L
1 No 146.
RC
Enclosure 1.
Sir,
ດ
REC
34019
[Ree: || JUL 18}
307
GOVERNMENT HOUSE.
HONGKONG. 17th May, 1918.
I have the honour to report the action taken
by me in connection with an action originally instituted by the Official Receiver in the circumstances detailed in the summary by Mr. Carpmael of which I enclose a copy.
2.
As the Official Receiver owing to lack of funds was unable to continue the action, I had to decide whether the Government would undertake the liability of the Official Receiver's costs, in the event of his losing the case, and so enable him to continue the action. The ques- tion was submitted to me on the 23rd. of May, 1917. The plaintiff had applied the day before for a month's adjourn- ment but could only obtain an adjournment till the 30th of May. The matter was therefore very urgent.
3.
It was represented to me by the Official Receiver that if the action failed for want of funds "a very serious blow will have been struck st British Justice and the policy of attempting to apply British Law and British methods to Chinese litigants". There were strong grounds for the belief that a great fraud, supported by forgery, had been perpetrated. The alleged forgery was of certain docu- ments which had previously been submitted by the Secretary for Chinese Affairs to the Committee of the Chinese Chamber
of
THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
WALTER LONG, M.P., &C..
&c...
&C..