Directory_and_Chronicle_1903 — Page 111

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THE BRITISH COMMERCIAL TREATY WITH CHINA

Section 1.-The Chinese Government undertake that all barriers of whatsover kind, collecting lekin or such like dues or duties, shall be permanently abolished on all roads, railways, and waterways in the Eighteen Provinces of China and the Three Eastern Provinces. This provision does not apply to the Native Custom Houses at present in existence on the seaboard or waterways, at Open Ports, on land routes, and on land frontiers of China.

Section 2.-The British Government agree that foreign goods on importation, in addition to the effective 5 per cent. import duty as provided for in the Protocol of 1901, shall pay a special surtax equivalent to one and a half times the said duty to com- pensate for the abolition of lekin, of transit dues in lieu of lekin, and of all other taxation on foreign goods, and in consideration of the other reforms provided for in this Article; but this provision shall not impair the right of China to tax salt, native opium and native produce as provided for in Sections 3, 5, 6 and 8.

The same amount of surtax shall be levied on goods imported into the Eighteen Provinces of China and the Three Eastern Provinces across the land frontiers as on goods entering China by sea.

Section 3.-All Native Custom Houses now existing, whether at the Open Ports, on the seaboard, on rivers, inland waterways, land routes or land frontiers, as enumerat- ed in the Hu Pu and Kung Pu Tse Li (Regulations of the Boards of Revenue and Works) and Ta Ch'ing Hur Tien (Dynastic Institutes), may remain ; a list of the same, with their location, shall be furnished to the British Government for purposes of record.

Wherever there are Imperial Maritime Custom Houses, or wherever such may be hereafter placed, Native Custom Houses may be also established; as well as at any points either on the seaboard or land frontiers.

The location of Native Custom Houses in the Interior may be changed as the circumstances of trade seem to require, but any change must be communicated to the British Government, so that the list may be corrected; the originally stated number of them shall not, however, he exceeded.

Goods carried by junks or sailing-vessels trading to or from Open Ports shall not pay lower duties than the combined duties and surtax on similar cargo carried by

steamers.

Native produce, when transported from one place to another in the Interior, shall, on arrival at the first Native Custom House after leaving the place of production, pay duty equivalent to the export surtax mentioned in Section 7.

When this duty has been paid, a certificate shall be given which shall describe the nature of the goods, weight, number of packages, etc., amount of duty paid and intended destination. This certificate, which shall be valid for a fixed period of not less than one year from date of payment of duty, shall free the goods from all taxation, examina- tion, delay, or stoppage at any other Native Custom Houses passed en route.

If the goods are taken to a place not in the foreign settlements or concessions of an Open Port, for local use, they become there liable to the Consumption Tax described in Section 8.

If the goods are shipped from an Open Port, the certificate is to be accepted by the Custom House concerned, in lieu of the Export Surtax mentioned in Section 7.

Junks, boats, or carts shall not be subjected to any taxation beyond a small and reasonable charge, paid periodically at a fixed annual rate. This does not exclude the right to levy, as at present, tonnage (Chuan Chao) and port dues (Chuan Liao) on junks. Section 4.-Foreign opium duty and present lekin which latter will now become a surtax in lieu of lekin shall remain as provided for by existing treaties.

Section 5.The British Government have no intention whatever of interfering with China's right to tax native opium, but it is essential to declare that, in her arrangements for levying such taxation, China will not subject other goods to taxation, delay, or stoppage.

China is free to retain at important points on the borders of each province-either on land or water--offices for collecting duty on native opium, where duties or contribu- tions leviable shall be paid in one lump sum; which payinent shall cover taxation of all kinds within that province. Each cake of opium will have a stamp affixed as evidence of duty payment. Excise officers and police may be employed in connection with these offices; but no barriers or other obstructions are to be erected, and the excise officers or police of these offices shall not stop or molest any other kinds of goods, or collect taxes thereon.

A list of these offices shall be drawn up and communicated to the British Govern- ment for record.

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