Any further communication should be addressed to:-
THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL,
COMMERCIAL DEPARTMENT, BOARD OF TRADE,
7, WHITEHALL GARDENS,
LONDON, S.W.
And the following letter and number should be quoted :-
C 5050.
Telegraphic Address.
BOARD TRADE, COMMERCIAL, LONDON.
Sir,
BOARD OF TRADE,
(COMMERCIAL DEPARTMENT),
7, WHITEHALL GARDENS,
LONDON, S.W.
567
27th January,
3803
1905.
Rrc3
FREE 27 JAN 05
With reference to previous correspondence on the subject of junks flying foreign flags at Hong Kong and especially to your letter of the 23rd December, BGT(41709/1902) I am directed by the Board of Trade to forward to you herewith copy of a Memorandum which has been prepared in this Department showing the countries which have treaties with the United Kingdom entitling their ships to the same privileges in British Colonial Ports as British ships, and also showing how the nationality of a ship is defined for the purposes of the said Treaties. In this connection I am to point out that the position as regards a ship's nationality is not precisely as stated in sub-heading C of your letter referred to above, as it will be seen from the enclosed Memorandum that a vessel is only to be considered as belonging to a given nation if so considered by the law of the said nation. In the present case a junk flying a foreign flag could not benefit under these treaties unless it is in fact authorised to fly such flag under the laws of the country to which the flag belongs.
At the same time I am to point out that in the event of the course suggested by Sir H. Blake being adopted
The Under Secretary of State,
Colonial Office.