FO371-23517 — Page 166

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332 Gloucester Building,

Hongkong.

14th August, 1939

56

Dear Sir Archibald,

tirade

M

Morton Smith has come to me this morning in a

continuing state of surprise and perturbation from a per-

sonal but not private conversation he had on Saturday with

Shou J. Ch'en, the manager of the Hongkong branch of the

Bank of China. It appears that on reference being made to

the recent slump in the national dollar, which Ch'en attri-

buted wholly to the "Anglo-Japanese Customs agreement", he

launched out into a virulent and all embracing anti-British

the English of today are a degenerate race, not to

be believed or relied upon England had sacrificed Czecho-

Slovakia to save her own skin Chamberlain was the world's

biggest coward China was chalking up the score and would

demand every penny back when the time came etcetera, etcetera.

I have heard similar sentiments from the most unlikely

lips when the wine was in and the wit was out, but I think

it is significant that a man in Ch'en's position should have

given expression to such views when he was apparently not

drunk. When I called on him some months ago he was friendly

and courteous.

The incident is trivial and I am reporting it,

unofficially, merely as a straw showing perhaps the direction

to which the wind is once more veering.

Yours sincerely,

(Signed) J.C. HUTCHISON

His Excellency Sir Archibald Clark Keer, K.C.M.G.,

The British Embassy,

27 The Bund,

Shanghai.

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