According to a telegram from London, the question of Tsingtao berthing accommodation was raised in the House of Commons on Wednesday and Mr. R. A. Butler, Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, stated that the British Government is taking up the question of the extension of facilities at that port. When the Japanese authorities announced the reopening of Tsingtao to third party shipping the gesture was favourably received because it was believed that something like normal berthing facilities would be restored after a long period during which the Japanese insisted on—its closure for military reasons. The concession, however, has not proved in any way adequate even for the restricted shipping visiting the port. Only two berths have been allocated for third party vessels and these berths are considered the poorest in the harbour and difficult to reach in bad weather. The two berths are large enough for two coastal steamers or one Ocean-going steamer and the minimum nature of this concession can easily be appreciated With another condition of 48 hours' prior notice before occupying the berths, the dificult ties confronting third party shipping are obvious for it means that the limited accommodation available must result in considerable inconvenience in order to fit in requirements with the arrangements provided. On occasions, third party ships have been outside waiting for berths at the designated point while the other berths in the Tsingtao inner harbour have been empty, not a Japanese vessel being in sight. Tsingtao harbour is large enough to handle all the trade visiting the port at present and also provide a large margin for the military requirements of ghe Japanese, and therefore the request by third party shipping for increased facilities is not unreasonable.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.