The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-03-28
DANN|NG OF NEV ERA
so GREAT BRITAIN REGARDS
AMERICAS POLICY IN THE
FAR EAST
HER OPEN DOOR DEMANDS
LONDON NEWSPAPERS ASSERT
THEY TAKE AMERICA OUT OF
THE HERMIT CLASS
TEXT OF CORRESPONDENCE
Letters That Passed Between the
United States and the Great Pow
ers Are Finally Made Public
by the President.

by the President.
| WASHINGTON, March 2-Secretary
! Hay today submitted to congress the cor
respondence had with the governments of
| other nations respecting the maintenance
| OF an open door in China. The corre-
/ spondence extended over a period of time
| from Sept. last to the Goth inst, the
last date marking the successful compile
| tion of the undertaking. The nations ad-
dressed on this subject by the United
| States were Great Britain, France Ger
many, Russia, Italy and Japan.
! On Sept. 6 the state department ad-
| dressed to our ambassadors at London
Berlin and st. Petersburg copies of a
formal declaration" setting out the de-
sires of our government in the matter of
| the open DOOR" Italy and Japan were
similarly addressed about month later.
| While the formal declarations sent
| to the ambassadors were similar in each
| case, yet each of the officers adopted
different phraseology in addressing them
! selves to the governments to which they
are accredited, the dominant note be-
| ing best set forth, perhaps, in the form
Choate in his note to the British govern
ment, which was as follows:
TERM OF CONVEYANCE.
my Lord: am instructed by the Sec
retary of state to present to your lordshtp
a matter which the president regards as
Of great and equal Importance to Great
Britain and the United States in the
maintaining Of commerce in the far East,
where the differences are not OF great
character, but in degree only, and to ask
for assurances which it considers to be
in exact accord with its uniformly fol-
lowed policy and traditions, and which
will greatly promote the welfare of COM
merce.
'He understands it to be the settled
policy and purpose of Great Britain not
to use any privileges which may be grant
ed to it in China as a means Of excluding
any commercial rivals, and that freedom
of trade for 1t in the empire means free
dom of trade for all the world alike. Her
ma jeStY's government, while conceding by
formal agreements with Germany and
Russia the possession of spheres of in
fiuence or interest in China. in which they
! are to enjoy special rights and privileges,
particularly in. respect to railroads and
mining enterprises, has at the same time
sought to maintain what IS commonly
called the open door policy, to secure to
the commerce and navigation OF all ma
tions equality of treatment within such
spheres. The maintenance of this policy
is alike urgently demanded by the COM
mercial communities of our two nations,
+
only one which will improve existing con-
ditions, enable them to maintain their
positions in the market of China and eX-
! tend their future operations.
while the government of the United
States will in way commit Itself to
any recognition Of the exclusive rights of
any power within or control over any
portion of the Chinese empire under such
agreements as have recently been made,
it cannot conceal it's apprehension that
there is danger of complications arising
between the treaty powers which may i'm
peril the rights insured to the United
States by its treaty with China.
FOR AN OPEN MARKET.
"It is the sincere desire of my govern
ment that the interests of its citizens
may not be prejudiced through exclusive
treatment by any OF the controlling pow
ers within their respective spheres of in
terest in China, and it hopes to retain
there All open market for all the worlds
commerce, remove dangerous sources of
interna tiOnal irritation and thereby hasten
united action of the powers at Pekin to
promote administrative reforms so great
~ needed for strengthening the imperial
government and maintaining the integrity
| of ChiIa, IN which it's believes the whole
| Western world is alike concerned. It be-
heyes that such result may be greatly
aided and advanced by declarations by the
! various powers claiming spheres of in
| terest in China as to their intentions in
regard to the treatment of foreign trade
! and commerce therein, and that the pres
| ent is a very favorable moment for in
forming her majesty's government of the
desire Of the United States to have it
make 1t on its own part and to lend it's
powerful support in the effort to obtain
| from each of the various powers claim
! ing spheres of interest in China a dec
laration substantially to the following ef-
feet:
| "1.-That it will in no wise interfere
| with any treaty port or any vested in
! terest within any so called sphere of in
! terest or leased territory 1t may have in
! China.
"2 That the Chinese treaty tariff of
| fiT10n hoir h11
! chandise landed or shipped to all such
ports as are within such sphere of inter-
| est (unless they be free ports), no matter
! to what nationality it may belong, and
/ that duties so leviable shall becoliected
! by the Chinese government.
j. That it will levy no higher harbor
| dues on vessels of another nationality
frequenting any port in such spheres than
shall he levied on vessels of fits own ma
tionality and no higher railroad charges
over lines built controlled or operated
within its sphere on merchandise belong
| ing to citizens or subjects of other ma
tionalities transported through such
merchandise belonging to its own nation
ality transported over equal distances
COOPERATION EXPECTED.
THE president has strong reasons to
| believe that the governments of both
Russia and Germany will cooperate in an
| understanding as is here proposed. The
recent ukaSe of his majesty, the emperor
! of Russia, declaring the port of Talien
| wan open 10 the merchant ships of all
| nations during the whole term of the
! lease under which it is to be held by Rus
| sia, removes all uncertainty as to the lib
eral and conciliatory policy of that pow
er, and JuStifleS the expectation that his
majesty would accede to the similar re-
! quest of the United States now being pre-
sented to him and make the desired dec
| laTation.
THE recent action Of Germany in de-
| claring the Port of Kiao Chau a free
! port and the aid which it's government
! has given China in establishing there q
! Chinese custom house. coupled with oral
assurance given the United States by
| Germany that the interests of the United
/ States and It's citizens within it's sphere
would in no wise be affected by its oc-
cupatlon of this portion Of the province of
Shan Tung, encourage the belief that lit
! tie opposition is to be anticipated to the
presidents request for similar declara-
! ton from that power. 1t is needless also
| to add that Japan, the power next most
| largely interested in the trade with China,
must be in entire sympathy with the
| views here expressed and that its inter
| ests will be largely served by the propos-
| ed arrangement and the declarations of
! Its statesmen within the last year are so
| entirely in line with 1t that the co-opera-
| ton of that power is confidently relied
| upon.
| "It is therefore with the greatest pleas
| ure that l present this matter to your
| lordship's attention and urge it's prompt
attention by her majesty's government,