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His Lordship to request that you lay before the Earl of Kimberley the following observations thereon.
The basis of Settlement proposed by the Governor of Hong Kong presents many difficulties, and the prospect of its being accepted by the Chinese Government appears very doubtful. The conditions which it is suggested that the Colonial Government undertake to fulfil, is to prevent the exportation of salt, opium, firearms, and munitions of war from Hong Kong to China in junks without a permit from the Chinese Authorities; it would be cut...
This arrangement is open to grave objection. In the first place, it is not unlikely to lower the dignity and prestige of the Colonial Government in the eyes of the native community. In the second place, it is extremely doubtful whether the Colonial Government could effectively carry out such an undertaking.
It is not proposed to interfere with the free sale of the articles in...