THE TROUBLE IN CHINA.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19905, 27 September 1926, Page 8

THE TROUBLE IN CHINA.

Despatches from China continue to present an ill-defined and somewhat chaotic picture. The star of the Cantonese forces is still apparently in the ascendant. The Red army which occupied Hankow more than a fortnight ago has, however, encountered a desperately prolonged resistance at Wuchang. It is apparently not anticipated that the forces of General Sun Chuan-fang wilL be organised in sufficient strength to oppose the Southerners for some weeks yet. It is said that the Reds, so-called, emboldened by their successes, are attempting to bottle up the navigation ci the Yangtsze from Hankow westwards. Their commander was reported a few days ago to have advised foreign warships of all nations to proceed downstream, and thus avoid “misunderstandings.” The presence of warships is necessary, however, for the protection ot foreign life and property, particularly in view of the anti-foreign feeling which has been stirred up by Red propaganda. So far there is no report of any warships other than British being actively involved in the strife. Now, an echo of the Wanhsien affair comes from another quarter altogether—from Geneva. Apparently Mi Chu, the Chinese delegate to the League of Nations, took the Assembly by surprise when he presented a highly-coloured account of the recent events on the Yangtsze. His speech amounted to an allegation that: British wai<diip.s had been re-sponsible for a wanton destruction of life and property. Ag was pointed out by Viscount Cecil,

this version of the events conflicts seriously with the liiitish accounts. It would be interesting, perhaps, to know from what source Mr Chu derived his information and why he should be displaying such readiness to blame the British rather than tfce bloodthirsty occupiers of Hankow for the occurrences on the river front. He made no reference to anti-foreign feeling or to any of the circumstances which, as we have been led to believe, caused the British warships to intervene- The events that led up to the Wanhsien incident have yet to be clearly told. In the meantime, there is no reason to assume that the British navy has been showing more courage than discretion in Chinese waters. Upon it has fallen the onus as well as the unpopularity of safeguarding Europeans in the Yangtsze treaty ports. Mr Chu’s statement at Geneva will not be accepted as sufficient to show there was not good reason for a display of force against the pirates who, as we have been told, seized the British steamers near Hankow and then fired on the British warships engaged in restoring them to their rightful owners. The protest to the League of Nations has been that of the representative of a Government which itself does nothing, and is incapable of doing anything, to protect foreign lives and interests in China. In the meantime, Soviet Russia is seizing the opportunity of spreading Bolshevist doctrines over an area in Cnina occupied by perhaps a hundred million inhabitants. It is not to be forgotten that the headquarters of the Chinese Red armies are in Canton, the centre of anti-British feeling.