18
COPY.
No. 601/1915,
sir.
GOVERNMENT IDUSE,
HONGKUNG.
22nd. April, 1920.
35
Difficulties have arisen in the application of Articles 3 and 4 of the China (Companies) Azendisent urder-in- Council, 1919, and I have the honour to suggest that it would be advisable to postpone the enforcement of the Order until those difficulties have been discussed.
2. The drafts of the articles in question were communicated to the Government by the Secretary of State for thes Colonies, and Sir Henry Way in his despatch ko.67 of the 27th February, 1919, expressed his concurrence in the proposed legislation. Unfortunately the effects of the proposed logicļa. tion were not fully appreciated at the time.
3. In the copies of the inter-departmental corres- pondence forwarded by the Secretary of State for the Colonies only two reasons are given for the proposed alteration in the law. They are bàth instances of particular companies, and it is not clear from the correspomience how those two instances established a case for an steendient of the law,
4. In the first on se, that of "the loang On Company" it is stated that "the real control is wholly Chinese and the control of the Board of Directors merely nominal", and that "the company is endeavouring as such to acquire property in the British concession at Hankow". It is believed here that the object of the special legislation relating to China companies wara (1) graster convenience and (2) better control, but it does not appear that the control exercisable by means of action spminst the British directors has proved inadequate in any such case, or that the control would be increased by the
appointment Britannic Lajesty's kinister,
PEKING.
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