CO885-11 — Page 56

اليسا

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

J

C.O.882/11

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

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Article 14.- British subjects may hire whatever boats they please for the transport of goods or passengers." But both at Canton and Swatow the pickets of the Canton Strike Committee prevent this from being done.

Article 18.-" The Chinese authorities shall at all times afford the fullest protection to the persons and property of British subjects, whenever these shall have been subjected to insult or violence "; and arrest the guilty parties whom they will punish according to law. But the Canton Strike Com- mittee recently seized and imprisoned Mr. Cadman, of the Asiatic Petroleum Company, British subject, and at the same time seized two Indian watchmen, also British subjects. Mr. Cadman was soon released; but the two Indian watchmen were kept in prison for many days and treated with great brutality. The Canton Government has not arrested nor punished the strike pickets who committed this outrage.

8. I propose to describe separately in a public despatch the numerous outrages perpetrated along the frontier of this Colony But by the strike pickets since the anti-British boycott began. here I may state briefly that, when I reached Hongkong on the 1st November, I found that Canton strike pickets had invaded and occupied a portion of the New Territory near Sha-t'au-kok, I at once caused them to be ejected by a detachment of the Punjabi Regiment. Strike pickets have repeatedly fired at the Hongkong police launch in the Sham-chun River, which is British water. They also fired at a company of the Punjabi Regiment patrolling our frontier near Ta-ku-ling. They habitu- ally waylay villagers crossing the frontier, levy toll upon them, and prevent them from carrying foodstuffs across the border. On the 16th July last strike pickets fired upon eight Chinese women carrying fruit over the Sham-chun River from Chinese into British territory; two were killed, two were drowned and three were seized and carried off to Canton. I may add that in defiance of the Joint Working Agreement of the Kowloon-Canton Railway strike pickets prevent trains from running across the frontier in either direction.

9. The Canton Government, although called upon to do so and having adequate military force at its disposal, has not prevented On the con- these illegalities nor punished the guilty parties. trary it publicly recognises the Strike Committee as practically a Government Department, and has given the help of its gunboats in picketing operations. Full responsibility for the illegalities committed by the Canton Strike Committee falls, therefore, upon the Canton Government; and we consider that joint action by the Maritime Powers could unquestionably be justified on the ground of flagrant breach of treaty rights.

Assistance to anti-Red Leaders.

10. There is little doubt in my opinion that disruptive elements are at work in Canton. Please see in this connection the 4th paragraph of my secret despatch of the 14th January* and the 3rd paragraph of my secret despatch of the 15th January.†

†C 3928 26; not printed.

* No. 5.

As

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regards Sun Ch'uan-fang and Wu Pei-fu please see my secret despatches of the 25th January* and the 2nd February. It is not likely that they will attack Kuang-tung until a settlement has been reached in northern China. On the subject of General Chiang Chich-shih (Cheung Kai-shek) I refer you to the 3rd paragraph of my secret despatch of the 6th January. I have no authentic information concerning him. While we are of the opinion that the most satisfactory settlement of the present troubles would be that the anti-British boycott should be broken either by Chinese forces from another province or by the disrup- tion of the present Canton Government from within, we do not advise helping any anti-Red leader with men or money. We are, however, in favour of assistance being given to the Chinese Navy, if Admiral Li Ching-hsi will agree to patrol the mouth of the West River delta as well as the Hainan Strait and to take action against Chinese pirates. Please see my telegrams of 6th December§ and 19th January and my secret despatch of the 20th January.**

Pressure on Moscow.

11. We do not think that a permanent settlement can be reached unless the Bolsheviks are expelled from Canton. Would it be possible to repeat for this purpose the pressure exerted so effectively on Moscow in 1923 in connection with trawlers, &c.? If so, this might solve the Kuang-tung difficulties without antagonising the Chinese and without resort to force. As to the present strength of the Russians in Kuang-tung please see my secret despatch of the 22nd January. I am also addressing you in a separate despatch on the subject of Bolshevik intrigue at

Canton.

Conciliation.

12. The Cantonese demands are set out in enclosure No. 7 of my predecessor's confidential despatch of the 2nd October.‡‡ Please see also the 5th paragraph of Sir James Jamieson's tele- gram to the Foreign Office No. 5 of the 2nd February, which forms an enclosure in this despatch.§§

13. The Foreign Office telegram asks:-"What objection is there to direct negotiations between the Hongkong Government and the strikers? My reply is that the Hongkong Government cannot negotiate in Canton with any but the Canton Government. The Canton Strike Committee, in so far as it is not composed of Canton workmen, with whom the Hongkong Government has no concern, is made up of former labourers in Hongkong, who have left the Colony for its good, and whom we do not wish to see here again, and it is advised by Russian Bolshevists. It is im- possible for the Hongkong Government to negotiate with a body such as that. The "loss of face," were such negotiations entered upon, would not only imperil the future good government of this Colony but, if the anti-British boycott in Kuang-tung were to end in the humiliation of Hongkong or in any manner that could be proclaimed as a success by the Canton Government, by the Canton

⚫C 5254 26; not printed.

1 No. 4.

+C5561/26: not printed.

C 1871/26S: not printed. †† C4448/26; not printed.

54870'25; not printed. ** C 4487'26; not printed, 40489/25; not printed, §§ Enclosure 4.

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