CO129-407 - Public Offices & Others - 1913 — Page 38

(Copy) C.10172.

37

The Assistant Secretary,

Board of Trade,

(Commercial Department),

Dear Sir,

Gwydyr House,

Whitehall, London, S.W.

5, West Scotland Street,

Glasgow,

19th December, 1912.

We are in receipt of your letter C. 9920 of yeater-

day's date.

We regret we cannot give you any further informa- tion about the whisky sold in Hong Kong. We would res- pectfully suggest that it is a suitable subject about which your department should cause enquiries to be made on the spot. These official enquiries, we feel sure, will disclose the fact that the trade referred to is going on to the prejudice of the business of legitimate exporters of Scotch Whisky here. It has been notorious for years past that these cheap whiskies have been sold in the Straits Settlements and other places in the East and if your department took up the matter, we feel sure some interesting and useful facts would be disclosed. It is unreasonable to expect that private traders will go to the expense of obtaining the information suggested in your letter. We think it comes within the province of your Department to do it officially in the interests

of British trade.

Yours truly,

For SLATER, RODGER & CO., LIMITED.

($ga) JOHN CONNELL, Director.

zas.