can minister to China requesting advice whether a Chinese child adopted by an American citizen in China may be admitted to the United States for the purpose of being educated. The minister seeks specific instructions as to the correctness of an opinion expressed by him to the effect that the Chinese child mentioned can not be admitted as an American citizen merely because of its adoption by a lady who is a citizen of the United States.

So far as the department is aware, this particular question has never been raised, either before the executive branch of the government or in the courts. Upon careful reflection, however, it is constrained, in the light of the fact that it is impossible for a member of the Chinese race, under existing naturalization laws and decisions of the courts, to become a citizen of the United States by any other means than birth within its territory, to hold that a child born of Chinese parents in China can not be permitted to enter the United States as an American citizen because of its adoption by a temporary resident of the Empire of China who is a citizen of this country. The minister was correct in holding that the persons interested in the child should adopt the usual procedure to insure its admission to this country, viz, the procurement of a certificate under the provisions of section 6 of the act of July 5, 1884.

SIR: I have the honor to transmit herewith a memorandum prepared by Mr. Williams, Chinese secretary of this legation, on the subject of the foreign settlements at the open ports of China. The sketch is necessarily brief, but it notes the facts which mark the stages of the movement of the Chinese to narrow the privileges of foreign residents at these ports, which is so strongly marked in the regulations made by China for the government of the localities opened by her within the last few years, as well as in the negotiations. for opening localities under treaty provisions.

Concerning the negotiations for the establishment of international settlements at Mukden and Antung, to which the memorandum refers, I inclose copies of recent correspondence between this legation and the Wai-wu Pu on the reported recent regulations said to have been proposed by the Viceroy Yüan Shih-k'ai and the Tartar general at Sheng-king. The Wai-wu Pu in its reply acknowledges the necessity of agreeing with this legation as to the regulations for these settlements which it would have been impossible for it to deny-but say nothing concerning the authenticity of those purporting to come from the viceroy and the Tartar general.

I have, etc.,

W. W. ROCKHILL.

[Inclosure 1.]

FOREIGN SETTLEMENTS AT THE OPEN PORTS OF CHINA.

[Extracts.]

In China proper and in Manchuria 46 cities and towns have been thrown open already to foreign residence and international trade. This does not include Dalny, in Manchuria, leased to Japan; Wei-hai-wei, in Shantung, leased to

Great Britain; Kiaochow, in Shantung, leased to Germany; Kowloon, in Kuangtung, leased to Great Britain; nor Kuang-chou-wan, in Kuangtung, leased to France. Besides the above, there are 3 cities in Tibet thrown open to trade, making 49 ports in the Empire. In addition to these already declared open, there are 13 cities whose opening in the immediate future is arranged for, and 3 others whose opening depends upon the acceptance by other treaty powers of the provisions of Article VIII of the last commercial treaty between China and Great Britain. No account is taken of the cities of Turkestan, Mongolia, and the Amur region, in which Russian subjects have for many years enjoyed privileges of trade and consular jurisdiction.

It will be seen therefore that in the immediate future foreigners will enjoy the right of residence for purposes of trade at more than 60 cities of the Chinese Empire.

At the earliest known date of foreign commercial intercourse with China the foreign traders were restricted in their residence to definite areas at the ports frequented by them. This was the case with the Arab and Indian merchants who visited Canton from the ninth century onwards. They lived in what we may call the foreign quarter of Canton, where they were placed to a great extent under the jurisdiction of their headmen, in much the same way that Chinese traders in Java, the Philippines, and other parts of the East Indies were made subject to the control of their headmen.

Upon the advent of Europeans in China, they were placed under similar restrictions, and the British superintendent of trade at Canton was regarded by the Chinese as nothing more than the headman of the British merchants.

By the British treaty of Nanking (1842) and by that of Wanghia with the United States (1844) the superintendents of trade were given an official status and called consuls, and by the same treaties foreign merchants were allowed the privilege of residing for purposes of trade at five ports of the EmpireCanton, Amoy, Foochow, Ningpo, and Shanghai.

