CO129-274 - Public Offices & Others - 1896 — Page 53

traffic at the Treaty Ports should be left to the

Maritime Customs Authorities, so that vessels of all

nationalities may be placed on precisely the same

footing.

No communication has been received here from

the Hong Kong Government with regard to this

subject, but the fact of a letter having been sent

in February last to Mr Brenan and other Consuls by

that Government, asking their views on the question

of regulations for passenger ships on voyages of

not more than seven days' duration seems to show that

some legislation is or was contemplated, and ac-

cording to a letter, dated December 13th, 1895,

from the Shanghai Branch of the China Association

to Her Majesty's Secretary of State for the Colo-

nies, of which a copy has been sent to me an ordi-

nance has already been drafted.

2

I have the honour to refer in this connection

to Sir N. R. O'Conor's despatch No.171 of July 29th

1893, to Lord Rosebery, in which in discussing the

question