893.51/2693: Telegram
The Ambassador in Japan (Morris) to the Acting Secretary of State
[Received March 3—3:49 p.m.]
65. In an informal talk with the Minister of Foreign Affairs I referred to the recent negotiations in Peking resulting in a loan of 9,000,000 yen to the Chinese Government and inquired whether he felt at liberty to tell me how his Government viewed this emergency advance in relation to the larger question the consortium.
He replied that the advance of 9,000,000 yen by Japanese banks was approved by his Government simply as a temporary expedient to meet the pressing needs of the Chinese Government and was not intended to defeat the proposal of the British Government for an emergency loan of 5,000,000 pounds sterling or to affect in any way the progress of the negotiations for a four power consortium as proposed by the United States and approved by Great Britain and France. On the contrary the Japanese Government was extremely loath to approve an independent loan of any kind and delayed until the last moment in the hope that some joint action would be possible before the new year. He was glad to emphasize anew the adherence in principle of the Japanese Government to the plan of a four power consortium and was confident that a satisfactory agreement could be reached on the questions still under discussion. He further explained that the temporary advance of 9,000,000 yen which his Government had approved represented at the present rate of exchange 3,500,000 silver dollars or one half the amount which the Chinese Government had requested and left open the question of a further advance of the other half by the American banking group whose agents in Peking were on the eve of the Chinese New Year without definite instructions from their principal. He understood that there had been some misunderstandings in Peking during the course of the negotiations but he believed that the satisfactory explanations had been made to Sir John Jordan89 and Mr. Tenney. He was hopeful that the visit of Mr. Lamont to Tokyo and Peking would help to clarify the entire situation. Repeated to Peking.
- British Minister to China until Sept. 1919, when he was succeeded by Sir Alston.↩