Lieutenant Colonel Bleddick, commander of the Concession Garrison, sent a report to the Consulate General in Shanghai on the hoisting of the Chinese flag in the 9th Chinese Military Battalion. Barracks office issued. Confidential: Confidential. Docket number: F252/6.

Mr. Consul General,

I am instructed to report to you the following facts: 1. At the instigation of Lin Qiming, the commander of the 9th Chinese Military Battalion, and Fei Xingyuan, deputy of the Captain Battalion, illegally hoisted the Chinese national flag in their camp on 13 August 1938, with the initial hoisting time at 6:40 a.m. and the forced landing time at 3:56 p.m. on the same day. 2. When the flag was ordered to be lowered, I and the officers and men under my command maintained considerable calmness and restraint in an effort to avoid the occurrence of unfortunate incidents. However, due to the incredible stubbornness of the Chinese soldiers, I had to give the order to use force. 3. Lin Qiming, one of the instigators of the flag-raising, was hacked to death by his subordinate soldier Niu Kangnian with iron milling before the flag-raising, and the murderer Niu Kangnian died in a chaotic brawl. The investigation proved that the person who killed Niu Kangnian was the two mills hit by the battalion commander Lin Qiming's orderly Xiao Huozi (surname Li, no official name) or Bai Kequn, deputy of the second company. Both claimed to be responsible for Niu Kangnian's death, but it is not possible to determine for the time being, and now the two have been transferred to the central arrest room. 4. In the clash of forcibly lowering the flag, 32 soldiers of the infantry battalion under my command were wounded, and 23 soldiers were injured in the police patrol, but there were no deaths. The number of casualties among the Chinese soldiers in detention was 186 lightly wounded, 59 seriously wounded, and 4 dead (excluding Lin Qiming and Niu Kangnian). Among them, the lieutenant company commander Tu Guoqiang seized the weapons of our soldiers in the chaos, put up fierce resistance, wounded several of our officers and soldiers, and was extremely brutal, and was killed by my order, and the other three were all injured by mistake or died due to their own causes (with a death certificate). 5. The wounded Chinese soldiers have received public and humane treatment, and Fei Xingyuan, the instigator of the flag-raising incident, has also been transferred to the Central Arrest Cell.

I suggest that my report be forwarded to the relevant Japanese authorities through diplomatic channels to refute their unreasonable accusations that the Chinese detainees have indulged in anti-Japanese sentiments in the Chinese detainees.

Shanghai • August 26, 1938

Commander of the garrison, Bleddick

Consul General of the × Concession to Consul General of Japan in Shanghai, Hidaka. Issued by the Consulate General of × countries. Diplomatic No. 47.

Consul General Hidaka:

I have the honour to inform you that I and my Government have taken note of the repeated apprehension and unease expressed by you and your Government about the situation in the Concessions. Once again, I would like to point out to you that the measures taken by our military forces in Shanghai in the Chinese military battalions are as strict and perfect as possible, and any fierce emotions and actions that violate the neutral position of our country are not allowed. The "13 August" flag-raising incident that you pointed out was an accident and can never be regarded as the result of instigation by myself or the Chinese Government. Myself, my military and police and I carried out armed bombs on the Ninth Chinese Military Battalion where the flag-raising incident took place, effectively stopping the further escalation of the situation and demonstrating the unquestionable neutrality of the Chinese Government.

Therefore, I and my Government regret to inform you and to inform your Government that your Government's accusations and protests are untenable, and that the extradition of detained Chinese military personnel to your military authorities is absolutely impossible.

A copy of the report given to me by Lieutenant Colonel Bradick is attached.

Shanghai, August 29, 1938

Consul General: N. Wilson

Captain Rostow to Lieutenant Colonel Bleddick on the report on the continuation of the spiritual flag-raising activities of the 9th Chinese Military Battalion.

Mr. Lieutenant Colonel,

The camp under my jurisdiction has not been curtailed by the bloodshed of August. Fei Xingyuan, deputy of the captain's battalion, who was acquitted, is still leading the daily drills of the Chinese soldiers and holding the so-called "spiritual flag-raising", and I feel that there is still a possibility of illegal incidents similar to those in August. Therefore, I ask the judicial authorities to convict Fei Xingyuan and leave the military camp under my jurisdiction permanently.

Shanghai • November 2, 1938

Battalion Director Rostow

Lieutenant Colonel Bradick to Captain Rostow, Subject: Reply to the 9th Chinese Military Battalion.

