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the Syndicate's rights," &c. Ch'en Chu Lun replied that he had spoken of the meeting at the former interview, and had asked Mr. Brown to go to P'ing T'an to meet his Excellency Ting, but that Mr. Brown could not assent to this proposal, nor could his Excellency Ting come to Peking, as he had taken up the duties of Provincial Treasurer. Moreover, Mr. Chen said, "If the Agent-General insists upon opening mines in Shansi, there is no use in my staying here, nor in discussing the question of an interview with his Excellency Ting, because the people of Shansi were firmly set against the Syndicate's opening mines there." Mr. Ch'en then mentioned the fact of the original Concessions having been made between the Bureau of Trade and Mr. Luzzatti, upon which Mr. Brown said, "It is necessary to make plain once for all that Mr. Luzzatti was merely the Agent-General of the Peking Syndicate. He held the same position that I now hold, nothing more." Mr. Chen said, "The people of Shansi claim that the Agreement between the Bureau of Trade and the Peking Syndicate has nothing to do with the Government; that the mineral resources of Shansi belong to the people and were not sold to the Peking Syndicate, the Peking Syndicate being simply asked to develop them on their behalf." Mr. Brown said, in reply to this, that it had been recognized throughout the ages in China that the mineral resources of the country belonged to the Government, and Mr. Chen was asked whether or not the fact of the Emperor's having issued an Edict sanctioning the Agreement. and the 'T'sung-li Yamên's having sealed the same, did not raise the Agreement above that of a simple matter as between the Bureau of Trade and the Peking Syndicate. Mr. Ch'en replied to the effect that the people of Shansi were determined to resist the Syndicate, and if the permit were ordered to be issued the officials would be unwilling to take responsibility in the matter. Mr. Brown said, "Is the Government in authority over Shansi, or is Shansi independent ? " Mr. Chen replied that Shansi was, of course, under the authority of the Central Government, but that in these times the students and people were so strong as to force the hands of the Government. students had written to Shanghae and London legal authorities for advice, and He also said that the were prepared to enter the Law Courts against the Peking Syndicate. told Messrs. Ch'en that the Syndicate did not fear such action, and that the only Alr. Brown gainers from such a course would be the lawyers. Mr. Ch'en then said that if the matter had been put into the hands of the British Minister and the Wai-wu Pu there was no use in his remaining, and he would request the Agent-General to give him a letter to take back with him to Shansi; but that if proposals for a compromise would be entertained, his Excellency Ting would try his best to shoulder the burden of settling the matter on behalf of the people of Shausi,
Mr. Brown asked what proposals his Excellency Ting had to make, and he impressed upon Messrs. Ch'en the justice of the demand that proposals for a compromise should come from Shansi as it was from that source all the opposition to the Syndicate came. Mr. Ch'en said that his Excellency Ting spoke of redeeming the Concessions and reimbursing the Syndicate for all it has lost. He cited the case of the Canton-Hankow Railway, which originally was conceded to an American Corporation, who sold it to a Belgian Syndicate, but which was redeemed by the Government's paying compensation to the American concessionnaires. Mr. Ch'en continuing, said, "It will be admitted that the Canton-Hankow Railway Agreement is a much larger concern than the Peking Syndicate, and that if that could be redeemed, then surely so also could the Peking Syndicate's Concessions." Mr. Brown replied, "I cannot admit that the Canton-Hankow Railway Agreement is a much larger concern than the Peking Syndicate's Concessions, and I would point out that the Canton-Hankow Railway dispute was settled only by an arrangement satisfactory to the American Corporation." Mr. Ch'en said that he was aware of this, and he further said that his Excellency Ting was prepared to take up the matter of compensation if the Agent-General would submit a statement of the Syndicate's losses. informed Mr. Ch'en that the first claim for compensation had already been sent to the Mr. Brown then Wai-wu Pu through the British Minister, acting under orders from the British Foreign Office. Mr. Ch'en asked, "What is the amount claimed ?" this could be ascertained from the Wai-wu Pu, in whose hands the matter now rests. Mr. Brown replied that Then," said Mr. Ch'en, "seeing that the matter bas been placed in the hands of the Government it is useless to talk of compromise." Mr. Brown replied that he was quite prepared to listen to reasonable proposals from Ting Nieb-tai, or any properly authorized person acting officially, and if a reasonable proposal were made it would be submitted to the British Minister for approval. By means of an illustration, Mr. Brown then sought to show Messrs. Ch'en that if it was proposed to take away something which belonged to the Peking Syndicate and to substitute something else for it, the Peking Syndicate was justly entitled to know what this something else was, so as to be able to judge its
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value. Mr. Chen again referred to the subject of compensation, whereupon Mr. Brown informed Mr. Ch ́en that the claim already sent in was simply the first claim, and that others would accumulate as time elapsed without the Syndicate being granted its rights under the Agreement. Mr. Ch'en then again referred to the power the students exercise in national affairs, citing by way of illustration the case of the Governor-General of Yünnan-Kueichow, Ting Ch'en To, whose removal from office was secured by students because he had made so many Railway Concessions to the French, and who was by the same class of people prevented from taking up the post of Governor-General of Fukien- Chekiang, to which he had been appointed by the Government.
