1937-08-18 — Page 9

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THE CHINA MAIL, AUGUST 18, 1937

Pag

BOMBS DROP ALL ROUND BRITISH SHIP IN WHANGPOO A.P.C. Installation Ablaze 100 Yards Away

DONNEER their deadly missiles 10 yards off aircraft guns letting out a terrific

Captain Tells How Bombs Narrowly Missed Augusta

the Augusta water and deep seen and he Evansville, wh by, was also left the harbom ting out to sea. Further raads gave us a devil hearts were

Asiatic Petrol stallation

APC BLAZE

A graphic and terrifying description of the two bombs, wh bombardment of Hongkew by Chinese planes last huge, struck Saturday and the extremely narrow escapes of the U.S. Flagship Augusta and the French Cruiser us by barely 150 yards! Primaguet was given me in an e exclusive interview yesterday evening by Captain Morgan, skipper of A huge fire was the immediate the m.v. Silverteak, which arrived from Shanghai of the typhoon was

result, but providence yesterday evening, after having been through the the wind blowing aw terrific bombardments of Friday and Saturday.

The Silverteak is carrying three passengers, two of whom, Mr. F. A. Bellato, an American sub- jeet, travelling round the world on a holiday, and Mrs. Anita Taurog, another American subject, were right in the midst of the bombing when the Asiatic Petroleum Company's installation was struck by two of the Chinese aerial bombs.

carried the flames tow tanks.

would never alive and it that we did. rbidden `mem- passengers to city on Satur- pard, but did for the dread- bombers The before we had :

and boy!

CSIGHT

We heard the whirr of the aerial and them the explosion. We jumped for cover although most

amazing sight to see apping bombs at tervals of 500 to 1,000 yards the Yangtsepoo water-frent The following morning, (Sun-mills are in abundance, but

ust opposite us where Japanese day) however, the wind began..

they change and things were uncom- fortably hot for us the scorching

came dangerously near to hitting the power station, whe know American-owned many

flames giving us a real, toasting The French Cruiser Primaguet At this moment, all merchant Harbour as a general offensive by have looked like Japanese warships ships in port were ordered to leave and the USS Angusta, which must the Chinese against Japanese war. from the height the planes were ships was expected at any myarent" fying We left Shanghai at 8 am, on Sun- tari Garden day nobody was more relieved than rowly

I that we did.”

“I was through the last war, the ese fleet, just opposite the Japanese whole of the four years, and any-consulate and near the body who had seen half of what we Bridge.

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saw in Shanghai would become 2 The solitary Chinese plane That we were not hit was a guaranteed pacifist" declared Capswooped over the harbour, raining miracle in itself, for bombs were tain Morgan at the outset.

aerial bombs, all of which miracu-breaking all round us," concluded We arrived in Shanghai a week lously missed their objectives, in-Captain Morgan. ago on Tuesday and it was quite cluding the Primaguet, Augusta, evident then that the Japanese mili-Japanese warships and us. tary and naval authorities were pre- paring for a major offensive.

SHRAPNEL DANGER Anti-aircraft work by the Japan-

PASSENGER'S STORY Mr. F. A. Ballato, an Amer who is on a tour of the Orient, gave graphic account of the Shanghai i

much

had their share of

vessels came par- it. I guess that ole story except that to get out of Shang- is what they call the Fast, give me Frisco he concluded. TAUROG'S FRIGHT

of Chinese had finally thrown them- selves upon the steps of foreign banks and other buildings on the Iwater-front, thoroughly exhausted

Eaurog, who is also of San Francisco, stated as making her third trip From Thursday, conditions got ese saw shrapnel break dangerous-episodes.

round the world on a sight-seeing worse, firing broke out all

ly near to us and the shed from over

"On Friday Mrs. Taurog and I tour Hongkew, labour was scarce and the which we were supposed to have went ashore and witnessed amazing We were

been unloading

about trampled on by godowns full because consignees

was peppered scenes in Nanking Road and all along

Shanghai and never in would not take delivery. On Satur-given orders to take cover, but the Thousands of Chinese, carrying the Bund, and elsewhere. Thousands

right and left. The crew were the water-front

my life have I witnessed such scenes day last we could do little because

as were enacted on Nanking Road, of the general exodus of Chinese, Several merchant vessels

real danger was yet to come. their belongings were packed like which was hastened by the heavy were moored quite near to us, in-anti-aircraft guns popped all round. which sardines on the Garden bridge while bombardment of Chinese territory cluding a German, were forced to It was impossible to make by the Japanese warships, and I can leave harbour because of the dan-headway Picshas and motor and terrified by, the going-on, but tell you that it was no joke. The ger and one American boat, the vehicles there were none, and when sky was continually lit flashes from the guns, while smokely near to being hit.

City of Evansville came dangerous-we attempted to enter restaurants The sights terrified me, and what

they weren't the only ones.. and flames could be seen pouring Without the services of a pilot the sidewalk--with much difficulty

or shops, we were pushed out onto was mostly in my mind was how from houses and mills struck by we were pretty much helpless and because they were already crowded, was I going to get back to the ship- were forced to remain where we land told that everybody was board were hoping for the best.

The bombing on Saturday after- At about 4 pm bombers suddenly made their ap- When, eventually, we landed in attic Petroleum Company's installa

ling up.

noon was a terrifying ordeal, and six Chinese

MAGNwhen those two bombs hit the Asia- pearance and this was a signal for tender and had to pass between the tion, I thought we were all going shrapnel from Japanese anti-air- suddenly observed Chinese, aero-yards away and luckily for us the 2 general bombardment by lines of Japanese men-o-war, welup in smoke? It was barely a 100 greatly daring, flew the length of panese were letting loose hell craft guns. The Chinese, however, planes, while all round us the Ja-wind was blowing away from the the harbour, and dropped two of learth, their machine gun and anti-

on ship otherwise we would surely have

stellfire. 4

up..

with

TIDE OF BATTLE The Chinese in the streets were terrified and ran helter skelter from ever threatening death. It was ter- rible. Barely have. I witnessed such

scenes.

It was easy to follow the tide of the battle from the flash of the guns and one could see that the Chinese were not wholly dormant.

Amid stream and just opposite where we were moored "was the French cruiser Primaguet, while not far away the U.S.S. Augusta, flag- ship of the United States Asiatic Fleet was moored at a naval buoy. FIRST RAID

On Saturday morning we and neighbouring ships had the first taste of the terrible ordeal which hundreds of thousands of foreign and Chinese residents must have gone through subsequently a

At about 10 am, we heard the roar of an aeroplane obviously

Chinese from the which the plane

direction from

Nearby were de 264 aj

& number of Japanese torpedo boats and des- troyers, while cruisers were moor ed in the middle of the river with the Idzumo, Flagship of the Japan-

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