Captain Rostow:

I think you have made two mistakes, firstly, you have made a mockery of our impartial judicial spirit by treating the sacred law as child's play, thinking that guilt and innocence can be made at will. Second, it is undoubtedly ridiculous for you to think that if you eliminate a Fei Xingyuan, the trouble of the 9th Chinese military battalion will be gone forever. I know the Chinese soldiers of this battalion very well, and I myself saw with my own eyes how they fought valiantly at the Dexin Building, which was located at the intersection of Morse Road, on the last night of Shanghai in the hands of the Japanese. The thing is very clear, that is, Fei Xingyuan is gone, and there will be other Chinese soldiers to take his place. Therefore, my only advice and order to you can only be to respect these Chinese soldiers, and on this basis, strengthen the vigilance, so as to seek the safety of the camp and avoid new disturbances.

Shanghai • November 15, 1938

Commander of the garrison, Bleddick

Japanese Consul General in Shanghai, Hidaka, to Lieutenant Colonel Bradick on the subject matter: a diplomatic letter requesting the garrisons of the × countries in the concession to stop anti-Japanese activities such as the spiritual flag-raising.

Lieutenant Colonel Bradick:

I have constantly received reports from our expatriates in the concession, and I am deeply disturbed by the anti-Japanese sentiment of the Chinese soldiers in the detention. I would like to point out that the so-called "spiritual flag-raising" of the 9th Chinese military battalion is of an unquestionable anti-Japanese nature. As a result, this aroused strong dissatisfaction from the Shanghai Command of the Chinese Dispatch Army of our Imperial Army. I ask Mr. Lieutenant Colonel to put an end to this activity, otherwise you and the military authorities of your country will be held responsible for all the consequences.

Shanghai • December 7, 1938

Consul General of Japan in Shanghai, Hidaka

Lieutenant Colonel Bradik to Consul General of Japan, Hidaka, subject matter: reply to Nishitaka's diplomatic letter.

Mr. Consul General Hidaka,

It is with great regret that I refuse your request and refuse to accept the so-called "consequences" of which you speak. I believe that since the flag-hoisting incident, under the strict guard of our soldiers and the police officers in the concession, the Chinese soldiers have not engaged in and cannot engage in any anti-Japanese activities. I am surprised that you call the peaceful activities of Chinese soldiers marching in line to watch the sun rise an anti-Japanese "spiritual flag-raising". I think it's just a religious ritual, a religious act similar to totem worship. I cannot prohibit my country from being a democratic country, and the government protects freedom of religion or belief, and neither you nor your military authorities have the right to use this as a pretext for provocative interference. I will ask my Consul General in Shanghai to lodge a protest with you and the military authorities of your country.

Shanghai • December 17, 1938

Commander of the garrison, Bleddick

Captain Rostow to Lieutenant Colonel Bradick: Report on the killing of Fei Xingyuan, deputy of the Captain's Battalion of the 9th Chinese Military Battalion. Ninth Chinese military battalion. Confidential: Confidential. Docket No. F271/8.

Mr. Lieutenant Colonel,

At 4:11 p.m. on the 7th, when Fei Xingyuan, the deputy of the captain's battalion, was standing in front of the Little Red House and talking to a Chinese soldier, a bullet fired from outside the camp wall hit Fei Xingyuan in the back of the head, killing him instantly. I immediately led the soldiers of the mobile squad and the patrol on duty to surround the two buildings in the direction of the bullets, and found two uncollected bullet casings in front of the window on the fourth floor of one of the buildings. Mr. Nelson, an expert in ballistics, testified that the murderer of Fei Xingyuan was shot in front of this window, and the weapon used by the murderer was a Japanese-made mobile rifle. I suspect that this criminal act was committed by Japanese overseas Chinese or pro-Japanese Chinese, and is a retaliation for the spiritual flag-raising of Chinese soldiers. The residence was owned by a Chinese businessman surnamed Wang, whose family was not present at the scene at the time of the incident, and the murderer climbed in through a small window in the corridor. Patrol 172 found the killer's hair on the small window.

In this serious incident, I request that punishment be imposed and that I again request to you that the "spiritual flag-raising" activity that you call "totem worship" be cancelled. I've found out. On the day of Fei Xingyuan's death, the Chinese military introduced a new leader, and I could no longer cope with their madness and stubbornness that were not afraid of death and recklessly.

Shanghai • June 7, 1939

Battalion Director Rostow

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