1924-10-16 — Page 5

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SERIOUS FIGHTING AT CANTON.

DR. SUN'S EFFORT TO CRUSH THE VOLUNTEERS.

THE HONGKONGA DAILY PRESS, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 10TH,

CANTON HOUSES ABLAZE.

Dr. Sun Yapon has returned to near Canton and is now quartering himself in the Kwangtung Aracnal at Shekebeng. EYE-WITNESS'S STORY OF STREET north of Canton City, according to a report attributed to sources friendly to the Red Generalissimo.

BATTLE.

WRECKING THE CITY.

the

8.A. Kinshan,

RENTS ORDINANCE, SOLVING ANOTHER LEGAL PUZZLE.

ON THE

INTERESTING " JUDGMENT

GOVERNOR'S POWERS.

In the Summary Court, yesterday morn;

The long expected clash between Dr. Sun Yat Seg's armies" and "the Merchants Volunteers apparently commenced yes- terday. It was reported a few days ago that Dr. Sun" and issued orders to the troops to take possession of Saikwan. . 1,XX. the principal business centre of Canton. still unwilling to idupt the Red standard Telegraphic communication with Hong as ordered by Dr. Son, may not attack kong is interrupted, "but certain Chinese the merchants as Dr. Sun has secretly

When the Kinshun arrived in Canton eireles in the Colony received informa-instructed them to do. It is not believed at five o'clock on Wednesday morning, tion yesterday that fighting started early that Cenerai Li Fook-lam will co-operate bullets were flying all round the ship. In the morning and was still in progress with the Reds in the looting and destruc- in the afternoon.

tinne of the shops in Saikwan in Canton and the Red Army appeared to have con

The Red Army in Canton is but 7,800 A passenger who returned to Hong-ing, Jr. Justice Dyer Ball delivered an important judgment, the main object of strong. General Hsu Chung-chi con-kong from Canton op manding about 3,000 men and General which arrived at one o'clock this morn which was the legal interpretation of an Wu Te-chen, another 2,000, while General

ing, interviewed by a Daily Press gepre- order made by the Governor-in-Council' nintter of exempting Sun, 66, 6 and 79. Queen's sentative, said: “Well, as a Fan Chung-hsing, of the Honanese, about

Road East, from the provisions of Section Dr. Sun's ether mercenaries, who

fact. I went up to Canton on business.

14 (1) (f) of the Rents Ordinance. The but found things so hot that I have come

case was one in which the landlords, Li Chan-shi and Chu Chan-shi, claimed back to Hongkong."

possession of the houses in question in which there were nine tenants."

|

Mr. Eklon Potter, K.C., instructed by

plaintiffs and 'Mr. C: A. S. Russ and Mr. EC. Brooks, represented the

This information is confirmed by the as Dr. Sun on the evening of October 19th/trol of the Bund. The Volunteers were | D). IcCallum appeared for the tenants.

atury

told last night to a Daily Press redirected. presentative by a British subject who returned to Hongkong from Canton yea, terday in the sa. Langshan.

2

No information has been made avail alile from oficial sources of the capture by the Cantonese Army under General

on the look out for the men of Sun Yus

Sen's Red Armys but were confined to the city, the Bund being an impreguable Brd position.

His Lordship, in delivering judgment, said the argument had been confined to the one point at issue-the validity and effect of an order made by the Governor The Merchant Volunteers were shootin Council on May 29th and appearing in the Gazette on March 30th, exempting houses No. 66,68 and 2, Queen's Road East, from the provisions of Section 4 ()) (0.

Canton, he said, is now in a state of Chen Ching-ming of the forts at Housing at Reds whenever they got an op-

Tigris as generally reported in Canton.

#

"From 11 o'clock last night until an early hour this morning an exceptionally large crowd of Chinese gathered on the Praya in the vicinity of the Canton wharf.

siege by a strong force of Sun Yat Sen's

portunity, and as a measure of retalia- troops. By the small hours of yesterday That Dr. Sun Yat-sen has decided to tion the Red Army was setting fire to morning, they had completely surrounded give up his Northern Expedition is aphouses and business premises in Canton. and area comprising Taiping Maloo, andparently confirmed by the report that his

The firing in different parts of the news agencies have been directed not to city was maintained all morning and Saikwan.

Just before 5 a.m., he stated, a force mention the subject again.

Dust of the afternoon, but there was A of about 2,000 of Dr. Sua's mea marched CROWD AWAIT STEAMERS FROM all which lasted for about an hour. He on to the Bund, along which they. pro-

CANTON.

stated that he went ashore when the lull eeeded to picket themselves at swiftly.

in the shooting occurred, and found that barricaded positions at the end of the

many of the streets had been barricaded thoroughfares leading to the sea.

