Chungking, June 6.
Japanese forces in the Hankow area are apparently making a determined bid for the possession of Ichang, an important treaty port on the Yangtze River above Hankow, according to Chinese reports.
Japanese troops which reached Siangyang, on the west bank of the Han River, on June 1, are said to be moving south-westward in the direction of Nanchang to form the northern column of the drive towards Ichang.
Farther south, forces massed on the east bank of the Han River between Chungtsiang and Chienchiang are said to have crossed the river yesterday under cover of artillery and aerial bombardments at several points in the vicinity of Shayang, north-east of Shasi, for the purpose of advancing towards Ichang along the Hankow-Ichang highway and the north bank of the Yangtze River.—Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.