coolie hongs and boat people, and the delays occasioned to European traders by their antiquated methods of handling cargo. Often seven or eight days were wasted through these methods, and the advent of a European-managed concern was welcomed by the community as a means of escape from such vexations. Faced with competition, the Chinese changed their tactics, and an endless struggle ensued between the rival interests. The coolies, tallymen, and boat people would not work so well for the Company as they worked for their own countrymen; and when, as their business extended, the Company needed additional lighters, the Chinese, without reason or justification, gradually raised their charges from $4 a load to $15, and the Company were obliged to build their own fleet of lighters. Similarly the coolie hongs combined to raise the price of labour; but again their purpose was defeated, for the Company, compelled to import its own labour from Swatow, has continued the practice ever since. The experience of the Company has shown clearly that so far as Hongkong is concerned the much-vaunted cheap Chinese labour has no existence when it comes to the Europeans' demand, and that, whilst there are millions within easy reach of Hongkong who would be willing to work, labour is scarce on account of the guilds. There is practically no free labour in the Colony, for no labourer or mechanic coming to Hongkong on his own account, without the introduction of one of these guilds, would be likely to secure employment. It pays the European to employ better supervised, if perhaps more expensive, labour than is obtainable from the ranks of the local coolie. Another enemy of the Company has been the Chinese compradore, a survival of the early days when the only persons who could communicate with the ships in a foreign language were the bumboat people—the class from which the modern compradore originally sprang. In the majority of instances the compradore is the real retail trader in Hongkong, the foreigner supplying capital and exercising limited supervision. And so it was with tally-clerks, but this question has now been practically solved by the Company. The system in vogue of training boys to become tally-clerks in the Company's own private school, which has an average attendance of forty, has shown the most encouraging results. The boys are engaged in godown work during the fore-part of the day, and attend school during the afternoon, instruction being given by two Chinese teachers from Queen's College. The Swatow coolies, specially trained for godown work, are housed on the premises. Altogether about fifteen hundred men are employed.
The premises of the Company could hardly be more perfectly situated for the purposes for which they are required, and it is largely owing to their development that the aspect of Kowloon has been so changed within the last twenty years. After the first few years, amalgamation with the Jardine Wharf was effected, and the Peninsular and Oriental Company's Wharf at West Point was purchased. This latter was afterwards sold, and only Jardine's godowns were allowed to remain, the object being to concentrate the whole of the business on the Kowloon side of the wafer. The next step in the progress of the Company was an extensive scheme of reclamation at West Point, and upon the property so acquired now stands a large portion of the existing premises in that part of the town used exclusively for Chinese business. The enterprise prospered as soon as the reluctance of some of the sea-captains and others to use the Kowloon wharves had been overcome, and improvements and enlargements succeeded each other until, at the present day, no other firm can offer such facilities in Hongkong. The wharves and piers range from 250 to 600 feet in length, and afford berths for seven ocean going vessels up to 30 feet draught. A water system of pure filtered water from the Government mains is laid on to each wharf, so that vessels alongside can obtain an ample supply under high pressure at all times. The buildings occupy the entire western side of the peninsula, and form one of the features of the harbour. The godowns, which have a storage capacity of nearly 500,000 tons, are arranged so as to give every possible facility for the handling of cargo. There are shearlegs for hoisting loads up to 25 tons, heavy-weight cranes, and trolley lines upon which cargo may be transported to any part of the premises. In the Company's own engineering shops many of the requisites, such as turntables, trucks, &c., formerly imported, are now made, and repairs of all kinds are carried out. The number of vessels wharfed averages from thirty to forty from all parts of the world each month. Constant dredging is maintained alongside the wharves to ensure accommodation for the steamers of larger draught now employed on the Far Eastern trade routes, the minimum depth at lowest spring tides being 30 feet. The Company has a fleet of 85 lighters, and 10 powerful launches for towing them. Some of these are provided with steam cranes for delivering cargo at riverain ports as far as Canton, and it is a point well worth noting by shippers at home that heavy or awkward cargo, including all kinds of railway material, can be loaded into the Company's lighters and taken direct to their destination. Many of the lighters are new, for in the great typhoon of 1906 nearly the whole of the original fleet was destroyed. The Company was, indeed, one of the greatest losers in the havoc wrought on that occasion, the total damage to their property running into many hundreds of thousands of dollars. The godowns were flooded, and severe damage was wrought to the wharves; but the Company met their losses in the right spirit, increased their capital to $3,000,000 (Mexican), and turned the experience to account by raising the floors of their premises well above the highest flood mark, and by rebuilding the wharves more substantially. The old truck lines were left at the former level to act as drains in the event of further floods.
