PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE
Reference :-
C.O. 882
6
PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON
ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC-
COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH—NOT TO
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Viceroy emphatically denies that Americans have any right to a deep port at Whampoa or elsewhere, and states that no such concession will be granted to them."
I have not seen the trace of the British and Chinese Corporation's projected line, but if Chang's would compete with it, we might justly protest against grant of concession.
Attached to 4889
No. 83.
MESSRS. STEPHENSON, HARWOOD AND COMPANY to MR. G. V. FIDDES. [Answered by No, 85.]
31, Lombard Street, London, May 2, 1905. Canton-Kowloon Railway.
DEAR SIR,
SINCE settling with you the terms of the draft Agreement in this matter our clients' attention has been called by their Agents in Hong Kong to the fact that Clause 9 of the Working Agreement is not as clear as it might be and that, in con- sequence, questions might possibly arise in the future, even though it is unlikely to be the case during the existence of the bonds and net profit certificates. The clause in question has, therefore, been revised, with a view to avoiding such questions and without altering what was, we think, the intention of the parties, and our clients suggest that, if you approve of the revised clause, it should be sent out to Hong Kong to be incorporated if, by the time it reaches China, the negotiations should not have proceeded too far.
G. V. Fiddes, Esq.
We are, &c.,
STEPHENSON, HARWOOD AND COMPANY.
Enclosure in No. 83.
As soon as the railway approaches completion a Joint Board of Management shall be formed, composed of six members appointed as provided below, including a General Manager to be selected by agreement between the two contracting Governments.
Each Government shall appoint two members and so long as there are out- standing any of the bonds or net profit certificates of the Chinese Government which are proposed to be issued as herein before mentioned, the Corporation shall have power to agree on behalf of the Chinese Government with the Hong Kong Govern- ment as to the selection of the General Manager and also to have on the Board of Management one of its nominees as a member.
On the redemption of all the aforesaid bonds and net profit certificates the Corporation shall cease to have the right to appoint a member of the Board and the number thereof shall thenceforward be reduced to five.
Three members of the Board shall be a quorum and each Government and the Corporation may appoint temporary substitutes during the absence of the members appointed by them. The decision of the majority shall be final on all matters within the competence of the Board and not contrary to this Agreement.
14750
No. 84.
GOVERNOR SIR M. NATHAN to MR. LYTTELTON. (Received May 3, 1905.)
(Confidential.)
SIR,
Government House, Hongkong, April 3, 1905. WITH reference to your confidential despatch of the 2nd March, leaving to my discretion the matter of annexing an outline specification for the Canton-Kowloon
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Railway as a schedule to the Working Agreement for that line, I have the honour to inform you that the specification, as prepared by the Consulting Engineers to "The British and Chinese Corporation, Limited," does not appear to me to go so much more into detail than the provisions of clauses 4, 5, and 6 of the draft agreement as to make it worth appending it thereto. The inclusion of a more detailed specifi- cation, which could not be satisfactorily drawn up until the route of the railway has been definitely decided on and surveyed, would involve delay in the negotiations with the Chinese Government which would be undesirable.
4889
No. 85.
I have, &c.,
M. NATHAN,
Governor, &c.
MR. G. V. FIDDES to MESSRS. STEPHENSON, HARWOOD AND COMPANY. GENTLEMEN,
In reply to your letter to me of the 2nd instant* respecting the draft Working
Downing Street, May 4, 1905. Agreement (Canton-Kowloon Railway) I am desired to inform you that the revised draft of Clause 9, which you enclose, will be forwarded to the Governor of Hong Kong, with an intimation that the Secretary of State sees no reason to object to it.
15290
(Secret.)
No. 86.
Yours, &c.,
G. V. FIDDES.
GOVERNOR SIR M. NATHAN to MR. LYTTELTON. (Received May 6, 1905.)
[Copy to Foreign Office, May 18, 1905. L.F.]
SIR,
Government House, Hong Kong, April 5, 1905 I HAVE the honour to, acknowledge the receipt this morning of your cypher telegram of yesterday's date † informing me that the China Association of Hong Kong had stated that the Americans were endeavouring to get a deep water port in the neighbourhood of Whampoa as a terminus for the Hankow-Canton Railway, and to confirm the telegram‡ that I have sent in reply to the effect (1) that the American China Development Company appeared to have always claimed the right to go from Canton to a selected point on the coast; (2) that Mr. Cito of that Company had written to me on March 24th that the Chinese were proposing to build a line to Whampoa, which was being surveyed by an American of the name of McGee, but that this line was not to connect with the Canton-Hankow Railway; (3) that other information received from Canton was to the effect that the American Consul there had said that the Development Company intended to connect Whampoa and Canton and also that Mr. Cito was supposed to be negotiating with Mr. Gray, a former Chief Engineer of the Company; (4) that I was informed that the difficulties of making e good port at Whampoa were very considerable; and (5) that I was keeping Si Ernest Satow informed.
2. My authority for (1) is the enclosed extract from a book published in New York in the year 1900 called “An American Engineer in China," by William Barclay Parsons, who was in charge of the preliminary survey for the Canton-Hankow Railway. With regard to (2) I enclose an extract from a letter in which Mr. Cito, whose acquaint- ance I originally made in West Africa, sent me at my request some plans of the Sam Shui branch of the Canton-Hankow line. The information referred to in (3) is contained in the annexed extract from a communication to the "China Mail" paper, which was not published in that paper, but was supplied to me by the kindness of the Editor. I have been told the source of the information which is a good one. As to (4) I am only going by current reports, but will make further enquiries. With
news-
• No. 71.
• No. 83.
18843
† No. 78.
* No. 79.
01