Part 1 of the report of the Shanghai Municipal Council for the year 1919, which includes Watch, Health, Educational and general matters, has been issued in the usual form.
The section devoted to Watch matters starts with the report of the Officer Commanding the Volunteer Corps. "It would phenomenal," Major Trueman says, "if the desire to give up soldiering was not prevalent in Shanghai as in other parts of the civilized world... Therefore, it is not surprising that the numbers have decreased since the armistice, and more particularly after the close of the 1918-19 training." The strength of the Corps on December 31 last was 864 on the active list, a decrease of 158 in comparison with the preceding year, while the grand total, including reserves, was 1,064, a decrease of 177.
Major Trueman continues that it has been of incalculable value to the Corps that so many of the officers and men returned from active service had rejoined their old units and others. They were heartily welcomed back by their old comrades, and the community as a whole cannot too highly appreciate the splendid spirit they had shown. Tu conclusion Major Trueman emphasized the duty upon every young man in Shanghai and who is physically fit to serve a period in the Volunteers. It is essential,' he says. to maintain a striking force in Shanghai of.such strength as to make it impossible for local disturbances to develop into riots entailing the destruction of life and property.
Te Fire Bricape During the year under review the number of calls made upon the services of the Fire Brigade was 295, a decrease of 18 on the previous year. Of these 199 were genuine fires on assessed property within the Settlement or on municipal roads, and 51 were false alarms. The Brieade also attended of which it practically extinguish-45 fires outside the Settlement, 28
The percentage of loss on property and contents from fires was 3.3 per cent. of the risk, a decrease of 1.7 per cent. on that of the preceding year. A table shows that in 1908 this loss was 40 per cent.
Chief Officer Pett reiterates the remarks he made in 1915 on the necessity for a new fire float, the present one being nearly 20 years old. He points out that apart from its use for fires in the shipping of the port, the high buildings of the Bund call for it as a stand by. Mr. Pett further deals with the necessity for an up-to-date system of street alarms, which would have been installed but for the war. He also mentions the experiments made in wireless telegraphy by the Brigade, and when installations are completed it will be possible to keep
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.