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October 25, 1902.7
was followed a few years later by the great fire, and how seldom plagus has visited our shores since. So if the fire will give us an immunity from this fell visitant in coming years, it will be more of a blessing than a curse after all.
BRITISH CONSULAR APPOINT. MENTS.
The London Gazette of the 12th ult, under date Foreign Office, April 5, notified that the King has been graciously pleased to appoint
Alexander Hosie, Esq. to be His Majesty's Consul-General for the Province of Sząctuen.
James Scott, Esq.. to be. His Majesty's Consul-General for the Provinces of Kwang- tung and Kwangsi, to reside at Canton.
William Henry Wilkinson, Esq., to be His Majesty's Consul-General for the Provinces of Yunnan and Kweichan,
Ernest Freder.ck Beuneti, Esq.. to be His Majesty's Consul at Ichang.
William Holland, Esq, to be His Majesty's Consul at Swatow.
Richard Howard Mortimer, Esq. to be His Majesty's Consul at Ningpo.
Pierce Essex O'Brien Butler, Esq, to be His Majesty's Consul for the Province of Chekiang, to resideat Haugchow.
William Pollock Ker, Esq, to he His Majesty's Consul at Wahn.
Walter James Clennell, Esq., to be His Majesty's Consul at Kiukiaug.
Harry Alexander Little, Esq, to be Majesty's Consul at Pakhoi,
His
It will be seen, comments the L. &. C. Express that several of these appointments create precedents, and befoken an appreciation of the position in China that it is gratifying to observe. Thus we have the post, created of Consul-General for Szachuen and the excellent appointment made of Mr. A. Hosie to be the first occupant, a man who has already done good work in the province; also we have a Consul- General for ungaa aud Kweichow, and the likewise well merited promotion of Mr. W. H. Wilkinson, who has recently done good work at Ningpo and Weachow, to fill the post. It is perhaps worth calling attention to the fact that Great Britain has now five posts in China to which Consuls-General ure nominated: Canton. Shanghai, Tientsip, and the two new positions we have noted abfe.
FRANCE AND SIAM.
The Straits Times of the 9th inst. writes :— Among the passengers due to arrive here by. the Messageries 8.8. Aunum on Sunday afternoon is M. Beau, the Governor-General of Lado China, who comes out here to take possession of the newly extended French colonies in the Fur East. It is easy to believe that the matters of the extension of the Cambodian boundary west of the siekong, and the evacuation of Chanta- bun, were both definitely settled before he left- Paris, but the arrangement was kept quiet until his approach to Bangkok rendered it necessary to make the aunonue-ment in order to save having to create too marked a denoue ment by heralding the news himself. It is now to be hoped that the anticipations of Le Temps, mentioned by Reuter to-day, will be realised, and that the result of the new treaty will be the removal of those difficulties which have long been sources of irritation between Siam and France.
Since comment upon the subject was made in this column yesterday, research into sources of information, other than were then available, seems to justify the belief that Reuter, more suo, so hopelessly distorted in transmission the names of the two rivers referred to that they were unrecognisable. The extreme western boundary of Cambodia, for some 45 miles directly north of the Great Lake so-called, is along a small river near the month of which is a town called Kampong Cham. Now the Siamese for a river mouth is Pak or Pek. Therefore the estuary of the river whereon Kampong Cham is situated might very naturally be called Pak Kampong, which is probably the River, Pick Kompong of the despatch. River Rolnas there is none, but about 20 miles west of Kampong Cham. and midway between that town and Si.m Rat ---the capital of the province of Siem Rat or Angkor a small river runs parallel with the
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CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
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323
30th, 1899, amounted to the sum claimed. The plaintiff repeatedly applied to the defendants for the payment of his share of the profits, but the firm failed to satisfy him, on the ground that the business had proved a loss iustead of a gain.
In conclusion, defendants having secured the contract from the Japanese Government as a result of the labour of the plaintiff, and having agreed to pay to the plaintiff one-fourth of the net profits of this business, which agreement they had failed to fulfil, the plaintiff had been obtiged to bring the present action.
The case is down for hearing on the 28th inst.
None of the three defendants in the action is at present in Japan.
old boundary line, and situate thereon, near the coast, is a place ma ked Muang Rala (Ralu town) in McCarthy's map. In an older but much larger French map, that river is marked as Kolnos, and there can be little doubt but that the hiver Rolnas referred to in yesterday's despatch and t.is river Roluos are identical. Accepting this as the real arrangement, it is to be inferred that Frauce takes orer a strip of territory orly about 15 or 2 miles wide, running about 45 miles north and parallel to but west of the present boundary. Thence, however, the strip expands and from the point 15 deg. 55 mins. N. by 14 deg, 5 mins. E. it is to be assumed that the boundary will run in a curved line, in a north-easterly direction, along the mountain rauge forming the western watershed į north of the town of Bassae, or at a point hat may of the Mekong to a point on the river slightly || HONGKONG GENERAL CHAMBER
OF COMMERCE. be roughly estimated as 25 deg. 17 mins. N. and 105 deg. 14 mins. E. The triangle included be- tween these two peints, and a point on the Mekong River at 13 deg, 12 mins. N. and 16 E.--20 miles south of the town of Stung Treng-18 taken away from Siam. This triangle bas an apparent area of over 10,00 miles.
