Hangchow, Jan, 23.
Japanese forces inaugurating new operations south of Hangchow crossed the Chientang River with a minimum of casualties, a communique issued today by the headquarters of a Japan: ese detachment said, Darkness, sleet and snow counteracted the strongly fortified Chinese positions on the south bank of the river, the communique stated The river' was from 1,600 to 3,000 metres wide at the places the Japanese erossed, the announcement said.
An hour after all forces had landed, operations against retreating Chines troops had started, it was stated.
The communique stressed that the Japanese operations were not conducted for territorial gains, but crush the anti-Japanese forces operating south of the river—Domel deep snow when they advanced on Siaoshan, in Chekiang Siaoshan, Che. Jan, 25, With peace restored to Siaoshan, important communications and trade centre in eastern Chekiang, south of the Chientang River, residents were reluming in large "numbers today after briefly evacuating the town earlier in the week, By last night, 2,000 inhabitants had returned to their homes here, where earlier in the day Mr. Ting Ming-Jon, former magistrate, was installed chairman of the Peace Preservation Committee. A civilian's self-defence corps was also established yesterday, 'A balloon bearing the streamer "Those who resist will dio, but those who surrender will live" today rose above the town, the latest addition to Japanese-occupied territory in the Yangtze delta.
Meantime, the three-day military campaign which led to the capture fof the town, came to a temporary ull as Japanese commanders. ani nounced that their objective in securing control of the area bounded by Siaoshan and two other points, which they did not reveal," had' "been achieved.
Operations Wound Up The Japanese operations were wound up' with te occupation of Linpuehen, where $00 Chinese remnants were crushed, on Tuesday morning. On' the previous evening, sanguinary ighting was staged in the snow between a Japanese detach: ment which had outflanked $00 Chinese troops in hills eight kilometres south of Siaoshan.
Twenty junks, Jaden with ammunition and equipment, were seized by the Japanese forces on the Puyang River, a Chientang River tributary, 'Meantime, Chinese defences -between here and Chuld were being hastily reinforced as Gen, Ku Chu-tung, commander-in-chief of the Chinese' Third War Zone, sought to stem the Japanese advance.
In a statement issued in Hangchow yesterday, Japanese army authorities Announced that the offensive had been halted after attaining its objective "in order to afford time for the Chinese to reflect on the foolhardiness of strife and {o realize the urgent need of establishing a new order in East Asia by ensuring cooperation between Japan and China."
Alr Allacks in Chekiang Hangchow, Jan. 24.
Air raids upon the Headquarters of the 10th Group Army under Gen. Liv Chien-heu in central Chekiang and the Heaquariers of the anti-Japanese Self-Defence Corps at Kinhwa were staged by Japanese air units on
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.