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General Post Office (where the World Wide Centre now stands). He slipped out into the road between the soldiers, who were presenting arms as the governor passed, and rushed to the governor's chair. He rested his elbow on the beam of the chair and fired a revolver at the governor at point-blank range. Just as he fired, one of the Sikh constables escorting the governor was able to strike his hand upward and deflect the bullet. At the same moment, the police sergeant leapt from behind and seized the gunman's right hand. Before he could be overpowered he attempted to recock the gun with his left hand, in order to fire again, but he was quickly pulled to the ground and arrested. There were cries from the crowd of ‘Lynch him', ‘Kill him', ‘Let us have him' as he was led away.
The action of the constable in knocking the revolver aside probably saved Sir Henry's life. He was sitting well back in the sedan chair and the bullet passed about a foot in front of him and then passed through to lodge in the woodwork of Lady May's chair on the other side. Sir Henry stood up in his chair, waved away the smoke from in front of his face and made sure that no-one was injured. He smiled to Lady May, who had given out a cry, and then ordered the procession to proceed according to plan. The rest of the morning's ceremonial then proceeded as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.
As the prisoner was led away he was reported to have said: 'I am sorry I missed my aim; I do not care whether I die or not'. The revolver was found to be loaded in all the four remaining chambers which had not been fired. The assailant was identified as Li Hon Hing, and he was said to be the son of a man imprisoned fifteen years previously for bribery at the time when May was head of the police force."
Four days later Li was brought before the magistrate and pleaded guilty to the charge of attempted murder. Police witnesses described the events in detail, but had been unable to uncover any evidence of accomplices or of any widespread conspiracy. The defendant made an incoherent rambling statement from the dock in which he accused May of ill-treating the Chinese in a high-handed way both in Hong Kong and in Fiji,