714092-1866-GOVERNMENT-NOTIFICATION-NO-170 — Page 3

THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 17TH NOVEMBER, 1866.

451/

Your Petitioners beg to draw Your Excellency's attention to the fact that at the present time even the largest of the Licensed Passenger or Provision Junks pay only 10 Dollars per annum to the Government; and Your Petitioners would respectfully beg to submit, that, the payment of double that amount, as laid down in the Ordinance, is, of itself, a very high tax, and Your Petitioners believe it is as much as this class of vessels can possibly afford to pay out of their small profits, and that the payment of the "Anchorage Pass," "Day Clearance," or "Special Perinit" fees in addition will be absolutely impracticable, especially, as they have likewise to pay taxes and fees to their own Government at the Ports to which they belong or from which they sail.

Your Petitioners would also respectfully beg to draw Your Excellency's attention to the clause which requires that the Masters of all Licensed Junks shall cause the Number of said License to be painted in black Figures 20 inches in length, on a white ground, on each bow-this clause Your Petitioners respectfully submit is very objectionable as regards all classes of Licensed Junks, as these figures being fixtures would render them liable to many exactions from the Officials of the Chinese Ports to which they belong, as they would then be looked upon as foreign vessels, and impediments and exactions of all kinds would be felt by them at all the Chinese Ports to which they may have occasion to resort. Your Petitioners also beg to draw Your Excellency's attention to the fact that many of the Passenger or Provision Junks now trading here take their departure from the Chinese Ports they belong to for some other Chinese Ports, they not daring to clear for Hongkong, as it would subject them to greater exactions than they already pay, and in some cases would be prevented from leaving the Port altogether.

Another difficulty as regards the Passenger or Provision Junks which your Petitioners respectfully submit for Your Excellency's consideration, is, the length of time (18 hours) fixed for giving notice of the intended departure of any Junk before she is permitted to leave. The working of this clause" as regards this class of vessels would become wholly impracticable, as a large number of them leave the Colony within a very few hours after their arrival, and, in some instances, (as will be seen by the List above submitted) immediately after they have landed their Passengers and Freight.

The large amount of Security required before a License is granted will prevent many, if not all, of the Provision Junks from obtaining Licenses, even should the fees, other than the License fee, be remitted, and they should be desirous of applying for Licenses-the sum required being twice the value of Junks of the very best description. The present Security for vessels of the largest size being only 200 Dollars, whereas by the new Ordinance 1,500 Dollars is required for all vessels.

In the cases however of Licensed Trading or Cargo Junks, or unlicensed Junks of any description, the "Anchorage Pass," "Day Clearance," and "Special Permit" fees might with propriety be exacted, as vessels of the first description from the nature of their business, could only come to the Colony for a very limited number of times during the year, and is the case of the unlicensed vessels, the fees could with more propriety be demanded without regard to the frequency of their visits to the Colony for the purposes of trade, since they derive a certain benefit from such privilege.

Your Petitioners have not said anything as regards the payment by Fishing Boats of any of the fees other than the License fee; because although they cannot discover any clause in the Ordinance relieving them from such payment, Your Petitioners believe it never could have been the intention of the Government that they should be called upon to pay more than the License fee; if, however, it is intended by the Ordinance that Fishing Boats should be made to pay "Anchorage Pass," "Day Clearance," and "Special Permit" fees Your Petitioners fear that the immediate result will be that they will all leave the Colony for the neighbouring Fishing Boat Ports of which there are many.

But the last objection which Your Petitioners have to make to this Ordinance, they respectfully submit, is one which if persisted in will prove of serious injury to the trade of the Colony, inasmuch as it will work great hardship to the Shippers of Cargo by Chinese Junks not their own property, and upon the Owners of such Junks, they not being the Masters or Persons in charge.

By Section XVII the Master of any Junk (whether Owner or paid servant) failing to comply with the Provisions of Sections VIII, IX, and X, subjects himself to certain heavy penalties, and by Sections XIX and XX, the Master of a Junk infringing any of the conditions therein contained, not only subjects himself to the heavier penalties therein laid down; but also the forfeiture of the Junk and also the cargo which may have been entrusted to his care, the innocent Owner of such cargo being thus punished for the misconduct or neglect of a Person, who may possibly be even unknown to him!

In a case where the Master of a Junk is only a paid servant, and the Owner of such Junk being resident in China, Your Petitioners look upon the confiscation of such a Junk under Sections XVIII, XIX, and XX, in consequence of the act of such Master as a great hardship on the Owner, as, it is, in fact, a punishment of an innocent man equally with one guilty of a breach of the Ordinance; even still more strongly do Your Petitioners consider it a hardship to confiscate the cargo which may Belong to a man who has no other connection with either the Master or the Junk, except to pay them freight for the safe carriage of his goods.