This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government
443
2
offered my country the enjoyment of a preference, which he recorded in a despatch and communicated officially to the Wai-wu Pu and the high authorities at Canton and Changsha.
After his Excellency Chao succeeded his Excellency Chang at Wuchang this matter happened to be mentioned, when his Excellency declared that in his archives there was no record of it available for reference. After consulting by telegraph Sir John Jordan, I sent the Viceroy a copy of the despatch in question and also of correspondence between Sir Ernest Satow and the Wai-wu Pu regarding the Szechuan Railway.
Sir John Jordan now instructs me that, although the question of raising loans for the main lines south and west from Hankow is not yet settled, I should forward at once to your Excellency copies of the above important documents in case your Excellency, as a new comer, should not be aware of what has passed; and I have therefore the honour to do so.
In the Agreement for the redemption of the Hankow-Canton Railway Concession made in 1905 between the Grand Secretary Chang and the then Minister at Washington, Liang, as China's Representatives, and the China Development Company it is stipulated that China shall be responsible for the payment of the principal and interest of the Chinese Government bonds issued through that Company to the amount of 2,222,000 dollars gold and not presented for redemption by the holders, the parties deducting 90 per cent. of the face value of these bonds from the compensation payable to the Company under the Agreement. But, according to a statement of the French Minister's to our Minister, the Belgian Minister alleges that the interest on these bonds has never been paid by China during the three years since the resumption of the American Concession, and on this the Belgian Government founds a claim to the preferential right of lending money to build this line, a preference which is also made to rest on a letter written in 1898 by his Excellency Sheng to the Belgian Railway Company promising that, if the provisional contract with the American Company should not result in a definitive Agreement, the right to build the Hankow-Canton Railway should pass to the Belgian Company. Although that promise was, properly speaking, annulled by the regular Agreement between China and the American Company concluded in 1900, the Belgians persist in bringing the letter forward as a reason, backed by the failure to pay the interest due on the bonds for depriving Britain of the preference granted by his Excellency Chang.
I trust your Excellency will be good enough as soon as possible to let me know whether the interest has in fact been duly paid or not, in order that I may transmit the information which he calls for to my superior.
I avail, &c. (Signed) E. H. FRASER.
Inclosure 3 in No. 1.
CHINA RAILWAYS.
CONFIDENTIAL.
[27709]
No. 1.
[August 10] SEP 08
SECTION 2.
Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received August 10,)
(No. 288.) Sir,
Peking, June 24, 1908. WITH reference to your despatch No. 174 of the 3rd April, I have the honour to state that on the 15th May I received a letter from Mr. Bland, representing the Chinese Central Railways (Limited), requesting me to draw the attention of the Chinese Government to the fact that the Preliminary Agreement of the 6th January, 1899, for the construction of a railway from Pukow to Sinyang remained unfulfilled.
A copy of
After consultation with Mr. Bland, I decided to wait until the Shanghae-Hangchow-Ningpo Railway loan was issued; and soon afterwards, on the 12th June, I addressed a note to the Wai-wu Pu, copy of which is inclosed for your information.
I have not yet heard anything in reply on the subject,
The inconsistency referred to in your despatch under acknowledgment was mentioned to Mr. Bland, who pointed it out to Mr. Cordes, the representative of the German group. His reply to Mr. Bland was :-
"I admit that there is a discrepancy about the financing of branch lines to the northern section of the railway. I have always known that, and thought that it was a matter for London and Berlin to settle.”
Mr. Bland has asked his London Board to request the German Bank to define their position in respect of this discrepancy.
I have, &c. (Signed) J. N. JORDAN.
Inclosure 1 in No. 1.
(Translation.) Sir,
Viceroy Ch'en to Consul-General Fraser,
June 6, 1908.
I HAVE perused your note and the copies of correspondence inclosed in it. The successful accomplishment of the redemption of the Yueh-Han Railway was entirely due to your great kindness as the copies of the despatch and letters on record in the archives of my office show.
