The Municipal Council was first formed by a body of nine English and American merchants on ther own initiative, and they undertoois upon themselves the task of goveraing a population which included sev hundreds of thousands of} Chinese. Being saddled wita duties, they began to consider how they might obtain the necessary powers, and in 1862 they propose to make the situation permanent by making Shanghai a free city, governed by its own officers under the protection of the Treaty Powers. At first this proposal met with the disapproval of the Treaty Powers concerned. The British Consul (Mr. Medhiwst) warned the Council: "The plan proposed is one which the land-renter cannot legitimately adopt, seeing that the territory belongs to the Emperor of China, who merely accords to the foreign powers an extraterritorial jurisdiction over their own citizens resident at this port. but retains for himself all authority over his own territory and subjects. The present system may be extend ed and improved upon... clothing the Council with authority derived from the Emperor.........but even this cannot be effected without the consent of the Treaty
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.