CO129-402 - Governor Sir May - 1913 [7-8] — Page 289

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of the Chinese Guilds. Similarly the Government

of the Philippines has within the present year been

confronted with a serious situation caused by the

boycott of Japanese trade in Manila by Chinese who,

in support of the boycott, coerced members of the

Chinese community who handled Japanese goods.

Steps were instituted for the deportation of six

ringleaders, well known Chinese merchants in Manila:

but before the proceedings had gone far, Doctor Sun

Yat Sen (then in Japan) communicated with the Boycott

Organisation Sooiety to the effect that an alliance

between China and Japan was possible and that the

Japanese Government and people were well disposed

towards the Chinese. He, therefore, advised a

cessation of the boycott. This advice was adopted,

and the Government of the Philippines were thus

not called upon to find a solution of a difficult

situation.

8. During the boycott of the Low Level Tramway 8,

I was urged by many, and especially by Chinese, to

kill the boycott by the deportation of ringleaders

who supported it. I judged however that, even if

I could get evidence of the complicity of certain

individuals reported to me as the principal organisers

and supporters of the boycott upon which to bring the

question of their deportation before the Executive

Council, the deportation of a few members of a

community, a large section of which was actively

supporting the movement, would be worse than useless.

It remained, therefore, for me either to look

on while a commercial company was humiliated or ruined

for daring to demand legal tender in payment of debts

due to it, or to devise some means both of saving

the

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