793.94/11481: Telegram
The Consul General at Shanghai (Gauss) to the Secretary of State
[Received 7:30 p.m.]
1092. Following is substantially full copy of letter from Chairman Municipal Council to Senior Consul. Omissions are unessential.
“Although the Council did not receive information until the morning of December 2 that the Japanese forces proposed to parade through the Settlement, it had been made known to the Council for some time past that the Japanese military had in contemplation the project of marching Japanese troops along the Bund. On each occasion that this project was discussed with the Japanese authorities the Council’s representatives stressed the inadvisability of Japanese troops entering at the present time that part of the Settlement which lies south of the Soochow Creek. It was considered that while the Council has of course neither the right nor the power to object on legal grounds to the passage [of] foreign forces through the International Settlement, nevertheless, the passage of Japanese armed troops [Page 763] through the Settlement at the present time would cause grave embarrassment to the Settlement authorities and place a grave strain upon the municipal police. It was emphasized that with a large Chinese population having still in their minds the recent local hostilities and with an unprecedented number of destitute persons and refugees in the Settlement, it was quite impossible for the municipal police though taking every possible precaution, ordinarily [not to?] feel that a march by Japanese troops was likely to result in an unfortunate incident which would tend to disturb peace and order and the confidence of a peaceful population. I have previously stated that it was only on Thursday, December 2, that the Council received information of the course that the Japanese authorities intended to take on Friday. I myself personally again emphasized to the Japanese Consul General the Council’s view as to the inadvisability of the march which the Japanese military authorities proposed.
As you are aware, the Commissioner of Police immediately upon receiving information as to the proposed march instituted special police measures. (Omission). Nothing was left undone which could have been done to prevent the type of incident which the Council feared. (Omission). The Japanese column entered the Settlement at 11 a.m. and continued along the prescribed route without any incident until the second battalion was passing Kwangsi Road. (Omission). At that moment an unknown man dressed in foreign style clothing attempted to pass the police cordon on Kwangsi Road at a point approximately 30 yards south of Nanking Road. He was stopped by a Chinese police constable on duty and told to go back. The man nodded his head but immediately turned to the right and threw a parcel wrapped in a newspaper which he carried in his right hand. Fearing that he had thrown a dangerous missile, the Chinese police constable drew his pistol and loaded. Hearing an explosion he opened fire on the thrower who was attempting to run back through the crowd. The man fell to the ground wounded. (Omission). The missile was a bomb of some sort and exploded on the north side of the marching column. Three Japanese soldiers, one Japanese civilian, one foreign police officer and one Chinese police constable were wounded. As far as is at present known none of the wounds were serious. The marching column halted and deployed, a number loading their rifles ready for action. After about 10 minutes the column re-formed and had started moving when a Japanese sentry who had taken up his position on Kwangsi Road fired a shot at a civilian who was looking out of a window of the Sun Sun Company Building causing a further halt of the column. No one was injured in the building by the shot. After a few more minutes the column again started marching and crossed the Garden Bridge without further incident. A party of Japanese military remained behind and took command of the area. After some delay the police were allowed to proceed with their investigation into the incident but were not allowed to touch the body and were denied full freedom of action, the Japanese military proceeding with an independent investigation. All traffic on Nanking Road was stopped and by 5 o’clock in the evening the Japanese military had thrown a cordon around the area bounded by Shansi Road, Kiukiang Road, Yu Ya Ching Road and Tientsin Road and also extended up Bubbling Well Road as far as Park Road.
[Page 764]In view of its importance and in view of misleading statements which have been issued in relation to it the facts of the interview which took place subsequently between the Commissioner of Police and the Assistant Military Attaché of the Japanese Embassy are set out in the Commissioner’s own words in a copy of a report made by him to the…80 Council. I have attached to Commissioner’s report a copy of the document which we handed to Commissioner and which he endorsed (these have been telegraphed separately in my No. 109181 and No. 108682). While not of course questioning the fact that it was natural for the Japanese military to take immediate precautionary steps on the occurence of the regrettable incident of the bomb throwing I would stress the fact that there would appear to have been no good reason for continuing presence of Japanese troops for a period of about 8 hours in a crowded part of the Settlement. The troops in question hampered the police in performing their legitimate functions and their continued presence caused alarm and lack of confidence among the civilian population of the Settlement. I venture to express the hope that the interested Consuls may think fit to remonstrate with the Japanese authorities in regard to this aspect of the matter.
It is the wish of the Council to place the full facts of the occurence under discussion before interested Consuls and to request them through you to take such steps as they may think proper in regard thereto.”
The Senior Consul is asking the interested Consuls to meet with him tomorrow afternoon.