This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
(
CHINA RAILWAYS,
CONFIDENTIAL.
[12735]
(No. 104.) Sir,
No. 1.
62
[April 20.]
SECTION 1,
Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received April 20.)
Peking, March 4, 1907. IN continuation of my despatch No. 59 of the 4th ultimo I have the honour to transmit to you herewith copy of the Minutes of a meeting held on the 23rd ultimo between Messrs. Cordes and Bland and the Chinese negotiators of the Tien-tsin- Chinkiang Railway Agreement.
Some time before this meeting took place Messrs. Cordes and Bland addressed a letter to the Chinese Delegates, copy of which is likewise inclosed, notifying them that they were prepared to make certain modifications in the preliminary Agreement, and inclosing a new draft Agreement embodying these concessions. This draft, it will be observed, is largely based upon the Memorandum of the Conference held in Berlin on the 1st December last, copy of which was inclosed in your despatch No. 463 of that month. The stipulation for a 5 per cent, commission and several other points appear to form an exception, but these are doubtless retained to serve as a margin for negotiation.
In pursuance of an understanding with Count Rex, the German Minister, who had spoken to the Wai-wu Pu on the subject some days previously, I took the opportunity of a visit to that Department on the 26th ultimo to impress upon the Ministers the necessity of bringing the Tien-tsin-Chinkiang negotiations to a speedy completion.
The response was not altogether satisfactory. The Ministers expressed the belief that the line would not prove remunerative, especially the southern section from I-hsien to Pu K'ou, which passed through a poor country. What traffic there was would be diverted to the German colony of Tsingtau, and it would be that Power, rather than China or Great Britain, which would profit by the enterprise. The time had now come when China must seriously consider whether in pledging her national credit for railway construction she was not assuming a responsibility greater than her resources justified.
In 1898, when the preliminary Agreement was made, the country had not yet become saddled with the Boxer indemnity, while now they had not only to meet a large foreign debt, but also to find money for measures of reform.
I expressed surprise at this line of argument, and gave the Ministers to under- stand that its serious adoption would be regarded as a distinct breach of a formal Agreement.
China's credit, as tested by the European money markets, had never, I said, stood higher than at the present time; and instead of checking the development of the country by gratuitously discrediting their financial position, they should seize the opportunity to make railways while foreign capital was available on such easy terms.
While writing this despatch I have received the Minutes of a further meeting of the negotiators, copy of which I have likewise the honour to inclose.
I have, &c. (Signed)
Inclosure 1 in No. 1.
J. N. JORDAN,
Minutes of the 26th Meeting held at the Office of the Haikwan Taotai on February 23,
at 3 P.M.
Present:
Taotai Liang Tun Yen, representing the Board of Communications. Taotai C. L. Chow,
3
Mr. H. Cordes, representing the Dentsch-Asiatische Bank.
53
Mr. J. O. P. Bland, representing the Chinese Central Railways (Limited). MESSRS. CORDES AND BLAND'S letter of the 5th instant, forwarding revised draft of proposed Agreement, leads to discussion of the procedure to be
[2449 u-1]
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