CO129-390 - Acting Governor Claud Severn - 1912 [5-6] — Page 112

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107

GOVERNMENT HOUSE,

HONGKONG, 10th. May, 1912.

Enclosure!

Yor

Sir,

I have the honour to inform you that on

receipt of your cypher telegram of the 9th. April, I communicated

with the General Officer Commanding as desired and I enclose a copy

of his reply.

2.

I first heard of the proposed lease to the

Mitsui Bussan Kai sha. when I attended a meeting of the Local De-

-fence Comittee in February last. The view expressed by the Naval

and Military lembers of the Committee was that the alienation of a portion of deep-water frontage in the harbour of Honghong to a

Foreign Company whence a torpedo or mining attack might be made,

and where foreign personnel trained for war might be established

was a danger to the defence of the Port. These views are set

out

in Major-General Anderson's letter of the 4th. March, which formed

enclosure II in Sir F. D. Lugard's Secret Despatch of the 13th.

.March.

11257.5

cloure 2.

3.

These objections would be overcome I think if

the Government had a right of access at all times to the Coal

storage area and if the walls surrounding the site were kept low

and surmounted by an iron railing or similar structure so that

the place would be open to observation from outside.

4.

I enclose a copy of the letter from the

Director

&c.,

THE RIGHT HONOURABLE

LEIS HARCOURT, M.P.,

&C.,

&C...