Office of the Historian

793.94/7562: Telegram

The Consul General at Shanghai (Davis) to the Secretary of State

Shanghai, December 24, 1935—noon.
[Received December 24—10:45 a.m.]

788. Referring to my telegram December 21, 1 p.m.86

1.
Four hundred students took possession of North Station yesterday afternoon demanding transportation to Nanking for the purpose of interviewing Government leaders. Railway authorities refused transportation and removed all available locomotives. However, students remained in coaches and refused to leave although strongly urged to do so by university authorities and representatives of city government. According to local foreign press General Chiang Kai-shek also telegraphed students expressing understanding of their patriotic motives by which he stated he was also actuated and urged them to return to their schools. Chinese authorities cleared station of spectators and threw cordon of privates around North Station. Other precautionary measures were also taken.
2.
However, students did not disperse during night and this morning a further group of five hundred clashed with Settlement police while attempting to distribute pamphlets which police describe as anti-imperialistic, slightly anti-Japanese but not communistic in tenor. Students’ groups now acting in coordinated manner and reported by Settlement police to be forming into three groups, one of which is to seize Shanghai South Station, another at North Station and third group to operate as needed. Chinese authorities appear to be reluctant to use force to disperse students but due to increasing activity of these elements’ endeavor to bring about complete disruption of railway traffic out of Shanghai they may be forced to employ more energetic methods and eject students from North Station by force.

Repeated to Department, Embassy at Peiping and Nanking.

Davis
  1. Not printed.↩