393.115/754
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Chief of the Division of Far Eastern Affairs (Hamilton)
Mr. Morishima, Counselor of the Japanese Embassy, who has recently come to Washington from his previous post at Shanghai, called at his request. He handed me the attached statement70 in regard to various outstanding protection cases which Mr. Gauss had brought to [Page 393] the attention of the Japanese Consulate General at Shanghai. Mr. Morishima said that the information contained in the attached statement had been gathered by him while at Shanghai and had been written up in its present form after his arrival in Washington. He said that the Embassy here did not have record of some of the cases mentioned. He said that at least one third of the cases had already been settled.
I glanced briefly through this statement and commented that I was of course familiar with most of the cases mentioned but that there were several cases which I did not recognize but with regard to which we undoubtedly had record in our files.
Mr. Morishima said that he was handing the statement to me merely informally and I said that we would be very glad to examine it.
Mr. Morishima said that he appreciated very much the attitude of Mr. Gauss in assisting in the settlement of cases such as those mentioned; and that Mr. Gauss had oftentimes been very helpful in making suggestions as to ways of settlement.
Mr. Morishima said that the Japanese authorities were putting forth special effort to adjust cases involving American nationals which were at present unsettled and he referred to the fact that a special group of Japanese army and navy officers had been established at Shanghai to look into the question of claims of American nationals for losses and injuries.
Mr. Morishima commented that cases such as the slapping of American citizens by Japanese soldiers had received much publicity in the American press whereas no account was given in the press of the adjustment of many eases involving American interests. I said that, while we were of course glad to note the settlement of cases involving American nationals, there were many important respects in which the situation not only at Shanghai but in other parts of China could not be regarded as satisfactory from the standpoint of American interests. I said that the reports of newspaper correspondents, the reports sent to this country by various American chambers of commerce in China, the reports made by missionary representatives to their organizations in this country, and the reports made by travelers from the Far East combined to give the American people a substantially accurate idea of what was going on in China, especially as it affected American interests. I pointed out, for example, that the American public could not be expected to become enthusiastic over reports that the Japanese had settled a few protection cases at Shanghai or some other point when the American public knew that American business as a whole and American activity in general were being subjected to what the American public regarded as unwarranted interference and serious restriction.
- Not printed.↩