More than ten Chinese divisions were. believed by Japanese staff officers to be concentrated in the Tienchiacheng area, which was claimed by the Chinese to be "virtually impregnable."
Lakes, hills, and the Yangtze form natural defences, which have been strongly armed in recent years. The fortification works were augmented since the fall of Nanking, the Chinese describing the defence system of the Yangtze narrows comprising the Matouchen, Fuchikou and Tienchi cheng forts as the "They Shall Not Pass" line.
Meantime, another Japanese column threatening the northern Hupeh border from south-eastern Honan, had advanced by Tuesday to the neighbourhood of Paichaoyuen 32 kilometres west of Shangcheng.
About 500 troops of the Chinese 78th Division were believed to be defending Paichiaoyuen, Domei dispatches stated.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.