicile. The latest additions to the buildings are a School of Chinese Studies, the cost of which was borne by Mr. Tang Chi Ngong a local Chinese merchant and banker, and a Chinese Library named after the late Mr. Fung Ping Shan who provided a sum of $100,000 for the building and $50,000.00 as an endowment fund for its maintenance.
14. The income of the University for 1933 amounted to about $966,055.92 of which about $432,000 was derived from endowments and $350,000 from Government. Messrs. John Swire & Sons Ltd. gave £40,000 to the original endowment fund and subsequently $100,000 for engineering equipment. The Rockefeller Institute has endowed the University with three chairs in surgery, medicine and obstetrics, the endowment being in each case $250,000.
$250,000. The annual expenditure in 1933 amounted to about $971,922.71.
15. The University includes the three faculties of Medicine, Engineering and Arts. Admission to all faculties is conditional upon passing the matriculation examination of the University or some examination recognized as equivalent thereto.
:
16. The Faculty of Medicine provides a six year course of study in the usual pre-medical and medical sciences, leading to the degree of M.B. and B.S. The degrees of M.D. and M.S. are awarded on examinations but are subject to the proviso that every candidate for the degrees shall produce evidence of special post-graduate experience in the subject which he presents. The degrees above mentioned are recognized by the General Medical Council for registration in Great Britain..
17. The Faculty of Engineering provides a four years course in practical and theoretical engineering, leading to the degree of B.Sc., (Eng.). Fourth year students specialize in civil, mechanical or electrical engineering. The
engineering. The degree for post- graduate work is that of M.Sc., (Eng.).
18. The Faculty of Arts includes departments of pure arts and science, social science, commerce, a department of Chinese studies and a department for training teachers. The course is in all cases ore of four years and leads to the degree of B.A.
1931-1939
25
113
The degree for post-graduate work is that of M.A.
19. With a view to securing the maintenance of the desired standard-which is in all three faculties that of a British University degree-external examiners are, in all faculties. associated with the internal examiners in all annual final examinations. In the Faculty of Engineering, but not in other faculties, degrees with honours are granted, the standard being assessed by special examiners chosen from amongst the external examiners in the University of London.
20. The degree of LL.D. is granted honoris causa.
CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS.
21. The following are the best known Charitable Institu- tions.
French Convent Orphanage.
Italian Convent Orphanage.
Maryknoll Convent, Kowloon.
St. Louis Industrial School.
Po Leung Kuk-Chinese.
Victoria Home and Orphanage.
Society of Precious Blood Hospital.
Home for Aged Poor, Kowloon.
La Calvaire Home for Aged Poor, Happy Valley.
Eyre Refuge.
Salvation Army Home.
Industrial Home for the Blind, Pokfulam.
RECREATION AND ART.
22. Most of the schools contrive to hold Annual Sports either on their own grounds or on grounds generously lent by local Cricket and Football Clubs. Some schools are granted free use of Government Bathing Beaches for four afternoons a week during the Bathing Season. Lawn Tennis, Football, Swimming, Volley Ball and Basket Ball continue to increase in popularity. Cricket is played at a few schools. Physical train- ing is given by qualified instructors. Art is taught in the Government British Schools by Trained Art Mistresses.
114
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
26
Chapter X.
COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT.
The external communications of Hong Kong are excellent both by sea and by telegraph, cable and radio. As regards the former, the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co., the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, the Blue Funnel Line, the Messageries Maritimes, and several other British and foreign companies maintain regular passenger and freight services between Hong Kong and Europe. The trans-Pacific communications are well served by the Canadian Pacific Steamships Ltd., the Dollar Line, the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and other steamship lines. To Australia three steamship companies, the Eastern and Australian, Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and Australian and Oriental maintain regular passenger and freight services. In addition there are direct sailings to Africa, South America, and to New York. There is frequent and regular communication between Hong Kong and other Far Eastern ports in India, Java, Straits Settlements, Formosa, Indo-China, Japan and the China coast. Local steamship communication is by river steamer from Hong Kong to Canton and the West River ports with several sailings daily. In addition there is a vast traffic between Hong Kong and the adjacent provinces of China by junk and sampan.
4
2. The total shipping entering and clearing Ports in the Colony during the year 1933 amounted to 108,622 vessels of 43,043,381 tons which, compared with the figures for 1932 shows an increase of 4,507 vessels and a decrease of 781,525 tons. Of the above 51,492 vessels of 40,862,583 tons were engaged in Foreign Trade as compared with 52,359 vessels of 41,794,005 tons in 1932. There was a decrease in British Ocean-going shipping of 199 vessels and a decrease of 187,458 tons. Foreign Ocean-going vessels shew an increase of 166 vessels and an increase of 287,262 tons. British River Steamers showed a decrease of 260 vessels and a decrease of 677,298 tons. Foreign River Steamers showed a decrease of 782 vessels and a decrease of 305,409 tons. In steamships not exceeding 60 tons employed in Foreign Trade there was an increase of 678 vessels with an increase in tonnage of 5,879 tons. Junks in Foreign trade showed a decrease of 470 vessels and a decrease of 54,398 tons. In Local Trade (i.e. between places within the waters of the Colony) there was a decrease in steam launches of 366 vessels with an increase in tonnage of 4,109 tons. Junks in Local Trade show a decrease of 5,740 vessels and a decrease of 145,788 tons.
3. The Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company (British) by means of three cables to Singapore, one direct and one each via Labuan and Cape St. James respectively: provides good connections with Europe via India, with Australasia, and with the other British Colonies and Possessions.
1931-1939
27
115
:
By their cable to Manila connection is made with the direct American cable, thence to San Francisco. Two cables to Shanghai, belonging respectively to the Eastern Extension and to the Great Northern (Danish) Companies, via Foochow and Amoy respectively, give a good connection with Shanghai, North China, Japan and Russia; the system of the Great Northern Telegraph Company gives a good service to Europe via Asiatic Russia.
..
4. The Government operates a commercial radio service with direct communication with Chinese stations, Siam, Indo- China, Formosa and the Dutch East Indies. Indirect com- munication between Hong Kong and America is maintained via Manila and between Hong Kong and Europe via Manila or Dutch East Indies.
5. The revenue collected by the Radio Office during the year from radio telegrams amounted to $643,217.94, a decreas of $36,814.64 on the amount collected in 1932. Advices of vessels signalled at the Lighthouses yielded $1,473.60. The total Revenue from
from the
the telegraph service amounted to $644,691.54. Ship Station Licences yielded $1,801.00, Amateur Transmission Station Licences $304.75, Broadcast Receiving Licences. $29,048.00, Dealers' Licences $2,355.00 and Examina- tion Fee for Operators' Certificates of Proficiency $71.00.
6. The number of paid radio-telegrams forwarded during the year was 191,586 consisting of 1,518,215 words against 194,782 consisting of 1,607,233 words in 1932 and 207,339 were received, consisting of 1,757,629 words against 179,382 consisting of 1,653,046 words.
7. In addition to the paid traffic figures given above the wireless Service is responsible for the reception of time signals daily from Bordeaux, Rugby, Malabar and Nauen, for the transmission of time signals to ships in the China Sea, the reception of press messages amounting to 340 messages or 204,868 words from Rugby, the collection and distribution of meteorological traffic, 5,676 messages 218,153 words having been forwarded, and 16,907,, messages 324,153 words having been received, the reception and dissemination of distress, piracy and navigation messages, the transmission and reception of Govern- ment messages, etc.
8. A telephone service between Hong Kong and Canton, a distance of 110 miles is in operation.
9. Mails. The number of mail receptacles of Hong Kong origin despatched during the year was 46,650 as compared with 47,615 in 1932-a decrease of 965, the number received was 49,449 as compared with 51,324-a decrease of 1,875.
116
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
28
10. Receptacles in transit, including those to and from British and Foreign Men-of-War, numbered 222,489 as against 183,822 in 1932 an increase of 38,667.
11. Registered Articles and Parcels.-The number of regis- tered articles handled amounted to 691,046 as compared with 748,676 in 1932-a decrease of 57,630.
12. The figures for insured letters were 20,232 and 18,595 respectively-an increase of 1,637.
13. Parcels, ordinary and insured, which were dealt with reached a total of 143,064 as against 148,189 in 1932 a decrease of 5,125.
14. In 1933 the earnings of the Railway continued to improve steadily and another very successful year resulted. There were no suspension of traffic, and no interruption from storms or typhoons.
15. The track both on the British and the Chinese Sections was well maintained and enabled the accelerated timetable introduced in October 1932 to be continued, while certain alteratious were made to the hours of departure and in the number of express trains to suit the convenience of the travelling public. These improvements, together with the fact that Southern Kwong Tung is being rapidly opened up by roads, many of which act as feeders to the Railway, helped to make it a very popular means of conveyance.
16. The three express locomotives obtained in 1930 on behalf of the Chinese Section are still in the possession of the British Section; but the Chinese Section made twelve monthly cash instalments of $10,000 each in respect of them during the year. Haulage charges continued to be paid by the Chinese Section',
17. The total steam train mileage run amounted to 354,2941. This includes trains run over the Chinese Section to and from Canton. The Motor Coach mileage was 13,378 miles. 2,475,514 passengers were carried during the year, as against 2,182,634 in 1932.
18. The General Gross Revenue showed again a marked increase and reached the satisfactory figure of $1,630,610.83, as against $1,295,789.20 for the previous year. Net revenue amounted to $711,052.42, as against $333,412.15 for 1932.
19. There are 311 miles of roads in the Colony, 161 miles on the Island of Hong Kong and 150 miles in Kowloon and the New Territories. Of the total mileage 227 miles are constructed
1931-1939
29
117
in water bound macadam dressed with asphalt, 12 miles in sheet asphalt on a cement concrete foundation, 13 miles of tar macadam, 17 miles of concrete, 3 miles of granite setts and wooden blocks on a cement concrete foundation and 39 miles of gravel.
20. The public travelling over the Colony's roads increases yearly with a corresponding growth in the number of motor buses, of which there are 59 operating on the island of Hong Kong, and 115 on the mainland. These are gradually replacing the rickshas, the number of which decreases year by year.
21. The Hong Kong Tramway Company has fleet of nearly 90 double deck tram cars running along the sea front of Victoria from Kennedy Town to Shaukiwan.
22. Communication between the island and the mainland is maintained by a number of ferry services; the most important of which are the Star Ferry between Kowloon Point and a pier near the General Post Office, and the combined vehicular and passenger service of the Hong Kong and Yaumati Ferry Company between Jordan Road, Kowloon and Jubilee Street, Victoria.
Chapter XI.
BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS & MEASURES.
The Colony is well served by banking institutions. There are sixteen principal banks doing business in the Colony which are members of the Clearing House, and in addition several Chinese banks and numerous native Hongs doing some portion of banking business. There are no banks which devote them- selves specially to agricultural and co-operative banking. The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation also conducts the business of the Hong Kong Savings Bank on usual savings bank principles.
2. The Currency of the Colony is based on silver and is governed by the Order in Council of 2nd February, 1895. The dollar, which is normally in circulation and which is legal tender to any amount, is the British Dollar of 900 millesimal fineness and weight 26.957 grammes (416.00 grains). Silver subsidiary coins of the value of 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents and one cent pieces in bronze are also legal tender up to the value of two dollars for silver and one dollar for bronze. Bank notes issued by The Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank, The Chartered Bank and The Mercantile Bank are also in circulation, the estimated amount issued at the end of 1933 being $157,583,718.
118
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
30
These Bank notes are redeemable in legal tender dollars at the Banks' Offices in Hong Kong, and include fiduciary issues. amounting to $12,000,000, the balance being covered in various proportions for the respective banks by silver coin of approved denominations, by bullion, and by securities.
3. The weights and measures in use in the Colony are defined in the Schedule to Ordinance No. 2 of 1885. They consist of the standards in use in the United Kingdom and of the following Chinese Weights and Measures:-
and
1 fan (candareen)=0.0133 ounces avoirdupois.
1 tsin (mace)=0.133 ounces avoirdupois.
1 leung (tael)=1.33 ounces avoirdupois.
1 kan (catty)=1.33 pounds avoirdupois.
1 tam (picul)=133.33 pounds avoirdupois
1 check (foot)=14§ English inches divided into 10 tsün (inches) and each tsün into 10 fan or tenths.
Chapter XII.
PUBLIC WORKS.
During the year under review the operations of the Public Works Department were carried out under a Head Office Staff by eleven sub-departments. The European Staff comprised 160 officers and the Asiatic Staff 612.
:
2. Buildings:-The following works were completed during the year-Crematorium at Kai Lung Wan Cemetery; extension of the offices of the Public Works Department; additions to Kowloon Hospital comprising a new Ward Block and a House for a second European Medical Officer; Venereal Diseases Clinic at Kowloon; new Cattle Lairage at Ma. Tau Kok Cattle. Depot; Wireless Broadcasting Station at Kowloon; the Lady Ho Tung Infant Welfare Centre at Fanling; extension to the Store at the Central Police Station; provision of tanks for the storage of fish at the Central Market; Quarters for Gardeners at the Government Pavilions; Latrine and Bath House at Hennessy Road; Drill Hall at Kowloon Junior School; alterations at Kowloon Fire Station to provide quarters for Sub-Officers; Quarters and Store for the Botanical and Forestry Department; additions to Tai O Police Station; alteration and additions at the Remand Home for Juvenile Offenders; additions at Tsun Wan Police Station; adaptation of the Sailors' Home and Seamen's Institute for Offices; two Garages at Tai Po and the erection of a Fountain, Shelter and Lavatory in the Botanical Gardens.
1931-1939
31
119
In addition the following works were under construction during the year: Site formation for the New Government Civil Hospital at Pokfulam; new Residence for the Director, Royal Observatory; Government Bungalow at Fanling; Block of Quarters for Nurses at Kowloon Hospital; site preparatiou for the New Gaol at Stanley; Sextons Quarters at Chai Wan Cemetery; additional Wing containing Laboratory and Class Rooms at the Junior Technical School; Dormitory Block at Lai Chi Kok Goal.
In addition to general maintenance, numerous minor alterations and improvements to Government Buildings were also executed during the year.
3. Communications.-The following works were com pleted:-The Concourse Area at Jubilee Street Vehicular Ferry Pier was surfaced; completed portions of Jaffe & Thomson Roads were kerbed, channelled and surfaced; a new area for burial purposes was formed in the Colonial Cemetery; a further section of Connaught Road West from Eastern Street to Ping On Wharf was strengthened, sandcarpeting and surfacing on a 6" cement concrete foundation being laid; Kennedy Road-a further section of this road adjoining the Magazine was widened to 30 feet; a retaining wall adjoining I.L. 59 section A, Caine Road, was taken down and rebuilt to the new road alignment; dangerous bends on Tai Hang Road were improved; Stubbs Road was regraded between the Peak Hotel and Jardine's Corner; a portion of Prince Edward Road between the Railway Bridge and Leven Road surfaced with 7′′ reinforced concrete; Chatham Road between Middle Road and Austin Road laid with bottoming and surfacing; the Concourse Area at Jordan Road Vehicular Ferry Pier laid with bottoming and surfacing; Taipo Road diverted at its junction with Castle Peak Road and laid with bottoming and surfacing; Children's Playground complete with shelter, lavatories and equipment erected Kowloon Tong; area for Children's Playground formed at Tong Mi Road; area for Children's Playground formed at Shantung Street; the bend on Castle Peak Road opposite the Warders' Quarters widened and improved; the bend at top of Laichikok Hill on Castle Peak Road widened and improved. The strengthening and improvement of road surfaces in the New Territories was continued between 20th and 21st milestones- Castle Peak; between 30th and 35th milestones-Mei Po- Fanling; between Kwanti Race Course and 2nd milestone, Sha Tau Kok Road and at Tsun Wan Hill; also between Tai Wai Level Crossing (8 mile-stone) and 12 mile-stone, Taipo Road. The hilly portions of the Lin Ma Hang-Sha Tau Kok Patrol Path was surfaced.
The following works were under construction:-The 1st section of new 75' road between Causeway Bay and Ming Yuen Gardens; a new road to Bathing Beaches (S.E. of Repulse Bay); widening of Robinson Road between Peak Road and Glenealy
120
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
32
(including bridge); Wong Nei Cheong Old Road Improvement, (i.e. Blue Pool Road); Path 10-ft. wide from Shek O Gap to Cape D'Aguilar Wireless Station; New Road from Island Road to Stanley; Upper Peak Tram Station Parking Ground; Road to Wong Ma Kok to serve Prison Site.
Tarpainting was carried out on the following roads:-10th- 16th Mile-stone, Castle Peak Road; 26th-27th mile-stone, Au Tau; whilst the bend on the Taipo Road near the 54 mile-stone was effected. The main street at Un Long was surfaced, kerbed and channelled in front of new houses and an invert was laid to the existing nullah.
4. Drainage.-New sewers and storm water drains were constructed in Hong Kong to a length of 16,058 feet, parapet walling to open nullahs to a length of 378 feet. An additional septic tank was constructed at Repulse Bay. Anti- malarial campaign work was continued at Mount Parker, Stanley, Sookunpoo and Lyeemun and a commencement made at Kowloon Tong. Streams were trained to a total length of 27,812 feet and 1,862 feet as walled' nullahs. In Kowloon new sewers and storm water drains were constructed to a length of 13,081 feet and an open nullah was decked over for a length of 333 feet. In New Kowloon the length of new sewers and storm water drains constructed was 14,761 feet. In Kowloon and New Kowloon nullah walling was built to a length of 2,301 feet and parapet walling constructed to a length of 2,742 feet. Various minor works were carried out in the New Territories.
5. Water Works.-In Hong Kong the following lengths of new mains were laid to improve the distribution system :- 1,042 feet of 10′′, 1,416 feet of 8′′, 1,529 feet of 6" and 1,573 feet of smaller sizes. 5,050 feet of subsidiary mains from "-3" were laid in back lanes. 550 feet of 24" steel main were diverted round the new Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank Site.
A covered service reservoir of 208,000 gallons capacity was constructed on Jardine's Lookout at an elevation of 778 feet A.O.D. to supply high level development.
In Kowloon and New Kowloon the following lengths of new mains were laid to improve distribution:-1,290 feet of 18", 10,541 feet of 12"; 1,005 feet of 8", 4,182 feet of 6" and 855 feet of smaller sizes. 13,636 feet of subsidiary mains were laid in back lanes.
The new five million gallons service reservoir at Yaumati Hill was nearly completed.
At Taipo 1,916 feet of 6′′ main were laid and 420 feet of smaller sizes.
1931-1939
93
121
:
A new water supply was provided for Tsun Wan consisting of an intake, strainer and storage tank of 5,000 gallons, 10,468 feet of 4" piping and 970 feet of 2′′ piping.
The Fanling supply was improved by laying 1,095 feet of 5" piping and 737 feet of 4" piping. A steel storage tank of 30,000 gallons capacity was also erected.
A water supply for Yuen Long district was investigated.
The Public Gardens Service Reservoir was completed thus concluding the first section of the Shing Mun Valley Water Scheme.
The 2nd. section of the Aberdeen East Catchwater and the Outfall Nullah at Aberdeen were completed. The 2nd. section of the Aberdeen West Catchwater was nearly completed. The removal of silt from the Lower Reservoir was continued and the Access Road to the Lower Dam was surfaced.
The 1st. section of the Pottinger Peak Catchwater was completed, whilst the Tytam Tuk East Catchwater and the first section of the Dragon's Back Catchwater were nearly completed.
6. Reclamations.-At Tsat Tze Mui, a further four acres were reclaimed making a total of approximately fourteen acres. A reclamation of about ten acres was commenced at Kennedy Town. Work on the reclamation at Cheung Sha Wan was stopped. An area of about eight acres has been filled in at Ma Tau Kok.
7. Electrical Works.-The existing installation were main- tained in good order. Telephones, lights, fans, bells, lifts, ferry pier hoists, traffic lights, etc.
Underground cables were laid between G.P.O.-Happy Valley and G.P.O.-Peak W/T. Station.
Improved traffic control lights were installed at junction of Queen's Road-Pokfulam Road; Bonham Road-Pokfulam Road and Connaught Road Central.
Twenty police recall signals were installed in various police stations.
Kowloon-Canton Railway, Taipo, Taipo-Market and Fanling Station were wired for electric lights. Also the Railway work- shop at Hung Hom, and an underground cable for power and light installed.
Thirty telephones were installed in various places. Repairs to the submarine cable to Stonecutters were carried out.
122
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
34
Certain improvements and re-arrangements were carried out at Tsat Tsz Mui Quarry.
Certain electrical works, thirteen telephones etc. were installed for Shing Mun Valley Scheme.
Fifty-six buildings in various places were either rewired or had electric joints installed for the first time.
The usual maintenance to. Wireless Stations, Telephones etc. was carried out. Two self supporting wireless masts were erected in the Hung Hom Reclamation and the Broadcasting Set was transferred to new building on the same Reclamation.
8. Buildings Ordinance Office.-The building industry continued to evince considerable activity throughout 1933 but failed to reach the level of the previous year and noticeably receded from the high peak reached in 1931. ·
The total number of plans approved for new works was only slightly less than for the previous year. The number of new buildings covered by such plans shows an appreciable decline; this is particularly noticeable in Chinese tenement property. The falling off in the number of European houses erected does not truly reflect the amount of new accommodation provided. The type of development tended towards the provision of flats three, four and in some cases five storeys high. These flats afford the accommodation hitherto provided by the erection of the detached and semi-detached houses which had figured largely in the Returns of the preceding three years.
+
Buildings of a non-domestic or commercial character shew an increase over the Returns of the preceding year.
Amongst the more important buildings completed the following are noted:-Emporium and Restaurant in Queen's Road Central, Bank building and office in Des Voeux Road Central, School and Quarters for the Salesian Society on Island Road, Chapel at Shaukiwan, Theatre in On Yan Street, Cinema in Boundary Street, two knitting factories, one on Tai Po Road and one at Ma Tau Wai, a leather factory in Pak Tai Street, a factory in Kai Yee Street and Printing Works at Ma Tau Kok, School in Waterloo Road, Building for Aged Women and Sisters' Quarters at Ngau Chi Wan, and the Hong Kong Brewery erected at Shan Tseng Bay.
European type flats of moderate rental have been a feature of the past year's construction although Chinese tenement property is still the largest factor.
►
The number of European houses completed during the year is 259. The number of Chinese houses is 832.
1931-1939
35
123
On the Praya East Reclamation, 147 Chinese houses were erected, making up to date a total of 973. The new Sailors' Home and Seamen's Institute and a large Chinese hotel were both completed during the year under review. The Royal Naval Canteen is still in course of construction.
The number of water flushed sanitary appliances approved during the year amounted to 3,622.
9. Fifteen fires occurred causing structural damage which necessitated action by the Public Works Department. Loss of life was occasioned in two instances where the buildings were of the old type of construction with wooden floors and stair- cases. It is pertinent to note that in no case where fires have occurred in
in the
the modern tenement houses constructed of reinforced concrete floors, roofs, and staircases, have casualties occured nor has the fire even attained serious proportions nor extended beyond the floor upon which it originated.
10. Reclamations were in progress on the following lots in Hong Kong. I.L. 2918, I.L. 3538, I.L. 3539, I.L. 3540. A total area of about 207,000 square feet is embraced in the above works.
Reclamation works at Kowloon include K.M.L. 52 and K.M.L. 102. The total area involved being about 200,000 square feet.
Chapter XIII.
JUSTICE AND POLICE.
I. THE COURTS OF HONG KONG.
The Supreme Court of Hong Kong consists of a Chief. Justice and one or more other judges. At present there is one other judge.
2. The jurisdiction of the Court is regulated by a number of Ordinances but generally it may be said that the Court exercises a Summary Jurisdiction in all actions where the claim does not exceed $1,000 and an Original Jurisdiction in all actions where the claim exceeds that amount.
3. In addition to the above the Court exercises Admiralty, Probate, Divorce, Bankruptcy, Lunacy, Criminal and Appellate Jurisdiction.
4. The following is a brief summary of litigation and matters dealt with during the year 1933:-
2,787 actions were instituted in the Summary Jurisdiction and the amounts for which judgment was given totalled $501,580.51.
124
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
36
523. actions. were instituted in the Original Jurisdiction and the amounts for
judgment was given totalled
$2,313,529.39.
which
4 actions were instituted in the Admiralty Jurisdiction.
470 grants were made in the Probate Jurisdiction.
:
146 persons were indicted in the Criminal Jurisdiction of whom 94 were convicted.
11 appeals were lodged in the Appellate Jurisdiction 10 of which were disposed of during the year.
5. The lower civil courts are the land courts in the Northern and Southern districts of the New Territories, with jurisdiction over all land cases in those districts, and the small debts courts of the same two districts. In these courts the District Officers sit to hear land and small debts cases.
6. The lower criminal courts are the magistrates' courts, two for Hong Kong island and a small area on the mainland opposite Shaukiwan, one for Kowloon, including the whole area south of the Kowloon hills, and one each for the two districts of the New Territories, in which the District Officers are the magistrates.
7. The following figures show the amount of work done by the lower courts in 1933:
Civil:-
District Officer North,
Land Court
Small Debts Court
67 cases.
239
21
District Officer South,
Land Court
Small Debts Court
Criminal:-
176 cases.
59 ""
Hong Kong Magistracy, two courts ....
26,159 cases.
Kowloon Magistracy, one court
19,925
"}
District Officer, North, one court
1,281 ""
District Officer, South, one court
276 ""
II. THE POLICE.
8. The Police Force of the Colony is under the control of the Inspector General of Police who is assisted by one Deputy Inspector General
General and twelve Superintendents. The force
1931-1939
37
consists of four. Contingents, European, Indian, and two Chinese, viz... Cantonese and Weihaiwei. The strength of the different Contingents is as follows:-
Europeans Indians
Chinese (Cantonese)
Chinese (Weihaiwei)
249
726
632
283
125
In addition the Police Department controls the Anti- Piracy Guards, a force consisting of thirty-three Russians and twenty-eight Indian Guards, together with four European Sergeants, eight Indian Sergeants and ninety-five Weihaiwei Chinese Constables, who are included in the Police strength. The Anti-Piracy Guards are employed and paid for by. Shipping Companies for service in the China Seas.
9. Further, the department engages and supervises 1,129 Indian and Chinese watchmen who are paid by private individuals for protection of private property.
10. The waters of the Colony are policed by a fleet of ten steam launches and three motor boats which employ a staff of two hundred and forty-four Chinese under European officers.
11. There were 5,630 serious cases of crime in 1933 as against 5,707 in 1932, a decrease of 77 or 1.3%.. There was a decrease of 75 cases in burglaries, 29 in house breaking, 111 in larcenies from dwellings, 28 in larcenies, 16 in murders and 4 in robberies. There were 25,659 minor cases during 1933 as against 15,364 in 1932, an increase of 10,295 or 67%. The main increases were in Hawking offences, offences against the Opium Ordinance, Vehicles and Traffic Regulation Ordinance and Women and Girls Protection Ordinance.
III. PRISONS.
12. There are three prisons in the Colony. Victoria Gaol in Hong Kong is the main prison for males. This prison is built on the separate system, but segregation is difficult owing to lack of space and accommodation. It contains cell accom- modation for 644 only and prisoners are often kept in association through unavoidable overcrowding. There is a branch male prison at Lai Chi Kok near Kowloon, with accomodation for 480 prisoners. In this establishment all the prisoners sleep in association wards and only selected prioners are sent there as the prison was not originally built as such. It was converted from a Quarantine Station in 1920, for temporary use pending the building of a new prison. The third prison is the prison for females situated near the male prison at Lai Chi Kok. A new general prison has been approved and site preparations commenced.
126
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
38
ow 13. The total number of persons committed to prison in the year 1933 was 11,439 as compared with 7,793 in 1932. The daily average number of prisoners in the prisons in 1933 was 1,472. The highest previous average was 1,189 in 1927. Over 90% of prisoners admitted are persons born outside the Colony.
་
14. The health of the prisoners generally was well main- tained in the prisons.
15. The discipline in all three prisons was good.
16. Prisoners are employed at printing, bookbinding, tinsmithing, matmaking, tailoring, carpentering, weaving, gardening, laundry work, cleaning and minor repairs to buildings. The bulk of the Government printing and bookbinding is done in Victoria Gaol.
-
·
17. A small separate ward is reserved in Victoria Gaol for Juveniles who are kept as far as possible apart from other prisoners. The daily average number of Juveniles in 1933 was 4.1. A school-master attends daily to instruct them. In 1929 the daily average was high and a separate hall was set aside at Lai Chi Kok for Juveniles, but the number is now so small that it has been found more expedient to deal with them in Victoria Gaol...
:
18. Police Magistrates may, under the provisions of the Magistrates. Ordinance No. 41 of 1932, give time for the payment of fines.
19. Lady visitors attend the Female Prison twice weekly to instruct the prisoners in hand-work and to impart elementary education.
20. Visiting Justices inspect and report on the prisons every fortnight.
MOM
Chapter XIV.
LEGISLATION.
Thirty Ordinances were passed during the year 1933. These and also the Regulations, Rules, By-laws and other subsidiary legislative enactments are published in a separate volume by the Government Printers. The thirty Ordinances comprised two appropriation, one replacement, one incorpora- tion, four consolidation, "twenty amendment, and two Ordinances which were new to the Colony.
2. The Appropriation Ordinance (No. 19) applied, a sum not exceeding $27,029,235 to the public service for the year 1934, and Ordinance No. 11 appropriated a supplementary sum of $517,015.30 to defray the charges of the year 1932.
1931-1939
39
127
3. The replacement Ordinance was the Public Works Loan Redemption Ordinance (No. 15), which provided for the redemption of the bonds issued under the authority of the Public Works Loan Ordinance, 1927, repealed.
4. Ordinance No. 18 incorporated the Procurator in Hong Kong of the Pontifical Foreign Missions Institute.
5. The following Ordinances, viz: Arms and Ammunition (No. 2), Full Court (No. 8), Volunteer (No. 10) and Miscellaneous Licences (No. 25) consolidated and to some extent amended the existing law on these subjects.
6. The Ordinances new to the Colony were the Mercantile Marine Assistance Fund Ordinance (No. 24) and the Naval Volunteer Ordinance (No. 30). Of these, Ordinance No. 24 establishes a fund for services similar to those performed by like funds in the Straits Settlements and India, and in England by the Mercantile Marine Masters and Officers Relief Fund. The local fund is administered by a Committee financed by the revenue of the Colony. Ordinance No.. 30 is based on a model prepared in England for enactment by the legislatures of this and other Colonies..
7. The twenty amending Ordinances covered a wide range of subjects, viz: Code of Civil Procedure. (Nos. 1 and 13), Printers and Publishers (No. 3), Supreme Court (Nos. 4 and 12), Criminal Procedure (No. 5), Summary Offences (Nos: 6 and 26), New Territories Regulation (No. 7), Divorce (No. 9), Probates (No. 14), Opium (No. 16), Betting Duty (No. 17), Dangerous Goods (No. 20), Industrial and Reformatory Schools (No. 21), Juvenile Offenders...(No. 22), Bankruptcy and Magistrates (No. 23), Telephone (No. 27), Merchant Shipping (No. 28) and Companies (No. 29).
1
8. Three Ordinances (No. 9, Divorce Amendment, on 1st November, 1933, and. Nos. 21, Industrial and Reformatory Schools, and 22, Juvenile. Offenders, on 20th November, 1933), were brought into operation by Proclamation on the same dates as the principal Ordinances which they amend, and Nos. 27 (Telephone Amendment) and, 29 (Companies Amendment) are expressed to commence on 1st. January, 1934.
•
wide
9. Similarly, the subsidiary legislation covered a range of subjects, including Public Places Regulation, Vagrancy; Criminal Procedure, Merchant Shipping, Civil Procedure, Gunpowder and Fireworks, Public Health and Buildings, Advertisements; Vehicles and Traffic Regulation. Education, Boarding Houses, Ferries, Places
Places of Public Entertainment Regulation, Post Office, Public Revenue Protection, Liquors, Tobacco, Factories and Workshops, Divorce, Police Pensions, Prisons, Companies, "and Naval Volunteer Force.
128
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
40
Chapter XV.
PUBLIC FINANCE & TAXATION,
The following tables show the Revenue and Expenditure for the five years 1929 to 1933 inclusive.
Revenue. Expenditure.
Surplus. Deficit.
1929
$23,554,475
$21,983,257
$1,571,218
1930
27,818,473
28,119,646
$301,173
1931
33,146,724
31,160,774
1,985,950
1932
33,549,716
32,050,283
1,499,433
1933
32,099,278
31,122,715
976,563
2. The revenue for the year 1933 amounted to $32,099,278 being $1,903,297 less than estimated and $1,450,438 less than the revenue obtained in 1932.
3. Duties on imported liquor and tobacco were less than estimated as they are on a sterling basis and were reckoned on an exchange rate of $1-1/2 whereas the average rate throughout the year was over 1/416. Assessed Taxes show a decrease of $65,031.30 due to vacant tenements and large decreases were shown by the Opium Monopoly of $1,347,148 and in Stamp Duties of $392,293. A considerable increase amounting to $328,907 was shown under Water Excess and Meter Rents due to general building development and to the institution of universal meterage. Land Sales were less than estimated to the extent of $327,139.
4. The expenditure for the year 1933 amounted to $31,122,715 being $4,076,532 less than estimated and $927,568 less than the expenditure in 1932.
5. Ordinary expenditure amounted to $27,830,266, Public Works Extraordinary to $3,292,449. Large savings resulted under Personal Emoluments, compared with the amounts inserted in the Estimates, on account of the higher exchange prevailing throughout the year. Changes in personnel and vacancies in office also reduced the amount but most of this under-expenditure amounting to $1,489,791 was due to the rise in the sterling value of the dollar. Under Other Charges savings were also effected amounting to $877,763. Expenditure on Public Works Extraordinary fell short of the original estimate by $375,474 and $138,893 less than estimated was expended on recurrent maintenance and improvements,
6. Debt. The total amount of sterling debt outstanding at the close of 1933 was £1,485,732.16.5, the sinking fund for its redemption amounting to £911,748. The 1927 Public Works Loan of $4,927,000 was converted on 1st August, 1933 to 4% under authority of Ordinance No. 15 of 1933; the sinking fund will be dealt with under section 10 (5) of that Ordinance.
1931-1939
41
129
7. The Assets and Liabilities of the Colony on the 31st December, 1933, are shown in the following statement:-
LIABILITIES.
$ C.
ASSETS.
$ c.
DEPOSITS;-
ADVANCES:
Contractors and
On account of
Officers Deposits
487,200.00
Future Loau
6,934,474.13
Purchase of three
Suitors Fund
587,617.30
Locomotives for
Chinese Section
Miscellaneous De-
posits....
Kowloon
Canton
2,268,353.78
Railway.....
Miscellaneous
267,468.26 79,401.82
Insurance Compan-
ies
Building Loans
723,310.04
1,900,700.00 Imprest Account.
7,218.15
Subsidiary Coin
1,415,597.95
Suspense Account ....
967,147.31 Crown Agents Re-
mittances
19,959.40
Exchange Adjustment
136,808.00
Investments:-
Trade Loan Reserve... 1,070,609.68
Surplus Funds
1,610,711.23
Trade Loan Out-
Praya East Reclaina-
tion
112,803.45
standing
574,500.50
Unallocated
Stores,
(P.W.D.)......
486,713.30
House Service Account|
10,479.98
Unallocated Stores,
Government House &
(Railway)...
187,916.81
City Development
Cash Balance :
Fund
1,227,666.28
Coal Account
2.126.52
Treasurer...
* Joint
Crown Agents....
Colonial
Total Liabilities... 8,771,011.30
Excess of Assets over
Fund.......
40,792.68
3,574,679.79
2,241,189.57
Fixed Deposits:-
Liabilities
13,823,625.33
+
General ... $2,080,000.00 Insurance
Companies 1,900,700.00 Miscellaneous 450,000.00
Total......$ 22,594,636.63
4,430,700.00
Total
.$ 22,591,636.63
*Joint Colonial Fund £157,000.,Os.Od.
8. Main Heads of Taxation.-The largest item of revenue is derived from the assessment tax, the sum of $6,434,969 being collected in 1933. This represents 20.05% of the total revenue or 20.67% of the revenue exclusive of land sales. The rates vary
130
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
from 15% to 17% on the annual value of property and are for police, lighting and water services, etc. Port and Harbour Dues comprising Light Dues and Buoy Dues brought in the sum of $679,385.
9. Duties on intoxicating liquors
liquors realized $2,172,449, tobacco- $2,921,456, postage stamps and
message fees $1,883,655. A considerable sum is also derived from the opium monoply, land revenue, stamp duties including estate duties and other fees. Land Sales during the year realized $972,861. The receipts of the Kowloon Canton Railway which was com pleted in 1910 amounted to $1,630,611, a considerable increase being shown under Passenger Service.
10. Customs Tariff.-There is an import tariff on all liquor, tobacco and light oils imported into the Colony for sale or use therein. There is no export tariff. The sale of opium is a Government Monopoly, and all importation of opium other than by the Government is prohibited. The importation of Dangerous Drugs is regulated in accordance with the terms of the Geneva Convention. Arms, ammunition, explosives and dangerous goods. are subject to the normal Harbour and Police Regulations in regard to storage and movement. A special Foreign Registration fee of 20% of the value of a motor vehicle is payable in respect of any vehicle not produced within the British Empire.
11. The duties on imported liquor range from $0.60 per gallon on beer to $1.20 on Chinese liquor and to $10 on sparkling European wines and perfumed spirits. The duties are collected on a sterling, basis, the conventional dollars in the tariff being converted at a rate which is varied from time to time according to the market rate of exchange between the local dollar and sterling. A 50% reduction in duty is allowed in respect of brandy grown or produced within the British Empire.
12. The duties on tobacco range from $0.63 per lb. on the lowest taxed unmanufactured tobacco to $2 per lb. on cigars. "The duties are collected on a sterling basis in the same manner as the liquor duties.
13. A duty of 25 cents per gallon is payable on all light oils imported into the Colony.
14. Excise and Stamp Duties.-The same duty is imposed on liquors (mainly Chinese type) manufactured in the Colony as on imported liquors.
15. Stamp Duties are imposed on various instruments and where a consideration is involved are mainly ad valorem. The following are examples of the duties charged:-Affidavits, Statu- tory Declaration, etc., $3; Bills of Exchange (inward) and Cheques, 10 cents; Bills of Lading, 15 cents when freight under
1931-1939
43
131
$5, 40 cents when freight $5 or over; Bond to secure the payment or repayment of money, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Conveyance on sale, $1 for every $100 or part thereof; Mortgages, principal security, 20 cents for every $200 or part thereof; Life Insurance Policy, 25 cents for every $1,000 insured; Receipt, 10 cents for amounts over $20; Transfer of Shares, 20 cents for every $100 of market value.
16. No Hut Tax or Poll Tax is imposed in the Colony.
W. T. SOUTHORN,
Colonial Secretary.
132
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
44
Appendix.
LIST OF PUBLICATIONS OF GENERAL INTEREST RELATING TO
:Hong KoNG
Title...
Price
Agents for sale
$
Sessional Papers (Annual)
Blue Book (Annual)
Ordinances-Ball's Revised Edit- ion (In 6 Volumes) 1844-1923. Regulations of Hong Kong 1844-
1925
Ordinances and Regulations
(Annual).
Administration Reports (Annual)
Estimates (Annual)
Government Gazettes (Weekly)
Meteorological Bulletin (Month-
ly)
Hong Kong Trade and Shipping
Returns (Monthly)..
(Annual)
Do. Hansards (Annual)
Historical & Statistical Abstract of the Colony of Hong Kong 1841-1930.
The Hong Kong Naturalist
(Quarterly).
Hong Kong: A Guide Book...
Hong Kong: Around and About,
by S.H. Peplow & M. Barker. Echoes of Hong Kong & Beyond
by L. Forster History of Hong Kong by Eitel.
2.00 Colonial Secretariat and
Government Printers.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers and Crown Agents for the Colonies, London.
90.00
Do.
30.00 Colonial Secretariat.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers and Crown Agents.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat and
Government Printers.
3.00
Do.
.50 Government Printers and
Crown Agents.
10.00 Government Printers.
per annum
2.00 Government Printers
Crown Agents.
2.00
Do.
and
5.00 South China Morning Post,
Hong Kong.
4.00 Colonial Secretariat.
2.00
Hong Kong University.
1.00
Kelly & Walsh, Ltd.,
Hong Kong.
5.00
Do.
2.50
Do.
Out of Print.
1931-1939
COLONIAL REPORTS-ANNUAL
No. 1712
133
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND
ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF
HONG KONG,
1934
(For Reports for 1932 and 1933 see Nos. 1637 and 1673 (Price 2s. od.) respectively)
Crown Copyright Reserved
Printed in Hong Kong
LONDON
PUBLISHED BY HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE
To be purchased directly from H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE at the following addresses: Adastral House, Kingsway, London, W.C.2; 120 George Street, Edinburgh 2; York Street, Manchester 1; 1 St. Andrew's Crescent, Cardiff;
80 Chichester Street, Belfast;
or through any Bookseller
1935
Price 25. od. Net
58-1712
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE COLONY OF HONG KONG FOR THE YEAR 1934.
CHAPTER
CONTENTS
135
PAGE
1 GEOGRAPHY, INCUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY......... 1
II GOVERNMENT
3
III POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS
4
IV PUBLIC HEALTH
5
V HOUSING
11
VI PRODUCTION
14
:
VII COMMERCE
16
VIII WAGES AND THE Cost of LivinG
23
IX EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS
26
X COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT
30.
XI BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS AND MEASURES...... 33
XII PUBLIC WORKS
34
XIII JUSTICE AND POLICE
40
XIV LEGISLATION
43
.....
XV PUBLIC FINANCE AND TAXATION
44
Chapter I.
GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY.
The Colony of Hong Kong is situated off the south-eastern coast of China between latitute 22° 9′ and 22° 17′ N. and longitude 114° 5′ and 114° 18′ E. The island is about eleven miles long and two to five miles in breadth, its circumference being about 27 miles and its area 28 square miles. It consists of an irregular ridge of lofty hills rising to a height of nearly 2,000 feet above sea level, stretching nearly east and west, with few valleys of any extent and little ground available for cultivation.
136
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
2
2. The island of Hong Kong was ceded to Great Britain in January, 1841, the cession being confirmed by the Treaty of Nanking in August, 1842. The charter bears the date of 5th April, 1843. The Kowloon peninsula and Stonecutter's Island were ceded to Great Britain under the Convention signed at Peking in October, 1860, and under the Convention signed at Peking in June, 1898, the area known as the New Territories including Mirs Bay and Deep Bay was leased to Great Britain by the Government of China for 99 years. The total area of the Colony including the New Territories is about 390 square miles.
3. The importance of Hong Kong has grown with the increase of China's trade with foreign countries. It is now in respect of tonnage entered and cleared one of the largest ports in the world. It is the most convenient outlet for the produce of South China as well as for the incessant flow of Chinese emigration to the Netherlands East Indies, Malaya, and elsewhere. It is also the natural distributing centre for imports into China from abroad.
4. The Colony is not primarily a manufacturing centre, the most important of its industries being those connected directly or indirectly with shipping, such as dock and warehouse, banking and insurance undertakings. Sugar refining and cement manu- facture are also major industries, and in recent years considerable quantities of knitted goods, electric torches and batteries, and rubber shoes have been produced and exported.
5. The climate of Hong Kong is sub-tropical, the winter being normally cool and dry and the summer hot and humid; the seasons are marked by the prevalence of the S.W. monsoon in summer and the N.E. monsoon in winter. The temperature seldom rises above 95°F. or falls below 40°F. The average rainfall is 85.16 inches, May to September being the wettest months. In spring and summer the humidity of the atmosphere is often very high, at times exceeding 95% with an average over the whole year of 79%. The typhoon season may be said to last from June to October though typhoons occasionally occur before and after this period.
The mean
6. The rainfall for 1934 was 97.67 inches. temperature of the air was 71.4° against an average of 71°.9. The maximum gust velocity of the wind was at the rate of 67 m.p.h. from N.E. on October 1st.
7. His Excellency the Governor Sir William Feel, K.C.M.G., K.B.E., laid the foundation stone of the new Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank on 17th October.
8. A regrettable gasometer explosion occurred at West Point on 15th May, resulting in the death of forty persons.
1931-1939
3:
137
9. In July a Commission was appointed under the chairman- ship. of Mr, M. J. Breen to enquire into the causes and make recommendations for the amelioration of the existing position and for the improvement of the trade of the. Colony".
The Commission had not reported by the end of the year.
10. During the course of the year Mr. E. D. C. Wolfe, C.M.G., Inspector General of Police, Mr. A. E. Wood, Secretary. for Chinese Affairs, and. Mr. J. R. Wood, Puisne Judge, left the Colony on retirement. Mr. C. C. Wu at one time Minister for Foreign Affairs to the Nationalist Government of China and later Chinese Minister at Washington died in Hong Kong in January. Among the honours conferred by His Majesty were:-C.M.G., Dr. A. R. Wellington; O.B.E., Mr. R. Baker; M.B.E., Mr. Tang Shiu Kin, Reverend G. T. Waldegrave and Mr. G. T. Padgett; I.S.O., Mr. A. R. Sutherland.
•
Chapter II.
GOVERNMENT.
The Government is administered under Letters Patent of 14th February, 1917, and Royal Instructions of the same and subsequent dates, by a Governor aided by an Executive Council, composed of six official and three unofficial members, and by a Legislative Council composed of nine official and eight unofficial members. Prior to 1928 the numbers of the Legislative Council members were seven and six respectively. The six official mem- bers of the Executive Council are the Senior Military Officer, the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney General, the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, the Colonial Treasurer, all of whom are members ex-officio, and the Director of Public Works, appointed by the Governor. The three unofficial members, one of whom is Chinese, are appointed by the Governor. The six official mem- bers of the Executive Council are also members of the Legislative Council; the other three official members of this Council, who are appointed by the Governor, are the Inspector General of Police, the Harbour Master, and the Director of Medical and Sanitary Services. Of the unofficial members of the Legislative Council two are appointed by the Governor on the nomination respectively of the Justices of the Peace and of the Chamber of Commerce; the Governor also appoints the remaining members three of whom are Chinese. Appointment in the case of unofficial mem- bers is for five years for the Executive and four years for the Legislative Council.
2. The Sanitary Board composed of four official and six unofficial members has power to make by-laws under the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance in matters appertaining to public health, subject to an overriding power in the Legislative Council.
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3. There are a number of advisory boards and committees, such as the Board of Education, Harbour Advisory Committee, Labour Advisory Board, etc., composed of both official and unofficial members. They are frequently consulted and are of much assistance to the Government.
4. The English Common Law forms the basis of the legal system, modified by Hong Kong Ordinances of which an edition revised to 1923 has been published. The law as to civil procedure was codified by Ordinance No. 3 of 1901. The Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1890 regulates the jurisdiction of the Supreine Court in Admiralty cases.
5. The daily administration is carried out by the twenty- eight Government departments, which are officered exclusively by members of the Civil Service. The most important of the purely administrative departments are the Secretariat, Treasury, Secretariat for Chinese Affairs, Harbour, Post Office, Imports and Exports Office, Folice and Prisons departments. There are seven legal departments, including the Supreme Court and the Magistracies. Two departments, the Medical and Sani- tary, deal with public health; one, the Education, with education; and one, the largest of all the Government departments, the Public Works, is concerned with roads, buildings, waterworks, piers and analogous matters.
6. There have been no changes in the system of Government in the year under review.
Chapter III.
POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS.
Variation in population in Hong Kong is more dependent on immigration and emigration than on births and deaths. Move- ments to and from the Colony are influenced by events in China and owing to the large numbers who come and go daily it is impossible to give more than a very rough estimate of the actual population, except during census years.
2. The following table shows the estimated population for the Colony for the middle of 1934.
Non-Chinese (mostly resident in Victoria and Kowloon)
Chinese in Victoria
Chinese in Hong Kong Villages
Chinese in Kowloon and New Kowloon..
Chinese in junks and sampans
Chinese in New Territories
Total..............
20,908
373,199
47,059
300,550
100,000
102,776
944,492
1931-1939
5
139
3. During the year 2,789,039 persons entered and 2,811,100 persons left the Colony, making a daily average of 7,641 arrivals and 7,702 departures. The daily average for 1933 was 7,637 arrivals and 7,431 departures.
4. Registration of Births and Deaths in the New Territories has been more fully enforced since 1932 and the number of births registered has steadily increased. Introduction of the new Births and Deaths Ordinance in the latter part of 1934 has caused a further increase, with the result that this year, for the first time, all birth and death rates have been calculated on the total population of the Colony including the New Territories.
5. The number of births registered was:-
Chinese
Non-Chinese
20,424
462
6. The deaths registered among the civil population number 19,766 giving a crude death rate of 20.93 per mille as compared with 22.11 for the previous year.
Non-Chinese
Chinese
Deaths.
Estimated
Population.
Death rate per mille population.
250
19,516
20,908
11.96
923,584
21.13
7. The number of deaths of infants under one year was Chinese 7,094, non-Chinese 23. If the figures for Chinese births represented the total births, which they do not, the infantile mortality figure for the Chinese would be 347.34 as compared with 454.89 in the previous year. The infantile mortality figure among non-Chinese was 49.78 as compared with 88.30 in 1933.
Chapter IV.
PUBLIC HEALTH.
In the absence of some general system of registration of sickness, the only sources of information available for gauging the state of the public health in this Colony are the returns relating to deaths, the notifications of infectious diseases and the records of Government and Chinese hospitals. Judging from the death returns the health of the Colony was better than that of the previous year. The crude death rate was 20.93 per mille as compared with 22.11 for 1933.
2. Respiratory diseases accounted for 39.97 per cent of the total deaths, the percentage for 1933 was 41.93. The principal diseases causing death were broncho-pneumonia, pulmonary tuberculosis, bronchitis, infantile diarrhoea and diarrhoea.
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3. The overcrowded houses, the expectorating habits of the people, and poverty furnish sufficient explanation for the prevalence of respiratory troubles.
4. Pulmonary Tuberculosis.-This disease continues to rank second to bronchi-pneumonia as the principal cause of death. It is probable that some of the cases of the latter were of tuberculous.origin.
5. The total number of deaths was 2,179; that for 1933 was 2,225. The death rate per mille was 2.31 as compared with 2.71 for the previous year..
6. There is need for more hospital or infirmary accommoda- tion for tuberculosis patients, especially for those of the poorer classes.
7. Malaria.-Owing to efficient drainage methods this disease has disappeared from the greater part of the urban districts. It still persists, however, in the suburbs and in the rural areas. There are parts of the New Territories where the spleen rate is as high as 41.1 per cent.
8. Malaria not being a notifiable disease the incidence figures are unknown. The cases admitted to the Government Hospitals numbered 457 as compared to 482 in the previous year. The percentage of deaths to cases admitted was 1.3%. Among the Chinese Hospitals there were 839 admissions with a case mortality rate of 18.35 per cent.
9. The total number of deaths attributed to this disease was 365, giving a death rate of 0.39 per mille over the whole population. The low death rate is, of course, due to the fact that the great bulk of the population residing in the drained urban area is not subject to risks of infection. If figures for local districts were available it would be found that in soine areas the incidence and death rates were very considerable.
10. During the year the Malaria Bureau continued its investigations into the life history, habits and carrying powers of the local anophelines. The results obtained were both interest- ing and instructive. As in previous years there was no obstruc- tion from the local Chinese; on the contrary they took an interest in the proceedings and showed their eagerness to be of assistance. The Chinese Inspectors have shown ability and zeal.
11. The Bureau co-operated fully with the Military Authori- ties and with the Public Works Department.
1931-1939
- 7 -
INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
12. During the year there were reported 153 cases of small- pox, 246 cases of cerebro-spinal fever, 162 cases of diphtheria and 212 cases, of enteric. There were no cholera cases.
13. Smallpox.-Every year in the cold season this disease manifests itself in outbreaks which are sometimes sporadic, some- times epidemic. Whatever the prevalence there is always a tendency for the morbidity rate to decline or disappear with the advent of summer. In the year under review there were 153 cases and 104 deaths as compared with 566 and 433 respectively in 1933. 53 cases only were treated in hospital; the remainder did not come under the notice of the authorities. until after death.
14. The vaccination campaign was continued and during the year 298,836 persons were vaccinated. Valuable assistance was afforded by the St. John Ambulance Brigade and by the Chinese Public Dispensaries. Both bodies engaged in active propaganda and through their efforts many were persuaded who otherwise would have kept aloof. The various sections of the Brigade again carried out street vaccination with excellent results.
15. The Chinese have a preference for vaccination in the spring as being the auspicious season, and for a month or two after Chinese New Year the Chinese Public Dispensaries are crowded with children waiting to be done.
16. The majority of Chinese still hold the opinion that the herbalist treatment of smallpox gives better results than the methods adopted by practitioners qualified in Western medicine, An analysis of the statistics of (a) the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital where only herbalist treatment is carried out, and (b) the Government Infectious Diseases Hospital where western treatment only is provided shows that this view is not correct. Calculating on the figures for the last 25 years the case death rate at the Tung Wah was 47.9 per cent while that at the Government institution was 15.25 per cent.
17.-Plague. For the last five years no cases of plague have been reported in Hong Kong. The disappearance of this disease not only from this Colony but from the greater part of China and. its decline throughout the world are due to factors which are not understood.
18. Systematic rat-catching and periodical cleansing of houses were carried out throughout the year. The total number of rats collected was 175,687 of which 21,976 were taken alive. as compared with 174,272 and 17,038 in 1933. The number collected each year shows that there is no diminution in the rat, population: All the rats collected were sent to the Public Mortuary for examination. None-was found infected.
:
141
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8
19. Cerebro-spinal. Fever.-There was an out-break of cerebro-spinal fever in Hong Kong which was sporadic in character. Altogether 246 cases were reported with 125 deaths. No special foci of infection were discovered and few instances where one could trace the source of infection. The cases were treated in the general hospitals without any instance of spread of infection.
20. Sera manufactured at the Bacteriological Institute were used therapeutically.
21. Diphtheria.-With regard to diphtheria there is little to be said. The cases were sporadic and the sources of infection were seldom discovered. 162 cases were reported as compared with 122 in 1933.
22. Enteric. What has been said of diphtheria applies to enteric. The incubation period being so long and the possible sources of infection so numerous there is little chance of tracing in any case the source of infection. 212 cases were reported as compared with 207 in 1933.
23. Leprosy.-In October His Excellency the Governor appointed a Committee, under the Chairmanship of the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, to enquire into the incidence of Leprosy in the Colony and to suggest methods of dealing with lepers. The report of this Committee is now under consideration. The num- ber of lepers in the Colony is unknown.
24. Rabies.-Fourteen cases of this disease were reported during the year. Four cases occurred in humans, the remainder in dogs.
With the exception of one human case in the City of Victoria the disease was confined to New Kowloon and the New Terri- tories.
The last case was reported in August.
None of the human cases had been treated with anti-rabic vaccine before the appearance of symptoms. All were fatal. No case which received anti-rabic treatment contracted the dis- ease, though several had been bitten by dogs proved to have been rabid.
THE DUMPING OF THE DEAD.
25. The number of bodies reported by the police as dumped was 1,056 as compared with 1,347 in 1933. In an endeavour to stop this practice chambers for the deposit of corpses have been established at all the Chinese Public Dispensaries. In some cases the top of the table is so arranged that the weight
•
1931-1939
9.
143
of a body on it closes an electric circuit which rings a bell in the caretaker's room, So far the chambers have not been an unqualified success and dumping in the street at night continues to happen.
HOSPITALS.
26. The Government Civil Hospitul.-The Hospital consists of three blocks and contains 225 beds in 23 wards. About one half the accommodation has been placed under the care of the clinical professors of the University who have been gazetted respectively Surgeon, Physician and Obstetric Physician to the Hospital.
The number of inpatients in 1934 was 5,063 as compared with 5,113 in the previous year.
27. Attendances at the Outpatient Department numbered 48,166 (51,925 in 1933), exclusive of the V. D. clinic. The greater part of the work of this department is done by the staff of the University.
28. Attached to the hospital is a Maternity Hospital of 21 beds. There were 954 cases in 1934 and 932 in 1933. With the exception of cases attended by the Government Medical Officers all the cases were under the care of the University Professor and his assistants.
29. Mental Hospital.-Situated close to the Government Civil Hospital is the Mental Hospital which is under the direction of the Medical Officer in charge of the Government Civil Hospital. There are separate divisions for European and Chinese. The Furopean section contains 14 beds and the Chinese section: 18 beds. This hospital is mainly only a temporary abode for mental cases, those of Chinese nationality being sent to Canton; and those of other nationalities repatriated to their respective coun- tries. There were 344 cases in 1934 and 352 in 1933. The daily average number of patients for 1934 was 44.8.
:
30. Government Infectious Diseases Hospital.-This hospital situated on the Western outskirits of the City of Victoria is the only Government Institution of its kind for the whole Colony. Formerly a Police Station it contains only 26 beds. Eight cases were admitted in 1934 as compared with 28 cases in 1933.
31. Kowloon Hospital.-This hospital is situated on the mainland. It consists of four two storied blocks, one of which, containing 40 beds, is reserved for Maternity cases.
The total accommodation of the hospital is 140 beds, 48 of which were added during the year by the opening of a new general block in June.
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10
Previously to the opening of the new block the Maternity Block had been used for general cases only. The opening of this block for the reception of Maternity patients filled a long felt want as there was no provision on the mainland for European women. Private patients may be attended by their own doctor if they so desire. During the latter half of the year 170 patients were admitted.
32. Victoria Hospital.-Situated on the Peak, this hospital overlooks the city of Victoria and has a clear view across the harbour of the territory on the mainland.
There are 42 beds in the General Block and 32 in the Maternity Block. There is an entirely separate staff for each building.
During 1934, 430 cases were treated, 359 in the General Block and 71 in the Maternity Block; the number in 1933 being 646, made up of 539 General and 107 Maternity cases. Maternity patients may be attended by their own doctor if they so desire.
33. Tsan Yuk Hospital.-This Maternity Hospital was formerly part of the organisation financed and managed by the Chinese Public Dispensaries Committee and was handed over to Government as a free gift on 1st January, 1934.
The care of the patients is under the general supervision of the University Professor of Obstetrics who is also a Government Consultant. The University Medical students receive training there.
There are 60 beds, of which 46 are reserved for maternity cases and 14 for gynaecological cases.
During the year 1694 cases were admitted to the Maternity section and 237 to the Gynaecological sections, a total of 1931 àdmissions.
In the out-patients department 6204 people attended during the year. Separate Gynaecological, Infant Welfare, Veneral Diseases, and Anti-Natal Clinics were held in which 1484, 2424, 1977 and 319 cases respectively were treated or advised.
34. The Chinese Hospitals.-Tung Wah, Tung Wah Eastern and Kwong Wah-are hospitals which are maintained by the Tung Wah Charity Organisation, a purely Chinese body. These institutions, which are assisted by Government, are under inspection by the Government Medical Department. Each has as its Medical Superintendent a Chinese Medical Officer who is paid by Government. The Medical staff consists of Chinese Medical Officers, qualified in Western Medicine, and Chinese Herbalists.
1931-1939
-
11
The patient is given his choice of treatment.
No. TREATED
No. TREATED
IN 1934
IN 1933
No.
HOSPITAL
of
Chinese
Chinese
beds Western Her- Western Her- Medicine balist Medicine balist
Medicine
Medicine
Tung Wah-General... 426 5,671
5,480 5,588
4,491
Maternity. 25
1,320
1,600
Kwong Wah-General. 269
5,902
2,883
6,082
3,195
Maternity. 59
4,106
4,006
Tung Wah
Eastern-General 222 3,050
2,528
2,560
2,680
Maternity. 14
954
767
145
35. Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital.-Situated in Kennedy Town and adjacent to the Government Infectious Diseases Hospital is the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital, an institution containing 30 beds where 60 patients could be accommodated at a pinch. The treatment here is left almost entirely to the herbalists.
During the year there were 47 patients, as compared with 137 in the preceding year.
TREATMENT OF OPIUM ADDICTS.
At the Government Civil Hospital and Tung Wah Eastern Hospital six and twelve beds (respectively) are reserved for the treatment of opium addicts, the Government being responsible for the expenses incurred. .56 cases were treated at the former institution and 413 at the latter, making a total of 469 cases.
Chapter V.
HOUSING.
In recent years some evidence has been shown amongst the artizan class of the Colony of a quickening social consciousness and the resultant desire to avail themselves of improved housing accommodation wherever such is made available. The unskilled
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12
labouring classes, however, are still found densely packed in tenement houses deficient in light and air. This class of labour has to find its habitat as close as possible to the scene of its labour, with the result that the Western part of the City of Victoria, which houses the native business quarter and closely adjoins the portion of the harbour handling the traffic from the West River and Chinese Coast Ports, is seriously overcrowded.
2. These conditions are being slowly mitigated by the rebuilding of properties which from time to time are condemned for reasons of structural defects. This process of elimination is however, too slow to create any appreciable improvement. The legislation mentioned in paragraph 8, which calls for the provision of reasonable yard space, when made operative, will hasten the removal or reconstruction of much of the old property. This, whilst providing improved housing conditions, will no doubt mean increased cost of living to the labouring classes.
3. Hitherto, the hostility of the property-owning class to the introduction of legislation requiring additional open space and thereby reducing the earning power of the property has been the chief obstacle in obtaining improved conditions. It can, however, be recorded that this spirit of obstruction is less evident today as a result of education, and of the example set by some of the better class of realty companies whose blocks of tenement houses compare not unfavourably in essential respects with modern European practice. :
4. The housing of the Colony is all privately owned, and control is maintained by the operation of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, the provisions of which also mould the character of the housing. Generally the houses are built back to back in rows, separated by a scavenging lane six feet in width specified by the Ordinance. These houses vary in height from two to four storeys according to the width of the street on to which they front, whilst the average height per storey is twelve feet, a minimum being controlled by the Ordinance. The houses built prior to the 1903 Ordinance covering the greatest part of the native quarter are of depths varying from forty feet to eighty feet, with often less than 100 square feet of open space provided within the curtilage of the lot. After the passing of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance No. 1 of 1903, the amount of open space per house to be allowed within the boundaries of each lot is governed, and falls under two main heads, viz:-(a) houses built on land bought prior to the passing of the Ordin- ance in 1903, where the open space must not be less than one-fourth of the area of the site and (b) houses built on land bought subsequently where the minimum is raised to one- third of the area. On plan the usual frontage of each house is fifteen feet (a dimension owing its origin more to early structural limitation than to economics) and a depth of about thirty-five feet, whilst each storey consists of one large "room"
1931-1939
13
147
with a native type kitchen in the rear. This room is then subdivided by thin partitions seven feet high into three cubicles each of which may accommodate a family. A latrine is built at ground floor level, one to each house irrespective of the number of occupants, and is common to all.
5. Structurally the earlier houses are of blue bricks (of native manufacture having a very low structural value) and timber, (usually China fir which is extremely susceptible to the ravages of white ants). Lately, however reinforced concrete and better quality bricks have been used.
6. In the City of Victoria the major defect of housing is due to lack of town planning, but since a large proportion of the City was erected in the early days of the Colony, when town planning was little practised even in Europe, the conditions to-day are a heritage, the elimination of which involves immense sums of money, and probably considerable opposition if attempted on a large scale.
7. Generally many of the old houses suffer from defects which are attributable to the Ordinance of that time. Passed in 1903 the measure was framed to meet existing conditions, both structurally and hygienically as they were then understood and practised. But, viewed in the light of modern practice and knowledge, many of its provisions are found to be lax and the following are the main resultant defects:-
Note:
(a) The open space is insufficient, especially with regard to earlier houses, i.e. those built on land purchased prior to 1903.
(b) Latrine accommodation is insufficient.
(c) Staircases are too narrow and steep, and often
unlighted.
(d) Means of escape in case of fire insufficient.
(b) In the case of new buildings where owners are able to provide by means of a well or otherwise an adequate water supply, flush sanitation is now usually provided on each floor. This is one of the most important steps forward in sanitation that has been achieved.
(c) and (d) have been provided for by recent amendments of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, which call for any new staircases in tenement houses to be of fire-proof construction, with alternative means of egress from all floors more than twenty three feet above the footpath. The remarks above apply more particularly to the housing of the wage-earning Asiatics. The housing for the wealthier classes is provided for by modern flats three or four storeys high, and in the suburban areas by detached or semi-detached houses usually two storeys high which may be occupied separately or as flats.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
14
8. It is hoped to introduce a new Buildings Bill in Legislative Council early in 1935. This Bill has been drawn up with a view to improving particularly the conditions of light and ventilation to those old properties which under the existing Ordinance are not called upon to conform to modern require. ments in this respect. A higher standard generally is being called for and building owners are themselves slowly realising the advantages to be gained from modern constructional methods allied to proper hygienic principles.
Chapter VI.
PRODUCTION.
Hong Kong is the port for South China, and the greater part of the large volume of goods that pass through it is in transit between South China and other parts of the world, including North and Middle China. The Colony itself produces comparatively little, though the shipbuilding, cement, rope, tin and sugar refining, rubber shoe and cotton knitting industries are not unimportant. Neither agriculture nor mining is carried on to any great
great extent, though the former is practised throughout the New Territories. Rice and vegetables are grown, and there is considerable
considerable poultry farming, but in insufficient quantities to supply the needs of the urban populations of Victoria and Kowloon. The cultivation is in the hands of the Chinese villagers. Sea fishing is an important industry, but here again local supplies have to be augmented by importation from outside.
2. Reports on the principal industries for the year 1933 are given below:-
Refined Sugar. The outstanding feature of the year in South China was the inauguration of the Kwangtung Govern- ment Sugar Monopoly controlling sales of all sugar in Kwang. tung, and the immediate result of this Monopoly was seen in the curtailment of indiscriminate smuggling into South China. Business with North China market was handicapped by the tightness of money, but the demand from consumers for Refineds was maintained and during the year showed no falling off in quantity. Japanese refiners have re-established their position in the country, and during the latter half of the year the boycott was non-existent. Towards the close of the year several thousand tons of United Kingdom, French and American Refined Sugars were dumped on the Hong Kong and China markets and the effects of these transactions cannot yet be definitely estimated,
1931-1939
15
149
:
Cement.-Business in Cement showed a slight decline during the first half of the year 1934, but the last six months saw a return of the good demand which has existed for the last two years. Japanese importers continue to flood the unrestricted market with Japanese Cement, which is retailed at phenomenally low prices.
Preserved Ginger.-Small increases in the amount of preserved ginger shipped in 1934 to the United States of America and Australia were more than discounted by a falling off in the demand from the United Kingdom and Holland, and there was a decline of more than 10 per cent in the total amount shipped during the year. Prices were approximately the same as last year, varying from $14 to $17 per picul for cargo ginger and $22 to $27 for stem ginger. Total value of exports amount- ed to $1,665,406. Of this amount $668,986 was taken by the United Kingdom, $332,245 by Australia, $194,651 by Holland and $182,186 by the United States of America.
Knitted Goods.-China is normally one of the largest markets for Hong Kong manufactured socks and singlets but the high China, Customs tariff has seriously affected this trade. At one time India also was a very large buyer of Hong Kong made socks but, owing to competition from cheaper Japanese made articles, shipments to India, have considerably decreased. There have been increased shipments of hosiery to the British West Indies but this increase is small compared to losses in the China and Indian markets. Exports of singlets have not been quite so adversely affected. Although the demand from China has seriously declined and there has also been a falling off in the demand from the Philippines and Siam, shipments to British Malaya and the Netherlands East Indies have appreciated slightly. The yarn used in the manufacture of the lower grades of cotton knitted goods is imported from North China and that for the higher grades from the United Kingdom. The total value of exports of singlets in 1934 was $3,011,096 and that of hosiery, $677,873.
.
Flashlight Torches & Batteries:-There were notable increases in the amount of torchlight cases shipped during 1934 to British Malaya, India and South Africa. Although there were fewer batteries exported, the increase in trade in cases amounted to considerably more than the decline in demand for batteries. The torch cases are manufactured from imported brass sheets, also from scrap brass rolled locally into sheeting. Glass lenses are also manufactured from imported glass and some bulbs are also made locally. The value of exports in 1934 amounted to $2,033,251 (torches) and $900,098 (batteries).
Rubber Shoes.-As locally manufactured canvas shoes with rubber soles qualify for Imperial Preference, an impetus has been given to shipments to other parts of the British Empire, particularly the United Kingdom and the British West Indies
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
16
whose impcrts in 1934 were more than treble those in previous years. The rubber used in the manufacture of these shoes is imported from the Straits Settlements. Formerly, most of the canvas used originated from the United States of America, but now a large proportion of British canvas is used. The total value of exports in 1934 amounted to over $3,000,000.
Lard. The manufacture of lard is an important local industry. Pigs are imported from South China and Kwong- chowan and slaughtered in Government abbatoirs, the prepara- tion of packing of the manufactured lard also being supervised by Government officials. Exports from Hong Kong declined somewhat in 1934 and prices also were lower. Total exports amounted to 33,485 piculs valued at $62,242. Of this amount, 21,104 piculs were taken by the United Kingdom.
Shipbuilding. Two ocean-going vessels, seven launches, two yachts, six motor boats, six lighters and twenty six small craft were built during the year in local dockyards.
Chapter VII.
COMMERCE.
As anticipated at the close of the year 1933, the visible trade of the Colony during the year 1934 showed a still further decline, with little or no promise of any recovery in the immediate future.
2. The gloomy state of trade during the year was largely due to the still further diminished purchasing power of China, accentuated by tariff barriers, particularly in the adjacent province of Kwangtung.
3. The declared values of imports of merchandise during 1934 totalled $415.9 millions (£31.7 millions), as compared with $500.9 millions (£33.9 millions) in 1933, and exports amounted to $325.1 millions (£24.8 millions), as compared with $403.1 millions (£27.4 millions). Details are given in Table I.
·
4. In terms of Hong Kong currency imports during 1934 declined 17.0% as compared with 1933, and 33.3% as pared with 1932, whilst exports declined 19.4% as compared with 1933, and 31.1% as compared with 1932.
5. In terms of Sterling values imports declined 6.5% as compared with 1933, and 22.7% as compared with 1932, whilst exports declined 9.5% as compared with 1933, aud 20.0% as compared with 1932.
1931-1939
17
151
6. It is estimated that the quantum of the import trade declined 16.0% as compared with 1933, 19.0% as compared with 1932, and 25.2% as compared with 1931, but, of necessity, the volume of imports into the Colony cannot be calculated accurately on account of the lack of a suitable unit of quantity, and the fact that many commodities are declared by value only.
7. China, Japan, Netherlands East Indies, U.S.A. and British Malaya all increased their shares of the import trade, whilst British Malaya, French Indo-China, Japan, Siam, U.S.A. and the Netherlands East Indies took greater shares of the exports. Details are given in Table II.
8. Imports of merchandise showed decreases in most groups of commodities, the exceptions being liquors, machinery, nuts and seeds, paper and paperware, and railway materials. Exports of liquors, machinery, minerals and ores, and nuts and seeds showed slight increases. Details are given in Table III.
9. Imports of Treasure (see Table IV) totalled $78.1 millions during 1934, as compared with $38.1 millions in 1933, and exports amounted to $128.5 millions as compared with $134.1 millions. During 1934 there was an export excess of gold bars amounting to a value of $56.2 millions, as compared with $82.9 millions in 1933. Towards the close of the year there was a considerable traffic in Chinese silver dollars, a total of $15.8 millions being exported abroad in the month of December alone.
10. Average T.T. opening rates of exchange during the year 1934 were:-London 1/6.3/16; France 581.3/8; U.S.A. 38.3/16; Shanghai 112.3/16; India 100.3/4; Singapore 64.11/16: Japan 128.1/8; Java 56.7/16. The lowest Sterling average rate was 1/4.3/4 in May, steadily rising month by month to 1/8.1/4 in December.
11. Wholesale prices in the Colony during the year 1934 recorded decreases of 11.6% as compared with 1933, 25.2% as compared with 1932, 33.0% as compared with 1931, 14.3% as compared with 1924, and 8.5% as compared with the base period of 1922. Details are given in Table V.
12. As compared with 1933 there were decreases in 1934 in each of the four groups of commodities, the index number of Foodstuffs declining 16.8%, Textiles 11.4%, Metals and Minerals 9.6%, and Miscellaneous Items 7.5%.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
1st Quarter
2nd Quarter
18 L
Table I.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS 1923-1934.
3rd Quarter
4th Quarter.
Tota!
(in £'s & $'s millions).
IMPORTS.
•
95.8
7.1 99.7
1923. 1924. 1930. 1931. 1932. 1933. 1934.
£14.7 19.3 * 9.0 11.9 8.5 7.1 $130.7 165.4 * 186.9 170.7 132.8
£ 15.2 17.1 9.2 8.7 10.2 8.5 $131.5 144.0 131.3 180.1 164.7 126.1
£ 14.3 19.2 10.1 9.0 9.3 8.5 8.1 $127.1 161.7 156.8 182.3 142.4 122.1 106.6
£17.8 16.5 10.3 11.8 9.6 8.4 9.4 $155.3 136.6 167.4 188.4 146.2 119.9 113.8
£ 62.0 72.1 29.6 38.5 41.0 33.9 31.7 $544.6 607.7 455.5 737.7 624.0 500.9 415.9
1st Quarter
£13.9 18.3 $123.5 156.8
EXPORTS.
1923. 1924. 1930. 1931. 1932. 1933. 1934.
* 6.8 8.8 6.8 5.8 * 140.1 127.0 105.3 77.5
2nd Quarter
£ 16.3 15.2
7.4 6.4 .7.1 7.2
5.7
3rd Quarter
$140.9 128.0 105.9 132.5 115.3 106.2
£ 14.0 14.6 7.3 6.5 7.2 $124.4 122.9 113.7 130.6 110.0
79.6
6.6
6.1
95.5
80.5
4th Quarter
6.8
7.2
Total
£17.2 15.5 8.5 9.2 7.9 $150.1 128.3 137.2 138.7 119.6 96.1 87.5
£61.4 63.6 23.2 28.9 31.0 27.4 24.8 $538.9 536.0 356.8 541.9 471.9 403.1 325.1
*No statistics available.
♪
Note: Average rate of exchange 1923-28. 31d.
1924-28. 41d.
1930-18. 3td.
1931-18. 02d.
1932=1s. 32d.
1933-1s. 41d.
1934=1s. 6d.
1931-1939
19:
Table II.
DISTRIBUTION OF IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF MERCHANDISE BY COUNTRIES ($'000's omitted).
A.-IMPORTS.
1933.
153
1934.
$
%
$
%
China
155,187
31.0 146,488 35.2
Japan
25,289
5.0
36,669
8.8
N. E. Indies
38,886
7.8
34,675
8.3
United Kingdom
52,172
10.4
32,542
7.8
U. S. A.
31,209
6.2
29,343
7.1
French Lndo-China
42,373
9.5
26,245
6.3
Siam
50,184
10.0
33,464
8.0
Germany
19,079
3.8
13,537
3.3
British Malaya.
5,991
1.2
5,496
1.3
India
18,310
3.7
8,276
2.0
Australia
8,097
1.6
6,698
1.6
Belgium
8,416
1.7
4,880
1.2
All Other Countries
.......
45,746
9.1
37,606
9.1
Summary
United Kingdom
52,172
10.4
32,542
7.8
British Dominions and Possessions
46,139
9.2
28,954
7.0
China
All Other Countries
155,187
247,441 49.4
31.0 146,488 35.2
207,935
Total British Empire
98,311 19.6
50.0
61,496 14.8
Total Foreign
402,628 80.4
354,423 85.2
Grand Total
500,939 100.0
415,919 100.0
154
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
20
B
Table II.-Continued.
B.-EXPORTS.
1933.
1934.
$
%
$
%
China
227,005
56.3
156,243
48.0
British Malaya
21,419
5.3
24,765
7.6
French Indo-China
24,273
6.0
24,095
7.4
Japan
12,884
3.2
11,447
3.5
Macao
21,384
5.3
17,364
5.3
Siam
14,546
3.6
14,664
4.5
U. S. A.
19,284
4.8
18,573
5.7
Kwong Chow Wan
9,965
2.5
8,018
2.5
N. E. Indies
9,574
2.4
8,506
2.6
Philippines
9,431
2.3
5,291
1.6
India
5,581
1.4
4,233
1.3
All Other Countries
27,746
6.9
31,906
10.0
Summary
United Kingdom
4,534
1.1
6,363
2.0
British Dominions and
Possessions
36,614
9.1
39,701 12.2
China
227,005
56.3
156,243
48.0
All Other Countries
134,939
33.5
122,798 37.8
Total British Empire...... 41,148
10.2
46,064 14.2
Total Foreign
361,944 89.8
279,041 85.8
Grand Total
403,092
100.0
325,105
100.0
1931-1939
21 -
Table III.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS BY MAIN GROUPS OF COMMODITIES
($'000's omitted)
Imports.
155
Exports.
1933.
1934.
1933.
1934.
$
$
$
$
Animals, Live
11,404
9,223
314
300
Building Materials
9,355
7,262
4,767
3,872
Chemicals & Drugs
6,688
5,724 3,849
3,325
Chinese Medicines
17,895
Dyeing Materials
16,825 12,179 11,789
4,389 3,696 3,856 3,224
Foodstuffs
166,926 126,537 153,602 102,170
Fuels
Hardware
Liquors
Machinery
Manures
Metals
13,979 11,463 2,125
1,087
3,970 2,937 2,437
2,120
3,769
3,916
933
1,226
5,644
6,948 1,952
5,833
9,862
2,046
9,328
3,520
Minerals & Ores
38,061 33,172 33,650 31,055
1,885
1,100 1,544 2,922
5,814 6,101 3,849 4,227
Nuts & Seeds
Oils & Fats
35,615 33,902 30,400 25,753
Paints
2,002 1,440 1,679 1,328
Paper & Paperware
Piece Goods
Railway Materials
352
· 9,389
75,077 66,551
354
9,732
8,023
6,962
55,523
48,703
189
1,521
Tobacco
6,539
6,384 5,185
4,295
Treasure
Vehicles
Wearing Apparel Sundries
38,113
4,186 3,374 2,058 2,039
4,117 4,041 8,488 8,487
64,021 53,190 57,162 49,346
78,081 134,133 128,480
Total
539,052 493,999 537,225 453,584
156
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
22:
Table IV.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF TREASURE.
Imports.
Exports.
1933.
1934.
1933.
1934.
$
$
$
$
Bank Notes
Copper Cents
Gold Bars
Gold Coin
6,578,574 16,735,677 5,525,607 13,295,374
156,983
43,079 264,622
39,513
5,986,917 13,713,828 88,917,365 69,869,489
2,777,545
528,049
Gold Leaf
24,864
14,448 244,689
252,556
Silver Bars
14,519,263
3,575,251
6,309,042
9,191,377
H.K. Silver Dollars
2,314,968 16,982,920
300
Chinese Silver Dollars
***
2,846,228 23,197,937
5,250,287 31,140,989
Other Silver Dollars
1
4,113
172,564
67,691
199,914
Silver Sub. Coin
Total
5,798,812 3,531,261 24,996,979 3,737,158
38,113,252 78,080,869 134,132,584 128,479,528
Table V.
WHOLESALE PRICE CHANGES.
(1922=100)
Groups
1913. 1924. 1931. 1932. 1933. 1934.
Foodstuffs
Textiles
73.6 106.1 144.3 126.5 113.4
94.3
55.1
112.5 135.8 125.2 .97.0
85.9
Metals
Miscellaneous
63.2
102.3
140.9 128.1 107.8
97.4
64.2
106.3 125.4
109.7
95.7
88.5
Average
64.0
106.8 136.6 122.4
103.5
91.5
1931-1939
23
Chapter VIII.
WAGES AND THE COST OF LIVING.
A great proportion of the workers in Hong Kong are paid on a piece-work basis and in some trades are engaged and paid on curiously complicated systems involving payment of a bonus or a share in the yearly profits.
157
2 Local trade was very dull during the year 1934 and the improvement of business of which there were faint signs at the end of 1933 did not materialize. The chief causes remained the same, viz. the world depression and the evergrowing wall of high tariffs imposed by the Chinese and other governments, whilst a new factor hindering exports to foreign countries was the steadily maintained appreciation of the silver dollar vis-à- vis gold and sterling. The hosiery and knitting trades were particularly hard hit and several large and well-established firms engaged in the manufacture of these classes of goods were compelled to close down. The heavy industries such as ship- building and engineering also suffered from lack of business, but on the other hand several smaller industries such as those involving the manufacture of felt hats, sweets, electric torches and dry-batteries, mosquito sticks, etc., appeared to be flourish- ing. The printing and book making industries and the rubber shoe trade had a fair measure of prosperity and although several factories closed down others were opened. In spite of the depression the total number of factories in the Colony continues to increase and at the end of the year there were 550 factories and workshops registered under the Factories and Workshops Ordinance. It would be misleading, however, not to point out that the majority of these are quite small establishments. As foreshadowed at the end of 1933 conditions in the building trade were slack as compared with the boom of previous years but thousands of coolies found employment in various public works and other undertakings such as the Shing Mun Dam, the new Gaol at Stanley, the new Government Civil Hospital and the new Hong Kong and Shanghai Bank building. Although unemployment has become more marked it cannot be said to have become acute as in Western countries. Many Chinese who are unable to find employment in the Colony have returned to their native districts in the neighbouring provinces of China and there has been a further decline in the rents of tenement houses, flats, offices and shops occupied by Chinese. Even in the case of premises occupied by Europeans a distinct decline in rentals has now become apparent and there is a tendency to move to outlying districts where accommodation is cheaper. There has been no noticeable change in the average rates of wages for labour but the prices of all Chinese food-stuffs declined further during the year.
158
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
24
3. The European resident, unlike the local labourer, purchases a certain number of articles which have to be imported from countries with sterling or gold currencies. He is therefore affected by variations in the exchange value of these currencies as expressed in terms of the silver dollar. Throughout the year the silver dollar showed a steady appreciation in its exchange value vis-à-vis sterling and the American dollar. Although this rise in value is regarded by many people as a mixed blessing, a general lowering of the local prices of articles imported from England and the United States of America was apparent in the closing months of the year.
AVERAGE RATES OF WAGES FOR LABOUR.
Building Trade :-
Carpenters
Bricklayers
Painters
Plasterers
Scaffolders
Labourers (male)
(female)
$1.15 per day.
P.10
"
1.10
""
1.10
1.70
0.80
0.50
11
Working hours, nine per day. Time and a half paid for over-time. Free temporary quarters provided on the building site and communal messing at cheap rates.
Shipping and Engineering:-
Electricians
Coppersmiths
Fitters
Sawmillers
Boilermakers
Sailmakers
Blacksmiths
Turners
Patternmakers
Labourers
$1.45 to $1.80 per day.
1.20 to 1.80
19
"
0.80 to 1.80 ""
11
1.00 to 1.40
1.00 to
1.50
1.00 to
1.50
0.80 to
1.20
""
??
1.00 to 1.40
1.00 to
1.40
"1
"'"
0.50 to 0.80
11
""
"1
Over-time-time and a half. Night work-double time-
Transport Workers:-
Tram drivers
$36 to $45 per month.
conductors
Bus drivers
conductors
"1
30 to
39
50
""
11
20 to 25
Working hours, nine per day. Free uniform. Bonus at end of year.
1931-1939
25
Railway Workers (Government) :-
Engine drivers
Firemen
Guards
Signalmen
Station Masters
Booking Clerks
Telephone operators
Female Workers in Factories:-
Cigarette making
159
$540 to $1,000 per annum.
330 to 480
21
600 to
1,000
11
600 to
1,000
11
""
1,100 to
1,800
600 to
1,000
11
JI
480 to 1,000
"
$0.40 to $0.80 per day.
Knitting factories
Perfumery
Confectionery
0.20 to 0.50
""
""
0.20 to 0.50
""
0.20 to 0.60
""
""
Working hours from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
One hour off at mid-
day. Over-time from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at day rates.
Domestic Servants :-
Employed by Chinese
Employed by Europeans Gardeners
$7.00 to $20.00 per month.
15.00 to 40.00
15.00 to 30.00
""
11
With free lodging, and with Chinese employers, generally free board.
NOTE :-The rates of pay of Government employees approximate closely to
those of a similar category in private employ.
AVERAGE RETAIL PRICES OF FOODSTUFfs, etc.
1933.
1934.
Rice (3rd grade)
...
7.6 cents per catty.
5.6 cents per catty.
Fresh fish
31.8
25.3
""
"
Salt fish
27.8
23.1
""
"}
""
11
??
Beef
44.4
40.6
??
"1
""
}}
Pork
51.4
41.6
i)
19
"
21
Oil
21.4
15.3
""
""
""
Firewood
10
"
for 9 catties. 10
for 9.7 catties
!!
160
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
26
Chapter IX.
EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS.
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS.
These are either schools where the medium of instruction is English or mostly English or schools where the medium of instruction is Chinese. The former, seventeen in number, are known as "English" schools, the latter of which there are three as "Vernacular" schools.
secondary
2. Of the four English schools, classed as schools in the Table below, two are Anglo-Chinese schools for boys and one for girls. These three schools have primary departments. The fourth school, the Central British School which is a mixed school, has no primary department. Of the eleven English schools, classed as "primary" schools in the Table, three are mixed schools preparing for the Central· British School. In this group are also four "District" schools, including one for Indian boys and four "Lower Grade " schools, three of which are in rural districts. In those English schools which are attended by Chinese the study of English and of Chinese is carried on side by side, the pari passu system requiring that promotion shall depend on proficiency in both languages.
3. Of the two Government Schools classed as "Vocational" one is the Junior Technical School which was opened in February, 1933, the other is the Technical Institute which is attended by persons desirous of receiving instruction for the most part germane to their day time occupations.
4. Of the three Government Vernacular schools one has a seven years' course and includes a Normal department. There is also a Normal school for women teachers and a Normal school on the mainland which aims at providing Vernacular teachers for rural schools.
GRAND-IN-AID AND SUBSIDIZED SCHOOLS.
5. There are fourteen Grant-in-Aid English Schools, and four Grant-in-Aid Vernacular Schools. Of the former, seven are schools for boys and seven are for girls.
6. One English school for girls has a primary department only. The remaining schools classed in the table below as secondary schools have primary departments as well as the upper classes. One Infant School for girls has been added to the Grant List during the year.
1931-1939
27
161
7. Munsang College, Kowloon City, received a grant of $6,000.
8. The Vernacular Grant-in-Aid Schools are schools for girls and are classed in the Table as secondary schools.
9. The 314 subsidized schools are all Vernacular schools.
UNAIDED SCHOOLS.
10. In 1934 there were 594 unaided Vernacular schools with 32,675 children and 123 unaided English schools with 6,520 children.
1934.
Table showing number of schools and scholars for the year
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS
GRANT-IN-AID AND SUBSIDIZED
UNAIDED SCHOOLS
SCHOOLS
CLASS OF INSTITUTIONS
No. of
Institu-
On Koll
No. of Institu-
No. of
On Koll
On
Institu-
Roll
tions
tions
tions
ENGLISH-
Secondary,
4 2,261
13*
6,258
11 1,643
Primary,.
11
1,714
2
218
112 4,877
Vocational,
2 1,035
17
5,010
15
6,506
123
6,520
Total,.....
VERNACULAR: --
Secondary,
Primary,... ........................
Vocational,
....
:
1
252
1
1,013
314
...
20,906
591 32,675
2
214
1
252
Total,...
3
466
319
22,171
594 32,675
Total No. of Institutions
Total On Roll
1,071
.73,348
*This includes Ying Wa College whose primary department receives
a Grant-in-Aid.
162
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
28
THE UNIVERSITY.
11. The University of Hong Kong was incorporated under a local University Ordinance, 1911, and opened in 1912. It is a residential University and open to students of both sexes.
12. The University hostels are three in number-Lugard Hall, Eliot Hall and May Hall. There are also three recognized hostels for men, St. John's Hall, Morrison Hall and Ricci Hall, and one-St. Stephen's Hall for women. No university hostel at present exists for women students.
13. The late Sir Hormusjee Mody bore the entire expense of the erection of the main building. Additions have been made through the liberality of benefactors of varied nationality and domicile. The latest additions to the buildings are a School of Chinese Students, the cost of which was borne by Mr. Tang Chi Ngong a local Chinese merchant and banker, and a Chinese Library named after the late Mr. Fung Ping Shan who provided a sum of $100,000 for the building and $50,000 as an endow- ment fund for its maintenance; also a School of Surgery and a New Engineering Laboratory named after H.E. the Governor, Sir William Peel.
14. The income of the University for 1934 amounted to $953,494 of which $422,000 was derived from endowments and $350,000 from Government. Messrs. John Swire & Sons, Ltd., gave £40,000 to the original endowment fund and subsequently $100,000 for engineering equipment. The Rockfeller Institute has endowed the University with three chairs in surgery, medicine and obstetrics, the endowment being in each case $250,000. The annual expenditure in 1934 amounted to about $948,144.
15. The University includes the three faculties of Medicine, Engineering and Arts. Admission to all faculties is conditional upon passing the matriculation examination of the University or some examination recognized as equivalent. thereto.
16. The Faculty of Medicine provides a six year course of study in the usual pre-medical and medical sciences, leading to the degree of M.B. and B.S. The degrees of M.D. and M.S. are awarded on examinations but are subject to the proviso that every candidate for the degrees shall produce evidence of special post-graduate experience in the subject which he presents. The degrees above mentioned are recognized by the General Medical Council for registration in Great Britain.
17. The Faculty of Engineering provides a four years course in practical and theoretical engineering, leading to the degree of B.Sc., (Eng.). Fourth year students specialize in civil, mechanical or electrical engineering. The degree for post- graduate work is that of M.Sc., (Eng.).
1931-1939
29
163
18. The Faculty of Arts includes departments of pure arts and science, social science, commerce, a department of Chinese studies and a department for training teachers. The course is in all cases one of four years and leads to the degree of B.A. The degree for post-graduate work is that of M.A.
19. With a view to securing the maintenance of the desired standard-which is in all three faculties that of a British Univer- sity degree-external examiners are, in all faculties associated with the internal examiners in all annual final examinations. In the Faculty of Engineering, but not in other faculties, degrees with honours are granted, the standard being assessed by special examiners chosen from amongst the external ex- aminers in the University of London.
20. The degree of LL.D. is granted honoris causa.
CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS.
21. The following are the best known Charitable Institu- tions.
French Convent Orphanage. Italian Convent Orphanage. Maryknoll Convent, Kowloon. St. Louis Industrial School.
Po Leung Kuk--Chinese. Victoria Home and Orphanage.
Society of Precious Blood Hospital.
Home for Aged Poor, Kowloon.
La Calvaire Home for Aged Poor, Happy Valley. Eyre Refuge.
Salvation Army Home.
Industrial Home for the Blind, Pokfulam.
RECREATION AND ART.
22. Most of the schools contrive to hold Annual Sports either on their own grounds or on grounds generously lent by local Cricket and Football Clubs. Some schools are granted free use of Government Bathing Beaches for four afternoons a week during the Bathing Season. Lawn Tennis, Football, Swimming, Volley Ball and Basket Ball continue to increase in popularity. Cricket is played at a few schools. Physical train- ing is given by qualified instructors. Art is taught in the Government British Schools by Trained Art Mistresses.
164
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
30
Chapter X.
COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT.
