Under these circumstances and for these various reasons it would be very unfair to describe the merchant's desire to close with Can. rident bargain selfish, short-sighted or opportunistic. It is the only thing that the merchant can be reasonably expected to do, When the opponents to the tax suggest that the Powers should oppose its imposition and take action to see that it is not} imposed, even though such action would mean a protracted interrupt tion of all trade in South China, no criticism of Hongkong for wanting' to get back to business is implied nor is there any lack of sympathy, leastwise in diplomatic circles here, for the merchant's attitude, There! are no respectable foreigners China of any nationality, excepting: of course the agents of the Soviet, who would not rejoice to see tish trade in South China booming: jand Hongkong recovered healthy prosperity. What the Governments interested, and their nationals Chinn, have to consider is what a local settlement of a local problem at Canton, which involved tacit] agreement' to a treaty violation, might cost foreign interests at large.
Truth of the Canton Tax The tax which the Cantonese] want to collect is, under whatever! name they choose to describe it, jan excess customs charge. The Cantonese Government, in effect, increase the tariff at'it own ini-tin tive and retains the proceeds from the increase. Whether this is done at one or a dozen barriers! makes no difference, except that if it were done at one barrier it would bbe done with the ce-operation of the! Customs Administration, and since the Administration is under _what amounts to international sion, the collection would imply international endorsement of the tax.
There is no provision in any commercial treaty for such an increase, no such tax has been endorsed by the existing treaties for tariff autonomy, much—les§__local autonomy. Such a tax could only} be endorsed by an international] conclave such as the recent Tariff Conference. The Hongkong Government could not endorse such tax by negotiation, because it is) a violation of the treaty rights many Powers, all of whom are entitled to a voice in the matter, nor could the. Customs Administration endorse it even under the authority' of a recognized Central Government because these same treaty' rights stand in the way.
The unendorsed tax cannot therefore be regarded as anything but: an open violation of the treaties at} Canton's own initiative. If it is! imposed without test from the Powers, Canton is thereby given international licence to repudiate treaty on her own initiative, she has the right to lect a tax of a certain fixed percentage without negotiation or any other form of by-your-leave she has an equally good right to put on any tax she sees fit. It is only logic cal to admit that if the imposition of a tax is entirely within a Gov-fernment's discretion. the increase of that tax to any figure is also within its discretion,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.