A fascinating overview of the economy of Saigon and the south in 1907 from Eugène Jung’s book l’Avenir économique de nos colonies 1: Indo-Chine, Afrique occidentale, Congo, Madagascar (The Economic Future of our Colonies1: Indochina, West Africa, Congo, Madagascar”), Paris, 1908

Cochinchina

Cochinchina has an area of 59,800 square kilometres, much of which is composed of alluvial soil from the Mekong, Donnai and Saigon rivers.

It’s a colony known almost exclusively for its rice culture; but with the opening of new railway lines, there is hope that the higher land to the east will be exploited for a range of other products.

Apart from its major rivers, Cochinchina is crossed by a multitude of other creeks and canals, which permit land irrigation and the movement of boats and junks bringing the crops of the Delta to Saigon. It is extremely rich and it was the first of our colonial possessions not only to cover all of its own expenses but also to make a contribution to the Metropolis. It has been a powerful supporter of the neighbouring territories which form our Indo-Chinese Union.

It’s inhabited by 5,192 French (other than troops) 190 foreigners, 498 mixed-race people and 2,837,787 indigenous people.

It’s almost exclusively a colony of exploitation, home to many important businesses which thrive here and carry out significant transactions.

In 1906, average imports amounted to 143,007,154 francs and exports to 116,612,847 francs. In 1907 it is expected that this figure will be significantly exceeded; but this year is exceptional. Up to 20 September 1907, 1,023,649 tons of rice had already been exported, generating 178 million francs. The tonnage will increase further, perhaps to 1,400,000.

However, only 1,200,000 hectares are currently under cultivation in Cochinchina; if one exploits the remaining two million hectares which remain available and are suitable for rice cultivation, the wealth of Cochinchina will undoubtedly increase in remarkable proportions.

Official infrastructure

Cochinchina is served by many ships of all nationalities and by several French companies,

The interior is criss-crossed by steamships of the Compagnie des Messageries fluviales de Cochinchine (Cochinchina River Courriers Company). Founded by J Reiff, it was set up as a limited company on 22 May 1881. Its head office is at 43 rue Taitbout in Paris, and its capital is 2 million francs, in shares of 100 francs, costing 320-340 francs. Saigon is its main place of business, with a sub-directorate in Phnom-Penh (Cambodia). Its fleet consists of 12 steel steamships weighing from 300 to 800 tons, 14 river steamships from 40 to 200 tons and eight steel launches. It travels to 123,000 different places in Cochinchina and Cambodia, serving many communities. It receives a 669,562 franc subvention for its domestic services and 48,438 francs for the provision of its Cap-Saint-Jacques service.

Chinese steamships of the Yen-Seng company also provide services on four routes.

Finally, Saigon is the headquarters of the Compagnie française de Cabotage des mers de Chine (French China Sea Navigation Company).

For a long time, Cochinchina has had just two small railway lines, from Saigon to My-Tho on the Mekong (71km) and from Saigon to Cholon (5km). These belong to the Société générale du Chemin de fer de Saïgon à My-Tho and the Société générale des Tramways à vapeur de Cochinchine respectively.

The former is a limited company, founded on 15 November 1881 for a term of 99 years, with capital of 2,378,500 francs in shares of 500 francs reimbursable at 600 francs, and 8,936 bonds of 500 francs at 3%. There are plans for the Saigon to My-Tho line to be extended in future to Tan-An and Can-Tho (95km).

The Compagnie française de Tramways (Indo-Chine) currently has a network of 29km: Saigon to Cholon via the route basse (low road) tramway; Saigon to Go-Vap; and Saigon to Hoc-Mon, which is capable of extension. A limited company set up with a duration of 50 years, its registered office is at 28, rue Saint-Lazare in Paris. It has capital of 1 million francs, fully-paid shares of 500 francs and 2,300 bonds of 500 francs at 4½%, issued at 475 francs. Transportation of passengers, increasing every year, guarantees the company a very prosperous future.

The automobile firm Ippolito et Cie, founded in 1900, offers regular services between Saigon and Tay-Ninh (106km) on the Cambodian border, as well as to Bien-Hoa, Ba-Ria and Cap Saint-Jacques.

Finally, the new railway line from Saigon to Khanh-Hoa (Annam), belonging to the Indo-Chinese [government] rail network, is currently operational as far as Tan-Linh, 120kms from Saigon.

All these transportation routes leave from Saigon, which is a major city (54,000 inhabitants, including 14,000 Chinese) and a port of the first order. This port has an area of 24,000m². A new port costing several million francs is currently under construction, with depots and 1,100m of quays, but the nature of the subsoil has caused some unfortunate construction problems. In fact, we were warned about this by several old Cochinchina hands, but we did not think it necessary to pay them any attention. When completed, it will have cost 10,394,100 francs. In 1907, the general government spent 220,000 piastres on this project.

Saigon has the peculiarity of being situated 70km from the sea (at Cap Saint-Jacques) and still being accessible by its river to ships of the largest tonnage. It has a naval port with an arsenal and a 160m dry dock, where both warships and other vessels may be repaired.

In 1906, 526 steamships (including 216 French and 169 English) entered the port carrying 130,752,846 francs of merchandise, while 456 (including 171 French) left carrying 116,039,273 francs of merchandise.

Other ports, including Hong-Chong (Gulf of Siam), Ca-Mau, Rach-Gia and Ha-Tien, can receive only boats of low draught, such as junks.

Exports from Saigon consists of rice, salted fish, cotton, pepper, cardamom, gambodge (tree resin), indigo, animal horns and copra; imports include flour, wines, liqueurs, fabrics, oils, soaps and machines.

Among the inland cities that make up the economic infrastructure of the colony, it is worth mentioning the great Chinese city of Cholon, located 5km from Saigon, with 138,000 inhabitants, of which 41,891 are Chinese. It has quays of 4,520m in length and every year in its factories, 4 or 5 million piculs of rice are placed in sacks for delivery to Saigon or export abroad. Thousands of junks and boats ply its canals. It is also an industrial city of the first order.

My-Tho, situated on one of the arms of the Mekong, is a hub for many steamship services which go to Cambodia, roam the arroyos of Cochinchina or travel along the coast.

Saigon has a practical school for Asian mechanics, a vocational school where students learn how to manufacture machinery and furniture, a Directorate of Land Mapping and Topography, a Directorate of Agriculture, a Botanical and Zoological Garden, an Institute of Scientific Research, a Pasteur Institute, an Indochinese Studies Society which publishes studies on agricultural trials and has its own museum, a Forestry Service, a Syndicate of Planters, a Chamber of Commerce and a Chamber of Agriculture.

Domestic products

Rice is the main product of Cochinchina, which gives rise to two crops each year. One should cite in particular the rice of Vinh-Long province, greatly sought after in Europe for distillation. The other main domestic products are pepper, cotton, ramie (Boehmeria nivea), corn, indigo, sugar cane, mulberry, silk, coffee, areca nut, betel, tobacco, coconut, copra, peanuts, jute, wood of all species, cardamom, wax, honey, joss sticks, fish and salt.

As we said at the beginning, Cochinchina includes high lands on the borders of Annam and Cambodia, which explains the diversity of production in this country, although other sectors are currently paid less attention than rice and pepper production.

Pepper is grown especially in the province of Ha-Tien, on the island of Phu-Quoc (which also contains the most valuable timber) and to a lesse extent in the provinces of Ba-Ria. Bien-Hoa and Chau-Doc. The Chinese devote themselves with ardour to the cultivation of this commodity and Indo-China is now its fourth largest exporter.

Tobacco is a major crop in some areas, including Hoc-Mon, where day by day the indigenous people open up more land to cultivation.

Our tax on tobacco came as a surprise to the Annamites, who were suddenly required to obtain a permit for carrying any more than 20 kilos of tobacco. The limit has since been reduced further, first to 10 kilos and then to just 1 kilo. In order to obtain a permit, they are forced to travel 17km to the Customs and Excise office in Cholon, and only after this can they return home to pick up their small loads. In some areas, these vexations have resulted in the complete abandonment of tobacco production and an exodus of residents. It would perhaps have been preferable to develop the lands that produced the tobacco first.

Some Annamite and Chinese industries are quite sizeable. Largest of all are the seven major Chinese rice de-husking and blanching factories in Cholon. These are expensive facilities, built with the latest steam-powered machinery, and they operate with perfect efficiency.

In Cholon one may still find the famous Cai-Mai pottery. This is now produced by the Société Tung-Hoa et Cie, which manufactures glazed terracotta vases, garden ornaments and ceramic building materials.

Manufacturers of glass and leather, dyeing works, sculpture workshops, silk and cotton weavers, pewter manufacturers, timber mills, brick kilns and junk construction and repair yards may also be found here.

Outside Cholon, one must mention the tortoiseshell crafts of Ha-Tien; the granite of Gia-Dinh and Bien-Hoa; the silks of Chau-Doc; the woven cottons and silks of Long-Xuyen; the sampots of Chau-Doc; the metalwork of Bien-Hoa; and the pottery and kaolin deposits of Thu-Dau-Mot.

European companies

European agricultural concessions are quite numerous in Cochinchina. In total there are about a hundred; but on average they are quite small.

While the larger and more important ones amongst them are thriving, others await the contribution of outside capital, because the work they do in developing new rice fields can be particularly costly, for example in the famous Plain of Reeds.

Among the most prosperous ones, we must mention the rice paddies of Monsieur Paris, lawyer, member of the Colonial Council and President of the Chamber of Agriculture. After many years of toil and expense, his company arrived at a happy outcome.

Of particular note is the Plantation Suzannah, located at km 67 on the Saigon to Khanh-Hoa railway line. It is situated 175km above sea level and includes 2,600 acres of exceptionally rich volcanic soil which ranges from 25m to 40m deep. A joint stock company with a capital of 150,000 piastres, it was established in 1907 by the founders of a research company sponsored by Monsieur Louis Caseau. It took the company two years of testing before they could begin to cultivate rubber. Today, this is its main crop, with 30,000 plants grown in 1907 and 100,000 in 1908. To cover its expenses, the Plantation Suzannah also grows mulberry trees, cassava, castor, tobacco and peanuts. All of its agricultural tools are mechanical.

In the province of Ba-Ria, Messrs Arcillon and Bertrand grow coffee and pepper. In the province of Gia-Dinh, several European companies grow rice, fruit trees, coffee and rubber and breed livestock. In Hong-Chong, the successors of the late Monsieur Paul Blanchy, former president of the Colonial Council, are known for their excellent pepper plants. And in Than-Hoa, next to the Mekong, the Société Michel Vilaz et Cie owns a large number of rice fields.

Merchant houses may be found in large numbers in Saigon, engaged in both import and export activity.

The proximity of Cambodia and Laos permits the import of products of all kinds, including fabrics, trinkets, hardware and a range of local specialities, which are brought for storage in Saigon and, along with rice and pepper, become the focus of much commercial activity.

We must not forget that many transactions are in the hands of the Chinese, whose merchant houses have considerable capital and largely monopolise the trade with neighbouring countries.

Saigon imports goods from Hong-Kong (8,920,739 francs), Singapore (10,463,076 francs), Japan, Siam and China (23,671,410 francs), the Philippines, Java, the British East Indies, Borneo, the Dutch East Indies.

It also exports goods to the same localities: Hong-Kong (21,256,898 francs), Japan (7,492,878), Singapore (6,087,206 francs), the Philippines (19,757,394 francs), Siam and Java (3,941,776 francs), China (13,186,000 francs), etc, etc.

International trade in the other ports of Rach-Gia (imports of 409,771 francs, exports of 319.387, mainly with Singapore, Bangkok and China), Ha-Tien, Ca-Mau and Hong-Chong is under the control of Chinese merchants.

Overall, however, Europeans play a fairly important part, controlling imports from France and other French colonies (59,545,074 francs), England (709,500 francs) and America (1,464,205 francs); and exports to France and other French colonies (28,710,614 francs), England (400,000 francs), Germany (180,000 francs) and the Netherlands (350,000 francs).

European merchant houses in Saigon include the Maison Denis-Frères of Bordeaux; Dumarest et fils of Marseille; Paris, Mangon et Denandre of Paris; the Société Française d’Exportation of Paris; the Maison Speidel et Cie of Paris; and Weil Wormser et successeurs, representing the mill owners of Rouen. In general, these houses are involved in the import and export of all major products, as well as consignment and chartering.

Apart from these companies, we may also find all kinds of interesting European enterprises: innkeepers, gunsmiths, insurance companies, automobile dealers and jewelers, as well as shipowners like the Maison Allatini et Cie.

Among the best-known houses are Omnium Français (head office in Dijon), the Société Bordelaise Indo-Chinoise (head office in Bordeaux) and the Compagnie Coloniale d’Exportation.

The banks of Cochinchina include the Banque de l’Indo-Chine, the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China (of which Messrs Speidel et Cie are the agents), the Hong-Kong and Shanghaï Bank, and the new Banque de la Cochinchine.

Industry is brilliantly represented in Cochinchina.

Firstly, the workshops of the Compagnie des Messageries Fluviales employ more than 300 artisans who build ships both for the company and for the local administration. These workshops are equipped to carry out larger repairs and also to assist the Naval Arsenal as required.

A large number of entrepreneurs is involved in major works projects. The Société de construction de Levallois-Perret (headquartered in Paris) builds bridges, port facilities and reservoirs; the Maison Graf, Jacque et Cie (rue Martel, Paris) has construction workshops in Khanh-Hoï, near Saïgon; and the Société française Industrielle d’Extrême-Orient (headquartered at 11 avenue de l’Opéra, Paris) builds railway equipment and major works in iron. Not to mention MM. Hermenier, entrepreneurs, Braisot Ducellier, etc.

Amongst the other important French industries are the ice factory of Monsieur Larue, whose plant includes two machines with respective capacity of 1,000 and 500 kilos; the distillery of the Société française des Distilleries de l’Indo-Chine, based in Cholon; the distillery of Messrs Mazet, also in Cholon; the Société pour l’exploitation des Alcools indigènes en Cochinchine et au Cambodge, with capital of 100,000 piastres, headquartered in Saigon; the Rizeries de l’Union, in Cholon; and the Rizeries de l’Orient, also in Cholon, with French, German and Chinese shareholders.

We must not forget the printing and lithographic works of Monsieur Claude, whose skilled workers publish books in French and in Chinese characters; and the coachbuilders of Monsieur J. Trigant.

The Société d’Electricité de Saïgon is a limited company with capital of 700,000 francs, with shares of 500 francs, distributing an interest of 5%. The company, whose registered office is at 20 rue Mogador in Paris, operates an electric power station in Saigon and supplies and distributes electricity throughout the city.

