1926-11-05 — Page 8

CAFE RESTAURANT PARISIEN

GRAND CARNIVAL

DINNER DANSANT

on

Saturday, November 6th.

The Great International Characteristic and Classical RUSSIAN DANCERS

Youry Yourlo

Will Entertain During Dinner and Dancing with the

FANTASTIC DANCE

TARTAR DANCE

RED INDIAN DANCE

DINERS $3,000 per cover.. ADMISSION to NON-DINERS $1.00 -

For Reservations 'phone C. 1576,

THE

イ

HONGKONG AMATEUR DRAMATIC CLUB

Booking now open at Anderson's for the

DRAMATIC MEDLEY

at the

́ ́THEATRE ROYAL

OPENING NIGHT Saturday, November 13th at 9.30 p.m.

FOR ALL

ANAEMIA WEAKNESS · TUBERCULOSIS

CURE YOURSELF

BY THE MOST RECENT DISCOVERY:

DE ROUSSEL

HEMOSTYL

A FRENCH PRODUCT, ALREADY RECOMMENDED BY 150.000 DOCTORS, THROUGHOUT THE WORLD THE TASTE IS VERY AGREEABLE. PARTICULARLY RECOMMENDED POR WOMEN AND CHILDREN IN A RUN-DOWN CONDITION

CURE ASSURED

Examine the package.carefully before buying. If it is not marked HEMOSTYL SPECIALLY PREPARED FOR TROPICAL COUNTRIES" in Red on a White label, and in English, it is not guarrntood Fresh stock as imported by the Sole Agents, COMPAGNIE OPTORG.

Princes Building

On sale at all the loading Dispazuries and Stores.

THE HONGKONG TELEGRAPH,

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER

THE LIQUOR DUTIES.

INGENIOUS FRAUDS REVEALED IN I. AND E. REPORT.

In his report for 1925, just issued, the Superintendent of Imports and Exports states:

The net revenue collected was $1,140,925.07 as com-. pared with $1,229,262.66 in 1924. The collection of duty on liquor of Chinese manufacture sill remained very un- satisfactory. The proposals made for revising the law and the regulations governing the collection of duty are still

under discussion.

1926.

was received. It is certain that. of the less than two percent. spirits of wina so denatured was ever used for the declared purpose of making varnish. The loss to the revenue in 1928 was as $150,- 000 by this.fraud alone; this loss was gradually reduced aa more at- tention was attracted to the firms concerned.

It seems probable that the fraud had been going on for very many years, perhaps from the, very be ginning of liquor. taxation in 1909. In cach cans a' varnish shop was catablished, which actually did a considerable trade in varnish, and actually made varnish on the pro- mises, but very little of the spirits Many of these distilleries, are drawn from bond for making into The adequate control of the Chinese liquor trade from the situated in such inaccessible posi-varnish was actually so used.

After suspicion.had attached to point of view of revenue collections that to visit one alone would tion is still extremely difficult entail a whole morning's work, and these varnish shops officers of the Departments issuing the various the inspecting officer would pro- department were ordered to visit licences have now agreed to con- bably find that the still had not them, they saw the process of var sult this department before issuing been in use for sometime, and that ish manufacture being carried new licences, and this will tend to his time was completely wasted. on, but did not ascertain the na- check the indiscriminate issue of The configuration of the liconces, which has been the practice for a long time.

A new set of regulations for the control of distillories, based on those in force in England and Bangal, has been drawn up and 48 still under consideration. The present regulations do not admit of any control whatever to be ex- erciaed- over the output of dis-i tilleries, with the result that dis tilleries have been able to evade the payment of duty by simply making false returns as to their output.

Investigations into the methods used in Chinese distilleries have been continued during the year, and the impossibility of exercising effective Revenue control under the present system amply proved.

any

Now

Territory makes it necessary forture of the liquid raw materials the inspecting oficer to be based being used. On their reports the on Hongkong Kong, and he has suspicions aroused were to a cer- certain of the perforce to spond, a considerabia tain extent allayed, but the in- shops to cease drawing spirits of portion of his time in getting out spection caused to the New Terriory.

Altering Samples.

The number of distilleries wine." licenced in the Northern district

Two attempts were discovered appears to be out of all proportion to the requirements of an agriculto import from Macau strong tural pópulation. Effective spirit composed of spirits of wine supervision of so large a number diluted to some extent, and to pass cannot be effectively carried the liquor at the lowest rate of out at a cost commensurate with duty, arrangements having been the daty paid and the only pus made with the aid of an employee sible course from a revenue point of this department to water down of view would seem to be to reduce the samples taken for the purpose their numbers, and confine the

(Continued on Page 11;! remainder to the more accessible localities. The villagers attend the markets held frequently at Tal Po and Un Long, and the vil laga store could quite convenient- ly satisfy its small requirernents by the purchase of spirit at these centres.

Denaturing Frauds.

