CO129-604-4 Immigration- control over entry from China 7-3-1947 - 5-11-1947 — Page 18

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of the circumstances is to be made to the Chinese Authorities.

By this

arrangement it is hoped that piracy and illegal traffic will be effectively

prevented."

By Article XVI, the most important of the three, it was

agreed: "That the Custom House officers of the five ports shall make

a monthly return to Canton of the passes granted to vessels proceeding to

Hong Kong, together with the nature of their cargoes; and a co y of these

returns will be embodied in one retum, and communicated once a month

to the proper English officer at Hong Kong. The said English officer will,

on his part, make a similar return or communication to the Chinese Authorities

at Canton, showing the names of Chinese vessels arrived at Hong Kong, or

departed from that port, with the value of their cargoes: and the Canton

uthorities will apprise the Custom-House at the five ports, in order that,

v those arrangements and precautions, all clandestine and illegal trade,

the

ncer/cover of passes, may be averted."

"Such were the precautions taken by Her Majesty's Government at that

e to prevent Hong Kong becoming a Smuggling depot, and the Chinese

nment being defrauded of its just dues; and had they, been preserved

future arrangements, all troublesome and difficult questions like the

esert one had never arisen. But by the Treaty of Tinatsin, of the 26th

e, 1858, which followed upon the third war, the Supplementary Treaty

Tanking was abrogated, and with it went these precautions, while none

bstituted, since which, smuggling prospered at Hong Kong, and the

Government was driven to take the action now complined of."

e Governor of Hong Kong was nevertheless informed by the Secretary

for the Colonies that the Earl of Derby would direct Her Majesty's

at Peking to call the attention of the Chinese Government to the

had, from time to time, been made by the mercantile

: Kong of the interference of the revenue cruisers with the

o urge them to issue such instructions as would render

f their Customs revenue in the immediate vicinity of Hong

e vexatious as possible to the Government of that Colony,

number of junks frequenting its waters for the purposes