A Thoroughly Unsatisfactory Position: Arms and Ammunition Purchaseable by the First Bidder: Dr. Sun Yat-sen Said to Have Bought One Ship The position of the "four Russian vessels now lying at Woosung continues to be a thoroughly unsatisfactory one, and a pretty story of intrigue is developing about them. When Admiral Gioboff's ships arrived here some three months ago we were assured that their only Object in calling was to obtain supplies and enable the refugees on board to obtain brief. rest and change in Shanghai before proceeding to another destiner tion, then, as now, exceedingly vague. What has happened since then is that a steady trade in arms-trafficking has been carried on, while the rival forces of Peking.and Canton have done nothing but look on cautiously lest the arms and ammunition on board the ships should fall into the hands of the other side.
As has already been reported, we are given to understand that the vessels have on board m very considerable armoury, of machine-guns, n thousand, five quick-firing guns, Mills' bombs and hand grenades, a field gue, and other military equipment, together with 2,000,000 rounds of rifle ammunition. Originally, an offer was made to the Peking Government to dispose of the lot for $300,000, a re-$100,000 and Enally $50,000, but fusal bringing the price down to
Peking declined to purchase at any price. The goods were later offered to General Lu Yung-hsiang, Military Governor of Chekiang, and also to Chang Tso-lin, without a sale being effected. Now we are informed on good authority that 10 days ago, after negotiation with Canton, a representative-of Dr. Sun Yat-sen offered $50,000 down upon shipment to Canton, and another $50,000 on arrival there, and the only bar to completion of the contract appears to be the difficulty-of safe transport.
A sort of guard over the ships has been kept by a guuboaé of the Independent Navy at Shanghai, but the watch has been far from strict, since there has been comparatively free intercourse between the vessels and the shore, and various prospective purchasers of small consignments have een free to pass to and - fro.
Thursday of last week a protest drawn up by certain Ohinese public bodies in Shanghai was lodged with Admiral Lin MKien-chang, ° commander-in-chief of the Independent Navy, urging that a more strict watch be kept on the arms traffic now going on at Woosung, with the result that the cruiser Haichow and the gunboat Ching An have been sent to Woosung' to strengthen the guard. This might well be secured by a vessel of the loyal section of the Navy at Nanking, but they remain there inactive, possibly fearing that their presence at Woosung would lead to a "dust up," with consequent international complications. Thus, with the Independents" in control at Woosung, it would seem there is nothing to prevent immediate departure of at least one of the vessels—one which Dr. Sun Yat-sen is reported to have jpurchasedi—fon Canton, taking with her the arms and ammunition, but there happens to be a vessel of the loyalists at Swatow, and the voyage would accordingly be a somewhat risky one. hree of the vessels took coal aboard last week, but only in smat]l quantities, an® certainly not sufficient for a voyage of any length.
It appears fairly certain that if no definite action is taken in the immediate future, the small arms and ammunition aboard these vessels will be brought ashore piecemeal and find their way into undesirable hands.
Endowment Fund, British War Graves, Tsingtao (from last New Year Race Meeting, omitted in report for 1st half-year 1923... already paid) 4,172.44
Japanese Earthquake Fund (from Race Club's General Fonds,...already paid) 5,000.00
$127,172.44
The distributions for the 1st half of 1923 as detailed in my letter of June 13 amount to $138,400.00
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.