CO129-383 - Public Offices - 1911 — Page 542

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

[B]

CHINA RAILWAYS,

CONFIDENTIAL.

[19355]

[May 22.]

19097

SECTION 1,

REC? No

16 JUN 11

Sir G. Buchanan to Sir Edward Grey.—(Received May 22.)

(No. 131. Secret.) Sir,

St. Petersburgh, May 14, 1911. WITH reference to my despatch No. 89, Secret, of the 5th ultimo, I have the honour to forward to you herewith copies of a correspondence which has been exchanged between the Russian Minister of Finance and Lord ffrench, the repre- sentative in China of Messrs. Pauling and Co., with regard to railway construction in Manchuria.

I have, &c.

GEORGE W. BUCHANAN.

Enclosure 1 in No. 1.

Your Excellency,

Lord french to M. Kokovtsoff.

St. Petersburgh, April 24 (May 7), 1911. AT the interview with which your Excellency honoured me this morning you were good enough to inform me that-

1. There was no objection on the part of the Russian Government to a line of railway connecting Peking, Taonanfu, and Harbin.

2. The Russian Government would have no objection to a line of railway connecting Tsitsihar and Mergen, and would grant facilities for a junction with the Chinese Eastern Railway, subject to the following conditions :-

(a.) The line to be of the same gauge as the Chinese Eastern Railway.

(b) Arrangements to be made by an interchange of notes between the Chinese and Russian Governments, by which China would undertake not to use this line for military purposes, and by which the Russian Government would be authorised to appoint agents at Tsitsihar, Mergen, and other points on the line to see that such undertaking was not infringed.

Your Excellency was also good enough to inform me that participation by a Russian bank in the financing of these railways was in no way a condition of consent on the part of the Russian Government, but that if the promotors wished for financial assistance from Russian banks your Excellency would be willing to try and arrange such participation.

I venture to write your Excellency this letter, so that if there is any misapprehension on my part of what your Excellency said to me you may be kind enough to correct it.

I have, &c.

FFRENCHI.

My Lord,

Enclosure 2 in No. 1.

M. Kokovtsoff to Lord ffrench.

St. Petersburgh, April 30 (May 13), 1911.

IN reply to your esteemed letter of the 24th instant, in which you briefly exposed the statements I made to you about the construction of railways in Eastern Mongolia and Northern Manchuria, I beg to inform you that only the first point relating to a line of railway connecting Peking, Taonanfu, and Harbin is explained not quite

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