Maroh 14, 1895.J
Chinese, to which Mr. FUTTAKIA had no
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT. inform your predecessor of the contents of this dis- patch. I have, Lo,
Li.
189
payers. Take, for instance, for the purpose of illustration, the management of the re- has been been resumed by the Crown and is
opportunity of replying. As this course The exalted position of the Viceroy places sumed area in Taipingshan. The property
would save trouble for the moment it was
wrote:-
probably that adopted by Sir JOHN WAL BEAM, who would then carefully docket the papers and put them in a pigeon bole, for according to all reports excessive neatness in regard to his papers was his ideal of the whole duty of a British Minister. To resume the thread of the correspondence, however; ou receipt of Mr. FUTTAKIA'S letter urging reconsideration of his petition Mr. O'CONOR The details set forth in your peti- “tion forwarded to me on December 3rd, "1892, engaged my careful attention, and "Although, as I told you at the time, I had "little or no hope of a satisfactory result "attending my representations, I nevertheless brought the matter to the notice of the "Ministers of the Tsungli Yamên at a recent "interview, and commended your case and| "the hardship entailed upon you by the "action of the local officials to their Excel- "lencies' favourable consideration, and urged
4K
"them to advise the Provincial authorities
"to again look into the matter. I regret to say that I can hold out no hope of such "action being taken, inasmuch as the Chinese
him beyond the reach of what would be the most appropriate reply to a letter of this description, but it is to be hoped that the Earl of KIMBERLEY will cause to be repre- sented to the Chinese Government in uu mistakeable terms that strict justice must be done in the matter of Mr. FUTTAKIA'S claim. If the Chinese think they have any case against the claim of course they are entitled to a hearing, and the matter might be adjudi
Rules for Joint cated in Canton under the Investigation," but so far as appears from Mr. FUTTAKIA's petition and the affidavits, statements, and correspondence attached to it that gentleman has been the victim of a grave injustice.
REJECTION OF THE PETITION FOR REPRESENTATIVE GOVERNMENT.
now in the hands of the Government to do
what it likes with. It may be kept unoccu pied for years, as was the case with the sites purchased for Queen's College and the Central Market, and when it is finally dealt
with it may
be laid out and utilised manner of which the public disap- prove, the only check being that the Sanitary Board is responsible for seeing that sanitary requirements are complied with. The Legislative Council might be increased to any extent, but the circumstances as re gards the management of the Taipingshan area would remain unaltered, because the matter is not one on which it would be necessary to consult the Legislative Council. If we had a Municipal Council, however, the matter would be entirely under the control of that body; and we should have When the petition for a larger measure greater confidence in a wise decision being of representative government for this colony arrived at by a body of practical business was published we remarked that the usual men familiar with the circumstances and fate of petitions to the House of Commons requirements of the colony than by one or was never to be heard of again. The Hong more officials acting on their own respon. "authorities, in their treatment of the case
kong petition has been heard of, but ap-sibility. Every other community under Eng- "in 1885-6, advanced counter-arguments and parently only in reply to a question. REUTER lish jurisdiction is allowed to manage its "statements to which they still adhere.”
To informs
us that Mr. SYDNEY CHARLES own municipal affairs, and we fail to see this Mr. FUTTAKIA replied, urging that he BUXTON, Parliamentary Under Secretary for why Hongkong should be an exception to had been kept in the dark as to the counter-the Colonies, has intimated that after careful the rule. A Municipal Council is not such arguments and statements that the Chinese consideration of the Memorial from Hong- an ornamental body as a Legislative Coun- authorities advanced in their treatment of kong for a representative government, Lord cil, but, in the circumstances of this colony, the case in 1885-86 and had therefore had RIPON is unable to grant the petition. There it would be more useful. Its members no opportunity of meeting them, and he presumably the matter ends, so far as the would not be styled "Honourable," they asked His Excellency to commend the House of Commons is concerned. That the would not be entitled to write "M.L.C." case again to the Ministors of the Tsung-li constitution of the colony stands in need of after their names, nor would they be Yamên for a fair and unprejudiced recon-
reform few will be found to dispute, but the accorded any position of precedence at state sideration. The Minister replied that al-House of Commons is hardly the quarter in functions, but their opportunities of render- though he could not hold out much prospect
ing good and substantial service to the of the claim being satisfactorily settled the
colony would be much greater than those of matter had not been lost sight of and was
the members of the more dignified body. still engaging his attention as well as that of
That prospect, however, does not seem Her Majesty's Consul at Canton. Here the
sufficiently alluring to induce our men. · of · correspondence with the Minister ends, the
light and leading to take up the cause. last letter being dated the 3rd October,
1893.
