XX SECRET (3)
Зо
53871/39
GOVERNMENT HOUSE,
4
HONG KONG.
32
26MA, 1985
9th May, 1939.
Orig
endi. to b.a.
(1)
Sir,
With reference to paragraph 12 of my
secret despatch of 14th February, 1939, in which I proposed to purchase respirators for sale to residents of the Colony at cost price, I have the honour to inform you that, from enquiries made amongst the European and Chinese populations, it seems probable that 100,000 respirators could be
sold on that basis.
2.
It is proposed that the sale price shall
cover not only the initial cost of the respirators
but also the cost of transport, storage, extra staff
involved and other incidental expenses.
After
purchase the respirators would be stored free of
charge by the Government in the proposed Air Raid
Precautions store and would be held at the disposal
of the purchaser.
3.
It is not possible at this stage to work out detailed estimates of the financial provision necessary, but it is anticipated that this should not exceed $300,000 in order to cover a first order of
THE RIGHT HONOURABLE
MALCOLM MACDONALD, M.P.,
&C.,
&C.,
&C.