Chinese Upheaval

Wairarapa Daily Times, 27 January 1927, Page 5

Chinese Upheaval

Shanghai Threatened. "Must Be Held.” Agreement Between Powers. (Electric Ttlenrupli— lTess Association. —Copyright., SHANGHAI, Tuesday. Sun Cliuan-fang, Shanghai’s anti-Ked Military Governor, continues to suffer reverses in trying to check the Cantonese advance on Shanghai. ! It is feared that an attempt will he made hy the Cantonese to seize Shanghai before the arrival of the British contingent from India and Shanghai, unless Sim-Chuan-fang is able to hold the ad- | vance another week.

AGREEMENT BETWEEN POWERS. BHANGHAT, Tuesday. ■ Sir Miles Lamps-on, British Minister at. Pekin, declares that a c-ondict between. the troops of tlie Powers and the Cantonese is unavoidable if the safety or Shanghai is threatened. An agreement has been reached beBritain. France, Japan and Ainland forces, whenever necessaryyin proportion to the national interests at stake. Hundreds of Annamitos are arriving Concession police, .and others arc en ronte. The British Government is commandeering British Trans-Pacific liners and freighters to transport troops to Shanghai from Hong-Kong and elsewhere. Though the Cantonese do not seriously threaten Shanghai, women arc preparing to leave. Valuables are being stored preparatory to -shipment homeward. The vaults of the princiiml bank are full of valuables. . The authorities are taking precautions in view of possible riots following strikes. —' ‘ Sun. ’ ’ FRENCH COLLABORATION. A PARIS, Tuesday. Cabinet has discussed the situation, m China,, and M. Briand is reported to have sent new instructions to French representatives in reference to collaboration-, with other Powers and the dethe French Concessions, if rheßarC' attacked. •BShanghai, ’ ’ declares “Le- Journal,” “which docs fully half of China’s foreign-trade ,raust be held at any cost. We are in entire agreement with Britain, that on this point the Powers must solidly show their intention to be respected,”.TROOPS LEAVE ENGLAND. '■ ' ; XOXDCtX, Tuesday The embarking of. a thousand Marines and two flights of Air Force aboard the Minnesota to-day recalled episodes famililjPduring the world war, but the light-hearted gaiety at Portsmouth is v,ery different from the grim tragedies enacted in the years 1914 to 1918. The whole town turned out to cheer the Marines, whp marched three miles along the Southsea front, singing “ShAtebai, Shanghai,” which is a most popiaß song. At l the entrance to the dockyard a band' struck up Elgar’s “Land of Hope and Glory.” Fatigue parties then stowed the kits aboard the ship, and cranes lifted the aeroplanes to the -decks. The public farewell is now' finished, and only close, relatives will be allowed on tlie jetty to shout the last good-byes rwhen the Minnesota steals away at dawn. FRONTIERSMEN VOLUNTEER. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) NEW PLYMOUTH, Wednesday. Lieutenant-Colonel Weston, as Commandant of the. New Zealand Legion of Frontiersmen,;ha». telegraphed the Act-’ ing-Prime Minister, offering 200 men, fully equipped, for service in China. BRITISH MISREPRESENTED. LONDON, Tuesday. Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister, in a. speech the Cantonese manifesto, declatfll: “Chen completely misrepresents British policy. It contains nothing of aggression or imperialism, but expresses a genuine will for peace. Nevertheless, we cannot submit to violence; ’ ’ 1 CANTONESE PROPAGANDA. LONDON, Tuesday. Ti? “Daily Mail” states that there . has been discovered a Chinese information bureau, not connected with the Chinese Legation, in Belgrave Real. This bureau disseminates Cantonese propaganda, and is in charge of Francis Orlando Bridgcman, who is admittedly in constant touch with the Cantonese Government. The “Daily Mail,” commenting or the discovery, says 'Moscow is suspending its revolutionary activities everywhere, and concentrating on China, where it hopes to deal a heavy blow at All leading agitators, plenti- \ fully with funds, are arriving for rim. purpose of using every possible means' to prevent an Anglo-Cantonese agreement. Thfcre is a significant lull in Bolshevik '-activities, particularly noticeable in India., Afghanistan, Persia, and even ‘in the French colonics, — ‘“Sun.”

