XXVIII. THE "MORI" CONVERSATION; JAPANESE BURNING PAPERS

 

General Short testified that about December 5th or 6th, he received intelligence reports to the effect that the Japanese Consulate was burning papers.

 

Admiral Bloch said that after the receipt of information to the effect that the Japanese were burning papers, he didn't know whether or not that was something that was really filled with meaning; he believed that so long as there were negotiations going on in Washington, there was a possibility of the period of waiting being extended; he had a very definite feeling that we were going to have war sometime in the future but just how far in the future he was unable to predict. (p. 17)

Lt. Stephenson discussed in some detail the Mori telephone conversation intercepted on December 6, 1941 and stated his conclusion that he believed it unlikely that this was a calculated transmission of information from Honolulu to Japan.

 

On December 6th, he received a report of a long telephone conversation between a person named "Mori" and someone in Japan, in which references were made to the weather, ships at Pearl Harbor, and the local attitude toward the Japanese (page 233).

 

The Mori conversation was as follows:

 

(Exhibit 39)

 

IC (J) Hello, is this Mori?

(H) Hello, this is Mori.

(J) I am sorry to have troubled you. Thank you very much.

(H) Not at all.

(J) I received your telegram and was able to grasp the essential points. I would like to have your impressions on the conditions you are observing at present.

Are airplanes flying daily?

(H) Yes, lots of them fly around.

(J) Are they large planes?

(H) Yes, they are quite big.

(J) Are they flying from morning till night?

(H) Well, not to that extent, but last week they were quite active in the air.

(J) I hear there are many sailors there, is that right?

(H) There aren't so many now. There were more in the beginning part of this ear and the ending part of last year.

(J) Is that so?

(H) I do not know why this is so, but appears that there are very few sailors here at present.

(J) Are any Japanese people there holding meetings to discuss US‑Japanese negotiations being conducted presently?

(H) No, not particularly. The minds of the Japanese here appear calmer than expected. They are getting along harmoniously.

(J) Don't the American community look with suspicion on the Japanese?

(H)       Well, we hardly notice any of them looking on us with suspicion.  This fact is rather unexpected.  We are not hated despised. The soldiers here and we get along very well. All races are living in harmony. It appears that the people who come here change to feel like the rest of the people here. There are some who say odd things, but these are limited to newcomers from the main­land, and after staying here, from three to six months, they too begin to think and feel like the rest of the people in the islands.

(J) That's fine.

(H) Yes, it's fine, but we feel a bit amazed.

 

524                                                       CONGRESSIONAL INVESTIGATION PEARL HARBOR ATTACK

 

(J) Has there been any increase in . . ? . . of late? That is, as a result of the current tense situation.

(H) There is nothing which stands out, but the city is enjoying a war building boom.

(J) What do you mean by enjoying a war building boom?

(H) Well, a boom in many fields. Although there is no munitions industry here engaged in by the army, civilian workers are building houses for the army personnel. Most of the work here is directed towards building houses of various sorts. There are not enough carpenters, electricians and plumbers. Students at the High School and University have quit school and are working on these jobs, regardless of the fact that they are unskilled in this work.

(J) Are there many big factories there?

(H) No, there are no factories, but a lot of small buildings of various kinds are being constructed.

(J) Is that so?

(H) It is said that the population of Honolulu has doubled that of last year.

(J) How large is the population?

(H) The population increase is due to the present influx of Army and Navy personnel and workers from the mainland.

(J) What is the population?

(H) About 200,000 to 240,000. Formerly there were about 150,000 people.

(J) What about night time?

(H) There seem to be precautionary measures taken.

(J) What about searchlights?

(H) Well, not much to talk about.

(J) Do they put searchlights on when planes fly about at night?

(H) No.

(J) What about the Honolulu newspapers?

(H) The comments by the papers are pretty bad. They are opposite to the atmosphere pervading the city. I don't know whether the newspaper is supposed to lead the community or not, but they carry headlines pertaining to Japan daily. The main articles concern the U.S.-Japanese conferences.

