CO129-372 - Public Offices - 1910 — Page 318

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Enclosure 6 in No. 1.

Consul-General Jamieson to Messrs. David Sassoon and Co. and Messrs. E. D. Sassoon )

Gentlemen,

and Co.

Canton, May 3, 1910.

I AM in receipt of your letter of the 2nd instant, and I have to thank you for the enclosures therein contained.

A perusal thereof confirms me in my opinion that the proposed tax is a nou- differential one on prepared opium directed against smokers, and, that being so, 1 confess that I am unable to see in what manner British interests are adversely affected. Whether the tax is paid by foreign raw opium in bulk or in detail prior to its being boiled down is surely immaterial, inasmuch as, equally with uative opium, it has to bear the incidence of the levy on purchase by the prepared opium dealers.

I am, &c.

J. W. JAMIESON.

Enclosure 7 in No. 1.

Consul-General Jamieson to Acting Governor-General Yüan.

Canton, May 4, 1910.

HIS Britannic Majesty's consul-general is given to understand that it is proposed by the Kuangtung Bureau for the suppression of Opium to introduce on the 1st day of the 4th moon a new tax on prepared opium, and that the levy thereof is to be entrusted to an organisation known as Kuang Jung-yüan, said to be the principal dealers in foreign opium.

Mr. Jamieson is further informed that Ch'i An-t'ai, the leading dealers in native opium, declined to have anything to do with the matter. This latter fact would seem somewhat remarkable, and, as the additional article to the Chefoo Agreement distinctly lays down that there shall be no differential treatment of foreign opium, it becomes Mr. Jamieson's duty to request his Excellency to remind the Opium Bureau of that provision, as well as of the clause prohibiting the imposition of additional taxation at a treaty port on whole packages of opium which have paid import and li-kin duties.

To any infraction of these stipulations objection would, of course, have to be offered.

J. W. JAMIESON,

This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]

OPIUM.

CONFIDENTIAL.

[23299]

Sir,

No. 1.

Foreign Office to China Association.

315

C

O

20857

Rece

Rege & 10 [July 1]

SECTION 2.

Foreign Office, July 1, 1910. I AM directed by Secretary Sir E. Grey to inform you that he has had under consideration your letter of the 24th ultimo, complaining of the action of the Canton authorities in imposing regulations levying a new tax on prepared opium.

In reply, I am to inform you that his attention has been called to the matter, and that His Majesty's chargé d'affaires at Peking has informed the Chinese Government that His Majesty's Government could not accept any regulations which enforced an additional duty on raw foreign opium in a treaty port, and that the Wai-wu Pu had undertaken to inform the Canton Viceroy and were calling for a report.

Sir E. Grey would also refer you to the reply which he returned to Mr. Rees, M.P., in the House of Commons on the 16th ultimo on this subject.

[2812 a-2]

I am, &c.

LOUIS MALLET.

Enclosure 8 in No. 1.

Messrs. David Sassoon and Co. and Messrs. E. D. Sassoon and Co. to Consul-General

Sir,

Jamieson.

Hong Kong, May 4, 1910.

WE have the honour to acknowledge receipt of your letter of yesterday's date. In reply, we beg to point out that it makes all the difference whether the tax is levied on raw opium at port of entry or on the boiled article at the place of consumption, inasmuch as, if the tax is levied on the prepared article, it can only be paid once, whereas if the raw article is taxed in Canton, it might be subjected to further taxation wheu sent to the consuming districts. Thus, the same opium can be taxed over and over again. It was obviously with the intention of preventing this being done that the treaty stipulated that no taxation whatsoever could be imposed on opium except at the place of consumption, provided that the native drug is similarly

taxed.

We trust that after this explanation you will see your way to take the necessary steps to protect our interests, which will be seriously jeopardised if the heavy new taxes

are enforced.

In the meanwhile the trade is quite demoralised, and deliveries have fallen off considerably.

We have, &c.

DAVID SASSOON and Co. (Limited) (R. M. JOSEPH, Manager).

E. D. SASSOON AND CO. (Limited).

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