Braga_JP Ch8

CHAPTER VIII

The Rise of Hongkong – Early Portuguese Settlers

The ill favour with which the early British residents of Hongkong viewed the prospects of the new settlement was reflected in despatches to the British Government in London, and can also be gathered from newspaper reports by men who doubted that the island of Hongkong was worth developing as an integral part of the British Empire. The early pessimists were many. Time has shown to what extent the predictions of the “doubting Thomases” have been falsified.

A typical criticism is the following report which appeared in the Friend of China and Hongkong Gazette⁷⁴:

“We have no native merchants settled in the colony; neither is produce imported, nor goods exported, to any of the five ports, except it be on British account; and all mercantile transactions are concluded at those ports, whilst the harbour of Hongkong is completely deserted. Not an anchor of a junk is dropped in the bay of Hongkong; they flee from it as a man would from a pestilence … Hongkong, a free port, is deprived of all trade further than the transhipment of goods, and a supply of articles for local consumption, the commissions upon which would barely pay the expenses of a first class mercantile establishment”.

On another occasion the same newspaper reported in an editorial that:⁷⁵

“The respectable Parsee firm, whose extensive premises near Messrs. Dent & Co. are now nearly finished, have determined not to remove to Hongkong; others, who contemplated settling here, have changed their minds and remain at Macao.”

The poor estimation in which Hongkong was held by the merchants already settled there was also voiced by the same journal on yet another occasion:

“We hesitate not to assert, that with the exception of two or three houses, who have a large coasting trade (this refers to the opium trade), nearly every merchant in the place would cheerfully dispose of his property at cost price, and abandon this island; and even the exceptions we have made, could manage their business equally well at Macao”.Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Ut elit tellus, luctus nec ullamcorper mattis, pulvinar dapibus leo.

The majority of the merchants continued to favour Macao as a place of residence, not only for themselves but principally for their families, and a memorial to Lord Stanley, Secretary of State for the Colonies at the time, from a number of firms, including Jardine, Matheson & Co., Dent &Co., and other British merchants who had set up establishments in Hongkong, dated “Victoria, 13th August, 1845”, contained a significant passage:

“The Americans and all other foreigners remain in Canton and Macao, notwithstanding all the boasted advantages of Hongkong as a free port”.

Macao became, as a matter of fact, the health resort for Hongkong residents needing a rest or a change of air. This is evident from an extract culled from the Civil Service Report of the Government of Hongkong, for the year 1844. There were others in similar vein. The extract reads:

” … Colonial Secretary very ill, went on sick leave to Macao; officiating Surveyor-General very ill, went on sick leave to Macao; Colonial Engineer twice ill, went on sick leave to Macao; Auditor-General very ill, went on sick leave to Macao; the Harbour Master and Marine Magistrate went on sick leave to England, his successor proceeded on sick leave to Macao …”

The inscriptions on the tombstones in the English Cemetery at Macao also tell a significant story, for until Hongkong became healthy and tranquil enough, the merchants who moved over to Hongkong to try their fortunes in the new British settlement would not risk taking their wives and children with them, but left them behind at Macao. Some of these women-folk and children of the Hongkong merchants died in the Portuguese colony and the tombstones over their graves in Macao remain to tell the plaintive tale. There were also many deaths at Macao among the men of the British and foreign communities, in the early’ 40’s most of whom had been stricken ill at Hongkong. So little confidence was there, at the time, in the permanency of the British settlement at Hongkong, that it is said that so high an official as Sir Humphrey le Fleming Senhouse, R.N., C.B., K.C.B., Senior Officer in Command of the British Fleet in the China Seas, who died on board H.M.S. <i>Druid</i> at Hongkong, on the 13th June, 1841, expressed a desire, before his death, that his remains might be buried at Macao. The interment took place, in accordance with his wishes, in the Portuguese colony. The tombstone erected over his grave records the “testimony of esteem and respect for their distinguished and lamented chief, by the officers of the Army and Navy, comprising the China Expedition in 1841”.

