CO129-521-13 Chinese Customs- proposed agreement with Hong Kong 27-8-1930 - 16-10-1930 — Page 134

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46.

3) The argument that Hongkong Chinese

favour insistence on inland-water

privileges for British-flag vessels may

have weight locally, but ignores the

consideration that the protection of the

British flag in China is the responsi-

bility of His Majesty's Government, and

not of Hongkong, and that it is undesir-

able to have a large increase in the

number of Chinese-owned vessels under

the British flag in the inland waters

of China.

*)

Sir M. Lampson thinks the agreement

would be beneficial without the articles

5 and 6 (inland navigation) and 10

(privileged factory treatment) which it

will be impossible for China to grant.

1)

The Governor insists on these concessions,

or others of equal value, but without

stipulating any.

m)

브

n)

o)

It is eminently undesirable to sacrifice

the agreement and its advantages (shown

in 2, 3 and 4) for the sake of impossible

demands, some of which (as Article 5)

it is for reasons of high policy even

undesirable that China should grant.

Great weight should be attached to Bir

M. Lampson's opinion that it is unde-

sirable to raise the navigation issue

prematurely.

It does not appear that the grant of

the desired privileges to the Chinese

/Custome