CO129-501-8 General policy in China 30-11-1926 - 30-11-1926 — Page 167

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Inspector General during the year of absence (Peking

telegram to Foreign Office No.273 of the 9th February).

66. Action on these lines was taken and on the

11th February Sir F. Aglen formally made over charge

of the Inspectorate General of Customs to Mr. Edwardes

who accepted the charge as officiating Inspector

General. But on the previous day Sir F. Aglen had

received a telegram from the Commissioner of Customs

at Hankow reporting conversations with Comrade Ch'en

in which the latter had said that the disappearance

of Sir F. Aglen would create an entirely new situa– tion; that the Southerners had accepted things as

they stood as a fait accommli; but that if Sir F.

Aglen left, the situation was fundamentally changed

and the Canton Government would decide its attitude.

from a fresh point of view. On receiving this in-

formation Sir M. Lampson again had recourse to Dr. Wang Ch'ung-hui, who stands very close to the South as well as to North, and asked whether he could not have the face-saving device so explained to the Southerners at Hankow as to avert the danger of disruption of the Customs by showing that no new

appointment of Inspector General would be made for at least a year. Dr. Tang agreed to do this (Peking telegram to Foreign Office No. 276 of 10th February). Sir F. Aglen also made an appeal to the South through the Commissioner of Customs at Hankow. Never- theless there were strong indications that the Southerners would not recognize the appointment of

Mr.

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