Of the much-advertised punitive expedition undertaken by the Japan ese garrison of Peiping against this bond when they asserted to have killed 60 and taken 100 prisoners or the captives knew nothing at all, According to their account the Dana that they were with never, at any. time, was involved in any serious or close Aghting—at most 0 Tanguld exchange of shots at lon range—nor did they see or hear of any wounded, with the exception of one member of the band who had shot himself by accident, During their enforced stay with these so-called bandits, the composi tion of the band had steadily changed for the better. All the professional Dandit clement who were originally responsible for the attack on the seminary and. the carrying-elf thirteen foreign missionaries, with 9 special' view to obtaining 'a large mngom, had been gradually ellminated, They were given a cash payment and sent away. New Myolunteers™ were recruited in the villages through which they passed and many disbanded soldiers joined tip, until in the end the band con~ sisied of, 400 well-armed men, all wearing some kind of uniform. ' The Teader was an intelligent and educated man, obviously of a better class, and probably a former military officer, He told the captives that he had changed the persond of his band, eeause his only purpose was to fight the Japanese, and it was not part of their plan to rob their own countrymen, He said that there were well-farmed groups amounting to over 3,000 ren in the hills who were preparing themselves for guerilla warfare against the Japanese. The three captives did mot see any actual, cases of deliberate looting, though there was 'a certain amount of petty pilfering by individuals, but the mere presence of band of such size In the proverty-Strleken mountain villages was almost fas disastrous, for they ate the poor Villagers out of house and home.
Unexpectedly Released the release of the three brothers came quite unexpectedly. The leader Into the hills. The three captives then made their way home on foot all Joy themselves across the plain without being interfered with In any way oF without meeting any more bandits or a single Japanese soldier.
Railway Line Exposed is interesting to note that the Peiping-Suiyuan Railway. one of the main lines of communications of the Japanese forces operating in Suiyuan and Northern Shansi, runs at an average distance of only ten miles from the foot of the hills in which the above bands have taken up their residence. A sudden dash at night down to the railway, the tearing of the track and return to the hills [before dawn, would, one would have imagined. have been a very. simple and obvious manoeuvre, Yet "not, once has this been attempted, and the Japanese have not even troubled to heap fortified observation posts in the plains. Not once has there been any report of any interference with the railway, Indeed, passenger trains are already' running along it to Kalean This ig symptomatic of one of the most striking omissions in the whole of the Chinese military operations in the North: their complete failure to destroy any of the railways. Quite apart from the fact that they have mot with comparatively little serious resistance, the advance of the Japan-Jere armies has, even 0,_ been remarkably rapid. That the Chinese: armies in the North. badly equipped 'a they were, should have been unable to put up any prolonged resistance against the formidable armaments of the Japanese Is perhaps nat so very strange. But that on not one of the railway lines should they have made any serious attempt to delay' the enemy's advance by tearing up the track, destroying bridges and water towers, and blowing up tunnels. is certainly one of the most striking: facts of the whole campaign. The Japanese have been left with. the {ull uso of the railways, as if present fed to them on a presentation salver. Nor have their railway communi ions which now stretch for hundreds of miles in their rear been at any ime or in any way interfered with. All this Is really remarkable. Tt is probably unique in the whole history of modern warfare.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.