CO129-495 - Governor Sir Clementi - 1926 [11-12] — Page 472

CO129 Colonial Office Hong Kong Records 理藩院香港檔案 All

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may be too much rooted in the past, end may achively promote disruption. We are definitely apprehensive that your policy might wreck customs machinery by overloading it and our hope was that oure might save it by lightening its responsibilities.

5. In view of the impracticability at the present time of a constructive policy the moet we can do 16 to guard against certain obvious dutgers. There- fore our immediato object mot Sa (1) te remedy the Canton situation and prevent repetition elsewhere, (2) to save customs collecting machinery and (3) to safe.

guard the foreign secured debtor. Other things are

subsidiary. It is true that you adduce weighty reasons

against our proposals. But we are not yet convinced

that your arguments are final. The dangers ahead of

us are very real, and we comot afford to leave any

possible avenue unexplored. If, therefore, you still

maintain your objectious against our scheme we are

bound to look to you for some elternative. We frankly

do not like that which you have put up.

6. You are doubtless fully conscious of another possibility, nemely that United States goverment will soon realise, if they have not already done so, that Conference is at present needing For complete forein Echtrol over new revenues, a thing hitherto totally opposed to their principles. We may well find our--- selves faced with an American initiative forcing us ultimately to follow instead of leading in some such policy as we are now discussing with you.

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