CO129-571-14 Sino-Japanese War- protection of interests in the Sincerity Company 19-12-1938 - 13-1-1939 — Page 5

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Telegram (en clair) from Mr. Blunt, (Canton).

3/5

No. 1. SAVING.

D.

January 3rd, 1939.

R. January 13th, 1939.

-000~~

Addressed to Governor, Hongkong, savingram No. 1 of January 3rd.

Your des patch No. 98 of December 20th, 1938, to Consul- General, Shanghai, and your telegram No. 386 of 1938 to the Secretary of State for the Colonies.

The mortgage held by the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation on the Sincere Company Limited was never registered at this Consulate-General, nor was the fact that this mortgage existed ever brought to my notice until it was mentioned, inter alia, in a letter which I received from the Bank's Canton agent on August 12th, 1938, in reply to any enquiry as to the extent of genuine British interest in non-British concerns in the Canton Consular District. I then asked what had happened regarding the Sincere Company at Shanghai, but heard nothing further.

2. With the imminent occupation of Canton by the Japanese aray, on October 18th the Hongkong and Shanghai, and Chartered Banks both requested my sanction to fly the British flag on the premises of the Sincere Company and Sun Company respectively on the grounds that they had mortgages on the properties. I refused sanction, but as far as the Sincere Company's building was concerned

Canton fires

-

the Sun Company's building was destroyed in the

both officially and unofficially I took every step possible to call the attention of the Japanese military authorities to the Bank's interest and to secure such protection

as they were able to give.

It will be appreciated that Canton

was.

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