The Société anonyme des Eaux et Electricité de l’Indo-Chine, with its registered office at 58 rue de Londres in Paris, was founded on 2 April 1900 with the aim of purchasing and exploiting all factories, concessions and contracts for water and electricity services already installed or to be installed in Saigon, Cholon and Phnom Penh. Under its concession agreement, the company secured guaranteed receipts of 162,000 francs for Saigon, 280,000 francs for Cholon and 363,000 francs for Phnom Penh. The Company’s capital is 2,500,000 francs, in fully paid shares of 500 francs and 6,000 bonds of 500 francs at 4½% paid, issued at 467.50 francs by the Banque Industrielle et Coloniale.

Finally, we should mention the canning of pineapple, mangosteen and other fruits of the country by Monsieur J Abos in Saigon; the wooden furniture and sculpture workshops of Monsieur Bonnet in Saigon; the soap company of Monsieur Hugand in Saigon; the brick factory of Monsieur Mulot in Vinh-Long; the cotton factory of Messrs Émile Nam Hee and Ly Dang in Cholon; and the quarries of Messrs Loesch-Frères in the province of Bien-Hoa, which are equipped with every modern facility.

The economic future

The potential future of agriculture in Cochinchina is bright. In the famous Plain of Reeds, for example, huge tracts of land are now barren and waiting for development capital. With constant irrigation, we can guarantee two superb crops each year, bringing significant returns. Do not forget, however, that these results are not immediate: for the first two years, we must prepare by removing the salt deposited on land, building dykes, digging irrigation canals, all considerable work in a country with a depressing climate. It is therefore necessary to have access to large amounts of capital.

In the province of Ha-Tien and on the island of Phu-Quoc, pepper can be planted over large areas; but we must remember that duty exemption or reduced duty in France is limited to a certain quantity, and that the remainder is subject to heavy taxation in line with world market prices.

On higher ground there is potential to create rich plantations, like that of Suzannah. However, success is contingent on several years of research and hard work and many would-be planters have failed.

The exploitation of forests and their products will also be increasingly possible with the opening of the new railway lines.

Several years ago, the Director of Agriculture of Cochinchina told us: “In our colony, according to the regions, one can grow grain products, Java peanuts (from which combustible oil can be manufactured), cotton, sugar cane, jute, indigo, cocoa, mulberry, coconut, copra, Liberian coffee and pepper. However, in order to succeed here, you must set up a limited or other company, so that a director returning on leave to France does not leave the future of the enterprise in the hands of a single employee. And of course, a company is always more influential in its dealings with the government.”

The observation of the Director of Department of Agriculture was and is still accurate; but what that officer could not say is that it is essential to rethink the working conditions demanded by the growers’ unions and to tackle the issues of working conditions and the competence of the courts in matters of labour.

A move in this direction was made in 1906 by a group of the settlers who had suffered as a result of the strongly incompetent laws, decrees, circulars on the matter issued by the Ministry of Colonies, all of which were influenced by the lobbying of organisations such as Défense des Indigènes (Defence of Local People) who are made up largely of those who have never set foot in a colony and have no interest in doing so.

What we say is all the more true since Monsieur Outrey, Inspector of Civil Service of Western Cochinchina, sent a letter to the Lieutenant Governor on the establishment of a Colonisation Office to safeguard the interests of European settlers in relation to those of the natives.

It requests that the administration supports the Europeans in their disputes with indigenous employees who attempt to evade their obligations. It also recommends, in addition, the gradual substitution of the indigenous workforce with new agricultural machinery.

Among the industries which we still have to create in Cochinchina, one must cite a distillery for perfumed essences from either cultivated or natural plants; a factory for producing rush mats; a factory for producing sacks in which to ship seeds and grain; and a cotton manufacturing plant (although since it is essential to ensure a good supply of the raw material, it is best for such a plant to be set up on plantations owned by the company that wants to start the factory).

On the subject of trade, let us finish with some comments by Monsieur Schneegans, President of the Chamber of Commerce of Saigon, addressed to Dupleix Committee:

“Cochinchina has many French and foreign import-export houses. He who would like to set up a new company must have significant capital to compete with the old established merchant houses, and even then, he is likely to encounter at the beginning almost insurmountable difficulties.”

“The retail trade is almost entirely in the hands of a few Chinese and French traders who cater more than sufficiently for the needs of the current European population.”

To this we must add that the foreign merchant houses of Saigon are generally large commissionnaires which buy from and sell to wealthy Chinese merchants. Their business is thriving – more than one of them exports between 200,000 and 300,000 tons of rice annually.

Finally, in Saigon, the foreign merchant houses have no need of the administration; they act outside of it, which is not the case in other parts of Indo-China. They also work with Annamite auxiliaries who have direct interests in the business, while elsewhere in Indo-China the local people seek only administrative posts.

Tim Doling is the author of the guidebook Exploring Saigon-Chợ Lớn – Vanishing heritage of Hồ Chí Minh City (Nhà Xuất Bản Thế Giới, Hà Nội, 2019)

A full index of all Tim’s blog articles since November 2013 is now available here.

Join the Facebook group pages Saigon-Chợ Lớn Then & Now to see historic photographs juxtaposed with new ones taken in the same locations, and Đài Quan sát Di sản Sài Gòn – Saigon Heritage Observatory for up-to-date information on conservation issues in Saigon and Chợ Lớn.

This article was published previously in Saigoneer http://saigoneer.com

One of the city’s most historic buildings, the Grand is better known as the former Saigon-Palace, one of the leading hotels of the 1930s.

The Grand-Hôtel de Saigon was founded by Henri Chavigny de Lachevrotière (1883-1951), a Eurasian journalist, plantation owner and businessman who is perhaps best known as the editor of the leading colonial-era newspapers L’Impartial (1917-1926) and La Dépêche (1928-1940).

In 1924, Chavigny de Lachevrotière set up the Société du Grand-Hôtel de Saigon and opened a café at the junction of rues Catinat [Đồng Khởi] and Vannier [Ngô Đức Kế]. In 1925 he acquired the franchise to run the new Majestic Hotel, and then in 1929 his company embarked on the construction of the 68-room Grand-Hôtel de Saigon at 8 rue Catinat. It was inaugurated in 1930, with Chavigny de Lachevrotière as its first director.

In fact, the Grand-Hôtel de Saigon survived for just two years; in 1932, Chavigny de Lachevrotière sold it to a French Corsican businessman named Patrice Luciani.

A former deputy prison governor who had worked both at the Maison Centrale in Saigon and on the prison island of Poulo-Condor in the Côn Đảo archipelago, Luciani amassed a small fortune in the 1920s from his rubber plantation at Lai Khê, Thủ Dầu Một. In 1928, this enabled him to purchase from the Hérald family the first Saigon-Palace Hôtel, located at 82-98 boulevard Charner [Nguyễn Huệ].

Although no images of the first Saigon-Palace Hôtel have survived, a newspaper advertisement of 1929 boasts of “all modern comforts,” including “comfortable rooms and lounges at guests’ disposal” and a restaurant known for the quality of its Corsican soup, Aïoli (Provençal sauce) and French wines.

Immediately after acquiring the Grand-Hôtel de Saigon from Chavigny de Lachevrotière in 1932, Luciani closed his old hotel and changed the name of the Grand-Hôtel to “Saigon-Palace Hôtel.”

Under Luciani’s management, the new Saigon-Palace Hôtel was promoted as a “Hotel of the First Order,” and during the 1930s it became one of the most successful in the city. Its terrace cafe-restaurant became famous for its nightly concerts and its spacious “salle de réunion” was always in demand for meetings by local organisations.

When Luciani retired in 1939, the Saigon-Palace Hôtel was purchased by another French Corsican businessman named Antoine Giorgetti, and it was under his management in the 1940s that it was converted into rented apartments. It is said that in the early 1950s, Graham Greene used these rented apartments as the model for Thomas Fowler’s “room over the rue Catinat,” where much of the action in his novel The Quiet American takes place.

After 1955, the Saigon Palace was reinstated as a hotel under the Vietnamese name Sài Gòn Đại Lữ Quán, but in subsequent years it became increasingly shabby and down-market. It continued to function as a hotel after Reunification, although in 1989 it was renamed the Đồng Khởi Hotel, a name which is still posted today on one side of the building.

Following a major renovation in 1995-1998, the hotel reopened as the Grand Hotel. It was awarded four stars in 2004.

Tim Doling is the author of the guidebook Exploring Saigon-Chợ Lớn – Vanishing heritage of Hồ Chí Minh City (Nhà Xuất Bản Thế Giới, Hà Nội, 2019)

A full index of all Tim’s blog articles since November 2013 is now available here.

Join the Facebook group pages Saigon-Chợ Lớn Then & Now to see historic photographs juxtaposed with new ones taken in the same locations, and Đài Quan sát Di sản Sài Gòn – Saigon Heritage Observatory for up-to-date information on conservation issues in Saigon and Chợ Lớn.

French travel writer Claudius Madrolle (b 1870) was a Far East specialist and his guidebook Vers Angkor. Saïgon. Phnom-penh (Towards Angkor. Saigon. Phnom Penh (Hachette, 1913) became a best-seller. Here is his chapter on Saigon and Cholon.

Travelling to Saigon

All steamships travelling to Saigon stop at Cap Saint-Jacques. From here you can telegraph to reserve a hotel room in Saigon.

If you are coming from the south, you will pass the Poulo Condore Islands (penitentiary, lighthouse at an elevation of 212m), which also have a telegraph service connecting with the neighbouring stations of the Bassac and the Cap.

Steamships arriving from the north will be in contact with the coast of Annam as soon as they reach Port Dayot [near Nha Trang] and may telegraph via the post of Padaran [Mũi Dinh].

Cap Saint-Jacques is a seaside resort and an important military centre surrounded by fortifications which overlook the harbour. Here, steamships stop in the shelter of a promontory (Ganh-rai or “Cap des Loutres,” meaning “Otter Cape”), on which there is nothing but a lighthouse.

After a local pilot has boarded, the vessel enters the Dong-Nai River via its mouth, the Loi-Rap, passing on its right the sheltered bays of Can-Gio and Dong-Tranh.

On the left is the entrance from the sea to the Cua Tieu, the easternmost mouth of the Mekong River. Foreign steamships entering this waterway en route for Phnom Penh must stop here and report to the Ben-Chua customs post.

The lower section of the Dong Nai River seems completely deserted, and its banks, lined with mangrove trees, show few signs of habitation. But many large rivers criss-cross the vast deltaic plain which the Annamites have been colonising for 300 years, repressing or driving out the Malays on one hand and the Khmers on the other.

On the right bank, one sees the district of Go-Cong and the wide mouth of the Grand Vaico, the two upper arms of which, emanating from Cambodia, pass through the districts of Tay-Ninh and Tan-An. And on the left bank, the lowlands of the Dong-Nai delta, intersected by a large number of the river’s tributaries, several of which are very deep. Further up the river, the ship passes the heights of the Tan-Luong plateau.

Suddenly, at a bend in the river, the slender towers of the Saigon Cathedral come into view. However, since at this point the river takes a number of capricious turns, it is sometimes on the left and sometimes on the right that we see this landmark from the upper deck of our ship.

After passing the Petrol Depot at Nha-Be, we leave the Dong-Nai River (which continues northward to Bien-Hoa) and enter the Saigon River.

The fleet of the Customs Directorate is moored at the Fort du Sud, an ancient Annamite fortress. On its exterior sloping walls are located the gun battery which is used to salute the fleet.

Next, we pass the small parish church of Xom-Chieu, the entrance to the Canal de Dérivation (By-pass canal) which connects with the arroyo-Chinois [Bến Nghé creek], and the Tam-Hai wharf where most of the steamships are at anchor.

We arrive at the headquarters of the Compagnie Messageries maritimes, built in 1862, and further upstream we see a few warships anchored in front of the Naval Arsenal.

Encountering the Annamite people for the first time, the visitor is very surprised at first not to find a marked difference between the silhouettes of Annamite men and Annamite women, because both sexes wear almost exactly the same clothing (a long tunic covering the pants) and hair wound in a kind of bun. However, this astonishment is of short duration, for it is easy to recognise from the gait and face whether you are looking at a man or a woman.

Visit customs. Take a carriage or pousse-pousse to your hotel.

Hotels

Continental Palace Hôtel, rue Catinat, near the Theatre (90 beds). Languages spoken: French, English, German, etc. Each room has a shower. Single room and board from 7 to 11 piastres, twin room and board from 12 to 20 piastres, apartment 20 piastres, service and lighting included; fan 1 piastre; breakfast 75 cents; lunch 11am-1pm including wine 2 piastres; dinner 7pm-8.30pm 2.50 piastres, and on the terrace 3 piastres. Arrangements for extended stays and families: full board, garden room from 5 piastres; 3rd floor room overlooking street from 6 piastres.; 2nd floor room overlooking street from 7.50 piastres (12 piastres for two persons).
Hôtel des Nations (Pancrazi), boulevard Bonard, single room and meals from 5 piastres; twin room and meals 8 piastres
Hôtel de l’Univers (Mottet), rue Turc, room and meals from 5 to 9 piastres per day; from 80 to 200 piastres per month long stay.

Cafés

In addition to those of the above hotels, the Café de la Musique and the Café de la Terrasse, both located near the Theatre.

Transportation

Horse-drawn carriages: There are two types of horse-drawn carriage. The first has two horses and costs 25 cents per single journey, 50 cents per hour and 40 cents for subsequent hours. From Saigon to Cholon, this type of carriage costs 70 cents per single journey and 1.30 piastres for a return journey with a one hour stopover. And for the “Tour de l’Inspection,” it costs 90 cents for a simple round trip and 1.20 piastres with an additional half-hour stop. The second type, a one-horse carriage known as the “Malabar,” costs 15 cents per single journey, 30 cents per hour and 25 cents for subsequent hours. From Saigon to Cholon, this type of carriage costs 50 cents per single journey and 90 cents for a return journey with a one hour stopover. And for the “Tour de l’Inspection,” it costs 60 cents for a simple round trip and 70 cents with an additional half-hour stop.
Chauffeur-driven carriages: 1.50 piastres per hour.
Automobiles: For small runs, we take “auto-taxis” with meters. For day trips, depending on distance, they cost from 25 to 50 piastres – contact Ippolito, boulevard Charner, or Mignot, 19 rue d’Espagne.
Pousse-pousse: With rubber tyres: 10 cents per single journey, 25 cents per hour and 20 cents for subsequent hours. From Saigon to Cholon, 40 cents per single journey, 80 cents for a return journey with a one hour stopover. And for the “Tour de l’Inspection,” 45 cents for a simple round trip and 55 cents with an additional half-hour stop.

Voitures ordinaires: 8 cents per single journey, 20 cents per hour.
Sampans: Available in the harbour, from 8 to 10 cents per single journey, from 10 to 15 piastres per hour, 1.50 piastres per day and 1 piastre for subsequent days.

