CO129-575-15 Traffic of arms to China 24-1-1939 - 4-12-1939 — Page 69

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Chefang has been proceeding as expeditiously as the

latter condition of the road allows. In this connection

I refer to my despatch No.47 of 22nd June, and to my

telegram No. 12 of 2nd July reporting a bad breach near

the end of the long climb out of the Mangshih plain to

Lungling. I hear that this landslip was in fact cleared

by 1st July, but it seems inevitable that it will be

followed by others, and that the Mangshih plain section and the hill section between Mangshih and Chefang will

also be difficult to maintain in spite of the efforts

which are being made to keep the road open at all costs

and remembering that labour is hard to come by at this

time of year. In view of the expert opinions pronounced

by Burma Public Works engineers the Chinese achievement

remains remarkable.

3. The Deputy Commissioner, Bhamo, has just

informed me that permission to transport munitions by

Mule via Tengyueh during the rains has not been granted

by the Government of Burma. The Bhamo and Tengyueh

branches of the South West Transportation Company are

closing down in consequence, and commercial mule freights

though still fantastic have fallen slightly. I intimated

indirectly to the local Chamber of Commerce that I had

suggested to Burma that big importers like Messrs. Steel

Brothers and Company Limited should temporarily suspend

consignments of cotton yarn, which have recently been

very heavy and fully supplied demand, and I am now told

that/