Another extension was carried out, when further capital had been raised, by the acquisition of the whole of the Praya front, and the removal of the Star Ferry Wharf, by which greater facilities were obtained for handling goods. On the sea-wall there are now three new lines of truck rails, and one line for carrying several powerful travelling cranes, including a 10-ton crane of 40 feet radius for loading timber. Throughout the godowns every precaution is taken against fire, including a complete system of fire hydrants, connected with the Government mains, a powerful Shand & Mason steam engine, and electric alarms. Each godown, in addition, is provided with a portable hand-engine, fire-buckets, &c. For goods of a dangerous nature there is special storage accommodation.
The business of the Company is managed by the Hon. Mr. E. Osborne, the secretary, who has been connected with the Company since 1889, and has had an important share in its development. Mr. R. J. Macgowan, who has general charge of the indoor working staff, has been with the Company for seven years. Captain Brown has charge of the outdoor staff, whilst Mr. T. W. Robinson is the superintending engineer.
THE PENINSULAR AND ORIENTAL COMPANY.
No other shipping company has a record of the same length of public service, combined with such a wide range of operations, as the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company. Whether in point of tonnage (and that of the most costly description) or in the extent of its sphere of operations, the Company must be admitted to stand at the head of all similar enterprises. Like most commercial undertakings, the Company has now and then experienced serious reverses, and on more than one occasion its fortunes have been at a rather low ebb, but now, after nearly three-quarters of a century's work, it will hardly be denied that there stands to its credit a record of valuable service, performed in a spirit of enterprise, and fraught with advantage to the commerce of the Empire.
The Company was founded in 1837, although the steamers which it owned had actually been running to the Peninsula a year or two previous to that date, its first contract being a monthly service between Falmouth and Gibraltar. At that time it was known as the Peninsular Company, but in 1840 it became the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company, incorporated by Royal Charter. Seventy years ago the annual trade of Great Britain with the East did not amount probably to more than £20,000,000. To-day it is almost equal to £250,000,000. To what extent the Company may have contributed towards the growth of this vast volume of commerce it is, of course, impossible to say, but when it is remembered that for upwards of thirty-three years the Company was almost the exclusive carrier by steam to India, China, and Australia, and that during that period the correspondence, the exchanges, the transport of bullion and of the more precious merchandise (to say nothing of the conveyance of passengers), depended entirely upon its fleet, it is evident that its influence in fostering this trade has been equal to, if not greater than, that of any other single agency in existence.
The shipbuilding operations of the Company during the last seventy years might be considered as typical of the development of the mercantile marine of Great Britain. The service commenced with two or three very small steamers, of which one, the William Fawcett, was of only 206 tons. Three of the four steamers that are being built at the present time are of 11,000 tons each, and the fleet to-day, including these, consists of ninety steamers, aggregating 422,260 tons. From these figures it is not difficult to realise how the Company has grown, and what an important place it holds in the shipping world to-day. The Government, recognising its stability and trustworthiness, have granted it additional powers from time to time by Royal Charters. The issued capital amounts to £2,320,000, the debenture stock to £1,800,000, and the unissued capital to £1,180,000. The last available report shows a fair result, from a financial point of view, of the previous half-year's work, and a dividend at the rate of 5 per cent. per annum on the preferred stock, and 7 per cent. per annum on the deferred stock, was declared in June, 1907.
Such, in brief and broad outline, is the general history of the Company. But turning
