香港時報

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香港時報
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Title: Verbatim Text: The 1915 "Hong Kong Times" (香港時報) Launch and Leung Kwok-Ying Agency Notice

Overview

This post documents the exact vertical layout and text of the launch notice for an early, previously unindexed incarnation of the Hong Kong Times (香港時報). Published on October 31, 1915, this advertisement confirms that the Leung Kwok-Ying Newspaper Agency (梁國英報局) served as the main distributor and registry hub for this specific newspaper during the late-Qing/early-Republican transition period.

Verbatim Chinese Transcription

(Read vertically from right to left, matching the original archival print layout):

【主標題】 香港時報
【邊欄標籤】 今天出版

各界諸君閱該報者請聲明住址通信示知自當按日妥派無誤倘蒙定閱均由第四天起計此佈

接辦內地外洋各埠 代理省城各報接登各行告白

香港信箱第一千零拾號

掛號處：

  • 港：文咸東街廿五號
  • 省：榮陽大街五十四號

省港總代理人 梁國英報局啟

乙卯秋月 廿四日（排卅九號）

Key Historical & Geographical Takeaways

  • Early Branding of the "Hong Kong Times": This discovery pushes back the timeline of newspapers using the title Hong Kong Times in the colony. It is entirely distinct from the better-known pro-KMT Hong Kong Times established later in 1939. This 1915 edition was deeply intertwined with the anti-Yuan Shikai revolutionary media wave spearheaded by Sheung Wan's merchant networks.
  • Delivery Logistics: The notice provides insights into early colonial newspaper courier services. Subscriptions took exactly four days to process, after which the agency promised localized daily delivery ("按日妥派无误") directly to a subscriber’s home or business address.
  • The Postal Infrastructure: The agency operated through Hong Kong P.O. Box No. 1010 (香港信箱第一千零拾號), indicating an established relationship with the early colonial post office for cross-border shipping and international mail subscriptions.
  • The Dual Hub (省港總代理):
    • Hong Kong Node: No. 25 Bonham Strand East (文咸東街廿五號), situated right in the core of Sheung Wan's printing and medicine merchant guilds.
    • Canton Node: No. 54 Rongyang Main Street (榮陽大街五十四號) in Guangzhou. Acting as a twin hub, this allowed commercial ads ("各行告白") and mainland papers to be cross-promoted and synchronized flawlessly between Hong Kong and Guangdong province.