CO129-423 - Governor Sir May - 1915 [7-8] — Page 17

ih

N-CONFIDENTIAL.

7

14

35771

REG 4 MIS

GOVERNMENT HOUSE,

HONGKONG. 2nd. July, 1915.

Sir,

for 31589

With reference to my Confidential Despatch of

the 5th. ultimo and to the telegrams noted in the margin, I have

9th.May to Secretary of State 2477.

Ho

7th June from Secretary of States 2nd.June to Secretary of State

28875

honour to enclose copies of two

reports by Er. G. R. Sayer who is

temporarily attached to the Crown Solicitor's department. One report is

on liessrs. Jebsen and Company's piece goods and dye trade, and the

other is on the export business of the same firm.

2.

The information relating to the business of

Liessrs. Jebsen and Company contained in my code telegram of the

29th. May and my confidential despatch of the 5th. June, was obtain-

-ed from the liquidators who appear to have generalised on in- -sufficient data. This is particularly so with regard to the piece

goods trade, which Mr. Sayer's report tends to show was carried on

during the years 1910 to 1914 at a net profit of about 4%. Enquiry

from a leading British piece goods firm here elicited the opinion that this rate of profit was high but not impossible, though sur-

-prise was expressed that such a return could be obtained on the

usual German long credit system. The net profit on the dye trade

would appear from Mr. Sayer's report to be about 7%. Messrs. Jebsen

and Company do not seem to have been engaged long enough in the

export trade for any conclusion of value to be dram. I may add

that

THE RIGHT HONOURABLE

&C..

ANDREW BONAR LAW, M.P.,

&C..

&C...