Prince Kung to Wells Williams, October 24, 1873
Prince Kung to Mr. Williams.
Prince Kung, chief secretary of state for foreign affairs, herewith makes a communication.
On the 9th of this month, M. Otin, Spanish chargé d’affaires, wrote to the Yamun as follows:
“I inclose several articles of an agreement to be discussed between us, which, if accepted without alteration, can be signed and sealed by us, but if there be any parts to be amended please inform me,” &c.
It was wholly on account of what we had heard respecting the condition of Chinese laborers in Cuba that we agreed to discuss the subject with the Spanish chargé d’affaires at a meeting of all the foreign ministers, at which they desired the Chinese government to send a commission of inquiry to Cuba. On the 2d ultimo a memorial was presented to appoint Chãn Lan-pin, a brevet law-examiner, to proceed there and make full examination into the condition of the Chinese laborers, to which His Majesty’s gracious assent was given. His appointment was notified to M. Otin and all the other ministers; and it is certainly incumbent on this government to wait until its commission has been there and has made a report before taking any further action in relation to emigration; and there is no necessity at this stage of discussing the protocol submitted by the chargé d’affaires of Spain, which, moreover, does not agree in all respects with what was adopted at the conference of August 1st.
These statements were embodied in the reply sent on the 13th instant to M. Otin, who two days afterwards answered as follows:
“I have received your dispatch of the 13th, the contents of which are so much at variance with what was agreed upon at the Russian legation, that I can no longer transact public business with the Yamun. I have accordingly requested the dean of the diplomatic body in Peking to attend to it for me, and I beg you to henceforth regard me simply as a private individual.”
On the same day a dispatch from Baron Holloben was received, stating “that M. Otin, the Spanish chargé d’affaires, has transferred his legation to me as dean of the diplomatic body, and all matters connected with Spain will be attended to by me until further notice.”
In regard to this whole affair, I can confidently say that in all our intercourse with foreign ministers the Yamun has always tried to maintain a spirit of cordiality and candor: and even when we have been disappointed in not arranging everything, we have never cherished the least feeling of distrust respecting the motives of others. In the present instance, as M. Otin seems to us to be mistaken and have misapprehended several points, we have addressed him unofficially, recapitulating the circumstances, and carefully defining our position in the matter, so as to dissipate his distrust.
The general conference which was held upon this question with all the ministers renders it desirable to communicate these things to them, as they will hear rumors of them, and I therefore inclose copies of two dispatches from M. Otin, one from the German chargé d’affaires, and three papers in reply from the Yamun, and submit the whole correspondence for your examination.
His Excellency S. W. Williams, United States Chargé d’Affaires.