[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
JHINA TRADE.
CONFIDENTIAL.
[23896]
No. 1.
524
[July 18.]
SECTION 1.
Sir,
Board of Trade to Foreign Office.-(Received July 18.)
Board of Trade, July 17, 1907.
I AM directed by the Board of Trade to acknowledge the receipt of your letters of the 25th ultimo and the 10th instant, transmitting copies of despatches, with their respective inclosures, from His Majesty's Minister at Peking regarding the privileges of the China Merchants' Company.
In reply, I am to say that, having regard to the fact that the Supplementary Treaty of 1880 between China and the United States has never been invoked by the latter Power against the privileges accorded by the Chinese Government to the China Merchants' Steam Navigation Company, in spite of the fact that the American negotiators were, at the time of the conclusion of the Treaty, well aware of these privileges, the Board concur in the view of Sir J. Jordan that it is not desirable that the Treaty in question should at present be invoked by His Majesty's Government in support of the claims of the China Navigation Company.
They also concur in his suggestion that the arguments based on this Treaty might be held in reserve as an additional means of defence against any new attempts on the f part of the Chinese Government to discriminate in favour of Chinese shipping.
I am, &c. (Signed) ARTHUR WILSON FOX.
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