Hankow, Sept. 21.
A tonous occurred last night at 8 forelock in the ex-British Conces-slot when a gang of Chinese armed With automatic pistols successfully rescued a prisoner in uniform—Velieved to be a Communist leader Who had been arrested on a Japanese atoamer—who was being. escorted by a Chinese guard to the ative city.
'When the escort was marching along one of the most' crowded thoroughfares in Hankow the suddenly opened fire at point-blank range. Roughly forty tyed with the result passers-by were killed or wound-'The prisoner escaped in the feonfusion hut some of the gang were taken prisoners.
The manner in which the rescue wav carried out shows conclusively that there is a well-organized group. in Hankow conspiring against the Wuhan Governntent and that it possesses an excellent intelligence: service as only a short time elapsed Detwoon the arrest and the rescue, Martial law was proclaimed last night in the Special Concessions Chinese city, which were closed to fall pedestrian and vehicular trafic while strong barricades were erected at important points. In addition, fully-armed bodies of troops patrol Ted the streets all night This morning the Japanese authorities removed fifty Chinese soldiers]
a Ninshin Kisen steamer, disarmed them afd held them under arrest in the J Concession pending the arrival of Suad of Chinese. soldiery to take them avy.
Some friction occurred on the arrival-of the Chinese guard and Tepanese sentry at the barricades of the "Japanese Concession wounded in the neck by a bayonet thrust delivered by one of the Chinese soldiers and fired his rife} in self-defence, This wes followed Uy one of the machine-guns in the barricade opening fire, with the result that one Chinese was killed And a few wounded.
Later the situation eased down and is now normal-—Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.