[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government, and should be returned
to the Foreign Office if not required for official use.]
38
From CHINA.
Decypher.
ir. Gage. (Hanking).
September 4th, 1937.
No. 417.
D. (by wireless) September 4th, 1937.
R. 8.5.p.m.
September 4th, 1937.
-o0o·
29th.
hongkong telegram No. 163 to Colonial Office August
The Chinese Government and the educated classes are
watching with the utmost anxiety for the reaction of His
Majesty's Government to Japan's suggestion that restrictions should be imposed on the use of Hongkong as an entrepôt for
the import of arms into China. They do not intend to ask us
for favours but they feel that it is a matter of life and
death for them and that as joint signatories with them of the Kellogg Pact and other agreements which Japan is trampling
under foot we owe them something more than the benevolence of
neutrality, the effect of which will be to destroy their
power of resisting the aggressor.
Japan's appeal to the Powers to help her to shorten hostilities by cutting off China's supply of arms calls forth specially cynical comments.
Addressed to Foreign Office telegram No. 417 September 4th; repeated to Peking telegram No. 517, Commander-in- Chief and Tokyo.
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