Delfino Joaquim de Noronha was one of the leading members of the Portuguese community in Hong Kong in the first half-century. Soon after the first Opium War (1839-1842) he saw that opportunities would be far greater there than in Macau, which soon fell into a steep decline. In Hong Kong he became the leading printer and in 1859 was appointed Government Printer. Deeply involved in public affairs, he had considerable influence, not only in his own community, but also in the development of Kowloon in the forty years after its cession to the British Crown in 1860. A classic 19th century liberal, he was widely respected as an ardent champion of the rights and liberties of the citizen.
Delfino Noronha was educated at St Joseph's College, which in 1822 had been authorised to have its own printing press.1 The growth of British commerce in the Far East meant that there were fewer careers in maritime commerce for Portuguese boys than in earlier times. Consequently, the farsighted priests at St Joseph's taught the skill of printing to a growing number of youths to give them opportunities in what they correctly saw would be a growing industry.2 They could not have guessed that the printing industry would undergo vast expansion throughout the Far East in the century ahead.
In 1844, at the age of 20, Noronha left Macau for the new British colony of Hong Kong.3 He took with him a small printing press, which his father, a prominent citizen and successful merchant, had given him. He set up 'Noronha's Printing Office',4 in which he was at first type-setter, printer and bookkeeper. His grandson, J.P. Braga, looking back in 1943 on that courageous step a century before, marvelled at his achievement. 'He dared to face the rigours of the climate and the social uncertainties of young Hong Kong without the assurance of a fixed salary.'5 Macau, though close to Hong Kong, was cooled by sea breezes, and had a more equable climate in summer. Hong Kong soon gained the reputation of being a most unhealthy place, and many young British men died soon after arriving. Moreover, any Portuguese subject going to Hong Kong was taking a leap in the dark. Would he be able to make his way in this new British colony, in which there might be no place for foreigners?
However, young Noronha succeeded after lean times in early days. At first his wife helped him in the printery, inking the plates and working the press.6 By 1848 he had employed a compositor, Antonio Fonseca, and secured the contract to print the Hongkong Almanack, 1849, for its proprietor, William Tarrant. Ten years later, in 1859, the governor, Sir Hercules Robinson, awarded the contract as government printer7 in place of Andrew Shortrede, who had held it since the early 1840s.8 By 1860 his business had expanded to such an extent that he now employed six compositors. All were Portuguese. They were: J.J. da Silva e Souza, Vicente Barradas, H. Rodrigues, L. d'Azevedo, C. Sanches and H.C. Pereira.9 By then he was regarded as the best printer in Hong Kong. A family tradition, recounted by J.P. Braga, is that Robinson's successor, Sir Richard Macdonnell, assured Noronha that so long as his firm continued to give satisfaction, they would remain government printers in perpetuum.10
In 1860, Noronha's business was located at Oswald's Terrace, Wellington St. He was still using the business name, 'Noronha's Office' in 1864, but by 1867, it had become 'Noronha & Sons, printers to Hongkong Government', or 'Noronha e Filho' for Portuguese publications. By 1874, the name 'Noronha & Co' had been adopted, and the firm would continue under this name until 1941.11 It maintained a high standard of excellence in all its work, of which perhaps the finest example in Noronha's lifetime was J.W. Norton-Kyshe, The History of the Laws and Courts of Hongkong, 2 vols, 1898.12 These two huge legal tomes were flawlessly produced, and included several high-quality photographic portraits and illustrations. They were the pinnacle of more than fifty years of Noronha's commitment to the highest possible standards. Naturally, he kept a set of much of his output, including a complete set of government publications, which on his death passed to his grandson, J.P. Braga. 13 Almost all were lost during World War II during the Japanese occupation.
Delfino Noronha married Umbelina Maria Basto and had thirteen children - seven sons and six daughters. Some of his sons went to Canton, Shanghai, Singapore, Manila and Singapore, where their father assisted them to launch out on their own, as he had done. In 1880 he bought an established Shanghai printing business, 'Celestial Empire Press' from A.H. de Carvalho, and renamed it 'Noronha & Sons'.14 It was managed by one of his sons.