This was followed by a long recital of the difficulties encountered by the Govern- ment from the students and reformers, all of which was apparently designed to show that the Peking Syndicate would never be allowed to carry on operations in Shausi in peace.
Mr. Brown stated that the justice of the Syndicate's claim has been recognized by the Chinese Government in that the issue of the permit had been promised to him by the Wai-wu Pu. It had also been promised by the Wai-wu Pu to the British Minister. Mr. Chen said ironically, "I wish you may get it." He then went on to remark, "Orders had been sent by the Wai-wu Pu to the Governor to issue the permit within a week, and it was not issued. These orders had been peremptorily repeated, and they were not obeyed. So it would be to the end."
No other business was discussed, and Mr. Brown, in conclusion, stated that he would prepare a letter for his Excellency Ting, and take it to Messrs. Chien at their hotel on the morning of the 25th (9th January, 1907). Messrs. Chien then expressed regret that nothing had resulted from the interviews held, and took their departure after a meeting of two hours, during which the same ground was gone over again and again.
Inclosure 3 in No. 1.
Mr. G. Brown to Sir J. Jordan.
Peking Syndicate (Limited), Tien-tsin, Your Excellency,
January 15, 1907. IN continuation of my Report of the 8th instant on his Excellency Ting Nieh- t'ai's advance to the Syndicate and his professed anxiety for a meeting with me, I have the honour to inclose accounts of further interviews with his Excellency's deputies, still showing that their mission was not for the purpose of arranging a conference, but for suggesting a compromise, the basis of which was to be the exclusion of the Syndicate from Shansi. A copy of my reply to his Excellency Ting Nieh-t'ai is also included. among these documents,
I have, &c.
(Signed)
GEORGE BROWN, Agent-General.
Inclosure 4 in No. 1.
MEMORANDUM of an interview between Messrs. Chifen Chu Lun, Ch'en Chil Feo, and Dr. Gatrell, held at the Fo Chao Lou, Tien-tsin, the 9th January, 1907.
MESSRS. CH'EN allowed Dr. Gatrell to read a telegram in Chinese, which said in effect: " Any arrangement regarding the Peking Syndicate's affairs in Shansi must be such that the whole of the population of Shansi can approve of it. It will not be sufficient to have the approval of the Wai-wu Pu alone. The Kowloon, Canton- Hankow, and Soochow-Ningpo Railways, and the (P) Tung Kuan Shan Mining Concessions in Anhwei have been redeemed, notwithstanding the sanction of the Wai- wa Pu had been given. If the Peking Syndicate will accept in settlement au extra amount of compensation over and above its actual losses, then Ting will be able to render assistance."
Messrs, Ch'en further said that supposing the permit were granted, the Syndicate would not be allowed to work in Shansi, because the people would resist them, "not by acts of violence, but by the simple method of closing the doors upon them." Also, "The Pao Ku Company is importing machinery into Shansi, and are expecting to have
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