Mr." Sdong's Appreciation of Services of Sir John Hope Simpson Ata Jenary meeting of the National Flood Relief Commission held fat the Central Bank Building yesterday afternoon, Mr. T.
Chairman of the Commission, re:
jewed the activities of the Commis-jon ince: it was brought into beig. Speeches were also made by Sir John Hope Simpson, the Direc-for-General of the Commission, Gen, Chu Ching-lan, Director of the'Field Operations Department, Dr. J.
Director of the Hygiene "and Sanitation Department, Me. "7. Lis, Chief of the Labour' Relief igion, and Mr. J. E, Baker, Chief "of the Commissary Division, fon the activities under their respec: tive charge, Mr, Soong addressing the mem-bors said: You have before you a preliminary report detailing the activities of the Commission to date, and a resolution recommended for your acceptance by your Standing Committee at its meeting held on Sune 18. ict was withdrawn from cireulation, and in its place a 10 per cent. Customs surtax was levied for the months from December 1, 1931 to July 31, 1982. The yield of the surtax up" to June 20 amounts to $12,181,505, "The total resources at the' disposal of the Commission, including the wheat and flour, amani in round figures to $65,000,600.
curacy at the first general mesting' was forecast with remarkable acof thd Commission last September: when we estimated our budget at Turning to the expenditure side, time forbids me from even enumerating the manifold activities of our Commission. You will see from the mary report before you that It will be remembered that at the first. general meeting of the Commission on September 9, 1931, T re. ferred to the stupendous nature of the flood, which was of such sel verted; I emphasised the necessity of combining all public and private esourees for relief and prevention; fand concluded that the resources available in any case being limited, they should be carefully husbanded wed on selected yield the maximum. ye than frittered to cover the whole area of oper tions.
The plan as adopted by the Commission consisted of giving. immedt-Ate relief to the victims of the flood, Mr. LIG. W. Woodhead, CRE. where they could be reached, in the way of food, shelter, and. sanitary. protection; and 30 soon as the water Teceded sufficiently we should repair reconstruct. the dykes, most Which have been washed' away, to approximately one-third of the fuflelent height and strength' to, wheat and flour has been allocated withstand the normal drainage lards emergency relief, farm rethe Yangtze River, in other words of, and as subsidy towards. the to restore the status quo. ante or construction or repair of private even to improve on it, as far as dykes. 'The remaining two-thirds limited resources would peri of the wheat and flour have been and lastly we were to retain sul allocated towards paying workers' wage: the construction and restoration of the main dykes. The fever possible, other items of expenditure follow rehabilitation closely the estimates made at the 'The greatest emphasis was surally "nid on. dyke. work, as its general meeting, last "September. transportation charges have been beneficial elects ake' more perman-somewhat lower because of the conent, and upon rests the version of a portion of the wheat ultimate useful ne of immediate re-and flour into cash in order to Het, to the flood. sufferers, or any overcome transportation difficulties inca. at rehabilitation of the fin sending relief supplies to me farina, It is the opinion of your accessible regions.
Commitese that the main features As I described at our first mectof the work have been adhered to ing, owing to the stupendous nature faithfully, "and. that within" the lof the disaster, we have no exper Iimits of our resources the origin lence te guide us in giving relief on plan fas been advanced to\ the such a vast scale." We Stage as to call for the adoption operate with an improvised staff of the Resolution that 1s now be-drawn throughout the country from fore you. fall walks of life, engineers and 'On' this occasion I cannot touch doctors from technical organisations upon, mote than few "high for in private practice, students for our work, The financial Jour survey and inspection naturally was of prime Interest, as missionaries experienced in relief the extent of our work is: condition: work oF with intimate knowledge of There were ople who based reliance mainly a government bond issue of porary With such. conditions, and depot keepers
Shoo, to parnase wheat and rath ore Sther grains. from Manchoria Zor unavoidable, but the ently serious
relief, "But those actually" respon-could rest assured that whatever tible forthe flood eliot held. that mistakes that occurred were. mis-the bond market could. not easily takes of the head and not of the faboorb "any. auch issue, "and. that heart, " Above all it is a matter of reins. from Manchuria' would de-satisfaction to record that in the Bend. too much on fortuitous. cit-expenditure of nearly $65,000,000, Te was decided instead there was not the slightest tention on the put [tion of politics of any nature, Even surplus wheat on when' the, Japanese guns at tacking Chapel, and ever the Communist-occupied regions where supplement the two by embers of oar stof were repeated Customs. Events have justified the correctness of this course of action gularly on schedule without inter-Ipeaptsed, work rogrened {nfo uncertain manner. ruption.
By the agreement of September consequence, to take the most! 28, 1981, between the National Govgrhment'and the Government of the ies portant aspect of our work, dyke United States, the Commission Dullding progressed "with rapidity Jon the Yangtse stretching from betained 15,000,000 bushels of who: ow Shasi te Koachow below Ching-and flour' from America. The cost of this wheat and flour amounts to amg, and. through the vulnerable V.S.$9,212,828.46, which at the presegishs of the "Han and Hwai Eivers and. the Grand'Canal, and a ent "rate "of exchange equals to about $43,000,000. Repayment [total of 5,000 kilometres of dykes. rare constructed, much of St entire-this. purchase' is based on a5 per cent: surtax, effective from August new work. "At the height of 1902, ti the entre Joan is paid or building activities ax many 93
'Contributions from various sour-employed. loging refugee iwarers ere ces have how reached the hand-"The entire staff of our Commis-Some umu $387,400, hich. sion,' many' of whom are. serving frithout pay, have been extremely Inge Contaibutions for food _reiet very gratifying, bearing in min Hlevoted fo" their work and_are be-received by other charity organise: Hong, the extent of the. present Beer mentioning. the names of and
ide economic depression, and chs ope, Sipion, who came, India and Greece, and. General rom equally meritariogs servic
'Finally, owing to the foreseen {Cha Osiog-ans both of whom stand weakness of the bond markets the fas models of Zeal and probity, and $80,000,000 bond issue for flood re-Jwhose labours have much to do' with
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.