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he should be given latitude to make a generalised and provisional approach in which he would deploy some of the arguments most likely to secure a favourable response from the Afrikaaner mind and try to elicit enough reaction to enable us to judge when and how best to carry the matter further.

5. I recommend that the High Commissioner's proposal should be approved since-

(a) there is very little time to lose;

(b) it will be advantageous for him to be able truthfully to say that we do not yet know exactly when the Gold Coast issue will be ripe for discussion and decision; and

(c) he would be in a position to offer to bring back from his London visit information and views on any points which Mr. Strijdom may raise. It would help us also to have from the High Commissioner personally his impressions of his first contacts with Mr. Strijdom on this question.

6. I would propose if my colleagues agree to seek the High Commissioner's view on his return whether there would be advantage in his taking some suitable opportunity to let the Leader of the South African Opposition know in strict confidence how matters are developing in order to prevent the latter taking up an attitude which might be embarrassing to us through ignorance of how things stand.

7. I invite my colleagues to agree that I should proceed on the lines I have suggested above.

Commonwealth Relations Office, S.W. 1, 22nd November, 1955.

H.

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