793.94/9064
The Japanese Embassy to the Department of State
1. That the Japanese side did not take any drastic measures against wanton firing of the Chinese army on several occasions even after the truce of July 11, 1937 and that the terms of the settlement itself were lenient and practicable show clearly the basic principles of the Japanese Government not to aggravate the situation and to come promptly to a peaceful settlement.
Moreover, the Japanese army took the initiative in proposing a mutual withdrawal from the Yuanping area and actually carried out the withdrawal immediately after an agreement was made on July 11. Nothing is farther from the intention of the Japanese army than to occupy Lukow-Kiao or to control the Peiping-Hankow Railway as is alleged by a spokesman of the Chinese Government.
2. The Japanese troops stationed in Tientsin, Peiping, Fengtai, etc. are without exception in very small detachments. If the Chinese 29th Army challenged the Japanese on all sides, these detachments would have been decidedly isolated in great danger. In such an event, the lives and property of 2,000 Japanese residents in Peiping and 8,000 in Tientsin would also be jeopardized. The dispatch of additional forces from Japan to the troubled area is solely to prevent such an eventuality. It would also serve to localize the incident and preserve the peace, because sizable reinforcements from Japan would discourage any attempt on the part of China to challenge the Japanese detachments, which, in turn, would prevent open hostilities between Japan and China.