rAn attempt at kidnapping Lord Li Ching-mei at 10.50 a.m, on April 9, during the course of which his Dodyguard was shot and probably. mortally wounded, was foiled by the Potential victim, who with the first pistol shot instructed his chauffeur to drive post haste towards his yesidenee. As the car gathered speed, the gang fired further shots, of which tivo lodged in the body of S. Kousnetzoff, the bodyguard, who was unarmed although the Russian chauffeur earvied a pis Settlement police who were passing in a motor-cycle, saw the foi of the) wounded man on the roadside and carried him into the Red Cross Hospital, less than 20 yards distant, Later he was conveyed in a Fire Brigade ambulance to the Country Hospital and operated upon, one of the bullets being removed. It was stated that little hopes of his surviving were entertained and the family were called to the hospital about mid-afternoon, The French police have charge of investigations.
According to investigations made by both the Settlement and French alice, Lord Li, riding in his, open lat ear, turned south-west on Avenue Haig, having emerged from
residence, which is in the compound Route de Say Zoong, en rate to his of the' Brookside Apartments, situated on Avenue Haig.
The car had just passed the Red Cross Hospital, 249 Avenue Haig, when the chauffeur slowed down the outlying roads until 2 p.m., without finding a trace of a suspicious looking machine. The French police, likewise, sent out their vans.
When notified, Sub-Inspr, Taplin. and Det-Sgt. Barton went to the scene, finding everything quiet. To one side of the road was the handcart still loaded with bamboo, splinters of glass and an cartridge, of.32 calibre. Wil arrival of the French' detectives, they relinquished the case, In making a statement to the "North-China Daily News,". after the attempted Kidnapping 'Lord Li said, "We were proceeding Home from the Bund and as the car proached, the handcart appeared to want to turn into Mr, Chun Bing. hhim's resi 'To' allow the hhandeart to make the turn with cargo of' long. protruding bamboo, the car slowed" down.: The next moment one of the handcart pullers} fired two shots at my chauffeur from behind, but these shots found their mark in the bodyguard sitting long-the chauffeur, "T than told the chauffeur to drive {full speed ahead, but before properly getting away, aman jumped on the running board, and from behind fired a couple of shots at the chauffeur, who ducked in time and feseaped with only injuries from the splintered glass of the wind screen.
"The car then drove away while further shots were fired as it left the scene. On the bodyguard's being admitted to the Country Hospital an X-ray examination proved that one bullet had entered the shoulder blade and one the lower part of the back."
Lord Li is the adopted son of the: fate Lord Li Hung-chang, who was Foreign, Minister to the Manchu Court and China's leading diplomat. Te is understood that on several occasions, kidnappers had threatened him, but apparently were afraid owing to the Russian and Chinese bodyguards employed at his house, in addition to Annamite watchmen,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.