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was ample room on a vacant Lot for reinforcements; and?) eventually (I understand with some difficulty) persuaded him that they were both necessary and feasible. The result was that he received orders to send two more companies with Haxims and guns, and I received your instructions to permit these troops to go if I was satis- fied that they could be spared without endangering the safety of the Colony. As regards the latter point I am
of opinion that if a successful attack were made on the Shameen the resulting danger to the Colony would be much greater than any risk run by detaching this small re- inforcement, and I therefore concurred without hesitation.
General Anderson in taking these steps
7.
had much misgiving for all responsibility for the protec- tion of the Shameen had been formally taken out of his
hands and transferred to the Naval authorities. His own
troops had been taken away from his command and their
disposal was solely at the discretion of the Senior Naval
officer who is frequently changed and who, I presume,
had not made a study of the land defence of the place
as the General himself had. General Anderson feared that
his own visit to Canton might cause friction, for he
had no locus standi whatever.
8.
In my view (in which I believe the
General fully concurs) if the robber bands in Canton
were to make an attempt to "rush" the Consession by
night the probabilities under the then existing circum--
stances would have been all in favour of their succeeding
and the detachment of 80 men from this garrison would
probably have been wiped out. We know that these robber
bands are estimated at from 20,000 tỷ 40,000 and are
under no control whatever except by their own leaders. Their plan as unfolded to me was to loot the Shameen
and
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