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AN OPIUM CONTRACT CASE IN JAPAN,
Acting on behalf of Mr. Robert Bughes, of Kobe, Mr, Hirata, a Japanese barrister, has
reinstituted an action which has been several times before the Courts, arising out of a claim made by Mr. Hughes for a share of the profits| of the opium business in Formosa carried on by Messrs. Samuel Samuel & Co., of Yokohama and Kobe. The action was originally instituted against Mr. F. J. Bardens, as representative of Messrs. Samuel Samuel & Co in Kote, but it was decided by the Court that Mr. Bardens was not liable in the suit, and the case was conse- quently dismissed. Attempts have since been made to compromise the case, but they have failed. In the present action Sir Marcus Samuel, Mr. Samuel Samuel, and Mr. Wiliam
Samuel Samuel & Co., are wade defendauts. Foute Mitchell, partners in the firm of Messrs.
The petition of plantiff reads as follows:- Robert Hughes, the plaintiff in this action, prays that the defendants jointly and separately be ordered to pay to the plaintiff the sums of 15,706,50 yeu; and 3,113.30 yen, together with interest thereon at the legal rate from July 1st. 1897, to the execution of the judgment in this case.
The reasons given for the claim are:- 1.--In May 1896 the plaintiff was engaged by the defendants, and took charge of the import department of the firm on tho under- standing that he should receive one-fourth of the net profits made out of the business uuder bis control, in addition to a fixed monthly salary. 2.--About July, 186, the plaintiff was in- formed that the Japanese Government intended to entrust the purchase of opium for use in Formosa to a tinstworthy foreign firm, and desiring to secure this business for the firm of the defendants, plaintiff visited Tokyo and approached Marquis Ito, with whom he was well acquainted. Upon the introduction of Ma quis Ito, plaintiff applied to the Ministers of Stats then in office and other officials, and succeeded iu securi g the contract for supplying the Japanese Government with opium for its opium monopoly in Formosa.
3. Prior to his departure for Tokyo the plaintiff had proposed to the defendants that in case be succeeded in securing the contract, one fourth of the net profits made should be paid him as long as the contract was held by the firm. The defendants agreed to those conditions.
4-In November, 1896, the plaintiff proceeded to Formosa and Hongkong in connection with the arrangements for the new coutract, and returned to Kobe in March 1897, when he dis- covered that during his absence the defendants had infringed a trade-mark, his property. In consequence, the plaintiff left the defencants' firm in November, 1897, and re-entered busine s
on his own accouut.
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5. The defendants continued to hold the opium contract, making thereby a net profit of 12,450.20 yen every half year, and the share of the profits due to the plaintiff for the period from the establishment of the business to June
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THE LICENSING OF FILOTS.
We have ree, ived from the Secretary of the Hongkong General Chamber of Commerce the following farther correspondence on the subject of the proposed licensing of pilots :-
Colou,al Secretary's Office.
16th July, 1902. SIR-I am directed to acquaint you for the information of the Chamber of Commercs that the Officer Administering the Government has had under cousideration the report, forwarded in your 1 tter of the 18th ultimo, on the subject of the licensing of pilots at this port.
2. The report shows that while there is no necessity at this port for pilotage properly so- called, a demand exists for
(a) Chinese capable of berthing along-ide the private whares of the Wharf and Godown Company the comparatively small number of ves-els which use th 8 wharves;
(h Men who bare a local knowledge of tides (c) Men who know the position of ships which may b. in Harbour at any particular time.
3. The first of the above indicated qualifi cations is one which no one should be asked to guarantee unless after ample personal observation of the capabilities of the person guaranteed. No examider, uuless he had frequent opportunity of observing the practical work of the candidate, could give a certificate rouching competency in the qualification demanded.
The person in the Colony best qualified to give an opinion on the competency of any person in this respect is the wharfinger of the Wharf and Godown Company, aud I am to suggest that if that official were emp wwered by the Company which employs him to give te timonials to such persons as he considers competent to bring Fessels alongside the wharves of the Company, the difficulty would be met in a simple and satisfactory mauner.
4 The second qualification is one that could to some extent be test.d. but the third is a qualification of general intelligence hardly sufficient to demaud Government warranty.
3. A fourth point-the handling of vessels- is alluded to in the report. This is a qualifica- tion which cannot be tested without practical observation. But even if it could ba tested by the examiner. I am to point out that the responsibility for the handling of a vessel must remain with the master and officers of the vessel, and cannot be shifted to the shoulders of a Chinese pilot.
In these circumstances I am to state that the Officer Administering the Government regrets that he cannot see his way to adopt the suggestion of the Chamber, because His Excellency con- siders that to require the Harbour Master or any other Governm nt officer to give certificates for qualifications which such office cannot test would be to place the officer concerned in an entirely false position. I have the honour to be, Sir, your obedient servant,
The SECRETARY
F. H. MAY, Colonial Secretary.
Chamber of Commerce.
Hongkong, 8th September. FIR, The Sub-Committee of the Chamber of Commence have consid red the letter dated 16th July, 1902, from the Colonial Secretary, in which certain reasons are brought forward why H. E. the Officer Administəring the Government is unable to agree to the request of the Chamber
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