Post Office

Near the Cathedral; long-range wireless telegraphy connecting with the stations at Cap Saint-Jacques, Hanoi and Kouang-Tcheouwan [Guǎngzhōuwān or Guǎngzhōu Bay].

Banks

Banque de l’Indo-Chine, 22 quai de l’arroyo-Chinois; Hongkong & Shanghai Bank, 9 quai de l’arroyo-Chinois, Chartered Bank of India Australia and China, 1 rue d’Adran.

Clubs

Cercle de l’Union, place du Théâtre; Cercle Colonial, rue Catinat; Cercle Sportif, rue de Lagrandière – lawn tennis, shooting, cycling and motorcycling, fencing tournaments.

Tourism information

The Syndicat d’Initiative du Sud Indochinois (Southern Indochina Tourism Information Office) contributes to the development of tourism in southern Annam, Cochinchina and in Cambodia.

Concerts, theatre

Military band music: Monday at the Cercle militaire; Wednesday on boulevard Charner [Lê Lợi]; Friday at the Military Hospital; Sunday at the Botanical and Zoological Gardens.
Theatre: Performances of comic opera, operetta, comedy-vaudeville, from October through to April, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Prices: Upper Boxes, Lower Boxes and Front Stalls 5 Francs, Middle Stalls 4 Francs, Rear Stalls 3 Francs, Gallery 2 Francs.

Consulates

Great Britain, Germany.

Bookstores

Rousseau (L Royer), 39 rue Catinat; C Ardin, 74 rue Catinat; Portal, 125 rue Catinat; F H Schneider, 2 rue Kerlan.
Tourists may purchase a 1:200.000 road map of Cochinchina, prepared in 1912 by M. Lebret on the orders of Governor Destenay, or 1:100.000 maps (price 1.33 piastres) issued by the Indochina Geographic Service.

Scientific and educational institutions

The Société des Études Indochinoises (Indochina Studies Society): 16 rue de Lagrandière; museum open daily except Monday, 8am-11am and 3pm-6pm; samples and casts of Khmer and Cham art; coin collections from the Far East; library open to visitors.
Government Library: 27 rue de Lagrandière; 8am-11am and 2.30pm-5pm, 12,000 volumes.
Institut Pasteur: rue Pellerin, an annex to that of Nha Trang.
Colleges for the study of French language; Franco-Annamite schools where native pupils are taught transcription of their own language in the Latin alphabet, which, in this form, is improperly called quoc-ngu, meaning “national language;” and private schools which sometimes teach Chinese ideographic characters for future members of the literati.

Tramways

Saigon-Cholon “High Road” steam tramway: 5.1km, stops at rue Mac-Mahon in Saigon, Cho-Dùi (church built in 1902), Cholon.
Saigon-Cholon “Low Road” electric tramway: 6.3km, stops at Cau-Ong-Lanh, Cau-Kho, Cho-Quan (4km), Rizerie, Cholon (Binh-Tay).
Saigon-Hoc Mon steam tramway: 20.2km, price 20 cents, departures every hour, stops at Arsenal, Citadelle (3.2km), Dakao (4.5km, with 1km branch line to Tan-Dinh), Gia-Dinh, Pagode de Xom-Ga (7.2km), Go-Vap (with additional 10km branch line to Lai-Thieu on the Saigon River, 1 hour journey, price 30 cents), Xom-Thuoc, Hanh-Thong-Tay, An-Hôi, Cho-Moi, Quan-Tre, Trung-Chanh, Hoc-Mon.

Railways

Saigon-My Tho railway: 70.8km, via Cholon and Tan-An.
Saigon-Nha-Trang railway: 408km, via Bien-Hoa (33km), Phan-Thiet (190km), Phan-Rang (320km, with 37km branch line to Xom-Gon, and projected 60km branch line to Da-Lat on the Langbian Plateau) and Bang-Hoi (Cam-Ranh, 370km).

Places of interest

The rue Catinat; Museum of the Société des Études indochinoises, Notre Dame Cathedral, the Palace of the Governor General, the Jardin de Ville (City Park), the Botanical and Zoological Gardens, the Naval Arsenal, the Chinese Quarter.
Visit the market in the early morning; take the late afternoon “Tour de l’Inspection” from 4pm to 7pm; and (in wintertime) spend an evening at the Theatre.

Excursions

For those with only a few hours: visit either the Botanical and Zoological Gardens or the Chinese city of Cholon.
For those with a full day: The beautiful roads of eastern Cochinchina are ideal for those wishing to take interesting excursions by automobile. Destinations include: Cap Saint-Jacques (129km, hotel) via Bien-Hoa and Ba-Ria; Tay-Ninh (101km, guest house) (for these two destinations one can also use the postal service automobile); Thu-Dau-Mot (29km); Chon-Thanh and its forests (74km); Hon-Quan and its forests, hunting, plantations and ethnic minorities (99km, villa for rent, take food); the superb Tri-An Waterfall (55km, villa for rent, take food) via Bien-Hoa; and the Tombs of the Royal Family near Go-Cong (56km) via Cholon and Can-Giuoc (22km).

The hunting areas of La-Nga and Dji-Rinh are ranked among the most remarkable in the world. However, if the tourist goes into the forest, he must be very careful, be armed and have a good guide. The Malay aboriginal is very sweet natured, but one must always be on guard against the attacks of wild beasts, such as tigers, panthers, rhinoceroses, elephants, bears, wild buffalo and wild boar. It is easier to hunt wild hens, pheasants, partridges, quails, peacocks, hares, deer. There are also monkeys and pangolins. Beware of reptiles such as cobra, python, green pit vipers, coral snakes and boa constrictors.
Rubber plantations growing Hevea brasiliensis, Ficus elastica and Gutta-percha are easy to visit – contact the companies directly. Some, like Xa-Trach and Loc-Ninh, are located on terre grise (grey earth) territory in the province of Gia Dinh, while others, like Suzannah and An-Loc, are situated on terre rouge (red earth) territory in the north and east of Cochinchina. One reaches the latter by train.

Saigon

Saigon is located at latitude 10°47’24” N and 104°18’26” E on the Ben-Nghe or Saigon river, 75km from Cap Saint-Jacques. The population of Saigon at the end of 1883 was 13,348 souls, including 913 French, 53 other Europeans, 5,595 Chinese and 6,246 Annamites. By 1911 it was 58,998 inhabitants, including 8,364. French, 157 other Europeans, 16,500 Chinese and 32,500 Annamites.

To local people, Saigon is in fact the official name of the neighbouring “Big Market,” commonly called Cholon. The area occupied by the government, meanwhile, was originally known by the administrative name Phan-Yen or Gia-Dinh, while the commercial area adjacent to the river retained its old popular names Ben-Nghe or Ben-Thanh (the latter meaning “Citadel of the firewood”), names which are still in use today. The error committed by foreigners in naming their capital as Saigon has begun to be accepted by the Annamites. Meanwhile, the Chinese, who once employed the characters Tch’ai-Koun – meaning “firewood” – now write Si-Kong, meaning “Tribute of the west.”

The upper part of the city was inhabited in prehistoric times, as evidenced by weapons and polished stone tools found during excavations carried out during construction of the Cathedral. At the time of the Angkorian empire, this sparsely-inhabited land was Khmer territory. In the 17th century, the Annamites came to trade on the shores of Dong-Nai river and on “the plain of the Deer,” setting up a Customs House in Ben-Nghe (Saigon) which was conferred on them in 1623 by the Cambodian king. In 1672, the Nguyen princes of Upper Cochinchina (Hue), intruding bit by bit in the affairs of lower Cambodia, installed a Cambodian Vice King at Ben-Nghe, but replaced him in 1699 with a high Annamite official with the title Kinh-Luoc.

At this time, Ben-Nghe was the capital of the General Government of Gia-Dinh (Lower Cochinchina), the seat of the tinh (province) of Phan-Tran and that of the huyen (district) of Tan-Binh. In 1773, the extent of the walled city was doubled in distance following the construction of an earthen wall measuring 15 li in length. However, this did not prevent the city from being occupied four times by the troops of the Tay-Son.

In 1789, the Nguyen army definitively recaptured the walled city, then called Binh-Duong-Huyen. After peace was restored, a new administrative organisation was created.

In 1808 Ben-Nghe (Saigon), capital of Gia-Dinh, became the seat of the tinh of Phan-Tran, of the phu (prefecture) of Binh Duong and of the huyen of Binh-Tri; this organisation was maintained until the arrival of the French (1859).

The first Citadel was built in 1790 in the Vauban style and the city walls were reinforced in 1808. However, in 1835 these structures were considered too extensive and were demolished. A smaller citadel was built in 1837, and it was this entrenchment which was captured on 17 February 1859 by the French, assisted by a Spanish detachment.

Saigon today is one of the residences of the Governor General of Indochina, and the seat of the Lieutenant Governor of Cochinchina, assisted by directors of various administrative services, the Apostolic Vicar of Western Cochinchina, the Commanding General of Troops in Southern Indochina, and a Rear Admiral commanding the Naval Arsenal and the fleet of the colony. It is also the seat of the Court of Appeal, the Court of First Instance, the Commercial Court and the Colonial Council. It has a Chamber of Commerce and a Chamber of Agriculture.

Saigon, together with its suburb of Cholon, forms a conurbation of 240,000 souls; its commercial traffic is worth 350 million francs. This is one of the largest Far Eastern rice markets; it exported 1.1 million tonnes of rice in 1910, 652,000 tonnes in 1911, and 600,000 tons in 1912.

The city extends from the left bank of the arroyo-Chinois [Bến Nghé creek] to the Citadel. Along the Saigon River, docks and European homes have replaced the ancient landings and shops of the former Annamite town of Ben-Nghe, which was connected with the official ville haute (“upper town”) by the street which became rue Catinat.

The western part of the city

After leaving the Messageries maritimes, one arrives at two bridges over the arroyo-Chinois, which lead from the maritime city to the commercial city.

We see the 30m high Semaphore, and then, on the quay Francis-Garnier [Tôn Đức Thắng], a series of jetties. And at the corner of the rue Krantz [Hàm Nghi], the Customs Directorate.

Behind the Customs Directorate, in the rue des Fleurs, is a Khmer Shivaite temple known as the “Temple of the Phallus” which is revered by a great number of women.

Boulevard Charner measures 40m wide and 1km long and was built over the former Grand Canal, which once permitted junks to bring their goods to the main City Market. That Market is currently situated a short distance along this road, but it will soon be relocated. Beyond it is the Justice of the Peace, built on the site formerly occupied by the Église Sainte-Marie-Immaculée. Here, leading off to the left, is the rue Ohier, an area inhabited by natives of India, with a Brahmanic temple and three Hindu houses belonging to wealthy Chettyars. At the far end of boulevard Charner is the Hôtel de ville (City Hall), built in 1901-1908 and decorated with a belfry.

The rue Catinat, 20m wide and the oldest street in the city, leads 1,500m from the quayside up to the Cathedral. Situated at the point where it crosses the boulevard Bonard, near the statue of Francis Garnier (1839-1873), is the Municipal Theatre. Built in 1899 to the plans of Ferré, it can hold up to 800 spectators. Around it, on the square, are the Continental Hôtel and several large cafes. Nearby are the offices of the main administrative services.

Up on the “plateau” is the Cathedral square, decorated with a statue of Monsignor Pigneau de Béhaine, Bishop of Adrán, which was inaugurated in 1902. The bishop is depicted presenting to the court of Versailles the Prince Canh, son of the future King Gia-Long, to whom he was the ambassador. He holds in his hand the treaty he had just signed with the Count de Montmorin, Minister of Louis XVI.

The Notre-Dame Cathedral was built in Romanesque style between 1877 and 1883 to plans by Bourard. Constructed in red brick on a granite plinth, its two 40m high square towers are topped by iron spires. Close by is the Post Office, its main hall decorated with frescoes.

Further north, the boulevard Norodom runs from Palace of the Governor General to the Botanical and Zoological Gardens. On this street is the statue of Gambetta (1838-1882) and nearby, on the rue de l’Evêché [Alexandre de Rhodes], the Bishop’s Palace.

The Palace of the Governor General was built in the middle of a beautiful park during the “time of the admirals.” The façade, pierced by large arched windows, measures 80m. It is flanked by two small wings. Access to the ground floor is via a large porch with two gentle ramps. Just inside the main entrance is a vast hall containing a marble stairway. On the right is the office of the Governor, and on the left, the main dining room. Beyond the stairway is the salle des fêtes (events hall), where 600 guests may be accommodated. The upper floor contains civil and military offices and private apartments.

The Jardin de la Ville (City Park) is adjacent to the Palace compound. It contains a bandstand for musical events and a sports fields which hosts football matches every Sunday.

Nearby are the Collège Chasseloup-Laubat; the Service de l’identification judiciaire (Service of Legal Identification), near the Prison; the Palais de Justice [Law Courts]; and the Palace of the Lieutenant Governor of Cochinchina (a former Museum).

The Museum of the Société des Études Indochinoises at 16 rue de La Grandière [Lý Tự Trọng] is dedicated to the arts and ethnography of the peoples of southern Indochina. In the museum garden, one may find carved stones taken from various Cham ruins in southern Annam, and under the veranda, several Cham and Khmer statues.

The museum has a library and two exhibition rooms. The “salle de Beylié” on the ground floor contains casts of bas-reliefs from Angkor and My Son. On the first floor is the largest room. On the right, a showcase of Indochinese currencies, Japanese weapons and collections of shells and Buddhist books; at the back, a collection of traditional Malay, Annamite and Khmer musical instruments; on the left, samples of wood from the forests of Cochinchina and various types of Cochinchina rice; and near the entrance, exhibitions of Annamite fishing gear and Malay ethnic minority weaponry. Next to the walls of this room on both sides are various collections of artefacts, including: prehistoric tools, bracelets and pottery from Cu-Lao-Rua (Bien-Hoa) and Samrong-Son (Kompong-Chnang); Chinese, Korean and Japanese currencies; Annamite, Khmer and Siamese bronzes and porcelain; Lao woven fabrics; model carts and canoes; ceramics from Cay-Mai near Cholon; and blue Chinese porcelain. In the centre of the room are exhibitions of Chinese currency and more Buddhist books. In one of the nearby small meeting rooms, there is a collection of pottery; and in the other, a series of stuffed reptiles from the Lower Mekong.

The eastern part of the city

The Citadel, the southern walls of which were razed, contains the “Martin Pallières” Barracks. This fortification, of the Vauban system, occupies the northeast corner of the earlier [1790] fortress, which was built by the Annamites during the reign of Gia Long to plans by the French military mission. It was demolished in 1835 following the revolt of the previous year, and replaced by the current Citadel.

