Chapter VIII: Our Stronghold in the Far East

HONG KONG AND THE KOWLOON HINTERLAND

Importance of Hong Kong as a naval and military base—An
object‐lesson of Empire—Its marvellous rise—The constant menace
of famine—Cause of Hong Kong’s prosperity—Its geographical
position—An archipelago—Approaching Hong Kong by sea—First view of
Victoria—A crowded harbour—The mainland—The Kowloon Peninsula—The
city of Victoria—Queen’s Road—The Shops, hotels, banks—The
City Hall—The palatial club—The Brigade Parade Ground—The base
Commissariat Officer, Major Williams, I.S.C.—The Naval Dockyard—Sir
Francis Powell, K.C.M.G.—Barracks and Arsenal—The Happy Valley—A
_memento mori_—The polo ground—Lyeemoon Pass—The southern side
of the Island—The Peak—The cable tramway—View from the Peak—The
residential quarter—The floating population of Hong Kong—The
sampans—Their dangers in the past—The rising suburb of Kowloon—The
Hong Kong regiment—The docks—The Chinese city of Kowloon—Street
scenes in Hong Kong—Social amusements of the colony—Society in Hong
Kong and Kowloon—The Kowloon Peninsula—Danger to Hong Kong averted
by its possession—Character of the peninsula—The frontier—The
Chinese territory beyond it—The taking over of the Hinterland
in 1898—A small campaign—The chances of a land invasion of Hong
Kong—The garrison of Hong Kong—Advisability of mounted infantry
_pages_ 169‐201