We sre authoritatively informed that BLE. the Officer Administering the Government received this morning " telegram from the Secretary of State for the Culonies, to the effect that the proposal for the xppointuwnt of a Chinese Consul at Hongkong has been withdrawn, Since the above was written we have received frou the Colonial Secretary " copy of the telegram received from the Secretary of State forthe Colonies, which ly xs fol lows "Chinese Consul proposal withdrawn see my despateh of 7th July; therefure nut necessary to lay correspondence on the table of the Legislative Council."
Mr, Whitehead, who asked fur docu ments on the subject, at last meeting of Council, received @ letter to-day from the Acting Colonial Secretary containing a copy of the telegram received, The decision to withdraw the appointment was evidently made before 7th July, and can have no reference tu opinion in this Colony. The whole question has been treated sulaly on Imperial ground The withdrawal of the proposed Chinese Consulate in Hongkong would seem to indicate that the Foreign Office is becoming alive to the real character and value of the Chinese Government. The recent riots and the evident helplessness of the authorities' in' dealing with them, "iimve perhaps tended to open the eyes of the Amperial Government. A Chinese Consul in Hongkong would occupy a position vccupied by no other consul in the world, It practically impossible to distinguish Hongkong-born Chinese from ordinary Chinvse. The Consul would therefore have under his protection about 211,000 inbubitants of the Colony, ous of the total 221,500, shat is, the whole population minus (in round figures) 10,500. In ordinary cases the number of foreigners in a country under Coneular proteotin is a very small proportion of the total population, Here, were the Chinese made foreigners—ns they would be by the appointment of " Chinese consul—the proportion would be reversed.—China Mail.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.