12894/26.
PARAPHRASE TEIEGRAM from the Secretary of State for the
Colonies to the Governor of Hong Kong.
Secret.
(Sent 3.0 p.m. 23rd July, 1926.)
570
Canton negotiations. Following is for your guidance after discussion with Foreign Office.
If Canton Government as part of general friendly settlement were to ask for loan of officers from Hong Kong as technical assistants you couldgive any such request friendly ansideration. Of course no military instructors could be allowed and it would have to be clear that only civil officials were to be lentand that they were not to be employed on any work subsidiary to military purposes. You should not however yourself put forward any proposal of this kind. It will be necessary for any such proposal to be carefully examined here in the light of possible international obligations and difficulties and should one therefore be made to you I request that you will refer it home at once.
As to railway schemes we have considered the four projects mentioned in the first enclosure of your de spatch of the 26th March and I have supported the request contained in your despatch of the 20th March that the loop-line should be financed from Boxer Indemnity Funds. You cannot however count on this and if it were found in course of negotiations that loan either for this or for Fan-ling-Bias Bay railway would be suitable, neither I nor the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs would raise any objection, provided of course that the conditions contained in my telegram of the 26th March were observed. As regards the other projects I would invite your attention to the above mentioned telegram which indicated the objections (on the score of the consortium agreement) to which any
railway
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.