CO129-361 - Public Offices - 1909 — Page 80

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Paraphrase of Telegram from Sir E. Goschen to Sir E.Grey

No.47, dated April 7th, 1909.

Before I had received your telegram No.150 on the

subject of the Canton Hankow Railway I had yesterday

enquired of the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs

whether the statement referred to in the telegram was

correct. He replied that it was not correct but I

subsequently elicited from His Excellency that he had

been asked by the banks whether the Imperial Government

desired them to withdraw the agreement. His Excellency

stated that he had told the banks that they must do as

they liked, and that the German Government could not

take the responsibility of advising them to break an

engagement with the Chinese Government.

A long conversation showed that the German Govern-

ment could not bring pressure upon the German group,

but that if the action of the British Government put a

stop to the agreement they would have no objection at

all.

I called the attention of His Excellency to the

account of the Paris meeting published in the Times.

He