393.11/851
The Vice Consul at Nanking (Paxton) to the Minister in China (MacMurray)23
Sir:
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Frequent requests have been received by this office for its sanction to a return of American citizens to the Nanking Consular District. To each of these, acting under the Legation’s instructions, a reply in the sense of the following letter to Rev. William F. Junkin has been sent:
“Sir:
“The receipt is acknowledged of your letter of January 16, 1928,24 in which you express your desire to return to your station at Sutsien and request the sanction of this office for such return.
[Page 273]“In reply you are informed that this office, acting under the Legation’s instructions, has been continuously doing all in its power to discourage the return of Americans into the interior, at the present time, as it is considered that the Nanking regime has, as yet, offered no guarantee for the safety of foreigners, and, hence, it appears unwise to venture beyond the protection which can be afforded by the American Government. In no single instance has this office given anything that might legitimately be construed as sanction for the return of any Americans to the interior.
“As a result of this attitude, this office, most regretfully, finds itself unable to change its advice not to return, as such a sanction would afford you a sense of security in no way warranted by the general conditions of the area under control of the present Nanking regime. And further, conditions may, as they have in the past, change decidedly for the worse overnight.
“If, in spite of this advice, you decide that your mission interests absolutely necessitate your presence at your stations, i. e. that they can not be handled through your Chinese from Shanghai, or your visit delayed temporarily, then you are strongly urged not to stay away from places where you can be protected longer than absolutely essential. Please, under no circumstances, take your family back without the consent of this office, and if you must return, at your own risk and responsibility, it would be greatly appreciated, would you be so good as to keep this office constantly informed of your whereabouts, movements, and plans. A weekly letter, if only informing this Consulate of your safety, would greatly assist in its difficult task of protection of Americans.
“This office is always eager to be of all possible assistance, but you must recognize that a sanction to return, under present conditions, would prove ultimately to be a great disservice to you.
“Very respectfully yours,”
Most of the missionaries have been extremely faithful about letting this office have a weekly report concerning their safety and general conditions at their station. From these it would appear that those Americans returning are receiving, on the whole, very friendly treatment from the inhabitants of the towns and cities where they are living; some even report kind treatment at the hands of the soldiers though most are significantly silent on this point. The failure to evacuate American-owned property, still occupied by them, speaks for itself of their effective attitude towards American citizens and interests.
In order to secure a monthly statement, which would be fairly accurate, this Consulate addressed to the heads of all American missionary organizations the following letter: [Page 274]
“American Consular Service,
“American Consulate,
Nanking (now at Shanghai), China,
“June 18, 1928.
“To the Heads of All American Missionary Organizations operating in the Nanking Consular District.
“Sir/Madam:
“It has come to the knowledge of this Consulate, that in spite of its continued warning against so doing, a certain number of American citizens have returned to the Nanking Consular District.
“In this connection you are respectfully but urgently requested to inform all members of your organization who are proposing to return or have already done so, that their action is against this office’s strong protest, acting under instructions received from the Department of State and the American Legation, which direct it to discourage, so far as possible, and to lend no sanction, in any way, to the return of American citizens to places where they can not be protected or from which they can not be easily evacuated.
“You are further requested to give this Consulate a list of the names of all members of your organization who have returned to the Nanking Consular District together with the places where they are now; it would also greatly assist this office, if you would be so kind as to give a supplementary statement, on the first of each month, showing any additional Americans who have returned since your last report, or any who have come out of the Nanking Consular District.
“As a complement to this information a statement from you as to the members of your organization who are in Shanghai or elsewhere, only awaiting the necessary improvement in conditions to justify their return, would be helpful. …”
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
I have [etc.]