567
;
of the principle involved, and quite agreed with his own. For when the opportunity came there was not a hair's breadth of choice. If one had insisted on weighing every pound and trying to get all sorts of reductions, the probability is the matter would still have been unsettled and with the complexity of the situation and the artfulness of foreign schemes there is no saying what new situation might not by this time have been evolved which would have ended in this concession never being got back!
*
As to the total sums paid they all passed through Minister Liang's hands. Thus on 7th September was payable the first instalment of dollars 2,000,000 gold plus 29 days interest dollars 35,342.45 gold: and the interest on loan bonds due on 1st May gold dollars 55,550 making a total of gold dollars 2,090,892.45. Every payment made was reported by telegram by Minister Liang and communicated as records show by telegram to the Grand Council, Wai Wu Pu and Board of Commerce.
The censor says an account of the amount of redemption money and of expenses should have been laid before the Board of Commerce and the Government; does he mean that the telegrams of the Council and the two Boards are not enough to go on?
As to the first instalment it was paid before the loan of English pounds had been settled. At the time the crisis was terribly pressing so payment was effected by means of a temporary loan at interest from the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank at Hankow. British loan was settled as the Agreement prescribed that £700,000 should be remitted to Minister to U.S.A.
When the