The external communications of Hong Kong are excellent both by sea and by telegraph, cable and radio. As regards the former, the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co., the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, the Blue Funnel Line, the Messageries Maritimes, and several other British and foreign companies main- tain regular passenger and freight services between Hong Kong and Europe. The trans-Pacific communications are well served by the Canadian Pacific Steamship Ltd., the Dollar Line, the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and other steamship lines. To Australia three steamship companies, the Eastern and Australian, Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and Australian and Oriental maintain regular passenger and freight services. In addition there are direct sailings to Africa, South America, and to New York. There is frequent and regular communication between Hong Kong and other Far Eastern ports in India, Java, Straits Settlements, Formosa, Indo-China, Japan and the China coast. Local steam. ship communication is by river steamer from Hong Kong to Canton and the West River ports with several sailings daily. In addition there is a vast traffic between Hong Kong and the adjacent provinces of China by junk and sampan.
2. The total shipping entering and clearing Ports in the Colony during the year 1934 amounted to 93,754 vessels of 41,914,022 tons which, compared with the figures for 1933 shows a decrease of 14,868 vessels, and 1,129,359 tons. Of the above, 44,043 vessels of 40,054,033 tons were engaged in Foreign Trade as compared with 51,492 vessels of 40,862,583 tons in 1933. There was an increase in British Ocean-going shipping of 9 vessels and 20,855 tons. Foreign Ocean-going vessels show a decrease of 388 vessels and 484,206 tons. British River Steamers showed a decrease of 320 vessels and 101,057 tons. Foreign River Steamers showed decrease of 227 vessels and 60,299 tons. In steamships not exceeding 60 tons employed in Foreign Trade there was a decrease of 1,425 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 36,598 tons. Junks in Foreign Trade showed a decrease of 5,098 vessels and 147,245 tons. In Local Trade (i.e. between places within the waters of the Colony) there was a decrease in steamlaunches of 1,622 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 42,389 tons. Junks in local Trade show a decrease of 5,797
vessels and 278,420 tons.
3. The Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company (British) by means of three cables to Singapore, one direct and one each via Labuan and Cape St. James respectively, provides good connections with Europe via India, with Austra- lasia, and with the other British Colonies and Possessions. By their cable to Manila connection is made with the direct American
1931-1939
31
165
cable, thence to San Francisco. Two cables to Shanghai, belong- ing respectively to the Eastern Extension and to the Great Northern (Danish) Companies, via Foochow and Amoy respective- ly, give a good connection with Shanghai, North China, Japan and Russia; the system of the Great Northern Telegraph Com- pany gives a good service to Europe via Asiatic Russia.
4. The Government operates commercial radio services with direct communication to the Chinese stations Shanghai, Foochow, Amoy, Swatow, Canton, Yunnanfu, Hoihow, and to Formosa, French Indo-China, Siam, Phillippines, Dutch East Indies, British North Borneo and via Manila to Europe, America, etc.
5. The revenue collected by the Radio Office during the year from radio telegrams amounted to $639,464, a decrease of $3,754 on the amount collected in 1933. Advices of vessels signalled at the Lighthouses yielded $1,459. The total Revenue from the telegraph service amounted to $640,923. Ship Station Licences yielded $1,544, Amateur Transmission Station Licences $298, Broadcast Receiving Licences $37,262, Dealers' Licences $2,371 and Examination Fee for Operators' Certificates of Proficiency $6.
6. The number of paid radio-telegrams forwarded during the year was 184,466 consisting of 1,730,084 words against 191,586 consisting of 1,518,215 words in 1983 and 212,072 were received, consisting of 2,401,601 words against 207,339 consisting of 1,757,629 words.
7. In addition to the paid traffic figures given above the wireless Service is responsible for the reception of time signals daily from Bordeaux, Rugby, Malabar and Ñauen, for the trans- mission of time signals to ships in the China Sea, the reception of press messages amounting to 400 messages or 246,930 words from Rugby, the collection and distribution of meteorological traffic, 8,124 messages 355,538 words having been forwarded, and 19,908 messages 318,969 words having been received, the reception and dissemination of distress, piracy and navigation messages, the transmission and reception of Government mess- ages, etc.
8. A telephone service between Hong Kong and Canton, a distance of 110 miles is in operation.
9. Mails.-The number of mail receptacles of Hong Kong crigin despatched during the year was 44,067 as compared with 46,650 in 1933-a decrease of 2,583, the number received was 44,951 as compared with 49,449-a decrease of 4,498.
10. Receptacles in transit, including those to and from British and Foreign Men-of-War, numbered 206,869 as against 222,489 in 1933 a decrease of 15,620.
166
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
32
11. Registered Articles and Parcels.-The number of regis- tered articles handled amounted to 680,360 as compared with 691,046 in 1933-a decrease of 10,686.
12. The figures for insured letters were 16,316 and 20,232 respectively a decrease of 3,916.
13. Parcels, ordinary and insured, which were dealt with reached a total of 150,309 as against 143,064 in 1933-an increase
of 7,245.
14. The Railway had a successful year in 1934 in spite of the trade depression. Features were the growth of terminal through traffic to and from Canton and the decline of local and sectional through traffic.
15. The principal event was the introduction of a new working agreement for through traffic between the British and Chinese Sections. This came into force on October 1st and superseded the old working agreement which, although drafted in 1911, had never been ratified. The new agreement is com- prehensive and flexible and is expected to lead to increased efficiency through co-operation and mutual goodwill. Its main proviso is that the British Section's share of terminal through traffic receipts has been reduced from 35% to 28%.
16. The manner in which the track on both Sections has been maintained, enabled the express services to be accelerated, the journey from Kowloon to Canton being reduced by thirteen minutes to two hours fifty-seven minutes from October 1st. A new mid-day fast terminal through train was instituted at the same time and has proved very popular.
17. The three 4-6-0 express locomotives obtained for the Chinese Section are still operated by the British Section. The Chinese Section made twelve monthly cash payments of $10,000 each in respect of these locomotives. Haulage charges continued to be paid by the Chinese Section.
18. The total steam train mileage run amounted to 433,868; this includes trains hauled by British Section locomotives over the Chinese Section. Motor Coach mileage was 14,519. Passenger journeys were 2,683,444 as against 2,765,726 in 1933.
19. Revenue for the year totalled $1,639,775 as against $1,630,610 in 1933. Net revenue amounted to $696,604 as against $711,052.42 for 1933, but the former figure would have increased to $727,917 had the percentage earnings from terminal through traffic remained at the same level throughout the year.
20. There are 377 miles of roads in the Colony, 161 miles on the Island of Hong Kong and 216 miles in Kowloon and the New Territories. Of the total mileage 293 miles are constructed
1931-1939
33
in water bound macadam dressed with asphalt, 12 miles in sheet asphalt on a cement concrete foundation, 13 miles of tar macadam, 17 miles of concrete, 3 miles of granite setts and wooden blocks on a cement concrete foundation and 39 miles of gravel.
21. The public travelling over the Colony's roads increases yearly with a corresponding growth in the number of motɔr buses, of which there are 59 operating on the island of Hong Kong, and 115 on the mainland. These are gradually replacing the rickshas, the number of which decreases year by year.
22. The Hong Kong Tramway Company has a fleet of nearly 90 double deck tram cars running along the sea front of Victoria from Kennedy Town to Shaukiwan.
23. Communication between the island and the mainland is maintained by a number of ferry services; the most important of which are the Star Ferry between Kowloon Point and a pier near the General Post Office, and the combined vehicular and passenger service of the Hong Kong and Yaumati Ferry Company between Jordan Road, Kowloon and Jubilee Street, Victoria.
Chapter XI.
BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS & MEASURES.
There
The Colony is well served by banking institutions. are fifteen principal banks doing business in the Colony which are members of the Clearing House, and in addition several Chinese banks and numerous native Hongs doing some portion of banking business. There are no banks which devote them- selves specially to agricultural and co-operative banking. The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation also conducts the business of the Hong Kong Savings Bank on usual savings bank principles. Several of the more important Chinese Banks have opened branches in Hong Kong during the year and there have been no notable difficulties among the smaller native banks. The credit and repute of the Colony's financial institutions have never been higher than during this difficult period and it is satis- factory to be assured that ample encouragement and support are available to finance any possible demand that a revival of trade would need.
2. The Currency of the Colony is based on silver and is governed by the Order in Council of 2nd February, 1895. The dollar, which is normally in circulation and which is legal tender to any amount, is the British Dollar of 900 millesimal fineness and weight 26.957 grammes (416.00 grains). Silver subsidiary coins of the value of 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents and one cent pieces
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
34
M
in bronze are also legal tender up to the value of two dollars for silver and one dollar for bronze. Bank notes issued by The Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank, The Chartered Bank and The Mercantile Bank are also in circulation, the estimated amount issued at the end of 1934 being $153,601,407. These Bank notes
are redeemable in legal tender dollars at the Banks' Offices in Hong Kong, and include fiduciary issues amounting to $12,000,000, the balance being covered in various proportions for the respective banks by silver coin of approved denominations, by bullion, and by securities.
3. The weights and measures in use in the Colony are defined in the Schedule to Ordinance No. 2 of 1885. They consist of the standards in use in the United Kingdom and of the following Chinese Weights and Measures:-
and
1 fan (candareen)=0.0133 ounces avoirdupois.
1 tsin (mace)=1.33 ounces avoirdupois.
1 leung (tael)=1.33 ounces avoirdupois.
1 kan (catty)=1.33 pounds avoirdupois.
1 tam (picul)=133.33 pounds avoirdupois.
1 check (foot)=14§ English inches divided into 10 tsün
(inches) and each tsün into 10 fan or tenths.
Chapter XII.
PUBLIC WORKS.
During the year under review the operations of the Public Works Department were carried out, under a Head Office Staff, by eleven sub-departments, namely the Accounts and Stores, Architectural, Buildings Ordinance, Crown Lands and Surveys, Drainage, Electrical, Port Development, Roads and Transport, Valuations and Resumptions, Waterworks Construction, and Waterworks Maintenance offices.
2. The European staff comprised 160 officers and the non- European approximately 623.
3. The following is a summary of works carried out during the year:-
BUILDINGS.
4. Works completed were:-New Markets at Bowrington Canal and Arsenal Street; temporary Barrack Sheds for Police on Caine Road; new Quarters for Wireless. Operators at the Peak Wireless Station; fire Appliance Sheds at Aberdeen and Aplichau; new Stores for the Hong Kong Volunteer Defence Corps; new
1931-1939
35
169
Laboratory Building at the Junior Technical School; quarters for a Sexton at Chai Wan Cemetery; a block of Quarters for Nurses at Kowloon Hospital; new Residence for the Director of the Royal Observatory; new Markets at Mong Kok and Tong Mi; a new Fire sub-Station at Shamshuipo; a temporary Post Office at Kowloon Point; two Postal Kiosks; a Revolver Range at King's Park, Kowloon; Government Bungalow at Fanling; a new Dormi- tory Block at Lai Chi Kok Prison; a Furniture Workshop and Store at Hung Hom and a temporary Court Room Building at the Yaumati Magistracy.
5. Works under construction were:-New Gaol at Stanley; new Government Civil Hospital at Pokfulum; new Upper Levels Police Station and an Outpatients Department Building at Kow- loon Hospital.
6. In addition to general maintenance, numerous minor alterations and improvements to Government Buildings were also executed during the year.
COMMUNICATIONS.
7. Works completed were:-A new road to the bathing beaches (South-east of Repulse Bay); Robinson Road, between Peak Road and Glenealy, including a bridge; Blue Pool Road; path to Cape D'Aguilar Wireless Station; Magazine Gap Road (from May Road to Stubbs Road); Middle Gap Road; approach path to "Tanderagee", and Garden Road (from about the Helena May Institute to Macdonnell Road) were widened, and to the latter a new type of non-skid slab footpath was laid; 1st section of the new road between Causeway Bay and Ming Yuen; and a further section commenced towards the end of the year; sur- facing was laid to the 40-feet roads on the Praya East; Waterloo Road was widened from the Disinfecting Station to the Railway Bridge; a path to a temporary park to the South-east of Waterloo Road near the Disinfecting Station; approach road to the Botanical and Forestry Quarters at Lai Chi Kok; portion of Pratas Street from Castle Peak Road was formed; a path to the East of the Polo Ground from Boundary Street; half width of roadway immediately East of La Salle College; access path at Chuk Un leading to experimental block for Kowloon City Villagers; Sai Kung Road was extended eastwards; South of Prince Edward Road; improvements to bends on Taipo Road at 52, 61 and 62 miles; surface between 12 miles and 16 miles was strengthened and improved; approach paths leading to the Senior Police Officers' quarters and to the District Officers Land Court at Taipo were widened and surfaced with concrete; a parking area was formed at the junction of the Fanling-Sha Tau Kok Cross Road; Sha Tau Kok Road was improved and strength- ened in the vicinity of Sha Tau Kok Police Station and also the main road from Fanling-Sha Tau Kok Cross Roads to Fan- ling Cross Roads via Fanling Village and Sheung Shui Railway
·
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36
Station; main bridge at Sheung Shui was extended by the addi- tion of one extra span; road leading to Lok Ma Chau Police Station was strengthened and improved; road to Kam Tin was widened; a length of the main road between Castle Peak and Un Long was tar-painted for a distance of two miles; car park on the Castle Peak Road between 10th and 13th miles; streets at Sha Tau Kok. Taipo Market and Un Long were surfaced, kerbed and channelled in front of new houses.
8. Works under construction were:-New 100 ft. Shaukiwan Road, 1st and 2nd Sections from Causeway Bay to Taikoo Sugar Refinery; new Road to Bathing Beaches (S.E. of Repulse Bay): Robinson Road widening between Peak Road and Gleneally; Blue Pool Road Improvements-1st section; 10 ft. Path from Shek ( Gap to Cape D'Aguilar Wireless Station; new Road from Island Road to Stanley; Widening of Magazine Gap Road between May Road and Stubbs Road.
DRAINAGE.
9. New sewers and storm water drains were constructed in Hong Kong to a length of 11,997 feet, open nullahs to a length of 334 feet and parapet walling to open nullahs 933 feet. Anti-malarial Campaign work was completed at Lyeemun and continued at Mt. Parker and Sookunpoo. Streams were trained to a total length of 19,597 feet. In Kowloon, New Kowloon and New Territories, new sewers and storm water drains were con- structed to a length of 14,641 feet; open nullahs full section 113 feet, part section 1,278 feet; parapet walling 232 feet; channelling 1,116 feet. Anti-malarial work at Kowloon Tong:-Nullahs and channels were constructed to a length of 2,642 feet, and "cutting and filling" amounting to 6,928 cubic yards was carried out.
WATER WORKS.
10. In Hong Kong the following lengths of new mains were laid to improve the distribution system:-432 feet of 12′′, 2,326 feet of 10", 566 feet of 8′′, 3,910 feet of 6′′, and 13,574 feet of smaller sizes, 274 feet of 2′′ subsidiary main wère laid in back lanes. The Jardine's Lookout Section of the Eastern Pumping Scheme was practically completed by the end of the year. The scheme includes two turbine driven ram pumps each capable of delivering 3,600 gallons per hour from Eastern Filter Beds to a service reservoir at 778 A.O.D. through a 5′′ diameter rising main 2,687 feet in length. 4,680 feet of 3′′ and 4′′ diameter 'distribution mains were laid and a 45,000 gallons balance reservoir above Tai Hang at 533 A.O.D. was nearly completed. A scheme for a similar installation to service the Middle Gap and Mount Cameron Districts was investigated. A scheme to improve the water supply to the Stanley District was investigated and re- ported on. In Kowloon and New Kowloon the following lengths of new mains were laid:-300 feet of 18′′, 6,295 feet of 12′′,
1931-1939
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171
1,286 feet of 10′′, 1,135 feet of 8′′, 6,278 feet of 6′′, and 1,460 feet of 4". In addition 9,619 feet of subsidiary mains of from 14"-4" diameter were laid. The Yaumati Hill Service Reservoir was completed and brought into use. At Taipo 7,838 feet of 6" and 780 feet of 7′′ supply mains were laid. At Un Long the first section of a new water supply was nearly completed. The scheme includes intake works with rough filters and 11,600 gallons storage; 22,764 feet of 5′′ and 6′′ piping were laid and the irrigation dam was being reconstructed to provide a dry weather supply for cultivation.
11. The new five million gallons Service Reservoir at Yau- mati Hill was completed.
12. The Second Section of the West Catchwater and the removal of silt from the Lower Reservoir were completed and with the termination of these works the Aberdeen Valley Water Scheme was completed.
13. The Tytam Tuk East, Dragon's Back First Section, Pottinger Peak Second Section and Mount Parker First Section Catchwaters were completed and the Second Section of the Dragon's Back Catchwater was commenced.
14. Preparations were made for the laying of the Second Cross Harbour Pipe, and by the end of the year most of the materials had arrived in the Colony.
RECLAMATIONS.
15. At Tsat Tze Mui, a further seven and a half acres were reclaimed, this completes the reclamation of a section of about twenty-one and a half acres; work was commenced on a further instalment which will bring this reclamation to its seaward limit. The construction of about 700 feet of the sea wall to protect the reclamation at Kennedy Town was continued. The con- struction was completed of a length of about 2,700 feet of the rubble foundations for a sea wall to protect a reclamation of about forty acres at Kun Tong in Kowloon Bay.
ELECTRICAL WORKS.
16. Works completed were:-Telephone cables laid from No. 1 Police Station to Shaukiwan and between Kowloon-Canton Railway Station and Water Police Station; Automatic traffic signal and improved type of traffic control lights installed at Pedder Street and Magazine Gap Road; two police recall signals installed at Sha Tau Kok and Cheung Chau Police Station; Kowloon-Canton Railway Chinese Staff quarters A and B blocks rewired; one fifty-line telephone switch-board installed at Kow- loon Railway Station and an underground lighting cable laid
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- 38 -
between Goods Shed and Signal Cabin; forty-two telephones installed in various places; four telephones installed at Shing Mun Valley; twenty-six buildings in various places rewired; two S.W.B. 4b. Transmitters installed at Cape D'Aguilar W/T. Station.
17. In addition to minor works the usual maintenance of Wireless Stations, telephones, lights, fans, bells, lifts, ferry pier hoists, traffic lights, etc., was carried out. The installations were all maintained in good order.
BUILDINGS ORDINANCE OFFICE.
18. The volume of new. building works coming under the jurisdiction of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance shewed a considerable decline when compared with 1933, but the industry was nevertheless fairly actively engaged throughout the year on works mostly of small magnitude.
19. The total number of plans approved shewed only a small decrease but works were largely in the nature of alterations and additions to existing buildings. The number of new buildings included in such approvals were appreciably fewer.
20. Amongst the more important works for which plans were approved, the following may be noted:-New Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank on Queen's Road and Des Voeux Road, Central; Clinic and Health Centre on Johnston Road; new Chinese Methodist Church in Wanchai; extension to Soldiers & Sailors Home on Anton Street; extension to Messrs. Sincere Co.'s building on Connaught Road; new Headquarters for St. John Ambulance Brigade on Tai Hang Road; Confucius Hall on Caroline Hill Road; site development and Gas Holder at West Point; Repulse Bay Lido and development of Mount Cameron on Middle Gap and new Tai Hang Road as residential districts; reclamation and Gas Holder on To Kwa Wan Road; School and Church on Waterloo Road; site formation in Waterloo Road; Peiho Theatre in Peiho Street; Maryknoll Convent School on Waterloo Road and Boundary Street.
21. Buildings of importance completed were:-Hong Kong Stock Exchange Building in Ice House Street; Cheero Club in Queen's Road, Central; Kam Loong Restaurant in Des Voeux Road, Central; China Fleet Club on Praya East Reclamation; School of Surgery, Hong Kong University; Peel Engineering Laboratory on Pokfulam Road; St. Louis Industrial School on Queen's Road, West; National Lacquer and Paint Product Co.'s Factory on Shaukiwan Road; Commercial Press Ltd.'s Printing and Book Binding Factory on Shaukiwan Road; Alhambra Theatre on Nathan Road; Paint Factory in Arran Street and Canton Road; Book Factory in Pak Tai Street; Pastor's quarters at All Saints School in Hak Po Street; Extension to Chinese Y.M.C.A. in Waterloo Road; Lead Pencil Factory on Castle Peak Road.
1931-1939
39
173
22. Of the 280 Chinese tenement houses for which occupation permits were granted, it is of interest to note that thirty-two were erected on the Praya East Reclamation making a total to date on this area 1,005 houses. Forty houses of this type were erected in other localities in Hong Kong and 208 were erected in Kowloon and New Kowloon.
23. Occupation permits for eighty-five dwellings of European type were granted, of which twenty-eight were erected on the Island and fifty-seven in Kowloon District.
24. Mount Cameron, Middle Gap and new Tai Hang Roads are new residential districts proving very popular.
25. Buildings of non-domestic or commercial character com- pleted shew an increase over the returns of the preceding year, but these, apart from the buildings noted in paragraph 21 were of a minor character.
26. The number of Water Flushed Sanitary appliances ap- proved amounted to 1403.
27. Twenty-four fires were reported. The most disastrous was that caused by the ignition of escaping gas from a large Gas Holder in the Hong Kong Gas Co.'s premises at West Point on the 14th May. The following houses were involved:-Nos. 13-17 Chung Shing Street; Nos. 1-12 Clarence Terrace and No. 1A Yu On Terrace. Of these houses, Nos. 2, 4 and 8 Clarence Terrace were completely gutted, while the remainder were all more or less seriously affected. A great number of lives were lost and many person were injured.
28. Eleven fires occurred in Chinese tenement houses of non fire-resisting floors and staircases; in nearly every case the houses were gutted-casualties amounted to four.
29. Six fires occured in Chinese tenement houses of fire- resisting construction and in almost every case the fire was confined to the single storey in which it originated.
30. The value of R.C.C. construction in preventing the spread of fire has been amply demonstrated and the security afforded to occupants by concrete stairs with alternative exists, marks a definite step forward in this class of property.
31. Reclamation of I.L. 2918 was completed and work on I.Ls. 3538, 3539 and 3540 remain in progress. An area of approximately 207,000 square feet is embraced in the above. Reclamation work on Kowloon Marine Lot 102 continues, the total area involved being about 200,000 square feet.
32. Minor landslides occurred as a result of heavy rains. They were not of a serious nature nor were there any casualties.
33. The Chinese Cemeteries in Hong Kong and Kowloon were maintained in good order and, where required, provision was made for additional burial areas.
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Chapter XIII.
JUSTICE AND Police.
I. THE COURTS OF HONG KONG.
The Supreme Court of Hong Kong consists of a Chief Justice and one or more other judges. At present there is one other judge.
2. The jurisdiction of the Court is regulated by a number of Ordinances but generally it may be said that the Court exercises & Summary Jurisdiction in all actions where the claim does not exceed $1,000 and an Original Jurisdiction in all actions where the claim exceeds that amount.
3. In addition to the above the Court exercises Admiralty, Probate, Divorce, Bankruptcy, Lunacy, Criminal and Appellate Jurisdiction.
4. The following is a brief summary of litigation and matters dealt with during the year 1934:-
2,781 actions were instituted in the Summary Jurisdiction and the amounts for which judgment was given totalled $477,428.
417 actions were instituted in the Original Jurisdiction and the amounts for which judgment was given totalled $2,772,364.
11 actions were instituted in the Admiralty Jurisdiction.
442 grants were made or grants of other courts sealed in the Frobate Jurisdiction.
135 persons were indicted in the Criminal Jurisdiction of whom 98 were convicted.
10 appeals were lodged in the Appellate Jurisdiction 8 of which were disposed of during the year.
5. The lower civil courts are the land courts in the Northern and Southern districts of the New Territories, with jurisdiction over land cases in those districts, and the small debts courts of the same two districts. In these courts the District Officers sit to hear land and small debts cases.
6. The lower criminal courts are the magistrates' courts, two for Hong Kong island and a small area on the mainland opposite Shaukiwan, two for Kowloon, including the whole area south of the Kowloon hills, and one each for the two districts of the New Territories, in which the District Officers are the magistrates.
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175
7. The following figures show the amount of work done by the lower courts in 1934:
Civil:-
-
District Officer North,
Land Court
Small Debts Court
District Officer, South,
Land Court
Small Debts Court
Criminal:-
Hong Kong Magistracy, two courts
Kowloon Magistracy, two courts District Officer, North, one court District Officer, South, one court
II. THE POLICE.
76 cases.
205
186 cases.
62 ""
32,597 cases.
21,220
1,451
521
}}
8. The Police Force of the Colony is under the control of the Inspector General of Police who is assisted by one Deputy Inspector General and twelve Superintendents. The force con- sists of four Contingents, European, Indian, and two Chinese, viz., Cantonese and Weihaiwei. The strength of the different Contingents is as follows:-
Europeans
Indians
Chinese (Cantonese) Chinese (Weihaiwei)
256
741
655
295
In addition the Police Department controls the Anti-Piracy Guards, a force consisting of thirty-five Russians and twenty- seven Indian Guards including three Sergeants together with four European Sergeants and ninety-six Wei-hai-wei Chinese Constables, who are included in Police Strength. The Anti- Piracy Guards are employed and paid for by the Shipping Companies for service in the China Seas.
9. Further, the department supervises 1,146 Indian and Chinese Watchmen who are engaged by the Police Department and paid by private individuals for protection of private pro- perty.
10. The waters of the Colony are policed by a fleet of ten steam launches and four motor boats which employ a staff of two hundred and forty-five Chinese under European officers..
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B
11. There were 5,549 serious cases of crime in 1934, as against 5,630 in 1933, a decrease of 81 cases or 1.4%. There was a decrease of ten cases in Coinage offences, 20 in Em- bezzlement, 14 in House and godown breaking, six in Kid- napping and 81 in Larceny from Dwellings. There were 27,733 minor cases during 1934 as against 25,659 in 1933, an increase of 2,074 or 8%.
:
III. PRISONS.
12. There are three prisons in the Colony. Victoria Gaol in Hong Kong is the main prison for males. This prison is built on the separate system, but segregation is difficult owing to lack of space and accommodation. It contains cell accom- modation for 644 only and prisoners are often kept in association through unavoidable overcrowding. There is a branch male prison at Lai Chi Kok near Kowloon, with accommodation for 680 prisoners. In this establishment all the prisoners sleep in association wards and only selected prisoners are sent there as the prison was not originally built as such. It was converted from a Quarantine Station in 1920, for temporary use pending the building of a new prison. The third prison is the prison for females situated near the male prison at Lai Chi Kok. Α new general prison at Stanley, Hong Kong, is in course of con- struction.
13. The total number of persons committed to prison in the year 1934 was 13,304 as compared with 11,439 in 1933. The daily average number of prisoners in the prisons in 1934 was 1.610. The highest previous average was 1,472 in 1933. Over 90% of prisoners admitted are persons born outside the Colony.
14. The health of the prisoners generally was well main- tained in the prisons.
15. The discipline in all three prisons was good.
16. Prisoners are. employed at printing, bookbinding, shoemaking, tinsmithing, matmaking, tailoring, carpentering, weaving, gardening, laundry work, cleaning and minor repairs to buildings. The bulk of the Government printing and book- binding is done in Victoria Gaol.
17. During the year 242 boys underwent sentences of de- tention for various crimes at the Remand Home for Juveniles (Boys). The Remand Home for Girls, which is under the management of the Salvation Army, was opened at the end of September. Fourteen girls underwent detention. The boys are given instruction in elementary reading and writing, as well as in rattan work, which teaches them a trade. The girls are given employment in house-work, laundry, and making and mending clothes. There are recreation facilities at both Homes.
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•
There are also three Probationer Officers, two males and one female.
18. Lady visitors attend the Female Prison twice weekly to instruct long sentence prisoners in needle work.
19. Visiting Justices inspect and report on the prisons every fortnight.
Chapter XIV.
LEGISLATION.
Forty-one Ordinances were passed during the year 1934. These and also the Regulations, vules, By-laws and other sub- sidiary legislative enactments are published in a separate volume by the Government Printers. The forty-one Oruinances com- prised two appropriation, tour replacement, three incorporation, one consolidation, twenty-seven amendment, and tour which were new to the Colony.
2. The Appropriation Ordinance (No. 29) applied a sum not exceeding $20,404,219 to the public service for the year 1935, and Ordinance No. 16 appropriated a supplementary sum of $27,243.67 to defray the charges of the year 1933.
3. Of the four replacement Ordinances:-
The Registration of Persons Ordinance (No. 3) applies with specified exceptions to non-Chinese aliens. It replaced two. Ordinances (The Travellers Restriction Ordinance, 1915, and the Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1916) which were passed during the war and which, though still law, were not strictly enforced in recent years. The Immigration and Passports Ordinance (No. 8) enacted new provisions derived mainly from the Straits Settlements Passengers Restriction Ordinance, No. 169, as amended to 1932, and from the existing Passport Regulations of this Colony, in place of the power of regulating the admission of persons into the Colony delegated to the Governor in Council by the Passports Ordinance, 1923, which it replaced. The Trustee Ordinance (No. 18), based on Trustee Act, 1925, replaced the Trustees Ordinance, and the Cremation Ordinance (No. 40) replaced the Cremation Ordin- ance, 1914.
4. Ordinance No. 10 incorporated the Trustees of the China Fleet Club, Ordinance No. 20 incorporated the Regional Superior in Hong Kong of the Foreign Mission Sisters of St. Dominic commonly knows as Maryknoll Sisters, and Ordinance No. 39 incorporated a Body of Trustees capable of holding property and empowered to administer a trust fund known as the Morrison Scholarships Trust Fund for the purpose of providing scholarships at Queen's College in this Colony. These Ordin- ances followed the usual lines in such cases.
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5. The Births and Deaths Registration Ordinance (No. 21) consolidated and to some extent amended the law on this subject.
6. The Ordinances new to the Colony were the Hong Kong Dollar Loan
Loan Ordinance
Ordinance (No. 11), which empowered the Governor to raise a loan of $25,000,000 in bearer bonds at 3 per cent interest for various public works, the Colonial (Bahamas and Leeward Islands) Light Dues Ordinance (No. 15) which implemented an Order of His Majesty in Council dated the 17th December, 1931, under section 670 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894, by providing for levying in Hong Kong colonial light dues in respect of twelve lighthouses and a buoy on or near the coasts mentioned, hitherto maintained mainly from light dues collected in Great Britain, Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State, the Government House and City Development Scheme Ordinance (No. 30), and the Sand Ordinance (No. 41).
7. The twenty seven amending Ordinances covered a wide range of
of subjects, viz: Commissioners Powers (No. 1), Merchandise Marks (Nos. 2 and 38), Sunday Cargo Working (No. 4), Railways (Nos. 5 and 35), Merchant Shipping (Nos. 6 and 25), Opium (No. 7), Miscellaneous Licences (No. 9), Pensions (No. 12), Marriage (No. 13), Protection of Women and Girls (No. 14), Summary Offences (No. 17), Crown Counsel's Fees (No. 19), Coroner's Abolition (No. 22), Jury (No. 23), Official Signatures Fees (No. 24), Betting Duty (No. 26), Supreme Court (No. 27), Printers and Publishers (No. 28), Empire Preference (No. 31), Estate Duty (No. 32), Evidence (No. 33), Dangerous Goods (No. 34), Police Force (No. 36), and Criminal Procedure (No. 37).
8. Similarly, the subsidiary legislation covered a wide range of subjects, including Supreme Court rules, Marriage, Merchandise Marks, Merchant Shipping, Public Health and Buildings, Waterworks, Vehicles and Traffic Regulation, Ferries, Places of Public Estertainment Regulation, Post Office, Printers and Publishers, Bankruptcy rules, Liquors, Tobacco and Pensions.
Chapter XV.
PUBLIC FINANCE & TAXATION.
The following tables show the Revenue and Expenditure
for the five years 1930 to 1934 inclusive.
Revenue. Expenditure. Surplus. Deficit.
1930
$27,818,473 $28,119,646
$301,173
1931
33,146,724 31,160,774
1,985,950
1932
33,549,716 32,050,283
1,499,433
1933
32,099,278 31,122,715
976,563
1934
29,574,286 31,149,156
1,574,870
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45
179
2. The revenue for the year 1934 amounted to $29,574,286 being $2,157,339 less than estimated and $2,524,992 less than the revenue obtained in 1933.
3. Duties on imported liquor and tobacco were less than estimated as they are on a sterling basis and were reckoned on an exchange rate of $1=1/3 whereas the average rate throughout the year was over 1/6/16. Assessed Taxes fell short of estimates by $96,771 due to vacant tenements and large shortfalls were shown by the Opium Monopoly of $644,932 and in Stamp Duties of $282,583. A shortfall amounting to $116,393 was shown under Water Excess and Meter Rents due to 10% rebate allowed from 1st April and 15% rebate allowed from 1st September. Land Sales were less than estimated to the extent of $641,507.
4. The expenditure for the year 1934 amounted to $31,149,156 being $2,293,539 less than estimated and $26,441 more than the expenditure in 1933.
5. Ordinary expenditure amounted to $27,364,990, Public Works Extraordinary to $3,784,166. Large Savings were made under Personal Emoluments when compared with the estimates, provision being made for $12,955,767 but only $11,213,115 was expended. By far the greater part of the saving is due to the rise in the sterling value of the dollar. Under Other Charges savings were also effected, the total provision being $4,871,357 against $4,294,183 expended. For the first time for many years Public Works
Works Extraordinary exceeded the original estimates. By a resolution of Council dated the 26th July 1934 an extra sum of $752,000 was placed at the disposal of the Director of Public Works to be spent on a variety of Services.
6. Debt.-The Inscribed Stock Loans of 1893 and 1906 amounting to £1,485,733 were redeemed on the 15th October. The 4% conversion. loan raised in 1933 amounted to $4,838,000 and the Sinking Fund established in 1934 amounted at 31st December 1934 to £12,311.2.1. In July 1934 a 31% dollar loan was raised to finance certain public works and to redeem a portion of the Sterling inscribed stock. Bonds to the amount of $14,000,000 were issued at 99% producing $13,860,000. The loan bears 31% interest and is redeemable by drawings at par in each of the twenty five years commencing in 1935 at the annual rate of one twenty fifth of such issue. Ordinance No 11 of 1934 governs this issue and authorises the Governor to borrow up to a total of $25,000,000. The total public debt of the Colony on 31st December 1934 amounted to $18,838,000 equal to about 8 months revenue as things are at present.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
46
7. The Assets and Liabilities of the Colony on the 31st December, 1934, are shown in the following statement:-
LIABILITIES.
ASSETS..
€9
C.
DEPOSITS:-
ADVANCES:
Contractors and
Purchase of three
Officers Deposits..
521,085.50
Locomotives for
Chinese Section
Suitors Fund
43,638.29
Kowloon Canton
Railway
147,468.26
· Insurance Com-
panies
1,762,946.51
Miscellaneous
237,642.32
Miscellaneous De-
posits
Building Loans...
738,250.94
2,176,481.29
.:
Imprest Account
9,476.27
House Service
Account
23,614.27 | Subsidiary Coin
1,261,981.10
Government House
Trade Loan Outstand-
and City Develop-
ment Fund
ing
553,500.50
1,218,741.28 Unallocated Stores,
(P.W.D.)
573,052.47
Suspense Account...
975,589.24 Unallocated
Stores,
(Railway)
170,372.02
Exchange Adjust-
meut
28,038.16 Dollar Loan Account...
217,067.30
Trade Loan Reserve..
1,073,017.94
Cash Balance:-
Crown Agents
15,762.01
Praya East Reclama-
tion
Treasurer
2,334,087.55
...
112,175.27
Coal Account
*Joint Colonial Fund 2,913,103.46
2,092.09 Fixed Deposits:-
Total Liabilities.. 7,937,419.84
General ...$8,800,000.00
Insurance
Companies 1,762,946.51
Excess of Assets
over Liabilities.... 12,248,755.24
Total...$20,186,175.08
Miscellaneous 451,464.37
11,014,410.88
*Joint Colonial Fund £242,000. Os. Od.
Total.......
$20,186,175.08
8. Main Heads of Taxation.-The largest item of revenue is derived from the assessment tax, the sum of $6,603,229 being collected in 1934. This represents 22.32% of the total revenue
1931-1939
47
181
or 22.76% of the revenue exclusive of land sales. The rates vary from 15% to 17% on the annual value of property and are for police, lighting and water services, etc. Port and Harbour Dues comprising Light Dues and Buoy Dues brought in the sum of $565,457.69.
9. Duties on intoxicating liquors realized $1,973,845, to- bacco $2,953,834, postage stamps and message fees $1,829,298. A considerable sum is also derived from the opium monopoly, land revenue, stamp duties including estate duties and other fees. Land Sales during the year realized $558,473. receipts of the Kowloon-Canton Railway which was completed in 1910 amounted to $1,639,775.
The
10. Customs Tariff.-There is an import tariff on all liquor, tobacco and light oils imported into the Colony for sale or use therein. There is no export tariff. The sale of opium is a Government Monopoly, and all importation of opium other than by the Government is prohibited. The importation of Dangerous Drugs is regulated in accordance with the terms of the Geneva Convention. Arms, ammunition, explosives and dangerous goods are subject to the normal Harbour and Police Regulations in regard to storage and movement. A special Foreign Registration fee of 20% of the value of a motor vehicle is payable in respect of any vehicle not produced within the British Empire.
11. The duties on imported liquor range from $0.60 per gallon on beer to $1.20 on Chinese liquor and to $10 on sparkling European wines. The duties are collected on a sterling basis, the conventional dollars in the tariff being converted at a rate which is varied from time to time according to the market rate of exchange between the local dollar and sterling. A 50% reduction in duty is allowed in respect of brandy grown or produced within the British Empire.
12. The duties on tobacco range from $0.63 per lb. on the lowest taxed unmanufactured tobacco to $2 per lb. on cigars. The duties are collected on a sterling basis in the same manner as the liquor duties.
13. A duty of 25 cents per gallon is payable on all light oils imported into the Colony.
14. Excise and Stamp Dutics.-The same duty is imposed on liquors (mainly Chinese type) manufactured in the Colony as on imported liquors, but prior to March 1935 was not payable on a sterling basis.
15. Stamp Duties are imposed on various instruments and where a consideration is involved are mainly ad valorem. The following are examples of the dutics charged:-Affidavits, Statu- tory Declaration, etc., $3; Bills of Exchange (inward) and
182
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
*48
Cheques, 10 cents; Bills of Lading, 15 cents when freight under $5, 40 cents when freight $5 or over; Bond to secure the pay- ment or repayment of money, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Conveyance on sale, $1 for every $100 or part thereof; Mortgages, principal security, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Life Insurance Policy, 25 cents for every $1,000 insur- ed; Receipt, 10 cents for amounts over $20; Transfer of Shares, 20 cents for every $100 of market value.
16. No Hut Tax or Poll Tax is imposed in the Colony.
D. W. TRATMAN,
Colonial Secretary.
1931-1939
49
Appendix.
LIST OF PUBLICATIONS OF GENERAL INTEREST RELATING TO HONG KONG.
Title
Price
Agents for sale
$
183
Sessional Papers (Annual)
Blue Book (Annual)
Ordinances-Ball's Revised Edit- ion (In 6 Volumes) 1844-1923. Regulations of Hong Kong 1844-
1925
Ordinances and Regulations
(Annual)...
2.00 Colonial Secretariat and
Government Printers.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers and Crown Agents for the Colonies, London.
90.00
Do.
30.00 Colonial Secretariat.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers and Crown
Agents.
Administration Reports (Annual) 3.00 Colonial Secretariat and
Estimates (Annual)
Government Printers.
3.00
Do.
Government Gazettes (Weekly)
.50 Government Printers and
Crown Agents.
Meteorological Bulletin (Month-
ly)
Hong Kong Trade and Shipping
Returns (Monthly).
(Annual)
Do. Hansards (Annual)
Historical & Statistical Abstract of the Colony of Hong Kong 1841-1930.
The Hong Kong Naturalist
(Quarterly).
10.00 Government Printers.
per
annum
2.00 Government Printers and
Crown Agents.
2.00
Do.
5.00 South China Morning Post,
Hong Kong.
4.00 Colonial Secretariat.
2.00
Hong Kong University.
Hong Kong: A Guide Book............
1.00
Kelly & Walsh, Ltd. and Brewers' Bookshop, Hong
Kong.
Hong Kong: Around and About,
by S.H. Peplow & M. Barker.
5.00
Do.
Echoes of Hong Kong & Beyond
by L. Forster
2.50
Do.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
COLONIAL REPORTS-ANNUAL
185
No. 1775
Annual Report on the Social and Economic Progress of the People of
HONG KONG, 1935
(For Reports for 1933 and 1934 see Nos. 1673 and 1712, respectively, price 2s. od. each)
Crown Copyright Reserved
LONDON
PUBLISHED BY HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE
(PRINTED IN HONG KONG)
To be purchased directly from H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE at the following addresses
Adastral House, Kingsway, London, W.C.2; 120 George Street, Edinburgh 2; 26 York Street. Manchester 1; 1 St. Andrew's Crescent, Cardiff; 80 Chichester Street, Beliast;
or through any bookseller
1936
Price 2s. 6d. net
186
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE COLONY
OF HONG KONG FOR THE YEAR 1935.
CHAPTER
CONTENTS
PAGE
I GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY......
1
II GOVERNMENT
3
III POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS
4
IV PUBLIC HEALTH
V HOUSING
VI PRODUCTION
VII COMMERCE
10
5
12
15
17
VIII WAGES AND, THE COST OF LIVING
24
IX EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS
27
X COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT
31
XI BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS AND MEASURES...
34
XII PUBLIC WORKS
36
XIII JUSTICE AND POLICE
42
XIV LEGISLATION
45
XV PUBLIC FINANCE AND TAXATION
47
APPENDIX
52
1931-1939
Chapter I.
GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY.
187
The Colony of Hong Kong is situated off the south-eastern coast of China between latitude 22° 9′ and 22° 17′ N. and longitude 114° 5′ and 114° 18′ E. The island is about eleven miles long and two to five miles in breadth, its circumference being about 27 miles and its area 32 square miles. It consists of an irregular ridge of lofty hills rising to a height of nearly 2,000 feet above sea level, stretching nearly east and west, with few valleys of any extent and little ground available for cultiva- tion.
2. The island of Hong Kong was ceded to Great Britain in January, 1841, the cession being confirmed by the Treaty of Nanking in August, 1842. The charter bears the date of 5th April, 1843. The Kowloon peninsula and Stonecutter's Island were ceded to Great Britain under the Convention signed at Peking in October, 1860, and under the Convention signed at Peking in July, 1898, the area known as the New Territories including Mirs Bay and Deep Bay was leased to Great Britain by the Government of China for 99 years. The total area of the Colony including the New Territories is about 390 square miles.
5. The importance of Hong Kong has grown with the increase of China's trade with foreign countries. It is now in respect of tonnage entered and cleared one of the largest ports in the world. It is the most convenient outlet for the produce of South China as well as for the incessant flow of Chinese emigration to the Netherlands East Indies, Malaya and else- where. It is also the natural distributing centre for imports into China from abroad.
4. The Colony is not primarily a manufacturing centre, the most important of its industries being those connected directly or indirectly with shipping, such as dock and warehouse, banking and insurance undertakings. Sugar refining and cement manu- facture are also major industries, and in recent years considerable quantities of knitted goods, electric torches and batteries, and rubber shoes have been produced and exported.
5. The climate of Hong Kong is sub-tropical, the winter being normally cool and dry and the summer hot and humid; the seasons are marked by the prevalence of the S.W. monsoon in summer and the N.E. monsoon in winter. The temperature seldom rises above 95° F. or falls below 40° F. The average rainfall is 85.16 inches, May to September being the wettest months. In spring and summer the humidity of the atmosphere is often very high, at times exceeding 95% with an average over the whole year of 79%. The typhoon seasoon may be said to last from June to October though typhoons occasionally occur before and after this period.
188
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
6. The rainfall for 1935 was 71.32 inches.
The mean tem perature of the air was 72.4° against an average of 71.9°. The maximum gust velocity of the wind was at the rate of 63 m.p.h. from E.N.E. on October 7th.
7. The Colony's celebrations on the occasion of the Silver Jubilee of the reign of His late Majesty King George V were held in May 6th, 7th and 8th and were marked by demonstrations of enthusiasm and loyalty on the part of all sections of the com- munity. Among the features of the celebrations were dragon and lantern processions organised by the Chinese community. It is estimated that about 200,000 persons, mostly from the neigh- bouring districts in China, visited the Colony for the purpose of witnessing or taking part in the festivities.
8. By the end of August 1935 the Shing Mun Dam was in a position to store 500 million gallons of water, and on September 2nd, Sir Thomas Southorn, K.B.E., C.M.G., then Officer Administering the Government, inaugurated the im- pounding of water in the reservoir at a brief ceremony.
9. Mr. N. L. Smith, then Officer Administering the Govern- ment, officially opened the new Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank building on 10th October, 1935.
This imposing building consists of a central tower of fourteen storeys, 217 feet in height, and a main block of seven storeys, 103 feet in height.
10. The Commission appointed in 1934 under the Chairman- ship of Mr. M. J. Breen "to enquire into the causes and make recommendations for the amelioration of the existing position and for the improvement of the trade of the Colony" presented its report on 16th February 1935. The report was published on 18th April, 1935, as Sessional Paper No. 3 of 1935.
*
11. His Excellency Sir Andrew_Caldecott, Kt., C.M.G., C.B.E., arrived in the Colony on 12th December, 1935, to assume office as Governor and Commander-in-Chief in succession to Sir William Peel, K.C.M.G., K.B.E., who left the Colony on 17th May, 1935, and retired on 2nd December.
12. His Excellency Major-General A. W. Bartholomew, C.B., C.M.G., C.B.E., D.S.O., arrived in the Colony on 12th December, 1935, to assume command of the British troops in China in succession to Lieut.-General O. C. Borrett, C.B., C.M.G., C.B.E., D.S.O.
1931-1939
3
189
13. Among the Honours conferred by His Majesty during the course of the year were:
Knight Bachelor, Sir Atholl MacGregor, K.C.
C.B.E., The Hon. Dr. Ts'o Seen Wan.
O.B.E., (Civil Division), Lady Southorn, The Hon. Mr. J. P.
Braga, Mr. J. W. Franks.
O.B.E., (Military Division), Lieut.-Col. G. D. R. Black,
M.D.
M.B.E., Mr. J. L. MacPherson.
I.S.O., Mr. A. M. de Sousa.
Chapter II.
GOVERNMENT.
The Government is administered under Letters Patent of 14th February, 1917, and Royal Instructions of the same and subsequent dates, by a Governor aided by an Executive Council, composed of six official and three unofficial members, and by a Legislative Council composed of nine official and eight unofficial members. Prior to 1928 the numbers of the Legislative Council members were seven and six respectively. The six official meni- bers of the Executive Council are the Senior Military Officer, the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney General, the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, the Colonial Treasurer, all of whom are members ex-officio, and the Director of Public Works, appointed by the Governor. The three unofficial members, one of whom is Chinese, are appointed by the Governor. The six official mem- bers of the Executive Council are also members of the Legislative Council; the other three official members of this Council, who are appointed by the Governor, are the Inspector General of Police, the Harbour Master, and the Director of Medical and Sanitary Services. Of the unofficial menibers of the Legislative Council two are appointed by the Governor on the nomination respectively of the Justices of the Peace and of the Chamber of Commerce; the Governor also appoints the remaining members three of whom are Chinese. Appointment in the case of unofficial mem- bers is for five years for the Executive and four years for the Legislative Council.
2. The Sanitary Board composed of four official and six unofficial members had up to the end of 1935, when its place was taken by the Urban Council (Vide chap. xiv, para. 3) power to make by-laws under the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance in matters appertaining to public health, subject to an overriding power in the Legislative Council.
190
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
4
3. There are a number of advisory boards and committees, such as the Board of Education, Harbour Advisory Committee, Labour Advisory Board, etc., composed of both official and unofficial members. They are frequently consulted and are of much assistance to the Government.
4. The English Common Law forms the basis of the legal system, modified by Hong Kong Ordinances of which an edition revised to 1923 has been published. The law as to civil procedure was codified by Ordinance No. 3 of 1901. The Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1890 regulates the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in Admiralty cases.
are
5. The daily administration is carried out by the twenty- eight Government departments, all officers of which members of the Civil Service. The most important of the purely administrative departments are the Secretariat, Treasury, Secretariat for Chinese Affairs, Post Office, Harbour, and the Imports and Exports, Police, and Prisons departments. There are seven legal departments, including the Supreme Court and the Magistracies. Two departments, Medical and Sanitary, deal with public health; one, Education, with education; and one, the largest of all the Government departments, Public Works, is concerned with roads, buildings, waterworks, piers and analogous matters.
6. There have been no changes in the system of Government in the year under review.
Chapter III.
POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS.
Variation in population in Hong Kong is more dependent on immigration and emigration than on births and deaths. Move- ments to and from the Colony are influenced by events in China and owing to the large numbers who come and go daily it is impossible to give more than a very rough estimate of the actual population, except during census years.
2. The following table shows the estimated population for the Colony for the middle of 1935.
Non-Chinese (mostly resident in Victoria and Kowloon)
Chinese in Victoria
Chinese in Hong Kong Villages
Chinese in Kowloon and New Kowloon
Chinese in junks and sanipans
Chinese in New Territories
Total......
21,370
377,659
48,832
314,204
100,000
104,276
966,341
1931-1939
5
191
3. During the year 3,347,473 persons entered and 3,412,020 persons left the Colony, making a daily average of 9,171 arrivals and 9,348 departures. The daily average for 1934 was 7,641 arrivals and 7,702 departures.
4. Since 1932 registration of Births und Deaths in the New Territories has been more and more fully enforced. The intro- duction of the new Births and Deaths Ordinance in the latter half of 1934 by improving facilities for registration on the one hand and checking on the other brought about an appreciable increase in registrations. This was particularly noticeable in the New Territories where the births registered were 3,810 as com- pared to 587 in 1932.
5. The number of births registered was:
Chinese
Non-Chinese
Total
1934
20,424
1935
24,510
462
527
20,886
25,037
6. The deaths registered among the civil population number 22,133 giving a crude death rate of 22.90 per mille as compared with 20.93 for the previous year.
Non-Chinese
Chinese
Deaths.
Estimated
Death rate per
Population.
mille population.
220
21,913
21,370
10.25
944,971
23.19
There were 26 deaths among H.M. Forces during the year.
7. The number of deaths of infants under one year was Chinese 7,754, Non-Chinese 30. If the figures for Chinese births represented the total births, which they do not, the infantile mortality figure for the Chinese would be 316.36 as compared with 347.34 in the previous year. The infantile mortality figure among non-Chinese was 56.92 as compared with 49.78 in 1934.
Chapter IV.
PUBLIC HEALTH,
In the absence of some general system of registration of sickness, the only sources of information available for gauging the state of the public health in this Colony are the returns
192
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
6
relating to deaths, the notifications of infectious diseases and the records of Government and Chinese hospitals. Judging from the death returns the health of the Colony was not quite so good as that of the previous year. The crude death rate was 22.90 per mille as compared with 20.93 for 1934.
2. Respiratory diseases accounted for 41.62 per cent of the total deaths, the percentage for 1934 was 39.97. The principal diseases causing death were broncho-pneumonia, pulmonary tuberculosis, bronchitis, infantile diarrhoea and diarrhoea. The overcrowded houses, the expectorating habits of the people, and poverty furnish sufficient explanation for the prevalence of respiratory troubles.
..
3. Pulmonary Tuberculosis.-This disease continues to rank second to broncho-pneumonia as the principal cause of death. It is probable that some of the cases of the latter were of tuber- culous origin. The total number of deaths was 2,237; that for 1934 was 2,179. The death rate per mille was the same as for the previous year i.e. 2.31.
4. There is need for more hospital or infirmary accommoda- tion for tuberculosis patients, especially for those of the poorer classes.
5. Malaria.-Owing to efficient drainage methods this disease has disappeared from the greater part of the urban districts. It still persists, however, in the suburbs and in the rural areas. There are parts of the New Territories where the spleen rate is as high as 41 per cent.
6. Malaria not being a notifiable disease the incidence figures are unknown. The cases admitted to the Government Hospitals numbered 577 as compared to 457 in the previous year. The percentage of deaths to cases admitted was 0.86%. Among the Chinese Hospitals there were 811 admissions with a case mortality rate of 19.35 per cent.
7. The total number of deaths attributed to this disease was 400, giving a death rate of 0.41 per mille over the whole popula- tion. The low death rate is, of course, due to the fact that the great bulk of the population residing in the drained urban area is not subject to risks of infection. If figures for local districts were available it would be found that in some areas the incidence and death rates were very considerable.
8. During the year the Malaria Bureau continued its investigations into the life history, habits and carry powers of the local anophelines. The results obtained were both interesting and instructive. As in previous years there was no obstruction from the local Chinese, on the contrary they took an interest in the proceedings and showed their eagerness to be of assistance. The Chinese Inspectors have shown ability and zeal.
1931-1939
7
193
9. The Bureau co-operated with the military authorities, the Royal Air Force, the Sanitary Department, the Public Works Department and the construction engineers at the Shing Mun Dam.
The cause of the swarns of mosquitoes which each spring made the lives of the Peak residents a burden was discovered and dealt with resulting in a complete disappearance of the nuisance.
At the Shing Mun Dam construction works where more than 2,000 labourers were employed the casualty rate from malaria continued to reinain at a very low figure. The daily average percentage of workers off duty from sickness was less than five.
INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
10. During the year there were reported 61 cases of sinall- pox, 110 cases of cerebro-spinal fever, 266 cases of diphtheria and 319 cases of enteric. There were no cholera cases.
11. Smallpox.-Every year in the cold season this disease manifests itself in outbreaks which are sometimes sporadic, some- times epidemic. Whatever the prevalence there is always a tendency for the morbidity rate to decline or disappear with the advent of summer. In the year under review there were 61 cases and 44 deaths as compared with 153 and 104 respectively in 1934. 18 cases only were treated in hospital; the remainder did not come under the notice of the authorities until after death.
12. The vaccination campaign was continued and during the year 325,809 persons were vaccinated. Valuable assistance was afforded by the St. John Ambulance Brigade and by the Chinese Public Dispensaries. Both bodies engaged in active propaganda and through their efforts many were persuaded who otherwise would have kept aloof. The various sections of the Brigade again carried out street vaccination with excellent results.
13. The Chinese have a preference for vaccination being done in the spring, which they regard as the most auspicious season. For a month or two after Chinese New Year the Chinese Public Dispensaries are crowded with children waiting to be vaccinated.
14. Many Chinese still hold the opinion that the herbalist treatment of smallpox gives better results than the methods adopted by practitioners qualified in Western medicine. An analysis of the statistics of (a) the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital where only herbalist treatment is carried out, and (b) the Government Infectious Diseases Hospital where western treatment only is provided shows that this view is not correct.
194
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
8
Calculating on the figures for the last 25 years the case death rate at the Tung Wah was 47.2 per cent while that at the Government institution was 15.25 per cent.
15. Plague.-For the last six years no cases of plague have been reported in Hong Kong. The disappearance of this disease. not only from this Colony but from the greater part of China and its decline throughout the world are due to factors which are not understood.
16. Systematic rat-catching and periodical cleansing of houses were carried out throughout the year. The total number of rats collected was 192,251 of which 21,820 were taken alive, as compared with 175,687 and 21,976 in 1934. The number collected each year shows that there is no diminution in the rat population. All the rats collected were sent to the Public Mortuary for examination. None was found infected.
17. Cerebro-spinal Fever.- Altogether 110 cases were reported with 54 deaths. No special foci of infection were dis- covered and few instances where one could trace the source of infection. The cases were treated in the general hospitals without any instance of spread of infection. Sera manufactured at the Bacteriological Institute were used therapeutically.
18. Diphtheria.-With regard to diphtheria there is little to be said. The cases were sporadic and the sources of infection were seldom discovered. 266 cases were reported as compared with 162 in 1934.
19. Enteric.-What has been said of diphtheria applies to enteric. The incubation period being so long and the possible sources of infection so numerous there is little chance of tracing in any cases the source of infection. 319 cases were reported as compared with 212 in 1934.
20. Leprosy. The Committee appointed in 1934 by His Excellency the Governor under the Chairmanship of the Secretary for Chinese Affairs to enquire into the incidence of Leprosy in the Colony and to suggest methods of dealing with lepers presented its report in January and as a result a new lepers Ordinance (Ordinance No. 25 of 1935) was enacted and passed on the 13th of June.
Prior to 1935 there was no place set apart in the Colony for use as a leper settlement. In May of 1935, however, temporary arrangements were made whereby lepers could be admitted to the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital at Kennedy Town. They are fed by the Tung Wah Hospital Committee at Government expense and treated by a Government Medical Officer.
1931-1939
9
195
21. Rabies. Ten cases of this disease were reported during the year. Three cases occurred in humans, one in a mule, the remainder in dogs. The disease was confined to Kowloon, and the last case was reported in August.
Two of the human cases had been treated with anti-rabi vaccine before the appearance of symptoms. All three
All three were fatal.
THE DUMPING OF THE Dead.
22. The number of bodies reported by the police as dumped was 1,038 as compared with 1,056 in 1934. In an endeavour to stop this practice chambers for the deposit of corpses have been established at all the Chinese Public Dispensaries. In some cases the top of the table is so arranged that the weight of a body on it closes an electric circuit which rings a bell in the caretaker's room. So far the chambers have not been all unqualified success and dumping in the street at night continues.
HOSPITALS.
23. The Government Civil Hospital.-The Hospital consists of three blocks and contains 225 beds in 23 wards. About one half the accommodation has been placed under the care of the clinical professors of the University who have been gazetted respectively Surgeon, Physician and Obstetric Physician to the Hospital.
The number of inpatients in 1935 was 5,047 as compared with 5,063 in the previous year.
24. Attendances at the general clinics for outpatients numbered 50,685 as compared with 48,166 in the previous year. In addition there were 55,750 attendances at clinics for special subjects such as those in connection with children's diseases, opthalmology, ear, nose and throat work, venereal diseases etc. Much of the work connected with outpatients was done by the University staff.
25. Attached to the hospital is a Maternity Hospital of 21 beds. There were 1,056 cases in 1935 and 954 in 1934. With the exception of 193 cases attended by the Government Medical Officers all the cases were under the care of the University Professor and his assistants.
26. Mental Hospital.-Situated close to the Government Civil Hospital is the Mental Hospital which is under the direction of the Medical Officer in charge of the Government Civil Hospital. There are separate divisions for European and Chinese. The European section contains 14 beds and the Chinese section 18 beds. This hospital is mainly only a temporary abode for mental
196
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
.10
cases, those of Chinese nationality being sent to Canton, and those of other nationalities repatriated to their respective coun- tries. There were 350 cases in 1935 and 344 in 1934. The daily average number of patients for 1935 was 50.3.
27. Government Infectious Diseases Hospital. This hospital situated on the Western outskirts of the City of Victoria is the only Government Institution of its kind for the whole Colony. Formerly a Police Station it contains only 26 beds.
One case only was admitted in 1935 as compared with 8 cases in 1934.
28. Kowloon Hospital.-The accommodation at this hospital, which is situated on the Mainland, is 131 beds. It consists of four two storied blocks, one of which is reserved for Maternity
cases.
The opening of the Maternity Block in 1934 filled a long felt want as there was no provision on the mainland for European women. Private patients may be attended by their own doctor if they so desire. During the year 657 patients were admitted.
The number of inpatients in 1935 was 3,077 as compared with 2,536 in 1934.
The new Out-Patients Department situated at the Main Gate was opened on 11th March 1935.
The total attendances at the Out-Patient Department num- bered 54,194 (32,311 in 1934); of these 23,053 were new cases; 14,143 were old cases. The remaining 16,998 were dressings.
29. Victoria Hospital.-Situated on the Peak, this hospital overlooks the city of Victoria and has a clear view across the harbour of the territory on the mainland.
There are 46 beds in the General Block and 26 in the Maternity Block. There is an entirely separate staff for each building.
During 1935, 490 cases were treated, 424 in the General Block and 66 in the Maternity Block; the number in 1934 being 430, made up of 359 General and 71 Maternity cases. Maternity patients may be attended by their own doctor if they so desire.
A few outpatients attend at this Hospital each morning between 9-10.30 a.m.
30. Tsan Yuk Hospital.-This Maternity Hospital was formerly part of the organisation financed and managed by the Chinese Public Dispensaries Committee and was handed over to Government as a free gift on 1st January, 1934.
1931-1939
11
197
The care of the patients is under the general supervision of the University Professor of Obstetrics who is also a Government Consultant. The University Medical students receive training there.
.
There are 60 beds, of which 46 are reserved for maternity cases and 14 for gynaecological cases.
;
During the year 1,541 cases were admitted to the Maternity section and 197 to the Gynaecological sections, a total of 1,738 admissions.
In the out-patients department, 5,250 people attended during the year. Separate Gynaecological, Infant Welfare, Venereal Diseases, and Anti-Natal Clinics were held in which 1,334, 2,565, 1,062 and 289 cases respectively were treated or advised.
31. The Chinese Hospitals.-Tung Wah, Tung Wah Eastern Kwong Wah-are hospitals which are maintained by the Tung Wah Charity Organisation, a a purely Chinese body. These institutions, which are assisted by Government, are under inspection by the Government Medical Department. Each has as its Medical Superintendent. a Chinese Medical Officer who is paid by Government. The Medical staff consists of Chinese Medical Officers, qualified in Western Medicine, and Chinese Herbalists.
The patient is given his choice of treatment.
No. treated in 1. No. treated in
1935.
1934.
No.
HOSPITAL.
of
Chinese
Chinese
beds. Western
Western
Herbalist
Herbalist
Medicine
Medicine
Medicine
Medicine
Tung Wah-General.. 410
7,088
4,984 5,671
5,480
Maternity. 24
1,833
1,320
Kwong Wah-General 267
7,296
3,364
5,902
2,883
Maternity. 59
4,439
4,406
Tung Wah
Eastern-General.. 222 4,778
2,185
3,050
2,528
;
Maternity. 14
1,154
954
198
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
12
32. Tung Wah Infectious Discases Hospital.- Situated in Kennedy Town and adjacent to the Government Infectious Diseases Hospital is the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital, ..an institution containing 30 beds where 60 patients could be accommodated at a pinch. The treatment here is left almost entirely to the herbalists.
During the year there were 7 patients, as compared with 47 in the preceding year.
TREATMENT OF OPIUM ADDICTS.
At the Government Civil Hospital and Tung Wah Eastern Hospital six and twelve beds (respectively) are reserved for the treatment of opium addicts, the Government being responsible for the expenses incurred. 37 cases were treated at the former institution and 441 at the latter, making a total of 478 cases.
Chapter V.
HOUSING.
In recent years some evidence has been shown amongst the artizan class of the Colony of a quickening social consciousness and the resultant desire to avail themselves of improved housing accommodation wherever such is made available. The unskilled labouring classes, however, are still found densely packed in tenement houses deficient in light and air. This class of labour has to find its habitat as close as possible to the scene of its labour, with the result that the Western part of the City of Victoria, which houses the native business quarter and closely adjoins the portion of the harbour handling the traffic from the West River and Chinese Coast Ports, is seriously overcrowded.
2. These conditions are being slowly mitigated by the rebuilding of properties which from time to time are condemned for reasons of structural defects. This process of elimination is however, too slow to create any appreciable improvement. The legislation mentioned in paragraph 8, which calls for the provision of reasonable yard space, when made operative, will hasten the removal or reconstruction of much of the old property. This, whilst providing improved housing conditions, will no doubt mean increased cost of living to the labouring classes.
3. Hitherto, the hostility of the property-owning class to the introduction of legislation requiring additional open space and thereby reducing the earning power of the property has been the chief obstacle in obtaining improved conditions. It can, however,
1931-1939
13
199
be recorded that this spirit of obstruction is less evident today as a result of education, and of the example set by some of the better class of realty companies whose blocks of tenement houses compare not unfavourably in essential respects with modern European practice.
4. The housing of the Colony is all privately owned, and control is maintained by the operation of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, the provisions of which also mould the character of the housing. Generally the houses are built back to back in rows, separated by a scavenging lane six feet in width specified by the Ordinance. These houses vary in height from two to four storeys according to the width of the street cn to which they front, whilst the average height per storey is twelve feet, a minimum being controlled by the Ordinance. The houses built prior to the 1903 Ordinance covering the greatest part of the native quarter are of depths varying from forty feet to eighty feet, with often less than 100 square feet of open space provided within the curtilage of the lot. After the passing of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance No. 1 of 1903, the amount of open space per house to be allowed within the boundaries of each lot is governed, and falls under two main heads, viz: -(a) houses built on land bought prior to the passing of the Ordin- ance in 1903, where the open space must not be less than one-fourth of the area of the site and (b) houses built on land bought subsequently where the minimum is raised to one- third of the area. On plan the usual frontage of each house is fifteen feet (a dimension owing its origin more to early structural limitation than to economics) and a depth of about thirty-five feet, whilst each storey consists of one large "room with a native type kitchen in the rear. This room is then subdivided by thin partitions seven feet high into three cubicles each of which may accommodate a family. A latrine is built at ground floor level, one to each house irrespective of the number of occupants, and is common to all.
5. Structurally the earlier houses are of blue bricks (of native manufacture having a very low structural value) and timber, (usually China fir which is extremely susceptible to the ravages of white ants). Lately, however reinforced concrete and better quality bricks have been used.
6. In the City of Victoria the major defect of housing is due to lack of town planning, but since a large proportion of the City was erected in the early days of the Colony, when town planning was little practised even in Europe, the conditions to-day are a heritage, the elimination of which involves immense sums of money, and probably considerable opposition if attempted on a large scale.
200
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
14
7. Generally many of the old houses suffer from defects which are attributable to the Ordinance of that time. Passed in 1903 the measure was framed to meet existing conditions, both structurally and hygienically as they were then understood and practised. But, viewed in the light of modern practice and knowledge, many of its provisions are found to be lax and the following are the main resultant defects:-
Note:
(a) The open space is insufficient, especially with regard to earlier houses, i.e. those built on land purchased prior to 1903.
(b) Latrine accommodation is insufficient.
(c) Staircases are too narrow and steep, and often
unlighted.
(d) Means of escape in case of fire insufficient.
(b) In the case of new buildings where owners are able to provide by means of a well or otherwise an adequate water supply, flush sanitation is now usually provided on each floor. This is one of the most important steps forward in sanitation that has been achieved.
(c) and (d) have been provided for by recent amendments of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, which call for any new staircases in tenement houses to be of fire-proof construction, with alternative means of egress from all floors more than twenty-three feet above the footpath. The remarks above apply more particularly to the housing of the wage-earning Asiatics. The housing for the wealthier classes is provided for by modern flats three or four storeys high, and in the suburban areas by detached or semi-detached houses usually two storeys high which may be occupied separately or as flats.
the
8. The Buildings Ordinance No. 18 of 1935 was passed during the year and came into operation on the 1st January, 1.936. The ordinance provides for improvement in conditions of light and ventilation of those old properties which under the existing Ordinance are not called upon to conform to modern requirements in this respect. A higher standard general- ly is being called for and building owners are themselves slowly realising the advantages to be gained from modern constructional methods allied to proper hygienic principles.
+
On May 10th, 1935, a Commission was appointed to enquire into the housing difficulties in Victoria and Kowloon, with special reference to overcrowding and its effect on tuberculosis, and suggest steps which should be taken to remedy existing condi- tions.
•
1931-1939
15
201
The Commission held its first meeting in June 1935 but owing to absence of members from the Colony and temporary changes in Government personnel no further meetings were possible during the year.
Chapter VI.
PRODUCTION.
Hong Kong is the port for South China, and the greater part of the large volume of goods that pass through it is in transit between South China and other parts of the world, including North and Middle China. The Colony itself produces comparatively little, though the shipbuilding, cement, rope, tin and sugar refining, rubber shoe and cotton knitting industries are not unimportant. Neither agriculture nor mining is carried on to any great extent, though the former is practised throughout the New Territories. Rice and vegetables are grown, and there is considerable poultry farming, but in insufficient quantities to supply the needs of the urban populations of Victoria and Kowloon. The cultivation is in the hands of the Chinese villagers. Sea fishing is an important industry, but here again local supplies have to be augmented by importation from outside.
2. Reports on the principal industries for the year 1935 are given below:-
an
Refined Sugar.-Generally speaking 1935 witnessed upward trend in world prices for raw sugar following the reduc- tion in carry-over stocks and the more approximate balance of output and consumption following the severely restricted produc- tion. Refined sugar values naturally followed suit, but Hong Kong and China markets were slow in coming up to replacement costs. The severe floods in the Yangtsze valley and Yellow river areas in July aggravated the economic depression and financial stringency, and refined sugar as a relative luxury in China suffered some reduction in offtake. The extreme fluctuations in exchange rates and the political situation in North China, Man- churia and Mongolia, tended to restrict trade. The political situation is somewhat less tense at the time of writing and with the, at least relative, success achieved by the Chinese Govern- ment's currency measures the financial situation appears to be slightly easier, and prospects for the future are better than they have been for some time past.
Cement.-Business in Cement continued to be fairly brisk throughout the year despite trade conditions. Japanese importers did the bulk of the business at very low prices.
202
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
16
Preserved Ginger.-Local prices fluctuated during the year from $10 to $16 per picul for cargo ginger and from $15 to $25 per picul for stem ginger. This represented a decrease in terms of local currency but in terms of other currencies Hong Kong ginger was dearer on account of higher exchange values. In- creased quantities were, however, exported owing to the more prosperous conditions existing in the countries which are the largest purchasers. Total value
value of exports amounted to $1,875,778. Of this amount $783,193 was taken by the United Kingdom, $332,671 by Australia, $191,454 by Holland and $138,131 by the United States of America.
more
Knitted Goods.-Local knitting factories experienced another year of very depressed trading. The heavy Chinese import duties. have practically closed the South China market to Hong Kong manufactured goods and on account of the higher exchange value of local currency during the greater part of 1935 it was difficult to sell competitively in British Malaya, the Philippines, Netherlands East Indies and Siam which are now the biggest markets. There was a welcome increase in business with the British West Indies, particularly in singlets. The yarn used in the manufacture of the lower grades of cotton knitted goods is imported from North China and that for the higher grades from the United Kingdom. The total value of exports of singlets in 1935 was $2,346.360 and that of hosiery, $352,942.
Flashlight Torches.-High exchange also handicapped the sale in other markets of Hong Kong-made flashlight torches and batteries and there were large decreases in exports to the Netherlands East Indies, Malaya and India. Exports to Siam and to the United Kingdom increased but the total volume of business ($1,546,615 worth of torches and $809,964 worth of batteries) was considerably below normal. At the close of the year lower exchange gave prospects of better business but it is not thought likely that there will be much export to the United Kingdom in 1936 owing to the fact that to qualify for Imperial Preference, the torches are now required to be made of British- made brass which is dearer than the Continental brass at present used.
Rubber Shoes.-As locally manufactured canvas shoes with rubber soles qualify for Imperial Preference, an impetus has been given to shipments to other parts of the British Empire, parti- cularly the United Kingdom and the British West Indies. The rubber used in the manufacture of these shoes is certified to be the produce of British Malayan plantations and the canvas to have been made in the United Kingdom. Until a few years ago most of the canvas used originated from the United States of America. The total value of exports of rubber shoes from Hong Kong in 1935 amounted to over $2,000,000.
1931-1939
17
203
Lard. The manufacture of lard is an important local industry. Pigs are imported from South China and Kwong- chowan and slaughtered in Government abbatoirs, the preparation of packing of the manufactured lard also being supervised by Government officials. Total exports from Hong Kong in 1935 amounted to 71,222 piculs valued at $1,617,009. Of this a:nount 63,158 piculs was taken by the United Kingdom.
Shipbuilding.-One river motor ship, one motor schooner, five launches, three yachts, fourteen motor boats, seven lighters, nine small craft, one vehicular ferry and one tug were under construction during the year in local dockyards.
Chapter VII.
COMMERCE.
During the year 1935 the visible trade of the Colony showed a further decline as compared with the year 1934, in terms of local currency, but the statistics of both imports and exports of merchandise showed an increase in terms of sterling in 1935 as compared with 1934.
2. In terms of local currency the total visible trade of the Colony in 1935 declined by 14.2% as compared with 1934, and 29.6% as compared with 1933, but in terms of sterling values the visible trade in 1935 showed an increase of 8.7% as compared with 1934, and an increase of 0.2% as compared with 1933. (Details are given in Table I).
3. Imports of merchandise totalled $365.0 (£35.3) millions in 1935, as compared with $415.9 (£31.7) millions in 1934, and $500.9 (£33.9) millions in 1933; whilst exports totalled $271.0 (£26.1) millions in 1935 as compared with $325.1 (£24.8) millions in 1934, and $403.1 (£27.4) millions in 1933.
4. In terms of local currency. imports of merchandise in 1935 decreased by 12.2% as compared with 1934, and 27.1% as compared with 1933; whilst exports decreased by 16.6% as compared with 1934, and 32.8% as compared with 1933.
5. In terms of sterling values imports of merchandise increased by 11.4% in 1935, as compared with 1934, and 4.1% as compared with 1933; whilst exports increased by 5.2% in 1935, as compared with 1934, and decreased by 4.7% as compared with 1933.
204
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
18
6. It is estimated that the quantum of the import trade increased by 4.4% in 1935, as compared with 1934, and decreased by 12.3% as compared with 1933 and 15.4% as compared with 1932, but, of necessity, the volume of imports into the Colony cannot be calculated accurately on account of the lack of a suitable unit of quantity, fluctuations in the dollar exchange, and the fact that many commodities imported are declared by value only.
7. The following countries increased their shares of the import trade:-Japan, U.S.A., French Indo-China, Germany, British Malaya, Australia, and Belgium; whilst increased shares of the export trade were credited to China, Japan, U.S.A., Kwong Chow Wan, and the Philippine Islands. (Details are given in Table II).
8. It will be seen from Table III that as compared with 1934, there were decreased imports in 1935 of live animals, building materials, chemicals and drugs, Chinese medicines, foodstuffs, fuels, hardware, intoxicating liquors, machinery, metals, nuts and seeds, paper and paperware, piece goods, tobacco, treasure. wearing apparel and sundries; whilst there were slight increases in imports of dyeing and tanning materials, oils and fats, paints and vehicles. Imports of artificial- manures and also minerals and ores practically doubled. With exception of dyeing and tanning materials, machinery, artificial inanures, treasure, and vehicles, all other groups of export commodities in 1935 showed a decline as compared with 1934.
9. Total movements of treasure amounted to $254.7 millions in 1935, as compared with $206.6 millions in 1934; imports accounting for $38.8 millions as compared with $78.1 millions in 1934, and exports $216.0 millions as compared with $128.5 millions in 1934. (Details are given in Table IV).
10. Average T.T. opening rates of exchange during the year 1935 were: London 1/11; France 719.7/16; U.S.A. 471; Shanghai; 1281; India 1283; Singapore 8213; Japan 1651; Java 693. The highest Sterling average rate was 2/44 in May, steadily decreasing month by month to 1/33 in December.
11. Wholesale prices in the Colony during the year 1935 declined by 14.9% as compared with 1934, 24.7% as compared with 1933 and 22.1% as compared with the base year 1922. Foodstuffs declined by 9.4% in 1935 as compared with 1934, Textiles by 12.6%, Metals and Minerals by 18.1% and Miscellaneous Articles by 18.3%. (Details are given in Table V).
1931-1939
- 19
Table I.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS 1924-1935. (in £'s & $'s millions).
205
IMPORTS.
1924.
1930. 1931. 1932. 1933.
1934. 1935.
1st Quarter
....
£ 19.3 $165.4
* 9.0 11.9 8.5 7.1 9.0
*
186.9
170.7 132.8
95.8
97.3
2nd Quarter .... £ 17.1
9.2 8.7 10.2 8.5
7.1
10.7
$144.0 131.3 180.1 164.7 126.1
99.7
94.0
3rd Quarter
.....
£19.2 10.1 9.0 9.3 8.5
$161.7 156.8 182.3 142.4 122.1 106.6 4th Quarter £ 16.5 10.3 11.8 9.6 8.4. 9.4 $136.6 167.4 188.4 146.2 119.9 113.8
8.1
8.1
79.5
7.5
94.2
Total
£ 72.1 29.6 38.5 41.0 33.9 31.7 35.3 $607.7 455.5 737.7 624.0 500.9 415.9 365.0
EXPORTS.
1924. 1930. 1931.
1932. 1933. 1934, 1935.
1st Quarter
£18.3
* 6.8
8.8
6.8 5.8 6.9
$156.8
* 140.1
127.0
105.3
77.5 74.8
2nd Quarter
£ 15.2
7.4 6.4
7.1
7.2
5.7
7.7
$128.0 105.9 132.5
115.3
106.2
79.6 67.9
3rd Quarter
£ 14.6
7.3 6.5
7.2
6.6
6.1 5.8
....
$122.9
113.7 130.6
110.0
95.5
80.5 56.6
4th Quarter
£ 15.5 $128.3
8.5 9.2
7.9
6.8
7.2 5.7
137.2 138.7 119.6
96.1 87.5 71.7
Total ...... £ 63.6 23.2 28.9
27.4 24.8 26.1 $536.0 356.8 541.9 471.9 403.1 325.1 271.0
31.0
*No statistics available..
NOTE:-Average rate of exchange 1924-2s. 44d.
1930-1s. 33d.
1931-1s. 0ad.
1932-1s. 34d.
19331s. 41d.
1934-1s. 6d.
1935-1s. 11-d.
206
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
20
Table II.
DISTRIBUTION OF IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF MERCHANDISE BY COUNTRIES ($'000's omitted).
A.-IMPORTS.
1934.
1935.
$
%
$
%
China
146,488
35.2
123,314 33.8
Japan
36,669
8.8
43,132 11.8
N. E. Indies
34,675
8.3
22,576
6.2
United Kingdom
32,542
7.8
23,897
6.5
U. S. A.
29,343
7.1
26,462
7.3
French Indo-China
26,245
6.3
32,573
8.9
Siam
33,464
8.0
20,535
5.6
Germany
13,537
3.3
16,346
4.5
British Malaya
5,496
1.3
6,215
1.7
India
8,276
2.0
4,440
1.2
Australia
6,698
1.6
8,419
2.3
Belgium
4,880
1.2
4,788
1.3
All Other Countries
37,606
9.1
32,293
8.9
Summary.
United Kingdom
32,542
7.8
23,897
6.5
British Dominions and
Possessions
28,954
7.0 ·
26,983
7.4
China
146,488
35.2
123,314
33.8
All Other Countries
207,935 50.0
190,796
52.3
Total British Empire
Total Foreign
354,423
61,496 14.8
85.2
50,880
13.9
314,110 86.1
Grand Total ...
415,919 100.0
364,990 100.0
1931-1939
21
Table II,-Continued.
B.-EXPORTS.
207
1934.
1935.
$
%
$
%
Chinu
156,243
48.0
132,804
49.0
British Malaya
24,765
7.6
17,006
6.3
French Indo-China
24,095 7.4
14,459
5.3
Japan
11,447
3.5
11.497
4.2
Macao
17,364
5.3
13,294
4.9
Siam
14,664
4.5
10,441
3.9
U. S. A.
18,573
5.7
21,248
7.8
Kwong Chow Wan
8,018
2.5
9,333
3.4
N. E. Indies
8,506
2.6
6,193
2.3
Philippines
5,291
1.6
5,012
1.8
India
4,233
1.3
3,416
1.3
All Other Countries
31,906 10.0
26,330
9.8
Summary.
United Kingdom
6,363
2.0
7,553
2.8
British Dominions and
Possessions
39,701 12.2
30,107 11.1
China
156,243 48.0
132,804 49.0
All Other Countries
122,798
37.8
100,569 37.1
Total British Empire
46,064 14.2
37,660 13.9
Total Foreign
279,041
85.8
233,373 86.1
Grand Total
325,105 100.0
271,033 100.0
208
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
22
Table III.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS BY MAIN GROUPS OF COMMODITIES
($'000's omitted).
Imports.
Exports.
1934.
1935.
1934.
1935.
$
$
$
$
Animals, Live
9,223
7,929
300
168
Building Materials
......
7,262
6,730
3,872
3,502
Chemicals & Drugs
5,724
4,521
3,325
2,894
Chinese Medicines
16,825
13,018 11,789.
10,318
Dyeing Materials
3,696 4,261
3,224
3,553
Foodstuffs
Fuels
Hardware
126,537 108,025 102,170
82,187
11,463
10,628 1,087
781
2,937
2,651 2,120
2,041
Liquors
3,916
2,922
1,226
761
Machinery
6,948
6,740
5,833
7,392
Manures
2,046
3,435
3,520
4,882
Metals
33,172
32,784
31,055
28,711
Minerals & Ores
1,100
2,190 2,922 2,829
Nuts and Seeds
6,101
5,141
Oils and Fats
33,902
4,227 3,436
33,972 25,753 25,657
Paints
1,440 1,451
1,328 1,196
Paper and Paperware
9,732
8,871
6,962 5,644
Piece Goods
66,551
52,670
48,703
34,109
Railway Materials
354
563
1,521 1,061
Tobacco
6,384
5,863
4,295
3,236
Treasure
78,081
38,785
128,480 215,959
Vehicles
3,374
3,938 2,039
3,061
Wearing Apparel
4,041
3,611 8,487 6,223
Sundries
53,190
43,075 49,346 37,392
Total
493,999 403,774 453,584 486,993
Bank Notes
1931-1939
23
Table IV.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF TREASURE.
Imports.
209
Exports.
1934.
1935.
1934.
1935.
$
$
$
$
16,735,677
12,520,780
13,295,374 12,619,645
156,983
6,006 264,622
13,485
Copper Cents
Gold Bars
13,713,828 3,548,539 69,869,489 28,330,556
Gold Coins
528,049
38,060
Gold Leaf
Silver Bars
14,448
3,575,251
4,764
1,053,014
252,556 139,597
9,191,377 100,856,835
H.K. Silver Dollars
16,982,920
8,285,219
34,558,816
Chinese Silver Dollars
Other Silver Dollars
Silver Sub. Coin
23,197,937 6,727,206 31,140,989 17,088,114
172,564 1,358,911 199,914 19,038,593
3,531,261 5,280,372 3,737,158 3,275,588
Total
78,080,869 38,784,811 128,479,528 215,959,289
Table V.
WHOLESALE PRICE CHANGES.
(1922-100)
Groups.
1924. 1931. 1932. 1933. 1934. 1935.
Foodstuffs
.... 106.1 144.3 126.5 113.4
94.3
85.4
Textiles.....
112.5 135.8
125.2
97.0
85.9
74.2
Metals
102.3 140.9 128.1 107.8
97.4
79.8
Miscellaneous
106.3 125.4
109.7
95.7
88.5
72.3
Average
106.8 136.6 122.4
103.5
91.5
77.9
210
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
24
Chapter VIII.
WAGES AND THE COST OF LIVING.
A great proportion of the workers in Hong Kong are paid on a piece-work basis and in some trades are engaged and paid on curiously complicated systems involving payment of a bonus or a share in the yearly profits.
The depression in local industries seemed to have reached its lowest ebb at the beginning of the year and during the first nine months there was little, if any, improvement in business.
A number of the smaller knitting and weaving factories closed down altogether and some of the larger factories worked shorter hours. During the last three months, however, various industries, especially those engaged in the manufacture of cigarettes, rubber shoes, felt hats, electric torches, dry batteries and confectionery, began to improve. It is probable that this improvement was mainly due to better export trade consequent upon the fall in value of the local dollar vis-a-vis sterling and there is reason to hope that this improvement will be maintained.
As usual, the knitting and weaving industry has done better business with the approach of the cold season. Joss-stick making has been prosperous for the greater part of the year. A new industry, the making of Bakelite wares, has started but so far the output has been limited to samples. One enterprising rubber factory which had hitherto confined itself to the manufacture of shoes is now making a bid to increase business by making rubber knee-boots and, still more recently, leather shoes, using leather from England and Australia.
The number of factories has maintained its level. In spite of fifty-three having closed down during the year, over sixty new factories have been registered. There are now 506 registered workshops and factories in operation.
Owing to the fact that Chinese who are unable to find employment in the Colony tend to return to their native districts in China it is difficult to form an accurate opinion on the question of unemployment in Hong Kong. There can be little doubt, however, that there has been a slight increase in unemployment during the year and that the average rates of wages for labour, especially for skilled and semi-skilled labour in factories and workshops, have decreased. Wages for unskilled labour do not appear to have suffered to the same extent. A natural corollary of this general decrease in prosperity is that many people who formerly rented rooms and
1931-1939
25
211
cubicles have been reduced to occupying bed-spaces and consequently, although rents for Chinese tenements have remained more or less the same, there has been an increase in overcrowding in the poorer districts and, at the same time, an increase in the number of vacant tenements. On the other hand there has been a slight but definite decrease in the cost of Chinese foodstuffs which has ternpered the effects of the fall in wages rates.
1935
AVERAGE RATES OF WAGES FOR LABOUR.
Building Trade:-
Locomotive Drivers
Carpenters
$1.50 to $2.00 per day.
Bricklayers
Painters
Plasterers
Scaffolders
Labourers (male)
""
(female)
0.85
1.25
""
19
0.85
1.20
""
0.95
1.25 ??
""
??
0.80
1.20
""
""
""
0.90,
1.25
>>
"}
0.60
0.75
""
"
0.40
0.60
""
Working hours 9 per day. Time and a half paid for overtime. Free temporary sleeping quarters provided on the building site and communal messing at cheap rates.
Shipbuilding & Engineering:-
Electricians
$1.00 to $1.40 per day.
Coppersmiths
1.00
1.60
""
""
}}
Fitters
0.80
1.55 ""
11
??
Sawmillers
0.70
1.25
11
31
Boilermakers
0.95
1.20
"}
}}
Sailmakers
1.00
1.40
11
Blacksmiths
0.75
1.20
Turners
1.00, 1.40
1)
Patternmakers
1.00
1.40
"}
Labourers
0.70
1.00
1)
11
Overtime-time and a half. Night work-double time.
212
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
26
Transport Workers:-
Tram Drivers
Conductors
Bus Drivers
Conductors
$36 to $45 per inonth.
30
39 ??
""
"
30
50
""
""
""
18
25
Free Uniform. Bonus at end
Working hours 9 per day. Free Uniform.
of year.
Railway Workers (Government):-
Station Masters
$1,100 to $1,800 per annum.
Telephone Operators
Booking Clerks
Guards
Signalmen
Engine Drivers
Ticket Collectors
Firemen
Pointsmen
Female Workers in Factories:
Cigarette making
Knitting factories
Perfumery
Confectionery
750
""
1,400
77
""
600 1,000
??
600
1,000
1,000
,;
540
1,000
""
420
600
??
330
480
192
240
""
$0.30 to $0.55 per day.
0.25
0.60
"
0.20
0.50
""
""
0.20
0.40
""
""
0.25
0.35 ""
""
""
Electric hand torch factories
battery factories
0.15 0.40 ""
Working hours from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. One hour off at mid- day. Overtime from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at day rates.
Domestic Servants:-
Employed by Chinese
Employed by Europeans Gardeners
$7.00 to $20.00 per month.
15.00 .,,
40.00
15.00
30.00
1)
With free lodging, and, with Chinese employers, generally free board.
NOTE:
The rates of pay of Government employees are much the same as those of a similar category in private employ. $0.60 to $0.70 per day.
Transport coolies
Coal coolies Ricksha coolies
0.80
0.60 0.70
"
1931-1939
27
Chapter IX.
EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS.
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS.
213
These are either schools where the medium of instruction is English or mostly English or schools where the medium of instruction is Chinese. The former, seventeen in number, are known as "English" schools, the latter of which there are three as "vernacular" schools.
2. Of the four English schools, classed as "secondary" schools in the Table below, two are Anglo-Chinese schools for boys and one for girls. These three schools have primary departments. The fourth school, the Central British School which is a mixed school, has no primary department. Of the eleven English schools, classed as "primary" schools in the Table, three are
are mixed schools preparing for the Central British School. In this group are also four "District" schools, including one for Indian boys and four "Lower Grade" schools, three of which are in rural districts. In those English schools which are attended by Chinese the study of English and of Chinese is carried on side by side, the pari passu system requiring that promotion shall depend on proficiency in both languages.
3. Of the two Government Schools classed as "vocational" one is the Junior Technical School which was opened in February, 1933, the other is the Evening Institute which is attended by persons desirous of receiving instruction for the most part germane to their day time occupations.
4. Of the three Government vernacular schools one has a seven years' course and includes a Normal department. There is also a normal school for women teachers and a normal school on the mainland which aims at providing vernacular teachers for rural schools.
GRANT-IN-AID AND SUBSIDIZED SCHOOLS.
5. There are fourteen Grant-in-Aid English Schools, and four Grant-in-Aid Vernacular Schools. Of the former, seven are schools for boys and seven are for girls.
6. One English school for girls has a primary department only, and one an infant department only. The remaining schools classed in the table below as "secondary" schools have primary, departments as well as the upper classes.
214
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
28
7. Munsang College, Kowloon City, received a grant of $6,000.
8. The vernacular Grant-in-Aid Schools are schools for girls and are classed in the Table as "secondary" schools.
9. The 311 subsidized schools are all vernacular schools.
UNAIDED SCHOOLS.
10. In 1935 there were 638 unaided vernacular schools with 35,973 children and 126 unaided English schools with 5,444 childron.
1935.
Table showing number of schools and scholars for the year
GRANT-IN-AID
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS.
AND SUBSIDIZED,
UNAIDED SCHOOLS.
SCHOOLS.
CLASS OF INSTITUTIONS.
No. of Institu-
On
No. of
On
No. of
Roll.
Institu-
Roll.
Institu-
On Roll.
tions.
tions.
tions.
ENGLISH:
Secondary,
4
2,150
13* 6,470
13
1,504
Primary,
11
1,783
2
248
113
3,940
Vocational,
2
992
Total,
17
4,925
15
6,718
126
5,444
VERNACULAR :-
Secondary,
1
244
4
998
Primary,
310
20,830
637
35,774
Vocational,
221
1
128
1
199
Total,
3
465
315
21,956
638 35,973
Total No. of institutions
Total on Rɔll
* This includes Ying Wa College whose primary department receives a Grant-in-Aid.
N.B.-Kindergarten boys attending Grant-in-Aid Schools for girls are
not shown separately.
1,114
75,481
1931-1939
29
THE UNIVERSITY.
215
11. The University of Hong Kong was incorporated under a local University Ordinance, 1911, and opened in 1912. It is a residential University and open to students of both sexes.
12. The University hostels are three in number-Lugard Hall, Eliot Hall and May Hall. There are also three recognized hostels for men, St. John's Hall, Morrison Hall and Ricci Hall, and one-St. Stephen's Hall for women. No university hostel at present exists for women students.
13. The late Sir Hormusjee Mody bore the entire expense of the erection of the main building. Additions have been made through the liberality of benefactors of varied nationality, and domicile. The latest additions to the buildings are a School of Chinese Students, the cost of which was borne by Mr. Tang Chi Ngong a local Chinese merchant and banker, and a Chinese Library named after the late Mr. Fung Ping Shan who provided a sum of $100,000 for the building and $50,000 as an endow- nent fund for its maintenance; also a School of Surgery and a New Engineering Laboratory named after H.E. the Governor, Sir William Peel.
14. The income of the University for 1935 amounted to $822,498 of which $299,000 was derived from endowments and $350,000 froin Government. Messrs. Jolin Swire & Sons, Ltd., gave £40,000 to the original endowment fund and subsequently $100,000 for engineering equipment. The Rockfeller Institute has endowed the University with three chairs in surgery, medicine and obstetrics, the endowment being in each case $250,000. The annual expenditure in 1935 amounted to about $806,562.
15. The University includes the three faculties of Medicine, Engineering and Arts. Admission to all faculties is conditional upon passing the matriculation examination of the University or some examination recognized as equivalent thereto.
