The 1902 American legation in Seoul standoff occurred in 1902 when a detachment of the Imperial Japanese Army's 11th Regiment, led by the officers Kanemaru Tsuda and Hasa Yamada, intruded onto the grounds of the American legation in Seoul with the objective of arresting American acting Consul Eugene Choi for assaulting Tsuda and Yamada days earlier. Choi had previously come to the aid of the Korean children Do-mi and Soo-mi after Tsuda assaulted them for accidentally bumping into them, and he single-handedly took down the two Japanese soldiers. Tsuda later recalled that Choi worked at the American legation, and, during a rifle training session, Tsuda spontaneously ordered his men to follow him, and he led them into Seoul and onto the grounds of the American legation. The American sentries raised an alarm, and the American detachment stood off against the Japanese soldiers in the courtyard. With the help of two interpreters (one translating Japanese to Korean, and Im Gwan-soo trnaslating Korean to English), Tsuda declared that the Japanese Army would hold an investigation into the assault of two of its officers by an American officer, and they identified Choi as the perpetrator. However, Choi and Moore defiantly grinned and told their translator to relay a message to the Japanese: that, if the Japanese wanted them, the Japanese would have to take them. The Korean to Japanese translator refused to translate such a combative message, and the two translators got into a (staged) fight, ensuring that the threat was never relayed. However, Choi - who had learned Japanese in America - asked if the Japanese wished for war with America, and asked which side should shoot first. The cool-headed Yamada ordered his men to disarm, and he had them march off, while a combative Tsuda was forced to follow suit, defusing the incident. Choi then recalled to Moore the advice that President Theodore Roosevelt had given them: "Speak softly and carry a big stick."