CO129-501-8 General policy in China 30-11-1926 - 30-11-1926 — Page 108

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occupation.

This boycott was enforced by strike

pickets, who were really nothing but an organized

band of pirates and brigands, and whose acts of rob-

bery with violence were connived at by the Canton.

Soviet. Many attempts had been made by Canton to

induce Hong Kong to free itself from the boycott by

payment of blackmail and by accepting other humilia-

ting terms. All these attempts had failed: and

irritated by their failure the strike pickets at

Canton behaved with ever increasing violence. Finally

on the 1st September His Majesty's Government decided

that forcible British measures for the prevention of

acts of piracy by strike pickets were fully justified

and the Admiralty sent orders to Admiral Sir E.

Alexander-Sinclair to seize and disable the boats of

the strike pickets on the Canton waterways. (Foreign

Office telegram No. 19 to Canton, dated 1st September

1926). Accordingly on the 4th September all strike

pickets were swept off the Canton waterways by the

British Navy. This action frightened the Canton

Soviet, whose General Tseung Kai-shek at once sent

peremptory orders to Comrado Eugene Ch'en, the

Minister for Foreign Affairs at Canton, that he

must negotiate a settlement of the boycott. Accord-

ingly Comrade Ch'en hastened to assure Mr. J. F.

Brenan, the British Consul General at Canton, that

the

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