THE EARL OF KIMBERLEYMy Lords, I desire to ask a question of the noble Marquess the Prime Minister, of which I have given him private notice, whether he is in a position to give any information to the House as to the terms of the Agreement entered into with the Russian Government?
§ THE PRIME MINISTER AND SECRETARY OF STATE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS (the Marquess of SALISBURY)I am in a little difficulty, because I am not quite sure whether I am acting in accordance with the wishes of the Russian Government in entering into the matter. That I have not been able to ascertain. But I imagine that as soon as the text arrives, which will be in two or three days, I shall be able to lay it upon the Table. As to the general drift of the Agreement the noble Lord probably knows that it is a railway agreement concerning our fields of operation in China, and that, while England agrees neither to undertake nor to encourage any railway, by English persons or others, north of the Great Wall, Russia, on the other hand, has made exactly similar stipulations with respect to the basin of the Yang-tsze. There are certain stipulations in the Agreement with respect to the railway to be made to Niu-Chwang, about which there has been a great deal of controversy, and our interests in that direction are, I think, entirely protected. I may say that, while I could not be silent on the subject, I am very anxious not to appear to attach to the particular stipulations of this Agreement an exaggerated importance. But I attach very great importance to the Agreement itself, as a sign of good feeling between the Governments of Great Britain and Russia. That is very much to be desired; and what is still more to be desired is that good feeling should grow up between the Russian and English peoples. But this particular Agreement will be of value in preventing the possibility of collision between the two Governments in that distant part of the world, and therefore it is a gauge for their future agreement for a long time, and will, I trust, lead to agreement in other matters.
§ Order of the Day for the House to be put into committee read