Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/163

Rh by pinnacles, has a grace of its own and is a feature of the landscape from many points of view. Near by stands an unpretentious group of Government Offices, whose plainness is relieved by the surrounding vegetation. A little higher up on the same side is Government House, a commodious and substantially built residence, dating from the year 1857. Above this and lying on either side of Albany Road are the Public Gardens, tastefully laid out in walks and terraces, and containing a profusion of rare palms, trees, and shrubs, and a constant succession of bright flowers. The collection of palms is especially noteworthy, for it embraces specimens from all parts of the world. A handsome fountain adorns the second terrace, and looking down upon this is a large bronze statue of Sir Arthur Kennedy, who was a popular Governor of the Colony from 1872 to 1876. From this coign of vantage a view is obtained of the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St. Joseph, a cruciform building with a central tower at the intersection and a detached Gothic campanile tower. The sacred edifice occupies a delightful site in Glenealy, one of the prettiest ravines in the Colony, which is shortly to be desecrated by a second tramway line to the Peak. On the left side of Garden Road, after passing Murray Barracks and the terminus of the little funicular tramway which gives easy access to Victoria Gap, entrance is gained to Kennedy Road, along which lie the Union Church, a pleasing little edifice in the Italian style, and the handsome premises of the German Club. This road, which winds round the hill and eventually leads down to the Gap, forms a very pleasant promenade. Throughout its entire length of about a mile and a half charming glimpses of the harbour are obtainable through the interlacing trees which form a canopy overhead, while here and there little rills come splashing down over rocks and hide themselves in the tangled vegetation below. On a similar level to this road, but running in an opposite direction, is Caine Road, and, above that and in a line with MacDonnell Road, is Robinson Road. Both roads eventually merge into Bonham Road, which eventually loses itself in Pokfolum Road, leading to the village of Aberdeen, on the south side of the island. Caine Road is largely built upon, but from Bonham Road onwards the road becomes more rural in character and commands fine sea views.

Parallel with Kennedy Road and at a height of 400 feet above sea-level, Bowen Road traverses the face of the hills from Happy Valley to a point above the centre of the town some four miles further to the west. This aqueduct and viaduct—for such it is—was constructed for the purpose of conveying water from the Tytam reservoir. In many parts it is carried over the ravines and rocks by ornamental stone bridges, one of which, above Wanchai, has twenty-three arches. The road commands magnificent views of the eastern district, and is a favourite resort of pedestrians.

Around Victoria Gap a little hill settlement has been formed, possessing its own club and its own church, as well as several hospitals. The reason for the popularity of this district is not far to seek. In summer time, when the city below is wrapped in a haze of clammy heat, the atmosphere at this altitude is several degrees cooler and less humid. Throughout the winter a succession of crisp, clear days is experienced, and it is only during the spring, when everything is enveloped in a thick veil of mist, that the lower levels seem more desirable places of residence. Numerous paths branch off from Victoria Gap—some to the neighbouring hills and others to Pokfolum and Aberdeen. A road to the westward ascends the Peak, which rises abruptly behind the city of Victoria to a height of nearly 2,000 feet. From the summit of this eminence a magnificent panorama lies unfolded to the view. Across the harbour with its busy movement, the brown, arid-looking hills of the mainland rear their crests against the sky, while to the south, east, and west the Canton Delta, a wide expanse of blue water, set with opalescent-looking islands, stretches as far as the eye can reach. At the close of day when the shades steal up from the east and the sinking sun paints the western horizon