793.94/7459: Telegram
The Counselor of Embassy in China (Peck) to the Secretary of State
[Received November 30—10 a.m.]
120. My [119,] November 30, 11 a.m. In answer to my request for information, Hsu Mo62 told me this afternoon that for the moment everything depends on the ability of Sung Che-yuan to resist the intrigues of Japanese military officers to promote a declaration of an autonomous state and that while the Government is encouraging him to continue such resistance it is frankly not confident how long he will hold out. More confidence seems to be felt in the stamina of Yen and Han Fu-chu and Shang. Hsu said that if an autonomous state is declared the authorities will endeavor to suppress it and if the Japanese inject troops into North China the Government will oppose them with armed force. He asserted that the protest sent to the Japanese Embassy a day or so ago against Japanese interference in domestic affairs of China mentioned Doihara by name and the relations between Japan and China had reached a critical stage.
When I thanked Hsu for complying with my request for information he said that he was glad to inform me of the position of the Chinese Government but naturally he would like to receive whatever information I could give him concerning the attitude of the American Government toward the activities of the Japanese military in North China. I replied that I had seen no recent communications from Washington and I thought that the dominant purpose of the American Government at present, as partially evidenced by the neutrality legislation of last August, was to avoid danger of being involved in any war.
Repeated to Peiping and Tokyo.
- Chinese Political Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs, acting for the absent minister.↩