The island of Shameen in the Consular District of Canton is a British Concession: it is held by the British Government on a lease in perpetuity from the Chinese Government made in 1861. Tt is for the "accommodation of the British Community": see also the Treaties of 1842 and 1848. Tt is managed by a Municipal Council, composed of qualified persons elected the ratepayers at) meetings presided over by the Congul-General Geo Shameen Land Rogulatio 1008, King's Regulations No. 2 of 1008, which superseded earlier ones of 1871 revised in 1899, under which be it noted transfers of land had to be made in the Consulate-General Canton within one month under penalty not exceeding $100). The land in the Concession has been eased by the British Government, now represented by the Commis: sioners of His Majesty's Works and Public Buildings, to lessees for terms of years: these are known as Grown Leases, and are undoubtedly' valuable. In Exhibit A. a plan of the Concession has been placed before me, showing the various lots and the nationality of the holders.
is to be noted thab others besides British subjects are the holders of these Crown Leases, including even the Chinese Martime Customs and the Salt Gabelle, two Chinese Government, organizations. The lot in Aispute in this ease is marked' on the plan as Lot No. 67 B.. As I have 'Said, "these Crown leases are valuable and provisions for the transfer of them and for the registration. "6f mortgages of them. 'These, transfers are' to be made and mortgages are to be regis tered.in a Register kept for the pur-Pose. at the Consulate-General (King's Regulations, Section 2) and "ik is snot disputed that there is therefore a statutory duty to Keep such a Register imposed.upon the on Instructions from the Secretary lof State for Foreign Affairs (who is the official head of the Consular Service), is set out admittedly ce rectly in the letter from the pi tiffs! solicitors to the Consul-Gen dated August 18, 1923. It wa that registration was to be refused to limited companies incorporated under the Hongkong Ordinances unless they fulfilled certain condi tions, and that the Consul-General had decided this Bank did not fulfil them. The matter is carefully set out in the letters on pp. 21, 22 and 28 of Exh. A. It is thatthe nationality of Chinese in China was matter of dispute between His Majesty's Government and the Chinese Government: that the shareholders in the Bank, though British Chitiese, might prove to have to. revert to Chinese nationality in China and therefore would not be subject to British jurisdiction nor capable of getting" British protection; and that therefore a company with shareholders of that, lass could not in view of a covenant in the lease be the holders of a lease in Shameen. It is necessary to add that in view of previous interview and correspondence it was expected that this refusal would be made; but it has never been suggested that Vasania had any know. Hedge of thi the Bank of East Asia, 'a Limite? Com. [pany formed in' Hongkong, a British Colony, under the Company Laws. of the' Colony, which very closely. approximate to the Company Laws fof England. It was incorporated Jon November 14, 1918; its Memorandum and Articles of Association are in evidence: its head office Jand its registered offices are in Hongkong: it has a branch in Canton and branch in Shanghai. It is registered as a British "Company in Shanghai. It is not suggested that it is other than a flourishing and well-conducted affair. Tt is admitted that at the time of this conveyance of the Crown Lease the majority the Directors were British sub-Jects, and that the majority of the capital was in the hands of British subjects, though these British subjects. were men of Chinese race: they' have for convenience been referred to as "Hongkong British Subjects." The Company is known in China under our legislation as a "Hongkong. China Company," and such are expressly included ' in the terms "British Companies": see Order in Council 1915, Art 2,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.