139
(4)
Fara. 1. Why should the Willingdon Report 'exasper-
ate and prolong the present difficulties'?
It is, and
so, too, is the Report of the Buxton Committee, a careful and sympathetic statement regarding educational institutions,
etc. and the method of dealing with the Indemnity Funds. The sections regarding railway construction and the Science
Institute were written chiefly by Chinese members (Messrs.
Wang and Ting respectively).
When
Para. 2. The reason why the Delegation did not visit
Hongkong was because the Hongkong Government strongly pro- tested against its also visiting Canton on the same occasion.
Hongkong desired to utilise the presence of the Delegates in
order to demonstrate against Canton; and it would have been
unwise of the British members and impossible for the Chinese
members to lend themselves to this kind of manoeuvre, and
to have visited Hongkong without visiting Canton too.
the question of a visit to Canton was first raised, the
Governor of Hongkong strongly opposed the proposal, but urged that the Delegation should visit Hongkong only, and
deliberately exclude Canton. The Secretary of State for
Foreign Affairs, therefore, decided that in the circumstances
the delegation had better not visit either Hongkong or Can-
ton, but that the question should be postponed for the mo-
ment. Later, the Advisory Committee in London strongly
advised a visit both to Hongkong and to Canton before the
Delegation completed its work. This was again opposed by
the Hongkong Government; but the opposition was overruled
by the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, and the Dole-
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gation...