As regards the interest of the Gold Dollar Loan Bonds mentioned in the Hankow-Canton Railway Redemption Agreement the interest due to the amount of United States 55,550 dollars has been duly paid up to the 1st May, 1908 (Kuang Hsü 34th year, 4th moon, 2nd day), on every 1st May and 1st November by our Minister to the United States into the New York Bank in full; and on each occasion of payment 4,444 coupons have been sent back to Hupei to be cancelled. Thus the Belgian Minister's assertion that during the three years since the redemption no interest has been paid is manifestly incorrect.
With regard to the Belgian Company's reliance on Sheng Kung-pao's declaratory letter, as the Belgian Company was to have taken over the business from the Development Company, the Belgian Company cannot found any claim on the letter which his Excellency Sheng gave it previous to the buying up of the Development Company.
I avail, &c. (Card of Ch'en K'uei-lung.)
Your Excellency,
Mr. Bland to Sir J. Jordan.
Peking, May 15, 1908. UNDER instructions of the Board of Directors of the Chinese Central Railways (Limited), I have the honour to request that your Excellency may be good enough to draw the attention of the Chinese Government to the fact that the Preliminary Agreement signed by his Excellency Shêng, Director-General of Chinese Railways, and Messrs. Jardine, Matheson, and Co., on the 6th January, 1899, for the construction of a railway from Pukow to Sinyang remains unfulfilled.
A basis for the completion of this undertaking being provided in the Final Agreement recently signed in respect to the Tien-tsin-Pukow Railway, the Board of Directors hopes that the Chinese Government may now be pleased to authorize the necessary negotiations at an early date.
I have, &c. (Signed) J. O. P. BLAND.
Inclosure 2 in No. 1.
Sir J. Jordan to Wai-wu Pu.
Your Highness,
Peking, June 12, 1908. ON the 6th January, 1899, a Preliminary Agreement was concluded by his Excellency Sheng Hsuan-huai, Director-General of the Imperial Chinese Railway Administration, acting under the authority of the Tsung-li Yamên, with the British
This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Govermez |
443
2
offered my country the enjoyment of a preference, which he recorded in a despatch and communicated officially to the Wai-wu Pu and the high authorities at Canton and Changsha.
After his Excellency Chao succeeded his Excellency Chang at Wuchang this matter happened to be mentioned, when his Excellency declared that in his archives there was no record of it available for reference. After consulting by telegraph Sir John Jordan, I sent the Viceroy a copy of the despatch in question and also of correspondence between Sir Ernest Satow and the Wai-wu Pu regarding the Szechuan Railway.
Sir John Jordan now instructs me that, although the question of raising loans for the main lines south and west from Hankow is not yet settled, I should forward at once to your Excellency copies of the above important documents in case your Excellency, as a new comer, should not be aware of what has passed; and I have therefore the honour to do so.
In the Agreement for the redemption of the Hankow-Canton Railway Concession made in 1905 between the Grand Secretary Chang and the then Minister at Washington, Liang, as China's Representatives, and the China Development Company it is stipulated that China shall be responsible for the payment of the principal and interest of the Chinese Government bonds issued through that Company to the amount of 2,222,000 dollars gold and not presented for redemption by the holders, the parties deducting 90 per cent. of the face value of these bonds from the compensation payable to the Company under the Agreement. But, according to a statement of the French Minister's to our Minister, the Belgian Minister alleges that the interest on these bonds has never been paid by China during the three years since the resumption of the American Concession, and on this the Belgian Government founds a claini to the preferential right of lending money to build this line, a preference which is also made to rest on a letter written in 1898 by his Excellency Sheng to the Belgian Railway Company promising that, if the provisional contract with the American Company should not result in a definitive Agreement, the right to build the Hankow-Canton Railway should pass to the Belgian Company. Although that promise was, properly speaking, annulled by the regular Agreement between China and the American Company concluded in 1900, the Belgians persist in bringing the letter forward as a reason, backed by the failure to pay the interest due on the bonds for depriving Britain of the preference granted by his Excellency Chang.
