Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China/The Chamber of Commerce
THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.
Hongkong was a prosperous and thriving commercial centre in 1861, when the idea of organising a Chamber of Commerce was first mooted. In May of that year, at a meeting of merchants convened under the chairmanship of Mr. C. W. Murray, for the purpose of discussing the suggestion, it was unanimously decided to establish a Chamber, the object of which should be "to watch over and protect the general interests of commerce, to collect information on all matters of interest to the mercantile community, and to use every means in its power for the removal of evils, the redress of grievances, and the promotion of the common good; to communicate with authorities and others thereupon; to form a code of practice whereby the transaction of business might be simplified and facilitated; to receive references and to arbitrate between disputants." All mercantile firms, and persons engaged or interested in the commerce or shipping of China were eligible for admission as members on payment of an annual subscription, and a committee of seven was appointed consisting of the chairman, vice-chairman, and five members. For the first year Mr. Alexander Perceval presided over the deliberations of the Chamber, and Mr. W. Walkinshaw occupied the vice-chair, while Messrs. C. W. Murray, P. Campbell, J. D. Gibb, W. Delano, and R. M. Reddie formed the committee. Mr. Baldwin was appointed the first secretary at an annual salary of $1,500.
Thus Hongkong's Chamber of Commerce was inaugurated. It was not destined, however, to start upon its career without some little criticism, and The Friend of China, a paper of considerable importance in those days, commenting upon the inaugural meeting, described it as an insignificant gathering in view of the fact that only 20 out of the 120 mercantile, banking, broking, and commercial firms of the Colony, were represented at it. The paper went on to express the opinion that the haste to scramble after the first seats on the committee was unpardonable, and, while admitting that there could be no possible objection to traders of such standing as Messrs. Perceval, Gibb, Delano, and Reddie, it was argued that, the principle being fixed that the chamber was not to be exclusively British, there should be foreigners in place of the other members of the committee. Whether these strictures produced any effect it is difficult to determine after so many years, but certain it is that a little later the constitution of the committee was so altered as to include merchants of several other nationalities. The Chamber of Commerce, after the first few years, during which its stability was questionable and its activities were cramped by lack of enthusiasm on the part of its members, rapidly advanced and widened its sphere of influence pari passu with the growth of the Colony. Now, instead of a membership of 20, the roll includes 117 firms and 20 private traders.
In various directions throughout its career the Chamber has shown great enterprise. As far back as 1869 a considerable sum of money was devoted to the organisation of a commercial expedition into the interior of China for the purpose of obtaining as much reliable information as possible with regard to the inland districts. Mr. Moss accepted the commission and started from Canton, but he was prevented by the Chinese officials from proceeding beyond Nan-ning-fu. Up to this point, however, he faithfully and diligently prosecuted his inquiries, and placed beyond doubt the fact that inland dues, both under the names of Customs duty and Likin, were imposed on British and other foreign manufactures in the districts watered by the Canton River, much in excess of what was stipulated in Lord Elgin's Treaty. The publication of his report aroused considerable public interest. The subject was continually agitated by the Chamber of Commerce, until at length the members had the satisfaction of learning that an agreement was signed at Peking on February 14, 1896, under which the Chinese Government undertook to throw open two ports on the West River as Treaty ports, and four other places as calling stations where passengers and cargo might be landed. This agreement came into force on June 14, 1907.
Under the auspices of the Chamber in 1863 a subscription list was opened to relieve the serious distress then prevailing in the districts forming the seat of cotton manufacture in Great Britain. Over $5,000 was raised, and the committee also succeeded in obtaining the co-operation of the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce for the same object. In the early part of 1871 the Chamber addressed a memorial to the Secretary of State praying that the licensing of gambling in the Colony might be discontinued, and this petition had the desired effect.
