CO129-361 - Public Offices - 1909 — Page 511

589

C.0.

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This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.

Face R18 JUN 09

CHINA RAILWAYS.

CONFIDENTIAL.

[March 19.]

SECTION 2.

[10630]

(No. 66.)

No. 1.

Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received March 19.)

(Telegraphic.) P.

HANKOW-CANTON Railway loan.

Peking, March 19, 1909.

I have carefully considered the suggestion made in the last paragraph of your telegram No. 48, and there are two reasons why I think it would be inadvisable to act on it at present.

Firstly, the Chinese would not, I am afraid, be deterred from signing the final agreement by a formal reminder of the 1905 undertaking, nor would it oblige them to abandon their negotiations with the German Bank. On the contrary, they would probably arge the Germans to conclude the loan.

Secondly, should the London negotiations prove successful, as anticipated by Mr. Addis, it would be embarrassing to have made a formal communication such as The Chinese, who are of would be necessitated by the circumstances of the case. course desirous to frustrate the tripartite agreement, would immediately inform the Germans, and it might be used by the latter to the prejudice of the negotiations at present being conducted in London.

I shall make another verbal representation to Liang, who is inclined to favour our case, intimating that a strict adherence to the undertaking of the 13th February is expected by His Majesty's Government.

The Germans are the only people here who can prevent the signing of the final agreement, and therefore I think it advisable to delay making a protest in writing until the negotiations for the tripartite arrangement at home have failed definitely. There would still be time for me to make the protest, before the conclusion of the agreement, on the receipt of an urgent telegram.

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