BRITISH SHIPS LEAVE PORT ARTHUR. 373 



of the January of 1898. The presence of a British 

 vessel, H.M.S. Iphigenia, which was visiting Port 

 Arthur, as it had every right to do under the treaty of 

 Tientsin, was objected to by the Russian authorities, 

 who made representations to the British Government 

 to this effect. While pointing out to the Russian 

 Ambassador that British ships had every right to be 

 there. Lord Salisbury issued no orders to prevent them 

 leaving, with a result that as soon as the Iphigenia left 

 the port, a Reuters telegram was published in Peking, 

 stating that it was officially announced at St Petersburg 

 that British men-of-war had received orders to quit 

 Port Arthur immediately in consequence of representa- 

 tions made by Russia. The effect of this report may be 

 well imagined. 



In reply to these unfortunate occurrences on the 

 Pacific, the Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs stated 

 in the House of Commons in February that " the right 

 to send ships of war to Port Arthur was a right which 

 we enjoyed together with other Powers under the 

 treaty of Tientsin, and, when occasion arose, we should 

 do it again." Unfortunately the occasion never did 

 arise, nor did we do it again ; for in March Russia 

 forced from China a lease of both Talienwan and Port 

 Arthur, and included in the convention connected with 

 it an article which reads as follows : " The two nations 

 agree that Port Arthur shall be a naval port for the 

 sole use of Russian and Chinese men-of-war, and be 

 considered as an unopened port so far as the naval and 

 mercantile vessels of other nations are concerned." 



Thus did we stand idly by and view our treaty rights 

 played fast and loose with, in spite of the heroic state- 

 ment by the Prime Minister — that there was no effort 

 which this country would not make rather than allow 

 its rights to be destroyed I No wonder that a Russian 



