Hankow; Kuling Evacuees Due on Thursday As late as last January, Mr. Caldwell points out, Szechuen was still not 100 per cent loyal to the Central Government and continually resisted its attempts to enforce its authority. The same was true of Fukien. Since then. there has been a marked swing of public opinion towards the Central Government, "It is safe to assume that Szechuen is now supporting the Central Government more whole-heartedly than at any time in history."
The British gunboats Cricket and Scarab left Shanghai yesterday morning for Nanking, from which port they will sail to various up-river stations to relieve other British gunboats trapped above Yangtze boom since the beginning of the hostilities. The vessels to be relieved will proceed to stations on the Lower River under arrangements made with the Japanese naval authorities for the passage of foreignvgunboa's from Hankow to Shanghai.
On Friday the first third party vessels to make the trip arrived in Shanghai, these being the American gunboat Luzon, with six evacuees from Hankow on board, and the French warship Amiral Charnier. In a statement issued by British naval authorities on Saturday it was stated that arrangements had been completed for the withdrawal of four vessels from Hankow and it is expected that they will leave that port for Shanghai on December 19.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.