PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :-
TEC.O. 882
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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO
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Suchow. Tang had consulted with Prince, who had nothing to add to previous statements, but begged me to move His Majesty's Government to let this question rest until Kowloon is settled.
In any case His Highness was quite clear that the same negotiator could not undertake both, the conditions being different and the lines far apart.
I agree that it is better to deal with Kowloon first, and give Chinese Government time to overcome undisguised opposition to Suchow line.
24761
No. 265.
FOREIGN OFFICE to COLONIAL OFFICE. (Received July 9, 1906.)
[Copy to Governor, Secret, July 23, 1905. L.F.]
The Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs presents his compliments to the Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies, and, by direction of the Secretary of State, transmits herewith copy of the under-mentioned paper.
Foreign Office,
July 9, 1906.
Name and Date.
DESCRIPTION of Enclosure.
Subject.
Mr. Carnegie, Peking, No. 227, May 15, 1906
SIR,
(No. 227.)
Canton-Kowloon and Soochow-Ningpo Railwaya.
Enclosure in No. 265.
In his despatch, No. 170,
To Prince Ching, May 12th, 1906 (Boochow-Hangchow Railway.)
Peking, May 15, 1906. of April 10th, Sir E. Satow informed you of the proposals which the Viceroy at Canton had telegraphed to the Wai Wu Pu on March 3rd in respect to the Canton-Kowloon Railway, and recorded the circumstances which led to the appointment by the Viceroy of delegates to negotiate with the representative of the British and Chinese Corporation.
To Prince Ching, May 12th, 1906 (Canton-Kowloon Railway).
These negotiations were undertaken at Canton early in April by Mr. Bland on behalf of the Corporation, under instructions to adhere strictly to the Draft Agree- ment of February 18th, 1906.
On April 12th Sir Matthew Nathan telegraphed stating that negotiations were suspended on account of the departure of the Viceroy to the neighbouring province on special duty, but that his delegates, after recognising formally the Preliminary Agreement, had made on his behalf definite proposals which followed the general lines of the Northern Railways Loan Agreement, and had requested that if these proposals required modification it should be obtained at Peking.
The Governor of Hong Kong added that he was in favour of the Corporation taking the Viceroy's proposals as a general basis for further discussion, if it were understood that a Joint Working Agreement satisfactory to the Government of the Colony should be simultaneously concluded.
Mr. Bland thereupon came to Peking with the object of consulting with Sir E. Satow, and also in order to see the Director-General of the Shanghai-Nanking Railway on matters of business connected with that line.
His understanding with the Viceroy's delegates having been that, while His Excellency now admitted the binding force of the Preliminary Agreement, he was prepared to abide by such arrangements for the Final Agreement as might be made by the Central Government, it seemed desirable to see what could now be effected here. Consideration of the other railway interests of the Corporation lent further support to this view. The affairs of the Shanghai-Nanking Railway in reference to the provision of funds for the completion of the line had necessitated interviews
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between Messrs. Bland and Collinson (the Engineer-in-Chief) and the Director- General, T'ang Shao-yi. As it appeared probable that the Corporation would have to meet Mr. Tang's wishes to a certain degree on this question, the opportunity was favourable for using this leverage to gain his support in recommending that the Canton-Kowloon loan negotiation should be undertaken forthwith-a course to which I had reason to believe he was not opposed.
At the same time the question of the Sooohow-Hangchow-Ningpo Railway was at a deadlock, as reported in Sir E. Satow's despatch, No. 163, of April 10th, and it was necessary to induce the Wai Wu Pu to take some step which would have the effect of cancelling the Imperial Decree of September 23rd, under which the Governor of Chekiang still holds himself bound to cancel the Preliminary Agreement for this railway.
After consultation with Mr. Bland, I therefore decided that the best course to pursue would be to ask for a negotiator to be Imperially appointed to discuss the Final Agreements for both these lines with Mr. Bland in Peking, as reported in my telegram, No. 100, of May 14th.
I now have the honour to enclose copies of my notes to Prince Ching on this subject, of May 12th, of which the latter, concerning the Canton-Kowloon Railway, was the more urgent owing to news which I had just received from the Governor of Hong Kong that the Chinese project for building a line from Canton to Whampoa was being seriously considered by the Provincial Authorities.
The Right Honourable
Sir Edward Grey, Bart.,
&c.,
YOUR HIGHNESS,
&C..
&c.
I have, &c.,
LANCELOT D. Carnegie.
Peking, May 12, 1906. On April 19th Sir Ernest Satow addressed a note to Your Highness on the subject of the Soochow-Hangchow-Ningpo Railway, in which he pointed out that the Governor of Chekiang, relying on the Decree of September 23rd, was ignoring the earlier obligation of the Chinese Government, regarding which Your Highness had stated that the Governor should negotiate with the British and Chinese Corpora- tion. Sir Ernest Satow repeated his former requests that Your Highness should inform the Governor that the Preliminary Agreement must be faithfully carried out, and that he should, consequently, receive the Corporation's representative for the purpose of negotiating a final agreement.
To this note Your Highness has not yet been good enough to reply. In the meantime, the representative of the Corporation, Mr. Bland, has arrived in Peking on business connected with the Shanghai-Nanking Railway; and as it is clear that His Excellency the Governor of Chekiang has no intention of carrying out these negotiations, which in your letter of January 1st Your Highness stated would be continued by His Excellency, I beg to suggest that advantage be now taken of Mr. Bland's presence in Peking to discuss the terms of the final agreement here.
I have the honour, therefore, to request that Your Highness will be good enough to obtain the Imperial sanction for the appointment of a negotiator, to discuss and determine a final agreement in a friendly spirit with Mr. Bland in Peking.
I avail myself of this opportunity to renew to Your Highness the assurance of my highest consideration.
L. D. CARNEGIE, His Imperial Highness,
Prince Ch'ing,
&c.,
YOUR HIGHNESS,
&c.,
&c.
Peking, May 12, 1906.
I HAVE the honour to inform Your Highness that I have received a telegram from His Excellency the Governor of Hong Kong stating that he has learnt on trustworthy authority that the Canton Provincial Authorities are taking energetic steps to give effect to the Chinese scheme of constructing a railway from the provincial capital along the right bank of East River through Whampoa. Such