793.003/969a: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant)
5325. 1. [Here follows summary of memorandum dated October 26, printed supra.]
2. Please inform the British Foreign Office in regard to the above. With particular regard to questions of coastal trade and of inland navigation by both public and private vessels, it has been our intention in [Page 340] general to eliminate anomalies in the treaty relations between the United States and China. At the same time we realize that these particular questions may involve settlement of details such as ownership of and compensation for wharves and other shipping facilities which might be affected by relinquishment of rights of inland navigation and that discussion of such details might result in undesired delay in conclusion of the brief treaty which we have proposed to the Chinese Government. Our general attitude toward this matter is therefore a flexible one with inclination toward including in the treaty some appropriate provisions on the subject, especially if the Chinese so desire. An early expression of the British Government’s thought on this matter would be welcomed.