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China Mail
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 4,
NAVIGATION OF THE
WEST RIVER.
British Syndicate With-
draws from Trade.
Time and again the British shippers in- terested in the West River traffic have made representations, through the Hong- kong Chamber of Commerce, to Sir Claude Macdonald, the British Minister at Peking regarding the restrictive regulations aor differential treatment accorded to British ¿vessels trading on the West River. The so-called concession of the open ing up of the inland waters to for eign traffic has been proved, after long Fand patient trial, to be an utter force The steamers have been granted facilitie to call at certain ports on the river, bu the privilege of carrying passengers au cargo to some of the most-frequented port and busy market towns has been withheld in favour of launches flying the Chinese flag and native craft. The volume of trade between the ports of call has not been sufficiently remunerative, and the re- presentations of the shippers regarding their differential treatment having been quietly ignored by Consular efficinta and the British Minister, at Peking, the British syndicate that has endeavoured | to promote and extend British interests in these regions, has given up the fight and withdrawn its steamers from the trade. The two steamers are practically new ves- sels and were placed on the run only last year. They are named the Samiskui and Wuchow, after two of the open ports on the river, and were designed for towing lighters to be dropped at the ports on the upward voyage and picked up on the voy- age down.
Disheartened at the treat.
ment accorded their ships and the want of support by the British authorities, the West River Syndicate accepted with alacrity an offer to purchase their vessels, and the steamers and fighters leave Hong- kong at an early date for Taku. where they will be engaged in a brisker and more lucrative trade until the ice closes the port of Tientsin for the season. The withdrawal of this Syndicate from the West River traffic is a decided loss of British prestige, i as this is practically the withdrawal of all the vessels flying the British flag plying direct from Hongkong to the West River.
VI
REC
From Canton, the longkang, Caiten" and Macao Steamboat Co. steamer Lung Kiang is still continuing to run to and from Wuchow and ports of call, but the recent occurrences at Luklau, in which the Lung- Liang played a prominent part, has resulted in a distinct threat of oppressive measures by the Imperial Maritime Customs, which if carried into effect will greatly hamper trade. It will be remembered that the steamer Lungkiang was attacked on 24th September, while steaming through the Luklan chan. nel, by crowds of men on each bank, who met the steamer with a fusilade of stones, and afterwards fired tive shots into the after part of the vessel, slightly wounding the Chinese carpenter on the foot. It was re- ported that in retaliation for this outrage the British gunboat Robin steamed along to Lukiau and bombarded the village. The truth of the matter is that the Robin went to Luklau, and a man from the bank hurled astone at her, whereupon the gunboat treat- led the villagers to a display of marksman- ship by firing 200 shots from a Maxim into la mud bank! A petty mandarin came a- long and with profuse apologies for the out- rage on the steamer, and promised to bamboo somebody. A coolic was captured and the punishment inflicted. And thus the incid jent ended su far as the people were con-
corned.
But the Customs authorities have taken the opportunity afforded to caution the Captain of the Lungking that he would be subjected to a fine by continuing to use the Luklau Channel. The Langkiang and other vessels on this trade have been using
the Luklau Channel for three years with the full knowledge of the Customs offi- cials, and a right of way can therefore be elsimed as fairly established. This restriction is now imposed with the full consent and knowledge of the British Consal General at Canton. Could anything more puerile or undignified be imagined! A British vessel is fired upon and that incident closes her right to steam her regular course. It is painful to view the manner in which British oficials consent to the besmirching of British prestige in China, and to concede one iota at the present stage would be disastrous. It was in consequence of the understood right to steam along these channels that the Hongkong, Canton and Macao Steamboat Co. built the two latest additions to their flect. the stern-wheelers Nanning and Sainan, and to deprive them of the use of these channels means a prolongation of the voyage and a loss of the passengers to Shinhing and other places on the river. It is to be hoped that the British Government will not submit to this latest aggression of the Chinese Imperial Maritime Customs,
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