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[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government654
RECE
Tribute to be paid in cash, not in kind at market rates, on same system as proposed in case of land tax.
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Waterways: (a) deepening of waterway from Hangchow to Kashing. Launches, &c., to pay a tax of 1 dollar, sailing-ships of 50 cents, on entering either port towards expenses. This would bring in over 10,000 dollars per annum; no ashes, &c., to be emptied into this waterway; (b) deepening of waterway from South and Shao-chi Lakes to West Lake; (e) improvement of waterways in Western Chekiang.
Yamên clerks abolition, improvement, and replacement of.
Annex 2.
Opium Monopoly as discussed by Chekiany Provincial Assembly.
(a.) Boiled opium manufactured by the bureau for the official sale of boiled opium divided into two classes-native and foreign opium. It is not to be adulterated.
(b.) When the central bureau sends its opium to its branch offices, the year being divided into four quarters, the local branch shall report how much boiled opium it cau sell per quarter, and first pay up half of that amount.
The other half of the price, plus the duties leviable on the quarter's opium, shall be paid in full at the end of that quarter.
(c.) On receipt by the local branches of the boiled opium they may sell it through their own employés. For the country districts the local branch shall, according to the requirements of each district, appoint reliable firms or shops to sell on their behalf.
(d) Every local branch shall report to the central bureau within three months the number of opium smokers in its area of distribution and the total amount of boiled opium sold.
(e) Each local branch shall keep a register showing each smoker's name, age, address, ancestral home, quantity of opium le consumes, and the total number of all such smokers, and give to each smoker a number. The register shall also show cach smoker's daily purchase.
(f.) Each smoker must provide himself with a licence before the end of this year. No licence to smoke the bureau's boiled opium will be issued after the expiration of this year.
(g.) No smokor may at one time buy more opium than the amount mentioned on his licence.
(h.) This system of an official monopoly of the sale of boiled opium to continue for five years, ending Hsuan Tung, Oth year (1914).
(.) If merchants from other provinces import into Chekiang for sale native or foreign opium they shall report it at the frontier, both its kind and weight, and the frontier customs barrier shall issue a detailed certificate to assist in verification.
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AFFAIRS OF CHINA.
CONFIDENTIAL.
[3509]
No. 1.
Rego 24 FEB 1Q [January 31.1
SECTION 2.
Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received January 31.)
(No. 12.) Sir,
Peking, January 9, 1910. WITH reference to my despatch No. 376 of the 13th October last, I have the honour to transmit to you herewith copy of a further despatch from His Majesty's consul at Newelwang reporting upon the negotiations which are proceeding locally on the subject of the improvement of the navigability of the Liao River.
Mr. Wilkinson's despatch explains fully the nature of the new difficulty which has arisen owing to the apparent inability of the Japanese consul to consent to any scheme which involves Japanese contribution to the cost of the upper river improve- ments; Mr. Wilkinson's compromise project scems to me, however, to meet this objection and to afford a suitable basis for a satisfactory arrangement. If it is adopted, the main difficulty will be to obtain the necessary grant of 200,000 taels from the central Government for the purchase of dredgers and preliminary expenses. The financial position of Manchuria is so unsatisfactory that there is no hope of the money coming from local sources. On the other hand, the central Government are not likely to contribute this sum willingly, in view of their experiences in connection with the conservancy of the Huangpu.
In the last paragraph of his despatch Mr. Wilkinson suggests that an expression of the Admiralty's views upon Mr. Hughes's scheme for the deepening of the bar would be of material interest, and I would accordingly ask that this question may be referred to them and their opinion communicated to me in due course,
(No. 23.) Sir,
Enclosure in No. 1.
Consul Wilkinson to Sir J. Jordan,
I have, &c.
J. N. JORDAN.
Newchwany, December 20, 1909. I HAVE the honour to report on the progress that has recently been made with the scheme for the improvement of the navigation of the Liao River.
In my despatch No. 16 of the 28th September last I informed you that the Foreign and Japanese Chambers of Commerce had expressed themselves in favour of the imposition of certain taxes on the trade of the port to assist in defraying the cost of the proposed conservancy works, provided, however, that the deepening of the bar at the mouth of the river was included in the scheme. As this last was quite a new proposal and no expert opinion was available as to the probable cost of effecting any useful improvement in the condition of the bar, it was decided by the consular body that, before jointly addressing the diplomatic body at Peking on the subject, they would ask the taotai to have a survey of the approaches to the river made by Mr. Hughes, the Government engineer, by whom an estimate could then be made of the additional expenditure which the new work would involve. A letter to this effect was accordingly addressed to the taotai by the senior consul.
I have now to state that our request was at once complied with by the taotai, who, on the 13th ultimo, forwarded to us a copy of the very able report drawn up by Mr. Hughes on the subject. In this report, of which I have the honour to enclose a copy, Mr. Hughes estimates the cost of increasing the depth of the bar by 5 feet, which represents a uniform depth at spring tides of between 23 and 24 feet and is therefore amply sufficient for the requirements of the port, at 482,974 dollars. He also mentions in it that the work of protecting the bank at Duck Island could, in his opinion, be carried out at a cost of not more than 44,000 dollars, as compared with Mr. de Rijke's estimate of 160,000 dollars.
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