123 Ward, Angus I.
Memorandum by the Under Secretary of State (Webb)59
Meeting With the President, Monday, November 14
angus ward case
The President indicated that he had been giving some further thought to the problem of the release of Consul General Angus Ward, that he felt we should thoroughly explore the possibility of blockading the movements of coal clown the coast of China to Shanghai. He said he felt that if we prevented the movement of coal from Tientsin and another coal port, and prevented the entry of coal to Shanghai, the Communists would understand that we meant business, and release Ward. He indicated that he thought we would also gain considerable respect by this move internationally, and that this would make it more difficult for the British to act independently in connection with recognition and other problems. He said further that he felt sure we probably had both the ships and planes available in the neighborhood to accomplish this. I asked him how far he would be inclined to go, that is, would he actually use force to stop the coal traffic if they refused to obey orders from our Naval forces, and he said if we meant to go into this matter we should be prepared to sink any vessels which refused to heed our warning.
- Copies transmitted to the Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Butterworth) for action and to the Deputy Under Secretary of State (Rusk).↩