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nor, Sir Arthur Kennedy.
Both incidents reflect inner tensions within the Chinese community and the difficulty Europeans had in recognising which leaders of the Chinese had the support of the majority.
The Europeans favoured those Chinese who were most thoroughly Anglicised. These were such men as Ng Choy, Ho Kai and Wei Yuk, all of whom had been educated in Britain. The Chinese, on the other hand, were inclined to feel that men who had been elevated to a position of leadership by the Chinese community itself were better representatives.
The Honourable Ng Choy had been able to straddle this difference, keeping a foot on both sides. Ho Kai and Wei Yuk, however, at the time of the controversy, were young and inexperienced and the majority of the leaders of the Chinese community resented their being pushed to the front by the Europeans.
When the news of Sir Arthur Kennedy's death reached Hong Kong, a public meeting was hurriedly convened to discuss a suitable memorial to him. The organisers issued an invitation to all sections of the community. They arranged for Dr. Ho Kai to be the spokesman of the Chinese.
In his remarks at the meeting he promised the support of the Chinese community to the proposal for a statue of Sir Arthur Kennedy. He also asked to make additional comments expressing the desire of the Chinese to have a fitting memorial for Sir Richard Macdonnell, Sir Arthur's predecessor.
The chairman rightly suggested that the two objects were different and as the present meeting was to consider only the honouring of Kennedy's memory, the matter of a Macdonnell memorial should be left for discussion at some later time by those interested in the project.
Dr. Ho Kai had dutifully fulfilled his obligation to the Chinese community when he raised the point; however, he did not mention a further desire of the Chinese to honour Sir John Pope
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nor, Sir Arthur Kennedy.
Both incidents reflect inner tensions within the Chinese com- munity and the difficulty Europeans had in recognising which leaders of the Chinese had the support of the majority.
The Europeans favoured those Chinese who were most thor- oughly Anglicised. These were such men as Ng Choy, Ho Kai and Wei Yuk, all of whom had been educated in Britain. The Chinese, on the other hand, were inclined to feel that men who had been elevated to a position of leadership by the Chinese community itself were better representatives.
The Honourable Ng Choy had been able to straddle this differ- ence, keeping a foot on both sides. Ho Kai and Wei Yuk, however, at the time of the controversy, were young and inexperienced and the majority of the leaders of the Chinese community resented their being pushed to the front by the Europeans.
When the news of Sir Arthur Kennedy's death reached Hong- kong, a public meeting was hurriedly convened to discuss a suit- able memorial to him. The organisers issued an invitation to all sections of the community. They arranged for Dr. Ho Kai to be the spokesman of the Chinese.
In his remarks at the meeting he promised the support of the Chinese community to the proposal for a statue of Sir Arthur Kennedy. He also asked to make additional comments expressing the desire of the Chinese to have a fitting memorial for Sir Richard Macdonnell, Sir Arthur's predecessor.
The chairman rightly suggested that the two objects were differ- ent and as the present meeting was to consider only the honouring of Kennedy's memory, the matter of a Macdonnell memorial should be left for discussion at some later time by those interested in the project.
Dr. Ho Kai had dutifully fulfilled his obligation to the Chinese community when he raised the point; however, he did not men- tion a further desire of the Chinese to honour Sir John Pope
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