Office of the Historian

893.05/215: Telegram

The Chargé in China (Perkins) to the Secretary of State

Peiping, December 19, 1929—11 a.m.
[Received December 20—6:11 p.m.29]

1168. My 1161, December 18, noon. Following telegram has been sent Senior interested Minister by Senior Consul, December 18, 11 a.m.:

  • “1. Yesterday one of the Provisional Court judges, Ying Shih, announced from the bench that as the court would cease to function at the end of this month and as it was not known what would happen next year, no cases would be set down for hearing next year in the absence of instructions from Nanking. Actually no cases have been set for hearing next year.
  • 2. In view of this state of affairs, it would appear to be highly important for the Senior Minister to endeavor to obtain from the Chinese Government an assurance that the court would be instructed to continue the status quo without prejudice to the rights of the powers concerned to claim automatic renewal of the rendition agreement under clause 7 thereof, until the rendition agreement is superseded by a new agreement in accordance with the clause mentioned.
  • 3. The diplomatic body can envisage the dangers which would beset the Settlement should the functions of the Shanghai Provisional Court be terminated abruptly. The view held generally by members of the consular body is that if such a situation developed the consular body would have no alternative but to adopt such measures as it might deem appropriate to insure that the administering of justice in the Settlement be continued.”

Following from Cunningham dated December 18, 6 p.m.:

“Jacobs and Bucknell have shown me the various statements and counterstatements made by the Chinese and foreign negotiators in reference to the Provisional Court and I am particularly referring to the joint telegram of December 16, 5 p.m.,30 and in general agree with the statement therein. However, I desire to emphasize that the matter of greatest importance is that some means should be devised immediately for the continuance of the present agreement without prejudice to terminate automatic rendition provided in article 7 of the rendition agreement. There remains but 12 days for the present agreement to continue before it is automatically extended 3 years. The Chinese action places the municipality in a very grave position and unless an agreement is reached as above indicated the entire structure of foreign trade and law and order in the municipality will be threatened. I venture to urge in the strongest possible manner that the most important thing is to secure without prejudice an extension of the present agreement until the conclusion of negotiations.”

Perkins
  1. Telegram in three sections.↩
  2. See telegram No. 1161, December 18, from the Chargé in China, p. 730.↩