793.003/5578/9
Memorandum by the Minister in China (Johnson)31
I called on British Minister this afternoon and he informed me that he had seen Dr. C. T. Wang and had read to him selected portion from the instructions which he had received from his Government with reference to Dr. Wang’s final offer of April 27th. These instructions were to the effect that Dr. Wang’s offer was by no means acceptable. British Government felt that the four areas should be excluded and that because of the complicated nature of the questions involved it was the opinion and the suggestion of the British Government that a very desirable way to deal with them would be to have commissions composed of responsible Chinese and British subjects which could investigate all of the questions involved and make proposals for a settlement. British Minister read to Dr. Wang the last paragraph of his instructions which were substantially to the effect that British Government hoped that Chinese Government would not take any precipitate action in this question which had been the subject of negotiations. British Government warned Dr. Wang that such action on Chinese part might very well result in turning what had been consultations on the part of the British Government with other governments to persuade them to take a more conciliatory attitude toward Chinese aspirations to consultations directed toward a [Page 834] common resistance to Chinese attitude. British Minister informed me that Dr. Wang was apparently very much taken aback by British Minister’s communication. He said he could not go beyond what he had offered and refused even to go to higher authorities with any other proposition. British Minister pressed him not to look upon present situation as closing door to further discussion.
British Minister tells me that he informed his Government of Chinese attitude. He said that he did not know just where matters stood now but that he proposed to have Mr. Teichman make an appointment with Hsu Mo for the purpose of further discussion.
We went on to discuss the present situation and agreed that it would probably push the question of extraterritoriality into the background as a matter of importance at the coming conference. We also agreed that there was little chance of trouble here.
- Copy transmitted to the Department by the Minister without covering despatch; received June 11. Substance reported by the Minister in telegram of May 2, 1931, noon, from Nanking; received May 2, 4:55 p.m. (793.003/655)↩