CO129-388 - Governor Sir Lugard - 1912 [1-2] — Page 227

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Enclosure 2.

232

5840

The Hongkong Trenway Company, Limited.

$24 FEB 12

The Honourable

The Colonial Secretary,

Hongkong.

Sir,

Hongkong, January 27th.,1912.

I am in receipt of your letter of January 20th.

enclosing a copy of a letter written December 16th., 1911, by the Secretary of my Company in London to the Under Secretary of State for the Colonies.

I had heard unexpectedly by letter received January 15th. that such a letter had been written. Our Secretary's letter might however be considered as in a sense cancelled now, as in the first place I have heard on January 19th. that he received a satis- -factory reply giving him all the assurance he required, and in the second place my subsequent reports describing the various measures taken against disorder will I hope have cancelled any expression of opinion or impression given in the particular private note of mine

quoted.

then

It is difficult to reply to your letter because I

have not now any such opinion as that referred to. Subsequent events

and the measures taken by the Government have proved that I, in commonj with many other people not possessed of any inside knowledge, was

entirely wrong in holding such an opinion.

It is part of my duty to keep my Directors continuously informed (both on fects and opinions) on matters here which are likely to affect us. It is not always easy to give in writing at such a distance a clear impression which will not be misleading. The particular private letter of mine referred to was written on November 14th. (not 24th. as in the letter you send me). It reflected I think the general impression prevailing at that moment of the

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