1938-03-01 — Page 11

THE CHINA MAIL, MARCH 1, 1938

CHINESE FRONT AT

LINGSHIH

BROKEN

Natural Line Of Retreat Said Cut Off

Japanese Checked

By Guerillas In Pengpu Area

Peiping, To-day.

Pounded by planes and artillery, the Chinese front at Lingshih has broken with a vengeance and the Japanese yesterday were pouring through the pass, occupying Hwochow yesterday evening.

Meanwhile, a Japanese column from Luanfu yesterday occupied Pingyang, 45 miles south of Hwochow, thus cutting off the natural line of re- treat.

SZECHUEN IMPERIAL CRISIS

SETTLED

Shanghai, To-day.

The serious domestic crisis arising from ́refusal of the Sze- chuen militarists to accept Gen- eral Chang Chun as Governor of the province, has been finally re- solved, according to Chinese re- ports.

The Central Government has evidently made concessions. Chinese despatches predict the appointment of Hsu Shi- ying, former Ambassador to Tokyo, as Governor of the Pro- vince.--Reuter.

As a result, large masses of disorganised Chin-JAPAN MAY ese troops have turned and are now heading west-ESTABLISH

ward towards the Yellow River in Shansi Province.

It appears that no serious The Japanese claimed in a report NEW MINISTRY

Chinese resistance is likely now that their troops captured Linfeng until the Japanese reach the Yel- from Taiyuan yesterday morning, low River in the south-west after launching concentrated attacks corner of Shansi. -Reuter.

from the north-east, north and CHECKED NEAR PENGPU

north-west but no conformation to Shanghai, To-day.

this effect has been received from Further headway has been made Chinese sources. by the Japanese columns in their at- Highly placced Chinese military tempt to encircle 250,000 Chinese circles here consider that the situa troops, reported by the Japanese to tion in Shanhi is by no means hope be in occupation of South Shansi. less. It is pointed out that

Besides advances southward, Ja-Fonly the Army operating in the north panese despatches claim that a column of Japanese troops has troops in the west and east of South reached a point on the Yellow Shansi are continuing their resis

not

of Shansi but also the Chinese

is

AIRWAYS PLANE

FIRED ON BY JAPANESE

Considerable mystery surrounds

a report that the Imperial Airways plane Delphinus, which arrived in Hong Kong on February 21 from Penang, was fired on by Japanese warships.

Although definite allegations were made by a passenger, or pas- sengers, on the plane that the craft had been attacked, no con- firmation can be obtained in Hong Kong.

Kong,

war-

News of the alleged attack was Tokyo, To-day. contained in a Reuter The

message opinion

gaining

from Shanghai, quoting passen- strength that the Japanese Gov-

that gers on the plane as stating ernment is in favour of stablish they were fired on south of Hong ment of a new Ministry to be called the Asiatic Affairs Depart

- The plane, it was stated; had ment, according to the

news been attacked en route from Pen- paper "Yomiuri.”

ang to Hong Kong while flying in say it could be created by a mer-warships, believed to be destroy- Proponents of the measure the vicinity of a group of Japanese

Affairs Board, the Asiatic Bu- ger of the existing Manchuria ers outside British waters.

"An unknown number of reau, the Chinese section of the ships opened fire," the passengers Foreign Office and the Overseas stated, "and machine-gun bullets that the Japanese although advanc. Ministry. The latter has juris whizzed and Despite official Japanese tence with undiminished zeal and diction over the Japanese admin- exploded round the :: machine,

istrations claims that Chinese resistance in ing along the railway lines:

in Korea, Formosa, which, however, escaped untouch- Sakalin and the mandated terri- the southern section of the main routes, are certainly not

tories in the South Seas. Tientsin-Pukow Railway has col- control of the hinterland.

The passengers stated, the lapsed, the Japanese do not ap-

It is claimed that amalgama-liner was following the same pear. to be making headway

tion of these organs would ad- taken in the past two years. north of Pengpu, and their pre-

just Japanese Asiatic policy in Imperial Airways Hong sent operations in this area are

order to meet new developments office told the "China Mail" confined to beating off Chinese

in China, including growth of morning that a number of discrepan- the "provisional government" of cies existed in the report. North China.-Reuter.

River west of Taiyuan.

guerillas.

According to Chinese reports the Japanese are sending. heavy rein- forcements to Pengpu in an at- tempt to break the deadlock-Reu- ter.

FLANK ATTACK ·

Hankow, To-day.

..and în

The Japanese. advance along the Taoching railway line north of the Shansi-Honan Frontier seems, ac- cording to reports from Chinese troops who are quite familiar with

the mountain district crossing the Taoching Railway, has been check- ed.

GUERILLA. ACTIVITY

ed.

anti-aircraft shells

air

this

No further developments appear MANCHUKUO-SOVIET Delphinus says that although he

BORDER TENSION

Moscow, To-day.

There was only one passenger in the plane, a Dr. A. Griot, of Cal- cutta, who travelled on to Shanghai. The report of the captain of the to have taken place on the Yellow River where concentrations of

sighted a number of warships, he the troops on both banks is proceeding

saw nothing of any attack on The latest Chinese military re-and the Japanese on the north bank

plane. At the time of the reported port from Shansi does not confirmare apparently fortifying their

incident, he was flying at a height Alleged Japanese reports that of 12,000 feet. the fall of Linfan, the temporary positions before attempting the Soviet detachments and two aero- seat of provincial government of crossing:

planes crossed the Manchurian fron-trating five miles across the fron- Shansi, but admits that heavy fight-

This strengthening of their positier on February 26 and 27,

are tier ing is in progress in the vicinity tions is deemed particularly neces-denied in official quarters.

It is added that the Japanese ma- of the city. Chinese troops are sary by the Japanese, whose troops It is alleged here that on these chines retreated hurriedly after checking the Japanese advance to are suffering more and more from dates three Japanese flights

Soviet fighting craft took off to in ward Linfan in two- directions. the increased activity of Chinese Soviet territory occurred, one pene-Ivestigate. Reuter Hucheng, a town to the east of Lin-guerillas.

fan, has been captured_by_the_Ja- A report from the north of the panese, who advanced on the town Tientsin-Pukow Railway states, from Changchi.

that the town of Chiahsiang, west

It is obvious that the Japanese of Tsinan, has been captured by forces in Shansi are carrying out the Japanese after three days of a large-scale flanking movement sanguinary fighting while on the against the Chinese positions along other hand the Chinese have re- the Lunghai Railway instead of a captured several points near frontal attack on Hsuchow, which Tsinanfu would prove too costly Hua Nan. Fighting has recommenced in CHINESE NOT DOWNHEARTED the south of the Tientsin-Pukow Hankow, To-day. Railway in the same sector which The Japanese have scored fur- was the centre of hostilities some ther successes in the south of Shan-weeks ago. Several thousand Ja- si Province, according to a Chinese panese troops are reported to communique from the front yester- have crossed the Hwai River day morning, which reports that again yesterday near Linghwao Linfeng, the new capital of Shansi, Kwan, Pengpu and Hwai Yuen in has been surrounded by Japanese order to advance northward along troops and that heavy fighting is the railway line to in progress at the rear of the city, Trans-Ocean.

Hauchow.

Those who know....

Insist on

EWO