168
"We would hope that the almost unanimous voice of the meeting and the tone and manner in which its views would be expressed would have an effect, not only upon the immediate subject of the meeting, but the worldwide China question.”
A few days following the meeting, Mr. David Welsh wrote a letter to the Daily Press supporting Mr. Whittall's unpopular position.
In introducing his opinions, he took up Mr. Sharp's theme of cries of distress. Mr. Welsh suggested that, “in a war of opinion, a good cry is more than half the battle. This was made painfully evident at the public meeting. The cry of Hongkong blockaded is a good one, and almost every person came to the meeting prepared to vote for resolutions framed in that sense, notwithstanding their extravagance, and that the movers of the resolutions gave not one shred of evidence in favour of what they proposed."
The final resolution of the meeting provided for a wide distribution of its results. They were of course to be sent to the proper Government authorities.
Copies were also to be provided to the Chambers of Commerce in Britain and to all Members of Parliament and other prominent figures.
British officials in Canton, Peking and London did not share the strong views of the meeting. Their position was more moderate and no definitive action was taken to break the “blockade.”
STRIKING A HARD BARGAIN ON TRADE WITH CHINA
Officials responsible for political relations between Britain and China were less emotional than Hongkong residents about the issues of a Chinese "blockade" of the harbour and the appointment of a Chinese consul. As diplomats their perspective was broader.
They recommended that a report formulated by a commission appointed in Hongkong to study the blockade should not be made
168
"We would hope that the almost unanimous voice of the meet- ing and the tone and manner in which its views would be ex- pressed would have an effect, not only upon the immediate sub- ject of the meeting, but the worldwide China question.”
A few days following the meeting, Mr. David Welsh wrote a letter to the Daily Press supporting Mr. Whittall's unpopular posi- tion.
In introducing his opinions, he took up Mr. Sharp's theme of cries of distress. Mr. Welsh suggested that, “in a war of opinion, a good cry is more than half the battle. This was made painfully evident at the public meeting. The cry of Hongkong blockaded is a good one, and almost every person came to the meeting prepared to vote for resolutions framed in that sense, notwithstanding their extravagance, and that the movers of the resolutions gave not one shred of evidence in favour of what they proposed."
The final resolution of the meeting provided for a wide distri- bution of its results. They were of course to be sent to the proper Government authorities.
Copies were also to be provided to the Chambers of Commerce in Britain and to all Members of Parliament and other prominent figures.
British officials in Canton, Peking and London did not share the strong views of the meeting. Their position was more moder- ate and no definitive action was taken to break the “blockade.”
STRIKING A HARD BARGAIN ON TRADE WITH CHINA
Officials responsible for political relations between Britain and China were less emotional than Hongkong residents about the issues of a Chinese "blockade" of the harbour and the appoint- ment of a Chinese consul. As diplomats their perspective was broader.
They recommended that a report formulated by a commission appointed in Hongkong to study the blockade should not be made
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