The Military Hospital is formed of pavilions connected by large porches.

The Botanical and Zoological Gardens, created in 1864, is one of the most interesting parks in the Far East. It contains a bandstand for music. This “pleasure garden” incorporates a large aviary, animal pavilions and several greenhouses. In the latter, we may see beautiful collections of orchids and magnificent ornamental plants. The paths intersecting the green lawns of the park are lined with tropical flowerbeds. The aviary and pavilions are home to an endless variety of Indochinese birds and other fauna, including tigers, panthers, bears, elephants and snakes. The fields on the opposite bank of the arroyo-de-l’Avalanche [Thị Nghè creek] are annexed to the Agronomic Service.

The Naval Arsenal stands at the confluence of the arroyo-de-l’Avalanche and the Saigon river, on the site of the ancient Annamite shipyard. This property is the main base of the French fleet in the Far East and has an area of 22 hectares, including a 168m dry dock.

The workshops, forges and power-hammers here are used to perform major repairs and even to build torpedo boats. Its employees include 1,500 Annamite and Chinese workers under the supervision of specialist foremen. On the river, several warships are anchored.

Located along the quay towards rue Paul Blanchy [Hai Bà Trưng] (which runs parallel to rue Catinat) is the Admiralty, and beyond it the Rond-point [Mê Linh square], with its statue of Admiral Rigault-de-Genouilly (1807-1873) by sculptor Alexandre-Victor Lequien, and mausoleum of sailor and explorer Doudart-de-Lagrée (1823-1868).

Cholon

Cholon (pronounced Tioeu-leune and not Cho-len) is the “Big Market” (or big city). This is the commercial and industrial suburb of our Cochinchina capital. Its municipality has 181,640 inhabitants (1911), one-third of whom come from southern China. It is located at the confluence of Lo-Gom creek and the arroyo-Chinois and its importance dates from 1778 when Chinese traders settled there.

Three railways and four roads connect Saigon with Cholon.

The railways are: 1. The Saigon-My-Tho railway, first stop Cholon, journey time 9 minutes, price 40-60 cents; 2. The “High Road” tramway (5.1km), services every 20 minutes from 5.20am to 9.20pm and on Sundays up to 11pm, journey time 14 minutes, price 10 cents; and 3. The “Low Road” electric tramway (6.3km, extension to Binh Tây), services every 30 minutes from 5am to 8pm, journey time 28 minutes, price 8 cents.

The roads (average journey time 35 minutes) are as follows: 1. The “Route du Polygone,” an extension of the rue Legrand de la Liraye [Điện Biên Phủ], which passes the Racecourse and then crosses the huge “Plain of Tombs,” a vast necropolis covered by tumuli of brick or stone. 2. The “Route Stratégique,” an extension of the rue Chasseloup-Laubat [Nguyễn Thị Minh Khai] which cuts across the Saigon-My-Tho railway line. 3. The “Route Haute” (High Road), an extension of shady rue de Lagrandière [Lý Tự Trọng] which passes the pretty Cho Dui church (built in 1902) and the Camp des Mares, now assigned to the Annamite Riflemen but originally the location of Trung Hien-tu or Temple de la Fidélité éclatante (Temple of Bright Loyalty). The latter was built by King Gia Long (1802-1820) in memory of his mandarins and generals who helped to bring down the power of the Tay-Son (1789-1802). The loyal generals it honoured included a Frenchman named Man-oe (Manuel), commander of a royal squadron, who was killed in 1783 during a battle in Can-Gio harbour. He was described by Gia Long as a “Faithful subject, just and deserving” and was given the title “Leading general, column of the empire.” 4. The “Low Road,” which follows the arroyo-Chinois via Cho Quan (4km) to Cholon (6.3km).

A fifth road, a new 40m wide extension of boulevard Bonard, will eventually connect with the rue des Marins [Trần Hưng Đạo B] in Cholon.

All of Cholon’s commerce and industry is in the hands of the Chinese, grouped into five congregations according to their place of origin and language.

These congregations are: Kouang-Tong [Guǎngdōng] and the Si-Kiang [Xījiāng] Delta; Fou-Kien [Fújiàn], specifically Hok-lo [Hokkien or Min-nan] people from the area of E-moui (A-moi); Hak-ka (A-ka) from northeast Kouang-Tong [Guǎngdōng]; Trieu-Chau [Cháozhōu] from eastern Kouang-Tong [Guǎngdōng]; and Hai-Nam [Hǎinán], from the district of Wen-Tch’ang [Wénchāng] in the eastern part of Hainan island.

The curved bridges above the arroyos, the long signboards above each store, the Chinese lanterns which are lit as soon as the sun goes down, the crowds of people crammed into the streets or in the doorways of the theatres, all give this city a uniquely Asian stamp. Amble along the rue des Marins and the rue de Canton.

Some temples were raised by the various Chinese congregations to honour the saints or genies of their homelands; among these temples we may mention: those of Kouang-Tcheou [Guǎngzhōu] and Fou-Kien [Fujian], along with another one on the rue de Cây-mai which was reproduced in the Paris Exhibition of 1900. Also of note are the Collège franco-chinois and the city’s hospitals.

The Cây May (“Apricot Tree”) Pagoda was originally built by the Khmers as the Ho-Tang-Tran-Thap Pagoda, but in the 18th century the Annamites built the An-Tan Pagoda here in its place. It gets its current name from the apricot trees which were planted on the May-Ki hill. During the Tay-Son occupation of the south, the pagoda was damaged. When it was restored in 1814, a large quantity of ancient bricks and tiles was discovered, along with two gold tablets inscribed with the image of the Buddha seated on an elephant. Today, the pagoda is surrounded by extensive fortifications. Around it there is large-scale manufacturing of ceramics.

Surrounding areas

The “Tour de l’Inspection:” This 9km journey, taking 1 hour 20 minutes and travelling via the Botanical and Zoological Gardens, the pont de l’Avalanche, Phu-My, Gia-Dinh and Phu Nhuan, is the favorite promenade of the Saigonnais.

Reaching Bac-Lieu, capital of the province of Gia Dinh, visit the tomb of Le-Van-Duyet, the “Great Eunuch,” Kinh-Luoc (Viceroy) of Cochinchina during the reign of Minh Mang (1820-1841), who died in Saigon in 1832. This monument is one of the largest (24m by 10m) in the country. The temple is adjacent and contains interesting sculptures, weapons, costumes and the palanquin and ancestral tablets of Le-Van-Duyet.

In some difficult legal cases tried by indigenous courts there is still a tradition of “swearing an oath” in front of the altar of Le-Van-Duyet while drinking the blood of a freshly slaughtered chicken. In case of deception, this potentially submits the one who has uttered the oath, along with his family, to the wrath of the Eunuch.

The Tomb of the Bishop of Adran at Tan-Son-Nhut: A journey of 11km there and back, taking 2 hours, including the visit. The Tomb of the Bishop of Adran stands in a grove of beautiful mango trees. Monsignor Pigneau de Béhaine was the author of the 1787 treaty between France and Annam. He died near Qui-Nhon on 9 October 1799. The Prince Nguyen, soon to take the title of King Gia-Long (1802-1820), posthumously made him “Duke Bi-Nhu” (Pigneau). He also ordered the construction of this funeral monument in the style of Annamite temples and composed the epitaph which is engraved on his tomb. By a decree of 3 August 1861, the monument was declared French national heritage.

Travel there via the third pont de l’Arroyo-de-l’Avalanche and the road to Go-Vap; then return via the route de Tong-keou, the canal de Ceinture and the Lignes de Chi-Hoa (an Annamite fortification destroyed in 1861 after a bloody struggle) and the arid Plain of Tombs.

Other places to visit: The column commemorating the battle of the Lignes de Chi-Hoa in 1861; the Annamite village of Phu Tho, created in 1747; the Kien Phuoc Temple; Phu Nhuan-(Binh-Hoa); the Thap-Phuoc Temple with its Buddhist pantheon.

Tim Doling is the author of the guidebook Exploring Saigon-Chợ Lớn – Vanishing heritage of Hồ Chí Minh City (Nhà Xuất Bản Thế Giới, Hà Nội, 2019)

A full index of all Tim’s blog articles since November 2013 is now available here.

Join the Facebook group pages Saigon-Chợ Lớn Then & Now to see historic photographs juxtaposed with new ones taken in the same locations, and Đài Quan sát Di sản Sài Gòn – Saigon Heritage Observatory for up-to-date information on conservation issues in Saigon and Chợ Lớn.

This article was published previously in Saigoneer http://saigoneer.com

Founded by French businessman Léopold Bernard, the Casino de Saigon was one of the city’s earliest cinemas.

Bernard set up the Société anonyme pour l’exploitation des cinémas Léopold Bernard in around 1910 and proceeded to build a chain of cinema-entertainment halls in Saigon (the Casino de Saigon), Mỹ Tho (the Casino de Mytho), Cần Thơ (the Casino de Cantho) and Bến Tre (the Casino de Bentre). Each auditorium was equipped for both stage and screen presentations and offered a varied programme of “cinema, theatre, concerts and other attractions.”

The original Casino de Saigon building stood at 30 boulevard Bonnard (Lê Lợi), but it was subsequently expanded into number 28, the larger adjacent building on the corner of rue Pellerin (Pasteur). The original building was then remodelled to become the Casino’s restaurant-café, known after 1915 as the “Brasserie des sports” and managed by one of Bernard’s business partners, Daniel Courrèges.

Apart from its regular programme of film screenings, the Casino de Saigon was billed as a venue for “European theatre” and hosted frequent performances by visiting French drama groups. It also became a popular venue for amateur boxing.

Following the death of Bernard Léopold on 31 July 1918, management of the Société anonyme pour l’exploitation des cinémas Léopold Bernard was taken over by his brother-in-law, Constant René Blot. The company remained in family ownership until the end of the colonial era.

After the departure of the French, the Société anonyme pour l’exploitation des cinémas Léopold Bernard was acquired by a local businessman. The original Casino buildings were sold, and in the late 1950s, a larger and more modern Casino Cinema was built just round the corner at 59 Pasteur.

After 1975, the Casino Cinema at 59 Pasteur was renamed the Vinh Quang Cinema and in 1998 it was converted into the Saigon Drama Theatre (Sân khấu Kịch Sài Gòn). It was closed several years ago and today the new Liberty Central Hotel stands on the site.

Tim Doling is the author of the guidebook Exploring Saigon-Chợ Lớn – Vanishing heritage of Hồ Chí Minh City (Nhà Xuất Bản Thế Giới, Hà Nội, 2019)

A full index of all Tim’s blog articles since November 2013 is now available here.

Join the Facebook group pages Saigon-Chợ Lớn Then & Now to see historic photographs juxtaposed with new ones taken in the same locations, and Đài Quan sát Di sản Sài Gòn – Saigon Heritage Observatory for up-to-date information on conservation issues in Saigon and Chợ Lớn.

This article was published previously in Saigoneer http://saigoneer.com

On 23-25 February 2015, Hồ Chí Minh City residents were given the opportunity to view 11 shortlisted designs for the new City People’s Committee Administration Building and to vote for the scheme they felt was best suited for the site and purpose.

The exhibition of shortlisted designs was held in the City Exhibition Centre at 92 Lê Thánh Tôn and attracted a steady throughput of visitors, including a very large number of young people.

While the shortlist included a number of more conventional monumental designs, it also featured several stunningly futuristic glass and steel creations. These included a semicircular structure with an undulating roof, apparently inspired by “the simple act of two hands held together, fingers interlocked – a humble expression of unity,” and a “sustainable, intelligent building” comprised of curved, abstract-shaped floors layered slightly off-centre from one another.

However, for members of the city’s growing urban conservation movement, the concern was not simply the design of the new building and its impact on the cityscape. Equally important was the fate of the 1888 Bureau du Gouvernement building at 59-61 Lý Tự Trọng,which had previously been threatened with demolition to make way for the new Administration Building.

Encouragingly, no fewer than seven of the 11 shortlisted designs planned to retain the 1888 building intact, without negative impact on its heritage value. One proposed minor modifications to the old building, two others envisaged building around it, and just one of the shortlisted designs involved dispensing with the old building altogether.

Undoubtedly the most intriguing design was one which envisaged moving the Bureau du Gouvernement building in three complete sections to a more central location on the site, in order to repurpose it as the rear entrance to the People’s Committee building. Addressing the concerns of visitors about the dangers of moving a 126-year-old heritage building, a representative of the design consultancy responsible for this scheme pointed out that this had already been done safely on many occasions in Japan and involved no danger to the old building.

The Saigon Heritage Observatory, set up last year by the group which led the 2014 Saigon Tax Trade Centre preservation campaign, issued a statement urging voters to choose a design which will preserve the old government building intact.

The results of the vote were expected to be announced in February 2015.

Tim Doling is the author of the guidebook Exploring Saigon-Chợ Lớn – Vanishing heritage of Hồ Chí Minh City (Nhà Xuất Bản Thế Giới, Hà Nội, 2019)

A full index of all Tim’s blog articles since November 2013 is now available here.

Join the Facebook group pages Saigon-Chợ Lớn Then & Now to see historic photographs juxtaposed with new ones taken in the same locations, and Đài Quan sát Di sản Sài Gòn – Saigon Heritage Observatory for up-to-date information on conservation issues in Saigon and Chợ Lớn.

This is the second of two excerpts from La Cochinchine française (1883), one of several works on colonial Indochina written by Saigon magistrate Raoul Postel.

To read part 1 of this serialisation, click here.

The Chinese City of Cholon

To get to Cholon, two roads are frequented by preference: that of the route des Mares and that of the Arroyo-Chinois.

The route des Mares continues west from the rue de Lagrandière [Lý Tự Trọng]. On the right as we head for Cholon is the Plain of Tombs; and on the left, a long strip of rich and fertile land. Here, on the outskirts of Saigon, are the former garden houses of the Annamite mandarins. Located one after the other, the ruins of their opulent pleasure houses are now hidden in the undergrowth. All that now remains are the trees which once adorned these delicious retreats: guava and grapefruit, mango and mangosteen, curious banyan, beautiful tamarind, slender areca. But European construction in this area is gradually making them disappear.

Further along, the road runs past the government Stud Farm and a former artillery park, now an Annamite army barracks known as “les Mares” because of the two small ponds which adorn each side of its main entrance – in one of these the mandarins kept fish, and in the other crocodiles. There were once two royal pagodas here, which were celebrated in the annals of the country. Here, in 1783, a French soldier who had given his life in defence of King Gia Long was buried amidst great pomp in the first pagoda; while in the other, Gia Long himself married the woman who later became the mother of his successor, King Minh Mang. After passing this place, this road offers nothing else of interest. It has a total length of 6 kilometres.

