its telegraphic address being "Caldbeck, Hongkong." The wines and spirits supplied by Messrs. Caldbeck, Macgregor & Co., are all of good quality, but the connoisseur will agree that their V.O.S. whisky merits particular mention. The local office is at No. 15. Queen's Road.
SPERRY FLOUR COMPANY.
The Sperry Flour Company has been interested in the flour trade of the Colony for upwards of forty years—a period considerably longer than any other similar company—and during the whole of this time it has lost no opportunity of studying the requirements of Eastern buyers, with the object of pushing business throughout the Empire of China. Starting in 1852 with a small mill at Stockton that had a capacity of 100 barrels, the Company—incorporated in 1884, and reincorporated under the laws of California in 1892—now has a larger output than any other flour-milling enterprise on the Pacific coast. There are eleven mills, ten of them situate in California and one in Tacoma, Washington, with a daily capacity of 10,000 barrels, or 40,000 sacks. The Company's chief brands of flour are Sperry's xxx or Green Girl, Pioneer or Mandarin, Anchor, Charm, Day, and Junk.
The president of the Company is Mr. Horace Davis, and the managing directors are Messrs. James Hogg and H. B. Sperry. The headquarters are at No. 133, Spear Street, San Francisco. There are branches at No. 13, Nanking Road, Shanghai, where Mr. J. R. Hargreaves is manager; and at No. 24, Robinson Road, Singapore, where Mr. C. E. Richardson is in charge. The office at No. 7, Redder Street, Hongkong, however, exercises a controlling influence over the whole of the Asiatic business, and here Messrs. W. S. Allen and G. V. Hayes are the resident managers.
THE STOCKTON MILLING COMPANY.
Many thousands of tons of flour are consigned to Hongkong each year by the Stockton Milling Company, whose mills are located at Stockton, in the county of San Joaquin, which is in the centre of the valley of that name, reputed to be one of the best wheat-growing districts in California, The total capacity of the mill is 2,000 barrels, or 200 tons, a day, and there is warehouse accommodation for 10,000 tons of flour and 20,000 tons of wheat. The mill, which has a larger capacity than any other in the State, has been continuously operated since March, 1882, under the same management, and the highest standard of efficiency has been maintained throughout by the introduction of the latest type of machinery, to keep pace with modern inventions. The mill is situated on the banks of a tributary of the San Joaquin River, and is in close touch with the port of San Francisco both by water and rail, the cost of transportation thus being nominal. The best known brands of the Company are the Crown, Brown Bear, Crescent, and Orient. The first of these is the finest flour exported from America, and enjoys a high reputation throughout the East. The Company, who formerly were represented in Hongkong by agents, opened an office in Queen's Buildings about seven years ago, to deal with the growing volume of business in the Orient. Their representative in the East is Mr. T. W. Hornby.
GIBB, LIVINGSTON & CO.
It was in 1836 that Messrs. Gibb, Livingston & Co. established themselves in Canton. They extended their operations to Hongkong and Shanghai as soon as these places were opened to trade, and, subsequently, established a branch at Foochow. Their business increased rapidly, and now, as general merchants and agents, their house is amongst the most important and best-known in the Colony. Their many agencies at Shanghai, include the Shanghai Land Investment Company; the China Fire Insurance Company, Ltd.; the North British and Mercantile Fire Insurance Company; the "Allianz" Vers. Aktien Ges. in Berlin; United States Lloyds; Indemnity Mutual Marine Insurance Company, Ltd.; Lloyds London; the London Salvage Association; the Liverpool Salvage Association; the Maritime Insurance Company, Ltd., Liverpool; the Underwriting and Agency Association (composed of underwriting members of Lloyds only); the Eastern and Australian Steamship Company; and the Ben Line of Steamers. In Hongkong they are agents for the British North Borneo Government; the Hongkong Electric Company; the Ben Line of Steamers; the Eastern and Australian Steamship Company, Ltd.; the South African Line of Steamers; the Australian Alliance Association Company (Marine); the Northern Fire and Life Assurance Company; the North Queensland Insurance Company, Ltd.; the Shanghai Land Investment Company, Ltd.; the Shanghai Gas Company, Ltd.; the Shanghai Tug and Lighter Company, Ltd.; and the Weihaiwei Land and Building Company, Ltd. At Foochow their agencies include the Union Insurance Society, of Canton, Ltd.; the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company; the Ben Line of Steamers; the Eastern and Australian Steamship Company; and the North British and Mercantile Insurance Company. The firm's offices in Hongkong are situated in York Buildings.
BRADLEY & CO.
The firm of Bradley & Co. was first established in Swatow, and now has branches in various parts of China. The trade carried on by the Company covers a very wide area, and consists chiefly of coal, shipping, and general imports. There is a branch of the business in Shanghai, and in 1893 offices were opened in Hongkong. This policy of extension has been amply justified by results. The partners in the firm are Messrs. T. W. Richardson (Swatow), R. H. Hill (London), A. Macgowan (Swatow), A. Forbes (Hongkong), and G. A. Richardson (Shanghai). Mr. A. Forbes is the partner in charge of the Hongkong branch.
HONGKONG'S OLDEST GERMAN HOUSE.
The firm of Siemssen & Co. is but a few years junior to the Colony itself. The history of the Company dates from 1846, when, according to a circular still preserved in the Hongkong office, Mr. G. T. Siemssen, who up till that time had been connected with Messrs. T. E. Vidal & Co., of Batavia, as manager of their China department, decided to start business in China on his own account. Supported by prominent firms like Messrs. Fredk. Huth & Co., of London, and R. L. Fould & Fould Oppenheim, of Paris, he chartered the good sailing ship Paul for a voyage to Canton, loading her with every class of goods that seemed likely to be saleable in China. He arrived at Canton in 1847, and met with such success that a year later he had completed arrangements for the opening of offices in Canton. On January 1, 1848, Messrs. Siemssen were permanently established in the city. In 1855, only twelve years after the then pirate-infested and barren island of Hongkong had been formally ceded to Great Britain, Messrs. Siemssen extended their operations to the Colony. At this time on the site of the present city of Victoria there was merely a straggling village with but few European business houses, less than half a dozen of which remain at the present day. Siemssen & Co. are thus in the proud position of being the pioneer firm of the many powerful German houses which now conduct operations in the Colony. In 1865, the headquarters of the house were transferred to Hamburg, where Mr. G. T. Siemssen
