CO129-501-5 Chinese situation- Recognition of Canton Government 22-7-1927 - 28-9-1927 — Page 45

- 14

45

fast and pay too little regard to the actual facts of

the situation in China, as it exists today and as it

is likely to continue for years to come.

But some day, soon or late, peaceably or other-

wise, a modus vivendi must be arrived at between

Great Britain and China, and we urge most strongly

that the negotiations to that end should not be based

on any false premisses as to unity and uniformity of

control in China. It must not be assumed to follow

that, because all the revenue of Shanghai can be taken by a Central Government at Nanking without protest, a similar arrangement will content Canton, even though the Liang Kuang provinces were to profess true allegiance to that Government. The various provinces (or perhaps groups of provinces) will insist on administering at least a share of their own incomes; and, if His Majesty's Government agrees to proposals running counter to this determination, His Majesty's subjects will have to pay local taxation in addition to the agreed central taxation.

China has broken in peices and no amount of pretence will conceal this fact. Then it comes to a

question of revising treaties there must be a Govern- ment with whom to treat. At the present moment no treaty with Peking would be recognized in Canton, Shanghai

or Hankow. No treaty with Hankow would be recognized

anywhere else, and should the present Nationalist

Army succeed in capturing Peking there is every reason to expect. that lanchuria would remain outside

I

hext

the