# Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China/Social and Professional Biographies

SOCIAL AND PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHIES.
SIR HENRY SPENCER BERKELEY, KT., formerly Attorney-General, Hongkong, was born on September 6, 1851, and having been educated for the legal profession was called to the Bar by the Inner Temple, in 1873. He went to the Leeward Islands in 1877 as Attorney-General, and became, in 1878, Solicitor-General, and, in 1883, Acting Colonial Secretary. From 1885 to 1889 he was Attorney-General for Fiji, and in the latter year he became Chief Justice. For a time he acted as Administrator, until in June, 1902, he arrived in Hongkong to take up the position of Attorney-General. On two occasions he acted as Chief Justice. He resigned his appointment in 1906, relinquishing the duties early in the following year, upon the arrival of Mr. Rees-Davies. Sir Henry, who is married to Katherine, a daughter of S. S. Cassin, of Antigua, West Indies, is a member of the Junior Carlton (London) and Hongkong Clubs, and is chairman of the Hongkong Volunteer Reserve Association. He resides at the Peak, Hongkong.
MR. MATTHEW JOHN D. STEPHENS, Hongkong's senior legal practitioner, comes from an old legal family, his father and grandfather having practised as solicitors in Chatham, Kent, for over 100 years. Admitted a Solicitor at home in 1863, Mr. Stephens came to Hongkong in August, 1872, and was admitted a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of the Colony in January, 1873. At that time there were only three legal firms established on the island, including the one which Mr. Stephens joined. He is a Conveyancer, and Proctor of the Supreme Court of Hongkong, Notary Public, and Patent and Trade Mark Agent. He is also a member of the Law Society and a Solicitor of His Britannic Majesty's Supreme Court for China and Korea. His residence in the Colony has only been broken by short trips to England, with the exception of one lasting about two years, so that all his interests are centred in Hongkong. His offices are at No. 18, Bank Buildings, Queen's Road Central.
MR. CHARLES DAVID WILKINSON, senior partner of the legal firm of Messrs. Wilkinson & Grist, is one of the oldest practitioners in the Colony. Born on June 21, 1860, he was educated for the legal profession, and in 1882 was admitted a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Judicature, England. Four years later he sailed for Hongkong, where he quickly made his way to the front rank of the local Bar. He is Notary Public and Commissioner to take acknowledgments of married women. He has written several books on legal subjects, including an authoritative volume on the local law relating to trademarks, and is a member of the committee of the Hongkong Law Society. He lives at "The Falls," a picturesque residence on the Peak, and is a member of the Peak, Hongkong, and "Thatched House" (London) Clubs.
MR. GEORGE ANDREW HASTINGS, who is at the present time managing the practice of Messrs. Hastings & Hastings, is a member of the committee of the local branch of the Law Society. He was born in 1865, and was educated at Uppingham School. He is a member of the Hongkong Club, and lives at the Peak.
MR. JOHN HASTINGS, the other partner in the firm of Messrs. Hastings & Hastings, was born in January, 1862, and was also educated at Uppingham. He is a member of the "Thatched House" Club (London), the Hongkong Club, and the Royal Hongkong Yacht Club. His address is "Slemish," the Peak, Hongkong.
MR. GODFREY CORNEWALL CHESTER MASTER, head of the legal firm of Johnson, Stokes & Master, came to the Colony in March, 1884, and joined the firm of Edmund Sharp & Toller, which since the year 1890 has been known as Johnson, Stokes & Master. Mr. A. B. Johnson and Mr. A. P. Stokes have no longer any connection with the firm, which now consists of Mr. Master and Mr. Herbert Johnson George, who came out to the Colony in 1890. The following solicitors are at present connected with the firm as managing clerks: Messrs. H. G. C. Bailey, R. F. C. Master, W. J. Daniel, and A. G. Jackson (a nephew of Sir Thomas Jackson, one of the most prominent men in the financial history of the Colony). The firm is well represented in the field of sport. Mr. Master has for many years been connected with racing, both as an owner and as an amateur rider, and for a good many years rowed regularly in the annual regattas of the Victoria Recreation Club with no little success. Mr. Bailey and Mr. Daniel are both seen to advantage on the football field, and a representative of the firm is more often than not to be found taking part in local sport and amusements, but pleasure is never allowed to interfere with business.
​ MR. J. SCOTT HARSTON, a member of the legal firm of Ewens & Harston, is a Solicitor and Notary Public and also a Commissioner to administer oaths for the High Court of Australia and the Supreme Courts of New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, and Western Australia. He was born in 1872, and was educated at Thorparch Grange, Yorkshire. He served his articles in Leeds and London, qualifying in 1895. For five years he was managing clerk to Messrs. Ford & Warren, solicitors, of Leeds, and, coming to Hongkong in 1900, he was admitted into partnership with Mr. Creasy Ewens two years later. He is on the committee of the local Law Society. He is also a director of the National Bank of China, Ltd., A. S. Watson & Co., Ltd., Humphreys Estate and Finance Company, Ltd., and the "South China Morning Post," Ltd. Mr. Harston, who is a member of the Hongkong Club and of the Junior Athenieum, London, lives at No. 4, Clifton Gardens, Conduit Road.
