CONTRETEMPS, September 9, Some six weeks have passed since a formal communication was laid before the Conservancy Board, to the effect that allegations had been made against the firm of Ten Bokkel Huinink, Korthals Altes, van Thiel de Vries and Company in regard to the manner in which it is carrying out its dredging contract. These allegations, it is understood, originated with two men in the employ of the Conser-fancy Board and the Contractors respectively, and the Board was called upon to investigate the charges made. The sequence of events since that date has already been made public in part, and it is known that after an abortive effort by -the Conservancy Board, with whom was associated for the purpose Taotai Kwang of the Kinngnan Dock and Engineering Works, to inquire into the matter, it was proposed to hand the investigation over to a commission of four nominated by the Bourd and Taotai Kwang. Effect was about to be given to this proposal and a commission had been appointed, when a halt was called by the Consular Body. Writing on August 26 to the Commissioner of Customs in his capacity as Director of the Huangpu Conservancy Board the Senior Consul announced that the following declaration had been approved and signed by the seventeen Consular representatives in Shanghai:—* It is the opinion of the members of the Consular Body who have signed hereunder that the appointment of a Commission to inquire into the present difficulties which have arisen between the Conservancy Board and their contractors is unnecessary and contrary to the articles of the Convention of 1905; they are further of opinion that the present difficulties can very well be dealt with by the members of the Huangpu Conservancy Board, that is to say, by Mr. Hobson and the Taotai, without outside interference."
For the present, therefore, any inquiry into the allegations against the contractors is in abeyance, in consequence of the Consuls' action. Now with the motives which
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.