2
convenient to record briefly here the progress that had been made in this regard, before the death of the Viceroy Yang, the fall of Director Li, and the present determined opposition of the gentry, interposed obstacles that cannot but fear will retard the accomplishment of the object in view.
After several interviews and correspondence between the British and German consuls, and the late Viceroy and other authorities of the railway, the Viceroy Yang agreed to provide railway station facilities for the foreign settlements.
At an interview which Mr. Ker, acting British consul-general, and Mr. Knipping, German consul, bad with the Viceroy on the 18th February last, when Li Te-shun, the customs taotai ts'ai, a deputy of his Excellency Sun Pao-chi, associate director of the railway, and other officials were also present, the following terms were agreed to as a basis for further negotiations towards carrying out the Anglo-German scheme, the Viceroy only stipulating that the land required should be purchasable on reasonable
terms.
From the main city station a branch line to run to the settlements station, and from there a connecting line to be constructed round the south of the German concession to a landing station on the bund. The railway to purchase the land required for this purpose. The arca of the said landing station to be bounded on the east by the river bank, on the west by Victoria Road, on the north by Bromley Road, and on the south by the German concession. The Chinese Government to have jurisdiction over this area, but the bund road to be kept open as a public thorough- fare, and maintained in good repair. The wharves to be constructed by the railway. The mooring and bund fees never to be lower than those charged in the British and German concessions. The land in the German concession occupied by the track from the settlements station to the goods landing station also to revert to Chinese jurisdiction. The railway administration to undertake to run trains with passenger accommodation for all classes to connect with all regular trains leaving or arriving at the city station.
The British and German communities were to consult with the engineer-in-chief of the northern section (Herr Dorpmuller) as to the route to be followed by the line connecting the city station with the settlements station. Some delay has been caused by repeated absence on duty of the engineer-in-chief; but consultations have taken place, land surveyed, and plans drawn up, and negotiations with land-owners entered into, during the last four months. When the British and German communities are ready with detailed plans and estimates to submit to the incoming Viceroy and the new managing director, it will be learned how far the high authorities are prepared to yield to the demands of the gentry on the subject of the main station site, and what modifications it will accordingly be necessary to make in the scheme for the settle- ment stations.
The name of Li Te-shun's successor has not yet been made known.
I have, &c.
J. N. JORDAN.
This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
356
CHINA RAILWAYS.
CONFIDENTIAL.
9354 [August 9.1
SECTION 2.
[29901]
(No. 264.) Sir,
No. 1.
Sir J. Jordan to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received August 9.)
Peking, July 21, 1909. IN my telegram No. 118 of the 15th instant I had the honour to communicate to you the substance of a telegraphic report which had reached me on the previous day from His Majesty's consul-general at Yünnan-fu to the effect that an American chief engineer and several assistant engineers had been engaged in the United States for the Yunnan-fu-Szechuan and the Yunnan-fu-Tengyueh railways.
I took an opportunity of mentioning the matter to Mr. Fletcher, the United States chargé d'affaires, and explained to him that the proposal, if carried out, would probably be found to conflict with the engagements which China had contracted with us in regard to railway construction in the province of Yunnan.
Mr. Fletcher had no information, but said he fully appreciated the privileged position we naturally claimed in a district adjoining our Indian Empire.
In later telegrams Mr. Wilton informed me that the men had been engaged by the Yunnan delegates of the Provincial Railway Bureau, who had been sent to the United States for the purpose early last year, and that the conditions of the contract had been approved at Peking. The intention was apparently to survey the two lines and ascertain which of them offered the best prospects of construction.
My interview yesterday with Prince Ch'ing gave me an opportunity of asking for an explanation of these proceedings, and of stating the attitude I should be compelled to adopt in the event of their being allowed to interfere in any way with the engage- ments recorded in the exchange of notes which took place between his Highness and Sir E. Satow in March 1902. These notes were handed to the Prince, who showed himself perfectly familiar with their contents, and did not attempt to question their binding effect.
Recognising that the complete fulfilment of this undertaking might impose a severe strain upon China at present, I had consented to consider as an initial measure a modified scheme for the construction, under conditions far from onerous to China, This proposal had been of a short line of railway from Bbamo to Tengyueh. discussed in the first instance between myself and the Wai-wu Pu, and had, at the latter's suggestion, subsequently formed the subject of several interviews between me and the Viceroys of the province. The present Viceroy, Li Ching-hsi, bad promised to give it his careful consideration, but before he reached his post I received the news that the work was apparently to be entrusted to engineers of another nationality, with the approval of the Central Government.
The Prince and Ministers denied all knowledge of the transaction, and assured me that the new Viceroy would not fail to give effect to the arrangement he had made with me before leaving Peking. The great objection from their point of view to the project I had put forward was that it bound China to construct an unreruunerative railway in a distant region, while there were many parts of the Empire where railways were far more urgently required. The American engineers, if engaged at all, were, they said, probably intended for the Yunnan-Szechuan railway.
Liang Ta-jen enquired why we should object to China building her own railways We should with foreign expert assistance. I replied that that was not my objection. welcome any genuine attempt of the kind, but I was inclined to think that the present step was taken with the deliberate intention of blocking railway connection between Burmah and Yünnan, It was notorious that the Yunnan treasury was empty, and that the province was in no condition to undertake railway construction. wished therefore to make it clear at the outset that the result of any contention such as that which Liang Ta-jen's question suggested would be that we should revert at once to the strict letter of the 1902 engagement, and demand the same rights as those which had been accorded to the French.
The Prince deprecated such a course at present, and suggested that I might await further developments without feeling any uneasiness.
I am forwarding a copy of this despatch to the Government of India.
I have, &c.
J. N. JORDAN.
[2389 i-2]
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