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of Mr. Dresing's temporary presence here to endeavour to convince the Chinese authorities that the demand was not an unreasonable one. They themselves have a very imperfect knowledge of questions of this kind, and the fact that their expert adviser, in whom they have much confidence, favours our contention, will be a decided advantage to me in conducting any future negotiations which you may consider advisable.
The simplest solution of the question, I venture to think, would be that the terminal office of the Chinese Telegraph Administration should be removed to the new frontier, and that the line from there to the old frontier should be acquired and worked by the Eastern Extension Telegraph Company. This is, as understand it, the second of the two alternatives put forward by Sir F. Lugard, and it is one which the Chinese Govern- ment might possibly be induced to accept, but not, I fear, without some pressure.
As regards the existing arrangement under which the Eastern Extension Company and the Chinese Telegraph Administration function in the same buildings in Hong Kong itself, any attempt to disturb it would, so far as my information goes, raise a very wide question. The arrangement was originally made in 1884, with the sanction of His Majesty's Government, I believe, by the late Mr. Dunn, then special agent of the Eastern Extension Telegraph Company, and its nature will be gathered from the inclosed letters which were addressed by him to the Director of the Chinese Telegraph Adminis tration in January of that year. The archives of this Legation do not unfortunately contain a complete account of these negotiations, but they go to show what Sir M. Nathan stated in his despatch of the 10th October, 1904, and what Mr. Dresing asserts to be a fact, namely, that the Eastern Extension Telegraph Company's rights over the lines from Shanghae to Woosung, and from Foochow to Sharp Peak, are intimately connected with the Concession granted to the Chinese Administration in Hong Kong, and that the latter cannot be questioned apart from the former. Further, the Eastern Extension Company enjoys other privileges in China, such as the office they maintain in Peking, which it seems very undesirable to raise at present.
I am sending a copy of this despatch to his Excellency the Governor of Hong Kong,
I have, &c.
J. N. JORDAN.
(Signed)
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2. At the place of junction of the Chinese and English land wires a brick house 0) shall be built and provided with a table, on which the Chinese and English wires shall be joined.
3. For the use of the English land and sea lines between Kowloon boundary and Houg Kong the Chinese Telegraph Company shall pay to the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company for each word transmitted 1 cent of a Mexican dollar. Service messages will not be charged for. Settlement of accounts to
be made monthly.
4. The Chinese Telegraph Administration will receive from the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company messages for Canton and for other places where the Chinese land wires are extended. The Chinese Telegraph Administration will receive in Canton, and all other places where the Chinese land lines are extended, messages intended for the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company and the Chinese Telegraph Administration will account for the moneys received from senders of such messages to the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company. Accounts to be adjusted monthly.
5. The Imperial Chinese Telegraph Administration will have its Hong Kong office in same building as the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company's office, and will pay rent therefore to the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company.
6. The land and sea lines between Hong Kong office of the Imperial Chinese Telegraph Administration and the boundary line at Kowloon shall be maintained in good working order by the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company, and all repairs that may be required shall be made with all dispatch by and at the cost of the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company.
7. All business between the English and Chinese Companies to be regulated by, and all questions settled according to, the Rules of the International Telegraph Convention.
8. This Agreement to be in force for twenty years from the 7th May, 1883. 9. In case of question or dispute the English version of this Agreement will bind both parties.
Of this letter six copies have been made, all of the same tenor and date and identical.
I have, &c. (Signed)
Sir,
Inclosure 1 in No. 1.
Mr. Dunn to Imperial Chinese Telegraph Administration, Shanghae.
Shanghae, January 21, 1884.
I HAVE to add, for your satisfaction, to the Agreement contained in my letter to you of this date, that the two land wires and two cables that have been provided by my Company to enable your Canton-Kowloon line to connect with Hong Kong, will be, according to the Agreement, placed at your Company's disposal, and will be brought to your Hong Kong office and worked by your Company's operators. In fact, the lines are specially for your Company's use, same as the Woosung-Shanghae land lines provided by your Company for my Company's use.
I am, &c. (Signed)
J. G. DUNN, Special Agent.
(Confidential.) Sir,
$
J. G. DUNN, Special Agent of the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company.
Inclosure 2 in No. 1.
Mr. Dunn to Imperial Chinese Telegraph Administration, Shanghae.
Sir,
Shanghae, January 21, 1884. HAVING the approval of Her Britannic Majesty's Government, I, on behalf of the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company, agree with the Imperial Chinese Telegraph Administration, of which you are the Chief Director---
1. That two Chinese land-line wires shall be brought to the British boundary of Kowloon and there connected with the two land wires belonging to the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Company. These two English land wires are joined on the sea-shore to two submarine cables, which give telegraphic communi- cation with the city of Hong Kong.
Inclosure 3 in No. 1.
Governor Sir F. Lugard to Sir J. Jordan.
Government House, Hong Kong, November 4, 1908. IN accordance with the request contained in your Excellency's telegram of the 26th ultimo, I have the honour to transmit copy of my despatch of the 3rd September last, and of Sir M. Nathan's despatch of the 10th October, 1904, referred to therein.
2. You will observe from the last paragraph of my despatch to the Secretary of State that I observe that I have sent a copy to you, and it is by an accidental oversight that these papers have not been sent to you earlier.
3. I also inclose copy of correspondence with the Chief Resident Engineer of the Chinese section of the Canton-Kowloon Railway concerning an application to run the telegraph wires of that section of the railway into Hong Kong.
I have, &c. (Signed) F. D. LUGARD.
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