CO129-363 - Public Offices & Others - 1909 — Page 20

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The British group therefore consider that they are doing all that can fairly be asked of them by offering to make the sacrifice on the Hankow-Szechuan line and expecting the Germans to do the same, for the sole question at issue is how to redis- tribute the engineering sections on the Hankow-Szechuan line in such a way as to admit of the American claim to appoint an engineer on one-half of the extension, without doing violence to the existing equilibrium of parties.

By the Berlin agreement of the 14th May, one-third of the Hankow-Szechuan line, namely, the Hanko-Ichang line with branches to Hsiangyang and Kuangchui, was allotted to the German group, and the remaining two-thirds, namely, the exten- sion from Ichang or Hsiangyang to Chengtu, were allotted to the Chinese Central Railways (Limited), an Anglo-French company constructed ad hoc, and representing the British and French groups.

In strict equity, therefore, the German group and the Chinese Central Railways (Limited) should surrender 267 and 533 kilom. respectively, in order to satisfy the American claim to appoint an engineer on one-half of the extension, which is assumed to be 1,600 kilom. in length.

It may be admitted, however, that the German section, as the first to be con- structed, is relatively of greater value than the deferred section of the Chinese Central Railways (Limited), and in order to promote a settlement, His Majesty's Government would be willing that the Germans should surrender only the Hsiangyang-Kuangchui section to the Chinese Central Railways (Limited), estimated at 200 kilom., as a contribution to the sacrifice of some 600 kilom. imposed upon the latter by the American claim to one-half of the Ichang-Chengtu extension.

The relative strength of the three groups over the whole line with its extensions would then be--

Germans

Americaus..

Chinese Central Railways (Limited)

Kilom.

600

800

1,000

(This includes the British and French shares, which thus amount to 500 kilom.

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

[B]

AFFAIRS OF CHINA.

CONFIDENTIAL.

[38932]

No. 1.

0.0.

36392

IREC

Free 5 NOVO October 21.]

SECTION 1.

Note by M. Cambon.----( Communicated to Foreign Office October 21, 1909.)

LE Gouvernement des États-Unis, préoccupé des ravages produits par le développe- ment de l'usage de l'opium, avait provoqué la réunion d'une commission internationale chargée d'examiner les mesures les plus propres à enrayer les progrès du mal.

Cette commission, réunie à Shanghai au mois de février dernier, a terminé ses travaux et a indiqué l'ensemble des dispositions dont elle conseille l'adoption par les divers Gouvernements respectivement.

Par une communication récente, l'Ambassadeur des États-Unis à Paris suggère maintenant qu'une conférence internationale soit chargée de transformer en convention. les conclusions de la commission de Shanghaï.

Le Gouvernement de Sa Majesté a-t-il reçu une communication analogue ? Ambassade de France, Londres,

le 21 octobre, 1909.

[2462 a-1]

each.)

Foreign Office, October 20, 1909.

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