Among the tombstones in the English Cemetery at Macao must be noted, among others, one of particular interest. It will be found over the grave of the Right Honourable Lord Henry John Spencer Churchill, 4th son of George, 5th Duke of Marlborough. He was Captain of H.M.S. Druid and Senior Officer in command of the British Fleet in the China Seas before Sir Fleming Senhouse. He died on board his ship in the Macao Roads on the 2nd June, 1840, aged 43 years. The inscription on his tombstone records that “This monument is erected by his officers and petty officers in testimony and affection”. In other ways the British merchants showed their lack of confidence in the permanence of Hongkong as a Crown Colony. Horse-racing and yachting, for instance, have long been popular sports among the British, yet up to as late as 1845, the British trading community did not indulge in their favourite sports in Hongkong but confined their horse-race meetings and yachting excursions to Macao. There was no proper course laid out in the Portuguese colony for horse-racing, it is true, but the open fields then extending from the city gates, known as Porta do Campo, to the Barrier were used for the purpose. The yachts and other pleasure craft of the British residents were sailed in the placid waters of Macao’s Inner Harbour, on most afternoons. For longer excursions and picnics the boats sailed from Praia Grande Bay to Taipa and also to Lappa, or to Green Island, returning to Macao by the Inner Harbour. Everything indicates that the British as a community were thoroughly disgusted with Hongkong; and books were even written condemning the choice of the barren island, while the newspapers in England were just as critical of the choice which had been made, as were the press of Hongkong. Not only was Hongkong “an unhealthy, pestilential, barren rock” held “in ill repute by the Chinese nation”, where “the withering sense of desolation and death, which flickers before the mental vision of the spectator, is overpowering”, but Henry Charles Sirr, the first barrister practising in Hongkong, exclaimed: “We deem it a duty which we owe our fellow-men to speak truthfully and plainly of the insalubrity of China generally, but especially of Hongkong, for had we had but one sincere friend, who would have told us the honest truth concerning that charnel-house Hongkong, not all the wealth of the East would have lured us thither”, and he ranted against “the wretched diplomacy evinced in selecting an insalubrious, piratical island for a Colonial possession”.

The census taken in May, 1841, showed that there were 5,650 Chinese residents, among them 2,000 boat people, but five years later, the Rev. Mr. George Smith, later the first Bishop of Victoria (Hongkong), speaking of the increasing numbers, felt that “the lowest dregs of native society flock to the British settlement, in the hope of gain or plunder, and although a few of the better class of shopkeepers are beginning to settle in the colony, the great majority of the new comers are of the lowest condition and character”. Among these there moved British and foreign sailors, rough men from the ships which thronged Hongkong Harbour, who frequented the drinking saloons, hardly the company which the merchants and shipowners would have liked their women-folk to meet, and regarding whom the Rev. Mr. Smith said: “It is with unfeigned regret and reluctance that the author states, that scenes frequently occur in the public streets, and in the interior of houses, which are calculated to place the countrymen of missionaries in an unfavourable aspect”.

It is not surprising that the British generally were disgusted with Hongkong, and the London Times gave utterance to public opinion in Britain with regard to the new colony:

“Hongkong is always connected with some fatal pestilence, some doubtful war, or some discreditable internal squabble, so much so that, in popular language, the name of this noisy, bustling, quarrelsome, discontented little island may not inaptly be used as a euphonious synonym for a place not mentionable to ears polite. Every official’s hand is there against his neighbour. The Governor has run away to seek health or quiet elsewhere. The Lieutenant-General has been accused of having allowed his servant to squeeze. The newspaper proprietors were, of late, all more or less in prison or going to prison or coming out of prison… The heads of the mercantile houses hold themselves quite aloof from local disputes and conduct themselves in a highly dignified manner, which is one of the chief causes of the evil…”

Yet, by 1860 the population had reached 92,441 Chinese residents, and 2,476 British and other non-Chinese individuals, including the garrison. And contrast the glowing account of Hongkong, by Sir William Des Voeux, the Governor, less than half a century after the British flag was first hoisted on the Island, with the gloomy views quoted in the preceding pages, and, for that matter, any of the “authorities” on the subject of early Hongkong. This account is contained in Sir William Des Voeux’s despatch dated 31st October, 1889, forwarding the Colony’s Blue Book for 1888 to the Right Honourable Lord Knutsford, Secretary of State for the Colonies:

There was cause indeed for Sir William Des Voeux to feel the satisfaction which he expressed in his report, but no one who has followed the history of the past century can feel otherwise than that Hongkong, in the hands of a British administration, was bound to be a success. And when the success is measured in terms of material welfare and financial growth it must be conceded that its prosperity was indeed assured. The subsequent rise of Hongkong to position of eminence as one of the greatest ports in the world has demonstrated, more effectively than any words of praise, the soundness of Elliot’s judgment in his choice of Hongkong as a British settlement. It was in the second half of the ’40’s that the British merchants began to see the greater possibility of permanent residence at Hongkong, after the authorities had introduced health measures, and the more cautious persons who had continued living at Macao for such a long time began to bestir themselves and move over to join their fellow nationals in the British colony. As the number of Europeans in Hongkong increased, churches and schools were built on the Island, not only for the British community but for the Portuguese there as well.

