Chinese Customs Secret Files (8)

Author: Chen Xiefei, Editor-in-Chief
Publisher:
Publish Date: 1995-11-01
Features:
1. The correspondence between Sir Robert Hart and J. D. Kennedy, including telegrams and letters, is synchronized from 1874 to 1907, totaling 4,496 pieces. It includes a small number of telegrams sent by Sir Robert Hart to the London Office while he was on official business or leave, handled by P. F. Alcock as Acting Commissioner of Customs. Additionally, telegrams sent by Sir Robert Hart to Sir Robert Hart during the period when J. D. Kennedy was seriously ill and handled by H. C. Hart as Acting Director of the London Office in 1907, are all recorded according to their original telegram numbers.
2. For confidentiality, the following methods were used in the correspondence between Sir Robert Hart and J. D. Kennedy:
1. The use of code words. In the telegrams, names of individuals familiar to both parties were referred to using code words. For example, the term "Presto" sometimes referred to P. F. Alcock, sometimes to J. D. Kennedy, and sometimes to someone else. The editors only note those that can be clearly identified.
2. To mislead recipients who were not supposed to know, the original telegram numbering had two types: one was sequential from small to large, such as 1, 2, 3, and the other was reverse sequential from large to small, such as 999, 998, 997. This collection of telegrams is arranged in chronological order by year, month, and day to help readers understand the content based on the sequence of events. Starting in 1881, the correspondence between the two parties, in addition to customs affairs and international information exchange, also involved J. D. Kennedy frequently reporting to Sir Robert Hart to complete secret missions assigned by him, further enhancing the confidentiality of the telegrams. The two parties agreed that each telegram sent would be preceded by the same coded number of the preceding incoming telegram. For example, adding a reverse sequential number at the beginning indicated that the telegram was top secret, while adding a sequential number indicated a general confidential telegram. This tacit agreement remained in place until the Boxer Uprising in 1900, when communication between China and the outside world was temporarily disrupted. To preserve the original state of the archives, these numbers are retained as they are.
3. Some telegrams from Sir Robert Hart to J. D. Kennedy have two dates. The first date is the date recorded by J. D. Kennedy as the receipt date.