811.30 Asiatic Fleet/564
Memorandum by the Chief of the Division of Far Eastern Affairs (Hamilton)
Commander Shelley of the Navy Department telephoned me about this series of messages.40 He said that with reference to the last message, the feeling in the Navy Department was that the Navy Department would send no reply to Admiral Yarnell: in other words, the Navy Department would leave Admiral Yarnell free to accept the Japanese offer to transport mail, supplies, and possibly personnel. Commander Shelley said that Admiral Leahy was not at the Navy Department today, but that the foregoing represented the opinion of the officers at the Navy Department who had considered the matter. I said that if the Navy Department wished to handle the matter by making no reply to Admiral Yarnell, we would not wish to interpose in the matter and the Navy Department’s decision was satisfactory to us. I added that decision along the lines indicated by the Navy Department seemed to us to be essentially a matter for the Navy Department.
- Supra.↩