Marshall Mission Files, Lot 54–D270
Memorandum by General Chou En-lai to Colonel J. Hart Caughey
No. 101.2–5
Chungking, 21 January 1946.
The following information has been reported to me regarding violation of cease fire order on part of government troops in North Kiangsu and South Shantung:
- 1.
- 136th unit Japanese 72nd Brigade, stationed at Hsin-an-chen, sixty miles east of Hsuchow on the Lunghai Railway, was besieged by Communist-led troops for some time. However, just when negotiation was under way to effect the surrender of the Japanese, one regiment of government troops at Hsin-an-chen, of the Third Reserve Divsion of the 98th Army under Tuan Mao-lin, joining hands with Japanese troops there, launched repeated attacks upon the position of the Communist-led troops at Ho-tun on 15 and 16 January, inflicting upon them twenty-odd casualties. For the sake of avoiding conflicts, the Communist-led troops did not shoot back, but only firmly retained their position. In the meantime, Tuan Mao-lin rushed the entire Third Division to Hsin-an-chen on 16 January as reinforcement. Being supported by the Japanese he launched a big assault on the Communist position under cover of heavy gunfire, and attempted to sandwich the Communist-led troops by coordinating with the Japanese troops surrounded at Shihchuang village. With utmost patience Communist-led troops retreated again and again, and finally withdrew to [Page 371] Wa-yao townlet, ten miles west of Hsin-an-chen. But the Third Division and the Japanese troops kept on advancing, with the object of seizing Wa-yao and wiping out the Communist-led forces. From dawn till noon of 17 January, Communist-led forces suffered over two hundred casualties; one regiment commander and one battalion deputy commander were also killed in action.
- 2.
- Government troops of the American-equipped First Division stationed between Hanchuang townlet and Lincheng town on the Tientsin-Pukow Railway, laid on 14 January all day long a heavy barrage upon the Communist position in the adjacent area, notwithstanding the Communist-led forces had forwarded a short while ago a truce message to them. Over thirty casualties were inflicted upon the Communist-led forces, including three political commissars and one deputy regiment commander. At 10 o’clock of 17 January the government troops also sallied out toward the Communist position.
- 3.
- Around 300 men of government troops at Lincheng sallied out and captured Yuochwang village on 14 January, from where they made several attacks upon the Communist position under cover of armored train. At 8 pm the same day, they further advanced to Hungchiaya village and attacked Communist position at Tsaochuang (twenty miles east of Lincheng on the branch railway line). Subsequently a unit of American-equipped troops, 1000 men strong, also attacked Communist position at Mushan on the same day, while a third unit machinegunned Communist troops stationed at Tsochuang.
- 4.
- Puppet troops at Tzeyang town led by Wu Hua-wen attacked Communist position outside the west gate of the town under cover of machinegun. As of 15 January, the puppet troops kept on harassing Communist troops stationed outside the city with infantry and cavalry units.
In view of the aforementioned accidents, it is desired that you will kindly inform the U. S. representative attached to the Hsuchow team about them, and request him to bring these up to the team, so that such actions shall come to an end.
Faithfully yours,
[Signature in Chinese]
Chou
En-lai