[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
710
AFFAIRS OF CHINA.
31455
[July 29.]
CONFIDENTIAL.
SECTION 3.
Acce
Po 2 SEP 07
[25180]
No. 1.
(No. 286.) Sir,
Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received July 29.)
Peking, June 12, 1907. REFERRING to my despatch No. 256 of the 29th May, in regard to the suppression of piracy in Canton waters, I have the honour to inclose copies of a despatch from His Majesty's Consul-General, dated the 23rd April, which reached me only on the 24th May owing to postal delay. In this despatch Mr. Mansfield transmits a translation of certain Regulations which the Viceroy Chou Fu proposed to introduce providing for the protection of launches on the river by a special force of armed police, who would be detailed for duty on the launches and search the passengers as they came on board, besides accompanying the launch on her journey. The Regulations also provide for fourteen new patrol-launches, and define the places where the landing and embarkation of passengers will be permitted.
The Viceroy Chou Fu was relieved of his office on the 28th May, and I still had Mr. Mansfield's despatch under consideration when I received a message from the Wai- wu Pu on the 1st June which threw light upon the Viceroy's proposed scheme. The message of the Wai-wu Pu was in effect that, as the Viceroy was taking up the question so thoroughly, there seemed to be no necessity for the service of vessels under Customis control. When I called at the Board on the 4th June the Grand Secretaries were not present, and I was received by Messrs. Lien Fang and Tsou, the Vice-Presidents of the Wai-wu Pu. I asked them if I was to take this as a repudiation of the undertaking, and, on receiving a non-committal reply, begged them to convey to Prince Ching and the Grand Secretaries a message from me to the effect that I must hold the Board to the arrangement which they had made with me after repeated consultations, and which I had reported to my Government as settled.
I had already telegraphed to Mr. Mansfield to impress upon the Viceroy that the Chinese Government had given me the undertaking to place four vessels under Customs control, and that if the Viceroy's scheme was intended to take the place of that arrangement I could not regard it as adequate.
To this Mr. Mansfield replied that he did not consider that it had any bearing on the Customs scheme, and that he had only sent it to me in order to conciliate the Viceroy, who attached great importance to it. In the event of the Viceroy Ts'en returning, Mr. Mansfield added, he hoped that I would oppose it completely, or only agree to its enforcement when the Customs vessels were actually ready for use.
In a despatch dated the 4th June, copy of which is inclosed, I instructed Mr. Mansfield to inform the Viceroy that I could only accept the proposed scheme as a complement to the Customs arrangement.
On the 11th June I went into the question at considerable length with the Viceroy Ts'en, with whom I had arranged an interview. I impressed on his Excellency that the provincial authorities had signally failed in their measures in the past. Their river patrol- boats lay at their moorings, with the crews smoking opium and gambling, while launches were pirated within easy distance of them. The reports of the Commanders of His Majesty's river gun-boats gave chapter and verse evidence of this laxity, which was a standing reproach to China. It was, further, derogatory to China's prestige that we should have to police her inland waters for her, but we should continue to do so as long as China neglected her manifest duties. As a result of many consultations with the Wai-wu Pu, an undertaking had been given to place four vessels under Customs control for preventive work, and I asked his Excellency to bear in mind that the Customs was a Chinese Department under the superintendence of the Viceroy, so there should be no reluctance to give this scheme a fair trial.
His Excellency expressed no decided opinion, but promised to consider the question carefully on arrival at Canton,
In the afternoon of the same day I went over much of the same ground with the Grand Secretary Na Tung at the Wai-wu Pu. His Excellency assured me that the
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