CO129-331 - Public Offices - 1905 — Page 362

(This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.

SOUTH-WEST CHINA.

CONFIDENTIAL.

35122 [September 18.]

تی

SECTION 1.2 OCT 05

No. 1.

355

Consul-General Wilkinson to the Marquess of Lansdowne.-(Received September 18.)

(No. 19.) My Lord,

Yunnan-fu, July 30, 1905. REFERRING to my despatch No. 5 of the 11th April last, I have the honour to list inclose copy of a further despatch to His Majesty's Minister, showing, from furnished me by the Governor-General here, that the Chinese still maintain certain military posts on the west, or Burmah, side of "Scott's Line" (the undelimited frontier south of Kunlong Ferry).

I have, &c.

(No. 28.) Sir,

(Signed) W. H. WILKINSON.

Inclosure 1 in No. 1.

Consul-General Wilkinson to Sir E. Satou.

Yunnan-fu, July 29, 1905. WITH reference to my despatch No. 13 of the 11th April last, I have the honour to inclose copy of a despatch which I have addressed to the Government of Burmah, covering translation of a Return of the Chinese military posts on the frontier about "Scott's Line.”

Ting Chiht'ai tells me that he has received copies of your despatch to the Wai-wu Pu of the 7th March and of Prince Ching's reply of the 30th March. (Copies of the English text have reached me through Burmah, but none of the Chinese.)

Shih Hung-shao, who is to go to Pu-erh as Acting I-nan Tao, is on his way hither from Tengyueh. I expect that Ting Ta-jên will not feel himself in a position to furnish the Wai-wu Pu with full information on the subject of the undelimited froutier from the Namting to Nalawt ("Scott's Line") until he has received Shih Taot'ai's reports from Chenpien, where the latter cannot now arrive for some three months. Ch'en Ts'an, who was one of the Chinese Boundary Commissioners in 1899-1900, is substantive Provincial Judge here, and he also will, no doubt, be consulted by the Governor-General. Ting Chiht'ai was himself Governor here at that time, so must be well posted already in the controversy. All the same, I think that he will, as I have said, await Shih Taot'ai's report before finally advising the Peking Government.

Sir,

I have, &c.

(Signed) W. H. WILKINSON,

Inclosure 2 in No. 1.

Consul-General Wilkinson to Government of India.

Yunnan-fu, July 28, 1905. REFERRING to my despatch of the 9th April last, I applied some short time ago to Governor-General Ting for information as to the position and strength of the Chinese military posts in Chenpien Sub-Prefecture. His Excellency telegraphed to the Brigadier-General at Pu-erh, and he has now sent me what I understand to be a copy of the consequent Return.

Of this Return I have the honour to inclose my translation, to which I have appended certain notes. I regret that I cannot identify all the places on the list, but sufficient names are marked on the various maps in my archives to show that the general disposition of the forces under the Brigadier's command is designed to hem in the K'a-wa on the east and south.

[2167 s -1]

Oct.