The praise meted out by Sir William Des Voeux to the pioneers of Hongkong embraces all sections of the community of Hongkong, British as well as others, specially those who braved the trials and tribulations of the early days when the merchants seemed so nervous and chary about living in the new settlement. Among the non-British pioneers who assisted the British colonizers, the Portuguese can claim a proud and honourable place.

The decision of the British to transfer to Hongkong, on the 27th February, 1842, the official headquarters of British trade in China showed the determination of the Government to push forward their plans for the building up of their own trading centre in China, despite the serious difficulties attending the founding of the new settlement. It was a move that opened up a new outlook for the Portuguese in China: and who will say that Hongkong did not benefit by it? The Portuguese endured with the British pioneers the trials, hardships, and horrors of those early years of Hongkong’s history, and shared with them the labours which resulted in the building up of Hongkong on a foundation “well and truly laid”.

From the very beginning, younger members of the Portuguese community at Macao in the service of British firms accompanied the latter to their new establishments in Hongkong. The loyalty of the Portuguese was thus displayed at the earliest stage of Hongkong’s existence and it has remained as one of the outstanding traits of the Portuguese in Hongkong during the past one hundred years. Venturesome young men among the Macao Portuguese also emigrated from Macao to try their fortunes on their own account in the new field.

When Sir Henry Pottinger moved over the Superintendency of British Trade in China from Macao to Hongkong it was just such people among the Portuguese at Macao who threw in their lot with the British officials and built their new homes on the fever ridden island of Hongkong. Included in the staff of the Superintendency transferred to Hongkong as well as in most of the British firms were Portuguese young men filling clerical and other essential positions, some of them qualified interpreters in three or more languages. Regarding the competency of the Portuguese to interpret in the English, Chinese, Malayan and Portuguese languages, a tribute must be paid to the Fathers of St. Joseph’s College at Macao for their excellent work in the teaching of these languages.

None will be found to grudge the Portuguese migrants the rewards which their loyalty, devotion to duty, ability, integrity, and law-abiding characteristics earned for them in Hongkong. It will be my endeavour to furnish a chronicle of what Hongkong gave to some of them in return during the years which followed.

“Hongkong has indeed changed its aspect; and when it is remembered that all this has been effected in Her Majesty’s reign and indeed during a space of less than fifty years on ground in immediate contact with the most populous Empire in the world, by a comparatively infinitesimal number of an entirely alien race separated from their homes by nearly the whole earth, and, unlike their countrymen in Australia and Canada, living in an enervating and trying climate; and when it is further remembered that the Chinese, whose labour and enterprise under British auspices have largely assisted in this development, have been under no compulsion, but have come here as free men, attracted by liberal institutions, equitable treatment, and the justice of our rule; and when all this is taken into account, it may be doubted whether the evidences of material and moral achievement, presented as it were in a focus, make anywhere a more forcible appeal to eye and imagination, and whether any other spot on the earth is thus more likely to excite, or much more fully justifies pride in the name of Englishmen”.

There can be no disputing the propriety of assigning the premier place among the Portuguese pioneers of Hongkong to these young men, both of whom were subsequently raised to positions of honour and distinction in the service of the Government of Hongkong, as were descendants of the younger of the two brothers – Mr. J.M. d’Almada e Castro. It is altogether fitting to record, in this book on the Portuguese in Hongkong, the long and honourable service of these two brothers with the British Government.

In the Hongkong Almanack and Directory for 1849 will be found the names of both the brothers Almada. The elder (Leonardo) appears as Clerk of Councils to both the Executive and Legislative Councils of the Government of Hongkong and concurrently Keeper of the Records in the Colonial Secretary’s Office. He first entered the service of the British Government in 1836, at Macao, in the office of the Superintendency of British Trade in China. The younger brother (José Maria) was Second Clerk in the British Trade Superintendency, having first joined the service at Macao. He, like his brother, was transferred from Macao to the Colonial Secretariat in Hongkong. Details of their careers in the Hongkong Colonial Service are given in Mr. Norton-Kyshe’s work on the history of the laws and courts of Hongkong. Recording the death, on the 15th January, 1875, of Mr. Leonardo d’Almada e Castro, at the age of sixty-one, Kyshe’s History states:

“At a meeting of the Legislative Council on the 23rd February, in the absence of the Governor, The Chief Justice, Sir John Smale, referred to the death of Mr. d’Almada, its sad circumstances, and his long service, both under the Superintendency of Trade, which was formerly vested in the Governor of Hongkong, and as Clerk of Councils. Sir John Smale dwelt at length on Mr. d’Almada high qualifications, zeal, discretion, and conduct of business, and moved as follows:

“That this Council greatly regrets the death of Leonardo d’Almada e Castro, Esq., the oldest public servant in this Colony, who, having in 1836 entered the service of the Crown in the Office of the Superintendency of British Trade in China, was, since May, 1847, Clerk of the Councils and First Clerk in the office of the Colonial Secretary. The Council cordially records its high estimate of his public services in these important offices, the duties of which he has discharged, faithfully and with great ability, assiduity, and discretion; and expressing its appreciation of the private worth of the deceased, it offers its condolence to his widow and family”.

