He said there had been only a few cases in which American nationals had been delayed but that delays to American goods ranged from a few hours to more than a day. Many complaints had been received from American businessmen in Tientsin because of interference by the Japanese with their commercial shipments, Mr. Welles said.
Reports from Mr. Caldwell, said the Under-Secretary, described cases in which Japanese military authorities kad forced Americans to dump truckloads of coal and peanuts in the street "for inspection." In some cases, it was'reported, Americans were compelled to count the number of peanuts in a truckload or the pieces of coal.
Another message from Mr. Caldwell three days later, Mr. Welles said, reported that conditions were becoming worse for American businessmen in Tientsin. An American rug manufacturer, among other cases, complained that he had been forced to spread out a truckload of rugs in the street at a Japanese sentry post.
Mr. Welles emphasized that the rug manufacturer earlier had obtained an American pass, bearing a Japanese consular visa, for the transport of the goods into the British Concession.
Another American, Mr. Welles said, complained of difüculty in bringing food into the British Concession. Mr.
Caldwell reported that the coal Situation in the British and French concessions was "most critical" although ample supplies were stored in Japanese controlled areas across the Pei River.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.