693.001/353 Suppl.: Telegram
The Acting Secretary of State to the Ambassador in Japan (Grew)
Washington, October 5, 1938—11
a.m.
342. Your 640, October 3, 4 p.m.
- 1.
- With reference to the suggestions contained in your numbered paragraph 5 in regard to the statements relating to Manchuria, these statements as you have perceived are intended to be illustrative. The Department feels that their omission would materially weaken the presentation of the case, and suggests (a) that you introduce the second paragraph of the text of the draft note with some such phrase as follows “As having by way of illustration a bearing upon the situation to which the Government of the United States desires to invite the attention of the Japanese Government,”; (b) that you delete from the first sentence of the second paragraph the word “military”; and (c) that you delete the entire second sentence of the second paragraph and begin the next sentence with the word “however,”. Also, you may make such further revision of this portion of the note as you consider desirable. If, however, you feel strongly that it would be advisable to omit entirely the statements in regard to Manchuria, the Department authorizes you to do so.
- 2.
- Your telegram No. 640 refers to the President three times. As the Department’s 339, October 1, 2 p.m., as despatched contains no mention of the President, the Department assumes that its telegram No. 339 was received by you in garbled form. The Department would naturally be reluctant to impair any advantages which may have accrued from your oral presentation. The President has been consulted and ratifies the use which you made of his name. In the light of all the circumstances the Department desires to have your opinion whether, in view of your conversation with Prince Konoye, the note could appropriately be presented to the Foreign Office in the language drafted by the Department without there being included any reference to the President and without there being offered any explanation of possible discrepancies between what you said to Prince Konoye and the phraseology used in the note as telegraphed by the Department. In case you should feel that this suggested procedure would not adequately meet this phase of the situation, please give the Department the benefit of your suggestions.
- 3.
- The Department desires to hold in abeyance for the time being the question of giving publicity to the note.
Welles