CO129-506-12 Kowloon-Canton railway- new rolling stock and engines 25-11-1927 - 25-11-1927 — Page 3

ε.E.

Copy.

Extract from encl. /= scent Sap fr For It delil 21 Aft. 1928

Kowloon-Canton Railway.

(orig on 52701 B/28. No42)

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then raises the question of the Kowloon-

HIS EXCELLENCY

Canton Railway.

are to run at a

He said that if express trains

profit, suitable engines must be

obtained. At present there are no suitable engines

for hauling the express trains. Sometime ago

Mr. Lao, the manager of the Chinese Section of the

Railway, Fr. Stratton, and Mr. Robert Baker, manager

of the British Section, had a discussion, and it as

considered that the best plan would be for the Hong Kong

Government to buy in the first instance a new

locomotive which the Canton Government could take

over on payment by instalments. There are two ways of

dealing with the matter: one is that the long Kong

Government buy the locomotives with power to run

them over the whole line; and the second is that

the Canton Government should buy the locomotives

and run them under the present working agreement. The Hong Kong Government has called for tenders

for one locomotive, which is estimated to cost about

£6,000.

MARSHAL LI says that he is very anxious to improve, not

only this line, but all the other railways in

Kongtung. There is profit in the undertaking if

the railways are properly run. The most important

problem is the labour problem, and it must first be

settled before there can be any hope of profit.

HIS EXCELIENCY says that something should be done no ".

IR.