An international squadron off Canton according to the Dutch newspaper Het Centrum dated 20 December 1923

The Portuguese Patria

Hong Kong, 18 December. Before the Chinese harbour of Canton was an international squadron assembled after the treat of dr. Sun Yat Sen to seized the customs office in this city. The squadron consisted of the American Clemson-class destroyers 225 [USS Pope], 226 [USS Peary], 343 [ USS Noa] and 346 [USS Siccard], the cruiser Asheville [this must be the gunboat built between 1917-1920] and the gunboat Pampanga, the British gunboats Tarantula and Magnolia, sloop Bluebell and the river gunboats Moorhen and Robin, the French gunboat Malicieuse and sloop Craonne, the Portuguese gunboat Patria and the Italian charted steam launch Kwangtung with Italian sailors on board. There were new demonstrations against the republic and the squadron was preparing for all thing to come.

Note
1. This must be the medicine doctor Sun Yat-sen (12 November 1866-12 March 1925) who frequently is named as the man who founded the republic China and also responsible for the end of the empire China. In 1923 he spoke about his Three Principles of the People and the Five-Yuan Constitution to latter to control the political system and bureaucracy to prevent corruption something he hated. He was also responsible for establishing the Whampoa Military Academy to improve the officer corps. However his government was an opponent of the Beiyang government which latter government was recognized all over the world. To finance his military actions Sun used heavy taxes!

Corrected 3 May 2020 with comments of Dorbel, who also supplied as additional information that the Senior Naval Officer RN was Captain AH Alington, flying the SNO flag in HMS Tarantula. Bluebell's log and others are published on naval-history.net