16. The Faculty of Medicine provides a six year course of study in the usual pre-medical and medical sciences, leading to the degree of M.B. and B.S. The degrees of M.D. and M.S. are awarded on examinations but are subject to the proviso that every candidate for the degrees shall produce evidence of special post-graduate experience in the subject which he presents. The degrees above mentioned are recognized by the General Medical Council for registration in Great Britain.
17. The Faculty of Engineering provides a four years course in practical and theoretical engineering, leading to the degree of B.Sc., (Eng.) Fourth year students specialize in civil, mechanical or electrical engineering. The degree for post- graduate work is that of M.Sc., (Eng.)
216
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
30
18. The Faculty of Arts includes departments of pure arts and science, social science, commerce, a department of Chinese studies and a department for training teachers. The course is in all cases one of four years and leads to the degree of B.A. The degree for post-graduate work is that of M.A.
19. With a view to securing the maintenance of the desired standard-which is in all three faculties that of a British University degree-external examiners are, in all faculties associated with the internal examiners in all annual final examinations. In the Faculty of Engineering, but not in other faculties, degrees with honours are granted, the standard being assessed by special examiners chosen from amongst the external examiners in the University of London.
20. The degree of LL.D. is granted honoris causa.
CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS.
21. The following are the best known Charitable Institutions.
French Convent Orphanage. Italian Convent Orphanage. Maryknoll Convent, Kowloon.
St. Louis Industrial School.
Po Leung Kuk-Chinese.
Victoria Home and Orphanage.
Society of Precious Blood Hospital.
Home for Aged Poor, Kowloon.
La Calvaire Home for Aged Poor, Happy Valley. Eyre Refuge.
Salvation Army Home.
Industrial Home for the Blind, Pokfulam.
Industrial School, Aberdeen.
RECREATION AND ART.
22. Most of the schools contrive to hold annual sports either on their own grounds or on grounds generously lent by local cricket and football clubs. Some schools are granted free use of Government bathing beaches for four afternoons a week during the bathing season. Lawn tennis, football, swimming. volley ball and basket ball continue to increase in popularity. Cricket is played at a few schools. Physical training is given by qualified instructors. Art is taught in the Government British schools by trained art mistresses.
1931-1939
31
Chapter X.
COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT.
217
The external communications of Hong Kong are excellent both by sea and by telegraph, cable and radio. As regards the former, the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co., the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, the Blue Funnel Line, the Messageries Maritimes, and several other British and foreign companies main- tain regular passenger and freight services between Hong Kong and Europe. The trans-Pacific conmmunications are well served by the Canadian Pacific Steamship Ltd., the Dollar Line, the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and other steamship lines. To Australia three steamship companies, the Eastern and Australian, Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and Australian and Oriental maintain regular passenger and freight services. In addition there are direct sailings to Africa, South America, and to New York. There is frequent and regular communication between Hong Kong and other Far Eastern ports in India, Java, Straits Settlements, Formosa, Indo-China, Japan and the China coast. Local steam- ship communication is by river steamer from Hong Kong to Canton and the West River ports with several sailings daily. In addition there is a vast traffic between Hong Kong and the adjacent provinces of China by junk and sampan.
2. The total shipping entering and clearing Ports in the Colony during the year 1935 amounted to 94,655 vessels of 43,473,979 tons which, compared with the figures for 1934 shows an increase of 901 vessels, and 1,559,957 tons. Of the above, 45,553 vessels of 41,487,477 tons were engaged in Foreign Trade as compared with 44,043 vessels of 40,054,033 tons in 1934. There was an increase in British Ocean-going shipping of 268 vessels and 475,911 tons. Foreign Ocean-going vessels show an increase of 549 vessels and 1,325,134 tons. British River Steamers showed a decrease of 63 vessels and an increase of 66,007 tons. Foreign River Steamers showed an increase of 247 vessels and 49,346 tons. In steamships not exceeding 60 tons employed in Foreign Trade there was a decrease of 446 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 8,400 tons. Junks in Foreign Trade showed an increase of 955 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 474,554 tons. In Local Trade (i.c., between places within the waters of the Colony), there was an increase in si-am- launches of 241 vessels with an increase in tonnage of 31,984 tons. Junks in Local Trade show a decrease of 850 vessels, with an increase in tonnage of 94,529 tons.
>
3. The Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company (British) by means of three cables to Singapore, one direct and one each via Labuan and Cape St. James respectively, provides good connections with Europe via India, with Austra- lasia, and with the other British Colonies and Possessions. By
218
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
32
their cable to Manila connection is made with the direct American cable, thence to San Francisco. Two cables to Shanghai, belong- ing respectively to the Eastern Extension and to the Great Northern (Danish) Companies, via Foochow and Amoy respective- ly, give a good connection with Shanghai, North China, Japan and Russia; the system of the Great Northern Telegraph Com- pany gives a good service to Europe via Asiatic Russia.
4. The Government operates commercial radio services with direct communication to the Chinese stations Shanghai, Foochow, Annoy, Swatow, Canton, Yunnanfu, Hoihow, to Formosa, French Indo-China, Siam, Philippines, Dutch East Indies, British North Borneo, via Manila to Europe, America, etc. and via Malabar to Australasia, Europe etc.
5. The revenue collected by the Radio Office during the year from radio telegrains amounted to $600,836, a decrease of $38,628 on the amount collected in 1934. Advices of vessels signalled at the Lighthouses yielded $1,459. The total Revenue from the telegraph service amounted to $602,295. Ship Station Licences yielded $1,620, Amateur Transinission Station Licences $285, Broadcast Receiving Licences $45,016, Dealers' Licences $2,676 and Examination Fee for Operators' Certificates of Proficiency $896.
6. The number of paid radio-telegrams forwarded during the year was 202,196 consisting of 1,829,519 words against 184,466 consisting of 1,730,084 words in 1934 and 204,155 were received, consisting of 2,225,364 words against 212,072 consisting of 2,401,601 words.
7. In addition to the paid traffic figures given above the wireless Service is responsible for the reception of time signals daily from Bordeaux, Rugby, Malabar and. Nauen, for the transmission of time signals to ships in the China Sea, the reception of press messages amounting to 480 messages or 295,971 words from Rugby, the collection and distribution of meteorological traffic, 5,945 messages 420,759 words having been forwarded, and 12,782 messages 430,486 words having been received, the reception and dissemination of distress, piracy and navigation messages, the transmission and reception of Govern- ment messages, etc.
8. A telephone service between Hong Kong and Canton, a distance of 110 miles is in operation.
9. Mails.-The number of mail receptacles of Hong Kong origin despatched during the year was 45,318 as compared with 44,067 in 1934-an increase of 1;251, the number received was 47,759 as compared with 44,951-an increase of 2,808.
1931-1939
33
219
10. Receptacles in transit, including those to and from British and Foreign Men-of-War, numbered 209,157 as against 206,869 in 1934 an increase of 2,288.
11. Registered Articles and Parcels.-The number of regis tered articles handled amounted to 683,676 as compared with 680,360 in 1933-an increase of 3,316.
12. The figures for insured letters were 14,580 and 16,316 respectively a decrease of 1,736.
13. Parcels, ordinary and insured, which were dealt with reached a total of 149,929 as against 150,309 in 1934-a decrease of 380.
con-
14. The Railway may be said to have had a fairly successful year during 1935, bearing in mind the acute economic depression. Circumstances which have affected operating revenue siderably, are the economic instability engendered by the high price of silver, the complete failure of the fruit crop in Kwang Tung Province, and the existence through the entire period of a rate war among the Canton river steamers. The impoverished spending power of the public was a vital factor in reducing receipts.
15. The most noteworthy event of the year
was the introduction of an agreement for the issue of through passenger tickets between Kowloon, and Sam Shui, Sai Nam and Fat Shan on the Canton-Sam Shui Railway. This was signed at Canton on August 30th, by the Administrations of the British and Chinese Sections of the Kowloon-Canton Railway, and the Southern Section of the Canton-Hankow Railway.
:
16. The track on both Sections has been maintained in a manner which has enabled all services to be run to the accelerated schedule during the year. The mid-day fast trains were speeded up, the journey between Kowloon and Canton being reduced from 3 hours 45 minutes to 3 hours 20 minutes.
17. The three 4-6-0 express locomotives obtained for the Chinese Section are still operated by the British Section. The Chinese Section made twelve monthly cash payments of $10,000 cuch in respect of these locomotives. Haulage charges continued to be paid by the Chinese Section.
18. The total steam train mileage run amounted to 500,887; this includes trains hauled by British Section locomotives over the Chinese Section. Motor Coach mileage was 8,123. Passenger journeys were 2,799,352 as against 2,683,444 in 1934.
220
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
34
..
19. Receipts and net operating revenue were $1,411,674.73 and $500,654.48 respectively, as against $1,639,775.07 and $696,604.41 the previous year. The former figures would have been increased to $1,512,405.26 and $601,385.01 had the British Section's share of terminal through traffic receipts remained at 35%.
.j
·
20. There are 377 miles of roads in the Colony, 161 miles on the Island of Hong Kong and 216 miles in Kowloon and the New Territories. Of the total mileage 293 miles are constructed in water bound macadam dressed with asphalt, 12 miles in sheet asphalt on a cement concrete foundation, 13 miles of tan macadam, 17 miles of concrete, 3 miles of granite setts and wooden blocks on a cement concrete foundation and 39 miles of gravel.
21. The public travelling over the Colony's roads increases yearly with a corresponding growth in the number of motor buses, of which there are 79 operating on the island of Hong Kong, and 121 on the mainland. These are gradually replacing the rickshas, the number of which decreases year by year.
22. The Hong Kong Tramway Company has a fleet of 91 double deck tram cars running along the sea front of Victoria from Kennedy Town to Shaukiwan.
23. Communication between the island and the mainland is maintained by a number of ferry services; the most important of which are the Star Ferry between. Kowloon Point and a pier near the General Post Office, and the combined vehicular and passenger service of the Hong Kong and Yaumati Ferry Company between Jordan Road, Kowloon and Jubilee Street, Victoria.
Chapter XI.
BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS & MEASURES.
}
The Colony is well served by banking institutions. There are fourteen principal banks doing business in the Colony which are members of the Clearing House, and in addition several Chinese Banks and many native Hongs do some banking business. There are no banks which devote themselves specially to agricultural and co-operative banking. The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation also conducts the business of the Hong Kong Savings Bank on usual savings bank principles. Two of the Chinese Banks foreign style got into difficulties during 1935 and had to close down temporarily. One has
"
1931-1939
35
▬▬
221
subsequently re-opened. There were no notable difficulties among the smaller native banks. The credit and repute of the Colony's financial institutions are still as high as ever and it is satisfactory to be assured that ample encouragement and support are available to finance any possible demand that a revival of trade would need.
2. The Currency of the Colony which had been hitherto based on silver and governed by the Order in Council of 2nd February, 1895, underwent some very important changes during the period under review. The unit of currency is the Hong Kong dollar, divided into 100 cents. The standard coin was the silver British dollar, the silver content of which is almost identical with that of the Mexican dollar, and the exchange value of the Hong Kong dollar should theoretically have been identical with the bullion value of this coin. The reasons for the wide discrepancies from this theoretical value which have existed at various times are discussed in the Report of the Hong Kong Currency Commissioners 1931. Apart from these, the Hong Kong dollar was, like that of China, on a silver standard after the 15th October, 1934, when the Chinese Government in effect left that standard by imposing variable duties on the export of silver from China. On the 9th November, 1935, however, the Hong Kong Government prohibited the export of silver, and on the 5th December, 1935, a Currency Ordinance was passed calling in silver coin from circulation, and setting up the machinery which now controls the exchange value of the Hong Kong dollar. Briefly, this consists of un Exchange Fund, with power to buy and sell foreign exchange, which has taken over the silver formerly held against their issues by the note-issuing banks, in return for certificates of indebtedness against which the Fund may hold silver or foreign exchange.
The legal tender currency of the Colony is now as follows:- (a) Bank notes, the excess of which over the fiduciary issue of each bank is now backed by certificates, not by silver as formerly:-
At 31.12.35.
(1) Chartered Bank of India, Australia & China ....$ 21,763,985
(ii) Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation ...$112,322,143
(iii) Mercantile Bank of India
...$ 2,131,162
(b) Government $1 notes, of which $1,280,000 were issued to prevent a shortage of currency at the beginning of the new system. These may ultimately be replaced by $1 bank notes.
(c) 10 cent and 5 cent cupro-nickel coins.
222
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
(d) 1 cent copper coins.
- 36
(e) The silver dollars and .800 fine silver sub-coin (10 cent and 5 cent pieces, and a few 50 and 20 cent pieces) which have either remained in circulation in the Colony or filter back into it from the mainland of China, are still legal tender in the Colony (sub-coin only up to an amount of $2.00). The exchange value of the Hong Kong dollar, which had gradually risen during 1934 in confirmity with the rise in the price of silver, reached a maximum of between 2s/6d and 28/7ā in April/May 1935, and thereafter continued to follow silver until the prohibition of export in November, 1935. From then until the Currency Ordinance was passed in December, the rate moved between 18/4d and 1s/6d; and, since the Exchange Fund began operating in December, has been consistently between 1/33 and 18/37d.
3. The weights and measures in use in the Colony are defined in the Schedule to Ordinance No. 2 of 1885. They consist of the standards in use in the United Kingdom and of the following Chinese Weights and Measures:-
and
1 fan (candareen)=0.0133 ounces avoirdupois.
1 tsin (mace)=1,33 ounces avoirdupois. 1 leung (tael)=1.33 ounces avoirdupois.
1 kan (catty)=1.33 pounds avoirdupois.
1 tam (picul)=133.33 pounds avoirdupois.
1 chek (foot)=143 English inches divided into 10 tsün (inches) and each tsün into 10 fan or tenths.
Chapter XII.
PUBLIC WORKS.
During the year under review the operations of the Public Works Department were carried out, under a Head Office Staff, by eleven sub-departments, namely the Accounts and Stores, Architectural, Buildings Ordinance, Crown Lands and Surveys, Drainage, Electrical, Port Development, Roads and Transport, Valuations and Resumptions, Waterworks Construction and Waterworks Maintenance offices.
2. The European staff comprised 161 officers and the non- European approximately 635.
1931-1939
37
223
3. The following is a summary of works carried out during the year:
BUILDINGS.
4. Works completed were:-Upper Levels Police Station; Latrines at two new bathing beaches; cold storage rooms at the Central Medical Store; Outpatients Department at the Kowloon Hospital; a furniture workshop and store at Hung Hom; quarters for gardeners at the Kowloon Hospital; and a new hot water system to the Maternity Block of the Victoria Hospital.
5. Works under construction were:-Gaol at Stanley; Queen Mary Hospital; Market at Wanchai; Trade School; and a Magistracy at Kowloon.
6. In addition to general maintenance, numerous minor alterations and improvements to Government Buildings were also executed during the year.
COMMUNICATIONS.
7. Works completed were:-King's Road (formerly called Shaukiwan Road) from North Point House to Taikoo Sugar Refinery; Approach Road to the proposed Government House Site at Magazine Gap; surfacing, kerbing and channelling to streets in front of new houses in Kowloon and New Kowloon; surfacing market area at Taipo Market; erection of village nameplates and sign-posts in New Territories; strengthening and improving the Fanling-Sha Tau Kok Road between Au Ha Gap and Sha Tau Kok Police Station; widening of Taipo Market to Fanling Road, between Nam Sha Po and Fanling cross roads; improvements to dangerous bends at 53, 6 and 74 miles on the Taipo Road; streets at Taipo Market and Un Long were surfaced, kerbed and channelled in front of new houses; and improving bends on road to Sha Tin Gap. Following upon the general development of the Island and Mainland, kerbing, surfacing and channelling were laid where required. Queen's College recreation ground was levelled and re-turfed.
:
8. Works under construction were:-King's Road from Causeway Bay to North Point Power House and improvements to various subsidiary roads on the mainland.
DRAINAGE.
9. New main sewers and storm water drains were construct- ed in Hong Kong to a length of 10,210 feet, covered nullahs to a length of 276 feet and parapet walling to open nullahs seventy-eight feet. In Kowloon, New Kowloon and New Territories, new main sewers and storm water drains were
224
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
- 88
constructed to
to a length of 9,382 feet, open nullahs part section 580 feet, parapet walling 179 feet, earth cutting 9,136 cubic yards, and a large section open earth intercepting cut (part inverted and walled) for a length of 2,200 feet.
-
10. Anti-Malarial work in Hong Kong was completed at Sookunpoo and continued at Mount Parker. Streams were trained to a total length of 12,921 feet with 3,522 feet of subsoil drains. At Kowloon Tong work was
was continued-nullahs, channels, pipe drains and culverts were constructed to a length of 3,672 feet, and "cutting and filling" amounting to 2,300 cubic yards was carried out.
WATER WORKS.
11. In Hong Kong the following lengths of new mains were laid to improve distribution:-576 feet of 12′′, 774 feet of 10′′, 3048 feet of 8′′, 1,012 feet of 6′′ and 3,302 feet of 4′′ and under. 1,022 feet of subsidiary mains were also laid in back lanes.
:
12. The Jardines Lookout Section of the Eastern Pumping Scheme was completed in February and has worked satisfactorily since. The Middle Gap and Mt. Cameron Sections of the Scheme were proceeded with and were almost completed by the end of the year. These sections comprise two turbine driven ram pumps each capable of delivering 3,000 gall. per hour from Eastern Filter Beds through a 5′′ dia. rising main about 3,000 feet in length to a covered service reservoir at Middle Gap 778 A.O.D. and of 200,000 gall. capacity. Two electrically driven ram pumps are housed below Middle Gap Service Reservoir. Each pump is capable of delivering 1,800 gall. per hour through a 3" dia. rising main about 2,00 feet in length to a covered service reservoir 1,323 A.O.D. on Mt. Cameron. This reservoir has a capacity of 100,000 gall. and is connected by 1,252 feet of 3′′ dia. piping to the Peak distribution system.
13. A scheme to improve the Stanley District Water Supply was approved and a Paterson Pressure Filtration Plant to deal with 200,000 gall. per day was ordered from England. Tenders for the construction of two covered service reservoirs were called for at the end of the year, one of 200,000 gall, capacity and the other of 80,000 gall. capacity. The latter is intended principally for the New Prison. During the year the following lengths of main were laid at Stanley:-714 feet of 6", 1,248 feet of 5", 2,438 feet of 4" and 4,146 feet of 3′′.
14. In Kowloon and New Kowloon the following mains were laid:-850 feet of 12′′, 4,285 feet of 8′′, 575 feet of 6′′ and 3,606 feet of 4′′, 9,126 feet of subsidiary mains were also laid in back lanes. At the Air Port 920 feet of 6′′ main were
1931-1939
- 39
225
laid. At Taipo 3,657 feet of 6", 1,230 feet of 3′′ and 525 feet of 2" piping were laid to complete the scheme. At Un Long 450 feet of 6", 870 feet of 5′′ and 1,370 feet of 4′′ mains were laid. The scheme was completed in June and a satisfactory supply maintained to the end of the year.
15. A small supply scheme for Castle Peak was investigated.
16. The second sections of the Dragon's Back and Mount Parker Catchwaters
Catchwaters were completed during the year thus completing the construction of catchwaters under the scheme. Two roller sluice gates were ordered from England to byepass the discharge of the Tytam Tuk East Catchwater when Tytam Tuk Reservoir is full.
17. The laying of the second Cross Harbour Pipe (18" diameter) was completed during the first half of the year.
RECLAMATIONS.
18. A sea wall extending 700 feet eastwards from M.L. 431 was constructed to low water level on the seaward limit of the area to be reclaimed at North Point, about two acres of this area were reclaimed. The construction of a length of about 700 lineal feet of sea wall at Kennedy Town together with a live stock landing were completed to cope level and approximately one acre of the area at the back of the sea wall was reclaimed. About 300 feet of sea and quay walling were completed at Ma Tau Kok and an area of approximately one acre reclaimed. The rubble foundations of the sea wall at Kun Tong were extended a distance of 800 feet, making a total of 3,500 lineal feet and the sea wall to protect the southern section of the reclamation was constructed for a distance of 900 lineal feet. Over 2,000,000 cube yards of harbour dredging have been dumped within the protected area bringing an area of about twenty acres up to the level of low water approximately.
ELECTRICAL. WORKS.
19. Works in hand or completed were:-Installations for the new buildings constructed under the Architectural Office and rewiring a number of Hospital, Police and Quarters etc. blocks in Hong Kong and Kowloon.
20. Improvements and additions were made in twenty-two buildings in Hong Kong, six buildings in Kowloon and five buildings in New Territories. Sixty fans and thirteen tele- phones were installed in various buildings. Illumination work was carried out in connection with the Jubilee Celebration.
.
•
226
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
- 40
21. Sections of submarine cable were laid.
22. Wireless:-A beacon transmitter was installed at Cape D'Aguilar. Two new rebroadcasting receivers were received and installed. Two medium/long wave receivers and two short wave receivers were taken into use at Observatory
at Observatory Marine and Meteorological W/T Station. W/T for Air Services is in hand. New Creed transmitters and keyboard perforators were installed in the Radio Telegraph Office. A Government W/T School was started in the General Post Office Building.
23. In addition to minor works the usual maintenance of Wireless Stations, telephones, lights, fans, bells, lifts, ferry pier hoists, traffic lights, etc., was carried out. The installations were all maintained in good order.
BUILDINGS Ordinance Office.
24. The volume of new building works coming under the jurisdiction of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, shewed a slight decline when compared with 1934. The industry was nevertheless fairly actively engaged.
25. The plans approved were largely for works of alteration and additions to existing domestic buildings. In contrast to this however, many works of magnitude in the nature of Banks, Office Blocks and Factories etc., were dealt with.
26. Amongst the more important works for which plans were approved were:-New Factory of the British American Tobacco Co., Ltd. on Gloucester Road; new quarters at the French Convent, Causeway Bay; new station and flats at the Lower Peak Tramway Station, Garden Road; new Church at Causeway Bay; Industrial School on Third Street; office block at No. 10 Queen's Road, Central; school for the Italian Convent on Caine Road; large block of flats and garages on Plantation Road; new building for the Salesian Fathers on Island Road, Shaukiwan; swimming pool and retaining walls at Repulse Bay; new Central British School on Argyle Street; extension to St. Mary's School on Austin Road; Maryknoll Convent School on Waterloo Road and Boundary Street; sub-station for the China Light & Power Co., Ltd., on Chatham Road; engineering work- shop for the China Light & Power Co., Ltd. on Dyer Avenue; site formation for large residential and day school at Hau Pui Loong; motor bus shelters at Tsim Sha Tsui; private hospital en Kiu Kiang Street; widening and lengthening of pier at the Kowloon Wharf & Godown Co., Ltd; Chinese hotel on Nathan Road; and Dispensary on Yee Kuk Street.
1931-1939
41
227
27. Buildings of importance completed were:-New Hong Kong & Shanghai Bank on Queen's Road and Des Voeux Road, Central; Cheero Club on Queen's Road, Central; new factory of the British American Tobacco Co., Ltd. on Gloucester Road; extension to the Soldiers and Sailors Home on Hennessy Road; site development and Gasometer for the Hong Kong & China Gas Co., Ltd. at Smithfield; office block and flats at Nos. 3 and 5 Duddell Street; office block at Nos. 15 to 19 Queen's Road, Central; extension to Sincere Co. Building on Des Voeux Road, Central; Bank of East Asia Building on Des Voeux Road, Central; Gold and Silver Exchange on Mercer Street; Lido Bathing Pavilions (1st Section) at Repulse Bay; Theological College on Stubb's Road; Headquarters of the St. John's Ambulance Brigade on Tai Hang Road; Confucius Hall at Sookunpoo; Tungar Printing Press at North Point; Buddhist Temple and Free School on Shan Kwong Road; Industrial School at Aberdeen; "Rest House" at Stanley; Club House at Kowloon Tong; Gas holder and Tar tanks at To Kwa Wan; motor bus shelters at Tsim Sha Tsui; widening and lengthening of pier at the Kowloon Wharf & Godown Co., Ltd.; block of twenty-four European houses at Shamshuipo.
28. Occupation permits were issued for 158 Chinese tenement house, of this number sixty-one were erected in Kowloon and ninty-seven on the Island, of the latter number, eleven were erected on the Praya East Reclamation, making a total to date on this area of 1,016 houses. There was a slight increase in the number of occupation permits issued for European type houses, thirty-five being erected on the Island and fifty-nine in Kowloon.
29. There was a decrease in the number of non-domestic type buildings completed when compared with the returns of the preceding year.
30. The number of water flushed sanitary appliances approved amounted to 2,331.
31. Twelve fires, causing structural damage, were reported. Loss of life was, occasioned in two instances. The most disastrous fire occurred at Nos. 1 to 7 Belchers Street. The houses were of old type with wooden floors, stairs and roofs. Casualties at this fire were two deaths and three persons injured. No. 5 Tung Shing Lane and No. 131 Main Street, Shaukiwan, were completely gutted by fire. No casualties occurred. is of interest to note that fires occurring in houses of reinforced cement concrete construction were not of a serious nature, and were mostly confined to the floor where the fire originated. ·
It
32. Seven minor collapses occurred. Only in one instance was loss of life reported.
228
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
42
-
33. Reclamation of Inland Lots Nos. 3538, 3539 and 3540 and Kowloon Marine Lot No. 102 were completed. Reclamation of Kowloon Marine Lot No. 97 is still in progress.
34. A landslip occurred on Kowloon Inland Lot No. 3311. There were no casualties.
35. The Chinese Cemeteries in Hong Kong, Kowloon and New Kowloon were maintained in good order, provision was made for additional burial areas where required. A new area to be known as New Kowloon Ceinetery No. 7, situated to the cast of Ngau Shi Wan, has been laid off. Development of this Cemetery will be undertaken during 1936.
Chapter XIII.
JUSTICE AND POLICE.
I. THE COURTS OF HONG KONG.
The Supreme Court of Hong Kong consists of a Chief Justice and one or more other judges. At present there is one other judge.
2. The jurisdiction of the Court is regulated by a number of Ordinances but generally it may be said that the Court exercises a Summary Jurisdiction in all actions where the claim does not exceed $1,000 and an Original Jurisdiction in all actions where the claim exceeds that amount.
3. In addition to the above the Court exercises Admiralty, Probate, Divorce, Bankruptcy, Lunacy, Criminal and Appellate Jurisdiction.
4. The following is a brief summary of litigation and matters dealt with during the year 1935:-
2,126 actions were instituted in the Summary Jurisdiction and the amounts for which judgment was given totalled $303,976.00.
353 actions were instituted in the Original Jurisdiction and the amounts for which judgment was given totalled $1,359,593.34.
10 actions were instituted in the Admiralty Jurisdiction. 426 grants were made or grants of other courts sealed in the Probate Jurisdiction.
160 persons were indicted in the Criminal Jurisdiction of whom 122 were convicted.
15 appeals were lodged in the Appellate Jurisdiction 10 of which were disposed of during the year.
1931-1939
43
229
Two Criminal appeals were lodged and both were disposed of during the year.
5. The lower civil courts are the land courts in the Northern and Southern districts of the New Territories, with jurisdiction over land cases in those districts, and the small debts courts of the same two districts. In these courts the District Officers
sit to hear land and small debts cases.
6. The lower criminal courts are the magistrates' courts, two for Hong Kong island and a small arca on the mainland opposite Shaukiwan, two for Kowloon, including the whole area south of the Kowloon hills, and one each for the two districts of the New Territories, in which the District Officers are the magistrates.
7. The following figures show the amount of work done by the lower courts in 1935:-
Civil:
District Officer North,
Land Court
Small Debts Court
District Officer, South,
Land Court
40 cases.
146
""
Small Debts Court
Criminal:-
Hong Kong Magistracy, two courts
Kowloon Magistracy, two courts
District Officer, North, one court
209 cases.
96
..... 34,425 cases.
22,302 1,675
District Officer, South, one court
II. THE POLICE.
""
402
""
8. The Police Force of the Colony is under the control of the Inspector General of Police who is assisted by one Deputy Inspector General and twelve Superintendents. The force con- sists of four Contingents, European, Indian, and two Chinese, viz., Cantonese and Weihaiwei. The strength of the different Contingents is as follows:-
Europeans
Indians
Chinese (Cantonese) Chinese (Woihaiwei)
265
798
712
300
In addition the Police Departinent controls the Anti-Piracy Guards, a force consisting of thirty-seven Russians and twenty- seven Indian Guards including three Sergeants together with four European Sergeants and one hundred and eight Wei-hai-wei
230
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
44
Chinese Constables, who are included in Police Strength. The Anti-Piracy Guards are employed and paid for by the Shipping Companies for service in the China Seas.
9. Further, the department supervises 506 Indian and Chinese Watchmen who are engaged by the Police Department and paid by private individuals for protection of private property. In addition there are 433 Indian and 8 Japanese Private Watchmen Registered at the Guards Offices.
10. The waters of the Colony are policed by a fleet of ten steam launches and five motor boats which employ a staff of two hundred and fifty-five Chinese under European officers.
11. There were 6,373 serious cases of crime in 1935, as against 5,549 in 1934, an increase of 824 cases or 14%. There was an increase of 28 cases in Coinage offences, 11 in Burglary, 315 in Deportation offencos, 12 in House and Godown breaking, 650 in Larcenies, 20 in Larcenies from Ship and Wharf, 1 in Kidnapping, 26 in Robbery, 10 under the Women and Girls Ord. There was a decrease of 8 cases under the Arms Ord., 14 656 in Larcenies, 20 in Larcenies from Ship and Wharf, 1 in Embezzlement, 147 in Larceny from Dwelling, 5 in Manslaugh- ter, 8 in Murder, 33 in False Pretences, 14 in "Receiving stolen property, " and 13 in other serious offences. There were 33,000 minor cases during 1935, as against 27,733 in 1934, an increase of 5,267 cases or 18%.
י.
III. PRISONS.
·
Victoria Gaol This prison is
12. There are three prisons in the Colony. in Hong Kong is the main prison for males. built on the separate system, but segregation is difficult owing to lack of space and accommodation. It contains cell accom- modation for 644 only and prisoners are often kept in association through unavoidable overcrowding. There is a branch male prison at Lai Chi Kok near Kowloon, with accommodation for 680 prisoners. In this establishinent all the prisoners sleep in association wards and only selected prisoners are sent there as the prison was not originally built as such. It was converted from a Quarantine Station in 1920, for temporary use pending the building of a new prison. The third prison is the prison for females situated near the male prison at Lai Chi Kok. A new general prison for males at Stanley, Hong Kong, is in course of construction.
13. The total number of persons committed to prison in the year 1935 was 16,140 as compared with 13,304 in 1934. The daily average number of prisoners in the prisons in 1935 was 1,796. The highest previous average was 1,610 in 1934. Over 90% of prisoners admitted are persons born outside the Colony.
1931-1939
45
231
14. The health of the prisoners generally was well main- tained in the prisons.
15. The discipline in all three prisons was good.
16. Prisoners are employed at printing, bookbinding, shoemaking, tinsmithing, matmaking, tailoring, carpentering, weaving, gardening, laundry work, cleaning and minor repairs to buildings. The bulk of the Government printing and book- binding is done in Victoria Gaol.
IV. REMAND HOMES.
17. During the year 205 boys underwent sentences of detention for various crimes at the Remand Home for Juveniles (Boys), not under Priscn administration and 58 girls underwent detention at the Remand Home for girls. The boys are given instruction in elementary reading and writing, as well as in rattan work, which teaches them a trade. The girls are given employment in house-work, laundry, and making and mending clothes. There are recreation facilities at both Homes.
There are also four Probationer Officers, two males and two females.
Lady visitors attend the Female Prison twice weekly to instruct long sentence prisoners in needle work.
18. Visiting Justices inspect and report on the prisons every fortnight.
Chapter XIV.
LEGISLATION.
Fifty-four Ordinances were passed during the year 1935. These and also the Regulations, Rules, By-laws and other subsidiary legislative enactments are published in a separate volume by the Government Printers. The fifty-four Ordinances comprised two appropriation, fifteen replacement, five incorpora- tion, four consolidation, twenty-three amendment and five which were new to the Colony.
2. The Appropriation Ordinance No. 40) applied a sum not exceeding $23,840,416 to the public service for the year 1936, and Ordinance No. 30 appropriated a supplementary sum of $635,424.27 to defray the charges of the year 1934.
3. Of the fifteen replacement Ordinances, the Urban Council Ordinance (No. 7) substituted an Urban Council for the Sanitary Board, and repealed various Public Health and Buildings Ordinances. The Adulterated Food and Drugs Ordinance (No. 8) replaced the Sale of Food and Drugs Ordinance, 1896. The
232
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
46
Public Health (Quarantine and Prevention of Disease) Ordinance, (No. 12), repcaled certain portions of the Merchant Shipping Ordinance, 1899, and enacted new provisions regarding quarantine and the prevention of disease ainong human beings. The Public Health (Food) Ordinance (No. 13) granted wider powers to the Urban Council for the maintenance of public health in relation to food than the similar powers possessed by its predecessor, the Sanitary Board. Similarly under the Public Health (Sanitation) Ordinance (No. 15), the Public Health (Animals and Birds) Ordinance (No. 16), the Buildings Ordinance (No. 18) and the Hawkers Ordinance (No. 22), the Urban Council was given more effective powers than those possessed by the Sanitary Board for the control of sanitation, animals and birds, buildings, and hawkers. The Lepers Ordinance (No. 25) replaced the Lepers Ordinance, 1910. The Falsification of Documents Ordinance (No. 33) replaced the Corrupt Practices (Documentary) Ordinance, 1865. The Official Signatures Fees Ordinance (No. 37) replaced various Official Signatures Fees Ordinances. The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Ordinance (No. 44) replaced the Live Stock Import and Export Ordinance, 1903, making more effective provision for the protection of animals. The Infants Custody Ordinance (No. 48) replaced the Infants Custody Ordinance 1886. The Separation and Maintenance Ordinance (No. 49) replaced the Married Women (Desertion) Ordinance, 1905, and the Sand Ordinance (No. 50) replaced the Sand Ordinance, 1934.
Ordinances Nos. 7, 8, 9, 13, 15, 16, 18 and 22 did not come into operation until the 1st January, 1936.
Ordinance No. 12 never came into operation and was repeal- ed and replaced by a new Ordinance early in 1936.
4. Ordinance No. 3 incorporated the Director of the Ambulance Department of the Order of St. John in Hong Kong and the Treasurer and Secretary of the Hong Kong Branch of the St. John Ambulance Association as Custodian Trustees of the Hong Kong Branch of the St. John Ambulance Association. Ordinance No. 4 incorporated the Cheero Club of Hong Kong. Ordinance No. 47 incorporated the Hong Kong Travel Association.
Ordinance No. 51 incorporated the Hong Kong Branch of the Girl Guides Association. Ordinance No. 53 incorporated the Administrator in Hong Kong of the Catholic Mission of Macao. These Ordinances followed the usual lines in such cases.
5. The following Ordinances, viz:-Larceny (No. 32). Dangerous Drugs (No. 35), Deportation of Aliens (No. 39) and Medical Registration (No. 41), consolidated and to some extent amended the existing law on these subjects.
1931-1939
47
233
6. The twenty-three amending Ordinances covered a wide range of subjects, viz:-Asylums (No. 1), Public Health and Buildings (No. 2), Tobacco (No. 5), Tung Wah Hospital (No. 6), Boarding House (No. 9), Rating (No. 10), Liquors (No. 11), Telephone (No. 14), Peak Tramway (No. 17), Magistrates (No. 18), Stamp (No. 20), Jury (No. 21), Immigration and Passports (No. 23), Companies (No. 24), Merchant Shipping (No. 28), Pensions (No. 29), Crown Solicitors (No. 31), Summary Offences (No. 36), Estate Duty, and New Territories Regulation (No. 38), Defence Contribution (No. 43), Volunteer Amendment (No. 45), Probates (No. 46), Ferries (No. 52).
Ordinance No. 38 does not cone into operation until 1st January 1937.
7. Similarly the subsidiary legislation covered a wide range of subjects including:-Public Places Regulation, Foreign Re- cruiting, Marriage, Merchant Shipping, Civil Procedure, Public Health and Buildings, Vehicles and Traffic Regulation, Importa- tion and Exportation, Post Office, Dogs, Motor Spirit, Nurses Registration, Liquors, Juvenile Offenders, Industrial and Re- formatory Schools, Pensions, Factories and Workshops, Police Force, Prisons, Cremation, Adulterated Food and Drugs, Build- ings, Dangerous Drugs, Air Navigation.
8. The Ordinances new to the Colony were the Tokens Ordinance (No. 26), the Lunacy (Payment of Public Allowances) (No. 27), False Personation (No. 34), Dollar Currency Notes (No. 42) and Currency (No. 54). Of these Ordinances No. 26 prohibited the making, issuing and circulating of metal tokens in the Colony, Ordinance No. 27 regulated the manner of pay- ment of emoluments, pensions, etc., to persons certified mentally incapable of managing their affairs, Ordinance No. 34 provided penalties for persons convicted of false personation, Ordinance No. 42 empowered the Treasurer to issue one-dollar currency notes in the Colony, and Ordinance No. 54 provided for the establishinent and management of an Exchange Fund.
Chapter XV.
PUBLIC FINANCE & TAXATION.
The following tables show the Revenue and Expenditure for the five years 1931 to 1935 inclusive.
Revenue. Expenditure. Surplus. Deficit.
$33,146,724 $31,160,774 $1,985,950
1931
1932
33,549,716 32,050,283
1,499,433
1933
32,099,278 31,122,715
976,563
1934
29,574,286 31,149,156
$1,574,870
1935
28,430,550 28,291,636 138,914
234
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
48
2. The revenue for the year 1935 amounted to $28,430,550 being $2,155,100 less than estimated and $1,143,736 less than the revenue obtained in 1934.
3. Duties on imported liquor and tobacco were less than estimated as they are on a sterling basis and were reckoned on an exchange rate of $1-1/4 whereas the average rate throughout the year was over 1/11. Assessed Taxes fell snort of the estimate by $169,609 due to vacant tenements, and large shortfalls were shown in the Opium Monopoly of $297,286 due to competition of illicit opium; in Stamp Duties of $132,349 owing to trade depression. Receipts from the Kowloon-Canton Railway were also $281,225 less than estimated owing to river boat competition and fewer local passengers to Shum Chun. Land Sales again were much below the estimate. Increases were shewn under Water Excess and Meter Rents due to inore metered services. China Companies Registrations were up by $51,576. Market fees also showed an increase of $45,440 as new markets were opened.
4. The expenditure for the year 1935 amounted to $28,291,636 being $4,264,466 less than estimated and $2,857,520 less than the expenditure in 1934.
5. Ordinary expenditure amounted to $25,030,568, Public Works Extraordinary to $2,801,919 and Naval Arsenal Yard & Kellet Island to $459,149. Large savings were made under Personal Emoluments when compared with estimates, provision being made for $12,701,739 but only $10,248,600 was expended. Under Other Charges savings were also effected the total provision being $4,632,853 against $3,730,038 expended.
6. Debt. The public debt of the Colony consists of two issues. The 4% Conversion Loan raised in 1933 amounting to $4,838,000, the Sinking Fund of which, established in 1934, amounted on 31st December, 1935, to £31,222.4.4. Secondly the 31% Dollar Loan raised in July, 1934. Bonds to the amount of $14,000,000 were issued at 99% producing $18,860,000. This loan is redeemable by drawings at par in each of the twenty-five years commencing in 1935 at the annual rate of one twenty fifth of such issue. During the year $560,000 was redeemed thus reducing the amount outstanding to $13,440,000.
$13,440,000. Ordinance No. 11 of 1934 governs this issue and authorises the Governor to borrow up to a total of $25,000,000. The total public debt of the Colony on 31st December, 1935, amounted to $18,278,000 equal to about 9 months revenue as things are at present.
1931-1939
49
235
7. The Assets and Liabilities of the Colony on
on the 31st December, 1935, are shewn in the following statement:-
LIABILITIES.
$
C.
ASSETS.
€A
$
C.
DEPOSITS:-
ADVANCES:
Contractors and
Purchase of three
Officers Deposits.
533,338.40
Locomotives for
Chinese Section
Suitors Fund ........
10,436.05
Insurance Com-
Kowloon Canton Railway...
panies
1,713,304.57
Miscellaneous
27,468.26 258,639.18
Pending Re-im-
Miscellaneous De-
bursements from
posits
1,830,312.85
future loan
4,182,298.66
House Service
Building Loans
776,220.94
Account
26,873.51 Imprest Account
50,828.31
Subsidiary Coin
135,347.75
Government House
Note Issue Account...
1,280,000.00
ment Fund
and City Develop-
Trade Loan Reserve.
Crown Agents Re-
836,407.12
mittances
1,069.63
Trade Loan Out-
1,080,801.79
standing
548,500.50
Praya East
Re-
Nickel Coinage
clamation
112,175.27
Account
573,500.00
Exchange Adjust-
Coal Account
6,155.14
ment
23,197.49
Note Security Fund.
Unallocated Stores,
1,280,000.00
(P.W.D.)
519,408.60
Nickel Coinage
Security Fund
Unallocated Stores,
....
573,500.00
(Railway)
137,495.69
Suspense Account
269,793.38
Cash Balance:-
Treasurer
3,089,636.07
Crown Agents
35,495.82
Total Liabilities.
8,003,304.70
*Joint Colonial Fund
256,000.00
Excess of Assets
over Liabilities
12,387,668.51
General
Insurance
Total.........$ 20,390,973.21
Fixed Deposits:-
..$6,050,000.00
Companies 1,713,304.57 | Miscellaneous 462,768.36
Total...................
8,226,072.93
.$ 20,390,973.21
*Joint Colonial Fund £18,000 Os. Od.
236
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
50
8. Main Heads of Taxation.-The largest itein of revenue is derived from the assessment tax, the sum of $6,130,391 being collected in 1935. This represents 21.56% of the total revenue or 21.75% of the revenue exclusive of land sales. The rates vary from 15% to 17% on the annual value of property and are for police, lighting and water services, etc. Port and Harbour Dues comprising Light Dues and Buoy Dues brought in the sum of $485,607.
9. Duties on intoxicating liquors realized $1,578,324, tobacco $2,703,866, postage stamps and message fees $1,759,660. A considerable sum is also derived from the opium monopoly, land revenue, stamp duties including estate duties and other fees. Land Sales during the year realized $244,957. The receipts of the Kowloon-Canton Railway which was completed in 1910 amounted to $1,411,675.
10. Customs Tariff.-There is an import tariff on all liquor, tobacco and light oils imported into the Colony for sale or use therein. There is no export tariff. The sale of opium is a Government Monopoly, and all importation of opium other than by the Government is prohibited. The importation of Dangerous Drugs is regulated in accordance with the terms of the Geneva Convention. Arms, ammunition, explosives and dangerous goods are subject to the normal Harbour and Police Regulations in regard to storage and movement. A special Foreign Registra- tion fee of 20% of the value of a motor vehicle is payable in respect of any vehicle not produced within the B.tish Empire.
11. The duties on imported liquor range from $0.60 per gallon on beer to $1.20 on Chinese liquor and to $10 on sparkling European wines. The duties are collected on a sterling basis, the conventional dollars in the tariff being converted at a rate which is varied from time to time according to the market rate of exchange between the local dollar and sterling. A 50% reduc- tion in duty is allowed in respect of brandy grown or produced within the British Empire.
12.. The duties on tobacco range froin $0.63 per lb. on the lowest taxed unmanufactured tobacco to $2 per lb. on cigars. The duties are collected on a sterling basis in the same manner as the liquor duties.
13. A duty of 25 cents per gallon is payable on all light oils. imported into the Colony.
.
14. Excise and Stamp Dutics.-The same duty is imposed on liquors (mainly Chinese type) manufactured in the Colony as on imported liquors, but prior to March 1985 was not payable on a sterling basis.
1931-1939
51
237
15. Stamp Duties are imposed on various instruments and where a consideration is involved are mainly ad valorem. The following are examples of the duties charged:-Affidavits, Statu- tory Declaration, etc., $3; Bills of Exchange (inward) and Cheques, 10 cents; Bills of Lading, 15 cents when freight under $5, 40 cents when freight $5 or over; Bond to secure the pay- ment or repayment of money, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Conveyance on sale, $1 for every $100 or part thereof; Mortgages, principal security, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Life Insurance Policy, 25 cents for every $1,000 insured; Receipt, 10 cents for amounts over $20; Transfer of Shares, 20 cents for every $100 of market value.
16. No Hut Tux or Poll Tax is imposed in the Colony.
R. A. C. NORTII,
Colonial Secretary.
238
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
52
Appendix.
LIST OF PUBLICATIONS OF GENERAL INTEREST RELATING TO HONG KONG.
Title.
Price.
Agents for sale.
$
Sessional Papers (Annual)
Blue Book (Annual)
2.00 Colonial Secretariat and
Government Printers.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers und Crown Agents for the Colonies, London.
Ordinances-Ball's Revised Edit- ion (In 6 Volumes) 1844-1923 Regulations of Hong Kong 1844-
1925 Ordinances (Annual)
and Regulations
Administration Reports (Annual) Estimates (Annual) Government Gazettes (Weekly)
Meteorological Bulletin (Month-
ly)
Hong Kong Trade and Shipping
Returns (Monthly)
Do. (Annual)
Hansards (Annual)
Historical & Statistical Abstract of the Colony of Hong Kong 1841-1930
The Hong Kong Naturalist
(Quarterly)
Liong Kong: A Guide Book
Hong Kong: Around and About, by S. H. Peplow & M. Barker Echoes of Hong Kong & Beyond
by L. Forster
90.00
Do.
30.00 Colonial Secretariat.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers and Crown Agents.
5.00 Colonial Secretariat. 3.00 Government Printers.
.50 Government Printers and
Crown Agents.
10.00 Governinent Printers.
per annum
2.00 Government Printers and
Crown Agents.
2.00 5.00
Do.
South China Morning Post,
Hong Kong.
4.00 Colonial Secretariat.
1.00
2.00 Hong Kong University.
Kelly & Walsh, Ltd. and Brewers' Bookshop, Hong Kong.
5.00
Do.
1.50
Do.
Title.
1931-1939
53
APPENDIX,-Contd.
Price.
Agents for sale.
$
239
Picturesque Hong Kong The Tourist Guide 1936 The Dollar Directory 1936 .. A Hong Kong Sketch Book Hilly Hong Kong
1.25 Brewers' Bookshop.
1.25
1.00
Do.
Do.
2.50 Kelly & Walsh, Ltd. 1.00
Do.
Sections on Hong Kong will be found in the annual "China Year Book" published by the North China Daily News and Herald Ltd., Shanghai (London Agents Simpkin Marshall Ltd.) price $20.00, and the annual "Directory and Chronicle of China, Japan etc." published by the Hong Kong Daily Press at Hong Kong, Price $12.00 and obtainable at their London office at 53, Fleet St., for £2.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
COLONIAL REPORTS-ANNUAL
241
No. 1825
Annual Report on the Social and Economic Progress of the People of
HONG KONG, 1936
(For Report for 1934 see No. 1712 (Price 25. od.) and for Report for 1935 see No. 1775 (Price 2s. 6d.).)
Crown Copyright Reserved
LONDON
PUBLISHED BY HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE
(printed in Hong Kong)
To be purchased directly from H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE at the following addresses : Adastral House, Kingsway, London, W.C.2; 120 George Street, Edinburgh 2; 26 York Street, Manchester 1; 1 St. Andrew's Crescent, Cardiff; 80 Chichester Street, Belfast;
or through any bookseller
1938
Price 1s. 3d. net
242
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC
PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE COLONY
OF HONG KONG FOR THE YEAR 1936.
CHAPTER
CONTENTS
PAGE
I GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY......
1
II GOVERNMENT
III POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS
IV PUBLIC HEALTHI
3
4
5
V HOUSING
12
VI PRODUCTION
14
VII COMMERCE
17
VIII WAGES AND THE COST OF LIVING
24
IX EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS
27
X COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT
30
XI BANKING, CURRENCY, Weights and MEASURES................
34
XII PUBLIC WORKS
36
XIII JUSTICE AND POLICE
41
XIV LEGISLATION
XV PUBLIC FINANCE AND TAXATION
APPENDIX
45
47
52
.....
1931-1939
Chapter I.
GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY.
243
The Colony of Hong Kong is situated off the south-eastern coast of China between latitude 22° 9′ and 22° 17′ N. and longitude 114° 5′ and 114° 18′ E. The island is about eleven miles long and two to five miles in breadth, its circumference being about 27 miles and its area 32 square miles. It consists of an irregular ridge of lofty hills rising to a height of nearly 2,000 feet above sea level, stretching nearly east and west, with few valleys of any extent and little ground available for cultiva- tion.
2. The island of Hong Kong was ceded to Great Britain in January, 1841, the cession being confirmed by the Treaty of Nanking in August, 1842. The charter bears the date of 5th April, 1843. The Kowloon peninsula and Stonecutter's Island were ceded to Great Britain under the Couvention signed at Peking in October, 1860, and under the Convention signed at Peking in July, 1898, the area shown as the New Territories including Mirs Bay and Deep Bay was leased to Great Britain by the Government of China for 99 years. The total area of the Colony including the New Territories is about 390 square miles.
3. The importance of Hong Kong has grown with the increase of China's trade with foreign countries. It is now in respect of tonnage entered and cleared one of the largest ports in the world. It is the most convenient outlet for the produce of South China as well as for the incessant flow of Chinese emigration to the Netherlands East Indies, Malaya and else- where. It is also the natural distributing centre for imports into China from abroad.
4. The Colony is not primarily a manufacturing centre, the most important of its industries being those connected directly or indirectly with shipping, such as dock and warehouse, banking and insurance undertakings. Sugar refining and cement manu- facture are also major industries, and in recent years considerable quantities of knitted goods, electric torches and batteries, and rubber shoes have been produced and exported.
5. The climate of Hong Kong is sub-tropical, the winter being normally cool and dry and the summer hot and humid; the seasons are marked by the prevalence of the S.W. monsoon in summer and the N.E. monsoon in winter. The temperature seldom rises above 95° F. or falls below 40° F. The average rainfall is 85.16 inches, May to September being the wettest months. In spring and summer the humidity of the atmosphere is often very high, at time exceeding 95%, with an average over the whole year of 79%. The typhoon season may be said to last from June to October though typhoons occasionally occur before and after this period.
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2
6. The rainfall for 1936 was 69.77 inches.
The mean tem-
perature of the air was 71.8° against an average of 71.9°. The maximum gust velocity of the wind was at the rate of 132 m.p.h. from E. on August 17th.
7. The development of Hong Kong as an Airport was al feature of the year. A weekly mail and passenger service by Imperial Airways between Hong Kong and Penang, connecting with the London-Singapore-Australia service, was inaugurated with the arrival on 24th March, of the R.M.A. "Dorado".
On 5th November, a regular mail and passenger service be- tween Hong Kong, Canton and Shanghai was inaugurated by the China National Aviation Corporation.
On 23rd October, the Pan American Airways' "Philippine Clipper" arrived in Hong Kong on an experimental trans-Pacific flight.
8. A Commission appointed by the Secretary of State for the Colonies to investigate the whole question of Mui Tsai in Hong Kong and Malaya and of any surviving practices in those territories of transferring women and children for valuable con- sideration, whether on marriage or adoption, or in any other circumstances, and to report to the Secretary of State on any legislative or other action which they may consider practicable and desirable in relation to these matters", and consisting of Sir Wilfrid Woods, Miss Picton-Turbervill and Mr. C. A. Willis, arrived in the Colony on 14th May. After completing its investi- gations the Commission left Hong Kong on 6th June.
9. His Excellency the Governor, Sir Andrew Caldecott, Kt., C.M.G., C.B.E., paid an official visit to Canton from 17th to 19th September.
The visit was returned by His Excellency General Huang Mu Sung, Chairman of the Kwangtung Provincial Government, and His Honour Mr. Tsang Yang Fu, Mayor of Canton, who arrived in Hong Kong on 4th November and left on November.
6th
10. His Excellency Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Little, K.C.B., arrived in the Colony on 9th January to assume the post of Commander-in-Chief, China Station, in succession to Admiral Sir Frederic Dreyer, K.C.B., C.B.E.
11. The Hon. Mr. N. L. Smith returned to the Colony on 26th November to assume the post of Colonial Secretary in sue- cession to Sir Thomas Southorn, K.B.E., C.M.G. who departed on leave on 2nd May prior to assuming the post of Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Gambia.
12. Among the Honours conferred by His Majesty during the course of the year were:
C.M.G. The Hon. Mr. Edwin Taylor.
O.B.E. (Civil Division) Dr. W. B. A. Moore. M.B.E. Dr. R. McLean Gibson.
1931-1939
245
Chapter II.
GOVERNMENT.
The Government is administered under Letters Patent of 14th February, 1917, and Royal Instructions of the same and subsequent dates, by a Governor aided by an Executive Council, composed of six official and three unofficial members, and by a Legislative Council composed of nine official and eight unofficial members. Prior to 1928 the numbers of the Legislative Council members were seven and six respectively. The six official mem- bers of the Executive Council are the Senior Military Officer, the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney General, the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, the Colonial Treasurer, all of whom are members ex-officio, and the Director of Public Works, appointed by the Governor. The three unofficial members, one of whom is Chinese, are appointed by the Governor. The six official mem- bers of the Executive Council are also members of the Legislative Council; the other three official members of this Council, who are appointed by the Governor, are the Inspector General of Police, the Harbour Master, and the Director of Medical Services. Of the unofficial members of the Legislative Council two are appointed by the Governor on the nomination respectively of the Justices of the Peace and of the Chamber of Commerce; the Governor also appoints the remaining members three of whom are Chinese. Appointanent in the case of unofficial mem- bers is for five years for the Executive and four years for the Legislative Council.
2. The Urban Council composed of five official and eight unofficial members has power to make by-laws under the Public Health (Food) Ordinance, the Public Health (Sanitation) Ordin- ance and the Public Health (Animals and Birds) Ordinance in matters appertaining to public health, subject to an overriding power in the Legislative Council.
3. There are a number of advisory boards and committees such as the Board of Education, Harbour Advisory Committee, Labour Advisory Board, etc., composed of both official and unofficial members. They are frequently consulted and are of much assistance to the Govermanent.
4. The English Common Law forms the basis of the legal system, modified by Hong Kong Ordinances of which an edition revised to 1923 has been published. The law as to civil procedure was codified by Ordinance No. 3 of 1901. The Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1890 regulates the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in Admiralty cases.
5. The daily administration is carried out by the twenty- eight Government departments, all officers of which arc members of the Civil Service. The most important of the
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purely administrative departments are the Secretariat, Treasury, Secretariat for Chinese Affairs, Post Office, Harbour, the Imports and Exports, Police and Prisons departments. There are seven legal departments, including the Supreme Court and the Magistracies. Two departments, Medical and Sanitary, deal with public health, one, Education, with education; and one, the largest of all the Government departments, Public Works, is concerned with roads, buildings, waterworks, piers and analogous matters.
6. There have been no changes in the system of Govern- ment in the year under review.
Chapter III.
POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS.
Variation in population in Hong Kong is more dependent on immigration and emigration than on births and deaths. Move- ments to and from the Colony are influenced by events in China and owing to the large numbers who come and go daily it is impossible to give more than a very rough estimate of the actual population, except during census years.
2. The following table shows the estimated population for the Colony for the middle of 1936.
Non-Chinese (mostly resident in Victoria and Kowloon). 21,832 Chinese in Victoria
Chinese in Hong Kong Villages
Chinese in Kowloon and New Kowloon
Chinese in junks and sampans ....
Chinese in New Territories
Total
382,119
50,605
327,858
100,000
105,776
988, 190
3. During the year 2,977,205 persons entered and 2,987,772 persons left the Colony, making a daily average of 8,134 arrivals and 8,163 departures. The daily average for 1935 was 9,171 arrivals and 9,348 departures.
4. Since 1932 registration of Births and Deaths in the New Territories has been more fully enforced. The introduction of the new Births and Deaths Ordinance in the latter half of 1984 by improving facilities for registration on the one hand and checking on the other brought about an appreciable increase in registrations. This was particularly noticeable in the New Ter- ritories where the births registered during 1936 were 3,317 as compared to 587 in 1932.
1931-1939
5
5. The number of births registered was:
Chinese
Non-Chinese
Total
1935.
24,510
1936.
26,853
527
530
25,037
27,383*
247
* Includes 272 registered after 12 months.
6. The deaths registered among the civil population number 26,356 (Including 976 stillbirths) giving a crude death rate of 26.6 per mille as compared with 22.90 for the previous year.
Non-Chinese Chinese
Deaths.
236 26,120
Estimated Death rate per Population. mille population.
21,832
966,358
10.8
27.0
There were 17 deaths among H.M. Forces during the year.
7. The number of deaths of infants under one year was Chinese 9,905, Non-Chinese 19. If the figures for Chinese births represented the total births, which they do not, the infantile mortality figure for the Chinese would be 372.42 as compared with 316.36 in the previous year. The infantile mortality figure among non-Chinese was 38.83 as compared with 56.92 in 1935.
Chapter IV.
PUBLIC HEALTII.
In the absence of some general system of registration of sickness, the only sources of information available for gauging the state of the public health in this Colony are the returns relating to deaths, the notifications of infectious diseases and the records of Government and Chinese hospitals. Judging from the death returns the health of the Colony was not quite so good as that of the previous year. The crude death rate was 26.68 per mille as coinpared with 22.90 for 1935.
2. Respiratory diseases accounted for 39.70 per cent of the total deaths, the percentage for 1935 was 41.62. The principal diseases causing death were broncho-pneumonia, pulmonary tuberculosis, bronchitis, infantile diarrhoea and diarrhoea. The overcrowded houses, the expectorating habits of the people and poverty furnish sufficient explanation for the prevalence of respiratory troubles.
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3. Pulmonary Tuberculosis.-This disease continues to rank second to broncho-pneumonia as the principal cause of death. It is probable that some of the cases of the latter were of tuber- culous origin. The total number of deaths was 2,416; that for 1935 was 2,237. The death rate per mille was 2.44 as compared with 2.31 for 1935.
4. There is need for more hospital or infirmary accommoda- tion for tuberculosis patients, especially for those of the poorer classes.
5. Malaria.-Owing to efficient drainage methods this disease has disappeared from the greater part of the urban districts. It still persists, however, in the suburbs and in the rural areas. There are parts of the New Territories where the spleen rate is as high as 41 per cent.
6. Malaria not being a notifiable disease the incidence figures are unknown. The cases admitted to the Government Hospitals numbered 581 as compared to 384 in the previous year. The percentage of deaths to cases admitted was 3.6%. Among the Chinese Hospitals there were 1,341 adanissions with a case mortality rate of 18 per cent.
7. The total number of deaths attributed to this disease was 503, giving a death mate 0.50 per mille over the whole population. The low death rate is, of course, due to the fact that the great bulk of the population residing in the drained urban area is not subject to risks of infection. If figures for local districts were available it would be found that in some areas the incidence and death rates were very considerable.
8. During the year the Malaria Bureau continued its in- vestigations into the life history, habits and carry powers of the local anophelines. The results obtained were both interesting and instructive. As in previous years there was no obstruction from the local Chinese, on the contrary. they took an interest in the proceedings and showed their eagerness to be of assistance. The Chinese Inspectors have shown ability and zeal.
9. The Bureau co-operated with the military authorities, the Royal Air Force, the Sanitary Department, the Public Works Department and the construction engineers at the Shing Mun Dam.
At the Shing Mun Dam construction works where more than 2,000 labourers were employed the casualty rate from malaria continued to remain at a very low figure. The daily average percentage of workers off duty from sickness was less than five.
INFECTIOUS DISEASES....
10. During the year there were reported 23 cases of small- pox 123 cases of cerebro-spinal fever, 375 cases of diphtheria and 418 cases of enteric. There were no cholera cases.
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249
11. Smallpox.-Every year in the cold season this disease manifests itself in outbreaks which are sometimes sporadic, sometimes epidemic. Whatever the prevalence there is always a tendency for the morbidity rate to decline or disappear with the advent of summer. In the year under review there were 23 cases and 16 deaths as compared with 61 and 44 respectively in 1935. 11 cases only were treated in hospital; the remainder did not come under the notice of the authorities until after death.
12. The vaccination campaign was continued and during the year 274,784 persons were vaccinated. Valuable assistance was afforded by the St. John Ambulance Brigade and by the Chinese Public Dispensaries. Both bodies engaged in active propaganda and through their efforts many were persuaded who otherwise would have kept aloof. The various sections of the Brigade again carried out street vaccination with excellent results.
13. The Chinese have a preference for vaccination being done in the spring, which they regard as the most auspicious season. For a month or two after Chinese New Year the Chinese Public Dispensaries are crowded with children waiting to be vaccinated.
14. Many Chinese still hold the opinion that the herbalist treatment of smallpox gives better results than the methods adopted by practitioners qualified in Western medicine. An analysis of the statistics of (a) the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital where only herbalist treatment is carried out and (b) the Government Infectious Diseases Hospital where western treatment only is provided shows that this view is not correct.
15. Plague. For the last seven years no cases of plague have been reported in Hong Kong. The disappearance of this disease not only from this Colony but from the greater part of China and its decline throughout the world are due to factors which are not understood.
16. Systematic rat-catching and periodical cleansing of houses were carried out throughout the year. The total number of rats collected was 212,947 of which 17,967 were taken alive, as compared with 192,251 and 21,820 in 1935. The number collected each year shows that there is no diminution in the rat population. All the rats collected were sent to the Public Mortuary for examination. None was found infected.
17. Cerebro-spinal Fever.-Altogether 123 cases were re- ported with 65 deaths. No special foci of infection were discovered and few instances where one could trace the source of infection. The cases were treated in the general hospitals without any instance of spread of infection, Sera manufactured at the Bacteriological Institute were used therapeutically.
18. Diphtheria.-With regard to diphtheria there is little to be said. The cases were sporadic and the sources of infection were seldom discovered. 375 cases were reported as compared with 266 in 1935.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
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19. Enteric. What has been said of diphtheria applies to enteric. The incubation period being so long and the possible sources of infection so numerous there is little chance of tracing in any cases the source of infection. 418 cases were reported us compared with 319 in 1935.
20. Leprosy.-A new lepers Ordinance (Ordinance No. 25 of 1935) was enacted und passed on the 13th of June, 1935.
Prior to 1935 there was no place set apart in the Colony for use as a leper settlement. In May of 1935, however, tem- porary arrangements were anade
made whereby lepers could be admitted to the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital at Kennedy Town. They are fed by the Tung Wah Hospital Com- mittee at Government expense and treated by a Government Medical Officer. There were 129 admissions during 1936 (106 M. 23 F.) of whom 82 were transferred to Sheklung.
21. Rabics.-No human cases were reported during the year. One infected dog was reported from the New Territories.
22. Dysentery.-During November there occurred a serious epidemic of Shiga Dysentery.
The outbreak commenced on the 8th of November when twelve European children developed symptoms so severe that seven of them subsequently died.
From the 8th up to and including the 19th there were forty seven cases all but four of whom were European children under ten years of age. The causative organism was in twenty-five cases proved to be the bacterium dysenteriae of Shiga, in four that of Flexner and. in the remainder the organism was not isolated and identified though in the majority of cases the severity of the symptoms pointed strongly to Shiga infection.
There were altogether eight deaths seven of which as men- tioned above were cases which developed symptoms on the 8th. The remaining death was that of a Chinese infant the son of a Chinese servant engaged in a house where two children had died of the disease.
There being some indication that the infection was milk borne the public were advised to boit all milk and the various dairies were instructed to take special precautions. One of them the Dairy Farm decided to institute pasteurisation of all milk and cream before issuing thus obviating any risk there might be of infection spreading from that source.
It having been ascertained that all the twenty-four cases taken ill on the 8th and 9th had consumed a special brand of mild designated "Nursery Milk" issued by the Dairy Farm- special attention was directed to this institution. The fact that thousands of individuals had daily consumed milk from this
1931-1939
9
251
dairy without suffering any deleterious effects showed that the milk as a whole had not been at fault. It was assumed that one batch of nursery milk had accidently become infected with Shiga bacilli, a thorough inspection of the premises failed to bring to light any source of contamination.
The farmi could fairly be described as a high class institution where special precautions were taken to produce a clean milk. It appeared to be the case that the milk was handled in a sanitary manner from the cow to the consumer and would be called Grade A in England.
A search was made to discover the source of infection and the stools of 113 workers were examined in an endeavour to find among them any Shiga carriers. No Shiga bacilli isolated from any of the stools.
THE DUMPING OF THE DEAD.
were
23. The number of bodies reported by the police as dumped was 1,091 as compared with 1,038 in 1935. In an endeavour to stop this practice chambers for the deposit of corpses have been established at all the Chinese Public Dispensaries. In some cases the top of the table is so arranged that the weight of a body on it closes an electric circuit which rings a bell in the caretaker's room.
HOSPITALS.
24. The Government Civil Hospital.-The Hospital consists of three blocks and contains 225 beds in 23 wards. About one half the accommodation has been placed under the care of the clinical professors of the University who have been gazetted respectively Surgeon, Physician and Obstetric Physician to the Hospital.
The number of in-patients in 1936 was 5,875 as compared with 5,047 in the previous year.
25. Attendances at the general clinics for out-patients numbered 55,532 as compared with 50,685 in the previous year. In addition there were 47,734 attendances at clinics for special subjects such as those in connection with children's diseases, opthalmology, ear, nose and throat work, venereal diseases, etc. Much of the work connected with outpatients was done by the University staff.
26. Attached to the hospital is a Maternity Hospital of 21 beds. There were 1,010 cases in 1936 and 1,056 in 1935. With the exception of 224 cases attended by the Government Medical Officers all the cases were under the care of the University Professor and his assistants.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
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27. Mental Hospital.-Situated close to the Government Civil Hospital is the Mental Hospital which is under the direc- tion of the Medical Officer in charge of the Government Civil Hospital. There are separate divisions for European and Chinese. The European section contains 14 beds and the Chinese section 18 beds. This hospital is mainly only a tem- porary abode for mental cases, those of Chinese nationality being sent to Canton, and those of other nationalities repatriated to their respective countries. There were 419 cases in 1936 and 350 in 1935. The daily average number of patients for 1936 was 58.
28. Government Infectious Diseases Hospital. This hos- pital situated on the Western outskirts of the City of Victoria is the only Government Institution of its kind for the whole Colony. Formerly a Police Station it contains only 26 beds. 13 cases were admitted in 1936 as compared with 1 case in 1935.
29. Kowloon Hospital.-The accommodation at this hos- pital, which is situated on the Mainland, is 131 beds. It con- sists of four two storied blocks, one of which is reserved for Maternity cases.
The opening of the Maternity Block in 1934 filled a long felt want as there was no provision on the mainland for Euro- pean women. Private patients may be attended by their own doctor if they so desire. During the year 1,137 patients were treated.
The number of inpatients in 1936 was 3,367 as compared with 3,077 in 1935.
The new Out-Patients Department situated at the Main Gate was opened on 11th March, 1935.
The total attendances at the Out-Patient Department num- bered 62,502 (54,194 in 1935); of these 25,706 were new cases; 13,591 were old cases. The remaining 23,115 were dressings.
30. Victoria Hospital.-Situated on the Peak, this hospital overlooks the city of Victoria and has a clear view across the harbour of the territory on the mainland.
There are 46 beds in the General Block and 26 in the Maternity Block.
During 1936, 644 cases were treated, 579 in the General Block and 65 in the Maternity Block; the number in 1935 being 490, made up of 424 General and 66 Maternity cases. Maternity patients may be attended by their own doctor if they so desire.
The total number of outpatients during the year 1936 was 1,061.
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253
31. Tsan Yuk Hospital.-This Maternity Hospital formerly part of the organisation financed and managed by the Chinese Public Dispensaries Committee and was handed over to Government as a free gift on 1st January, 1934.
The care of the patients is under the general supervision of the University Professor of Obstetrics who is also a Government Consultant. The University Medical students receive training there.
There are 60 beds, of which 46 are reserved for maternity. cases and 14 for gynaecological cases.
During the year 1,636 cases were admitted to the Maternity section and 264 to the Gynaecological sections, a total of 1,900 admissions.
In the out-patients department, 4,172 people attended during the year. Separate Gynaecological, Infant Welfare and Anti-Natal Clinics were held in which 1,279, 2,494, and 399 cases respectively were treated or advised.
32. The Chinese Hospitals.-Tung Wah, Tung Wah Eastern, Kwong Wah--are hospitals which are maintained by the Tung Wah Charity Organisation, a purely Chinese body. These in- stitutions, which are assisted by Government, are under inspec- tion by the Government Medical Department. Each has as its Medical Superintendent a Chinese Medical Officer who is paid by Governnient. The Medical staff consists of Chinese Medical Officers, qualified in Western Medicine, and Chinese Herbalists.
The patient is given his choice of treatment.
No. treated in No. treated in
1936.
1935.
HOSPITAL.
No. of
Medicine Herbalist Medicine
Tung Wah-General.. 446 9,251 5,723
Maternity. 24 2,034
beds. Western
Chinese
Western
Chinese Herbalist
Medicine
Medicine
7,088 4,984 1,833
Kwong Wah-General 267
9,155
4,436
7,296 3,36-1
Maternity. 59
4,173
4,439
Tung Wah
Eastern-General. 222
5,110
2,715
4,778
2,185
Maternity. 14
1,120
1,154
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
12
33. Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital.-Situated in Kennedy Town and adjacent to the Government Infectious Diseases Hospital is the Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital, an 'institution containing 30 beds where 60 patients could be accommodated at a pinch. The treatment here was left almost entirely to the herbalists.
During the year, there were no cases of Smallpox treated.
TREATMENT OF OPIUM ADDICTS.
34. At the Government Civil Hospital and Tung Wah Eastern Hospital six and twelve beds (respectively) are reserved for the treatment of opium addicts, the Government being responsible for the expenses incurred. 41 cases were treated at the former institution and 404 at the latter, making a total of 445 cases.
Chapter V.
HOUSING.
In recent years some evidence has been shown amongst the artizan class of the Colony of a quickening social consciousness and the resultant desire to avail themselves of improved housing accommodation wherever such is made available. The unskilled labouring classes, however, are still found densely packed in tenement houses deficient in light and air. This class of labour has to find its habitat as close as possible to the scene of its labour, with the result that the western part of the City of Victoria, which houses the native business quarter and closely adjoins the portion of the harbour handling the traffic from the West River and Chinese Coast Ports, is seriously overcrowded.
2. These conditions which were being slowly mitigated by the rebuilding of properties which from time to time were con- denined for reasons of structural defects are now being more rapidly appeased by the operation of the Buildings Ordinance, 1935, which came into force on the 1st January, 1936. Over- crowding amongst the labouring class is still however prevalent.
3. The housing of the Colony is all privately owned, and control is maintained by the operation of the Buildings Ordin- ance, 1935, the provisions of which also mould the character of the housing. Generally the houses are built back to back in rows and are separated by a scavenging lane. These houses vary in height from two to four storeys according to the width of the street on to which they front, whilst the average height per storey is twelve feet, a minimum being controlled by the Ordinance of 1903. The Buildings Ordinance, 1935, permits a-
1931-1939
13
255
minimum of eleven feet. The houses built prior to the 1903 Ordinance covering the greatest part of the native quarter are of depths varying from forty feet to eighty feet, with often less than 100 square feet of open space provided within the curtilage of the lot. After the passing of the Public Health and Build- ings Ordinance, No. 1 of 1903, the amount of open space per house to be allowed within the boundaries of each lot is governed, and fails under two urain heads, viz:-(a) houses built on land bought prior to the passing of the Ordinance in 1903, where the open space must not be less than one-fourth of the area of the site and (b) houses built on land bought sub- sequently where the urinimum is raised to one-third of the arca. On plan the usual frontage of each house is fifteen feet (a dimension owing its origin more to early structural limitation than to economics) and a depth of about thirty-five feet, whilst each storey consists of one large "room" with a native type kitchen in the rear. This room is then subdivided by thin partitions seven feet high into three cubicles, each of which may accommodate a family. A latrine is built at ground floor level, one to each house irrespective of the number of occupants, and is conmmon to all.
·
4. Structurally the earlier houses are of blue bricks (of native manufacture having a very low structural value) and timber, (usually China fir which is extremely susceptible to the ravages of white ants). Lately, however, reinforced concrete and better quality bricks have been used.
5. In the City of Victoria the major defect of housing is due to lack of town planning, but since a large proportion of the City was erected in the early days of the Colony, when town planning was little practised even in Europe, the conditions Lo-day are a heritage, the elimination of which involves immense sums of money, and probably considerable opposition if al- tempted on a large scale.
6. Generally, many of the old houses suffer from defects which are attributable to the Ordinance of that time. Passed in 1903 the measure was framed to meet existing conditions, both structurally and hygienically as they were then understood and practised. But, viewed in the light of modern practice and knowledge, many of its provisions are found to be lax.
into
7. The Buildings Ordinance, No. 18 of 1935, - came operation on the 1st January, 1986. This ordinance provides for improvement in the conditions of light and ventilation of those old properties which under the previous Ordinances were not called upon to conform to modern requirements. A higher standard generally is being called for and building owners are themselves slowly realising the advantages to be gained from modern constructional methods allied to proper hygienic prin- ciples.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
14
8. On May 10th, 1935, a Commission was appointed to enquire into the housing difficulties in Victoria and Kowloon, with special reference to overcrowding and its effect on tuber- culosis, and to suggest stops which should be taken to remedy existing conditions.
9. The Commission has had difficulty in arranging meetings owing to the absence of members from the Colony and changes in Government personnel and the main work so far has been confined to the compiling of statistics obtained from preliminary housing surveys and an exchange of views with Shanghai,
Chapter VI.
PRODUCTION.
Hong Kong is the port for South China, and the greater part of the large volume of goods that pass through it is in transit between South China and other parts of the world, including North and Middle China. The Colony itself produces comparatively little, though the shipbuilding, cement, rope, tin and sugar refining, rubber shoe and cotton knitting industries are not unimportant. Neither agriculture nor mining is carried on to any great extent, though the former is practised throughout the New Territories. Rice and vegetables are grown, and there is considerable poultry farming, but in insufficient quantities to supply the needs of the urban populations of Victoria and Kowloon. The cultivation is in the hands of the Chinese villagers. Sea fishing is an important industry, but here again local supplies have to be augmented by importation from outside.
2. Reports on the principal industries for the year 1936 are given below:
Refined Sugar:-The promise of better trading conditions for Sugar at the beginning of 1936 was not fulfilled and after heavy purchases were made at the rising price levels of the first few weeks, a sharp drop in values caused considerable dis- location in market conditions and some loss to holders.
The downward movement of prices continued during the greater part of the year and the snuggling into North China through the connivance of the Autonomous Council in Hopci, and several rumours of substantial reduction in China's rates of Import Duty on Sugar as counter measures, contributed to the general dullness in trading. These rumours were not fulfilled and the unexpectedly rapid and peaceful success of the Central Government's resumption of control in Kwangtung and Kwangsi leading to improved confidence in Nanking's power,
1931-1939
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257
better harvests in the Yangtze Valley giving rise to renewed optimism, an active demand for Sugar supplies arose in August, and this was maintained during the greater part of the rest of the year.
The devaluation of the Guilder in September might have had considerable effect on Eastern markets, but the Sugar Selling Organisation in Java, which is probably the most potent single factor in Sugar circles in the Far East, was able to exercise firm and beneficial control of the price situation, and the changed conditions caused little disruption.
At the end of 1936 a sharp upward trend in prices set in, with considerable activity in all the world markets. The strength of the upward movement has brought out many specu- lators buit in general the recovery is probably genuine and healthy, and it is perhaps not too much to hope that at last Sugar may share in the inprovement noted in other commodity markets.
Cement:-Due to the general depression, and the Govern- ment's retrenchment policy, fewer building schemes of import- ance have been undertaken during the year, So that the consumption of Cement shows a reduction on last year's figures.
Japanese Importers continue to do most of the trade, but large supplies of Haiphong Cement are now coming into the Colony and are being retailed at prices below those of Japanese.
Government Statistics for the year 1936 give the Imports of Cement into Hong Kong for that year as follows:-
1,034,784 piculs valued at $ 742,526
From Japan
Indo-China Other Countries...
342,505
""
""
10,236
""
"}
Total
1,387,425
245,598
51,220
""
"}
$1,039,342
Preserved Ginger:-Local prices fluctuated during the year from $12.50 to $19 per picul for cargo ginger and from $19 to $26 for stem ginger. Better trade conditions in the United Kingdom and other buying markets led to increased demand for preserved ginger during 1936, the values of quantities exported being as follows:-
To United Kingdom
1936.
$1,107,427
1935. $ 783,193
Australia
""
346,913
332,671
Holland
202,578
191,454
U. S. A.
""
142,717
138,131
Other Countries
""
301,331
430,329
Total
$2,100,966
$1,875,778
258
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
16
Knitted Goods: -Better trading conditions were experienced by the local knitting factories in 1936. Although it is no longer possible to compete in the China market owing to heavy import duties, increased quantities of singlets were sold to Malaya and the Netherlands East Indies. These are manufactured from fine count yarns imported from Lancashire. Increased quantities of singlets were also exported to British Empire markets under Imperial Preference, Colonies in West Africa taking considerably more than in the previous year. These singlets at present, are manufactured from North China and Japanese yarn but the possibility of using yarn manufactured in the British Empire is now under consideration. Increased quantities of hosiery were also shipped in 1936 to India, Malaya, British West Indies, Egypt and South America.
The total value of exports of singlets in 1936 was $3,186,277 and that of hosiery $729,543.
Flashlight Torches & Batteries:-Although exports of flash- light torches to the United Kingdom were less in 1936 than in previous years owing to the Customs ruling that to qualify for Preference nothing but Empire made brass must be used in local factories, quantities sold to other markets were considerably in excess of the previous year's totals. The principal markets and the quantities taken were as follows:-India ($595,089), Burna ($220,918), Netherlands East Indies ($428,282), Malaya ($323,302), Siam ($173,224), Australia ($169,282), West Africa ($153,091), South Africa ($103,613), British West Indies ($42,362), Other Countries ($721,361), Total ($2,930,424).
Exports of batteries were also well maintained, the principal purchasing countries and values of quantities taken being as follows:-Netherlands East Indies ($327,453), Malaya ($180,888), India ($169,272), Ceylon ($154,332), Siam ($46,394), Other Countries ($400,040), Total ($1,279,379).
Rubber Shoes:-The discussions with the United Kingdom Customs authorities regarding the conditions to be complied with in respect of rubber and canvas shoes imported under Imperial Preference into the United Kingdom having been satis- factorily concluded, shipments of these shoes to the United Kingdom increased during 1936, the total value being $2,357,451. The British West Indies also purchased increased quantities totalling $1,071,932, the total value of exports to all countries being $4,126,413.
Lard:-The total quantity of lard exported during 1936 amounted to 70,688 piculs valued at $2,322,458 of which 62,424 picus valued at $2,071,762 was taken by the United Kingdom. The year closed with unfavourable prospects for business in 1937 as the United Kingdom Customs have ruled that in order to obtain remission of duty as Empire produce on importation into the United Kingdom, lard refined in the Hong Kong must be produced from pigs bred in the Empire. Most of the lard manu- factured in Hong Kong is from the fat of pigs which are imported into Hong Kong from China and Formosa.
1931-1939
17
259
Shipbuilding :-During the year the Colony's shipyards had under construction three passenger ships, two cargo ships, one police patrol cruiser, one Admiralty tug, one hopper dredger, one cruising yacht, one dumb barge and seven launches, a total of seventeen vessels of 3,900 tons gross.
Chapter VII.
COMMERCE.
The collection and compilation. of Trade statistics was resumed in 1930 and for the first time since comparative figures have been available the visible trade of the Colony in 1936 showed signs of improvement, particularly in the final quarter of the year when substantial increases were recorded both of imports and exports, as compared with the corresponding period of the preceding year.
2. The combined, values of imports and exports of mer chandise in 1936 increased by 26.3% as compared with 1935, and 8.4% as compared with 1934, in terins of local currency. (De- tails are given in Table I).
3. Imports of merchandise totalled $452.4 (£28.5) millions in 1936 as compared with $365.0 (£35.3) millions in 1935, and $415.9 (£31.7) inillions in 1934; whilst exports totalled $350.9 (€22.1) millions in 1936, as compared with $271.0 (£26.1) millions in 1935, and $325.1 (£24.8) millions in 1934.
4. In terms of local currency imports of merchandise in 1936 increased by 23.9%, as compared with 1935, and 8.8% as compared with 1934; whilst exports increased by 29.5% in 1936 as compared with 1935, and 7.9% as compared with 1934.
5. In terms of sterling values imports of merchandise de- creased by 19.3% in 1936 as compared with 1935, and 10.1% as compared with 1934; whilst exports decreased by 15.3% in 1936 as compared with 1935, and 10.9% as compared with 1934. (It should be noted that the average T.T. rate of exchange on London 1s. 3.3/16d. in 1936, 1s. 11.5/16d. in 1935, and 1s. 6.3/16d. in 1934).
6. It is estimated that the quantum of the import trade in- creased by 7.8% in 1936 as compared with 1935, and 12.6% as compared with 1934, but, of necessary, the volume of the import trade cannot be calculated accurately on account of the lack of a suitable unit of quantity and the fact that many commodities imported are declared by value only.
260
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
18
-
7. The following countries increased their shares of the import trade in 1936 as compared with 1935:-Japan, Nether- lands East Indies, Siam, Germany, India and Belgium; whilst increased shares of the export trade were credited to British Malaya, Japan, Siam, U.S.A., Netherlands East Indies, Philip- pine Islands and India. (Details are given in Table II).
8. It will be seen from Table III that there were increased imports in 1936 of the following groups of commodities as com- pared with 1935:-Live animals, chemicals and drugs, Chinese inedicines, dyeing and tanning materials, foodstuffs and provi- sions, fuels, hardware, liquors, machinery, manures, metals, minerals and ores, nuts and seeds, oils and fats, paints, paper and paperware, piece goods and textiles, tobacco, vehicles, wear- ing apparel and sundries, the only groups showing a decrease being building materials and railway materials. There were increases in all groups of exports with the exception of live animals and fuels.
9. Total movements of Treasure amounted to $216.5 millions in 1936 as compared with $254.7 millions in 1935. Imports totalled $72.7 millions in 1936 as compared with $38.8 millions in 1935, and exports $143.8 millions as compared with $216.0 millions. (Details are given in Table IV).
1936
+
10. Average T.T. opening rates of exchange during the year were:-London 1/3.3/16; France 522.15/16; U.S.A. 31.7/16; Shanghai 105; India 83.5/8; Singapore 53.7/8; Japan 108.1/8; Java 48.3/4.
11. Wholesale prices in the Colony showed an increase of 32.3% in 1936 as compared with 1935 and an increase of 12.7% as compared with 1934. Increases were recorded in each of the four groups of commodities, viz., Foodstuffs, Textiles, Metals and Minerals, and Miscellaneous Articles.
1931-1939
19
Table I.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS 1924-1936.
(in £'s & $'s millions).
261
IMPORTS.
1924.
1931. 1932.
1933.
193-4.
1935. 1936.
1st Quarter ...£ 19.3
$165.4
9.0 11.9
8.5
7.1
9.0 6.3
186.9
170.7
132.8
95.8
97.8
98.2
2nd Quarter ...£ 17.1
8.7 10.2
8.5
7.1
10.7
7.4
$144.0
180.1
164.7
126.1
99.7
94.0
114.1
3rd Quarter ...£ 19.2
9.0
9.3
8.5
8.1
8.1
6.6
$161.7
182.3
142.4
122.1
106.6
79.5
106.7
4th Quarter ... 16.5 $136.6
11.8
9.6
8.4
9.4
1.5
8.2
188.4
146.2
119.9
113.8
94.2
133.4
Total ......£ 72.1 $607.7
38.5 41.0 33.9 737.7 624.0 500.9 415.9 365.0 452.4
31.7 35.8 28.5
EXPORTS.
1921.
1931. 1932. 1933. 1934. 1935. 1936.
1st Quarter ... 18.3 $156.8
6.8
8.8
6.8
5.8 6.9
1.9
140.1
127.0
105.3
77.5
74.8
76.0
2nd Quarter ...€ 15.2
6.4
7.1
7.2
5.7
7.7
5.6
$128.0
132.5
115.3
106.2
79.6
67.9
87.5
3rd Quarter ... 14.6
6.5
7.2
6.6
6.1
5.8
5.1
$122.9
130.6
110.0
95.5
80.5
56.6
81.5
4th Quarter...£ 15.5
...£15.5
9.2
7.9
6.8
7.2
5.7
6.5
$128.3
138.7
119.6
96.1
87.5 71.7
105.9
Total £ 63.6
28.9 31.0 27.4 24.8 26.1 22.1 $536.0 541.9 471.9 403.1 325.1 271.0 350.9
NOTE:-Average rate of exchange 1924=2s. 44d.
1981=1s. 03d.
1982=1x. 8d.
19331s. 4d.
19341s. 6d.
1935=1s. 11d.
1936-18. 3.
262
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
20
Table II.
DISTRIBUTION OF IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF MERCHANDISE
BY COUNTRIES ($'000's omitted).
A.-IMPORTS.
1935.
1936.
$
%
$5
%
China
123,314
33.8 152,041 33.6
Japan
43,132
11.8 58,039 12.8
N. E. Indies
22,576
6.2
38,334
8.5
United Kingdom
23,897
6.5
29,008
6.4
U. S. A.
26,462
7.3
32,181
7.1
French Indo-China
32,573
8.9
25,760
5.7
Siam
20,535
5.6
29,780
6.6
Germany
16,346
4.5
23,618
5.2
British Malaya
6,215
1.7
7,352
1.6
India
4,440
1.2
5,755
1.3
Australia
8,419
2.3
9,114
2.0
Belgium
4,789
1.3
6,599
1.5
All Other Countries
32,293
8.9
34,769
7.7
Summary.
United Kingdom
23,897
6.5
29,008
6.4
British Dominions and
Possessions
26,983
7.4
29,911
6.6
China
123,314 33.8
152,041
33.6
All Other Countries
190,796 52.3
241,390 53.4
Total British Empire
50,880 13.9
58,919 13.0
Total Foreign
314,110 86.1 393.431 87.0
Grand Total
36-1,990 100.0 152,350 100.0
1931-1939
21
Table II,-Continued.
B.-EXPORTS.
263
1935.
1936.
$
%
$
%
China
132,804
49.0
149,739
42.7
British Malaya
17,006
6.3
25,767 7.3
French Indo-China
14,459
5.3
17,870
5.0
Japan
11,497
4.2
17,955
5.1
Macao
13,294 4.9
13,001
3.7
Siam
10,441.
3.9
14,506
4.1
U. S. A.
21,248
7.8
28,436
8.1
Kwong Chow Wan
9,333
3.4
10,586
3.0
N. E. Indies
6,193
2.3
9,722
2.8
Philippines
5,012
1.8
11,500
3.3
India
3,416
.1.3
4,819
1.4
All Other Countries.
26,330 9.8
47,464
13.5
Summary.
United Kingdom
7,553
2.8
13,282
3.8
British Dominions and
Possessions
30,107 11.1
48,295 13.7
China
132,804
49.0
149,739 42.7
All Other Countries
100,569
37.1
139,549 39.8
Total British Empire
Total Foreign
Grand Totul
37,660 13.9 61,577 17.5
233,373 86.1 289,288 82.5
271,033 100.0 350,865 100.0
264
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
22
Table III.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS BY MAIN GROUPS OF COMMODITIES
($'000's omitted).
Imports.
Exports.
1935.
1936.
1935.
1936.
Animais, Live
7,929
8,042
168
134
Building Materials
6,730
6,635
3,502
3,513
Chemicals & Drugs
4,521
5,409
2,894
3,411
Chinese Medicines
13,018
20,265
10,318
13,761
Dyeing Materials
4,261
4,736
3,553
3,636
Foodstuffs
108,025 123,411 82,187
91,912
Fuels
10,629 11,033
781
396
Hardware
2,651 3,937 2,041
3,072
Liquors
2,922
3,379
761
894
Machinery
6,740
9,060
7,392
9,947
Manures
3,435
8,886
4,882
10,221
Metals
32,784
41,032
28,711
36,973
Minerals & Ores
2,190
2,812
2,829
8,485
Nuts and Seeds
5,141
6,566
3,436
4,047
Oils and Fats
33,972
39,994
25,657
33,090
Paints
1,451
1,750 1,196
1,430
Paper and Paperware
8,871
13,417
5,644
7,894
Piece Goods
52,670
67,673
34,109
40,069
Railway Materials
563
84
1,061
1,155
Tobacco
5,863
5,891
3,236
4,321
Treasure
Vehicles
Wearing Apparel
Sundries
38,785 72,728 215,959
3,938 6,584
3,611 4,123 6.223
43,075 57,631 37,392 31.913
143,815
3,061
7.970
12.591
Total
403,774 525,079 486,993 194,680
1931-1939
23
Table IV.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF TREASURE.
Imports.
265
Exports.
1936.
1937.
1936.
1937.
$
$
$
$
Bank Noles
Copper Cents
Gold Bars
Gold Coins
22,545,864
80,111,618 24,756,807
18,178,291
193,279
421,037
234 1,294,773
3,656,465 11.112,926
33,217,868
10,979,127
331,109
760,049 2,567,141
Gold Leaf
5,849
7,586
356,132
551,304
277,420
22,446
Silver Bars
II.K. Silver Dollars
Chinese Silver Dollars
Other Silver Dollars
Silver Sub. Coin
740,496 135,339,484 17,201,873 87,519,955
45,288 6,448,118
25,876
5,985,968
176
49,176,000
403,000
45,241,301 152,676,901
2,975,093 262,617,500
15,345,501 5,129,465
Total
72,728,408 386,448,955 143,815,433 395,226,524
Table Y.
WHOLESALE PRICE CHANGES.
(1922-100)
Groups.
1932. 1933. 1934. 1935. 1936. 1937.
Foodstuffs
Textiles
126.5 113.4
94.3
85.4 113.3 136.2
125.2
97.0
85.9
74.2
99.4
117.7
Metals
128.1
107.8
97.4
79.8
107.2
146.1
Miscellaneous
109.7
95.7
88.5
72.3
92.5
124.4
Average
122.4 103.5
91.5
77.9
103.1
131.1
266
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
- 24
Chapter VIII.
WAGES AND THE COST OF LIVING.
The depression in the smaller industries, which pay their employees on a piece-work basis or on a complicated system of a bonus on the yearly profits, appeared to have been improved owing to the beneficial effect of the falling exchange rate throughout the year. The improvement of conditions in the manufacturies of electric torches and dry batteries, confectionery, cork and felt hats, rubber shoes and rubber knee-boots reported in 1935 has been maintained.
Other industries which have increased included the paper dyeing industry, many concerns having transferred to Hong Kong from South China due to the local facilities for obtaining raw materials; and the silk cloth printing, hurricane lamp manufac- turies and shoe making by machinery concerns.
Within the last few months there has been a marked increase in the shirt and pyjama making industry due to the large amount of artificial silk which is being imported into the Colony.
Signs of the renewal of activity in the knitting and weaving factories are apparent. The employment of female labour in these industries as well as in the torch, battery and rubber shoe factories has increased.
There is still a good deal of unemployment amongst the unskilled male workers, but the heavy industries, where skilled labour is demanded, have had a fairly good year.
Most of the factories are working full time. The working conditions are still improving and the majority of factories are now operating in fire-resisting buildings, having removed from their old tenements. There has been no trouble over wage dis- putes and dismissals.
The number of factories has increased. Sixty-four have closed down, but ninety-nine fresh factories were registered. The total number of registered workshops and factories in opera- tion is now 541.
