Wearer of the Peacock Feather, Delegate of Heilungkiang Province, party of the second part, have concluded the following agreement:

1. The right is granted to the Chinese Eastern Railroad to work the coal within certain regions of Heilungkiang Province.

The places where the coal may be worked within the limits of these regions, and the mode of working it, shall be determined by the management of the railway itself. However, when explorations are made, a Chinese official must be present in order to ascertain whether there are any objections to the work, the question whether or not there are such objections being determined by the distance of the shafts from Chinese settlements or cemeteries, as follows: Shafts shall not be sunk nearer than two Chinese li to large commercial settlements, not nearer than one Chinese li to villages of not over ten dwellings, and not nearer than one-half Chinese li to large cemeteries and sacred groves.

2. Within a zone of thirty Chinese li on either side of the roadbed of the railroad, the right to explore and work the coal deposits shall belong to the railroad. However, Chinese shall also be allowed the right to work the coal deposits within the limits of a zone thirty Chinese li wide on either side of the road, provided this does not interfere with mines previously operated by the management of the road; and the management shall not offer any opposition thereto. If there should be other foreigners, or Chinese and foreigners, who have gathered capital and desire to operate the coal deposits within the radius of a zone thirty Chinese li wide, they shall not be allowed to proceed with such operation until receiving permission from the Chinese authorities as well as the consent of the management of the road. As regards lands situated outside the thirty li zone, they do not concern the management of the road, and the permission for Chinese. or foreigners to explore or operate the coal deposits therein shall depend entirely on the Chinese authorities, the management of the road not having any right to interfere in such matters. If the management of the road should desire to make explorations of coal deposits outside the thirty li zone, it must first receive permission from the proper governor, whereupon it may proceed, but in this case the rights of the management of the road shall in no wise differ from those of Chinese or foreigners.

3. In order not to deprive the inhabitants of coal regions of mineral fuel, the residents of villages in the vicinity of shafts belonging to the Chinese Eastern Railway Company shall have a right to buy coal from the company at prices fixed by the management of the Chinese Eastern Railway for each deposit separately. The prices fixed shall be published by the management for general information and communicated to the Tsiao-she-tsü at Harbin for the same purpose.

4. If in the vicinity of a place selected for the mining of coal there are settlements of not over five dwellings or cemeteries of not over ten graves, the Chinese Eastern Railway Company shall enter into arrangements with the owners of the dwellings or cemeteries for the removal thereof to other places, with the requirement that the matter be discussed and settled in agreement with the official of the Tsiao-she-tsü, whereupon it shall be necessary to communicate the matter to the local governor for his information.

5. In each individual case when, as a result of prospecting, it is ascertained

that coal may be worked in a particular place, the question of the dimensions of the tract to be worked shall be discussed by the management of the road with the official of the Tsiao-she-tsü and the owner of the land. Upon the tract to be worked being determined, a fair rental or purchase price must be fixed, and not until this question has been settled shall permission for proceeding with the work be granted. Lands which, after being explored, prove useless, shall be releveled at the expense of the management of the road and returned to the owner, for the management of the road is not granted ownership of the surface of the land. For any injuries caused to forests or crops the management of the road shall likewise be obliged, in company with the official of the Tsiao-she-tsü, to reach an agreement with the owners and grant them just compensation.

6. Any timber found within the limits of the tract purchased, and necessary for the operation of the coal deposits, may be prepared by the management of the road at its discretion. With respect to forests situated on private land outside the limits of the purchased tract, the management of the road must come to an agreement with the owner of the land and proceed in accordance with the forestry regulations established by agreement with the manager of the road. In regard to government lands, it shall also be necessary to proceed in accordance with the forestry regulations mentioned.

7. For every 1,000 kin of coal extracted, the Chinese Eastern Railway Company shall pay into the Heilungkiang treasury 12/100 of a Heilungkiang tael quarterly, that is, at the end of March, June, September, and December. Moreover, for each active shaft, the Chinese Eastern Railroad Company shall pay annually at the rate of 17.64 Heilungkiang taels in silver, making the payment at the end of June.

8. With respect to government lands, it shall also be necessary to make explorations in company with a Chinese official, it being necessary to determine the boundaries, and, with the consent of the management of the road, a rental shall be fixed which cannot, however, exceed the amount of charges collected upon the colonization of lands of similar quality.

9. All questions on which no final agreement has been reached between the company and private individuals or the government treasury, as well as all misunderstandings which may arise at the place where the work is going on, shall be examined and finally decided by the Tsiao-she-tsü of Harbin.

10. All the foregoing provisions of the present agreement relate solely to the Chinese Eastern Railway Company and are in no case applicable to Chinese subjects who are engaged in the mining of anthracite coal at the present time or who may receive permission for such work in future. All such persons shall be exclusively subject to the Chinese laws already existing on the subject, the Chinese Eastern Railway Company taking no part in the matter.

