793.94/4536: Telegram
The Minister in Switzerland (Wilson) to the Secretary of State
[Received March 2—7:43 p.m.]
48. Matsudaira called on Gibson and me this afternoon and outlined to us the events of the past few days at Shanghai. His account of the meeting on Admiral Kelly’s flagship showed some difference from the report which Kelly had cabled. It will be remembered that Kelly’s statement declared that “the principle of mutual retirement had been agreed upon”. This Matsudaira was unable to confirm and intimated that the Japanese Admiral’s acceptance had been predicated on previous retirement by the Chinese. He then stated that in his private opinion their military leaders had undertaken too big a task, for the forces at hand had been checked by the Chinese and this put them and the country in a state of mind in which it was very difficult to make any concession or even to cease hostilities especially in view of the [Page 494] wide publicity which had been given by the Chinese to Chinese victories. Matsudaira said that Nomura had received instructions to renew negotiations and that he, Matsudaira, felt the situation much more hopeful because, now that the Chinese troops had retired, hostilities might be arrested on the status quo.
He appeared distinctly ill at ease and gave a rather pathetic impression of an honorable man trying to make the best of a bad case.
In view of the fact that Matsudaira is to speak tomorrow in the Assembly we thought it was a friendly act to disillusion him as to the conviction carried by his statement and therefore pointed out that events this week succeeded Sato’s acceptance of the Council’s proposal on Monday30 followed by his Government’s ratification of Sato’s act had made everybody here expect an immediate cessation of firing. No argument other than such immediate cessation would avert the storm of criticism that is likely to break in the meeting of the Assembly; that it has never been more urgent in the interest of Japan itself than it is at the present moment that hostilities should cease and cease at once.
Matsudaira told us that he and Sato were doing everything that was humanly possible in this sense and it was obvious that he realized the vulnerable position that he now occupies.
- February 29.↩