The cost of living as reflected in the commodities rice, fish, meat, vegetables, oil, tea, firewood, clothes and shoes appears to have remained much the same for the beginning of the year as in 1935, but an upward trend is noticeable towards the end of the year.
On two labour-food index figures taken for 1928-1933, the approximate percentage for 1936 rises from 75.3 in both cases in January 1936 to 80.9 and 91.8 respectively for December 1936.
1931-1939
25
AVERAGE Rates of Wages for Labour.
267
Building Trade:-
Locomotive Drivers
$1.50 to $2.00 per day.
Carpenters
0.80
1.15 ""
""
}}
Bricklayers
0.80
1.15
"
Painters
0.90
1.15
}}
Plasterers (including Shanghai
Plasterers)
0.90
1.60 ""
""
Scaffolders
0.90
1.20 "}
""
}"
Labourers (male)
0.45
0.50 "}
""
} }
""
(female)
0.30
0.40
""
"}
Working hours 9 per day. Time and a half paid for over- time. Free temporary sleeping quarters provided on the build- ing site and communal messing at cheap rates.
Shipbuilding & Engineering:
Electricians
Coppersmiths
Fitters
Sawmillers
Boilermakers
Sailmakers
Blacksmiths
Turners
Patternmakers
Labourers
$1.00 to $1.40 per day.
"}
1.00
1.60
"}
??
}}
0.80
1.55
"
21
0.70
1.25 ""
0.95
1.20
1.00
1.40
""
""
0.75
1.20 ""
11
17
1.00
1.40 ""
1,00
1.40 }}
""
,,
0.70
1.00
17
Transport Workers:-
Tram Drivers
Overtime-time and a half. Night work-double time.
$36.00 to $45.00 per month.
Conductors
30.00
39.00
""
19
Bus Drivers
(Chinese Bus Co.)
30.00
50.00
Conductors
(Chinese Bus Co.)
18.00
20.00
C
""
11
Drivers
(European Bus Co.). 55.00
Conductors
(European Bus Co.).
22.50,,
35.00
Working hours 9 per day. Free Uniform. Bonus at end
of year 3 day's pay. (Chinese Bus Co.).
9 hours a day. Free Uniform. One month's salary bonus. (European Bus Co.).
268
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
26
Railway Workers (Government).-
Station Masters
$1,100 to $1,800 per annum.
Telephone Operators
Booking Clerks
Guards
750
1,400
21
600
""
1,000
""
"
600 1,000
""
Signalmen
1,000
""
Engine Drivers
540
"
1,000
""
""
Ticket Collectors
420
600
""
Firemen
330
480 ""
Pointsmen
· 192
240
Female Workers in Factories: -
Cigarette making
$0.30 to $0.75 per day.
Knitting factories
0.20
""
0.45 ;,
""
Perfumery
0.20
0.40
....
""
""
Confectionery
0.15
0.25
""
""
Electric hand torch factories
0.20
0.30
"1
Electric hand torch battery
factories
0.15
0.35,,
""
Working hours from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. One hour off at mid- day. Overtime from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at day rates.
Domestic Servants:-
Employed by Chinese ...... $ 7.00 to $20.00 per month. Employed by Europeans...... 15.00 40.00
Gardeners
15.00
30.00
""
""
With free lodging, and, with Chinese employers, generally free board.
NOTE: The rates of pay of Government employees are much the same as those of a similar category in private employ.
Transport coolies
$0.60 to $0.70 per day.
Coal coolies
0.80
Ricksha coolies
0.60
0.70
"}
11
1931-1939
27
Chapter IX.
269
EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS.
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS.
These are either schools where the medium of instruction is English or mostly English or schools where the medium of instruction is Chinese. The former, seventeen in number, are known as "English" schools, the latter of which there are three as "vernacular" schools.
2. Of the four English schools, classed as "secondary" schools in the Tabie below, two are Anglo-Chinese schools for boys and one for girls. These three schools have primary departments. The fourth school, the Central British School which is a mixed school, has no primary department. Of the eleven English schools, classed as "primary" schools in the Table, three are mixed schools preparing for the Central British School. In this group are also four "District" schools, includ- ing one for Indian boys and four "Lower Grade" schools, three of which are in rural districts. In those English schools which are attended by Chinese the study of English and of Chinese is carried on side by side, the pari passu system requiring that promotion shall depend on proficiency in both languages.
3. Of the two Government Schools classed as "vocational" one is the Junior Technical School which was opened in February, 1933, the other is the Evening Institute which is attended by persons desirous of receiving instruction for the most part germane to their day time occupations.
4. Of the three Government vernacular schools one has a seven years' course and includes a Normal department. There is also a normal school for women teachers and a normal school on the mainland which aims at providing vernacular teachers for rural schools.
GRANT-IN-AID AND SUBSIDIZED SCHOOLS.
5. There are fifteen Grant-in-Aid English Schools, and four Grant-in-Aid Vernacular Schools. Of the former, seven are schools for boys and eight are for girls.
6. One English school for girls has a primary department only, and one an infant department only. The remaining schools classed in the table below as "secondary" schools have primary departments as well as the upper classes.
7. Munsang College, Kowloon City, received a grant of $6,000.
270
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
28
S. The vernacular Grant-in-Aid Schools are schools for girls and are classed in the Table as "secondary" schools.
9. The 294 subsidized schools are all vernacular schools.
UNAIDED SCHOOLS.
10. In 1936 there were 661 unaided vernacular schools with 40,323 children and 128 unaided English schools with 5,963 children.
Table showing number of schools and scholars for the year 1936.
GRANT-IN-AID
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS.
AND SUBSIDIZED
SCHOOLS.
UNAIDED SCHOOLS.
CLASS OF INSTITUTIONS.
No. of Institu-
tions.
No. of
No. of
On
On
On
Institu-
Institu-
Roll.
Roll.
Roll.
tions.
tions.
ENGLISH
Secondary,
4 2,238
14
6,785
6
893
Primary,
11
1,843
2
243
115
4,695
Vocational,
2
907
7
375
Total,
17
4,988
16
7,028
128
5,963
VERNACULAR :-
Secondary,
1
247
4
964
Primary,
294
19,955
660
40,022
Vocational,
2
211
1
301
Total,
3
458
298 20,919
661 40,323
1,123
79,679
Total No. of Institutions
Total on Roll
N.B.-Kindergarten boys attending Grant-in-Aid Schools for girls are
not shown separately.
THE UNIVERSITY.
11. The University of Hong Kong was incorporated under a local University Ordinance, 1911, and opened in 1912. It is a residential University and open to students of both sexes.
1931-1939
29
271
12. The University hostels are three in number-Lugard Hall, Eliot Hall and May Hall. There are also three recognized hostels for men, St. John's Hall, Morrison Hail and Ricci Hall, and one-St. Stephen's Hall for women. No university hostel at present exists for women students.
13. The late Sir Hormusjee Mody bore the entire expense of the erection of the main building. Additions have been inade through the liberality of benefactors of varied nationality and domicile. The latest additions to the buildings are a School of Chinese Studies, the cost of which was borne by Mr. Tang Chi Ngong a local Chinese anerchant and banker, and Chinese Library named after the late Mr. Fung Ping Shan who provided a sum of $100,000 for the building and $50,000 as an endow- ment fund for its maintenance; also a School of Surgery and a new Engineering Laboratory named after H.E. the Governor, Sir William Peei. During 1936 a first class gymnasium was added to the University buildings. The entire cost of this build- ing and its equipment was the generous gift of Mr. Eu Tong Sen, one of the leading Chinese in the Colony.
14. The income of the University for 1936 amounted to $891,714 of which $369,260 was derived from endowments and $350,000 from Government. Messrs. John Swire & Sons, Ltd., gave £40,000 to the original endowment fund and subsequently $100,000 for engineering equipment. The Rockfeller Institute has endowed the University with three chairs in surgery, medicine and obstetrics, the endowment being in each $250,000. The annual expenditure in 1936 amounted to about $849,663.
case
15. The University includes the three faculties of Medicine, Engineering and Arts. Admission to all faculties is conditional upon passing the matriculation examination of the University or some examination recognized as equivalent thereto.
16. The Faculty of Medicine provides a six year course of study in the usual pre-medical and medical sciences, leading to the degree of M.B. and B.S. The degrees of M.D. and M.S. are awarded on examinations but are subject to the proviso that every candidate for the degrees shall produce evidence of special post-graduate experience in the subject which he presents. The degrees above mentioned are recognized by the General Medical Council for registration in Great Britain.
17. The Faculty of Engineering provides a four years course in practical and theoretical engineering, leading to the degree of B.Sc., (Eng.) Fourth year students specialize in civil, mechanical or electrical engineering. The degree for post- graduate work is that of M.Sc., (Eng.).
18. The Faculty of Arts includes departments of pure aris and science, social science, commerce, a department of Chinese studies and a departinent for training teachers. The course is in all cases one of four years and leads to the degree of B.A The degree for post-graduate work is that of M.A.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
30.
19. With a view to securing the maintenance of the desired standard-which is in all three faculties that of a British University degree-external examiners are, in all faculties associated with the internal examiners in all annual final examinations. In the Faculty of Engineering, but not in other faculties, degrees with honours are granted, the standard being assessed by special examiners chosen from amongst the external examiners in the University of London.
20. The degree of LL.D. is granted honoris causa.
CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS.
21. The following are the best known Charitable Institutions.
French Convent Orphanage.
Italian Convent Orphanage. Maryknoll Convent, Kowloon.
St. Louis Industrial School.
Po Leung Kuk-Chinese.
Victoria Home and Orphanage.
Society of Precious Blood Hospital.
Industrial Home for the Blind, Pokfulam.
Home for Aged Poor, Kowloon.
La Calvaire Home for Aged Poor, Happy Valley.
Eyre Refuge.
Salvation Army Home.
Industrial School, Aberdeen.
RECREATION and Art.
22. Most of the schools contrive to hold annual sports either on their own grounds or on grounds generously lent by local cricket and football clubs. Lawn tennis, football, swim- ming, volley ball and basket ball continue to increase in popularity. Cricket is played at a few schools. Physical train- ing is given by qualified instructors. Art is taught in the Government British schools by trained art mistresses.
Chapter X.
COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT.
The external communications of Hong Kong are excellent both by sea and by telegraph, cable and radio. As regards the former, the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co., the
1931-1939
31
273
Nippon Yusen Kaisha, the Blue Funnel Line, the Messageries Maritimes, and several other British and foreign companies maintain regular passenger and freight services between Hong Kong and Europe. The trans-Pacific communications are well served by the Canadian Pacific Steamship Ltd., the Dollar Line, the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and other steamship lines. To Australia three steamship companies, the Eastern and Aus- tralian, Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and Australian and Oriental maintain regular passenger and freight services. In addition there are direct sailings to Africa, South America, and to New York. There is frequent and regular communication between Hong Kong and other Far Eastern ports in India, Java, Straits Settlements, Formosa, Indo-China, Japan and the China coast. Local steamship communication is by river steamer from Hong Kong to Canton and the West River ports with several sailings daily. In addition there is a vast traffic between Hong Kong and the adjacent provinces of China by junk and sainpan.
2. The total shipping entering and clearing Ports in the Colony during the year 1936 amounted to 83,571 vessels of 41,731,016 tons which, compared with the figures for 1935 shows a decrease of 11,084 vessels and 1,742,963 tons. Of the above, 40,626 vessels of 40,063,663 tons were engaged in Foreign Trade as compared with 45,553 vessels of 41,487,477 tons in 1935. There was a decrease in British Ocean-going shipping of 476 vessels and 567,247 tous. Foreign Ocean-Going vessels show a decrease of 438 vessels and 169,658 tons. British River Steamers show a decrease of 1,157 vessels and 772,460 tons. Foreign River Steamers show an increase of 508 vessels and 268,521 tons. In Steamships not exceeding 60 tons employed in Foreign Trade there was a decrease of 614 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 16,393 tons. Junks in Foreign Trade show a decrease of 2,750 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 166,577 tons. In Local Trade (i.c., between places within the waters of the Colony), there was a decrease in Steam launches of 1,859 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 92.759 tons. Junks in Local Trade show a decrease of 4,298 vessels, with a decrease in tonnage of 225,390 tons.
+
3. The Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company (British) by means of three cables to Singapore, one direct and one each via Labuan and Cape St. James respectively, provides good connections with Europe via India, with Austra- lasia, and with the other British Colonies and Possessions. By their cable to Manila connection is made with the direct Ameri- can cable, thence to San Francisco. Two cables to Shanghai, belonging respectively to the Eastern Extension and to the Great Northern (Danish) Companies, via Foochow and Amoy respec- tively, give a good connection with Shanghai, North China, Japan and Russia; the system of the Great Northern Telegraphı Company gives a good service to Europe via Asiatic Russia.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
32
4. The Government operates commercial radio services with direct communication to the Chinese stations Shanghai, Foochow, Amoy, Swatow, Canton, Yunnanfu, Hoihow, to Formosa, French Indo-China, Siam, Philippines, Dutch East Indies, British North Borneo, via Manila to Europe, America, etc. and via Malabar to Australasia, Europe etc.
5. The revenue collected by the Radio Office during the year from radio telegrams amounted to $676,546, an increase of $75,710 on the amount collected in 1935. Advices of vessels signalled at the Lighthouses yielded $1,517. The total Revenue from the telegraph service aniounted to $678,063. Ship Station Licences yielded $1,638, Amateur Transmission Station Licences $300, Broadcast Receiving Licences $66,756, Dealers' Licences $2,675 and Examination Fee for Operators' Certificates of Proficiency $975, Limited Licences $450.
6. The number of paid radio-telegrains forwarded during the year was 167,883 consisting of 1,630,029 words against 202,196 consisting of 1,829,519 words in 1935 and 194,973 were received, consisting of 2,112,835 words against 204,155 consisting of 2,225,364 words.
or
7. In addition to the paid traffic figures given above the wireless Service is responsible for the reception of time signals daily from Bordeaux, Rugby, Malabar and Nauen, for the transmission of time signals to ships in the China Sea, the reception of press messages amounting to 589 messages 382,839 words from Rugby, the collection and distribution of meteorological traffic, 5,522 messages 421,409 words having been forwarded, and 11,995 messages 561,255 words having been received, the reception and dissemination of distress, piracy and navigation messages, the transmission and reception of Govern- ment messages, etc.
8. A telephone service between Hong Kong and Canton, a distance of 110 miles, is in operation.
9. Mails.-The number of mail receptacles of Hong Kong origin despatched during the year was 41,681 as compared with 45,318 in 1935-a decrease of 3,637, the number received was 48,672 as compared with 47,759-an increase of 913.
10. Receptacles in transit, including those to and from British and Foreign Men-of-War, numbered 146,126 as against 209,157 in 1935 a decrease of 63,031.
11. Registered Articles and Parcels.-The number of regis- tered articles handled amounted to 660,866 as compared with 683,676 in 1935-a decrease of 22,810.
12. The figures for insured letters were 12,540 and 14,580 respectively a decrease of 2,040.
1931-1939
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275
13. Parcels, ordinary and insured, which were dealt with reached a total of 164,482 as against increase of 14,553.
149,929 in 149,929 in
1935-an
14. The Railway may be said to have had a satisfactory year in 1936. The estimates were framed in expectation of increased traffic revenue and lower operating expenditure. This optimism was justified by the results secured, which show that both traffic receipts and net earnings would have exceeded the amounted anticipated but for the unexpected closure of the Shuan Chun Casino on September 1st.
15. Receipts and net operating revenue were $1,245,469.16 and $454,733.00 respectively, as against $1,411,674.73 and $500,654.48 the previous year.
16. Operating expenditure was $790,736.16, compared with $911,020.25 in 1935. This year's figure is the lowest obtained since 1929, and was made possible, despite the low sterling exchange figure of the dollar, by a particularly favourable price for coal and by economy in working. The operating ratio improved from 64.53% to 63.49%.
17. The account in respect of the three 4-6-0 locomotives, purchased by the Hong Kong Government on behalf of the Kwang Tung Provincial Government, wus fully liquidated on April 30th, and these engines were handed over to the Chinese Section for operation on May 1st. Revenue was affected con- siderably by the change, foreign haulage receipts slumping from $289,641.32 to $132,482.78.
18. The track on both Sections was well maintained, and enabled the overall timing of the express trains to be reduced to 2 hours 55 minutes including an additional stop in Chinese territory.
19. The total steam train mileage run arounted to 334,674, compared with 500,887 the previous year; this includes trains hauled by British Section locomotives over the Chinese Section. Motor coach mileage was 5,621. Passenger journeys were 2,826,867, as against 2,799,352 in 1935, the advance being due to an increase of 180,487 in through carryings.
20. The most noteworthy improvement of the year was the conversion of one of the two motor coaches into a streamlined luxury parlour observation railcar named the "Taipo Belle". This car was operated as a separate unit during week-ends, and attached to the rear of ordinary local trains on other days. It has proved to be extremely popular with the public and, in consequence, the second motor coach is undergoing similar reconstruction.
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34
21. There are 377 miles of roads in the Colony, 161 miles on the Island of Hong Kong and 216 miles in Kowloon and the New Territories. Of the total mileage 293 miles are constructed in water bound macadam dressed with asphalt, 12 miles in sheet asphalt on a cement concrete foundation, 13 miles of tar macadam, 17 miles of concrete, 3 miles of granite setts and wooden blocks on a cement concrete foundation and 39 miles of earth roads.
22. The public travelling over the Colony's roads increases yearly with a corresponding growth in the number of motor buses, of which there are 84 operating on the island of Hong Kong, and 101 on the mainland. These are gradually replacing the rickshas, the number of which decreases year by year.
23. The Hong Kong Tramway Company has a fleet of 91 double deck tram cars running along the sea front of Victoria from Kennedy Town to Shaukawan.
24. Communication between the island and the mainland is maintained by a number of ferry services; the most important of which are the Star Ferry between Kowloon Point and a pier near the General Post Office, and the combined vehicular and passenger service of the Hong Kong and Yaumati Ferry Company between Jordan Road, Kowloon and Jubilee Street, Victoria.
Chapter XI.
BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS & MEASURES.
The Colony is well served by banking institutions. There are fourteen principal banks doing business in the Colony which are members of the Clearing House, and in addition several Chinese Banks and many native Hongs do some banking business. There are no banks which devote themselves specially to agricultural and co-operative banking. The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation also conducts the business of the Hong Kong Savings Bank on usual savings bank principles. The credit and repute of the Colony's financial institutions are high and it is satisfactory to know that ample encouragement and support are available to finance any possible demand.
2. The Currency of the Colony which had been hitherto based on silver and governed by the Order in Council of 2nd February, 1895, underwent some very important changes towards the end of 1935. Prior to that time it was, like that of China, on a silver basis. The unit of currency is the Hong Kong dollar, divided into 100 cents. The standard coin was the silver British dollar and the exchango value of the Hong Kong dollar, subject to rather, wide variations, from time to time. the reasons for which are discussed in the Report of the Hong Kong Currency
1931-1939
35
277
On
Commissioners, 1931, fluctuated with the price of silver. the 15th October, 1934, the Chinese Governinent departed from the strict silver standard by imposing a variable export duty on silver, but Hong Kong remained on the silver standard until November, 1935, when the Chinese Government definitely abandoned the silver standard, nationalising all silver and prohibiting export. Following that, the Hong Kong Government, on the 9th November, 1935, prohibited the export of silver, and on the 5th December, 1935, a Currency Ordinance was passed calling in silver coin from circulation, and setting up the machinery which now controls the exchange value of the Hong Kong dollar. Briefly, this consists of an Exchange Fund, with power to buy and sell foreign exchange, which has taken over the silver formerly held against their issues by the note-issuing banks, in return for certificates of indebtedness against which the Fund may hold bullion, foreign exchange or approved securities.
The legal tender currency of the Colony is now as follows:-
(a) Bank notes, the excess of which over the fiduciary issue of each bank is now backed by certificates, not by silver as formerly:-
At 31.12.36.
(i) Chartered Bank of India, Australia & China ...$ 22,756,888 (ii) Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation ...$124,863,771
(iii) Mercantile Bank of India
...$4,091,508
...
(b) Government $1 notes, of which $2,300,000 have been issued.
(c) 10 cent and 5 cent cupro-nickel coins.
(d) 1 cent copper coins.
(c) The silver dollars and .800 fine silver sub-coin (10 cent and 5 cent pieces, and a few 50 and 20 cent pieces) which have either remained in circulation in the Colony or filter back into it from the mainland of China, are still legal tender in the
Colony (sub-coin only up to an amount of $2.00).
The exchange value of the Hong Kong dollar, which had gradually risen during 1934 in confirmity with the rise in the price of silver, reached a maximum of between 2s./6d. and 2s./7d. in April/May 1935, and thereafter continued to follow silver until the prohibition of export in November, 1935. From then until the Currency Ordinance was passed in December, the rate moved between 18./4d. and 1s./6d. Since the Exchange Fund began operating in December, 1935, the rate has remained fairly steady; the highest during 1936 being 1/3 on 4th April and the lowest 1/2 on 9th September. During the last 3 months of the year exchange was very steady at 1/213 to 1/23.
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-36
3. The weights and measures in use in the Colony are defined in the Schedule to Ordinance No. 2 of 1885. They consist of the standards in use in the United Kingdom and of the following Chinese Weights and Measures:-
and
1 fan (candareen)=0.0133 ounces avoirdupois. 1 tsin (mace)=.133 ounces avoirdupois.
1 leung (tael)=1.33 ounces avoirdupois.
1 kan (catty)=1.33 pounds avoirdupois.
1 tam (picul)=133.33 pounds avoirdupois.
1 chck (foot)=143 English inches divided into 10 tsün (inches) and each tsün into ten fan or tenths.
Chapter XII.
PUBLIC WOrks.
During the year under review the operations of the Public Works Department were carried out, under a Head Office Staff, by eleven sub-departments, naunely the Accounts and Stores, Architectural, Buildings Ordinance, Crown Lands and Surveys, Drainage, Electrical, Port Development, Roads and Transport, Valuations and Resumptions, Waterworks
Waterworks Construction and Waterworks Maintenance offices.
2. The European staff comprised 150 officers and the non- European approximately 641.
3. The following is a summary of works carried out during the year:
BUILDINGS.
4. Works completed were:-Gaol at Stanley and its Staff Quarters; Trade School; Magistracy at Kowloon; Market at Tsun Wan; Latrine at Lockhart Road; Kiosk for the Hong Kong Travel Association; Improvements at the Peak School and addi- tional cells at Taipo Police Station.
5. Works under construction were:-Queen Mary Hospital and its Staff Quarters; Wanchai Market; Police Station at Ta Ku Ling and Barricades to Police Stations in the New Territories.
6. In addition to general maintenance numerous minor alterations, improvements and additions. were executed to Government Buildings during the year.
1931-1939
37
COMMUNICATIONS.
279
7. Works completed were:-King's Road from North Point House to Causeway Bay; formation of road adjoining Inland Lots Nos. 3685 and 3686 Blue Pool Road, Wong Nei Chong; widening of the entrance to Tytam Road; access road to new cemeteries area, north and east of Hanmer Hill; road between 34 and 4 miles on the Fauling-Shataukok Road and between Nam Sha Po and Gill's cutting on the Taipo Market-Pauling Road was strengthened and proved; streets in Taipo Market and Un Long were surfaced, kerbed and channelled in front of new houses; access road to new Central British School and Branch Road from access road to Shek Lai Pui Filters.
8. Works under construction were:-widening of road from Kennedy Road to the Military Hospital, Bowen Road; improve- ments to Sha Tin Pass Road; widening of road from Au Tau to Kam Tin; new 20 feet road from Kam Tin to Shek Kong; Smuggler's Pass Road; Sai Kung Road round new Flight Gap, Kai Tak and roads on Kowloon Inland Lot No. 2657.
DRAINAGE.
9. New main sewers and storm water drains to a length of 2,655 feet, open rubble-walled nullahs to a length of 485 feet, a portion of which was covered for a length of 102 feet were constructed in Hong Kong. A further length of singie nullah wall with concrete invert was built for a length of 93 feet. Open channels of varying sections were laid for a length of 547 feet. In Kowloon, New Kowloon and New Territories, new main sewers and storm water drains to a length of 370 feet were constructed. A length of 2,000 feet of 3′′ thick cement concrete was laid as inverting for an open cut.
10. Anti-Malarial work in Hong Kong was continued throughout the year at Mount Parker. The work was chiefly confined to "making good" and improvements to prevent storm damage arising in the main valley. The work extended over a length of approximately 1,800 feet. The contract which had
been in force since May 1932 was closed in December. Kowloon Tong, the work was terminated early in the year and the contract closed. No work was undertaken during the latter part of the year.
At
WATER WORKS.
11. On the maintenance side the following works were carried out:-
12. In Hong Kong the following lengths of new mains were laid to improve distribution:-3,166 feet of 4", 2,133 feet of 3" and 4,551 feet of 2". 1,103 feet of subsidiary mains were laid in back lanes.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941 38
13. The Middle Gap and Mt. Cameron Sections of the Eastern Pumping Scheme were completed and put into use in April. A distribution system from Middle Gap Service Reservoir was provided by laying 2,658 feet of 3" and 2,654 feet of 2" piping.
14. The new scheme commenced in 1935 to supply filtered water to the Stanley District was completed, except for a few minor fittings in the Pressure Filters erected at Tytam Tuk Pumping Station. The two concrete service reservoirs, one at Stanley Mound and the other near the New Gaol, were com- pleted, tested and put into use in July with unfiltered water.
15. The following lengths of piping were laid:-397 feet of 6", 8,056 feet of 5′′, 592 feet of 4′′ and 1,767 feet of 3′′.
16. A scheme to supply filtered water to the Queen Mary Hospital was completed during the year. A pipe line 8,551 feet long was laid from the existing 750-foot level service reservoir near Po Shan Road to a new service reservoir above the Hospital site. This reservoir has a capacity of 102,000 gallons and a top water level of 675 feet A.O.D. 762 feet of 4′′ and 1,050 feet of 3′′ piping were laid for the distribution system and fire service from the service reservoir to the Hospital and Quarters.
17. In Kowloon and New Kowloon the following lengths of mains were laid 2,550 feet of 12", 335 feet of 10", 544 feet of 6", 982 feet of 4′′, 832 feet of 3", 340 feet of 2′′ and 70 feet of 11". In addition 3,858 feet of subsidiary mains were laid in back lanes.
18. In the New Territories mains were aid as follows: 515 feet of 4′′ and 390 feet of subsidiary main at Taipo, 140 feet of 3′′ main at Un Long and 413 feet of 2′′ main at Tsun Wan.
19. The pathway over the spillway of the Kowloon Reservoir was demolished and replaced by a reinforced concrete decking.
20. On the construction side the following works were carried out:-
21. Two roller sluice gates, to byepass the discharge of Tyłam Tuk Catchwaters when Tytam Tuk Reservoir is full, were crected and a byepass channel to divert the above dis- charge was constructed.
22. A commencement was made with the laying of the second 24′′ diameter trunk main for the Shing Mun Valley Scheme. The pipes, which were made locally from British steel, were all delivered during the year and comprised 12,837 lineal feet of heavy section and 3,449 lineal feet of light section. The laying of 12,050 lineal feet of the heavy section was prac- tically completed during the year.
1931-1939
39.
281
23. The third section of the filters for the Shing Mun Valley Scheme was commenced. This comprises a rapid gravity plant of a daily capacity of five million gallons supplied by the Paterson Engineering Company, Limited. Delivery of the plant was made in Hong Kong during the year. A contract for the construction was let in April and by the end of the year half the work was completed.
RECLAMATIONS.
24. At North Point, a length of sea wall extending 800 feet eastwards from M. L. 431 was constructed to high water level. The sea wall at Kun Tong was extended 260 feet making a total of 1,150 feet. The dumping of refuse was carried out by the Urban Council within the area protected by the above sea wall; at the end of the year about one acre had been reclaimed by the dumped refuse.
ELECTRICAL WORKS.
25. Wireless:-A new short wave wireless transmitter, line amplifier for broadcasting, an emergency marine trans- mitter and two new dipole aerials were installed at Cape D'Aguilar. A loud speaker unit and various new aerials were erected at Victoria Peak. Kai Tak Airport W/T Service was equipped for aeronautical services on medium and short waves. A new W/T installation was fitted to No. 1 Police Launch and a new charging apparatus was supplied to Gap Rock Light- house.
26. Two ribbon type microphones and an amplifier were installed in the Broadcasting Studio and control room. Three Marconi recorder bridges were installed and various improve- ments carried out at the Radio Telegraph Office.
27. Under the hospital services a new amplifier was sup- plied to Kowloon Hospital, loud speakers and diffusion points were installed in the Tung Wah Small Pox Hospital, the Govern- ment Civil and Victoria Hospitals.
28. At the Government W/T School one full course and five refresher courses were completed. Current certificates were called in and exchanged for the new type issued under the 1936 Ordinance.
20. Light, power and telephone:-Lights, fans, lifts, tele- phones and bells in Government Buildings were maintained in good order. Extensive submarine cable repairs were carried out in Hong Kong Harbour, Kapsingmun and Island-Waglan. The cable between Tai Kok Tsui and Stonecutters was damaged beyond repair and taken out of commission.
30. Work on new electrical installations in the following places was in hand or completed:-Queen Mary Hospiteri, Gaol at Stanley, Wanchai Market, Trade School, Kowloon Magistracy,
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40
Central British School, Tsun Wan Market, Travel Association Kiosk and at the Civil Hangar, Kai Tak. Six Government Buildings were rewired. Twenty-five telephones were installed, improvements and additions were carried out in six buildings in Hong Kong, five in Kowloon and two in New Territories.
31. The laying of two subinarine cables and buried land cable work was completed.
BUILDINGS ORDINANCE OFFICE.
32. The volume of the new building works coming under the jurisdiction of the Buildings Ordinance, 1935 shewed a small increase in comparison with the figures for 1935.
33. Alterations and additions to existing buildings comprised a very large proportion of the work carried out. There was a decrease in the number of plans for new European houses but an increase in those of Chinese tenement type. Many buildings of a social character such as Churches and Schools were under construction during the year.
34. Plans were approved for the following more important works:-One block of eighteen European flats at junction of Plantation and Plunkett Roads; European house, Stanley Beach Road; Convent, Stanley; European house, Stanley; Pentecostal Church for Chinese, Castle Road; twelve Chinese houses, Hill Road; fourteen Chinese houses, Gloucester Road; eighteen Chinese houses, Stewart Road; twenty-eight Chinese houses, Tonnochy Road; New Cold Storage Building for Dairy Farm, Great George Street; ten Chinese houses, Hennessy Road; office block, 9 Queen's Road Central; office block, 10 Queen's Road Central; New Christian Church for Chinese, Tai Hang Road; school for Chinese, to accommodate one hundred and twenty boarders,. ten teachers and two hundred and thirty day scholars, Hau Pui Loong; foundations for 100 ton crane, Kowloon Dock; Chinese Roman Catholic Chapel and Quarters, Kak Hang Tsun Road; Christian Church for Chinese, Ma Tau Chung Road; block of European flats sixteen storeys high, Nathan Road; Anglican Church, Waterloo Road; block of four Chinese houses, Austin Road; Private Hospital, Kiu Kiang Street; block of ten Chinese houses, Lai Chi Kok Road; block of four European houses, Nathan Road; block of five Chinese houses, Reclamation Street; extention of Weaving Factory, Un Chau Street.
35. Buildings of importance completed were:-European house, Tai Hang Road; large school for Chinese boys, to accom- modate eighty boarders and three hundred and eighty day scholars, Third Street; large residence, Bonham Road; thirteen Chinese houses, Gloucester Road; twelve Chinese houses, Hennessy Road; ten Chinese houses, Heard Street; six Chinese houses, Lockhart Road; new residential quarters at French Convent; new banks and offices, (Marina House) 15 to 19
1931-1939
41
283
Queen's Road Central; Lower Peak Tram Station and flats, Garden Road; new Methodist Church, Hennessy Road; Central British School, off Argyle Street; extension to St. Mary's School, Austin Road; engineering workshop for China Light and Power Company, Tai Wan Road; block of four Chinese houses, Austin Road; block of six Chinese houses, Lai Chi Kok Road; block of ten Chinese houses, Lai Chi Kok Road; large Chinese residential Hotel, Nathan Road; six houses, European type flats, Nathan Road; four houses, European type flats, Peiho Street; fourteen Chinese houses, Shanghai Street; Public Dispensary, Yee Kuk Street.
36. Occupation permits for 167 Chinese tenement houses, of these eighty-eight were erected in Kowloon and seventy-nine on the Island. Occupation permits were issued for seventy-seven European type houses, of these fifty were erected in Kowloon and twenty-seven in Hong Kong.
37. The number of water flushed sanitary installations approved amounted to 2,078.
38. Twelve fires were reported, none resulting in loss of life, this immunity being traceable very largely to the protection afforded by buildings of reinforced concrete construction and to the improved form of staircase now called for.
39. Twelve collapses were reported, eight of which occurred as a result of the severe typhoon experienced in the month of August. There were three deaths and ten people were injured as the result of the typhoon collapses and eight persons were killed and seven injured when defective timbers caused the collapse of Nos. 2 to 8 Woo Sung Street. The total casualties for the year numbered twelve killed and eighteen injured.
40. Reclamation by private enterprise of the remaining area of approximately 18,000 square feet of Kowloou Marine Lot No. 97 was completed.
41. The Chinese Cemeteries in Hong Kong, Kowloon and New Kowloon were maintained in good order and provision was made for additional burial areas where required. The new area known as New Kowloon Cemetery No. 7, Customs Pass, is being developed.
Chapter XIII.
JUSTICE AND POLICE.
1.-THE COURTS OF HONG KONG.
The Supreme Court of Hong Kong consists of a Chief Justice and one or more other judges. At present there is one Puisne Judge and one other Judge for the purpose of Appeals.
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42
2. The jurisdiction of the Court is regulated by a number of Ordinances but generally it may be said that the Court exercises a Summary Jurisdiction in all actions where the claims do not exceed $1,000 and an Original Jurisdiction in all actions where the claims exceed that amount.
3. In addition to the above the Court exercises Admiralty, Probate, Divorce, Bankruptcy, Lunacy, Criminal and Appellate Jurisdiction.
4. The following is a brief summary of litigation and matters dealt with during the year 1936:-
1,758 actions were instituted in the Summary Jurisdiction and the amounts for which judgments were given totalled $207,828.40.
236 actions were instituted in the Original Jurisdiction and the amounts for which
for which judgments
judgments were given totalled $993,292.78.
One action was instituted in the Admiralty Jurisdiction.
387 grants were made, or grants of other courts sealed, in the Probate Jurisdiction.
One Petition for Divorce was filed during 1936 and Decree absolute pronounced thereon.
263 persons were indicted in the Criminal Jurisdiction of whom 196 were convicted.
15 appeals were lodged in the Appellate Jurisdiction 12 of which were disposed of during the year.
Three Criminal appeals were lodged and disposed of during the year.
5. The lower civil courts are the land courts in the Northern and Southern districts of the New Territories, with jurisdiction over land cases in those districts, and the small debts courts of the same two districts. In these courts the District Officers sit to hear land and small debts cases.
6. The lower criminal courts are the magistrates' courts, two for Hong Kong island and a small area on the mainland opposite Shaukiwan, two for Kowloon, including the whole area south of the Kowloon hills, and one each for the two districts of the New Territories, in which the District Officers are the magistrates.
1931-1939
43
285
7. The following figures show the amount of work done by the lower courts in 1936:-
Civil:-
District Officer North,
Land Court
Small Debts Court
District Officer, South,
115 cases.
100
Land Court
Criminal:
Small Debts Court
197 cases.
51 ""
Hong Kong Magistracy, two courts
... 37,044 cases.
25,249
Kowloon Magistracy, two courts
District Officer, North, one court
District Officer, South, one court
II. THE POLICE.
1,854
374
8. The Police Force of the Colony is under the control of the Inspector General of Police who is assisted by one Deputy Inspector General and twelve Superintendents. The force con- sists of four Contingents, European, Indian, and two Chinese, viz., Cantonese and Weihaiwei. The strength of the different Contingents is as follows:-
Europeans
Indians
Chinese (Cantonese)
Chinese (Weihaiwei)
266
817
740
287
In addition the Police Department controls the Anti-Piracy Guards, a force consisting of thirty-eight Russians and twenty- seven Indian Guards including three Sergeants together with four European Sergeants and hundred and twenty-two Wei-hai-wei Chinese Constables, who are included in Police Strength. The Anti- Piracy Guards are employed and paid for by the Shipping Companies for service in the China Seas.
9. Further, the department supervises 506 Indian and Chinese Watchmen who are engaged by the Police Department and paid by private individuals for protection of private property. In addition there are 433 Indian and 8 Japanese Private Watchmen Registered at the Guards Offices.
286
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
-
44
10. The waters of the Colony are policed by a fleet of ten steam launches and five motor boats which employ a staff of two hundred and fifty-five Chinese under European officers.
11. There were 9,038 serious cases of crime, in 1936, as against 6,373 in 1935, an increase of 2,665 or 41%. There was an increase of 17 cases in serious assault, 9 in assault with intent to rob, 36 in burglary, 6 in coinage offences, 97 in deportation, 11 in embezzlement, 72 in house and godown break- ing, 2,355 in larceny, 25 in larceny on ship and wharf, 1 in man- slaughter, 2 in murder, 23 in false pretences, 113 in receiving and 13 in other serious crimes. There was a decrease of 14 cases under the arms ordinance, 4 in intimidation, 3 in kidnapping, 57 in larceny from dwelling, 27 in robbery and 10 in Women and Girls Ordinance offences.
There were 37,549 minor cases during 1936 as against 33,000 in 1935, an increase of 4,549 or 13%.
III.-PRISONS.
12. There are three prisons in the Colony. Victoria Gaol in Hong Kong is the main prison for males. This prison is built on the separate system, but segregation is difficult owing to lack of space and accommodation. It contains cell accom- modation for 644 only and prisoners are often kept in association through unavoidable overcrowding. There is a
There is a branch nale prison at Lai Chi Kok near Kowloon, with accommodation for 680 prisoners. In this establishment all the prisoners sleep in association wards and only selected prisoners are sent there as the prison was not originally built as such. It was converted from a Quarantine Station in 1920, for temporary use pending the building of a new prison. The third prison is the prison for females situated near the male prison at Lai Chi Kok. A new general prison for males at Stanley, Hong Kong, is nearing completion and will be opened in 1937.
13. The total number of persons committed to prison in the year 1936 was 16,106 as compared with 16,140 in 1935. The daily average number of prisoners in the prisons in 1936 was 1,917. The highest previous average was 1,796 in 1935. Over 87% of prisoners admitted are persons born outside the Colony.
14. The health of the prisoners generally was well main- tained in the prisons.
15. The discipline in all three prisons was good.
16. Prisoners are employed at printing, bookbinding, shoemaking, tinsmithing, matmaking, tailoring, carpentering, weaving, gardening, laundry work, cleaning and minor repairs to buildings. The bulk of the Government printing and book- binding is done in Victoria Gaol.
1931-1939
45
IV.-REMAND HOMES.
287
17. During the year 277 boys underwent sentences ol detention for various crimes at the Renand Home for Juveniles (Boys), not under Prison administration and 87 girls underwent detention at the Remand Home for girls. The boys are given instruction in elementary reading and writing, as well as in rattan work, which teaches them a trade. The girls are given employment in house-work, laundry, and making and mending clothes. There are recreation facilities at both Homes.
There are also four Probationer Officers, two males and two females.
Lady visitors attend the Feinale Prison twice weekly to instruct long sentence prisoners in needle work.
18. Visiting Justices inspect and report on the prisons every fortnight.
Chapter XIV.
LEGISLATION.
Fifty-nine Ordinances were passed during the year 1936. These and also the Regulations, Rules, By-laws and other sub- sidiary legislative enactanents are published in a separate volume by the Government Printers. The fifty-nine Ordinances comprised two appropriations, four replacement, one incorpora- tion, two consolidation, thirty-seven amendment and thirteen which were new to the Colony.
2. The Appropriation Ordinance (No. 42) applied a sum not exceeding $25,582,269 to the public service for the year 1937, and Ordinance No. 28 appropriated a supplementary sum of $122,771.15 to defray the charges of the year 1935.
3. Of the four replacement Ordinances the Quarantine and Prevention of Disease Ordinance (No. 7) followed more closely than the corresponding 1935 Ordinance which it replaced the lines indicated in the Articles of the International Sanitary Convention, 1926 and of the International Sanitary Convention for Aerial Navigation, 1933. The Deportation (British Subjects) Ordinance (No. 16) regulated the deportation of undesirable British Subjects forming a counterpart to the Deportation of Aliens Ordinance (No. 39), 1935. Previous to 1935 deportation, whether of British Subjects or of aliens, was regulated by a general deportation Ordinance. The Pleasure Grounds and Bathing Places Regulation Ordinance (No. 29) replaced the Public Places Regulation Ordinance, 1870 and the Chinese Recreation Ground Ordinance, 1923 providing for a better system of control. The Ordinances and Regulations of Hong Kong
288
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
-46
(1937 edition) Ordinance (No. 51) provided for a revised edition of the Ordinances and apart from certain modifications was similar to the previous revision Ordinance.
4. Ordinance No. 41 provided for the incorporation of the Superioress in Hong Kong of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Precious Blood. The Ordinance followod the usual lines in such cases.
5. The Asylums Ordinance (No. 22) consolidated and to some extent amended the existing Asylums Ordinances. The Telecommunication Ordinance (No.
Ordinance (No. 18) consolidated amended the existing law on the subject.
and
6. The thirty-seven Ainending Ordinances covered a wide range of subjects, viz.-Police Force (No. 2) Pensions (No. 3, 27, 34 and 53), Gambling (No. 5), Coinage Offences (No. 6 and 43), Magistrates (No. 8), Bills of Exchange and Falsification of Documents Amendment (No. 9), Liquors (No. 2), Sumanary Offences (No. 13 and 35), Stonecutters Island (No. 14), Com- panies (No. 15), Buildings (No. 19 and 58), Midwives (No. 21 and 49), Female Domestic Service (No. 23), Marriage (No. 24), Protection of Women and Girls (No. 25), Estate Duty (No. 26), Factories and Workshops (No. 30), Jury (No. 31), Crown Rights (Re-entry) (No. 32), Stamp (No. 36), Public Health (Sanitation) (No. 37), Public Health (Animals and Birds) (No. 38), Public Health (Food) (No. 39), Currency (No. 44 and 57), Stamp Duties Management (No. 45), Merchant Shipping (No. 47), Defences (Firing Areas) (No. 50), Cremation (No. 52), Quaran- tine and Prevention of Disease (No. 54).
7. The Ordinances new to the Colony were the Defences (Firing Areas) Ordinance (No. 1). Crown Rents (Apportionment) (No. 4), Married Women (No. 10), Tortfeusors (No. 11), Hong Kong Government Service (Levy on Salaries) (No. 17), Counter- feit Currency (Convention) (No. 20), Cane for Birch Substitution (No. 33), Public Reclamations Validation and Clauses (No. 40), Director of Medical and Sanitary Services (Change of Name) (No. 46), Nursing and Maternity Homes Registration (No. 48), Lighting Control (No. 55), Wild Animals Protection (No. 56), and Coronation Souvenirs (No. 59).
The subject matter of Ordinances Nos..17, 33, 46, 48, 49 and 56 is self-evident from the short titles. Of the remainder No. 1 regulated practice firing so as to ensure the safety of shipping and of all persons who might be affected thereby; No. 4 provided for the payment of Crown rents by section owners of lots: Nos. 10 and 11 followed the lines of Part 1 and Part 6 respectively of the Law Reform (Married Women and Tortfeasors) Act, 1935; No. 20 gave effect to the terms of an Agreement reached at an International Convention for the sup- pression of Counterfeiting Currency, 1929; No. 40 validated certain undertakings on unleased Crown foreshores and sea beds,
1931-1939
47
289
and enacted certain provisions deemed to be incorporated in future Ordinances regulating similar undertakings; No. 55 pro- vided for the control of lighting by the Governor in Council on occasions of emergency cr by way of experiment; No. 59 prohibited the sale before the 1st June, 1937, of Coronation Souvenirs without a clear indication of their origin.
8. The subsidiary legislation covered a wide range of sub- jects including:-Supreme Court, Marriage, Evidence, Protec- tion of Women and Girls, Vagrancy, Merchant Shipping, Rating, Rope Company's Tramway. Midwives, New Territories Regula- tion, University, Holiday, Vehicle and Traffic Regulation, Asiatic Emigration, Boarding-House, Importation and Exportation, Ferries, Societies, Plants, Registration of Imports and Exports, Wild Birds, Rating (Refunds), Post Office, Public Revenue Protection, Dogs, Watchanen, Motor Spirit, Liquors, Tobacco, Opiuin, Pensions, Factories and Workshops, Police Force, Prisons, Companies, Volunteer, Mercantile Marine Assistance Fund, Miscellaneous Licences, Naval Volunteer, Adulterated Food and Drugs, Public-Health (Food, Sanitation and Animals and Birds), Buildings, Hawkers, Official Signatures Fees, Deportation of Aliens, Quarantine and Prevention of Disease, Hong Kong Government Service (Levy on Salaries), Telecom- munication, Pleasure Grounds and Bathing Places and Air Navigation.
Chapter XV.
PUBLIC FINANCE & TAXATION.
The following tables show the Revenue and Expenditure for the five years 1932 to 1936 inclusive.
Revenuc. Expenditure. Surplus. Deficit.
1932
$33,549,716 $32,050,283 $1,499,433
1933
32,099,278 31,122,715
976,563
1934
29,574,286 31,149,156
$1,574,870
1935
28,430,550
28,291,636
138,914
1936
30,042,984
29,513,520
529,464
2. The revenue for the year 1936 amounted to $30,042,984, being $3,371,139 more than estimated, and $1,612,434 more than the revenue obtained in 1935. Owing to lower exchange the revenue included an item of $161,505.48 being the profit in dollars on the realization of sterling securities.
290
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
G
48
3. Duties on imported liquor and tobacco were considerably more than estimated on account of an increase in the tariff which became effective on 1st April, 1936. Duty on locally manufactured liquor, however, showed a decrease of some $60,000; the net increase being $1,593,672. Light Dues which are on a sterling basis were greater than estimated by $118,928 owing to lower exchange. Assessed Taxes were also greater than the estimate by $169,353 as vacant tenements were fewer and a further sign of the improvement in trade conditions is shown in an increase in Stamp Duties of $236,943 and in Water Excess Supply and Meter Rents of $272,519. Two large estates were the main causes of an increase in Estate Duty of $352,890. Receipts from the Post Office also showed an increase of $268,886 due to higher rates of postage and to expansion of the air mail services.
The trade depression which shows some signs of passing was still reflected in 1936 in a reduction of $56,823 in Liquor Licence fees and of $74,970 in Pawnbrokers Licences.
Receipts from the Kowloon-Canton Railway were also $77,530 lower than estimated due to competition by river and by road and to a decline in traffic to Sham Chun.
4. The expenditure for the year 1936 amounted to $29,513,520 being $84,628 less than estimated and $1,221,884 more than the expenditure in 1935.
5. Ordinary expenditure amounted to $26,460,621, Public Works Extraordinary to $3,052,900. Personal Emoluments amounted to $11,779,501 being $321,680 in excess of the estimated figure of $11,457.821 due to lower exchange; the excess would, however, have been greater by at least $1,144,000 but for the operation of the Levy on Salaries Ordinance No. 17
of 1936.
Other Charges amounted to $3,742,653 being $361,288 less than estimated.
6. Debt.-The public debt of the Colony consists of two issues. The 4% Conversion Loan raised in 1933 amounting to $4,838,000, the Sinking Fund of which, established in 1934, amounted on 31st December, 1936, to £42,836.14.11. Secondly the 34% Dollar Loan raised in July, 1934. Bonds to the amount of $14,000,000 were issued at 99% producing $13,860,000. This loan is redeemable by drawings at par in each of the twenty-five years commencing in 1935 at the annual rate of one twenty-fifth of such issue. During each of the years 1935 and 1936 $560,000 was so redeemed thus reducing the amount outstanding to $12,880,000. Ordinance No. 11 of 1934 governs this issue and authorises the Governor to borrow up to a total of $25,000,000. The total public debt of the Colony ou 31st December, 1936, amounted to $17,718,000 equal to about 7 months revenue as things are at present.
1931-1939
49-
291
7. The Assets and Liabilities of the Colony on
on the 31st December, 1936, are shewn in the following statement:
LIABILITIES.
$
&
ASSETS.
$
DEPOSITS:-
ADVANCES:
Contractors and
Miscellaneous
74,445.46
Officers Deposits...
470,847.00
Pending Re-in-
Insurances Com-
bursements from
panies
1,633,973.92
future loan
9,206,268.63
Miscellaneous De-
posits
Building Loans
846,060.70
1,640,994.15
Imprest Account
59,420.17
House Service
Account
27,510.50 Subsidiary Coin
145,625.00
Government House
Note Issue Account.
2,300,000.00
and City Develop-
ment Fund
839,704.12 Trade Loan Out-
standing
298,800.00
Suspense Account
9,282.33
Nickel Coinage
Exchange Adjust-
Account
1,379,999.50
ment
23,301.03
Unallocated Stores,
Trade Loan Reserve.
837,313.59 (P.W.D.)
529,595.63
Praya
clamation
East Re-
111,5-17.17
Unallocated Stores,
(Railway)
123,461.94
Coal Account
5,273.69 Cash Balance:-
Note Security Fund.
2,169,608.31
Treasurer
2,596,687.54
*Joint Colonial Fund
Nickel Coinage
1,516,638.66
Security Fund .....
1,203,692.12
Fixed Deposits:--
Crown Agents Over-
draft
857.68
General ...$1,050,000.00 Insurance
Companies 1,633 973.92| Miscellaneous 130,050.75|
Total Liabilities.
8,973,895.61
2,814,024.67
Excess of Assets
over Liabilities
12,917,132.29
•
Total.........$ 21,891,027.90
⚫ Joint Colonial Fund £94,000 Os. Od.
Total....... $ 21,891,027.90
292
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
50
8. Main Heads of Taxation.-The largest item of revenue is derived from the assessment tax, the sum of $5,976,160 being collected in 1936. This represents 19.89% of the total revenue or 20.07% of the revenue exclusive of land sales. The rates vary from 15% to 17% on the annual value of property and are for police, lighting and water services, etc. Port and Harbour Dues comprising Light Dues and Buoy Dues brought in the sum of $638,284.
9. Duties on intoxicating liquors realized $2,080,765, tobacco $4,066,519, postage stamps and message fees $2,058,886. A considerable sum is also derived from the opium monopoly, land revenue, stamp duties including estate duties and other fees. Land Sales during the year realized $269,230. The receipts of the Kowloon-Canton Railway which was completed in 1910 amounted to $1,245,469.
10. Customs Tariff.-There is an import tariff on all liquor, tobacco and light ofis imported into the Colony for sale or use therein. There is no export tariff. The sale of opium is a Government Monopoly, and all importation of opium other than by the Government is prohibited. The importation of Dangerous Drugs is regulated in accordance with the terms of the Geneva Convention. Arms, ammunition,
Arms, ammunition, explosives and dangerous goods are subject to the normal Harbour and Police Regulations in regard to storage and movement. A special Foreign Registra- tion fee of 20% of the value of a motor vehicle is payable in respect of any vehicle not produced within the British Empire.
11. The duties on imported liquor range from $0.80 per gallon on beer to $1.50 on Chinese liquor and to $13 on sparkling European wines. A 50% reduction in duty is allowed in respect of brandy grown or produced within the British Empire.
12. The duties on tobacco range from $0.90 per lb. on the lowest taxed unmanufactured tobacco to $2.60 per lb. on cigars. A reduction in duty is allowed to tobacco of Empire origin and/or of Empire manufacture.
13. A duty of 30 cents per gallon is payable on all light oils imported into the Colony.
14. Excise and Stamp Duties.-A roduction in duty is allowed on beer and Chinese type spirits manufactured in the Colony..
15. Stamp Duties are imposed on various instruments and where a consideration is involved are mainly ad valorem. The following are examples of the duties charged:-Affidavits, Statu- tory Declaration, etc., $3; Bills of Exchange (inward) and Cheques, 10 cents; Bills of Lading, 15 cents when freight under $5, 40 cents when freight $5 or over; Bond 'to secure the pay- ment or repayment of money, 20 cents for every $100 or part
1931-1939
-51
293
thereof; Conveyance on sale, $1 for every $100 or part thereof; Mortgages, principal security, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Life Insurance Policy, 25 cents for every $1,000 insured; Receipts, 10 cents for amounts over $20; Transfer of Shares, 20 cents for every $100 of market value.
16. No Hut Tax or Poli Tax is imposed in the Colony.
R. A. C. NORTH,
Colonial Secretary.
294
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
52
Appendix.
LIST OF PUBLICATIONS OF GENERAL INTEREST RELATING TO
HONG KONG.
TITLE.
PRICE.
AGENTS FOR SALE.
$
Sessional Papers (Annual)
Blue Book (Annual)
Ordinances-Ball's Revised Edit- ion (In 6 Volumes) 1844-1923
Regulations of Hong Kong 1844-
1925
Ordinances and Regulations
(Annual)
Administration Reports (Annual)
Estimates (Annual)
Government Gazettes (Weekly).
Meteorological Bulletin (Month-
ly)
Hong Kong Trade and Shipping|
Returns (Monthly)
Do. (Annual)
Hansards (Annual)
Historical & Statistical Abstract of the Colony of Hong Kong 1841-1930
The Hong Kong Naturalist
(Quarterly)
2.00 Colonial Secretariat and
Government Printers.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers and Crown Agents for the Colonics, London.
Do.
90.00
30.00 Colonial Secretariat.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers and Crown Agents.
i
5.00 Colonial Secretariat.
3.00 Government Printers.
.50 Government Printers and
Crown Agents.
10.00 Government Printers.
per
annum
2.00 Government Printers and
Crown Agents. 2.00
Do.
5.00 South China Morning Post,
Hong Kong.
4.00 Colonial Secretariat.
2.00 Hong Kong University.
1931-1939
53
Appendix,-Continued.
295
TITLE.
PRICE.
AGENTS FOR SALE,
$
Hong Kong: A Guide Book .....
Hong Kong: Around and About, by S. H. Peplow & M. Barker.
1.00 Kelly & Walsh, Ltd. and Brewers' Bookshop, Hong
Kong.
5.00
Echoes of Hong Kong & Beyond
by L. Forster
Do.
Do.
1.50
Hong Kong-the Riviera of the
Orient
1.00
Do.
Travellers Map of Hong Kong...
Picturesque Hong Kong
.10
Do.
1.25 Brewers' Bookshop.
The Tourist Guide 1936
1.25
Do.
The Dollar Directory 1937
1.00
Do.
A Hong Kong Sketch Book
2.50 Kelly & Walsh, Ltd.
Hilly Hong Kong
1.00
Do.
Glimpses of Hong Kong
1.00
Do.
Sections on Hong Kong will be found in the annual "China Year Book" published by the North China Daily News and Herald Ltd., Shanghai (London Agents Simpkin Marshall Ltd.) price $20.00, the annual "Directory and Chronicle of China, Japan etc. published- by the Hong Kong Daily Press at Hong Kong, Price $12.00 and obtainable at their London office at 53, Fleet St., for £2, and "Comacrib China & Hong Kong Manual", price $35.00 (Brewers' Bookshop).
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
COLONIAL REPORTS-ANNUAL
297
No. 1867
Annual Report on the Social and Economic Progress of the People of
HONG KONG, 1937
(For Report for 1935 see No. 1775 (Price 2s. 6d.) and for Report for 1936 see No. 1825 (Price 1s. 3d.).)
Crown Copyright Reserved
LONDON
PUBLISHED BY HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE
(PRINTED IN HONG KONG)
To be purchased directly from H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE at the following addresses: York House, Kingsway, London, W.C.2; 120 George Street, Edinburgh 2; 26 York Street, Manchester 1; 1 St. Andrew's Crescent, Cardiff; 80 Chichester Street, Belfast;
or through any bookseller
1938
Price 1 34. net
298
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE COLONY
OF HONG KONG FOR THE YEAR 1937.
CHAPTER
CONTENTS
PAGE
I GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY....
1
Il GOVERNMENT
4
III POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS
5
IV PUBLIC HEALTH
7
V HOUSING
12
VI PRODUCTION
VII COMMERCE
VIII WAGES AND THE COST OF LIVING
IX EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS
14
17
24
27
X COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT
......
32
XI BANKING, Currency, WEIGHTS AND MEASURES...... 36
XII PUBLIC WORKS
XIII JUSTICE AND POLICE
37
44
XIV LEGISLATION
47
XV PUBLIC FINANCE AND TAXATION
49
APPENDIX
54
1931-1939
Chapter I.
299
GEOGRAPHY, INCLUDING CLIMATE AND HISTORY.
The Colony of Hong Kong is situated off the south-eastern coast of China between latitude 22° 9′ and 22° 17′ N. and longitude 114° 5′ and 114° 18′ E. The island is about eleven miles long and two to five miles in breadth, its circumference being about 27 miles and its area 32 square miles. It consists of an irregular ridge of lofty hills rising to a height of nearly 2,000 feet above sea level, stretching nearly east and west, with few valleys of any extent and little ground available for cultiva- tion.
2. The island of Hong Kong was ceded to Great Britain in January, 1841, the cession being confirmed by the Treaty of Nanking in August, 1842. The charter bears the date of 5th April, 1843. The Kowloon peninsula and Stonecutter's Island were ceded to Great Britain under the Convention signed at Peking in October, 1860, and under the Convention signed at Peking in July, 1898, the area shown as the New Territories including Mirs Bay and Deep Bay was leased to Great Britain by the Government of China for 99 years. The total area of the Colony including the New Territories is about 390 square miles.
3. The importance of Hong Kong has grown with the increase of China's trade with foreign countries. It is now in respect of tonnage entered and cleared one of the largest ports in the world. It is the most convenient outlet for the produce of South China as well as for the incessant flow of Chinese emigration to the Netherlands East Indies, Malaya and else- where. It is also the natural distributing centre for imports into China from abroad.
4. The Colony is not primarily a manufacturing centre, the most important of its industries being those connected directly or indirectly with shipping, such as dock and warehouse, banking and insurance undertakings. Sugar refining and cement manu- facture are also major industries, and in recent years considerable quantities of knitted goods, electric torches and batteries, and rubber shoes have been produced and exported.
5. The climate of Hong Kong is sub-tropical, the winter being normally cool and dry and the sunimer hot and humid; the seasons are marked by the prevalence of the S.W. monsoon in summer and the N.E. monsoon in winter. The temperature seldom rises above 95° F. or falls below 40° F. The average rainfall is 85.16 inches, May to September being the wettest months. In spring and summer the humidity of the atmosphere
300
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
2
is often very high, at times exceeding 95% with an average over the whole year of 79%. The typhoon season may be said to last from June to October though typhoons occasionally occur before and after this period.
6. The rainfall for 1937 was 82.50 inches. The mean tem- perature of the air was 73.3° against an average of 71.9°. The maximum gust velocity of the wind was greater than 125 m.p.h. from N.E. on September 2nd.
7. Government.-Sir Andrew Caldecott left the Colony on the 16th of April having been appointed Governor and Commander-in-Chief of Ceylon. The Hon. Mr. N. L. Smith administered the Government until the arrival on the 28th of October, of His Excellency Sir Geoffry Northcote, the new Governor.
8. Official Visits.-General Yu Han-Mow, Commander-in- Chief of the 4th Route Army and Pacification Commissioner for Kwangtung, visited the Colony and paid an official call on the Governor on the 8th of March. General Wu Teh-Chen, newly appointed Civil Governor of Kwangtung, paid an official visit to the Colony on the 12th of April.
9. Public Works.-During the year three major public enterprises were finished and declared open. The Governor, Sir Andrew Caldecott, on the 18th of January officially inspected the new prison on Stanley Peninsula, which has accommodation for 2,000 prisoners. On January the 30th the Governor unveiled a tablet at the Jubilee Reservoir, Shing Mun. The reservoir took four years to complete and has a capacity of 3,000 million galions. The dam, 285 feet high, is the highest in the British Empire. The Queen Mary Hospital, a granite-faced structure standing 500 feet above sea-level in open country on the south side of the island, was opened on April the 13th. 546 beds and the most modern equipment are provided in this hospital, which replaces the old Government Civil Hospital and the Victoria Hospital.
10. Communications.-Three new passenger air-services were inaugurated during the year. On the 6th of May the Pan- American Airways commenced a passenger service from Manila to Hong Kong. On the 1st of December this service was extended to San Francisco. On the 29th of June Eurasia Airways extended their Peiping-Canton passenger service to Hong Kong.
A telephone service between Hong Kong and Hankow was made available to the public on the 20th of March providing a further link in the telephonic communication between the Colony and the interior of China.
11. Commissions.-A Commission was appointed by the Officer Administering the Government on the 7th of October to inquire into the sinking of Chinese fishing junks off the Chilang Lighthouse on the 22nd of September.
1931-1939
3
G
301
12. The Coronation.-The Coronation of His Majesty King George VI was celebrated on the 12th of May. In the early morning the Officer Administering the Government (The Hon. Mr. N. L. Smith) held a review of the combined services at Happy Valley. The parade consisted of over 2,500 members of His Majesty's forces in the Colony, and was witnessed by approximately 100,000 people.
At noon a meeting of the Legislative Council was held at which members signed a Loyal Address which was sent to Their Majesties.
2,000 guests attended a Reception and Ball at Government House in the evening. General illuminations, a silver Dragon and a Chinese lantern procession were other features of the celebrations.
13. Sino-Japanese Hostilities.-On the 7th of July hostilities broke out between China and Japan. During the ensuing months much of the trade bound for the interior of China was diverted through Hong Kong. Wharves and godowns remained crowded until the end of the year. The first refugees from Shanghai arrived in Hong Kong on the 17th of August. At the shortest notice approximately 4,800 non-Chinese refugees were accommodated in four Refugee Centres, in hotels and in private houses. It was not considered safe for women and children to return to Shanghai until late in December.
14. The Typhoon. On the 2nd of September the most disastrous typhoon in local history passed over the Colony. At the height of the storm the barometer fell to 28.298 inches and it is estimated that a wind velocity of 167 m.p.h. was reached. Vast damage was done to property in all parts of the Colony, but by far the greatest sufferers were the Chinese fishing com- munity. Information was received of 1,361 native boats being sunk and it can only be presumed that many thousands of seafaring people were drowned. No fewer than 27 steamers of various sizes were sunk or driven ashore.
15. Decorations.-Among the Honours conferred by His Majesty during the course of the year, were:-
K.C.M.G.-H.E. Sir Andrew Caldecott, Kt., C.M.G.,
C.B.E.
O.B.E.-Mr. T. M. Hazlerigg, M.C. (Civil Division). The Coronation Decorations were awarded as follows:
C.M.G.-H.E. The Officer Administering the Govern-
ment, Mr. N. L. Smith.
Kt. Mr. V. M. Grayburn.
O.B.E. (Civil Division)-Mr. D. L. King.
M.B.E. (Military Division)-Capt. H. Westlake, D.C.M. M.B.E. (Civil Division)-Mrs. J. M. King.
302
..
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
4.
Chapter II.
GOVERNMENT.
The Government is administered under Letters Patent of 14th February, 1917, and Royal Instructions of the same and subsequent dates, by a Governor aided by an Executive Council, composed of six official and three unofficial members, and by a Legislative Council composed of nine official and eight unofficial members. Prior to 1928 the numbers of the Legislative Council members were seven and six respectively. The six official mem- bers of the Executive Council are the Senior Military Officer, the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney General, the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, the Financial Secretary, all of whom are members ex-officio, and the Director of Public Works, appointed by the Governor. The three unofficial members, one of whom is Chinese, are appointed by the Governor. The six official mem- bers of the Executive Council are also members of the Legislative Council; the other three official members of this Council, who are appointed by the Governor, are the Inspector General of Police, the Harbour Master and the Director of Medical Services. Of the unofficial members of the Legislative Council two are appointed by the Governor on the nomination respectively of the Justices, of the Peace and of the Chamber of Commerce; the Governor also appoints the remaining members three of whom are Chinese. Appointment in the case of unofficial members is for five years for the Executive and four years for the Legis- lative Council..
2. The Urban Council composed of five official and eight unofficial members has power to make by-laws under the Public Health (Food) Ordinance, the Public Health (Sanitation) Ordin- ance, the Public Health (Animals and Birds) Ordinance, the Hawkers Ordinance and Factories and Workshops Ordinance in matters appertaining to public health, subject to an overriding power in the Legislative Council..
3. There are a number of advisory boards and committees such as the Board of Education, Harbour Advisory Committee, Labour Advisory Board, etc., composed of both official and unofficial members. They are frequently consulted and are of much assistance to the Government.
4. The English Common Law forms the basis of the legal system, modified by Hong Kong Ordinances of which an edition revised to 1923 has been published. A further revised edition was commenced during 1937. The law as to civil procedure was codified by Ordinance No. 3 of 1901. The Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act, 1890 regulates the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in Admiralty cases.
5. The daily administration is carried out by the twenty- eight Government departments, all
all officers of
of which are members of the Civil Service: The most important of the
1931-1939
5
303
purely administrative departments are the Secretariat, Treasury, Secretariat for Chinese Affairs, Post Office, Harbour, the Imports and Exports, Police and Prisons Departaments. There are seven legal departments, including the Supreme Court and the Magistracies. Two departments, Medical and Sanitary, deal with public health, one, Education, with education; and one, the largest of all the Government departments, Public Works, is concerned with roads, buildings, waterworks, piers and analogous matters.
6. An important change in the system of Governinent during 1937, was the creation of the post of Financial Secretary in place of the former Colonial Treasurer, with a view to reorganizing the financial administration of the Colony generally.
financial
Chapter III.
POPULATION AND BIRTHS AND DEATHS.
The estimated civilian population at mid-year 1937, based upon the arithmetical increase in population between the Census periods of 1921 and 1931, amounted to 1,006,982. Of this figure 984,400 or ninety-eight per centum were Chinese. Excluding Chinese, who do not register, 6,444 aliens were registered in the Colony at the end of the year and it is therefore estimated that there are approximately 16,138 Non-Chinese British subjects. Forty-eight per centum of the estimated Non- Chinese population resides in Kowloon and New Kowloon, the latter being primarily a residential area. In view of the Sino- Japanese conflict which has driven a large number of refugees to Hong Kong the estimate of 1,006,982 is considered to be within the region of thirty per centum below the actual popu- lation. The population distributed into the main districts of the Colony is shown in the following table:
Island of Hong Kong.
Non-Chinese
Chinese
Kowloon Peninsula.
Non-Chinese
Chinese
New Territories.
Non-Chinese
Chinese
Non-Chinese
Maritime.
Chinese
Total Non-Chinese
Total Chinese
Totals
Estimated at mid-year 1937.
9,847 437,982
10,887
339,366
476
107,052
1,372
.. 100,000
22,582
984,400
1,006,982
304
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
6
Registration of births and deaths is compulsory and is governed by the Births and Deaths Registration Ordinance,
No. 21 of 1934.
Births.-There was a large increase in the number of births registered in the year under review. Whereas in 1936 the figure was 27,383 (530 Non-Chinese), in 1937 the number of births registered was 32,303 (692 Non-Chinese) an increase of 4,920. This is attributed to the increase in the population due to large numbers of refugees seeking shelter in Hong Kong and to the desire of Chinese residents to register births with a view to claiming British nationality. The number of late registrations after twelve months totalled 744 in 1937 and 272 in 1936. The crude, uncorrected birth-rate for 1937 was 32.1 per thousand of the mid-year population.
The following table provides means for comparing with 1936 the number of males and females born:
Males
Females
Totals
1936.
1937.
15,064
17,559
12,319
14,744
27,383 32,303
Deaths. Once again the Sino-Japanese conflict caused some increase to registration figures, but in addition a severe typhoon which struck the Colony on the 2nd of September and a serious cholera epidemic earlier in the year resulted in known deaths of 490 and 1,082 persons respectively.
In 1937 the number of deaths amounted to 34,635 as against 25,380 in 1936, to which must be added 11 and 17 respectively for deaths among the Forces of the Crown. The crude, uncorrected death-rate was estimated at 34.4 per thou- sand living, the corresponding figure for 1936 being 25.8.
Male deaths exceeded female as shown in the following table:-
1936.
1937.
Males
14,681
20,233
Females
10,683
14,392
Unknown
16
10
Totals
25,380
34,635
1931-1939
7
305
Some 11,620 Chinese and 30 Non-Chinese deaths of infants under one year of age were registered in 1937. The infant mortality rates showed some improvement over the previous year as may be seen from the following table:-
Non-Chinese
Chinese
1936.
1937.
37
46
372
376
Still-births in 1937 numbered 913 and 976 in 1936.
Chapter IV.
PUBLIC HEALTH.
It would appear from first sight that public health in the Colony received a serious set-back in 1937 when the number of deaths registered exceeded the 1936 figure by 9,255. When, however, (a) the sudden increase in the population due to refugees leaving Shanghai and other parts of China, (b) the cholera epidemic, and (c) the typhoon are taken into considera- tion the reason for the set-back will be better appreciated.
Malaria.-During the year 696 civilians died from malaria, an increase of 193 over the year 1936. The ratio of deaths from malaria to deaths from all causes remained practically the same for both years.
INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
Plague. No case of plague has been reported during the last eight years. A proportion of the daily number of rats collected was sent to the Public Mortuary for examination. Deratisation of ships was carried out by the Port Health Branch. Ninety-one deratisation and eighty-eight exemption certificates were issued.
Cerebro-spinal fever.-Some 157 cases were notified in 1937 as compared with 123 cases in 1936. The number of deaths was eighty-eight and sixty-five respectively.
Cholera.-The Colony suffered a severe epidemic from this disease during the year. On the 22nd July, the first case was reported and by the 31st of December 1,082 persons had died of the disease. In all 1,690 cases were reported giving a mortality rate of sixty-four per centum.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
8
In view of the small amount of accommodation available at the Infectious Diseases Hospital, it was necessary to reopen part of the old Government Civil Hospital in order to cope with the 1,299 cases treated. Over a quarter of a million anti- cholera inoculations were administered free by hospitals, public dispensaries and the St. John Ambulance Association and Brigade.
Smallpox.-Out of a total of 129 cases reported during the year, thirty-seven were notified in April. There were ninety- four deaths as compared with sixteen in 1936.
Preventive measures against smallpox included the vaccina- tion of some 443,021 persons with lymph prepared in the Gov- ernment Bacteriological Institute.
Some sixty cases were segregated in the Infectious Diseases Hospital at Kennedy Town.
Pulmonary tuberculosis.-Ranking high among the causes of death, 3,061 deaths from pulmonary tuberculosis were recorded during the year.
Schemes for improving the housing conditions of the poorer classes are under consideration and, should these materialize, it is anticipated that they may have a definite influence upon the incidence of this disease.
Dysentery.-On 5th February this disease was declared notifiable by Order of the Governor-in-Council. From that date 576 cases were notified of which 316 proved fatal.
Enteric fever.-Sporadic cases of enteric fever were notified during the year. There was a total of 464 cases with 176 deaths, a slight increase over the previous year which was no doubt attributable in part to the influx of refugees.
Diphtheria.-There was a noticeable reduction in the figures for the year as only 308 cases and 148 deaths were notified, whereas in 1936 the figures were 375 and 214 respec- tively.
Leprosy.-Cases of leprosy were cared for by Government at the Kennedy Town Tung Wah Leper Settlement and there were thirteen deaths recorded during the year.
Diseases of the Respiratory System. (Non-tuberculous).- These diseases accounted for 10,380 deaths and occupied the first place in the list of causes of deaths during 1937. The overcrowded housing conditions, associated with the exceedingly common and filthy habit of expectorating, provide sufficient explanation for the prevalence of this group of diseases.
1931-1939
- 9
THE DUMPING OF THE DEAD.
307
To avoid paying burial fees, and, in the case of infectious diseases, to evade the cleansing of their houses by the Health Authorities, the poorer members of the Chinese community con- tinued to dump dead bodies in the streets. In 1937 the Police found 1353 of these bodies.
HOSPITALS.
The Queen Mary Hospital which was built to replace the old Government Civil Hospital was formally opened on the 13th April. This hospital has accommodation for 546 beds and cots, 138 of which have been allotted to the three clinical units of the Hong Kong University.
The total number of in-patients admitted was 5,566 which includes 191 maternity cases. The daily average of general in-patients was 289. 4,631 general in-patients were treated by Government officers, and 229, 275 and 240 by the Medical, Surgical and Gynaecological Units of the University Staff respectively. Sixty-three per centum of the in-patients admitted were of Chinese nationality. The Casualty Department treated 1,933 out-patients (new cases). Some 295 deaths took place amongst in-patients.
The Government Civil Hospital was closed on the 30th of June after all patients had been transferred to the Queen Mary Hospital. General in-patients numbered 2,693, whilst 469 maternity patients were also treated, giving a daily average of 197. Deaths in in-patients amounted to 172.
When this hospital was closed a portion of it, "C" Block, was renovated to accommodate the out-patients department. 21,246 new cases were treated in the Government Civil Hospital and in "C" Block during the year. The building at the Queen's Road entrance to the hospital functioned throughout the year and was used exclusively for special out-patient clinics follows:-
as
New cases.
•
Medical University Unit
1,624
Surgical University Unit
4,459
Gynaecological University Unit
1,890
Eye Clinic (Government)
3,126
Venereal Diseases (Government)
1,811
Total
12,910
308
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
10.-
The Kowloon Hospital is situated on the mainland and stands in a medical reserve of over thirty acres. There are ninety-seven beds in the general blocks and thirty-four in the maternity block. The out-patients department as in previous years increased its activities.
The following summary shows the work carried out during 1937 as compared with 1936.
In-patients.
General
Maternity
Daily average.
General
Maternity
Operations under general
anaesthesia
Out-patients
1936
1937
3,367
3,706
1,137
1,372
104
101
23
22
1,033
1,322
66,193
101,709
Some 334 deaths took place in in-patients.
The Victoria General and Maternity Hospital which pos- sessed forty-six general and twenty-six maternity beds in two separate blocks, was closed on the 7th of June.
During the period 1st January to 7th June the hospital accommodated 199 general and 30 maternity cases.
cases. The daily average for the general block was twenty-four and for the maternity block three women and three children. There were no deaths. The number of out-patients treated was 542.
The Mental Hospital had a daily average of seventy patients although it was designed to accommodate only thirty-two patients. The hospital is used mainly as a temporary abode for mental cases, Chinese and Europeans being repatriated to their respective countries. 149 lunatics were transferred to Canton in 1937. Some fifty-one cases remained from 1936 and 359 were admitted in 1937. Seventy-one cases were discharged as cured, sixty-two as relieved and fifty-two as not improved. There were twenty deaths.
The Government Infectious Diseases Hospital is situated at Kennedy Town on the western outskirts of Victoria. It contains only twenty-six beds which have been proved to be inadequate to accommodate the more serious types of infectious diseases. 1,299 cases of cholera, sixty cases of smallpox and eight cases
1931-1939
11
309
of chickenpox were treated during 1937 at the Infectious Diseases Hospital and at the old Government Civil Hospital taken back temporarily into use.
Tsan Yuk Hospital.-Formerly financed and managed by the Chinese Public Dispensaries Coininittee this hospital was presented to the Government on the 1st January, 1934.
There are sixty beds of which fourteen were reserved for gynaecological cases until the Queen Mary Hospital was opened. During the year 2,096 maternity patients were treated. There were 1,934 deliveries, six maternal deaths, thirty-three infant deaths and eighty-three still-births.
The gynaecological unit treated 140 cases and performed sixty-nine operations. Only one death was recorded during the year. Ante-natal, gynaecological and infant welfare clinics were held by the obstetrical and gynaecological unit of the Hong Kong University where some 952, 572 and 2,109 cases respectively were treated or advised. This included new and old cases.
Tung Wah Infectious Diseases Hospital.-As these premises had been condemned for the treatment of acute infectious diseases, they were used as a settlement for lepers, the patients being treated by the Government Medical Officer in charge of the Infectious Diseases Hospital. The cost for maintaining the inmates, thirty cents per leper per day, is paid by the Govern- ment to the Tung Wah Committee. The number of lepers admitted during the year under review amounted to 167, ten having remained from 1936.
The record for 1937 was as follows:-
Transferred to Sheklung Leper Settlement,
Kwangtung, China
Discharged ..............
Discharged at own request
Absconded
Died
Remaining at end of year
·
49.
6
14
35
11
62
is
The Chinese Hospitals.-These hospitals, the Tung Wah and Tung Wah Eastern situated on the Island and the Kwong Wah in Kowloon, are
are managed by the Tung Wah Committee, a charitable organization which receives a subsidy from Government. A Chinese Medical Officer, at- tached to the staff of the Medical Department, stationed in each hospital. Patients are given the choice of receiving herbalist treatment or treatment by Western medicine; but gradually, with the aid of energetic directors, the illiterate and poorer classes of the local Chinese public are becoming enlightened and the majority now prefer the Western treatment. 16,175 in-patients received treatment by Chinese herbalist medicine and 31,794 were treated by Western methods. Opera- lions performed during the year numbered 1,837.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
12
In the out-patients departments 462,864 and 116,468 cases were dealt with by Chinese treatment and Western methods respectively.
TREATMENT OF OPIUM ADDICTS.
Opium addicts, all Chinese, were treated as in previous years at the Government Civil Hospital until it was replaced by the Queen Mary Hospital, and at the Tung Wah Eastern Chinese Hospital. Treatment in the Government institutions was under the supervision of Professor W. I. Gerrard, O.B.E., of the University Medical Unit, and eighteen patients were cared for in 1937.
Chinese Western-trained graduates, under the general supervision of a Government Visiting Medical Officer, treated 430 cases in the Tung Wah Eastern Hospital.
Chapter V.
HOUSING.
In recent years some evidence has been shown amongst the artizan class of the Colony of a quickening social consciousness and the resultant desire to avail themselves of improved housing accommodation wherever such is made available. The unskilled labouring classes, however, are still found densely packed in tenement houses deficient in light and air. This class of labour has to find its habitat as close as possible to the scene of its labour, with the result that the western part of the City of Victoria, which houses the native business quarter and closely adjoins the portion of the harbour handling the traffic from the West River and Chinese Coast Ports, is seriously overcrowded.
2. These conditions which were being slowly mitigated by the rebuilding of properties which from time to time were con- demned for reasons of structural defects are now being more rapidly appeased by the operation of the Buildings Ordinance, 1935, which came into force on the 1st January, 1936. Over- crowding amongst the labouring class is still however prevalent.
3. The housing of the Colony is all privately owned, and control is maintained by the operation of the Buildings Ordin- ance, 1935, the provisions of which also mould the character of the housing. Generally the houses are built back to back in rows and are separated by a scavenging lane. These houses vary in height from two to four storeys according to the width of the street on to which they front, whilst the average height per storey is twelve feet, a minimum being controlled by the
1931-1939
13
311
·
Ordinance of 1903. The Buildings Ordinance, 1935, permits a minimum of eleven feet. The houses built prior to the 1903 Ordinance covering the greatest part of the native quarter are of depths varying from forty feet to eighty feet, with often less than 100 square feet of open space provided within the cur- tilage of the lot. After the passing of the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, No. 1 of 1903, the amount of open space per house to be allowed within the boundaries of each lot is governed, and falls under two main heads, viz:-(a) houses built on land bought prior to the passing of the Ordinance in 1903, where the open space must not be less than one-fourth of the area of the site and (b) houses built on land bought sub- sequently where the minimum is raised to one-third of the area. On plan the usual frontage of each house is fifteen feet (a dimension owing its origin more to early structural limitation than to economics) and a depth of about thirty-five feet, whilst each storey consists of one large "room" with a native type kitchen in the rear. This room is then subdivided by thin partitions seven feet high into three cubicles, each of which may accommodate a family. A latrine is built at ground floor level, one to each house irrespective of the number of occupants, and is common to all.
+
4: Structurally the earlier houses are of blue bricks (of native manufacture having a very low structural value) and timber, (usually China fir which is extremely susceptible to the ravages of white ants). Lately, however, reinforced concrete- and better quality bricks have been used.
•
5. In the City of Victoria the major defect of housing is due to lack of town planning, but since a large proportion of the City was erected in the early days of the Colony, when town planning was little practised even in Europe, the conditions to-day are a heritage, the elimination of which involves immense sums of money, and probably considerable opposition if at- tempted on a large scale.
6. Generally, many of the old houses suffer from defects which are attributable to the Ordinance of that time. Passed. in 1903 the measure was framed to meet existing conditions, both structurally and hygienically as they were then understood and practised. But, viewed in the light of modern practice and knowledge, many of its provisions are found to be lax.
7. The Buildings Ordinance, No. 18 of 1935, came into operation on the 1st January, 1936. This ordinance provides for improvement in the conditions of light and ventilation of those old properties which under the previous Ordinances were not called upon to conform to modern requirements. A higher standard generally is being called for and building owners are themselves slowly realizing the advantages to be. gained from modern constructional methods allied to proper hygienic prin- ciples.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
14
8. Some progress was made in the work of the Housing Commission and from the study of data collected a draft report was prepared for consideration by the Commission.
Chapter VI.
PRODUCTION.
Hong Kong is the port for South China, and the greater part of the large volume of goods that pass through it is in transit between South China and other parts of the world, including North and Middle China. The Colony itself produces comparatively little, though the shipbuilding, cement, rope, tin and sugar refining, rubber shoe and cotton knitting industries are not unimportant. Mining has been developed in recent years and agriculture is widely practised throughout the New Territories. Rice and vegetables are grown, and there is con- siderable poultry farming, but in insufficient quantities to supply the needs of the urban populations of Victoria and Kowloon. The cultivation is in the hands of the Chinese villagers. Sea fishing is an important industry, but here again local supplies have to be augmented by importation from outside.
2. Reports on the principal industries for the year 1937 are given below:-
Refined Sugar.-World sugar prices continued to advance in the early part of 1937, and, after a period of uncertainty as to the outcome of the quota arrangements decided upon at the World Sugar Conference in London in April, 1937, quotations again advanced in company, at last, with general commodity prices. There was a very marked increase in quotations, and business generally, in the Far East early in June when the sugar selling organization in Java raised its limits as a result of its newly strengthened position.
A surplus of sugar available over and above the U.S.A. import quota resulted in an attempt to sell Philippine sugar in Hong Kong, but this danger to the market was ended, after only a few deliveries had been completed, by the threat of action under the terms of the International Sugar Agreement.
The Kwangtung sugar mills did not all go into active pro- duction in conditioning imported sugars as in the previous year but confined their activities to crushing local cane only. Their total output was thus considerably reduced during 1937.
The start of hostilities in North China in July and the subsequent spread of fighting to most important markets in China resulted in a breakdown in normal trading. Considerable quantities of distressed sugar were landed in Hong Kong and
1931-1939
15
313
this greatly depressed local prices until it had slowly gone into consumption. After the absorption of this cheap sugar, quota- tions late in the year rallied. A gain over the whole year of more than 30% in terms of raw sugar prices indicates the success of world-wide attempts to establish more remunerative price levels. The volume of trade has been greatly curtailed as the effects of the Sino-Japanese conflict have been more keenly felt with the passage of time, but eastern markets have been spared the additional disruptive effects of wildly fluctuating exchange rates, such as were threatened by the devaluation of the guilder in 1936.
The outlook for 1938 is extremely uncertain, depending on the march of political events in the world as a whole and the Far East in particular.
Cement. Total imports of cement into the Colony during the year amounted to 1,201,440 piculs and exports to 1,615,806 piculs. As in previous years the bulk of the exports went to British Malaya. Large quantities were imported from Japan during the early part of 1937 but after the outbreak of Sino- Japanese hostilities supplies from this
source ceased. As 3
result there was a very keen demand for the product of the local factory which has lately been operating at full capacity. Cement from Indo-China was imported in large quantities and found a ready market at advanced prices.
Preserved Ginger.-Local prices fluctuated during the year from $15-$21 per picul for cargo ginger and from $22 - $26 for stem ginger. Exports were well maintained to all markets as will be noted from the following comparative figures of values of quantities exported:-
To United Kingdom
1937.
1936.
$1,064,099
$1,107,427
Australia
"J
408,059
346,913
Holland
""
281,206
202,578
U.S.A.
??
236,030
142,717
Other Countries
""
364,575
301,331
$2,353,969
$2,100,966
Knitted, Woven & Made-Up Goods.-Local knitting and weaving factories and factories making up garments from imported cloth enjoyed fairly profitable trading conditions during 1937, exports to Empire markets showing notable in- creases as a result of Imperial Preference and (in the case of woven goods) quota regulations imposed by many Empire countries on cloth which is not "spun, woven
woven and finished within the Empire". Local weaving factories, to obtain the
314
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
16
benefit of exemption from quota regulations, are required to satisfy accountants that nothing but Empire yarn is used. India has therefore replaced North China and Japan as the source of supply for yarn for the local cotton and weaving industry. Factories weaving artificial silk cloth are using arti- ficial silk yarn from the United Kingdom. To obtain the benefit of Imperial Preference local knitting factories and factories making-up garments are required to prove 25 per cent Empire content in the form of work done in Hong Kong and/or Empire materials used in manufacture. In the knitting in- dustry also, India has replaced North China and Japan as the source of origin for lower count cotton yarns. In the manu- facture of higher quality goods, Lancashire cotton yarn tinues to be used.
con-
The total values of exports of Hong Kong knitted, woven and made-up goods in 1937 were approximately as follows:-
Singlets
Shirts
$4,187,258
$2,387,664
Socks
$1,427,680
Other wearing
wearing apparel (chiefly
pyjamas)
$2,000,000
Woven Goods
.$3,000,000
Rubber Shoes.-The principal market for locally made rubber shoes is the United Kingdom. To satisfy the United King- dom Customs authorities as to compliance with Imperial Preference requirements, local factories are required to satisfy accountants that they use exclusively rubber certified to be the produce of plantations situated within the British Empire, and canvas, the whole process of which has been carried out within the British Empire. The value of goods so certified and exported to the United Kingdom during 1937 totalled $3,215,073. The British West Indies also purchased increasing quantities totalling $1,427,634, the total value of exports to all countries being $5,486,659.
Flashlight Torches & Batteries.-The United Kingdom Cus- toms Authorities having ruled that, to qualify for Imperial Preference, torches must be made in factories using British brass exclusively, arrangements are being made whereby some local manufacturers are organizing new factories in which British brass is to be used exclusively, the old factories con- tinuing to use non-Empire brass for manufacturing torches ex- ported to non-Empire countries. Under the United Kingdom Customs ruling, accountants are required to certify as to exclu- sive use of Empire brass. Small shipments, so certified, were made to the United Kingdom during 1937. The largest markets at present, however, for locally made torches are India and
1931-1939
17
315
Burma, Siam and Ceylon, and considerably increased quantities were shipped to these countries in 1937. The total value of exports to all countries in 1937 amounted to $3,670,609.
Exports of batteries were also well maintained, the principal purchasing countries and values of quantities taken being as follows:-Netherlands East Indies ($415,695), Burma ($302,921), Malaya ($274,260), Ceylon ($231,491), Other Countries ($616,589), Total ($1,840,956).
Tin. Although slightly larger quantities of locally refined tin were shipped to Europe and the United States of America; the total volume of exports from Hong Kong during 1937 ($22,207,686) was about 15 per cent lower than in 1936 due to the decreased consumption in North China following the out- break of hostilities there. The price was subject to wide fluctuations. The highest level was H.K. $265 per picul in March and the lowest H.K.$155 per picul at the end of the year.
Lard. The total value of lard exported during 1937 amounted to 94,290 piculs valued at $4,057,026, of which 83,507 piculs valued at $3,632,764 was taken by the United Kingdom. The year closed with unfavourable prospects for business in 1938 as the United Kingdom Government has ruled that, to qualify for Imperial Preference, lard must be produced from pigs bred within the Empire. Most of the lard manu- factured in Hong Kong is from the fat of pigs which are imported here from China..
Shipbuilding :-During the year the Colony's shipyards had under construction seven passenger ships, one cargo vessel, one naval sloop, one tug, one waterboat, six lighters and five launches, a total of twenty-two vessels of 14,073 tons gross.
Chapter VII.
COMMERCE.
1. The combined values of imports and exports of mer- chandise in 1937 increased by 35.0% as compared with 1936, and 70.5% as compared with 1935, in terms of local currency. In terms of sterling the total visible trade of the Colony increased by 32.2% in 1937 as compared with 1936 and by 9.0% as compared with 1935. (Details are given in Table I).
•
2. Imports of merchandise totalled $617.1 (£38.1) millions in 1937 as compared with $452.4 (£28.5) millions in 1936, and $365.0 (£35.3) millions in 1935; whilst exports totalled $467.3 (£28.8) millions in 1937 as compared with $350.9 (£22.1) millions in 1936, and $271.0 (£26.1) millions in 1935.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
18
3. In terms of local currency imports of merchandise in 1937 increased by 36.4% as compared with 1936, and 69.1% as com- pared with 1935; whilst exports increased by 33.2% in 1937 as compared with 1936, and 72.4% as compared with 1935.
4. In terms of sterling values imports of merchandise in- creased by 33.7% in 1937 as compared with 1936, and 7.9% as compared with 1935; whilst exports increased by 30.3% in 1937 as compared with 1936, and 10.3% as compared with 1935. (It should be noted that the average T.T. rate of exchange on London was 1s. 2.13d. in 1937; 18. 3.d. in 1986; and 18. 11.d. in 1935).
5. It is estimated that the quantum of the import trade increased by 42.2% in 1937 as compared with 1936, and 53.3% as compared with 1935, but, of necessity, the volume of the import trade cannot be calculated accurately on account of the lack of a suitable unit of quantity and the fact that many commodities imported are declared by value only.
6. The following countries increased their shares of the import trade in 1937 as compared with 1936:-China, United Kingdom, U.S.A., French Indo-China, Australia and Belgium; whilst increased shares of the export trade were credited to British Malaya, French Indo-China, U.S.A. and Netherlands East Indies. (Details are given in Table II).
7. It will be seen from Table III that there were increased imports in 1937 of the following groups of commodities as com- pared with 1936:-Live animals, building materials, chemicals and drugs, Chinese medicines, dyeing and tanning materials, foodstuffs and provisions, fuels, hardware, liquors, manures, metals, minerals and ores, nuts and seeds, oils and fats, paints, paper and paperware, piece goods and textiles, railway mate- rials, tobacco, wearing apparel and sundries, the only groups showing a decrease being machinery and vehicles. There were increases in all groups of exports with the exception of live animals, machinery, railway materials and vehicles.
8. Total movements of Treasure amounted to $781.6 millions in 1937 as compared with $216.5 millions in 1936. Imports totalled $386.4 millions in 1937 as compared with $72.7 millions in 1936, and exports $395.2 millions as compared with $143.8 millions. (Details are given in Table IV).
9. Average T.T. opening rates of exchange during the year 1937 were:-London: 1/2. 1; France: 765.7/8; U.S.A.: 30.1/2; Shanghai: 102.7/16; India: 81.11/16; Singapore: 52.9/6; Japan: 105.13/16; Java: 55.3/16.
10. Wholesale prices in the Colony showed an increase of 27.2% in 1937 as compared with 1936 and an increase of 68.3% as compared with 1935. Increases were recorded in each of the four groups of commodities, viz., Foodstuffs, Textiles, Metals and Minerals, and Miscellaneous Articles.
1931-1939
19
Table I.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS 1931-1937.
(in £'s & $'s millions).
317
IMPORTS.
