'A special train conveying about 120° orsons, "mostly British and Amesiean, arrived here from. Han-the carly hours of this morning. Most of them were mis-Slonaries from the interior, "Among them. were also thirteen" Germans including Frau Tischbein, who had encountered. the greatest dimeulty fu. getting through to, Mankow. Of the "Germans who. left Nanking, about 100 have decided to remain Hankow where the German colony hag so far made no preparations for immediate departure.
"As the Felugees explained, the habitants of -Hankow are not wing in any fear of" ale raids, seeing that dor the time being ai least the Japanese air bases ure 100 remote to enable the Japanese to tarry out effective als attacks. This aso explains why Hankow has 20 far not taken any extensive anti-alr raid precaullons—Trans-Ocean.
Shanghat, Dec. 17, 'Strong exception was taken' by' a Japenese naval spokesman yesterday to. press reports that the Japanese forees had end red the rescuers of the survivors of the U.SS. Panay by {ineluding armed men in the crew of a motor-launch flying the Red Cross view of the presence of disorganized remnants of Chinese troops", he declared, "it was only natural that '8 guard should be provided. This was, especially so since the vessel was operating far away from a strong ase.
"The precaution proved justified for the vessel flying the Red Cross flag was fred upon."
Asked it he id not believe that such elreumsta the Red Cross fay the spokesman plied:
"No. The flag showed the mission in which the vessel was engaged, The armed men were there to protect the vessel and Its medical crew. The Mavante Tsai Ting-kai, the late wife of the former Commander of the famous 19th Rowe Army, who passed away in Hongkong on Octo-ker 23 this year, left a will calling for the inheritance of her legacy of $228,000 by her two sons, "Jui chang and Jul-hui, says a) special report to. the "Ta Wan Pao." It is Jearnt that this legal instrument has been approved and enforced by the authorities in the Colony, armed force was not there to launch an attack but to protect".
An analogy was drawn by the spokesman between a man in civilian clothes carrying a gun for self-protection and the armed guard.
Under international - conventions, the spokesman said, members of military ambulance units wearing Red Cross insignia were authorized to carry revolvers for their own protec tion against attacks by stragglers.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.