893.01/5–2649: Telegram
The Minister-Counselor of Embassy in China (Clark) to the Secretary of State
[Received May 27—3:07 a. m.]
Cantel 480. Chiang Moulin, very much of an elder statesman [of] Kmt himself, says elder statesmen still hope bring Li Tsung-jen and Generalissimo sufficiently close together that they will at least stop fighting each other. Li, he says, has agreed to further meeting with Generalissimo who remains reluctant.
Forces of disintegration seem to be moving almost irresistibly, he said, and admitted matters were not being improved by position Acting President [in] Canton with responsibility and insufficient authority. He admitted Tang En-po, for example, would not obey any instruction Li gave him, but hoped that if Li and Generalissimo could get closer together they would discontinue working at cross purposes.
Chiang stated categorically to me that Generalissimo has placed Taiwan gold completely at disposal government and recent visit S. Y. Liu to a “certain place” was to interview Generalissimo this regard and make arrangements using gold assets, which Chiang estimated at $280 million, in support new financial measures which will be instituted soonest. Chiang Monlin, giving evidence of fatalism which I am encountering more and more of late, said Communist doctrine is so diametrically opposed to fundamental of Chinese society and tradition as eventually to prove unworkable. He takes comfort in this belief, [Page 348] therefore, that Communism will not survive in China more than 30 or 40 years which, after all, is “nothing in our history”. Sent Department 480; repeated Nanking 330, Shanghai 280.