762.94/469: Telegram
The Ambassador in Japan (Grew) to the Secretary of State
[Received August 21—10:35 a.m.]
725. The following is a paraphrase of a telegram recently sent by my British colleague to London:
In some Japanese quarters there are signs that irritation with Germany is growing, according to a reliable official source. Many [Page 643] Japanese are convinced that the establishment of German interests in China would result from a German victory and that Germany still wishes Chiang Kai-shek to win. The failure of the rapidly increasing German colony in Japan to register and report their movements is causing dissatisfaction with the police. In the event of a German victory possible German designs on the Netherlands East Indies are also causing anxiety.
I may add that in official circles there is a growing sense of irritation at the constant activities of the German Embassy in Tokyo in trying to influence the Japanese Government in problems of purely domestic concern and in its efforts to embroil Japan with Great Britain and the United States. The opinion is expressed that Germany is overplaying its hand.