CO129-529-5 China- extraterritoriality 23-11-1931 - 31-12-1931 — Page 115

157

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.]

361

ΤΟ CHINA.

(359)

(358)

(F 5029/34/10)

Cypher telegram to Sir M. Lampson (Peking)

Foreign Office, 30th September 1931. 3.30 p.m.

No. 294.

Your despatch No. 964 (of July 3rd) and your tele-

extraterri- grams Nos. 353 and 356 (of September 17th;

toriality).

1.

I agree that it is most desirable to reach a final agreement, if possible, with the Chinese govern- ment on the subject of extraterritoriality before the end

of the year.

While every effort should be made to secure

a settlement of the Thorburn case I do not consider that this case should influence our policy in regard to extra- territoriality. As you have pointed out extraterritoriali ty did not save Thorburn's life. He was secretly killed owing to reluctance to hand him over to a foreign court

to be tried for the murder of two Chinese but if the draft

treaty of last June has been in operation it is possible

that the military would have handed him over for trial in accordance with the law. The national passions that

have been aroused by the Thorburn case and the recommenda-

tions of the Feetham report may strengthen the opposition of those elements in Shanghai and elsewhere who fail to appreciate the danger of attempting to stand pat for an

indefinite period on existing treaty rights. I am

satisfied however that the arguments in my predecessor's despatch No. 303 to Washington are still valid, that it is impossible to maintain by force our extraterritorial privileges in China and that therefore our only alter-

natives are to see them go by default or arrive at

agreement by negotiation.

2.