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course of conversation I had told General Yu that, while
the Hong Kong Government hitherto had permitted passage of
war materials through their territory - unlike (at that
time, as he knew), the Government of Indo-China-, and while
I had strongly supported the project of a road connecting
Canton and Hong Kong, should he impose unreasonable
restrictions on Hong Kong cargo with which the wharves
there were overcrowded, the Hong Kong Government might
conceivably change their attitude also.
12. The following morning (November 2nd) the Commissioner
of Customs informed me that he had just received the revised regulations (of which a copy is enclosed). Apparently
General Yu had deliberately broken his promise to me.
At my request kr. Little promised to postpone issue until
the afternoon, and, in the interval, on his strong
representations, as well as mine, permission was obtained
to postpone issue at any rate until Monday, November 8th
and I was led to believe that issue would be postponed
indefinitely. On November 3rd I went to Hong Kong, and
on November 4th, through the courtesy of His Excellency the
Governor (Sir Geoffry Northcote) and the Commodore (Captain
E.B.C. Dicken, O.B.E., D.S.C.) I had conferences (a) with
the Colonial Government and (b) with Naval experts and the
Shipping Companies. The outcome of (a) were Hong Kong
telegrams Nos. 268 to the Colonial Office and 53 to Nanking
(repeated to Peking telegram No. 15) of November 4th. The
first telegram requested sanction to permit me to use the
question of road connexion with Canton as pressure, should
the Military authorities impose restrictions; the latter
telegram enbodied my request to Your Excellency to ask the
intervention of the Generalissimo.
13. At the meeting with the Shipping Companies, I
explained