CO129-360 - Public Offices - 1909 — Page 638

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The draft Agreement after having been read was considered clause by clause and agreed subject to the following points:-

(4) The insertion of an additional clause that all parties to the Agreement should bind themselves not to be interested in any competing business within the scope of the Agreement without disclosure of such interest, and the consent of the other parties thereto. This was agreed to in principle. The British and Chinese Corporation having communicated to the Meeting their Agreement with the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation of 30th June 1908, it is understood that the present Agreement is conditional on the continued adhesion of the Bank to the said Agreement and terminates automatically the moment the said Agree- ment is denounced.

(B) The insertion of a Clause ensuring the internationalisation of future Lonus. The Corporation pointed out that this was a matter for the decision of the Stock Exchange Committee but that they would be prepared to recommend it provided that the consent of the Paris Market was first obtained. The Banque de l'Indo Chine states that if the internationalisation of future loans were to be obtained in Paris, the expenses concerning stamp duty and publicity ought to be shared in common by the three parties.

CLAUSE 6.--The question of appointing a representative of one of the parties to conduct the negotiations with the Chinese Government was considered, and it was agreed that it should stand over for further consideration.

CLAUSE 10 (A).—The question of the appointment of an Engineer in Chief was considered at length and it was not contested that in regard to this point the Engineer in Chief to the Hankow Canton Railway must be British as provided in Clause 7A of the Addis Memo- randum. Accordingly it was proposed by the Corporation and the French Group that subject to the exclusion of the Hankow Cauton Railway and the Pookow Sinyang Railway all Railway business in China should be shared in as nearly as possible equal terms by the three Groups. The matter was held over in order to allow the German Group time to refer it to their Consortium in Berlin.

The Banque de l'Indo Chine as a condition of their approval of the present scheme raised the question of being permitted to participate in the Agreement between the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation and the Deutsch-Asiatische Bank of 1895 and 1905 and Mr. Addis and Mr. Rehders undertook to refer this matter to the consideration of their respective Directors.

The meeting was then adjourned until to-morrow morning.

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MINUTES OF ADJOURNED MEETING held at 3 Lombard Street E.C. on the 13th March 1909.

All the above gentlemen were present,

Mr. W. Keswick in the Chair.

The draft Minutes of the meeting held on the 12th March 1909 were read considered and approved in the terms above set forth and ordered to be printed for distribution and to be signed by the Chairman as correct.

Signed as correct.

W. KESWICK,

Chairman.

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