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492 front all through the year 1872. The system of doing business through foreign brokers had for many years quietly made its way, cutting out the Chinese compradors who formerly were the only medium of settling transactions between foreign houses and native buyers. Yet, even in 1872, there were still influential foreign merchants in Hongkong who saw no need for European brokers except for bullion and exchange operations, and who stubbornly adhered to the comprador system. In January, 1872, it was publicly urged that the system of foreign brokers, having now obtained a recognized footing, should be subjected to Government control, or that the brokers should themselves establish an exchange and frame their own regulations. As nothing was done in the matter, the Chamber of Commerce (April 25, 1872) fixed a scale of brokerage charges, but the brokers, not having been consulted, defiantly resolved to adhere to their former rates. At last a Bill was framed, which met the views of the leading foreign brokers, and it was read a first time in Legislative Council (July 9, 1872). The Bill was then referred to a Select Committee (Th. C. Hayllar, H. Lowcock, J. Greig), published in Government Gazette (July 13, 1872), and the brokers received an invitation to communicate their views to the Committee. This Bill proposed to enact a rule that no person should act as a broker without having obtained a licence; that licences, subject to an annual fee, be granted by the Governor in Council; that brokers, in taking out a licence, should file a declaration not to trade, buy or sell, on their own account, and that any one committing a fraud or acting in contravention of that declaration, should be disqualified acting as broker. Whilst the Bill was under the consideration of the Committee, the brokers held a meeting (August, 1872), condemned the Government measure, resolved to incorporate themselves as a Brokers' Association, and appointed a Committee to frame by-laws. When the Bill came up in Council for its second reading, the Select Committee reported that there was a difficulty in applying the Ordinance to Chinese brokers (who in most of their transactions are both principals and partners), that the