73
BofT
10379
Too
98
1989-9
98;
The Board do not wish to raise any objection against the adoption by a Colony of suitable measures regulating the immigration of aliens, but it appears to them that, if a Colony considers legislation of this kind necessary for its welfare, it should en- deavour to attain its object without imposing unneces- sary or undue restrictions and liabilities upon interests as important as those of the Shipping trade.
In this connexion I am to refer to a Memorandum
from the Chamber of Shipping dated 23rd April, 1898,
(a copy of which was forwarded to the Colonial Office
by this Department on the 10th May of that year) in
which the opinion is expressed that "it is the duty
"of the Hong Kong Authorities if they wish to prevent
"pauper immigration to do the same as the United
"States do to prevent any passenger landing who has
*not a certain sum of money which is thought suffi-
"cient. But once the landing has been permitted by
"the Authorities, the Shipmaster or Agent should no
"longer be responsible". In reply to this statement
the Attorney General for Hong Kong in his Minute of
the 14th July 1898, (a copy of which was forwarded
with the letter from the Colonial Office of the 10th
September, 1898) said that the suggestion of the Chan-
ber of Shipping entirely ignored "the fact that the
*United States has an elaborate Customs Staff, while
"Hong Kong is a free port and passengers can be and
"often are landed here before the ship has been visi-
"ted by any Colonial Authority". The Attorney General
further stated that "the Shipping Com-unity here would
"probably consider the introduction of the United
"States system into Hong Kong with its attendant delay
*in the landing of passengers as more objectionable
*than the present law".
It
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