CO129-580-2 Sino-Japanese War- British policy and reactions in Hong Kong and Malaya 27-7-1939 - 3-2-1940 — Page 37

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Government an outline of the proposals with

regard to the use of a proportion of the silver

for flood relief. On 9th December he hanghai

telegram Wo. 1350) pressed that the sum allocated

for relief should be specified and that there

saɔuld be no question of drawing upon the fund

indefinitely.

He recommended the exclusion of

Chinese representatives, whether puppet or

government, on the board to be established for

the control of the fund.

The Chinese Government were notified of

the proposal at Chungking on 9th December

(Shangnai telegram No. 1561 of 12th December].

On 12th December in an oral statement (hanghai

telegram No. 1964 of 13th December) they

regretted their inability to agree saying that

the silver was a reserve for legal tender which

should not be diverted to any other use, and

that the Chinese Government had already

recently set aside 3 million dollars for relief.

A personal message by Sir A. Clark Kerr in an

effort to induce the Chinese Government to

alter

NOTHING

TO

BE

WRITTEN

IN

THIS

MARGIN.