Who's Who in the Far East/JACK, William Charles
JACK, William Charles (HONGKONG), M. last. N.A.; Consulting Engineer; b. Portsoy, N.B., Nov. 9, 1857. Served apprenticeship as marine engineer at George dark's Southwick Engine Works, Sunderland; went to sea as junior engineer from Wigham Richardson's, Newcastle on Tyne, in 1879; Chief Engineer, 1882; appointed Ingenieur en Chef of " Service Subventionne des Correspondances Fluviales," Tonkin, in 1887, which post he held for eleven years, building fleet of river steamers, which included the light draft stern wheel steamer "Yunnan," the first steam vessel to successfully navigate the Bed River and reach the Chinese frontier through Tonkin, 1890; in recognition of this received from the French Government the decoration of officer of the order of the Imperial Dragon of Annam; in 1898 joined the Hongkong and Whampoa Dock Co. as Superintendent Engineer, and as their representative contracted with Admiral Dewey for salvage of sunken Spanish war vessels in Manila Bay, three of which were successfully floated and refitted in Hongkong for the U. S. Navy; from 1901 to 1903 Assistant Manager at the above Dock Co.'s Kowloon establishment, during which term conducted several successful salvage operations; in 1905 contracted, in conjunction with Sir C. P. Chater, for the salvage of the French cruiser "Sully," stranded in the Tonkin Gulf, which after months of arduous work was destroyed by typhoon on,-October 28; elected President of Engineers Institute in 1904. Publications: An important paper read before Institute of Engineersand Shipbuilders of Hongkong, comparing relative cost of shipbuilding in that port and at home. Address: Robinson Road, Kowloon, Hongkong.