Our Canton correspondent's in: teresting letter to-day throws light fon the causes of General Chang Fakkuei's second failure to reach Canton, Writing some days before Kuangtung's last success, oar correspondent thought that only trea-Ichery on the Government side could let in the Ironsides, and the one danger of this had been nipped in the bud. He spoke with admiration of General Chang's strategy, but thought it is the strategy of the weaker side. The military reputation of the Ironsides' leader is doubtedly high; but his army been tramping about since the end Jof Sepember, when it first left the Yangtze, and another correspondent described it, some few days ago, as tired and much in need of rest, But the worst disadvantage it suffered iwas probably the lively fear it inspired in the Kuangtung people by its associations, real or imaginary, with Communism. This was the cause of General Chang's first failure. Canton's recall of December, 1927, are vivid, and' he found no moral encouragement Jamong its people. His habit, described by our Canton correspondent to-day, of gathering under his banner all the desperadoes of the districts he passed through would not help to sweeten his reputation, Incidentally, such fellows, regarded merely as a fighting force, would probably be more hindrance than help, and their only motive in joi ing him would be the prospect of looting Canton, which would nerve the Kuangtang armies to greater Jefforts. How mach truth there is. in the reports of thousands of hi Tronsides having been slain captured on the North River, remains to be seen. Some few weeks after General Chang left the Yangtze, there was a fine story of hhis being trapped in the mountains of Hunan, which proved quite untrue, Not impossibly his "strategy of the weaker side" ood enough to enable him to draw off at least his own particular 30,000 Tronsides in fair order. Bat' the east at Canton appears definitely to have failed, Before General Chang started out in opposition to Nanking the latter was at some pains to show that he was not a Communist and to explain away his relations with the Canton coup. Possibly he is not more of a Communist than others now daubed with the red brush, and the Ironsides seem to have behaved themselves quite well along their line of march. It will be a pity if one of. China's best military leaders cannot somehow be brought into the fold agai and enabled to use his talents for, and not against, her.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.