CO885-11 — Page 94

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السلسا

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

C.O.882/11

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

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

176

11th April*.) I am told that Marshal Wu Pei-fu hopes to arrange with Marshal Sun Ch'uan-fang for a coalition against the Canton Soviet, the attack coming from Fukien, Kiang-si, Kuei-chou, I am endeavour- Kuang-hsi and by means of the Chinese navy.

ing to obtain authentic information on this subject; but mean- while it is becoming clear that the Canton Government, so far from itself organising an expedition against the north, is grow- ing more and more apprehensive of an attack upon Kuang-tung. 10. In view of all these circumstances, the Hongkong Chinese merchants are now no longer anxious to pay blackmail to the Canton Strike Committee and opinion among them in hardening against any payment of blackmail at all. The great majority of British merchants in Hongkong are now undoubtedly opposed to payment of blackmail and are cheered by slight improvement of late in the Colony's trade. The Hongkong Government considers that no settlement of the boycott will be satisfactory or lasting unless it ends in the defeat of the Canton Strike Committee, and it is still, as it always has been, opposed in principle to any nego- tiation with the Canton Strike Committee or to payment of black- mail. Moreover, we have now the support of Chinese as well as of British merchants in saying that we will not countenance pay- ment by anyone in Hongkong of blackmail to the Canton Strike Committee. There are also signs that the anti-British boycott is increasingly inconvenient to the Government and the people of Canton, and that its inherent artificiality and economic unsound- ness are being increasingly felt in Canton. For instance, ships are often delayed three weeks at Canton owing to lack of facilities for loading and discharge. In one case a ship was so delayed for 25 days. In another case it cost $5,000 to move 800 tons of cargo out of a single ship from Whampoa to Canton, while one small ship of about 1,200 tons had to spend $9,000 to get away from Canton, and the Strike Committee wanted in addition $7 for each fireman. Ships cannot get beyond Whampoa, if they draw more than 14 or 15 feet. This information was given by Mr. W. L. Pattenden, general manager of Messrs. W. R. Loxley & Co., after a visit to Canton.

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11. There has also, if I may so express it, been for some time a continuous and progressive depreciation in value of the of the Canton Strike Committee. When Mr. economic terms C. C. Wu met Messrs. Li Yau-ch'uan, Ma Tsui-chiu and M. K. there were Lo at Canton on the 30th December he said that about 270,000 strikers, of whom there were at least 40,000 in Canton. Assuming the number of strikers to be 150,000 and the average wages a month to be $50, we could more or less imagine the amount" which would be demanded by the Canton Strike Committee. (Please see enclosure No. 1 in my secret despatch of the 6th Januaryt.) This would mean payment at the rate of $7,500,000 a month, or for a period of ten months a total of $75,000,000. As against this demand the Hongkong Chinese merchants mentioned a sum of $300,000, which was received with

+ No. 4.

• No. 17.

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derisive laughter. A figure was next mentioned at Macao by Mr. Fu Peng-sheung to Sir Shou-son Chow and Dr. Kotewall on the 2nd March. Mr. Fu then said that the total amount of the claim had been estimated by the strikers to be about $14,000,000, (Please see enclosure No. 2 in my secret (2) despatch of 8th March*.) Subsequently on the 16th March, Sir James Jamieson telegraphed to me that the strike leaders had let him know that a final settlement could be had for $300,000—the sum originally mentioned by the Hongkong Chinese merchants on the 30th December. (Please see paragraphs 2-1 of my secret despatch of 18th March.) This was just before the blow struck by General Cheung Kai-shek on the 18th March. After the blow had fallen Sir James wrote to me on the 20th March as follows:- "I have received a list to-day of eight prominent strike leaders, who on payment of $2,000 per head, I am told, would call off the strike at once-So Shiu-cheng (President of the Strike Committee and head of the Seamen's Union), Wong Kam-yün (No. 1 picket- leader, pork butcher from Hongkong), Tsang Tsz-yin (Shamien employé, in charge of Shamien affairs). Hon Ts'eng-hoi (un known), Leung Tsz-kwong (non-Cantonese, representative of Cheung Kai-shek), Tsui Sheng-chöng (pickets' delegate), Tang Chung-ba and Lei Tsz-sham (from Hongkong, and presumably acting more particularly against Hongkong)". I do not for a moment believe that these eight men could have "delivered the goods on payment of $16,000; but the mere mention of such a figure shows how badly the Canton Strike Committee was shaken by the coup of General Cheung Kai-shek. It gives an air of un- reality to the whole attempt at a money bargain for calling off the boycott and it throws a lurid light on the professions of

patriotism made by the strike leaders.

·

12. The conclusion I draw is that a firm adherence to the line of negotiations initiated by Mr. Kemp's visit to Canton is likely to yield the best results, and this was also the unanimous opinion of the members of the Executive Council, with whom I had a full discussion on the subject to-day. I propose for the present to await a reply from Mr. C. C. Wu to Mr. Kemp's letter of the 11th April, which forms the second enclosure in my secret despatch of the same date; and, unless some specially favourable opportunity of ending the boycott presents itself meanwhile, I shall make no special effort to accelerate the impending negotia- tions until the meeting of the Kuo-min-tang takes place in Canton next month.

This despatch confirms and amplifies my telegram of to-day's date.§

I have, &c.,

C. CLEMENTI,

Governor, &c.

• No. 12.

† No. 13.

† No 17.

§ ('. 8234/265 ; not printed.

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