SOVIET FURIOUSLY ANGRY. - BITTER DISILLUSIONMENT. LONDON, Wednesday. “According to reliable reports, the Soviet Government io furiously angry over the dispatch of large British naval and military reinforcements to China,-' says the “Daily Telegraph's” diplomatic correspondent. “For .Moscow has repeatedly assured the Cantonese that popular opinion in England and its Communist and Socialistic • friends would not permit the Government to send a single unit. Hence the Cantonese were told they could bluff the British out of every settlement and concession with impunity. The Bolshevik disillusionment is apparently bitter. Aloseow hoped to secure the ejection from China first of Britain and then of America. This would have left Soviet Russia in China confronting only Japan and the smaller European Powers, with whom it was thought a deal might have been made.” The correspondent emphasises that Britain was no party to the. Chinese civil wars. “The Chinese city and province of Shanghai have changed hands several times in. recent years. Our only concern was to prevent the Cantonese from overrunning the international settlement and abolishing the foieigu municipal council.” FURTHER BRITISH FORCES. (Received Thursday, 8.40 a.m.) LONDON, Wednesday. ■ It is learned that the eighth destroy or flotilla will probably leave for China on February 10th. The aircraft carrier Argus has been ordered to China. Tlie destroyers- Wanderer and -Woolston, the gunboats Aphis and Ladybird, and tlie hospital ship Maine, are expected to leave Malta for China on Fehruaiyjst. »... JAPATf STANDS ALQOF. -(Received Thursday, 9.2 q a.m.) TOKYO,' ‘Wednesday. Japanese officials denounce, as pure propaganda, tain, Japan and America are co-ope^at-. ing in a military and naval demonStrhJ tion against Hankow. Government authorities assert that Japan declined to asociate with Britain in demonstrating in force, because she considers it premature and liable to react seriously against the .participants’ interests and future influence. The Japanese navv lias despatched four destroyers for patrol work on the Yangtsze, with positive orders not to land troops. SOUTHERNERS CONFIDENT. (Received Thursday, 9.25 a.m.) SHANGHAI, Wednesday. Interviewed at Hankow, M. Borodin, the Russian adviser to the Southern Government, attributed the singling out of Britain for attack by the Kuo-min-Tung extremists to the fact that no amends were made for the Shanghai, Shameen and Wanhsien affairs. Referring to the British memorandum, he said the only tangible proposal in it: placed large sumsrin the hands of the Northern militarists. Regarding the prospects of the Sou : .therners holding their ground against . the North, M. Borodin admitted that, militarily, the Northerners might appear to have the advantage, but he declared they were as good as defeated. •History condemned them, so all that now remained was to bury the corpse. BRITISH PROPOSALS. PRESENTED TO CHINESE. (Received Thursday, 9.25 a.m.) LONDON, Wednesday. Sir Edward O’Malley has presented Eugene Chen with definite proposals on behalf of the British Government. BRITISH POLICY. (Received Thursday, 9.45 a.m.) LONDON, Wednesday. “Y”ou cannot negotiate- with a typhoon; you must secure safety for yourself and your family till it blows out,’’ said Sir Thomas Inskip, speaking at Tipton. “When that happy day comes the Government will be ready to begin negotiations, which Chen admits arc preferable to war. “Whether responsible authorities ordered the attack on the British at Hankow I do not know, but the manner in which the Scriptural injunction to “turn the other cheek” to the. smiter was obeyed proves British anxiety to prevent a conflict of arms. “The division going to China is not designed to cooperate with any Chinese

faction to defend Chinese territory, or the British concession. Its sole purpose is to see that 10,000 British men, women and childre nat Shanghai are as safe as they can be made.” (Received Thursday, 10.55 a.m.) LONDON, Wednesday. It is understood that Sir Edward O’Malley has made definite proposals to Eugene Chen, doubtless relating to gua : rantees and assurances. It is emphasised authoritatively that it is a mistake to suggest that Sir Edward O’Malley is merely concerned in a discussion over the Hankow affair. He is making proposals, which have been considered in ■London for months past, referring to tlie whole of China. It. is pointed out that great attention is drawn to- military and other preparations. This, by putting things out of their due proportion, has obscured the likelihood of Britain ’s constructive policy bearing fruit. It is declared that there is a very good chance of this, even before the arrival of the British troops in China. Definite constructive proposals bv Britain to the whole of China will be known to the authorities of China, possibly within the next few days, and unless these authorities are bent on making Anglo-Chinese relations impossible, there is no reason why a .satisfactory result should not be readied. ’ AMERICAN POLICY. (Received Thursday, 9.45 a.m.) \VA SHIN GTON, Wednesday. The State Department will issue a memorandum to-morrow, rejecting the Chinese demands for a treaty revision. Despite the -present menace to American lives and property, the memorandum will express sympathy with Chinese aspiration?,- and will commit the United States to a treaty revision ns soon as a stable Chinese Government is able to negotiate, but will insist on the gradual abrogation of extra-territorial-ity treaty privileges- under which -American courts and troops are maintained in China.

It will express entire agreement with the desire to throw off the “foreign yoke,” but will express the conviction that the present condition of the Chinese law courts and the political situation do not afford adequate protection for American lives and property which would be dependent entirely on them if American courts and troops were withdrawn.

The memorandum will repeat the hope that China will soon be able to provide conditions of order and progress justifying the- United States’ desire to relinquish protection of legitimate American interests to Chinese official institutions. This will depend on the reform of Chinese courts, codification of the native, law. and the establishment of a fairly stable and responsible central government, able to speak for the Chinese people and to enforce the laws. The memorandum will commit tlje Government to a much slower programme of change than urged by thePorter resolution, which was favourably reported to the* House. It will generally agree with the policy advocated by the Peking Minister, Mr MncMurray, and other American officials. RIOTERS ARRESTED. ’’ i ‘ TEN EXECUTED. (Received Thursday,'lo;ss : a/nb) ■ 1 i PEKING, Wednesday.-' General Hoyingehin,- who is the Kuo Min: Tung commander-in-chief ! at Fukien, arrested 200 alleged anti-foreign rioters conected with the recent disturbances at Foochow, and executed ten.