'This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
CHINA.
CONFIDENTIAL.
50
| May 7, 1926.
SECTION 4.
[F 1880/10/10]
(No. 192.)
No. 1.
Sir R. Macleay to Sir Austen Chamberlain.--(Received May 7.)
HIS Majesty's Minister, Peking, presents his compliments to His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, and transmits herewith a copy of despatch No. 21 from His Majesty's consul, Hankow, dated the 11th February, 1926, transmitting a copy of a leading article from the "Central China Post," respecting the political situation in China.
Peking, March 12, 1926.
Enclosure 1 in No. 1.
Consul-General Goffe to Sir R. Macleay.
(No. 21. Confidential.) Sir,
Hankow, February 11, 1926. I HAVE the honour to transmit herewith the leading articles published in the "Central China Post of yesterday and to-day on the political situation in this
country.
They represent, in general, the views of Wu Pei-fu as communicated by one of his intimate entourage, whose name I am not at liberty to divulge.
I am sending a copy of this despatch and its enclosure to the Governor of Hong Kong.
I have, &c.
HERBERT GOFFE.
Enclosure 2 in No. 1.
Extract from the "Central China Post
of February 10, 1926.
THROUGH CHINESE EYES.
WE have often wondered what in the turmoil and plethora of views, existing and published daily, on the China position vis-à-vis Communism and the non-Communistic Powers, was the view of the really intelligent Chinese, and they exist in great numbers, but it is a matter of difficulty to obtain their real views because of their habit of saying just what they think would please you, and in so doing suppressing their real feelings on any subject.
It was, however, the writer's good fortune recently to meet with one who voiced the opinion of a good many leaders of Chinese thought without polite camouflage, and in no uncertain tone; he covered the ground from the Hong Kong position to the present international fiasco in Peking, and included the civil war now raging in the north.
His views were certainly illuminating. To commence with he informed us that the Hong Kong position was entirely our own fault, as was the recent boycott against British goods in the Yang-tsze Valley, a boycott which was only prevented from becoming intensely serious by the efforts of the influential Chinese, who have a sense of values and a feeling of real friendship for us, but, he added, we are fast losing that friendship. We asked him why.
He said, when the boycott was at is height and your merchants were feeling the pinch, your Government received direct offers with guarantees to at once suppress this boycott in exchange for a little assistance which would have easily been given to those requiring it; you were not even asked for payment. Instead of accepting the offer in the friendly spirit in which it was made, your Ministers, consuls and chambers of
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