CANTON-KOWLOON RAILWAY CLAIMS.
49
The British Section of the Railway
have claims against the Chinese Section under
two heads (a) on account of suspension of
Through Traffic, and (b) on account of Demurrage
of Rolling Stock.
(a) Suspension of Through Traffic.
Claims on this account are based on
Clause (f) of Article 7 of the Working Agreement
of the Railway (made between the Directorate
General of the Chinese Imperial Railways of the
Board of Ports and Communications and the Governor
of Hong Kong and signed, apparently, on the
8th September, 1911, but never formally ratified
by the Chinese). The clause reads as follows:-
"When in circumstances of political emergency it is necessary either for the
Hong Kong Government or for the Chinese
Government to suspend the running of through
trains due notice (not less than six hours clear)
shall be given by the one Government to the
other and compensation shall be paid by the
Government requesting such suspension at a
daily rate of half the average gross receipts
of the other section on through traffic as
ascertained from the accounts for the corres-
ponding month of the preceding year, or failing
that for the last preceding month".
During 1923 and succeeding years
conditions of civil war in the Chinese province and disturbances arising there from occasioned
continual