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Mr. Cox.
I apologize for discussing with you last night the question of publishing the Report before I had in fact had an
opportunity of considering it. On re-readi. only Part I of the Report it is clear that there are strong political objections to publishing the Report as it stands. 8.g. the second paragraph of Part I (un- numbered) where the question of British prestige is emphasized. The alternatives seem to me therefore to be either that this and similar passages in the Report should be redrafted so as to make them inocakous or altern tively that the Report should not be published but printed as a paper "I'or the use of the Colonial Ofrice" it being
understood nevertheless that copies could be made available to appropriate persons. The disadvantage of the first course is that it would certainly delay the presentation of the Report; the disadvantage of the second is that the Report could not be given to the local Press in Hong Kong as suggested by Mr. Slo
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