The Sun.
London, England, 1854-07-28 00:00:00

HONG KONG.

Hunl Kong is a mass of sterile granite, sepa-
rated fruit the mainland by a narrow channel—it
lies at the entrance of the estuary of the river of
Canton and almost on the very Tropic, in the very
centre of the region of typhoons. Its only advan-
tages are its vicinity to the emporium of Canton
ant a good harbour. A better locality might assn -
edly have been selected, but, such as it is, we proceed
to describe its progress during the twelve years it
has been a British possession. In 1844 its popula-
tion, wholly Chinese, amounted to 19,463 souls. In
1849 its inhabitants of all descriptions were 29,507,
and last year they had risen to 39,017, so that in ten
years' time the population had more than doubled.
Thu ingredients of this population are curious and
various. Tue mass of it, of course, consists of Chinese,
for in 1853 these amounted to 37,536, or to 96 in a
100 of the whole. Die Europeans and Americans,
the maser race, amounted only to the poor fraction
of 496, or about one-eightieth part. The rest of the
population is mole up of a in ,st, heterogeneous as•
sent dage of melt ofcolour—Portuguese of M teau and
Goa, the bastard descendants of Vascolli and
his contpani, ms—of Parsees, H in, loos, and Malanne-
ans, from }l;ndoAtan—of Malays and Javanese from
the Indian Archipela,,,o ; anti of 13isavas and Ta-
galas, from the Philippine islands. All these, of
whatever complexion, claim to be subjects i f Queen
Victor,a, and are governed by the laws of England.
The number of the female inhabitants is but 9,000,
which gives three men to every woman, a condition
of things extremely prejudicial to good morals,
giving Hong Kong too much the character of a
colony of convicts. The truth seems to be that in
so far as the Chinese—the majority—are concerned
the morality of Hong Kong is at zero, many of
these people being louse characters and mere
sojourners. The nearness of the island to the con-
tinent is so far a disadvantage to it, in facilitating
the ingress and the - egress of malefactors, one party
escal,ing from Chinese and the other from English
justice.

Now for the revenues of our colony. There are
neither import nor export duties, for blanch a place
they would be an intolerable nuisance. The items
of the revenue are five and twenty in number,
which is about a score too many. In 1848, the
total revenue was 23,091/., but in 1853, at an in-
terval of five years, when the population had in-
creased by 76 per cent., it was only 24,7001. This
backsliding is not accounted fur, all the items of
both years being the same, except a paltry auction
duty of 2661., abolished in 1853. The first item
of the colonial income is called " land revenue,"
but its nature is not explained, although, most
probably, it consists of the sale of public lands for
building and other purposes. .. The second item is
still more inexplicable, and indeed a miracle,
which never existed save in the island of Hong
Kong, " Rent exclusive of Land." Perhaps
the technology requires amendment. After this
come "licenses" for the retail vend of wine,
spirits, opium, &c., the so-called licenses being in
reality "monopolies," and perhaps unavoidably so.
Among these licenses we discover two, which con-
fer a monopoly of salt, where all the necessaries of
life are dear, and a monopoly of granite rock where
building materials are scarce. The produce of
both imposts in 1848 amounted to no more than
1,0611., and in 1853 we were very, glad to see that
it had fallen off by 1631., the population meanwhileth
having increased by three-fourths. Among, the
particulars of the imperial revenue, we find 11,.
cense for a billiard table," which in the year of
our Lord 1853 yielded to the State the sum h
211. 3s. 3d. If the European game of billiards e MELBOURNE LABOUR MARKET.
The demand for a ri ultur 1
licensed and taxed, then, we ask, Ivlly not the
during the week. gFeemale a THURSDAT, MAT 25.
labourerscooks,
hasi decreasednd
Chinese games of " Pho and Topho,' . which very
properly are so in the Dutch andf Sgsanno:uslriacoinloniienis.4.
general servants, are wanted. cThe folloawL( laundresses, and
ratea
In the Blitisli, under the plea of wages now paid, viz :-With rationsg:-arried
morality, they are prohibited, and the resultg is couples, without family, 1001. to 110/. per annum; do.
with family, 901. to 100/. do. ; shepherds, 45/. to 52/.
that gaming is carried on clandestinely, and. the
police, winking at it, are corrupted.
of This. is legis_ do. ; hutkeepers, 401. to 45/. do. ; general useful
genius and spirit f society. You servants, 1/, lating against thelss. to 2/. per week ; bullock drivers on
might as well fornid the Ilindoos r)m dying z
in farms, 3/. to 3/. 10s. per week ; do. for the roads, 31.105.
sight of the Ganges, or the Mahomedans from i to 4/. do. ; storekeepers, 701. to 901. per annum ;- good
turning towards Mecca. Tile Chinese are addicted I farm labourers. 1/. 15s. to 21.. a week ; ploughmen, 2/.
to g
and it would be wiser to do as you do to 2/. 10s. per week ; gardeners, 100/. to 120 per
amina,
with drunkenness, limit and control by taxation annum ; cooks, -Male, 3/. to 4/. per week; waiters,
what it is irnposib This hint is 1/ 10s. to 1/.
le to prevent, 15s. do. ; grooms, 701. to 1001. per ant:
thrown out for the consideration of the Colonial num, Without rations :-Compositors,- 2s. 6d. per
Minister. , thousand ; ditto, 7/. 7s. per week ; good hoose earPen'
1 te-iis, town work, 3/. ss. to 1/. 78. per day ;
The expenditure of Hon Ko 14. beeng ng hits enor- it. 54. to 1/. 104. ; woolsplik.ters and fencers, 12s. 6d..
an , for so very
mous, d small a place, is still pre- ' per load ; -blacksmiths for country work and shoeing,
masons,
nostarously large. kt 1846 it amounted to no less 1 1/. to 1/, ,ss. per day ; labourers on the roads, with ,wood, •
bea 440.3 of wig‘t, iiptcrittri-lior budigg Biro $4 towecaspilivicei 405303.. Per 07,