551
18
No. 25.
Peking Syndicate to Foreign Office.—(Received October 28.)
Sir,
110, Cannon Street, London, October 28, 1903. I AM desired by my Board to forward, for the information of the Foreign Office, copy of a telegram received yesterday from Mr. George Jamieson, C.M.G., Shanghae. The negotiations referred to are in connection with the arrangement mentioned in Foreign Office letter of the 13th August last. It would appear that his Excellency Sheng Taotai is endeavouring to defer a settlement of this matter which is of such importance to the Peking Syndicate, and my Directors trust that as his Excellency, the British Minister at Peking, has been informed by Mr. Jamieson of what has occurred steps will be taken to induce the Chinese Government to proceed with the business and bring it to a speedy conclusion.
I have, &c.
(Confidential.)
Sir,
19
No. 27.
Admiralty to Foreign Office. (Received October 30.)
Admiralty, October 27, 1903.
I AM commanded by my Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty to transmit herewith, for the information of the Marquess of Lansdowne, copy of a letter of the 4th ultimo from the Commander-in-chief, China Station, forwarding a letter addressed by him to His Majesty's Ministers in China, Japan, and Corea, embodying information obtained during his visit to Vladivostock.
I am, &c.
(Signed)
EVAN MACGREGOR.
(Telegraphic.)
(Signed)
THOMAS GILBERT, Secretary.
Inclosure in No. 25.
Mr. Jamieson to Peking Syndicate.
Shanghae, October 26, 1903. NEGOTIATIONS with his Excellency Sheng Taotai at a deadlock, be requires us to undertake not to work iron for a long time to come alleging injury to Hanyang Ironworks, Am forwarding all particulars to British Minister at Peking.
NOTE. It is supposed that his Excellency Sheng Taotai is personally interested in the Hanyang Ironworks.
Sir,
No. 20.
Treasury to Foreign Office.--(Received October 29.)
Treasury Chambers, October 28, 1903.
I HAVE laid before the Lords Commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury Mr. Campbell's letter of the 27th instant, inclosing, by direction of the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, a copy of a telegram from Sir E. Satow, suggesting a modification of the conditions for signature of the gold Indemnity bonds by the Chinese Government.
In reply, their Lordship's direct me to point out that the Concession which the French Minister now proposes to make to China would appear to be inconsistent with the tenour of the bonds which the Chinese Representatives are to sign.
Under the scheme of the Belgian Minister, as described in Mr. Campbell's letter of the 30th ultimo, China would have been required to pay, in the long run, the full gold value of the debt with interest, though the time required for completing payment would have depended upon the gold value of the tael. But, with the modification now proposed, China, while paying in gold the full amount of the capital debt, will be released from paying interest on the amounts which may fall into arrear through the depreciation of the tael.
My Lords think it desirable to call attention to this apparent discrepancy in the proposals, but as regards the substance of the Concession they think it is one which the British Government need not hesitate to make if the concurrence of the other Powers can be obtained. Accordingly they agree with Lord Lansdowne's proposal to authorize Sir E. Satow to act with the French Minister in the matter, on the under- standing that the British Government is not pledged thereby to accept less favourable treatment than may be accorded to the other Powers.
I am, &c.
(Signed) E. W. HAMILTON.
(Confidential.)
Inclosure 1 in No. 27.
Vice-Admiral Sir C. Bridge to Admiralty.
SUBMITTED. The information contained in the inclosed copy of a letter, being primarily of local interest, was addressed by me to the Ministers in China, Japan, and Corea; but a copy is submitted for the information of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty.
CYPRIAN A. G. BRIDGE.
(Confidential.)
(Signed)
Inclosure 2 in No. 27.
Vice-Admiral Sir C. Bridge to Sir E. Satow.*
Sir,
September 4, 1903, THE following information, obtained during my recent visit to Vladivostock- the 31st ultimo to the 4th instant--may be of interest to your Excellency.
2. Admiral Alexieff's new appointment was much talked of. The Russian Com- mander-in-chief said that the name was "Lieutenant of the Emperor;" that it was not in itself new, having been held in Poland and in the Caucasus; but it had never before been given to any one but a member of the Imperial family. It was described to me as being much the same as that of our Viceroy in India. The appointment puts the holder of it in direct communication with the Emperor, without the intervention of or State Department.
any
Minister
3. Admiral Alexieff's selection for such a post has greatly pleased the officers of the Russian fleet on this station. They evidently felt flattered by its being a brother officer of their own who was chosen to fill it. Some officers said that the appointment would lead to economy of public money, as Admiral Alexieff would now have complete control of the finances. It is believed by some, at least--that he will stop the work at Dalny. The Admiral himself told me at Port Arthur, in June, that he was convinced that neither Dalny nor Kiao-chau (Tsingtao) had any real prospect of becoming commercially prosperous.
4. The prevailing view amongst the higher Russian officers appeared to be that Port Arthur, in addition to being a great naval port, might become a considerable commercial port, and that a part of the money which they hold is being wasted on Dalny would be better spent on improvement of the western basin at Port Arthur,
5. The choice of Admiral Alexieff for this post was said to be due exclusively to the Emperor, who takes great interest in the navy, and had become intimately acquainted with the Admiral, of whom His Imperial Majesty has formed a high opinion. It was remarkable that no Russian officer at Vladivostock seemed to look upon Admiral Alexieff's appointment as having any but a pacific tendency.
6. The officers of all ranks were curiously frank in the expression of their views on Russia's relations with Japan. They said that a couple of months back they looked The Vice-Admiral upon war as very near, but that now there was not going to be one. Commander-in-chief said that he had not been able to visit Hong Kong, as he bad wished, because of "the affair with Japan," but that now he hoped to visit the place
* Also to Sir C. MacDonald and Mr. Jordan,
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