*
(A. 357)
Room 360.
MINISTRY OF MUNITIONS OF WAR, 78
8, NORTHUMBERLAND AVENUE,
LONDON, W.C. 2.
21st October, 1918.
Dear Grindle,
Thank you for sending me an advance copy of the Hong Kong answer about Tin. We shall receive it officially through the usual channels presently, and I suppose our reply will have to go that way too, but in the face of the Governor's earnest request that the Rubber & Tin Committee will licence all applications for export to Chine up to the 18th October, I have written Mr.Grebby, Secretary of the Rubber & Tin Committee, to-night suggesting that they should not wait before considering these applications for licences.
As regards the Governor's query as to whether Japan, China and Portugal are included in the Inter- Allied Tin Executive, the answer is that the Japanese Authorities in London led us to expect that Japan will aign the agreement, but that we do not consider it necessary to bring in Portugal and China, as the small quantity of fin required by these countries can be sufficiently controlled by means of export licences:
Meantime I would say that we have completed our arrangements for appointing Jardine Matheson & Company our Agents in HongKong. I take it it is hardly necessary to wait to hear further from the Governor before setting them to work.
Your
rotty Bowery
G. Grindle, Esq., Colonial Office,
S.W.
1.