[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
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being to keep M. Casenave fully informed of what is going on, but you are in no wise bound to conform to his opinion should you see cause to disagree with it. In event of such difference arising, which doubtless is very improbable, the prescribed course is to refer the matter to the respective Boards.
The Board's attention has been called to your letter of the 31st December, reporting your visit to his Excellency Chang Chih-tung. Though there was, of course, ne reason to object to M. Casenave accompanying you on this visit, yet, in so far as the discussion turned on a railway from Wuchang to Changsha, this was peculiarly a predominant British interest by reason of the quasi agreement or understanding come to with the British Consul in 1905 on the occasion of supplying funds to buy out the American interest in the Yueh-han Railway. It would therefore have been quite in keeping with the spirit and letter of the agreement if you had paid the visit in question alone, and in that case the embarrassment which you mention as having been brought about by an oversight of the French Consul would have been avoided. I am to add that these remarks are intended rather for your future guidance, and in no way suggesting dissatisfaction with your visit, which, on the contrary, is likely, so far as the Board can judge, to be productive of satisfactory results.
The Board take note of your remark that M. Casenave and yourself had agreed in future to eliminate Consular intervention wherever possible. In regard to this, the Board would observe that, while not wishing to fetter your discretion, they are strongly of opinion that the concurrence of the British Minister or the British Consul, as the case may be, should as a rule be sought on all occasions when you are, so to speak, breaking new ground in the course of your negotiations. The Board is assured that the sympathy and support of His Majesty's officers may always be counted upon, and while their "intervention," in the sense of taking a direct and active part in negotia- tions, may not be possible or desirable, they should always, in the opinion of the Board, be fully informed as to all important steps you may think fit to take in your dealings with Chinese officials. Such confidence cannot but greatly strengthen your hands, while conversely, if there is any objection on the part of His Majesty's Representative, it is better to learn it in time than to wait for it to be raised afterwards.
CHINA RAILWAYS,
CONFIDENTIAL.
[9424]
No. 1.
[March 23.11 4492
SECTION 3.
· 24 APR 07·
Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.—(Received March 23.) (No. 59.) Sir.
Peking, February 4, 1907. IN continuation of my despatch No. 444 of the 30th October, 1906, I have the honour to transmit to you herewith Minutes of a further meeting between Messrs. Cordes and Bland and the Chinese negotiators of the Tien-tsin-Chinkiang Railway Agreement.
You will notice that, in pursuance of the decision communicated in your telegram No. 224 of the 25th December, 1906, Messrs. Cordes and Bland notified the readiness of the Syndicate to omit the condition relating to control by a Board of Commissioners, and generally to follow the system of administration laid down in the Canton-Kowloon Railway Agreement.
The German Minister, Count von Rex, recently spoke to me about the necessity of pressing on the Tien-tsin-Chinkiang negotiations to a successful issue, and seemed impatient at the delays interposed on the Chinese side. I did not, however, feel justified in encouraging any representations to the Wai-wu Pu at present, as it seems important that the issue of the Canton-Kowloon Railway Edict should be secured before proceeding with other railway questions.
I have, &c.
(Signed) J. N. JORDAN.
A
Inclosure in No. 1.
Tien-tsin-Yang-tsze Railway.
Minutes of Meeting held at the Office of the Haikuan Taotai at Tien-tsin, on Saturday, January 26, 1907, at 3 P.M.
PRESENT: Taotai Liang Tun Yen and Taotai C. L. Chow, representing the Viceroy; Mr. H. Cordes, representing the Deutsch-Asiatische Bank; Mr. J. O. P. Bland, representing the Chinese Central Railways (Limited).
Chow Taotai stated that negotiations were now resumed under instructions conveyed to Mr. Liang and himself by his Excellency Tong Shoa-yi on behalf of the Yu Chuan Pa (Board of Communications). Under these instructions he and his colleague were precluded from discussing any proposal for control by Board of Com- missioners; they had also been directed that the Minutes of last meeting could only be confirmed after approval by the Yu Chuan Pu. He was therefore of the opinion that the best course to adopt would be for the Syndicate's representatives to draft the Final Agreement anew, basing its terms generally upon those of the Canton-Kowloon Railway contract, and embodying therein those conditions of the Preliminary Agreement which had been mutually agreed to.
Liang Taotai concurred in this proposal, and suggested that the Agreement be made as brief and concise as possible.
Mr. Bland thought that the approval of the Minutes by the Yu Chuan Pu might lead to serious delay in the negotiations. He therefore proposed to save time by sending a copy direct to his Excellency Tong Shoa-yi, for the information of that Board, with a request that the Board's approval thereof, or comments thereon, might be communi- cated to the Commissioners before the date fixed for the next meeting. In thus forwarding the Minutes of the present meeting, he would write to his Excellency Tong Shoa-yi and request approval of this procedure and authority for regular confirmation of the Minutes hereafter at each meeting in the absence of any expressed objection by the Yu Chuan Pu.
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