893.00/13625: Telegram
The Consul General at Canton ( Spiker ) to the Secretary of State
[Received July 18—6:36 p.m.]
Special delegate for Foreign Affairs has just informed me that existing grave situation has been relieved by the following happenings: Yesterday Marshal Chen was waited on by various of his officers and urged to resign. While Marshal Li was today appealed to by group of Kwangtung generals who entreated him to return to Kwangsi and to promise not to send into Kwangtung a very large Kwangsi force which has been mobilized at Wuchow. Both leaders were informed that failure to act as requested would precipitate ruinous war which no one wants. Li informed the generals that he has never had the slightest desire to interfere in Kwangtung’s affairs, that he would remove suspicion by returning to Kwangsi and by promising not to move his troops into Kwangtung. Within the hour Li took an aeroplane for Wuchow, and Chen, upon being informed of this, tendered his resignation to the Southwest Political Council. He had packed his effects last night preparatory for flight and is expected to leave Canton at the earliest opportunity, relinquishing charge to Generals Li Yang Ching of the Kwangtung Third Army and Ho Lok, Chen’s recently appointed Chief of Staff and long Commissioner of Public Safety here. They will in turn hand over charge to General Yu Han Mou who has been invited by the Kwangtung generals to succeed Chen and who is expected to arrive in Canton within 48 hours. When queried as to probability of acceptance of Li’s action by Pai and other Kwangsi leaders, the Special Delegate stated that they would unquestionably accept since “no one wants to fight”. He strongly reaffirmed such belief when attention was called to the fact that Kwang-si’s problems of finance, et cetera, remain unsolved and province has large army mobilized at Wuchow with 38 steamers and launches and numerous junks held in readiness to throw this force into Kwangtung.
2. Generals Li and Ho today assured Consuls here that the generals accepted full responsibility for the preservation of law and order in the city and the protection of life and property. During the changeover, situation will, of course, be potentially dangerous. American citizens have been kept appropriately advised of developments and cautioned, women and children having yesterday been warned to withdraw from Tungshan suburb to place of greater safety.
3. Sent to the Department, Peiping, Nanking, Shanghai, Hankow.