The arroyo-Chinois [Bến Nghé creek], so animated, so crowded, and so graciously designed to provide a pleasing contour to the eye, is the second route to Cholon and the most convenient one for those who fear the dust and heat.

Taking this route, it becomes apparent that there are few cities which can offer prettier scenery than Saigon. Along the riverbank, lines of houses on stilts advance over the water, serving as quays for the residents. Narrow canals lead away behind mountains of greenery.

On the right, we see the huge roof of the Cau-Ong-Lanh Chinese Theatre, of which I will say more later. On the left, a little further upstream, we see the arroyo-de-l’Amphytrite (Ong-Lanh). Near this creek, set back amidst a grove of areca and coconut trees, on may see the modest spire of the Cho-Quan Church. Nearby is the hospital of this pretty village, a hospital devoted to Asians. It is connected to the Pagode des Mares by a thousand paths, each one shaded and cool.

The arroyo-Chinois is as useful for the merchant as it is pleasant for the tourist to travel on. It is always packed with boats bringing goods from the vast storehouses of Cholon to Saigon for export. In the past, a bridge located at the entrance of the arroyo-Chinois prevented larger sea junks from accessing the creek and sailing down to Cholon. However, some years ago this bridge collapsed and happily we have now replaced it with a rotating iron bridge, built in France.

If we now enter the city of Cholon by one of the branches of this beautiful creek, we can admire its wide streets lined with solid and well-built one-storey houses, and the crowded quaysides with their shophouses packed with countless treasures, collected through the active and patient commerce of the Chinese. Cholon is their city, and in a very short time it has undergone considerable development.

Commercial freedom was the only way to achieve this rapid development. By breaking the old barriers, we succeeded in permanently settling the Chinese in this, their city of choice. It is true that some of them have been established here for more than a century. Many currently own land and houses. They understand fully the scope of the measures we have taken in their favour, which are intended to facilitate their efforts. And they profit greatly from them.

The real name of Cholon is Taï-Ngon, the Chinese name which the Annamites transformed into Saï-Gon. Today, the Chinese city is known only by its indigenous name Cholon, which means “big market.”

When we French first arrived in Cochinchina, Cholon was a dirty city, with dark and unhealthy homes clustered alongside narrow and winding streets. Its makeshift bridges, impassable to carriages, were also inconvenient for the feet of Europeans. Roads were often flooded by the tide, and house fronts were receptacles of filth. We created wide and airy streets, developed the docks, dug a new canal, rebuilt or restored the houses along the water’s edge, built bridges and bounded properties, cleaning and brightening up the city. Through our efforts, Annamite suburbs were transferred to new locations. Now, in the middle of the city, there stands an immense arcaded City Market with a tiled floor, courtyards and exterior sidewalks. Today we can finally move at ease in this bustling centre.

Thanks to the connecting arroyos and canals, junks, sampans and fishing boats can enter the city from all directions and unload their goods on the wharfs, where they can be transferred directly into the shophouses. A special steam boat service also runs back and forward every half-hour between Cholon and Saigon, carrying travellers and their goods.

The city is divided into five districts, each with a Chinese, Minh Huong and Annamite chief, which has had the effect of homogenising the population of these three very disparate elements, and also of encouraging the Annamites to become more interested in the commercial development of the city. Our Inspector of Native Affairs is responsible for the supervision and control of the chiefs of the Chinese congregations, and he is also responsible for justice and tax collection. When I left the colony, the pressing question was whether or not Cholon could be provided with an exclusively Asian city council. But, from the point of view of future development, I think that this would be an unfortunate measure.

The greatest attraction of Cholon, as far as the European is concerned, is its very large number of pagodas and temples. This city is the true “boulevard of Buddhism” in Cochinchina and we will now visit three of its most famous places of worship.

The first is the Kuang-Ti [Quan Công or Guānyǔ] pagoda, dedicated to the warrior deity. From the outside, it looks like all the rest of its peers. A high brick wall surrounds it on all sides, at the front of which stands a monumental three-entrance gate, the upper compartments of which are decorated with ceramic bas-reliefs: the one in the centre is the highest of the three, and each is covered with a light roof of tubular tiles, designed to protect against heavy rain.

Within the walls, located in the centre of a vast courtyard, are two long buildings. One wing is the temple, while the other is reserved for temple officials. Between the two buildings is a tall and thin carved wooden column supporting a bronze carved cornice, in which is housed a deformed genie. The brick roof of the pagoda is richly decorated with an array of wonderfully crafted ceramic ornaments: giant birds, huge bunches of flowers, figurines intertwined in capricious arabesques, and sacred lotus flowers emitting holy rays.

As we enter the left wing, closely followed by a hungry pack of local dogs, we venture through a small hidden door – this is the everyday entrance of the temple, because the great door of the front hall is only opened on festival days.

The interior is divided into several parts, each supported by many pillars of black wood on granite bases: an area adjoining the front hall is reserved for the faithful.

The middle hall comprises an open courtyard which serves to illuminate the main sanctuary. It contains a single shrine of enormous proportions, covered with embroidered silk and gold banners and surrounded by bronze-tipped wooden weapons.

At each corner of the main (rear) hall are two bulging idols, grimacing bodyguards of colossal size, one with a black face and lance in hand, the other with his hands buried deep in his wide sleeves. Both sport moustaches and long beards, and they face each other with serious expressions. Placed on the central shrine is a statue of the famous Kuang-Ti [Quan Công or Guānyǔ]. To his right is a statue of his son Kouang-Ping [Quan Bình or Guānpíng], and to his left, a statue of his faithful squire [Châu Xương or Zhōu Cāng], resembling the ridiculous Sancho-Panza in the story of Don Quixote.

The second temple we will visit is the Kwan-chin-Hway-quan, which was built to worship the goddess Koang-Yin or A-Pho, the creative power and patron saint of sailors.

To get there, we must cross a paved courtyard of granite slabs which were brought from Canton. The entrance is guarded by two granite sphinxes, each rolling a ball between its teeth. Along the walls, we see ceramic flower garlands of a very high quality; this is unusual, because in the past, the Chinese have rightly been criticised for their rather rough work in this genre. Above these are glazed ceramic panels featuring a variety of characters. The ridges of the tiled roof are decorated with snakes and fantastic birds.

The doors are intricately carved; inside, on both sides, sit small shrines featuring bearded deities. Along the side galleries, black marble slabs covered with Chinese inscriptions are embedded vertically in the wall. Above them on both sides, a series of paintings depict mandarins sitting in judgement, ladies of the court, and scenes of equestrian combat involving spears, axes and bows and arrows.

The square open courtyard in front of the main hall is reserved for detonating firecrackers. Worshippers also set light to gold and silver votive papers, which are thrown into a large and ornate cast iron urn located in front of the shrine. The main sanctuary is separated from this space by a screen made from fine hardwood, and the pillars on either side carry twin sentences in gold characters. Here there are also wooden chairs, a wooden settee and several small wooden sideboards with marble tops.

The main hall of the temple features a canopy supported by beautifully carved pillars; beneath it, the shrines comprise vast carved and gilded wooden niches where the Chinese deities are enthroned. The main shrine is occupied by the goddess, and on either side of her are two smaller subsidiary shrines occupied by bearded deities.

The goddess wears a crown topped with a red square which resembles an Italian beret. She also wears earrings and around her head is a golden halo. Near her are placed two other goddesses. Two characters with a menacing demeanour stand guard on either side.

In front of the shrine we see large screens decorated with peacock feathers, rows of triangular flags, a model junk with sails, large fragrant joss sticks, and imitation flowers and lotus buds, interspersed with small sundials, mirrors and inscribed panels. On festival days, the banners of the Cantonese congregation are displayed here, along with insignia mounted on top of painted sticks and a fragrant sandalwood cylinder which is eventually burned as a sacrifice. On one side of the shrine is a drum, and on the other a beautiful Chinese bell.

Three tables are arranged in front of the shrines to receive the sacrificial offerings, which consist of whole glazed roasted pigs, fruit, cakes, poultry, seafood and tea. At the foot of the tables are mats and cushions, where worshippers prostrate themselves and make their offerings against a background of incessant noise which includes the sounds of drums, bells and firecrackers.

It is also in this part of the temple that worshippers have their fortunes told using the curved root of a bamboo branch split into two: the two parts are dropped on the floor and the way in which they separate and are respectively positioned is said to denote either a favourable or unfavourable prognosis. Alternatively, they can throw into the air a bunch of 49 small sticks, on each of which predictions are written; if they land in a fortuitous position which corresponds to that indicated in the books of the monks, it is a happy lot for the thrower. On festival days, the monks preside at the ceremonies, and Chinese come in full costume early in the morning to pay homage.

In the right side of the temple is a small workshop where prayer sheets are printed. The characters are first engraved in relief onto a wooden board and then the sheets are reproduced in considerable numbers. This method is not as perfect as that of the Buddhists who sent to our 1867 Exhibition a prayer machine which was capable of turning out 120 sheets each day. Nearby, they also make and sell candles, votive gold and silver papers, and stacks of ingenious imitation coins and piastre notes, which are within the reach of every budget. By burning them, the good Chinese pass these items on to their ancestors, along with clothes, utensils and everything else which is deemed necessary for the material life, all represented on coarse paper and destined to go up in smoke.

A compartment on one side of the main hall contains four large burners, and it’s here too that food is served on large tables during festival days. Large quantities of roast pig are sacrificed for the greater benefit of the living, who come and go within the temple precincts, talking and laughing loudly. A native orchestra mingles its discordant notes with all the rest of the noise.

On the other side is a room filled with a large table and chairs and decorated with Chinese calligraphy: it’s the boardroom of the congregation.

Besides these areas, there are still more shrines, as well as a kind of attic, which may be reached by means of a wooden staircase, but contains nothing remarkable.

We are now sufficiently educated about the interior of this temple.

The third pagoda we will visit is the Pagode-neuve (New pagoda), which is dedicated to the Buddha. I attended its solemn inauguration, presided over by a monk who came especially from Tibet, and on whose travel huge sums had been spent.

A deep ditch, protected by a dry stone wall, separates the Pagoda from the street. Its exterior and interior decoration is similar to the previous two. One notices, however, a unique and wonderful work comprising six enormous granite columns, around each of which the artist sculpted gigantic dragons. Two of these columns are placed at the entrance to the front hall, two in the middle hall, and two on either side of the main sanctuary.

Right opposite the pagoda on the other side of the street is a vast enclosure surrounded on three sides by high walls decorated with gigantic tigers. The side facing the street is decorated with a lattice fence, through which it is possible to see all of the goings-on inside. However, this space is usually empty, being reserved for stage performances on festival days.

This is the general appearance of the famous pagodas, of which there are nearly 30 in Cholon. But none are as rich as those which belong to the Chinese.

The three pagodas that I have just described are located in the street that leads back to Saigon, not far from the Catholic church and the convent of the French nuns.

As we head back down that street, we pass the magnificent residence of three Indigenous Affairs Administrators, surrounded by a beautiful garden. In front are the guards’ barracks. Here we are back on the route des Mares, alongside which, set amidst huge mango trees, are situated numerous brick factories. After that, we must bid farewell to all the movement and life, because from this point onwards the eye contemplates only the sorry weeds of the Plain of Tombs.

Since 27 December 1881, Cholon has been connected to Saigon by a steam tramway line, which has succeeded wonderfully. It appears that its trains carry no less than 2,000 to 2,500 Asians each day, for the price of just 0 Fr.30. This is an excellent result. In their colourful language, the Annamites have dubbed this tram the cheval de feu (“fire horse”).

I don’t suppose that you expect me to write an in-depth essay on Chinese drama. Apart from the fact that the language is totally unknown to me, I must say that I have very rarely attended performances at the theatres in Cau-ong-Lanh or Cholon. All I can say is that the dramas, based on either history or fantasy, usually last two or three days, and that each evening performance extends for seven or eight hours. Everything is interconnected, from the main story, entr’actes and pantomimes, to the conjuring shows in which the Chinese excel. As for the décor, it is primitive. The scene never changes: a simple sign, hanging from a string or nailed onto a board, successively indicates change of place.

Members of the audience are content with these limitations and intelligence makes up for what cannot be glimpsed by their eyes. The lighting also leaves much to be desired. The backstage candle-snuffer is not in the least embarrassed to walk half naked across the stage in order to carry out his duties, even while the hero is delivering a speech, neither do the spectators seem to care.

As for the orchestra, it sits at the back of the stage and plays almost continuously; but its frenzied cacophony is one of the cruellest punishments which can be inflicted on the newly-arrived European. In a word, attending a Chinese theatrical performance once, in passing, can offer the charm of the unexpected; but attending a second time – which no-one is forced to do – is, in my view at least, a tedious chore for which there is neither excuse nor explanation.

The Chinese also play comedy and vaudeville. But I would not commit any of my French lady friends to risk viewing such performances. These representations are all too often of a revolting immorality. The Asian is never afraid to present on stage acts which, by their very nature, should be confined behind closed doors. On one occasion, the government intervened to defend the actors of the Cau-Ong-Lanh Theatre from attack by neighbouring Europeans who deemed their foul improvisations to be both offensive and dangerous.

In Cholon and other remote centres, the administration has more scruples. For my part, I wanted to attend one of these hideous representations, in order that I could understand the extent of their licentiousness. I must admit that eventually I had to retire in disgust. The Chinese are a people of little prudishness, and the Chinese audience members revel in such spectacles, which they supplement with a barrage of their own shameless jokes, made in loud voices at all of the most risqué points of the performance. Note that the Chinese never applaud with their hands. Their laughter alone, which they produce without restraint, indicates their satisfaction.

The first time I attended a performance at Cau-Ong-Lanh was at the opening of the theatre season, in June. Two of my colleagues and a Saigon lawyer accompanied me. The impresario had arranged everything splendidly. As the troupe knew in advance that three French judges would “honour” the festival by their presence, a carefully-stocked buffet was installed in the gallery which had been reserved for Europeans. Nothing was lacking, not even the champagne, that wine so dear to the wealthy Chinese! Needless to say, we could enjoy all this without spending a penny, for this gracious kindness was paid for in its entirety by the banker Mr Banh-Ap, farmer of opium in Cholon and sponsor of the theatre.

We were escorted by one of the native interpreters of the legal department; but the manager of the troupe, fluent in French, wanted to explain the scenario and the events of the drama himself. Besides, a little surprise had been arranged. As the curtain rose, the principal actor, advancing alone to the front of the stage, addressed us with a pompous harangue, partly improvised, we were told. It seems that this preliminary declamation was customary in the presence of Frenchmen of importance who attended the opening performance of the season.

The translation that was made to us was remarkable, though perhaps a little too hyperbolic. Having arrived at half past eight, we did not retire until well after midnight.

