CO129-501-3 Chinese situation- Protection of British subjects of Chinese race 23-10-1926 - 21-12-1927 — Page 133

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This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government, and should be

returned to the Foreign Office if not required for official use.]

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(F3193/1410/10)

Code telegram to Sir M. Lampson (Poking)

Foreign Office, 12th April 1927, 6.45 p.m.

(R).

No. 269.

DIXIYZENIX

Your telegram No. 533 (of April 4th, Chinese law in British Courts).

the work to be done appears to fall into two divisions, namely (1) the ascertainment of the Chinese laws to be applied in our Courts, which can only

be done in China, and (2) the preparation of an anend.. ing Order in Council which will enable the Chinese laws to be co applied as and when they are enacted, communicated to us and recognised as falling within the scope of our offer. This part of the work must be done here, but with the assistance of the Board of Trade and such local experts as may be available at home, it should not be necessary to employ anybody from outside.

The preparation of the Order in Council will necessarily take some time but a considerable time must also elapse before a solution is found of the difficulties you refer to with regard to Chinese

laws or the situation is such as to render it possible for such laws to be applied in all our Courts through- out China.