893.61331/120: Telegram
The First Secretary of Embassy in China (Salisbury) to the Secretary of State
[Received October 15—6 a.m.]
623. Embassy’s 622, October 13, 5 p.m.2
1. A secretary of the Japanese Embassy called yesterday and read the following statement:
“There are three Japanese Leaf Tobacco Companies, Meihsing, Shantung, and Hotung in Tsingtao all of which have been financed by a limited amount of capital and so among them there has been keen competition which often resulted in causing undesirable effects. In view of that fact the Japanese authorities there suggested to these firms that they avoid unnecessary competition. Based upon this suggestion conversations had been going on for some time among the three firms and decision was recently reached that the three companies be amalgamated into a joint company. A report has just been received that an inaugural meeting will be held shortly. (It is needless to say that the joint tobacco company has nothing to do with the monopolization of Shantung leaf tobacco.) As this is the situation it will be understood that the information that a firm is going to be established at Tsingtao for the purpose of monopolizing the trade in Shantung leaf tobacco is entirely untrue. All tobacco companies whether American or British will have entire freedom to carry on their business as they have been doing.”
The secretary stated that the sentence in parentheses was his own interpolation.
Repeated to Chungking, Tokyo and Tsingtao. By mail to Shanghai.
- Not printed.↩