CO129-471 - Public Offices - 1921 — Page 396

رم

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

CHINA.

CONFIDENTIAL.

[F 2770/3/10]

No. 1.

[July 28.]

SECTION 6.

(No. 331.) My Lord.

Sir B. Alston to Earl Curzon.—(Received July 23.)

[WITH MAP.]

Peking, June 17, 1921. WITH reference to my despatch No. 264 of the 18th ultimo, I have the honour to enclose copies of two despatches from His Majesty's consul-general at Mukden, transmitting reports from Mr. Cunningham on the subject of his tour in Chientao.

(Copy to Tokyo.)

I have, &c.

BALSTON.

Enclosure I in No. 1.

Consul-General Wilkinson to Sir B. Alston.

(No. 36.) Sir,

Mukden, June 8, 1921. I HAVE the honour to enclose a copy of a report on the situation in the Chientao and Hunchun districts addressed to me by Mr. W. B. Cunningham, who returned from the tour which he was instructed to make in those localities on the evening of the 6th instant. Owing to the state of the roads between Hunchun and Ninguta, Mr. Cunningham was unable to make the return journey, as I had suggested to him that route, but came back as he went, viâ Korea. He is preparing a separate report on his itinerary, which he proposes to forward to me from Dairen, to which place he returned last night.

Mr. Cunningham found both the Chientao and Hunchun districts in a peaceful condition. The Japanese troops had been completely withdrawn and their place taken by some 350 police, who had been scattered over the two localities, and ten Japanese army officers who were apparently acting as liaison officers at the open

marts.

With regard to the particular points on which Mr. Cunningham was instructed to report, he has arrived at the following conclusions:--

1. The lives and property of the British missionaries in Chientao are in no danger, and therefore no special measures are necessary for their protection. The friction between them and the local Japanese officials was largely due to mutual misunderstanding, the rough and ready ways of the Canadians evidently offending the susceptibilities of the Japanese, while the friendly advances of the latter were obviously mistrusted and regarded as insincere by the missionaries.

2. The Korean Christians are undoubtedly suspect as such to the Japanese - authorities, and there were instances during the outrages of October last in which Christians were deliberately singled out for persecution. On the other hand, it would seem that the Japanese are not actuated by anti-Christian sentiments so much as by the conviction that the native Christians as a body are supporters of the independence movement. For this belief there is this much justification, that, owing to the superior education and wider outlook of many of them, native Christians as a rule show a greater interest in politics and are more patriotic than the average Korean, though a comparatively small proportion of them are active partisans in the independence movement.

3. At the present time there is no direct interference on the part of the Japanese with the work carried on by the missionaries, but the native Christians have been so terrorised by the events of last October and by the petty persecution to which they are apparently still being subjected by the Japanese police that they are keeping aloof from the mission. The new sect founded by the Japanese in Opposition to Christianity had lost favour with the Koreans now that there was no longer the incentive of fear to join it.

The charges made by Major Mizumachi against the missionaries are absolutely without foundation.

[6014 ce-6]

B

395