CO129-304 - Governor Sir Blake - 1901 [1-4] — Page 503

14243

497

No.116.

Government House.

Brd

Hong-Kong, 23 March, 1901.

sir,

мо Have Wei

nel: 1.

In reply to your despatch No.46 of the 12th.

ultimo enclosing an extract from a letter from the General

Post Office, London, to the Colonial Office,on the subject of

the acceptance of letters from Chinese Post Offices, I have the

honour to inform you that the Postmaster General, London, is

correct in his assumption that the Hong-Kong Post Office ac-

cepts letters from Chinese Post Offices for delivery in Hong-

Kong prepaid at a lower rate than that which is exacted for

letters sent in the reverse direction.

2. This arrangement was the outcome of a cor-

respondence which took place in 1897 between the Postmaster

General, Hong-Kong, and the Secretary of the Chinese Postal Au-

thorities, from which it appears that Hong-Kong agreed to the

arrangement on the basis of the so-called domestic rate of

postage".The matter apparently was not referred to the Postal

Authorities in England or to the Colonial Office .I attach a

copy of the correspondence thereon.

3. The seventh Article of the Postal Convention

now awaiting execution by the Chinese Postal Authorities makes

provision for the Chinese rates to be raised to those of Hong-

The Right Honourable

Kong

JOSEPH CHAMBERLAIN,M.P.