CO129-491 - Public Offices - 1925 — Page 96

:

D

928

(3)

prospect of an early increase of revenue.

But apart from the holding of the Conference and

the grant of tariff revision, it would be borne in mind that

it is the Peking Government, or (shell I say ?) the Anfu party

that would derive the most benefit from the revision, whilst

the political agitators in Canton and other provinces would

gain practically nothing.

There is very little doubt in my mind that 15 pays

these political "gitators to stir up strife and boycotts, and

unless these people are won over and induced to stop their

anti-British agitation I am afraid that the slightest move

from Peking will again lead to a continuation of the boycott and anti-British agitation the South.

Therefore, whilst the British delegates are making

a firm and reasonable stand at the Peking Conference, it is

absolutely necessary to devise means of stopping the anti-

British "gitation in the South.

To accomplish this end I would suggest that a

special agent should be sent privately by the British

Government to China for the purpose of getting into touch with

the leaders of the Kuoningtang the party in power at Canton) and ascertaining their true aims, with a view to discovering some means of reconciling the conflicting aspirations of the North and the South, or in other words the Anfu and Kuoning tang