Copy
No. 31.
Copies to:-
Peking No.76.
Swatow.
sir,
Enclosure No. 6.
55
Government House,
Hong Kong,
30th August, 1927.
I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt
of your letter No. 333 of the 23rd August, relating to the case of an alleged robber chief, Lau Lun (1).
2.
It is a new doctrine that, when one arty to
a contract has been breaking his engagement for many months, the injured party must still carry out his side of the bargain; but, in spite of constant breaches of treaty by various Chinese authorities, the nong Kong Jovernment would gladly carry out the extralition provisions of the Treaty of
Tientsin, if it wore possible to do so. It is the
constitutional confusion in which China has involved itself
that forms the sole obstacle.
3.
I almost despair of over veing able to explain
the situation to the Canton authorities, when a iritish
official who is conversant with the subject can still sugest that the Hong Kong Goverment has taken up the position that the Canton authorities are not entitled to the benefit of the extradition provisions of the Treaty of Tientsin. I should have thought that the anxiety of this Government for the resumption of extradition to China would have been obvious by now, and that it would have been clear that the only difficulty is a leal difficulty, which has been created by
the Chinese themselves.
HIS BRITANNIC SAJ JTY'S CONSUL-GENERAL,
CANTON.
40/