CO129-572-14 Proposed reorganisation of water services 7-4-1938 - 3-4-1939 — Page 13

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and landlords adjusts itself in such a way that

landlords will be deterred from abusing the

facilities now granted to them.

No. 7.

It is unfortunate that this should

have happened. It seems that the first we

heard of the secrecy in which this affair was

being shrouded in Hong Kong was Mr. Smith's

(5)

letter to Mr. Gent of the 25th October. This

would take anything up to ten days to arrive,

and by the time it had arrived the circular

despatch must already have been in preparation

(the circular referred to in (7) is prepared

and sent out at the beginning of each month).

I think Hong Kong ought to have let us know that

they wanted the matter to be regarded as a secret

when they first notified us of the vacancy and

submitted Mr. Purves' name for promotion to it.

? Reply s.o. to Mr. Smith, saying that

we very much regret what has happened and that

the Hong Kong Government should have been

placed in a somewhat embarrassing position by

Pruunature

the publication of an appointment which was

intended to be the final stage of a complicated

series culminating about a year hence.

Add,

however, that it would not be altogether fair

for us to assume entire responsibility for it,

since the only notification we had of the

secrecy involved was Mr. Smith's letter of the

25th October, the arrival of which was

coincident with the despatch of the circular,

and say that it would have been quite easy to

defer the publication to suit Hong Kong's

wishes