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To this with the points he had made it still would not seem to me reasonable that His Majesty's Government should be asked to tie their hands in the manner suggested. Chen replied that they were not begging for recognition, that while he could understand our view the Nationalist government's aim was a government for the whole of China and that even if the position of stalemate was reached, which was all his amended formla was intended to cover, they would still be compelled strenuously to object to His Majesty's Government recognising any government of any other part of China.
replied that while I agreed generally
As no progress on this question of recognition seemed possible I suggested that we might pass to the discussion of his draft declaration regarding treaties, but Chen thought that as recognition was essential preliminary it would be uscleɛs to do so, To this I replied that discussion being barred, I must confina myself to a statement of the view had formed after considering his draft, This I then made on lines of opinion expressed in my telegram No.7 that principle underlying this declaration must be that of revision and not a negotiation of now treaties.
This caused Chen to launch into a further long speech on treaties which he characterised as having made an invisible conquest of China. The feeling regarding unequal treaties was so deeply implanted in Nationalists that they wished to (? extract) what they considered the root of their troubles. From his point of view there- fore, and he begged me to take the great difficulties of his position into consideration, it must be a question
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