CO129-621-12 War damage compensation 19-5-1949 - 7-10-1949 — Page 14

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TELEPHONE: GROSVENOR 6363.

TELEGRAMS:

GROVHOWS. AUDLEY, LONDON.

23/6

Dear Mr. Bourh,

GROSVENOR HOUSE,

PARK LANE,

LONDON, W. I.

22nd June, 1949.

I am very much obliged to you for your

(5) comprehensive letter of the 18th June, returning

(1).

nuî.

to me the enclosures which I sent to you under cover of my letter dated 19 th May.

I appreciate that, in the absence of detailed records in the Admiralty or in the Colonial Office, action on my claims must primarily be taken in Hongkong. At the same time i wish to point out that the absence of a local war risks insurance scheme and of a war damage compensation scheme does not, in my opinion, affect my claims, since my vessels, with the exception of m.v. "Chungshan", were requisitioned by His Majesty's forces prior to their loss or destruction.

The

Right Honourable

As

May I request that, when Mr. Creech- Jones sends his despatch to the Governor of Hongkong, it be made clear that i did not approach the Admiralty entirely on my own initiative? a matter of fact, shortly before my departure from Hongkong, I called on the Honourable D.M. Mac Dougall, Colonial Secretary at the time, for his advice and he was of the opinion that there would be no harm in my laying the matter before the Admiralty.

It has all along been my intention to propose to the two companies to allocate say 25% of the compensation to be used for charitable or useful purposes after consulting His Excellency the Governor of Hongkong

Thanking you in anticipation and appreciating the trouble you have taken in the matter.

Yours sincerely,

плоди

etc.,

J. Bourn, Eşq The Colonial Office

R.

Ho Tung.