THE CASE OF COLONEL SPEAR

Press, Volume LXXV, Issue 22769, 22 July 1939, Page 14

THE CASE OF COLONEL SPEAR

Journey Through War Areas JAPANESE ALLEGE ESPIONAGE [By H. G. W. WOODHEAD, Tar Best era Correspondent of "The Press.”] Colonel Spear, a British Military in China, is now held by the Japanese Army authorities in Kalgan. The latest report is that he will be court-martialled.

It is regrettable that at a time when anti-British feeling is so prevalent in 'the Japanese Army, It should be afforded so many unnecessary opportunities of venting it. (This must not be taken to mean that “opportunities” is synonymous with “justifications.”) What information is available—most of which comes entirely from Japanese sources—regarding the arrest and detention of the British Military Attache Colonel Spear, suggests that there has been unnecessary blundering. The comment that follows, however, is made with the’ reservation that the British version of the incident has not yet been revealed—in itself a serious error in tactics.

Lieutenant-Colonel Spear, who was appointed Military- to China In succession to Lieutenant-Colonel W. A. Lovat Fraser, in the latter part of 1938, in February of this year left Shanghai for an extended tour through the territory under the control of the Chinese National Government. Providing that the latter raised no objections, a tour of tins- character might be considered part of his routine duties. It is one of the normal functions of an accredited Military Attache to keep in touch with military developments in the country to which he has been appointed, and this could hardly have been done by remaining in residence in Shanghai, or indeed in any place in Japanese-occupied territory. * Embassy Loses Touch Colonel Spear accordingly proceeded to Hanoi, via Hong Kong, and after flying thence to Chungking, toured extensively through Szechwan. Shensi, Shansi, and Hopei, observing the organisation and activities of the Chinese forces. He presumably kept in touch as far as circumstances permitted. with his OiVn embassy, which, however, appears to have lost touch with him for several weeks before, in the latter part of May, rumour began to circulate that an unidentified foreigner, who claimed to be the Military “of a certain Power,” had been arrested at a place called Shuanghutsun. about 45 kilometres south-west of Kalgan, on the premises of a Catholic mission.

It was several days before it was definitely established that the unidentified foreigner was LieutenantColonel Spear, and that not only, he, but a Lieutenant Cooper, a British Army officer, who had, after-due notification to the Japanese military authorities in Peiping, gone up tb meet' him, had been placed under arrest, and were being detained by the Japanese military on suspicion qf espionage. Lieutenant Cooper was detained until June 10, and only released after signing a document apologising for entering the Kalgan war zone without a military pass, undertaking not to repeat the offence in any other Japanese war zone, and pledging himself not to communicate to the Chinese side anything that he might have gleaned during his trip. Lieutenant Cooper is understood to have signed this document with the approval of Colonel Spear, and upon promise of immediate release —though he was actually detained for another eight days. Moreover, he had been informed by the Japanese authorities in Peking, to whom he had communicated his proposed destination, and the object of his trip, that passes were not required by foreign military officers. Lieutenant-Colonel Spear remains in custody, under the threat of being treated as an “ordinary spy,” pending the development and examination of certain photographic films which were found in big possession. Entitled to Diplomatic States The British Military Attache was carrying a British passport which established his rank and official position, and according to generally recognised and diplomatic practice, though not accredited to the British Embassy in Japan, his diplomatic status would have been recognised by the military authorities of any other country. It is absurd to describe his mission as espionage. He was merely engaged in the ordinary intelligence work appertaining to his office, and there is not the slightest evidence to suggest that he compromised his diplomatic status. Nevertheless, his discovery by the Japanese military authorities, some 400 kilometres behind what they claim to be their front line in the SuiyuanShansi region, in civilian clothes, is just the kind of thing calculated to pander to their espionage obsession. That he should have been able to

cross their supposed lines—and presumably also one or more railway line* —and reach a point within 120 kilometres of Peiping, was also certain to offend their amour propre. For it would seem that they had no idea of Colonel Spear’s presence in occupied territory until Lieutenant Cooper, on May 24, applied for a permit for the and himself to travel to Peiping by the Peiping-Kalgan railway. Colonel Spear appears actually to have been considerably closer to Peiping when he made his presence known to the British Embassy, having reached th* Trappist monastery at Yang Chia Pina It was only when he found that fighting between the Japanese and guerrfr las was in progress in the Mentoukou region, that he made a detour north td Shuanghutsun, whither lieutenant Cooper proceeded to meet hfan. Lack of Prudence How It came about that the Military Attache played straight Into the hands of the Japanese has yet ts be revealed. Knowing their anti-Briflsn attitude, he must have been aware of the risks he was taking in penetrating Japanese-occupied territory. Tb* prudent course to have adopted if hd decided to make his exit through this area, in preference to the wiser ohbic# of returning via Chungking and Ramming, would appear to have been t 6 have sent back or abandoned hfe diaries and cameras, sought out as advanced Japanese outpost, and made his identity known as soon as he , entered Japanese occupied territory; It throws a somewhat curious sidelight on the extent and efficacy of the Japanese occupation that he should, have penetrated some 400 kilometres into this territory without encountering. a single Japanese unit. : Alternatively, it may be suggested, the British Embassy might ,hava£~ •Earned the Japanese North China that its. Military AttaghAf might be expected to enter their waf’ zone, with the details of the approxi- ; mate locality, and of the expected date of arrival, and asked to locate him and facilitate his journey to Peiping. Had either of the above courses been adopted there could have been no justifiable reason for detaining him —much less any suggestion of espion- . age. The circumstances in which Colonel Spear was actually located might have aroused sus> picions amSfig 4 hfflitary' authorities -fa?■ less obsessed with the “spy mania’' than the Japanese. Wild Allegations .... Japanese spokesmen and press agencies have, of course, been making all possible capital out of the incident. Wild allegations .of Colonel Spear's communicating military information from the Communist area to Shanghai and Peiping have been made, the fact that he was unable to acquaint his embassy with his whereabouts being Ignored. Sinister motives are attributed to his visit to the Communist area, though the incorporation of the Red Army into the defence forces of the Chinese National Government would make it natural for any Military Attache to extend his investigations to , this region. One might think from the fuss that has been made, that the safety of the whole 'Japanese army had been jeopardised by the wanderings of a neutral Military through Chinese and Japanese-occu-pied territory, though at the time this is written a party of neutral military officers —including British—is actually on a tour of the Japanese front. If normal" relations existed between - : the British and Japanese Governments and armies, Lieutenant-Colonel Spear . would undoubtedly have been released immediately he had established his identity and explained the object of his travels. But relations are not normal, and the Japanese military are at present in a mood in which they welcome any opportunity to embarrass or humiliate British officials. To give them unnecessary pretexts for doing so is merely playing into their hands. Though it is only reasonable to expect that Lieutenant-Colonel Spear will be released in the near future, it will probably be without apology and represented as an act of magnanimity instead of one of ordinary diplomatic courtesy. Everything considered, it does seem unfortunate that a senior official of His Majesty s Embassy should have put himself in a position that allows the Japanese to exploit what—to put it mildly—appears to have been an avoidable indiscretion.