893.48/1057
Memorandum by the Chief of the Division of Far Eastern Affairs (Hornbeck)
I called up the Chinese Ambassador this morning and inquired whether he had any new information with regard to Mr. K. P. Chen’s mission.
The Ambassador said that Mr. Chen is scheduled to sail from Shanghai on March 9, for Honolulu; at Honolulu he will transship and will arrive on the steamship Lurline at San Francisco on March 26. He will be accompanied by Mr. Y. C. Koo, a banker and an expert on monetary matters, and Mr. P. W. Kuo (Kuo is well known in this country; he is an educator and publicist and was for some time connected with the China Foundation, with his offices in New York).
I asked whether the Ambassador had any new specifications with regard to Chen’s mission. The Ambassador said that Chen was coming on the invitation of the Secretary of the Treasury; that Mr. [Page 467] Morgenthau had at first asked that T. V. Soong19 come; that Soong had countered by suggesting that C. T. Wang be sent; that Mr. Morgenthau had said that he wanted not a diplomat or politician but a financial expert; that the Chinese had then offered K. P. Chen and it had been arranged that Chen should come; that Mr. Chen was to talk with Mr. Morgenthau about monetary matters but that he, the Ambassador, had been informed that in addition Mr. Chen would be prepared to talk about matters relating to the outstanding credits and that he, the Ambassador, had suggested to his Government that Mr. Chen be informed about certain of China’s outstanding financial obligations. The Ambassador said that Mr. Morgenthau had informed him that he, Morgenthau, was keeping Mr. Phillips20 informed.
I inquired whether Mr. K. P. Chen would have an official status. The Ambassador replied that Mr. Chen had been given an official passport but not an official title, and that it had been agreed that there should be no publicity. I said, “Is it to be understood that Chen will be regarded by his Government as an official?” The Ambassador replied, “Yes”.
The Ambassador then said that Mr. Bartz21 had called on him recently, subsequent to a conversation which Mr. Bartz had had with me. See memorandum entitled: “Proposed reinstatement of canceled portion of the cotton and wheat credit of 1933.”22