}
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so far as I know, attracted the attention of the Chinese, the matter can scarcely have escaped their knowledge entirely. But in view of the stage which the negotiations have already reached, and of the fact that no preliminary preparations of a specially conspicuous character are contemplated such as would be likely to excite the resent- ment of the Chinese, I see no objection to the schemes being completed on the lines on which they have been discussed. If you approve of this suggestion, I think it would be well for me to speak to my French, German, American, and Japanese colleagues, especially as the French Minister has already received a report from the French vice-consul at Amoy on the subject, and has asked me for information. This course would put us in a better position vis-à-vis the Chinese Government, and would save the appearance that we were acting alone. The recent riot at Hankow shows the advantage of concerted action, and the necessity for some prearranged scheme by which the assistance of the foreign gunboats may be readily invoked in case of need.
I have, &c.
J. N. JORDAN.
[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
AFFAIRS OF CHINA.
CONFIDENTIAL.
[17268]
19637
[May 8.]
REC2
REG 16 JUN 11
SECTION 5.
No. 1.
Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.--(Received May 8.)
(No. 163.) Sir,
Peking, April 18, 1911. I HAVE the honour to transmit herewith the copy of a despatch and enclosures which I have received from the acting British consul at Harbin on the subject of the impending revision of the Russo-Chinese treaty of 1881.
Mr. Sly has treated the subject very exhaustively, and his review is instructive as showing the aspirations of the Russian mercantile communities in Manchuria.
I have, &c.
J. N. JORDAN.
Enclosure 1 in No. 1.
Acting Consul Sly to Sir J. Jordan.
(No. 13.) Sir,
Harbin, March 30, 1911. I HAVE the honour to enclose herewith a memorandum on the subject of the coming revision of the Russo-Chinese treaty of 1881. The memorandum is an analysis of commercial and other particulars furnished by the Russian Chamber of Commerce at Harbin to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry at St. Petersburgh. The views of the Chamber are expressed in a document containing material for the revision of the treaty, in an explanatory memorandum, and in two alternative drafts of a treaty, copies of which, in translation, are annexed to the enclosure.*
The subject is a complicated one, and it is therefore not improbable that, though I have given it careful study, and have endeavoured to the best of my ability to elucidate intricate and obscure points, the pitfalls have not all been safely avoided-pressure of work has not permitted me to make a journey along the Sungari and Amur Rivers in order to personally acquaint myself to some extent with frontier and other conditions, a thorough knowledge of which is indispensable to a complete understanding of the whole situation,
The consideration given in the principal memorandum to the views of the committee of the Chamber of Commerce, though not exhausive, is on the other hand not scant, and it will accordingly be sufficient here to allude to those matters which appear to possess a peculiar importance and significanee.
You will not fail to observe that the proposals made by the members of the committee with the object of extending Russian trade and influence in Manchuria and in Eastern Mongolia, do not lack ambition--expressed in brief, the committee desire that Russian goods imported into Manchuria shall be granted the same immunity from duty as that enjoyed under the treaty of 1881 by these goods when sent to Mongolia, and should this not be feasible, they would exact from the Chinese Government the concession of special privileges of a kind so generous as to give, if not the right of free trade, particular treatment of a nature barely distinguishable therefrom. As a further incentive to Russian trade and enterprise in the Far East, they claim that the Russian Customs Law of the 16th (29th) January, 1909, should be either withdrawn or modified in such a manner as to effectively secure the purpose which they have in view.
It is a noticeable feature of some of the arguments advanced by the committee that they do not conceal the intention to procure preferential treatment in Manchuria for Russian subjects and Russian goods and one may even go so far as to assert that the whole of their recommendations are imbued with the same spirit.
The extent to which the Russian authorities are prepared to go in order to give effect to the recommendations of the committee regarding the demands which it is
* Not printed.
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