I trust your Excellency will be good enough as soon as possible to let me know whether the interest has in fact been duly paid or not, in order that I may
transmit the information which he calls for to my superior.
I avail, &c. (Signed)
Inclosure 3 in No. 1.
E. H. FRASER.
CHINA RAILWAYS.
CONFIDENTIAL.
[27709]
No. 1.
[August 104 SEP 08
SECTION 2.
Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received August 10,)
(No. 288.) Šir,
Peking, June 24, 1908. WITH reference to your despatch No. 174 of the 3rd April, I have the honour to state that on the 15th May I received a letter from Mr. Bland, representing the Chinese Central Railways (Limited), requesting me to draw the attention of the Chinese Government to the fact that the Preliminary Agreement of the 6th January, 1899, for the construction of a railway from Pukow to Sinyang remained unfulfilled. this letter is inclosed.
A copy of
After consultation with Mr. Bland, I decided to wait until the Shanghae-Hangchow- Ningpo Railway loan was issued; and soon afterwards, on the 12th June, I addressed a note to the Wai-wu Pu, copy of which is inclosed for your information.
I have not yet heard anything in reply on the subject,
The inconsistency referred to in your despatch under acknowledgment was mentioned to Mr. Bland, who pointed it out to Mr. Cordes, the representative of the German group. His reply to Mr. Bland was :-
"I admit that there is a discrepancy about the financing of branch lines to the northern section of the railway. I have always known that, and thought that it was a matter for London and Berlin to settle.”
Mr. Bland has asked his London Board to request the Gerinan Bank to define their position in respect of this discrepancy.
I have, &c. (Signed) J. N. JORDAN.
Inclosure 1 in No. 1.
(Translation.) Sir,
Viceroy Ch'en to Consul-General Fraser,
June 6, 1908.
I HAVE perused your note and the copies of correspondence inclosed in it. The successful accomplishment of the redemption of the Yueh-Ilan Railway was entirely due to your great kindness as the copies of the despatch and letters on record in the archives of my office show.
As regards the interest of the Gold Dollar Loan Bonds mentioned in the Hankow- Canton Railway Redemption Agreement the interest due to the amount of United States 55,550 dollars has been duly paid up to the 1st May, 1908 (Kuang Hsü 34th year, 4th moon, 2nd day), on every 1st May and 1st November by our Minister to the United States into the New York Bank in full; and on each occasion of payment 4,444 coupons have been sent back to Hupei to be cancelled. Thus the Belgian Minister's assertion that during the three years since the redemption no interest has been paid is manifestly incorrect.
With regard to the Belgian Company's reliance on Sheng Kung-pao's declaratory letter, as the Belgian Company was to have taken over the business from the Develop- ment Company, the Belgian Company cannot found any claim on the letter which bis Excellency Sheng gave it previous to the buying up of the Development Company.
I avail, &c. (Card of Ch'en K'uei-lung.)
Your Excellency,
Mr. Bland to Sir J. Jordan.
Peking, May 15, 1908. UNDER instructions of the Board of Directors of the Chinese Central Railways (Limited), I have the honour to request that your Excellency may be good enough to draw the attention of the Chinese Government to the fact that the Preliminary Agree ment signed by his Excellency Shêng, Director-General of Chinese Railways, and Messrs. Jardinc, Matheson, and Co., on the 6th January, 1899, for the construction of a railway from Pukow to Sinyang remains unfulfilled.
A basis for the completion of this undertaking being provided in the Final Agree- ment recently signed in respect to the Tien-tsin-Pukow Railway, the Board of Directors hopes that the Chinese Government may now be pleased to authorize the necessary negotiations at an early date.
I have, &c. (Signed)
Inclosure 2 in No. 1.
Sir J. Jordan to Wai-wu Pu.
J. O. P. BLAND.
Your Highness,
Peking, June 12, 1908. ON the 6th January, 1899, a Preliminary Agreement was concluded by his Excellency Sheng Hsuan-huai, Director-General of the Imperial Chinese Railway Administration, acting under the authority of the Tsung-li Yamên, with the British
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