861.77 Chinese Eastern/300
Memorandum by the Secretary of State
The Japanese Ambassador requested an appointment and told me that he thought the situation in Manchuria was improving. He said that he had had several more cables which indicated that Russia had agreed to appoint a new manager and assistant manager of the railroad and this was a very long step forward. He further said that he thought there were no clashes on the border; that the reports which came from the American newspapers were not true. I asked him how about Mr. C. T. Wang’s statement in respect to the Board of Directors. He said yes, he had noticed that; that Russia had suggested that the Vice President of the Board of Directors was the source of the trouble and that he should be changed; he thought Mr. Wang was seeking to save China’s face in refusing it. He intimated that he thought that Wang might not insist on this and that there might be a change. He said that Baron Shidehara was doing everything he could to promote peace.