CO129-350 - Public Offices - 1908 — Page 340

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

( CHINA RAILWAYS.

CONFIDENTIAL.

[37059]

No. 1.

[November 9.]

SECTION 1.

(No. 190.)

Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received November 9.)

(Telegraphic.) P.

SOOCHÓW-NINGPO Railway.

Please see your telegram No. 116 of the 7th instant.

Peking, November 9, 1907.

At a long interview which I had with Prince Ching yesterday, I pressed most strongly for the simultaneous signature of the Tien-tsin-Yang-tsze and Soochow-Ningpo Railway Agreements.

He made use of the provincial opposition as a plea for delay in the case of the latter, in order to enable him to deal with this opposition, which he said had assumed a serious form. He stated that delegates from the gentry of Chekiang were to come to Peking, and that he hoped to bring them to reason by explaining to them the altered conditions of the Agreement which was being negotiated.

I deprecated this parleying with the province, and said that it would only increase the trouble; and I impressed earnestly on his Highness the duty of the Chinese Government to undo the mischief which they had themselves done in 1905, and to settle the question independently of the province, making use of the authority given to them by the Imperial Decree of the 20th October for this purpose.

I informed bis Highness that until the Soochow-Ningpo Agreement was ready for signature we should not sign the Tien-tsin-Yang-tsze Agreement, but I could not extract more from him than a promise to consult his colleagues and to do his utmost to hasten a conclusion of the question.

Although the Tien-tsin-Yang-tsze Agreement has been initialled by the negotiators, it is by no means ready for signature, as Yuan Shih-k'ai and Chang Chih-tung have still to revise it.

[2723 i-1]

333