894.85/657: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the
Ambassador in Japan (Grew)
Washington, November 20,
1941—3 p.m.
762. Your 1820, November 18, 6 p.m., visit of Tatuta
Maru. The Department desires that you reply to the oral statement
of the Foreign Office along the following lines:
- “1. The Government of the United States has no objection to
the visit of the Japanese-Government-requisitioned ship Tatuta Maru at Honolulu, Los Angeles and
Balboa as proposed in the oral statement handed to the Embassy
by the Foreign Office on November 18.
- 2. With regard to the desire of the Japanese Government that
this Government give a guarantee that the Tatuta Maru will have freedom of ingress to and egress
from the ports mentioned above and will be
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allowed to obtain necessary
supplies of fuel, water and food and to pay for such supplies
from Japanese frozen funds in the United States, the Government
of the United States would be prepared (1) in case the Japanese
Embassy in Washington formally notifies the Government of the
United States that the Tatuta Maru has
been requisitioned by the Japanese Government, to bring to the
attention of the appropriate judicial authorities, with a view
to freeing the vessel of any impediments arising from the
institution of legal proceedings, such information as the
Japanese Government might furnish showing that the ship was
requisitioned; (2) to permit the vessel to take on board
necessary supplies of fuel and stores sufficient to enable it to
return to a Japanese port and to extend facilities for the
payment of such supplies out of blocked funds arising from
passenger fares collected in the United States. (Note: the
above-mentioned formal notification by the Japanese Embassy of
the requisitioning of the Tatuta Maru by
the Japanese Government should state that the vessel is on a
mission for the Japanese Government and should be accompanied by
a copy of the order of requisition.)
- 3. Trade between the United States and Japan is of course
subject to this Government’s freezing regulations. This
Government understands, however, that the question of cargo is
not involved in the proposed visit of the Tatuta Maru.
- 4. In order to avoid misunderstanding, this Government wishes
to make clear to the Japanese Government that, as the United
States postal authorities are in process of formulating new
general procedures for handling of transocean mails, this
Government cannot make any commitment in regard to the carrying
of American mail on the Tatuta
Maru.
- 5. Note has been made of the Japanese Government’s readiness
to accord every possible facility to American nationals wishing
to return to the United States on the Tatuta
Maru. This Government assumes that the Japanese
Government will give full publicity to the sailing so that
knowledge of it will reach all Americans in Japan in due time to
avail themselves of the sailing if desired.”57
Sent to Tokyo via Peiping. Repeated to Chungking.