1931.
1932. 1933. 1934. 1933. 1934.
1935.
1935.
1936.
1937.
1st Quarter ...£ 9.0 11.9
8.5 7.1
9.0
6.3 8.1
$186.9 2nd Quarter ...£ 8.7 10.2
$180.1 3rd Quarter ...£ 9.0 9.3
170.7
132.8
95.8
97.3
98.2 131.7
8.5
7.1
10.7
7.4 9.5
164.7
126.1
99.7
94.0
114.1 154.8
8.5
8.1
8.1
6.6 10.5
$182.3
4th Quarter ...£ 11.8
$188.4
142.4 122.1 106.6
9.6 8.4 9.4
146.2 119.9 113.8
i
79.5 106.7. 169.8
7.5
94.2 133.4 160.8
8.2 10.0
Total ......£ 38.5
$737.7
41.0 33.9 .31.7 35.3 28.5 38.1
624.0 500.9 415.9 365.0 452.4 617.1
EXPORTS.
1931. 1932. 1933. 1934. 1935. 1936. 1937.
1st Quarter ...£ 6.8. 8.8 6.8 5.8 6.9 4.9 6.5
$140.1 127.0
105.3 77.5
74.8 76.0 105.7
2nd Quarter...£ 6.4
7.1
7.2
5.7
7.7.5.6
7.0
$132.5
115.3
106.2
79.6
67.9 87.5
113.2
3rd Quarter ...£ 6.5
7.2
6.6
6.1
5.8 5.1
7.0
$130.6
110.0
་
95.5
80.5
56.6
81.5 113.8
·
4th Quarter ...£ 9.2
7.9
6.8
7.2
5.7 6.5 8.3
$138.7
119.6
96.1
87.5
71.7 105.9 134.6
Total ......£ 28.9 $541.9
31.0 27.4
471.9 403.1 325.1 271.0 350.9 467.3
́
24.8 26.1 22:1
28.8
NOTE:-Average rate of exchange. 1931-1s.
O d.
1932-1s.
34d.
1933-1s. 41d.
1934-18. 6d.
1935-1s. 11d.
1936-1s. 3d.
1937-1s. 213d..
318
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
20
--
Table II.
DISTRIBUTION OF IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF MERCHANDISE BY COUNTRIES ($'000's omitted).
A.-IMPORTS.
1936.
1937.
$
%
$
%
China
Japan
N. E. Indies
United Kingdorn
152,041
33.6
211,321
34.2
58,039
12.8
58,044
9.4
38,334
8.5
46,915
7,6
29,008
6.4
46,732
7.6
U. S. A.
:
32,181.
7.1
51,776
8.4
French Indo-China .........
25,760.
5.7
40,779.
6.6
Siam
29,780
6.6
22,652
3.7
Germany
23,618
5.2
30,898
5:0
British Malaya
* 7,352 *
1.6
9,125
1.5
India .....
5,755
1.3
6,424
1.0
Australia
9,114
2.0
13,351
-2.2
Belgium
6,599
1.5
9,991
1.6
All Other Countries
34,769
7.7
69,056
11.2
Summary.
United Kingdom
29,008
6.4
46,732
7.6
British Dominions and
Possessions
29,911
6.6
52,916
8.6
China
152,041
33.6
211,321 34.2
All Other Countries
241,390 53.4
306,095
49.6
Total British Empire
58,919 13.0
99,648 16.2
Total Foreign
393,431
87.0
517,416 83.8
Grand Total
452,350 100.0 617,064 100.0
1931-1939
21
Table II,-Continued.
B.-EXPORTS.
319
1936.
1937.
$
%
$
%
China
149,739
42.7
190,401
40.7
British Malaya
25,767
7.3
39,800
8.5
French Indo-China
17,370
5.0
24,004
5.1
Japan
17,955
5.1
19,780
4.2
Масао
13,001
3.7
17,096
3.7
Siam
14,506
4.1
14,173
3.0
U. S. A.
28,436
8.1
41,129
8.8
Kwong Chow Wan
10,586
3.0
9,735
2.1
N. E. Indies
9,722
2.8
15,559
3.3
Philippines
11,500
3.3
13,208
2.8
India
4,819
1.4
5,360
1.1
All Other Countries
47,464
13.5
77,078
16.7
Summary.
United Kingdom
13,282
3.8
20,874
4.5
British Dominions and
Possessions
48,295 13.7 71,067
15.2
China
149,739 42.7
190,401
40.7
All Other Countries
139,549 39.8
184,981 39.6
Total British Empire
61,577 17.5
91,941 19.7
Total Foreign
Grand Total
289,288 82.5 375,382 80.3
350,865 100.0 467,323 100.0
320
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
22
Table III.
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS BY MAIN GROUPS OF COMMODITIES
($'000's omitted).
Imports.
Exports.
1936.
1937.
1936.
1937.
Animals, Live
8,042
8,821
134
88
Building Materials
6,635
8,027
3,513
4,677
Chemicals & Drugs
5,408
9,973
3,441
6,536
Chinese Medicines
20,265
22,118
13,761
17,045
Dyeing Materials
4,736 8,170
3,636
5,310
Foodstuffs
123,411 155,343
91,912
118,637
Fuels
11,033 16,012
396
540
Hardware
3,937 6,915
3,072
5,217
Liquors
3,379
4,061
804
1,399
Machinery
9,060
9,866 9,947
4,861
Manures
8,886
13,348
10,221 11,807
Metals
41,032
67,391
36,973
44,570
Minerais & Ores
2,812
12,775
8,485
17,503
Nuts and Seeds
6,566
9,360
4,047
5,793
Oils and Fats
39,994
72,985
33,090 60,992
Paints
1,750
2,297
1,430
1,769
Paper and Paperware
...
13,417
16,089 7,894
10,443
Piece Goods
67,675
76,842
40,069
46,519
Railway Materials
84
1,068
1,155
873
Tobacco
5,891
8,150
4,321
7,415
Treasure
72,728
386,449
143,815 395,227
Vehicles
6,584
6,224
7,970 5,932
Wearing Apparel
Sundries
4,123 4,448
57,631
12,591 19,684
77,781 51,913 69,712
Total
525,079 1,003,513 494,680 862,549
1931-1939
23
Table IV.
321
IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF TREASURE.
Imports.
Exports.
1936.
1937.
1936.
1937.
$
$
$
$
Bank Noles
22,545,864
80,111,618 24,756,807
18,178,291
Copper Cents
Gold Bars
Gold Coins
193,279
3,656,465 11,112,926
421,037
234 1,294,773
33,217,868
10,979,127
331,109
760,049 2,567,141
Gold Leaf
5,849
45,288
277,420
22,446
Silver Bars
II.K. Silver Dollars
Chinese Silver Dollars
Other Silver Dollars
Silver Sub. Coin
740,496 135,339,484 17,201,873 87,519,955
7,586
6,448,118
356,132
551,304
25,876
5,985,968
176
49,176,000
403,000
45,241,301 152,676,901
2,975,093 262,617,500
15,345,501 5,129,465
Total
72,728,408 386,448,955 143,815,433 395,226,524
Table V.
WHOLESALE PRICE CHANGES.
(1922-100)
Groups.
1932. 1933. 1934. 1935. 1936. 1937.
Foodstuffs
Textiles
126.5 113.4
94.3
85.4 113.3 136.2
125.2
97.0
85.9
74.2
99.4 117.7
Metals
128.1
107.8
97.4
79.8
107.2
146.1
Miscellaneous
109.7
95.7
88.5
72.3
92.5
124.4
Average
122.4
103.5
91.5
77.9
103.1 131.1
322
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
24
Chapter VIII.
WAGES AND COST OF LIVING.
The favourable rate of the local dollar which remained steady throughout the year undoubtedly helped the local indus-
tries.
Factories which produced goods for the Empire markets i.e. hand electric torches, rubber shoes, dry battery cells, cork and felt hats and artificial silk goods had a very good year. Taking all the local industries together a great improvement was anade.
The system of payment remained the same. Piece work was the general rule in the lower grades of work of the light industries and in all mass production work. This system seeined to be the most satisfactory to the employers and the employed. Daily pay remained the rule for skilled male labour.
New industries sprang up, such as the manufacture of tooth brushes, gas masks and their component parts, and fertilizer from street refuse. Weaving and knitting factories, and also torch and battery factories, showed a marked increase in numbers.
There was a considerable improvement in employment. The heavy industries did a great deal towards this. Female labour, too, had a good year. In cigarette, torch, weaving and knitting factories, in all of which female labour predominates, the available space for workers was fully occupied.
Most of the factories worked full time. In a number of cases larger and better premises were taken over and much modern machinery installed.
No trouble was experienced in respect of wages or dis-
missals.
The number of factories increased by more than one third, from 541 to 731. 241 new factories opened, whilst only 51 closed down.
After allowing for seasonal fluctuations, there was a slight average rise in the prices of the commodities included in the cost of living index up to July, the last normal month before the outbreak of Sino-Japanese hostilities. But this rise was very uneven. While meat, vegetables, clothes and shoes prices rose, firewood and oil prices fell substantially. After July prices climbed rapidly to a peak (average) in late September, at levels between 20% and 70% above the corresponding figures for 1936, with the exception of tea and oil prices which rose about 10%. After September prices fell off about 15% in relation to the corresponding figures for 1936.
1931-1939
25
323
The price of rice varied between 20% and 33% above the corresponding figures for 1936, but in 1937 the peak price for the year was reached in August as opposed to December in 1936. The sharp rise in price which occurred in the latter half of 1936 proved largely permanent. The absolute variation during the year (25%) was about the same as in 1936 (23%) but, as in 1937 the interval between the two was two months as compared with eleven months in 1936 (the minimum being prior in both cases), the change was more keenly felt. Figures
are:
Per 100 catties. (average of 4 grades).
1937
June
August
Variation.
$7.31
$ 9.16
2.5%
1936
February
December
$ 5.90
$ 7.27
23%
AVERAGE RATES OF WAGES For Labour.
Building Trade:-
Locomotive Drivers
$1.30 to $1.80 per day.
Carpenters
0.80
1.30 ¡¡
Bricklayers
0.80
1.30 ""
""
Painters
0.80
1.30
11
12.
12
Plasterers (including Shanghai
Plasterers)
1.00
1.50
Scaffolders
1.00
1.50
Labourers (male)
* 0.60
0.80
,,
""
(female)
0:40,, 0.50
Working hours 9 per day. Time and a half paid for over- time. Free temporary sleeping quarters provided on the build- ing site and communal messing at cheap rates...
324
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
26
Shipbuilding & Engineering:-
Electricians
Coppersmiths
Fitters
Sawmillers
Boilermakers
Sailmakers
Blacksmiths
Turners
Patternmakers
Labourers
$1.00 to $1.40 per day.
1.00
1.60 11
11
""
0.80
1.55 ""
""
""
0.70
1.25 17
""
0.95
1.20 ""
39
""
1.00
1.40 ""
0.75
1.20 ""
"}
"}
1.00
1.40 ""
1.00
1.40 ""
0.70 ',,
1.00 ""
""
Overtime-time and a half. Night work-double time.
Transport Workers:-
$36.00 to $45.00 per month.
Tram Drivers
Conductors
""
30.00,,
39.00
""
""
Bus Drivers
(Chinese Bus Co.)
27.00
54.00 ""
""
Conductors
""
(Chinese Bus Co.) 18.00
21.00
...
""
Drivers
"
(European Bus Co.). 55.00
Conductors
""
(European Bus Co.). 22.50
"
""
35.00 ""
""
17
Working hours 9 per day. Free Uniform. Bonus at end of year 3 days' pay. (Chinese Bus Co.).
9 hours a day. Free Uniform. One month's salary bonus. (European Bus Co.).
Railway Workers (Government).-
$1,100 to $1,800 per annuin.
Station Masters
Telephone Operators
13
750 1,400,,
"}
Booking Clerks
""
600 1,000,,
""
Guards
600
1,000
""
Signalmen
1,000
29
11
Engine Drivers
540
""
1,000
"}
Ticket Collectors
420
600
""
"3
Firemen
330
480
Pointsmen
192
240
11
21
""
1931-1939
27
Female Workers in Factories:-
Cigarette making
325
$0.20 to $0.70 per day.
Knitting factories
0.20
0.45
....
""
""
Perfumery
0.20
0.40
11
21
""
Confectionery
0.20
0.40 ""
11
""
Electric hand torch factories ......
0.20
0.30
""
""
Electric hand torch battery
factories
0.15
0.35
""
Working hours from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. One hour off at mid- day. Overtime from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at day rates.
Domestic Servants:-
Employed by Chinese
$7.00 to $20.00 per month.
Employed by Europeans...... 15.00 40.00
Gardeners
15.00
30.00 "}
""
""
With free lodging, and, with Chinese employers, generally free board.
NOTE: The rates of pay of Government employees are much the same as those of a similar category in private
employ.
Transport coolies
$0.60 to $0.70 per day.
Coal coolies
0.55
Ricksha coolies
0.60
0.70
Chapter IX.
EDUCATION AND WELFARE INSTITUTIONS.
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS.
These are either schools where the medium of instruction is English or mostly English or schools where the medium of instruction is Chinese. The former, seventeen in number, are known as "English" schools, the latter, of which there are four, as "vernacular" schools.
326
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
28
"}
2. Of the four English schools, classed as "secondary" schools in the Table below, two are Anglo-Chinese schools for boys and one for girls. These three schools have primary departments. The fourth school, the Central British School which is a mixed school, has no primary department. Of the ten English schools, classed as "primary' schools in the Table, three are mixed schools preparing for the Central British School. In this group are also four "District" schools, includ- ing one for Indian boys and three "Lower Grade" schools, two of which are in rural districts. In those English schools which are attended by Chinese the study of English and of Chinese is carried on side by side, the pari passu system requiring that promotion shall depend on proficiency in both languages.
3. Of the three Government Schools classed as "vocational" one is the Junior Technical School which was opened in February, 1933, the other is the Evening Institute which is attended by persons desirous of receiving instruction for the most part germane to their day time occupations. The Trade School was opened in February 1937.
4. Of the four Government vernacular schools one has a seven years' course and includes a Normal department. There is also a normal school for women teachers and a normal school on the mainland which aims at providing vernacular teachers for rural schools. As explained in the Report for the year 1936, the alteration in the status of Un Long School has proceeded according to plan and this school is now classified as "Verna- cular".
GRANT-IN-AID AND SUBSIDIZED SCHOOLS.
5. There are fifteen Grant-in-Aid English Schools, and three Grant-in-Aid Vernacular. Schools. Of the former, seven schools for boys and eight are for girls.
6. One English school for girls has a primary department only, and one an infant department only. The remaining schools classed in the table below as "secondary" schools have primary departments as well as the upper classes.
7. Munsang College, Kowloon City, received a grant of $6,000.
8. The vernacular Grant-in-Aid Schools are schools for girls and classed in the Table as "secondary" schools.
9. The 283 subsidized schools are all vernacular schools.
1931-1939
-29
UNAIDED SCHOOLS.
327
10. In 1937 there were 724 unaided vernacular schools with 46,139 children and 129 unaided English schools with 6,325 children.
1937.
Table showing number of schools and scholars for the year
GOVERNMENT SCHOOLS.
GRANT-IN-AID AND SUBSIDIZED
SCHOOLS.
UNAIDED SCHOOLS.
CLASS OF INSTITUTIONS.
No. of Institu-
No. of
No. of
On
Institu-
Roll.
On Roll.
On
Institu-
Roll.
tions.
tions.
tions.
ENGLISH :---
Secondary,
4
2,272
14 7,341
5
877
Primary,
10
1,751
255
117
4,983
Vocational,
3
1,061
7
465
Total,
17
5,084
16
7,596
129
6,325
VERNACULAR :-
Secondary,
1
240
3 1,080
Primary,
1
100
283 19,738
723 | 45,837
Vocational,
2
219
1 472
1 302
Total,
4
559
287 21,290
724 46,139
Total No. of Institutions
Total on Roll
1,177
86,993
N.B.-Kindergarten boys attending Grant-in-Aid Schools for girls are
not shown separately.
328
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
30
THE UNIVERSITY.
11. The University of Hong Kong was incorporated under a local University Ordinance, 1911, and opened in 1912. It is a residential University and open to students of both sexes.
12. The University hostels are three in number-Lugard Hall, Eliot Hall and May Hall. There are also three recognized hostels for men, St. John's Hall, Morrison Hall and Ricci Hall, and one-St. Stephen's Hall for women. No university hostel at present exists for women students.
13. The late Sir Hormusjee Mody bore the entire expense of the erection of the main building. Additions have been made 'through the liberality of benefactors of varied nationality and domicile. The latest additions to the buildings are a School of Chinese Studies, the cost of which was borne by Mr. Tang Chi Ngong a local Chinese merchant and banker, and a Chinese Library named after the late Mr. Fung Ping Shan who provided a sum of $100,000 for the building and $50,000 as an endow- inent fund for its maintenance; also a School of Surgery and a new Engineering Laboratory named after a former Governor, Sir William Peel. In 1936 a first class gymnasium was added to the University buildings. The entire cost of this building and its equipment was the generous gift of Mr. Eu Tong Sen, one of the leading Chinese in the Colony.
14. The income of the University for 1937 amounted to $1,018,116 of which $404,902 was derived from endowments and $350,000 from Government. Messrs. John Swire & Sons, Ltd., gave £40,000 to the original endowment fund and subsequently $100,000 for engineering equipment. The Rockefeller Institute has endowed the University with three chairs in surgery, medicine and obstetrics, the endowment being in
being in each case $250,000. The annual expenditure in 1937 amounted to about $1,021,278.
น
15. The University includes the three faculties of Medicine, Engineering and Arts. Admission to all faculties is conditional upon passing the matriculation examination of the University or some examination recognized as equivalent thereto.
16. The Faculty of Medicine provides a six year course of study in the usual pre-medical and medical sciences, leading to the degree of M.B. and B.S. The degrees of M.D. and M.S. are awarded on examinations but are subject to the proviso that every candidate for the degrees shall produce evidence of special post-graduate experience in the subject which he presents. The degrees above mentioned are recognized by the General Medical Council for registration in Great Britain.
1931-1939
31
329
17. The Faculty of Engineering provides a four years' course in practical and theoretical engineering, leading to the degree of B.Sc., (Eng.). Fourth year students specialize in civil, mechanical or electrical engineering. The degree for post- graduate work is that of M.Sc., (Eng.).
18. The Faculty of Arts includes departments of pure arts and science, social science, commerce, a department of Chinese studies and a department for training teachers. The course is in all cases one of four years and leads to the degree of B.A. The degree for post-graduate work is that of M.A.
•
19. With a view to securing the maintenance of the desired standard-which is in all three faculties that of a British University degree-external examiners are, in all faculties associated with the internal examiners in all annual final. examinations. In the Faculty of Engineering, but not in other faculties, degrees with honours are granted, the standard being assessed by special examiners chosen from amongst the external examiners in the University of London.
20. The degree of LL.D. is granted honoris causa.
CHARITABLE INSTITUTIONS.
21. The following are the best known Charitable Institutions.
French Convent Orphanage. Italian Convent Orphanage. Maryknoll Convent, Kowloon.
St. Louis Industrial School.
Po Leung Kuk-Chinese.
Taipo Rural Orphanage School.
Society of Precious Blood Hospital.
Industrial Home for the Blind, Pokfulam.
Home for Aged Poor, Kowloon.
La Calvaire Home for Aged Poor, Happy Valley. Eyre Refuge.
Salvation Army Home.
Industrial School, Aberdeen.
:
RECREATION AND ART.
22. Most of the schools contrive to hold annual sports either on their own grounds or on grounds generously lent by. local cricket and football clubs. Lawn tennis, football, swim- ming, volley ball and basket ball continue to increase in popularity. Cricket is played at a few schools. Physical train- ing is given by qualified instructors. Art is taught in the Government British schools by trained art mistresses.
330
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
$2
Chapter X.
COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORT.
The external communications of Hong Kong are excellent both by sea and by telegraph, cable and radio. As regards the former, the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co., the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, the Blue Funnel Line, the Messageries Maritimes, and several other British and foreign companies maintain regular passenger and freight services between Hong Kong and Europe. The trans-Pacific communications are well served by the Canadian Pacific Steamships Ltd., the Dollar Line, the Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and other steamship lines. To Australia three steamship companies, the Eastern and Aus- tralian, Nippon Yusen Kaisha, and Australian and Oriental maintain regular passenger and freight services. In addition there are direct sailings to Africa, South America, and to New York. There is frequent and regular communication between Hong Kong and other Far Eastern ports in India, Java, Straits Settlements, Formosa, Indo-China, Japan and the China coast. Local steamship communication is by river steamer from Hong Kong to Canton and the West River ports with several sailings daily. In addition there is a vast traffic between Hong Kong and the adjacent provinces of China by junk and
sampan.
2. The total shipping entering and clearing Ports in the Colony during the year 1937 amounted to 73,257 vessels of 37,830,760 tons which compared with the figures for 1936 showed a decrease of 10,314 vessels and 3,900,256 tons. Of the above, 33,782 vessels of 36,191,724 tons were engaged in foreign trade as compared with 40,626 vessels of 40,063,663 tons in 1936. There was a decrease in British ocean-going shipping of 294 vessels and 234,162 tons. Foreign ocean-going vessels showed a decrease of 1,162 vessels and 2,105,107 tons. British river steamers showed a decrease of 487 vessels and 622,960 tons. Foreign river steamers showed a decrease of 781 vessels and 315,086 tons. In steamships not exceeding 60 tons em- ployed in foreign trade, there was a decrease of 1,405 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 35,962 tons. Junks in foreign trade showed a decrease of 2,715 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 558,662 tons. In local trade (ie., between places within the waters of the Colony), there was a decrease in steam launches of 363 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 12,406 tons. Junks in local trade showed a decrease of 3,107 vessels with a decrease in tonnage of 15,911 tons.
3. The Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company (British) by means of three cables to Singapore, one direct and one each via Labuan and Cape St. James respectively,
1931-1939
33
331
provides good connections with Europe via India, with Austra- lasia, and with the other British Colonies and Possessions. By their cable to Manila connection is made with the direct Ameri- cun cable, thence to San Francisco. Two cables to Shanghai, belonging respectively to the Eastern Extension and to the Great Northern (Danish) Companies, via Foochow and Annoy respec- tively, give a good connection with Shanghai, North China, Japan and Russia; the system of the Great Northern Telegraph Company gives a good service to Europe via Asiatic Russia.
4. The Government operates commercial radio services with direct communication to the Chinese stations in Shanghai, Foochow, Amoy, Swatow, Canton, Yunnanfu, Hankow and via Hankow to inland places in China, to Macao, Formosa, French Indo-China, Siam, Philippines, Dutch East Indies, British North Borneo, via Manila to Europe, America, etc. and via Malabar to Australasia, Europe, etc.
5. The revenue collected by 'the Radio Office during the year from radio telegrams amounted to $975,459, an increase of $208,913 on the amount collected in 1936. Advices of vessels
signalled at the Lighthouses yielded $1,464. The total Revenue from the telegraph service amounted to $976,923. Ship Station Licences yielded $1,600, Amateur Transmission Station Licences $300, Broadcast Receiving Licences $102,232, Dealers' Licences $2,800, Examination Fee for Operators' Certificates of Pro- ficiency $270 and Limited Licences $2,550.
6. The number of paid radio-telegrams forwarded during the year was 236,401 consisting of 2,923,162 words against 167,883 consisting of 1,630,029 words in 1936 and 234,477 were received, consisting of 2,999,469 words against 194,973 consisting of 2,112,835 words.
7. In addition to the paid traffic figures given above the wireless Service is responsible for the reception of time signals daily from Bordeaux, Rugby, Malabar and Nauen, for the transmission of time signals to ships in the China Sea, the reception of press messages amounting to 516 messages or 360,609 words from Rugby, the collection and distribution of meteorological traffic, 13,844 messages (754,500 words) having been forwarded, and 24,238 messages (1,304,558 words) having been received, the reception and dissemination of distress, piracy and navigation messages, the transmission and reception of Government messages, etc.
8. A telephone service between Hong Kong and Canton, a distance of 110 miles, is in operation. During 1937 a telephone service between the Colony and Hankow was inaugurated.
9. Mails. The number of mail receptacles of Hong Kong origin despatched during the year was 44,416 as compared with 41,681 in 1936-an increase of 2,735, the number received was 53,153 as compared with 48,672-an increase of 4,481.
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10. Receptacles in transit, including those to and from British and Foreign Men-of-War, numbered 163,888 as against 146,126 in 1936-an increase of 17,762.
11. Registered Articles and Parcels.-The number of regis- tered articles handled amounted to 886,262 as compared with 660,866 in 1936-an increase of 225,396.
12. The figures for insured letters were 12,268 and 12,540 respectively a decrease of 272.
13. Parcels, ordinary and insured, which were dealt with reached a total of 188,626 as against 164,482 in 1936-an increase of 24,144.
in
14. The Railway may be said to have experienced the most eventful year in its history. Abnormal occurrences, chronological onder, were a disastrous fire on the up through fast train in January resulting in the death of 84 persons; a major derailment of the same train twelve days later; record passenger traffic during the Ching Ming festival in April and the Coronation celebrations in May; linking-up of the Canton- Hankow and the Canton-Kowloon Railways in August; the sub- sequent introduction of a working agreement for through goods traffic between Kowloon and Hankow; use of all available space on the Railway Reclamation at Kowloon for storing cargo originally destined for Shanghai but diverted to Hong Kong owing to Sino-Japanese hostilities; intensive damage to track and the total suspension of traffic for 10 days caused by a record typhoon in September; and lastly, the intensive bombing of the Chinese Section of the line from October to December which caused dislocation of traffic, damage to rolling stock and the ultimate cancellation of the through morning and mid-day passenger trains.
15. Receipts and net operating revenue were $1,331,468.73 and $436,935.30 respectively, as against $1,245,469.16 and $454,733.00 the previous year. Since revenue was reduced by $193,000 due to the loss of both Shum Chun Casino traffic and foreign express train haulage, and expenditure was increased by more than $113,000 through the two causes mentioned in the following paragraph, the results can be considered as being very satisfactory.
16. Operating expenditure was $894,533.43 compared with $790,736.16 in 1936. The increase is due to heavy repair work necessitated by the disastrous typhoon, which cost the Railway $80,883.12, and also to the higher price of coal. The operating ratio declined from 65.49% to 67.18% due to these causes.
17. The track on both sections was well maintained, al- though continued bombing caused serious delays to traffic for the last 2 months of the year.
1931-1939
35 -
333
18. The total steam train mileage run amounted to 295,687, compared with 334,674 the previous year; this includes trains hauled by British Section locomotives over the Chinese Section. Motor couch mileage was 4,217. Passenger journeys were 2,721,518, as against 2,826,867 in 1936.
■
19. A notable operating inprovement was the construction in the Railway workshops of an air-conditioned lounge car of the ice-activated type. This car which was placed on the Canton run in June and called the "Aurora" aroused great public interest as it was the first...of its kind in China. The increased patronage surpassed the most sanguine expectations, and it was necessary to institute a booking fee of 50 cents to cope with the great demand for seats. The results obtained have led the Chinese Section to plan the construction of two similar coaches. Unfortunately, owing to the hostilities be- tween China and Japan it was considered desirable to withdraw the car from service in September.
20. The most noteworthy event of the year was the construction of a loop connecting the Canton-Hankow and the Canton-Kowloon Railways. This connection, which is ap- proximately 9 miles in length, runs practically due cast from Sai Chuen, a station 42 miles north of Wongsha (Canton West), to Shek Pai Junction, 5 miles from Tai Sha Tou (Canton East). The final junction with the Canton-Kowloon Railway was made on the night of August 17th/18th. The first train to reach Kowloon via the loop consisted of nine 40-ton covered goods wagons which carried bullion from Hankow. This train arrived at 9.28 a.m. on August 27th. Since that date many goods trains and three passenger trains have completed the 791 miles journey between Kowloon and Wuchang. The increase in through goods earnings from $44,694.93 to $167,556.45 can be attributed directly to the linking-up of the two Railways.
21. There are 371 miles of roads in the Colony, 173 miles on the Island of Hong Kong, 106 miles in Kowloon and 92 miles in the New Territories. Of the total mileage 203 miles are constructed in water bound macadam dressed with asphalt, 12 miles in sheet asphalt on a cement concrete foundation, 13 miles of tar macadam, 17 miles of concrete, 3 miles of granite setts and wooden blocks on a cement concrete foundation and 39 miles of earth roads.
22. The public travelling over the Colony's roads increases yearly with a corresponding growth in the number of motor buses, of which there are 88 operating on the island of Hong. Kong, and 111 on the mainland. These are gradually replacing the rickshaws, the number of which decreases year by year.
23. The Hong Kong Tramway Company has a fleet of 97 double deck tram cars running along the sea front of Victoria from Kennedy Town to Shaukiwan.
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24. Communication between the island and the mainland is maintained by a number of ferry services; the most important of which are the Star Ferry between Kowloon Point and a pier near the General Post Office, and the combined vehicular and passenger service of the Hong Kong and Yaumati Ferry Com- pany between Jordan Road, Kowloon, and Jubilee Street, Victoria.
Chapter XI.
BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS & MEASures.
The Colony is well served by banking institutions, including branches of English, American, French, Netherlands, Japanese and Chinese banks. Besides the fourteen
Besides the fourteen banks which are members of the Clearing House, there are several Chinese Banks and many native Hongs do some banking business. There are no banks which devote themselves specially to agricultural and co-operative banking. The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation also conducts the business of the Hong Kong Savings Bank on usual savings bank principles. The credit and repute of the Colony's financial institutions are high and it is satisfactory to know that ample encouragement and support are available to finance any possible demand.
2. The Currency of the Colony which was formerly based on silver underwent very important changes at the end of 1935. The unit of currency is the Hong Kong dollar, divided into 100 cents. Under the former regime its exchange value fluctuated with the price of silver; but since the passing of the Currency Ordinance 1935, on the 5th December, 1935, the value of the dollar is controlled by an Exchange Fund, which has power to buy and sell foreign exchange, and has taken over the silver formerly held against their issues by the note-issuing banks, in return for certificates of indebtedness against which the Fund may hold bullion, foreign exchange or approved securities. At the 30th June, 1937 (the latest date for which figures have been made public) the Fund had issued Certificates of Indebtedness to the value of $152,652,579 equivalent to £9,342,020 at the middle market rate on that day, 1/2; and the total assets of the Fund amounted to £10,316,240.
The legal tender currency of the Colony is now as follows:
(a) Bank notes, the excess of which over the fiduciary issue of each bank is now backed by certificates, not by silver as formerly:
At 31.12.37.
(i) Chartered Bank of India, Australia & China ...$ 25,172,604
1931-1939
37
335
(ii) Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation
(iii) Mercantile Bank of India
.$199,689,793
$ 5,175,570
(b) Government $1 notes, of which $3,900,000 have been issued.
(c) 10 cent and 5 cent cupro-nickel coins.
(d) 1 cent copper coins.
(e) The silver dollars and .800 fine silver sub-coin (10 cent and 5 cent pieces, and a few 50 and 20 cent pieces) which have either remained in circulation in the Colony or filter back into it from the mainland of China, are still legal tender in the Colony (sub-coin only up to an amount of $2.00).
During 1937, which may be regarded as the first year of normal operation of the Exchange Fund, the exchange value of the Hong Kong dollar was maintained with great steadiness at about the level established in the latter part of 1936. The official rate quoted by the Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation for the sale of sterling varied between a maximum of 1/23 in January and February and a minimum of 1/2 in July; and for the last four months remained unchanged at 1/23. Market rates were usually a fraction higher.
3. The weights and measures in use in the Colony defined in the Schedule to Ordinance No. 2 of 1885. They consist of the standards in use in the United Kingdom and of the following Chinese Weights and Measures:-
and
1 fan (candareen)=0.0133 ounces avoirdupois.
tsin (mace)=.133 ounces avoirdupois.
1 leung (tael)=1.33 ounces avoirdupois.
1 kan (catty)=1.33 pounds avoirdupois,
1 tam (picul)=133.33 pounds avoirdupois.
1 chek (foot)=143 English inches divided into 10 tsün
(inches) and each tsün into ten fan or tenths.
Chapter XII.
PUBLIC WORKS.
During the year under review the operations of the Public Works Department were carried out, under a Head Office Staff, by eleven sub-departments, namely the Accounts and Stores;
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38
Architectural, Buildings Ordinance, Crown Lands and Surveys, Drainage, Electrical, Port Development, Roads and Transport, Valuations and Resumptions, Waterworks Construction and Waterworks Maintenance offices.
2. The European staff comprised 149 officers and the non- European approximately 638.
3. The following is a summary of works carried out during the year:-
BUILDINGS.
4. Works completed were:-Queen Mary Hospital with Staff Quarters; Wanchai Market; Wholesale Market at Kennedy Town; Stanley Market; Postal Kiosk at Stanley; Wireless Telegraph Station at Hung Hom; Sports Pavilion at Central British School; Kain Wah Street Latrine; Shelter and Car Park at Garden Road; Car Shelters at Stanley Prison; Ta Ku Ling Police Station; Latrine at Tsun Wan Market; Barricades to Police Stations in the New Territories and the demolition of the old Central Market, old Wanchai Market and Queen's Gardens.
5. Works under construction were:-Government Stores and Workshops; additional block of flats at Stanley Prison and the new Central Market.
6. In addition to general maintenance numerous minor alterations, improvements and additions were executed to Government Buildings during the year and repairs of varying magnitude were carried out to practically all Government Build- ings damaged by a severe typhoon on the 2nd of September.
COMMUNICATIONS.
7. Works completed were:-Cutting and filling of the section of road adjoining Inland Lots Nos. 3685 & 3686, Blue Pool Road; widening of that portion of Garden Road between the Lower Peak Tram Station and the Helena May Institute; raising the first section of Electric Road to new Town Planning levels; Magazine. Gap Road. was widened and a Car Park constructed at the junction of this road with Bowen Road; surfacing of Sai Kung Road from Sam Tack Road to Field Cottage site; improvements to Sha Tin Pass Road; road to Smuggler's Pass and road from Au Tau to Shek Kong.
8. Works under construction were:-Widening and sur- facing of Customs Pass Road; surfacing of Sai Kung Road from Field Cottage site to Customs Pass Road; strengthening of bridges at Tsun Wan, Tsing Lung Tau, Tai Lam Chung (small bridge); rebuilding of a large bridge at Tai Lam Chung; surfacing of road to Smuggler's Pass and approach road to Tsun Wan Cemetery.
1931-1939
- 39
DRAINAGE.
337
9. In Hong Kong, new main sewers and storm water drains to a length of 5,361 feet and new open channels of varying sections to a length of 717 feet were laid. In addition, 188 feet of existing nullah was decked over and 142 feet of main storm water drain previously inverted was completed. In Kowloon, New Kowloon and New Territories, new main sewers and storm water drains to a length of 6,414 feet, and new open channels of varying sections to a length of 528 feet were laid. Nullah walling was constructed to proper height and parapet walling built for a length of 500 feet.
10. Anti-Malarial work was continued in Hong Kong by the letting of two new contracts, one for an area between the two reservoirs at Aberdeen, the other in the vicinity of Pokfulam between the Queen Mary Hospital and Sandy Bay. Although these contracts were not let until late in the year good progress was made on preliminary work and excavation, and at Aberdeen area 300 feet of main channel was constructed. A 3,000 gallon reservoir with a "De Villiers" automatic syphon sluice was erected near Mount Cameron Road, and minor channelling was laid near Inland Lot No. 2441, Victoria Road. In Kowloon, several short lengths of channelling were laid as requested by the Government Malariologist. In New Kowloon, working on training the stream-course west of New Kowloon Inland Lot No. 1969 at Ngau Shi Wan was commenced in November. A length of 150 feet of 36" diameter channel was completed. Filling to the amount of 1,200 cubic yards was also completed and an area of 300 super yards was turfed.
WATER WORKS.
11. On the maintenance side the following works were carried out:-
12. In Hong Kong the following lengths of new mains were laid to improve distributions:-120 feet of 15", 287 feet of 10", 1,105 feet of 6", 144 feet of 5", 2,271 feet of 4", 2,211 feet of 3", 904 feet of 2". 3,624 feet of subsidiary mains were laid in back lanes. The Stanley Water Supply Scheme was com- pleted. Construction of a 50,000 gallon covered service reser- voir for Repulse Bay commenced.
13. In Kowloon and New Kowloon the following lengths of mains were laid:-1,367 feet of 12′′, 1,724 feet of 6" and 3,607 feet of subsidiary mains in back lanes.
14. In the New Territories mains were laid as follows: 5,907 feet of 4" at Tsun Wan, 780 feet of 3" at Taipo and 364 feet of subsidiary mains in back lanes.
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-40
15. The Jubilee Reservoir at. Shing Mun was taken over from the Consulting Engineers on 1st May. Certain defects in Pineapple Pass Dam were discovered in September and were referred to the Consulting Engineers whose final decision had not been received at the close of the year.
16. The disastrous typhoon of 2nd September caused only minor damage to Water Works.
17. During the year experimental waste detection work was carried out and reports were submitted to Government with a view to the establishment of a permanent waste detection branch.
18. On the construction side the following works were carried out:-
19. The laying of the first section of the second 24" diameter trunk main from the Shing Mun Valley between Shek Lai Pui Service Reservoir and Waterloo Road was completed and brought into use in July.
20. The total length of main laid was 16,876 feet of which 16,286 feet consisted of new pipes.
21. The third section of the rapid gravity filters for the Shing Mun Valley Scheme was completed and brought into use in July. With the completion of this section, which deals with five million gallons per day the total filtration capacity of the plant is now fifteen million gallons per day. Provision has been made for the addition of a further five million gallons per day at a future date.
22. The following works in connection with a general ex- tension of the Water Works and described in Sessional Paper No. 3/1937 were approved by the Secretary of State: -supply to Albany; supply to Peak Road; new Cross Harbour Pipes; rapid gravity filters at Eastern; Kowloon Tsai Service Reservoir and Supply Mains thereto; Distribution-Island and Mainland and Shing Mun Valley Scheme Catchwaters.
23. Of the above a contract was let in October for the first section of the Shing Mun Catchwaters, on which good progress was made. Pipes and specials were ordered through the Crown Agents for the Cross Harbour Pipes. Of the remain- ing items work was mainly restricted to preliminary investigations, designs, detailed estimates and the preparation of contract documents.
RECLAMATIONS.
24. At North Point and Kennedy Town, areas of about 0.75 acres and 1 acre respectively were reclaimed by free deposits of building debris. At Kun Tong an area of about 2 acres has now been reclaimed by the depositing of town's refuse by the Urban Council.
1931-1939
41
339
25. Extensive repairs were carried out to piers and seawalls which were damaged in the typhoon of 2nd September. At Lai Chi Kok a length of 750 lineal feet of seawall was recon- structed.
ELECTRIC Works.
26. Wireless:-Aerial systems were renewed and improved at Cape D'Aguilar Transmitting Station. The re-broadcasting receiver at Victoria Peak was improved, and special aerials were erected. A Lamson pneumatic tube was installed to faci- litate communication between the Royal Observatory and the Kowloon Wireless Telegraph Station. A new receiver and several new batteries were fitted at Water Police Stations. An experimental transmitter of increased power was constructed for alternative broadcast programmes and one new lattice work mast was erected.
27. Hospital apparatus from the Government Civil Hospital was removed, repaired and installed at Queen Mary Hospital.
28. Lighting, power and telephones:-Lights, fans, lifts, telephones and bells in Government Buildings were maintained in good order. Two submarine cables were repaired. Lines were run, and telephones fitted in various offices and hospitals, and alarm bells were fitted in hospitals and gaols.
29. Work on new electrical installations at the following places was in hand:-Queen Mary Hospital; Wanchai Market; Stanley Village Market; Victoria Gaol and Guards' Quarters at Wyndham Street; Government Civil Hospital; Stanley Prison; Kennedy Town Market; Western Market; new Broadcasting Station; Central British School; Kowloon City Police Station and new Wireless Station Hung Hom. Inprovements and additions were carried out in forty-seven buildings in Hong Kong and fifteen in Kowloon.
30. One cross harbour submarine cable was laid.
BUILDINGS ORDINANCE OFFICE.
31. The volume of new building work coming under the jurisdiction of the Buildings Ordinance, 1935, showed a slight decrease in comparison with the figures for 1936.
32. Plans for alterations and additions to existing buildings again comprised the major part of plans deposited. There was an increase in the number of European houses but a decrease in the number of Chinese tenement type houses dealt with. Buildings of a non-domestic character showed an increase.
33. The large increase in the cost of building material which occurred toward the middle of the year was reflected in a marked falling off in the number of plans deposited during the last quarter.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
42
34. Plans were approved for the following more important works:-Demolition of slum property and rebuilding of a block of modern Chinese type houses, Lyndhurst Terrace and Gage Street; Chinese Restaurant, Wing Lok Street and Bonham Strand West; Chinese Restaurant, Queen's Road West and Possession Street; Super Service Station, Arsenal Street; a block of eighteen Chinese houses, Gloucester, Jaffe and Canal Roads; a block of ten Chinese houses, Morrison Hill Road; European flats Nos. 74 to 76 Macdonnell Road; a block of twelve Chinese houses, Wanchai Road; St. Stephen's Junior School, Stanley; three Godowns, King's Road; New Wharf, Taikoo; Biscuit Factory, Electric Road; Roman
Roman Catholic Chapel, Pokfulam; four blocks Chinese Quarters, Dairy Farm, Pokfulam; Printing Factory, King's Road; Ice Store and Garage for Dairy Farm Company, Canton Road; two large Godowns, Canton Road; Pea-nut Oil Factory, Castle Peak Road; block of four Chinese houses, Lai Chi Kok Road; a block of ten Chinese houses, Lai Chi Kok Road; a block of twelve Chinese houses, Reclamation Street; Chinese Restaurant, Shanghai Street; large Godown, Saigon Street; a block of three European houses, Taipo Road; Brewery, Tsun Wan Marine Lot No. 5; eleven European houses, Argyle Street; two blocks of European flats, (comprising in all twelve flats) with garages, Argyle Street; five storey block of flats, Austin Road and Avenue; one pair of European houses, Austin Road; La Salle Junior School, Boundary Street; Cinema Theatre, Carpenter Road; three European houses, Grampian Road; Church, Hillwood Road; Church and School, Kak Hang Tsun Road; China Light and Power Company Sub-Station, Ma Tau Chung Road; Cracker Factory extension, Pak Tai Street; two pairs European houses, Prince Edward Road; three storey Godown, Pak Tai Street; New Power Station, Tai Wan; a block of twelve Chinese houses, To Kwa Wan Road; Factory for Hong Kong Dairy Supply Company, Waterloo Road.
:
"
35. Buildings of importance completed were:-Chinese Restaurant, Wing Lok Street and Bonham Strand West; a block of European flats, Robinson Road; Cold Storage Building, Dairy Farm Company, East Point; Sisters' Quarters, St. Paul's Hospital, Causeway Bay; Church and Hall, Causeway Bay; fourteen Chinese houses, Gloucester, Marsh and Jaffe Roads; eighteen Chinese houses, Gloucester, Stewart and Jaffe Roads; Office Building, 10 Queen's Road Central; Office Building, 9 Queen's Road Central; Hong Kong Electric Company Sub- Station, Chiu Lung Street; Carmelite Sisters' Convent, Stanley; Garden and Swimming Pool, Repulse Bay; three Godowns, King's Road; European type flats, "Hill Crest" The Peak; Printing Factory, King's Road; Private Hospital, Kiu Kiang Street; large extension to Weaving Factory, Un Chau Street; two large Godowns, Hong Kong and Kowloon Wharf and Godown Company, Canton Road; a block of twelve Chinese houses, Reclamation Street; large Godown, Hong Kong and Kowloon
1931-1939
43
341
Wharf and Godown Company, Saigon Street; Girls' School, Hau Pui Loong; Church, Waterloo Road; Maryknoll Convent School, Waterloo Road and Boundary Street; Chinese Christian Church, Ma Tau Chung Road; School, Church and Priests' Quarters, Kak Hang Tsun Road.
36. Occupation permits were issued for 116 Chinese tene- ment houses, of these forty were erected in Kowloon and seventy-six on the Island. Occupation permits issued for fifty- seven European type houses, of these thirty-eight were erected in Kowloon and nineteen in Hong Kong.
37. The number of water flushed sanitary installations. approved amounted to 1,843.
38. Twelve fires causing structural damage were reported. In a fire which occurred at Nos. 21 to 25 Sa Po Road, the building was completely gutted. The building was a three storey structure with wooden floors, stairs and roofs without egress to roofs. Four of the inmates were burned to death.
39. During the typhoon of 2nd September a conflagration broke out at Nos. 131 to 137 Connaught Road West. The buildings were of the early tenement type, and with the excep- tion of two houses, the roofs, floors and stairs were of wooden construction. Egress to roofs was provided. Practically all the wooden floors and stairs collapsed, but little damage was done to walls. Several lives were lost, but as the ground floors were flooded by heavy seas from the harbour, the cause of death could not be ascertained.
40. It is noted that fires in houses of reinforced concrete construction were confined mostly to the floors in which the outbreak occurred, and in the majority of cases resultant damage was slight.
41. Nineteen collapses were reported, eleven of which occurred as a result of the very severe typhoon experienced on the 2nd September. The total casualties for the year due to collapses amounted to two. A serious accident occurred during the operation of a piling plant on Kowloon Inland Lot No. 3871, Canton Road. The accident was attributed to an exceptionally severe and sudden gust of wind, which caused the plant to overturn. Six people were killed and several injured.
42. Three landslips occurred as a result of the heavy rains. One casualty occurred as the result of a quantity of overhanging decomposed granite and boulders falling on to a shed at Tai Kok Tsui (Kowloon Quarry No. 14).
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44-
43. Plans were approved for the construction of a seawall and the reclamation of an area comprising 2,137,000 square feet at Tsun Wan Marine Lot No. S. Preparation work only was carried out.
44. The Chinese Cemeteries in Hong Kong, Kowloon and New Kowloon were inaintained in good order and provision was made for additional burial spaces. An area at Hammer Hill was gazetted as an urning ground, and preliminary survey work was carried out with a view to making this area available in 1939, by which time it is expected Aplichau will be unable to accommodate any additional urns. Very few burials took place at Ho Man Tin or Cheung Sha Wan, the main volume going to No. 7 Cemetery (Customs Pass). Chai Wan Cemetery is rapidly approaching saturation point, and it was found neces- sary to gazette a new area (Chai Wan Extension) which is in course of formation. Usual maintenance and minor works were executed in Kai Lung Wan and Mount Caroline Cemeteries.
Chapter XIII.
JUSTICE AND POLICE.
I. THE COURTS OF HONG KONG.
The Supreme Court of Hong Kong consists of a Chief Justice and one or more other judges. At present there is one Puisne Judge and one other Judge for the purpose of Appeals.
2. The jurisdiction of the Court is regulated by a number of Ordinances but generally it may be said that the Court exercises a Summary Jurisdiction in all actions where the claims do not exceed $1,000 and an Original Jurisdiction in all actions where the claims exceed that amount.
3. In addition to the above the Court exercises Admiralty, Probate, Divorce, Bankruptcy, Lunacy, Criminal and Appellate Jurisdiction.
4. The following is a brief summary of litigation and matters dealt with during the year 1937:-
1,582 actions were instituted in the Summary Jurisdiction and the amounts for which judgments were given totalled $212,915.00.
the
172 actions were instituted in the Original Jurisdiction and amounts for which judgments were given totalled $328,632.87.
1931-1939
45
343
Two actions were instituted in the Admiralty Jurisdiction.
403 grants were made, or grants of other courts sealed, in the Probate Jurisdiction.
Eight Petitions for Divorce were filed during 1937 and Decree absolute pronounced in two cases.
201 persons were indicted in the Criminal Jurisdiction of whom 229 were convicted.
38 appeals were lodged in the Appellate Jurisdiction 34 of which were disposed of during the year.
Four Criminal appeals were lodged and disposed of during the year.
5. The lower civil courts are the land courts in the Northern and Southern districts of the New Territories, with jurisdiction over land cases in those districts, and the small debts courts of the same two districts. In these courts the District Officers
sit to hear land and small debts cases.
6. The lower criminal courts are the magistrates' courts, two for Hong Kong island and a small area on the nfainland opposite Shaukiwan, two for Kowloon, including the whole area south of the Kowloon hills, and one each for the two districts of the New Territories, in which the District Officers are the magistrates.
7. The following figures show the amount of work done by
the lower courts in 1937:-
Civil:-
District Officer North,
Land Count
Small Debts Court
District Officer, South,
91 cases.
87
209 cases.
Land Court
Small Debts Court
41
""
Criminal:-
Hong Kong Magistracy, two courts
38,091 cases.
Kowloon Magistracy, two courts
District Officer, North, one court.........
District Officer, South, one court
30,220
1,881
19
508
17
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
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46
II. THE POLICE.
8. The Police Force of the Colony is under the control of the Commissioner of Police who is assisted by one Deputy Commissioner and ten Superintendents. The force consists of four Contingents, European, Indian, and two Chinese, viz., Cantonese and Weihaiwei. The strength of the different Contingents is as follows:-
Europeans
Indians
Chinese (Cantonese)
Chinese (Weihaiwei)
.....
269
803
733
289
In addition the Police Department controls the Anti-Piracy Guards, a force consisting of thirty-nine Russians and twenty- seven Indian Guards including three Sergeants together with four European Sergeants and one hundred and twenty-eight Weihaiwei Chinese Constables, who are included in Police Strength. The Anti-Piracy Guards are employed and paid for by the Shipping Companies for service in the China Seas.
9. Further, the department supervises 580 Indian
Indian and Chinese Watchmen who are engaged by the Police Department and paid by private individuals for protection of private property. In addition there are 424 Indian and 7 Japanese Private Watchmen Registered at the Guards Offices.
10. The waters of the Colony are policed by a fleet of ten steam launches and five motor boats which employ a staff of two hundred and fifty-five Chinese under European officers.
•
11. There were 12,434 serious cases of crime in 1937, as against 9,038 in 1936, an increase of 3,396 or 37%. There was an increase of 124 cases in burglary, 86 in house and godown breaking, 1 in intimidation and extortion, 3 in kidnap- ping, 2,925 in larceny, 174 in larceny in dwelling, 62 in Larceny on ships and wharves, 6 in manslaughter, 2 in murder attempted, 48 in obtaining by false pretence, 108 in receiving, 41 in robbery and 27 in other serious offences. There was a decrease of 12 cases in arms, 30 in serious assault, 4 in assault with intent to rob, 48 in coinage offences, 106 in deportation, 8 in embezzlement, 2 in murder and 1 under the Protection of Women & Girls Ordinance.
There were 43,288 minor cases in 1937 as against 37,549 in 1936, an increase of 5,739 or 15%.
III.-PRISONS.
two
12. There were four prisons during 1937, but only prisons are now in existence in the Colony. Hong Kong Prison at Stanley is the general prison for males, opened in January 1937. This prison is built on the separate system. It contains
1931-1939
47
345
cell accommodation for 1,598. Lai Chi Kok Branch Prison for males was closed down on 28.1.37. Victoria Gaol was closed down on 26.9.37 and all prisoners were transferred to Hong Kong Prison at Stanley. The transfer of all male prisoners was completed on 26.9.37. The other prison is the female prison situated at Lai Chi Kok.
13. The total number of persons committed to prison in the year 1937 was 17,088 as compared with 16,106 in 1936. Thic daily average number of prisoners in the prisons in 1937 was 2,493. The highest previous average was 1,917 in 1936. Over 85% of prisoners admitted are persons born outside the Colony.
14. The health of the prisoners generally was well main- tained in the prisons.
15. The discipline in the prisons was good.
16. Prisoners are employed at printing, bookbinding, shoemaking, tinsanithing, matmaking, tailoring, carpentering, weaving, gardening. laundry work, cleaning and minor repairs to buildings. The bulk of the Government printing and book- binding is done in Hong Kong Prison.
IV.-REMAND HOMES.
17. During the year 221 boys underwent sentences of detention for various crimes at the Remand Home for Juveniles (Boys), not under Prison administration and 69 girls underwent detention at the Remand Home for girls. The boys are given instruction in elementary reading and writing, as
as well as in rattan work, which teaches them a trade. The girls are given employment in house-work, laundry, and making and mending clothes. There are recreation facilities at both Homes.
There are also four Probation Officers, two males and two females.
Lady visitors attend the Female Prison twice weekly to instruct long sentence prisoners in needle work.
18. Visiting Justices inspect and report on the prisons every fortnight.
Chapter XIV.
LEGISLATION.
1. Twenty-eight Ordinances were passed during the year 1937. These and also the Regulations, Rules, By-Laws and other subordinate legislation enacted during 1937 are published
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
48
in a separate volume by the Government Printers. The twenty- eight Ordinances comprised two appropriation, three replace- ment, one incorporation, one consolidation, seventeen amend- ment and four which were new to the Colony.
2. The Appropriation Ordinance (No. 23) applied a sum not exceeding $26,338,340 to the public service for the year 1937 and Ordinance No. 10 appropriated a supplementary sum of $782,310.80 to defray the charges of the year 1936.
3. Of the three replacement Ordinances-
(1) The Hong Kong Government Service (Levy on Salaries) Ordinance (No. 2), which replaced the corresponding 1936 Ordinance, reduced the percentage deductions on salaries for the first half of 1937 and gave power to the Legislature by re- solution to continue, reduce or abandon the percentage deduc- tions during the second half of the year, and in addition made provision for the exchange conversion rate.
(2) The Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance, 1937 (No. 8), which replaced the Pharmacy and Poisons Ordinance, 1916 (No. 9), followed closely the provisions of the Pharmacy and Poisons Act, 1933.
(3) The Factories and Workshops Ordinance, 1937 (No. 18) replaced the corresponding 1932 Ordinance. This Ordinancé transferred the office of Protector of Labour from the Secretary for Chinese Affairs to the Chairman of the Urban Council and enacted certain new provisions to meet modern requirements.
4. Ordinance No. 28 provided for the incorporation of the Procurator in Hong Kong of the Irish Province of the Order of Franciscans Minor. The Ordinance followed the usual lines in such cases.
5. The Forestry Ordinance, 1937 consolidated and to some extent extended the existing Ordinances relating to forests, trees and plants.
6. The seventeen amending Ordinances covered a wide range of subjects, namely-Telecommunication (No. 1), Pensions (No. 3), Watchmen (No. 4), Deportation (British Subjects) (No. 5), Advertisements Regulation (No. 6), Public Health (Sanita- tion) (No. 7), Currency (No. 9), Printers and Publishers (No. 12), Stonecutters Island (No. 13), Motor Spirit (No. 14), Or- dinance and Regulations of Hong Kong (1937 edition) (No. 15), Life Assurance Companies (No. 16), Full Court (No. 17), Naval Establishment Police (No. 19), Magistrate's (No. 20), Merchant Shipping (No. 22), Interpretation (No. 26).
7. The Ordinances new to the Colony were:-
(1) Stores Pier (North Point) and Additional Pipe Lines
Ordinance (No. 21).
1931-1939
49
347
(2) Sterling Salaries Conversion Ordinance (No. 21). (3) Public Officers (Change of Style) (No. 25).
(4) Law Revision Ordinance (No. 27).
Ordinance No. 21 provisionally authorised the Director of Public Works to construct a pier projecting into the ilarbour and to lay two additional cross-Harbour pipe lines; No. 24, while repealing the Hong Kong Government Service (Levy on Salaries) Ordinance, 1937 (No. 2), made provision for converting the ster- ling salaries of Government officers for the year 1938 at a rate. similar to the rate applicable in 1937; No. 25 changed the style of Inspector General of Police and Deputy Inspector General of Police and Police Probationer to Commissioner of Police, Deputy Commissioner of Police and Police Cadet respectively and authorised the Legislative Council by resolution to make additional alterations in the style of public officers at any time; Ordinance No. 27 gave effect to certain amendments found necessary in the preparation of the revised Ordinances (1937 edition).
8. The subordinate legislation covered a wide range of subjects including.-
Air Navigation, Adulterated Food and Drugs, Asiatic Emigration Boarding House, Betting Duty, Births and Deaths Registration, Buildings, Cremation, Crown Rents (Apportion- ment), Dangerous Drugs, Defences (Firing Areas), Dentistry, Emergency Regulations (Cholera). Ferries, Forestry, Hawkers, Hong Kong (Coinage), Lighting Control, Liquors, Marriage, Merchant Shipping, Midwives, Naval Volunteer, New Territories Public Health (Sanitation), Nursing and Maternity Homes Registration, Public Health (Animals and Birds). Pensions, Pharmacy and Poisons, Places of Public Entertainment, Pleasure Grounds and Bathing Places, Post Office, Prisons, Public Health (Food), Public Health (Sanitation). Quarantine and Prevention of Disease, Rating, Registration of Imports and Exports, Rope Company's Tramway, Telecommunication, Tram- ways, Vaccination, Vehicles and Traffic, Volunteer and Watch-
men.
Chapter XV.
PUBLIC FINANCE & TAXATION.
The following tables show the Revenue and Expenditure for the five years 1933 to 1937 inclusive.
Revenue. Expenditure. Surplus.
1933
1934
1935
1936
1937
Deficit.
$32,099,278
$31,122,715
$976,563
29,574,286
31,149,156
$1,574,870
28,430,550 28,291,636 30,042.984 29.518.520) 33,196,368 32,111,222
188.914
529.1464
1,085,146
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
50
2. The revenue for the year 1937 amounted to $33,196,368, being $4,436,118 more than estimated, and $3,153,384 more than the revenue obtained in 1936.
3. All subheads under Duties exceeded the estimate by $1,210,411. Of this sum $682,203 was on account of Tobacco, representing the increased activities of local manufacturers on the closing down of North China factories through abnormal con- ditions in China. The temporary increase in population due to the influx of refugees from China accounted for the increase of $133,404 under Locally Manufactured Liquor, and certain smaller increases under Import Duty on Liquor and Spirits. Less tonnage accounted for a decrease of $11,224 under Light Dues. Receipts from Opium Monopoly exceeded the estimate by $64,770 accounted for by the increased population. Assessed Taxes were greater than the estimate by $314,066. This was due to the greater demand for accommodation during the latter half of the year by the abnormal influx of refugees, and for the same reason Water Excess Supply and Meter Rents were higher by $123,856. Two large estates were the main causes of an increase in Estate Duty of $183,251. Due to an improvement in general business conditions Stamp Duties brought in $130,186 more than anticipated. Post Office receipts also showed an increase of $1,204,596, principally due to an expansion of the Air Mail Services and large sales of the Coronation Issue of postage stamps, while increased postage rates also contributed.
Receipts from the Kowloon Canton Railway were $197,790 greater than estimated. Of this figure the linking up of the Canton-Kowloon and Canton-Hankow Railways accounts for some $120,000, and some $40,000 more in rents was 'derived from the storage of goods originally consigned to Shanghai but landed in Hong Kong. The closing down of the casino at Shum Chun, however, adversely affected the passenger traffic receipts from that source to the extent of over $70,000.
4. The expenditure for the year 1937 amounted to $32,111,222 being $147,938 less than estimated and $2,597,702 more than the expenditure in 1936.
5. Ordinary expenditure amounted to $30,600,924, Public Works Extraordinary to $1,510,298. Personal Emoluments amounted to $12,895,932, being $822,984 less than the estimated figure of $13,718,916 due to the operation of the Levy on Salaries Ordinance No. 17 of 1936 which was repealed on 1st July, 1937.
Other Charges amounted to $4,575,527, being $69,539 less than estimated.
6. Debt.-The Public Debt of the Colony consists of two issues: The 4% Conversion Loan raised in 1933 amounting to $4,838,000, the Sinking Fund of which, established in 1934, amounted on 31st December, 1937, to £54,325.6.11. Secondly,
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349
the 34% Dollar Loan raised in July, 1934. Bonds to the amount of $14,000,000 were issued at 99% producing $13,860,000. This Loan is redeemable by drawings at par in each of tlie twenty-five years commencing in 1935 at the annual rate of one twenty-fifth of such issue. During each of the years 1935, 1936 and 1937 $560,000 was so redeemed thus reducing the amount outstanding to $12,320,000. Ordinance No. 11 of 1934 governs this issue and authorizes the Governor to borrow up to a total of $25,000,000. The total public debt of the Colony on 31st December, 1937, amounted to $17,158,000.
7. The Assets and Liabilities of the Colony on the 31st December, 1937, are shown in the following stateinent:-
LIABILITIES.
$
ASSETS.
Deposits:-
Advances:-
Miscellaneous
220,148.51
Contractors and
Pending Re-im-
Officers Deposits..
447,749.26
bursements from
31% dollar loan.
10,263,484.30
Insurance Com-
Pending Re-in-
panies
1,563,341.62
bursements from
proposed new low
56,783.30
Miscellaneous De-
Building Loans ....
337,922.63
posits
1,339,709.71 Imprest Account ...
9,420.17
Subsidiary Coin
120,625.00
House Service
Trade Loan Out-
Account
31,007.47
standing
295,493.00
Suspense Account .
84,285.42
Government House
& City Develop-
Unallocated Stores,
(P.W.D.)
ment Fund
839,704.12 Unallocated Stores,
486,938.40
(Railway)
121,552.45
Exchange Adjust-
Note Issue Account :-
ment
23,934.73
Current
Account. $ 513,870.4:
Fixed.
Trade Loan Reserve..
338,689.27
Deposit.. 3,000,000.0.
3,513,870.42
Praya East Re-
Nickel Coinage
clamation
108,280.35
Account :-
Current
Coal Account
10,404.98
Sterling
Investment
Crown Agents-
Account. $ 333,517.7
Account. 1,290,336.8
Overdraft
7,026.69
1,678,854.57
Cash Balance:--
Note Security Fund..
3,513,870.42
Accountant-
General
1,547,810.91
Nickel Coinage
*Joint Colonial
Security Fund
1,678,854.57
Fund
2,436,302.53
Fixed Deposits
Total Liabilities..
9,902,573.19
General...$ 1,050,000.00| Insurance
Excess of Assets
Companies 1,563,341.62| Miscellaneous 118,018.07
over Liabilities
14,002,278.11
Total.........$ 23,904,851.30
2,731,359.69
Total........ $ 23,904,851.30
* Joint Colonial Fund £151,000 Os. Od.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
52
8. Main Heads of Taxation.-The largest item of revenue is derived from the assessment tax, the sum of $5,914,066 being collected in 1937. This represents 17.82% of the total revenue or 18.10% of the revenue exclusive of land sales. The rates vary from 15% to 17% on the annual value of property and are for police, lighting and water services, etc. Port and Harbour Dues comprising Light Dues and Buoy Dues brought in the sum of $625,684.
9. Duties on intoxicating liquors realized $2,291,167, tobacco $4,432,203, postage stamps and message fees $3,254,396. A considerable sum is also derived from the opium monopoly, land revenue, stamp duties including estate duties and other fees. Land Sales during the year realized $528,464. The receipts of the Kowloon-Canton Railway which was completed in 1910 amounted to $1,297,940.
10. Customs Tariff.-There is an import tariff on all liquor, tobacco and light oils imported into the Colony for sale or use therein. There is no export tariff. The sale of opium is a Government Monopoly, and all importation of opium other than by the Government is prohibited. The importation of Dangerous Drugs is regulated in accordance with the terms of the Geneva Convention. Arms, ammunition, explosives and dangerous goods are subject to the normal Harbour and Police Regulations in regard to storage and movement. A special Foreign Regis- tration fee of 20% of the value of a motor vehicle is payable in respect of any vehicle not produced within the British Empire.
11. The duties on imported liquor range from $0.80 per gallon on beer to $1.50 on Chinese liquor and to $13 on sparkling European wines.. A 50% reduction in duty is allowed in respect of brandy grown or produced within the British Empire.
12. The duties on tobacco range from $0.90 per lb. on the lowest taxed unmanufactured tobacco to $2.60 per lb. on cigars. A reduction in duty is allowed to tobacco of Empire origin and/or of Empire manufacture.
13. A duty of 30 cents per gallon is payable on all light oils imported into the Colony.
14. Excise and Stamp Duties.-A reduction in duty is allowed on beer and Chinese type spirits manufactured in the Colony.
15. Stamp Duties are imposed on various instruments and where a consideration is involved are mainly ad valorem. The following are examples of the duties charged:-Affidavits, Statutory Declarations, etc., $3; Bills of Exchange (inward) and Cheques, 10 cents; Bills of Lading, 15 cents when freight is under $5, 40 cents when freight is $5 or over; Bond to secure
1931-1939
351
the payment or repayment of money, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Conveyance on sale, $1 for every $100 or part thereof; Mortgages, principal security, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Life Insurance Policy, 25 cents for every $1,000 insured; Receipts, 10 cents for amounts over $20; Transfer of Shares, 20 cents for every $100 of market value.
16. No Hut Tax or Poll Tax is imposed in the Colony.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
54
Appendix.
LIST OF PUBLICATIONS OF GENERAL INTEREST RELATING TO
HONG KONG,
TITLE.
PRICE.
Agents for SALE.
$
Sessional Papers (Annual)
Blue Book (Annual)
Ordinances-Ball's Revised Edit-
ion (In 6 Volumes) 1844-1923.
Regulations of Hong Kong 1844-
1925
Ordinances and Regulations
(Annual)
Administration Reports (Annual)|
Estimates (Annual)
Government Gazettes (Weekly).
Meteorological Bulletin (Month-
ly)
Hong Kong Trade and Shipping
Returns (Monthly).
Do. (Annual)
Hansards (Annual)
Historical & Statistical Abstract of the Colony of Hong Kong 1841-1930
The Hong Kong Naturalist
(Quarterly)
2.00 Colonial Secretariat and
Government Printers.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers and Crown Agents for the Colonies, London.
90.00
Do.
30.00 Colonial Secretariat.
3.00 Colonial Secretariat, Govern- ment Printers and Crown Agents.
5.00 Colonial Secretariat.
3.00 Government Printers.
.50 Government Printers and
Crown Agents.
10.00 Government Printers.
per
annum
2.00 Government Printers and
Crown Agents. 2.00
Do.
5.00 South China Morning Post,
Hong Kong.
4.00 Colonial Secretariat.
2.00 Hong Kong University.
1931-1939
55
Appendix,-Continued.
TITLE.
PRICE.
AGENTS FOR sale.
$
353
Hong Kong: A Guide Book .....
Hong Kong: Around and About, by S. H. Peplow & M. Barker.
Hong Kong-Birth, Adolescence
& Coming of Age
Echoes of Hong Kong & Beyond
by L. Forster
Hong Kong-the Riviera of the
Orient
Travellers Map of Hong Kong...
1.00 Kelly & Walsh, Ltd. and Brewers' Bookshop, Hong
Kong.
5.00
Do.
18/-
Do.
1.50
. Do.
1.00
Do.
.10
Do.
Picturesque Hong Kong
1.25 Brewers' Bookshop.
The Tourist Guide 1936
1.25
Do.
The Dollar Directory 1938
1.00
Do.
A Hong Kong Sketch Book
Hilly Hong Kong
2.50 Kelly & Walsh, Ltd.
1.00
Do.
Glimpses of Hong Kong
1.00
Do.
Sections on Hong Kong will be found in the annual "China Year Book" published by the North China Daily News and Herald Ltd., Shanghai (London Agents Simpkin Marshall Ltd.) price $20.00, the annual "Directory and Chronicle of China, Japan etc." published by the Hong Kong Daily Press at Hong Kong, Price $12.00 and obtainable at their London office at 53, Fleet St., for £2, and 'Comacrib China & Hong Kong Manual", price $35.00 (Brewers' Bookshop).
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INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
COLONIAL REPORTS-ANNUAL
355
No. 1914
Annual Report on the Social and Economic Progress of the People of
HONG KONG, 1938
(For Reports for 1936 and 1937 see Nos. 1825 and 1867
respectively (Price 1s. 3d.).)
Crown Copyright Reserved
LONDON
PUBLISHED BY HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE (PRINTED IN HONG KONG)
To be purchased directly from H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE at the following addresses : York House, Kingsway, London, W.C.2; 120 George Street, Edinburgh 2; 26 York Street, Manchester 1; 1 St. Andrew's Crescent, Cardiff; 80 Chichester Street, Belfast;
or through any bookseller
1939
Price 31. od. net
356
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
CONTENTS.
Chapter
1 Geography, including Climate and History
II Government
Page
1
11
III Population and Births and Deaths
17
IV Public Health
23
V Housing
VI Natural Resources
VII Commerce
VIII Labour
39
47
63
3333
93
IX Wages and the Cost of Living
101
X Education and Welfare Institutions
109
XI Communication and Transport
121
XII Public Works
133
XIII Justice and Police
141
XIV Legislation
153
XV Banking, Currency, Weights and Measures........... 159
XVI Public Finance and Taxation
165
XVII Miscellaneous
171
Appendix I List of Publications, etc.
177
Appendix II Effects of Sino-Japanese
hostilities
Map of the Colony
.181 ·
187
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357
CHAPTER I.
Geography, Climate and History.
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INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
CHAPTER I.
Geography, Climate and History.
359
Geography.
The Colony has a total area of 390 square miles which consists of the following:-
(1) The island of Hong Kong, on which lies the
capital city of Victoria, and Stonecutters' Island.
The Kowloon peninsula, which is almost completely
urbanised. These two areas are British-owned.
(2) The New Territories. These include a portion of
the mainland of China lying south of the Shum Chun River, approximately seventeen miles north of the northern boundary of the Kowloon peninsula and, secondly, certain outlying islands and the
seabeds of Deep Bay and Mirs Bay. The New Territories are held from China on a ninety-nine
years lease dating from the 1st of July, 1898.
The Colony is situated off the south-eastern coast of China
between latitude 22° 9′ and 22° 17′ N., and longitude 113° 52′
and 114° 30′ E. at the eastern foot of the delta of the Pearl
River. Forty miles across this delta lies the Portuguese colony
of Macao, and at the apex of the triangle thus formed is the Chinese city of Canton, some ninety miles north-west of Hong
Kong.
The island of Hong Kong has an area of thirty-two square miles and is about eleven miles long and two to five miles in breadth. It is dominated by a group of treeless hills rising
steeply on the west to a maximum height of 1,823 feet above sea-level. The more gradual slope on the east affords some scope for cultivation. A parallel range of similar height rises on the mainland opposite about a mile from the shore. The New
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
2
Territories are for the most part mountainous with considerable flat rather swampy areas to the north.
Climate.
The climate of Hong Kong is sub-tropical, and is governed
to a large extent by the monsoons, the winter being normally
cool and dry and the summer hot and humid. The north-east
monsoon sets in during October and persists until April. The
early winter is the most pleasant time of the year, the weather
being generally sunny and the atmosphere often exceedingly dry. Later in the winter the sky becomes more cloudy, although rainfall remains very slight; in March and April long spells of dull overcast weather may occur. Warm southerly winds may temporarily displace the cool north east monsoon at this period; under these conditions fog and low cloud are prevalent.
The
From May until August the prevailing wind is the south-west
monsoon, a warm damp wind blowing from equatorial regions.
Winds are more variable, however, in summer than in winter, for the south-west monsoon is frequently interrupted. weather is persistently hot and humid, and is often cloudy and
showery with frequent thunderstorms. The summer is the rainy season, three-quarters of the annual rainfall falling between the months of May and September.
Hong Kong is liable to be affected by typhoons from June to October, although they are occasionally experienced before and after this period. A typhoon whose centre passes over or near the Colony is usually accompanied by winds of hurricane force, resulting in widespread damage and loss of life. Sixteen such disasters have occurred in the last fifty-five years. Spells of bad weather with copious rain and strong winds are, however, experienced several times in each summer, owing to the passage of typhoons at varying distances from the Colony.
The mean monthly temperature ranges from 59°F in February to 82°F in July, the average for the year being 72°F.
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3
361
The temperature very rarely rises above 95°F or falls below 40°F. In spring and summer the relative humidity of the atmosphere is persistently high, at times exceeding 95%, while
in early winter it occasionally falls as low as 20%. The mean monthly duration of sunshine ranges from 94 hours in March to
217 hours in October. The mean annual rainfall is 84.26 inches.
The mean temperature for 1938 was 72.8°F, which is 0.9°F above normal. April and June were both exceptionally sunny, the total duration of sunshine being the highest recorded in each
of these months. The year was the driest since 1895: the total
rainfall amounting to only 55.35 inches, against a normal of 84.26 inches. No typhoon seriously affected the Colony during the year, and no gales occurred, although an unseasonably early typhoon on May 3rd-4th produced a gust of 63 m.p.h., which is the highest wind velocity ever recorded in May.
History.
Prior to 1841 the island, now known as Hong Kong, was
inhabited by a few fishermen, stone-cutters and farmers, and provided a well-known hiding place for sinugglers and pirates. In that year it was occupied by the British forces partly as a reprisal for the treatment of British merchants in Canton, and
partly to provide a secure base from which trading might be
continued with the merchants of South China..
Foreign intercourse with China dates from the sixteenth
century when expeditions from the maritime states of Europe-
Portugal, Spain, Holland and England-penetrated into Far
Eastern waters in the hope of establishing a direct trade by sea
with the Moluccas or Spice Islands. At the end of the century
Queen Elizabeth herself addressed a letter to the Emperor of
China. Though this letter was probably never delivered it
marks the beginning of official support for a whole series of
adventurous attempts to share in the trade of the Eastern
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
4
countries. At the beginning of the next century a monopoly of
the East Indian trade was created in favour of "The Governor
and merchants of London trading in the East Indies." An early
trading-station at Bantam in Java soon led to the extension of
the sphere of action to Japan and China, and it was off the coast of South China that the East India Company had to face
a double opposition to its aims: the hostility of the Chinese
authorities, and an intense rivalry with the Dutch merchants.
The Portuguese had already founded the settlement of
Macao from Malacca. It was probably the existence of this
European foothold that concentrated foreign attention on Canton.
In 1681 the East India Company secured a house in Macao and
a little later an approach was made to Canton itself. By 1715
a regular seasonal trade had been commenced with a shore-staff
residing during the season in 'factories' in Canton, and, during
the summer months, in the Company's premises in Macao. The
French, Dutch and Americans were not long in following the
Company's lead and, by the end of the eighteenth century, Englishmen trading on their own account were beginning to share the benefits of this precarious intercourse. It was into the hands of these newly arrived adventurers that the opium trade fell when, in 1800, the Company declined to carry opium in its ships owing to an Imperial edict forbidding the importation of opium into China. For some thirty years this
state of affairs continued, during which the Chinese authorities, infuriated by the persistence of the illicit trade which they were unable to check, put increasingly arbitrary and irregular restrictions on the Company's legitimate activities.
·
Meanwhile two abortive attempts had been made to establish
official relations with China-by Lord Macartney in 1793 and by Lord Amherst in 1816. The separate trends which British intercourse with China had hitherto taken, the activity of the East India Company, whose monopoly expired in 1831, and the
1931-1939
*5
363
unsuccessful official missions,-were united in 1834 by the
arrival of Lord Napier in Canton as His Majesty's Chief Superintendent of Trade.
Lord Napier's efforts at improving relations with the Chinese authorities for the benefit of British trade resulted in conspicuous failure and he died in Macao in October, 1834. Captain Elliot R.N. succeeded him as Chief Superintendent and for five years negotiations were intermittently continued while the position of
the British merchants became more unbearable. The ultimate
result of this protracted period of undeclared hostilities was the withdrawal of British merchant ships to Hong Kong Bay, a blockade of the Canton River in 1840 and the peaceful occupation of Hong Kong Island in January, 1841.
The cession of the island to Great Britain was confirmed
by the Treaty of Nanking in August, 1842. The history of the Colony thereafter is one of uninterrupted peaceful development. The Convention of Peking of 1860 added the Kowloon peninsula
and Stonecutters' Island to the Colony, and under a further
Convention of Peking signed in 1898, the area known as the New Territories, including Mirs Bay and Deep Bay, was leased to Great Britain for a period of ninety-nine years.
Nearly a century has passed since the bare unproductive
hills were first occupied and the gangs of law-breakers evicted
from their shelter. Afforestation, extensive reclamation of the
foreshore, cultivation of the lower slopes, and a network of motor roads cut into the hills have combined with the steady growth of the city itself to present to the ocean-going ships which lie in Hong Kong waters to-day a very different picture from that
which met the first merchantmen who watered off the south-west
coast of the island. Sanitation, anti-malarial work, and public
health administration have removed all evidence of the 'plague
spot' which the new Colony was thought to be. The adminis- tration of the Colony usually has been serene and untroubled.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
6
One of the world's great harbours has been developed out of the enclosed waters between Lyemoon and Green Island. The
freedom of the port has been maintained and no restrictions are
placed on the entrance or egress of the Chinese population. This
policy has preserved for the Colony the rôle which it was intended to fulfil in 1841: that of an entrepôt for the trade and labour of the southern provinces.
It has had the effect too of
establishing Hong Kong as an impartial refuge, both for persons and capital, during the internecine struggles which followed the
inauguration of the Chinese Republic in 1911, and through the more recent misfortunes of the Chinese people. A railway which passes through the centre of China and a road from Canton
debouch upon the line of wharves where the world's shipping collects. Five airlines, from China, Europe and America, terminate in the airport. Ship-building yards on the eastern side of the harbour have laid down keels for ships of 11,000 tons,
and the docks can accommodate the largest of the Pacific liners. Small industries have sprung up and flourished in the east of the island and in Kowloon. Cement, rope, glass, cigarettes, cigars, matches, paper, lard, electric torches and batteries, rubber-shoes and piece-goods are now exported widely. Market-
produce, cereals, poultry and live-stock are brought in daily from
the New Territories, and from the surrounding waters fleets of junks net every variety of fish,-a supply which more than suffices for the Colony's needs. Mining is, as yet, in its infancy. Considerable deposits of wolframite, manganese, granite and kaolin are to be found in the hills of the New Territories, and
prospecting and mining for these are encouraged.
Hong Kong has developed naturally in strategic and military importance as the Empire extended towards the East. To-day the Colony is the headquarters of the Commander-in-Chief, China Station, and of the General Officer Commanding British
Troops in China. The Royal Air Force has a station at Kai Tak,
1931-1939
7
365
The
sharing a landing ground with the civil authorities. constantly shifting personnel of the armed forces, together with
the flow of tourist traffic and the itinerant habits of the boat-
people and poorer classes generally, make the permanent
population of the Colony relatively few. To these few however, and to her visitors, Hong Kong now offers amenities which
cannot be equalled in the tropics. The present low fixed rate of the dollar and the cheapness of labour bring living expenses to an encouragingly economic level. There is no income tax and no general customs tariff. For six months of the year the weather is cool and dry with long periods of sunshine daily. Every variety of sport is to be found: safe bathing in ideal conditions, two first-class golf-courses, a drag hunt, polo,
shooting, tennis, football, cricket, pony racing, sailing and civilian flying. The scenery, especially along the deeply indented shores of the Colony, is superb.
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INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
367
CHAPTER II.
Government.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
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CHAPTER II.
Government.
369
The Government of Hong Kong is administered under Letters Patent of the 14th of February, 1917, and Royal Instruc- tions of the same and subsequent dates, by a Governor aided by an Executive Council, composed of six official and three unofficial members, and by a Legislative Council composed of nine official and eight unofficial members. Prior to 1928 the numbers of the
Legislative Council members were seven and six respectively.
The six official members of the Executive Council are the Senior
Military Officer, the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney General, the Secretary for Chinese Affairs, the Financial Secretary, all
of whom are members ex-officio, and the Director of Public Works, appointed by the Governor. The three unofficial members, one of whom is Chinese, are appointed by the
Governor. The six official members of the Executive Council
are ex-officio members of the Legislative Council; the other three official members of this Council, who are appointed by the Governor, are at the present time the Commissioner of Police,
the Harbour Master and the Director of Medical Services. Of
the unofficial members of the Legislative Council two are appointed by the Governor on the nomination respectively of
the Justices of the Peace and of the Chamber of Commerce; the
Governor also appoints the remaining members three of whom are Chinese. Appointment in the case of unofficial members is
for five years for the Executive and four years for the Legislative Council.
The English Common Law forms the basis of the legal system, modified by Hong Kong Ordinances of which an edition revised to 1923 has been published. A further revised edition, of which the first volume has already been printed, was commenced during 1937. The law as to civil procedure was
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
12
codified by Ordinance No. 3 of 1901. The Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act 1890 regulates the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in Admiralty cases.
The daily administration is carried out by twenty-two Government departments, all officers of which are members, of
the Civil Service. The central branch of the administration is
the Colonial Secretariat. The Secretariat for Chinese Affairs is
concerned with questions affecting the Chinese community.
Matters of finance and the collection of rates and internal
revenue are dealt with by the Treasury Departments. The Imports and Exports Department collects the import and excise duties and controls the opium monopoly. There are seven legal sub-departments, including the Supreme Court and the Magis- tracies. The Medical Department and the Sanitary Department Ideal with public health, and the Public Works Department is
concerned with roads, buildings, waterworks, piers and analogous matters. The Education Department controls the Government's English and Vernacular Schools and supervises education in the Colony generally. Other departments are the Audit Department, the Post Office, the Harbour Department, the Police Department, the Prisons Department, and the two District Offices.
In 1936 the Sanitary Board was replaced by an Urban Council composed of five official and eight unofficial members. This council has not, however, the full municipal function which is usually understood by its title. All its officers are salaried civil servants and the council itself is subordinate in many
respects to the executive authority of the Government. The council has power to make by-laws, which are submitted to the Governor and subject to the approval of the Legislative Council, under the Public Health (Food) Ordinance; the Public Health (Sanitation) Ordinance, the Public Health (Animals and Birds) Ordinance, in matters appertaining to public health, subject always to an over-riding power in the Legislative Council. The
1931-1939
13
371
Urban District over which the Council présides consists of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and New Kowloon.
Local administration in the New Territories and in the
several small islands within the territorial waters is in the hands
of two District Officers. In addition to their administrative
work these officers are the Magistrates and Land Officers for their districts, and are empowered to hear small debts cases and to decide summarily certain cases relating to land. The District
Officers are also Coroners for their districts and are assisted in
many of their duties by the advice of Councils of Elders.
There are a number of advisory boards and standing committees such as the Board of Education, Harbour Advisory Committee, Labour Advisory Board, etc., composed of both official and unofficial members. They are frequently consulted
and are of much assistance to the Government.
was
The reorganization of the financial administration
carried a stage further in 1938 by the Financial Secretary's assumption of a purely administrative
administrative function in the
Secretariat. The Treasury remained under his control but was
divided into three sub-departments: the Accountant-General's
Office to deal with the Colony's finance generally, the Assessor's
Office for the assessment and collection of rates, and the office
of the Superintendent of Inland Revenue for the administration of the Estate Duty Ordinance, the Stamp Ordinance, and the Entertainment and Betting Tax Ordinances.
Later in the year the Accounts and Stores Office of the Public Works Department was made into a separate department supervised by the Financial Secretary and under the direct charge of a Controller of Stores.
An Air-Raid Precautions Officer was sent out from England
early in 1938 to organize general precautionary measures on behalf of the Government. He is now in charge of a small department housed in the Colonial Secretariat.
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14.
The new post of Labour Officer was created on the 14th of November, 1938. During the remainder of the year the new
Labour Officer was engaged in investigating general conditions
in factories and the position regarding Trades Unions, on which subjects a report will be prepared in due course. Wages and
cost of living, arbitration in trade disputes and the application of the Workman's Compensation Ordinance are other matters
with which this officer will deal.
1931-1939
373
CHAPTER III.
Population and Births and Deaths.
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17
CHAPTER III.
Population and Births and Deaths.
375
Hong Kong is a free port and this fact coupled with its geographical proximity to the mainland of South China makes effective control of emigration and immigration impossible. It is, therefore, very difficult to give accurate estimates of the population of the Colony. The 1938 mid-year population
obtained by extrapolation from the last two census results is
1,028,619. The excess of immigrants arriving by railway and
sea over emigrants during 1938 was more than 300,000, and when it is remembered that this figure takes no account of those
entering the Colony by sampan, junk or across the land frontier,
it is easy to realise that the normal population of Hong Kong has been increased by at least 500,000* during 1938. Most of
these people have been accommodated in the urban districts of
the Colony, but, for the space of two months subsequent to the
Japanese invasion of South China, many thousands of refugees
were crowded into the towns and villages of the New Territories.
Though the influx of refugees has been continuous throughout the year there were three peak periods, the first occurring after the systematic air raids on Canton began in May, the second after the Japanese landed at Bias Bay in October and the third and greatest after the Japanese "mopping up" operations along the Hong Kong frontier at the end of November. The fall of Canton, while checking the stream of immigrants did not
entirely stop it, for refugees were still able to reach Hong Kong
by Shekki and Macao, and regulations formulated on a property basis proved 'ineffective in reducing the influx.
*To this figure must be added the increase due to refugees in
1937 which is estimated to be in the neighbourhood of 100,000.
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18
The figures given in the following tables do not include refugees now living in Hong Kong and the New Territorics. The distribution of the population in various parts of the Colony is
estimated as follows:-
Hong Kong
Kowloon
New Territories
Maritime Totals
Non-
9,871 11,361
492
1,372
23,096
Chinese
Chinese 444,138 352,849
108,536
100,000 1,005,523
...
Totals
454,009 364,210
109,028
101,372 1,028,619
Registration of births and deaths is compulsory and the
necessary data are obtained through twenty-nine registration offices. Unfortunately, registration of births is still imperfect owing to the Chinese custom of not registering children until
they are in the second year of life. In 1938 registered births
showed an increase from 32,303 (692 non-Chinese) in 1937 to
35,893. The crude uncorrected birth rate for 1938 was 34.9 per thousand of the mid-year population as compared with a crude. rate of 32.1 for 1937. Chinese births registered during the year
showed an increase from 31,611 in 1937 to 35,835. The crude
uncorrected birth rates for this class being 35.1 (1938) and 32.1 (1937). Among the civilian population 38,818 deaths were registered in 1938, an increase of 4,183 over the 1987 figure. In addition to this, twenty-nine deaths were recorded in the Forces
of the Crown during the year, an increase of eighteen over the
1937 figure. The crude uncorrected death rate for the civilian population is estimated at 37.7 per 1,000 living, the figure for
1937 being 34.4. These increases in the actual number of
deaths and the rates reflect the general deterioration in the health of the community, a deterioration which has been largely brought about by overcrowding, lack of accommodation and insufficient food. Still-births numbered 1,075 in 1938 and
·
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19
377
913 in 1937. Chinese deaths numbered 38,621 in 1938 giving a crude uncorrected death rate of 38.4. The corresponding figures
for 1937 were 34,391 and 34.9.
11,620 Chinese infants under one year of age died in 1937, 12,001 in 1988; the infant mortality rates for the two years being respectively 376 and 343.
In 1938, 558 non-Chinese births were registered (270 male
and 288 female). This represents a decrease of 134 on the 1937
figure. The crude birth rate is estimated at 24.2 per 1,000
living in 1938 as compared with 30.6 in 1937. There were 244
non-Chinese deaths (excluding 11 deaths in the Forces of the Crown) in 1937, giving a death rate of 11 per 1,000 living, whereas in 1938 the corresponding figures were 197 (excluding 29 deaths in the Crown Forces) giving a death rate of 8.5. The deterioration in the general health of the community, which is clearly demonstrated by these figures, has not been accompanied by a corresponding deterioration among the non-Chinese
population in Hong Kong.
Twenty-three non-Chinese infants under one year of age died in 1938, as compared with thirty in 1937. This gives an
infant mortality rate of forty-two for non-Chinese infants, as compared with a rate of forty-six for the year 1937. Comment on the respective infant mortality rates of the Chinese and non- Chinese communities is superfluous.
There was a considerable increase in the number of marriages
in the year under review, both in licensed places of worship and at the Registry of Marriages. This can be accounted for principally by the influx of population, but also by the fact that the Christian marriage and its civil equivalent are gaining in popularity among the Chinese. It is of course impossible to record the number of non-Christian customary marriages.
The following table provides means for comparing statistics
in 1938 with those in 1937:-
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20
1937
1938
Chinese
Others Chinese
Others
By Special Licence
in Churchi
2
1
4
By Special Licence
at Registry
6
5
10
9.
By Registrar's Cer-
tificate in Church
93
128
116
115
By Registrar's
Certificate at
Registry
134
50
209
79
In Articulo Mortis ...
1
· 1
1
1
236
185
336
208
1931-1939
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CHAPTER IV.
Public Health.
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CHAPTER IV.
381
Public Health.
The extension of the Sino-Japanese hostilities to South
China during 1938 resulted in a still greater influx of refugees
into Hong Kong than had taken place in the previous year, and
in an aggravation of the various public health problems such as
overcrowding, malnutrition and epidemic disease.
The population for mid-year 1938 based upon the arith-
metical increase between the census of 1921 and that of 1931 is
calculated as 1,028,619.
The Community was faced with having to provide shelter
for nearly half a million refugees.
:
:..
The actual surplus of immigrants over emigrants by sea and rail in 1938 amounted to over 300,000 persons;-this figure
does not take cognisance of the surplus of the previous year, nor
does it include the large numbers of refugees who entered the Colony across the land frontiers and by sampan, junk, ferry
and launch.
:
Many checks have been made of the numbers of residents
per floor in the usual type of three story Chinese tenement. The normal figure before the commencement of the Sino-Japanese hostilities was fifteen to twenty. It is now sixty. This fact goes to support the apparently high estimate of increase in the population given above.
Most of the burden has, of course, been borne by the urban
area but many thousands have also crowded into the towns and
villages in the rural areas comprising the New Territories.
The actual refugee invasion was fairly continuous throughout the year. It received an impetus in the summer coincident with the bombing of Canton, particularly in June. A second wave
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24
followed the Japanese landing at Bias Bay and the invasion of Kwangtung on the 12th of October ending with the capture of Canton by the Japanese troops. Yet a third wave resulted from
the "mopping up" operations by the Japanese along the Hong Kong-Kwangtung border on the 25th of November.
The taking of Canton and closing of the Pearl River which
preceded it cut off that avenue of escape, but this did not deter
refugees from making their way to Hong Kong via Shekki and Macao. On one day the surplus immigrants over emigrants
through this channel amounted to over 3,600.
A slight check was placed on entry into the Colony by a
regulation requiring immigrants to possess at least twenty dollars per head, but this system is obviously open to fraud.
As might be expected local charitable organizations could
not hope to cope with the destitution and distress associated
with the refugee problem and Government had to assume control and to erect camps in both the urban and rural areas. Further details of these relief schemes are given in Appendix II of this
Report.
That the general health of the community deteriorated as a. result of these abnormal conditions goes without saying.
Many cases of dangerous infectious disease actually found their
way into the Colony in spite of the increased vigilance of the Port Health Authorities and their colleagues in the New Territories and urban areas. Thousands of ill-fed, aged and sick persons also sought safety from the invaded regions and added to the already heavy task of the hospital authorities in the Government and Chinese hospitals. That this alarming situation
did not become far more grave was due in no small part to the
work of the Medical and Health Staff. A local appeal for
funds for the relief of distress in South China raised $389,824.16.
1931-1939
383
25
Epidemics.
SMALLPOX.
The outbreak of smallpox started in the early winter of 1937. It reached a peak in March, 1938, when 236 cases and
192 deaths were recorded in one week (ending the 19th of March). Particularly vigorous measures were instituted about
that time including the introduction of compulsory vaccination
for all immigrants and the placing of Canton in quarantine for
the first time in history, thus enabling the Health Authorities to examine and vaccinate the many thousands arriving daily
from that port and its smallpox-infected hinterland.
