Thirty-five Chinese were killed According to Capt. Sellers, the' on Jan. 24 in a terrific: explosi force of the explosion was lateral which wrecked a tug and two light-in nature rather that vertible, At ers conveying explosives across the the height of 800 feet the seaplane Whangpoo river from the Pootung was not affected at all, dump to Kiangnan arsenal at 3.30 wedlock in the afternoon, The explosion.was so terrific that a 300 yards over the Whangpoo. column of smoke shot hundreds of feet into the air and windows of "The explosive action," said shops, garages and houses over a Capt. Sellers, "consummated that wid in Shanghai were shat-lof a tidal wave. A huge wall of Jwater was thrown in a circle from Of the' crews of the fug and the lighters, and small craft were lighters," who." comprised sailors, buffeted here and there. The workers attached to Kiangnan Ar-Intensity of the explosion Ferial and Chinese troops guarding the bottom of the river, roiling the the explosives, only two. were silt and mud, which came to the Tescued, They were taken tothe Nantao' hospital" but they. are. aerial condition and ave not It is highly probable that. PEAS a Yesult of the tension which ly ids of fish were killed by the
has. followed. the delivery of the "I did not see the actual explo-nese ultimatum to the Chinese sion as I was about ready to settle the explosion caused the' ship, but I heard the report, consternation throughout the which sounded like an H, E. shell. Chinese and forei 3. In many As the force spread laterally, my [ship was unaffected and there was that hostilities had. broken out and no vertical bounce, such as pilots The Arsenal had_ been blown Up.
Ihave experienced daring the war." 'The "coincidental arrival of the Capt, Sellers was an American Shanghai-Hankow air mail plane, aviator during the war, has. the which lands. in' the vicinity, end!
D8.C, ribbon, and at various Which citoled around for some time} imes was instrumental in bombing the column of smoke shot into the Jenemy ammunition dumps. He has air, added to general confusion and experienced the bounce from hig! misapprehension. All sorts of explosives, but felt none of this, Tumours circulated, and in many] Capt. Sellers went on to sav. streets Chinese rushed into the] "We passed the Customs House at streets excitedly. It was not until minutes' before we were to 8.29 pam, having only three or fou some considerable time later that the exact cause was ascertained. reach our hangars. With the Damage in the French Concession sound of the explosion I thought that my motor had stalled, but she oreign Settlement over as wide an oven as from the top of was "revving beautifully at' 1,600 per minute, Kyenve Joffre to the Bund, and down "In less. time than it takes to fo Hongkew added to the conster-relate a*eolumn of smoke filled the nation. So. terrific wag the blast that plate glass windows in the ir'to a height of 1,000 ft. I had vene boat. filled with coal dust 1.8.8, Apartment building at the top of the Avenue Joffre, garages in the and thought that spontaneous combution had caused the catastrophe, French Concession, ahd several shops} in the Settlement were wrecked.
However, I circled once right and Many" houses in the Settlement once left through the column of mnioke and knew at once from the suf fered from broken window panes] and dust was blown into through the Jsmell that gunpower had been ex-windows of offices and shops in the ploded, central district. In the Chinese} After reaching the Settlement, intriets "considerable damage to] I learned that people thought that windows, was sustained, Japanese aeroplane had drops sqmanie into the dinaater revealed 'a bomb, Persons told me that they 300° cusses of gunpowder and other lat two each carrying seen the bomb fall, This is entirely incorrect. Our pi explosives in old and broken boxes, Sere being towed by the steam Jauneh, Ta Chung, from the Pootung Heeeteagmuns Tae ey belevedy there were between 36 and 40 hands mao, In al itis believed
me machine, pilse demi Ta Chung and the lighters, work: thought that hey ers of the Arsenal and soldiers attached to the Shanghat and Woo-they sone to this conclusion. One sung. Gendarmerie Commission ther junk was: completely sitipped fore ils, the mainmast and rear "As the three craft crossed mid-ling Save in the Deeeze. iver and was nearing the Lunghua Small riveretage. and thole oceup-Greek & spark. fromthe steam Ents were extremely distressed. rat Launch caused. an ignition and the Yor over, which was aareces-4 explosion, all three vessels. were Blown high up into the air with] anger also. were broken.
Several windows inthe those on Uoard.
"The machine which Capt, Sellers According t0_an eye-witness, the was fying is a Keystone Loening, Jaumeh was towing the barges across Which made the Hankow trip the iver when ucienly heard Tinew motor, He is a veteran, pilot thoke, followed by' cloud of black explosion and a mass of Atte leaving the U.S Atm, Capt Stlicrs ow with' the. Pitsburg, er leaving the U. 3..AFMy, smoke, go up into the air, romaine ing fore fully Ave minutes, The Avintion Ca, for one. year before three vessels, he noticed, had discoming to China in February, 1931. apt ate" anefdenally, boards Thee authorities of the Kingman ing, water, "Incidentally, boards oth vere' "thrown Arsenal announced they" woUld: Day $20: for, the recovery of each body own "river several thousand feet Sither fom the waters or on the away.
Later, two bodies were picked up and, but up to yesterday afternoon, consefous condition, one of covery of any of the Bodies. nobody had coparted. onthe. diting being Sung§. was "also. snnoanced by the Jhember of the afew of the Arsenal authorities that the Gov-the other being a soldier, Yang ernment would compensate the de-Ste, of the local mill ceased's relatives in accordance with 'A strange phase the arsenal roles under which the Ries, onthe Shongnal hangchow relatives of the workers killed whilst port handed. in to the Greater ningpo Railway, according to a vein the execution of duty would be entitled to compensation in the Bhanghai Bureau of Public Safety. minimum amount of -$200. This This stated a driver on one of the sum Was considered as considerably Jocomotives. which was" pulling a less than what the deceased's retrain, noticing an aeroplane ying Tatives had demanded, the latter verliead, took this to be a Japanese gathering outside the offices of the Machine. As it flew towards. the Arsenal yester Kesenal,' he noticed that it made ing. The official Give and fly upwards again, Then, managed to prevail upon them to fndenly, he heard the explosion. return home, promising to transmit Fearing "a Japanese attack, "he their views to the director of the immediately detached his Tocomotive from the train, which, at the time Was at. Zih-kwot-kong" (according
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.