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"river shall be opened to trade."
The above article foreshadowed the definite appoint-
ment by the Chinese Government of an Inspector General of
Customs and Mr. Lay, the senior official, was selected.
Owing, however, to his high-handed and semi-independent
attitude towards the Chinese Government, his employers,
was "permitted to resign" within a short period of time,
and Kr. (afterwards Sir) Robert Hart was appointed Inspector
General of Customs in his stead.
he
During the early days of the Maritime Customs, and
up to the year 1906, the Chinese Foreign Office controlled
the Inspectorate of Customs, but in that year (1906) a
separate "Board of Customs", under the Board of Finance,
was established, and the administration of the Customs
establishment (with the Marine Department and the Postal
Administration) was thus transferred from the Chinese
Foreign Office to the Board of Finance. In 1911 this
principle was extended, and the Postal Administration
was separated from the Customs establishment, removed
from the control of the Board of Finance (and the Inspectorate
of Customs), and placed directly under the control of the
Board of Communications. In other words, the control of
the Postal Service was taken out of the hands of the
Inspector General and placed in other hands independently
of him. It should be explained here that in the early
sixties of the last century, Mr. Hart recommended the
Chinese Government to authorise him to light and mark the
coast of China, and this invaluable work, which was of
great International importance, was successfully performed
under.
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