607
T
tell me quite openly that as a matter of fact the Jap-
anese Government desired to make the Formosa Export
Trade quite independent of Amoy and had purposely made
the difference of the harbour dues with that object.
I pointed out to His Excellency that there were consid-
erable British interests at Amoy and that British
Firms established there and British Steamship Compa-
nies engaged in the Trade were being seriously injured
by the action of the Japanese Government in this mat-
ter, which had given rise to protests on the part of
the Chambers of Commerce of Amoy and Hongkong.
His Excellency, who had just been in consultation
with Baron Kodama, the Governor of Formosa, said that
when the Formosan Government had decided to take this
action they had not realized how much it would be ob-
jected to by the British Merchants affected, and con-
tinued to say that he, Viscount Aoki, would do all he
could in the matter, possibly in the sense of abolish-
ing the export duties altogether, but that he was
afraid his efforts would meet with much opposition.
(Signed)
I have &c.,
J. B. Whitehead.