[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
CHINA RAILWAYS.
CONFIDENTIAL.
23223
RECO REGE 28 JUL 10)
[July 11.]
SECTION 2.
418
[24956]
(No. 265.) Sir,
No. 1.
Sir F. Bertie to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received July 11.)
Paris, July 9, 1910. I HAVE the honour to inform you that, in accordance with the instructions contained in your despatch No. 55 of the 29th January last, an unofficial communication was made to the political director of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs respecting the preferential rates which are accorded to goods of French and Indo-French Chinese origin dispatched from Haiphong or Hanoi to stations on the Yunnan Railway within Chinese territory.
I have the honour to transmit herewith copy of the memorandum left with M. Bapst, together with copy of a note which I have received from M. Pichon, stating that the matter has been brought to the notice of the Minister for the Colonies, who has instructed the Governor-General of Indo-China and the railway company concerned to examine the question in the most friendly spirit.
I have, &c. (For the Ambassador),
L. D. CARNEGIE.
Enclosure 1 in No. 1.
Memorandum communicated to M. Bapst by Mr. Carnegie.
THE attention of His Majesty's Government has been called to the preferential rates which are accorded to goods of French and Indo-French Chinese origin dispatched from Haiphong or Hanoi in Indo-China to Mongtze, and to the present terminus of the Yunnan Railway, both of which places are well within Chinese territory. These preferential rates are also to apply to similar goods dispatched to Yunnan-fu, the eventual terminus of the line, as soon as traffic is opened to that town. His Majesty's Government cannot admit that such treatment should form a precedent for similar action elsewhere, as they would regard such differentiation against British trade as inconsistent with the general principles of equality of treatment affirmed in article 4 of the Anglo-French Declaration of 1896.
Paris, February 17, 1910.
Enclosure 2 in No. 1.
M. Pichon to Sir F. Bertie,
M. l'Ambassadeur,
Paris, le 3 juillet, 1910. PAR un office en date du 17 février dernier, votre Excellence a bien voulu signaler à mon attention la mise en application sur le Chemin de Fer du Yunnan, d'un tarif de transport des marchandises qui serait de nature à nuire aux intérêts britanniques.
Je n'ai pas manqué de faire part à mon collègue, M. le Ministre des Colonies, des objections soulevées par le Gouvernement britannique contre ce tarif, et M. Trouillot vient de m'aviser qu'il a donné des instructions pour que la question soit signalée à la compagnie du chemin de fer et au Gouverneur général de l'Indo-Chine, afin qu'elle soit étudiée dans le sentiment le plus amical.
Agréez, &c.
(Pour le Ministre et par autorisation),
EDMOND BAPST.
(2813 1-2]