PART V - British and Chinese Chambers of Commerce

• Author: Chamberlam, Austen
• Pages: 93

PART V - BRITISH AND CHINESE CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE

(i ) BRITISH CHAMBERS (a ) Introductory The announcement of the Brntsh Government at the end of 1922, that all future instalments of the China Indemnity would be paid into a Special Fund with a view to the money being ultimately devoted to purposes mutually beneficial to China and Great Britain, engaged the immediate attention of the various public bodies which were interested m promoting good relations between the two countries They soon began to pass resolutions and draw up schemes, which were intended to assist the authorities m coming to a decision as to how the money should be spent Among such public bodies were the chambers of commerce, and m view of the close commercial relations between China and Lancashire, it is not surprising that one of the first of the chambers to announce its opinions on this matter was that of Manchester As early as April 1928 it addressed a letter to the Marquess Curzon, then Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, making a series of suggestions which evidently based on a sound knowledge of conditions m China, and which have constantly reappeared among the recommendations and suggestions put forward more recently m both countries The Manchester Chamber was not m favour of large numbers of young Chinese students being sent to England It was of opinion that 'a few Cminese should be invited to England for post-graduate courses, but the candidates should be very carefully chosen and the selection should be strictly luted ' It approved, however, of the education of Chinese m British schools and colleges m China, and of a proposal to establish a technical college m China, mainly with a view to the development of existing native industries It was also m fsvour of assisting and encouraging British medical work m China, and of founding Chairs of Chinese at British universities,

oi adding to the endowments of those already existing Professors of Chinese m England might with advantage give public lectures on Chinese ife and customs Finally, the chamber recommended that students of the applied arts in both China and England should be encouraged to study their special subjects m each other's country.

British youths, therefore, should be awarded scholarships for travel in China (b) The Associated Brntzsh Chambers of Commerce in Chtna The attitude of the various British Chambers m China has undergone certain modifications smce the matter of the remission of the Indemnity first came under discussion, and to understand the matter fully we must go back to a date prior to the British Government's formal announcement at the close of 1922

At their annual conference m November 1919, the Associated British Chambers of Commerce in China announced that they attached 'the utmost importance to the education of Chinese on Britsh lines ', and urged that the British Government, either by a remission of a portion of the Indemnity, or by other means, should come to the aid of British educational institutions for Chinese in the Far East, and make provision for the education and vocational training m England of 'adequate numbers' of 'selected Chinese students ' At the same time the Chambers realised that they could not expect the British tax-payer to shoulder the whole burden, for they also drew the attention of British merchants m ehina to the necessity for unified effort on their own part to ensure the adequate maintenance and development of Brtish educational nd medical work in China, and invited them to contribute to a fund-to be administered and distributed by a Central Committee, nomiated by the Associated Chambers-for the support of such istltutions as the committee might nominate It was further decided that the efforts of the committee (afterwards known as the Donations or Education Committee) should be concentrated on the support of 'British schools giving a high-class secondary education to Chinese students,' and on the subsidising of those Bntish medical missions which were at that time im financial difficulties owing to the unfavourable exchange, &c It was finally resolved that a certain proportion of the funds contributed should be set aside as a reserve fund, from which contributons might be made for such charitable purposes, other than educational and medical, as seemed to have 'a specially strong claim to the sympathy and assistance of British merchants m China ' Action was taken on the lines indicated in these decisions and resolutions, and with the advice and assstance of such educational authoritie as Sir Willam Brunyate, Vice-Chancellor of the Univerity of Hong Kong, Dr Lavington Hart, the Reverend Bernard Upward, the Reverend C G Sparham anda Dr Maegilivray, a scheme was drawn up for the allocaton of funds, and a hst prepared of deserving nstitutions Here it may be mentoned that, up to February 1928 80,000 dollars had actually been paid out of

secondary schools in China, and 20 000 dollars had been handed over to medical missions A list of the schools selected by the Committee of the Chambers may be of interest, as indicating those institutions winch, after full mvestlgation, were believed bx the committee to be deserving of assistance The eighteen schools m question were Griffith John College, Hankow, the United Methodist College, Wenchow; the Enghsh Methodist College Nmgpo Trinity College Nlngpo, Farthing Memorial School Talyuan,

Wesley College Wuchang, Irish Presbyterlan Middle School,

Hsnmin, Manchuria Anglo-Chinese College Amov London Mission Boys' School, Peking, Manchurian Christian College,

Mukden Medhurst College, Shanghai Friends' High School Chungking, Anglo-Chinese School, Kaifeng, Holi Trinity College Canton, Westminster College, Chuanchow, Anglo-Chinese College Swatow, Trinity College Foochow, Anglo-Chinese College Tien-tsm In 1926 (the last year dnnng vhich funds were available for dlstnbution) the schools subsldised included all those named and in addition three other mstltutions-Yingwa College Hong Kong, Ch un Te School, Peking and the Universit- of Hong Kong As soon as it was officiall announced that the outstanding portion of the British share in the Indemnity was to be apphed to purposes beneficial to both countnes the Associated Chambeis declared themselves of opinion that the purpose to which the funds could most usefully be apphed was the support of efficienthconducted 'econdary schools m China under British control, with subsidiary provision for the development of 'feeder primary schools' They also advocated the provision on a generous scale of scholarshLps from the ' feeder primary schools ' to the...