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into the forces of the Kwangsi group. You will
remember that it was the defection of General T'ang
Shang-chih from Marshal Wu Pei-fu and his alliance with
the Nationalist armies in their advance from Canton,
which effected the overthrow of Marshal Wu and gave
Hankow to the Nationalists.
6.
Marshal Chiang evidently hopes to retain
Marshal Li Chai-sum in some relatively unimportant
post at Nanking and thereby to prevent his exercising
a real influence on the situation in South China.
Some high sounding title such as Chief of Staff of the
Nationalist Armies would be found for him; but in
effect he would be removed from the Command of such
troops as are loyal to him.
7.
Only time can show whether these manoeuvres
of Marshal Chiang against the Kwangsi group will
succeed; but I may mention that, when I paid a visit
of ceremony to Marshal Li at Canton in March, 1928,
he and General Ch'an Ming-shu at one of our meetings
took me aside and the three of us conversed in
Cantonese out of earshot of anyone else.
General Ch'an
then said to me that I had no doubt noticed in the
Chinese press many statements to the effect that he was
not really loyal to Marshal Li. He went on to
observe that I must realize from the mere fact that he
was discussing this matter with me in the presence of
Marshal Li that there was no foundation for the
statements in the newspapers.
I believe the truth to
be that General Ch'an is a personal friend of Marshal Li,
but that politically his views are more in line with
those of Marshal Chiang than with those of the Kwangsi
group.
8/
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