MR. G. K. HALL BRUTTON.— A leading firm of lawyers in Hongkong is that of Messrs. Brutton & Hett, whose offices are situated in Des Voeux Road Central. The practice was founded by Mr. K. W. Mounsey, who retired in 1903 and is now in Tientsin. Mr. G. K. Hall Brutton was born in England, and was admitted a Solicitor in the English Courts. He went to Shanghai in 1892, and joined the legal firm of which Mr. W. V. Drummond was the head. Five years later he joined Mr. Mounsey as a partner in Hongkong. After the retirement of Mr. Mounsey, Mr. Brutton conducted the business for some years on his own account. In 1905, however, he took Mr. F. Paget Hett into partnership. Messrs. Brutton & Hett besides being qualified to appear before the local Courts, have been duly admitted as SoHcitors of His Britannic Majesty's Supreme Court for China and Korea. Mr. Brutton takes a keen interest in sport, and especially in the turf, being well known as a pony owner and amateur jockey. Shooting is another favourite recreation. He is sergeant of the Hongkong Mounted Troop, with which he has been connected since it was formed, at the instigation of Sir Matthew Nathan, some three years ago.
MR. PHILIP WALLACE GOLDRING, B.A. Oxon., the head of the legal firm of Goldring, Barlow & Morrell, was born on March 15, 1875, and educated at Woking School, Clifton College, and Trinity College, Oxford. At the University he obtained honours in classical moderations and in the final school of jurisprudence. Admitted a Solicitor in 1899, he was a member of the firm of Brutton, Hett & Goldring, until April, 1906, when he started to practise on his own account. Mr. Goldring is an enthusiastic sportsman, his recreations including football, cricket, shooting and fishing. He lives at "Parkside," Kowloon, and is a member of the Hongkong Club and the Sports Club, London.
MR. HERBERT WILLIAM LOOKER, a partner of the firm of Messrs. Deacon, Looker & Deacon, solicitors, was born on December 2, 1871. He was admitted a Solicitor in 1894, and arrived in Hongkong in December of the following year. He is a member of the Hongkong Club, and resides at the Peak.
MR. OSWALD DYKES THOMSON, Solicitor and Notary Public, Hongkong, was born on July 25, 1870, and was educated at University College School, London. He matriculated in 1887, and was admitted a Solicitor in England in April, 1892. Five years later he came to Hongkong as an assistant to Messrs. Deacon & Hastings, and, in 1903, started practice on his own account. He resides at the Peak, and is a member of the Peak Club, of which for a short time he acted as honorary secretary.
MR. F. X. d'ALMADA e CASTRO, senior member of the firm of d'Almada & Smith, solicitors, of No 33, Queen's Road, Hongkong, was born in Hongkong in January, 1869. His family is of Portuguese extraction, and has been connected with the Colony practically since its foundation. His father was for some years in the office of the Commissioner of Trade at Macao, but shortly after the British occupation of Hongkong he came to this Colony, and for forty years was connected with the public service. Mr. F. X. d'Almada received his education at St. Joseph's English College, Hongkong, and was then articled to Mr. C. D. Wilkinson. He passed his final examination on August 13, 1897, and towards the end of the same month was admitted to practice as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of Hongkong. He continued for a time to act as managing clerk for the firm of Messrs. Williamson & Grist, but in 1901 he commenced practice in the Hongkong Courts on his own account, eventually founding the firm of which he is now the head.
MR. ROBERT GORDON SHEWAN, the senior partner in the firm of Shewan, Tomes & Co., has been a prominent figure in the commercial life of the Colony for nearly thirty years. Born in i860, he came to Hongkong at the age of twenty-one in connection with Messrs. Russell & Co., then one of the largest mercantile firms in the East. He subsequently took over the business of this house, and founded the firm of Shewan, Tomes & Co., which, under his guidance, has prospered exceedingly. In 1902 Mr. Shewan was chosen to represent the interests of the Chamber of Commerce on the Legislative Council, and he retained his seat on that body until April, 1906, when he resigned in order to travel abroad. He was a member also of the committee appointed by the Government to report on the subsidiary coinage question. His participation in the public life of the Colony was a marked success, for, besides bringing to bear upon large administrative problems that keen business acumen so essential to their successful solution, he is a pleasing and fluent speaker of far more than average ability. He is a director of the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation and of several local companies. A variety of interests occupy his leisure, and most of the sporting clubs in the Colony claim his support; he also retains his membership of the "Thatched House," London, and the "Calumet," New York.
