CO129-513-4 Land leases in the new territories 8-11-1928 - 29-7-1929 — Page 17

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the life of the present Government when they may have ample opportunities to find ways and means to arrange

for the return of Hongkong to China. In the case of

the leased territory of Kowloon or New Territories, the

Baldwin Government had given a definite promise in 1926

to arrange for its early retrocession and we expect the

Labor Government will tackle the job when it gets more

firmly seated on the saddle. It is our sincere wish and

hope that the Eritish Government under the Labor regime

will do much to cement the good relations now happily

existing between this country and Great Britain. And

we on our part will endeavor to do likewise".

2. From this and other articles of Chinese Fationalist

propaganda it is evident that if and when the Concessions

at Treaty Forts are retroceded we shall have to face an

intensive Nationalist campaign, und possibly economic pressure, for the retrocession of Kowloon and of Hongkong

itself.

In

3. Recently at an official dinner-party I was asked

in a bantering tone whether the British Government would

be likely to wish to retain Hongkong if shameen and the International settlement at Shanghai were retroceded.

like bantering tone I advised my Chinese questioner, who was slightly flusned, to "wait and see", adding that he doubtless knew that Gibraltar had been successfully defended

by war more than once. That was the only time that the

question has been forced on my attention and it passed off with laughter. There is however no doubt in my mind that

the retrocession of Hongkong is considered as not being

beyond the bounds of the successes hoped for through insistence in a campaign of Nationalist blaff and propaganda.

The

Nationalists/