121.893/9–1947
Memorandum by Mr. Philip D. Sprouse to General Wedemeyer
Attached is a letter71 addressed to you by Marshal Li,72 which I have received from a member of the British Embassy staff. The latter informs me that “the letter was forwarded to me by a mutual friend in Hong Kong who asked me to see that it got to General Wedemeyer safely”.
Marshal Li is the leader of the dissident elements in south China. He is one of the Kwangsi triumvirate, which includes also Marshal Li Tsung-jen73 and General Pai Chung-hsi.74 Li Chi-shen has a long record of opposition to the Generalissimo, having been under house arrest in Nanking in the late 1920’s and having been one of the leaders of the short-lived Fukien rebellion in 1934. During late 1943 and in 1944 he was the leader of a movement in south China aimed against the National Government, which never made much headway. He has a reputation for honesty and sincerity of purpose but has never managed to collect any military following. There are rumors that the British are quietly watching the developments toward separatism [Page 691] and other rumors that some British firms in Hong Kong may have provided some funds to assist such a movement.