The advice the Nepal Minister gave to the Tibetan Council was this: If the report was correct that they had refused to be bound by the treaty of 1890, on the ground that it was concluded by the Chinese and not by themselves, then they had acted very improperly. The Tibetans and the Nepalese had for a long time held the Emperor of China in high respect. It was improper, then, to declare that the treaty, having been made by the Chinese, was not binding upon the Tibetans, since whatever was done was done on their behalf. The Minister pointed out that, since the conclusion of the treaty between the British and Nepal Governments representatives of each of the Governments had resided in the other’s country, and the due observance of the terms of the treaty had been continually advantageous to the Government of Nepal, and their religion had not suffered in any way. The advantages derived from such an arrangement were too many to enumerate. Since the treaty was made, the British Government had on different occasions restored to them territories lost by Nepal in war, and producing a revenue of many lakhs of rupees. The Tibetans must bear in mind that the Government that they had to deal with was not a despotic, but a constitutional, one, and this would be corroborated by the fact that the British had helped the Nepalese to maintain the autonomy of their country for so long a time, whereas they might easily have deprived them of it if they had had a mind to behave in a despotic and unjust manner. The most notable feature in the relations of the Nepalese with the British, continued the Minister, was that they sacredly observed Nepalese religious and social prejudices. Hence if the Tibetans would even now take time by the forelock, settle the pending questions, and behave with the British as true friends, he was sure Tibet would derive the same benefit from such an alliance as Nepal had hitherto done. That the British Government had any evil designs upon Tibet did not appear from any source. It was well known that the sun never sets upon the British dominions, and that the Sovereign of such a vast Empire should entertain designs of unjustly and improperly taking the Tibetan mountainous country should never cross their minds. So wrote the Nepalese Minister to the Lhasa Council.
Another month passed, and there was still no improvement in the situation. On the contrary, continued rumours arrived that the Tibetans were massing troops, and that at Lhasa they were quite prepared to go to war. The old Shigatse Abbot was very friendly, but quite ineffectual in bringing about negotiations. One day he lunched with us, and assured us that he had made a divination that Yatung was the place where negotiations would be carried on quickest. I said that what we wanted to find was a place where the negotiations could be carried on, not quickest, but best; and I asked him to consult his beads again, and see if Shigatse would not be suitable in that respect. He laughed, and replied that the divination had to be made in front of an altar, to the accompaniment of music. Captain O’Connor had succeeded in making the Abbot and his people so friendly that Mr. Wilton heard from Chinese sources that the Chinese believed that we had either bought over the Abbot or promised him some considerable concession—neither of which was, of course, the case. Still, all this friendliness of the Shigatse men amounted to very little practical use as long as the Lhasa people were still obstinate. So on October 7 I telegraphed to Government that I was strengthening my escort by 100 men from the support, and on the following day telegraphed them a resumé of the whole situation.
I said that the Viceroy’s despatch had reached the Resident one month previously, and no reply had yet been received, though letters from Lhasa could reach Khamba Jong in four days. The Mission had been there for three months without being able to even commence negotiations. The Chinese showed indifference and incompetence, and the Tibetans pure obstruction. The present Resident was acknowledged by even the Chinese to be weak and incompetent, and his Associate Resident had been allowed to resign some months back. The new Amban, though appointed in December, was only just leaving Chengtu, and could not reach the frontier till January. The new Associate Resident had been given sick-leave before even joining his post. Mr. Ho, though I had given him the above-mentioned very serious warning, made no haste to proceed to Lhasa, but had loitered at Phari. Even if the Chinese showed less indifference, they could do little with the Tibetans. Mr. Ho was refused transport, and Colonel Chao (his successor) had informed me that the new Resident could not bring large numbers of troops into Tibet, as Tibetans would refuse to furnish transport and supplies. As regards the attitude of the Tibetans, the people in the vicinity and the Shigatse deputies were perfectly friendly, but the Lhasa authorities were as obstructive as ever. The delegates, since the first formal visits, had refused all communication, social or official, with me. The two Sikkim men made prisoners remained in custody, and Tibetan troops lined all the heights between our camp and Gyantse or Shigatse; and there was much probability that Siberian Buriat Lamas were present in Lhasa. The result of all our moderation in the present and previous years was nil, and I could, I said, no longer hold out any hope to Government of a peaceful solution of the question.
