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323
(This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
AFFAIRS OF CHINA.
CONFIDENTIAL.
[39249]
No. 1.
RECE
1798 [December 9.] REG 17 JAN 03.
Sir,
Foreign Office to Chinese Engineering and Mining Company.
Foreign Office, December 9, 1907. I AM directed by Secretary Sir E. Grey to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 27th ultimo respecting the mining rights of the Chinese Engineering and Mining Company in Chilli.
I am to inform you that in a recent despatch His Majesty's Minister at Peking reported that, as he wished to prevent the Viceroy Yuan from trying to bring pressure to bear on the Company by any open act of aggression while the question of an adjustment was under consideration, he sent Mr. Mayers, Acting Chinese Secretary, to Tien-tsin on the 15th August to inform the Customs Tactai there, on Sir J. Jordan's behalf, that he was prepared to use his best endeavours towards effecting a reasonable and amicable adjustment of the existing difficulties on the lines of the scheme for settlement, which it was understood Major Nathan had already submitted to the Chinese authorities, and that he was ready to dopute Sir Alexander Hosie, Acting Commercial Attaché to His Majesty's Legation, to meet the Viceroy's delegate and the Company's representative with the object of arranging a settlement acceptable to both parties. In the meantime, Sir J. Jordan desired to strongly impress on the Viceroy the inadvisability of resorting to any overt act of hostility towards the Company,
In a letter dated the 16th August, the Customs Taotai stated that he had conveyed Sir J. Jordan's message to the Viceroy, who was quite prepared to accept Sir Alexander Hosie's mediation in the matter.
Sir J. Jordan now proposes to arrange for an early meeting between the parties, with a view to reconciling if possible their divergencies of view.
I am to add that, in a telegram dated the 27th November, Sir J. Jordan reported that he considered the dispute between the Viceroy and the Company to be no longer in an acute stage.
A copy of your letter will therefore be forwarded to Sir J. Jordan by mail for any observations he may have to offer on it. With reference, however, to the statement contained in your letter in regard to the transfer of the property from the old Chinese Company having been confirmed by Imperial Decree, am to observe that this Department has understood throughout the discussion of the matter that the Company's case was much prejudiced by the fact that the transfer has never received the Imperial assent, and that the wording of the Rescript quoted in your letter rather tends to show that what was contemplated in the Decree was the retention of the property in purely Chinese hands.
I am, &c.
(Signed)
F. A. CAMPBELL.
(2769 i-1]