793.94/9152: Telegram
The Consul General at Shanghai (Gauss) to the Secretary of State
[Received August 3—4:20 p.m.]
420. Local French newspapers state that as a measure of reprisal against the French authorities at Tientsin for preventing Japanese troops from passing through the French concession, the Japanese who now occupy the third special area have erected barbed wire entanglements and a machine gun post at the end of the International Bridge, and have refused to permit French troops to proceed to the French barracks located at the East Arsenal. This paper reports also that a surprise attack was made by Japanese soldiers on July 29 on a small detachment of French troops who were stationed at the East Station; that the detachment was disarmed and a French sergeant seriously wounded. The paper reports further that the French Consul General at Tientsin has protested to the Japanese authorities and has sent a detailed report to the French authorities.
Repeated to Peiping, the Department and Tientsin. Mail to Nanking.