Evening star., 1939-07-30
japanese Invaded
Shanghai Defense
Area, British Charge
Troops Face Each Other
Across Burricudes on
Disputed Boundary
NJ the Associated Press.

~ the Associated Press.
SHANGHAI, July 29.-Shanghai's s
intermittent British-Japanese fric-
ton flared anew tonight in an Incl
dent which brought japanese with
fixed bayonets and British troops
face to face on a disputed Interna-
tional Settlement boundary.
The affair produced no actual
clash, but the japanese temporarily
detained four British soldiers and
threw up barrier along the British
defense zone which drew strong
British military protest as an en-
croachment on British-guarded ter
ritory.
Thousands of terrified Chinese
fed into the British area before q
Japanese naval force of 200 closed
the gaps between the barricades on
the boundary between the Japanese
and British defense sectors.
The barricades extended along the
entire mile and a half length of
North Kiangsi road, from Soochow
Greek to the northern limit of the
British area.
DTlNc SDIcdUS.
The fresh friction occurred as the
anti-British campaign in North
China spread to Pehtaiho, seaeoast
resort northeast of Tientsin, with
the parading of paid Chinese dem
onStratorS.
The trouble started when four
Seaforth Highlanders in a military
fy~11nb ny,tnraI tho To Ioforc q
sector to repair barbed wire. Brit
ish said they were under the i'm
preston the territory was British.
japanese forces quickly blocked
off the alleyway in which the British
were working by stretching barbed
wire across the exit and held the
Highlanders and their truck for two
hours and a half as British officers
negotiated with the Japanese for
their release.
The Japanese in the meantime,
working at top speed, strung three
strands of wire along the length of
North Kiangsi road.
Chinese Flee Across Roadway.
On seeing this, Chinese living in
the japanese sector fled across the
roadway to the British side in scenes
reminiscent of the 1887 exodus into
the settlement from Chapel when
japanese were attacking.
Chinese had been advised that
the road would be blockaded in
by the japanese for August 10, and
barricades without wires already
had been erected, but this failed
to relieve the panic.
Carrying everything movable from
food to beds, Chinese streamed
through rapidly narrowing gaps in
the barricades and piled their goods
high on the British sidewalk
Many fled so rapidly that they
failed to turn off their lights, which
could be seen blazing from deserted
rooms.
Tonight the Japanese side of the
barrier was nearly deserted while
the roadway and British sidewalk
were crammed with terrified, home
less Chinese.
japanese Troops Withdrawn.
British charged that the Japanese
defense sector extended only as far
as the eastern sidewalk and that
the japanese infringed on British
territory by placing the barricades
well out in the roadway and sending
patrols inside the British sector.
Seaforth Highlanders were rushed
to the scene in two armored trucks
and for two hours the British and
the japanese, with their bayonets,
brushed elbows in the thronged
roadway until the japanese were
withdrawn.
The French and Shanghai mu-
nicipal council police doubled their
guards along newspaper row." Ave-
nue. Edward VII, as a precaution
against terroristic outbreaks like the
one last Saturday, in which an
American and three Chinese were
killed.
Tanks were stationed at frequent
itervals and riflemen stopped all
taxicabs to question their occu-
pants.