The area surrounding Cau-Ong-Lanh Theatre is hard to describe. The building is accessed via a long wooden corridor, decorated with a multitude of fantastic banners and colourful lanterns. During festival times, firecrackers are detonated frequently, their noise echoing through the arroyo. No-one burns as much gunpowder as the Chinese, who distinguish their every festivity in this way. We have even had to ban this practice in some of the more crowded locations of the city, in order to avoid accidents.

The theatre emits a bright red glow from many sections of its roof, which extends far into the night. This glow and the sound of the audience and the firecrackers have often been mistaken as signs of a major fire.

The Cau-Ong-Lanh Theatre building is constructed entirely of wood around a huge rattan frame. All this is of proven strength. As for the numerous corridors which radiate from it, these are all packed with little businesses from which entrepreneurs derive great profit.

However, those of high moral standard will find little of satisfaction here, because gambling houses and brothels are in the majority.

Indeed, these constitute one of the necessities of Chinese life. They are not the most sumptuous of places. On both sides of a low and narrow corridor next to the theatre are a series of small rooms containing furniture as minimal as the wardrobe of the courtesans they house.

But the women spend little time here. In the evening, a crowd flocks to the doorstep of this establishment and the highest bidders are free to conduct the women whose charms have seduced them back to their own homes.

Europeans do not disdain from attending these kinds of establishments in Saigon, almost all of which are grouped immediately behind the Hôtel Wang-Taï in the rue des Fleurs.

But the installations.of Cau-Ong-Lanh offer them serious competition.

Unfortunately, French residents are too easily led to imitate the moral turpitude of the Chinese, which is definitely not the way to raise our colony.

Tim Doling is the author of the guidebook Exploring Saigon-Chợ Lớn – Vanishing heritage of Hồ Chí Minh City (Nhà Xuất Bản Thế Giới, Hà Nội, 2019)

A full index of all Tim’s blog articles since November 2013 is now available here.

Join the Facebook group pages Saigon-Chợ Lớn Then & Now to see historic photographs juxtaposed with new ones taken in the same locations, and Đài Quan sát Di sản Sài Gòn – Saigon Heritage Observatory for up-to-date information on conservation issues in Saigon and Chợ Lớn.

This is the first of two excerpts from La Cochinchine française (1883), one of several works on colonial Indochina written by Saigon magistrate Raoul Postel.

The European City: Saigon

The name “Saigon” was improperly given by the French to the capital of their colony. The Annamites [Vietnamese] designate it as Ben-Thanh, or alternatively Ben-Nghe. Saigon is, in fact, the true name of the Chinese city of Cholon. We muddled up these names without cause, just for the sake of creating something new.

The land area within the city limits is extremely large. Admiral de Lagrandière dreamed of a city with a core population of 500,000 souls, but his grandiose plan has not yet been realised. Although Saigon increases in size day by day, and has experienced particularly rapid growth over the last eight years, I can’t believe that the current city, including the many villages which border it on all sides, contains more than 115,000 individuals. In my view, the more narrowly-defined “European city” has no more than 30,000 inhabitants. It is true, however, that it is very difficult to quantify the Annamite and Chinese populations, whose records are poorly kept.

I will concern myself here only with what may be called the “white man’s city,” leaving the suburbs with their teeming oriental populations for later discussion. This European Saigon is enclosed in a square formed by the Don-nai [Saigon] River to the east, the arroyo-Chinois [Bến Nghé creek] to the south, the arroyo de l’Avalanche [Thị Nghè creek] to the north and the Canal de ceinture [Belt Canal] to the northwest, the latter connecting the two arroyos. Needless to say, the vast area of land between the Palace of the Government and the Canal de ceinture remains uninhabited, and will perhaps never be fully populated.

On the Don-nai River, just downstream from the mouth of the arroyo Chinois, stand the offices of the Messageries maritimes shipping company. On the other side of the arroyo, situated on the tree-lined quayside, one may find the Directorate of the Commercial Port, and in the Hôtel Wang-Tai, the Town Hall and the Commercial Court. After that there is a long line of restaurants and cafés, and, further up river, the Naval Port Directorate, the shipbuilding yards and the floating dock.

Running perpendicular to the quayside, and almost dividing the city equally into two parts, stretches the Grand Canal [Nguyễn Huệ], bordered by two streets: rue Charner and rue Rigault de Genouilly. These two streets lead as far as the rue d’Espagne [Lê Thánh Tôn], which intersects them and marks the perimeter of the upper town.

While the rue Charner is occupied only by French, Chinese or Malabar traders, the rue Rigault de Genouilly also includes the residence of the Commissioner and the former offices of the Regulator. Each of these streets has, in addition, a branch of the Auction House. The upper part of the Grand Canal has been filled, and in its place has been built a vast square dominated by a bandstand, where music can be heard several times a week.

Also on the rue Charner are the City Market and the very modest Cathedral. Most of the streets in the area behind these two monuments are occupied almost exclusively by industrious Asians, except for the rue Mac-Mahon, where one may find the most beautiful house in the city, occupied almost entirely by European traders.

To the right of the rue Rigault de Genouilly, running parallel to it but of greater length, is the rue Catinat [Đồng Khởi], a bustling entrepôt of both European and native traders which was once the main thoroughfare of the Annamite city. Also in the same direction, one may find the rue de l’Hôpital [Thái Văn Lung] and the rue de Thu-Duc [Đông Du], the latter leading to the vast buildings of the Naval Arsenal and beyond it to the grandiose constructions of the Sainte-Enfance [St Paul’s Convent].

Close to the Sainte-Enfance are the Carmelite Convent, the Mission and the College d’Adran. Behind these institutions are the Botanical and Zoological Gardens, the intelligent and learned director of which, Monsieur Jean-Baptiste Louis-Pierre, has transformed it into the true rendezvous of all specimens of trees, shrubs and flowers from Indochina.

All this is, strictly speaking, the ville basse (lower town). Here one may find only small houses, with little or no garden spaces other than those of the Sainte-Enfance, the Mission and the Collège d’Adran, which are all splendidly laid out. The lower end of the rue de l’Hôpital [Thái Văn Lung] is still a swamp, while the area west of rue Mac-Mahon presents the same spectacle, with forlorn clumps of trees protruding from marshland. These two areas are quite unhealthy.

I mentioned that the ville haute (upper town) begins at the rue d’Espagne [Lê Thánh Tôn]. This is the luxurious European quarter, the leafy “aristocratic district” of the city. There are no trading houses, no indigenous people and no Malabar or Chinese in this area – it is inhabited entirely by “palefaces.” Since there are no streams or wetlands here, the air is clean and healthy. Each house has its own pretty garden. The offices of government administrators in the upper town are also more spaciously built, forming a huge contrast to the meagre barracks which were provided in the lower town during the early years of the colony.

Running parallel to the rue d’Espagne is the rue de Lagrandière [Lý Tự Trọng]. Located on the right side of this street, as we travel in the direction from Cholon to the Botanical and Zoological Gardens, are the Prison, the Courthouse, the Attorney General’s office, the Telegraph administration, and the offices of the Direction of the Interior. On the left side of the street, heading in the same direction, are the Gendarmerie, the Observatory and the Military Hospital.

Three great arteries intersect the upper town perpendicularly: the rue Pellerin [Pasteur], at the centre of which one may find the Bishop’s Palace; the rue Catinat [Đồng Khởi], which contains the Direction of Roads and Bridges, the Land Office, the Directorate of the Interior, the Treasury and the Post Office; and finally the rue Nationale [Hai Bà Trưng], on which are situated the Council of War building, the former Palace of the Government, the National Printing Works and the Officers’ Mess. Finally, please note the newest government office, that of the Regulator, on rue Tabert, the street which runs parallel to rue de Lagrandière.

It remains for me to mention the principal building of the colony, the Palace of the Government, located alongside the Route stratégique from Saigon to Cholon, behind which is the beautiful Jardin de la ville (City Park), where military music may be enjoyed every Thursday evening. On the other side of the Route stratégique is the Plain of Tombs, which will be described elsewhere.

The Palace of the Government has an imposing appearance. However, this immense building serves only to house the governor and his two or three aides-de-camp. Yet it cost the colony a dozen million francs! This was one of those ruinous fancies, useless and motivated only by the vain whim of a previous governor.

A final word about the port. Although it may not yet be compared to the wonderfully animated harbour of Singapore, our port of Saigon is no less frequented by many ships of all shapes and from all sources. These include Malay prahos and lorchas, Chinese and Annamite junks, warships of the various European nations which maintain colonies in the Far East, trading vessels flying all the flags of the world, and passenger ships and steamers heading for multiple destinations. It’s a real hive of activity, the contemplation of which has always fascinated me.

What surprises Europeans the most is the design of the Asian boats which we see here. What strange machines they area, these vessels which are still built to ancient plans using techniques which have changed little down the centuries. Take, for example, the Chinese junk. Anyone who hasn’t seen one could not imagine what an inconvenient piece of apparatus it is. Massive, heavy and square, it has wooden anchors and each of its four tall masts is made from a whole tree. Huge eyes, symbolising the vigilance of its captain, are painted in bright colours on its bow. The stern, which rises above the water as high as the châteaux-d’arrière (stern castles) of our older vessels, is also decorated with paintings; here one can often make out the image of a huge eagle with outstretched wings.

Inside the junk, the clutter is simply indescribable. Not an inch of space is wasted, but if we try to walk from one end of the junk to the other, we do not know where to place our feet and the journey is literally fraught with obstacles, to the extent that one wonders what maneouvres are possible at sea in the midst of such disorder.

Even the smallest gaps are packed full of goods. As for the passenger accommodation, every tiny nook, however exposed, is equipped with matting or hammocks and crammed so full of people that it is hard to understand how they avoid being swept overboard during a sea crossing.

Only two spaces are respected within the junk: the kitchen, a spacious area at the centre of the ship, which is a theatre of incessant activity; and the stern castle, a monumental fortress that contains the crew’s weapons and ammunition, along with the shrine of a portable deity, before which fragrant jossticks are burned.

One wonders how this machine, seemingly devoid of all nautical qualities other than strength, can accomplish its double pilgrimage every year with so few accidents. The view of the land is the only guide to navigation. Thanks to long practice, the pilot is always familiar with every detail of the coast. This is very fortunate, because the compass – the discovery of which counts among the few maritime claims of the Chinese – is used very little. Indeed, I would venture to suggest that no Chinese crew has any understanding of it; it is only the confidence and willpower of these bold sailors which saves them from disaster.

Some of these Chinese junks measure as much as 700 tonnes, but their average size is 300 tonnes. In China they cost around 75,000 to 80,000 francs to buy. Malay and Annamite vessels hardly differ from the Chinese model.

The cries and songs of the junk crews are impossible to recreate. One could describe them as sounding like a squad of screaming demons.

Needless to say, here in Saigon the Asian boatmen operate within limits which have been specifically determined for them: the arroyo-Chinois belongs to them. And it is in this area that all trade with the interior is focused.

Such is Saigon today. How to predict its future?

Saigon is a newly-created city and should therefore not be compared with the ports of neighbouring European colonies. What we are aiming at is to establish a compact, homogeneous source of wealth, useful above all to our Métropole. To us this seems preferable to an agglomeration of 20 different races, based solely on domestic trade, without proper resources and subject to all the dangers of a distant war. This is our avowed aim: but are we succeeding?

From a purely physical point of view, responding to those who compare Saigon unfavourably with Singapore and regard our new city with disdain, one must point out that, 22 leagues inland, we can’t all of a sudden build a city as monumental as one which already has over 40 years of existence and sits happily on the seashore. Of course the coup d’oeil here is not yet as satisfying as it is in Colombo or Singapore. We are still in the work of raising our child.

However, consider what Saigon was like 15 years ago, when swamps covered one part of the city and a vast cemetery occupied the remainder, both giving off a formidable odour during the rainy season. Not to mention the poor stilted houses which once served as residences for all French colons. Now consider what has been done since that time – the filling of the canals, the construction of roads and bridges, the great colonial buildings which have sprung up everywhere, and the elegant upper town which has grown as if by magic. We cannot ignore the achievements of recent years, notwithstanding the complaints of those envious people who seek to undermine our progress to date.

In a few years time, our Saigon will lack nothing in comparison with those other proud Asian port cities. We have already achieved a great deal and we will achieve more, because we are still far from reaching the point at which our path of expansion is complete. Already, construction has begun in the area around the ancient citadel, and the trowel of our developers now begins to threaten the bushes of the Plain of Tombs. This is not a sign of decadence.

To read part 2 of this serialisation, click here.

Tim Doling is the author of the guidebook Exploring Saigon-Chợ Lớn – Vanishing heritage of Hồ Chí Minh City (Nhà Xuất Bản Thế Giới, Hà Nội, 2019)

A full index of all Tim’s blog articles since November 2013 is now available here.

Join the Facebook group pages Saigon-Chợ Lớn Then & Now to see historic photographs juxtaposed with new ones taken in the same locations, and Đài Quan sát Di sản Sài Gòn – Saigon Heritage Observatory for up-to-date information on conservation issues in Saigon and Chợ Lớn.

This article was published previously in Saigoneer http://saigoneer.com

While foreign visitors still flock to the famous Rex Hotel, few have heard of the Établissements Bainier Auto Hall which preceded it, a building once feted as the greatest automobile dealership in Asia.

Little is known about the early life of company founder Émile Bainier, other than the fact that he was a skilled mechanic who arrived in Saigon and set up his own business in around 1908.

On 26 April 1909, it was Bainier who demonstrated to a group of distinguished guests the colony’s very first public bus. According to an article of that month in the Écho Annamite newspaper, “At 16h.30, the bus, driven by Monsieur Bainier, travelled a pre-planned route through the city. Arriving at the bottom of rue Paul Blanchy [Hai Bà Trưng street], it stopped at a garage in which a table had been set up, laden with glasses of champagne. After drinking to the success of this new form of locomotion which had thus been launched on our streets, the guests returned by the same route, observed by a great crowd of onlookers.”

In 1911, Bainier became the Director of the Garage Ippolito, a Peugeot dealership run by the Société d’automobiles Ippolito et Cie, which had made its name in 1901 by launching the very first automobile courier service from Saigon to Phnom Penh. However, in 1914, Bainier parted company with the Garage Ippolito and set up his own business, the Société Anonyme des Établissements Bainier. Initially based at 40 boulevard Bonnard, it specialised mainly in electrical and electro-mechanical equipment, but also sold auto-pousses and voiturettes (miniature automobiles).

By 1920, the Société Anonyme des Établissements Bainier had moved to more imposing premises, the first Établissements Bainier Auto-Hall at 21 boulevard Bonnard [Lê Lợi boulevard] and 100-102 boulevard Charner [Nguyễn Huệ boulevard], where it became a full-blown automobile dealership, advertising itself as the exclusive agent for Darracq, Unic, Dodge Brothers and the recently-established Automobiles Citroën.

