CO129-361 - Public Offices - 1909 — Page 198

C.0.

This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government15 128

PEC

CHINA RAILWAYS.

CONFIDENTIAL.

[10915]

(No. 98.) Sir,

No. 1.

REG 5 MAY 09.

[March 29.J

SECTION 4.

196

Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.--(Received March 22.)

Peking, March 3, 1909. I HAVE the honour to inclose, for your information, copies of further correspondence relating to the affairs of the Shanghae-Ningpo Railway.

My note of the 9th February to Prince Ching was still unanswered when I received from Mr. Bland copy of a Confidential Report by Mr. Foord, the Chief Engineer, on the unsatisfactory position and prospects of the railway. It appeared to me desirable in the circumstances that measures should be taken into consideration. without delay, either by the Hong Kong and Shanghae Banking Corporation or the British and Chinese Corporation, for the purpose of preventing irregular use of the loan funds, which, according to the latest information, were being issued by the Board of Communications to the provincial bureaux. I advised Mr. Bland to that effect, and I also arranged for a special interview with the Grand Secretary Na-t'ung, which took place yesterday. I placed before his Excellency a Memorandum, copy of which is inclosed,* containing a full statement of the present deplorable situation, based on Mr. Foord's Report, and urged him strongly, as a member of the Grand Council, to devise some remedial measures as soon as possible.

Much old ground was gone over in the course of our conversation, during which his Excellency showed that he thoroughly understood the difficulties and the necessity for a prompt remedy. He admitted, with unusual frankness, that the Board of Commerce were to blame for all the complications which had arisen, and said that he would consult with the President of the Board of Communica- tions personally and see what could be done. Unfortunately, the recent dismissal of Ch'on-pi had left that Board without a proper head.

I made some severe comments on the conduct of this matter by the Board of Communications, and expressed my conviction that nothing short of the direct inter- vention of the Central Government would suffice to bring the two provincial bureaux into proper subjection. He then mentioned that the affairs of the Board of Communications were being carefully inquired into by the Prince Regent himself at the moment, and I took advantage of this observation to request that his Highness' attention should be specially invited to this question of the Shanghae- Ningpo Railway. His Excellency gave me to understand that this would be done as soon as he had had a consultation with the acting President of the Board of Communications.

I have, &c. (Signed)

J. N. JORDAN.

Sir,

Inclosure 1 in No. 1.

Mr. Bland to Sir J. Jordan.

Peking, February 22, 1909.

I HAVE the honour to forward herewith inclosed, for your Excellency's informa- tion, copy of a Confidential Memorandum supplied by Mr. Foord to the Corpora- tion's agents at Shanghae, giving his professional opinion as to the position and prospects of the Shanghae-Hangchow-Ningpo Railway.*

With this document I am also in receipt of a statement from the Hong Kong and Shanghae Bank's Manager, showing that his Excellency Liang Shih-yi has drawn a total sum of 1,750,000 taels from the loan funds for this railway. In this connection Messrs. Jardine, Matheson, and Co. (Limited) report:-

"Of the above-mentioned amount the Managing Director has received 300,000 taels from the Yuchuan Pu, and under instructions of that Board he has been

* Not printed.

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