An anti-smallpox and vaccination campaign was carried out
in both the English and Chinese Press and through posters all
over the territory. Free vaccination centres were opened up in
hospitals, dispensaries and at convenient points. The quota of twelve vaccinators was augmented by twenty-four temporary
officers. As a result of intensive propaganda some *1,027,591 vaccinations were carried out during the year.
Most of the vaccine lymph used was prepared locally in the
Government Bacteriological Institute and gave
gave uniformly satisfactory results. A certain quantity was imported as a
reserve to meet any unusual demands.
Three additional wards providing accommodation for from
45 to 60 patients were built in the space of nine days at the
Infectious Diseases Hospital.
The outbreak virtually ended in June and only five cases
were reported in July and thirty-seven between that date and
the end of the year, the majority of these last cases coming
* This figure does not include the St. John Ambulance Brigade
figure for December.
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26
over as refugees from Kwangtung during the "mopping up". operations already referred to.
The total number of cases for 1938 amounted to 2,327 of
whom 1,834 or nearly 79% died.
This constitutes the worst outbreak in the history of the Colony and the heavy case mortality gives some indication of
the virulence of the virus.
1,388 of the victims were babies and children of five years
and under.
As many as seventy-two were imported cases from Canton, Macao, Shanghai, Swatow, and other China ports..
CHOLERA.
Superimposed on the epidemic of smallpox was a somewhat
less serious outbreak of cholera.
The Colony had suffered severely from cholera in 1937. when
1,690 cases and 1,082 deaths were recorded.
Apart from a sporadic case in January, 1938, the Colony was free from the disease until the 25th of May.
The outbreak spread with great rapidity, being aggravated by the thousands of refugees entering the Colony from Canton and other parts of Kwangtung which were infected with the disease and which were being subjected to systematic bombing by Japanese aeroplanes at that time.
The peak was reached by the week ending the 16th of July when sixty-three cases and fifty-three deaths were recorded.
Thereafter the numbers affected declined rapidly and less than ten cases were recorded weekly from the end of the second
week in November.
In all 547 cases with 364 deaths were recorded giving a
case mortality of nearly 67%.
Males were the chief victims and whereas in smallpox the majority of the cases occurred in babies and young children, the
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27
385
age incidence here showed a considerable preponderance in persons of twelve years and over, mainly in adults, only fifty
cases being recognized in children of twelve years or less.
Twenty-one cases were imported from various parts of
China.
Advantage was taken of the lesson taught in 1937 when the
Colony found itself quite unprepared for what proved to be the
worse outbreak of cholera it had ever suffered.
Before cases commenced to appear, the general public received detailed warnings through the medium of the Press and through posters and wireless broadcasts as to how to avoid
infection, where to obtain free cholera inoculation, and what
steps to take on the occurrence of suspected cases of the disease.
The upper blocks of the former prison at Lai Chi Kok were
converted into a cholera hospital capable of holding two hundred
beds.
Legislation was introduced prohibiting the sale of various
foodstuffs and drinks likely to carry infection, and suitable action
was taken to limit as far as possible the importation of cases of cholera by sea.
A campaign aiming at inoculating as many of the general public as were willing was instituted, and, in addition to the
hospitals and dispensaries, special posts were opened for the convenience of the public. Nearly a million inoculations were
carried out. The St. John Ambulance Association and Brigade gave valuable assistance as it had done in the vaccination
campaign and useful help was also rendered by the Medical Faculty of the University of Hong Kong during the height of
the epidemic.
Steps were taken to arrange for the chlorination of all
pipe-borne water in the Colony and to cover an unprotected
service reservoir.
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28
Legislation was introduced which aimed at securing com-
pulsory, pasteurisation of all fresh milk as from the beginning
of 1939-a period of grace being necessary to allow the operating dairies to purchase and instal their plants. Supplementary
legislation was also introduced governing the cleansing of bottles, storage of milk, etc.
There is some reason to believe that the measures enumer-
ated above had the effect of keeping the epidemic within more
or less reasonable bounds, more especially since the refugee
problem in 1938 was far more serious than it had been at the beginning of hostilities in 1937.
It may be worth while recording in this connexion that with an additional two or three hundred thousand persons at risk, the
actual number of cases of cholera in 1938 was half that found
in 1937.
CEREBRO-SPINAL MENINGITIS.
It is interesting to note that only eight deaths from cerebro- spinal meningitis were reported between 1897 and 1918. In that year a severe outbreak occurred accounting for 923 deaths.
:
From 1919 to 1937 inclusive, a hundred or more deaths
were recorded only in 1919, 1932 and 1934.
In 1938 exactly. twenty years after the. previous serious outbreak, some 483 cases were registered of whom 223 or 46
per centum died.
As in the case of cholera, in cerebro-spinal meningitis males.
were more commonly affected than females, although the ratio was only 111 to 100. On the other hand, whereas cholera picked out adults, the large proportion of those affected with cerebro- spinal meningitis were children and young persons under fifteen
years of age.
Only 109 out of the 483 cases were over fifteen years old.
1931-1939
29
387
Little could be done to combat the outbreak other than to
encourage early notification and to secure suitable isolation, usually in the Infectious Diseases Hospital at Kennedy Town.
Stocks of anti-meningococcal serum were prepared by the Government Bacteriologist and their use was reported upon very
favourably.
Supplies of sulphanilanide were also made available for the
treatment of cases and appeared to give satisfactory results.
Efforts to combat overcrowding were doomed to failure from
the start owing to the exceptional conditions arising out of the
refugee influx, to the conversion of the all too few tenements
into factories and schools and to the existence of many thousands
of street sleepers who could not find even a bed space under the
stairs in the congested tenements. This matter is dealt with indirectly under a later section of this Report.
OTHER INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
It is of interest to record the fact that two cases of typhus
were recognized during the year. Both had been infected in
Shanghai.
Numerically speaking, both dysentery (1,071 cases, 340
deaths) and typhoid (539 cases, 187 deaths) were of considerable
importance from the public health standpoint and provided yet another index of the unsatisfactory health conditions prevailing
in the overcrowded city.
Diphtheria (319 cases, 147 deaths) fortunately did not
assume epidemic proportions at any time.
Owing to the invasion of Kwangtung by Japanese forces it became impossible to transfer lepers to the settlement at Shek Lung and by the end of the year the number of inmates of the premises adjoining the Infectious Diseases Hospital at Kennedy
Town had reached the figure of 133.
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30
Two important decisions were made regarding the leper question during the year. Firstly, arrangements were made whereby the Catholic Mission received financial assistance to build accommodation for 200 lepers, to be increased to 400 in
due course, in order to permit of the transfer of lepers from
Hong Kong to Kwangtung, there to be maintained at the expense of the Hong Kong Government.
Secondly, legislation was enacted which gave the Director
of Medical Services control over the inmates of the small
settlement in Hong Kong, since these persons had been too little subject to discipline previously. Being able to wander at will they not infrequently committed felonies and misdemeanours both inside the settlement and in the town. A ruling was given by Government in this connexion, during the year under review, that convicted lepers should be detained in a special portion of the Prison built for the purpose. Under the former system,
lepers who committed even serious felonies were duly convicted,
sent to prison, but immediately released to the leper settlement.
However important the diseases already mentioned may be, and indeed are, both individually and in the aggregate, their
importance is completely overshadowed by the tuberculosis
problem which caused the death of 4,920 persons during 1938.
For every death it is probable that there are five or even ten sufferers from the disease, many of whom are at the moment
passing on infection to their families and neighbours.
With the bulk of the population living in grossly over-
crowded, ill-ventilated tenements, many of them workless or
in receipt of wages which cannot possibly purchase an adequate dietary, exposed to mass infection owing to the universal habit of spitting and to the low standards of hygiene and ignorance
of the mode of infection, it is not surprising that this disease
claims such a heavy toll of life.
1931-1939
31
389
The line of attack against the disease has included the following measures:-the appointment of a Nutrition Research
Committee, the appointment of a Housing Commission and the
drafting of town planning and zoning legislation, the appointment of a Labour Officer to investigate conditions of work and wages,
the increasing of facilities for the discovery, isolation, education and treatment of cases, the education of the general public
through the Press and wireless broadcasting system, and the expansion of the Health Services to enable better control to be
exercised over domestic and municipal hygiene.
Additional preventive measures are contemplated in regard to the more adequate provision of hospital accommodation for "infectious" cases and to compulsory notification.
The question of a tuberculosis survey is under consideration and 10,000 doses for the Mantoux test together with the necessary syringes and special needles have already been
obtained.
Venereal diseases are responsible for much ill-health both amongst the population and amongst the naval and military
forces.
The Social Hygiene Centres functioned on an increased scale during 1938 and dealt with some 3,925 attendances.
A special committee was appointed during the year to consider what additional measures could be taken to combat
the evil.
Hospitals.
The addition of nearly half a million refugees to a population of a little over a million, during the year under review, very naturally resulted in an almost intolerable strain being placed on hospital accommodation. This was accentuated by the fact that many of the unfortunates who sought safety in this Colony were ill on arrival, and many were homeless and destitute and many others had barely enough money for food.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
32
Instances came to light where nineteen sick and elderly women occupied seven beds in one of the important Chinese hospitals, where there
there were sixty-one patients in a ward containing twelve beds and where sixty-six women in child-birth
shared forty beds.
An old prison was converted into an auxiliary hospital for Chinese patients containing 500 beds, and three temporary wards were constructed at the Infectious Diseases Hospital to hold from forty-five to sixty cases of smallpox or other dangerous
infectious disease.
During the summer large marquees were lent by the Military
Authorities to house the overflow from the wards and corridors
of one of the large Chinese hospitals.
In view of the gravity of the situation, a Hospitals Committee, under the chairmanship of the Director of Medical
Services, was appointed to report on existing hospital accoin- modation and to submit recommendations for its improvement.
The Committee sat on several occasions, heard evidence from many sources, and should be in a position to report in the spring
of 1939.
Welfare Activities.
The popularity of the welfare centres on the Island and in Kowloon was well maintained and the number of attendances
reached a record figure of 124,046.
Repeated representations were received to open another welfare centre to serve the populous area in the west central district and there is some possibility of a start being made in this regard in a portion of the former Government Civil Hospital during the first half of 1939.
These centres cater for a large number of sick children and
could be classified as out-patient dispensaries were it not for the
fact that they also serve as well-baby centres and as places where mothers can be taught the essentials of mother-craft.
1931-1939
33
391
As in previous years the centres continued to distribute hot, nourishing meals daily to over two hundred nursing mothers and
distributed quantities of milk, free or at cost price, for babies and young children in need.
The valuable teaching given in the centres was carried into the homes through the medium of Health Visitors.
Registered midwives also took their share in this welfare
work and their activities were subject to close supervision from
a Lady Medical Officer acting as Supervisor of Midwives.
Nutrition.
Although notes on nutrition are relegated to the end of this chapter, it should be clearly stated that the problem is probably
the most pressing one of any which has to be solved in this Colony.
Sir Gowland Hopkins wrote of England that "whatever sum
can possibly be spared is almost always spent on food" and
Dr. McGorrigle, an expert on such problems in their immediate relation to public health, also wrote that it was "economic
factors which control the situation." Such statements are even
more applicable to Hong Kong and China as a whole.
Practically speaking, immigration is unrestricted and this,
added to a very real refugee problem in which there is a ratio
of a refugee to every two normal citizens, results in the labour
market being overcrowded and in a tendency to depress the
standard of living.
The invasion of Kwangtung by Japanese forces aggravated
the situation not only by driving tens of thousands of refugees
to seek safety in these territories, which were already over-
crowded, but it resulted in a cutting off of very considerable
areas from which Hong Kong derives its vegetables, meat, fish,
etc.
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34
Evidence of a serious degree of malnutrition in the popula- tion was forthcoming as the result of observations carried out
at the hospitals and dispensaries, mortuaries, and at the Government camps established for refugees and destitutes. Such conditions as skin affections, eye diseases, respiratory troubles, polyneuritis of beri beri were common. Whole wards were given up to the treatment of the last mentioned group and the recorded deaths from beri beri alone amounted to 2,673 as
compared with 1,661 in 1937.
Government was fully alive to this state of affairs and it
was decided to appoint an enlarged Nutrition Research Com-
mittee under the chairmanship of the Director of Medical
Services.
The terms of reference of this Committee are to ascertain
the nature and extent of the problem in these territories and to devise measures to deal with it. Plans for dietary surveys
have been drawn up and preliminary investigations have been carried out in regard to average meals and prices of basic
foodstuffs.
Actual experiments have also been undertaken in connexion with menus for refugee and destitute camps where upwards of
ten thousand have been rationed at a time. The average cost for two meals a day in such camps-fuel and service included- has been twenty cents (3d.) and there seems to be some possibility of reducing this to about sixteen cents a day and still maintaining an adequate and a balanced diet. Owing to the magnitude of the refugee problem a reduction of even 25% means a considerable saving to Government, thus releasing
funds for relief work of another nature.
As in the previous years over two hundred nursing mothers and children received a nourishing soup meal each day at the
welfare centres. Another three thousand or more destitutes
were fed daily at three food kitchens operated under the auspices
1931-1939
35
393
of the Emergency Refugee Council in different parts of the town. During the height of the influx of refugees, many additional food kitchens and distribution centres were organized by private charity in the New Territories.
Experimental diets were recommended to Government for
use in the prisons and every effort was made to encourage the
cultivation of alfalfa and amaranth and the consumption of red
rice and soya bean.
The use of soya bean milk prepared with dextrimaltose, common salt and calcium hydroxide-as being cheaper than the
lactate-was also popularised at the welfare centres and in the Government camps.
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395
CHAPTER V.
Housing.
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39
CHAPTER V.
Housing.
397
In recent years some evidence has been shewn amongst the artisan classes of the Colony of a quickening social consciousness
and the resultant desire to avail themselves of improved housing
accommodation wherever such is made available. The unskilled
labouring classes, however, are still found densely packed in tenement houses deficient in light and air. These people have
to find dwelling places as close as possible to the scene of their
work, with the result that the western part of the City of
Victoria, which houses the native business quarter and which closely adjoins that portion of the harbour where the traffic from the West River and from the coast ports is handled, is seriously
overcrowded.
These conditions, which were, in the past, slowly mitigated by the rebuilding of properties condemned for reasons of
structural defects, are now being more rapidly alleviated by the
operation of the Buildings Ordinance, 1935, which came into
force on the 1st of January, 1936. Overcrowding amongst the labouring class is, however, still prevalent.
The housing of the Colony is all privately owned, and control is maintained by the operation of the Buildings Ordinance, 1935, the provisions of which also regulate the character of the housing. Generally Chinese-type tenement houses are built back-to-back in rows and are separated by a
scavenging lane. These houses vary in height from two to four storeys according to the width of the street on which they front. The average height per storey is twelve feet, a minimum being controlled by the Ordinance of 1903. The Buildings
Ordinance, 1935, permits a minimum of eleven feet. The houses built prior to the 1903 Ordinance covering the greater part of the native quarter are of depths varying from forty feet to
398
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
40
eighty feet, with often less than 100 square feet of open space provided within the curtilage of the lot. With the passing of
the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance, No. 1 of 1903, the
amount of open space per house to be allowed within the
boundaries of each lot was stipulated, and falls under two main heads. These are: (a) houses built on land bought prior to the passing of the Ordinance in 1903, where the open space must be not less than one-fourth of the area of the site, and (b) houses built on land bought subsequently, where the minimum is raised to one-third of the area. On plan the usual frontage of each house is fifteen feet (a dimension owing its origin more to early structural limitation than to economics), with a depth
of about thirty-five feet, whilst each storey consists of one large "room" with a native type kitchen in the rear. This room is then subdivided by thin partitions seven feet high into
three cubicles, each of which may accommodate a family. One
latrine is built on the ground floor level of each house, irrespective of the number of occupants, and is common to all.
The earlier houses are constructed of blue bricks and timber.
The bricks are of native manufacture and have a very low
structural value, and the timber is usually of China fir which is
extremely susceptible to the ravages of white ants. Lately, however, reinforced concrete and better quality bricks have been
used.
In the City of Victoria the major defects of housing are due
to lack of town planning. A large proportion of the City was
erected in the early days of the Colony when town planning was little practised even in Europe, and the conditions to-day are a heritage the elimination of which would involve immense sums of money, and probably considerable opposition, if attempted on a large scale.
Generally, many of the old houses suffer from defects which are attributable to the Buildings Ordinance in force when they
1931-1939
41
399
were built. This Ordinance, which was passed in 1903, was framed to meet existing conditions, both structurally and hygienically, as they were then understood and practised. But, viewed in the light of modern practice and knowledge, many of its provisions are now found to be inadequate.
The Buildings Ordinance, No. 18 of 1935, came into operation on the 1st of January, 1936. This Ordinance provides for improvement in the conditions of light and ventilation of
those old properties which, under previous ordinances, were not
called upon to conform to modern requirements. A higher standard generally is being called for, and building owners
themselves are slowly realizing the advantages to be gained from modern constructional methods allied to proper hygienic
principles.
•
In October, 1938, the Housing Commission, appointed in 1935, presented its report to the Government.
The principal recommendations were as follows: (a) that a permanent Town
Planning and Housing Committee be formed to advise Govern- ment on town planning and housing matters, to make surveys,
to prepare legislation and to devise machinery necessary to give effect to town planning and housing schemes, (b) that the
Buildings Ordinance be amended to permit the erection of
experimental types of tenements, and (c) that more open space
be provided in or near the congested areas.
There are no building societies in the Colony.
Owing to the influx of refugees from the war areas of China,
overcrowding, which is a normal feature of the housing of the
poorer classes, increased considerably during the year under review. There was a general increase in rents. Some thousands
of the poorest people took to living on the sidewalks of the
streets under the verandahs and in shacks erected on vacant
pieces of Crown Land.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
42
:
In order to meet the situation in part and to relieve the street sleeper problem, Government constructed accommodation for five thousand in the urban area and for about twice that
number in the New Territories. The huts built in the urban area will provide living space for persons dispossessed from insanitary slum dwellings, pending rebuilding, if it is found possible to carry out slum clearance schemes.
•
Private building enterprise was particularly active during the year but made little or no impression on the housing
shortage.
For the purpose of the sanitary inspection of tenements under the powers conferred by the Public Health (Sanitation)
Ordinance, No. 15 of 1935, the Urban District is divided into
twenty-eight Health Districts each of which is in the charge of
a Sanitary Inspector. Each Health District contains about 3,000 floors and,, in normal times, about 30,000 inhabitants. House to house inspection forms part of the duties of the Sanitary Inspectorate and of the Health Officers. Some 47,000 sanitary nuisances were dealt with during the year and some 203,000 floors were subjected to cleansing with kerosene oil
emulsion. Floors in the over-crowded central districts are
cleansed four times annually and those in the outlying districts twice annually.
Occupation Permits Issued and Premises
Demolished during 1938.
Chinese tenement
Occupation Permits.
type houses.
1936 Kowloon.
88
Hong Kong.
79
European type
houses.
50
27
167
77
1931-1939
43
1937 Kowloon.
40
Hong Kong.
76
116
38
19
57
1938 Kowloon.
64 (237 Flats.)
41
Hong Kong.
39 (152 Flats.)
44
103
85
Premises Demolished.
1936 Kowloon.
41
3
Hong Kong.
69
4
110
7
1937 Kowloon.
18
2
Hong Kong.
154
16
172
18
1938 Kowloon.
14
2
Hong Kong.
15
4
29
6
401
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
403
CHAPTER VI.
Natural Resources.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
47
CHAPTER VI.
Natural Resources.
The natural products of the Colony of Hong Kong are few and, by comparison with those of other Colonies, unimportant in the general economy of the Empire. Agriculture and the fisheries are, however, the sole means of support of a large percentage of the poorer classes and, to this extent, are essential to the economic life of the community. The labouring classes of the urban population are employed in a variety of small
industries, and in the shipyards and docks where ocean-going
vessels are built and repaired. The shipyards employ almost as many male workers as all the other smaller industries put together and for this reason shipbuilding is treated of in the present chapter so as to allow comparison with the two other main forms of occupation mentioned above.
.
Mining is in its early stages. There is good reason to believe that workable deposits are present in practicable
quantities but the pursuit of mining is not indigenous to the
native Chinese and development at the moment seems to be
waiting upon the investment of capital and recognition by large- scale enterprise.
The Colony's forestry resources are not sufficient for commercial exploitation. Afforestation has been in progress for many years, directed mainly towards the conservation of rainfall and the prevention of erosion of the bare hills in which the Colony abounds.
The total area of the Colony is estimated at 249,885 acres.
About 20% of this area, or 50,187 acres, is at present under cultivation. There is little fertile land which has not already been taken up. Large areas, particularly on the island, are entirely unsuitable for tillage. The cultivated land generally is in the hands of peasant farmers who alternate the
1931-1939
48
405
planting of rice with the growing of vegetables and sugar-cane, and cling to the traditional methods of agriculture practised by
their remote ancestors. There are signs of the extension of European enterprise to agriculture, live-stock farming and dairy
farming, but steady development on these lines is not yet under
way.
Fisheries.
The fisheries of Hong Kong, from the point of view of the general economy of the Colony and of the number of persons
connected directly and indirectly with this form of production,
are the most important of the local industries. There are three
classes of fishery products available in the open market: fresh
freshwater fish, fresh sea-fish and salted sea-fish including
mollusca and crustacea. Almost all the freshwater fish is
imported from Canton, Sheklong, Shekki, Kongmoon. Wuchow and Macao. A portion of the salted and canned goods is
imported from Europe, America, and Japan, and from Annam and other East Indian countries. The remainder, both fresh
and salted, is the product of the local fisheries.
It is estimated that, during 1938, there were 5,500 large and small Chinese fishing junks either indigenous, or regular visitors, to Hong Kong. These fishing fleets are manned by at
least 75,000 able-bodied men and women, and carry with them some 40,000 others who have no homes other than the fishing junks. In normal times the fleets make voyages of two to four weeks' duration as far as Swatow, and Kwonghoi (Toishan), but since the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese hostilities they have been compelled to limit their activities to areas within and
adjacent to the territorial waters.
During 1938 approximately 160,000 piculs of fresh sea-fish,
valued at $2,500,000, and 230,000 piculs of salted sea-fish, valued at $3,600,000, were landed. This represents a total quantity:
of 390,000 piculs, or 23,150 tons, of a wholesale price value of
406
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
49
$7,100,000, and a retail price value of more than $10,000,000.
It is estimated that over $22,500,000 capital is invested in
junks, gear and general equipment.
Approximately 108,000 piculs of fresh freshwater fish, valued at $2,160,000, are imported annually.
Only a small fraction (usually about 80 piculs per day) of
the fresh sea-fish is exported to Canton and the surrounding district. In 1938, owing to the increased demand for food-stuff
in Hong Kong, the export of fresh sea-fish was reduced to a minimum. Of the salted sea-fish produced in the Colony 30% is consumed locally and 70% is exported to the interior of China through Canton, Macao, Shekki, Kongmoon, Wuchow and.
occasionally through Shanghai. The total amount of foreign produced salted fish imported into the Colony and then re-exported into China is valued at approximately $4,000,000.
From
The hub of the
The organization of production is on a loose co-operative
basis of traditional growth. The fishermen, brokers, fish stores,
lans or wholesale dealers, retail dealers and fish stalls are grouped into separate associations, not unlike medieval guilds. From the fishermen the fish passes to the big lans or wholesale
dealers either directly or via the fish driers or fish stores. the big lans it passes to the retail dealers, the travelling salesmen or the stall keepers, and so to the consumer. whole system is the group of twelve big lans. carried out entirely on a commission basis and between one- quarter and one-third of their total capital is advanced to the fishermen free of interest. Between $20,000 and $100,000 is
invested in this manner by each lan, and between $10,000 and $50,000 kept in reserve. A single lan will transact business valued at between $100,000 and $650,000 in a single year.
Their business is
The local fishermen belong essentially to the floating population, a special class of people known as tan ka or 'boat family'. Their calling and trade is a specialised one and they
1931-1939
50
407
are entirely unsuited to other occupations.
Their junks are
their only stock in trade. To these they have confined their entire life for generations, regarding them not only as their sole means of support but also as their only home. The fact that there are some 100,000 persons living in 5,500 boats, the largest of which does not exceed $5 feet in length, and the majority
of which are less than 60 feet long shows the extent of the
overcrowding to which their traditional occupation subjects them. A boat of 70 feet in length provides space for the accommodation of 40 to 45 persons of all ages, besides space for fish, salt, gear, food and miscellaneous cargo. The average earning capacity of a single able-bodied fisherman is $70 per
annum. This general low standard of living combined with the
hidebound allegiance to a centuries-old tradition has prevented the infiltration of modern methods and the adoption of modern appliances. The Japanese were quick to realise the advantage
to be gained from power-driven vessels and the substitution of machinery for man-power. Sometime before 1927 a Japanese fishing company was organized in Hong Kong for work in the South China seas with the presumed object of controlling the entire industry in the Colony and in South China. Steam trawlers and improved fishing methods brought the company increasing profits up to 1937 when the business was suspended owing to the Sino-Japanese hostilities.
Trawling, seining, grill netting and lining are the principal
methods of fishing in use in the Colony. Garoupers, sea-breams, golden-threads, flat fishes, rags, white herring, mackerel, crabs,
halibut, sole, crayfish and mullet are found in great quantities off the Pearl River delta. In Deep Bay off the New Territories, oysters are cultivated in an area of approximately 20 square miles. The annual produce of this area is about $200,000.
A survey of the fisheries of Hong Kong was begun in 1938 by Mr. S. Y. Lin of the University of Hong Kong.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
51
Agriculture.
It is estimated that 50,187 acres, or 20% of the total acreage of the Colony, are now under cultivation. The great proportion of cultivated land lies in the New Territories, north of the
Kowloon hills. The land is held on permit or Crown lease by about 25,000 small farmers or family associations. There is little fertile land which is not being worked in some manner,
and if the area of land under cultivation is to be increased
considerable capital for fertilization and general development will be necessary. For the present the efforts of agriculturalists are concentrated on improving the quality of the yield rather
than on the extension of cultivation. It is probable that the New Territories could never produce sufficient rice for the Colony's requirements, but it is felt that, with the use of modern methods and improved stocks, self-sufficiency could be attained in respect of many other agricultural products such as European vegetables, dairy produce, pineapples and other fruit.
Of the total acreage in crop 70% is planted with rice, 15% with sweet potatoes, 6% with ground-nuts, 6% with sugar-cane, 3% with orchards and 1% with pineapple. At present roughly $140 millions of food-stuffs are imported into the Colony annually. A small quantity of New Territories rice, sugar and ground-nuts is exported, but market and dairy produce, meat and fruit are all consumed locally.
►
In contrast to the village farmers are the various forms which modern agricultural enterprise is taking in the New
Territories. There are several well-equipped poultry farms, fruit orchards and market gardens with sufficient backing of capital. to put into practice the theories of tillage, fertilization and improvement of stock and seeds which have been evolved in various agricultural countries. Although many of these farms are now well past the experimental stage they are to a great extent isolated enterprises lacking the effective cooperation
1931-1939
52
409
necessary for the improvement of agriculture generally. Attempts are, however, being made, notably by the New Territories Agricultural Association and by the Kernel Seed Company of America not only to provide a basis for that cooperation between the few modern farms but to instill into
the minds of the village agriculturalists themselves advantages to be gained from modern methods.
·
the
The New Territories Agricultural Association was founded in 1927 and has held an agricultural show each year including the year under review. At these shows such of the village farmers as have cared to avail themselves of the privilege have been able to see a demonstration of the possibilities latent in the soil they till. The Association now has permanent accom- modation in the New Territories and has opened an Institute for
the training of Chinese youths. Land leased from the
Government is being worked on behalf of the Association by
the Kernel Seed Co. of America. This company has carried
out exhaustive experiments with different kinds of seed in order
to find brands most suited to the soil and climate. These
experiments have been eminently successful with rice-seed, and
a demand is growing among the farmers for a new seed, called
No. 716, which was evolved by this Company.
The Association, which is supported by voluntary contribu-
tions and by an annual grant of $2,000 from the Government,
has still a heavy task before it. The few modern farms are
mostly connected with its organization and avail themselves of its assistance as and when they require. The peasant agricul- turalist is not, however, so easily reached. The influence of the association is strong only around Fan Ling and Ping Shan, and it is probable that the annual show is hardly heard of in many other districts such as Sai Kung and Lan T'au. The general system, too, of individual and village agriculturalists, does not lend itself readily to change of any sort. Families and
410
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
53
clans still hold land which they held when the New Territories were under Chinese rule, and their primitive methods and implements are clung to with the traditional conservatism of the farmer and the obstinacy of a simple people.
The association has, however, many practical achievements to its credit. Besides the increasing facilities, instruction and
advice placed at the disposal of the farmer, it has done much to stimulate the growth, and improve the quality of vegetables in winter. The improved quality of this form of produce during the last two years has been striking, and there is no sign that the rate of incrcase is slowing down.
Shipbuilding.
The shipbuilding and ship repairing industry is the largest manufacturing industry in the Colony. The three main yards. are, respectively, the property of the Hong Kong & Whampoa Dock Co., Ltd., the Taikoo Dockyard & Engineering Co., Ltd., and W. S. Bailey & Co., Ltd. These three firms together were
responsible for a total tonnage of 12,426 completed during 1938 and for 26,013 gross tons under construction at the end of the
year, as compared with a tonnage of 14,073 completed during 1937. Ships built included some special type vessels of consider-
able diversity of design, and the success of these local products shews that the industry is well served technically. Several large salvage and repair enterprises were undertaken during the year, including heavy repairs necessitated by the typhoon of September 1937, and marine casualties which involved long
tows to Hong Kong by local salvage tugs. Considerable progress was made in the building of diesel engines under licence at the Taikoo Dockyard and at the Hong Kong & Whampoa Docks. Further development in this branch of the industry is anticipated. The two largest ships ever to be built in the Colony, M.V. Breconshire and M.V. Glenorchy, each of 10,000 gross tons, are
at present under construction at the Taikoo Dockyard.
1931-1939
54
411
A number of small craft, including lighters, motor-boats and yachts have been constructed in the native yards, but accurate
statistics are not available. There are also many native yards
with a considerable output of junks and sampans for the use of
the shipping community.
Roughly 20% of the labour employed in the Colony's
dockyards is on the monthly wage system and is directly
recruited by the dock companies. The remainder is employed
under the contract system by which work is hired out at standard
rates to contractors who pay and are responsible for their own
employees. Workers in each section of the industry are banded together into guilds. These are at present of the nature of
friendly societies, but it is possible that they may develop into more orthodox trades unions in the future.
The following are notes on the equipment and general
facilities of the three main yards:-
TAIKOO DOCKYARD & ENGINEERING CO., LTD.
A Graving Dock 787 feet long with a breadth at entrance
of 95 feet and a depth of water at ordinary spring tides of 34
feet 10 inches.
Three patent slipways capable of taking vessels up to 4,000
tons displacement.
Five building berths for ships up to 500 feet in length. Deep water quayage 3,200 feet long, with one 100-ton crane, and 25-ton and 10-ton electric travelling cranes.
836 gross tons of shipping were completed during 1938, and 22,320 gross tons were under construction at the end of the
year.
HONG KONG & WHAMPOA DOCK CO., LTD.
Largest Graving Dock 700 feet long, with a breadth of 88 feet to 94 feet and a depth of water at ordinary spring tides of 29 feet 6 inches. Five other graving docks.
412
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
55
Two slipways capable of taking vessels up to 2,000 tons
displacement.
Building berths for ships up to 700-800 feet.
Two wharves of 430 feet and 600 feet respectively.
6,000 tons of steel were used on structural repairs to ships during 1938. 11,069 gross tons of shipping were completed during 1938, and 3,193 gross tons were under construction at the end of the year.
W. S. BAILEY & CO., LTD.
Sea frontage for shipbuilding berths of 550 feet on which twenty-one vessels can be laid down.
Facilities for the construction of hull and machinery for vessels up to 200 feet in length.
Repair work is carried out on three electrically operated slipways, the largest accommodating vessels of 300 feet in length and of 3,000 tons displacement. The total repair work under-
taken during 1938 was carried out on vessels totally 22,000 tons. Ships were constructed to a total of 521 gross tons during
the year and ships totalling 500 gross tons were under construc- tion at the end of the year.
Mining.
Owing to the absence of a detailed geological report, the mining potentialities of the Colony are to a large extent unknown. Small scale prospecting and mining operations in the past would appear to indicate that there are no minerals of economic value on the island of Hong Kong but that in the New Territories and neighbouring islands there are deposits of the following minerals which may prove of economic value if prospected and mined by up to date methods backed with adequate capital: Argen-
tiferous galena, Wolframite, Molybdenite, Magnetite, Hematite, Manganese, Granite for building purposes, and Kaolin for bricks and porcelain. It would appear that the present tendency is towards scientific deep prospecting and large scale mining, ast
1931-1939
56.
413
compared with the shallow workings of the past. Since 1936 twenty applications for prospecting licences and six applications for mining licences have been received..
Hong Kong mining: law is codified; in the. Mining and Prospecting Ordinance, No. 7 of 1906. The power given to the Governor-in-Council to fix the charges for licences and leases is at present waived, and such charges are determined according
to the circumstances of each case.
•
There are four mining leases in existence at the present
time. The Hong Kong Clays and Kaolin Co., Ltd., prior to the Sino-Japanese hostilities, was employing twelve to thirty
coolies on daily wage, and producing 2,500 tons of good quality
kaolin per annum. Marsman (Hong Kong) China Ltd. employs 500 coolies at the Needle Hill wolfram mine, and had recovered
1,640 piculs of this ore, mostly exported to England, up to the
end of 1938. The ore is purchased from sub-contractors on a
sliding scale, the company providing all facilities such as power;
plant, transport, accommodation etc. At the Lin Ma Hang mine the Hong Kong Mines Co., Ltd., is working a galena deposit for silver and lead by underground methods on the adit
system. The ore carries an average of 2.5 oz. per short ton of silver and 10.4% lead. A labour force of five hundred,
with a plant of 575 H.P., is employed. 5,526 short tons of concentrates carrying 15.8 oz. per short ton silver and 69% lead
have so far been produced at a cost of £12 per ton. At Ma On Shan the New Territories Mining Co., Ltd., employs 120 contract coolies under Chinese management to mine an outcrop of magnetite iron ore on the quarry system. Approximately 8,000 tons have been produced since 1931.
Mining generally in the Colony is as yet in its infancy and at present there are no adequate regulations for the inspection and control of the existing mines. It is possible that more
mines will be opened in the near future and the Government
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
57
has under consideration detailed measures for the more effective
control of all mining activities.
During the year 1938 an investigation into general mining conditions in the Colony was carried out by Mr. A. E. P. Kershaw, Senior Inspector of Mines, Perak, Federated Malay States. Mr. Kershaw submitted a report on the control measures which the Government should adopt in respect of local mining, which has been printed as Sessional Paper No. 14 of 1938.
Forestry.
The history of forestry work in the Colony consists of progressive afforestation of a bare, hilly country. The greater part of Hong Kong Island has now been afforested, the older
plantations being about sixty years of age. In the New Terri-
tories certain definite areas have been afforested, while a
movement to interest the local population in the value of forests,
initiated in 1904, has produced a sparse forest covering in the
neighbourhood of villages.
The aims of local afforestation may be summed up as
follows:-
(1) To provide a forest covering to the hilly country. (2) To prevent further erosion of the numerous slopes. (3) For hydrological reasons, i.e. to assist in the conservation of rainfall, etc., with its resultant effect upon the Colony's water supply and agricul-
tural areas.
(4) To build up timber reserves on Crown land. Commercial exploitation of the forest reserves is not contemplated. Such timber as is extracted is in the nature of typhoon-damaged trees or necessary thinnings. The native afforestation scheme provides the peasant population with fuel for domestic and other purposes. Partly owing to the increased price of imported firewood there has recently been considerable
1931-1939
58
415
commercialization of these amenities, the local timber being
brought into the towns and villages and sold profitably.
During 1938 forestry offences were numerous and consider- able difficulty was experienced in the protection of forest areas particularly in the thickly populated parts of Hong Kong Island and Kowloon. The large increase in offences of this nature was
chiefly due to the Sino-Japanese hostilities which severely
curtailed imports of firewood from South China and brought into
the Colony large numbers of refugees.
The native afforestation scheme mentioned above consists
of letting sections of open hillside land to a village or villagers at a nominal annual rental of 20 cents per acre. When the
trees are considered large enough the licensees are permitted to remove 10% of them annually conditionally upon their planting
an equivalent number of trees. The species used for this
purpose is Pinus Massoniana Lamb., which provides excellent
fuel. The Leased Forest Lot Scheme is administered by the District Officers. Wild trees may not be felled at any time except under special circumstances when permission must be obtained from the Superintendent, Botanical and Forestry
Department.
A general survey of forestry activities was made, and દી
Forest Experimental Station established during 1938. The Forest Protection Service was separated from the Field Service
and was domiciled on definite areas.
Estimated Areas Under Forest.
(a) Crown Land.
: Hong Kong Island-about 18 square miles.
New Territories-about 4 square miles. (b) Native Holdings (Leased Forest Lots).
Hong Kong Island-nil.
New Territories-approximately 813 square miles.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
59
Timber Production.
(a) Crown Land.
As stated above output consists chiefly of the removal of dead and damaged timber. During 1938
removals of this nature totalled 2027.59 tons, valued at $35,000 at current prices (i.e. average of prices for the year). The average dimensions of trees of 8-10 years of age in Crown plantations are
height 21 feet, diameter 4 inches (breast-high). (b) Native Holdings (Leased Forest Lots).
Under the conditions of the forestry licence the
licensee may remove 10% of the timber per annum.
It is customary to remove side branches (brush-
wood) at definite seasons of the year and these are
utilised for brick kilns, etc. This results in the production of stunted trees which are considered sufficiently large for disposal as firewood when they have attained a height of 12 feet and a diameter of 2 inches to 4 inches (breast high). The age of trees of these dimensions is from 8 to 14 years. From inspections and check it is estimated that the annual output of timber and brushwood is approxi- mately 11 piculs (12.16 cwts.) per acre. At the 10% removal rate this represents an output of
3408.2 tons for the whole area under "leased forest
lots." For the year 1938 this was valued at
$17,177.
Proportion of Land Under Forests.
Area of Colony
390 square miles.
Crown Forests
22
??
Leased Forest Lots.
811
""
""
Percentage of Crown Forests
5.64%
Leased Lots
-20.85%
Total percentage
-26.49%
1931-1939
417
CHAPTER VII.
Commerce.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
63
CHAPTER VII.
Commerce.
419
-a place
As a
The trade of Hong Kong is that of an entrepôt,-
where goods are imported primarily for exportation.
business centre the Colony handles the trade between South China and the rest of the world, and consequently the mercantile community is much larger than is necessary for handling local
needs. At present, when the South China market is to a large extent cut off by military operations, many firms have been compelled to reduce their overhead expenses and to draw upon
reserves.
From its position as the centre of an entrepôt trade Hong Kong has grown to be a very important banking centre. Trade conditions demand a highly organized system of exchange banking. The banks established are, therefore, pre-eminently Exchange Banks which also perform the ordinary functions of
domestic banking. There are about thirty-four banks in the Colony. Marine insurance companies are also numerous.
Hong Kong is one of the world's large ports, possessing a
fine natural harbour seventeen square miles in extent. Cargo is handled both in mid-stream and at wharves which give access
to modern warehouses.
Shipbuilding, which is dealt with more fully in Chapter VI,
is one of the Colony's most important trades, employing, in commercial establishments and in the Royal Naval Dockyard, many thousands of Chinese under the supervision of European experts. Cement, sugar refining and rope-making are old established industries. Recently there has been considerable development of knitting and weaving, garment-making and rubber-shoe manufacture which has received an impetus by reason of duty-free admission to British countries under Imperial
Preference.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
64
For practical purposes the Colony of Hong Kong can be considered to be a "free port. The only import duties imposed are on liquors, tobaccos, perfumed spirits, and light hydrocarbon oils. Preferential rates of duty are extended to Empire brandies and tobaccos. An ad valorem licence fee is charged on first registrations of motor vehicles which are not of British Empire
origin.
The Hong Kong trade returns do not distinguish between
imports for consumption and imports for re-export or between
exports of Hong Kong, Chinese and non-Chinese origin, and it
is not possible to differentiate the various items of trade
accurately. Trading conditions have changed radically in various
directions since the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese hostilities in
1937. Before that date the visible trade of the Colony fell into four broad categories:-
(a) Imports for consumption in Hong Kong (including raw materials for certain industries) and exports
of Hong Kong origin.
(b) Chinese external trade passing through Hong Kong, i.e., Chinese goods re-exported to non-Chinese countries and non-Chinese goods re-exported to
China.
(c) Chinese coastal trade, i.e., goods imported from one
part of China and re-exported to another.
(d) Non-Chinese entrepôt trade, i.e., goods imported from a non-Chinese country and re-exported to another non-Chinese country.
By an examination of the individual items of trade it was
possible to make an approximate estimate of the values of the respective items, and these, prior to July, 1937, were roughly as
follows:-
One third of the imports into Hong Kong was of goods intended for retention in Hong Kong, coming from Chinese and
1931-1939
65
421
non-Chinese countries in the proportion of one to three; and a tenth or less of the exports was of goods originating in Hong Kong (e.g. refined sugar, rubber shoes etc.). Re-exports constituted two-thirds of the imports and nine-tenths of the
exports. Of them some 10 per cent consisted of "Chinese coastal trade," 20 to 25 per cent consisted of non-Chinese
entrepôt trade and the remainder, nearly 70 per cent, was made up of goods passing between China and the rest of the world via Hong Kong.
It is common to speak of Hong Kong's trade as being almost wholly concerned with China, but the above figures make it clear
that such a part of it as is concerned with China alone is less important than that which is not concerned with China at all.
The latter consists of such items as the trade in rice from Siam
and Indo-China to Japan and the Philippines, the trade in wheat
flour from North America to Siam and the trade in Japanese manufactured articles to Indo-China, Siam, Malaya and the
Netherlands East Indies.
The latter half of the year 1937 shewed, in spite of the general decline in China's trade, à considerable increase in the
proportion of that trade passing through Hong Kong. The proportion of China's imports credited to Kowloon increased from 3% in July, 1937, to 45% in January, 1938. The
proportion of China's exports returned as going to Hong Kong increased from 12% in July, 1937, to 41.3% in January, 1938. At the same time the absolute amount of Hong Kong's trade
with China also increased.
This state of affairs with regard to the Colony's China trade, accompanied by a steady increase in general trade, continued during the first three quarters of 1938. In October of that year an abrupt downward movement in all trading figures was shewn as the Japanese extended their operations to South China. As
a result of the military occupation of Canton and the closure of
422
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
66
the Pearl River the normal trade routes between the Colony and the South China delta regions were almost entirely
disrupted, and at the close of the year there were no signs of any early appreciable resumption of the South China trade. In
the first nine months of 1938 the import and export trade with South China averaged $70.9 millions in each quarter. In the
final quarter of the year the total was $32.6 millions.
In terms of the analysis of Hong Kong's trade before the
Sino-Japanese hostilities, given above, the position at the end of the year was that, though categories (a) and (d) were only indirectly affected, categories (b) and (c) had, with the exception of air transport and minor attempts at avoiding the
Japanese blockade of the Pearl River delta, come to a virtual
standstill.
The total visible trade of the Colony during the year 1938 totalled $1,130.1 millions (£69.9 millions) as compared with $1,084.4 millions (£66.9 millions) in 1937, and $803.3 millions (£50.6 millions) in 1936. Imports of merchandise in 1938 increased by 0.2% as compared with 1937, and by 36.6% as
compared with 1936. Exports increased by 49.5% as compared
with 1936.
The following is a list of the appendices to this chapter with general observations on the statistics shewn therein:-
A. TOTAL VALUE OF IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF
MERCHANDISE.
Statistics of imports and exports for the years 1935-1938
reveal a progressive increase of trade in terms of local currency (imports from $364.9 millions in 1935 to $618.1 millions in 1938, and exports from $271.0 millions in 1935 to $511.9 millions in 1938). Imports and exports in 1934 were higher than in 1935 in terms of local currency-the 1934 totals being $415.9 millions (imports) and $325.6 (exports), but, owing to higher currency values in 1935, the sterling totals were greater in that year.
1931-1939
67
423
B. PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL IMPORTS PROVIDED BY
EMPIRE AND FOREIGN COUNTRIES.
During the period 1934-1938, the share of Hong Kong's
total import trade supplied by British Empire countries has varied between 13 per cent and 17.2 per cent (the latter being the 1938 figure). The United Kingdom is the largest Empire supplying country (9.1 per cent of Hong Kong's total import
trade in 1938), the share of other Empire countries in the same
year being Australia 2%, India 1.9%, Malaya 1.2%, "other
Empire countries" 3%.
The percentages of Hong Kong's total import trade supplied by the various non-Empire countries has varied only slightly during the period 1934-38, with the exception of Japan, the
share of which country has decreased from 8.8% in 1934, and
12.8% in 1936 to 3% in 1938. The shares of other non-Empire countries in 1938 were as follows:-China 37.7%, U.S.A. 8.8%, Netherlands East Indies 6.6%, Germany 6.3%, Siam 5.9%, French Indo-China 5.6%, "other foreign countries" 8.9%.
C. PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL EXPORTS SENT TO EMPIRE
AND FOREIGN COUNTRIES.
During the period 1934-1938, the share of Hong Kong's total
export trade shipped to British Empire countries has varied from
13.9 per cent to 19.7 per cent. The total in 1938 was 16.3 per cent. British Malaya is the largest Empire purchasing country (7.2 per cent of Hong Kong's total export trade in 1938), the
share of other Empire countries in the same year being United Kingdom 4.1%, India 1.6% and "other Empire countries" 3.4%.
The percentages of Hong Kong's total export trade supplied to the various non-Empire countries has varied within narrow limits during the period 1934-1938, the only country where a marked difference is apparent being Japan to which country 3.5% of Hong Kong's total exports were shipped in 1934, 5.1% in 1936 and 0.6% in 1938. The percentages taken by other
424
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
68
non-Empire countries in 1938 were as follows:-China 45.1%, U.S.A. 10.2%, French Indo-China 4.5%, Macao 4.1%, Siam
3.1%; "other foreign countries" 16.1%.
D. QUANTITIES AND VALUES OF PRINCIPAL ARTICLES
OF IMPORTS DURING THE YEARS 1937 AND 1938.
The principal commodities imported into Hong Kong (1938
values being given in brackets) are as follows:-
Food stuffs
Piece-goods......
Oils and Fats
Metals
($152,441,000) ..( ( 79,833,000)
( 78,223,000)
..( 48,144,000)
Chinese Medicines ......( 19,593,000)
Fuels
Machinery
( 17,273,000)
(17,136,000)
Dyeing Materials .......( 16,086,000)
Paper and Paperware...( 14,743,000)
Vehicles
( 14,140,000)
The above-mentioned commodities also figure
figure as the principal exports from Hong Kong, as most imports into this Colony are destined for China and adjacent markets.
E. QUANTITIES AND VALUES OF PRINCIPAL ARTICLES
OF EXPORTS DURING THE YEARS 1937 AND 1938.
Exports of Chinese produce from Hong Kong to Europe,
the United States of America and other markets were well
maintained in 1938 and in some instances there were considerable
increases, notably in tea, wood oil and bristles as a result of trade being diverted to Hong Kong from Yangtse ports during the first nine and a half months of the year as a result of Sino-Japanese hostilities. The export trade was very seriously curtailed subsequent to the closure of the Pearl River on the 13th of October. The values of principal exports of Chinese commodities from Hong Kong in 1938 were as follows:-
1931-1939
69
Wood Oil
$39,762,205
*Tin
$16,318,553
Tea
$12,080,814
Wolfram Ore
$14,252,838
*Firecrackers
.$ 4,647,436
*Peanut Oil
.$ 3,920,453
Hides
$ 3,672,228
Feathers
$ 2,359,284
*Preserved Ginger
425
.....$ 2,187,651
Exports of Hong Kong manufactured goods under Imperial
Preference were well maintained in 1938. The Trade Returns
do not differentiate between exports of locally manufactured
goods and re-exports of similar imported goods. It is therefore
impossible to give approximate exports of locally manufactured sugar, cement, rope and woven cotton and artificial silk cloth because exports under these headings include considerable
quantities of imported goods re-exported to adjacent markets.
In the case of many other classes of goods, however, there is little import trade and the export figures may be taken to represent mainly the export of locally manufactured goods. The following export of Hong Kong made goods in 1938 has been
assessed on this basis:-
Canvas Rubber Shoes
...$6,675,542
Singlets
$5,019,924
Shirts
$2,168,543
Socks
$1,121,172
*Note.
Other wearing apparel......$3,426,077
Chinese tin is refined in Hong Kong before export. The item firecrackers includes locally made firecrackers as well as firecrackers imported from South China and Macao. The item peanut oil includes locally manufactured peanut oil as well as peanut oil imported from North China. Preserved ginger exported from Hong Kong is manufactured here from ginger imported from South China and sugar imported from Dutch East-Indies.
426
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
70
Electric Torches
Electric Batteries
Hats
$2,900,261
$2,189,923
$1,068,113
F. TOTAL VALUE OF IMPORTS OF TREASURE.
G. TOTAL VALUE OF EXPORTS OF TREASURE.
H. WHOLESALE PRICE INDEX.
I. INDEX NUMBERS OF QUANTITIES OF COMMODITIES
IMPORTED INTO HONG KONG.
APPENDIX A.
Total Value of Imports and Exports of Merchandise (in $'s and £'s Thousands).
1931-1939
427
71
Imports.
Exports.
Average Rate of Exchange.
1938
$ 618,169
511,902
H.K.$= ls. 2.27/32d.
£ 38,233
31,661
1937
$ 617,064
467,323
= 1s. 2.13/16d.
£ 38,084
28,843
1936
$ 452,350
350,865
= 1s. 3.3/16d.
£ 28,625
22,203
1935
$ 364,990
271,033
= 1s. 11.5/16d.
£ 35,453
26,327
1934
$ 415,919
325,105
= 1s. 6.3/16d.
£ 31,519
24,637
APPENDIX B.
Percentage of total Imports provided by Empire and Foreign Countries.
428
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
72
1938.
1937.
1936.
1935.
1934.
%
%
%
%
%
British Empire
Foreign
17.2
16.1
13.0
13.9
14.8
82.8
83.9
87.0
86.1
85.2
Australia
Belgium
2.0
2.2
2.0
2.3
1.6
1.0
1.6
1.5
1.3
1.2
British Malaya
1.2
1.5
1.6
1.7
1.3
China
37.7
34.2
33.6
33.8
35.2
French Indo-China
5.6
6.6
5.7
8.9
6.3
Germany
6.3
5.0
5.2
4.5
3.3
India
1.9
1.0
1.3
1.2
2.0
Japan
3.0
9.4
12.8
11.8
8.8
Netherlands East Indies
6.6
7.6
8.5
6.2
8.3
Siam
5.9
3.7
6.6.
5.6
8.0
United Kingdom
9.1
7.6
6.4
6.5
7.8
U. S. A.
8.8
8.4
7.1
7.3
7.1
All Other Countries
10.9
11.2
7.7
8.9
9.1
APPENDIX C.
Percentage of total Exports sent to Empire and Foreign Countries.
1931-1939
73
1938.
1937.
1936.
1935.
%
%
%
%
1934.
%
British Empire
16.3
19.7
17.6
13.9
14.2
Foreign
83.7
80.3
82.4
86.1
85.8
British Malaya
7.2
8.5
7.3
6.3
7.6
China
45.1
40.7
42.7
49.0
48.0
French Indo China
4.5
5.1
5.0
5.3
7.4
Japan
0.6
4.2
5.1
4.2
3.5
India
1.6
1.1
1.4
1.3
1.3
Kwong Chow Wan
1.9
2.1
3.0
3.4
2.5
Macao
4.1
3.7
3.7
4.9
5.3
Netherlands East Indies
2.8
3.3
2.8
2.3
2.6
Philippine Islands
1.9
2.8
3.3
1.8
1.6
Siam
3.1
3.0
4.1
3.9
4.3
United Kingdom
4.1
4.5
3.8
2.8
2.0
U. S. A.
10.2
8.8
8.1
7.8
5.7
.....
All Other Countries
12.9
12.2
9.7
7.0
8.0
429
APPENDIX D.
Quantities and Values of Principal Articles of Imports during the years 1938 and 1937.
1938.
1937.
Principal Source
Quantity
Value
Quantity
Value
of Supply.
430
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
74
7,103,632
Germany, U.K., U.S.A.
2,809,150
22,117,748
South China, North
Germany, U.K., U.S.A.
China.
3,458,707 Germany, U.K.
Animals
(for slaughter)
Head
363,487
10,095,934
272,076
8,652,295
Cement
:
Timber
Piculs
939,391 1,772,132 1,201,440
1,089,557
French Indo-China,
Cu. Ft.
3,535,990
3,919,750
2,974,367
3,494,520
British North Borneo,
South China, Kwong Chow
Wan, French Indo-
China.
Japan.
U.S.A., Siam, South China.
Article
Chemicals & Drugs
Pharmaceutical
Products
Chinese Medicine
Aniline Dyes
1
6,404,359
2,848,699
19,592,511
9,291,677
1
Article
APPENDIX D. (Continued).
1938
1937.
Quantity
Value
Quantity
Value
Principal Source
of Supply
1931-1939
75
Indigo (Artificial)
Piculs
33,079
2,960,658
21,285
2,243,083
Germany, U.K., U.S.A.
Beans
763,189
6,201,592
540,737
4,637,981
North China.
Fish & Fishery Products
7,336,003
10,613,079 Japan, French Indo-
China, South China.
Wheat Flour
Piculs
1,365,013
12,717,719
1,142,496
12,512,662
Australia, U.S.A.,
Rice (all kinds)
8,581,997
54,443,971
9,197,455
58,512,212
Sugar (all kinds)
11
2,045,813
13,308,294
2,730,210
20,138,577
Milk (canned)
Cases
210,788
3,409,813
210,084
3,185,927
Tea
16,926,951
3,923,626
Canada.
Siam, French Indo-China,
Burma.
Netherlands East Indies.
Holland, U.K.
Middle China, South
China.
Coal
Hardware
Tons
738,830
13,934,721
896,882
13,426,358
6,003,238.
6,914,562
Japan, North China. Germany, U.K.
431
APPENDIX D. (Continued).
432
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
76
1938.
1937
Principal Source
Article
Quantity
Value
Quantity
Value
of Supply.
$
Malt Liquors
Wines
Gallons
603,687
1,875,661
452,745
1,038,382
U.K., Japan.
44,392
494,053
85,624
431,731
France, U.K.
Spirits
120,550
11
1,918,763
92,398
1,499,592
France, U.K.
Machinery & Engines
17,136,128
8,865,764
Germany, U.K., U.S.A.
Sulphate of Ammonia Piculs
1,234 988
9,431,860
1,977,310
12,949,457
Iron Bars
273,981
3,474,895
876,230
7,561,933
19
Tinplates
218,858
4,866,254
487,536
9,891,456
Germany, U.K., Belgium,
Holland.
Belgium, U.K.
U.S.A., U.K.
Tin Slabs
19
113,218
19,450,562
143,384
27,486,699
South China, Malaya.
Wolframite
47,251
7,040,759
61,721
10,984,339
South China, Macao,
"
Manganese Ore
Nuts
21,664
56,063
957,003
964,378
South China.
967,712
10,236,951
443,583
5,479,726
North China.
North China, Netherlands
East Indies.
Article
Seeds
APPENDIX D. (Continued).
1938.
1937
Quantity
Value
Quantity
Value
Principal Sourco of Supply
$
Piculs
173,496
3,585,980
155,367
3,880,820
South China, Malaya,
Kwong Chow Wan,
1,533
37,707
60,109
2,258,266
North China, Siam,
Imperial 14,395,809 Gallons
10,962,436 20,960,597
14,468,969
North China.
Sɔuth China.
Netherlands East Indies,
U.S.A., North China.
Lard
11
Petrol
1931-1939
77
Fuel Oil
Tons
Kerosene
Lubricating Oil
Wood Oil
Piculs
246,601 12,728,474 Imperial 15,754,497 5,494,953 22,429,157 Gallons 2,997,489 2,438,909
711,506 32,327,155
172,355
10,377,242
Netherlands East Indies,
U.S.A.
7,708,906
Netherlands East Indies, U.S.A.
6,559,791
4,459,945
353,410
19,217,858
South China, North
Netherlands East Indies, U.S.A.
China, French Indo- China.
433
APPENDIX D. (Continued).
434
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
78
North China, Netherlands East Indies, Kwong
Chow Wan.
1938.
1937
Article
Principal Source
Quantity
Value
Quantity
Value
of Supply.
$
Peanut Oil
Piculs
287,464
5,913,909
143,970
3,960,741
Paints
2,328,535
2,297,260
U.K., Germany, Japan.
Printing Paper
4,740,273
5,131,012
Germany, Canada.
Unbleached Cottons
Pieces
833,220
7,480,648
788,547
6,645,378
Japan, North China.
Bleached Cottons
,,
251,678
2,781,664
273,380
3,174,032
U.K., Japan, North
Light Cotton Fancies
Yards
3,183,873
1,092,808
4,194,833
1,112,997
Other Cottons
""
49,174,764
11,705,564 57,463.154
12,548,649
Prin:3
955,971
327,823 3,264,081
619,008
Cotton Thread
Grosses
of 50
Yards
577,527
1,090,172
328,987
698,440
China.
Japan, U.K., North
China.
Japan, North China,
South China.
Japan, U.K.
U.K., Middle China.
APPENDIX D. (Continued).
1931-1939
79
1938
1937.
Principal Source
Article
Quantity
Value
Quantity
Value
of Supply
$
Cotton Yarn
lbs.
48,035,978
81,006,100 36,080,586
24,598,913
North China, Japan,
U.K., India.
Woollens
Yards
1,759,224
4,732,590 1,651,844
3,727,279
U.K., Japan, Italy.
Silk (Artificial)
3,804,035
8,337,042
Silk (Raw)
5,296,211
Japan, North China. 4,708,008 South China.
Tobacco, Cigars &
lbs.
1,815,244
3,907,678
1,795,300
2,987,825
U.K., Philippines, North
Cigarettes
China, U.S.A., Macao.
Motor Cars
No.
800
2,819,324
710
2,123,831
Motor Lorries
3,424
8,472,228
695
1,531,201
U.K., Canada, U.S.A. U.S.A., U.K.
Boots & Shoes
1,556,707
Wearing Apparel
3,515,339
954,901
3,492,787
Japan, Czechoslovakia. U.K., Japan, North
Gunny Bags
Pieces
5,899,587
1,657,431
5,916,024
1,945,363
China, South China. India, Malaya, Macao.
435
Article
China Ware
Cosmetics &
Perfumery
Electric Lamp Bulbs-
(All Kinds)
Radio Apparatus
Feathers
· APPENDIX D. (Conţinued).
1938
1937
Principal Source
Value.
Quantity
Value
of Supply
Quantity
$
436
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
80
IMAVERS
743,998
795,041
North China, Japan,
Middle China.
7 MS 390 1,108,589
BIX 100
883,879
1,049,607
U.S.A., South China,
461,656
1,246,508
779,242
DEERFIEL
2,619,634
4,295,645
TORE
3,389,699
5,333,825
South China, Macao,
U.K., France.
North China, U.K.,
Japan.
U.S.A., U.K.
South China, French
Indo-China, Middle China.
Kwong Chow Wan,
North China.
Hides (All Kinds)
Piculs
98,447
5,482,534 ...173,459
8,387,030
South China, Siam.
Firecrackers
Article
APPENDIX D. (Continued).
1938
1937
Quantity
Value
Quantity
Value
Principal Source of Supply
$
$
2,747,263
3,137,610 Australia, South China,
Malaya.
China.
81
1931-1939
1,906,568
2,652,605
South China, French Indo-China.
Matches
1,611,180
1,080,075
Japan, Macao, South China, Sweden.
Rubber (Raw)
Piculs
35,367
2,410,211
36,785
3,484,115
Malaya, Netherlands East Indies, French Indo-
Leather (All Kinds)
Mats (All Kinds)
437
APPENDIX E.
Quantities and Values of Principal Articles of Exports during the years 1938 and 1937.
Article
438
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
82-
1938.
1937.
Quantity :: Value
Quantity
Value
$
$
Piculs
· 1,124,985
2,087,131
1,615,806
Cu. Ft.
1,016,354
1,315,882
458,759
2,611,357
633,461
4,914,923
4,239,195
4,159,535
2,296,349
15,714,561
17,045,541
4,921,612
1,917,450
Piculs -
21.506
2,693,847
7,102
458,508
3,824,779
""
382,541
1,050,417
3,561,930
6,704,216
1,064.107
9,974,442
804,590
9,459,738
9,012,606
5,418,281
36,429,104
6,079,649
1,605,715
14,470,235
2,011,846
.39,395,832
16,600,742
2,156,132
16,080,814
3,013,405
2,264,708
3,620,211
5,216,889
Cement
Timber
Chemicals & Drugs
Chinese Medicines
Pharmaceutical Products
Aniline Dyes
Indigo (Artificial)
Beans
Fish & Fishery Products Wheat Flour
Rice (All Kinds) Sugar (All Kinds) Ginger, Preserved
Tea
Hardware
**
APPENDIX E. (Continued).
1931-1939
83
1938.
1937.
Article
Quantity
Value
Quantity
Value
$
$
Native Liquors
Gallons
202,720
689,906
258,338
898,457
Machinery & Engines Sulphate of Ammonia
6,470,542
4,861,358
Piculs
1,439,992
12,445,490
1,566,820
11,041,647
Iron & Steel Bars
175,722
1,919,689
414,891
""
4,104,458
Iron & Steel Scrap
157,696
813,943
425,711
2,149,953
""
Tinplates
223,547
4,944,384
141,809
3,029,696
""
Tin Slabs & Ingots
106,345
""
16,362,918
120,812
22,921,351
Wolframite
80,817
14,252,838
78,231
15,382,666
Manganese Ore
37,146
63,652
720,073
1,089,867
Nuts
7:17,863
7,717,548
212,265
2,767,533
Seeds
19
130,498
2,860,771
1:16,024
3,025,620
Lard
35,188
884,008
""
94,290
4,057,026
Petrol
Imperial
Gallons
10,936,933
10,267,764
13,138,662
11,789,431
Fuel
Tons
75,676
5,141,422
Kerosene
Imperial
14,394,702
7,378,516
77,004
20,921,437
4,857,172
10,994,777
Gallons
439
APPENDIX E. (Continued).
•
440
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
84
1938.
Article
Quantity
Value
Quantity
Imperial
$
Lubricating Oil Peanut Oil
Gallons
3,460,499
3,685,568
3,330,849
Piculs
167,941
3,920,453
125,810
1937.
Value
$
3,214,638
3,717,575
Wood Oil
822,462
39,762,205
""
268,703
15,476,909
Paints
1,713,284
1,769,857
Printing Paper
1,283,281
1,519,888
Unbleached Cottons
Pieces
337,813
3,210,508
411,031
3,074,432
Bleached Cottons
109,495
1,395,940
128,191
1,603,156
Light Cotton Fancies
Yards
532,488
190,110
1,144,362
312,981
Other Cottons
61,289,110
14,631,675
58,826,585
13,294,204
Cottons, Prints
343,288
90,218
1,692,073
324,191
Cotton Thread
Grosses
421,162
792,978
200,475
362,362
Cotton Yarn
lbs.
35,394,504
21,163,764
25,438,399
14,586,821
Woollens
Yards
193,236
367,063
184,728
309,556
Silk (Artificial)
1,016,028
2,567,497
Silk, Raw
4,446,735
4,318,999
Tobacco, Cigars & Cigarettes
lbs.
7,374,125
7,664,107
4,358,711
4,490,405
Motor Cars..
No.
469
1,212,465
353
664,808
APPENDIX E. (Continued).
1931-1939
85
1938.
1937.
Article
Quantity
Value
Quantity
Value
$
$
Motor Lorries
No.
4,224
15,285,364
570
1,490,298
Boots & Shoes
Wearing Apparel
7,585,639
12,975,680
6,677,500
13,007,043
Gunny Bags
Pieces
8,781,568
2,733,911
8,930,438
2,962,774
China Ware
461,411
524,235
Cosmetic & Perfumery
1,007,637
1,115,128
Electric Torches
2,900,261
3,670,609
Electric Torch Batteries
2,189,923
1,840,956
Embroidery & Lace
1,380,026
2,347,448
Feathers
*2,359,284
4,599,331
Firecrackers
4,647,436
5,486,075
Hides (All Kinds)
Piculs
59,392
3,672,228
89,038
4,750,560
Leather (All Kinds)
796,483
936,580
Mats (All Kinds)
1,918,453
2,338,627
Matches
1,186,256
836,626
Rubber (Raw)
15,308
1,021,659
16,168
1,443,237
Trunks & Suit Cases
Piculs
1,287,311
1,423,655
441
APPENDIX F.
Total Value of Imports of Treasure (in $'s thousands).
442
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
86
1938
$
1937
$
1936
1935
1934
$
$
$
Bank Notes
2,100
80,112
22,546
12,521
Copper Coins
1
421
193
6
Gold Bars
5,572
11,113
3,656
3,549
16,736
157
13,714
Gold Coins
90
331
Gold Leaf
9
8
6
5
10
15
Silver Bars
18
6,448
45
1,053
3,575
Silver Dollars
786
152,677
45,541
16,371
40,353
Silver Subsidiary Coins
1,025
135,339
741
5,280
3,531
Total:
9,601
386,449
72,728
38,785
78,081
APPENDIX G.
Total Value of Exports of Treasure (in $'s thousands).
1931-1939
87
1938
$
1937
$
1936
1935
1934
$
$
$
Bank Notes
35,851
*** 18,178
24,757
12,620
13,296
Copper Coins
15
1,295
13
265
Gold Bars
48,538
:..10,979
33,218
28,330
69,869
Gold Coins
3,186
2,567
760
38
528
Gold Leaf
266
552
356
140
253
Silver Bars
1,600
.... 5,986
26
.100,857
9,191
Silver Dollars
52,385
*****269,150*8*!|
67,496
70,685
31,341
Silver Subsidiary Coins
46,283
87,520
17,202
3,276
3,737
Total:-
188,124
395,227
143,815
215,959
128,480
443
Foodstuffs
Textiles
Metals and Minerals
Miscellaneous Articles
APPENDIX H.
Wholesale Price Index.
1922=100.
1933
1934
1935
1936
1937
1938
444
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
88
113 4
94.3
85 4
113.3
136.2
131.6
97.0
85.9
74.2
99.4
117.7
116.1
107.8
97.4
79.8
107.2
146.1
147.3
95.7
88.5
72.3
92.5
124.4
127.3
Average:-
103.5
91.5
77.9
103.1
131.1
130.6
APPENDIX I.
Index Numbers of Quantities of Commodities imported into Hong Kong during 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937 and 1938.
GS
1931-1939
1931-100.
Items
1934
1935
1936
1937
1938
Building Materials
10
57.9
72.4
67.3
77.5
65.9
Chemicals & Drugs
18
91.8
84.9
55.7
133.8
93.0
Dyeing Materials
5
44.2
53.4
43.6
41.8
55.2
Foodstuffs
25
91.9
90.1
85.8
110.7
107.3
Fuels
5
10
115.3
122.6
118.1
126.8
119.3
Manures
2
21.7
48.2
101.1
141.9
88.7
Metals
30
69.3
88.7
82.9
120.7
62.3
Minerals & Ores
3
8.2
16.5
125.8
308.6
22.8
Nuts & Seeds
Oils & Fats
Textiles
Sundries
7
134.7
106.3
98.0
113.7
310.9
14
99.4
99.4
99.0
129.6
145.1
37
79.4
79.0
68.4
59.8
83.0
29
83.4
75.4
64.2
71.6
64.7
Total Items:-
185
General Average:-
74.8
78.1
84.2
119.7
101.5
445
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
447
CHAPTER VIII.
Labour.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
93
CHAPTER VIII.
Labour.
449
A new Factories and Workshops Ordinance, No. 18 of 1937,
replacing the old Ordinance, No. 27 of 1932, came into operation
on the 1st of January, 1938. The Chairman, Urban Council,
replaced the Secretary for Chinese Affairs as Protector of
Labour, and the Factory Inspectorate was transferred from the Secretariat for Chinese Affairs to the Urban Council. The new Ordinance gives to the Urban Council power to make by-laws in respect of industrial undertakings. A Select Committee of the Council deals with applications for the registration of factories and workshops and other matters arising out of the
administration of the Ordinance. The By-laws in the Schedule to the new Ordinance prohibit the employment of any child under the age of fourteen years in any industrial undertaking
and the employment of women and of young persons under the age of eighteen years between the hours of 8 p.m. and 7 a.m. No new By-laws were made during the year.
The Inspectorate, consisting of an Inspector of Factories
and Workshops and an Inspector of Labour, deals with new
applications for registration and pays periodic visits of inspection to all factories and workshops. Special attention is given to
the safety of machinery, overcrowding of workers and machinery,
obstructions to exits and the ages of workers. Night visits are frequently made to guard against the employment of females and young persons during prohibited hours.
All registered factories and workshops are inspected for renewal of registration during the early part of the year. 199 new certificates of registration were issued during the year
1938, bringing the total of registered factories and workshops
up to 829. There were 45 prosecutions, including 23 for the offence of employing females and young persons during prohibited
450
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
94
hours, and 19 for the offence of operating an unregistered factory. The total number of accidents reported was 141, of
which 14 were fatal. Ten of the fatal accidents occurred in
shipyards.
་
The year 1938 was quite outstanding in the industrial life of the Colony, the general improvement which set in in 1937 being well maintained. Hostilities in China caused many industrialists to turn their eyes to the Colony with a view to
establishing themselves here. Consequently industries, hitherto
unknown in the Colony, have come into being, for instance,
the manufacture of war necessities such as gas masks. metal helmets, spades and entrenching tools, uniforms, water-
bottles, the assembling of field telephones, and portable military transmitting and receiving sets. Other new industries are the
manufacture of bicycles and tricycles, tabloid medicines, nails, postage stamps, bank notes, coupons, tooth brushes and pearl buttons. Many Shanghai workers were brought into the Colony for these trades, especially for printing, this finer craft being peculiar to the northern Chinese. The output of electric hand- torches, dry-batteries, rubber boots and shoes, cotton and silk
goods, etc., mostly for Empire and oversea markets, was well
maintained.
Many new factory-type premises have been erected and plans for more are in preparation. The general prosperity in some trades and the pressure exerted by the Health Authorities and the Factory Inspectorate have resulted in the removal of
some factories from the tenement-house premises, which they formerly occupied, to new modern factory-type buildings. But
the conversion of tenement houses into factories still remains a disquieting feature of the industrialization of the Colony, especially in view of the acute housing shortage due to the influx of refugees from China.
1931-1939
95
451
There was a good demand for skilled and unskilled male labour in the heavy industries. Female workers, too, were in demand, especially in the cigarette-making, spinning and weaving factories. The general supply of labour, skilled,
unskilled and casual, is, however, in excess of the demand. It
is difficult to state in what proportion this excess obtains at present owing to the abnormal conditions created by the Sino- Japanese hostilities.
It is estimated that about 55,000 workers of both sexes are
employed in the various industries. Of these some 17,000 are spread over the less important industries.
distribution of the remainder is as follows:-
The approximate
Industries
Shipyards
Male
Female
Total
.10,390
36
10,426
Sugar Refineries
Oil Refineries
871
81
952
449
12
461
Breweries
52
48
100
Metal Wares
1,756
2,170
3,926
Knitting Factories
....... 1,710
5,035
6,745
Spinning and Weaving Factories 1,597
4,554
6,151
Engineering
674
4
678
Rubber Factories
599
1,420
2,019
Newspaper Factories
743
2
745
;
Printing Factories
3,664
703
4,367
Tobacco Factories
319
1,372
1,691
22,817
15,394
38,211
Employment in the heavy industries, e.g. roads, reclama- tions, buildings, shipyards, etc., is on the contract system. Otherwise the piece-work or the monthly wage system is
adhered to.
452
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
96
Trades Unions are freely permitted to function in the Colony, but at the present time there are no orthodox unions in existence. During the year under review there were about eight industrial disputes. These were of a minor nature, and
in each case an amicable settlement was reached through the
Secretariat for Chinese Affairs. No bona fide trade union has
ever been suppressed in the Colony, but certain guilds and
associations have from time to time been declared unlawful
under the Societies Ordinance of 1920, mainly on account of
terrorist and political activities. No such suppression took place during 1938.
*
The new Ordinance, No. 18 of 1937, referred to above,
consolidated the law relating to factories and workshops. Articles 2 and 4 of the Draft Convention fixing the minimum age for the admission of children to industrial employment, and Articles 2 and 3 of the Draft Convention concerning the
employment of women during the night, were introduced in that
Ordinance.
The Minimum Wage Ordinance, No. 28 of 1932, created machinery by which a minimum wage may be fixed for any occupation, in which, in the opinion of the Governor-in-Council, the wages paid are unreasonably low. No minimum wages for
any industry have yet been prescribed.
There is no legislation providing for the establishment of
conciliatory machinery for the amicable settlement of disputes
between employers and their work people, nor is there factory legislation controlling compensation for accidents or enforcing
provision for sickness, old age, etc. Several European owned and controlled industrial undertakings have their private schemes
of insurance, compensation in case of accidents or death, sick
benefits and provident funds.
1931-1939
97
453
The
A Labour Officer was appointed in November, 1938.
status of this officer is at present undefined and his work up
to the end of the year under review was largely in the nature
of a preliminary survey. He is at present considering the
application to the Colony of workmen's compensation legislation.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
455
CHAPTER IX.
Wages and the Cost of Living.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
. 101
CHAPTER IX.
Wages and the Cost of Living.
457
The year 1938 showed a continued increase in trading activity until the Japanese invasion of South China in October resulted in the closure of the river and an interruption of the Colony's trade with the West River area.
These conditions
Prices remained
obtained during the remainder of the year. remarkably steady throughout the year, with a general tendency to fall. There were exceptional price-movements, caused by temporary local conditions, but these were not maintained. The supply of labour increased considerably with the influx of refugees, but the general wage level was not depressed, the wage-rate of female workers in factories shewing an increase over the 1937 level. This steady level was the result of the demand for labour increasing with the supply. Many small industries moved into the Colony from China during the year and a great trade was done in the manufacture of small appliances required in large quantities by the Chinese Government. Payment continued to be by piece-work in the lower grades of work in light industries and in all mass production work, and
this system appeared to be satisfactory to employers and
employees. Skilled male labour was employed on daily pay. In the case of refugee northern workers housing and food were usually provided by the employer.
The chief factor in the slight rise in the cost of living was
a general increase in rents. This increase, stimulated by the continued entry of refugees into the Colony and the acute
shortage of vacant tenements, assumed alarming proportions in the first few months of the year. In March a Commission was appointed to investigate the whole question of rentals, and, as a result of this Commission's recommendations, legislation was introduced providing for appeal to the Courts by persons evicted without adequate cause.
458
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
102
There was a slight and fairly steady fall in the prices of commodities included in the cost of living index throughout the year. In the early part of the year the prices of fish, meat and
vegetables were between 10% and 30% above the corresponding figures for last year and at the end of the year they were 10% or less below those figures. The October figures for vegetables showed an increase of 80% over the previous month. This was
entirely due to the temporary dislocation of supplies caused by
the Japanese invasion of South China at the end of the year, however, prices of vegetables later fell to the minimum for the year, which was about 8% lower than the corresponding figure for 1937. The price of oil, at the beginning of year, was about
the same as the average level for 1937 and in the course of the
year fell gradually to a point 30% below that figure.
The price of rice fell steadily throughout the year. For the first seven months it was not more than 9% above the corresponding figures for 1937, and for the last five months was consistently less than the 1937 figures.-the greatest falling off being 15% in August. The absolute variation during the year (14%) was considerably less than in 1936 or 1937 (23% and 25% respectively) and the interval between the two extremes was eleven months as compared with two months in 1937. The figures for rice are:-
1938
1937
Average of four grades..
January
Variatic
Per 100 catties.
December
$7.33
$8.38.
June
August
$7.31
$9.16
14%
Variatic
25%
Average Retail Prices of the Staple Foodstuffs, etc.,
of Wage Earning Classes.
1936
1937
1938
Rice (3rd Grade) per
catty
6.3 cents 7.9 cents 7.3 cents
Fresh fish, per catty Salt fish, per catty
Beef per catty
Pork per catty
Oil per catty
Firewood,
1931-1939
459
103
20.9 cents
26.9 cents
24.4 cents
.....
21.2
24.1
25.2 17
32.8
36.8.
37.6 11
17
41.7
51.9
.49.7
""
23.7
28.3
22.2
܂
10 cents for 12.2 catties 9.8 catties 7.0 catties
Average Rates of Wages for Labour.
Building Trade:-
Locomotive Driver
Carpenters
•
Bricklayers
Painters
Plasterers (including Shanghai
Plasterers)
Scaffolders
Labourers (male)
""
(female)
$1.30 to $1.80 per day.
0.80 to
1.30
0.80 to 1.30
""
0.80 to
1.30
""
"
1.00 to
1.50 "}
1.00 to
1.50
"1
17
0.60 to
0.80 "1
0.40 to 0.50
,,
27
Working hours 9 per day. Time and a half paid for overtime. Free temporary sleeping quarters
provided on the building site and communal messing
at cheap rates.
Shipbuilding & Engineering:-
$1.00 to $1.40 per day.
1.00 to 1.60 ""
Electricians
Coppersmiths
Fitters
... 0.80 to
1.55
12
12
Sawmillers
0.70 to
1.25
7
Boilermakers
.... 0.95 to
1.20
Sailmakers
1.00 to
1.40
""
Blacksmiths
0.75 to
1.20
""
""
Turners
1.00 to
1.40
Patternmakers
1.00 to
1.40
11
Labourers
0.70 to 1.00
27
460
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
time.
104
Overtime-time and a half. Night work-double
Transport Workers:-
Tram Drivers
......
$36 to $45 per mouth.
Tram Conductors
Bus Drivers, Chinese Bus Co........
Bus Conductors,
Working hours 9 per day.
at end of year 3 days' pay.
"1
30 to 39
27 to 54
""
""
18 to
21
91
Free Uniform. Bonus
Bus Drivers, European Co...$55.00 per month.
Bus Conductors
*1
22.50 to $35 per month.
One
Working hours 9 per day. Free Uniform.
month's salary bonus.
Railway Workers (Government)
Station Masters
$1,100 to $1,800 per annum.
Telephone Operators
480 to 1,400
""
""
Booking Clerks
600 to
1,000
""
Guards
600 to
1,000
""
"
Signalmen
600 to
1,000
""
**
Engine Drivers
540 to
1,000
""
""
Ticket Collectors
420 to
600
""
Firemen
330 to
480
""
Pointsmen
11
Female Workers in Factories:-
192 to 240 17
.$0.30 to $0.70 per day.
Cigarette making
Knitting Factories
Perfumery
Confectionery
Electric hand torch factories..
0.25 to
0.50
0.20 to
0.40
"1
0.20 to
0.50
**
0.25 to 0.45
19
Electric hand torch battery
factory
0.15 to 0.35
""
Rope Works
Gunny Bag makers
0.42 a day.
0.30 to 0.50 per day.
1931-1939
105
461
$0.30 to $0.60 per day.
Feather works
Joss stick workers
Printing works
Weaving and spinning
Rattan workers
Hardware workers
Felt hat workers
Cork hat workers
Green pea sorting Handkerchief makers
Paper dyeing .....
.... 0.20 to
0.30
""
0.20 to
0.80
""
0.25 to
0.60
11
0.30 to
1.00
""
""
0.25 to
0.40
""
""
0.25 to
0.70
17
.....
0.30 to
0.55
""
""
0.15 to
0.25
"}
0.20 to
0.40
,,
99
0.20 to 0.40
""
Grass rope makers
0.30 to 0.35
Preserved fruit makers
0.15 to 0.60
""
??
Sugar refinery
0.35
"}
Rubber shoe makers
0.35 to 1.05
""
Working hours from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. One hour
off at mid-day. Overtime from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at day rates.
Domestic Servants:-
Employed by Chinese
Employed by Europeans
Gardeners
With free lodging,
generally free board.
$ 7.00 to $20.00 per month.
15.00 to 40.00
""
""
15.00 to 30.00
and, with Chinese employers,
Note: The rates of pay of Government employees are much the same as those of a similar category in private employ.
Transport coolies
.$0.60 to $0.70 per day.
*Coal Coolies
0.55
""
*Ricksha Coolies
0.60 to 0.70
??
*Now reduced to 55 cents.
Formerly business was
.
better and up to $1.00 was paid in some cases.
The
reduction is reckoned to be due to business falling off and to a lessened cost of living.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
463
CHAPTER X.
Education and Welfare Institutions.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
109
CHAPTER X.
Education and Welfare Institutions.
465
Schools.
Education in Hong Kong is voluntary and is mainly in the hands of Government and of missionary bodies.
The present system may be said to have started in 1913 when the Education Ordinance, requiring all non-Government Schools (unless specifically exempted) to register and to conform
to certain regulations, came into operation. The Director of Education derives his legal powers from this Ordinance. Since
1920 he has been advised by a Board of Education of which he
is ex officio chairman. This board is appointed by the Governor
and at present consists of eleven unofficial members together
with the Senior Inspectors of English and Vernacular Schools.
The Schools in the Colony may be classified as follows:-
(1) Government Schools which are staffed and main-
tained by the Education Department.
(2) Grant Schools, i.e.
i.e. schools, run mainly by missionary bodies, which are in receipt of a grant from Government under the provisions of the Grant
Code.
(3) Subsidized Schools, i.e. vernacular schools which
are in receipt of a subsidy from Government. (4) The Military Schools and certain others which are
exempted from the provisions of the Education
Ordinance, 1913.
(5) All other Private Schools.
There are fourteen Government English Schools (i.e. schools in which English is the medium of instruction) of which four are for British pupils, though other European children may be admitted if vacancies are available. These are all primary schools with the exception of the Central British School which
466
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
110
comprises both primary and secondary classes. The remaining three British Schools have, in addition, an infants' department. Of the other English schools, three are for secondary education, two for boys and one for girls, each having a primary department attached. The other Government English Schools are all primary, one of them being reserved for the education of Indians. The Government also provides four vernacular schools (i.e. schools in which Chinese is the medium of instruction).
these one is a primary school, two are for training vernacular teachers, and one comprises both secondary classes and normal
classes. There are two English vocational Schools, the Junior
Technical School and the Trade School. In the latter, classes
have been started in Wireless Telegraphy, Building and
Engineering.
Of
The English Grant Schools number sixteen, eight for boys
and eight for girls, the latter admitting boys to the lower classes. The majority of these schools are managed by religious bodies. The sixteen schools provide both secondary and primary
education, with the exception of two girls' schools, one of which
is infant and primary, and the other infant.
There are three Upper Grade Vernacular Grant Schools,
two conducted by the Church Missionary Society and one by the London Missionary Society.
A total of 1,243 institutions were under the control of the
Education Department at the end of 1938, while there were six
exempted schools. The number of pupils on the rolls of these schools was 103,564 and 570 respectively.
The Evening Institute, controlled directly by the Education Department, provides classes at seven centres in the following subjects: English, Field Surveying, Building, Engineering, Ship-building, Pedagogy (English and Vernacular), Book- Keeping, Shorthand, and Physical Instruction. 1,243 students were enrolled in these classes during 1938.
1931-1939
111
467
At present the training of teachers for English schools is carried out in the Education Group of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Hong Kong, and in the Teachers' Classes of the Evening Institute. At the end of 1938 there were sixty-six students in the Education Department of the University of whom nineteen held Government Educational Scholarships which are awarded annually. The Teachers' Classes in the Evening Institute provide a three-year course. The Training of
Vernacular Teachers is undertaken in the following four
institutions:-
(a) The Evening Institute.
(b) The Normal School for Men at the Vernacular
Middle School.
(c) The Vernacular Normal School for Women.
(d) The Vernacular Normal School at Taipo (New
Territories).
It is proposed that a new Teachers' Training College shall be opened during the course of the present year.
There are in the Colony four orphanages and one home for incurables and aged women, all of which are controlled by
religious communities. There are two industrial schools which
are under the control of the Salesian Institute.
The School Health Branch of the Medical Department
came into being in 1925 when a Medical Officer for Schools was
appointed. This has now been expanded and consists of a European Health Officer for Schools, two Chinese Medical Officers, one European Lady Medical Officer (part-time) and
five nurses. Three school clinics and two special centres for
the treatment of eye, throat and nose defects have been
established. Pupils in Government and Grant-in-Aid Schools
are now medically examined initially and periodically through their school career, while the provision of free spectacles for those requiring them has been made possible.
·
468
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
112
In 1937 a Supervisor of Physical Education was appointed and physical training is proceeding along organized lines. The regulations require that every boy and girl in Government and Grant Schools shall receive a minimum of one hour's training each week in addition to organized games.
As only a few schools in the Colony are fortunate enough to possess adequate playing fields it has become necessary to rely on the generosity of the numerous sports' clubs for the use of grounds for football, cricket, and hockey. These clubs, established for all nationalities, willingly place their grounds and equipment at the disposal of schools when required.
The University.
The University of Hong Kong, which was incorporated in
1911 and formally opened in 1912, reached the twenty-sixth
year of its existence in the year under review. The buildings,
including class-room accommodation for about 500 students, six
hostels, laboratories, residences for the staff, the students' Union, a gymnasium, workshops and playing fields, occupy an area of thirty-six acres.
The Court, the supreme governing body, is composed of
life members, ex officio members, and nominated members,.
with the Governor as Chairman. The Council, which is
the executive body, is composed of the Chancellor, the Vice-
Chancellor, the Treasurer, certain Government officials, the
Chinese members of the Legislative Council, the Deans of Faculty, two representatives of the commercial community, and two additional members appointed by the Governor. The Senate consists of the Vice-Chancellor, the Director of Education, the
Professors and Readers. There are three Faculties-Medicine,
Engineering and Arts. The Arts Faculty includes a Department of Chinese Studies. The Degrees granted are M.B., B.S., M.D., M.S., B.A., M.A., B.Sc.: (Engineering), M.Sc. The standard aimed at is that of the University of London.
1931-1939
113
469
All male students are required, as a condition of admission, to reside in halls of residence provided by the University or in hostels founded by religious bodies and conducted under regulations approved by the Council. The tuition fee is $400 a year and the hostel fee, which includes board and lodging, $300 a year. It is estimated that it costs a student $1,500 a year at the University. This sum includes registration and laboratory fees, Union and club fees, books, instruments, clothes
and vacations.
538 students were on the rolls during 1938. This was the
highest enrolment recorded in the history of the University. The
large majority of these students were of Chinese nationality, and 40% of them were obliged to relinquish their studies in Chinese universities on account of the Sino-Japanese hostilities.
Since September, 1938, facilities have been afforded to 500 refugee students of Lingnan University, Canton, to continue their studies under their own professors and lecturers at Hong
Kong University.
Of the 536 regular students in 1938, 418 were men and 118
women students distributed as follows:-
Men
Women
Medicine
187
24
Engineering
.129
3
Arts
88
85
External students
14
CO
6
Total
..418
118
The number of students who graduated during 1938 is shown
below:-
Medicine (M.B., B.S.) Engineering (B.Sc.) ................
Men
Women
11
1
7.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
114
Arts (B.A.)
Men
Women
5
1
23
2
The total expenditure amounted to $1,078,155.49 and the
total income to $1,050,841.45 leaving a deficit of $27,314.04 on the year's working. This deficit will be met from the credit balance of the Income and Expenditure Account of previous years, which stood at $110,474.57 at the beginning of 1938. Owing to the large increase in the number of students during
1938 the accommodation' available in the six halls of residence
for men was tested to its limits. The question of the provision
of hostel accommodation for women forced itself on the
immediate attention of the University authorities during 1938.
A scheme for the construction of a hostel for women students
in the vicinity of the University is likely to materialize in the near future, owing to an offer of the Mother Provincial of the French Convent, Hong Kong, to build, equip and conduct a hall of residence for fifty women students, if a suitable site is provided for the purpose. In the meantime the majority of the women
students live with parents and guardians, residential facilities for about thirty being provided by the Church Missionary Society
and the Italian Convent.
The General Library, which includes the Morrison Collection
and the Medical Library, contains 45,450 volumes. The Fung
Ping Shan Chinese Library includes 4,895 sets of books and
43,681 volumes and is open to the public without restriction. The Hankow Library which was acquired in 1933 includes a
unique collection of some 3,000 volumes written in English, French and German, dealing with China and things Chinese. Three valuable private collections, comprising 7,551 sets and 62,767 volumes, are housed in the Fung Ping Shan Library for safe keeping. Special arrangements were made during 1938
-
..
1931-1939
115
471
for extending facilities to the Lingnan University for the use of the Library.
The University continues, through the activities of its various Societies and organizations, literary, technical, social and sporting, to maintain and promote contact with the general and cultural interests of the Colony. During 1938 the Chinese Society organized two very successful exhibitions of Chinese Porcelain and Painting held in the Fung Ping Shan Library. The University Libraries, particularly the Hankow Section, were increasingly used by the public, and University buildings and rooms were made available for public lectures, for the use of musical societies, and for use as centres for examinations
conducted by the Trinity College of Music, and by the Government Nurses Board. The University laboratories and departments continue to carry out important tests and investiga-
tions for hospitals in the Colony and for the X-Ray Department of Queen Mary Hospital. Mention may also be made of the work done by the Head of the Department of Physiology (Professor Ride) in connection with the nutritional survey of
the Colony, and by the Economic Department (Miss Archer)
on the cost of living. Mr. S. Y. Lin's report on Fisheries is mentioned in Chapter VI. There are several publications of professional and literary interest issued by the various University
societies.
Students of the University have identified themselves with social and charitable work as is shewn by the Education
Society's Free Night school for poor boys, the provision by the Athletic Association of the University Union of a play-ground
for the use of the Pokfulum Boys' Club, and the participation by students in relief work among Chinese refugees at the camp at Shumchun during the Christmas vacation, 1938. During 1938 a sum of about $15,000 was distributed by the University Students Medical Relief Association. The members of the
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
116
Alumni Association also gave practical evidence of their continued interest in their University by providing funds for a
new hard tennis court. Similar Associations are in active
existence in Shanghai, the Straits Settlements and the Federated Malay States.
As a result of the findings and recommendations of the University (1937) Committee, the organization and financial position of the University formed the subject of close investiga-
tion by the Court of the University. Important changes and developments are under consideration. The provision of a block
of Science buildings and the inauguration of a Faculty of Science are contemplated, and a new diploma course for teachers is to be instituted. Considerable expenditure will be involved and the need for augmenting the resources of the University is
prominently indicated.
Welfare Institutions.
Practically every form of sport is played in the Colony the most popular being Association Football in winter and swimming
in summer. Hockey has become increasingly popular during recent years. Lawn Tennis and Golf are played throughout the year. In addition the following are followed with the keenest interest:-Cricket, Rugby Football, Badminton, Baseball, Volley
Ball and Athletics.
The Colony is well provided with social clubs for all nationalities. Among the most prominent may be mentioned
the Philharmonic and Amateur Dramatic Societies both of which
produce at least one play each year. The Hong Kong. Branch of the English Association, the Hong Kong Singers and the Hong Kong Rotary Club all contribute in their own way to the social life of the Colony. For lovers of flowers and gardening the Horticultural Society and the New Territories Agricultural Association provide an outlet for enthusiasm. There are local
1931-1939
117
473
A
branches of the Young Men's and Young Women's Christian Associations which provide recreation and accommodation. public library is housed in a portion of the former City Hall and is used mainly by Chinese, the European community obtaining reading matter from libraries run in connection with the clubs of which they are members.
