리
18001/1911
27507/1911
Briefly stated, the grounds for the attitude of the
Hong Kong Government were as follows:
(1) The companies had renewed their agreements with the
Chinese Government without reference to the Colonial
Government and there appeared no good reason why
the interests of the Government should be made
subservient to those of the company.
(2) That the ownership of telegraph lines within the
colony was highly undesirable and created a position
without precedent.
(3) In time of war Hong Kong would have to commandeer
the line, in which case they might be called upon to
meet a claim from the Chinese Government for
compensation.
(4) The colony needed fresh revenue.
The traffic on the
existing line was considerable and a profit might
be made on it for the colony if worked and owned
by the Government or leased to an English Company
with a royalty or messages.
His Majesty's Minister at reking in commenting upon the
new proposals gave a resume on the negotiations between the
ор
companies and the Chinese Government remarking that, much
as he appreciated the distaste of the Colonial Government
for the continuance of the existing conditions, and their
desire to profit by what in normal circumstances would be a
natural source of revenue, he could not avoid the conclusion
that the solution proposed by the Governor of Hong Kong would
be nothing more than a unilateral abrogation of existing
engagements whose operation extended beyond the limits of
British territory, and would certainly lead to measures of
reprisals against the company by the Chinese Government.
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