Message from General George C. Marshall to the War Department

WAR DEPARTMENT Secret marshall CLASSIFIED MESSAGE CENTER markeps COMING CLASSIFIED MESSAGE COI DECRET IVI EYES ONLY URGENT story PARAPARASE NOT REQUIRED. HANDLE AS TOP SECRET CORRES PONDENCE PER PARAS 511 and 60a AR 380-5 From: Hq Nanking Liaison Gp Nanking, China from Marshall To: War Department for WARCOS Nr: GOLD 740 22 May 1946 Pass EYES ONLY to Colonel Bowen, TOP SECRET. Please have following delivered by hand of officer to hand of President and Secretary of State. "Dear Mister President: As the military situation in North China reaches a critical state trembling on the verge of open general war and the fighting in Manchuria continues, a point has been reached in negotiations that indicates probability of an agreement for termination of hostilities with a reasonable basis for military and political compromises in Manchuria. The time factor is critical as an open rupture in North China would probably fatally defeat the possibility of reaching agreement. The following is the situation and I must ask you and Mister Byrnes to guard this recital against all possibility of a leak, which would wreck any prospects I now have for terminating the present conflict. On my departure from Chungking for Nanking I, in effect, withdrew as a mediator in the Manchuria problem as having exhausted my resources and found myself in a position where National Government leaders, because of Communist attack on Changchun, felt my advice regarding cooperation with Communists had proved unworkable and Communists were CM-IN-4990 (22 May 46) DECLASSIFIED E. O. 11652, Sec. 3(E) and 5(D) or (E) EYES ONLY OSD letter, April 12, 1974 SECRE By NLT , NARS Date 7-1575 COPY No. 1 THE MAKING OF AN EXACT COPY OF THIS MESSAGE IS FORBIDDEN