Refugees everywhere were gathering The barricades were set up with re-

together their belonging and making markable thoroughness and speed, when

They patiently awaited the arrival of their way either out of the city or to the it is considered that the workers were the night steamers for news of the situaBund so that they could embark on ships barassed by intermittent rife-fire from tion in Canton and when the Sai Ou and leaving the port. Merchant Volunteers barricaded in posi- the inskan berthed just before 1 a.m. Many of the passengers who went up. tions further up the streets. The ob the anxiety of the crowd for information to Canton, on the Minshen remained on stabiles on both sides were constructed of was displayed in the way they pressed board and booked return passages, while wood, stone, and granite. Dr. Sun's in to the wharf gates to gather the stray a considerable number of refugees decid forces, ulded our informant, bad machine fragments of news..

ed to book up as passengers. The Kin | shop carried a far larger complement of guns, but he did not hear any machine-

passengers than usual.. gun fire from the Volunteers.

Our representative was shown a large indentation in a stout steel wall of one

of the deck-cabins of tin Lungshen, where à Mauser bullet had struck it, and

nearly gone through.

.

NEWS GLEANED FROM THE "SAI ON."

When the vessel left the port last night A representatife of the Daily Pres

force firing had again commenced, and interview a number of the ship's officers all over the city fires were breaking out. on honed the s.s. Saj Os, shortly after This, he said, was the work of the Bed her arrival this morning, and gleaned some Army. There were more than a dozen details as to what was happening in fires which could be seen as the ship left Canton. When the Sai On arrived in the city, and the streets were clear of Canton at 0.30 am. yesterday, "fighting all but the nighters engaged in the battle had already commenced, in fact the of the streets. firing in the City could be heard as the steamer proceeded up the river. It was cnubrious to those on board that the situa-

Just before the Lungshan left Canton at yesterday, frequent bursts of firing were exchanged, and our inform ant saw four corpses, all Dr. Sun's men, on the Bund, and a considerable number of wounded being carried away.

Everything pointed, he said, to an gagement on A large scale during the day.

Car Chinese correspondent communic ated to is last evening the following information

tion was serious.

It was, in fact, so serious that no one ventured ashore or on to the Bund and most of the passengers taken to Canton decided to return to Hongkong without going ashore. A few passengers were disembarked into sampans and these were taken across the river to Honam where things are comparatively peaceful

Throughout the day the Bund was de- serted of civilians and the only people to be seen were soldiers of the opposing factions and these not in large numbers.

Reviewing the arguments of Mr. Potter, his Lordship said Counsel's first point was that the exemption power was never jo- tended to apply to exemptions in favour of the tenupt but only to exemptions in favour of the landlord and that may exemption other than this would lead to absurdities. Mr. Potter claimed that any other interpretation than his would mean that the Governor in Council could exemptà tenant later alia from: 4°(V) (n) in which case he was "not obliged to pay any rent and from 4 (1) (b) under which he could break all the regulations of bis tenaney and not fear eviction.

1

Continuing, his Lordship said: "There is no doubt that if the exemption is exer- cised in favour of the tenant in respect' of certain provisions of the Ordinances, the result is sufficiently startling, but as Mr. Russ said, when power is delegated in this manner the legislature which dele- gates that power is surely entitled to assume that it will be exercised renson- ably. It is no argument to say that if power is exercised absurdly the result will be an absurdity.

In the opinion of his Lordship, Mr. Potter's absurdities were not absurdities so mach as unreasonable and unjust usea of the power of exemption and it was

It was almost impossible, he said. to clear that such uses could be made in give an estimate of the casualties, but favour of the landlord or of the tenan!. undoubtedly many must have been killed. He did not, therefore, agree with Mr.

Without doubt it was only the start of Potter on his first point. bard fight, which might continue for days even. As the Kinshen slipped down the river those on board could see the Bares from the fires and hear the rattle of, machine guns und rifles. Apparently bombs were not being used.

"If this state of things continues long Canton will be absolutely wrecked," concluded the passenger.

LADY'S BAG SNATCHED

IN BATTERY PATH..

Mr. Potter's second point, said bix Lordship, was that the section itself was tre vires because there was no body in the Colony which could deprive a man of his rights except the Legislative Coun eil and then only by Ordinance.

