793.94112/329: Telegram
The Consul General at Shanghai (Gauss) to the Secretary of State
[Received February 26—6:17 a.m.]
158. Reference Department’s 26, February 23, 6 p.m., to Chungking regarding opening of Yangtze. By my despatch No. 2873 of January 31,59 which however appears to have been delayed in transmission awaiting steamer, I sent to the Department and Embassy copy of confidential report of January 25 from Inspector General to Minister of Finance of which following now is summary:
Inspector General has been informed Japanese Government propose to open river as far as Nanking in the near future and [as?] had been desired but declined to furnish plans in connection with reopening of [Page 502] customhouses concerned. Japanese might welcome refusal on his part to resume customs work at ports concerned as relieving them of further responsibility in the matter. They might blame customs for obstructing resumption normal trade conditions on the river and might reopen customhouses themselves with separate staffs nominally under control of Chinese régime at Nanking. Interested friendly powers might resent customs failure to cooperate and would experience difficulty in protesting contravention of integrity of customs. For the public’s position might thus be weakened in that Japanese would have opportunity to declare they did not desire to disrupt unity of customs service and had been compelled to take independent action in view [of] refusal [by] Inspector General to reopen customhouses concerned.
The letter does not ask permission to agree to the reopening nor does it ask for instructions.
Repeated to Chungking and Peiping. Code text by air mail to Tokyo.
- Not printed.↩