[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
AFFAIRS OF CHINA,
CONTIDENTIAL.
[30594]
No. 1,
92
C O
[September 10.
SECTION B
Gen 1A NOV 06
(No. 319.) Sir,
Mr. Carnegie to Sir Edward Grey.--(Received September 10.)
Peking, July 24, 1906, IN reply to your telegram No. 91 of the 9th May, inquiring what progress had been made towards obtaining the punishment of the officials and ringleaders concerned in the riots which took place at Shanghae last December, and compensation for the damages caused by the rioters, I had the honour, in my telegram No. 99 of the 11th May, to refer you to Sir Ernest Satow's despatch No. 189 of the 10th April, which contained the latest account of how matters stood, and to suggest that I should defer taking any action here until I learnt the result of an interview which had taken place between Sir Ernest Satow and the Viceroy of Nanking.
Mr. Campbell, who had accompanied Sir Ernest, informed me on his return to Peking that nothing had been arranged in regard to this question. I accordingly addressed a note to Prince Ching on the 29th May, of which I inclose a copy, recalling the correspondence and conversations which had passed between Sir Ernest Satow and the Wai-wu Pu on this subject, and begging his Highness to favour me with a reply at an early date. I went to the Wai-wu Pu the same day, where I was informed that the Viceroy and the Shanghae Taotai had been warned that proposals for a settlement of these questions must be made without delay (see my telegram No. 115 of the 30th May). Still being without an answer, I went to the Wai-wu Pu on the 5th June. The Board assured me that they had every desire to dispose of this incident amicably, and that, as the matter was a local one, they hoped that I would agree to a proposal from the Viceroy to appoint his Secretary, Lo Taotai, and the new Shanghae Taotai to discuss a settlement with His Majesty's Consul-General at Shanghae. I objected at first, as I considered that the principle of compensation should be agreed upon here as a preliminary step. After some discussion the Board offered to telegraph to the Viceroy that compensation should be paid to bond fide sufferers. I considered this a sufficient admission of liability, and agreed to telegraph to His Majesty's Consul-General after having received your authorization. On my remarking that His Majesty's Consul. General could, of course, only deal with British claims, the Board stated that the Deputies should arrange non-British and municipal claims with the authorities concerned. I reported the above to you in my telegram No. 122 of the 6th June, and ventured to propose that I should instruct Sir Pelham Warren to meet the Deputies and discuss with them the question of compensation and the punishment of officials and ringleaders. Your approval was signified in your telegram No. 111 of the 7th June, which, together with my telegram to you, was repeated to Sir P. Warren for his information. He asked whether he should discuss the question of punishments alone with the Deputies or act in concert with the Consular Body. I replied that for the present he should act alone, as I was ignorant of the views held by some of my colleagues on the subject. In the course of the next few days I saw all the Foreign Representatives who have any interests in Shanghae, explained the nature of the proposal made by the Wai-wu Pu, and obtained their consent to instruct their respective Consuls to support Sir P. Warren in whatever manner he might consider most desirable. I inclose copy of my despatch to Sir P. Warren informing him of the above arrangement.
A few days later, Sir P. Warren having telegraphed that the Taotai had stated that he had no instructions to the effect that the principle of compensation had been conceded, I asked the Wai-wu Pu for an explanation. They said that no attention need be paid to the Taotai's statement, that the Viceroy had agreed that compensation should be paid where it was due, and that Taotais Lo and Shen Tung were being sent from Nanking, who, with the Shanghae Taotai, would open the discussion with His Majesty's Consel-General. I duly informed Sir P. Warren of the Board's statement.
On the 3rd July I again inquired of the Wai-wu Pu if the Taotais had been sent yet to Shanghae, as I knew from a chance reference in a despatch dated a few days back from His Majesty's Consul at Nanking that Lo Taotai at all events had not then started. On my pointing out that a month had elapsed since I had telegraphed to
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