CO129-582-5 Merchant Shipping Amendment Ordinance 1939 15-5-1939 - 22-1-1940 — Page 26

No. 510.

26

GOVERNMENT HOUSE,

HONG KONG.

25th July, 1939.

70 (18)

외

вору

3

Sir,

I have the honour to refer to your telegram

No.106 of 6th June, 1939, regarding the draft of a Bill to amend the Merchant Shipping Ordinance, 1899, by enabling the Harbour Master to refuse a port clearance in the case of a ship intending to proceed to a port of

China which has not been opened to foreign trade.

2.

In connection with the seizure by Japanese

forces recently in the West River delta of a ship, the s.s. "Dholera", flying the British flag which was suspected of smuggling goods into China a conference was

held in which the Commodore, Hong Kong, the Attorney-

General, the Harbour Master, the Commercial Secretary,

Hong Kong, and the Commissioner of the Chinese Maritime

Customs for Kowloon and district took part. The terms

of reference of this conference were to discuss the

principles which should govern the policy of this Colony

in dealing with the problems which arise from the

somewhat clandestine class of trade engaged in by

vessels like the s.s. "Dholera".

3.

The Commodore has now informed me that the

conference reached the conclusion that there appears

to be an anomaly in that British ships flying the

THE RIGHT HONOURABLE

MALCOLI MACDONALD, .P.,

&C.,

&C.,

&c.