The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1927-03-26
WOMAN RELATES
NANKING EPIC
Continued From Page u
others helped me. We found many
there ahead Of us.
Men Stand Guard

All the women and children were
sent upstairs in the house, guarded
by two men. The other men stayed
below. Parties continued arriving
all day until there were more than
fifty of us. All during the day a
group of Cantonese stayed at the
base of the hill, constantly demand
ing entrance to Socony House, and
firing at us intermittently.
My husband and e. Il. Hobart of
the Standard Oil Company faced
death a dozen times to go out and
speak to the Chinese. They were
bartering against fate.
Finally the soldiers demanded
money, which we gave them. They
left, but soon a mob of Chinese ar.
rived. They were in an ugly mood.
Mr.. Davis offered them money, but
they replied:
I'VE don't want money. We want
to kill"
My husband told them he was the
American consul and we were all
Americans.
1T makes no difference whether
you are Americans or French or
British or any other foreigners, "
they replied.
Firing on House
Still Mr.. Davis and Mr.. Hobart
parleyed with the men, who sud-
denly started firing at the house.
Then Acting Vice Consul Paxton,
who had been left at the consulate,
arrived with two friends he had
found among the Cantonese. They
waved a Nationalist flag and sought
to interecede, but the mob tore the
flag into shreds, again demanded
entrance and started to force their
way up the hill and into the house.
My husband had signaled the de-
stroyers in the river not to fire I'M
LESS he signaled with rocket.
When the Cantonese started rush
ing the house, he shouted:
Men, get your guns. Guard the
women. Fire a rocket"
Bullets started flying. All the
women and children were herded
into bathroom. Bullets kept
tipping through the windows, knock
ing plaster off the walls. But none
of us was hit.
Constantly we prayed for aid. Our
men were firing as fast as they
could, barely keeping the attackers
from entering the house.
where are the destroyers?"
heard my husband cry.
IF they don't fire we are lost"
Barrage Begins
Just at that moment we heard the
whine of a shell, and then another
and another. They began falling
thickly all around the hill. The
Chinese stopped firing and withdrew.
In the bathroom upstairs, we fell on
our knees and thanked God. Then
the men decided the time had come
to attempt a dash for the dock.
First our men picked off the
| Chinese snipers, who had resumed
popping at us from a nearby ridge.
| We were afraid we would be shot If
we went out the door, so the women
and children all were lowered from
windows on ropes and sheets, torn
and tied together in strips.
Run as Shells Fall
| We ran toward the nearby city
wall, with shells falling behind us
constantly. 1t took half an hour
to get across the wall and the moat
on the other side. Then we hao
two miles of open plains to cross
before reaching a creek. We saw
parties of Chinese in the distance
but they did not fire at us.
We reached the creek and com
Wandered sampans to carry us
across. Then we saw a British land
ing party and signaled to it. The
Britishers escorted us to the cruiser
Wolsey and later we went aboard
the Kungwo Wenchow, which tool
us to Shanghai.
We had no baggage-only ths
clothes we wore.