Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/136

 education on Western lines, and at the same time to see that the Chinese language itself is taught. Six schools have been opened—one in Hongkong, two in Canton, and three in Shanghai—having, in all, over a thousand pupils. The work is carried on by English masters, assisted by a competent staff of Anglo-Chinese teachers, and the curriculum embraces a wide range of subjects, from rudimentary consonantal sounds to higher and commercial arithmetic, map-drawing, history, and translation. The Hongkong school is situated in the neighbourhood of the Government Civil Hospital. MR. EDWARD ALEXANDER IRVING, Inspector of Schools, Hongkong, was born in 1870, and at the age of twenty-one joined the Perak Civil Service as a junior officer. Whilst in the Malay States he qualified in law, and acquired a knowledge of Malay, Hakka, and Cantonese, and filled various appointments in Perak and Selangor in the Mines Departments and Chinese Protectorate. He arrived in Hongkong in April, 1901, as Inspector of Schools, and has held that office ever since, except on two occasions when he acted as Registrar-General and Member of the Legislative Council. He resides at "Kinta," the Peak. A PROPOSED UNIVERSITY.—A proposal to establish a university in Hongkong assumed a tangible form in March, 1908, when Mr. Mody, a local gentleman well-known for his public benefactions, promised $150,000 for the purpose of erecting the necessary buildings, on condition that a site and an endowment fund were provided. The idea of a local university was first mooted in the China Mail some few years previously. It was suggested by this journal that the nucleus of the university should be the Medical College and the Technical Institute, that the endowment fund should be raised by the public, and that a grant of land should be made by the Government. At the time of writing, this scheme is under the consideration of the local Legislature, and it is very probable that a site at West Point, on the Bonham Road level, will be granted. MR. H. N. MODY, whose munificence is referred to in the foregoing paragraph, comes of a well-known Parsee family, is one of the oldest residents, and one of the most striking personalities in financial circles, in Hongkong. It is more than forty-seven years since he came to the Colony to enter the service of a firm of Hindoo bankers and opium merchants. With them he remained for three years before launching his own opium business, which rapidly grew to large dimensions. With the advent of the submarine cable, however, Mr. Mody realised that the halcyon days of the operations in opium were gone, so he turned his attention to dealing in stocks and shares and to exchange brokerage. Refusing to recognise the existence of such a word as "impossible" he soon came to the front, and for years he has played the leading part on the local stock exchange, carrying through many transactions of considerable magnitude. More than once he lost his all, for in his career he has had difficulties to overcome and obstacles to surmount, but with fine courage and estimable self-confidence he has braved the storms and steered his barque to safety. Always possessed of a marvellous memory and a wonderful fund of energy and zeal, even now, at an age when most business men are content to rest on their laurels, his activity is proverbial. He has built up an extensive business in exchange brokerage, having acquired the control of the bulk of the settlements made by many important Indian firms in the Colony, and, with the large fortune amassed by these means, he has materially assisted in the development of the island. With his partner, Sir Paul Chater, C.M.G., Mr. Mody is connected with most of the important industrial concerns, and was closely associated with Mr. A. H. Rennie in the establishment of the Hongkong Milling Company, Ltd., in which promising enterprise he holds a large number of shares. Numerous and varied as are Mr. Mody's business interests, however, he still finds time to take a prominent part in social life. Many charitable institutions have benefited considerably by his munificence, and though he carries on his good work in a quiet unostentatious manner, his benevolence and public spirit are gratefully recognised by the community. The Colony will soon be enriched by a magnificent statue of H.R.H. the Princess of Wales, a gift from Mr. Mody, which is now being executed in England. Mr. Mody also takes great interest in sport, and for many years has been a staunch supporter of the Hongkong Jockey Club, at whose annual race meeting his colours are always to the fore. On several occasions he has won the local Derby as well as other important races. Mr. Mody brings to the turf that integrity and steadfastness of purpose which have served him so well in business, and the enthusiastic manner in which his many victories have been acclaimed testifies unmistakably to the high place he occupies in the public esteem. His hospitality, too, is renowned and, among all nationalities, he is recognised as a prince of good fellows.