CO129-521-13 Chinese Customs- proposed agreement with Hong Kong 27-8-1930 - 16-10-1930 — Page 478

In any further communication on this subject, please quote

No.

F 2943/37/10.

and address---

not to any person by name,

but to-

+4

The Under-Secretary of State,"

Foreign Office,

London, S.W.1.

CONFIDENTIAL.

RECEIVED

13 JUN 0

COL. OFFICE

(60)

6D

FOREIGN OFFICE,

515

S.W.1.

12th June, 1930.

Sir,

I am directed by Mr. Secretary Henderson to refer

to your letter of the 27th May transmitting copy of a

telegram from the Governor of Hongkong regarding the

proposed Customs agreement with China.

2.

Mr. Henderson agrees that the Hongkong

authorities should now, in consultation with the Chinese

Customs administration, explore the possibility of

working out some scheme of co-operation in the prevention

of smuggling from Hongkong into China, and he concurs in

Lord rassfield's proposal to send instructions to the

Governor of Hongkong in that sense. Mr. Henderson doubts

whether any such scheme will appeal to the Chinese

Government as sufficiently attractive to induce them to

grant to Hongkong the advantages to her entrepôt trade

which would accrue to her under the Agreement. In the

event of the discussions leading to no satisfactory

result he considers that the question of allowing China

to operate a preventive service in the waters of the

colony should not be decided solely in relation to the

local objections urged against such a proposal.

3. The fact that the Hongkong Government have been

ready to waive their objections on condition that

sufficiently valuable privileges were granted in return

to the trade of the Colony would appear to show that they

The Under-Secretary of State,

Colonial Office.

are