Foreign Relations of the United States Diplomatic Papers, 1937, The Far East, Volume III

793.94/9332: Telegram

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

Shanghai, August 13, 1937—10 p.m.
[Received August 13—10 a.m.]

474. Artillery firing northeastern area between Japanese and Chinese since 4 o’clock this afternoon. At 8 o’clock tonight extending to general area civic center. Japanese Vice Consul informally requested member of my staff to inform appropriate American nationals and I have done so that Japanese Navy had decided to use anti-aircraft guns against Chinese planes and that commercial planes would fly over Japanese naval vessels at their own risk.

Repeated to Department. Repeated to Nanking, Peiping, Tokyo.

Gauss