Two Britons Making Their Way From Hankow Hankow, Apr. 30.
Two young English journalists, Mr. Whauden, English poet, and Mr. Christopher Isherwood, a novelist, who returned to Hankow last week from the. Shantung war front, left last night by steamer for Kiukiang en route to Nanchang, where they will endeavour to cross the Japanese lines to reach Ningpo and Shanghai.
The journalists, who left London a few months ago, intend to write a book on the Far East, including the Wer prase. A ey are also visiting Japan—Reuter, Hankow, Apr. 30, Tancheng about 12 miles from the Lunghai Railway, changed hands twice during the pas: 12 hours, according to Chinese military despatches from the Chinese field headquarters, Chinese forces yesterday morning, following an advance, the messages said, stormed the walls of Tancheng and captured the city in the afternoon, but upon the arrival of reinforcements the Japanese launched a severe counter-attack and recaptured the city.
Chinese reinforcements are now being rushed for another bottle for possession of Tancheng.
Matoucheng, a village to the west of Tancheng, holds the key to the situation at Tancheng. Observers here believe that Matoucheng will be the scene of bitter fighting between the Japanese and Ghinese forces in the next few day Meanwhile, Chinese forees are claimed to have driven a wedge through the Japanese lines east of Taierchwang with the capture of Motion and Chaho, two villages, thereby easing the Japanese pressure on Pihsien, Japanese troops, however, are said to have launched a counter-attack in an attempt to recover Jost ground.
At the same time. Japanese forces on the Hanchwang to Taferchwang front are reported to have begun the building of defence works in anticipation of a possible Chinese drive northward clóng the railway, (Continued on page 8)
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.