“The motion was put and carried unanimously. The Colonial Secretary referred to the deceased officer as a “very dictionary of public events, transactions, and correspondence received during an official career of thirty-four years,” and concluded with the following motion: “That, in consideration of the fidelity, zeal, and efficiency, with which the late Mr. Leonardo d’Almada e Castro performed the duties of his appointments under this Government during a period of more than thirty years, a pension at the rate of $150 per month be granted to his widow and daughter during their natural lives, $100 thereof being payable to Mrs. d’Almada and $50 to her daughter”. “The motion being put was carried unanimously”.

Regarding Mr. Leonardo d’Almada e Castro, there was an important decision by the Government of Great Britain the circumstances of which go to make an event that constitutes something of an unwritten page in the history of the Portuguese in Hongkong and which I feel honoured to record in this book. When, in 1882, seven years after the death of Mr. Leonardo d’Almada, Sir John Pope Hennessy was about to lay down the reins of Government in Hongkong, the Portuguese employees of the Government sent a deputation comprised of their oldest members, to call at Government House to present an address. In the course of his reply to the address, Sir John Pope Hennessy said:

“In my office there is a despatch, written more than twenty years ago, from the Duke of Newcastle, instructing Sir John Bowring to appoint Mr. L. d’Almada e Castro to be the Colonial Secretary of Hongkong. I cannot find any record explaining why Governor Bowring did not carry out these instructions. But as far as I am concerned, I prefer the policy laid down by so wise and good a man, and one who knew his Sovereign’s wishes so well, as the Duke of Newcastle”.

Had Mr. d’Almada e Castro lived longer and served under Sir John Pope Hennessy, it is likely that he would have been honoured by being appointed Colonial Secretary of Hongkong – the highest position in the Government of the Colony after that of Governor. In private life the Almada brothers were noted for their generosity. In the early 1870’s Mr. Leonardo d’Almada assigned a piece of land on Caine Road to the Canossian Order of Nuns and so enabled them to establish their first footing on the Island of Hongkong in a building of their own. The original plot of ground donated to the Canossian Sisters by Mr. L. d’Almada e Castro was subsequently enlarged by a gift from the younger brother, Mr. J. M. d’Almada e Castro, of a more extensive tract of land for the large school and orphanage so well known at the present time as a home of Christian charity. The Almada brothers did well in Hongkong, it is true, but their gifts of land represented a useful payment in kind to the land of their adoption.

Mr. Leonardo d’Almada e Castro;_1 had two daughters, the younger of whom entered the novitiate of the Canossian Sisters of Charity, and took the veil in 1878, assuming the name of ; she died in Hongkong at the advanced age of ninety, in 1938. The married a , by whom she had two daughters and two sons. When her husband died, she took her children to England, where her sons died at a comparatively early age. The male numbers of this branch of the family thus died out, leaving no sons to carry on the family name.

Mr. José Maria d’Almada e Castro, as we have seen, joined the service of the British Government at Macao in 1836, and came to Hongkong in 1842. He rose step by step in the service of the Hongkong Government, and in 1877, Sir John Pope Hennessy showed his appreciation of his services by appointing him his Private Secretary. At the time of his death (23rd January, 1881), José Maria d’Almada held, as his brother had done before him, the post of Chief Clerk of the Colonial Secretariat and Clerk of Councils of the Hongkong Government. He married in Hongkong, and had a large family of boys and girls. The eldest son entered the Government service and remained a Government employee till his death, and dying early did not have the opportunity of rising as high as his uncle and father before him.

The second son, , named after his grandfather, was employed in the Hongkong office of the International Banking Corporation, and held the position of Chief Clerk at the time of his retirement. The other sons, named respectively Francisco Xavier d’Almada e Castro and Leonardo d’Almada e Castro, Senior, were both solicitors in Hongkong and did well in their profession. The son of Mr. F. X. d’Almada e Castro, named after his father, has also embraced the profession of his father. The elder son of Mr. Leo. d’Almada e Castro, Sr. – the Hon. Mr. . – is a barrister-at-law, and was appointed a member of the Legislative Council of the Hongkong Government in 1937, and the younger son – Mr.

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