"Her Majesty's Government have hi-thereto abstained from offering any observations upon the circular of the Chinese Government on the subject of religious missions, of which a translation has been communicated to them by the French (Chairman), Nachtrieb, Hennequin, Maig-Charge d'Affuires, in tue expectation that nan, Buissonet, and Viguier, representing they might have received some reports from you regarding it. As, however, they learn' from your telegraphic despatches that it will be some time before they will be in ion of you views, they consider they cannot allow this important paper to remain longer unnoticed.
"Her Majesty's Government must protest against the general assertions contained in the circular and accompanying regulations,.with regard to missionary enterprise in China. They must,. moreover, remark that, of the instances of alleged abuses cited, there is not one which is in any way connected with any British missionary establishment. On the calor question to which the circular relates, the policy and practice of the Government of Great Britain have been unmistakable. They have uniformly declared, and now repeat, that they do not claim ta afford any species of protection to Chinese Christians which may be construed as withdrawing them from their native allegiance, nor do they desire to secure to British missionaries any privileges or immunities beyond those granted by treaty to other British subjects.
"The ist ition does not apply to the British Missionary Societies, as they do not support any orphanages in China. Her Majesty's Government could not obviously accede to regulations which they had no power to enforce. The second regulation requires that women ought no Yonger to enter the churches, nor should sisters of charity live in China to teach religion. The objection to women frequent ing Christian churches: has been met at Fatshan and elsewhere by a screen having been erected to divide the sexes. There are no sisters of charity attached to the British missionary societies, but Her Majesty's Government could not countenance any regulation which would cast a slur upon a sisterhood whose blameless lives and noble acts of devotion in the cause of humanity are known throughout the world.
"The 3rd and 4th Articles, as respects Chinese Christians, have already been dealt with in the preceding part of this despatch; but her Majesty's Government cannot allow the claim that the missionaries residing in China must conform to the Iavws and customs of China to pass challenged. The 7th Regulation calls for no special observation. The 8th Regulation does not appl to Bric' tish missionaries, who have no ecclesiastical property in China to reclaim, and seems to refer to misunderstandings with regard to the operation of the 6th Article of the with France "Tf British missionaries behave improperly they should be handed over to the nearest Consul for punishment,' like other British subjects, as provided' in the 9th article of the Treaty of Tientsin. If the local authorities consider that Her Majesty's Consuls do not in any instance afford redress for their complaints, they can appeal, through the Government at Peking, to Her Majesty's Minister, in the ordinary course of international usage; but until it can be proved that Her Majesty's Minister and Consuls are unable to control Her Majesty's subjects in China by the exercise of the powers confided to them, Her Majesty's Government must decline to supplement the existing treaties by regulations which, although only intended to deal with a particular class of British subjects, would undoubtedly subject the whole British community in China to a constant interference in their intercourse with the native population."
27th August.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.