On the 28th of the same month the fol. lowing studiously insulting letter was ad- dressed by the Viceroy L to Mr. F. S. A BOURNE, who was then the Acting Consul at Canton
28th October, 1893.
which to look for assistance. To us, who are on the spot, our gievances naturally loom rather largely, but to the members of the House, concerned with matters of great domestic and imperial importance, the parochial affairs of this distant outpost of the empire must naturally appear insignificant. The imperial importance of THE INDIAN MERCHANT SHIPPING the colony is fully recognised, but questions concerning its municipal government the House may not unreasonably be inclined to leave to the decision of the Secretary of State for the Colonies. It is to Her Majesty through the Secretary of State that the colony should have addressed itself, and it should have preferred a clear and distinct demand. The signatories to the petition said they were not so unpractical as to expect that unrestricted, power should be given to any local legislature, or that the Queen's Government should ever give up the paramount control of this important de- pendency; but they asked that they should be allowed the free election of representa- tives of British nationality in the Legislative The Board find that "this seizure case occurred in Council, a majority in the Council of such 1885 when it was referred by the the Viceroy to the representatives, perfect freedom of debate report the claim against the Government was dis- and of vote for the official members, com- missad, therefore the case does not on its merits deplete control in the Council over local ex- serve to be taken up again. But since the British Consul says that Futtakia is old and p. or and wishes penditure, the management of local affairs, to return to his own country, but is too badly off to and a consultative voice in questions of an afford the expense, &c., considering the facts of the Imperial character. Large and vague case and with regard to friendly relations, Futtakia's bad oircumstances are certainly deserving of pity. requests of that character have little chance It seems that we might make him a present towards of securing much attention. What the his travelling expenses as an unusual indulgence. colony really requires is a Municipal Council, We have talked the matter over together and pro-and that could probably be had for the pose that $300 (three hundred Mexican dollars) should be given to Mr. Futtakia through H.B.M. asking, but unfortunately there seems little Consul towards his travelling expenses on his return disposition to ask for it. A Legislative
Sir,—I have received a report from the Lekin Board in regard to my communication to them dated 3rd October, 1893, in which I informed the Board that I had received a despatch from your predecessor in office in regard to a case that occurred some years ago, namely, the Futtakia smuggling case, and that had replied to your predecessor that since he said that Mr. Fattakia was old and poor I would without going into the merits of the case, but merely for the Bake of good relations, send all the papers to the Board to consider the matter carefully and decide what could be done for Futtakia by way of compas. Bion and that the Board should report their decision at once.
Prefect of Canton; and that in consequence of his
to his own country.”
With regard to this report from the Lekin Board I would say that having received your predecessor's despatch I instructed the Board to enquire into the circumstances and to report. This I did in consider- ation of the friendly relations existing betw en our two countries and this case must not be taken as a precedent in foreign business. In accordance with the Board's recommendation I am willing if Mr. Fut takia definitely proposes to go home to instruct the Lekin Office to pay the above sum of $300 to you to be handed over to Mr. Futtakia and I beg that you will
Council exists, as its name implies, for the purpose of legislation, and it exercises practi- cally no control in executive matters, whereas a Municipal Council is essentially an execu- tive body. And it is a popularly elected executive body that this colony needs, so that the acts of officials who are now practi- cally irresponsible may be under the direct control of the representatives of the rate-
ACT AND LASCAR SEAMEN.
In India a Bill amending the Merchant Shipping Act is under consideration and in connection therewith some indignation has been expressed in reference to a proposal to increase the minimum space to be allowed for the accommodation of lascar crews. The Hongkong Merchant Shipping Act does not make any distinction between native and European crews in this respect, section 42 providing that so much of the provisions of the English Merchant Shipping Acts as relates to the provisions, health, and accom- modation of seamen shall apply, mutatis mutandis and so far as the same can be extended, to all ships registered in this colony. Under the Indian law, however, the statutory space required for lascars is six superficial and 36 cubic feet only, or half that required for European seamen. It has been proposed that the space for both classes of seamen should be the same, namely, 12 superficial feet and 72 cubic feet. The Times of India, in an article sarcastically headed " Philanthropy -with a Purpose," expresses the hope that public opinion in India will become alive to all that is involved in the proposal. The proposal is, our contemporary says, on the face of it a philanthropic one, but in these days projects put forward in the name of philanthropy must be deemed, in the ab- sence of proof to the contrary, to be made în the interests of pure business, and it will be easy to show, wher. all the facts have been brought to light, that the demands that have been made upon the Indian Legisla ture professedly in the interests of the poor lascars have been made with a less real re
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