124.93/397: Telegram
The Second Secretary of Embassy in China (Atcheson) to the Secretary of State
[Received December 7—11:27 a.m.]
1009. 1. My British and German colleagues and I have decided that, barring some developments which may precipitate our action, Embassy staffs including ourselves will go aboard our ships tomorrow evening, returning ashore next day if that is feasible. (Our Italian [Page 772] colleague, is as reported, already aboard the U.S.S. Panay.) We are not informing the press until we actually leave. Tomorrow we shall inform the Chinese authorities that we are sleeping aboard but expect to be at our offices during daytime.
2. Repeated to Hankow, Peiping, Shanghai.