CO129-497 - Public Offices - 1926 — Page 26

REVISE

24

Draft instructions to Mr. Lampson.

For some time past His Majesty's Government have

watched with growing anxiety the situation in China and

they believe that this anxiety will be shared by the

Governments of the interested powers. Five years ago the

Powera assembled at Washington and, taking into considera-

tion the circumstances then existing in China, they

agreed among themselves in conjunction with the represen-

tatives of the Chinese Government that their future

policy should be guided by certain general principles

designed to safeguard the integrity and independence of

China, to promote her political and economic development

and the rehabilitation of her finances. It was agreed

to grant her certain increases on her treaty tariff in

order to provide the revenue required for these

purposes, It was further agreed that a Commission should

examine the question of extraterritoriality with a view

to amending the system now in force by the elimination

of abuses and accretions and by the removal of unneceв-

sary limitation on China's sovereignty.

(2) Unfortunately the Tariff Conference did not

meet for four years and during that period the situation

had greatly deteriorated. During a succession of civil

wars the authority of the Peking Government had diminished

almost to vanishing point while in the south a powerful

nationalist government at Canton definitely disputed the

right of the Government at Peking to speak on behalf of

China or enter into binding engagements in her name.

This process of disintegration, civil war and waning

central authority continued with increased acceleration

after/

1

PO