By Article II of the above-mentioned British treaty, British subjects were allowed to reside for trade "at the cities and towns" just mentioned. Nothing is said of restricting them in their residence to any particular localities at these ports; no provision was made for foreign settlements.

The ravages of the Taiping rebels drove thousands of homeless Chinese to seek safety under the protection of foreign flags. The little settlement was soon crowded with such refugees. The building and renting of houses for their occupation became such a profitable enterprise that no foreigner protested against the influx. The authority of the Imperial Government was greatly weakened by the rebellion, and the local authorities could not but view with satisfaction the cooperation of the foreign powers in preserving order at the port. Some form of municipal government became absolutely necessary, and in 1854 a code of land regulations was adopted by an arrangement made between the Imperial Government and the ministers for Great Britain, France, and the United States. Under these regulations the international settlement at Shanghai flourished greatly, and rapidly grew into a great cosmopolitan municipality, entirely overshadowing the native city. The regulations were revised from time to time to the advantage of the foreigners, and the influx of Chinese increased from year to year to such an extent that the limits of the settlement had to be enlarged repeatedly. Its population to-day amounts to 465,000, of which but 11,000 are foreigners.

France early obtained a separate site for the residence of her merchants. This lies between the international settlement and the native city. It has its own municipal council, whose acts are without force, however, unless approved by the French consul-general. Its present population is about 80,000; that of the native city about 183,000, making a total for the port of Shanghai, native city and both settlements included, of 727,000, of whom less than 12,000 are foreigners. Here is an anomalous condition of affairs; 500,000 Chinese at the largest and most important seaport of the Empire, while owing allegiance to the Imperial Government and subject to the jurisdiction of native magistrates in the mixed courts, are really governed by foreign municipalities.

At no other port has the same method been adopted as at Shanghai. At some, as at Newchwang, for instance, no district has been definitely marked out for foreign residence. At others, as Hankow and Tientsin, for example, each nation interested has secured a separate site for the residence of its merchants. At Hankow there are five such settlements, and at Tientsin eight. At such ports, therefore, there are a number of little municipalities, each with its own regulations and its own method of government. Trade does not suffer,

however, as much as might be expected, since it always seeks that settlement which offers the best inducements.

As these foreign settlements began to grow up outside the walls of the native cities, the Chinese authorities began gradually to take the position that the cities themselves had never been opened to foreign residence and trade, that only a restricted area outside the gates of the city had been opened, and that goods passing from the city to the settlement and vice versa could be taxed by the likin and octroi offices. This position has been contested by various foreign governments for years past, but the question is still unsettled, so far as the Chinese are concerned, and in the regulations drawn up for the control of the settlements at ports voluntarily opened to China, it is clearly stipulated that all districts outside the boundaries of such settlements, including the native cities, are to be treated as under the inland transit regulations.

When the Chefoo convention was being negotiated between Great China, in 1876, Sir Thomas Wade agreed "to move his Government to allow the ground rented to foreigners (the so-called concessions) at the different ports to be regarded as the area of exemption from likin." The British Government, however, refused to accept this provision, and the treaty was finally ratified without it in 1886.

After the opening of the five ports mentioned in the treaties of Nanking and Wanghia, various other places, on the demand of one power or another, were likewise opened to international residence and trade. At all of these places, until the opening of Soochow and Hangchow in 1896, foreign residents were given the same privileges as at the five ports first opened. In opening Soochow and Hangchow, at the request of Japan, the Chinese decided upon a new course. The Chinese authorities themselves bought up the land at the locations fixed upon for foreign settlements and leased it in lots for a period of thirty years to those desiring it, the leases being subject to renewal for additional periods of thirty years for ever. These settlements were put under Chinese police control, and road making and all other public improvements were undertaken by the Chinese authorities themselves.

The next year Germany seized the port of Kiaochow, and later secured a lease of the bay and certain districts adjoining. This example was promptly followed by Russia, which obtained the lease of Port Arthur and Dalny and the region contiguous. France demanded and secured Kuangchouwan, and Great Britain in the same manner obtained Weihaiwei and the extension of Kowloon. Italy asked for Sanmun.

