No. 11.] Ambassador Wright to the Secretary of State. [Extract.] AMERICAN EMBASSY, SIR: I have the honor to transmit herewith a translation of an imperial ordinance published on the 8th instant promulgating regulations for the establishment of the South Manchurian Railway Company, for the purpose of operating the railways and adjacent mines in southern Manchuria. According to these regulations, the company's shares are to be held only by the Governments and subjects of Japan and China. The Japanese Government may put in its share of the capital in the form of the railways and mines that it now possesses in Manchuria-notably the southern section of the Chinese Eastern Railway Company and the coal mines. The shares may be divided into several issues, the first to be not less than one-fifth of the whole capital stock; and the first payment need not exceed one-tenth of the face value of the shares. The company is to have its head office in Tokyo and a branch office in Dalny. The regulations further provide for the appointment of a commission to take all necessary measures for the establishment of the company. In an informal conversation recently it was stated to Mr. Miller, of this embassy, that the capital of the new company would at first be 15,000,000 yen, of which it was estimated that the Japanese Government would subscribe one-half in the shape of its Manchurian railways and mines. The remaining half will be divided among Japanese subjects and the Government and subjects of China, thus ensuring a prepondering proportion of the stock in Japanese hands. Mr. Miller's informant thought that the portion of the shares taken by the Chinese would be small. It is evident from the foregoing and from a perusal of the regulations themselves that it is the policy and purpose of Japan to own a controlling interest in and direct the operations of all the railways in Manchuria in much the same way as the government roads in Japan. I also inclose herewith translations of some interesting comment upon the new company by the Japanese press. The Jiji Shimpo points out that the restriction of the shares to the two nationalities was insisted upon by China in her negotiations with Japan at Peking following the Portsmouth peace treaty. The paper regrets that the new company has been compelled to organize upon the narrow lines of its Russian predecessor, which was so opposed to the principle of the "open door" and equal opportunity; but inasmuch as the new company is to operate not only the present line, but also the branch lines to be newly constructed, it will have to make use of foreign capital, thus giving foreign capitalists an interest in the company little short of owning the shares. Commenting upon the question of gauge, the Jiji Shimpo remarks that the most important thing for the South Manchurian Railway is to connect Japan with the various other lines of Korea and China, all of which have the standard 4 feet 8.5 inch gauge, rather than to connect with the Russian railway of the north. LUKE E. WRIGHT. I have, etc., a Not printed. [Inclosure-Translation.] IMPERIAL ORDINANCE. We hereby sanction the organization of the South Manchuria Railway Joint Stock Company and cause the following ordinance to be promulgated. ARTICLE I. The Government shall cause the organization of the South Manchuria Railway Joint Stock Company for the purpose of engaging in railway traffic in Manchuria. ART. II. The shares of the company shall all be registered (signed) and may be owned only by the Japanese and Chinese Governments or by subjects of Japan and China. ART. III. The Japanese Government may offer its Manchurian railways, and their appurtenances, and its coal mines in Manchuria, as the capital to be furnished by the Government. ART. IV. The company may divide the new shares to be raised into several issues to be floated at different times, but the amount of the first issue shall not be less than one-fifth of the whole amount. ART. V. The first payment upon the shares need not exceed one-tenth of the value of the shares. ART. VI. The company shall establish its head office at Tokyo and a branch office at Dalny. ART. VII. The company shall have a president, a vice-president, four or more directors, and from three to five inspectors. ART. VIII. The president shall represent the company and manage its affairs. The vice-president shall perform the president's duties when the latter is prevented from discharging them, and shall act as president when the latter post is vacant. The vice-president and directors shall assist the president in his duties and shall take charge of various departments of the company's business. The inspectors shall examine the business of the company. ART. IX. The Government, subject to the imperial sanction, shall appoint the president and vice-president, whose term of office shall be five years. The Government shall appoint the directors from among those shareholders president and vice-president, whose terms of office shall be five years. The inspectors shall be elected from among the shareholders at a general meeting of the latter. The term of office shall be three years. ART. X. The amount of compensation and allowances of the president, vicepresident, and directors shall be fixed by the Government. ART. XI. The president, vice-president, and directors of the company shall not engage in any other business or trade, under any name whatsoever, during their terms of office except by special permission of the Government. ART. XII. The Government shall appoint a superintendent (superintendents) for the South Manchuria Railway Joint Stock Company to supervise the business of the company. The superintendent may at any time examine the company's business and inspect their safes, books, documents, and any other articles belonging to the company. The superintendent, whenever he may deem it necessary, may order the company to report on the various accounts and the condition of the company's business. The superintendent may attend the general meetings of the shareholders of the company, or any other meetings, and express his opinions, but shall not be entitled to vote. ART. XIII. The Government may issue such orders as may be necessary to superintend the business of the company. ART. XIV. In case the decisions of the company or the conduct of its officers are in violation of laws and regulations or of the object of the company, or are detrimental to the public welfare, or fail to carry out the orders of the government office under whose jurisdiction the company is, the Government may cancel the said decisions or dismiss the officers concerned. ART. XV. When the Government deems it necessary, it may apply to the company the provisions of the law and regulations relating to railways in Japan. In the case referred to in the preceding paragraph the Government shall inform the company in advance as to the laws and regulations to be so applied. ART. XVI. When not otherwise provided for in this ordinance, the provisions of the commercial code and its supplementary laws and regulations shall be