This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
3
there. That being the state of affairs at the time of the Treaty of 1887, the Viceroy of Canton in stationing troops in the old quarters is acting in accordance with the Treaty, which provided for the maintenance of the status quo pending a delimitation.".
The Portuguese Government now desires to settle this question in an amicable manner, and the Wai-wu Pu assuredly share that desire, but as the Portuguese Government raises the question of the observance of Article 2 of the Treaty the Board (should state that they) cannot consider the stationing of troops on Heng-ch'in Island (Vong-cam) and other places as a violation of the Treaty. China is the original lord of the land, and excluding (that which is administered by) Macao, according to the method of leased territory, the rest remains under Chinese jurisdiction.
At present all the two Governments have to do is to observe the stipulation of Article 2, that, so long as the delimitation of the boundaries is not concluded, everything in respect of them shall continue as at present without alteration by either parties. The request in the despatch under acknowledgment to withdraw troops stationed at Lappa, Heng-ch'in, and other places, and the statement that the places administered and guarded before the conclusion of the Treaty should for ever remain under the jurisdiction of the Portuguese Government are matters which the Wai-wu Pu finds it impossible to agree to.
I avail, &c.
(Extract.)
Inclosure 2 in No. 1.
Mr. Porter to Sir J. Jordan.
Canton, July 16, 1908.
I SPENT last week-end in Macao, partly for some fresh air and partly because it seems to be getting interesting.
I have located the mysterious Yin Kong. It is apparently identical with Annang, which appears on Admiralty Chart No. 2737, opposite the southern point of Macao, at the entrance to the inner harbour.
The Portuguese Consul-General here has no map of Macao, and, unless the Macao Government have one, it would seem as if none existed showing surroundings in full.
A new fort has been constructed on the top of the east point, and the fort at the north end of the Praya has been added to. Two quick-firing guns have been mounted in the former, commanding approach from Canton.
Road-making is going on actively, and the Praya is being continued round to the inner harbour. There are 600 Portuguese troops in the garrison, with 50-60 Macao Chinese.
I am told that "Governors" of both Kolowan and Taipa have been appointed, the latter being the slayer of one of King Carlos' assassins.
AFFAIRS OF CHINA.
CONFIDENTIAL.
[32666]
(No. 851.) Sir,
No. 1.
47
[September 21.]
SECTION 4.
Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.—(Received September 21.)
Rec 0.0.
37616
P.
15 001 08
Peking, July 31, 1908.
THE reports which have been sent to you by the Acting British Consul-General at Yunnan-fu and His Majesty's Consul at Hanoi, and of which copies have been forwarded to this Legation, will have supplied you with all the information which it has been possible to procure regarding the frontier incidents at P'halong and China.
The "Times" Peking correspondent, in his telegram of the 18th ultimo, furnished some interesting particulars showing the part which Sun Yat-sen and his followers are alleged to have played in these frontier raids, and I am indebted to Dr. Morrison for the communication, which I have the honour to inclose, and which contains the evidence on which his statements were based. It was supplied to him, I understand, by an official of the Singapore Government, who examined Li Yau-heng, one of the leaders in the movement.
A few days after Dr. Morrison's telegram was published the case was stated at length in the "Times" from the French standpoint, and a perusal of all these various documents left one in considerable doubt as to the points in dispute between the French and Chinese Governments and the degree of responsibility attaching to each.
The Phalong incident has since then been made the subject of a joint investigation which the French claim, and which the Chinese, I believe, do not seriously dispute, proves the Chinese troops to have been guilty not only of violating the frontier, but of having killed Lieutenant Weigand and three of his men.
The French Minister has courteously furnished me with a copy of a note which he intends to present to the Wai-wu Pu within the next few days. This document, of which a copy is inclosed, formulates the demands for reparation which France claims at the hands of the Chinese Government. But M. Bapst, in forwarding the paper to me, explained in a private note that these demands are only to be regarded as furnishing satisfaction for recent outrages, and that "the account for the unhandsome conduct of China towards France during the last two or three years will remain open."
As bearing upon the demand for the removal of the Viceroy, I should mention that on the 25th instant the Acting British Consul-General at Yünnan-fu telegraphed to me the substance of an interview which he had with his Excellency Hsi Liang, and suggested that, if I saw no objections, I should inform the Chinese Government that, in his view and that of his predecessor, it was due to the Viceroy's action that what at one time threatened to be a serious insurrectionary movement was so promptly checked.
In my reply of the 28th instant I informed Mr. Wilton that I considered it inadvisable to act upon his suggestion. Any such intimation would probably, I explained, be regarded and quoted by the Chinese Government as a justification of their resistance to French demands. I therefore instructed him, while continuing to cultivate good relations with the Viceroy, to maintain an attitude of absolute abstention in all that pertained to the dispute between his Excellency and the French.
I have, &c. (Signed) J. N. JORDAN.
P.S. Since the above was written Dr. Morrison has furnished me with the accompanying extract from a further letter from the same official at Singapore relative to Chinese revolutionary movements said to be organized on French territory.