His Lordship said he had examined the

which warranted the assumption that the point carefully and be could see nothing

section was not for the "peace, order and good government of the Colony"" He thought that the very fact that the exemption section was not included in the original Ordinance showed that the Legislature realised that there were tena. ments which ought not to be within the Ordinance but yet were so by accident. He did not think therefore that the sec tion was ultra virga,

Dr. Sun Yat-sen's attack on the mer chauts of Canton, as expected," started early yesterday morning (October 15th, the Red's and the hercenaries ander him first surrounding the City and then begin- ning to loot. Those participating in the fighting against the populace consisted of divisions from all armies, including those of the Cantonese under General Hsu Chungchi, the Yunnanese, the Kwangs ites, and the Hunanese and the Honanesc. at each other from various positions of

A Chinese youth was charged at the The fighting was still in progress in the vantage. The Asia building was appar afternoop.

ently in the hands of Sun's rhen who Central Magistracy, before Mr. R. E. A leading Cantonese merchant, when completely controlled the situation in Lindsell, yesterday, with snatching seca on the subject, said: "All militar-that vicinity. From the decks of the Sai handbag from Mrs. Green, of 266, The Ou several fires further back in the City Peak. The bag contained a small sum of ists and mercenaries must be driven out could be observed and once when the Fire money. The snatching occurred in Bat-there, be from the whole of Section 4,

During the earlier part of the day there was considerable firing on the bund "potting" Volunteers and Sun's men

and rickshas.

CHINESE YOUTH" SENT TO PRISON.

S

were passing St. Joha's Cathedral de fendant came up from behind and snatch ed the bag.

*

He ran round the Cathedral and made towards the Government Ofice, where he was caught by a soldier.

of China, if the people are going to govern Brigade cune along the Bund to deal tery Path the previous evening."

In reply to the Magistrate, Inspecter at.al. That some people had to die and with a blaze, Sun's men in the Asia build- some of their homes had to be "sacrificeding fired on them and would not allow Spear said there had been a lot of snatch in order to oust these enemies to de-them to proceed. Many casualties were.ing of late. The complainant was out mocracy from the country are to be ex- also sen on the Sui On und wounded walking with her husband, and when they posted. The Cantonese, refusing to fur-men were carried past the ship in chairs tber subject themselves to militarism but

According to information received on appearing as a people to defend their the vessel looting has been rife in the right to life, liberty, and property against City for the best part of the day. those trying to impede the progress. D' THE CAUSE OF THE TROUBLE.

The Magistrate sentenced defendant to the Republic, are van-guard in the

The trouble is believed to have origin nine months' imprisonment with hard people's movement for true democracy ated late on Tuesday when it was diabour, and ordered that he should also and national "righteousness. That the covered, thas a number of the artus seized receive 12 strokes. Canton Merchants Volunteers may have by Sun's men in last week's scrap on failed at the beginning in their conflict being returned were not those that should with regularly trained mercenaries from bave been handed over, but firearms of many provinces still allowing militarism an inferior quality. The Volunteers re to flourish will not discourage the people's fused to accept them, and Dr. Sun was movement for government of the people, informed of the impasse and it is stated by the people and for the people, The that on the orders of the Generalissimo fight for the salvation of China by the the Red Army commenced active opera in an empty icu chest on the verandah Chinese themselves will go on. The Can- tions at day break yesterday. tonese bave led and they are confident that other provincials will co-operate in the movement for true national bettor ment and progress,"

THE TEA MERCHANT MURDER.

The shop foki who is alleged to have murdered his employer and left the body

at 145, Connaught Road, was again When the Sui Un left last night for charged before Mr. B. E. Lindsell at the Hongkong faring was still in progress and Central Magistracy, yesterday morning, Canton appeared to be in. for a very bad and was remanded for another week.

No evidence was taken, night's fighting,

As regards Mr. Potter's third point which was that the word "provision!! the Ordinance, but only a complete acc- the exemption should, did not mean a portion of a section of tion, and that

his. Lordship gave it as his opinion that, even a sub-section or a paragraph might contain provisions' in itself He could not, therefore, accept what Mr. Potter had a suggested as a high road"

solution.

His Lordship thought that Mr. Potter's most formidable arguments were those dealing with his contention that the exemption order was not retrospective and could not take away what. Counsel had termed "vested rights," and that what the Governor in Council bad endea voured to de by the order was to supply the want of a desirability certificate re- quired under the Amending Ordinance of 1021,

Giving judgment for the plaintiffs, his Lordship said he thought that the object of the exemption section was simply to permit the Governor in Council to say when his attention was called to it that: "the viruumstances of this case are such that this domestic tenement should be excluded from the Ordinance on from Bome of its provisions. In the absence of expressions to that effect he did not believe that the Legislature contemplated in this case, of the rights given him under depriving the landlord, like the plainder Section 4 (1) (f) after he had once taken all steps neccesary to avail himself of those rights

His Lordship made no order for posses- sion.

At the request of Mr. Russ, a stay of execution for 14 days was granted, Mr. Ruas intimating the possibility of appeal

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