近代中国电报利权的维护——以1883—1884年中英交涉福州电报利权为例

The Defense of Modern China's Telegraph Rights: Focusing on Negotiations on Telegraph Rights of Fuzhou between China and Britain in 1883-1884

自19世纪60年代开始,西方列强就不断通过各种手段侵蚀中国的电报利权,中方为维护和争回电报利权也作了种种努力。1883—1884年,中英关于如何在福州安放英国大东电报公司电报海线的交涉便是其中一例。在此次交涉中,当时身为中国电报局总办的盛宣怀,善于运用策略,力争将此交涉限定于公司间的商业谈判而避免其成为国家间的外交议题。两国的电报公司最终于1884年在天津正式签署《福州电线合同》。该合同的签订,有效地阻止了外国电报公司对中国陆地电报利权的侵占,对此后中国电报事业的发展具有重要意义。

The western powers had continued to plunder China＇s telegraph rights through various means since the sixties of the 19th century, but there had always been lots of efforts made to defend and regain the rights. It was one of such examples that China and Britain negotiated on how to place the submarine cables of the Eastern Extension Australasia and China Telegraph Co. Ltd in Fuzhou in 1883--1884. During the negotiations, Sheng Xuanhuai, as the agent of the Empire Chinese Telegraph Administration, took effective measures to make negotiations become commercial negotiations between companies, not diplomatic issues between countries. The two countries＇ telegraph companies signed the Fuzhou telegraph contract in 1884 in Tianjin eventually. This contract effectively prevented the foreign telegraph companies＇ occupation of the rights of Chinese land telegraph and was of great significance to the development of China＇s telegraph business in future.