The annual meeting of the Hongkong General Chamber of Commerce, which took place on the 5th inst., was comparatively thinly attended. This was due to no want of interest in the institution, and certainly not to lack of energy on the part of the Committee, whose lengthy report embraced a wide field of subjects, while the published correspondence bore evidence to the activity displayed during the past year. The Chairman's speech was long but full of interest and information and was loudly applauded. Mr. Granville Sharp, after complimenting the Committee and Secretary on the report, criticised the attitude taken up by them on the Light Dues question, suggesting that it 0 at any future time the shipping interest should see it might be politic to submit to an incre: tax to promote the prosperity of the port. The Chamber, however, did not appear to endorse this view. Mr. concluded by proposing the adoption of the r This was seconded by Mr. J. H. who, however, expressed his dissent from Mr. Sharp's remarks on the Light Dues. Mr. Whitehead made a rather lengthy speech, in which he dwelt on the necessity for farther improvements in the sanitation of Victoria, the reerudescense of the plague yearly giving point to his remarks. The Report and accounts were adopted. The latter showed the Chamber's financial position to be greatly improved. The meeting then proceeded to the election of the Committee, when all the retiring members were re-elected, with the exception of Mr. Ede, for whom' Mr. H. A. Ritchie was substituted. Mr. Ede, who has for many years been one ofthe most active and useful members of the Committee, is about to leave the Colony, and the members apparently bought i would be superfluous to reflect
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.