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HONG KONG.
Constitution and Government.
The colony of Hong Kong, formerly an integral part of China, was ceded to Great Britain in January 1841 ; the cession was con- firmed by the treaty of Nankin, in August 1842 ; and the charter bears date April 5, 1843. Hong Kong is mainly a factory for British commerce with China, and a military and naval station for the protection of that commerce.
The administration of the colony is in the hands of a Governor, aided by an Executive Council, composed of the Colonial Secretary, the officer commanding the troops, and the Attorney-General. There is also a Legislative Council, presided over by the Governor, and composed of the Chief Justice, the Colonial Secretary, the Attorney-General, the Treasurer, the Auditor- General, the Sur- veyor-General, and three unofficial members nominated by the Crown, on the recommendation of the Governor.
Governor of Hong Kong. — Sir Richard Graves MaoDonnell, Knt. ; educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and graduated B.A. 1835, MA., 1838, hon. LL.D., 1844 ; called to the bar in Ireland, 1838, and at Lincoln's Inn, London, 1840 ; chief justice of the Gambia colony from 1843 to 1847 ; governor of Gambia from 1847 to 1851; conducted several exploring expeditions up the Gambia, and in the interior of Africa, between that river and the Senegal ; governor of St. Lucia and St. Vincent, in 1852 ; captain-general and governor- in-chief of South Australia, 1855 to 1862 ; governor of Novia Scotia, 1864-65 ; appointed governor of Hong Kong, 1865.
The Governor has a salary of 5,000/. per annum.
Revenue and Expenditure.
The occupation of Hong Kong at its outset was effected at con- siderable cost to Imperial funds, the vote from Parliament in the year 1845 being nearly 50,000/. in addition to military expenditure. The colony may be considered to have paid its local establishments in 1855, since which year it has held generally a surplus of revenue over and above its fixed expenditure.
The public revenue and expenditure of the colony in each of the five years from 1864 to 1868 were as follows: —
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