CO129-565-1 Indo-China Steam Navigation Company- acquisition of Chinese merchant steamers 30-9-1937 - 6-4-1938 — Page 14

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Decode

and Decypher

Sir A. Clark Kerr, (Shanghai)

28th March, 1938.

D.

(Wireless)

28th March, 1938.

R.

8.00 p.in.

28th March, 1938.

No. 532.

0:0:0:0

14

(R begins)

Tokyo telegram No. 372.

Second transaction. Haiyuan is one of four China

Merchants ships Jardine Matheson & Company are offering to buy. Japanese are probably confusing it with Haiyu formerly under Chinese flag and immobilized at Hongkong since outbreak of hostilities. Registration jurisdiction sought for the latter ship by Marden, Chairman of Wheelock & Company who claims to have bought it and who proposes to charter it to the Japanese. He states that it had never been used to store munitions and there is no question of its carrying T.N.T. to a Chinese port. (R ends).

Presumption in last paragraph of Tokyo telegram above- mentioned is correct.

It is by no means certain that deal will go through as Chinese are playing Jardine Matheson & Company off against American interests.

Addressed to Foreign Office; repeated to Tokyo and

Hongkong.