Chefoo, Oct. 6.
Vigorous protests against the avowed intention of the Chinese military authorities to blow up the mole and the wharf here have been lodged by the United States naval authorities and the Consular Body.
The protests have been sent to the local military, to General Han Fu-chu, Governor of Shantung, and to the Central Government at Nanking. No reply has yet been received.
The Chinese authorities here served notice on October 4 that the mole and wharf would be blown up to prevent the entry of Japanese warships, and requested all naval vessels and merchantmen to vacate the harbour within two days. Pointing out the "futility" of mining the har-hour, the local Chinese newspapers say that Chefoo is not likely to be the centre of an attack. u the Japanese intend to invade Shantung, the landing. they argue, would certainly be effected at Tsingtao rather than Chefoo. Why, then, they ask, is that port not to be similarly mined?
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.