CO129-540-13 Proposal by Chinese Government to establish vice-consulate in Hong Kong 6-6-1932 - 30-12-1932 — Page 29

CONSULAR INVOICES AND HONGKONG.

30

Br. Wang Tsu-lien, Assistant Director of Inter-

netional affairs in the walicheiopu, had lunch with Mr. Ingram

on October 8th and ofter lunch they discussed the question

of the appointment of an officer for the certification of

invoices in hongkong. kr. Ingram put to Mr. Wang all the

arguments in favour of allowing the work of the certifying

of invoices to be performed by the Commissioner of Customs

or some person attached to the Customs steff in llongkong, but

kr. Sang said that the Chinese Covernment would never accept

that solution.

ar. Ingrem eventually reached the conclusion the t

there was little hope of shaking the Chinese determinetion on

this point and he decided to proceed with the alternative

suggestion kunde by the Hongkong Government in their telegram

to the secretary of State for the Colonies No. 193 of sept.

15th.

I accordingly called on Mr. sang at the aichiaopu

at noon today and informed him that in as much as the Chinese

Government were unwilling to accept what appeared to us to be

the most reasonable ablution, I had been instructed to place

before him an alternative. I explained to him the require-

ments of the hongkong Government as set out in the telegram

referred to and said that for convenience of discussion I

had incorporated them in the draft of an exchange of Notes

between the Linister for Foreign Affairs and kr. Ingram, this

being, in kr. Ingram's view, the most convenient method of

dealing with the metter. Mr. Wang after resding the draft

exchange of botes said that the Chinese could not accept the

title suggested for the special officer end that he did not

like /