File No. 135/6–7.

Minister Rockhill to the Secretary of State.

No. 714.]

Sir: Referring to the department’s instruction No. 299, of May 31 last (file No. 135–1) and my reply thereto, No. 669, of July 18, 1907, on the subject of the Chinese characters to be used by the local authorities in stamping deeds for property purchased for missionary purposes in China, I have the honor to inclose copy of a note received from the foreign office, by which it is agreed to stamp the deeds in the manner suggested by this legation.

A copy of this note has been sent to our consuls in China for their information and guidance.

I have, etc.,

W. W. Rockhill.
[Inclosure 1.—Translation.]

The Prince of Ch’ing to Minister Rockhill.

Your Excellency: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your excellency’s note of August 27 with reference to the words (pen ch’u—local) in deeds to property purchased by American missionary societies. Your excellency in this note points out that the construction of the sentence in which this expression, “pen ch’u” appears in the regulations calls for a different reading than one which would make these words correspond with the similar expression (ko ch’u—all parts) in the treaty. You state that you have no objection to the use of the words pen ch’u “themselves, so long as it is clear that they do not qualify or restrict the words (chiao hut—missionary society); that the following phrase, for example, would be quite satisfactory: (mei-kuo mou chiao hui tsai mou chou hsien pen ch’u ti-fang yung tzu chih kung ch’an—public property in such and such locality of such and such department or district, leased in perpetuity to the — American Missionary Society); and finally, that you hope instructions in accordance with the above will be sent to the various local authorities.

In reply I have the honor to state that in the expression as contained in the last dispatch of my board, viz: (pen ch’u mei kuo chiao hui chih kung ch’an—public property of the local missionary society), and the one contained in your excellency’s reply, viz (public property in such and such locality of such and such department or district, leased in perpetuity to the — American Missionary Society), the idea is the same.

My board therefore agrees to the use of your expression. Further instructions will be sent accordingly to the various local authorities directing them to order their subordinates to take note and act accordingly. It also becomes my duty to send this reply for your excellency’s information.

A necessary dispatch.

[Seal of the Wai-wu Pu.]