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1II.-Letter of 25th November, 1926, from H. M. Vice-Consul, Canton,

to The Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs, Canton.

Sir,

I have the honour to inform you that, as a result of the piracy of the China Navi- gation Company's S.S. "Sunning," which took place off Chilang Point, south of Swatow, on the afternoon of the loth November, Mr. H. Lapsley, a brush-oubject in the employ of the Eastern Extension Telegraph Company, is missing. I may be that he has been abducted by the pirates, and I should be glad if the Canton Government would cause prompt and careful enquiries to be made as to his whereabouts with a view to obtaining his speedy return to Hong Kong.

Although on this occasion the pirates were defeated, the case affords a further illustration of the seriousness of the situation and impels me to urge upon you the desirability of co-operation in anti-piracy measures. Proposals of this nature have hitherto been declined on the ground that the Canton Government preferred to deal with the matter without outside assistance. Without such help, which would have been gladly given in the interests of both countries, no effective action whatever has been taken against the pirates, and the situation is steadily going from bad to worse. In this connection I might mention the recent incident at Samshui when pirates landed and car- ried off, among others, a government official. I need hardly say that the co-operation offered would be welcomed by the bulk of the population of the Canton delta and the whole of the Chinese travelling public, and the interests of the people of Kuangtung re- quire that such an offer should not be refused without good reason.

In view of the fact the piracy is worse in Kuangtung than in any other part of the world, and that no good has resulted from the measures recently taken by the Canton Government against the pirates, I would request you to bring these proposals for co- operation to the attention of the Political Council. The suppression of the Bias Bay pirates is a matter that calls for immediate action, before any more serions incident oc- curs, and I trust that the Canton Government realize the gravity of the position.

I have the honour to be,

Sir,

Your obedient. servant,

(Sd.) N. FITZMAURICE,

Vice-Consul.

(in the absence of H. M. Consul-General).

IV.-Letter of 8th December, 1926, from Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs, Canton, to H. M. Consul-General, Canton.

I have the honour to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated the 25th November, proposing to co-operate with us in suppression of pirates. I duly forwarded it to our Government for consideration, and as is on record, a letter was already sent to you in reply.

Now I have received a despatch from the Headquarters of the Generalissimo. which reads as follows:-

"The case has been entrusted to us. by order of Government. The pirates in the eastern regions have been holding out in their dangerous positions among mountains and near the sea. Our national troops have made repeated attacks