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Copy.
To Shanghai No.58.
No.58.
Sir,
Peking,
26th March, 1920.
299
On February 11th, Mr. W. B.Kennett, a British Director of the British American Tobacco Company (China) Ltd.
who was then in Peking, communicated to Sir John Jordan the
gist of a message which he had sent to his London Board in con-
nection with the China Companies Order in Council of 1919. He
suggested that the Company should appeal to H. M. Government
for the promulgation of a supplementary Order in Council,
authorising the issue by H. M. Minister of licences for non-
British managers of China Companies in cases where real hard- ship or practical disabilities would ensue from the strict
enforcement of the new amending Order. A precedent for the
procedure suggested was quoted in Article 14 of the China Com- pany Order in Council of 1915.
Sir John Jordan was disposed to consider the
suggestion, as providing a solution for difficulties which have
already arisen, and which may arise in the future, in finding
suitable British managers for Companies, and more especially for
Companies subsidiary to big manufacturing or distributing Com-
panies, the nature of whose business requires special or tech-
nical knowledge. As an instance may be quoted the Lopato Tobacco Company in Manchuria, which was taken over from Mr. Lopeto and the success of which is held by the parent Company to be largely dependent on his Russian connection. The British American Tobacco Co. is indeed likely to be the Company most affected for the present by the new Order and, although Sir John Jordan held that its general Manager in China, and the con- trol of its policy, must in future be undisputably British, he recognised the practical advantages of securing the most
Sir E. H. Fraser, K.Č.M.G.,
H. B. M. Consul-General,
Shanghai.