Another Battle Follows Failure of Truce Parley

Manawatu Times, Volume LV, Issue 6772, 2 February 1932, Page 7

Another Battle Follows Failure of Truce Parley

Fears That Hostilities May Spread

New York Times Broadcast. SHANGHAI, Feb. 1. A battle in which artillery and machine-guns were being used was under way this morning on the borders of the Hong Kew area, seized by the Japanese on Saturday night. The fighting followed failure of Chinese and Japanese authorities to reach an agreement on Sunday afternoon to end hostilities. It is feared that any moment the elasli may spread and make Shanghai a worse inferno than it lias been for the last, three days. For five and a-half hours yesterday a few representatives of flic Japanese Navy and the Chinese army sat in conference, but were unable to agree on any steps to end their differences.

Artillery in Action

MARTIAL LAW IN INTERNATIONAL SETTLEMENT CHINA’S CRACK TROOPS REACH NANKING San Francisco Press Broadcast. • SHANGHAI, Feb. 3. Fierce fighting broke out again in the northern districts of tho city shortly after midnight to-day. It began with desultory rifle fire, which grew heavy and was followed by bursts of machine-gun tire. It sounded like as though a fieldgun had been brought up, and one shell fired from somewhere in the north came over the Astor House in the International Settlement and finished in the Whangpoo river. It was thought that two Japanese gunboats farther up the river, off the Japanese Consulate, returned the fire, but this could not be verified immediately. It was impossible to determine whether the heavier guns were Chinese or Japanese, or whether the Chinese are to the north of the Settlement, or eastward of that area. The firing livened rapidly and was taken up in Hong Kew, another Chinese area and advanced southward as far as Soochow Creek, where Japanese machinegunners and riflemen went into action. A Japanese, warship in the harbour opened up with ma-chine-guns on the garden bridge connecting the Kong Kew district with the International Settlement, and killed three Chinese scurrying across it. While all this was going on a thick fog came down over the city, making it even more difficult to discover what was happening. Four American destroyers, steaming under forced draught from Manila, were expected here about 6 a.m. to-dav. They had been expected last night. The Paul Jones, Parrott, Edsall and Bulmer are in the flotilla, but one of them, soon after reaching here and taking aboard fuel, will proceed to Hankow', where there are numbers of American residents and considerable American property. United States marines have arrested twenty-seven Japanese "volunteer reservists’’ in the American area of the International Settlement,, where great numbers of Japanese continue pursuit of Chinese refugees and snipers. At least two foreigners were reported to have been injured when they attempted to interfere with their operations. Martial law will become effective in the International Settlement at 10 p.m. to-day, the Settlement authorities announced. After that hour and until further notice civilians will not be allowed on the streets between 10 p.m. and 4 » a.m. At all other times during the day and night all persons will be required to possess passes bearing the- owner’s photograph and to exhibit those passes on demand. This extraordinary action was taken in the belief that the situation within the Settlement was growing more serious and that additional steps for the protection of foreign residents were imperative. Thirty thousand national guardsmen, the finest troops in all China, streamed into Nanking to-day from Honan province. This crack division, equipped with German automatic rifles and clad in smart green uniforms, will be stationed there in order to defend the city in case of a Japanese attack, it was announced, although there were reports it might be destined for service in Shanghai. - '