CO129-571-17 Hong Kong Eugenics League 14-4-1938 - 8-7-1938 — Page 22

CONFIDENTIAL

My dear Cowell,

Hong Kong.

CODIVE

25 APR 100

C. REGY

Government House,

April 14th, 1938.

122

6163860/34.

JOINS (mad (2)

X

You will no doubt remember the correspondence

dealing with the activities of the Hong Kong Eugenics League which ended with the Secretary of State's confidential despatch

of the 2nd September.

The League approached me a couple of days ago

asking to be allowed to advertise as in the annexure to this

letter. I replied that although personally I sympathised with

the objects of the League, in view of the possible embarrassment

to the Secretary of State if the advertisement went in as

drafted, I was not prepared to agree until I had consulted you.

I had in mind the Secretary of State's letter to Lord Fitzalan

•3CR

42/21463CRf the 22nd January 1937 in the course of which he said: "It was

spy to Thoma

clearly irregular that the Colonial Secretariat Office should

have been allowed at any time to appear as an address for

receiving communications on behalf of the League. " I went on

that I was prepared to allow the advertisement to begin at

"VIOLET PEEL HEALTH CENTRE" and ending at "healthy babies" but I gather that the League would not be willing to accept this

compromise as it would not bring them sufficiently into the lime-

light. That is their affair.

The point of this letter is to enquire whether there would be any objection to the advertisement appearing as

in the annexure down to the words "healthy babies". Personally

I am in favour of that being permitted. The League, I am sure,

H.R. Cowell, Esq., C.M.G.