(J) What kind of impression did Mr. Kurusu make in Hawaii?

(H) A very good one. Mr. Kurusu understands the American mind, and he was very adept at answering queries of the press.

(J) Are there any Japanese people there who are planning to evacuate Hawaii?

(H) There are almost none wishing to do that.

(J) What is the climate there now?

(H) These last few days have been very cold with occasional rainfall, a phe­nomena very rare in Hawaii. Today, the wind is blowing very strongly a very unusual climate.

(J) Is that so?

(H) Here is something interesting. Litvinoff, the Russian ambassador to the United States, arrived here yesterday. I believe he enplaned for the main­land today. He made no statements on any problems.

(J) Did he make any statements concerning the US‑Japan question?

(H) No. Not only did he not say anything regarding the US‑Japan question he also did not mention anything pertaining to the Russo‑German war. It appears he was ordered by his government not to make any statement.

(J) Well, that means he was very different from Mr. Kurusu.

(H) Yes.

(J) What kind of impression did Litvinoff make?

(H) A very good one here. He impressed the people as being very quiet and a gentleman.

(J) Did he stop at the same hotel as Mr. Kurusu?

(H) Yes, at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel overnight. He has already enplaned for the mainland.

(J) Do you know anything about the United States fleet?

(H) No, I don't know anything about the fleet. Since we try to avoid talking about such matters, we do not know much about the fleet. At any rate, the fleet here seems small. I don't know whether all of the fleet has done this, but it seems that the fleet has left here.

(J) Is that so? What kind of flowers are in bloom in Hawaii at present?

(H) Presently, the flowers in bloom are fewest out of the whole year. However, the hibiscus and the poinsettia are in bloom now.

*(J) does not seem to know about poinsettias. He admits he doesn't know.

(J) Do you feel any inconvenience there due to the suspension of importation of Japanese goods?

 

PROCEEDINGS OF HEWITT INQUIRY                                                                                525

 

(H) Yes, we feel the inconvenience very much. There are no Japanese soy, and many other foodstuffs which come from Japan. Although there are enough foodstuffs (Japanese) left in stock to last until February of next year, at any rate it is a big inconvenience.

(J) What do you lack most?

(H) I believe the soy is what everyone is worried about most. Since the freeze order is in force, the merchants who have been dealing in Japanese goods are having a hard time.

(J) Thanks very much.

(H) By the way, here is something interesting about Hawaii. Liquor sells very fast due to the boom here. The United States, which twenty years ago went under prohibition, is today flooded by liquor. British and French liquors are also being sold. The Japanese merchants, whose business came to a standstill due to the suspension of importation of Japanese goods, engage in, liquor manu­facture. The rice from the United States is used in brewing Japanese sake here, and the sake is exported back to the mainland.

*(H) explains that the Japanese sake brewed in Honolulu is called "Takara‑Masamuno"; that a person named Takagishi was the technical expert in charge of the brewing; that said Takagishi is a son‑in‑law of Grand Chamberlain Hyakutake, being married to the latter's daughter; and that said Takagishi returned recently to Japan on the Taiyo Maru. He adds that Japanese here and the Americans also drink sake. He informs (J) that Japanese chrysanthemums are in full bloom here, and that there are no herring‑roe for this year's New Year's celebration.

(J) How many first generation Japanese are there in Hawaii according to last surveys made?

(H) About fifty thousand.

(J) How about the second generation Japanese?

(H) About 120,000 or 180,000.

(J) How many out of this number of second generation Japanese are in the United States Army?

(H) There aren't so many; up to the present. About 1,500 have entered the army, and the majority of those who have been drafted into the army are Japanese.

(J)        Any first generation Japanese in the Army?

(H) No. They do not draft any first generation Japanese.

(J) Is that right, that there are 1,500 in the army?

(H) Yes, that is true up to the present, but may increase since more will be inducted in January.

(J)        Thank you very much.

(H) Not at all. I'm sorry I couldn't be of much use.

(J) Oh no, that was fine. Best regards to your wife.

(H) Wait a moment please?

(J) Thank you.

(J) Off phone.