Washington, Dec. 24, Japan's long-awaited reply to ti United States protest against" th bombing of the United States gunboat Panay was received to-day and 18 being closely scrutinized by the State Department.
After the reports of It-Cmdr. J. J. Hughes, commander of the "Bana; and the Naval Board have been digested by President Roosevelt, State Department advisers will decide whether to communicate further with Japan on the basis of the facts revealed in these reports, Well-informed circles here point out that the report of Cmdr. Hughes searcely tallies with Tokyo's conter tion that the whole affair was mistake, but since Cmdr, Hughes incapacitated during much of. the Japanese action, officials are inclined to place most authority on the Naval Board's report, preliminary. accounts of which indicate that the Panay commander's account regarding the deliberate nature of the attack fully substantiated.
The insistence in the Japanese Note on the fact that strict orders a being given to make a recurrence of such an attack impossible In future, and the statement that "definite specific steps" would be taken to prevent a recurrence, have been well received here, but it is too early yet fo say that the incident may be considered to be closed ea the Amer~
Farther Conskleration Needed It is predicted here that President Roosevelt and Mr, Cordell Hull, Secretary of State, will consider the matter further during the Christmas break, Only after a further period of official study will it be possible to say whether or not a further Amer-tean Note will be considered nevessary, What is giving Government circles most concern, it is understood, is the effect which the fin of the Incident will have on the American public. Advance reports say that the pictures taken by a cameraman refugee aboard the Panay and rushed here by trans-Paelfle plane for showing at. the cinemas early next week -are har-vowing and of such a nature as to be liable to excite popular indigna:
There ly little prospect, however, thatthe Government could or would attempt (o interfere with the showing of the film throughout the country, fand thy effect which the pictures may have just when the gravity of the incident seems {o be. subsiding is believed to be arousing considerable The impression prevailed that the United States might seek further light from Tokyo regarding the clreumstances attending the Note and some of the implications contained therein, Unofficial observers almost unanimously commented on the fact that the Note did not reveal the Japanese Emperor's view or even did not hint that his personal attention had been called to the situation. The impression prevailed that the Note lacked the highest authority which, was convinced, the United States public holds necessary to prove the absolute sincerity of Japan's position, UnoMeial Japanese circles, predicted that Tokyo may orally acknowledge that Emperor Hirohito was personally distressed over the situation.
Widely commented upon was the fact that the Note itself indicated that Geld officers of the Japanese Army and Navy had failed to obey previous Tokyo orders with respect to foreign interests. Therefore, it was suggested that the United States Government might logically request more definite assurances from Tokyo that the cur~ rent orders will be obeyed—United Press.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.