Three Columns Claim to Have Taken City: Buildings Set on Fire by Retreating Chinese Tokyo, Dec. 27. ITH an estimated loss of 120 officers and men killed and wounded in four days' fighting, Japanese forces to-day. were possession of Tsinan, capital of Shantung province.
Crossing the Yellow River at three points on the night of December 23, a communique of the Imperial General Headquarters issued at 6 o'clock to-night said, the Japanese troops pro-grossed rapidly southwards.
Chowtsun, an important railway station on the Tsinan-'Tsingtao, Railway about 60 kilometres cast of Tsinan, was taken 7 o'clock on Christmas night.
The three columns then converged upon Tsinan to carry out the second cupation of the Shantung capital by Japanese troops in a decade.
Before retreating, the Chinese set fire to all. important buildings, the communique added. The Japanese Consulate-General, the German Consulate and the Japanese Hospital were buming fiercely this morning. The Provincial Government buildings, headquarters of Gen. Hon Fu-chu, were" also so} on ire yesterday morning.
Press dispatches from Japanese correspondents at the front said the entire walled city appeared to be ablaze, Japanese infantrymen, the reports added, were actively." engaged in. mopping-up operations among the burning buildings. Japanese flags were seen on top of the city gates. Few Chinese soldiers were reported seen in the unwalled city, the more up-to-date part of Tsinan-Encountering little resistance, Japanese column occupied the aerodrome, two Kilometres west of the city, at o'clock this afternoon—
Japanese Resume Drive Tokyo, Dec, 24, Atter clearings Tsinan of remnants: Japanese troops are reported to have Fesumed their drive southward in the direction of Taian, 25 miles south of the provincial capital.
'A salient feature of the Japanese occupation of Tsinan, according to Japanese press repens, is that the Japanese troops who entered the walled ely found that practically All the Chinese residents had re~ mained, It was revealed to-day that the Japanese, troops who had coneentrated on the north bank of the Yellow River. about 36 miles north east of Tsinan, started crossing the river at oight'o'elock on the night of December 23.
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