In 1884 the Governor of the Colony invited the Chamber to nominate one of its members to serve on the Legislative Council. Sir Thomas Jackson was unanimously chosen, and the Chamber has retained the privilege of direct representation ever since. In 1886 the Chamber was invited to send a representative to the Congress of the whole of the Chambers of Commerce for the British Empire, held in London. The Hon. Mr. W. Keswick was appointed as the delegate from Hongkong, and the Chamber has always had a representative at the various congresses held since that date.
In 1889 the action of the Australian Government in prohibiting the landing of Chinese in the Commonwealth was discussed, and the committee plainly expressed its disapproval of the arbitrary manner in which, without previous warning, subjects of a friendly power had been treated. The proceeding, it was considered, was totally opposed to all traditions of British legislation, either imperial or colonial, and, in the highest degree, calculated to bring about strained relations between England and China.
In 1900 the Chamber turned its attention to the sanitary condition of the Colony which had led to the outbreak of bubonic plague. Its action served to direct public attention to the question, and resulted in a petition being addressed to the Secretary of State for the Colonies praying that a commission of sanitary experts might be sent to inquire into the whole question. In response, Dr. Simpson and Mr. Osbert Chadwick were despatched by the Colonial Office to investigate the sanitary condition of the Colony, and their report has had a far-reaching effect.
As is well known, from the earliest days of European trading relations with China piracy has been a continual source of annoyance and hindrance to trade, and the British fleet has been frequently engaged in suppressing it. Many instances could be cited where foreign-owned vessels—river and coasting steamers—have been attacked in the inland waters of China even of recent years. The piracy of the passenger steamer Namoa is, perhaps, the most serious instance during the past twenty years; but the attack upon the Sainam in July, 1906, whilst proceeding from Canton to the West River, is of sufficiently recent occurrence to show that there still exists some need for the maintenance of proper control over the inland waterways of China—a duty which the Chinese have hitherto shown themselves incapable of discharging. In view of these facts the Chamber of Commerce as recently as July of 1906 telegraphed to the Secretary of State that it considered the work of policing the waterways of the Canton Delta should be carried out if necessary under the supervision of Great Britain.
The important question of quarantine regulations is one which is repeatedly receiving the attention of the Chamber, which only recently combined with the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce in a protest against "an excess of prudence" on the part of the Hongkong Government in imposing restrictions on arrivals from Shanghai, owing to the alleged prevalence of cholera in that port.
The reform of currency in China is another question concerning which the Chamber has made numerous representations to the Government. It is urged that this reform should be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Mackay Commercial Treaty of 1902, and to that end the Chamber has joined with the Chambers of Shanghai and Tientsin in memorialising the Diplomatic Body at Peking in favour of the currency of China being placed on a uniform basis, and the mints being transferred from independent provincial authorities to the control of the Imperial Government.
The Chamber has interested itself in the improvement of typhoon and storm warnings, and has urged the pressing necessity for a large typhoon refuge for small craft. At the request of the Government the Chamber nominated a member for service on a committee which sat to consider whether earlier warning could not have been given of the great typhoon of September 18, 1906; and on a committee which subsequently went into the whole question of weather forecasts and storm warnings.
Other matters which have been debated by the Chamber are the Sugar Convention, as worked under the Brussels Agreement, and the regulations enforced by the Imperial Merchant Shipping Act, upon British shipowners carrying Asiatic passengers and engaging in the coolie trade, which has always formed a very important section of the trade of Hongkong. This coolie traffic is considered likely to assume still greater proportions in the immediate future, and the Chamber has pointed out to the Government, that the existing regulations are a handicap upon British shipowners, and practically amount to a subsidy to foreign shipping.
It will thus be seen that the Chamber still holds to its old tradition of exercising a careful vigilance over all matters affecting the general welfare of the Colony. The Hon. Mr. E. A. Hewett has been the chairman for the past five years and represents the Chamber in the Legislative Council. Mr. A. G. Wood holds the office of vice-chairman; and the other members of the committee are the Hon. Mr. H. Keswick, Messrs. G. Friesland, D. R. Law, G. H. Medhurst, A. Fuchs, J. R. M. Smith, and H. E. Tomkins; with Mr. E. A. M. Williams as secretary.