¥*
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1..136.
Hongkong.
Rre
Rec 22 APR 03]
Government House,
Hongkong, 19th. March, 1903.
sir,
That
I have the honour to acknowledge the re-
ceipt of your Despatch No. 33 of the 30th. January last, en-
closing a letter from the Board of Trade with reference to
the evasion of the Chingfei Tax, and, informing me that you
approve of my proposal to refuse to license junks owned by
Chinese subjects, but flying foreign flags.
2.
The expressions "Ship' and 'Junk' are
respectively defined in the Nerchant Shipping Ordinance of
1891 and also in that of 1899 now awaiting approval, and the
principle that this Goverment has been acting upon since the
practice arose in 1901 of flying foreign flags on junks, is
that a junk is always a junk, and not a ship, no matter by
whom owned or what flag she carries and is subject to the
provisions of the local Merchant Shipping Ordinance governing
junks. In the Merchant Shipping Ordinance of 1891, section
38 (21) it is declared that it shall be lawful for the Harbour
Master in such cases as he shall think fit to grant a licence
to the owner of any junk. He may, therefore, also refuse to
grant such licence, if he deems it expedient to do so. There
is, therefore, no necessity to take any fresh powers in order
to enable this Government to refuse, in its discretion, to RIGHT HONOURABLE
license
JOSEPH CHAMBERLAIN, M.P.,
&C...
200, -1
&C + *