Prince Kung to Russell Young, October 31, 1882

Prince Kung to Mr. Young.

Your Excellency: In June of last year Minister Angell came to this yamên and stated that the Danish Great Northern Telegraph Company had secured from the grand secretary, Li, a monopoly for the laying of sea cables for a period of twenty years. This yamên maintained that his excellency Li, in initiating this policy and entering into an agreement for a term of years, was following a precedent established by the two Governments of Russia and France, and so replied to Minister Angell. Thereafter he came to this yamên repeatedly to discuss the question, and more than one communication passed between us on it.

After Minister Angell returned to the United States, Mr. Holcombe, then chargé d’affaires, addressed a dispatch to me inquiring whether the agreement concluded between his excellency Li and the Great Northern Telegraph Company had been confirmed by the throne. In response he was informed that whenever an American company desired to lay a telegraph cable from Japan to China, satisfactory arrangements would most positively be made for them to do so, and that the agreement referred to was a petition prepared by the Great Northern Telegraph Company, submitting certain propositions to his excellency, Li, which had been approved by him.

I am now in receipt of a communication from your excellency, setting forth a request made to you by certain American merchants resident at Shanghai, acting on behalf of a number of mercantile houses at the various ports in China. The substance of their request is that the telegraphic communication along the Chinese coast and between Shanghai and Hong-Kong having been very irregular in the past because of frequent accidents to the single existing cable, a company formed by merchants of all nationalities is willing and desirous to lay a cable between Shanghai, Foo-Chow, Amoy, Swatow and Hong-Kong. If the permission of the Chinese Government can be obtained for this scheme, Chinese merchants residing at the several ports will be invited to join in the undertaking. Whenever it shall be necessary to join the cable by a land line to the offices of the company in these places, such work shall be undertaken only with the approval and sanction of the local authorities, &c.

Your excellency calls my attention to the many advantages which would result to China from the construction of such a cable by Chinese and foreign merchants residing in China, and offering political, financial, and commercial guarantees. And you express the hope that I will give the request careful consideration, and favor your excellency with an early response, &c., &c.

It appears that the public policy of the various western powers in the construction of railroads, telegraphs, and similar works, has in the past been determined by each Government for itself. In some the Government has initiated such enterprises itself. In others they have been intrusted to public companies. Last year his excellency Li, in the construction, with the Great Northern Telegraph Company, of a Chinese telegraph line, simply followed a mode of procedure adopted by the western powers. And further, the Great Northern Telegraph Company has a monopoly for thirty years with Russia, and one for twenty-five years with France. These are all on record. But in this case of the construction of telegraph lines by China, his excellency Li only granted to the Great Northern Telegraph Company a monopoly for twenty years.

And now foreign merchants of various nationalities desire, in addition to the existing Chinese telegraph line, to lay another cable from Shanghai via Foo-Chow, Amoy and Swatow to Hong-Kong. This would not only conflict with the agreement entered: into between his excellency Li and the Great Northern Telegraph Company, but I fear it would also not be in accord with the policy hitherto adopted in such matters, by western powers, and hence I find it difficult to agree to the proposition.

With regard to what is said about the frequent accidents happening to the Chinese line, &c., such things cannot certainly be allowed. Instructions must be sent by this yamên to his excellency Li to most positively direct the Great Northern Telegraph Company to see to it that the various telegraph lines within the domains of China are constantly kept in a condition for service; that no interruptions must be allowed, and that certainly constant increase in the tariff of charges will not be permitted, as all these result in loss and inconvenience to the Chinese and foreign public. And I beg, in conclusion, to inform your excellency that in consequence of the receipt of your note instructions as above have been sent to his excellency Li.