11. The present agreement shall be written in the Chinese and Russian languages in duplicate. In case any dispute arises, the Chinese text shall be taken as a basis.

12. The Tsiao-she-tsü of Heilungkiang Province shall send a Chinese delegate to all coal mines being worked by the Chinese Eastern Railway Company, which delegate shall remain at the place of operations, keep track of the amount

of coal extracted, and, in company with the Russian superintendent of the mines, prepare reports. Quarters shall be assigned to him by the management of the The boundaries of the coal deposits shall be accurately defined, or the deposits shall be surrounded by a fence. In case Chinese who have committed some offense conceal themselves within the limits of the mining regions, the Chinese police may be allowed access thereto, provided the local authorities first communicate with the superintendents of the mines, the latter then appointing persons to cooperate with the Chinese police in searching for and arresting the guilty parties.

(Signed) Major General HORVATH,
Manager of the Chinese Eastern Railway.
E. DANIEL,

Agent empowered by Manager of the
Chinese Eastern Railway to deal with

the Chinese authorities.

(Chinese signature), Expectant Taotai, Wearer of the Peacock Feather, Delegate of Heilungkiang Province.

Harbin, August 17/30, 1907 (22d day, 7th moon, 33d year of the Reign of Kuang Hsü.

Note.

The following is a translation from the Chinese text of an agreement for the mining of coal in the Province of Heilungkiang, which had been concluded on January 1/14, 1902:

Agreement for Coal Mining in Heilungkiang, January 14, 1902.

On the 1st of January, 1902, Russian Calendar, being the 5th of the Twelfth Moon, XXVII Year of Kuanghsü, Chinese Calendar (January 14th, 1902), Ta-nieh-erh (Tarnier), being appointed by the Engineer-in-Chief of the Chinese Eastern Railway, Ju-ko-wei-chih (Jugovitch) as his agent with full powers, has entered into the following Articles of Agreement with Sa, who is by Imperial appointment the Acting Tartar General of the Province of Hei-lung-chiang:

"I.-The Tartar General of the Province of Hei-lung-chiang, being desirous of preserving the forests of that province, has given to the Railway Company authority to prospect for coal and to mine coal without hindrance in the said province, the said Čompany being at liberty to determine for itself in what places and by what methods to so prospect and mine.

II. When prospecting for coal or mining the same, it will be necessary to observe the following three conditions ;

(a) The Railway Company shall have the exclusive right to prospect for coal and to mine coal within not more than 30 Chinese li on either side of the railway line.

"(b) Should any foreigners, either some other company or some combination of Chinese and foreign share-holders, desire to prospect for coal or mine coal outside the 30 li limit on either side of the railway, the Tartar General agrees that before granting them permission so to do he will first consult with the Chinese Eastern Railway Company. (c) Should the Chinese Eastern Railway Company desire to prospect for coal or mine coal outside the 30 li limit on either side of the railway, the said Chinese Eastern Railway shall be accorded precedence over all other applicants, but it shall be necessary for the said Company to observe the general Regulations of China governing the mining of coal.

"III.-In order that the people living in the vicinity of the mines may not be deprived of fuel from the mines, the villagers of the region round about the mines of the Chinese Eastern Railway Company shall be permitted to purchase coal from the said Railway Company, but the conditions of these various mines are not alike, and it will be necessary to adhere to the prices to be fixed by the Head Company, and after the prices shall have

been decided upon by the Head Company, they shall be published for the information of all concerned and notice of the same shall be sent to the Hei-lung-chiang General Bureau of Railway Affairs at Harbin for purposes of verification.

"IV. Any hamlet in any region selected for the mining of coal, if it be in close proximity to a mine and if it shall contain not more than five families, and any grave plot which shall contain not more than ten graves, may be removed, provided the Railway Company shall consult with the owners of said property about the removal and the price to be paid as compensation. But the price to be paid must be agreed to by both parties concerned, and the Hei-lung-chiang General Bureau of Railway Affairs at Harbin shall use its good offices to secure agreement upon a fair price.

"V.-Should there be any large grave near to any mine, not less than half a Chinese li shall be reserved between it and any mining operations. If there be hamlets of ten families or more, such mining operations must not be carried nearer to them than one Chinese li, and in the case of a large market town not nearer than two Chinese li.

"VI. Should any injury be done to ground planted with trees, the Railway Company shall pay the owner for the same at the rate per mou paid for the land on which the railway line is built. If injury be done to fields bearing crops, the Company shall come to an amicable arrangement with the proprietors for compensation and pay the same.

"VII.-Should openings be made in places which are afterwards abandoned, the Railway Company must appropriate money to pay for filling them, or compensation must be made by the Company for any land that is damaged, which land shall nevertheless remain in the possession of its owner.

