His First Line Stormed: Unable to Hold Rallying-Point From Our OWN Comesroxnenr Tsinan, Nov. 7.
"Letters just received from Kueiteh "and other cities in Eastern Honan have some interesting things to say about the advance of the Ankuochun from Shantung and Kiangsu, On October 10 Marshal Feng Vu-hsiang. ordered 2 general advance from Changteho and Weihwei, and along the Lung-Hai Railway, against the Northern besiegers, but on the 1éth, on account of his shortage of munitions, his forees were forced back from Yucheng, towards Tsaochow. ju Shantung and from Mamub, on the railway nearest the Kiangsu order, Yucheng "was stormed for even days in succession, under a constant rain of shells, before the 'Xuominchun vacated 'Mamuh, had been the real first line of 'Marshal Feng's position for a numer of weeks, but in face of the persistent attacks, and their own poverty of shells, there was no option but to fall' back on Kueiteh from both directions.
These forces arrived in the suburbs of Kueiteh city in the night of the 14th, and for a time were refused permission to occupy the city, The city fathers remembered the siege of Sianfu, and, as. the defender of that city was leading the retreat, there was the fear that hho might be as stubborn in his hold of Kueiteh as he had been in hold-ug the capital of Shensi. However, he was permitted to enter the city in the early morning of the 15th, as the Chibli-Shantung. fore Began shelling the city and suburbs.
For thirty-six hours the people of Kaeiteh were under a very baptism of fire, Big shells fell continuously, the city, and, as one correspondent. staidi—The big guns kept up one prolonged peal of thunder. The volleys of machine-guns and_ of small-arms were like The city was in terror: the' whole universe seemed filled with the terror, and men's faces changed their ordinary colour, for it seemed as if the whole city was looking to the mouth of a cannon, The People feared that they were to die in a wolter of blood. Christians} Jrought the churches, and were contantly on their faces in prayer, that they might be enabled to meet} God, should they be called. It is the first time in very many years ba that the people of Kueiteh have heard the sound of cannon." This kept up till the evening of the 26th, when the Kuominchun, had no resource but to leave the city. This they did, going off in the direction of Checheng, toward the southwest, In other letters..and from. the mouth of those who had been through the siege, the terror of these unhappy hours is emphasized. Kusiteh, there were a goodly number of wounded, but the toll of death seems to have been remarkably small. "One big shell fell in the compound of the Baptist Mission, in the Rev. 8, J. Townshend's garden. Tt demolished the wall Detween him and his neighbour, inforing or killing the occupants of hat "house, but the mi spared. there, several buildings were badly damag-
Tt was only a matter of a very fow minutes after the Kuominchun left Kueiteh that the Chin-Lu troops made their entry. Tt is presumed! in the letters describing the entry and the immediate after-effects on the city, that the troops under Chang Ching-yao, mainly" newly-recruited ' brigands, must hav formed the major portion of the victorious force. For the greater part of the next three days, these troops plundered rich "and poor alike. Tt is reported "by eye witnesses that the soldiers were promised this privilege, and it is stated. that all former lootings of the city were merciful compared to the terror of this occasion. Between the burning of a number of homes and business places, and the sys tematic visitations the city has suffered much more than a million dollars in spatiation.. The letters that have been received state that there are persistent stories coming dri-that other places in the district leo were looted.
The cities Yucheng, Mamub. Hsiah-Ili, Husit-{ing and Yungehang are mentioned, in this connection, The bulk of At present reported to JaMicting the whole of the Shantung, Kiangse, Anhui, and Honan borders for months past.
In Tsinan there are rumours very] freely circulated, and even reported] in the local vernacular press, that} some catastrophe has happened to the combined provincial armies that the suburb toward the station have dored doors, and the price of, the provincial notes is jumpy.—Some days ago, word came up from Suchow that whispers were being] passed that Kueiteh had been taken again by the Kuominchan, but fag the press bore no word of thing but victories in Honan, these] rumours were discredited, The boast of the Kuominchun appearing in the wireless despateh of recent date seems to be accounted for in this way. Liu. Chen-hua, the former Tuchun of Shensi, and more recently the general who distressed Sianfu for nearly six months, has been fighting under Marshall Feng, with headquarters at Lan-Tt was reported that sold out to the Shantung and, as a matter of fact when the Ankucchun got as far Lanfeng, it appeared that keeping his part of the bargain.
seemed so assured that he ft in charge of that city, which Road, on snd westwards. Then, so the story goes, he suddenly turned inst his late would-be purchasfers, cut the line against further! advances from the east,.pocketed several trains and " host of Russians and mixed Shantung-Chibli forces, and spoiled all the fine victori that had been gained thus far. ig the atory that is credited here in Tsinan.
Those missionaries who have been preparing to return to th stations down the Tsin-Pu line have halted for the time being, and those who were appealing to the consuls} for permission to bring their fami Ties to them in the inland cities, have perforce to be patient for some time yet,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.