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of the Loan and Working Agreements, if necessary I
can get these done in Tientsin. I have not as yet
put the matter in hand because if Sheng is to nego-
tiate he will accept no translations but those pre-
pared by his own staff, and it therefore seems use-
less going to the expense (Tls.500) until we know
definitely who is to be the negotiator. I have
however informed Sir Ernest that I am prepared to
have the translations made at once if he so desires
and I await his instructions in the matter.
Yours very truly,
(Signed)
C. H. Ross.
Dear Mr. Ross;-
PEKING
June 6th, 1905.
The result of my conversation yesterday with
Na Tung seems to be this, that Sheng is attacked on
all sides by his foes, and that until he has either
beaten them or been defeated, the question of the
negotiator on the Chinese side for Canton Kowloon
railway cannot be settled.
If we attack him on the ground that he is
dilatory and difficult to deal with, we should be in
reality giving him a leg up, and if we advocated his
being chosen that would prejudice him still further.
The latter result is what we must desire in our own
interests, but we cannot very well lend ourselves to
such an intrigue. On the other hand, when I enlarg-
ed upon the necessity in Chinese interests of getting
hold of a man who could be trusted not to buy up
land, bricks or quarries with the object of filling
his pockets and those of his friends, and so increas-
ing
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