[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government, and should be returned to the Foreign Office if not required for official use.]
From CHINA.
Decode.
Sir M. Lampson (Shanghai).
21st May, 1929.
D.
11.40 p.m.,
21st May, 1929.
R.
6.55 p.m.,
21st May, 1929.
No. 13.
(R).
• •
•
• •
•
8
26
Rendition of Chinkiang concession.
I discussed this with Minister for Foreign Affairs
on May 20th. As liquidation of municipal assets and
paying off of municipal liabilities is proceeding
smoothly and does not concern Chinese authorities, the
only questions to settle with the latter before proceeding
with rendition are those of exchange of our Crown leases
for Chinese deeds of perpetual lease, claims and mooring
rights.
2. The Minister for Foreign Affairs showed no
disposition to contest principle of perpetual leases
but difficulty has arisen over wording of deed of lease
(based on ordinary triplicate deed) as Wang objects to
binding his government to a fixed rental of 1,500 cash
per mou per annum in perpetuity. We agreed to have a
formula worked out probably on the following lines:
deed would state that land is held subject to payment of national land tax while a separate exchange of
letters would provide that in this particular case land
tax would remain at the present figure of 1,500 cash
pending its reorganization throughout China. The
point is a minor one at Chinkiang but the question of principle and precedent raised thereby is important.
I
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.