Imperial Valley press., 1932-02-06
FAIL TO OBSERVE
UNWR|TTEN TRUCE
Agreement To Halt HOstilities During Celebration
OF Chinese New Year Quickly Broken. American
Troops Landed.

ing on Chapel at $3.50 a. m. (EST)
following the aerial attack. The
Chinese returned the fire.
Chinese troops in the blackened
ruins of Chapel attempted to OBJ
serve the lunar new year celebrated
in China for centuries. They made
the best of war time makeshifts.
There was a noticeable absence
of the usual firecrackers. The
Chinese apparently feared these
might be mistaken for gunfire.
The truce had cast a strange
silence over Shanghai. Aside from
the occasional crack of a sniper's S
| riflc-and most of these had quit
for the week-end-the sound of
warfare was ended.
/ The foreign defense forces with
in the international settlement and
French concession maintained their
precautionary patrols unrelaxed,
however.
Yankees Land
The 31st Infantry, United States
army, landed at 7 a. m. from the
transport Chaumont, prior to a
brief exchange of artillery fire dur
ing the morning. The American
soldiers landed at the customs jetty
and march jauntily along the bund
and up Marking road, bands play
ing lively martial airs.
Many cheered from windows
along the route. They were first
regular American army troops to
land in China since the Boxer re-
bellion in 1900. Chinese lined the
Marking road and gazed curiously
, the new arrivals.
On account of the Chinese new
year, the settlement and French
concession were immersed in holi-
day quiet. Women resumed their
weekend bridge parties. The clubs
were filled with men joking about
the truce.
The brief engagement during
Saturday morning began at 10 a.
m. after a night of comparative
quiet in Chapel.
At 10:15 a. m. three Japanese
bombing planes began dropping
their deadly missiles. The bomb
ers were escorted by two speedy
pursuit planes. The bombardment
lasted three hours, suddenly ceasing
at l p. m.
/ Official figures from the Jap
anese headquarters placed their
casualties in the Shanghai cam
paign SO far at 49 dead, 126 seri-
ously wounded and 1913 slightly
hurt.
Accurate figures on Chinese cas-
ualties were unavailable, but it was
estimated they had suffered at
least 1000 dead and many more
wounded.
NANKING, Feb. 6. U.P>-Evacu-
alton of all Americans in Nanking
was ordered officially today by the
United States consulate general.
About IT'S American residents are
here.
The first Americans affected by
the order were proceeding to
Shanghai today.
Consul General w. r. Peck
posted a notice at the consulate
general declaring he was appre-
hensive that departure might be-
come more difficult daily. Some
women and children already had
left voluntarily, due to the danger
of gunfire in the former capital.
The British consular offices
awaited arrival of Sir Miles Lamp
son, British minister to China, be-
fore deciding on evacuation OF
British Nationals.
Peck said all American women
and children and men not engaged
in work of the most vital import
ance should leave Immediately, re-
turning on termination of the
present military operations in the
Yangtze Valley.
The American official pointed
out that Ne fighting in Shanghai
had not diminished and said there
were no immediate prospects of
restoring railroad service to Shang-
hal, 100 miles distance.