393.1123 Nyhus, Phoebe/30
The American Ambassador in Japan (Grew) to the Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs (Arita)
Excellency: I have the honor to inform Your Excellency that information has reached me that property belonging to the Lutheran [Page 628] Brethren Mission at Tungpeh, Honan, was bombed by Japanese airplanes on October 24, 1938, which action resulted in the death of an American national, Phoebe Nyhus, aged three years, and in the wounding of two other American nationals, her mother, Mrs. Arthur E. Nyhus, and her sister, Ruth Nyhus, aged eight years. The building which was the object of the attack was destroyed.
Acting under instructions from my Government, I am compelled emphatically to protest this unwarranted bombing of American property which resulted in the death of an American national and wounded two others. The attention of Your Excellency is especially invited to the fact that a map of Tungpeh showing the location of the property was furnished to the Japanese authorities more than seven months ago, on March 3, 1938, and that, therefore, there would appear to be no grounds upon which the bombing could be excused because of lack of identification of the property.
My Government urgently requests that the Japanese Government cause an investigation to be made of the circumstances referred to in the foregoing report and that immediate steps be taken with a view to fixing the responsibility for this unfortunate occurrence and to the taking of measures which will ensure that similar incidents do not occur.
I avail myself [etc.]