The Chinese were aroused by these appropriations of their territory, and even while the negotiations were pending looked about for ports whose opening was likely to be demanded, and decided to be beforehand by opening such ports themselves under such conditions as would enable them to retain municipal control. In this way on March 31, 1898, the treaty powers were notified that Yochow and Honan; Santuao, in Fukien, and Chingwanto (winter port of Tientsin), in Chihli would be opened "by China herself." In the following month Woosung at the mouth of the Huangp'u was opened in the same way, as stated above. In 1899 Nanning, in Kuanghsi, was declared open in the same way. In the Chinese eyes the words “opened by China herself" have a very definite meaning, and imply that the settlements needed are to be laid out and controlled as in the case of Yochow, Santuao, etc. When the new commercial treaty between China and Great Britain was drawn up in 1902 it was provided therein that (Article VIII, section 12) "the Chinese Government agrees to open to foreign trade on the same footing as the places opened to foreign trade by the treaties of Nanking and Tientsin, the following places: Changsha, in Honan; Wanhsien, in Szecheun; Nganking, in Anhui; Waichow, in Kwangtung; and Kongmoon in Kwangtung." But this agreement was qualified by the statement that " foreigners residing in these open ports are to observe the municipal and police regulations on the same footing as Chinese residents, and they are not to be entitled to establish municipalities and police of their own within the limits of these treaty ports, except with the consent of the Chinese authorities." By our own treaty with China in 1903 it was provided that "Mukden and Antung, both in the Province of Shengking, will be opened by China itself as places of international residence and trade. The selection of fitting localities to be set apart for international use and occupation, and the regulations for these places set apart for foreign residence and trade shall be agreed upon by the Governments of the United States and China after consultation together."

What China means by a port opened by herself may be understood by reading the regulations adopted by Tsinan Fu in Shantung, which was opened to foreign

trade on January 10, 1906. Notice of intention thereof was given March 2, 1905, and a copy of the general regulations of the port were sent to this legation then. By these regulations foreigners are restricted in their residence and trade to a settlement definitely bounded, located outside the walls of the city, and the city itself and all territory outside the boundaries of the settlement are to be regarded as under inland regulations; that is, foreigners may not buy land there, nor reside nor trade there, and all goods going to and fro between the settlement are treated as shipped into the interior. Provisions are made also for the establishment of a Chinese municipal government and a Chinese police administration, but the extraterritorial powers of foreign consuls are recognized. In important cases, however, the police may enter any house in search of criminals, even without a warrant. All land in the settlement is bought by the Government and is leased to those who wish to occupy it at a fixed annual rental of from $10 to $36 per mou, according to class, and an annual tax of $2 per mou (one-sixth of an acre). The lease runs for thirty years only, and at renewal the rental may be increased, if circumstances warrant. If rent and taxes remain unpaid for a year, the lease is canceled. At the expiration of sixty years, if the Government so desires, it may take over the property at a valuation to be determined by arbitrators. Within three years from the date of the lease buildings must be erected on the ground, or the lease will be canceled, and no sums already paid for rent and taxes will be refunded. By comparing these regulations with those of Soochow and Hangchow, it will be seen that a great advance has been made in ten years in the matter of restricting the privileges enjoyed by foreigners in the settlements.

Mukden and Antung in Manchuria were opened to foreign residence and trade by our treaty of 1903. By the provisions of that treaty the sites for the foreign settlements at these places and the regulations for their government are to be determined by the Governments of the United States and of China after consulting together. Recent Chinese newspapers, however, publish a set of regulations for the said settlements, which, it is said, the Tartar general and the Viceroy Yuan Shih-k'ai have proposed for the approval of the imperial authorities. These regulations place the settlements at the two cities named on the same footing as that at Tsinan in Shantung. Indeed the regulations are even less liberal than those in force at Tientsin; the leases are fixed at from $15 to $50 per mou per annum, according to the location of the ground. It is but fair to say, however, that the Chinese authorities deny that such regulations have been drawn up. It is probable that the matter has been under discussion, but such regulations must of necessity be submitted to the Government of the United States for its approval before they can be put into operation.