The influx of a large number of refugees into the Colony as a result of the Sino-Japanese hostilities has brought the local charitable organizations into even greater prominence. The work, for instance, of the Society for the Protection of Children
has been increased. The Hong Kong Benevolent Society and
the Ministering Children's League both continue to do excellent work. Charitable associations connected with Churches, etc.,
are all helping in the very necessary relief work. The work of the St. John Ambulance Association and Brigade has been greatly extended, especially in the New Territories where at
least nine additional centres have been established.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
475
CHAPTER XI.
Communication and Transport.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
121
477
External.
SHIPPING.
CHAPTER XI.
Communication and Transport.
Hong Kong has one of the finest harbours in the world. It
is, in normal times, the chief shipping terminus between South
China and the outside world. Regular services are maintained
by shipping companies of every maritime nation bringing
merchandise, raw materials and passengers destined for all parts
of China. The following are details of the Colony's chief sea
communications:-
The P. & O. Steam Navigation Co., Ltd., Messageries
Maritimes Cie, Blue Funnel Line, Norddeutscher Lloyd, Lloyd
Triestino and Nippon Yusen Kaisya to the United Kingdom and
Europe.
The Blue Funnel Line, Osaka Syosen Kaisya, Nippon Yusen Kaisya and American President Lines, Ltd. to the United States
of America.
The Canadian Pacific S. S. Ltd. and the Blue Funnel Line
to Vancouver B.C.
The Eastern and Australian Line, Australian Oriental Line,
Burns Philp Line, Nippon Yusen Kaisya and Osaka Syosen
Kaisya to Australian ports.
The Java-China-Japan Line and the Royal Packet Navigation Co. (K.P.M. Line) to Java and other ports in the Dutch East
Indies.
The Indo-China S.N. Co., Ltd., China Navigation S.S. Co.,
and other small lines to ports on the east and south coast of
China and Formosa.
The British India, Shire, Glen and Bank Lines also call at
Hong Kong.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
122
The River Service to Canton and the West River, previously run by the Hong Kong, Canton & Macao Stearnboat Co.'s ships and other smaller companies, is now at a standstill on account
of the Sino-Japanese hostilities.
In addition, there is normally a vast traffic between Hong Kong and the adjacent provinces of China by junk. This, at
present, is much depleted.
The total shipping entering and clearing ports in the Colony during the year 1938 amounted to 67,007 vessels of 30,962,756 tons. This, compared with 1937, shewed a decrease of 6,250 vessels and 6,868,004 tons.
24,670 vessels of 29,530,384 tons were engaged in foreign
trade compared with 33,782 vessels of 36,191,724 tons in 1937. British ocean-going shipping shewed a decrease of 326 vessels and 312,456 tons. Foreign ocean-going shipping shewed a
decrease of 2,070 vessels and 5,133,209 tons.
British river steamers shewed an increase of 276 vessels
and 402,207 tons. Foreign river steamers shewed a decrease of 1,191 vessels and 614,251 tons., Steamships, not exceeding
60 tons, in foreign trade shewed a decrease of 2,497 vessels and 57,359 tons.
•
Junks in foreign trade shewed a decrease of 3,304 vessels and 946,272 tons.
In local trade, steam launches shewed a decrease of 307 vessels and 1,094 tons, and junks shewed an increase of 3,169 vessels but a decrease of 205,570 tons.
AVIATION.
Hong Kong Airport is situated at Kai Tak and has facilities for marine and land aircraft. The equipment of the airport includes W/T and R/T (short and medium wave) and D/F, aeronautical meteorological service, administration building, offices and workshops of operating companies, fuel and oil installations with tankage for some 7,000 gallons of petrol, and
1931-1939
123
479
full night flying facilities for land aircraft, including a 1,200,000 c.p. floodlight installed during 1938. A new terminal building has been constructed for traffic arriving by flying boat services; a slipway, pontoon and special mooring buoys are available for marine aircraft.
The continued growth of civil aviation caused a large increase in the amount of traffic handled at Kai Tak Airport, for example, the number of passengers arriving and departing has risen from 3,685 in 1937 to 9,969 in the year under review. Hong Kong was included in the Empire "all-up" air mail scheme in September, and from that date Imperial Airways Ltd. operated its service to Bangkok twice instead of once weekly and services were often duplicated. In August Air France extended its Paris-Hanoi service to Hong Kong. The
following air lines now maintain regular schedules from the
airport:-
Imperial Airways Ltd., twice weekly to Bangkok, connecting
with the England-Australia trunk route.
Air France, once weekly to Paris, via Hanoi.
Pan American Airways, once weekly to San Francisco via
Manila.
China National Aviation Corporation and Eurasia Aviation Corporation, to Kweilin and Chungking.
The fall of Hankow and Canton to the Japanese meant that air services to these towns could no longer be operated, but very heavy loads of passengers and mails are carried to those places.
in China still accessible by air.
The Far East Flying Training School Ltd. maintained a flect of five aeroplanes during the year which flew a total of 1,900 hours, including the training of the Air Arm of the Hong
Kong Volunteer Defence Corps, the training of six Reserve of Air Force Officers and 28 pupils, and 160 hours for Army Co-operation purposes. Twenty-six Government certificates were
480
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
124
awarded to pupils of the engineering section of the company.
No accident to aircraft causing injury to personnel occurred within the Colony.
The appendix to this chapter is a statement of the number, tonnage, cargo, passengers and crew of aircraft arriving at Hong Kong Airport during the years 1936, 1937 and 1938.
RAILWAY.
Railway activities throughout the period under review were dominated by the Sino-Japanese conflict. Before the Japanese invasion of South China the Kowloon-Canton Railway was connected up with the Canton-Hankow Line. Several times during the earlier part of the year through trains were run between the Colony and Hankow. The year opened full of promise, due to the unparalleled growth of through goods traffic, and closed gloomily with the contraction of operations
to the local service.
Receipts and net operating revenue were $1,901,883.32 and $932,418.48 respectively, as against $1,331,468.73 and $436,935.30 in the previous year. Both these figures reached new high levels. There is little doubt that, but for the unexpected stoppage of through traffic for the last 81 days of the year, net operating revenue would have exceeded $1,000,000.
The increase in operating expenditure is accounted for largely by the marked advance in the average price of coal which rose from $12.44 to $21.96 per ton and affected running costs to the extent of $110,668.37.
In order to cope with the abnormal conditions prevailing during the greater part of the year the Railway was called upon to solve many difficult problems, not the least among them being the utilization to the best advantage of an organization which had been built up to cater primarily for passenger traffic. A heavy strain was put upon the resources of the Department, calling for the utmost effort from the staff and a maximum use of rolling stock.
1931-1939
125
481
The value of the results obtained during the year cannot accurately be gauged by comparison with previous figures owing
to the abnormal conditions which affected, to a marked extent,
both through and local traffic receipts. Consequent on the
blockade of Chinese ports by the Japanese and the closing of
the Yangtze in 1937, Hong Kong became the main entrepôt for foreign trade with China, and large quantities of cargo were conveyed by rail to and from the interior. Further stimulation
was obtained through an increase in the Colony's resident population owing to the influx of refugees. On the other hand,
intensive bombing of the Chinese section of the line caused considerable dislocation and curtailment of the through passenger
service with a corresponding drop in receipts from that source.
This state of affairs continued until the 12th of October when
all through traffic ceased after a small bridge at Mile 52 on the
Chinese section had been hit by a bomb. Repairs were
uncompleted when the Chinese military forces blew up all major railway structures before the Japanese capture of Canton on
the 21st of October. For the remainder of the year railway operations were confined to the local service, the northern
terminal being withdrawn to Lowu which lies just within British
territory.
Receipts from through passenger traffic declined by 50.46%, due to the circumstances outlined above, although the earnings
per train mile improved from $10.45 to $16.17. The curtailment of the service resulted in only 622 express trains being run, as
against 2,235 in 1937.
The outstanding traffic feature of the year was
was the
phenomenal growth of through goods traffic. Railings aggregated
456,146 tons compared with 166,438 tons in 1937, and 60,732
tons in 1936, corresponding revenue being $621,787.28, $167,556.45, and $44,694.93.
482
:
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
126
An encouraging feature of the year's activities was the volume of export traffic received at Kowloon. Despite the abnormal conditions prevailing in Kwangtung and Hunan, large quantities of wood oil, tea, antimony, firecrackers, cotton flax, wolfram and zinc were exported to Hong Kong. This, coupled with the number of applications received from commercial firms for wagon space, would appear to indicate that, in times of
peace, the future prosperity of the Railway is assured.
Local passenger receipts appreciated to the extent of 61.71%.
This substantial growth is ascribable to the increase in resident
'population. The gain during the first 9
approximated 50%, and during the last 2
POSTS AND TELEGRAPHS.
months of the year
months 118%.
Postal communication is maintained with all parts of the
world by air, sea, and, in normal times, with Canton by rail.
All forms of mail handled during the year under review
shewed an increase on the amount handled during 1937, ordinary
mail receptacles shewing an increase of 4%, and registered articles and parcels shewing an increase of over 40%.
Long distance telephone services are normally available to Shanghai, Canton and various places in China.
Cable & Wireless Limited, by means of three cables to Singapore, one direct and one each via Labuan and Cape St. James, provide good connections with Europe via India,
with Australasia, and with other parts of the British Empire.
By their cable to Manila connection is made with the direct
American cable to San Francisco. Two cables to Shanghai, belonging to Cable & Wireless Limited and to the Great Northern Company (Danish), via Sharp Peak and Amoy respectively, give a good fast connection with Shanghai, North China, Japan
and Russia. The system of the Great Northern Telegraph Company gives good service to Europe via Siberia.
1931-1939
127
483
Cable & Wireless Limited also operate the direct com- mercial radio services to the Chinese stations at Chengtu, Chungking, Foochow, Shameen, Swatow, Tsangwu and Yun- nanfu; to Dutch East Indies, French Indo-China, Formosa,
Macao, Philippines, Siam and Shanghai.
The total revenue from the Government Wireless Telegraph service amounted to $126,902 as compared with $976,923 in 1937; a decrease of $850,021 due to the transfer of the com-
mercial fixed point services to Cable & Wireless Limited as from
the 1st of January, 1938.
The number of paid messages-mobile and commercial press services-forwarded and received during the year was 56,883, consisting of 4,568,023 words, as compared with 20,946 messages of 195,744 words in 1937; the increase being due to press services taken over by Government.
Unpaid traffic, which includes meteorological, police, anti- piracy, Rugby press, aircraft and air station operational messages etc., totalled 87,815 messages of 3,077,842 words as against 86,694 messages of 3,354,570 words in 1937.
Service messages totalled 4,684 consisting of 49,433 words as compared with 47,078 messages of 373,497 words in 1937; the decrease being due to the transfer of the commercial fixed point services.
Internal.
RAILWAY.
After the 12th of October, 1938, rail communication by the
Kowloon-Canton Railway was limited to the section of the line within British territory.
Co-ordination between road and rail interests was obtained
when a motor rail-bus commenced a shuttle service between
Fanling and Taipo Market on the 1st of May, displacing the road buses which had performed a similar function since the 1st of November, 1932. At the same time both transportation
484
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
128
-systems were made supplementary by the linking up at Fanling Railway Station of the Un Long-Sheung Shui and the Shataukok-Fanling bus services. The rail-bus was constructed
at the Hung Hom locomotive workshops on novel lines, two Bedford 3-ton lorry chassis being welded back to back and fitted with cast steel wheel discs to supplement the pneumatic tyres. The financial results were most gratifying, and it is probable that the profits from two years of operation will exceed the capital outlay.
ROADS.
There are 371 miles of roads in the Colony, 173 miles on
the Island of Hong Kong, 106 miles in Kowloon and 92 miles in the New Territories. Of the total mileage, 227 miles are constructed of water-bound macadam dressed with asphalt, 111 miles of sheet asphalt on a cement concrete foundation, 291 miles of tar macadam, 55 miles of concrete, 3 miles of granite
setts and wooden blocks on a cement concrete foundation and
45 miles of earth.
The public travelling over the Colony's roads increases yearly, with a corresponding growth in the number of motor buses, of which there are 98 operating on the Island of Hong Kong, and 133 on the mainland. These are gradually replacing rickshaws, the number of which decreases year by year.
The Hong Kong Tramway Company has a fleet of 103 double-deck tram-cars running along the sea-front of Victoria from Kennedy Town to Shaukiwan. The length of the Hong Kong Tramway tracks is about 10 miles.
There were 4,009 private motor-cars, 291 motor-cycles, 350 public cars and taxis and 945 commercial lorries and vans registered in 1938.
FERRIES.
Communication between the Island of Hong Kong and the mainland is maintained by a number of ferry services, of which the most important are:-
1931-1939
129
485
(1) The Star Ferry, between Kowloon Point and a pier near the General Post Office, Hong Kong. This ferry provides a 5-minute passenger service during the busy periods of the day and a 10-minute service at other times. The passage of just under one mile is negotiated in about 8 minutes.
(2) The Hong Kong and Yaumati Ferry Company, which operates passenger ferry services between Hong Kong and Jordan Road, Shan Tung Street, Pei Ho Street, Gillies Avenue;
and Kai Tack Road, all in Kowloon; also to Sai Wan Họ, near the eastern end of Hong Kong harbour. This Company also operates a 12-minute vehicles ferry service between Hong Kong (Jubilee Street) and Kowloon (Jordan Road).
:
(3) The New Territories Ferries. From a pier situated near Wilmer Street, Hong Kong, the Hong Kong and Yaumati Ferry Co. maintain regular ferry services to the following places which are outside the harbour limits:-Cheung Chau Island, Tsun Wan on the mainland, Ma Wan Island, Castle
Peak Bay on the mainland, Ping Chau Island and Silver Minc Bay, Tung Chung and Tai O which are situated on the Island of Lantao, and also to Aberdeen, a port on the Southern side of the Island of Hong Kong.
The number of vehicles of all classes carried in 1938 was approximately 180,000, while the total number of passengers carried by all ferry services between Hong Kong and Kowloon
was about 48,000,000.
TELEPHONES.
The general telephone service is a public service provided by the Hong Kong Telephone Co., Ltd. An automatic system is maintained with over 16,000 subscribers. In addition there is a Government system of magnetic telephones, which has two main exchanges, in Victoria and Kowloon, and forty-three branch exchanges. This systein, which consists of approximately. 800 telephones, has intercommunication facilities with the Hong Kong Telephone Company's system.
Number, tonnage, cargo, passengers, and crews of aircraft of each nation arriving at airports in the Colony of Hong Kong in the years 1936, 1937 and 1938.
486
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
130
10
ARRIVING.
NATIONALITY OF AIRCRAFT.
AIRCRAFT
PASSENGERS.
Goods, MAILS, AND
CREW.
EXCESS Luggage Tons
AIRCRAFT.
TONNAGE.
1936
1937 1938 1936 1937 1938 1936 1937
1938
1936 1937 1938 1936
1937 1938
British
52
65 116 37
49 150
113
130
232
6.5
17.0 38.4 217.0 335 622
Chinese
65
292
458
77
77
1,581 5,330 125 784❘ 1,802
0.4 122
50.6 |275.0 |2,092 |4,547
German
1
}
I
I
6
1
American
1
37
French
2
1
33 23
35 19
292
325
227
274
11
24
2
2
201
5
כא
LO
3
94
9.0
6.5 22.50 671 841
1.0 7.75 6 247
Czechoslovakia
1
[
I
5
מא
3
I
I
Latvia
1
1
1
1
1.0
1
Java
1
2
1
Filipino
1
2
1.25
Total..
123
398
633
135 1,929 6,006 256
1,150 2,402 6.9 150.0 96.5 533.50 3,112|6,257
1931-1939
487
CHAPTER XII.
Public Works.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
133
CHAPTER XII.
Public Works.
489
During the year under review the operations of the Public Works Department were carried out, under a Head Office Staff, by eleven sub-departments: Accounts and Stores (later, Accounts), Architectural, Buildings Ordinance, Crown Lands
and Surveys, Drainage, Electrical, Port Development, Roads and Transport, Valuations and Resumptions, Waterworks Construc-
tion and Waterworks Maintenance.
As from the 1st June, 1938, all work in connection with the
purchase of Government stores was removed from the Public Works Department, and was taken over by an independent Stores Department.
The staff of the Public Works Department comprises 148 European officers, including 9 temporary officers, and 557 non- European officers, including 12 temporary officers. The number of daily paid artisans and labourers averaged 1,778.
The following is a summary of works carried out during
the year:-
Buildings.
The reinforced concrete frame of the New Central Market
was completed by the end of the year when work was well advanced on the erection of the stalls, the application of the terrazzo wall finishings, the fixing of windows and the drainage work. This building is of four storeys with main entrances on Queen's Road and Des Voeux Road. At the Des Voeux Road
entrance a passenger lift will be provided and the entrances for goods will be on Jubilee Street and Queen Victoria Strect. The Wongneichung Market was completed in October. It is a small single storey market of the open type, in reinforced concrete, providing twenty stalls finished in terrazzo. Extensive altera- tions and additions were carried out during the year to the
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
134
former Victoria Hospital, converting the Hospital block and the Nursing Sisters' quarters into quarters for senior officers. The Hospital block was converted into three flats of five rooms and one flat of four rooms. The Nursing Sisters' quarters were converted into two semi-detached houses. Following the Japanese invasion of South China camps to house refugees
from the neighbouring Chinese territory were erected at North
Point, King's Park and Ma Tau Chung. These camps, of timber
construction with concrete floors, consist of 26, 24 and 27 huts
respectively, providing accommodation for 1,512, 1,368 and 2,016 refugees. Because of the uncertain political and economic situation it was decided not to proceed with work on the New Mental Hospital and the New Ward Block D, Kowloon Hospital. Owing to pressure of other architectural work it was not found possible to commence work during the year on the new Central Government Store, for which $205,000 had been provided in the Estimates for 1938.
Roads.
Among the more important road works completed during the year were the super-elevation of the bends on the Wong Nei Cheong Gap and Castle Peak road, the building of the Customs Pass Road and the road from Sheung Shui to Mak Fu Ferry, the widening and surfacing of the Tai Po Road and the reconstruction of the bridge at Deep Water Bay.
Major works in hand at the end of the year included the reconstruction of the junction of Hennessy Road, Arsenal Street and Queen's Road East, the reconstruction of MacDonnell Road Bridge, and widening, resurfacing and super-elevating several major roads on the island and on the mainland.
Drainage.
In Hong Kong new main sewers and storm water drains to a length of 5,522 feet and new open channels of varying sections to a length of 851 feet were laid. In addition, 1,114
1931-1939
135
491
feet of parapet walling to open nullahs was constructed, and Tai Hang Nullah bridge was reconditioned, strengthened and extended. In Kowloon, New Kowloon and New Territories, new
main sewers and storm water drains were constructed to a
length of 12,923 feet. The construction of Pat Heung nullahı
at Shek Kong, New Territories, commenced in 1936, was
completed at the end of the year.
Anti-malarial work was continued in Hong Kong. An area
between the two reservoirs at Aberdeen was completely drained,
and work was continued at Pokfulam between the Queen Mary Hospital and Sandy Bay. In New Kowloon 935 feet of channel were laid and subsoil drains were completed to a length of
2,162 feet.
Waterworks.
In Hong Kong 17,000 feet of mains, of various sizes, were laid. At Repulse Bay a covered concrete service reservoir of 56,000 gallons was constructed. Steel plate balance tanks, each
of 30,000 gallons capacity, were erected at Tai Hang and Kennedy Town. A third pressure filter was installed for the Stanley supply.
In Kowloon and New Kowloon 17,000 feet of mains were
laid, and 15,000 feet were laid in the New Territories.
Remedial measures at Pineapple Pass Dam were carried out by the Consulting Engineers. The work consisted mainly of removing the sand wedge and substituting 4,405 cubic yards of
cement concrete. As the Jubilee Reservoir did not fill during the year no opinion as to the efficacy of the measures taken could
be formed.
The rainfall during the year amounted to 55.36′′ which, with one exception, is the lowest ever recorded in the Colony. As a result the main storage reservoirs did not fill, and the water supply to Hong Kong and Kowloon was subjected to restrictions from August until the end of the year.
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Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
136
The formation of a waste detection branch of the waterworks
sub-department was proceeded with during the year. Additional staff, waste detection meters, etc., were provided, and a zoning scheme was worked out. Unfortunately the water restrictions after August greatly hampered the carrying out of night tests.
A new Waterworks Ordinance was prepared and passed in
1938, to take effect from the 1st of January, 1939.
Work in connection with the general extension of the
Colony's waterworks, approved in 1937, was proceeded with.
The pumping stations and pipe-lines for the supplies to Albany and Peak Road were practically completed, and construction
of the Peak Road service reservoir was commenced. The two
new 21′′ cross-harbour pipe-lines were about one-third completed.
Kowloon Chai Service Reservoir was commenced. Extensions
to the distribution system of the island and mainland were
made. The first section of the Shing Mun Catchwater was completed and the second commenced. Preliminary works for the supply and distribution mains for Kowloon Chai Service Reservoir, and for the rapid gravity filters at the Eastern Service Reservoir, were put in hand. Preliminary investigations in connection with the Tai Lam Chung Valley Scheme were commenced.
Reclamations.
Reclamations at North Point, Kennedy Town and Kun Tong were continued. The two former are being made by deposits of building debris; the last-named by deposits of town refuse. The areas reclaimed by the end of the year were 3.4, 2.4 and 12 acres respectively.
Electrical Works.
Two submarine cables between Victoria and Kowloon, which had been dragged eastward, were under-run and restored to their proper position. Repairs were carried out to the submarine cable to Green Island. The cable to Waglan was also damaged
1931-1939
137
493
but weather conditions did not permit repairs to be completed
in 1938.
A new landing floodlight was installed at Kai Tak Airport. Extensive electrical work was carried out at the Refugee camps
at North Point, Ma Tau Chung, King's Park and Kam Tin. A
private intercommunication telephone system was installed in the Colonial Secretariat. The Electrical Workshops were removed to premises in Arsenal Yard.
Buildings Ordinance Office.
Early in the year the building industry began to show signs
of recovering from the slump from which it had suffered during the past four years. The disturbed conditions in China have given an impetus to the erection of European flats and of buildings of a non-domestic character.
Valuations and Resumptions.
The total valuations made during the year comprised 773
hereditaments, with a total estimated value of $8,082,845.35.
Valuations were made for the purpose of resumption for
street widenings and the development of areas in accordance
with the approved Town Planning Scheme, for anti-malarial works, Estate Duty and sundry other purposes.
Valuations comprising 463 hereditaments, with a total estimated value of $7,127,560.50, were made for sundry
Government Departments.
Town Planning.
A tentative revised plan was prepared for the Government
House and Offices area. No other new schemes or revisions of
any importance were prepared during 1938, development having been in accordance with the recommendations of the Town
Planning Committee of 1922 or with amendments and additions previously reported.
494
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
138
Expenditure.
The average annual expenditure on Public Works for the
decade 1909 to 1918 was $2,293,762; 1919 to 1928, $6,990,950;
1929 to 1938, $8,507,690.
Comparative expenditure for 1937 and 1938 is as follows:-
1937
Public Works Department ...$2,436,112.31
.....
1938
$2,213,667.71
-
1,811,168.55
1,899,902.40
......
747,506.81 1,657,596.33
Public Works Recurrent ....... 1,768,369.96 Public Works Extraordinary.. 1,510,298.07
...
Works undertaken and charged
to Loan Accounts
Miscellaneous Works
734,730.07 555,649.47
Totals......$7,197,017.22 $8,137,984.46
1931-1939
495
CHAPTER XIII.
Justice and Police.
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INFORMATION SERVICES
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141
CHAPTER XIII.
Justice and Police.
The Courts of Hong Kong.
THE SUPREME COURT.
497
There are at present two permanent Judges, a Chief Justice and a Puisne Judge, whilst additional judges for purposes of certain appeals are temporarily appointed as and when required.
The Supreme Court has the same jurisdiction as His
Majesty's Courts of King's Bench, Common Pleas and Exchequer
lawfully have or had in England and is a Court of Oyer and
Terminer and Gaol Delivery, Assize and Nisi Prius, with
jurisdiction in Probate, Divorce, Admiralty, Bankruptcy and
Criminal matters.
It is also a Court of Equity with such and the like
jurisdiction as the Court of Chancery has or had in England, and
has and executes the powers and authorities of the Lord High
Chancellor of England with full liberty to appoint and control guardians of infants and their estates and also keepers of the persons and estates of idiots, lunatics and such as, being of unsound mind, are unable to govern themselves and their
estates.
The practice for the time of the English Courts is in force
in the Colony and such of the laws of England as existed on the 5th of April, 1843, are in force in the Colony except so far as the practice and laws are in applicable to local circumstances and subject to legislative modifications thereto.
All civil claims above the sum of $1,000 are heard in the
Court's Original Jurisdiction as well as all miscellaneous proceedings concerning questions arising on estates, appointments of trustees, company matters, etc.
196 actions were instituted in this jurisdiction during the year 1938 as against 172 in 1937.
498
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
142
All civil claims from $5.00 up to and including $1,000 are heard in the Court's Summary Jurisdiction by the Puisne Judge as well as all matters arising from distraints for non-payment
of rent.
1,383 actions were instituted during the year as against
1,582 in 1937.
All cases in the Probate, Divorce, Admiralty and Bankruptcy Jurisdictions of the Court are heard by the Chief Justice; Bankruptcy sittings usually taking place once a month.
In its Probate Jurisdiction, 432 grants (180 Probates and 252 Letters of Administration) were made by the Court. 77
grants by other British Courts were sealed, making a total of 509 grants made during the year compared with 402 in 1937.
Six new Petitions for Divorce were filed during the year. Eight decrees were made absolute, including four petitions
pending at the end of 1937. Two petitions were pending at the end of 1938.
Only three actions were instituted in the Court's Admiralty Jurisdiction during the year.
Criminal cases are first heard by the Magistrates and committed to the Criminal Sessions which are held once every month and the cases are usually divided between the two judges.
426 persons were committed to stand their trial at the Criminal Sessions of whom 347 were convicted. Two defendants
failed to appear and Bench Warrants were issued for their
arrest, their bail being estreated.
A right of appeal exists in all the above jurisdictions. Appeals are heard by a Full Court consisting of two or more judges. Under the Magistrates Ordinance, 1932, as amended by Ordinance No. 19 of 1935, any person aggrieved can appeal to a judge from the decision of a magistrate in a summary way. Appeals in this event are heard by a single judge although a right of appeal from the single judge to a Full Court exists.
1931-1939
143
499
Criminal: There were seven appeals against conviction or
sentence on indictment at the Criminal Sessions.
Magistrates: There were thirteen appeals against conviction or sentence by the magistrates.
Civil: There were eight appeals from judgments of the Supreme Court judges.
The Registrar of the Supreme Court also acts in the capacity of Official Trustee, Official Administrator and Registrar of Companies, administering trust estates and deceased's estates
and registering companies under the Companies Ordinance, 1932. Bills of Sale are also registered with the Registrar.
The number of Trust Estates in the hands of the Official Trustee at the end of the year was twenty-one.
During the year twenty-five deceased's estates were taken into the custody of the Official Administrator and thirty-seven were wound up.
Eighty-tour new companies were registered, bringing the
total number of companies on the register at the end of the
year to 764 of which nine were in the course of liquidation.
Fifty-six were incorporated outside the Colony but carry on
business within the Colony. Three further companies ceased. to
do business during the year.
Seventeen companies were removed from the register by
reason of the cessation of their business. No company was transferred from the Hong Kong to the Shanghai Register. Five companies were transferred from the Shanghai to the Hong
Kong Register.
THE LOWER COURTS.
The lower civil courts are the land courts in the Northern
and Southern districts of the New Territories, with jurisdiction over land cases in those districts, and the small debts courts of the same two districts. In these courts the District Officers
sit to hear land and small debts cases.
500
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
144
The lower criminal courts are the magistrates' courts, two for Hong Kong island and a small area on the mainland opposite Shaukiwan, two for Kowloon, including the whole area south
of the Kowloon hills, and one each for the two districts
of the New Territories, in which the District Officers are the
magistrates. A third court was in operation from the 20th of September to the end of the year at the Hong Kong Magistracy
and from the 26th of September to the 10th of November at the Kowloon Magistracy.
The following figures show the amount of work done by the
lower courts in 1938:--
Civil:-
District Officer North, Land Court
Small Debts Court
127 cases.
125
District Officer South, Land Court
40
Small Debts Court
47
Criminal:
Hong Kong Magistracy, three courts...38,612 cases. Kowloon Magistracy, three courts ...34,181
District Officer, North, one court... 1,418
District Officer, South, one court
......
667
The figures below show the penalties awarded at the Hong
Kong and Kowloon Magistracies in respect of certain cases
in 1938:-
Hong Kong. Kowloon. Total.
Prosecution (against Adults and
Juveniles)
38,571
34,181 72,752
Convictions (against Adults and
Juveniles)
35,363
32,237
67,600
Adult Offenders.
Fined
25,735
21,447
47,182
Imprisoned in default of pay-
ment of fine
4,306
5,011
9,317
1931-1939
Imprisoned without option of
fine
145
Hong Kong. Kowloon Total.
501
3,297
2,589
5,886
Bound over
896
1,710
2,606
Placed under Police Supervision
45
73
118
Cautioned or discharged
5,063
2,825
7,888
Defendants fined and allowed
time to pay fine
257
710
:
967.
Juvenile Offenders.
Fined
612
932
1,544
Sent to Remand Home
125
167
292
Committed to approved institu-
tion
8
8
16
Bound over
87
226
313
Placed on probation.
13
10
23.
Cautioned or discharged
350
158
508
Whipped
132
58
190
Maintenance Cases.
Order made
Order varied
9
5
14
¡
:
1
1
2
Committals in default of pay-
ment
Police.
1
1
The Police Force of the Colony is under the control of the Commissioner of Police who is assisted by one, Deputy Commissioner, thirteen Superintendents and two Police Cadets. The Force consists of four contingents, European, Indian, and two Chinese, namely, Cantonese and Weihaiwei. The strength
of the different contingents is as follows:-
Europeans
Indians
257..
818
Chinese (Cantonese)
767
Chinese (Weihaiwei)
293.
502
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
146
In addition the Police Department controls the Anti-Piracy Guards, a force consisting of 39 Russians, 70 Indian Special
Guards and 143 Weihaiwei Chinese Police, who are included in
the regular Police establishment.
The department also supervises 687 Indian and Chinese
Watclimen who are engaged by the Police Department and paid by private individuals for the protection of private property. In
addition there are 488 Indian Private Watchmen registered at
the Guards Offices.
The waters of the Colony, are policed by a fleet of ten steam launches and five motor boats which employ a staff of 257 Chinese under European officers.
There were 11,388 cases of serious crime in 1938 as against 12,434 in 1937, a decrease of 1,046 or 8.4%. Amongst the classes of criminal offence showing decreases were the
following:-a decrease of 13 cases in coinage offences, 177 in deportation, 16 in house and godown breaking, 3 in kidnapping, 830 in larceny, 3 in larceny on ships, 9 in
manslaughter, 48 in obtaining by false pretences, 126 in receiving,
2 under the Protection of Women and Girls Ordinance and
11 in other serious offences..
Amongst the classes of criminal offence showing increases were the following:-an increase of 13 arms cases, 31 in serious assault, 2 in assault with intent to rob; 50 in burglary, 2 in embezzlement, 77 in larceny in dwelling, 5 in murder and 12 in robbery.
There were 49,555 minor cases in 1938 as against 43,288 in 1937, an increase of 6,267 or 14%.
Prisons.
In 1937 Victoria Gaol and Lai Chi Kok Prison for men
were closed down and all male prisoners were transferred to the the new Hong Kong Prison at Stanley. At the beginning of 1938, therefore, there were only two prisons in the Colony:
1931-1939
147
503
The Hong Kong Prison at Stanley for men and the Lai Chi Kok
Prison for women.
The Hong Kong Prison at Stanley has been built with single cellular accommodation throughout (except for Hospital Wards) and was designed to accommodate a total of 1,559 prisoners (exclusive of Hospital and Punishment Blocks). Accommodation for 23 European prisoners is included in this
total.
On completion of the transfer of all male prisoners from
Victoria Gaol and Lai Chi Kok Prison there were 2,215 prisoners in the Prison at Stanley; by November 1937 this number had reached the high figure of 2,757.
On the 1st of January, 1938, there were in the Prison 18
European, 8 Indian and 2,313 Chinese prisoners-a total of 2,339.
The highest number of male prisoners recorded in 1938 was
2,908 on the 23rd of December. On the 31st of December the
number was 2,848.
Thus, from the outset, the Hong Kong Prison at Stanley
was grossly overcrowded and it has remained so ever since.
The authorized establishment of Subordinate
European Officers
1938 was:-
Indian Officers
Chinese Staff
65
235
55
Staff for
Male Staff .... 355
Female Officers
28
Total Subordinate Staff
383
The total number of persons committed to prison in the year 1938 was 15,046 as compared with 17,088 in 1937. The daily average number of prisoners in the prisons in 1938 was
504
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
148
2,556. The highest previous average was 2,493 in 1937. Over 85% of prisoners admitted are persons born outside the Colony. The percentage of convicted prisoners admitted to prison with previous convictions recorded against them was 24.3 as compared
with 21.6 in 1937 and 15.9 in 1936. The percentage of male prisoners with previous convictions was 26.1.
No measures exist at present for the mental training of prisoners. Prisoners may, however, purchase books for their own use; they also have access to books, English and Chinese,
from the prisoners' library.
Spiritual training is confined to visits paid on Sundays by officially appointed Chaplains and by approved preachers and
laymen..
The confinement and training of young offenders is carried
out in the Juvenile Remand Home in Hong Kong. The Home is administered by the Commissioner of Police. The
establishment of an institution to be run somewhat on the lines
of an English Borstal institution is under consideration.
No system of after-care is in operation. After-care would present peculiar difficulties in this Colony where a large number
of prisoners who are not British subjects are banished to South China on release. Apart from this, with the present large influx of refugees, so much help is required for the poorer class of Chinese in Hong Kong that public support for the introduction of a system of after-care for released prisoners could hardly be expected at the present time.
The health of the prisoners generally was well maintained and the discipline in the prisons was good.
Prisoners are employed in printing, bookbinding, shoe- making tinsmithing, mat-making,
mat-making, tailoring, carpentering, weaving, gardening, laundry work, cleaning and minor repairs to buildings. The bulk of Government printing and bookbinding is done in Hong Kong Prison.
1931-1939
149
505
The total cost of each prisoner per annum (average) was
$276.10.
The cost of feeding each prisoner per annum (average) was $92.68.
An estimate of the pecuniary value of an average prisoner's work, calculated on the basis of the work performed which has
a definite monetary value as apart from domestic prison tasks or other unproductive employment, was $123.36 per annum.
Remand Homes.
During the year 218 boys underwent sentences of detention for various crimes at the Remand Home for Juveniles (Boys), and 71 girls underwent detention at the Remand Home for Girls.
These institutions are not under prison administration. The boys are given instruction in elementary reading and writing and in rattan work. The girls are given employment in house- work, laundry, and making and mending clothes. There are
recreation facilities at both Homes.
There are four Probation Officers, two males and two
females, attached to the Homes.
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INFORMATION SERVICES
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507
CHAPTER XIV.
Legislation.
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INFORMATION SERVICES
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153
CHAPTER XIV.
Legislation.
509
Twenty-nine Ordinances were passed during the year 1938.
These, and also the Regulations, Rules, By-Laws and other subordinate legislation enacted during 1938, are published in a
separate volume by the Government Printers. The twenty-nine Ordinances comprised two appropriations, three replacement, twenty-one amendment Ordinances, and three Ordinances which were new to the Colony.
The Appropriation Ordinance, (No. 22), applied a sum not exceeding $29,327,294 to the public service for the year 1938, and Ordinance No. 7 appropriated a supplementary sum of $774,321.44 to defray the charges of the year 1937.
The three replacement Ordinances were:
(1) The Protection of Women and Girls Ordinance, 1938 (No. 5). This Ordinance, which replaced the Protection of Women and Girls Ordinance, 1897 (No. 4) and its amending Ordinances, re-enacted them after a close scrutiny and revision of every clause in the light of the recommendations in the Report of the Mui Tsai Commission and in the light of experience
gained from the working of these Ordinances.
(2) The Sedition Ordinance, 1938 (No. 13). This Ordinance,
which replaced the Seditious Publications Ordinance, 1914 (No. 6), is based upon a model Ordinance compiled by direction of the Secretary of State. It clarifies and brings up-to-date the
law relating to sedition previously in force in the Colony as contained in the Seditious Publications Ordinance, 1914 (No. 6),
regulations under the Emergency Regulations Ordinance, 1922,
and the common law.
(3) The Waterworks Ordinance, 1938 (No. 20). This Ordinance replaced the Waterworks Ordinance, 1903 (No. 16) and the regulations made thereunder, and is more in accordance
510
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
154
with modern requirements than the 1903 Ordinance.
The twenty-one amending Ordinances covered a wide range of subjects, namely-Asiatic Emigration (No. 2), Empire Preference (Nos. 3 and 29), Vaccination (No. 4), Merchandise Marks (No. 8), Bankruptcy (No. 9), Dentistry (No. 10), Registration of Persons (Nos. 11 and 26), Sand (No. 12), Female Domestic Service (No. 15), Offences Against the Person (No. 16), Dangerous Drugs (No. 17), New Territories Regula- tion (No. 18), Stamp (No. 19), Rating (No. 21), Land Registration (No. 23), Pharmacy and Poisons (No. 24), Dollar Currency Notes (No. 25), Police Force and Peace Preservation
(No. 27), Sedition (No. 28).
The Ordinances new to the Colony were:
(1) Gasholders Examination (No. 1);
(2) Prevention of Eviction (No. 6);
(3) Prohibited Publications (No. 14).
Ordinance No. 1 made provision for the periodical examina-
tion of gasholders. Ordinance No. 6 restricted the rights of landlords to possession of dwelling-houses in certain cases. Ordinance No. 14 substituted new provisions for the provisions
in the Seditious Publications Ordinance, No. 6 of 1914, dealing with the importation of seditious literature.
The subsidiary legislation covered a wide range of subjects
including-
Adulterated Food and Drugs, Air Navigation, Asylums, Basel Evangelical Missionary Society Incorporation, Buildings, Companies, Dangerous Goods, Daughters of Charity of the Canossian Institute Incorporation, Dentistry, Emergency Regulations, Evidence, Female Domestic Service, Gasholders Examination, Jury, Lighting Control, Liquors, Marriage, Medical Registration, Merchant Shipping, Midwives, Naval Volunteer, New Territories Regulation, Nurses Registration, Nursing and Maternity Homes Registration, Pensions, Pharmacy and Poisons,
1931-1939
155
511
Pleasure Ground and Bathing Places Regulations, Police Force,
Post Office, Prisons, Protection of Women and Girls, Public
Health (Food and Sanitation), Public Officers (Changes of
Style), Public Reclamations Validation and Clauses, Quarantine and Prevention of Disease, Rating, Rating (Refunds), Rope Company's Tramway, Telecommunication, Trade Marks, Tram- way, Vaccination, Volunteer.
Factory legislation in the Colony is limited to a single
ordinance, The Factories and Workshops Ordinance, No. 18 of
1937, which came into operation on the 1st of January, 1938.
There is no legislative provision for compensation for accidents nor for sickness and old age. The introduction of legislation dealing with workmen's compensation is at present under
consideration.
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INFORMATION SERVICES
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513
CHAPTER XV.
Banking, Currency, Weights & Measures.
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INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
1.59
515
CHAPTER XV.
Banking, Currency, Weights & Measures.
The Colony is well served by banking institutions, including branches of English, American, French, Netherlands, Japanese
and Chinese banks. Besides the fourteen banks which arc
members of the Clearing House, there are several Chinese Banks. Many native Hongs do some banking business. There are no banks which devote themselves especially to agricultural and co-operative banking. The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation conducts, in addition to its normal banking
activities, the business of the Hong Kong Savings Bank on usual
savings bank principles. The credit and repute of the Colony's
financial institutions are high and it is satisfactory to know that ample encouragement and support are available to finance any possible demand.
The currency of the Colony, which was formerly based on
silver, underwent very important changes at the end of 1935.
The unit of currency is the Hong Kong dollar, divided into
100 cents. Until 1935 its exchange value fluctuated with the price of silver; but since the passing of the Currency Ordinance on the 5th of December, 1935, the value of the dollar is controlled by an Exchange Fund, which has power to buy and sell foreign exchange, and has taken over the silver formerly held against their issues by the note-issuing banks, in return for certificates of indebtedness against which the Fund may hold bullion, foreign exchange or approved securities. At the 30th of June, 1938 (the latest date for which figures have been made public) the Fund had issued Certificates of Indebtedness to the value of $191,034,887, which is equivalent to £11,914,806 @ 1/2d, the middle market rate on that day. The total assets of the Fund amounted to £13,012,872.
516
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
160
The legal tender currency of the Colony is now as follows:-
(a) Bank notes, the excess of which over the fiduciary
issue of each bank is now backed by certificates, not by silver as formerly:-
at 31.12.38.
(i) Chartered Bank of India, Aus-
tralia and China
(ii) Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking
Corporation
$24,852,657
$210,197,678
(iii) Mercantile Bank of India ......... $4,441,620 (b) Government $1 notes, of which $5,571,000 had
been issued up to the end of 1938.
(c) 10 cent and 5 cent cupro-nickel coins, and 10 cent and 5 cent nickel coins with the security rim.
(d) 1 cent copper coins.
(c) .800 fine silver sub-coin (10 cent and 5 cent picces,
and a few 50 and 20 cent pieces), which has either remained in circulation in the Colony or filters
back into it from the mainland of China, is still legal tender in the Colony. Sub-coin is legal
tender only up to an amount of $2.00.
The currency situation remained stable during the year. The fluctuations in the exchange rate, controlled by the Exchange
Fund, were small. The official rate quoted by the Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation for the sale of sterling varied between a maximum of 1/23 and a minimum of 1/211⁄2 on the 20th of March. For eight months of the year the quotation was at the maximum rate. The fall in exchange in the Spring was due to the temporary disturbance caused by the sharp decline in the value of the Shanghai dollar which commenced then. Market rates were, in general, somewhat higher than the official rates quoted above.
1931-1939
161
517
The weights and measures in use in the Colony are defined in the Schedule to Ordinance No. 2 of 1885. They consist of
the standards in use in the United Kingdom and of the following
Chinese Weights and Measures:→
1 fan (candareen)
1 tsin (mace)
1 leung (tael)
1 kan (catty)
=
1 tam (picul)
1 chek (foot)
→
0.0133 ounces avoirdupois.
.133 ounces avoirdupois.
1.33
ounces avoirdupois.
1.33
pounds avoirdupois.
pounds avoirdupois.
= 133.33
14 English inches divided into 10 tsun (inches) and each tsun into ten
fan or tenthis.
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INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
519
CHAPTER XVI.
Public Finance and Taxation.
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INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
165
CHAPTER XVI.
Public Finance and Taxation.
521
The following tables show the Revenue and Expenditure for
the five years 1934 to 1938 inclusive.
Revenue. Expenditure. Surplus. Deficit.
$29,574,286 $31,149,156
1934
$1,574,870
1935
28,430,550 28,291,636 $ 138,914
1936
30,042,984 29,513,520
529,464
1937
33,196,368
32,111,222 1,085,146
1938
440,043
36,735,854 37,175,897
....
at
The estimates for 1938 provided for a deficit of $3,124,629, revenue being put at $30,254,920 and expenditure $33,379,549. No new or increased taxes were imposed during
the year. The increase in revenue was due to the diversion of a large proportion of China's trade to ports trading through Hong Kong, which continued through the greater part of 1938, and to the general increase of the Colony's population owing to
CANA an influx of refugees which reached its maximum in the latter months of the year. The effect of this increase in population
is most clearly seen in the receipts from rates and from import, betting and entertainment duties.
The situation in China and its direct or indirect repercussions on the Colony, particularly as regards emergency relief and two epidemics of disease, were responsible for the large proportion of the increase in expenditure. A new system of accounting, directed by the Secretary of State, and a revision of the method of payment of the Military Contribution also had the effect of weighting the 1938 expenditure in a manner which had not been foreseen when the estimates were prepared, though future liabilities were thereby reduced.
The Public Debt of the Colony at the 31st of December, 1938, was $16,593,000, consisting of two issues: the 4% Conversion Loan of $4,838,000, raised in 1933, the sinking fund
522
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
166
of which amounted, on the 31st of December, 1938, to £66,937. 7. 4; and the 31% Dollar Loan raised in July, 1934. This latter loan is redeemable by drawings at par in each of the twenty-five years commencing in 1935 at the annual rate of one twenty-fifth of such issue. The amount outstanding at the 31st of December, 1938, was thus reduced to $11,760,000.
The Assets and Liabilities of the Colony on the 31st of December, 1938, are shewn in the following statement:-
LIABILITIES.
C.
ASSETS.
$
C.
Deposits :-
Advances :-
Miscellaneous
53,443.81
Pending Re-imburse-
Contractors
and Officers
Deposits...$ 519,585.00
Insurance
Companies 1,678,641.62
Miscellaneous
ments from 34% dollar
loan
10,926,056.46
Pending Re-imburse-
ments from proposed
new loan
1,077,333.06
Imprest Account
10,420.17
Subsidiary Coin
90,625.00
Suspense Account
26,438.25
Note Issue Account :-
Deposits... 1,486,256.87
3,684,483.49 Current
Account.. $1,480,119.62 Fixed
Deposit... 4,000,000.00
Government House and
City Development Fund
5,480,119.62
839,704.12
Nickel Coinage
Account :-
King George V Memorial
Fund
Current
158,368.56
Account....$ 206,860.45
Sterling
Investment
Exchange Adjustment
26,092.39
Account.... 1,286,208.61
Praya East Reclamation ..
74,089.39 Cash :-
Accountant-General
1,493,069.05
.....
422,048.64
Note Security Fund
5,480,119.62
Nickel Coinage Security
Fund
Crown Agents *Joint Colonial Fund
1,493,069.06 Fixed Deposits :---
18,827.76 2,871,932.78
Total Liabilities
Total
General.... $1,050,000.00 Insurance
11,755,926.63
Companies 1,678,641.62
Miscella-
General Revenue Balance. 13,562,234.97
neous....... 119,205.37
2,847,846.99
$ 25,318,161.60
Total
$ 25,318,161.60
*Joint Colonial Fund £178,000. Os. Od.
1931-1939
167
523
The main heads of taxation enforced in the Colony, with
the yield of each for 1938, are as follows:-
(a) Duties on Liquor, Tobacco, Motor
Spirit and Perfumed Spirit
($9,105,121.72)
(b) Port and Harbour Dues
(c) Rates (Assessed Taxes)
.(
532,539.63)
(5,997,110.00)
(d) Estate Duty
(1,220,854.17)
(c) Stamp Duties
(2,324,948.76)
(f) Entertainment Tax
.(
320,027.86)
(g) Betting Tax
( 238,274.89)
.( 2,451,313.97)
(h) Miscellaneous Licences
Considerable revenue is, however, derived from sources not
strictly classifiable as taxation, i.e.
Excess Water Supply
Post Office
Kowloon-Canton Railway
Land Sales
.($2,315,668.20)
( 2,918,028.82)
.( 1,782,287.74)
..( 1,199,510.47)
The largest item of revenue is derived from the assessment tax (Rates). The sum collected during 1938 répresents 16.32% of the total revenue. There is a general rate of 15% plus a water rate of 2% on assessed rateable value. Properties in outlying districts which have unfiltered water pay a water rate of 1%, and this rate is remitted altogether if no water is
available.
There is no general customs tariff in Hong Kong, import duties being confined to liquor, tobacco, motor spirit and perfumed spirit. There is no export tariff. The sale of opium is a Government Monopoly, and all importation of opium other than by Government is prohibited. The importation of dangerous drugs is regulated in accordance with the terms of the Geneva Convention. Arms, ammunition, explosives and dangerous goods are subject to the normal Harbour and Police
Regulations in regard to storage and movement. A special
524
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
168
Foreign Registration fee of 20% of the value of a motor vehicle is payable in respect of any vehicle not produced within the British Empire.
The duties on imported liquor range from $0.80 per gallon on beer to $1.50 on Chinese liquor and to $13 on sparkling European wines. A 50% reduction in duty is allowed in respect of brandy grown or produced within the British Empire.
The duties on tobacco range from $0.90 per lb. on the lowest taxed unmanufactured tobacco to $2.60 per lb. on cigars. A reduction in duty is allowed on tobacco of Empire origin and/or of Empire manufacture.
A duty of 30 cents per gallon is payable on all light oils
imported into the Colony.
The only form of excise duty is the tax on locally manufactured liquor.
Stamp duties are imposed on various instruments and, where a consideration is involved, are mainly ad valorem. The
following are examples of the duties charged:-Affidavits, Statutory Declarations, etc., $3; Bills of Exchange (inward) and Cheques, 10 cents; Bills of Lading, 15 cents when freight is under $5, 40 cents when freight is $5 or over; Bond to
secure the payment or repayment of money, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Conveyance on sale, $1 for every $100 or part thereof; Mortgages, principal security, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof, Life Insurance Policy, 25 cents for every $1,000 insured; Receipts, 10 cents for amounts over $20; Transfer of Shares, 20 cents for every $100 of market value.
No Hut Tax or Poll Tax is imposed in the Colony.
1931-1939
525
CHAPTER XVII.
Miscellaneous.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
171
CHAPTER XVII.
Miscellaneous.
527
Vice-Admiral Sir Percy Noble, K.C.B., assumed command of the China Station on the 5th of February, 1938. His flag
was hoisted in H.M.S. "Cumberland" on that day. From the
24th to the 30th of January Air Chief Marshal Sir Edward
Ellington, G.C.B., Marshal and Inspector-General of the Royal
Air Force, paid a visit to the Colony as the guest of the
Governor. His Excellency Dr. Tamagnini Barbosa, Governor of Macao, paid an official visit to the Governor on the 24th of March. General Wu Tc-chien, Chaimmiof the Kwangtung
Provincial Government, arrived in the Cokury on the 30th of
August on an unofficial visit to the Governor, and was present
at a meeting of the Legislative Council on the 1st of September.
The Governor paid an unofficial visit to Canton from the
21st to the 23rd of July.
On Friday, the 7th of January, the Governor officially re-opened the New Nethersole Hospital. The original Nethersole
Hospital was founded in 1893 by private enterprise as an institution for women and children. The new building was
built at a cost of $200,000 and, together with the adjoining
Alice Memorial Hospital, now has accommodation for 100
patients of both sexes.
A Government-controlled Trade School for the training of craftsmen and technicians was opened by the Governor
on the 12th of April. The school itself developed from a
Junior Technical School which had been run successfully for several years. Full-time courses in wireless-telegraphy,
engineering and building are now provided. The Building Contractors Association was largely responsible for this new
accommodation for the school.
528
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
172
On the 30th of June the tenth anniversary of the Hong Kong Broadcasting Studio (ZBW) was celebrated.
A commission to enquire into the general increase in rents
was appointed on the 9th of March. Its report
report was
submitted to the Governor on the 2nd of April and was
printed as Sessional Paper No. 5 of 1938. The Housing
Commission, appointed by Sir William Peel on the 10th of
May, 1935, concluded its enquiry on the 16th of March, 1938,
and its report was printed as Sessional Paper No. 6 of 1938. l
Refugee Camps Committee was appointed in September and a
Committee to enquire into the broadening of the basis of
taxation in the Colony in December.
New Emergency Regulations for Hong Kong were gazetted
on the 12th of October.
An epidemic of small-pox occurred during the month of January. Free vaccination was made available at all Govern-
ment clinics and with the coming of the warmer weather the
epidemic gradually disappeared.
The Empire "All Up" air mail scheme was extended to
the Colony by the arrival of two Imperial Airways aeroplanes
on the 9th of September. The Air France service for passengers
and mails was inaugurated on the 10th of August, and the
Eurasia Aviation Corporation commenced a new service from
Hong Kong to Kunming on the 13th of June.
Co-operation with the business firns with regard to Air
Raid Precautions was commenced in June. A Ladies Air Raid
Precautions Union was formed on the 3rd of June, with Lady
Northcote as President. Air Raid Precautions drill for women
was made available on the 18th of July.
Among the Honours conferred by His Majesty during the year were the following:
C.B.E.
O.B.E.
1931-1939
173
New Year Honours.
The Honourable Mr. T. N. Chau.
- Major M. A. Johnson.
King's Police Medal- The Honourable Mr. T. H. King.
Kt.
Birthday Honours.
The Honourable Mr. R. H. Kotewall,
C.M.G., LL.D.
O.B.E.
Mr. J. H. Taggart.
O.B.E.
Dr. R. B. Jackson.
529
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
531
APPENDIX I.
List of Publications of General Interest Relating to Hong Kong.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
APPENDIX I.
List of Publications of General Interest Relating to Hong Kong.
1931-1939
533
177
Title.
Price.
Agents for Sale.
Sessional Papers (Annual)
$2.00
Blue Book (Annual)
3.00
Ordinances-Ball's Revised Edition (In 6 Volumes) 1844-1923
90.00
Regulations of Hong Kong 1844-1925
30.00
*Ordinances, Fraser's Revised Edition, 1844-1937
150.00
*Regulations of Hong Kong, 1844-1937
75.00
Ordinances and Regulations (Annual)
3.00
Administration Reports (Annual)
5.00
Estimates (Annual)
3.00
Government Gazettes (Weekly)
.50
Meteorological Bulletin (Monthly)
10.00
per
annum
Hong Kong Trade and Shipping Returns (Monthly). Hong Kong Trade and Shipping Returns (Annual)... Hansards (Annual)
Historical & Statistical Abstract of the Colony of Hong Kong, 1841-1930
2.00
Colonial Secretariat and Government Printers. Government Printers and Colonial Secretariat, Crown Agents for the Colonies, London. Colonial Secretariat, Government Printers and Crown Agents for the Colonies, London.
Colonial Secretariat.
Government Printers and Crown Agents for the Colonics.
Colonial Secretariat and Crown Agents for the Colonies.
Colonial Secretariat, Government Printers and Crown
Agents.
Colonial Secretariat.
Government Printers.
Government Printers and Crown Agents. Government Printers.
Government Printers and Crown Agents.
2.00
5.00
Government Printers and Crown Agents. South China Morning Post, Hong Kong.
4.00
Colonial Secretariat.
* First volume only available at the end of 1938.
534
178 Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
Title.
Author's
Name.
Price.
Hong Kong
Rambles in Hong Kong
Hong Kong Around and About
E. Thorbecke
$3.50
G. S. P.
Agents for Sale.
Kelly and Walsh, Ltd. and Brewers' Book- shop, Hong Kong.
do.
Heywood
2.00
W. Peplow
4.00
do.
Hong Kong
G. R. Sayer
18/-
Kelly and Walsh, Ltd.
Hong Kong Riviera of the Orient
1.00
do.
Glimpses of Hong Kong
1.00
do.
Echoes of Hong Kong & Beyond
Hong Kong Naturalist (published quarterly
Under the Mosquito Curtain
Hong Kong Dollar Directory
Naval, Military & Air Force Directory
Hong Kong Daily Press Directory Picturesque Hong Kong
L. Forster
1.50
do.
Herklots &
Heywood
4.00
do.
Lady Southorn,
O.B.E.
3.50
do.
1.00
Brewers' Bookshop.
.50
do.
.50
do.
1.25
do.
1931-1939
535
APPENDIX II.
Effects of Sino-Japanese Hostilities.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
181
APPENDIX II.
A note on the effect of the Sino-Japanese Hostilities on the Social and Economic Life of the Colony.
537
Two effects on Hong Kong of the hostilities in China stand out; the large increase in population due to the influx of refugees and the diversion to the Colony of Chinese trade normally conducted through other ports. The special problem of the destitute refugees is dealt with separately below.
General.
Trade passing through Hong Kong was increased abnorinally by the diversion of some of the Yang-tse Valley trade to the Canton-Hankow Railway, linked at the end of 1937 with the Kowloon-Canton Railway; and by the large imports both by rail and by the new road of supplies for the Chinese Government. Early in the year Chinese Maritime Customs returns shewed the Colony to be handling about half the trade of China coming within their purview; the proportion fell later as Shanghai trade
revived, but trade in Hong Kong continued brisk until October.
With the fall of Canton and the closing of the Pearl River,
there was, after October, a sharp fall in trade with South China
and grave fears were felt for the Colony's economic future. Although the intense activity of the first nine months of the
year was not maintained, business conditions generally were not unsatisfactory owing to an aggregation of various beneficial influences, among which may be mentioned the diversion of
part of the Canton trade to indirect channels, the continued
diversion to Hong Kong of other branches of China trade (e.g. the tea trade), the development of manufacturing under Imperial
Preference and the continued transfer of minor industries from
China, and the well-sustained demand of the local market owing
to the increase of population. Many of the refugees, it is important to remember, were by no means destitute.
538
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
182
The increased population had many other effects. There was a rapid fall in the number of vacant tenements. By June, 1938, for practical purposes, all vacant properties had become
occupied. A general increase in rents had set in shortly before,
and, to protect existing tenants from exploitation, a Prevention
of Eviction Ordinance was passed. A considerable demand was
shewn for Crown Land for both new residential building and new factories. The general level of prices had risen since the commencement of the hostilities, but during the year under
review there was a remarkable absence of severe fluctuation.
Fresh vegetables and firewood became scarce after the fall of
Canton, but the initial rise in price of these commoditics was
not maintained.
The yield of most forms of taxation was greatly increased, and the profits of public utility companies and other enterprises operating mainly in the Colony were enhanced by the growing population. The Kowloon-Canton Railway had a prosperous year and, even after the limitation of its activities to British territory after the fall of Canton, it maintained unusually high receipts from local traffic.
The general supply of labour was considerably in excess of demand throughout the year. Crime, particularly in the various forms of larceny, not unnaturally increased with the entry
into the Colony of large numbers of destitutes. Hospitals were overcrowded throughout the year.
Tourist traffic shewed a slight falling off by comparison with
previous years, but this was perhaps more than compensated
for by the fact that Hong Kong became the main port of entry into China proper. Hotels and boarding houses were full throughout the year.
Considering that the Japanese operations in South China extended to the very frontier of the Colony it is remarkable that no incidents of a political nature occurred within the Colony
1931-1939
183
539
during the year under review. Outside territorial waters, however, fishing junks were severely harassed, numerous cases of allegedly unwarranted attack being reported to the
Government.
Relief Measures.
By the end of 1937 the Shanghai Refugees Committee had practically concluded its work. Most of the non-Chinese refugees from the North had returned to their homes, but the
Colony was faced, during the ensuing year, with a much larger influx of Chinese from neighbouring territories consequent upon the Japanese invasion of South China. The various relief organizations in Hong Kong including the Tung Wah Hospitals
Committee, the oldest Chinese charitable institution in the
Colony, the Street Sleepers Shelter Society, the Society for
the Protection of Children, the Little Sisters of the Poor, the
Salvation Army, etc., did their utmost to cope with the great increase in destitution which resulted from the influx of
refugees from the affected parts of China, but their combined resources were quite inadequate to meet the task and Govern- ment was obliged to step in and to take over the major part of
the burden.
In the earlier part of 1938 the Tung Wah Hospital
Authorities were entrusted with the care of homeless and
friendless refugees. Several buildings were lent to this body
for the purpose, including the former Government Civil Hospital,
a portion of the former Victoria Gaol and a building which had served as the Kowloon Magistracy. By May some 2,648 of such refugees were receiving food and shelter in this way.
Many thousands were repatriated through the good offices of
the authorities in question, a total of over 30,000 being reached
between July, 1937, and June, 1938. Needless to say, this number formed but a small proportion of those who sought asylum in these territories. Tens of thousands of refugees.
540
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
184
packed into the already crowded tenements and the average number of persons to each floor of the typical three-storied Chinese houses rose from an average of eighteen to sixty. Many could find no accommodation and slept in the streets. A census taken in June, 1938, by the Police Department estimated the number of street sleepers at 27,000. Sanitary conditions deteriorated as might be expected and a severe outbreak of cholera was superimposed on an even more severe epidemic of small-pox. To relieve these conditions Government decided to undertake a scheme for the housing of some 5,000 persons in the urban area. Three camps were built, one on the Island
at North Point, a second at Ma Tau Chung and a third at King's Park, the last two being situated on the mainland.
These camps were designed to hold about 5,000 persons and
cost about $500,000 to build.
The administrative, medical and health duties of the camps were the responsibility of the Director of Medical Services and his staff, with the assistance of a Committee appointed by the
Governor.
Welfare work, education and industrial activities in the
camps were handed over to representatives of a voluntary organization-the Emergency Refugee Council-which came into being on the 11th of June, 1938, and which was, later,
regarded by Government as the chief co-ordinating body for the refugee relief associations in Hong Kong.
Whilst the urban area camps were being constructed a new situation arose in the rural areas owing to the extension of hostilities to Kwangtung.
The landing of Japanese troops at Bias Bay on the 12th of October, followed by the taking of Canton, nine days later, intensified the refugee problem and many thousands poured across the frontier into the New Territories. A matshed camp was rapidly established at Pat Heung which eventually housed 5,000 refugees.
1931-1939
185
541
Later, as the result of a further extension of the Japanese
activities on the Hong Kong-Kwangtung border, additional camps
in the form of railway trucks were opened at Fanling close to
the border. These provided accommodation for another 3,000
to 4,000 refugees.
A large number of refugees scattered to the villages in the
New Territories, being prevented from entering the urban area
by a particularly efficient policing system along a line drawn between Taipo and Castle Peak.
The sanitary conditions and lack of housing accommodation and water supply called for concerted action in December. The
Emergency Refugee Council, the Wai Young Association, the Tung Wah Hospitals Committee and allied Chinese charitable
bodies were approached and asked to assist in establishing camps in Chinese territory just across the border. At the same time
St. John Ambulance Association was asked to furnish medical
aid to the camps in Chinese territory. As the result of intensive
propaganda in the New Territories, the bulk of the refugees were induced to return to their villages in Kwangtung. By the end
of 1938 there were about four thousand refugees in Government
camps in the New Territories apart from those in the towns
and villages of the New Territories, and about three thousand
in Government camps in the urban area.
In addition, there were in an internment camp rather over 1,100 Chinese soldiers out of an original total of about 1,300
healthy and wounded soldiers who had sought safety in these territories during the operations on the Hong Kong-Kwangtung
border at the end of November.
Some idea of the extent of the refugee problem can be
gauged from the fact that 305,957 more persons arrived in the Colony by railway and by ocean and river steamer than departed. This figure does not include numbers arriving by
542
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
186
sampan, junk, ferry, launch and on foot. It represents an addition of more than one third to the normal estimated population of the Colony. As might be expected, a proportion of the cases of cholera, small-pox and cerebro-spinal meningitis which had to be dealt with in the Colony were imported from Kwangtung and other infected parts of China.
One of the more remarkable features of the situation in
connexion with the refugee problem in Hong Kong in 1938 was the inmediate response on the part of all classes of the community to appeals for help for the refugees. So much was
this the case that it was found necessary to warn organizations
of the desirability of working through a single co-ordinating voluntary body.
In order to stimulate further the generous response for help for the refugees, not only in the colony but in South China as
a whole, in the autumn of 1938 a Hong Kong and South China
Branch of a fund called the British Fund for the Relief of
Distress in China was opened. Up to the 31st of December,
1938, the total contributions to this branch of the Fund
amounted to $389,824.16. The Fund was organized with the idea of centralizing, as far as possible, all charitable efforts at obtaining donations for the relief of distress in South China, including Hong Kong. It did not itself undertake any actual relief work, this being entrusted to such existing relief bodies as were equipped for this purpose, and, in particular, to the Hong Kong Emergency Refugee Council.
On the 14th of December, 1938, a Chinese Sub-Committee of the Fund was appointed to canvass for further subscriptions from the Chinese community.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
544
TAI SHAN
MA CHAU
113° 32' E. LONG, OF GREENWIGH.
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
-
MAP OF HONG KONG
SCALE OF MILES
2
3
4
5
7
8
9
10
NAM TAU SHANG
WAN HA
SHUT WAN TAU
WAN TEMPLE
NSIN
NGON
(SUN
ON)
HAU HOI WAN OR
DEEP BAY
LUNG KU TAN
LUNG KU
SHA CHAU
TAI SHUI KANG
CHU LU
D.
CASTLE PEAK
1918
CASTLE PEAK 8
SHA TAU
TO CANTON
• PO KAK
SHAM CHUN
LO
TX KU LING
.S.
CHAU
SHEN U HUI
SHEUNG SHUJ
P.S.
SAN T
FAN LING
MAI PO
GOLF CLUD
CANTON
CHUK YUN
UN LONG
AU TAU
PING SHAN
HUI P.S.
SAN
P.S.KAM TIN
MAGNETIC
OBSERVATORY
TẠI LAM CHUNG
TSING CHAU
0.
MA WAN
PAK MONG
MA WAN CHUNG
P.STUNG CHEUNG
I PAKS
TAI KOK
CHEUNG SHA LAN
HUNG SHUI
MAN KOK
SHA LO WAN
TUNG WAN SHAM WAI
LAN TAU
LAN TAU PEAK
3066
P.S
PO CHU TAM RESTAL O
(1.0.
NAM CHUNG
PUI O
TSING I.
WAN I.
SII
ΚΑΙ ΡΟ
HUI
COON
WUN JU
ம்
TAI MO SITAN
3141
LOK LO
TSUEN WAN
7.S.
KAP SI MUN PASS
LAI CHI KOK
SHAM SHUI PO
STONECUTTERS I.
KAU 1. CHAU
PING CHAU
CHAU KUNG
GREEN 1.
YAU MA TI
VICTORIASS
KOWYLDƏN
ROYAL KORS
P.S
VICTORIA
PEAK
1309
OP.S.
TSIM SHA T:
HAR
HONG
ABERDEEN
P.S.
HI KU CHAU
SKUI HAU
MONG TUNG WAN
CHUNG HAU
CHEUNG
CHAU
SHEK SUN
SAI A CHAU
TAI A CHAU
TAI WANG
WEST LAMMA CHANNEL
DEEP WATER
EAST LAMMA CHANNE.
LAMMAI
SOK KU WAN
22° 9'
Է
1931-1939
AND NEW TERRITORIES.
KUI SHAN
no.
STARLING INLET
• KUK PO
WO HING
SHEUNG TUNG.
SHA Ủ CHUNG
P.S.
KAT O
CROOKED IS.
ROUND I.
CRESCENT I.
WANG LING TAU
DOUBLE I.
BLUFF HEAD
TOLO CHANNEL
IN WAN
TENZA
TING KOK
О
PLOVER COVE
TOLO HARBOUR
THRES FATHOM COVE
HA
TIDE COVE
KO TONG
PORT 1.
0:
GRASS 1.
TAP MUN
MIRS
BAY
LONG HAR
TANG KA WAN
TAI LONG
CHIK KANG
TAI SHUI HANG
SHEK HANG
FUNG BAY
CHIN HANG
PAK TAM CHUNG
SAI WAN
LAN NAI WAN
SAI KUNG
PAX KONG P.S.
IM TIN TSZ
HIGH I.
J
KEU
SHA TIN
P.S.
620,
PAK WAI
LION ROCK
KOWLOON PEAK
1975
NGAM CHI WAN
TAI PO TSAI
YLOOLIS
TSENG KWAN O
0:
KWA WAN NGAU TAU KOK
DEVILS PEAK
FU TAU CHAU
D
KUN TONG
HUNG HOM
724
RVATORY
UL
P.S.
P.S.
SHAD XI WAN
.S.
CHAI WAN 1.
ONG
LYEMUN PASS
STANLEY
LAT.
PAN LONG WAN
LEUNG SHUN WAN
TOWN 1.
D
K
BASALT 1.
C.COLLINSON
SHEK O
NINCPINO
FAT TONG MUN
NAM TONG 1.
GRCUP
MAIN ROADS
BRANCH ROADS
STREAMS
TYTAM B.
WONG MA KOK
BEAUFORT
OR
LO CHAU
W. T. S..
C. D. AGUILAR
SOON KONGO
PU TOI I.
RAILWAY
FUNG HEAD
REFERENCES
WAGLAN
POLICE STATIONS
NAVIGATION LIGHTS_ -
WIRELESS TELEGRAPH STATIONS
INTERNATIONAL BOUNDARY_
TIP FUX
WONG MO HUI
SHIU TAU SHA
PING. CHAU
W. T. S.
NAM O
MIRS PT
114° 30' E. LONG.
OF GREENWIGH.
545
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
1931-1939
547
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE COLONY OF HONG KONG
DURING THE YEAR 1939.
548
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
CONTENTS.
Page.
Chapter
I Geography, including Climate and History
1
II Government
III Population and Births and Deaths.
IV Public Health
V Housing
VI Natural Resources
VII Commerce
VIII Labour
IX Wages and Cost of Living ..
X Education and Welfare Institutions
XI Communication and Transport
XII Public Works
XIII Justice and Police
XIV Legislation
XV Banking, Currency, Weights and Measures
XVI Public Finance and Taxation.
XVII Miscellaneous
Map of the Colony
1
1
4
11
15
22
22
21
26
29
32
35
40
42
43
46
1931-1939
549
REPORT ON THE SOCIAL & ECONOMIC PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE OF THE Colony of HONG KONG FOR THE YEAR 1939.
Chapter I.
Geography, Climate and IIISTORY.
[Please see Chapter 1. of the 1938 Report.]
For 22° 37′ N. in line 13 of Chapter 1 of the Report for 1938, read 22° 17′ N.
Chapter II.
GOVERNMENT.
[Please see also Chapter II. of the Report for 1938.]
No outstanding changes in the system of Government in the Colony occurred during the year 1939, other than changes consequent upon the outbreak of the war with Germany in September of that year. Appointments were made to various temporary wartime posts which included: Custodian of Enemy Property, Controller of Trade, Controller of Food, Censor and Detaining Officer. In addition a Prize Court was established in the Colony shortly after the outbreak of war.
On 5th September, 1939, the Commodore in charge of Naval Establishments, Hong Kong, was appointed to be a member of the Executive Council.
Chapter III.
POPULATION and Birtus and Deaths.
Hong Kong is a free port and this and its geographical position renders it impossible to exercise effective control over emigration and immigration. It is dillicult, in consequence, to give accurate estimates of the population of the Colony. The mid-year population in 1939, based on the results of the censuses of 1921 and 1931, amounted to 1,050,256. During 1939 approximately 90,000 more persons entered the Colony by steamships than left by the same route. This figure does not take into account all those arriving by junk or sampan. In addition, it does not include those who crossed over from Chinese territory by land. It is probable that the population of llong Kong increased by about 650,000 during 1938 and 1939, the greater proportion of this increase being in respect of refugees from areas involved in the hostilities with Japan.
Hostilities between Chinese and Japanese forces close to the Kwangtung border towards the end of February, 1939, and again later in the year in this area, in the Chung Shan district between Canton and Macao, in the Island of Hainan and on the mainland of Western Kwangtung resulted in an influx of refugees amounting to many tens of thousands.
550
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
2
To balance this large influx of refugees, inany thousands left the Colony in the autumn of 1939 at the threat of extension of military operations involving the Colony itself. The fall in the value of the Chinese dollar and the rise in the cost of living also had the effect of causing many émigrés to leave the Colony for the interior of China.
The table given below indicates the distribution of the population in the various parts of the Colony as estimated at June, 1939, but does not include the refugee element who arrived in the Colony subsequent to the 7th July, 1937, the date. of the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese hostilities:---
Table I.
Hong Kong Kowloon
New Territories
Maritime
Totals
Non-Chinesc..
9,896
11,835
508
1,372
23,611
Chinese....
450,294
366,332
110,019
100,000 1,026,645
Totals...... 460,190
378,167
110,527
101,372 | 1,050,256
Registration of births and deaths is compulsory and the necessary data are obtained through twenty-nine registration offices. Stimulus was given to birth registration during the year when permission was accorded to post-register a large number of births which had occurred in the New Territories and when a large number of families desired to leave the Colony fearing that IIong Kong might be involved more closely in the conflict.
Births.
Registered births showed an increase from 35,893 (558 non-Chinese) in 1938 to 46,675 (566 non-Chinese) in 1939. Still-births numbered 1,402 in 1939, as compared with 1,075 in 1938. For purposes of comparison with the corresponding figures for the previous year, it is desirable to include a table giving the crude uncorrected birth-rates based upon two methods of calculation. Firstly (A), the rate is calculated on a population estimated by extrapolation methods from the previous census-as in the table given above. Secondly (B), the rate is calculated by adding to (A) a figure of 200,000 to represent the surplus of immigrants over emigrants during the period 1st of July, 1937, to 30th of June, 1938, and a further figure of 500,000 for the corresponding surplus for the year 1st of July, 1938, to the 30th of June, 1939.
Table II.
1938
Method A
Method B
Population Births
Rate
Population Births
Rate
Whole Population
1,028,619
Chinese
1,005,523
35,893 34.9 35,335
35.1
1,228,019 1,205,523
35,893
29.2
35,335
29.3
Non-Chinese
23,096
558
24.2
23,090
558
24.2
1939
Method A
Method B
Population Births
Rate
Population Births
Rate
Whole Population
1,050,256
Chinese Non-Chinese
1,026,645
46,675 46,109
44.4
1,750,250 46,675
26.7
44.9
1,726,645
46,109
26.7
23,611 |
566
23.9
23,611
566
24.0
1931-1939
3
Deaths.
551
The number of deaths recorded in 1939 amounted to 48,283 (202 non-Chinese), an increase of 9,465 over the corresponding figure for 1938.
As in the case of birth-rates, it is necessary to give two methods of calculation of the crude uncorrected death-rates and these can be seen in Table III below.
Table III.
1939
Method A
Method B
Population Deaths
Rate
Population Deaths
Rate
Whole Population
Chinese
Non-Chinese
1,026,045
23,611
1,050,256 48,283 46.0
48,081 46.8
8.6
1,750,256 48,283
27.6
1,720,645
48,081
27.8
202
23,611
202
8.6
1938
Method A
Method B
Population Deaths Rate
Population Deaths
Rute
Whole Population
Chinese
1,028,619
38,818
1,005,523
38,621
37.7
38.4
1,228,619
38,818
31.6
1,205,523
38,621
32.0
Non-Chinese
23,096
197
8.5
23,096
197
8.5
Still-births.
Only 1,402 still-births came under notice in 1939 (1,075 in 1938), a ratio of just over three per centum to the live births registered. It is more than probable that a number of still-births never come to the notice of the authorities.
Infant mortality rate.
15,678 Chinese infants under one year of age died in 1939, as compared with 12,001 in 1938; the infant mortality rates for 1939 and 1938 being 341 and 343 respectively. The rate among Chinese infants was nearly six times the corresponding rate among non-Chinese infants.
There was a considerable increase in the number of marriages in the year under review, both in licensed places of worship and at the Registry of Marriages. This can be accounted for principally by the fact that the Christian marriage and its civil equivalent are gaining in popularity among the Chinese. It is of course impossible to record the number of non-Christian customary marriages.
The following table provides means for comparing statistics in 1939 with those im 1938:-
1938
1939
Chinesc
Others Chinese
Others
By Special Licence in Church By Special Licence at Registry
4
1
6
10
9
4
12
By Registrar's Certificate in Church
116
115
151
114
By Registrar's Certificate at Registry
209
79
423
70
In Articulo Mortis
1
1
336
208
579
202
552
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
Chapter IV.
1. PUBLIC HEALTH.
The continuation of Sino-Japanese hostilities throughout 1939, the intensification of military operations in the Chung Shan district lying between Macao and Canton from which a greater portion of the supply of vegetables for the Colony is derived, the extension to the Island of Hainan and the neighbouring mainland of Western Kwangtung, whence come most of the live pigs, mopping-up tactics on the Colony's land frontier followed by a virtual land-blockade for the last five and a half months of the year, depriving the Colony of its normal supplies of vegetables, pigs and cattle from Eastern Kwangtung, increase in the price of staple foodstuffs following upon the outbreak of war in Europe, disintegration of health services in most of occupied Kwangtung and the influx of malnourished refugees often bringing with them acute infections of various kinds, all combined to exert an adverse influence on the health of the community during the year under review.
2. EPIDEMICS.
Epidemic disease took heavy toll.
SMALLPOX.
Smallpox was less prevalent than in 1938, the relevant figures for 1939 being 198 cases with 153 deaths, a case mortality rate of 77 per centum as compared with 2,327 cases and 1,834 deaths and a mortality of 79 per centum in the previous year. Thirty-five of the cases were imported from Macao, Kwangtung and other parts of China. The principal weapon used against this discase was vaccination and 1,393,860 vaccinations were carried out in 1939, the figure for 1938 being 1,027,591.
CHOLERA.
Cholera reared its ugly head once again in Hong Kong in 1939. Apart from five sporadic cases in January, the Colony remained free until the 5th May, a peak was reached during the last week in August and the first "nil" return was received for the week ending the 25th November. Thirty-four cases were imported from Macao and other out-ports. Cases, deaths and case mortality are given in the following table :-
Year.
Cases
Deaths
Percentage case mortality
Table IV.
1937.
1938.
1939.
1,690
547
709
1,082
364
448
64
67
63
Anti-cholera inoculations to the number of 320,748 were carried out. Many of these related to intending passengers by steamship, since stringent regulations were enforced by the quarantine authorities in the Philippines and elsewhere during the year. Owing to the many instances of cholera-infected persons arriving from Macao, special measures were taken to ensure that passengers to and from that port were in possession of valid certificates of anti-cholera inoculation. This measure met with local opposition which was, however, largely overcome in the interests of the community.
Intensive public health propaganda was carried out and took the form, in part, of the posting throughout the Colony of graphic posters demonstrating the ways in which infection took place and indicating the most appropriate preventive measures.
1931-1939
-
5
P
553
CEREBRO-SPINAL MeningitIS,
Cerebro-spinal meningitis, essentially a disease associated with overcrowding and bad housing, prevailed again in the Colony in 1939. Some 488 cases were discovered, being five more than in the previous year; of these, 214 (223 in 1938) died, representing a case mortality of 44 per centum (46 in 1938). Most of those affected were children or young persons under fifteen years of age. Supplies of sulphanilamide were obtained in sufficient quantities and the best results were obtained by the use of this drug in combination with anti-meningoccal serum prepared in the Government Bacteriological Institute.
OTHER INFECTIOUS DISEASES.
(a) Dysentery and typhoid fever.
With a deterioration in housing conditions, resulting from the refugee element, and in the general sanitary state of the urban area, owing to the fact that many of the refugees came from areas where communal hygiene was of a very low standard, it is understandable that dysentery and typhoid fever assumed somewhat serious proportions.
During 1939, some 1,451 cases of dysentery and 446 deaths were reported, as compared with 1,071 cases and 340 deaths in the preceding year. Typhoid fever accounted for $57 cases (539 in 1938) and 385 deaths (187 in 1938).
Representations were made to Government by the medical authorities in the summer of 1939 urging the need for more scavengers, additional refuse lorries, the daily washing of the streets in the worst districts of the town and for a complete reorganisation of the highly unsatisfactory method of collection and disposal of nightsoil from the bulk of the habitations in the urban area which depended upon a single bucket system.
Government approved the immediate engagement of 200′ labourers and the purchase of five additional refuse lorries. Directions were also given to the Urban Council to appoint a select committee to advise on the question of nightsoil collection and disposal. This committee had not reported its findings by the end of 1939.
Pasteurisation of all milk sold to the public was introduced on the 1st April, 1939, and no doubt will exercise a very beneficial effect on the incidence of these diseases.
(b) Diphtheria.
A somewhat alarming increase in the incidence of diphtheria was noted during the year. A total of 102 cases were reported, of which 142 ended fatally, comparing with 319 cases and 147 deaths in 1938. No actual source of infection, other than by carriers, could be traced.
(c) Leprosy.
A number of lepers were discovered amongst the refugees who sought safety in this Colony in 1939. These were accommodated temporarily in the Kennedy Town Leper Settlement (which is due for early demolition or very extensive repairs) until arrangements could be made for their transfer to Chinese territory.
By arrangement with the Sisters of the Immaculate Conception in charge of St. Joseph's Leper Asylum at Sheklung in Kwangtung, 100 leper patients were trans- ferred from Hong Kong in 1939. Some of them walked back, finding Hong Kong more exciting than life on an island in the Sheklung river.
Before the fall of Swatow in June, 1939, arrangements were also made for forty lepers to be admitted to the Swatow Municipal Leper Settlement on the island of Ching Wei. Unfortunately, this settlement was later bombed and destroyed and the majority of the survivors walked back overland to the leper settlement at Kennedy Town, taking twenty days on the journey.
3
554
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
6
Arrangements were also made with the Church Missionary Society Leper Settlement on the outskirts of Pakhoi in Western Kwangtung to accommodate twenty-five lepers.
In spite of these transfers, the Kennedy Town Settlement had a population of 172 at the end of the year.
(d) Tuberculosis.
In January, 1939, tuberculosis was added to the list of diseases which must be notified to the health authorities. By the end of the year, 7,591 cases had been reported, a tithe of those existing in the Colony. Deaths numbered 4,443 as compared with 4,920 in 1938. It is feared, however, that this does not represent the correct figure, for a very definite disinclination exists to report cases and deaths lest these be followed by terminal disinfection of the premises and other disturbances to person and property. Hence, there are no grounds for satisfaction at the apparent improvement in the mortality from this disease in 1939.
As stated above, pasteurisation of milk came into force in 1939, although it must be admitted that there is little evidence of tuberculosis in milch-kine in Hong Kong.
An important step was taken by Government in the summer of 1939 in connection with housing and town-planning, which has such an influence upon the incidence and spread of tuberculosis in this Colony. The Town-Planning Ordin- ance, No. 20 of 1939, was enacted and a Board was nominated by Government. Labour legislation was also prepared-not yet enacted-which should have an important effect on wage rates and conditions of work, hence, on the tuberculosis problem. Intensive public health propaganda was carried out during the year against spitting and to disseminate teaching on the cause and means of prevention of the disease.
•
3. HOSPITALIZATION.
The serious overcrowding of the hospitals in Hong Kong continued throughout the year. In-patients in the group of three Chinese hospitals numbered 61,001 in 1939, as compared with 43,807 in 1936, the year preceding the outbreak of hostilities.
The three Chinese hospitals have an "official" accommodation of 1,102 beds, but the daily average number of in-patients accounted to 1,684. As a temporary expedient, four large matsheds were constructed in the grounds of the Kwong Wah Hospital-one of the three principal Chinese hospitals-to house two hundred bed- ridden patients for whom room could not be found in the hospital itself.
In order to relieve the Chinese hospitals in some measure, Government approved the erection of hospital huts in all four urban camps for refugees, internees and destitutes. These housed eighty beds and proved a valuable asset.
To meet the difficulties resulting from the periodical closing of the Canton River (and, consequently, from the impossibility of transferring mental patients to the Fong Chuen Lunatic Asylum in Canton), Government sanctioned the conversion into wards of a large block of buildings originally used as quarters for Sisters at the former Government Civil Hospital. This helped greatly to reduce the serious overcrowding in the Mental Hospital.
To meet, in part, the dearth of accommodation for sick babies, Government also approved the temporary loan of the former Maternity Hospital at the old Govern- ment Civil Hospital to a private charitable association, a Government Lady Medical Ollicer serving as medical adviser.
1931-1939
7
555
A small block for patients suffering from diphtheria, typhoid fever and similar infectious diseases was opened during 1939 at the Kowloon Hospital pending the building of a new infectious diseases hospital nearby on the Kowloon Medical Centre.
Another minor, but useful improvement, consisted of a new block of staff quarters for the matron and midwives on the roof of the Government (Tsan Yuk) Maternity Hospital.
The Hospital Committee appointed by the Governor in 1938 under the chair- manship of the Director of Medical Services completed its deliberations in 1939 and submitted a report which has since received the careful consideration of Government. The report has been published and a copy may be obtained on application to the Medical Department, Hong Kong.
4. WELFARE ACTIVITIES.
A further large increase in the attendances at the welfare centres was registered in 1939 and attained the figure of 161,157 (124,046 in 1938).
A new welfare centre was established in May in Block C. of the former Government Civil Hospital. Measures were taken at the end of the year to convert the former Central British School in Nathan Road, Kowloon, into a health centre with a large welfare section.
With the approval of Government, sites were earmarked for a network of health centres throughout the urban area and New Territories and plans have been prepared to build these centres as and when funds become available.
Efforts were made to increase the "preventive" value of the welfare centres during the period under review, emphasis being placed on talks and demonstrations to mothers, domiciliary visits by health visitors, and so on. There is still considerable scope for such development at these centres which are too prone to assume the character of sick baby dispensaries in view of the heavy burden of sickness throughout the community.
5. NUTRITION.
Nutrition occupies pride of place in the problems to be solved in Hong Kong. It has been proved again and again that good housing, though of the very greatest importance to health, loses much of its value unless the occupants enjoy reasonable means for the purchase of food.
An overcrowded labour market reducing possible earnings, taken in conjunction with increased rents and a general rise in the cost of living amounting to about 45 per centum since the outbreak of the European War, has had an adverse effect on the general standard of nutrition in 1939.
Deaths from beri beri alone to mention but one of the obvious deficiency diseases-increased from 2,673 in 1938 to 3,189 in 1939. Whole wards had to be devoted to the treatment of cases of beri beri and, in a relief hospital of 300 beds, it was usual to find 250 occupied by patients suffering from this condition or from other gross forms of malnutrition or faulty nutrition.
These
Further practical nutrition experiments were carried out by the Medical Departinent in the camps for refugees and destitutes which it administered. camps held upwards of 12,000 persons at times, consequently, ample material was available for field experiment. Careful checks were made daily in regard to the quantity and quality of food served, children were weighed and medically examined weekly and adults once monthly.
556
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
8
The diet was eventually reduced to that given in the appendix below. The cost per head per day was reduced by the end of the year to 11.3 cents for those over seven years of age and 8.2 for those under seven.
Propaganda in the form of radio broadcasts in Chinese and English, articles in the Press and popular lectures all played their part in educating the general public.
In addition, two hundred and fifty nursing mothers received a nutritious rice congee at the welfare centres five days a week and babies attending the centres received tinned or soya bean milk according to their age and condition.
Four public food kitchens were maintained by a charitable body-the Hong Kong Refugee And Social Welfare Council-in the urban area, two on the Island and two in Kowloon, during the year and provided the congee made according to the Medical Department recipe to about 5,000 destitutes, children, mothers and disabled or blind men. This example of public charity was of particular value. The expanded Nutrition Research Committee under the chairmanship of the Director of Medical Services continued to carry out useful research work on various forms of vitamin deficiency, the value of balanced diets and general propaganda.
The field experiment in connexion with alfalfa and amaranth referred to in the report for 1938 did not, unfortunately, eventuate.
Appendix.
DIETS FOR Refugees.
Weight in ounces.
Foodstuff.
Mon.
Women.
Children 7-14.
Children 1-7.
*Rice
18 ozs.
16 ozs.
12 ozs.
8 ozs.
†Pork or beef or fresh fish or salted egg ..
Salted fish or vegetables
1 oz.
11⁄2 ozs. 1
1 oz.
3 oz.
oz.
ozs.
1 oz.
1 oz.
Fresh vegetables
10 ozs. 63 ozs.
5 ozs. 3.375 ozs.
Soya beans
Oil
Salt
Tea
1 ozs. 1 ozs.
1 oz.
oz.
1. oz.
1 oz.
2 oz.
oz.
1 oz.
4 oz.
oz.
3 oz.
1 oz.
1 oz.
* Rice: 75% whole white rice; 25% whole red rice.
† Meat: 3 days in a week; Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
1931-1939
9
557
On meatless days the adults shall be given salted fish and/or Chinese chese (foo yee). The children from 1-14 shall be given salted egg up to the scheduled weight on the four meatless days per week. Fresh green leafy vegetables shall form 70% or more of the total daily weight of vegetables. Onions, potatoes, carrots, tomatoes and melon for the balance. The items for beans or products are as
follows:-
Soya bean cheese, fresh bean curd, dried bean curd slices, sweet bean curd slices, soya bean milk and dried fresh bean cake. No whole soya beans will be served. In addition to the above a pint of congee containing two ounces of white rice shall be given to each person and soya bean milk prepared in accordance with the specifications of the Medical Department to all children and to any others recommended by the Medical Officer in charge
The prices include the provision by the Contractors of the following, viz. :-
1. Kitchen staff.
2. Kitchen and cooking utensils.
3. Feeding utensils including chopsticks, bowls, plates, etc.
4. Fuel for cooking the diets.
Chapter V.
HOUSING.
[Please see also Chapter V. of the 1938 Report.]
A Town Planning Committee was appointed in July, 1939 and held several meetings. Some tentative recommendations were made regarding zoning in Kowloon and the reservation of areas for factories. The Committee has now applied to Government for the secondment of a Town Planning officer so that certain preliminary work may be carried out and submitted for the consideration of the Committee.
For the purpose of the sanitary inspection of tenements under the powers con- ferred by the Public Health (Sanitation) Ordinance, No. 15 of 1935, the Urban District is divided into thirty-five health districts each of which is in the charge of a Sanitary Inspector. Each health district contains about 2,500 floors and, in normal times, about 25,000 inhabitants. House to house inspection forms part of the duties of the sanitary inspectorate and of the health officers. Some 56,207 sanitary nuisances were dealt with during the year and some 229,385 floors were subjected to cleansing with kerosene oil emulsion. Floors in the overcrowded central districts are cleansed four times annually and those in the outlying districts twice annually.
during the years
558
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
10
Occupation Permits Issued and Premises Demolished
1937-1939.
Occupation Permits.
1937 Kowloon
Hong Kong
Chinese tenement
European type
type houses.
houses.
40
38
76
19
116
57
I
1938 Kowloon
64 (237 flats)
41
Hong Kong
39 (152 flats)
44
103
85
1939 Kowloon
129 (386 flats)
141 (427 flats)
Hong Kong
100 (345 flats)
74 (195 flats)
229
215
1
Premises Demolished.
Chinese tenement type houses.
European type
houses.
1937 Kowloon
Hong Kong
18
2
154
16
172
18
1
1938 Kowloon
14
2
Hong Kong
1.5
4
29
6
|
I
1939 Kowloon
10
2
Hong Kong
14
8
24
10
10
1931-1939
11
Chapter VI.
NATURAL REsources.
[Please see also Chapter VI. of the 1938 Report.]
559
Fisheries.
The fisheries of Hong Kong, from the point of view of the general economy of the Colony and of the number of persons connected directly and indirectly with this form of production, are the most important of the local industries. There are three classes of fishery products available in the open market: fresh freshwater fish, fresh sca-fish and salted sea-fish including mollusca and crustacea. Almost all the freshwater fish is imported from Canton, Sheklong, Shekki, Kongmoon, Wuchow and Macao. A portion of the salted and canned goods is imported from Shantung, Shanghai, Europe, America and Japan, and from Annam and other East Indian countries. The remainder, both fresh and salted, is the product of the local fisheries.
It is estimated that, during 1939, there were 2,722 large and small Chinese fishing junks either indigenous, or regular visitors, to Hong Kong. These fishing fleets are manned by at least 40,000 able-bodied men and women, and carry with them some 25,000 others who have no homes other than the fishing junks. In normal times the flects make voyage of two to four weeks' duration as far as Swatow and Kwonghoi (Toishan), but since the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese hostilities they have been compelled to limit their activities to areas within and adjacent to the territorial waters.
