Our" Committee has felt that it was through the assistance friendly Consular officials that members of our Chamber had been granted an exemption from having to furnish shop security in civil cases in which they are defendants. We fully appreciate the importance of this privilege and lost it should be abused we have insisted on strict qualifications for membership in the Chamber. and no candidate who receives less that two-third votes by the Committee will admitted. This precaution has been made a plea for much adverse criticism against the Chamber.
Our Committee for the last few years have felt disinclined to chime in with popular clamour, or on the slightest pretext to rebuke the Government by wire, as we have felt that we should set an example to the country and not lend ourselves to frivolous protests. Those who oppose this attitude took occasion to cast aspersions on us in the newspapers, publishing reports which, to say the least, were mischievously incorrect.
The Committee, however, is glad that they are retiring and leaving the work in other and better hands. The struggle which has been alleged in the senior morning paper perhaps meant that some of those who opposed the Chamber last year had been elected on the new Committee.
We have taken the liberty to say a few words of explanation to correct any wrong impression that might have been caused, and the Committee desire me to say to all our foreign guests that they will remain personal friends and on the 25th of next month we shall be happy to attend at the jetty personally to bid goodbye to Mr. Siffert.
Chang then handed to Mr. Siffert the silver cup from the two Chambers.
Mr. Srrrert's Repry, In reply Mr. Siffert thanked those present on behalf of his country principally. His country had been very hard beat upon, but Belgium was coming up again. Belgium was living because Belgians were working hard, and in a few years they would have regained their pre-war position. It was because he was the representative of the Belgian people—that was the principal reason why they honoured him that night. He was very grateful to the Chinese for their manifestation of good-will, and for their appreciation of what he had done in his stay of nearly 20 years in Shanghai. He had always tried to make things easy for everybody, and if there was a question difficult to settle he tried to handle it in such a way that would satisfy his Chinese as well as foreign friends. If he had succeeded it was because he had been helped by all of them, by his colleagues, the Municipal. Council, by foreigners and Chinese. He returned thanks for the beautiful cup he had received, and asked them to drinks the health of the Chairmen of the two Chambers. They had done great work and great good. and he had no doubt that the new members of the Committee would continue that work.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.