This brief review if the history of foreign settlements in China shows a growing determination on the part of the Chinese to construe the treaties as strictly as possible, and to reduce the privileges heretofore enjoyed by foreign residents so far as can be done without a violation of these treaties. The newly awakened feeling of national unity, and the efforts being made to repurchase concessions made to foreign syndicates and develop the resources of the Empire with Chinese capital under Chinese control, are parts of the same general movement.

[Inclosure 2.1

E. T. WILLIAMS.

Chargé Coolidge to the Prince of Ch'ing.

NOVEMBER 17, 1905.

YOUR IMPERIAL HIGHNESS: My attention has been directed to a report by the board of finance of the Throne, recommending that the request for an appropriation from the imperial treasury for the expenses of opening the ports of Mukden, Antung, and Tatungkou be not granted, but that the authorities of the province be authorized to raise the needed funds themselves, and repay them from the future receipts of the customs. In this report, the memorial of the viceroy, Yuan Shih-k'ai, and others, preferring the above-mentioned request, is quoted as saying:

"In the matter of opening to international trade of the three places in Fengt'ien, Mukden, Antung, Tatungkou, now being dealt with, the precedent established in other places opened by China herself is to be followed in all things;

that is to say, the officials must purchase the land within the limits set apart for the foreign settlements which shall become government property, and shall mark the boundaries of the settlements, after which the merchants of various nations may lease lands as they may need, build thereon and establish their places of business. At Antung and Tatungkou, which are seaports, it will be necessary to construct anchorage and wharves, and within the settlements at all three places it will be necessary to establish police and make provision for sanitation, build roads and public buildings, the expense of which must be borne by our own Government in order that its sovereignty may be maintained." The report further says, that if the imperial sanction be given, orders will be given to the authorities concerned to report to the board of foreign affairs and the customs authorities the regulations to be proposed, that they may approve of them. The imperial rescript approves the report.

With regard to this matter, I have the honor to remind your imperial highness that Mukden and Antung have been opened to foreign residence and international trade by treaty with the United States, and that the selection of suitable localities for international use and occupation, and the regulations for these places must be agreed upon by the Governments of the United States and China after consultation together.

On the 28th of April last Mr. Rockhill addressed a note to your imperial highness in which he called attention to the provisions of the treaty in respect to this matter, and intimated the willingness of the American Government to delegate some one at as early a date as might be convenient to consult with a representative of China for the purpose stated. Negotiations regarding the matter were opened between Mr. Sammons, American consul-general at Newchwang, and the Taot'ai Liang, and on the 13th of July Mr. Rockhill called at the foreign office and had an interview with the ministers of your highness' board, in which it was agreed that, owing to the peculiar conditions prevailing in Manchuria at that time, the question of sites for settlements and the adoption of regulations for the government of the same should be left for the time being unsettled, to be adjusted later, when the circumstances should so improve as to admit of a satisfactory solution. It was expressly stipulated, however, that this arrangement was to be without prejudice to American treaty rights.

I have the honor to inform your imperial highness that the United States is ready now, as then, to appoint a representative to join with a representative of the Chinese Government in determining sites for the proposed settlements and in drawing up regulations for their government.

YOUR IMPERIAL HIGHNESS: It is reported that their Excellencies the Viceroy Yuan Shih-k'ai and the Tartar General Chao Erh-hsun have memorialized the Throne to draw up the following regulations in reference to the opening of Mukden and Antung to international commerce:

1. As the opening of Mukden and Antung was stipulated in the treaties with the United States and Japan, the which treaties provide that China shall herself open the said ports to international trade, it is necessary that the said two ports be regarded as voluntarily opened by China, and as being on a different footing from other ports opened by treaty-that is to say, all matters concerned with them must be dealt with under regulations for ports voluntarily opened for China.

2. Sites shall be selected and set apart at the two ports named for international settlements. The boundaries of said settlements shall be as follows:

(a) Boundaries at Mukden.

(b) Boundaries at Antung,