91
start formed a clause in the agreement.
The real reason was obviously that on
eleventh-hour thoughts they had decided
they were not getting enough out of the
Chinese in the way of concessions in
return for allowing the Customs to fune-
tion in the Colony and for the expense
and trouble the Hongkong administration
would be put to in the matter of preven-
tive measures. The Legation put up a
strong protest against the "parochial"
manner in which Hongkong had throughout
dealt with the question, but there was
nothing to be done but to drop it once
more.
2. In 1927, when the Canton government
were threatening to seize the Customs
and declare tariff autonomy, Sir C. Clementi
began to consider measures to meet this
threat, amongst others the revival in
some form of the disearded Customs agree-
ment. Nothing definite was done till,
in the summer of 1929, as a result of the
increased smuggling between Hongkong and
the mainland, consequent upon the intro-
duction of the revised tariff of February
1929, Mr.Maze was instructed by the
Chinese Government to approach Hongkong
with a view to negotiating an agreement
for allowing the Customs to function in
the colony. He suggested that the
Harris agreement might form the basis
or