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AN EXTRACT from the "Sheung Po" of the 18th October, 1906. (Translation.)
The Whampoa Railway Engineer passing Hong Kong.
His Excellency Cheung, Lord High Chamberlain, who undertakes to build the Canton Whampoa Railway, has engaged an American engineer at a monthly salary of $1,800. The engineer, having arrived at Hong Kong, has departed for Canton in the s.s. "Ying King" last night to take up his duties.
AN EXTRACT from the "Wa Tsz Yat Po," of 19th October, 1906. (Translation.)
Our special telegram received 6.30 yesterday from a Peking correspondent.
The British Minister has many times made representations to the Board of Foreign Affairs stating that the Whampoa Railway affects the interest of the Kow- loon-Canton Railway. The Board of Foreign Affairs has directed Viceroy Shum by telegraph to suspend the construction of the former line for the present, but Viceroy Shum has sent a telegram in reply strenuously opposing the Board's direction.
AN EXTRACT from the "Tsun Wan Yat Po," of the 20th October, 1906. (Translation.)
Further news regarding the construction of the Canton-Whampoa Railway.
We have reported lately that the construction of the Canton-Whampoa Railway would be suspended for the present. Later on we have learned that Viceroy Shum has insisted that his power should not be interfered with, and that the construction. must be carried on on his responsibility. He has detailedly discussed this matter with His Excellency Cheung, Lord High Chamberlain. It is believed that the construction of the railway will be commenced shortly, and there will be no delay.
As to the opening of Whampoa to be a Treaty Port which Viceroy Shum and His Excellency Cheung have jointly memorialised to the Throne, and received the Imperial sanction to do so, His Excellency Cheung's opinion is, we understand, that the matter should be laid aside until affairs should be properly managed regard- ing the Canton-Whampoa Railway. The matter is now under the consideration of
the authorities.
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No. 318.
GOVERNOR SIR M. NATHAN to THE EARL OF ELGIN. (Received December 1, 1906.)
(Secret.) MY LORD,
Government House, Hong Kong, November 2, 1906. In continuation of my secret despatch of the 21st September, 1906,* on the subject of negotiations for the completion of a loan agreement and of a joint working agreement in connection with the proposed Canton-Kowloon Railway, I have the honour to enclose, for information and record, a paraphrase of further telegraphic correspondence with your Lordship and His Majesty's Minister at Peking in this
matter.
2. I also enclose a copy of Sir John Jordan's despatch of the 13th October, referred to in his and my telegrams of the 25th (LVI.) and (LVII.). This despatch was received on the 26th nearly simultaneously with Sir John Jordan's telegraphic summary (LVIII.) of the extent to which the conditions on which I had laid stress in my telegrams of 28th August (L.) and (LI.) had been accepted. As telegraphed to your Lordship on the 27th (LIX.), I looked on the embodiment as Article 15 of the draft sent from Peking of Article 17 as printed in London as important. My
• No. 300.
491
reason for this is given in paragraph 3 of my despatch of the 21st September,* other- wise I could not consider the parts of the Peking draft directly affecting this Colony satisfactory, and I pressed His Majesty's Minister (LX.) at any rate to obtain the elimination from its Article 18 of the reference to "the agreements usual in regard to the junction and working of inter-State railways in other countries." It seemed to me that as there must be a vast number of such agreements differing widely in their provisions, the reference to them would give rise to endless discussion and delay in the settlement of the Canton-Kowloon Railway Working Agreement. Sir John Jordan, in reply, on the 29th (LXI.), pressed me to give at once my concurrence to the agreement as drafted, in the event of his not being able to obtain the modifica- tion for which I had asked. I hesitated to do this without receiving a reply to my telegram to your Lordship of the 27th,† in the face of the instructions contained in the final paragraph of Mr. Lyttelton's confidential despatch of the 17th February, 1905, and so telegraphed again for instructions on the 30th (LXII.). Not, however, having received these by the morning of the 31st, the date fixed for the final meeting at which the draft agreement was to be signed, I decided to concur in this signature (LXIII.), while again expressing a hope that it would be found possible to modify Article 18 in the manner I had suggested. Your Lordship's telegram received in the night of the 31st (LXIV.) justified my having taken on myself to do this. To the telegram I sent yesterday (LXV.) enquiring if the agreement has been signed, I have to-day heard (LXVI.) that this had not yet been done, but that the alteration I gested to Article 18 has been accepted.
sug-
3. Your Lordship will doubtless have received from the Foreign Office a copy of Sir John Jordan's despatch, No. 390, of the 29th September, 1906, § enclosing the minutes of the 4th meeting, held at Peking, on the subject of the loan agreement. The minutes of the 5th and 6th meetings are with enclosure 2 to this despatch.
4. I take this opportunity of acknowledging your Lordship's secret despatch of the 25th September, enclosing a copy of a telegram from Mr. Carnegie to Sir Edward Grey, dated the 6th of that month, with regard to the first three of these meetings.
I have, &c.,
Enclosure 1 in No. 318.
M. NATHAN,
Governor.
PARAPHRASE OF TELEGRAPHIC CORRESPONDENCE.
LVI.
HIS BRITANNIC MAJESTY'S MINISTER, Peking, to GOVERNOR. (Despatched 11.10 a.m., received 11.59 a.m., October 25, 1906.) (No. 25.)
Urgent. Canton-Kowloon Railway. Have you received my despatch of 13th October? There is some prospect of the final loan agreement being concluded to-day, and I should be glad to have your views. JORDAN.
LVII.
GOVERNOR TO HIS BRITANNIC MAJESTY'S MINISTER, Peking. (Sent 1.30 p.m., October 25, 1906.)
I have not yet received your despatch of 13th October. Are provisions on which
I laid stress in my telegram of 26th August embodied in draft final loan agreement?—— NATHAN.
3Q 2
No. 300. † No. 301. No. 64. Enclosure in No. 315. L.F. Enclosure in No. 284.
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