Chiang Kuan-nai, ""Geneval well-known Germ: military "adviser, Colonel Wetz fre here discussing military' plan: with President Chiang Kai-shek. large Chi building situated in beautiful park-ike grounds with water on three is well guarded by troops patrol boats.
law is being enforced here lay after sunset.
June 24, Reuters special writes: correspondent, T came to Kiangsi, the net of Chinese communism, together with the staff of the. Generalissimo Hesdquarters, to look for thrills, and I got plenty even before I arrived at Nanchang.
'Our boat, the Kiang Hua was China Merchant's "steamer, "This shipping company had eleven steamers employed in the Yangtze River service, but ten of them so far, have been commandeered' by. the Government for military trans purposes, Since the Kiang Hua was one of the few Chinese steamers still navigating the river, the boat car ied so much cargo that it took folly twenty hours for the boat to tuned the large amount consigned to Anking alone.
On our arrival at Anking General Chen 'Tiao-yuan, Chairman of the Anhui Provincial Goversment, came on board to greet some of the pro minent pasangers we had on beatd, including' General Ho Chen-chun, Chairman of the Hupeh Provincial Government, and Mr. Wu Hsin-ya, Chief Secretary of "the: General issimo's Headquarters at Nanchang.
'At Anking General. Chen Tiao-yuin informed us he had received wireless message from Wahu stat~ ing that President Chiang Kai-shek yard passed Wuhu on board the gun-oat' Yun Sui, and was due to. arrive at Anking about midnight, June 21. Preparutions were made for our steamer, Kiang) Hua, to move out into mid-stream so that the Generalissimo's gunboat could [dock at the China Merchant's wharf, /All the military and civilian leaders gathered in the saloon of the Kiang Hua shortly before midnight wait~ jing for the arrival of General Chiang but they were doomed to, disappointment for about two. clock in the morning, the Gener issimo's gunboat, followed _closel by the Chu Vu and Ngo Mei, pass: Jed Anking without stopping, the otilla proceeding straight up-river, As soon as we arrived at Kino Kiang, we learned that, Gener Chiang Kai-shek had not eat ried out is original plan of coming to Kit long but had proceeded from Hu-Kou through the Poyang Lake for Nanchang, The gunboat Chu Vu, however, had come to Kiukiang with three German advisers, including General Wetzel, and the Generale fssimo's private bodyguards on board.
General Chiang's decision Nanchang direct surprised every, body in Kiukiang, where every rangement had been made for him
facing a small lake, having been stop over, even, special ream, reserved for the Generalissimo at the Garden Hotel, The two famous Cantonese commanders, Tsai Ting-kai and General Chiang Kuang.nai, had also came to Kino ing from Kanchow to welcome Generalissimo, 'On the 28rd, the representatives lof the Generalissimo's Headquarters fat Kiukiang arranged for a special train to leave that morning' for Nanchang to convey the German advisers, General Chinng's body guards and Mr, Wu. I received me structions to be on the train fore eight o'clock.
I found the railway station filled with troops and military supplies. Although the Generalissimo's Headquarters had issued specific instrueons to the railway administration fo Tun at least one express train between Kiukiing and Nanchang ily, often for days there have been no trains running for ordinary passengers, All the locomotives and rolling stock have been commanceered for military transport pur po On this particular day, troops b longing to the 23rd Division, com: manded by General Li Yun-enter, were awaiting transportation from Kiukiang to Nanchai rear deity that a few couches were reserved for our group. Th train Was scheduled to leave at nine did not leave till one o'clock in the afternoon.
Our fellow passengers were an me teresting group. They represented the pick of the Whampoa Cadets, who have a great reputation for bravery and loyalty, They were all under 25 and most of them were former regimental com= but they considered it to assable honour to give per= These young will only take erders from principal" and would willing ly They wore always near him and therefore it was more surprising that General Chiang had: gone on to Nanchang without them.
One of them wa: me, engaged in a the "experiences of his regiment when it was evading the pursuit of ome Hankow troops in Kiangst during the-Hankow-Nanking trouble ju" 1987, when suddenly a. Mager pistol "he was carrying, went off: accident. "It was.about 7 o'clock sin the evening and quite dark in the carriage atthe train had no lights. Everybody heard the shot but 'Nobody knew: who fired it, Some wuggested the' culprit was some cate-less soldier sitting on the roof of the coach; others that a communist had taken pot shot from one of the houses near the railway track, The bullet hit the floor a few inches from my right foot. I very. dis tinctly felt the vibration of the wood, I said it must have been a revolver shot, Betraying nothing on his face, the cadet calmly corrected me; "No, a Mauser!
Tt took eight and a half hours for our train to travel from. Kivkang to Nanchang, a distance of only 120 miles. No food or drinks could be obtained on the train, When we arrived at the Nanchang railway station, it was pitch dark, there were no lights anywhere. We had. to cross. a river before we could arrive fat Nanchang proper. The station was full of soldiers waiting for their turn to ferry across. No fewer than 200 men stood on a raft, about 20 by 6) fect, Tt was a miracle nobody was knocked off and drowned when they all rushed for the ferry-boat, which became. decidedly overloaded. One of the, soldiers remarked he had. come ts Kiangsi fully expecting to be kit
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.