CO129-384 - Public Offices - 1911 — Page 90

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majority. Thus, the municipal elections held last month saw the election to the assembly of delegates of Mr. Hatsuaki, the local representative of the Japanese Manchuria Company, which is an agency of the South Manchuria Railway Company. Your suggestion that British and other foreign interests might at least be represented on the taxation committee seems entirely feasible and to come within the scope of the note to article 37 of the regulations of 1907. I have already mentioned this matter informally to my Russian colleague.

(4.) Official notification to His Majesty's consul of any new tax or municipai

regulation.

I have in preliminary conversation intimated to my Russian colleague that it would be desirable that we should receive official notification of any proposed new tax or municipal regulation, stating that, according to our practice, such regulations, if intended to be made binding upon British subjects, must first be submitted to you. The matter, in so far as British subjects residing in Harbin are concerned, would seem As regards the intro- to be governed by article 156 of the order of council of 1904. duction of new taxes, it is to be noted that by article 40 of the 1907 regulations no taxes other than those contemplated by article 5 of the said regulations can be imposed except with the approval of the general administration of the railway company. The request, then, that we should have previous information of any proposed new tax should not appear unreasonable.

(5.) The suggestion that some guarantee should be obtained from the Russian authorities intended to protect British subjects from being required, on the expiration of the railway company's lease, to evacuate their property without due compensation.

I have, in informal conversation with my Russian colleague, gathered that the idea exists that, though the rights of private Russian owners are not protected by any specific safeguards in the railway agreement of 1896, it would be "considered only equitable that these owners should not be expropriated on the expiration of the railway company's lease without receiving proper compensation. M. Poppé has not, however, committed himself to a definite statement as to the views of the Russian authorities on this matter and it has occurred to me that the securing of a guarantee of the kind in question might be facilitated if we, on our part, were willing to agree to give the Russian authorities such assistance as we properly could in upholding the claims, when legitimate, of British subjects. I should be glad to know whether you consider that this suggestion can be entertained or not.

(6.) The status of the police.

My Russian colleague has informed me, in conversation, that the local police administration has received instructions from the higher authorities in St. Petersburgh to give due attention to any request made to them by the Russian consul-general in connection with matters affecting the property and person of the subjects of foreign Powers residing in Harbin and also, in cases of urgency, to attend to any request preferred direct by the consul of the national whose person or property is concerned. I have, since the date of my report of the 30th June last, not received any complaints of unwarrantable interference on the part of the police with the persons or properties of British subjects, and I think that the above-mentioned procedure, if formally recognised in writing by the Russian Minister and rendered slightly more elastic so as to enable His Majesty's consul, should he see fit, to apply at once to the police direct might be considered a sufficient safeguard under the conditions now obtaining.

(7.) The control of the municipal administration over the regularity of

commercial dealings.

A reference to this matter is contained in the second enclosure to this despatch, and I have also alluded to it in conversation with my Russian colleague, who has promised to make enquiries as to the exact meaning of the vague wording of article 2 (i) of the regulations of 1907.

I have now, I think, mentioned all the important points requiring reference to you at the present stage and shall be glad to receive any instructions in regard thereto which you may deem necessary, so that I may be able to approach my Russian colleague with definite proposals.

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It remains, in conclusion, to furnish you with information regarding the more salient facts connected with the municipal elections held last month.

The total number of qualified voters was 812, of whom 161 were Chinese, as compared, respectively, with 1695 and 255 in 1908. Two elections were held-the first on the 19th March and the second on the 26th March. At the former, the number of voters present was 344 and at the latter 266. The Chinese, with two or three exceptions, abstained from voting. As the result of the two elections, thirty-eight members of the assembly of delegates were chosen, leaving two delegates and twelve candidate-delegates to be appointed by the manager of the railway. Among the elected delegates were fourteen persons employed by the railway administration including M. Daniel, chief of the department of foreign relations. At subsequent meetings of the assembly of delegates, M. Umansky, a lawyer, was elected president of the assembly of delegates and chairman of the municipal council, and Messrs. Semianikov, an engineer, and Dobisov, a merchant, were successful in securing election to the position of municipal councillors. Two attempts to obtain the selection of a fourth member failed, but one other member, M. Mimrin, has been appointed by the manager of the railway. Mention is made in enclosure 2 of the decision reached at a meeting of the assembly of delegates on the 11th instant in regard to the remuneration of the members of the municipal council. A list of the new members of the assembly of delegates and of the candidate-delegates is enclosed-enclosure 4.*

I have, &c.

H. E. SLY.

Enclosure 2 in No. 1.

Regulations for the Municipal Administration of Harbin.

ARTICLE 1. In accordance with the General Principles governing the Organisation of the Civil Administration on the Territory of the Chinese Eastern Railway," the management of town affairs and improvements in Harbin is to be entrusted to a municipal administration represented by elected officers (article 10). The legality of actions taken by the said officers shall be subject to the control of the general administration of the company and the manager of the Chinese Eastern Railway.

Art. 2. The following matters are to be placed under the control of the municipal administration of Harbin -

(a.) The management of taxes and dues introduced for the benefit of the town. (b.) The management of town properties and funds.

(c.) The charge of town improvements; the construction of the town in accordance with approved plans; the maintenance of streets, squares, bridges, quays, public gardens, waterworks, drains, town lighting and telephones, slaughter-houses, &c. (d) The prevention, by means of measures within the competence of the municipal administration, of scarcity and of abnormal rise in price of articles of first necessity and the provision of arrangements in such cases for the sale of fuel, bread, and meat.

(e.) The management of the medical, sanitary, and veterinary departments of the town, of town hospitals and cemeteries.

(f) The management of town destitute asylums and charitable institutions. (9.) The management of the town fire department and of municipal mutual fire insurance.

(h) The establishment and maintenance of public educational institutions, libraries, museums, theatres, and other educational institutions, also the grant of assistance to private educational institutions.

(i.) The development of local trade and industries, establishment of market balls and bazaars, control of the regularity of commercial dealings, introduction of rules regulating the mutual relations between employers and employés and workmen in factories in commercial and industrial establishments.

(j) The operation of omnibus, tramway, and steamer lines, and the supervision of similar private enterprises and hired conveyances plying within the limits of the

* Not printed.

town.

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