CO129-399 - Governor Sir May - 1913 [1-2] — Page 415

Т

CRET

Hàng rong.

C.O.

8860

Paco (Rra 15 MAR 18)

Government House.

8 February 1913.

i

Yu685

12-13

sir,

I have the honour to acknowledge the

receipt of your cypher telegram of the 3rd.instant,

in which you state that the Boycott Ordinance

should be repealed and that any action for the

levy of a special rate under it should be

Yo. 4203 abandoned. on the 4th. instant I replied by

cable in cypher that it had not been found

necessary to levy any special rate and that the

Ordinance had been suspended as the Boycott had

ceased.

Thanks to the moral effect produced

by the taking of what I and my advisers recognised

as somewhat exceptional powers, this wholly

unreasonable and unjustifiable interference with

the liberty of a public company in electing to

receive, in consideration of services rendered

to the public, what is the legal tender of the

Colony, has been stopped. My Government did not

resort to exceptional measures until the most

patient efforts on the part of the Company, the

leaders of the Chinese community, the Government

officials charged with the control of the Chinese

community, and of myself ( whose personal influence

used to count for something with the Chinese),

had been exhausted without producing any appreciable

effect.

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