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I thereupon telegraphed to the taotai at Tengyueh requesting him, as being the authority nearest the localities in question, to enquire into the particulars. In reply, the taotai says that Mr. Consul Rose told him verbally that, as he was going to the frontier meeting at Sima last month, he telegraphed to the Government of Burmah and to the Minister at Peking requesting them to wire directly to the consul-general, 1) Mr. O'Brien-Butler, if there should be any frontier business, and that, regarding the soldiers now sent, if the Administrator of Foreign Affairs enquired of the consul- general he might ascertain the truth.
As the boundary line between Yünnan and Burmah north of the High Peak has up to now not been determined, though it has been examined, both nations ought to In the 29th keep to the boundaries within which they now exercise jurisdiction. year of Kuang Hsü (1903-4) the British Minister, Sir E. Satow, wrote to the Board of Foreign Affairs stating that the natural boundary line, most suitable and easily recognisable, was the watershed of all the affluents of the Hsiao Chiang, which flows from the east into the N'mai Hka. It was found that the Hsiao Chiang, also called the Ngachang Hka, flows from the east into the N'mai Hka. Between the Hsiao Chiang and the N'mai Hka is the watershed of all the branches of the Hsiao Chiang, It was found on translating the English map appended to the treaty that the watershed is to the west of the Hsiao Chiang and to the east of the N'mai Hka, being the mountain Pala. This was communicated to the British Minister at Peking by the Board of Foreign Affairs. In the 26th year of Kuang Hsü (1900-1) British soldiers crossed the boundary and killed native chiefs and soldiers; the facts were represented on several occasions by the Yünnan provincial authorities, and the Tsungli Yamên also wrote to the British Minister stating that both nations should keep to the boundary formed by the banks of the Hsiao Chiang, within which they then exercised jurisdiction, without trespassing upon each other's territory, and that the British soldiers had entered Chinese territory for more than 150 li (50 miles). From this it is to be known that T'achia, Iparé and other places assuredly belong to native chiefs under the jurisdiction of Tengyueh. Upper and Lower Pienma were formerly under the magistrate of Yünlung Chou in the Prefecture of Tali, and were afterwards transferred to the jurisdiction of the magistrate at Paoshan in the Prefecture of Yungchang; they are actually ruled by the native chief of Tengkeng, grain tax and other taxes are collected, and a memorial presented to the Emperor during the Tao Kuang reign can be referred to. It is beyond all doubt that those places are within territory controlled by Chinese and native officers of Yunnan; the proofs are quite plain.
In the 2nd moon of the present year (March-April 1910) there was quarrelling among the natives of Pienma; the magistrate of Paoshan, Mr. Chiên Wên-ts'ang, thereupon went in person to the place to enquire into the circumstances and to take necessary action; this has been repeatedly communicated to you with exact particulars. Now, British soldiers do not hesitate to cross the Hsiao Chiang and pass Tachia and other places and enter Pienma, as reported by telegram. Chinese territory has really It is my been invaded, and the arrangements in force have evidently been violated. duty to request you to send a telegram at once to the Government of Burmah so as to investigate this matter of sending soldier across the frontier; if the soldiers are to make a circuit through Chinese territory and patrol the frontier temporarily, I have to ask that they he withdrawn without delay, so that the natives may not be frightened and that both nations may keep to the boundaries on the Hsiao Chiang within which they now exercise jurisdiction, in order that the arrangements in force may be I write this for your maintained and international relations be strengthened. information, and I earnestly hope that you will take note and act and favour me with an early reply.
I have, &c.
Enclosure 3 in No. 1.
(Seal of Hsia.)
(
3
In reply, I have the honour to state that the question of the occupation of Pieuma is one for the consideration of the British and Chinese Government, and I am not authorised to enter into any discussion of it or take any action with regard to it.
Under the circumstances I am unable to comply with your request, and telegraph to the Government of Burmah to ask that any troops dispatched to Pienma may be withdrawn.
I have, &c.
(No. 10.) Sir,
Enclosure 4 in No. 1.
P. E. O'BRIEN-BUTLER.
Consul-General O'Brien-Butler to Sir J. Jordan.
Yünnan-fu, February 8, 1911. I HAVE the honour to report that I called yesterday on the Administrator of Foreign Affairs in order to obtain, if possible, authoritative information regarding the destination of the troops now being moved westward from Tali-fn and Yunnan-fu. Mr. Hsia professed to know very little about these movements; he happened to know that the Tali troops were going to Yungch'ang-fu city in order to reassure the inhabitants, who were greatly disturbed in their minds by the advance of the British forces, but he knew nothing, he said, about soldiers having left Yunnan-fu for Tali.
As I had found some difficulty in revising the geographical details in the English translation which accompanied Mr. Hsia's despatch of the 25th January on the subject of the British occupation of Pienma, I begged Mr. Hsia to explain them and point out the various localities on a map. Two maps were produced, namely, the map accompanying Major Davies's work on Yunnan and a large scale map in Chinese, showing the Burmah-Yunnan frontier region from about Bhamo up to Szechuan. Mr. Hsia said that the frontier described in his despatch was the watershed running from "The High Peak," the northernmost point of the frontier as actually delimited, to the point where the Nga Cheng Hka joins the Nmai Hka. Mr. Hsia and I followed out this line on the map, and he seemed to be rather surprised that it made a con- siderable curve to the eastward instead of striking due north to the object-point. From the information obtained I prepared the sketchi plan attached to the translation of Mr. Hsia's despatch forwarded to you with my despatch dated the 31st January.
I was unable to elicit from Mr. Hsia in casual conversation what he considered to be the frontier north of the junction of the Nga Chang Hka and the Nmai Hka; but I noticed with great interest on the Chinese map produced by him that the whole country above this point was labelled "Hsi-tsang "Thibet. The map was long and narrow, and only represented the country to the west about as far as the Mali Hka, but I am convinced from what I saw that the Chinese lay claim to the whole of the northern part of Burmah, right across to Assam, as forming part of their Thibetan dependency.
I would add that this Chinese map was very well drawn and quite modern, the details being evidently copied from foreign maps.
I took the opportunity to touch on the subject of the boycott of British goods ordered by the Yünnali-fu Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Hsia agreed with me that it was very foolish of the Chamber to act as it had done, and said that a proclametion would be published urging the merchants not to interfere in a matter which would he dealt with by the two Governments. He added that the Provincial Government could not be held responsible in connection with this boycott and he instanced the former Chinese boycott of American goods whereby-and I thought I detected a tone of satisfaction in his voice-American merchants suffered considerable loss, and yet the American Government had made no complaint. I replied that as I was sure that the provincial Government would be able to put a stop to the boycott within a very short time, the question of fixing the responsibility for its inception and its consequences would scarcely arise.
I have, &c.
P. E. O'BRIEN-BUTLER.
Sir,
Consul-General O'Brien-Butler to Administrator of Foreign Affairs.
Yünnan-fu, January 28, 1911.
I HAVE the honour to acknowledge receipt of your despatch of the 25th instant to the effect that British troops had occupied Pienma, and requesting me to send a telegram to the Government of Burmah, and ask that they may be withdrawn.
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