CO129-554-7 British Empire and China Trade Fair 14-5-1935 - 23-10-1935 — Page 8

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Edward Crowe Re Mr Thompson

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I had a visit on the 1st of November from

Mrs. Thompson as arranged. Her immediate object was

to try to interest the Secretary of State in a

Committee which she was endeavouring to form, to be

called the "Friends of China Committee".

ar present Claim to

She admitted

that she could not claim,to have any substantial

support from local British enterprises in Hong Kong

for the Trade Fair which she and her co-Directors of

the Advertising and Publicity Bureau Limited are

trying to arrange in Hong Kong. She gave me to suppose

that this was due to jealousy on their part, and to a

general inertia which characterised local British

interests.

She claimed that in her preliminary negotia-

tions for setting up the Friends of China Committee

she had secured the support of many eminent people in

this country, including Lord Derby and Lord Nuffield,

and now she wanted Mr. MacDonald to promise his

support also. I asked her whether the project had the

support of Colonel Colville of the Department of

Overseas Trade, and explained to her that in my

personal view the Secretary of State for the Colonies

would