Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, 1930, Volume II

793.003/324

Memorandum by the Chief of the Division of Far Eastern Affairs (Hornbeck) of a Conversation With the British Chargé (Campbell)

[Washington,] March 17, 1930.

After the discussion of the question of criminal jurisdiction and co-judges, accounted for in a separate memorandum of even date, Mr. Hornbeck said that the Department had been giving a good deal of thought to the question of the port of Shanghai and that he would like to inform Mr. Campbell of the Department’s views. He then read to Mr. Campbell the statement of which a copy is hereto attached and gave Mr. Campbell a copy thereof.

Mr. Campbell read to Mr. Hornbeck excerpts from a number of memoranda which apparently had been supplied to the British Embassy by the British Foreign Office from which it appeared that the Foreign Office was giving a good deal of consideration to various arguments with regard to the line of action to be taken with reference to the problem of Shanghai. Mr. Campbell said that he hoped to give the Department memoranda on this subject.

[Annex]

The Department of State to the British Embassy

Referring to the question of dealing with the problem of extraterritoriality by application of the principle of geographical regions,—

The Department of State inclines to the view that the treatment of the problem of the International Settlement (or the whole port) at Shanghai as a question separate and distinct from the general question of extraterritorial jurisdiction would not constitute an application of the principle of geographical regions.

The Department also inclines at this stage to the view that it would be well to make the distinction indicated, treating Shanghai as a self-contained problem.

[Washington,] March 17, 1930.