500.A4e/614: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the American Delegation
33. Referring to paragraph 4 of your telegram, conference number 45, June 30, 9 a.m. The whole protocol, in the opinion of the Department, ought to be put into effect. If the British and Japanese do not desire to accept the protocol as a whole, the plan outlined in your fourth paragraph in subsection (b) is the next best plan. Forming an opinion on what course to take about the note is difficult here. The view of the Department is that we should not join in it but go ahead to put article III and paragraph 2 of the sixth article of the Treaty of Washington into effect on the assumption that the only Chinese government we can deal with is the Central Government. Undoubtedly we are running some risk. However, heretofore our policy in regard to carrying out the Washington Treaties has been to go as far as it was possible to go. The difficulties you face are realized by the Department, and in case you feel that it is very important for us to join in the note, will you please cable. If we do join in the note, the protocol will doubtless not go into effect at all, and possibly the charge may be made against us that we are unwilling to fulfill the Treaty of Washington, despite the truth of the fact that the imposition of the surtax was to be made on such conditions as might be determined by the Conference.