The capture of Nanziang and Anting by Japanese troops was denied by a Chinese military spokesman at the press conference yesterday afternoon, The rumoured land: ing of Japanese troops at Kwanhaiwei, northwest of Ningpo, was also found to be not true. Japanese troops had attempted to land south of Chapoo in the vicinity of Haiyen, but without success, he said.
Referring to the Nantao situation, the spokesman said orders had been issued to all Chinese units in the area to evacuate on Thurday evening. The majority received the orders in time but some small units, which had occupied isolated posts, failed to do so and held on, fighting the Japanese with small arms and hand-grenades, Colonel Chang Pin, commander of the Chinese Brigade which defended Nantao, was reported by the same The Brigade was summoned by Mr. H. Tarby, godown superintendent, but was unable to come at the moment as the blazing junks still constituted a danger to shipping. At 4.15 p.m., however, the junk situation was well under control. and the Brigade moved over to the wharf. Mr, German found that the whole of Pootung behind the wharf was in flames, entire streets of shops and houses being devoured by the fire It was obvious that nothing could be done to put. this out, as it was be-young control.
Fanned by a gentle breeze, and fed by the flimsy wooden structures of the Chinese buildings, the fire was rapidly spreading to the wharf. To make it even more difficult, bombs or hand grenades appeared to have been left in the buildings, for every now and then an explosion would occur and the internal walls and the
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.