To the Editor of the "Norta-Cuina Day News."
Srr,—Shanghai is a wonderful! place! That is a commonplace remark, but true. Shanghai people are wonderful people! That is not such a commonplace remark, but just as true, Where, either in the Old World, or in the New World, would one find a business community of a go-ahead business town airily voting away lakhs and lakhs of its own rooney and quietly submitting, without protest or even a murmur, to non-delivery of the goods they are paying for?
Solomon once made a pertinent remark on the way of a man with a maid, but the poor old bean hadn't seen the way of the Shanghai Council with the ratepayer; if he had, the odds are that he wouldn't have wasted that remark on the man and a maid. All of which is by way of introduction, In the Shanghai Municipal Council report for the year 1914 on page 58 of the Works Matters section is the following:—Central Offices. The excavations for the new building having being completed under excellent weather conditions ete., etc.
On page 28 of the Report for the year 1913 I read:—*... but in the meantime—good progress has been made with the foundations which are al] of reinforced concrete." (Also referring to the new Central Offices).
On page 98 of the same Report in the Municipal Engineer's section read:—"On the grounds of both cost and delay in obtaining this material the use of granite for this large building (viz, Central Offices) is impracticable.""
At the Ratepayers' Meeting of 1915 with the Council's approval, and presumably recommended by the Municipal Engineer, the eum of Tls. 259,950 was voted and passed for a granite facing to the Central Offices; this being an extra, over and above the original cost of the new building; this facing, the previous year, the Municipal Engineer said was impracticable.
On page 58 of the Report for the year 1915 the Municipal Engineer Bays:—". but no special difficulty has arisen in obtaining the necessary granite from Soochow," (re new Central Offices).
In the year 1913 additional land (area being mow 9.1.7.4) was purchased for the new Central Offices building scheme at a cost of Ts. 509,000.
There was a lease of the land which was bought out at a further cost of Tis, 53,836 in the same year.
On page 228 of the Report for the year 1914 we find under the heading Central Offices" tee following accommodation __w: leased for various Municipal Departments during the rebuilding of the Central Offices: per mensem Offices for Council Room and
Offices for Volunteer Corps at Tls. 500 Secretariat at Ts. 325 Offices for Public Works Detment and Tax Office at Tie. 450 ices for Finance Department at Tls. 433
Total Tls. 1,708
With regard to the total estimated cost of the new Central Offices or Municipal Buildings, I have looked in vain for this est mate but have failed to find this most important item. I give a moderate estimate of the total cost Tls. 800,000 including the extra of Tls. 259,950 passed for granite facing; of this total estimated cost I again give a moderate estimate when I say that Tis, 500,000 must have been already paid out.
'The new Central Offices, including ground required and used. by the contractor in conducting his building operations, which ground will be vacant and' form light and air space when building is completed, cover not less than 16 view; the land was assessed in 1916 at Tls. 47,000 per mow, it is now worth more than that but this figure will suffice; the land-covered by the new Central Offices, which has been idle and unproductive for six years, therefore is worth at least reproduction prohibited without permission
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.