[英文] 香港童軍［士蔑西報］讀者來函

HONGKONG SCOUTS.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE "HONGKONG TELEGRAPH."

Dear Sir,- May I trespass upon your valuable time and space to make a few remarks and suggestions amount the new Scout Company.

The Company to be formed by Mr. Ross, will, no doubt, be of excellent service to the Colony, and in times of trouble would be certain to render a splendid account of itself. There are one or two points which would however tell against its complete success as a Scout Company.

How many of the men who have been asked to become members of the Company are able to speak Chinese, and how many of them could adapt themselves to living on Chinese food in a dirty smelling Chinese village for any length of time, as they would certainly be called upon to do in troublous times in the Territory. Again, notwithstanding the periods of annual training, how many of them would know much about the geography of the Kowloon Peninsula and the New Territory generally.

The majority of the men who have been invited to join Mr. Ross' Company are, as far as I know, men who are likely to be moved about from one port to another just as their respective Taipans may direct, and it would be unreasonable to suggest that the said Taipans should not be allowed to do so. They would consequently not have much chance of becoming acquainted with the geography of the place they would be called upon to perform their duties in, and would not have the opportunity of acquitting themselves as creditably as they no doubt have the desire to do.

Might I suggest, therefore, the formation of a company in connection with the Hongkong Volunteer Corps, of men who, either through having been born here, or through long residence here, know the Colony and its Dependencies, its language and customs, practically from A to Z.

There are numbers of men in Hongkong of English, Eurasian, Portuguese and other descent, who are British subjects; who can speak the language perfectly; know the customs of the Chinese thoroughly; have a personal knowledge of the geography of the New Territory; could adapt themselves without an effort to living on Chinese food in Chinese villages for perhaps weeks at a time if necessary, and who could with little or no trouble extract from the population all information as to movements of an enemy. The Chinese naturally would give more help to a person who could speak their own language, than they would to a person who could not.

This Company could be officered by men like some of our Volunteer Officers, who through the exercise of their profession or their lifelong connection with the Colony, are also thoroughly conversant with the local language and customs. The men of the Company would be selected carefully, and only men who proved themselves perfectly fit and able to stand long trying days in the open in the hot, cold, and rainy seasons, and who could march well, would be allowed to become members. To become a member of the Company would be looked on as the highest compliment a man in the local Volunteers could receive. We would thus be certain of only having the best men to perform our scouting duties for us.

There are numerous other points which may occur to people reading this letter, and I hope that they will come forward and state them through the medium of the Press.

In conclusion, I would like to apologise for any weaknesses there may be in my arguments, and trust that some kind person will point them out for my guidance.- Yours faithfully,

THE SECOND ANGLE.

Hongkong, 21st July, 1910.

資料：

1. 宣统二年六月十五日《士蔑西報》第4頁

   • 庚戌年六月十五日

   • 公元1910年7月21日（星期四）

2. 宣统二年六月十六日《士蔑西報》第245頁

   • 庚戌年六月十六日

   • 公元1910年7月22日（星期五）