63
1
? werk
at Shanghai might, as suggested at the Conference, be requested to inquire further into the matter, and to forward a report showing how great the grievance is which it is suggested should be remedied by an amendment of the registry law, and what is the magnitude of the commercial interests involved; also to what extent the difficulty could properly be met by registering the ships in the names of individual British subjects.
The members of the Conference were of opinion that on the whole it would probably be better if any action taker Zere by means of a Hong Kong Ordinance, as amond- ment of Section 1 of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1894, in
In this direction is considered to be undesirable. this connection I am to point out that, as a Hong Kong Ordinance can only repeal the conditions of Section 1 of the Merchant Shipping Act so far as ships registered at Hong Kong are concerned, it would be necessary for the Shanghai Companies, in order to obtain the benefit of the Ordinance, to register their vessels at Hong Kong, and this might practically mean the closing of Shanghai as a port of registry.
I have the honour to be,
Sir,
+
Your obedient Servant,
(Sad) Ernest & Moggridge
ens.