385
40
+4209/08
La pens
Gov.
4.
It has of course been the invariable rule that copies of any despatches of importance addressed by the Governor to His Majesty's Ministers have been at once transmitted by the Governor to the Secretary of State for the Colonies, and I presume to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs by the Minister addressed.
5.
Your Lordship refers, re instances in point, to the despatches addressed by me to Sir C. Macdonald on the subject of the Japanese boycott and the question of Sovereignty over the Pratas Isles, and to Sir J. Jordan regarding a contribution by the Chinese Government towards the Hongkong University.
6.
In the first of these questions - that of the boycott - it was a matter of great urgency to assure the Japanese Government through the Minister regarding the action of this Government and especially that the riots which had broken out on November 2nd were not directed against the Japanese, and that the Government of Hongkong were doing their utmost to protect the rights of Japanese subjects. The principle was, I understood, confirmed shortly after in Your Lordship's telegram of December 9th, 1908, which however showed that in spite of my efforts an erroneous impression had been created in the mind of the Japanese Ambassador. In the second case concerning the Pratas Islands I cannot find that any official Despatch has been sent by me to Tokio, though I telegraphed to Sir C. Macdonald on the subject on March 24th, as it had become identified with the boycott question. I did however write to Sir J. Jordan on April 21st, but this matter cannot be alluded to in your Despatch under reply of May 14th, since it could not have had time to reach England. I enclose copies of this correspondence. I regret that it did not occur to me that the proposal (that Sir J. Jordan might if he thought fit suggest to the Chinese Government to establish a Wireless Station on the Pratas Atoll in return for the assistance of our Observatory) was