Canton, Nov. 14.
Destruction by fire yesterday of huge quantities of rice, wheat, flour, and sugar stored in Chinese-owned godowns here today brought a threat of food shortage among Chinese refugees. Incendiarism by plain clothes Chinese terrorists was alleged by the Japanese military authorities.
The conflagration, which broke out at 3 o'clock yesterday afternoon, swept over wide areas in the Honam and Fangtsun districts before it could be brought under control.
Included mong the goods burned yesterday wore 5,000 bales of rice tored at the Liang warehouse which were requisitioned by the Japanese forces on October 22. This action was the subject of a protest by the International Relief Committee through the British Consulate-General, who claimed that the rice had teen bought by a Briton. The protest was rejected by the Japanese authorities, who in a statement given io Mr. L. A. Scopes, British Vice-Consul, said:
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.