893.00/3–2548: Telegram
The Consul General at Shanghai (Cabot) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 25—2:53 a. m]
674. Propaganda against military conscription is being spread in Shanghai in form handbills. One handbill dated March 21 and entitled “Joint slogans issued by the various Shanghai civic organs against military conscription for civil war” appeals to workers, farmers, students, merchants to organize against conscription and against compulsory contributions for conscriptees’ families. It appends 13 slogans which stress such phrases as “cannon fodder, greedy corrupt officials, reactionary dictatorial traitorous government”; exhort Paochia chiefs to obstruct conscription instead of being “running dogs of reactionary clique”; appeal to city councilors; call for opposition to “enslaving of Chinese people by American imperialists who force us to be their cannon fodder”; and conclude with “victory to Chinese people” and “long live the new China”.
Another sample also dated 21st issued by “Shanghai People’s Union for opposing military conscription” employs similar phrases “cannon fodder, corrupt officials; et cetera” with respect to conscription but adds a more general and vitriolic attack on Government America of which following are excerpts:
“Officers and men at front now refuse to fight. They refuse to be made cannon fodder and are surrendering groups of 30 or 50 thousand [Page 167] at a time. Manchuria will soon be lost and Chen Cheng42 has fled to Shanghai.
The American boss behind scene with designs on China’s wealth, upon seeing the desperate situation, ships planes and guns to China to massacre Chinese people.
The Government treats America and Japan as if they were its own stepfathers and on the other hand exploits and oppresses the people and creates civil war. Its 20 years of dictatorship will soon be over but it still drafts great numbers of conscripts to turn them into unknown dead”.
Sent Embassy, repeated Department.
- Former director of Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek’s Northeast Headquarters.↩