"  Secondly,  Russia  had  no  desire  to  see  a  Chinese  modern  military  force
trained  and  quartered  in  Outer  Mongolia.  However  inferior  to  her  own
troops,  and  however  small  this  force  might  be,  it  would  nevertheless  con-
stitute a  menace  against  her  long  line  of  communication  with  the  Far  East,
or  in  the  event  of  another  war  on  the  Pacific  coast,  Russia  would  have  had
to  set  aside  a  suitable  force  to  match  these  Chinese  troops  in  case  they
attempted  a  sudden  inroad  toward  the  Siberian  Railway.
"  Thirdly,  Russia,  looking  far  ahead,  wished  to  maintain  free  of  any
strong  alien  element  all  that  part  of  Mongolia  which  lies  north  of  the
natural  frontier  which  ought  to  bound  her  Siberian  possessions  on  the
south,  the  direction  of  which  is  generally  roughly  described  as  running
from  near  Vladivostok  along  the  vague  line  of  the  Gobi  to  near  Chuguchak.
