Page 360
.00.3.30 .2 4 2 Letter from Consul General Fox to B & S dated 16th June, 1909.
Gentlemen,
I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter of yesterday's date asking me to persuade the Portuguese Consul General at Canton to hold an investigation into the case of the watchman Noronha accused of having caused the death of a Chinese Passenger on the steamer "Fatshan" on November 30th last.
I regret that I do not see my way to comply with your request.
As you are aware, The Portuguese Consul General has repeatedly offered to hold a formal enquiry, conducted in accordance with Portuguese Law, into the case, but the Chinese Authorities have, for various reasons, been unable to accept this offer.
The principal ostensible reason was that the Chinese Authorities demanded a joint enquiry, to which the Consul General could not agree, but a consideration which weighed more with the Authorities was, I have reason to know, the fact that no Court, Chinese or Foreign, would have recorded a conviction on the evidence brought forward in the case.
It is moreover within your knowledge, that for many weeks in December and January last I used my best endeavours to effect a compromise in this matter between the Chinese & Portuguese Authorities, and that I only desisted when it became evident that the task I had set myself was a hopeless one.
My last move in the matter was to persuade my Portuguese colleague to ask for an interview with the Viceroy at which the former was quite prepared to make certain concessions.
Page 360
...
...
Page 361