The text of the Note said: "The Government of the United States has had frequent occasion to smoke representations to Your Excellency's Government in regard to action taken and policies carried out in China under Japanese authority to {which the Government of the United 'States takes exception as being in its opinion in contravention of the principle and the condition of equality of opportunity or the open door' in in that area, In such a situation ports from and exports to the United States as well as the choice of dealers in North China would be entirely subjected to the dispensation of the Japanese authorities.
Notwithstanding the short time that exchange control has been enforced in Tsingtao two cases of discrimination have already been brought to the attention of the Government of the United States.
In one instance an American dealer in a staple commodity has been able to export to the United States because Japanese authorities there have insisted that his export bills be sold to a Japanese bank at a rate so far below the current rate of exchange of the Chinese currency in the open market that such transaction would involve a loss rather than a profit; but a Japanese competitor recently completed à large shipment invoiced at a price in United States dollars which was equivalent to the local market price calculated at the current open market rate. In the other instance an. American firm was prevented from purchasing tobacco in Shantung unless it should purchase so-called Federal Reserve notes or yen currency with foreign exchange and at an arbitrary and low rate of sectors of economic enterprise in China "The developments of which I have made mention are illustrative of the apparent trend of Japanese policy in China and indicate clearly that the Japanese authoriiets are seeking to establish in areas which have come under Japanese military occupation general preferences for, and superiority of, Japanese interests, an inevitable effect of which will be to frustrate the practical application of the principle of the open door and deprive American nationals of equal opportunity.
"I desire also to call Your Excellency's attention to the fact that unwarranted restrictions placed by the Japanese military authorities upon American nationals in China—notwithstanding the existence of American treaty rights in China and the repeated assurances of Japanese Government that been taken which would ins American nationals, interests properties would not be subje unlawful interference by Japanese authorities—further subject American interests to continuing serious inconvenience and hardship. Reference is especially to the restrictions placed by the Japanese military upon American nationals who desire to re-enter and re-occupy properties from which they have been driven by the hostilities and of which the Japanese military have been or still are im occupation. Mention may also be made of the Japanese censorship of and interference with American mail and telegrams at Shanghai and of restrictions upon freedom of trade residence and travel by Americans, including the use of railways, shipping end other facilities. While Japanese merchant vessels are carrying Japanese merchandise between Shanghai and Nanking those vessels decline to carry merchandise of other countries, and American and other non-Japanese shipping is excluded from the lower Yangtze on the grounds of military necessity.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.