Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-03-27

cealed official Jugoslav assistance.
The Jugoslav foreign minister made
| the challenging suggestion to the
| Skupshtina Uugoslav Parliament
that the military attaches of the
! powers stationed at Belgrade be in.
vited to investigate the Italian allega.
tons, but the attitude of the Skupsh-
tina seems to be that if there should
be an investigation, it should be con-
Quoted by the League and should
apply to Italy and Albania as well as
to Jugoslavia. The Jugoslav foreign
minister Is quoted as cordial to such
an amendment of his proposal, but
| Fascist sentiment is utterly hostile
| powers are bringing pressure on Bel
grade not to apply to Geneva in that
sense.
China.-Nationalist forces took pos
session of Shanghai last Sunday, and
of Marking and Chekiang on Thurs
day. Apparently no organized re-
sistance was offered by the Shan
tungese troops at Shanghai or
| Chekiang, and little at Marking, 1t
was every man for himself and the
Devil take the hindmost
Worse than the Devil in Shanghai,
for the regular Nationalist forces
were preceded into the city by bands
of guerillas, no doubt as vile a set
of cruel and rapacious rufians as the
sun ever gaZed upon, who satisfied
their blood-lust on the northern
stragglers and their other lusts upon
the civilian population of the native
city.
What portion of his forces south of
the Yangtze, Chang Tsung Chang,
| the northern chief
managed to evacuate to the northern
shore of the river we have no means
of knowing; but presumably only a
very minor portion as the mighty
stream is not bridged, and this most
incompetent of the Tuchuns had
neither secured adequate shipping nor
made defensive dispositions for en-
barkation. 1t would seem that part
of the Shantungese forces negotiated
their surrender in the usual way, part
got across the river, others scattered
over the countryside and the rest de.
parted beneath the Yellow Springs by
way of bullet or cutting steel.
The dispatches indicate that the Ma.
tionalist commander in the native
city of Shanghai has ended the reign
or terror of the guerilla bands and
now has the situation fairly in hand.
Some of these bands Offered" to rush
the foreign settlements, but a close
view OF the muzzles of the foreign de-
tenders weapons cooled them off
Only one very serious incident has oc.
Cured at Shanghai involving the
foreigners. A detachment of Shan.
tungese troops We're driven toward
the international settlement. 1t had
been the rule to admit refugees to the
foreign settlements on condition of
prior surrender of arms. But, for
whatever reason, possibly in be-
wiiderment, those poor Shantungese
fired on the guarding troops (mostly
British) and reply was made with ma
chine guns, perhaps SO Chinese being
killed and 100 wounded, and two
British soldiers being wounded The
surviving attackers gave up their
arms and were admitted. The Shang
hal situation holds hideous POSSIBLE
ties, OF course, but the foreign settle
ments are probably safe. Conceivably
as at Hankow and elsewhere, the mot
in the native city, under Indictment
from the agitators, will get out oil
hand, or even, as at Marking, the
Nationalist soldiers, but confidence
seems justified that an attack or
; either or both of the settlements
: would be handily beaten off.
The Nationalist commander al
Shanghai has manifested to the effect
that the Nationalist government
!, tenders the lives and property of the
foreigners and, deprecating force
. proposes to effect changes Of status