How the Country was Squeezed Dry During the Passage of borders of troops, that led to the increased Communist activity at Tningchow in the west and at Paishicohen and other places in the East. The welfare of the border peop: was sacrificed to the exigencies of Kuomintang position. In thus concentrating his troops and resisting the arrival of Liu Hsib, Wang Chu doubt had the support of th.
rang si clique, who control Han-
These Troops: Government Offices Burned Down Kickiang, Sept. 10, 1928.
There have been some interesti vvolitiel developments in Kiany driving the past few weeks, To. begin with, Chang "Ching's notorious Gth Army entered the province from Hunan early in July. It was. this army which looted the ing Concession in January, and subsequently perpetrated anking outrage in the followig, March, For several weeks these gallant troops quartered themselves on the border towns of Yuanchow, Wantsai and Shangkao, extracting money contributions from the inhabitants and living in foreign missionary perties, but otherwise bella fairly well, When they had squeezed the country dry, they moved east and about the third week in August they found themselves in Changshu, fan important market town on the Kop river south of Nanchang. emesis At Last On the day of their arrival they collected forcibly $ 80,000 from the Chingshu merchants, The next day, however, the news was not so good. It was reported the Srd Army was moving up against them and so they packed hurriedly and commenced to commandeer all the able-bodied men, on whom they could Iny hand! Merchants, coolies, students, artist fans, scholars, they took them all. But they moved too slowly. They had searcely cleared the town when the troops of the drd Army came up and an action followed. The 6th Army was completely defeated and suid to have suffered 800 casual. ties, The vast majority were dis armed, though 2,000 were later re-enlisted in the 8rd Army, A body, about 8,000 strong, howe' ed to escape with their off for the Fukien border. The bed Army gave chase and caught them up of Kienchang on August '31, In the fighting which fotlowe: the 6th Army troops lost 300 kill find all were disarmed, except a few hhundved, who fled in small scattered bands over the mountains to become Fnoy 4 Comnesroxoes otherwise they threaten to leave, which would mean an immediate return of the Communists, The unfortunate inhabitants of Min chow, having lost their all, thei houses stripped and their "money gone, are, indeed, on the horns of such' a dilemma as can be found nowhere else but under that brave and glorious flay, the white sun in a blue sky.
But why this demand by the troops for money? Have they not received their pay? The answer is in the negative, Though the provincial taxes (as against the national taxes which are collected addition) are more oppressive van they have ever been before and though there are fewer troops in the province than there were under the Northern Tuchuns, the troops have not been paid. Compared to Wang Chun, the Northern Tuchuns were mere' babes gt the game, His Own Preserves Chu Pei-teh's Yunnanese led troops, comprising the 3rd Army under' Wang Chun and the Slit Army under Chin Han-ting, have been in this province since Novem ber 1926 and they do not wish to leave, It is true three small divisions were persuaded (at the expense of the pockets of the wealthy merchants of Nanchang) to proceed] fon the Northern Expedition and, It is believed, that some of them actually got as far as Hsuchow. But they returned after they had done two months campaigning. In Chu Pei-teh's absence, General Wang Chun has been acting chai man of the Provincial Committee, which under the Kuomintang form of government controls the province, Early in July Chiang Kai-shek ordered Liu Hsih, with 30,000 men, into Kiangsi. When Wang Chun heard of it, he immediately concentrated his troops round Nanchang and declared, if Lin Hsih set foot in the province, he would fight him. it was this concentration, which denuded the provincial in Kiangsi would certainly have been followed by the disarming of Wang Chun's troops. This would have consolidated the authority of Nanking over Kiangsi, which would not have suited Hankow at all. In and arranged to send instead Hsiung Haih-hi with the newly organized 5th He a friend of Chiang Kai-shek's but also. has affiliations with the Kuangsi_ party, so presumably it is felt that his arrival will not seriously upset the existing balance. Besides he only brings 18,000 men and not 30,000,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.