On October 11 I left Khamba Jong to proceed to Simla to confer with the Government of India on future action, and thus ended this futile effort to settle the question on the frontier.
The unsatisfactory nature of the situation had in the meanwhile been taken notice of by the Government in England, and, under their instructions, Sir Ernest Satow, our Minister at Peking, on September 25 presented a note to the Chinese Government, stating that, in spite of the Dalai Lama having agreed that negotiations should take place at Khamba Jong, the Tibetan representatives had refused to negotiate there; they had imprisoned two British subjects at Shigatse, and refused to release them; and they were collecting troops, and making hostile preparations. Sir Ernest Satow further verbally informed the Foreign Board, in accordance with his instructions, that His Majesty’s Government expected them to bring immediate pressure to bear upon the Dalai Lama, with a view to the release of the two British subjects who had been imprisoned, and to the commencement without delay of negotiations between the Tibetan delegates and the British Commissioners. Should the Dalai Lama not give immediate satisfaction to these demands, His Majesty’s Government would feel themselves compelled to take such measures as they might consider necessary for the safety of their Mission and for the release of the two British subjects.
Prince Ching promised Sir Ernest Satow to despatch a telegram at once to Lhasa by Batang, and said he hoped an improvement would manifest itself as soon as the new Resident arrived; but he described the Tibetans as intensely ignorant and obstinate, and very difficult to influence.
At first the Imperial Government was not prepared to sanction anything further than the occupation of the Chumbi Valley; but on October 1 Lord George Hamilton telegraphed to the Government of India that Government had again considered the position, and were now prepared, if complete rupture of negotiations proved inevitable, to authorize, not only the occupation of the Chumbi Valley, but also the advance of the Mission to Gyantse, if it could be made with safety; and he asked the Viceroy to inform him of his plans, and particularly how he proposed to secure the safety of the Mission at Gyantse.
It was upon this that I was summoned to Simla to advise the Government of India, and after consultation with me at a meeting of the Council, which I was invited to attend, they telegraphed, on October 26, to Mr. Brodrick, who had now succeeded as Secretary of State, that, for the following reasons, an advance into Tibet seemed indispensable: (1) Though the Dalai Lama had agreed to the Commissioners meeting at Khamba Jong, the Tibetan delegates had refused to hold any communication with the British Commissioner; (2) no Chinese delegates of suitable rank had as yet been sent; (3) the procrastination of the Chinese Government; (4) the warlike preparations of the Tibetans; (5) the arrest and imprisonment of two British subjects; (6) the complete failure of the policy pursued for twenty-five years, the only result of which was that the Tibetans mistook our patience for weakness, and despised our strength. They recommended, therefore, the advance should extend to Gyantse, and should not be confined to the Chumbi Valley, for these reasons: (1) That the Chumbi Valley is on the Indian side of the watershed, and is not regarded as part of Tibet, and a move from Khamba Jong only to there would be regarded as a retrograde movement by the Tibetans; (2) that if we moved only into the Chumbi Valley, we should find the existing situation at Khamba Jong repeated at Phari; (3) that Colonel Younghusband considered it extremely important that we should come into contact with the Tibetan people, for they were quite prepared to enter into relations with us, and were friendly, it being only the hierarchy of Lhasa Lamas who were opposed; (4) that, as we were pressing to have a mart at Gyantse, that object could be secured in no better way than by advancing thither at once. On arrival at Gyantse the force would not attack the place, but, as had been done at Khamba Jong, would establish a fortified port, and invite Tibetans and Chinese to resume negotiations.
It was estimated, in a subsequent telegram, that the total force to be employed would be one battalion of Gurkhas, two companies of Sappers and Miners, two battalions of Pioneers, two guns, British Mountain Battery, two Maxims, and two seven-pounder guns. The command of the whole was to be entrusted to Brigadier-General Macdonald.