This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government., 1380
Rece
REG 16 JAN 051
CHINA TRADE.
CONFIDENTIAL
[December 21.]
SECTION 1. }
278
No. 1.
Board of Trade to Foreign Office.-(Received December 21.)
7. Whitehall Gardens, December 20, 1904.
am
I AM directed by the Board of Trade to refer to your letter of the 30th ultimo, "transmitting a copy of a telegram from His Majesty's Minister at Tokiô relative to the
provisional Regulations for the registration of trade-marks in China, and, in reply, to transmit to you herewith, for the information and consideration of the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, a copy of a further Memorandum by the Comptroller-General of Patents on the subject.
I am at the same time to say that the Board of Trade concur in the views expressed in the Memorandum, and would suggest that Sir C. MacDonald might be asked to supply further information in regard to the statement contained in his telegram as to Article 6.
With respect to your letter of the 19th ultimo relative to the objections of the Manchester Chamber of Commerce to the Regulations, I am to say that the Board ́concur with Lord Lansdowne in his Lordship's proposal to forward to Sir E. Satow a copy of the communication from the Chamber of Commerce, and I am to inclose a copy of a Memorandum by the Registrar of Trade-Marks dealing with the points raised by the Chamber, which, in the opinion of the Board, might usefully be communicated to Sir E. Satow at the same time.
I am, &c.
(Signed) FRANCIS J. S. HOPWOOD.
Inclosure 1 in No. 1.
Memorandum by Comptroller-General of Patenta.
I AGREE that this letter and telegram show no reason why the Board should modify their objections to these Regulations. I am not sure what is meant by "the acceptance in toto of the amendment proposed by His Majesty's Government as to Article 6," It is true that in his telegram of the 10th September Sir E. Satow says that the present Regulations, before promulgation, were submitted by him to a meeting of leading British importers, and most of the amendments recommended by them were introduced by the Chinese at his instance; but we do not know what these amendments were, and clearly Article 6, in its present form, is very objectionable. The Board will remember that certain draft Regulations, a copy of which will be found in F. 4909, and which are infinitely superior to the present Regulations, was submitted by Mr. Jamieson to Sir E. Satow, and that the Board on the 19th April last suggested a slight alteration in them. It is much to be regretted that these Rules were not adopted in preference to the present Regulations, and it does not appear why they were not. It was not until the 12th September that the Board learnt that the Regulations promulgated by the Chinese Government had been circulated to members of the Chamber of Commerce, and that they were not the same as those drafted by Mr. Jamieson, on which their views had been previously asked for; nor until the 11th October did they receive a copy of the Regulations, since which date they have constantly pressed for a postponement in the date on which they are to come into force. It seems clear that in such a case as this the Board were entitled to see the Regulations, and to have an opportunity of considering them before they come into force.
.'(Initialled) C. N. D.
December 6; 1904.
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