'We gather from American newspapers that an entirely unfounded belief
exists in the United States that Great Britain is inclined to some grandiose scheme of delivering an ultimatum to Mr. Chen and following it up by sending an Expeditionary Force against the Nationalists. It is difficult to know how this belief can have arisen, but in these days there are so many subtle forms of pro- paganda that one is always being surprised by finding cock-and-bull stories solemnly received as genuine. It is out of the question for Great Britain to go to war with China except by agreement with other Powers, particu- larly with the United States. Sir Austen Chamberlain is no doubt as ready to watch events patiently for a while as Mr. Kellogg himself is, though neither of them, we may he sure, intends to let it be thought that death and ruin for foreigners in China are things that can be condoned.
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