File 87/1926 Pt 2 'Arabia: Bin Saud: Relations with H.M.G. Revision of Treaty.' [‎249r] (185/840)

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wishes in the matter or what he was likely to accept.
The conference would now have the benefit of ^.Jordan’s
first hand knowledge, but taey could not be sure that
much of the time s >ent in considering the precise
terminology of the draft treaty and in laboriously
producing acceptable formulae right not prove to have
been almost entirely wasted. it was partly the doubt
wiiicn ne felt on txis score that led him to seek the
opinion of the Conference on the question which he would
now put to them:- that of tne most suitable form in
which to give Mr. Jordan his instructions for the conduct
of tue negotiations. They might take the form of a draft
treaty in cut and dried terms, to which r. Jordan would
be required to attempt to obtain Ibn Baud’s si mature.
This would necessarily circumscribe : r. Jordan.’s liberty
of action. Alternatively, he might be furnished, as was
3ir Gilbert Clayton last year, with a comprehensive
letter of instructions, telling him m general terms what
ends Ills Majesty's Government desired to secure, and
leaving him full discretion as to the means by wnich those
ends Should be secured. if the latter course were
adopted, there wouxd be little use i y concentrating now
upon obtaining an agreed text, wmch might in the event
Drove wholly unacceptable to Ibn Band. BjX—k-i—Clfty.tiPD
saxd that lus own ex enence of negotiations in .trabia
led ium to favour tne latter course. The instructions
given to him for las mission to ibn Baud had lelt him
considerable discretion in regard to the actual ter s oi
tne instrument to be negotiated, and in those negotiations
he had been successful, but in trie case of his
negoti ations