CO129-520-6 Railway development- Canton-Kowloon Railway 5-11-1929 - 5-11-1930 — Page 140

3.

152

illustration is afforded by the fact that the Chinese Government

previously accepted a claim for compensation under this article

in a cave where the Canton Viceroy had, in 1911, requested the

suspension of through-traffie for five days in order to facilitate

troop movemen

I much doubt

hether the alause "cirouzetanoes

of political emergency" was intended to cover revolutions, civil

warfare and similar circumstances beyond the control of the Go-

vernment concerned, sinse, followed out logically, such an inter-

pretation would mean that, in the event of a

meetion of the

line going more or less permanently out of action owing to oir-

cumstances over which it had no control (a practical possibility

which, if we consider the realities of Chinese polities, umat be

admitted) the Government concerned would thereby become liable to

subsidise the other party indefinitely.

It is difficult to define the exact intention of the alause in

question but that the above interpretation was not intende is, I

40

think, made clear by Article 52 which contemplates the suspensi ca

of the Agreement during civil war in the following terms:-

Should

вос

hen either party 18 temporarily usable at any

time owing to war or revolution to fulfil

/ provisions

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