Frauds by Distilleries. Four distilleries were convicted of fraud on the Revenue, and several distilleries in the New Tex-

In the summer of 1924 my atten- ritory were cautioned; they bad been for a long time making false tion was directed to the large entries of their output in their amounts of spirits of wine "which books, in many cases approximate were being denatured with shel- by the correct entry had apparentlad for the alleged purpose of ly been made at first, so that the making spirit varnish; more striet amount of spirit found on the pre-supervision reduced the amount mises directly after the distillation from 81,410 gallons in 1923 to had been completed for the day, 68,968 gallons in 1924, and 29,330 was alway correct, but before the gallons in 1926. In the spring of book was taken to the Police Station 1925 one firm was discovered per- to be checked and duty paid, the sistently attempting to use raw en-material of a nature other than Chinese characters already tered were very cleverly altered, that approved, they were therefore generally so as to read about one refused permission to draw spirits half or one third, less than the of wine for the purpose of making

into varnish for a certain time. amount originally entered.

Steps have been taken to meet This firm son afterwards clos- this type of fraud by the adoptioned, which only left one firm in this of a simple system of notation trade out of the original six, as re- which can be read by Europeansgular users of shellac' as a dera As well as Chinese, and new books turant; this firm was afterwards have been designed and issued, to found to be really the successor facilitate the new system,

of the one mentioned.

New Territory Distilleries.

Faked Spirit,

On October 14th after closely A European Revenue Officer with two Chinese assistants was watching the activities of the sale a large appointed to supervise the dis- remaining firm, I took tilleries in the New Territory, party of Revenue Officers to Mong- to the remote kok, and as the result of a whole Owing, however, position of many of the small dis-night's work discovered the real tilleries in the Northern district, use to which spirits of wine de- effective control has orly been ex-natured with shellac were being ercised over the large premises and put, and made five arrests. The those adjacent to the railway, spirits of wine had as a matter of motor roads, or sea-coast.

fact never been used for making

It was soon discovered that varnish at all, but by means of a large numbers of the smaller dis- process whereby the shellac, or tilleries had been tendering duty rather most of it, was removed by on only a small portion of their precipitation, had been converted actual output, some had not paid into a liquor which was sold ex- any duty for a long time, and some tensively as "molasses shoung had not been inspected for a very ching" after the alcoholic strength long time. The result of placing had been carefully adjusted. them under control has resulted in a This firm had been turning out considerable amount of extra duty about 12,000 gallons of this faked being paid. Even those wbdeh spirit per month. The whole of owing to their remoteness cannot the apparatus used was seized, the be regularly visited, rarely now working partner received a sen- miss, paying in something every tence of six months imprisonment, For the purpose of saving the but the real principals were never long journey into Hongkong the discovered. At least ten licenced collection of duty from the smaller spirit shops were regularly deal- distilleries still remains in the ing in this spirit, and it is pro- Police bable that the, varnish shop was hands of the nearest Station, payment being made once really established by a combina- a month, but the Police have been tion of spirit shops for the sole relieved of the technical control, purpose of defrauding the re-.. a work which needs experience and venue by the manufacture of this special training in order to under-bogus liquor

month.

IN

stand the processes used. Hither- Seizure News Spreads. to, owing to lack of the requisite. knowledge and want of time, An examination was made of: Police Inspection could not be ex-vory many of the spirit shops in pected to result in any effective Kowloon and a large amount of spirit was found which analysis. revenue control.

proved had been made by the same Police Co-operation.

process, in many shops the pecu- The Police can still be of great llar pink deposit left by this spirit assistanco in the protection of the was found on all the utensils in revenue especially in respect to use. A large amount was seized' distilleries, situated in remote and destroyed. I learnt sub- places, which cannot be regularly sequently that on the same night visited. In certain casas co-opera- news of the seizure was quickly Д large tion between the officer in charge circulated, and that of the police station and the fa-amount of such spirit was poured specting revenue officer has been away, to save discovery. productive of excellent results. The Police have been advised The extent of territory to be against renewing the licences of covered is so great that it is only the shope fivolved. The spirit so. with the cordial co-operation of the made seems to have met with n police that effective control can be ready sale, though it still contain- exercised.

ed considerable quantities of ahul

A large number of the dis-lac and a certain amount of the tilleries in the New Territory only chemical used as a precipitant. work, spasmodically, the only still The prominence given by thủ Chi- is altuated in the back part of the nese press to the police court pre- premises of a general store, in the coedings had a good offect in draw- place where the cookhouse Is,

usually found, and many only paying the attention of the public to duty on about six Jars per month the malpractices of many of the on the average. It is hard to Chinese spirit shops, d understand what proft can be

Suspicions Allayed. mado legitimately after paying all As the result of this case the expenses. The number of dig demand for shellac, as a dena. tilleries making less than 30-Jars turant has practically ceased, of spirit per month was 100, many after the seizure no further ap of which made very much less plication to denatura with shellao

Roneo

HONEST VALUES

We ask you to shop with us because we know that you appreofato honesty in business, and honesty is the key- note of our methods.

Whatovor you need for your household requirements, we can supply at prices, which are not unfair. We do not believe in Squeeze" and "Profitooring" and once we have convinced you of this, we know that we shall always have your name on our books. May we con vince you?"

KWONG LEE STORE

ADDRESS No. 5 Queen Victoria Strect. (Eastern side of Contral Market)

TEL. C. 798.

TEL. C. 798.

"GENASCO"

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OFFICE EQUIPMENT DEPT. QUEEN'S BUILDING GROUND FLOOR. Opposite Ferry Pler:

Phone: 1030

Shameon, Canton

Bouth China Christian Bookstall, The Bund, Cantor