Others stayed in Hong Kong, but it seems that they did not remain in their father's business. Instead, several grandsons joined the firm. Noronha's daughter, Carolina Maria, had married Vicente Emilio Braga in 1863, and had five sons. Three of them, all employed by Noronha & Co., died of smallpox in 1887 and 1888. Their youngest brother, José Pedro, a very promising boy, had been sent to Calcutta to further his education, but at his mother's urgent behest, returned to Hong Kong to take his brothers' place.
Young Braga had the opportunity to observe his grandfather closely in the last decade of his life. He found, not merely a busy and successful printery in which high standards were set and expected, but also a centre of intellectual activity. He could see and emulate the personal qualities that had made the older man a successful businessman and a respected community leader. Half a century later, he recalled his grandfather with esteem.
Mr Noronha was himself an expert compositor. Until his business justified the larger staff which he came to employ in later years, and sometimes even after then, he would often set up the type himself for the more important of his publications Through hard work and thrift, and in spite of the ravages of the climate and other handicaps of life in Hongkong's early days, Mr Delfino Noronha brought up a large family of children and grandchildren and built up a prosperous business. Of him I cherish fond memories, with his gentle ways and courteous manners. He was small and slight, and was always immaculately dressed, and he was my ideal of a perfect gentleman. He was popular not only in Hongkong but he also enjoyed a wide circle of Macao friends. At his table I met many interesting figures of the day.15
Braga wrote also of his grandfather's role in developing Kowloon on the north side of Hong Kong harbour. Added to the colony of Hong Kong in 1860, it remained almost unoccupied for many years. Noronha was a co-founder of the Hongkong Horticultural Society16 and developed a ten acre estate at Yaumati, on the western side of Kowloon.
Mr Delfino Noronha was the first Portuguese to invest in land across the harbour at Yaumati. The first plots of land sold in the area were not originally building lots; they were known at the beginning as 'farm lots' and were sold by public auction. Two of the first lots, namely F.L. 2 and 3, of a total of five acres, were bought by Mr Delfino Noronha from the original owner, and he subsequently acquired an additional lot consisting of a further five acres of land adjoining his first purchase. He then invited his friend Mr Marcus Calisto do Rozario to become joint owner with him of this land. Mr Rozario agreed, and as a distinctive name for the property, the partners adopted the initial syllables of their Christian names. Thus it came about that the estate came to be called 'Delmar'.17
Keen to develop the area further, Noronha commenced an irregular ferry service to Kowloon, running between Central and Yaumati, the main centre of population in Kowloon at that time.
The service began with a single-deck steam-launch called Blanche, which, after its name, was all painted white. At the beginning, a single fare amounted to less than one cent, and so fares were collected in cash (a cash was worth 1/10 of a cent). There was no regular timetable. A long blast from the boat's whistle announced the impending departure of the ferry, which took place when the Chinese coxswain thought that the launch had a sufficient complement of passengers on board.18
By 1897, the population of Yaumati had grown to 8,051,19 but the rest of Kowloon still remained largely undeveloped. It took vigorous action by an early twentieth century governor, Sir Matthew Nathan, to hasten its progress.
Noronha died at the age of 75 on 6 February 1900, and was buried in the Roman Catholic Cemetery, Happy Valley, next to his wife, who had predeceased him in 1894.20 The firm of Noronha & Co. was taken over by his sons Leonardo, Henrique and Secundino and by José Maria "Jeje" de Castro Basto, who managed the company after Leonardo's death in 1913. Eduardo "Edo" Noronha (Delfino's grandson and Jeje's nephew) then ran the company until his death in 1921. Later, the Hong Kong Government bought out the Noronha Compaony and established its own right to publish the Government Gazette.21
Delfino Noronha was one of a small group of Portuguese immigrants in mid-nineteenth century Hong Kong to create a significant niche for themselves in the legal profession or in successful businesses. Many others entered clerical employment, becoming for several generations an under-class of bank clerks, unable to gain managerial rank. Noronha's achievement, like that of several other eminent families, was based on personal drive, a passion for excellence, and a strong sense of public duty. For more than half a century, he blazed a trail that his family, who held him in high esteem, were proud to follow in later generations.22
Stuart Braga, great-great-grandson
