A weekly look through the archives at how the century progressed October 1, 1910: With the opening of the Hong Kong section of the Kowloon-Canton Railway in 1910 - and the Canton section two years later - romantic dreams of journeying from Hong Kong to Paris by train seemed realisable. In 1898, the British and Chinese Corporation was set up by the Hongkong & Shanghai Banking Corporation and Jardine, Matheson & Co, with the intention of providing capital for the railways. It was controversial, but by 1905, Britain and China had agreed to buy the concession for a Kowloon-Canton line together, preventing it from falling into American, French or Russian hands. The project had become an obsession for the governor, Sir Matthew Nathan, a trained engineer. His desire to participate in every little detail served to generate friction between all those involved. By the time the Hong Kong section was complete, five tunnels totalling 2,690 metres had been dug. March 18, 1911: On what began as 'a beautiful Saturday afternoon', crowds gathered in Sha Tin, hoping to witness Hong Kong's first powered flight. The exhibition was carried out by Charles Van den Born, a Belgian who had arrived 'fresh from a series of triumphs in Bangkok and Saigon'. The machine in which he hoped to impress the crowd was a Farman biplane, a model of which can be seen at Hong Kong International Airport. The day's events were delayed by the late arrival of the governor, Sir Frederick Lugard. 'When His Excellency did arrive, it was found that the wind had risen too high to permit flying', and 'it was decided that it would be folly to attempt to rise in a gale blowing about 30 miles an hour. The crowds hung around impatiently and most of them were glad to leave when the 5.10 train started for home'. Later, the wind died down and the few left saw Van den Born in the air, in 'perfect control of the machine'. July 4, 1912: Although this day was intended to mark the inauguration of Sir Henry May as the 23rd governor, it will instead be remembered for the first attempted assassination of a Hong Kong governor. The attack came as he and his wife Helena were travelling with the official procession from Blake Pier to City Hall for the ceremonies. According to the Post, a man rushed through soldiers lining the streets, and 'it seemed the man was alongside His Excellency's chair, pointing a revolver, which he fired point blank at about three feet range'. 'With the utmost courage and commendable promptitude, Indian Sergeant No 725, on seeing the revolver, knocked up the hand that held it, and the bullet lodged in the wood work of Lady May's chair.' One of several theories is that Li Hong-hung may have confused Sir Henry's previous role as governor of Fiji with that of South Africa - Fei Chau - and the ousting of Chinese from the latter. March 8, 1915: Rumours had been rife for weeks about wild tigers roaming Lantau, Hong Kong and the New Territories. A few days earlier, it was reported to police that two Fanling villagers were mauled by a tiger, but only two officers, Sergeant Goucher and Constable Holland, were sent to investigate. As the officers approached, 'the animal sprang, fixing its claws into the shoulders of the Sergeant and bearing him to the ground with such great force that his arm was broken in the fall'. The man died three days later. When the tiger was found again, an Indian constable named Rutton Singh was 'ferociously attacked' by the 'infuriated animal' and killed almost instantly. After the tiger was shot it was found to measure 2.59 metres in length and weighed 131 kilograms, and was taken to the City Hall taxidermist. Its head is still on display, slightly mouldy, at the Police Museum on the Peak.