Tokyo, Oct. 23.
Mr. Yoshizawa, the chief Japanese delegate at Geneva, was instructed tovlay, to agree that Japan will tart the withdrawal of her troops Manchuria into the railway zone and do. ter best to complete this task within three weeks, provided China agrees to recognise her treaty commitments and calls off the anti-
Tapancse agitation.
While Japan continues to stand pat in refusing to admit the prin sible that evacuation. must precede negotiations, to-day's instructions to Mr, Yoshizawa, which it ix hoped will reach Geneva int sentation to the meeting of Council this afternoon, are regarded a signifying an important cones sion on _Japan's part, as Japan up. to the present hax refused to consider any question of a time limit.
"The concession servos phasise the fundamental importance Japan attaches to forcing China to recognise Treaty commitments. before the League, Chinese recognition fof these commitments being rogardfed here as essential to a permanent Settlemnt of the whole Manchurian roganed in Japanese oficial circles as Marshal Chiang Hsueh-liang's. "failure to observe these sgreemonts hus, it is sai been. the root of all" the friction land irritation which have calminatfed. in the present trouble, While Japan is prepared conditionally: to make concession over the withdrawal of troops, hower"r, {tia emphasised that it is impossi-blo'to give a. definite promise to complete the evacuation by Novem ber 16, when the Council renssecbles, as Tt'ip stated that the proierete of withdrawal is necessarily pendent upon China's willingness and ability to guarantee the main tenance of peace and order after the withdrawal, is also emphasised that the new instructions: to Br. Yoshiaawa. do not represent a new formula, but merely. a further concession, to, the first of Sir Eric Drummond's three formalac.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.