Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-01-26

must give $3.50 annually to the city If he
would do business.
In addition to this the government gets
something out of monopoies. 1t receives
Si3.tOo month from Its opium farms and
less sums from other factories. With all
THIS 1t is easily able to meet it's expenses.
Its revenues are about 81, 600 900 silver every
year and its expenditures are considerably
less. Its debt is less than $1,000 900, and Il
pays an interest rate of only 3a per cent.
Hong Kong Money.
And what kind of money do they use in
this English colony? Pounds. shIllings and
pence? No. They use the silver dollar,
which is worth just as much as the value
OF the silver 1t contains. Many of. the
dollars are made In Mexico and many of
those in circulation have been plugged and
sWeated until they are worth less than par.
Nearly every dollar that you get at the
bank has a black mark stamped upon 1t
guaranteeing Its circulation by the last
man who passed 1t. If you want clean
Mexican, that is new dollars, the Hong
Kong and Shanghai Bank will charge you
2 per cent extra for them. All kinds of
Hong Kong money are at discount In
Shanghai Even the bank notes of the Hong
Kong and Shanghai Bank are taken at a
discount by the Shanghai branch Of this
same bank If presented at Shanghai.
money. The silver dollar ranges in value
from 43 to so cents gold. and 1t hobs up
and down. according to the rise and fall
Of silver Some Chinese merchants deal in
silver in bulk. taking everything by weight.
Their unit is the taei. containing one and
one-third ounces avoirdupois and worth
about 20 cents. Their copper coin Is the
cash of which 1t takes more than thou
sand to make of dollars. Hong
Kong has a mint. where 1t now makes
dollars and half dollars Of It's own. 1t
has also subsidiary coins imported from
England: the most beautiful of these Is tho
D-cent niece little disc of silver worth
2l2 cents in gold.
Some Queer Postal Methods.
Hong Kong is the center OF the British
postal service for China. The post office
Is on Queens road I'm the very center OF
the city. There are mail boxes at the
corners Of the streets and collections and
deliveries regularly made There are
private mail boxes in the office, which are
rented for $40 year in advance. Every
box holder has to provide himself with
two stout bags marked on both sides with
his name in English and Chinese. These
bags are for the coolies, who are sent
after the mail. Each coole must have his
masters bag and also a ticket OF wood or
metal bearing his masters name In Eng
lish and Chinese. Without this ticket he
cannot get the mail. The local postage
rates are equal to 1 cent Of our money per
half ounce The chief officials in the post
office are English. although the Chinese
are the cashiers and handle the money.
being the best accountants.
The Soldiers of Hong Kong.
Hol.; Kong is defended by a garrison OF
British soldiers. The city and island has,
in ordinary times about 1900 men, and
more now on account of the war. There
are three companies of garrison artillery.
corps of engineers and battalion or In
fantry. There Is also volunteer corps,
consisting of a battery of light field artii-
fIrnn aahi IN nj a n
fantry company, an engineer company and
a band. The approaches to the harbor are
we'll fortified, the batteries consisting OF
well constructed earthworks armed with
the latest of breech-loading guns. Tho
colony is an important naval station, Hong
Kong beng the headquarters OF the China
squadron.
In the harbor are magnificent dry docks.
in which not only English. but American
and other men-of-war are laid up for re-
pairs. The rates for such work on foreign
vessels Is exorbitantly high, the expense
often running into the hundreds OF thou
sands of dollars.
A City of Amusements and Clubs.
The foreigners live we'll in this part of the
world Many of them make a deal of
money and all spend a great dealy Victoria
is a town Of clubs. There Is cricket club.
a foot ball club. a polo clu-, a golf club, a
hocky club rifle club ana yachting club.
The Portuguese have their association. the
Germans have a club and the English have
clubs OF every kind. Even the ladies have
clubs They have their tennis courts and
pavilions, in which they periodically go to
carve up their neighbors Hong Kong has
its annual races, It's regattas. les athletic
exhibitions and it's swimming matches 1t
has an amateur dramatic club. which gives
regular performances in the city hall. and
1t has two large Chinese theaters:
1t has big hotels. one of which has $50
rooms. 1t has gas and electric lights. 1t
has good waterworks. 1t has churches,
colleges and schools. 1t has three daily
published In English and four
daily papers published In Chinese. 1t gets
its cables daily from all parts of the world.
and it is on the whole as live and as up-to-
date a colony as can be found On the Light
ming Express of Modern Progress, which is
pushing it's way through the dead civiliza-
lions of the far east.
FRANK G. CARPENTER