"To the Editor of the "Nommi-Cuana Dari News"
1025 the writer, on behalf of a group of financially int Chinese, petitioned bie Government for the necessary off te! authority to inaugurate bus services fon the island of Victoria, Th fernment's reply was a curt Based. on the contention that 1 faland's peculiar traMe conditions did not allow of a further addition to kong's wan sport services. At time the only bus service operation on the island was that be-Tonating to the Hongkong & Shanshat Hotels Ltd. on the Hongkong Hotel/ Repulse Bay route, Consequent upon the government' refusal the writer forwarded to the "Hongkong Telegraph" full details of the routes and fare schedule of the proposed company aswell as the yatiier lengthy application for per mission to. operate, and the government's reply thereio, In the cover Ing. Tetter "to the newspaper the opinion was expressed that trams 'A' mode of modern transportation had outlived their usefulness and were Goomed to extinction sooner or later. 'A lively bus versus tram contro which Tasted for a few weeks ensued. and the majority of corre: pondents were decidedly of the same mind as the writer, A reference fu one of the letters weltten by the writer to the fact that in many parts of the world the tramway corporations were taking notice of the handwriting on the wall and entering Into the bus transportation Business themselves drew fire from the Honskona Tramway Ca,, who Tet loose a statistical bombardment at the Duscites, But although the bus. sup: porters could have claimed a victory over the tram defenders the government remained adamant In Ite refusal {to grant a licence to operate fu and around Hongkong, Th 1920, while on a short visit to Hongkong, the writer was amused—and not a ttle chacrined—to observe that oMlclaldom had by some mysterlfous means been prevailed upon to relax in ils attitude towards the bus fand that buses were running on the Hongkong side under the -management of one other than its erstwhile detractor, the Hongkong Tramways The foregoing reflection has been occasioned by the sight of Shangha's streets to-day which as a result of the sudden strike by tramway employees In the Settlement are tree of trams with, it" Is certain, a considerable speeding up in traMe. All over the world city corporations are refusing to renew franchises for tramways where these have lapsed, or are making the renewal period: of very short duration. Just as surely as sail had to give way to steam so will the teams have to make for speedier and more up-to-date modes of transportation and e0 far. in this writer's opinion at least, the' bus has well proved its superiority in all directions.
Shanghai, Feb. 0,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.