§ Mr. LUNNasked the Secretary of State for War whether his attention has been called to a proclamation issued by the 1191W Japanese authorities in Siberia, stating that, as it is impossible to distinguish between Bolsheviks and non-Bolsheviks, all armed bands operating against the Omsk Government were to be treated alike as Red Guards, and that any village whose inhabitants gave assistance to the enemy was to be burnt to the ground; and whether this action on the part of the Japanese was sanctioned by the representatives of His Majesty's Government in Siberia?
§ Mr. CHURCHILLAllegations in the terms of the first part of this question have been made by the Bolshevik wireless Press, but His Majesty's Government has received no information on the subject from its representatives in Siberia. The Japanese and American Governments are responsible for the maintenance and protection of large sections of the Trans-Siberian Railway, and I am confident that they will discharge the duties they have accepted in full accordance with the laws and customs of war.