"Two Vessels Prevented from Entering the Harbour and Third Taken from Its Wharf to Lunghua: And no one Knows the Reason!
As mentioned briefly in our issue of last week, a most amazing situation has arisen locally in regard to German vessels visiting the port vis-a-vis of the local Chinese wether naval authorities, or civil authorities, or military. authorities, or all three together, is not clear, that they carried: material destined for the use of the northern fac-and in the case of the treland this would seem to be the case, as she has on board a big consignment of railway material destined for Tientsin.
This consignment, we understand, includes a number of valuable Last Wednesday morting the, Hamburg-America Jiner Muensterland, arriving from Europe and way ports, left Woosung at 6.30 a, to come up stream to her berth the harbour, Nothing happened till the vessel reached Black Point, where she was overtaken by one of the Chinese destroyers stationed fat Woosung (which one is not. Known) and was ordered to turn about and, go back to Woosung with the destroyer. As, under cumstances; there' was obviously: nothing else left to do, the Muensterland retunied to Woosung with her naval escort, and has remain. ed there ever since, with the local offices of the line having not. the lightest knowledge ay to when she is likely to be permitted to come to Shanghai, We understand from a private but reliable source that when the Muenstorland. was stopped by the destroyer her master was asked why he had wilfully disobeyed the shal to stop which had been ma Woosung, The only signal that seen by the vessel was the old German naval flag at the naval flagstaff, and it iv stated that even this was being flown upside-down!
5 which there is every'
the Nationalists seizing.
The reason for' the seizure and searching of vessels from Hankow and the north is less easy to find, though it has been suggested that the Nationalists have been informed that both Communists and mem-here of the northern faction are travelling to Shanghai on German ships, and the local Chinese military authorities are reported. have received definite information that Comrade Borodin would arrive at Shanghai in a German vessel. Even admitting this ta be the case, the searching of a ship for wanted persons would. take only a few, hours at the most, and would in no. case justify the vessels being: held for days, seemingly without rhyme or reason, The German shipping official previously referred to stated ti in each case the Chinese authorities he interviewed, in addition to blame ing some other department of the Nationalist administration, made the most varied excuses, some of them of a stupidity that almost passed understanding.
The Customs authorities stated to
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.