What the Commandant of the Volunteers has Done fon Shanghai in the Past Five Years Last night Col, P.L. W. Gordon, OMG, 0.5.0, was entertained to dinner by a' number of his friends and admirers, and the whole community will agree that such a tri-Dute to his work in Shanghai is no more than justified. Col. Gordon has Leen Commandant of the Vol-steers since the beginning of 1923, and the years it has been under his feommand have been by far the most rrenuous and exciting in its hi Col, Gordon, who succeeded the Into Col, Marr-Johnson, came to Shanghai with a very mature knowledge of military matters gained many parts of the world. He Joined the Army in 1893, being commissioned in the Norfolic Regiment. He was the gon of a Naval Officer, and it is of interest to us to Know that the last active service his father snw was also in China, disgruntled Chinese troops. It was then that Col, Gordon took up the Tines of defence which have since been occupied by the International Defence Forces, and then it was also that the first barbed-wire barvieades were put wp. During that year the Volunteer Corps was mobilized from September 9, to October 28. In January, 1926, it was again necessary to mobilize part of the Corps. following upon Chi Usieh-yuan's coup d'état, when the 4th Chekiang Division, which had taken no part in the fighting, enter. ed the French Concession over the Siccawei Creek. Units of the Vol-unter Corps assisted the French authorities in disarming them and confining: them to the grounds of the Haig Riding School, while at the ame time the Volunteers assisted police in disarming 2,000 men fat the level railway crossing at for he was P.M.Q, of the Naval Hospital at Hongkong, when he re ceived the thanks of the French Government for his ntterition to the French wounded during their war in Tongkin. Col. Gordon, served in the South African War, and in the Great War saw service at Gallipoli in Egypt, France and Flanders. Then in 1920 and 1921 he tool part fu the Mabsud campaign on the Indian Frontier. Actually apart from France, Belgium and England boon service in India, Burma, West Africa, South Africa, and Mesopotamia. In addition to obtaining ® brevet Lieut.-Coloneley for Gallipoli, he was awarded the G.M.G. and D.S.0. and was mentioned seven times in despatches Organizing the Defences He arrived in Shanghai in March 1028, Col, Marr Johnson had, during. his command, done an immense amount of work in xe-organizing the Volunteer Corps, and it so happened it was Col. Gordon's work to organize a complete scheme of dsfence for Shanghai. This he set about doing with the thoroughness which is characteristic of all his work, and it is an extremely interesting: and important fact that his original scheme was adopted in its entirely by the Shanghai Defence Force, and has not in the slightest been altered. Itis perhaps the high.
tribute that can be paid to the soundness of judgment of the retiring Commandant. It was at an early stage of his career in Shanghai that this defence scheme had to be pit into operation. dri 1924 the Chekiang-Kiangsu civil war result din fighting, in the vicinity of Shanghai and the Settlement was Uhreatened by. the. presence of a 226 vember or cicorgabized and Tt will be remembered that the your 1925 was a very arduous one for the Volunteers, for after the May 30 incident the Corps had to be mobilized on June 1, and Col, Gordon took over the whole defences of the Settlement, and the work of suppressing the unruly elements which were intended to make trouble, For 89 days the Corps was mobilized and those who were taking part in the measures adoj ed for the safety of the Settles will readily recall how the whole scheme worked without a hitch, Further calls were made upon the services of the Volunteers in 1926 when in May and September nine units of the Corps were assen:~ Ued and placed at points of importance throughout the Settlement, although only "A" Company was called upon for actual duty Now we come to the critical days of 1927 when, following the events at Hankow, the position "of the Settlement was extremely grave, We understand that it was only after consultation with Col. Gordon that Admiral Tyrwhitt asked the Brit ish Government to send troops to Shanghai, and it was Col. Gordon who made the estimate of the number require 1. The question at issue was whether the Settlement could he adequately protected by naval landing parties and the Volunteers, and at was Col. Gordon in the first place who suggested that a request for troops from Home should be made. Subsequent events proved that this was a very necessary measure. It must be remember, in connection with this, that until the troops arrived it was on Col. Gordon, to a very large extent, that the safety of the Settlement depend ed. On Tancary..39, he, ordered
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.