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  4. Document 493

893.113/229

The Ambassador in Italy ( Child ) to the Secretary of State

Rome , January 30, 1922 .
[Received February 20.]
No. 192

Sir: Referring to the Department’s cable instruction, No. 203 of December 23, 6 p.m.,60 I have the honor to transmit herewith a translation of Note Verbale No. 4540/23 of the 24th instant from the Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in reply to my protest against the delivery of the arms in question to the Military Governor of Pechili [Chihli] Province.

I have [etc.]

Richard Washburn Child
[Enclosure—Translation]

The Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the American Embassy

A.II

4540/23

Note Verbale

In reply to the Note of December 26th, the Royal Ministry of Foreign Affairs can only confirm what it has already communicated [Page 726] to the Embassy of the United States in a previous Note regarding the question of the delivery of Italian arms in China.61

The reservations formulated by the Italian Minister at Peking in adhering, in the name of the Italian Government, to the established agreement between France, England, the United States and Japan in April 1919, in accordance with the proposal of the Minister of the United States,62 were necessary because, for the delivery of the aforesaid arms, there already existed contracts which had just begun to be executed on the part of the Chinese purchasers.

However, considering the conditions prevailing in China, the Royal Italian Legation, awaiting a betterment thereof, has always deferred the fulfillment of such contracts, in spite of the large financial losses resulting therefrom and the serious inconveniences which the prolonged custody of such material caused, and which became more difficult because of the recall to Italy of the personnel in charge thereof. And, if lately the release of part of this material, subject of contracts prior to April 1919, was not objected to, this was due not only to the aforesaid reservations, but as a consequence of formal assurances which the Government of Chihli caused to be presented to it in the name of the Central Government to the effect that the material would be kept in magazines and would not be used in any manner in the internal wars of China.

Rome , January 24, 1922 .
  1. Ibid., p. 563.↩
  2. Probably refers to note verbale of Jan. 22, 1921, Foreign Relations, 1921, vol. i, p. 542.↩
  3. See ibid., 1919, vol. i, pp. 667 ff.↩