J. N. J.
(1933 -
A
This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
3
there. That being the state of affairs at the time of the Treaty of 1887, the Viceroy of Canton in stationing troops in the old quarters is acting in accordance with the Treaty, which provided for the maintenance of the status quo pending a delimitation.".
The Portuguese Government now desires to settle this question in an amicable manner, and the Wai-wu Pu assuredly share that desire, but as the Portuguese Govern- ment raises the question of the observance of Article 2 of the Treaty the Board (should state that they) cannot consider the stationing of troops on Heng-ch'in Island (Vong- cam) and other places as a violation of the Treaty. China is the original lord of the land, and excluding (that which is administered by) Macao, according to the method of leased territory, the rest remains under Chinese jurisdiction.
At present all the two Governments have to do is to observe the stipulation of Article 2, that, so long as the delimitation of the boundaries is not concluded, every- thing in respect of them shall continue as at present without alteration by either parties. The request in the despatch under acknowledgment to withdraw troops stationed at Lappa, Heng-ch'in, and other places, and the statement that the places administered and guarded before the conclusion of the Treaty should for ever remain under the jurisdiction of the Portuguese Government are matters which the Wai-wu Pu finds it impossible to agree to.
I avail, &c.
(Extract.)
Inclosure 2 in No. 1.
Mr. Porter to Sir J. Jordan.
Canton, July 16, 1908. I SPENT last week-end in Macao, partly for some fresh air and partly because it seems to be getting interesting.
I have located the mysterious Yin Kong. It is apparently identical with Annang, which appears on Admiralty Chart No. 2737, opposite the southern point of Macao, at the entrance to the inner harbour.
The Portuguese Consul-General here has no map of Macao, and, unless the Macao Government have one, it would seem as if none existed showing surroundings in full.
A new fort has been constructed on the top of the east point, and the fort at the north end of the Praya has been added to. Two quick-firing guns have been mounted in the former, commanding approach from Canton.
Road-making is going on actively, and the Praya is being continued round to the inner harbour. There are 600 Portuguese troops in the garrison, with 50-60 Macao Chinese.
I am told that "Governors" of both Kolowan and Taipa have been appointed, the latter being the slayer of one of King Carlos' assassins.
AFFAIRS OF CHINA.
CONFIDENTIAL.
[32666]
(No. 851.) Sir,
No. 1.
47
[September 21.]
SECTION 4.
Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.—(Received September 21.) Rec
0.0.
37616
P.
15 001 08
Peking, July 31, 1908.
THE reports which have been sent to you by the Acting British Consul-General at Yunnan-fu and His Majesty's Consul at Hanoi, and of which copies have been forwarded to this Legation, will have supplied you with all the information which it has been possible to procure regarding the frontier incidents at P'halong and China.
The "Times" Peking correspondent, in his telegram of the 18th ultimo, furnished some interesting particulars showing the part which Sun Yat-sen and his followers are alleged to have played in these frontier raids, and I am indebted to Dr. Morrison for the communication, which I have the honour to inclose, and which contains the evidence on which his statements were based. It was supplied to him, I understand, by an official of the Singapore Government, who examined Li Yau-heng, one of the leaders in the movement.
A few days after Dr. Morrison's telegram was published the case was stated at length in the "Times" from the French standpoint, and a perusal of all these various documents left one in considerable doubt as to the points in dispute between the French and Chinese Governments and the degree of responsibility attaching to each.
The Phalong incident has since then been made the subject of a joint investiga- tion which the French claim, and which the Chinese, I believe, do not seriously dispute, proves the Chinese troops to have been guilty not only of violating the frontier, but of having killed Lieutenant Weigand and three of his men.
The French Minister has courteously furnished me with a copy of a note which he intends to present to the Wai-wu Pu within the next few days. This document, of which a copy is inclosed, formulates the demands for reparation which France claims at the hands of the Chinese Government. But M. Bapst, in forwarding the paper to me, explained in a private note that these demands are only to be regarded as furnishing satisfaction for recent outrages, and that "the account for the unhandsome conduct of China towards France during the last two or three years will remain open."
As bearing upon the demand for the removal of the Viceroy, I should mention that on the 25th instant the Acting British Consul-General at Yünnan-fu telegraphed to me the substance of an interview which he had with his Excellency Hsi Liang, and suggested that, if I saw no objections, I should inform the Chinese Government that, in his view and that of his predecessor, it was due to the Viceroy's action that what at one time threatened to be a serious insurrectionary movement was so promptly checked.
In my reply of the 28th instant I informed Mr. Wilton that I considered it inadvisable to act upon his suggestion. Any such intimation would probably, I explained, be regarded and quoted by the Chinese Government as a justification of their resistance to French demands. I therefore instructed him, while continuing to cultivate good relations with the Viceroy, to maintain an attitude of absolute abstention in all that pertained to the dispute between his Excellency and the French.
I bave, &c. (Signed) J. N. JORDAN.
P.S.Since the above was written Dr. Morrison has furnished me with the accompanying extract from a further letter from the same official at Singapore relative to Chinese revolutionary movements said to be organized on French territory.
J. N. J.
(1933 -
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