CO129-392 - Governor Sir May - 1912 [9-10] — Page 239

N° 349.

upt

C.0.

35437

These

REG 9 NOV 12

GOVERNMENT HOUSE,

HONGKONG. 9th. October, 1912.

227

Sir.

I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt

of your Circular Despatch of the 24th, of August forwarding a copy of a further International Sanitary Convention signed at Paris on the 17th. of January last and a copy of the Report furnished by the British Delegates.

2.

It would not be advisable for this Colony to adhere to the Convention as a whole, because by so doing we should bind ourselves to conditions which do not accord with local circumstances, while we should derive no corresponding benefits so long as the Straits Settlements, with whom practically the whole of our emigration traffic is conducted, have their own rules and regulations. There is, however, no objection to this Government agreeing to notify all infectious diseases small-pox, cholera, plague and yellow fever to the Consular representatives in the Colony and to neighbouring countries. In fact this is already done in regard to small-pox, cholera, and plague.

3.

I would add that although more than four thousand mosquitoes have been examined locally no specimen of stegomyia fasciata, which carries the infection in yellow fever,

has so far been found.

I have the honour to be, Sir,

Your most obedient, humble servant,

E RIGHT HONOURABLE

LEWIS HARCOURT, M.P.,

&C.,

&C.,

&C...

Governor,&c..