applied. ART. XVII. The provisions of imperial ordinance No. 366 of 1900, relating to the construction of railways in foreign countries by Japanese companies, shall not be applied to the company that is to be organized in accordance with this ordinance. SUPPLEMENTARY RULES. ART. XVIII. The Government shall appoint a commission to transact all business relating to the organization of the South Manchuria Railway Joint Stock Company. ART. XIX. The organizing commission shall draw up the company's articles of association, and after the said articles have been approved by the Government, shall open the subscription for the first issue of shares. ART. XX. When the first issue of the company's shares has been subscribed, the commission shall present to the Government the subscription list and apply for permission to organize the company. ART. XXI. When the permission referred to in the preceding article has been given, the organizing commission shall, without delay, call for the first installment upon each share. When the first installment referred to in the preceding article has been paid in, the commission shall, without delay, call a general meeting for organization. ART. XXII. At the close of the first general meeting the organizing commission shall turn over its business to the president of the South Manchuria Railway Joint Stock Company. RECOGNITION OF THE CUBAN CONSUL-GENERAL. Ambassador Wright to the Secretary of State. [Telegram.-Paraphrase. ] AMERICAN EMBASSY, Tokyo, November 10, 1906. (Ambassador Wright reports that Mr. Ramsden, Cuban consulgeneral at Yokohama, has applied to the Japanese Government for exequatur and that the latter replies setting forth that our Government in 1902, with the consent of the Japanese Government, authorized our consuls to represent Cuban interests in Japan until the appointment of Cuban consuls; that the President of Cuba, whose commission Ramsden bears, has resigned his office, and that Cuba is now under a provisional government, established by the United States, and that under the circumstances named the Japanese Government declines to recognize Cuban consuls until a permanent and independent government has been established in Cuba and the good offices now exercised by consuls have been formally dispensed with. He adds that Mr. Ramsden submitted to the Japanese Government with his application for exequatur the decree of Secretary Taft, confirming in their positions Cuban diplomatic agents and consuls, with the result as already stated, and now asks Ambassador Wright to assist him in inducing the Japanese Government to grant exequatur to him. Before acting, Ambassador Wright requests instructions.) The Secretary of State to Ambassador Wright. [Telegram.-Paraphrase.] DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, November 12, 1906. (Mr. Root instructs Ambassador Wright to explain to the Japanese Government that the provisional Government of Cuba exists under the Cuban constitution and that it is so established pending the election of a President; that a commission given a Cuban consul by Mr. Palma prior to September 29, 1906, is still valid; that authority for American consuls to act for Cuba was asked in 1902 only, subject to their being displaced by regularly appointed Cuban consuls; and that this Government, which itself treats the independent foreign relations of the people of Cuba as unimpaired, hopes. that a consul who had been lawfully commissioned by the President of Cuba may be recognized.) No. 101.] Ambassador Wright to the Secretary of State. AMERICAN EMBASSY, Tokyo, November 23, 1906. SIR: I have the honor to confirm, as inclosed herewith, my telegram of November 10, 1906, to the department, concerning the refusal of the Japanese Government to issue an exequatur to Mr. Ramsden, Cuban vice-consul-general at Yokohama, and the department's telegram of November 12, 1906, stating the view of the Government of the United States as regards the validity of commissions given consuls by Mr. Palma prior to September 29, 1906, and instructing me to express the hope of my Government that a consul who had been lawfully commissioned by the President of Cuba might be recognized by the Japanese Government. In accordance with this instruction, on November 17 I called at the foreign office. The Viscount Hayashi, minister for foreign affairs, was unwell, but I gave to Vice-Minister Chinda the substance of the department's telegram and left a paraphrase of it with him. He stated that his Government had hesitated to recognize Mr. Ramsden pending the receipt of some definite statement from our Government, but, this difficulty having been now obviated, the Japanese Government would act. on the matter promptly. On November 22, in an interview with the Viscount Hayashi, I drew his attention to the matter, and he replied that in view of the telegram above referred to, the Japanese Government would issue the exequatur as requested. I have, etc., LUKE E. WRIGHT. a Supra. No. 112.] Ambassador Wright to the Secretary of State. AMERICAN EMBASSY, Tokyo, December 8, 1906. SIR: Referring to my dispatch No. 101, of the 23d ultimo, I have the honor to inform you that I have to-day received from the imperial foreign office a memorandum, of which a copy is inclosed, stating that "consistently with the telegram from the United States, dated November 17, 1906, a paraphrase of which his excellency Mr. Wright was good enough to hand to the Viscount Hayashi on the 22d instant, the Imperial Government have instructed the local authorities at Yokohama to recognize the Cuban consul-general recently appointed for that place." LUKE E. WRIGHT. I have, etc., [Inclosure.] MEMORANDUM. The department of foreign affairs has the honor to announce to the embassy of the United States that consistently with the telegram from the honorable the Secretary of the United States dated November 17, 1906, a paraphrase of which his excellency Mr. Wright was good enough to hand to Viscount Hayashi on the 22d instant, the Imperial Government have instructed the local authorities at Yokohama to recognize the Cuban consul-general recently appointed for that place. DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, Tokyo, November 8, 1906. OPENING OF THE CABLE BETWEEN JAPAN AND GUAM. President Roosevelt to the Emperor of Japan. [Telegram.] THE WHITE HOUSE, Washington, June 25, 1906. I am glad to send Your Majesty, over the American cable, which has just been completed between Guam and Japan and thus unites our two countries across the Pacific, a message of sincere good will, and the assurance of the earnest wishes of the Government and people of the United States for the welfare and prosperity of Your Majesty and Your Majesty's Empire. THEODORE ROOSEVELT. The Emperor of Japan to President Roosevelt. [Telegram.] TOKYO, June 26, 1906. I have just received with great interest and appreciation the kind message sent by you over the cable which has recently been laid between Guam and Japan and which will shortly be open to the public. I am highly gratified to know that the first telegram by this new |