393.1163 Seventh Day Adventist/41: Telegram
The Commander in Chief of the United States Asiatic Fleet (Yarnell) to the Chief of Naval Operations (Leahy)41
[Received September 18—6:54 p.m.]
0018. Following letter received from Vice Admiral Hasegawa dated 18, September, 1937:
“My dear Admiral Yarnell: I have the honor to acknowledge receipt of your letter of the 15th instant concerning the air raid on the American Hospital at Huiyang [Waichow].
Investigations made in this matter have revealed that three aero-planes of the Imperial Japanese Navy, on the morning of the 12th September, 1937, made a flight with the object of bombarding the wireless station of the Chinese Navy at Huiyang and raided a building with two wireless poles there.
As you may be aware, the Imperial Japanese Navy, in conducting aerial bombardment, select solely as their objectives military establishments, while doing their utmost to safeguard the interests of third powers, particularly life and property of noncombatants.
According to a report submitted to me by the aviators concerned, they made a scouting flight once over the town but not finding any such structure as might be taken for a wireless station except the building above mentioned, they further made a circuitous flight over the said building. They confirmed that there was no mark, nor any national flag on that building, and so they carried out a raid thereon. [Page 340] They report that when raiding the said building, they were fired upon from the sector nearby.
Such being the truth of the case, I should think that this aerial bombardment may possibly have given rise to the incident as mentioned in your letter. I consider it most unfortunate that a few noncombatants were more or less seriously wounded and the hospital building was badly damaged as the result of the attack, for which I have to express my profound regret.
I wish to inform you that I will do my utmost to avoid the repetition of incidents of this nature in the future so as to comply with your request.
I shall be gratified if you will be so good as to furnish me with information as to the whereabouts of the American property and to induce the American citizens [to] put up distinct marks, clearly visible from the air, upon their property and buildings.
I am, yours sincerely, K. Hasegawa, Vice Admiral, Commander-in-Chief Imperial Japanese Third Fleet.”
- Copy transmitted to the Department by the Navy Department.↩