Office of the Historian

393.115/12–1845: Telegram

The Consul General at Tientsin (Myers) to the Secretary of State

Teintsin, December 18, 1945—1 p.m.
[Received December 20—6:15 a.m.]

31. [To Embassy:] Roger Liao of War Transportation Board called yesterday to state that motor car parts were removed in accordance with instructions of Executive Yuan as transmitted to the Board by the Tientsin Municipal Government (reported in my telegram No. 26 of December 7); that Board has complete inventory of all motor car parts on Frazar premises and is keeping accurate record of all removals; that parts withdrawn are essential for maintenance of Toyoda [Page 1421] trucks operated by Chinese organizations here, primarily for military service, all of which are dependent upon one large repair depot; and that further withdrawals will be necessary to continue repair, exact records of withdrawals being kept.

Hinke agreed that in view of conflicting decisions of Chinese Government agencies in Chungking the question cannot be solved at a local level but that the difficult problem already under discussion, the additional question of compensation for such removals, will have to be referred to Chungking for consideration and decision.

According to a letter of December 15 to this office received yesterday, North China Uniform Factory now instructed by Ministry for Foreign Affairs through Generalissimo’s Peiping headquarters not to remove any property found in premises of Allied firms pending settlement and subsequently that “all stocks and equipment listed in inventory transferred by Japanese are to be turned over to the Americans”. These instructions refer specifically to the Karagheusian property and are now apparently being carried out satisfactorily.

Temporary People’s Commissariat of Finance of J. E. Hayes Engineering Corporation has been approached by Chinese Military for 6 months’ lease of company premises, a suggestion [reported in my?] airgram No. 8 of December 11,63 with tentative rental of CN 300,000 monthly proposed.

Sent to Chungking, repeated to Department.

Myers
  1. Not found in Department files.↩