The Coolidge examiner., 1937-09-09
international Crises

ONE grave international crisis
" followed another in the new
Sino-Japanese war. Britain was still
awaiting reply to her protest over
the wounding Of His Majesty's am
bassador to China by a Japanese
airman when four airplaneS, identi-
fed as Chinese, swooped down upon
the American liner, President Hoov-
er, flagship of the Dollar line, drop
ping bombs which wounded seven
persons aboard.
The President Hoover, having de-
posted a load of refugees in Ma
Mia, was nearing Shanghai to pick
up another load when the bombs
struck, tearing 25 holes in the ship
above the water line. The ship inn
mediately notified Admiral Harry E.
Yarnell, commander Of the Ameri-
can feet, who took command of all
American shipping in the emergen-
cy. He ordered the President Hoov-
er to continue to Japan, and radioed
other vessels that they must not
enter hostile" waters off the Woo
sung and Yangtze lightships. 1t was
only a few days before the Presi-
dent Lincoln, another Dollar liner,
had had to run a gauntlet Of artil-
lery fire to get 160 American refu-
gees on their way to Manila.
More spectacular, but only be-
cause of the importance of the per-
son it involved, was the shooting
Of Sir Hughe Montgomery Knatch-
bull-Hugessen, British ambassador
TO China.
With several Of his attaches, Sir
Hughe sped along a Chinese road
near Shanghai TO attend a confer
ence with British foreign service
officials. His conveyance and one
which accompanied it flew the union
jack. But a Japanese airplane
swooped down and began to pour
machine-gun fire into the car. One
of the bullets pierced the body Of
the ambassador, grazing his spine.
He was rushed so miles to Country
hospital where an operation was
performed and blood transfusions
were given.
Sir Hughe was the highest rank
ing British official in China, where
Great Britain has enormous inter-
ests at stake. He was attacked by
Japanese airplane which did not
even have the right of beligerent
since no war had been declared
while his car was flying the British
colors. The last comparable Incl
dent IN China was at the time of
the Boxer rebellion in 1900, when
the German ambassador Won Ket-
tier was shot and killed in Peiping.
Britain's note to Tokyo was
couched in stringent terms. 1t said,
in part:
The plea, should it be advanced,
that the flags carried on the cars
were too small to be visible is IT.
relevant There would have been
no justification for the attack even
had the cars carried no flags at
all.
The foreign and even the diplo-
matte status of the occupants is also
irrelevant. The real issue is that
they were noncombatants
Such events are inseparable
from the practice as illegal as it is
inhuman of failing to draw that
clear distinction between combat
ants and noncombatants in the con-
duct of hostilities which information
al law no less than the conscience
Of mankind has always enjoined.
His majesty's government must
therefore request:
'FIRST-A formal apology to be
conveyed by the japanese govern
ment to his majesty's government;
'SECOND-Suitable punishment
for those responsible for the attack;
''THIRD-An assurance by the
japanese authorities that necessary
measures will be taken to prevent
recurrence of events of such a char
acter."
Tokyo's reply was temporarily
withheld. pending a complete in
vestigation.