Evening star., 1938-10-25
JAPAN CAPTURES
HANKOW, BURNING
AS CHINESE FLEE
Army and Navy Units Are
Reported to Have Taken
City Together.
RETREATING TROOPS
DEMOLISH BUILDINGS
Some Defense Forces Trapped.
Chang and Wife Escape
by Plane in Night.
q. the Associated Press

b the Associated Press
SHANGHAI, Oct. 25.-The japanese
Army and Navy commands tonight
announced that their forces had en-
tered Hankow. Chinas provisional
capital abandoned by its defenders.
Although details were lacking, Japa-
nese officers said units of both services
had participated in the capture of the
great city on the Middle Yangtze
River, major goal of the Japanese
conquest since Nanking fell nearly II
months ago.
Neutral advices reaching Shanghai
said retreating Chinese troops de-
Inolished several buildings. Large
fires were reported in Hankow and
adjoining cities of Wuchang and Ham
yang. The city was without water,
but a foreign-owned power company
which was permitted to take over the
Waterworks was attempting to resume
service.
Patrols of British bluejackets CO.
operated with Chinese police in keep
ing order before entry of the Japa-
nese.
Infantry Enters First
The first detachment to enter appar-
entity was an infantry column which
previously had captured Hwangpei, 20
miles to the north, and then driven
rapidly down the Peiping- -Hankow
Railway
Generalissimo Chang Kai-shek,
military and civil leader of the Chi
nese Nation. was reported to have left
Hankow by plane during the night,
accompanied by his foremost aide, his
American-educated wife.
Announcement Of the japanese en-
communique from China headquarters
of the japanese army and navy
Naval officers said they believed
Japanese warships had reached the
great inland port, 585 miles up the
Yangtze, although exact positions of
the vessels were not disclosed. Since
Markings fall the navy has cooper
eted with the army in blasting path
way up the river.
The last stages of the japanese ad-
vance were made with such rapidity-
,pve141rd from ~rne nof ftheast. along
both banks Of the Yangtze and up the
river itself-that large units of Chi
nese were cut off.
The rapidly driving japanese COL
umns were said to have left several
divisions in pockets to be cleaned up
later, as motorized vanguards with
tanks sped toward the doomed Chi
nese capital.
Sixth Big City to Fall.
Hankow (Which. with its sister
Wuhan cities of Wuchang and Han
yang, had pre-war population of
about l,7O0,000) was the sixth great
Chinese city to fall to the invaders
Peiping and Tientsin were taken in
the first weeks of the war that began
July T. 1887; Shanghai fell November
and Nanking-Hankow's predecessor
ss Chinese capital-December 49,
Canton, metropolis of the South fell
last Friday.
Only lesser cities mostly far in the
interior. remain in Chinese hands.
@. Whether Japan would be content
to rest on her present conquests, thus
opening a period of undeclared peace,
remained a subject for conjecture to-
night.
Withdrawal of the Chinese Defend
ers "for strategic reasons apparently
spared HankoW the bloodshed which
marked the capture of Nanking There
was no need for a final grand assault
such as that by which the Mikado's
armies blasted their way into the
walls of Marking.
Army Retreats Westward.
The greater part of the Chinese
armies managed to retreat to the
westward, their commanders explain
ing this was in accordance with
decision to prolong resistance and not
risk humiliation of their best units
in defense of the Wuhan area.
According to the latest estimates
approximately 100000 persons, in
Guiding some 1000 foreigners, re-
manned in the three Wuhan cities
when the japanese arrived, less than
q quarter of the normal population.
One vital question involved fu-
ture cooperation between the central
government and Communists. Some
observers believed Communists would
(see HANKOW, Page A-40