Sunday, 19 October

At 9.00 in the morning I went with Fanny, Chen, Long and others to Beibei. We returned at noon to attend a banquet celebrating Zhao Cheng’s (趙澄) son’s one month old birthday.

List of Tōjō Hideki’s cabinet:

Foreign Minister: Tōgō Shigenori (東郷茂徳)[1], concurrently Minister of Colonial Affairs.

Minister of Navy: Admiral Shimada Shigetarō(嶋田繁太郎).[2]

Minister of Army and Home Minister: Lieutenant General Tōjō Hideki concurrently taking these two posts.

Minister of Finance: Kaya Okinori (賀屋興宣)[3]

Minister of Railways: Vice-Admiral Terajima Ken (寺島健),[4] concurrently Minister of Communications

Minister of Agriculture and Forestry: Ino Hiroya (no change)

Minister of Education: Hashida Kunihiko (no change)

Minister of Law: Iwamura Michio (no change)

Minister of Health and Welfare: Koizumi Chikahiko (no change)

Minister of the Planning Board: General Suzuki Teiichi (no change)

Chief Cabinet Secretary: Hoshino Naoki (星野直樹)[5]

Information Chief: Tani Masayuki (谷正之)[6]

Tōjō Hideki made a statement at six-thirty, after the Cabinet meeting, that Japan would implement its basic policy, that it would materialise the solving of The China Incident, that it would build the East Asia co-prosperity sphere, that it would strengthen the ties with those countries with treaties. It seemed to be that the enemy was, on the one hand, actively preparing (an invasion) of the Soviet Union. If our war was again to our disadvantage, it would start the invasion. On the other hand, it still wanted to alleviate the situation to try and buy more time.

The US House of Representatives passed the bill to arm commercial ships.

[1] Tōgō Shigenori(1882-1950) was a Japanese diplomat.

[2] Shimada Shigetarō (188301976) was a Japanese navy leader.

[3] Kaya Okinori(1889-1977) was a Japanese politician.

[4] Terajima Ken(1882-1972) was a Japanese naval leader.

[5] Hoshino Naoki (1892-1978) was a Japanese politician.

[6] Tani Masayuki (1889-1962) was a Japanese politician.