CO129-444 - Governor Sir May & Acting Governor Claud Severn - 1917 [10-12] — Page 72

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the Superintendent laboriously to collect the necessary particulars

from the ships' manifests which are furnished to him for an entirely

different purpose under the Importation and Exportation Ordinance, 1915.

Intoxicating liquors are excluded from the operation of the rules made

under the above Ordinance, but in a recent police court case the de-

fendant successfully contended that the inclusion of particulars re

lating to intoxicating liquors in a return furnished under that Ordi-

nance amounted to a compliance with the requirements of section 52 of

the Liquors Consolidation Ordinance, 1911. Another change is the

insertion of a provision requiring the furnishing of "nil" returns,

i.e., returns to the effect that no liquor has been imported or ex-

ported on the ship in question, to be used in cases where no such im-

portation or exportation has taken place. At present the only obli-

gation is to furnish returns where liquor has been imported or exported

These alterations will not really throw any fresh burden on ship owners

as it is already the general practice to furnish liquor returns on a

separate form and to furnish "nil" returns. The Ordinance provides

special forms for these returns.

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4. The opportunity is also taken to repeal certain provisions in the

Liquors Consolidation Ordinance, 1911, requiring the publication in

Chinese of all regulations relating to dealers licences, China se re s-

taurant licences and brewery licences. The se provisions are Con-

sidered unnecessary.

5. The Ordinance will ome into operation on the 1st December, 1917.

That date was chosen because publicans and adjunct licences expire

the 30th November of each year.

6.

In my opinion this is an Ordinance to which His Excellency the

Governor may properly assent in the name of His Majesty and on His

behalf.

Attorney General, 19th October, 1917.