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[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
ann 19 $ 25 Invoof andT
OPIUM.
CONFIDENTIAL.
[55582]
No. 1.
[December 30.]
SECTION 1.
(No 486.) Sir,
Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey. (Received December 30.)
Peking, December 12, 1912. IN continuation of my despatch No. 478 of the 5th instant, I have the honour to report that, taking advantage of the presence in Peking of Sir Everard Fraser, His Majesty's consul-general at Shanghai, I arranged for interviews with the Minister for Foreign Affairs and with the President of the Republic in order to renew my representations on the serious situation which has arisen through the recent concerted attempt of the Yang-tsze provinces to exclude Indian opium,
The interview with Mr. Lu Tseng-hsiang took place on the 9th in-tant, and Dr. W. W. You, the Vice-Minister-who himself negotiated the agreement of 1911– was present, together with a deputy of the tutu of Anhui. I reiterated the arguments used at my last interview, and pointed out that the reports of Sir Everard Fraser showed clearly that it was no longer a case of the provincial authorities acting in defiance of the wishes of the Central Government, for the tutus now maintained that their policy of immediate suppression of the retail trade and of the import of Indian Under these circumstances I could no opium had the avowed support of Peking. longer ask His Majesty's Government to make allowances for the lack of control due to the revolution, but must call upon the Chinese Government for an explicit declaration of their attitude towards the agreement of 1911.
Sir Everard Fraser then described the conditions at present existing in the provinces of Kiangsu, Chekiang, Anhui, Kiangsi, and Hupeh, all of which had now closed their doors to Indian opium and decreed the immediate suppression of the retail trade. Stress was laid on the statement of the tutu of Chekiang the pioneer province in treaty defiance-that the reissue of the former Wai-wu Pu's circular instructions He had of June 1911 was not sufficient to justify him in reopening his province. received a copy of these instructions recently sent to him by the Wai-chiao Pu "for information," but unless the President would issue definite orders to carry them out, he could not, in the face of local opposition, obey.
A similar statement of willingness to obey any definite instructions received from the President had been made by the tutu of Anhui.
The financial side of the situation, as it affected the foreign banks, which had advanced millions sterling on the security of the large stocks of opium accumulated in Shanghai, was then dealt with, and it was explained to Mr. Lu that the serious losses which would inevitably be caused by the depreciation of the security, following on the illegal closing of the markets, would fall on foreigners of every nationality, and would produce a financial crisis of far-reaching effect.
Mr. Lu, in reply, said that the Central Government had every desire to carry out their treaty obligations in the matter of opium, but that public opinion, which had developed in favour of accelerating the date for suppression, seemed worthy of consideration. The President, with whom he had conferred, was anxious that the joint investigation of provinces, with a view to their being placed on the prohibited list, should be proceeded with.
I pointed out that, as long as the provinces continued to enact prohibition on their own lines, it was out of my power to recommend His Majesty's Government to follow the course laid down by the agreement for the attainment of this object, and I could not admit that public opinion was well advised in advocating a departure from this course. The agreement, far from being a hindrance to rapid and effective suppression, was expressly designed to be an incentive and assistance to this end.
Mr. Lu then suggested that deputies should be sent from Peking to investi- gate the breaches of agreement complained of by me, but I replied that the evidence supplied by provincial proclamations and enactments required no corroboration, and, moreover, the time for investigation was passed, a grave crisis had arisen, and nothing but the immediate issue of explicit instructions by the Central Government
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