The company also acquired a fleet of service vehicles, and in 1922 it won the concession to run the thrice-weekly Saïgon-Phnom Penh bus and postal service, which departed from the Saigon Post Office at 6am on Tuesdays, Thursday and Saturdays. By this time, the company also had a large branch office in Phnom Penh, which launched the first metered Citroën taxi service in that city in 1925.

Unfortunately for Bainier, the reputation of his business sustained some damage in June 1926, when the Écho Annamite newspaper reported the case of a wealthy Vietnamese man who had bought a brand new Citroen 10CV car from the Bainier Auto-Hall. When he complained that it was not ready for collection at the agreed time, the man was subjected to racist comments by one of the European garage staff. In response, Bainier was obliged to issue a public apology and to declare in the newspaper that his company made no distinction between local and European clients and that, in fact, most of its sales were to local people.

Despite this minor PR setback, the company’s sales and earnings increased steadily throughout the 1920s, largely due to its exclusive dealership of the increasingly sought-after Citroën marque. In 1926, seeking to build upon this success, Bainier commissioned the construction of a brand new Auto-Hall, situated diagonally opposite the old one at the junction of boulevards Charner and Bonnard.

The new Établissements Bainier Auto-Hall was inaugurated in March 1927 amidst great fanfare. According to a report in the Écho Annamite newspaper of 21 March 1927, the new premises were located just across the road from the recently-opened Grands Magasins Charner, “of which they constitute a beautiful and worthy counterpart,” and “occupied the entire block leading up to rue d’Espagne [Lê Thánh Tôn street].”

“It has been said of the new Bainier garages that they are the most beautiful in the Far East, and that they yield nothing to similar ultra-modern buildings in proud America,” continued the press report. “Skeptics might think that this is pure advertisement. Well, they would be wrong, because we believe that it would be impossible to design garages more elegant or better suited to the purpose for which they are intended. Imagine a gigantic hall, with no columns obstructing the central area, where air and light circulate profusely, without recourse to a glass roof… Here, a system of overlapping corrugated roofs lets in the bright light of the tropical sun without any risk to the employees who work in the building. The builder has indeed created a masterpiece.”

By this time, Établissements Bainier had branches in Saigon, Hà Nội, Tourane, Huế and Phnom Penh, totalling 16,800m² of floor space and employing a workforce of 25 Europeans and 300 local staff.

The remarkable design of the new Établissements Bainier Auto Hall in Saigon was reported widely by both local and international press, and the building quickly became an attraction in its own right. On 19 November 1927, the new “Grand Hall Bainier” was “generously made available” for a grand society ball organised to raise money for victims of the Great War. Then in 1928, the Paris newspaper La Lanterne reported that “His Majesty King Monivong of Cambodia, visiting the city of Saigon, stopped to visit the largest garage in the Far East, that of M Émile Bainier, exclusive concessionnaire of Automobiles Citroën in Indochina.”

The following year, 1928, was one of the company’s most successful, thanks mainly to the “great sensation” caused by the release of the brand new six-cylinder Citroën C6, with its “moderate price and exceptional qualities.” The car sold spectacularly well in Cochinchina, and in that same year, Bainier himself was awarded the Order of the Légion d’Honneur for his services to the colony.

With the onset of the Great Depression in 1929, the company suffered a drastic loss of income, obliging it to downsize its operations. According to the annual reports of its Conseil d’Administration, the Société Anonyme des Établissements Bainier recorded significant business losses throughout the period 1931-1935. But the biggest blow came in 1933, when it lost the prized Citroën concession.

Établissements Bainier did not return to profitability until the late 1930s. By that time it had become the main Indochina dealer for Unic, Delahaye, Rosengart, Motoconfort and Mobylette cars and motor cycles. However, having lost the prestigious Citroën dealership, it never recovered its former pre-eminence.

For Émile Bainier, the 1930s were difficult years. When he died in early December 1941, the troubles of that period were alluded to by a brief obituary in Le Nouvelliste d’Indochine, dated 14 December 1941:

“Saigon has learned with great sadness of the death of M Émile Bainier, President and founder of the Société Anonyme des Établissements Bainier. We’ve lost one of our oldest residents, who has worked hard in this country for over 30 years, and his demise leaves deep regrets. A man of duty, honest, sometimes stubborn, but always fair and good, he was typically a self-made man who built his own destiny. He brought a remarkable lustre to the Cochinchina automobile industry and, like so many others, suffered many adversities without complaining. Through his hard and intelligent work, he repaired the damage which had been inflicted on his business. This was his last satisfaction.”

Bainier’s widow and her son Jacques Bainier continued to run the Établissements Bainier for the remainder of the colonial period, but some time after 1953 the garage was closed and the family sold up and returned to France. The new owners, Prince Nguyễn Phúc Ưng Thi and his wife Nguyễn Thị Nguyệt Nga, had the old building demolished and hired local architect Lê Văn Cấu to design in its place the six-storey Rex Hotel, Commercial Centre and Cinema. Following its completion, most of the complex was leased to the Americans. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Tim Doling is the author of the guidebook Exploring Saigon-Chợ Lớn – Vanishing heritage of Hồ Chí Minh City (Nhà Xuất Bản Thế Giới, Hà Nội, 2019)

A full index of all Tim’s blog articles since November 2013 is now available here.

Join the Facebook group pages Saigon-Chợ Lớn Then & Now to see historic photographs juxtaposed with new ones taken in the same locations, and Đài Quan sát Di sản Sài Gòn – Saigon Heritage Observatory for up-to-date information on conservation issues in Saigon and Chợ Lớn.

George Dürrwell spent nearly three decades working for the Cochinchina legal service. His 1911 memoirs, Ma chère Cochinchine, trente années d’impressions et de souvenirs, février 1881-1910 (My Dear Cochinchina, 30 years of impressions and memories, February 1881-1910) afford us a fascinating picture of life in early 20th century Saigon and Chợ Lớn. This is part 3 of a three-part excerpt from the book.

To read part 1 of this serialisation, click here.

To read part 2 of this serialisation, click here.

Let’s now complete our fantastic journey through the streets of Saigon, transporting ourselves along the boulevard Charner, that wide thoroughfare which runs parallel to the rue Catinat and which, in its animation, is somewhat reminiscent of one of the dreary main avenues in the dull city of Versailles. The boulevard runs from the central market as far as the new City Hall.

A market is always an interesting place to visit, and in every town and village here, it offers the astute observer an opportunity to observe an infinite variety of real-life scenes which reflect local customs. Each market is also a small agricultural show, where the region’s key products are all grouped together. In the Central Market of Saigon, where there is the most variety, Europeans and Asians – Annamites, Chinese and Indians – mingle and jostle, making such a visit even more captivating.

Yet how few of my fellow citizens have ever set foot in the Central Market? I don’t reproach them for this, having ignored it myself for many years, simply because of my lazy reluctance to get up at the early hour when it is at its busiest. However, I finally decided to visit, and if you make the effort to do the same, I can assure you that you will not regret it.

Moreover, the time left to see this market is now short [at the time of writing, the new Halles Centrales, new Bến Thành Market, was being planned]. It seems, in fact, that all the picturesque corners of our old Saigon, of which the dilapidated, rotten, yet so characterful old Central Market is the real centre of attraction, are now condemned to disappear. It’s not for me to discuss here the rights and wrongs of this measure, although I have every reason to believe that not everyone will lose out as a result of the change. But let’s not dwell on this subject.

So, here we are in the old Central Market: it is 7am, and around us is an intense and noisy scene with traders and customers swarming incessantly back and forward.

Here, in long rows at the edge of the sidewalk, one can see big baskets covered with large woven mesh, which serve as temporary cages for the various types of poultry brought every day by the little tram from Go-Vap. Nearby are piles of indigenous vegetables from the same source, including sweet potatoes and those long white turnips which grow in abundance on the sandy plains of Hoc-Mon.

Next to them, under the watchful eyes of merchants from the countryside, are spread out the seemingly infinite varieties of fruit which are produced throughout the year in this fertile land of Cochinchina. According to the season, these include: juicy yellow mangoes; mangosteens with their tasty white pulp; large oranges from Cai-Be, whose rough green skin contrasts starkly with the gleaming brilliance of small golden tangerines; bulging watermelons with rose coloured flesh; fragrant guavas; bunches of fresh indigenous lychees covered in spines which make them look like tiny curled hedgehogs; and more, many more. Not to mention the mountains of green and yellow bananas, that veritable national fruit of the earth in the land of Nam-Ky.

Further on, market gardeners from the suburbs obligingly spread out their green wares, pale reproductions of our vegetables from Europe, in the middle of which, marking a cheerful note, sit piles of scarlet peppers.

There, in a dark corner of the market, are the Chinese butchers, their appearance and that of their wares leaving much to be desired. They do business side by side with collectors of old scrap, rags and other rubbish. Frankly, that area is not the most attractive place to shop.

And here is the fish market, the best-stocked part of the market, but also the smelliest, due to the acrid and sickening stench of the muddy water.

Tough Indian collectors working for the market administration circulate, demanding sapeks from the traders. Their demands are often resisted loudly by the Annamite merchants, especially the women, and the police are frequently obliged to intervene.

Along the rue d’Adran [Hồ Tùng Mậu street], right outside the market, small open-air Chinese restaurants are set up on rough benches. It’s here that our cooks and boys line up and gorge themselves at our expense on a variety of steaming concoctions, washed down with a fine drop of choum-choum.

The immediate vicinity of the market, especially the rue d’Adran, is as interesting to visit as the main market pavilions. Watching the crowds of people going back and forth busily in the narrow alleys, it feels like one has been transported into one of the most populated areas of the city of Cholon; indeed, apart from some merchants of Indian fabrics whose shops line the rue Vannier [Ngô Đức Kế street], Chinese commerce reigns supreme here.

On the occasion of the great religious and family celebration of Tết, the market lies idle for two days, and during this period it is impossible to find even a radish in exchange for its weight in gold.

The new City Hall is another great attraction of the boulevard Charner, located at the top end of the street. Like the Swing Bridge across the arroyo Chinois, this building has attracted much attention from the press, most of it lukewarm.

It can’t be disputed that the City Hall presents, both as a whole and in its detail, big imperfections. The main entrance steps, which should rise high above the ground in order to comply with the most elementary rules of perspective, exist only in a rudimentary state; the central belfry, which claims to recall the elegant architecture of some city halls in Flanders and the north, is narrow and mean; and the main interior staircase is woefully lacking.

However, these gaps are largely redeemed by the admirable salle des fêtes, that most essential part of the building, even devoid of the lavish artistic decoration that has been bestowed on it, which is really worthy of our beautiful Saigon.

It is supplemented by other rooms especially assigned to the municipal council or reserved for weddings, including a charming reception room.

The solemn inauguration of the Town Hall took place just a few months ago, in February 1909, in the presence of the Governor General of Indochina, and it had the happy inspiration to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the French occupation of Saigon. The loyalty of the Annamites of Cochinchina was affirmed, on this occasion, by the willingness of all to respond to the invitation of the Mayor.

To follow the example of our cities in France, and especially the cities of the southwest, which, without exception, have spawned at least one great man, Saigon has decorated some of its squares with statues. However, these monuments have the merit of reviving genuine national or colonial glories. As for local celebrities, it has wisely been decided that for now their names should simply be given to streets in the city. Sic itur ad astra [“Thus you shall go to the stars,” from Virgil’s Aeneid book IX]

Next to the Saigon River, facing the naval port, stands the figure of Admiral Rigault de Genouilly, that glorious sailor to whom France owes the conquest of the old capital of Nam-Ky, and who now seems to contemplate the scene of his former exploits from the top of his pedestal. Some 30 years ago, the inauguration of his statue was the object of a great patriotic gathering to which the entire population Saigon was invited.

The inauguration of the Rigault de Genouilly statue was an occasion which lacked nothing in solemnity: the highest authorities of the colony praised the hero of the day in the most generous terms; land and sea troops marched in parade in front of him; a poet celebrated the Admiral in pompous Alexandrine verse; and the youth of local schools performed a cantata featuring the chorus: Come, children of Annamite France, To the land of steam and electricity!

And in those few happy words was summarised the whole of our future programme.

Nearby, a modest pyramid was erected in memory of the famous explorer Ernest Doudart de la Grée. The description of this monument can be found in a technical report to the municipality by one of our former councillors: “It is,” says the report, “a monolith composed of three cemented blocks of granite.” So now you know.

Nor have we forgotten Commandant de la Grée’s faithful companion, the valiant Mekong River explorer Francis Garnier, who remains one of the purest and most sympathetic figures among our early Indochinese pioneers.

We gave his name to the small square in front of the place du Théâtre and erected a statue there to his memory. Dressed in his naval officer’s uniform, he seems ready to draw his sword in the service of colonial France, to the greatness of which he devoted his entire life. I must admit, however, that the attitude of the statue reminds one greatly of the Jean Rapp monument in one of the squares of the old Alsatian city of Colmar, and it is not the most attractive to look at.

Occupying pride of place in the place de la Cathédrale is a statue of Monsignor Pigneau de Béhaine, Bishop of Adran. In the last years of the 18th century, he was a wise counsellor to the great Emperor Gia Long, and the true inspirer of the Versailles Treaty which opened up Annam to French influence.

The statue, inaugurated in 1902, is the work of our friend Édouard Lormier, the author of the Monument aux sauveteurs (Lifeguard Memorial) in Calais, who created a real tour de force by treating a rather awkward subject with great artistic originality.

The statue depicts the venerable prelate in a standing pose, presenting him as a tall and commanding figure, thanks to his long, tightly buttoned cassock and the narrow plinth on which he stands. At his feet, in ceremonial costume, is his beloved pupil, the little prince Canh, eldest son of Gia Long, to whom he is seen presenting a copy of the alliance and pact of friendship signed between the two kingdoms. The physiognomy and attitude of the child is also charming, and the group, though somewhat mannered, creates, in short, a beautiful overall effect.

Nearby, in the midst of the shaded lawns of boulevard Norodom, is Léon Gambetta himself. Wrapped in a large fur coat which seems somewhat inappropriate in our sunny Cochinchina, the great orator stands, head slightly thrown back, apparently addressing the crowds. His extended right arm seems to envelop the whole city with a sweeping and protective gesture. The two subjects flanking the monumental pedestal – a sailor and a mortally wounded naval infantryman – cut a fine figure, recalling the glorious role played Gambetta in the epic of the Défense nationale. The statue inspires the relentless admiration of all the good Nha-que who visit the capital.

