CO129-343 - Public Offices & Foreign Office - 1907 — Page 608

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[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government) 602

AFFAIRS OF CHINA.

13726

[March 28,119 APR 07;

CONFIDENTIAL.

[9420]

No. 1.

SECTION 3.

Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received March 23.)

(No. 55.) Sir,

Peking, February 2, 1907. WITH reference to my despatch No. 47 of the 23rd ultimo, I have the honour to transmit to you herewith copy of a note which I have received from the Wai-wu Pu in reply to mine of the 21st ultimo, stating that the Chinese Government are at present actually engaged in making preparations for opening custom-houses at Antung and Tatungkou, and are only awaiting the completion of satisfactory arrangements for the opening of these establishments before the spring.

I also have the honour to inclose copy of an interesting report on Antung and Tatungkou which has been drawn up by Mr. Coales, Assistant at His Majesty's Consulate-General at Mukden, and compiled from data collected during his recent visit to those ports.

A certain amount of progress has been made since the date of my last report towards the establishment of custom-houses in Manchuria. M. Konavaloff, a Russian who has been Chief Secretary for some time to the Inspectorate here, has been appointed Commissioner of Customs at Harbin, and leaves in a few days to take up his post. A Mixed Commission of Russians and Chinese is to assemble there shortly for the purpose of determining the details connected with the establishment of customs stations at Manchuria and Pogranitznaia. China will be represented by M. Konavaloff and two Taotais deputed by the Governors of the two northern provinces of Manchuria, while the Russian Commissioners will be the Consul-General at Harbin and a General who is in charge of the Russian section of the Eastern Chinese Railway.

Mr. Palen, an American who is now Deputy Commissioner at Tien-tsin, proceeds as Commissioner to Antung on the opening of navigation, and it is to be hoped that the anomalous state of things which now obtains there will then disappear. Antung will add another specimen to the variety of customs establishments which now exist in China. It will be unique in that it will be charged with the collection of both maritime and frontier duties. Goods coming by sea will pay full duties, while those passing by rail from the Corean frontier will, it is stated, be subject to the Frontier Tariffs of other limitrophe countries. Mr. Oliver, a British subject, is Commissioner at Mukden, and will, I understand, excrcise a general surveillance over all the stations in Lower Manchuria, some of which will be manned by Chinese.

The negotiations with Japan for regularizing the customs position at Dalny have made a marked advance during the last few days, which may be attributable to the As reported in my telegram No. 23 representations you caused to be made at Tokið. of the 31st ultimo, the Japanese Government has at last notified its willingness to accept an arrangement similar to that which obtains at Kiaochow, and the Ministers of the Wai-wu Pu told me two days ago that negotiations would be immediately commenced on this basis. Both they and the Japanese Minister have assured me that they fully expect to arrive at a settlement of the question before the opening of Newehwang in the spring, and Mr. Hayashi added that if this expectation were not realized he saw no reason why a custom-house should not be provisionally established at Dalny. The area of the leased territory on the Liaotung Peninsula being much greater than that at Kiaochow, it may be necessary to adopt some modification of the arrangement prevailing at the latter place, and the Japanese Minister has suggested to the Wai-wu Pu that the Inspector-General of Customs should be appointed to come to an agreement with him on the subject.

I have, &c. (Signed) J. N. JORDAN.

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