CO129-629-5 Purchase of the Law and Sayer picture collection by the Government of Hong Kong 1-6-1951 - 31-12-1951 — Page 19

COLONIAL

OFFICE

MON

My reference.

Your reference

54471/51

A18

The Church House,

Great Smith Street,

S.W.1.

December, 1951.

I am sorry that we have been so long in replying to your letter of the 23rd November. We have been scratching our heads to try and find some way of organizing an informal exhibition and I very much regret that in the end we have been unable to arrange one.

This is a great disappointment to us, as

I fear it will be to you. But, as Anderson said when you and he and Grimwood talked the matter over, the main difficulty has been that we have no authority for spending anything on such an exhibition, however small the sum that might be necessary.

This lack of funds has meant that we cannot overcome the various snags pointed out to us by the Crown Agents

(a)

-

viz

transport would have to be arranged

to carry the pictures to and from the place of exhibition.

(b) apparently

apparently an exhibition would complicate the insurance of the pictures.

(c) When Bolton & Fairhead were consulted they did not like the idea of an

D. J. Sloss, Esq., C.B.E., LI.D., M.A.

/exhibition