CO129-521-13 Chinese Customs- proposed agreement with Hong Kong 27-8-1930 - 16-10-1930 — Page 91

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In fact, it was originally intended by

Hongkong that the clauses of the Canton-

Kowloon agreement, providing for collec-

tion of duties by the Customs at the Kow-

loon terminal, should not be embodied in

that agreement, but in the separate Customs

agreement, to be negotiated simultaneously.

When, however, the Canton-Kowloon Working

Agreement was satisfactorily negotiated,

the Hongkong Government dropped the Cus-

toms negotiations. These were during the

succeeding years revived again, but always

between Hongkong and the representatives

of the Customs. In the years 1916 to

1918, however, the Legation was more de-

finitely drawn into the picture in the

endeavour to persuade the Chinese Govern-

ment to accept the so-called Harris agree-

ment, which the Governor, Sir H. May, was

then again anxious to conclude. When

after a lot of shilly-shallying on the part

of the Chinese Government and the putting

forward of futile amendments by various

departments, the Legation had finally

persuaded the Chinese to accept it, and

obtained the F.0.'s consent to signature,

the Hongkong Government (Sir H. May

having been replaced by Mr. Severn as

O.A.G. and Sir E. Stubbs later as

Governor) made a volte-face and stated

they no longer wished to sign, princi-

pally on the ground that they could not

agree to tax salt, which had from the

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