Saturday night saw the recrudescence of that terrorism which has lain dormant for a considerable time, and one of the biggest shooting affrays in the history of the International Settlement and the French Concession was the result. An American, Captain "Tug" Wilson, one of the gunmen and an unfortunate handcart coolie were killed, and about twenty persons, most of them innocent passers-by at the time, were injured in the battle which followed a raid by the miscreants on the premises of two Chinese language newspapers in an alleyway off Avenue Edward VIL If, as it is suggested, the raid on one of two newspapers was because it was the only one to publish the denunciation of Mr. Wang Ching-wei which was made at Chungking on Friday by Messrs. Lo Wen-kan and Wu Tse-hui, the affiliations of these terrorists would seem to be clearly identified, and the fact again established that the campaign of terrorism is being carried on not by adherents of Chungking alone. The gang appears to have numbered about fifteen men, wearing what appears to have been a uniform costume, and led by a man who is known to the authorities, and the whole story of the affair suggests that the raid was highly organized, and carefully thought out. What appears to be the mystery of the whole matter is that, while they managed to get into the building, housing the two Chinese newspapers which appeared to be their objective, they did very little damage there, to all accounts, and it was only when they endeavoured to make their escape after the alarm had been raised that they sought to shoot their way to safety. They probably would have done so had a car bearing some of them not been met by a police search party, when, after an exchange of shots, two of the gangsters were arrested. It is to be hoped that the two men which the police now have in custody will provide the necessary information which will enable the police to make further arrests, for it is imperative, in the interests of the whole community that as many of the men concerned as possible shall be brought to punishment.
On the evidence which is at present available it appears that four hire cars were ordered to proceed to a house in an alleyway running out of Edinburgh Road, and the driver of one of the cars states that, when he arrived there, he was forced at the point of a pistol to drive into the settlement. If that story is true, then this raid on Avenue Edward VII originated in a house in the "badlands," and is ample proof of the correctness of the often repeated allegations concerning the deplorable conditions which prevailing that area. Reduced to the simplest possible terms, in order that there shall be no mistake about it, this raid into the International Settlement was organized in and carried out from territory not under the control of the Municipal Council, but under the jurisdiction of those authorities responsible for maintaining law and order in that particular area. It was on June 30 that the "North-
China Daily News" as a result of its own investigations was able to state that no fewer than 3,000 gangsters, chiefly ex-convicts, armed robbers, and murderers were living in the areas off the municipal roads outside the boundaries of the International Settlement, and it is in all probability from amongst these the gang which operated on Saturday night was recruited. The existence of such an Alsatia reflects no credit whatsoever upon those authorities who could clean up the district very quickly indeed if they chose to do so, and its continuance as it is at present must remain a perpetual threat to peace and good order, and the personal safety of the residents in the foreign areas. Repeated pleas for more ce-operation with the municipality of Greater Shanghai would come with better grace were this criminal menace suppressed, instead of being used, for what, judging from what happened on Saturday night, can only be regarded as political purposes.
It is impossible to leave the subject without paying a special tribute to the late Capt. Wilson, who lost his life in a brave attempt to assist in capturing the gang, or at least impeding its escape. It was the action of a gallant gentleman, and a good citizen, and while there must be the greatest regret that he has met so untimely an end, there will always be the completest appreciation of the courageous manner in which, unarmed, he sought to render service to the community. Of the police of the International Settlement and the French Concession there cannot be anything but the fullest praise. The celerity with which they got into action speaks well for the organizations north and south of Avenue Edward VII and the fact that no more of the miscreants were captured is due to the manner in which the whole raid was planned rather than to any shortcomings on the part of the police authositie. For the rest there cannot be anything but the strongest condemnation of that type of reckless behaviour which imperils the lives of innocent people in no way concerned with whatever objectives these raiders had in their mind. Nor can there be anything else for those men who fancy they can attain political ends by such demonstrations. Examples can be found the world over which prove that terrorism and assassination have never achieved th objectives. The widespread bombings carried out by the LR.A. in Britain is a striking example of this fact, and the futility of such procedure only enhances its criminality. It does not matter by which side these terroristic acts are perpetrated; they are equally to be condemned, and those who have it in their power to put a stop to these campaigns merely by the issuance of the necessary instructions, should realize that by their failure to do so, they expose themselves to the eyes of the world as totally unfit for the task of governing which some of them have accepted "with such alacrity. Such a failure reflects upon their own bona fides and authority, for no government which claims to be a good one can ignore the paramount responsibility of ensuring that criminal elements shall be suppressed.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.