Office of the Historian

793.94/9788: Telegram

The Ambassador in China (Johnson) to the Secretary of State

Nanking, August 30, 1937—2 p.m.
[Received August 30—9:55 a.m.]

561. My 485, August 21, 1 p.m.83

1.
On the morning of August 29 the diplomatic representatives of Germany, Great Britain, France and Italy asked that I telegraph the following message to the American Ambassador in Tokyo for transmission to the diplomatic respresentatives with request for action on our behalf.

2. “The diplomatic representatives in Nanking of the five powers concerned have already asked that Japanese bombing operations be excluded from an area in this city wherein they and some of their nationals reside and where foreign shipping is anchored. They feel, however, that other aspects of the matter demand equal consideration. For example the extensive bombing of the city on the night of August 26 placed in danger the lives and property of noncombatants, both foreign and Chinese, and it has seemed to the same diplomatic representatives that the appropriate Japanese authorities, when this fact is brought to their attention, may desire to limit future action in accordance with the restraints which considerations of humanity and of international comity usually impose on the bombing of the political capital of a country, especially when no state of war exists. Both before and after the earlier request for the protection of a defined area was made, there occurred bombing operations over the city which extensively damaged the buildings and killed several of the employees of the National Central University and also resulted in the burning alive of numerous peaceful Chinese in one of the poorer quarters. These scenes of destruction have been visited by foreign diplomatic officers. The Governments and people of the nations of the indicated diplomatic representatives are in friendly relations with China as with Japan. Basing their appeal, therefore, on these friendly relations, and on the principles of ordinary humanity they request the discontinuance of activities which despite their military objectives result actually in the indiscriminate destruction of property used for educational and other non-military purposes, and in the wounding and painful death of civilians”.

Repeated to Peiping.

Johnson
  1. See Department’s telegram No. 158, August 21, 10 p.m., vol. iv, p. 273.↩