CO129-360 - Public Offices - 1909 — Page 105

103

This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Governmen()

CHINA RAILWAYS.

C

CONFIDENTIAL.

[122]

No. 1.

2497

[January 2, 1909.1

A. 19

SECTION 1.

Sir C. MacDonald to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received January 2, 1909.)

(No. 311.) Sir,

Tokió, November 27, 1908. IN the concluding paragraph of the summary inclosed in my despatch No. 293, Confidential, of the 15th instant, allusion was made to an Agreement signed at Peking on the 12th of the present month by the Japanese Secretary of Legation and the Director of the Chinese Railway Bureau with regard to a loan to the Chinese Government by the South Manchurian Railway Company of 320,000 yen (32,7001)) towards the capital of the Hsinmintun-Mukden line, and of 2,150,000 yen (219,5007) towards that of the Kilin-Changchun line. The text of this Agreement, which was ratified by the two Governments on the 15th instant, and is supplementary to the Convention of the 15th April, 1907, referred to in Mr. Lowther's despatch No. 95 of the 6th May, 1907, is published in the Japanese "Official Gazette of to-day, and I have the honour to inclose a translation of it herewith. The Agreement, besides dealing with the loan, lays down the mode of appointment, &c., of the Engineer-in- chief and Chief Accountant on the railways in question.

I have, &c. (Signed)

Inclosure in No. 1.

CLAUDE M. MACDONALD.

Extract from the Japanese " Official Gazette" of November 27, 1908.

THE Supplementary Agreement relating to the IIsinmintun-Mukden and the Kilin-Changchun Railways, signed by the Delegates of Japan and China on the 12th instant, and approved by the two Governments on the 15th instant, is as follows:-

The Governments of Japan and China recognizing the necessity of supplementing the points determined by the Convention with reference to the Hsinmintun-Mukden and the Kilin-Changchun concluded on the 15th day of the 4th month of the 40th year of Meiji, otherwise the 3rd day of the 3rd month of the 33rd year of Kuang-Hsü (15th April, 1907), before the Contracting Parties of the two countries proceed to draw up the contract of loan for the said lines in pursuance of the provisions of Article 4 of the said Convention, the undersigned have, under instructions, concluded an Agreement supplementary thereto as follows :--

Article 1. The Chinese Government, in accordance with the provisions of Articles 1 and 2 of the Convention regarding the Hsinmintun-Mukden and the Kilin- Changchun Railways (hereinafter called simply the Convention) will borrow from the South Manchurian Railway Company 320,000 yen in Japanese currency, being half the amount of the capital required for the section of the Peking-Mukden Railway east of the Liao River, and 2,150,000 yen in Japanese currency, being half the amount of the capital required for the new construction of the Kilin-Chang- chun Railway.

Art. 2. The rate of interest on the loan shall be 5 per cent. per annum.

Art. 3. The actual sum received under the loan shall, in accordance with the provisions of Article 6 of the Convention, be 93 for every 100 (yen).

Art. 4. In accordance with the provisions of Article 3 of the Convention, the Chinese Government shall, during the term of the loan, employ a Japanese as Engineer-in-chief on the section of the Peking-Mukden Railway east of the Liao River, and in the first instance shall appoint to the post the Japanese Engineer actually engaged on the Peking-Muklen Railway. As regards his duties, he shall

• Not printed.

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