Office of the Historian

893.5041/54: Telegram

The Secretary of State to the Counselor of Embassy in China (Lockhart), at Peiping

Washington, September 18, 1939—2 p.m.

196. Your 484, September 13, 4 p.m. The Department concurs in your view that efforts on the part of the local authorities to force sales by American firms at prices which those firms consider to be unprofitable offer grounds for protest and authorizes you to make whatever local representations you may consider appropriate.9 If your representations fail to achieve their object please inform the Department and consideration will be given to taking the matter up with the authorities at Tokyo.

Sent to Peiping only. Please send copies by mail to Chungking, Tientsin, and Tokyo.

Hull
  1. Further local representations were made in similar cases.↩