CO129-372 - Public Offices - 1910 — Page 469

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

CHINA RAILWAYS.

CONFIDENTIAL.

(

[26765]

(No. 220.) Sir,

24838.

[July 25.]

SECTION 1.

REC REG 12 AUG 10

No. 1.

Mr. Max Müller to Sir Edward Grey.-(Received July 23.)

Peking, July 5, 1910. WITH reference to Sir John Jordan's despatch No. 11 of the 9th January, I have the honour to enclose a copy of the agreement which Mr. Ricketts signed at Tien-tsin on the 3rd February as engineer-in-chief and general manager on the Imperial Railways of North China. It will be remembered that Mr. Liang Shih-yi, the Director-General of Railways, gave Sir John Jordan an explicit promise on the 24th November last that he would consult with Mr. E. G. Hillier, the agent of the British and Chinese Corporation, as to the wording of this agreement before it was signed. It turned out, however, that he studiously avoided a proper fulfilment of this promise, and took care to catch Mr. Ricketts at Tien-tsin, immediately upon his arrival from London, with the agreement drawn up and ready for signature. A copy of the English of the document was sent to me on the 9th February by Mr. Hillier, who, though not satisfied with the wording, did not feel justified in objecting formally. Later the Chinese text was produced formally by Mr. Hillier for comparison, and Mr. Campbell drew my attention to expressions in it which were out of place and evidently used of set purpose. The word "employé," for example, was rendered throughout by Chinese which might be appropriate in the engagement of an artisan, but was clearly unsuitable in speaking of the engineer-in-chief of an important railway. The motive seemed to be to depreciate the position of Mr. Ricketts in a way peculiarly intelligible to Chinese, and when the matter was pointed out to Mr. Hillier he agreed that this was so. He promised to speak to the director-general, but he bad not succeeded in seeing Mr. Liang before the arrival of Mr. Mayers. Further delay was caused by the absence of Mr. Liang from Peking on a tour of inspection, but eventually after two or three conversations, the gist of which is recorded in Mr. Mayers' letters of the 19th May and the 29th June, copies of which are also enclosed for your information, an assurance has been given that a more suitable phraseology will be used in all future agreements.

The point looks a small one, but it is indicative of the general attitude which Chinese authorities are assuming more and more vis-à-vis the foreigners whose employment is forced upon them by international obligations, and which, if unchecked, can hardly fail to create unpleasant questions.

1 bave, &c.

W. G. MAX MÜLLER.

Enclosure 1 in No. 1.

Agreement, signed February 3, 1910.

IN accordance with article 6 of the Loan Agreement, dated the 10th October, 1898, which were made by the Director-General of the Imperial Railways of North China with the British and Chinese Corporation re the employment of an engineer- in-chief, and also according to article 1 of the Protocol, dated the 29th April, 1902, were returned to the Chinese when the Imperial Railways of North China Government, that, under the authority of the director-general, there shall be a general manager.

Therefore, Director-General Liang, of the Imperial Railways of North China, makes this agreement with Mr. D. Poyntz Ricketts, as follows

1. The Director-General of the Imperial Railways of North China (hereinafter called the director-general; agrees to appoint Mr. D. Poyntz Ricketts (hereinafter called the employé) as the engineer-in-chief and general manager of the Imperial Railways of North China, and the said employé agrees to serve the Imperial Railways of North China as engineer-in-chief and general manager.

2. This agreement is made for a period of three years, commencing from the date at which the said employé joins the railway service, ie., the third day of February, 1910, subject to the conditions contained in article 6.

Six months before the expiration of this agreement either party can notify the other and have this agreement cancelled.

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