In fact, the Gambetta monument on boulevard Norodom has a history that could serve as a theme for some amusing production in the Théâtre du Palais-Royal. Here it is in a nutshell.

The premature death of Gambetta, which inspired genuine public mourning in France, also caused deep emotion here in Cochinchina. In response, seeking to interpret faithfully the common sentiment, our local assembly decided to perpetuate his memory by raising a dignified statue to him in one of our Saigon squares. The funds were voted by acclamation, and one of our honourables, then on leave in Paris, was charged with commissioning the work.

Our man, thus given a mandate, made his choice among the great artists of the capital, and that choice was good; a few months later, the desired monument arrived safely. Everything was going well.

But we had reckoned without the patriotic zeal of our deputy. The confusion resulting from his informal intervention was not long in coming. One morning, the mayor was informed that another large box labelled “statue – fragile” had just arrived at his address. A duplicate statue had been mistakenly produced and delivered to Saigon. The excitement was great, but so was the embarrassment, because a large monumental statue is rather more difficult to refuse than a simple parcel sent cash on delivery. The Mayor had a good practical solution: the duplicate was given to the deputy who had rashly ordered it, and he was obliged to pay for it. It was cruel but logical, and in our good Cochinchina, where money comes easy, a compromise solution was not even offered. In this way, Saigon is even now in possession of two Gambetta statues. The one we all know is proudly located in the sunlight of boulevard Norodom, while the other is stored and long forgotten, buried for years in the white wooden coffin in which it once made its long and unnecessary trip to our overseas territories.

Arriving at the end of the long avenue lined with sao trees named rue de Bangkok, one reaches the entrance to the great Saigon necropolis, which is open to all.

It is here that Cochinchina keeps the remains of officials who have fallen foul of the deadly climate, old disillusioned settlers who have succumbed to hard work, bright future officers struck down far too early and poor young soldiers whose weeping mothers wait in vain for their return. Here they all sleep side by side, and alas, there are far too many of them!

The Saigonnais, who are always rather careless about tomorrow and even cheeky in the face of the death that awaits them, refer to this large cemetery by the graceful name of the “Jardin du père d’Ormay” (Father d’Ormay’s Garden).

In order to explain this etymology, I must tell you that the said Father d’Ormay whose sympathetic memory has indeed remained very much alive in Saigon, once occupied the high functions of Director of the Public Health Service and of the Military Hospital.

Pierre Loti dedicated some beautiful pages of his work L’Indochine Coloniale – Un Pélerin d’Angkor to a description of this special garden. In heartfelt lines of poignant melancholy, he spoke of these French graves, dug so far from the land of France. However, none of them has been completely abandoned, and in default of family, all of the deceased may still count on a friendly hand to care for their graves and make floral tributes.

Saigon also has two other public parks, large exotic gardens with shady paths and flowerbeds. However, with the exception of the days of “La Musique,” they attract fewer visitors than the gloomy park we just left.

Only the Botanical Gardens sometimes offers asylum to amorous couples fleeing from prying eyes; indeed, if the plants in some mysterious corners of the orchid house could talk, they would undoubtedly disclose some curious revelations about the romantic intrigues which take place there. But hush! Let’s remain discreet and not interfere in matters that do not concern us.

Located at a distance of about four kilometres from Saigon, at the other end of the dreary Plain of Tombs, stands the Chinese city of Cholon. This is the “big market” of the colony, the rich industrial and commercial warehouse of our Cochinchina.

Two tramway lines and several roads connect the two cities with each other; and in the future, a wide boulevard will link them even more closely: however, a great many interests of all types, both public and private, are engaged in this enterprise, so we may have to wait a long time for its completion.

Of all the channels of communication between Saigon and Cholon, the busiest and most active is unquestionably the arroyo Chinois [Bến Nghé Creek], the waterway along which the rice of fertile Cochinchina flows incessantly, from Cholon with its large factories to the port of Saigon where the international cargo ships are moored.

In order to account properly for the inexhaustible richness of this wonderful land of promise, it is necessary to travel, during the working hours of the day, along the Binh-Dong and Binh-Tay quays where rice paddy undergoes successive transformations in the large steam rice mills. It is here, from dawn to dusk, that we encounter at first hand the relentless hard work on which our economy is based.

Massive junks hasten, bow to stern, along the waterway, loading and unloading again and again.

Half-naked Chinese workers walk back and forth between the junks and the vast stores, their spines bent under the weight of heavy gunny sacks packed with grains.

Nothing interrupts the work of these beasts of burden; and one can not help admiring their tireless stamina, a vaguely disturbing activity that a whole race knows so well as their daily business of life.

It is by design that I refer to a vague uneasiness and apprehension about the hard work of the Chinese, because the coin has two sides. We must remember that these great labourers work only for themselves and for their country; all the money they amass so patiently, sapek by sapek, invariably leaves the producer countries and makes its way back to China, and there can be no doubt that its owners would follow at the first opportunity.

In fact, with just a few exceptions, the Chinese merchant who has settled in our country is not fixed here. His only desire, his only dream for the future, is to make a fortune and then to return to his homeland. Ideally he will achieve this while he is still alive, so that he can enjoy with his family the fruits of his labours acquired abroad. However, if he only manages to return after his death, he will at least sleep peacefully in the field alongside his ancestors, near the family altar on which incense sticks will be burned to honour his memory.

An article published in the journal Dépêche coloniale under the title “The True Yellow Peril” (1 October-November 1909) is a well-documented study of this financial exodus which we suffer without being able to stop it. All those who have concern for the future of our colony will read it with interest and meditate fruitfully on its wise conclusions.

In the evenings, Cholon turns into a real fairyland city. Everywhere in the crowded streets and squares, in the markets and even in the shops and open-air restaurants that line the roads, countless lights shine out into the night. Among them, forming the keynote of this illumination, are large lanterns of isinglass on which Chinese characters are painted in large brush strokes, indicating the names of the proprietors and their multiple professions – the thousand and one trades in which the good Chinese, without distinction, are masters.

Gradually, the clubs begin to light up in their turn; theatres open their doors; brohels, gambling and opium dens prepare quietly to receive their customers; and all Cholon, that which we know and that which remains for us mysterious and closed, begins its search for pleasures more varied than innocent, a relaxation to the labour of the day.

Once a year, in early May, all Saigon travels to Cholon to attend the ritual “Procession of the Dragon,” which makes its way from pagoda to pagoda through the crowded streets of the city.

The Procession of the Dragon is a veritable feast of beautiful and colourful Chinese silk costumes and banners, which shimmer in the bright Nam-Ky sunlight. The banners seem to float in the wind, proudly displaying in broad embroidered characters the names and slogans of each Chinese congregation. Meanwhile, those taking part in the procession wear elegant silk festival costumes in soft shades of azure blue and mauve. Some carry subtlely decorated silk umbrellas.

But the undoubted highlight is the group of adorable Chinese children who play a major role in the procession. Their heavily made-up little faces and colourful silk costumes seem to transform them into cute, finely-modelled wax dolls.

Some ride on richly-decorated horses, while others are perched high on a float, where they emerge curiously from a gigantic blossoming pink or white lotus flower. Their hieratic appearance and apparent imperturbability complete the illusion; and we realise that all of the children are fully aware of the important role they play in the ceremony. Meanwhile, attentive and anxious fathers follow their brood step by step, ready to jump in and save them at the first sign of a fall or an accident.

Finally, at the very end of the procession, marches the hero of this great celebration, the fantasy dragon of Chinese legends. Its body, which exceeds 30 metres in length, is made from a rattan frame concealed by wide bands of scarlet silk, decorated with sparkling sequins. It is carried by a troupe of around 20 young men. The mission of those half-hidden under its body is to give the monster the appearance of life by recreating the soft undulations of a creeping beast. However, the real virtuoso of the troupe is concealed beneath the grotesque head, which moves up and down relentlessly until the final great ritual, in which the dragon bows down before the Mayor of Cholon as the crowd of onlookers presses around him.

The festival ends with the crowd storming a mountain of Chinese food, meats, cakes and sweets which has been set out in front of the Pagode des Sept-Congrégations. Needless to say, the assailants don’t take very long to devour everything.

Then, in the evening, the pagodas light up; noisy firecrackers explode everywhere and the feast continues more intimately in restaurants and private houses, not stopping until long into the night.

Close to Cholon’s busy industrial and commercial centre, one may find a quiet city of charity where all who are suffering may find succour and assistance, regardless of the nature of their infirmity. Thanks to this admirable initiative, the area contains a range of support establishments which can meet every need.

There is the Hospital Drouhet, a model hospital with wards and operating rooms equipped in accordance with the most modern rules of hygiene and comfort, and where the Europeans of the colony, officials and settlers, may find the illusion of home and all the amenities they can reasonably desire.

The natives have, moreover, not been forgotten and a beautifully landscaped hospice has made available to them.

Next to the Hospital Drouhet rise the elegant buildings of the Maternité, where all young expectant mothers, are welcomed and treated without distinction. A school for native midwives has been annexed to this building, which has become very popular with the local people, rendering invaluable service to the business of Annamite birth, once so neglected and so culpably compromised.

Nearby is an asylum for blind children, where around 40 youngsters learn, alongside the first elements of primary education, the manual trade that will keep them later from want and ensure that their daily rice bowl remains full. This asylum is maintained under the intelligent direction of a French teacher who is also blind. Among all the infirmities that afflict our poor and unbalanced humanity, deprivation of sight has always seemed to me the most unjust and the most cruel. Thus, my concern has always been carried by preference towards those who are afflicted by it. If you agree with me, go and visit the blind children of Cholon: by the time you leave, your heart will be overflowing with charity.

Unfortunately, a nearby project devoted to the education of deaf children did not give as good practical results, for competitive reasons that it is better not to mention.

Finally, to end our pilgrimage, there is an old people’s asylum, created with the ingenious idea of providing facilities for elderly men and women without families who previously displayed their decay and misery on the streets of the city. I once made an official visit to this place and was saddened to find that one of its residents was the nephew of the great patriot Phan-Tan-Giang.

It was in the midst of this group of model institutions that the Société de Protection de l’Enfance (Child Protection Society), with the generosity of the Chinese city, built its orphanage on a gracefully conceded plot of land. More than 60 children, mostly those of mixed race who had ruthlessly been abandoned by their fathers, are currently sheltered and raised here. This work fills an important gap in social provision, and thus happily completes the works of the charities to which the administration of the city of Cholon is honoured to attach its name.

Tim Doling is the author of the guidebook Exploring Saigon-Chợ Lớn – Vanishing heritage of Hồ Chí Minh City (Nhà Xuất Bản Thế Giới, Hà Nội, 2019)

A full index of all Tim’s blog articles since November 2013 is now available here.

Join the Facebook group pages Saigon-Chợ Lớn Then & Now to see historic photographs juxtaposed with new ones taken in the same locations, and Đài Quan sát Di sản Sài Gòn – Saigon Heritage Observatory for up-to-date information on conservation issues in Saigon and Chợ Lớn.

This article was published previously in Saigoneer http://saigoneer.com

Built by the French during the latter years of the colonial era, Chợ Lớn’s “Y” Bridge became the focus of several important battles during the two Indochina Wars.

The “Y” Bridge was originally conceived by the French in 1937 as part of a scheme to build a new municipal abbatoir in Chánh Hưng, immediately south of the existing Arroyo Chinois (Bến Nghé/Tàu Hủ creek) in what is now District 8. Known to the French as the pont Tripode or pont en Y, the bridge formed a crucial part of this scheme, because the construction of the “Canal de dérivation” in 1906 and of the “Canal de doublement” in 1919 to relieve congestion on the Arroyo Chinois had left much of the Chánh Hưng area ringed by waterways.

The design was drawn up by modernist architect René Nguyễn Khắc Schéou, and in 1938 the Cochinchina authorities voted just over 400,000 piastres from their regional budget to pay for the construction of the bridge. Then on 28 October 1939, according to the Bulletin économique de l’Indo-Chine, “Mr Governor General Brévié laid the first stone of the pont Tripode to serve the future slaughterhouse.”

In the wake of the Japanese invasion of 1940, construction of the bridge was placed on hold, but work eventually resumed and the pont Tripode was inaugurated on 20 August 1941. In the words of a Vichy government press release of 23 September 1941, “Its construction, carried out despite the circumstances, is a symbol of our constructiveness and confidence in the future. It meets multiple needs and will enable Greater Cholon to develop. With a length of 90 metres and a deck 8 metres wide, it required 8,900 tons of steel and more than 4,000 cubic metres of reinforced concrete for its construction. Its lateral and access roads required an additional 7,099 cubic metres of fill.”

Apart from its unusual configuration, the “Y” Bridge was regarded at the time of construction as a utilitarian work, and it may have lapsed into obscurity had it not been for the various battles which took place in its vicinity during the two Indochina Wars.

From as early as the 1920s, the neighbourhood immediately south of the bridge harboured various bands of thieves and outlaws. By the 1940s, it had become home to the Bình Xuyên, an organised coalition of gangs involved in racketeering, petty crime, river piracy and kidnapping.

After World War II, the Bình Xuyên emerged as a powerful military and political force, initially allying itself with the Việt Minh and staging a vigorous defence of the “Y” Bridge from 24 September until early October 1945 in order to prevent returning French troops from reoccupying the southern part of the city.

However, in 1947 it switched allegiance, offering money and military support to the French authorities and later to the State of Viêt Nam in exchange for legal recognition of its gambling, prostitution, money laundering and opium trafficking activities.

Following his rise to power in the spring of 1955, President Ngô Đình Diệm resolved to crush the Bình Xuyên, and during the subsequent “Battle for Saigon” (28 April-3 May 1955), VNA forces attacked its base of operations in Chợ Lớn, blowing up part of the “Y” Bridge to prevent Bình Xuyên reinforcements from entering Saigon. By the end of this operation, Bình Xuyên forces had been routed and driven from the city.

The “Y” Bridge was subsequently repaired, and in late May 1968 it once more became a battlefield during the National Liberation Front’s “Mini Tet” Offensive.
During six days of intense house-to-house fighting, the area around the bridge was devastated, but the bridge itself remained intact.

Refurbished in 1992, the old bridge was completely rebuilt in 2007 to permit higher clearance over the East-West Highway, retaining the original columns and abutments.

Tim Doling is the author of the guidebook Exploring Saigon-Chợ Lớn – Vanishing heritage of Hồ Chí Minh City (Nhà Xuất Bản Thế Giới, Hà Nội, 2019)

A full index of all Tim’s blog articles since November 2013 is now available here.

Join the Facebook group pages Saigon-Chợ Lớn Then & Now to see historic photographs juxtaposed with new ones taken in the same locations, and Đài Quan sát Di sản Sài Gòn – Saigon Heritage Observatory for up-to-date information on conservation issues in Saigon and Chợ Lớn.