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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :-
THETIC.O. 882/11
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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-
COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
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of grievances under this head. They said that the Secretary for Chinese Affairs had absolutely vetoed the discussion of politics at any meeting; that he had sent spies to report what was said at any assembly; that the Hongkong-Wuchow Traders' Guild had been closed for no reason at all; that no school in Hong- kong was allowed to use any text book which was not prescribed It was obvious in Mr. Wong by the Government, and so on. Ching-wai's opinion, that it would take weeks for the Council to come and go between the strikers and myself regarding the political terms, and he therefore thought that the Hongkong delegation should now come down and discuss terms with the strikers direct, the Council mediating. I said that the Hongkong- Wuchow Union was closed a long time ago on the very good ground that the members were a most disorderly and seditious body. I gave this explanation because I had previously informed the Council that no Unions had been closed in connection with the strike. I added that I knew nothing of the allegation as to the school text books. All this was, however, entirely beside the point. I had informed the Council that I had full powers regard ing these political questions, and I was prepared to give a final answer at once. The Hongkong Government would in no cir- cumstances yield any of these terms as a condition of the strikers ending the boycott. If the Council thought that there was any- thing in the alleged grievances, the Hongkong Government would be glad to listen to any suggestions which they might put forward, either officially or semi-officially, and it would give them careful consideration, but the place for the strikers to present their grievances was in Hongkong, before the Secretary for Hongkong had not Chinese Affairs in the recognised manner. the least desire to have the strikers back, and if they did not like the laws under which they lived in the Colony, the obvious course was for them to stop away. I felt entirely assured that the Canton Authorities were genuinely anxious to put an end to the intolerable situation, and so I would speak quite frankly. They were a new Government, quite recently come into.power,_and they owed their position to the support of the labourers. They could not at the moment coerce the strikers-Mr. Sung here interposed that if they shot down any strikers they would not last a day but they would soon have to face the necessity for doing so. It was impossible for any Government to tolerate an imperium in imperio, with its separate police and separate Court, an imperium, moreover, which flouted all the observances of civilised usage. The British Government had shown great little longer, but there patience, and it would no doubt wait
must be a limit. General Cheung Kai-shek was shortly due back from the Front, and his troops would then enable the Government to get the complete mastery of the situation. Mr. Wu hereupon replied that General Cheung was bringing with him nothing more than a personal bodyguard and no part of the army was returning. I suggested that the Canton Government in this Province of 40 million inhabitants, with vast resources hitherto untapped, would no doubt look to recognition by the Powers -Mr. Wu here said that they did not want recognition-- or any any rate they would wish to give and take on terms of equality in accordance with the practice of the civilised world. They must see that they could hardly expect a cordial reception from other nations, as long as they deliberately allowed a body
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of men the free use of their territory for the avowed purpose of destroying the trade of a friendly power. Such a proceeding was tantamount to an act of war, and it would be so construed if such a situation arose between two European Powers. They could not expect the privileges of a civilised nation and refuse the responsibilities. Mr. Wu said the circumstances were unique. Hongkong happened to be British but the inhabitants were prac tically all Chinese, and the strikers were now back in their own homes. I agreed, and said that the Hongkong Government had no objection to their stopping in their homes, and it had no inten- What it did object to tion of trying to force them to come back. was the action of the Canton Government in allowing these men to use their territory as a base for an attack on Hongkong's exact parallel, but suppose the trade. There might be no foreigners in Shameen had come to Hongkong and had used it as a base to blockade the Pearl River and destroy Canton's trade, what would the attitude of the Canton Government be? It was, of course, inconceivable that the Hongkong Government should allow such a thing. If there was to be any blockade, it would shoulder the responsibility itself, and would not pretend that the Shameen people were legitimately entitled to war Canton from Hongkong. The discussion was continued at some length and I got the definite impression that, with the exception perhaps of Mr. Wong Ching-wai, the Council was quite sincere in its desire to settle but that it was impossible for it to. coerce I had suggested that the the strikers beyond a certain point. people in Canton and Hongkong desired a settlement and that most of the strikers wished to get back to work. It was absurd in such circumstances that a comparatively small body of strike pickets should be able to stand in the way, however powerful they might be politically. It was suggested to me that the out- side world failed to realise the immense power which labour was beginning to wield in China, and it must be remembered that the Kwok Man Tong, which was now practically the only political The discussion ended party in China, was the people's party. with a statement by myself that if the strikers insisted upon discussion of the political terms, the negotiations were at an end. I must warn Mr. Wong Ching-wai and his Council that they must give their most serious consideration to the responsibility which they must incur for any consequences that might ensue. Mr. Wu here said that they had not the slightest wish for war. They had had much more than enough of it. I replied that I had I regarded not the slightest intention of even hinting at war. them as sensible men of the world and I fully sympathised with their difficulties. My only wish was to advise them as a friend how the Hongkong Government viewed the situation and how, in my opinion, the outside world would view it. Mr. Wong Ching-wai said that they would consider very carefully whether some way could not be found out of the impasse, and we would resume the discussion in the evening. I then returned to Shameen, informed the Consul-General of what had transpired, and telegraphed to the Governor.
On thinking the matter over further, a suspicion deepened in my mind that the political terms difficulty was a bluff engineered by Mr. C. C. Wu, and, as we left for dinner, I suggested to We dined with Mr. Foo the Vice-Consul that this was the case.
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