MR. A. SHELTON HOOPER, secretary of the Hongkong Land Investment and Agency Company — an appointment which he has held since 1889 — has been very intimately associated with the endeavours which have been made to improve the sanitary condition of the Colony. Born in 1859, and educated at Newton Abbot College, Devon, he came to Hongkong in 1886, having been appointed to the Civil Service by the Secretary of State for the Colonies. For three years he was employed under the Government Rating Ordinances as Municipal Rates Valuer and Assessor, but in 1889 he resigned to take up his present appointment. In 1890 he was made a Justice of the Peace, and in 1906 he was elected a member of the Sanitary Board. On May 11, 1906, he was appointed a member of the commission which sat for ten months to inquire into the administration of the Sanitary and Building Regulations enacted by the Public Health and Buildings Ordinance of 1903. As one of the authorised architects under that Ordinance he was eminently qualified for the duties which devolved upon him in connection with the inquiry. He is president of the Devonian Society of Hongkong, and is a member of the Hongkong, Royal Hongkong Golf, and Cricket Clubs. He resides at "Rougemont," MacDonnell Road, Hongkong.
MR. J. R. MICHAEL, J.P., who was born in 1860, has been connected with the Colony for nearly thirty-four years, and during that time has taken a keen interest in local commercial enterprises. He is head of the firm of Messrs. J. R. Michael & Co., who have for many years carried on an extensive business as commission agents, stock and general brokers, and merchants. Seventeen years ago he was joined by his nephew, Mr. S. H. Michael, who is now a partner, and has sole charge of the Company's interests in Hongkong. Mr. Joseph R. Michael, who is a Justice of the Peace for the Colony, has travelled considerably, and was one of the first passengers by the Hankow-Peking Railway before the Yellow River Bridge was completed. He is a strong advocate of a stable currency for Hongkong irrespective of China. His recreations are chiefly gardening, swimming, and racing, and he acts as official timekeeper to the local Jockey Club, of which he is a member. Other clubs to which he belongs are the Grosvenor, the Piccadilly, and the Hongkong Cricket Club. He lives at No. 4, Century Crescent, Hongkong.
MR. ERNEST MANNING HAZELAND, civil engineer and architect, was born in 1870 and educated at the Diocesan School, Hongkong. He entered the Public Works Department in 1888, but twelve years later started in practice on his own account. His chief recreation is yachting ; he was one of the promoters of the Corinthian Yacht Club and is now its vice-commodore. He is a member of the Royal Hongkong Yacht Club, the Jockey Club, and the Hongkong Club. His offices are at No. 33, Queen's Road Central.
MR. HENRY PERCY WHITE, the chairman of the Hongkong Club for 1907-8, was born at Highgate in 1863, and was educated at the Merchant Taylors' School. He joined a London firm engaged in the tea trade in 1878, and, eight years later, went out to Formosa. He remained there until 1900, when he entered the firm of Messrs. Douglas Lapraik & Co., for whom he has been the manager in Hongkong since Mr. Lewis left the Colony. He has been a member of the Hongkong Club since 1898. ​He is also a member of the Peak, the Germania, and various local sporting; clubs. His chief recreation is racing. He resides at No. 32, Robinson Road.
MR. A. A. H. BOTELHO, who is a well-known merchant of Hongkong and a partner in the firm of Messrs. Barretto & Co., was appointed Consul in the Colony for the Republic of Nicaragua in January, 1905. He is a son of the late Mr. A. A. H. Botelho, for many years a prominent resident in Hongkong, and was married in December, 1905, to Sarah, daughter of Mr. J. A. dos Remedios.
MR. F. D. BARRETTO, Consul for Mexico in Hongkong, Canton, and the Provinces of the two Kwangs and Yunnan, was born in the Colony, and was educated at Queen's College. He is now a partner in the firm of Messrs. Barretto & Co. In 1905 he was elected a life member of the Society of Arts and Manufactures; in 1906, a member of the Japan Society; in the same year was appointed Magistrate for the State of Queensland, Australia; and in 1907, was elected a Fellow of the Geographical Society of Lisbon. His wife is a daughter of Mr. K. Jones, Commercial Agent in the East for the State of Queensland.
DR. A. S. GOMES, the oldest representative of the medical profession in the Colony, is a native of the neighbouring Portuguese Colony of Macao. After receiving his professional training in Bombay, London, and Edinburgh, he commenced practice in Hongkong in 1867. He quickly established a high reputation, and was actively and busily engaged with his professional duties until 1894, in which year he retired. Dr. Gomes has for many years taken a great interest in charitable work in the Colony. He was the donor of the Kowloon Catholic Church, a pretty building facing the harbour at Kowloon. He also established a school and orphanage close to the church, which is superintended by the sisters of the Italian Convent. Here a small number of orphans receive an excellent education, and a considerable amount of assistance in various ways. Dr. Gomes was responsible, too, for starting the Wanchai Hospital for the aged and infirm. As a reward for his many services in these and other directions, Dr. Gomes received from the Pope the Order of St. Gregory. He resides at Gomes Villas, Kowloon.
MR. MARCUS WARRE SLADE, Barrister-at-Law, was born in 1865, and was educated at Clifton and at New College, Oxford. Called to the Bar of the Inner Temple in 1891, he practised in London for five years before coming to Hongkong early in 1907. He has chambers in Prince's Buildings, Ice House Street, and resides at "Lewknor," Mount Gough. He is a member of the United University, the Hongkong, and the Royal Hongkong Yacht Clubs.