- 3-
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struggle for existence.
But on the entry of Great
Britain into a major war, with a considerable likelihood
of finding Japan among her enemies, not only did the
offences of the possession and use of an illicit
transmitting set become much more serious in themselves,
they also became associated with breaches of the
published censorship regulations relating to the
gossession and use of codes and cyphers. It would be
difficult to exaggerate the gravity of such offences
when committed during war-time in a fortress situated
as Hong Kong is.
The second category consists of abundant
evidence that David Kung, son of the Chinese Minister
of Finance, who is in joint control of the Hong Kong
offices of the Central Trust, an important agency of the
Chinese Government, was energetically directing a murder
organization from one of these offices in this Colony:
the third contains ample proof of anti-British activities,
such as espionage on the British Ambassador and the a vowed
aim of embroiling the British with the Japanese in Shanghai,
vide my very secret despatch of 13th October dealing with
this subject. Comment upon these abuses of hospitality
and treachery towards a friendly power is unnecessary.
have been informed by the British Ambassador of an assurance
given to him by the Chinese Minister for Foreign Affairs that
he knew nothing of the underground activities carried on
by David Kung, and as Sir A. Clark Kerr was himself convinced
by that assurance I accept it: but I do not believe that
those activities were unknown to all the responsible
Government officials in Chungking.
I
P.T.O.