File No. 861.77/539

The Ambassador in Japan ( Morris ) to the Secretary of State

[Telegram]

The Japanese Government has made no comment on the railway plan submitted last week. In the meantime Emerson informs me that 1,000 additional Japanese troops arrived at Harbin on October 23 and on October 29 five cars of Japanese railway officials passed through Harbin on their way to inspect the Amur line. General Graves advises me under date of October 29 that all public barracks appear to be occupied east of Lake Baikal and that he is forced by this situation to place troops between Vladivostok and Khabarovsk. General Graves writes as follows:

General Ivanov-Rinov, Minister of War in the Siberian Cabinet, is here apparently trying to get the military elements together. He came to see me and appeared very much disturbed at the large number of Allied troops in this part of Siberia, and said that he personally thought that the Russian people would have to depend upon the United States to see that the agreements entered into prior to our coming to Siberia were carried out. There seems to be much anxiety in other quarters about this same subject.

Emerson has telegraphed Stevens under date of November 2 that the Chinese Eastern has embargoed all freight and passenger business beyond Manchuria until further notice. Stevens does not know the reason for this action but one result will be seriously to hinder any efforts we may make to assist Russia.

Morris