LOSS OF RAILWAY STOCK.

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 18007, 12 July 1928, Page 9

LOSS OF RAILWAY STOCK.

Action of Chinese Troops. DEBTS TO BRITISH FIRMS. (British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, July 9. Sir Austen Chamberlain stated in the House, in answer to a question, that he had no information as to whether the retiring Chinese Northern Hoops; had carried off 6000 goods waggons and j 300 locomotives, being practically half of the rolling stock of the railway north of the Yang-tse-kiang. Other facts stated in the same question were substantially correct, namely that two British firms were owed over £1,000,000 for rolling stock, towards which nothing bad 'been paid since 1022, and that large sums of money were also owed to British firms for railway inaterial. Sir Austen Chair berlain added that constant efforts had been made by the British Minister in the past to secure payment c i these debts by the Chinese authorities, but, owing to the fafct that the railways were the chief instruments of civil war, it was impossible to expect any" result unti|' some form of unified control emerged. Nevertheless, the British Minister’s efforts to secure payment of these commercial debts would not be relaxed.