JOHN SWIRE & SONS LTD.
TELEGRAPHIC ADDRESS, TEMSELOAF, FEN, LONDON.
RECEIVED
-4FEB1330
OOL, OFFICE
8. Billiter Square. 26
London
LCS.
January 29th,1930.
Sir,
Hong Kong.
Ever since the troubles in China started in 1925
and in spite of the rapprochement during the last two
years it has become more and more obvious, how little Hong Kong understood modern China, what complete lack of
real sympathy there was between Hong Kong and its important
neighbour, Canton, and what enormous harm was being done
by this state of affairs not only to Hong Kong itself, but,
what is more important, to the whole range of Anglo-Chinese
relations. The continuance of this state of affairs and
the lack of liaison between Hong Kong and the Legation
in Peking about the former's foreign relations has given
us like many other firms interested in China considerable
cause for anxiety and discussions with our Eastern representatives and personal observation on the spot have
confirmed us in our anxiety.
Finally of recent months there has unfortunately
seemed to be every disposition on the part of the Hong Kong
Government to suffer the failure of the negotiations for
the Hong Kong/Chinese Customs Agreement, unless they could
get a quid pro quo from the Chinese Government for the