893.515/378
Memorandum by the Secretary of State
The Minister of China called and stated that the one week’s notice that had been given him by the Treasury, to the effect that the recent [Page 462] silver arrangement between this government and that of China would be abrogated, was calculated to upset or dislocate the exchange and financial situation in certain important commercial centers of China; that the inference would be that this government would probably make some large purchases of silver with the results aforementioned; and that, therefore, he would be glad to get any assurance possible from this Government that no major silver-purchasing operations were in immediate contemplation.
I replied that there was little I could say to him myself in addition to what he had learned at the Treasury; that I knew of nothing on which one might base a conclusion or a surmise that the Treasury was contemplating any immediate purchase of silver on a large scale, and the Minister might say that to his government if he should see fit; that if he should desire any further information during the coming days, I would be glad to cooperate with him to secure whatever the Treasury would be disposed to impart.