CO129-590-11 Commission of Enquiry into irregularities in Immigration Departments 22-4-1941 - 19-12-1941 — Page 278

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of general agents or of regional or district monopolies was discussed and was approved? After the X.C. decision?

Mr. Smith: Yes. I do recollect being at Government House with

H.E. and Mr. Forrest. i think, in extenuation, I was having

meetings of this kind at the rate of one or two a day. My、

recollection is that we did discuss this Kobza agreement. I

-

told H.E. - speaking entirely from memory that when the Immigration of ice was first started Kobza was given, I think very early on, a room in the near neighbourhood, if not in the same building as far as I recollect.

Chairman:

It was in the same building.

I also recollect

Mr. Smith: And that everyone had known about this.

that I mentioned to H. E. timt in similar departments such as the 1.&. Department i knew, because I have been incharge of that Department, that it is quite a regular thing for definite agencies to be set up for filling in these forms which look so simple to us but present certain difficulties to exporters and importers of goods; and those agencies are not recognized in any way but we do know that they are simply an extension of the Chin-

ese letter-writer that you go to if you want to express your

thoughts on paper, and that I thought that something of that sort would probably be necessary as regards these immigration forms.

Mr. Forrest: You have probably telescoped two meetings.

Mr. Smith: I daresay that is right.

.

This is a later meeting when I found that an attempt to work under the decision of the X.C. as I had interpreted it got me

deeper and deeper into the bog.

A. That was the earlier discussion.

Mr. Forest: On the 9th of January, I find from my diary, I sought

through you a further interview with H.E., in desperation as to

how to deal with these agencies, and I thought that I was pre-

cluded by the terms of this decision from making any arrangement,

even a non-monopolistic one, with the one agency so as to put it in

a position of superiority or control over the others; and I think