During 1939 approximately 230,000 piculs of fresh sea-fish, valued at $3,450,000, and 220,000 piculs of salted sca-fish, valued at $3,700,000, were landed. This represents a total quantity of 450,000 piculs, or 26,787 tons, of a wholesale price value of $7,150,000, and a retail price value of more than $10,000,000.
It is estimated that over $15,030,000 capital is invested in junks, gear and general equipment.
Approximately 150,000 piculs of fresh freshwater fish, valued at $3,000,000, are imported annually.
Only a small fraction (usually about 80 piculs per day) of the fresh sea-fish is exported to Canton and the surrounding district. In 1939, owing to the increased demand for food-stuff in Hong Kong, the export of fresh sea-fish was reduced to a minimum. Usually, of the salted sea-fish produced in the Colony, 30% is consumed locally and 70% is exported to the interior of China through Canton, Macao, Shekki, Kongmoon, Wuchow and occasionally through Shanghai but now a large percentage is consumed in the Colony. The total amount of foreign produced salted fish imported into the Colony and then re-exported into China is valued at approximately $3,300,000.
The organization of production is on a loose co-operative basis of traditional growth. The fishermen, brokers, lish stores, lans or wholesale dealers, retail dealers and fish stalls are grouped into separate associations, not unlike mediaeval guilds. From fishermen the fish passes to the big lans or wholesale dealers either directly or via the fish driers or fish stores. From the big luns it passes to the retail dealers, the travelling salesmen or the stall keepers, and so to the consumer. The hubs of the whole system are the groups of the twelve big salt sea fish lans, the fourteen fresh sea fish lans and the eleven freshwater fish lans. Their business is carried out entirely on a commission basis and between one quarter and one third of their total capital is advanced to the fishermen free of
560
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
12
interest. Between $20,000 and $100,000 is invested in this manner by cach lan, and between $10,000 and $50,000 kept in reserve. A single lan will transact business valued at between $100,000 and $800,000 in a single year.
The local fishermen belong essentially to the floating population, a special class of people known as tan ka or "boat family". Their calling and trade is a specialised one and they are entirely unsuited to other occupations. Their junks are their only stock in trade. To these they have confined their entire lives for generations, regarding them not only as their sole means of support but also their only home. The fact that there are some 70,000 to 80,000 persons living in about 3,000 boats, the largest of which does not exceed 85 feet in length, and the majority of which are less than 60 feet long shows the extent of the over- crowding to which their traditional occupation subjects them. A boat of 70 feet in length provides space for the accommodation of 40 to 45 persons of all ages, besides space for fish, salt, gear, food and miscellaneous cargo.
The average earning capacity of a single able-bodied fisherman is $70 per annum. This general low standard of living combined with the hidebound allegiance to a centuries-old tradition has prevented the infiltration of modern methods and the adoption of modern appliances. The Japanese were quick to realise the advantage to be gained from power-driven vessels and the substitution of machinery for man-power. Sometime before 1937 a Japanese fishing company was organized in Hong Kong for work in the South China seas with the presumed object of controlling the entire industry in the Colony and in South China. Steam trawlers and improved fishing methods brought the company increasing profits up to 1937 when the business was suspended owing to the Sino-Japanese liostili-
tics.
Trawling, seining, gill netting and lining are the principal methods of fishing in usc in the Colony. Garoupas, sea-breams, golden-threads, flat fishes, rags, white herring, mackerel, crabs, halibut, sole, crayfish and mullet arc found in great quantities off the Pearl River delta. In Deep Bay off the New Territories, oysters are cultivated in an area of approximately 20 square miles. The annual produce of this area is about $200,000.
A survey of the fisheries of Hong Kong was begun in 1938 by Mr. S. Y. Lin of the University of Hong Kong.
Agriculture.
The total area of the Colony is about 390 square miles of which some 20% is privately owned agricultural land. The greater part of this land is situated in the North Western part of the Colony where the only plain and undulating arcas arc to be found. In the remainder, which is of a very hilly nature, cultivation is confined to valleys where the available flat land is generally of narrow pro- portions. In these areas, cultivation for rice production has in some cases (where water is available) been carried some distance up the slopes but seldom has any attempt been made to utilize these areas for other crops.
The monsoonal
Rainfall at 85 inches is adequate for tropical cultivation. distribution of the rainfall with about 66 inches in the five months May to September and 18 inches in the remainder of the year further determines the forms of cultivation. The chief crop is rice. Two crops of rice are grown in the wetter months and in the drier months, where water is available, a crop of vegetables. Crop rotation is not practised and, in respect of the greater part of the agricultural land, rice is the only crop. This is made possible by the liberal use of fertiliser, chiefly human manure. While production of rice is insufficient for rural requirements yet there is a fair export trade in certain special grades for which an overseas demand exists. Consequently, the greater part of the Colony's rice requirements have to be met by import from overscas. In the present state of agriculture it is unlikely that the rice crop can be materially increased, the limiting factors being land and manure. By the introduction and acclimatization of higher yielding strains and varieties it may be possible to
1931-1939
13
561
effect some increase in production but it is unlikely that any such increased pro- duction will appreciably lower the imports of rice required by the local market. It is customary to obtain two crops of rice from the areas irrigated with fresh water i.e. the greater part of the rice land, and one crop from poor soil areas and from those areas which though tidal, are able to be brought under cultivation during the rainy season.
Secondary crops of a general nature are sweet potatoes, ground nuts, sugar cane and fruits. These are produced on a relatively small scale and, with the exception of sugar cane, much of which is exported to Singapore, they are pro- duced chiefly for local consumption. In recent years more attention has been given to the production, during the winter season, of both Chinese and foreign types of vegetables. With a large urban market near at hand (i.e. Victoria and Kowloon) the farmer is beginning to realize that there is money in vegetables and it is estimated that some 25% of the urban requirements during the winter months is being supplied from local sources. This production is capable of expansion and much leeway can be made up in respect to the disparity between supply and demand, which, under present conditions, is met by imports.
More interest is being taken in fruits than formerly as is shown by the ac- quisition of more land for this purpose by persons with capital at their disposal. There is plenty of room for expansion of this nature on the numerous hill slopes, of which the greater part of the Colony consists, and, with a large market at hand, this type of undertaking should develop. Animal husbandry does not form a large part of the agricultural activities of the Colony. Cattle are used chiefly for draught purposes, while the production of pigs and poultry though fairly wide-spread is on a very small scale in comparison with the local market for such products. The possibilities of local dairy farm, poultry and vegetable enterprises are exemplified by the increasing number of such concerns run by people with capital. This is considered an encouraging sign.
Several commercial firms have been started in recent years to supply the demand among the well-to-do for vegetables which can safely be caten raw and for better type farm produce in general. These ventures have met with success but their total production and market are at present small.
Cheap manure is one of the most urgent needs of the New Territories farmer at the present time. In this connection measures are under consideration for cheapening the supply of manure by improving the efficiency of the transport of the urban supplies to the rural districts. The general agricultural possibilities of the Colony, together with associated questions of social service and nutrition, have also been the subject of recent investigations by Government.
The New Territories Agricultural Association, founded in 1927, endeavours to demonstrate to farmers the possibilities of improved methods of cultivation. With the improvement in the status of the farmer and in his share in the urban market the value of such demonstration will steadily grow. The possibilities of the Association's premises at Fanling as a centre of co-operation and instruction are also important.
Shipbuilding.
The shipbuilding and ship repairing industry is the largest manufacturing industry in the Colony. The three main yards are, respectively, the property of the Hong Kong & Whampoa Dock Co., Ltd., the Taikoo Dockyard & Engineering Co., Ltd., and W.S. Bailey & Co., Ltd. These three firms were responsible for a total new tonnage of 24,081 gross tons completed during 1939 (compared with 12,426 gross tons in 1938), and for 14,644 gross tons under construction at the end of the year. The latter figure includes vessels building for British, Norwegian, Danish and Philippine owners. The two largest ships ever built in the Colony M.V. Breconshire and M.V. Glenorchy each of 8,982 gross tons have been completed and delivered
562
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
14
during 1939 after successful trials. The tonnage of merchant ships dry docked for overhauls and repairs, including one vessel which was lengthened amidships by over 100 feet, reach a total of 1,636,994 gross tons. Additionally 183,490 displacement tons of Naval ships were dry docked by the firms mentioned.
were
The anticipated expansion of the output of new Diesel Engines has eventuated. The largest Diesel engine yet produced in Hong Kong, of 2420 B.H.P., was completed during 1939, and Diesel engines aggregating 4950 B.H.P., under construction at the end of the year, in addition to 4700 I.H.P. of steam engines.
A number of small craft, including lighters, motor boats and yachts have been constructed in the native yards, but accurate statistics are not available. There are also many native yards with a considerable output of junks and sampans for the use of the shipping community.
Roughly 20% of the labour employed in the Colony's dockyards is on the monthly wage system and is directly recruited by the dock companies. The remainder is employed under the contract system by which work is hired out at standard rates to contractors who pay and are responsible for their own employees. Workers in each section of the industry are banded together into guilds. These are at present of the nature of friendly societies, but it is possible that they may develop into more orthodox trades unions in the future.
[Notes on the equipment and general facilities of the three main yards will be found in Chapter VI. of the 1938 Report.]
Mining.
[Please see Chapter VI. of the 1938 Report.]
Forestry.
[Please see also Chapter VI. of the 1988 Report.]
During 1939 forestry offences were very numerous and considerable difliculty was experienced in the protection of forest areas generally. The position created by the events in China was further aggravated by the European situation and resulted in further curtailment of imports of firewood from overseas sources. The reaction on local forest areas was of a serious character and much difficulty was experienced in maintaining control of the situation.
The opening up of land on Hong Kong island and on the mainland for various purposes connected with general development, defence works, etc., makes the task of protecting the wooded areas a very onerous one. The incasures for control, put into operation the previous year, appear to constitute the best solution of a problem which is at all times somewhat acute. The necessity for a re-orientation of ideas in respect to forestry areas to bring them into line with the demands of development is apparent and steps are being taken to deal with this aspect of the matter.
(a) Crown Land.
Estimated Areas Under Forest.
Hong Kong Island-about 18 square miles. New Territories-about 4 square miles.
(b) Native Holdings (Leased Forest Lots).
Hong Kong Island-nil.
New Territories-approximately 81 square miles.
(a) Crown Land.
1931-1939
15
Timber Production.
563
As stated above, output consists chiefly of the removal of dead and damaged timber. This timber is passed to the Stores Department for issue to Government departments in the form of firewood. During 1939 removals of this nature totalled 912 tons valued at $21,764 at current prices (i.c. average of wholesale prices for the year). The growth and yearly increment of timber of the local pine tree in the Crown plantations is generally considerably heavier than that of the trees in the leased forest lots. Under favourable conditions ten year old trees attain a height of 21 feet and a diameter of 4-6 inches (breast high).
(b) Native Holdings (Leased Forest Lots).
Under the conditions of the forestry licence the licensee may remove 10% of the timber per annum. It is customary to remove side branches (brushwood) at definite seasons of the year and these are utilised for brick kilns, etc. This results in the production of stunted trees which are considered sufficiently large for disposal as firewood when they have attained a height of 12 feet and a diameter of 2 inches to 4 inches (breast high). The age of trees is from 8 to 14 years. From inspections and checks it is estimated that the annual output of timber and brushwood is approximately 11 piculs (12.16 cwts.) per acrc. At the 10% removal rate this should represent an outturn of 3,408 tons of timber and brushwood from the whole area under these holdings. However, until more accurate data becomes available definite figures concerning annual production from these lots cannot be given.
Area of Colony
Proportion of Land Under Forests.
390 square miles.
Crown Forests
22
"
""
"
Leased Forest Lots ......
81
Percentage of Crown Forests
5.64%
Leased Lots
13
31
Total percentage
20.85%
26.49%
Chapter VII.
COMMERCE.
[Please see also Chapter VII. of the 1938 Report.]
The total visible trade of the Colony during the year 1939 amounted to a value of $1,127.6 millions (£69.3 millions) as compared with $1,130.1 millions (£69.9 millions) in 1938, and $1,084.4 millions (£66.9 millions) in 1937. Imports of merchandise in 1939 decreased by 3.9% as compared with 1938 and by 3.7% as compared with 1937, whilst exports increased by 4.2% in 1939 as compared with 1938 and by 14.1% as compared with 1937.
The following is a list of the appendices to this chapter with general obser- vations on the statistics shown therein :-
564
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
16
A. TOTAL VALUE OF IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF MERCHANDISE.
Imports consistently increased during the years 1937 and 1938-both in terms of sterling and local currency-but declined slightly in 1939; whilst exports continued on the upward grade during the whole period 1937 to 1939. Exchange averaged 1s. 213d. in 1937 and remained steady in the two subsequent years at approximately the same figure.
B. PERCENtage of total Imports PROVIDED BY EMPIRE AND FOREIGN COUNTRIES.
During the period 1937 to 1939 the share of the Colony's import trade supplied by British Empire countries increased from 16.1% in 1937 to 17.2% in 1938, but declined to 13.8% in 1939. The United Kingdom accounted for 6.7% in 1939 as compared with 9.1% in 1938; Australia 1.2% as compared with 2.0%; British Malaya 2.2% as compared with 1.2%; and India 1.7% as compared with 1.9%. The percentage of imports from non-Empire countries increased from 82.8% in 1938 to 86.2% in 1939. The German percentage noticeably decreased from 6.3% in 1938 to 2.2% in 1939, whilst French Indo-China increased from 5.6% to 6.8%; and Japan from 3.0% to 4.6%.
C. PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL EXPORTS SEnt to Empire and Foreign Countries.
During the period 1937-1939 the share of Hong Kong's total export trade shipped to British Empire countries has fluctuated from 16.3% in 1938 to 20.0% in 1939. British Malaya is again the largest Empire purchasing country, accounting for 8.6% of the total export trade as compared with 7.2% in 1938, the share of other Empire countries in 1939 being United Kingdom 4.2%, India 1.8% and "other Empire countries" 5.4%.
The percentages taken by non-Empire countries were China 16.9%, French Indo-China 10.4%, Japan 1.2%, Kwong Chow Wan 7.9%, Macao 8.4%, Netherlands East Indies 2.8%, Philippines 2.1%, Siam 2.9%, U.S.A. 14.4% and "other foreign countries" 13.0%.
D. QUANTITIES AND VALUES OF PRINCIPAL ARTICLES OF IMPORTS
DURING THE YEARS 1938 and 1939.
The principal commodities imported into Hong Kong are as follow:-
1938.
1939.
Food Stuffs
$152,441,000
$137,369,000
Piece-goods
79,833,000
99,201,000
Oils and Fats
78,223,000
89,442,000
Metals
48,144,000
36,981,000
Chinese Medicines
19,593,000
25,828,000
Fuels
17,273,000
16,399,000
Machinery
17,136,000
10,688,000
Dyeing Materials
16,086,000
8,102,000
Paper and Paperware
14,743,000
10,640,000
Vehicles
14,140,000
13,627,000
1931-1939
17
565
were
E. QUANTITIES AND VALUES OF PRINCIPAL ARTICLES OF EXPORTS
DURING THE YEARS 1938 AND 1939.
The values of principal exports of Chinese commodities from Hong Kong
as follow:-
1938.
1939.
Wood Oil
$39,762,205
$49,525,910
*Tin
$16,318,553
20,529,233
Tea
$16,080,814
20,357,195
Wolfram Ore
$14,252,838
21,207,308
*Firecrackers
$ 4,647,436
3,552,252
*Peanut Oil
$ 3,920,453
5,416,909
Hides
$ 3,672,228
7,138,920
Feathers
$ 2,359,284
3,913,538
*Preserved Ginger
$ 2,156,132
2,795,171
Exports of Hong Kong manufactured goods under Imperial Preference were well maintained in 1939. The Trade Returns do not differentiate between exports of locally manufactured goods and re-exports of similar imported goods. It is therefore impossible to give approximate exports of locally manufactured sugar, cement, rope and woven cotton and artificial silk cloth because exports under these headings include considerable quantities of imported goods re-exported to adjacent markets. In the case of many other classes of goods, however, there is little import trade and the export figures may be taken to represent mainly the export of locally manufactured goods. The following export of Hong Kong made goods has been assessed on this basis :-
1938.
1939.
Canvas Rubber Shoes
$6,675,542
$8,495,901
Singlets
$5,019,924
5,741,079
Shirts
$2,168,543
4,000,182
Socks
$1,121,172
1,875,055
Other wearing apparel
$3,426,077
5,794,295
Electric Torches
$2,900,261
3,911,060
Electric Batteries
$2,189,923
1,734,976
Hats
$1,068,113
1,387,667
F. TOTAL VAlue of Imports or Treasure.
G. TOTAL Value of Exports of Treasure,
H. WHOLESALE PRICE INDEX.
I. INDEX NUMBERS OF QUANTITIES OF Commodities Imported INTO HONG KONG.
*NOTE.-China_tin is refined in Hong Kong before export. The item firecrackers includes locally made firecrackers as well as firecrackers imported from South China und Macao. The item peanut oil includes locally manufactured peanut oil as well as peanut oil imported from North China. Preserved ginger exported from Hong Kong is manufactured here from ginger imported from South China and sugar imported from the Netherlands East-Indies.
566
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
18
Appendix A.
Total Value of Imports and ExpORTS OF MERCHAndise (in $'s and £'s Thousands).
AVERAGE RATE OF EXCHANGE.
IMPORTS.
EXPORTS.
1939..
$ 594,199
$ 533,385
II.K.$ = ls. 2.25/32d.
£ 36,596
£ 32,810
1938...
$ 618,169
£ 38,233
511,902 31,661
1s. 2.27/32d.
1937......
$ 617,064
467,323
=
1s. 2.13/16d.
£ 38,084
28,843
Appendix B.
PERCENTAGE OF TOTAL IMPORTS PROVIDED BY EMPIRE AND FOREIGN Countries.
British Empire
Foreign
Australia
Belgium
British Malaya
China
French Indo-China
Germany
India
Japar
Netherlands East Indies
Siam
United Kingdom
U. S. A.
All Other Countries
1939.
1938.
1937.
%
%
%
13.8
17.2
16.1
86.2
82.8
83.9
1.2
2.0
2.2
1.0
1.0
1.6
2.2
1.2
1.5
37.6
37.7
34.2
6.8
5.6
6.6
2.2
6.3
5.0
1.7
1.9
1.0
4.6
3.0
9.4
6.6
6.6
7.6
5.0
5.9
3.7
6.7
9.1
7.6
8.7
8.8
8.4
15.7
10.9
11.2
Appendix C.
Percentage of Total Exports sent to Empire and Foreign Countries.
1939.
1938.
1937.
%
%
%
British Empire
20.0
16.3
19.7
Foreign
80.0
83.7
80.3
British Malaya
8.6
7.2
8.5
China
16.9
45.1
40.7
French Indo-China
10.4
4.5
5.1
India
1.8
1.6
1.1
Japan
1.2
0.6
4.2
Kwong Chow Wan
7.9
1.9
2.1
Macao
8.4
4.1
3.7
Netherlands East Indies
2.8
2.8
3.3
Philippine Islands
2.1
1.9
2.8
Siam
2.9
3.1
3.0
United Kingdom
4.2
4.1
4.5
U. S. A.
All Other Countries
14.4
10.2
8.8
18.4
1.2.9
12.2
567
1931-1939
19
Appendix D.
QUANTITIES AND VALUES OF PRINCIPAL ARTICLES OF IMPORTS DURING THE YEARS 1938 AND 1939.
1938.
1939.
Article.
Principal Source of Supply.
Quantity
Value Quantity Value
Animals (for slaughter)
ilead
363,487 | 10,095,034
Cement
Piculs
Timber
Cu. Ft.
939,391 1,772,132
3,535,990 3,919,750
830,718
2,952,936
1,483,436
473,216 14,021,860 Kwong Chow Wan, South Chine,
Middle China, French Indo. China, North China. French Indo-China, North China,
Belgium.
Chemicals & Drugs
6,404,359
Pharmaceutical Products
2,848,699
I
Chinese Medicine
T
19,592,511
Aniline Dyes
9,291,677
Indigo (artificial).
Beans
Picul
"
33,079 2,900,658 763,189 6,201,392
8,636
022,459
Fish & Fishery Products
7,336,003
I
Wheat Flour
Piculs
Rice (all kinds)
Sugar (all kinds) Milk (canned) Tea
"
Cases Iba.
1,365,013| 12,717,719
8,581,997 54,443,071 2,045,813 13,308,204
210,788
Tons
3,369,369 British North Bornco, U.S.A.,
Siam, Canada.
5,577,774 Germany, U.K., U.S.A., North
China.
2,157,702 U.K., U.S.A., North China,
Germany.
25,827,689 North China, Macao, French Indo-
China, U.S.A.
2,433,768 Germany, Switzerland, U.K. 1,176,022Germany, U.S.A., U.K.
6,474,911 North China, French Indo-China,
Burma.
7,164,552 French Indo-China, North China,
Macao.
1,219,930 8,352,242 U.S.A., Australia, Canada, North
7,541,830 | 44,450,201 1,930,485 17,003,082 3,409,813 174,626 2,890,634 16,926,951 | 30,671,605 | 12,524,857
738,830 13,934,721 653,312 12,054,492
China.
Siam, French Indo-China, Burma. Netherlands East Indies. Holland, U.S.A.
North China, Middle China, South
China.
India, Japan, Netherlands East
Indies, French Indo-China. North China, U.K., U.S.A.
Coal
Hardware
Malt Liquors
Gallons
Wines
"
Spirits
6,003,238 G03,687 1,375,661 538,648
44,392 494,053
39,363 120,550 1,918,763
4,721,681
1,381,378
96,295
Machinery & Engines
Sulphate of Ammonia
Piculs
17,136,128 1,234,988 9,431,800
1,104,351
Iron Bars
273,981 3,474,,895
329,605
Tinplates
218,858
#
4,866,254
165,103
Tin Slabs
113,218 19,450,562
Wolframite
47,251
7,040,759
30,766
"
Manganese Ore
21,664
56,063
"
Nuts
*
967,712 10,236,951
2,306 578,051
7,014 5,523,645
64.934
417,648
1,707,650 TU.K., France, Australia, 10,687,605 U.K., Denmark, U.S.A.
7,469,547 Belgium, Poland, U.K., Germany. 3,427,067 Belgium, U.K., Australia.
3,577,317 U.S.A., U.K., Malaya.
15,944,869 Soulli China, North China, Malays.
South China, Middle China. 5,002,356
North China, French Indo-Chinn.
North China, U.K., Japan, France, U.K., Spain.
North China, British North
Bornco, French Indo-China.
Seeds
(
173,496 3,585,080 206,812
4,344,414
North China, Malaya, South China,
French Indo-China.
Lard
1,533
8,534
Petrol
Fuel Oil
Kerosene
Lubricating Oil
Wood Oil
Piculs
Peanut Oil
10
Paints
Printing Paper Unbleached Cottons Bleached Cottons
Light Cotton Fancies
Other Collons
37,707 Imperial 14,395,809 | 10,062,436 11,244,444
10,293,016 | Netherlands East Indies, U.S.A. Netherlands East Indies, U.S.A. 4,242,295
1,293,159 U.S.A., Netherlands East Indies,
U.K.
7,986,346 | North China, Netherlands East
Indics, Kwong Chow Wan. 1,942,358 (U.K., North China, U.S.A.,
Gallona Tons
246,601 12,728,474 185,120 Imperial | 15,754,497
5,494,953 12,672,500 Gallons
2,097,489 2,438,909 1,457,799
711,506 32,327,155
615,350 50,810,243 | North China, South China, French
Indo-China. 287,464 5,913,909 363,538
2,328,535
4,740,273 7,480,648 741,870 251,678 2,781,664 278,030 3,183,873 1,092,808 6,985,964 49,174,764 11,705,564 124,306,756 955,971 327,823 4,471,291 577,527 1,000,172
842,141
48,035,978 31,006,160 67,348,734 1,759,224 4,732,590 2,045,241
Pieces
"
Yards
"
"
Grosses of 50 Yards
lbs.
Yards
833,220
Germany,
2,263,520 Germany, Norway, Italy, U.S.A. 5,215,673 | North China, Japan, U.K. 2,541,426 North China, Japan, U.K. 1,690,597 Japan, North China, U.K. 23,941,709 North China, Japan, Macao, U.K.
957,836 Japan, North China, U.K. 908,894 North China, U.K., Belgium.
197,336
North China.
6,668,467
U.S.A., Netherlands East Indies.
Prints
Cotton Thread
Cotton Yarn
36,275,490 North China, Japan, U.K.
Woollens
Silk (artificial)
3,304,035
4,170,847 Japan, U.K., Italy, North China. 3,425,595 | Japan, North China, U.K.
Silk (raw)
5,296,211
7,368,914 Macao, North China, South China.
Tobacco, Cigars & Cigarettes
ibs.
1,815,244
3,907,678
1,770,752
Motor Cars
No.
800
2,819,324
952
2,789,236 U.K., U.S.A., Canada.
Motor Lorries
3,424
8,472,228
3,544
Boots & Shoes
1,556,707
Gunny Bags
Wearing Apparel
China Ware
Cosmetics & Perfumery Electric Lamp Bulbs
(all kinds)
Radio Apparatus
Feathers
3,515,339
Pieces
5,899,587
1,657,431
4,578,128
743,998
1
1,108,589
883,879
Firecrackers
llides (all kinds)
Leather (all kinda) Mats (all kinds)
Picula
=
Matches
Cases
Rubber (raw)
Piculs
1,246,508
2,619,634
t
3,389,688
98,447
5,482,534
| |
2,747,263 1,006,568
1,611,180 35,367 2,410,211
1
3,827,253 North China, U.K., U.S.A.
7,433,561 U.S.A., Canada, U.K.
1,078,031 Czechoslovakia, North China,
U.S.A., U.K.
3,362,101 North China, Macao, U.K., U.S.A,
1,576,920 | India, Malaya.
879,768 North China, Middle China, Japan.
640,199 U.S.A., France, U.K.
640,406 North China, U.K., Japan. 1,665,121 U.S.A., U.K., Germany. 2,565,380 French Indo-China, Kwong Chow Wan, South China.
2,404,242 | Macao, Kwong Chow Wan, North
China.
98,442 4,585,173 North China, Kwong Chow Wan,
427,279
39,415
South China.
2,231,315 Australia, Malaya, Germany. 2,309,023 | Macao, Kwong Chow Wan, French
Indo-China,
2,704,889 North China, Macao, Japan, 3,158,406 Malaya, Netherlands East Indies,
British North Borneo.
568
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
20
Appendix E.
QUANTITIES AND VALUES OF PRINCIPAL ARTICLES OF EXPORTS DURING THE YEARS 1938 AND 1939.
1938.
1939.
Article.
Quantity
Value
Quantity
Valuc
$
$
Cement
Piculs
1,124,985 2,087,131
1,070,819
2,208,455
Timber
Cu. Ft.
1,016,354
1,315,882
274,043
289,272
Chemicals & Drugs
4,914,923
3,865,726
Pharmaceutical Products
4,159,535
3,014,292
Chinese Medicines
15,714,561
23,268,855
Aniline Dyes
4,821,612
2,817,850
Indigo (artificial)
Piculs
21,506
2,693.847
12,069
1,663,859
Beans
458,508
3,824,779
Fish & Fishery Products
= {
587,803
4,385,990
6,704,216
6,390,934
Wheat Flour
Piculs
1,064,107
9,974,442
589,124
4,165,585
Rice (all kinds)
5,418,281
36,429,104
3,836,209
23,555,757
Sugar (all kinds)
1,605,715
14,470,2:35 1,559,645
16,284,433
Ginger, Preserved
2,156,132
2,795,171
Tea
14.
16,080,814 43,957,212
20,357,195
Hardware
3,013,405
-
4,369,712
Native Liquors
Gallons
202,720
689,906
242,200
893,314
Machinery & Engines
6,470,542
6,995,323
Sulphate of Ammonia
Piculs
1,439,992
12,445,490
963,910
7,437,828
Iron & Steel Bars
175,722 1,949,689
90,150
1,348,723
Iron & Steel Scrup
157,656
813,943
110,777
441,936
Tinplates
Tin Slabs & Ingols
Wolframite
.....
Manganese Ore
223,547 4,944,384
56,439
1,342,347
106,345
16,362,918
118,128
20,560,943
80,817
14,252,838
"
127,987
21,207,308
37,146
63,652
"
27,971
43,182
Nuts
Seeda
Lard
I'ctrol
717,863
7,717,548
D
312,338
3,144,004
130,498
2,860,771
144,800
3,326,295
35,188
884,008
30,120
712,609
Imperial
10,936,933
10,267,764
6,985,001
0,502,001
Gallons
Fuel Kerosene
Lubricating Oil
Peanut Oil Wood Oil
Paints
Tons
75,676
5,141,422
30,985
2,140,373
Imperial Gallons
14,394,702
7,378,516
7,196,524
3,835,302
H
3,460,499
3,685,569
1,739,322
1,697,637
Piculs
167,941
3,920,453
233,003
5,416,909
822,462
39,762,205
"
593,726
49,525,010
1,713,284
1,817,400
Printing Paper
1,283,281
584,952
Unbleached Cottons
Pieces
337,813
3,240,508
325,009
2,312,344
Bleached Cottons
109,495
1,395,940
125,004
1,460,993
Light Colton Fancies
Yards
Other Cottons
532,488 61,289,110
190,110
2,964,614
GOG,407
Cottons, Prints
•
Cotton Thread
Cotton Yarn
Woollens
Grosses
lbs.
Yards
343,288 421,162 35,394,504 193,236
14,631,675 90,218 792,078
92,155,289
19,866,763
1,631,074
340,905
331,669
357,871
21,163,764
51,727,153
20,742,550
367,063
264,260
546,862
Silk (artificial)
1,016,028
--
1,494,824
Silk (raw)
4,446,735
9,423,419
Tobacco, Cigars & Cigarelles
lbs.
7,374,125
7,664,107 6,595,250
8,888,999
Motor Cars
No.
469
1,212,465
512
1,203,822
Motor Lorrics
Bools & Shoes
Wearing Apparel
||:
4,224
15,285,364
4,555
13,107,249
7,585,639
9,433,730
12,975,680
19,085,907
Gunny Bags
Pieces
8,781,568
2,733,911
7,133,807
2,879,645
China Warc
461,411
587,637
Cosmetic & Perfumery
1,007,637
1,098,050
Electric Torches
2,900,261
3,911,0GO
Electric Torch Batteries
2,189,023
1,734,970
Feathers
Embriodery & Lace
Firecrackers
Ilides (all kinds)
1,380,026
962,528
2,359,284
3,913,538
£,647,436
3,552,252
Piculs
69,392
3,672,228
89,519
7,138,920
Leather (all kinds)
796,483
1,000,273
Mats (all kinds)
Matches
Rubber (raw)
Trunks & Suit Cases
Cases
Picula
音量
11 191
1,918,453
3,039,036
1,186,256
223,887
1,626,474
15,308
1,021,659
2,537
186,460
1,287,311
1,114,156
1931-1939
21
Appendix F.
TOTAL VALUE oF IMPORTS OF TREASURE (IN $'s thousands).
569
1939
1938
$
$
1937 $
Copper and Nickel Coins......
210
1.
421
Gold Bars
4,708
5,572
11,113
Gold Coins
90
331
Gold Leaf
1
9
8
Silver Bars
17
18
6,448
Silver Dollars
102
786
152,677
Silver Subsidiary Coins
286
1,025
135,339
Total
5,324
7,501
306,337
Appendix G.
TOTAL VALUE OF EXPORTS OF TREASURE (IN $'S THOUSANDs).
1939
1938
1937
$
$
$
Copper and Nickel Coins....
1,645
15
1,295
Gold Bars
64,047
48,538
10,979
Gold Coins
17
3,186
2,567
Gold Leaf
196
266
552
Silver Bars
7,200
*** 1,600
5,986
Silver Dollars
788
52,385
268,150
Silver Subsidiary Coins
1,511
46,283
87,520
Total
75,404
152,273
377,049
Appendix H.
WHOLESALE PRICE INDEX.
1922=100.
1937
1938
1939
Foodstuffs
136.2
131.6
134.9
Textiles
117.7
116.1
106.2
Metals and Minerals
146.1
147.3
145.0
Miscellaneous Articles
124.4
127.3
125.9
Average
131.1
130.6
128.0
570
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
22
Appendix I.
INDEX NUMBERS OF QUANTITIES OF COMMODITIES IMPORTED INTo Ilong Kong duRING 1937, 1938 AND 1939.
1931=100.
Items
1937
1938
1939
Building Materials
Chemicals & Drugs
Dyeing Materials
Foodstuffs
Fuels
Manures
Metals
Minerals & Ores
Nuts & Seeds
Oils & Fats
Textiles
Sundries
29
NELSONGÃAZO
10
77.5
65.9
43.0
18
133.8
93.0
96.3
5
41.$
55.2
34.4
25
110.7
107.3
92.1
126.8
119.3
114.5
2
141.9
88.7
67.2
30
120.7
62.3
54.0
308.6
22.8
9.7
113.7
$10.9
201.0
14
129.6
145.1
123.8
37
59.8
83.0
101.0
71.6
64.7
64.6
Total Items
185
General Average
119.7
101.5
$2.6
Chapter VIII.
LABOUR.
No new by-laws were made during the year.
The improvement in the industrial life of the Colony recorded during 1938 fully maintained its level during the year under review. An outstanding feature was the construction by local shipyards of the two largest ships ever built in the Colony. There was a steady increase in the numbers of factories where weaving and knitting is done and also in the shirt and pyjama making industry. Several new industries were opened. These include a match factory (the first in the Colony) and factories for the manufacture of buttons made from cocoanut shells and ivory nuts. Shanghai workers only are employed in the latter industry but some experienced workers from Canton are employed in the match factory. The output of rubber shoes, electric hand-torches, batteries, etc., for the Empire and overseas markets was well maintained.
For the first ten months of the year employment generally was very steady and most of the factories worked to full capacity, although the majority of them closed before regulation hours. Some difficulty was experienced in obtaining raw materials after the outbreak of war in Europe but this is gradually being overcome. There was a steady increase in the number of workers employed in registered factories and the total at the end of the year was approximately 57,500. The amount of unemployment is difficult to estimate owing to the number of refugees still in the Colony. Skilled labour was in demand principally in the shipyards and there was also a steady demand for both skilled and unskilled labour by the military authorities.
1931-1939
23
571
Working conditions in factories improved generally and more factory-type buildings were erected. More industrial undertakings opened in the New Territories and there were several applications to erect factories, including an application for another match factory on one of the islands of the New Territories.
Factories were regularly visited during the year and many night visits were made. There was a total of 71 prosecutions principally for operating unregistered factories and employing females and young persons during prohibited hours. The total number of accidents reported was 160 of which 15 were fatal. During the year 212 Certificates of Registration were issued in respect of new factories, while 93 factories closed down. At the end of the year there were 948 factories and workshops in operation. The following figures show the approximate distribution of workers of both sexes in registered factories and workshops among the more important industries :-
Industries.
Male.
Female.
Total.
Shipyards
Sugar Refineries
Oil Refineries
10,553
14
10,567
770
81
851
449
12
461
Breweries
40
10
50
Metal Wares
1,794
3,013
4,807
Knitting Factories
2,114
6,233
8,347
Spinning and Weaving Factories ...
1,378
4,489
5,867
Engineering
951
29
980
Rubber Factories
1,384
3,250
4,634
Newspaper Factories
731
2
733
Printing Factories
2,516
563
3,079
Tobacco Factories
385
1,618
2,003
23,065
19,314
42,379
There were two disputes of more than minor importance during the year, in both of which Shanghai Chinese were involved. The employment of Shanghai workmen in Hong Kong presents certain problems which are absent from the employment of local labour and there is reason to believe that much of the unrest has its roots in the natural discontent of men who are separated from their families and who feel themselves to be strangers in a strange land. In both cases an amicable settlement was finally reached and the Shanghai workmen were repatriated to their homes.
Mr. H. R. Butters, who was appointed Labour Officer at the end of 1938, completed his survey of labour and labour conditions in Hong Kong and submitted a report which was published as Sessional Paper No. 3 of 1939. Among other recommendations the report advocates the enactment of legislation to provide for (a) the voluntary registration of Trade Unions, (b) the creation of Trade Boards to deal with questions of wages and hours of work in particular trades, (c) a system of Workmen's Compensation and (d) an extensive labour law, in place of the present Factories and Workshops Ordinance, dealing with labour conditions generally and providing for a labour inspectorate of European, Chinese and women inspectors under the direction of the Labour Officer. These recommendations are under consideration.
572
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
-
24
M
Chapter IX.
WAGES AND Cost or Living.
The increased industrial activity in the Colony which was noted in the report for 1938 was maintained during the year 1939, notably in the weaving and knitting industries. There was no appreciable change in rates of wages or in the employment situation.
There was a distinct rise in the cost of commodities (rice, oil, fish, meat, vegetables and firewood) generally consumed by the poorer classes and it is estimated that the cost of a normal working class family budget (excluding clothes and rent) was at the end of the year about 20% higher than at the beginning of the year, and also higher than at any time since October, 1937. The rise accelerated towards the end of the year and the indications were that it would continue. There was, however, no appreciable variation in the cost of clothes. It is difficult to obtain reliable figures for the rents paid by sub-tenants in working class tenements, but the tendency for rents to rise was no doubt checked to some extent by the Prevention of Evictions Ordinance, 1938.
By the end of the year the price of oil had risen by over 60% and price of rice by over 12% as compared with the beginning of the year, a contributory factor in these increases being the outbreak of the European War and the consequent increased cost of freight.
The figures for rice are:-
1939
1938
Per 100 catties.
May $7.14
Average for four grades. December
Variation.
$7.74
8%
January $8.38
Variation.
14%
December $7.33
Average Retail Prices of the Staple Foodstuffs, etc., of Wage Earning Classes.
Rice (3rd Grade) per catty
Fresh fish, per catty
Salt fish, per catty
Beef, per catty
Pork, per catty
1937
7.9 cents
1938 7.3 cents
1939 7.0 cents
26.9
24.4
28.4
""
24.1
25.2
23.9
36.8
37.6
34.9 ""
51.9
49.7
54.4
31
28.3
22.2
23.8
"
.10 cents for 9.8 catties
Oil, per catty Firewood,
Building Trade:-
Locomotive Driver
7.0 catties 5.6 catties
Average Rates of Wages for Labour.
$1.30 to $1.80 per day.
Carpenters
0.80 to
1.30
""
Bricklayers
0.80 to 1.30
Painters
0.80 to
1.30 ""
Plasterers (including Shanghai Plasterers) Scaffolders
1.00 to
1.50
"}
1.00 to
1.50
Labourers (male)
0.60 to 0.80 ""
(female)
0.40 to 0.50
>>
""
Working hours 9 per day. Time and a half paid for overtime. Free temporary sleeping quarters provided on the building site and communal messing at cheap rates.
Shipbuilding & Engineering:-
Electricians
Coppersmiths
Fitters
Sawmillers
Boilermakers
Sailmakers
Blacksmiths
Turners
Patternmakers
Labourers
1931-1939
573
25
$1.00 to $1.40 per day.
1.00 to
1.00
"}
0.80 to
1.55
0.70 to
1.25
0.95 to
1.20
1.00 to
1.40
""
0.75 to
1.20
""
1.00 to
1.40
1.00 to
1.40
""
"2
0.70 to 1.00
39
Overtime-time and a half. Night work-double time.
Transport Workers:-
Tram Drivers
Tram Conductors
Bus Drivers, Chinese Bus Co.
Bus Conductors,
""
31
*J
$36 to $45 per month.
30 to 39
"}
27 to 54
31
18 to 21
""
22
Working hours 9 per day. Free Uniform. Bonus at end of year 3 days' pay.
Bus Drivers, European Co.
Bus Conductors
>>
"}
$55.00 per month.
22.50 to $35 per month.
Working hours 9 per day. Free Uniform. One month's salary bonus.
Railway Workers (Government)-
Station Masters
Telephone Operators
Booking Clerks
Guards
Signalmen
Engine Drivers
Ticket Collectors
Firemen
Pointsmen
Female Workers in Factories:-
Cigarette anaking
Knitting factories
Perfumery
Confectionery
Electric hand torch factories
Electric hand torch battery factories
Rope works
$1,100 to $1,800 per annum.
480 to
1,400
600 to
1,000
,,
600 to
1,000
,,
600 to
1,000
""
540 to
1,000
32
420 to
600
"
330 to
480
""
192 to
240
$0.30 to $0.70 per day.
0.25 to 0.50
,,
11
0.20 to
0.40
,,
"
0.20 to
0.50 ""
21
0.25 to
0.45
""
0.15 to 0.35
"
0.42 a day.
Gunny Bag makers
0.30 to
0.50 per day.
Feather works
0.30 to
0.60
""
""
Joss stick workers
0.20 to
0.30
39
Printing works
0.20 to
0.80 ""
>>
Weaving and spinning
0.25 to
Rattan workers
0.30 to
0.60
1.00
""
""
21
574
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
20
Hardware workers
Felt hat workers
Cork hat workers
Green pea sorting Handkerchief makers Paper dyeing
Grass rope makers
Preserved fruit makers
Sugar refinery
Rubber shoe makers
$0.25 to $0.40 per day.
0.25 to
0.70
"}
0.30 to
0.55
"
0.15 to
0.25 ""
"}
0.20 to
0.40 ""
0.20 to
0.40 ""
}}
0.30 to
0.35
""
"
0.15 to 0.35
0.60 ""
"
"
11
0.35 to
1.05 "
"
Working hours from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. One hour off at mid-day. Overtime from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at day rates.
Domestic Servants:-
Employed by Chinese
Employed by Europeans
Gardeners
$7.00 to $20.00 per month.
15.00 to 40.00 "" 15.00 to 30.00 "}
""
With free lodging, and, with Chinese employers, generally free board.
Note: The rates of pay of Government employees are much the same as
those of a similar category in private employ.
Transport coolics *Coal coolies
*Ricksha coolies
$0.60 to $0.70 per day.
0.55
>>
""
0.00 to 0.70
""
""
Chapter X.
Education and WelfarE INSTITUTIONS.
Schools.
Schools in Hong Kong may be divided into two categorics:
(1) English schools in which the principal medium of instruction is the
English language.
(2) Vernacular schools in which the principal medium of instruction is the
Chinese language.
In each category there are three classes of schools:
(a) Government schools entirely maintained by public funds.
(b) Assisted schools to which Government makes financial contributions which are called grants in the case of English and higher grade vernacular schools, and subsidies in the case of other vernacular schools.
(c) Unassisted schools which are run without any financial contributions
from Government.
One new Government institution was opened in 1939, namely the Teachers Training College which is training teachers for English and vernacular urban schools. There were 48 students in training at the end of the year. The College provides a two-years course, and is housed in temporary quarters pending the construction of a new building.
1931-1939
27
575
There were 20 Government schools in 1939, the same number as in 1938. Four of these are for British children of both sexes. 12 are English schools for Asiatic students and 4 are vernacular schools. In consequence of the opening of the Teachers Training College, no new normal classes were formed at the Ver- nacular Normal and Middle School and the Vernacular Normal School for Women. These two schools are in process of being converted into ordinary ver- nacular schools without normal classes and have been re-named Saiyingpun Ver- nacular School for Boys and Eastern District Vernacular School for Girls respectively. The Vernacular Normal School at Taipo continues to train teachers for rural vernacular schools. Two of the Government English schools are voca- tional, namely the Junior Technical School and Trade School.
The number of grant schools in 1939 was 19, the same as in 1938. Of these 15 were English schools and 4 higher grade vernacular. A new grant code for the regulation of Government contributions to these schools was prepared and was under discussion at the end of the year.
There were 276 subsidised schools in 1939 as compared with 279 in 1938, 155 being urban schools and 121 rural. A new subsidy code drawn up in 1938 was revised in 1939 and was under discussion at the end of the year.
The total of 982 private schools in 1939, an increase of fifty over the number in 1938, was made up of 134 English schools and 849 vernacular schools. Included are a number of refugee schools from South China which have establish- ed themselves temporarily in Hong Kong.
Altogether 120 new schools were registered during the year and 55 schools previously registered ceased to exist.
Evening classes, collectively known as the Evening Institute, were continued as usual in technical and educational subjects, classes being arranged in en- gineering, shipbuilding, building, electrical engineering, English, handwork and art, pharmacy, book-keeping, shorthand, method and English for teachers; the total number of students enrolled during the year was 958. In view of the opening of the Teachers Training College, the classes for training teachers were restricted to untrained teachers already serving in schools.
There were four orphanages and one home for incurables and aged women, all controlled by religious communities. The Hong Kong Refugee and Social Welfare Council conducted schools attended by 2,000 children in connection with the Government camps and food kitchens for refugees from China. The Salesian Institute continued to maintain two industrial schools.
There were three school clinics and two special centres for the treatment of eye, throat and nose defects. Innoculation against cholera and vaccination was carried out during the year and full use made of the services of the European Health Officer for Schools, two Chinese medical officers, one European lady medical officer (part-time) and five nurses.
An assistant supervisor of physical education was appointed at the beginning of the year.
All Government schools were supplied with portable apparatus, and physical history record cards for all pupils were introduced. Eighteen teachers in grant schools were given special training but classes for other teachers which it had been planned to open in September had to be postponed owing to mobilisa- tion at the outbreak of war. Sports clubs in the Colony continued to place their grounds at the disposal of schools for organised games; in the summer arrange- ments were made with some swimming clubs to borrow their premises for school swimming.
After the outbreak of war in September, 1939, a number of Government teachers were employed on defence duties and Government schools were handi- capped by consequent changes of staff. Fortunately it was possible to engage temporary trained teachers to fill vacancies.
576
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
28
A revised edition of the Education Ordinance, 1913, was published during the year, but no considerable amendments were made. A new set of regulations to be made under the Ordinance was passed to come into force on 1st January, 1940.
The University.
[Please see also Chapter X. of the 1938 Report.]
The University of Hong Kong, which was incorporated in 1911 and formally opened in 1912, reached the twenty seventh year of its existence in the year under review. The buildings, including class-room accommodation for about 500 students, six hostels, laboratorics, residences for the staff, the students' Union, a gymnasium, workshops and playing fields, occupy an area of thirty-six acres.
During the year under review the revised Ordinance and Statutes of the University were published in the Government Gazette. The amendments in- corporated in the revised version of the Ordinance involved no fundamental change in the scope and effect of the Ordinance. They have been designed rather for the purpose of clarifying and validating provisions which have already been enacted by the original Ordinance and by the amending Ordinances and Statutes passed since 1911.
515 students were on the rolls during 1939 viz. 507 undergraduates and 8 external students. The large majority of these students were of Chinese nationality.
Since September, 1938, facilities have been afforded to 500 refugee students. of Lingnan University, Canton, to continue their studies under their own professors and lecturers at Hong Kong University.
Of the 507 regular students in 1939, 408 were men and 99 women students: There were also 8 external students, 4 men and 4 wonen.
Medicine
Engineering
Arts
Science Faculty
External students
Total
Men
Women
214
22
106
74
71
14
6
4
4
412
103
The number of students who graduated during 1939 is shown below:-
Medicine (M.B., B.S.)
Engineering (B.Sc.)
Arts (B.A.)
Total
Men
Women
22
2
29
1
12
10
63
13
The total expenditure amounted to $1,044,586.09 and the total income to $1,030,814.63 leaving a deficit of $13,771.46 on the year's working. This deficit will be met from the credit balance of the Income and Expenditure Account of previous years, which stood at $69,389.07 at the beginning of 1939.
1931-1939
29
577
The University Library, which includes the Medical Library separately housed in the School of Pathology, has a total of 46,800 accessions (volumes, Government publications, etc.). This figure includes the unique and valuable Hankow Collec- tion of some 3,000 volumes and also the Morrison Collection of some 2,800 volumes. The Library is subscribing to 200 literary, medical and scientific periodicals. Graduates of other Universities are making increasing use of the Library.
The Fung Ping Shan Library, which is a purely Chinese Library contains 5,073 sets in 45,004 volumes, also houses the following collections: Chu Hsuch Tsai Collection, 1,795 books in 17,618 volumes, Professor Hsu Sin-fu's Collection, 2,570 books in 25,842 volumes and Lo Tun Fu Shih's Collection, 3,186 books in 19,307 volumes. The last two sections are lodged in the Library on a loan basis.
Owing to the outbreak of the European War it was not possible to proceed with certain major developments such as the provision of a new Science Building and new residential quarters for the staff on the University Estate. The details of both these schemes are complete and the schemes were ready for initiation just as hostilities broke out. A new Faculty of Science has however been established and a new Diploma Course in Education was instituted as foreshadowed in the report of 1938.
A new hostel for women students was formally opened by His Excellency the Governor on the 29th. of August 1939. The hostel which is called "Our Lady's Hall occupies a fine situation above the University grounds and provides accommodation for 25 students. The hostel is maintained entirely by the authorities of the French Convent in Hong Kong. Students of all denominations are eligible for admission to it.
Residential facilities for women students of the University are also provided by the Church Missionary Society which maintains a hostel for about 20 students and by the Sacred Heart Convent which caters for a similar number. About half the number of women students reside with parents or guardians.
Welfare Institutions.
[Please see Chapter X. of the 1938 Report.]
Chapter XI.
COMMUNICATION and Transport.
External.
SHIPPING.
Hong Kong has one of the finest harbours in the world. It is, in normal times, the chief shipping terminus between South China and the rest of the world. Regular services are maintained by shipping companies of every maritime nation bringing merchandise, raw materials and passengers destined for all parts of China. Details of the Colony's chief sea communications will be found in Chapter XI. of the 1938 Report.
There is normally a vast traffic between Hong Kong and the adjacent provinces of China by junk. This at present is very much depleted.
The total shipping entering and clearing ports in the Colony during the year 1939 amounted to 74,617 vessels of 30,897,918 tons. This compared with 1938 shewed an increase of 7,610 vessels but a decrease of 64,808 tons.
23,881 vessels of 29,196,1466 tons were engaged in foreign trade compared with 21,670 vessels of 29,530,384 tons in 1938, British ocean-going shipping shewed a decrease of 332 vessels and 1,251,971 tous. Foreign ocean-going shipping shewed an increase of 611 vessels and 1,215,467 tons.
578
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
30
British river steamers shewed an increase of COS vessels, but decreased by 50,694 tons. Foreign river steamers shewed an increase of 226 vessels and 112,950 tons. Steamships not exceeding 60 tons, in foreign trade, shewed a decrease of 625 vessels and 16,087 tons..
Junks in foreign trade showed a decrease of 1,277 vessels and 343,589 tons.
In local trade, steamlaunches shewed an increase of 5,775 vessels and 151,151 tons, and junks shewed an increase of 2,500 vessels and 88,020 tons.
AVIATION.
[Please see also Chapter XI. of the 1938 Report.]
Hong Kong Airport is situated at Kai Tak, and has facilities for marine and land aircraft.
The slight decrease in traffic for 1939 as compared with statistics for 1938 is due mainly to (1) the Japanese occupation of Canton and Hankow in December 1938 and the subsequent reduction of the daily schedules, (2) suspension of the all-up mail and temporary dislocation of Empire route services through the outbreak of hostilities in Europe. Since the Japanese occupied Hankow and the neighbouring territory, the services to Chungking have been reduced and the flights undertaken by night. The suspension of the all-up mail service has resulted in a big drop in mail figures as well as a curtailment in the schedules of Imperial Airways.
RAILWAY.
Throughout the year 1939, the British Section reverted to a position as regards its functions not experienced since its infancy when all through running was suspended for long periods and the line was worked to the British border only. The current year, however, differs from those carlier years by reason of the fact that the border has been closed since August 16th owing to the presence of Japanese troops. This closure has resulted in marked increases in passenger journeys to and from Taipo and Fanling, the former station affording alternative communication with China via the Sha. U Chung launch, and the latter via the Sha Tau Kok road-bus. This local expansion has failed to compensate for losses sustained at the frontier, on account of the very much shorter hauls involved and the decreased numbers travelling.
The local passenger journeys were 1,917,603 which is an all-time record, eclipsing by 403,623 the previous record attained during 1933. For reasons given in the above paragraph, however, the receipts from this source were only $660,698 compared with the 1933 peak of $704,183. In this connection it is worthy of record that the year opened auspiciously, the earnings during the first three months amounting to $209,068 which is the highest figure ever reached in any one quarter.
Receipts and net operating revenue were $911,046.87 and $128,613.38 respectively, as against $1,901,883.32 and $932,118.18 the previous year.
Operating expenditure was $782,433.49 compared with $969,464.84 in 1938.
In consonance with the complete suspension of through running, the operating ratio has depreciated from 50.97 to 85.88 per cent.
As a corollary to the growth of passenger traffic, local goods receipts rose from $28,193.15 to $40,645.96, or 44.17%.
The value of the rail-bus shuttle service between Taipo Market and Fanling continues to demonstrate itself. Although the receipts from this source alone are only 15.48% higher than last year, yet the normal passenger train bookings between these two points have shown a further increase of 92.34% over the figures for 1938
1931-1939
31
579
which in turn were 389.45% higher than those of 1937. The gain resulting from the elimination of the uneconomic overlapping of road and rail services can be gauged from the fact that rail earnings on this section have increased from $1,713.80 in 1937 to $15,989.78 in 1939. This latter figure is made up of $7,316.65 from the rail-bus and $8,673.13 from the ordinary train service. This striking advance has been achieved at the expense of an increased annual cost of only $5,330.00.
Prospects for the coming year are not particularly bright. There appears to be no possibility of resuming through traffic; a marked advance in local passenger receipts is not expected; a fall in earnings from rentals is anticipated, and a considerable rise in expenditure must be faced due to the war in Europe. For these reasons a cautious financial policy will need to be pursued.
POSTS AND TELEGRAPHS.
[Please see also Chapter XI. of the 1938 Report.]
The total revenue from the Government Wireless Telegraph service amounted to $87,958 as compared with $126,902 in 1938; a decrease of $38,944 mainly due to enforced restriction of the mobile services in the latter months of the year.
The number of paid messages-mobile and commercial press services-forwarded and received during the year was 95,725, consisting of 8,557,491 words, as compared with 56,883 messages of 4,568,023 words in 1938; the increase being due to press services taken over by Government.
Unpaid trafic, which includes meteorological, police, anti-piracy, Rugby press, intercepted press, aircraft and air station operational messages, navigation warnings, etc., totalled S6,758 messages of 4,608,910 words as against 87,815 messages of 3,077,812 words in 1938.
Service messages totalled 5,647 consisting of 68,289 words as compared with 1,681 messages of 49,433 words in 1938; the increase being due to additional messages necessitated by war conditions.
Internal.
RAILWAY.
After the 12th of October, 1938, rail communication by the Kowloon-Canton Railway was limited to the section of the line within British territory.
ROADS.
There are 384-49 miles of roads in the Colony, 173 miles on the Island of Ilong Kong, 100 miles in Kowloon and 105-49 miles in the New Territories. Of the total mileage, 227 miles are constructed of water-bound macadam dressed with asphalt, 11 miles of sheet asphalt on a cement concrete foundation, 29 miles of tar macadam, 68-49 miles of concrete, 3 miles of granite setts and wooden blocks on a cement concrete foundation and 45 miles of earth.
The public travelling over the Colony's roads increases yearly, with a corres- ponding growth in the number of motor buses, of which there are 109 operating on the island of long Kong, and 186 on the mainland. These are gradually replacing rickshaws, the number of which decreases year by year.
The Hong Kong Tramway Company has a fleet of 106 double-deck tram-cars running along the sea-front of Victoria from Kennedy Town to Shaukiwan. The length of the Hong Kong Tramway tracks is about 10 miles.
There were 4,439 private motor-cars, 362 motor-cycles, 385 public cars and taxis and 1,205 commercial lorries and vans registered in 1939.
580
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
32
FERRIES.
[Please see also Chapter XI. of the 1938 Report.]
The number of vehicles of all classes carried in 1939 was approximately 355,000, while the total number of passengers carried by all ferry services between Hong Kong and Kowloon was about 56,800,000.
TELEPHONES.
[Please see also Chapter XI. of the 1938 Report.]
Chapter XII.
PUBLIC WORKS.
[Please see also Chapter XII. of the 1938 Report.]
From 1st January, 1939 the Waterworks were put on a self supporting basis with a separate budget. This has resulted in partial" decentralisation of the Water- works Oflice from the Public Works Department. A new post of Waterworks Engineer was created and all Waterworks staff and maintenance charges appear under a new Head B. of the Public Works Department Estimates.
The following is a summary of works carried out during the year :-
Buildings.
The erection of the new Central Market was completed by the end of April. The new Central Government Store at North Point was almost completed by the end of the year. The main building is of two storeys containing office accom- modation and large warehouses and is constructed of a reinforced concrete frame, concrete floors and roof and brick panel walls. The foundations are carried on piles. A large compound is provided for storage of materials and allows for future extensions to the building. Alterations to the adjoining building formerly the property of the Yacht Club were being carried out to provide Asiatic staff quarters. The new Police Sub-Station at Wanchai Gap was nearing completion. The building is of brick with flat concrete roof and contains an office and accommodation for a European officer and eighteen Indian police. A contract was let for the site formation in connection with the erection of a new Government House at Magazine Gap. A hutment camp was erected at Wood Lane, Wanchai, to accommodate the workmen and a little preliminary work was carried out on the site. On the outbreak of the war in Europe, it was decided not to proceed with the scheme and the contract was cancelled. At Hong Kong Prison, Stanley, a concrete post and wire mesh fence was erected and alterations made to subdivide the prison and an additional septic tank provided. Adjoining the prison an Isolation Block for leper prisoners was under construction containing a dormitory, cell, wash house, cook house, exercise yard and guards' room. Alterations were carried out at the former Victoria Gaol to convert a portion of the building into a Remand Prison. Alterations and additions were carried out at Lai Chi Kok Female Prison to provide increased accommodation. A storey was added to the dormitory block for 100 prisoners and additions were also made to the reception block and the staff quarters. At Tsan Yuk Hospital a storey was added to the end wings at the second floor level to provide additional accommodation for the nursing staff. A flush system was installed at Lai Chi Kok Cholera Hospital. At the former Government Civil Hospital, extensive alterations were carried out to the nursing staff quarters converting the cast block into three self contained flats for the mental hospital staff and the adjoining block into a mental hospital for females. The resident surgeon's quarters were also converted into a temporary Teacher's Training
1931-1939
33
581
College. At each of the refugee camps at North Point, King's Park and Ma Tau Chung, a hospital hut was erected of timber construction with concrete floor containing three wards with lavatories, a consulting room for the medical officer, a dispensary and stores. Work was proceeding with the cutting down, filling and levelling of the ground adjoining Kowloon Hospital to form the necessary sites for a future extension to the present hospital and also for the new Infectious Diseases Hospital. A hutment camp was erected at Argyle Street, Kowloon, for the Chinese interned soldiers. The camp consists of sixteen huts of timber construction with concrete floors and accommodates 800 soldiers with quarters in addition for the guards. It is enclosed by a fence with barbed wire entanglements and watch lowers are provided. The garage block at the Public Works Department was demolished and a building of two storeys was erected on the site to provide additional office accommodation. Six garages were erected at Barker Road adjoining the quarters for senior oflicers. Improvements were carried out at Queen Mary Hospital consisting of the conversion of the food service rooms into additional ward kitchens, fixing grilles and bostwick gates to several doors and windows, the erection of a car shelter and an extension to the existing garage. Owing to the pressure of other architectural projects it was not possible to commence the work of reprovisioning the south block of the Western Market, but the necessary working drawings and details were completed by the end of the year.
Roads.
Among the more important road works completed during the year were the super-elevation of the bends on Stubbs Road between Magazine Gap and Jardine's Corner, and Castle Peak Road, the reconstruction of Macdonnell Road and Tai Lam Chung bridges, access roads to New Kowloon Cemetery No. 8 at Diamond Hill, and Sheung Yuen Ling village, the funds for which were contributed by the villagers, the surfacing of lengths of Chatham and Fanling Roads, and improvements to roads in a number of New Territory villages.
Major works in hand at the end of the year included the super-elevation of the bends on Repulse Bay Road, the construction of Argyle Street extension, road formation in connection with the Wong Nei Cheong development, the widening of Bowen Road and of the road at Castle Peak pier and the widening and raising of the road between Taipo Market and Taipo Land Office.
Drainage.
In Hong Kong new main sewers and storm water drains to a length of 4,809 feet and new open mullahs and channels of varying sections to a length of 530 feet were laid and 174 feet arched over. In addition, 602 feet of parapet walling to open nullahs was constructed. In Kowloon, New Kowloon and New Territories, new main sewers and storm water drains were constructed to a length of 9,273 feet and 648 feet of existing sewer was increased in size. In addition, 486 feet of parapet walling to open nullahs, seventeen feet of double nullah walling, 370 feet of single nullah walling and invert and 5,000 square feet of nullah decking were constructed. A contract was let in October to re-align a nullah in open-cut and 23,000 cubic yards of excavation in earth, boulders and rock were removed.
Anti-malarial work was continued in Hong Kong at Pokfulam between Queen Mary Hospital and Sandy Bay where 2,160 feet of stream-courses were trained.
Waterworks.
In Hong Kong 20,754 feet of mains of various sizes were laid. A 16,000 gallon steel tank was erected on R.B.L. 7, the Peak. Schemes for new filtration plants and service reservoirs at Aberdeen and Pokfulam were put in hand. Nos. 1 and 2 pumping units at Tytam Tuk became unserviceable and were disposed of, and two new pumping units were ordered from England to replace them. Ten waste detection meters were fixed and a number of tests successfully carried out.
In Kowloon and New Kowloon 18,570 feet of mains were laid and 7,540 feet were laid in the New Territories. Four waste detection meters were fixed.
582
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
34
At the low gap, Jubilee Reservoir, a row of interlocking steel sheet piling was driven on instructions from the consulting engineers in an attempt to arrest the leakage.
The rainfall during the year amounted to $6.71 inches which is 2.41 above the average for the past 56 years. The bulk of this rainfall occurred between April and August, and the impounding reservoirs were fuil to capacity on 12 days only in Hong Kong and on 15 days in Kowloon, in May and June. Owing to the large increase in population and consequent record consumption the supply had to be restricted for the greater part of the year, a full supply being given for forly- two days only in Hong Kong and for forty-four days in Kowtoon.
The
Works in connection with the general extension of the Colony's waterworks approved in 1937 were continued. The pumping stations and pipe-lines to Albany and Peak Road and the Peak Road service' reservoir were completed and brought into operation. The two new 21′′ cross harbour pipe-lines were completed. mechanical equipment for the Eastern rapid gravity filters was ordered and enquiries made for the necessary pumping plant. owloon Tsai Service Reservoir was about three quarters completed. The local manufacture of 24′′ mild steel pipes was commenced and the recovery and reconditioning of the 18" cross-harbour main completed for the supply and distribution mains from Kowloon Tsai Service Reservoir. Extensions to the distribution system of the island and mainland were made. The second section of the Shing Min catchwater was nearly completed and the third section commenced. The final extension of the rapid gravity filters of the Shing Mun Valley Scheme was commenced. Preliminary investigations including prickings and borings on the proposed dam site in connection with the Tai Lami Chung Valley Scheme were continued.
In connection with Air Raid Precautions, various waterworks structures were protected by sandbags and railway sleepers and several splinter-proof shelters were commenced. A scheme was prepared for running the waterworks in time of
emergency.
Reclamations.
Reclamations at North Point, Kennedy Town and Kun Tong were continued. The two former are being made by deposits of building debris; the last-named by deposits of town refuse and dredgings. The areas reclaimed by the end of the year were 5.9, 3.2 and 14.5 acres respectively.
Electrical Works.
Repairs were carried out to the submarine cable between the island of Hong Kong and Waglan Lighthouse and steps were being taken to restore communication between Lantau and Cheung Chau islands, the submarine telephone cable having been damaged during the typhoon on 23rd November, 1939.
A certain amount of work was carried out at various refugee camps and a private intercommunication telephone system was installed at Government louse.
Buildings Ordinance Office.
During the year the building industry continued to improve and has now apparently recovered from the slump which has prevailed during recent years. The disturbed conditions in China have continued to contribute to this recovery.
Valuations and Resumptions.
The total valuations made during the year comprised 1,376 hereditaments, with a total estimated value of $11,138,534.69.
Valuations were made for the purpose of resumption for street widenings and the development of areas in accordance with the approved Town Planning Scheme, for the Military Authorities, anti-malarial works, Estate Duty, Exchange and sundry other purposes.
1931-1939
35
583
Valuations comprising 759 hereditaments, with a total estimated value of $7,784,SSS.00 were made for sundry Government Departments.
Town Planning.
A revised layout was prepared for Kowloon Tsai. No other new schemes or revisions of any importance were prepared during 1939, development having been in accordance with the recommendations of the Town Planning Committee of 1922 or with amendments and additions previously reported.
Expenditure.
The average annual expenditure on Public Works for the decade 1910 to 1919 was $2,117,010; 1920 to 1929, $7,410,820; 1930 to 1939, $8,519,732.
Comparative expenditure for 1938 and 1939 is as follows:
1938.
1939.
Public Works Department
$2,213,667.71
$1,856,258.64
Public Works Recurrent :
(a) General
1,811,168.55 1,279,837.52
(b) Water Works
1,063,856.71
Water Works Renewals and Improvements Fund
S0,331.25
Public Works Extraordinary
1,899,902.40
1,817,096.51
Works undertaken and charged to Loan
Accounts
1,657,596.38
1,508,912.71
Miscellaneous Works
555,649.17
461,716.31
Total
$8,137,984.46
$8,068,009.65
Chapter XIII.
JUSTICE AND POLICE.
The Courts of Hong Kong.
THE SUPREME COURT.
[Please see also Chapter XIII. of the 1938 Report.]
The following figures show the amount of work done in the Supreme Court during the year, 1939.
584
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
36
199 actions were instituted in the original jurisdiction;
1,420 actions were instituted in the summary jurisdiction;
157 probates and 227 letters of administration were granted in the probate jurisdiction;
477 persons were indicted at criminal sessions of whom 381 were convicted;
8 appeals were heard against conviction or sentence at criminal sessions;
16 appeals were heard against magisterial decisions;
8 appeals in respect of civil actions were heard.
The number of Trust Estates in the hands of the Official Trustee at the end of the year was nineteen:
During the year, thirty deceased's estates were taken into the custody of the Official Administrator and the administration of twenty estates were completed.
During the year 76 Hong Kong Companies were registered, 8 Hong Kong China Companies were registered and 25 Foreign Corporations were registered.
The total number of Hong Kong Companies now on the register is 703.
The total number of Hong Kong China Companies now on the register is 130.
The total number of Foreign Corporations now on the register is 301.
17 companies are in process of liquidation.
THE LOWER COURTS.
[Please see also Chapter XIII of the 1938 Report.]
The following figures show the amount of work done by the lower courts. in 1939:-
Civil:-
District Officer, North, Land Court
144 cases.
Small Debts Court
District Officer, South, Land Court
Small Debts Court
72
32
67
"3
19
12
1931-1939
37
585
Criminal :-
Hong Kong Magistracy, three courts Kowloon Magistracy, two courts District Officer, North, one court
District Officer, South, one court
29,779 cases.
27,666
"
1,813
670
The figures below show the penalties awarded at the Hong Kong and Kowloon Magistracies in respect of certain cases in 1939:-
Hong Kong.
Kowloon. Total.
Prosecution (against Adults and Juveniles)
29,678 27,641 57,319
Convictions (against Adults and Juveniles)
30,094 26,741 | 56,835
Adult Offenders.
Fined
20,707 16,660 | 37,367
Imprisoned in default of payment of fine
3,996
4,975 8,971
Imprisoned without option of fine
3,222
2,690 5,912
Bound over
1,266
1,718
2,984
Placed under Police Supervision
102
33
135
Cautioned or discharged
2,701
2,379
5,140
Defendants fined and allowed time to pay fine
115
512
627
Juvenile Offenders.
Fined
235
273
508
Sent to Remand Home
138
130
268
Committed to approved institution
14
17
31
Bound over
221
171
392
Placed on probation
51
13
64
Cautioned or discharged
137
114
251
Whipped
125
34
159
Maintenance Cases.
Order made
17
3
20
Order varied
1
1
Committals in default of payment
1
1
586
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
38
Police.
1. The Police Force of the Colony is under the control of the Com- missioner of Police who is assisted by one Deputy Commissioner, twelve Superintendents and one Police Cadet. The Force consists of four contingents, European, Indian, and two Chinese, namely, Cantonesc and Weihaiwci. The strength of the different contingents is as follows:-
Europeans
Indians
Chinese (Cantonese)
Chinese (Weihaiwci).
270
784
843
296
In addition the Police Department controls the Anti-Piracy Guards, a force consisting of 34 Russians, 67 Indian Special Guards and 120 Weihaiwei Chinese Police, who are included in the regular Police establishment.
2. The department also supervises 657 Indian and Chinese Watchmen who are engaged by the Police Department and paid by private individuals for the protection of private property. In addition there are 482 Indian Private Watch- men registered at the Guards Offices.
3. The waters of the Colony are policed by a fleet of ten steam launches and five motor boats which employ a staff of 257 Chinese under European officers.
4. There were 11,804 cases of serious crime in 1939 as against 11,388 in 1938, being an increase of 416 or 3.6%. Amongst the classes of criminal offence showing increases were the following: an increase of 55 arms cases, 292 in deportation, 8 in intimidation and extortion, 186 in larceny, 11 in manslaughter, 18 in murder, 6 in murder attempted, 24 in obtaining by false pretences, 106 in robbery and 1 in women and girls Ord.
the
Amongst the classes of criminal offence showing decreases were following:- -a decrease of 10 serious assault cases, 2 in assault with intent to rob, 84 in burglary, 3 in coinage, 76 in house and godown breaking, 6 in kid- napping, 108 in larceny in dwelling, 31 in larceny on ship and 4 in other serious offence.
There were 41,777 minor cases in 1939 as against 49,555 in 1938, a decrease of 7,668 or 15%.
Prisons.
By the close of 1939 there were three prisons in the Colony, viz:
The Hong Kong Prison at Stanley for convicted males.
The Victoria Remand Prison for inale remands, destitutes, debtors and
deportees.
The Lai Chi Kok Prison for females.
On the 1st of January, 1939, there were in the Hong Kong Prison 12 European, 8 Indian and 2,815 Chinesc prisoners-a total of 2,835.
The highest number of male convicted prisoners recorded in 1939 was 2,978 on the 26th of October. On the 31st of December the number was 2,803.
The Hong Kong Prison at Stanley has remained grossly overcrowded through- out the year.
1931-1939
ვე
The authorized establishment of Subordinate Staff for 1939 was:-
European Officers
Indian Officers
Chinese Staff
Male Staff
Female Officers
Total Subordinate Staff
73
226
62
361
28
389
587
The total number of persons committed to prison in the year 1939 was 16,146 as compared with 15,046 in 1938. The daily average number of prisoners in the prisons in 1939 was:
Hong Kong Prison
2,832
Victoria Remand Prison
Female Prison
88 (from 16.10.-31.12.39) 183.
The highest previous average was 2,556 in 1938. Over 87% of prisoners admitted are persons born outside the Colony. The percentage of convicted prisoners admitted to prison with previous convictions recorded against them was 31.5 as compared with 24.3 in 1938 and 21.6 in 1937. The percentage of male prisoners with previous convictions was 33.1.
No measures exist at present for the mental training of prisoners. Prisoners may, however, purchase books for their own use; they also have access to books, English and Chinese, from the prisoners' library.
Spiritual training is confined to visits paid on Sundays by officially appointed Chaplains and by approved preachers and laymen.
The confinement and training of young offenders is carried out in the Juvenile Remand Home in Hong Kong. The Home is administered by the Commissioner of Police.
No system of after-care is in operation.
The health of the prisoners generally was good and the discipline in the prisons was well maintained.
Prisoners are employed in printing, bookbinding, shoemaking, tinsmithing, matmaking, tailoring, carpentering, weaving, gardening, laundry work, cleaning and minor repairs in buildings. The bulk of Government printing and book- binding is done in the Hong Kong Prison.
The total cost of each prisoner for the year (average) was $302.01.
The cost of feeding each prisoner for the year (average) was $62.89.
Remand Homes.
During the year 247 boys underwent sentences of detention for various crimes at the Remand Home for Juveniles (Boys), and 44 girls underwent detention at the Remand Home for Girls. These institutions are not under prison administration. The boys are given instruction in elementary reading and writing and in rattan work. The girls are given employment in house-work, laundry, and making and mending clothes. There are recreation facilities at both Homes.
There are four Probation Officers, two males and two females, attached to the Homes.
588
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
40
Chapter XIV.
LEGISLATION.
Forty-four ordinances were passed during the year 1939. These, and also the regulations, by-laws and other subordinate legislation enacted during 1939, are published in a separate volume by the Government Printers. The forty-four ordinances comprised two appropriation, five replacement, twenty-eight amendment, and nine ordinances which were new to the Colony.
The Appropriation Ordinance (No. 40) applied a sum not exceeding $49,706.787 to the public service for the year 1939, and Ordinance No. 15 appropriated a supplementary sum of $3,426,243.48 to defray the charges of the year 1938.
The five replacement ordinances were:-
(1) The Defence Contribution Ordinance (No. 8). This ordinance replaced the Defence Contribution Ordinancé, 1901, (No. 1), its amending ordinance, 1935, (No. 43) and various sections of other ordinances dealing with the same matter. It made provision for the Colony's yearly contributions to His Majesty's Government for defence.
(2) The Hydrocarbon Oils Ordinance (No. 11). This ordinance, which replaced the Motor Spirit Ordinance, 1930 (No. 4), its amending ordinances, and all regulations and resolutions made thereunder, consolidated and amended the law relating to the taxation of hydro- carbon oils.
(3) The Registration of Persons Ordinance (No. 12). This ordinance, which replaced the Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1934 (No. 3) and its amending ordinances, consolidated and amended the law relating to the registration of persons.
(4) The Law Revision Ordinance (No. 33). This ordinance which replaced the Law Revision Ordinance, 1937 (No. 27) made provision for minor amendments and repeals in connection with the revision of the ordinances of Hong Kong.
(5) The Prevention of Eviction Consolidation and Amendment Ordinance (No. 44). This ordinance replaced the Prevention of Eviction Ordinance, 1938, and its amending ordinances. In addition to consolidating and amending the previous law it introduced certain restrictions on the issue of distress warrants.
The twenty-eight amending ordinances covered a wide range of subjects, namely-
Asiatic Emigration (No. 1), Criminal Procedure (No. 2), Dangerous Drugs (No. 3), Prevention of Eviction (Nos. 5 and 19), Evidence (No. 6), Offences Against the Person (No. 7), Supreme Court and Full Court Ordinances (No. 10), Protection of Women and Girls (No. 14), Protection of Cruelty to Animals (No. 16), Trustee (No. 17), Ordinances and Regulations of Hong Kong (1937 edition) (No. 18), Merchant Shipping (No. 22), Telecommunication (No. 23), Sterling Salaries Conversion (No. 24), Rating (Nos. 26 and 42), Dangerous Goods (No. 27), Pensions (No. 28), Volunteer (Nos. 29, 37 and 43), Registration of Persons (No. 30), Hydrocarbon Oils (No. 31), Births and Deaths Registration (No. 34), Urban Council (No. 35), Promissory Oaths (No. 39), Vagrancy (No. 41).
The ordinances new to the Colony were:-
(1) The Government House and City Development Fund Winding Up (No. 4). This ordinance repealed the Government House and City Development Scheme Ordinance, 1934 (No. 30), and appropriated to general revenue the balance of the fund established under the repealed ordinance.
1931-1939
11
589
(2) The Incitement to Disaffection Ordinance (No. 9). This ordinance made better provision for the prevention and punishment of endeavours to seduce members of His Majesty's forces etc., from their duty or allegiance.
(3) The Queen Victoria Street Eastward Reclamation and Piers Ordinance (No. 13). This ordinance gave the Director of Public Works provisional authority to construct certain works.
(4) The Town Planning Ordinance (No. 20). This ordinance made provision for the systematic preparation and approval of plans for the future lay-out of urban areas.
(5) The Note-Issuing Banks Extension of Powers Ordinance (No. 21). This ordinance extended for a further period certain powers of the note-issuing banks.
(6) The Naval Volunteer and Defence Ordinance (No. 25). This ordinance amended the Naval Volunteer Defence Ordinance, 1933 (No. 30) and made better provision for the naval defence of the Colony.
(7) The Compulsory Service Ordinance (No. 32). This ordinance made
provision for compulsory service in the Colony.
(8) The Kowloon Union Church Incorporation Ordinance (No. 36). This
ordinance provided for the incorporation of that church.
(9) The Essential Commodities Reserves Ordinance (No. 38). This ordinance provided for the maintenance of reserve stocks of essential commodities and for the registration of importers of such commodities.
The subsidiary legislation covered a wide range of subjects including-
Adulterated Food and Drugs, Advertisements Regulation, Births and Deaths Registration, Buildings, British Nationality and Status of Aliens (Fecs), Companies, Compulsory Service, Dangerous Drugs, Dentistry, Deportation of Aliens, Education, Emergency Regulations, Essential Commodities Reserves, Evidence, Ferries, Hydro- carbon Oils, Immigration and Passports, Importation and Exportation, Jury, Law Revision, Lighting Control, Liquors, Marriage, Medical Registration, Merchant Shipping, Midwives, Naval Volunteer, Naval Volunteer and Defence, Nurses Registration, Nursing and Maternity Homes Registration, Pensions, Pharmacy and Poisons, Pleasure Grounds and Bathing Places Regulation, Police Force, Post Office, Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Prisons, Probates, Public Health (Food and Sanitation), Public Officers (Changes of Style), Public Revenue Protection Quarantine and Prevention of Disease, Rating, Registration of Persons, Rope Company's Tramway, Stamp, Supreme Court, Telecommunication, Trade Marks, Trading with the Enemy, University, Vagrancy, Vehicles and Traffic Regulation, Volunteer, Water- works, Wild Birds.
Factory legislation in the Colony is limited to a single ordinance, The Factories and Workshops Ordinance, No. 18 of 1937, which came into operation on the 1st of January, 1938. There is no legislative provision for compensation for accidents nor for sickness and old age. The introduction of legislation dealing with workmen's compensation is at present under consideration.
590
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
12
Chapter XV.
BANKING, CURRENCY, WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.
The Colony is well served by banking institutions, including branches of English, American, French, Netherlands, Japanese and Chinese banks. Besides the fourteen banks which are members of the Clearing House, there are several Chinese Banks. Many native Ilongs do some banking business. There are no banks which devote themselves especially to agricultural and co-operative banking. The Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation conducts, in addition to its normal banking activities, the business of the Hong Kong Savings Bank on usual savings bank principles. The credit and repute of the Colony's financial institutions are high and it is satisfactory to know that ample encouragement and support are available to finance any possible demand.
The currency of the Colony, which was formerly based on silver, underwent very important changes at the end of 1935. The unit of currency is the Hong Kong dollar, divided into 100 cents. Until 1935 its exchange value fluctuated with the price of silver; but since the passing of the Currency Ordinance on the 5th of December, 1935, the value of the dollar is controlled by an Exchange Fund, which has power to buy and sell foreign exchange, and has taken over the silver formerly held against their issues by the note-issuing banks, in return for certificates of indebtedness against which the Fund may hold bullion, foreign exchange or approved securities. At the 30th of June, 1939 (the latest date for which figures have been made public) the Fund had issued Certificates of Indebtedness to the value of $192,121,887, which is equivalent to £11,907,554 @ 1/23, the middle market rate on that day. The total assets of the Fund amounted to £13,226,195.
The legal tender currency of the Colony is now as follows.:-
(a) Bank notes, the excess of which over the fiduciary issue of each bank
is now backed by certificates, not by silver as formerly :-
at 31.12.39.
-
(i) Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China .... $25,524,024
(ii) Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corporation....$195,232,228
(ii) Mercantile Bank of India
$4,843,727
(b) Government $1 notes, of which $6,443,000 were in circulation at the
end of 1939.
(c) 10 cent and 5 cent nickel coins with the security rim.
(d) 1 cent copper coins.
(e) .800 fine silver sub-coin (10 cent and 5 cent pieces, and a few 50 and 20 cent pieces), which has either remained in circulation in the Colony or filters back into it from the mainland of China, is still legal tender in the Colony. Sub-coin is legal tender only up to an amount of $2.00.
The currency situation remained stable during the year.
The weights and measures in use in the Colony are defined in the Schedule to Ordinance No. 2 of 1885. They consist of the standards in the United Kingdom and of the following Chinese Weights and Measures :-
1 fan (candareen) = 0.0133 ounces avoirdupois.
1931-1939
43
591
1 tsin (mace)
.133
ounces avoirdupois.
1 leung (tael)
1.33
ounces avoirdupois.
1 kan (catty)
1.33
pounds avoirdupois.
1 tam (picul)
pounds avoirdupois.
1 check (foot)
133.33
14 English inches divided into 10 tsun (inches) and each sun into ten fan or tenths.
Chapter XVI.
PUBLIC FINANCE AND TAXATION.
The following tables show the Revenue and Expenditure for the five years 1935 to 1939 inclusive.
Revenue.
Expenditure.
Surplus.
Deficit.
1935.
$28,430,550 $28,291,636 $ 138,194
1936....
30,042,984 29,513,520 529,464
1937...
33,196,368 32,111,222 1,085,146
1938...
36,735,854 37,175,897
440,043
1939.................. 41,478,052
37,949,116 3,528,936
The estimates for 1939 provided for a deficit of $1,659,898, revenue being put at $36,097,325 and expenditure at $37,757,223. No new or increased taxes were imposed during the year. The increase in revenue was due to the diversion of a large proportion of China's trade to ports trading through Hong Kong, which continued through the greater part of 1939, and to the general increase of the Colony's population owing to an influx of refugees which reached its maximum in the latter months of the year. The effect of this increase in population is most clearly seen in the receipts from rates and from import, betting and entertainment duties.
The situation in China and its direct or indirect repercussions on the Colony, particularly as regards emergency relief and two epidemics of discase, were res- ponsible for the large proportion of the increase in expenditure. A new system of accounting, directed by the Secretary of State, and a revision of the method of payment of the Military Contribution also had the effect of weighting the 1939 expenditure in a manner which had not been foreseen when the estimates were prepared, though future liabilities were thereby reduced.
The Public Debt of the Colony at the 31st of December, 1939, was $16,038,000 consisting of two issues: the 4% Conversion Loan of $4,838,000, raised in 1933, the sinking fund of which amounted, on the 31st of December, 1939, to £75,567. 2. 7; and the 3% Dollar Loan raised in July, 1934. This latter loan is redeemable by drawings at par in each of the twenty-five years commencing in 1935 at the annual rate of one twenty-fifth of such issue. The amount outstanding at the 31st of December, 1939, was thus reduced to $11,200,000.
592
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
44
The Assets and Liabilities of the Colony on the 31st of December, 1939, are shewn in the following statement :-
LIABILITIES.
ASSETS.
C.
C.
DEPOSITS:-
CASH:-
Contractors and
Officers
.$ 588,810.00
Current Account
No. 1
.$ 1,137,216.16
Miscellaneous
1,466,962.07
Current Account
2,055,772.07
No. 2
1,571,097.05
Crown Agents for the
Colonies
40,226.49
ESSENTIAL COMMODITIES "R" Account.
1,571,097.05
*Joint Colonial Fund. 2,145,882.36
Imprest Account
10,420.17
SPECIAL FUNDS :-
Subsidiary Coin
35,000.00
King George V
4,939,842.23
Memorial Fund ......$ 158,368.56
FIXED DEPOSITS :-
Chinese Public
Dispensaries Fund
33,160.07
General
.$ 1,050,000.00
District Watchmen's
Miscellaneous
105,464.16
Fund
114,851.31
1,155,464.16
Education Scholarships
6,095,306.39
Fund
86,220.41
ADVANCES
Pending reimbursement from Loans
Praya East
Hoclamation Fund
127.10
31%
392,727.45
Dollar
Loan. $11,140,000.00
NOTE SECURITY FUND
6,396,502.44
Pro-
posed
New
NICKEL COINAGE SECURITY FUND
1,622,272.19
Loan. 2,306,262.30
-$13,446.262.30
WATER WORKS RENEWALS AND
IMPROVEMENTS FUND
Miscellaneous
78,218.02
333,675.75
13,524,480.32
Total Cash and Advances
19,619,786.71
Exchange ADJUSTMENT ACCOUNT
21,713.94
12,393,760.89
RESERVE STOCKS OF ESSENTIAL
COMMODITIES
1,571,097.05
INVESTMENTS, &C., ON ACCOUNT OF
SPECIAL FUNDS :--
Investments
Fixed Deposits
112,250.00
30,000.00
142,250.00
INVESTMENTS, &C., ON ACCOUNT OF
NOTE ISSUE :-
Fixed Deposit
..$ 4,000,000.00
Current Account ..
2,396,502.44
INVESTMENTS, &C., ON ACCOUNT OF
NICKEL COINAGE :-
Sterling Investment ..$ 1,317,987.83
Current Account
GENERAL Revenue Balance
17,091,170.73 SUSPENSE ACCOUNT
TOTAL
29,484,931.62
TOTAL
6,396,502.44
304,284.36
1,622,272.19
133,023.23
*Joint Colonial Fund £133,000. 08. Od.
29,484,931.62
1931-1939
45
593
The main heads of taxation enforced in the Colony, with the yield of each for 1939, are as follows:-
(a) Duties on Liquor, Tobacco, Motor Spirit and Perfumed
Spirit
(b) Port and Harbour Dues
(d) Estate Duty
(c) Rates (Assessed Taxes)
(e) Stamp Duties
(f) Entertainment Tax
(g) Bet and Sweeps Tax
$11,156,449.01
538,358.44 6,789,104.36
721,527.75 2,531,108.72
(h) Miscellaneous Licences
351,988.95
248,713.01
3,231,022.84
Considerable revenue is, however, derived from sources not strictly classifiable
as taxation, i.e.
Excess Water Supply
Post Office
Kowloon-Canton Railway
Land Sales
$2,212,035.34
3,120,758.60
912,904.86 2,139,818.81
The largest item of revenue is derived from the assessment tax (Rates). The sum collected during 1939 represents 16.37% of the total revenue. There is a general rate of 15% plus a water rate of 2% on assessed rateable value. Properties in outlying districts which have unfiltered water pay a water rate of 1%, and this rate is remitted altogether if no water is available.
There is no general customs tariff in Hong Kong, import duties being confined to liquor, tobacco, hydrocarbon oils and perfumed spirit. There is no export tariff. The sale of opium is a Government Monopoly, and all importation of opium other than by Government is prohibited. The importation of dangerous drugs is regulated in accordance with the terms of the Geneva Convention. Arms, ammunition, explosives and dangerous goods are subject to the normal Harbour and Police Regulations in regard to storage and movement. A special Foreign Registration fee of 20% of the value of a motor vehicle is payable in respect of any vehicle not produced within the British Empire.
The duties on imported liquor range from $0.70 per gallon on beer to $1.75 on Chinese liquor and to $26 on sparkling European wines. A reduction in duty is allowed in respect of brandy grown or produced within the British Empire.
The duties on tobacco range from $0.90 per lb. on the lowest taxed unmanu- factured tobacco to $2.60 per lb. on cigars. A reduction in duty is allowed on tobacco of Empire origin and/or of Empire manufacture.
A duty of 60 cents per gallon is payable on all light oils imported into the Colony, and 30 cents per gallon on all heavy hydrocarbon oils used as fuel for any heavy oil road vehicle.
The only form of excise duty is the tax on locally manufactured liquor.
Stamp duties are imposed on various instruments and, where a consideration is involved, are mainly ad valorem. The following are examples of the duties charged:-Affidavits, Statutory Declarations, etc., $3; Bills of Exchange (inward) and Cheques, 10 cents; Bills of Lading, 15 cents when freight is under $5, 40 cents when freight is $5 or over; Bond to secure the payment or repayment of money, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof; Conveyance on sale, $1 for every $100 · or part thereof; Mortgages, principal security, 20 cents for every $100 or part thereof, Life Insurance Policy, 25 cents for every $1,000 insured; Receipts, 10 cents for amount over $20; Transfer of Shares, 20 cents for every $100 of market value.
No Hut Tax or Poll Tax is imposed in the Colony.
594
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
46
J
Chapter XVII.
MISCELLANEOUS.
On the 21st February nine Japanese planes crossed the border into British territory and bombs were dropped at Shum Chun. As a result of the extension of Japanese activities on the border a large influx of refugees entered the Colony and necessitated the re-opening of two refugee camps at North and South Fanling Station on the 21st February. On the following day the Government Medical Department re-opened a third camp at Gill's Cutting. Some 2,000 refugees were accommodated in these camps.
2. In February a restricted steamer service between Canton and Hong Kong was resumed as a result of negotiations between the British and Japanese authorities.
3. In April compulsory registration of British subjects was commenced with the passing of the Registration of Persons Ordinance, No. 12 of 1939. The Compulsory Service Ordinance, No. 32 of 1939, was passed in July. Medical examination under the Ordinance was commenced in August and the first meeting of the Compulsory Service Tribunal was held on the 28th of that month.
4. In July a Town Planning Board was appointed by the Governor. The functions of the Board were to draw up zone schemes and other town plans as advised by the Housing Commission.
The M.S. "Breconshire," the largest vessel to be constructed in Hong Kong dockyards, underwent official trials on the 21st July.
6. On the 27th July the first compulsory blackout exercise took place.
7. On the 15th August a Hong Kong-Manila-Chungking radio telephone service was inaugurated. This service was, however, suspended on the out-break of war.
8. Two committees were appointed by the Governor during the year namely, a Nutrition Research Committee on the 9th January and an Income Tax Committee which held its first meeting on the 3rd November.
9. Rear-Admiral A.J.L. Murray was appointed to the newly created post of Rear-Admiral of the 5th Cruiser Squadron on the China Station as from 14th April.
10. Many war time innovations centre round the declaration of war with Germany on 3rd September. Press censorship was instituted on 26th August. The control of shipping and aircraft was announced on 3rd September.
Many local German residents were interned in La Salle College immediately on the outbreak of war.
On 8th September _control of foreign exchange was instituted and on 9th September the liquidation of German firms was commenced. The Chinese and Sikh community in the Colony sent loyal messages to the Governor pledging their support of the British Crown. Control of food prices was announced on 5th September.
11. Among the Honours conferred by His Majesty during the year were :-
New Year Honours.
C.B.E.-Hon. Mr. R. M. Henderson, M.I.C.E., C.C.E., M.I.M.E., M.I.W.E.
(Civil Division)-Mr. M. F. Key.
O.B.E.
M.B.E. (Civil Division)-Chief Inspector A. K. Taylor.
Birthday Honours.
O.B.E. (Civil Division)-Prof. K. H. Digby.
M.B.E. (Military Division)-Capt. J. S. Rodrigues.
east view
INFORMATION SERVICES
10
35
45
596
Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941
50*
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MAIN ROADS.
BRANCH ROADS
FOOTPATHS__
STREAMS --
RAILWAY ---
NAVIGATION LIGHTS.
REFERENCES
WIRELESS TELEGRAPH STATIONS.
POLICE STATIONS_
BOUNDARY UNDER CONVENTION OF 1898 -
HEIGHTS IN FEET.
FERRY SERVICES
AIR ROUTES - -
--W.T.S.
P.S..
"27′′ S′ 1. LAT.
--1800
AIR
10
FRANCE AND IMPERIAL AIRWAYS TO FURE BAM
INCH TO MILES
ANI HANO!
20
MILES
AMERICAN AIRWAYS TO MANILA
23
HAM O
MIRS PT.
114 SO E.
LONG OF GREENWICH
30'
597
30
25'
+
20'
22° 15′ N. LA
10