CO129-437 - Public Offices - 1916 — Page 534

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532

etc., will very clearly show.

Apart from the question of impracticability,

I think that a reference to the mendments made in

the Hongkong Ordinance of 1911 by the ordinance of 1915 with a view to making the ordinance applicable to China Companies in China as well as to Fongkong Companies, will show that it was never intended that

the main body of the Ordinance should apply to "ome

Companies, Wherever a Section of the ordinance of

1911 is amended to make an appropriate provision for hina Companies, it refers to China Companies only and not to British Companies,

on referring to Article 15 of the order-

in-Council 1915, it will be seen that the actual

words used are:- "The jurisdiction of the Court

in respect of all British Componies carrying on

business in Chins shall be exercised so far as

circumstances admit in accordance with the pro-

visions of the Ordinance". I think that the

obvious intention of this was to provide that the

Hongkong Companies ordinance of 1911 should apply

in China as well as in Hongkong to Companies re- gistered under that ordinance, and such a pro-

vision was obviously necessary upon the transfer of companies originally registered in Hongkong to

the the Registry at hanghai as China Companies.

There is no indication in the Arttle itself that

it intends to refer to ome Companies, and it is

only on looking at the definition of "British

Company* that this meaning becomes possible. It

seems probable that the definition of "British

.

Company*