"VIII. All timber needed for construction, and any other materials needed for use, as well as all timber cut down either inside or outside of the area prospected or mined shall be paid for at a price amicably agreed upon with the owner, in the case of private lands, and, in the case of timber cut on Government lands, the Hei-lung-chiang royalty shall be paid, amounting to 8% of the price at which such timber may be bought in the market, or 8% of contractor's price for the same.

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IX.-Every thousand catties (Chinese) of coal taken out of the mines for its own use by the Railway Company shall pay to the treasury of the Hei-lung-chiang Province Chiang-p'ing Taels 0.08, to be paid every quarter at the end of March, June, September, and December, Russian Calendar. In addition to this at the end of June each year the Railway Company shall pay for each coal shaft opened an annual tax of Chiang-p'ing Taels 17.64.

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'X.-All unsettled questions between the Railway Company on the one hand and officials or private persons on the other, and all misunderstandings that may arise during the mining of coal shall be settled by the Hei-lung-chiang General Bureau of Railway Affairs at Harbin.

"XI.-The foregoing Regulations have been agreed upon with exclusive reference to coal mines opened by the Railway Company. Coal mines operated by Chinese, no matter whether new or old, no matter in what place situated, are all to be operated in accordance with the old regulations of China, and the Railway Company is in no wise concerned therewith. These Regulations apply only to those places in which the mines are located, and do not refer to any other mining property whatsoever.

"XII.-This agreement is written in Chinese, Russian, and French, there being two copies of each, and has been signed by the Acting Tartar General of the Hei-lung-chiang, Sa, and by Ta-nieh-erh (Tarnier), the agent of the Engineer-in-chief, whom he is fully empowered to represent, and, after it shall have been signed, as is necessary, by the Engineer-in-chief of the Chinese Eastern Railway, Ju-ko-wei-chih (Jugovitch) and the Assistant Engineer, I-ko-na-chai-wu-ssu, one copy of each text shall be given to the Tartar General of Hei-lung-chiang, and one to the Engineer-in-chief. Should any dispute arise as to the sense, the French text shall be considered authoritative. Kuanghsü XXVII Year, 12th Moon, 5th Day, i.e., Jan. 1, 1902, Russian Calendar (January 14th, 1902).”

NUMBER 1907/13.

RUSSIA (Chinese Eastern Railway Company) AND CHINA (Heilungkiang Province).

Contract for the expropriation of lands in Heilungkiang Province.*—August 30,

1907.

In order to establish a definite system for the expropriation of lands in Heilungkiang Province for the requirements of the Chinese Eastern Railway, we the undersigned, Major General Horvath, General Manager of the Chinese Eastern Railway, and Daniel, Agent of the General Manager of the Chinese Eastern Railway, on the one hand, and Expectant Taotai Sung Hsiao-lien, Decorated with the Peacock Feather, Delegate of Heilungkiang Province, on the other, have concluded the following agreement:

ARTICLE 1.-After the conclusion of this present agreement both contracting parties must strictly observe it, and since the whole quantity of land required for the railway has been included in this agreement, the Chinese Eastern Railway Company will never make any further expropriations.

ARTICLE 2.-The total quantity of land expropriated in Heilungkiang Province is fixed at one hundred and twenty-six thousand Chinese shang, beginning at the Chinese frontier at the western station of Manchuria and going eastward as far as the station of Zaton on the northern bank of the river Sungari at the city of Harbin. This quantity shall be divided among the stations and along the line in accordance with the special schedule attached to this contract, and the boundaries of the expropriated land shall be indicated by ditches. When paid for, the lands shall pass into the possession of the Chinese Eastern Railway Company in accordance with the contract for the construction of this road.

ARTICLE 3. The prices of lands belonging to private owners lately expropriated (with the exception of those already paid for) are fixed according to the following three categories:

(a) For cultivated lands: At the stations of Zaton or Peichiangtzu, for each Chinese shang, sixty rubles; at Tueichingshan, Tsitsihar and Fuliaerhti, forty rubles; at Yientungtun and Kukuluh, thirty-three rubles.

(b) For good lands that are not cultivated: At Zaton, for each Chinese shang, twenty-five rubles; at Tueichingshan, Tsitsihar and Fuliaerhti, twenty rubles; at Yientungtun and Kukuluh, fifteen rubles;

(c) For wet meadows: At Zaton, for each Chinese shang, thirteen rubles; at Tueichingshan, Tsitsihar, Fuliaerhti, Yientungtun, and Kukuluh, ten rubles.

ARTICLE 4.-The Chinese Eastern Railway Company agrees also to pay for government land expropriated, at the rate of eight rubles for each Chinese

* Translation from the Russian text as printed in Soglashenia, p. 33.

In connection with this contract see also a similar contract in regard to Kirin Province (No. 1907/14, post).