893.512/490: Telegram
The Minister in China (MacMurray) to the Secretary of State
[Received December 30—2:20 p.m.]
647. My 633, December 22, 5 p.m.6 Following from American consul general at Hankow:
“December 28, 2 p.m. My December 18, noon. I have today been officially informed that ‘the statutes for the collection of the inland tax on the production and consumption of commodities’ now being collected at Canton will be enforced here and at ‘the remaining places where there are customs houses and native customs houses’ from January 1, 1927. With the note from Commissioner of Foreign Affairs transmitting the notice, is enclosed statute authorizing imposition of the two and one-half percent surtax at Canton and since it is assumed that you are fully informed of the terms of this so-called statute I am not repeating it by telegram. Article 3 of the statute, however, reads as follows: ‘In order to facilitate the merchants, this temporary inland tax may be paid to the various customhouses, the native customhouses or barriers, or the tax collection offices in their vicinity. The detailed regulations governing the collection of this tax shall be separately made and promulgated by the Ministry of Finance.’ Exact plan of collection is not defined.
Statute states that luxuries, which will be separately classified, shall pay five percent and that tobacco, wine, kerosene, gasoline, et cetera, shall be exempt from the payment of the tax but will be subjected to a special tax.
Please telegraph if diplomatic body has come to a decision or if you have any separate instructions apropos these taxes.”
I have replied as follows:
“December 30, 5 p.m. Your December 28, 2 p.m.
- 1.
- The Department has instructed me to give complete support in diplomatic body meetings to British program as expressed in British declaration recently make [made] public. (Telegraph if you have not an authorized copy thereof.) Department is now willing to put Washington surtaxes into effect unconditionally.
- 2.
- Thus far no unanimity has been arrived at in diplomatic body conference regarding British declaration, since the Japanese Government is opposed thereto, and several diplomatic representatives are as yet without instructions. I construe the Department’s instructions to mean that it would not wish to make known its agreement with the British program pending complete agreement by the powers concerned or some decision if unanimity is not achieved.
- 3.
- In this circumstance you should refrain from protesting against or in any way objecting to the imposition of the new taxes subject to further instructions. Replies to queries by American citizens as to payment of taxes should be of this tenor.”
- Not printed.↩