Their request to see the ship's log and papers was evidently refused by the captain for after a stay of about twenty minutes they entered their launch which took them back to their ship. Later it was -discovered, the reporter was informed, that a wireless message had been despatched to the British naval authorities in Hongkong describing the stopping of the ship with the result that H.M.S. Duchess was quickly on the scene. This, it was believed, had led to the hasty departure of the boarding party and later the warship for when the Duchess arrived it was a good distance away. *A party from the British warship also came on board, it was explained, to ascertain the cause of the Japanese action and when the British naval officers had left, the Ranpura was escorted to Hongkong by the destroyer, the captain making a full report to the authorities on his arrival.
Government, which formerly favoured evacuation to rural camps, has now decided that evacuation "would do more harm than good."
"The Government has also stated that, for the vast majority of the population, trenches are impracticable because practically all the populated areas are low-lying, and because water is very close to the surface.
In a statement on ARP. policy, the Government pointed out that the China station, E ner lei ires Bie scan. place.to tha. enate] de-protection of lives and property must
hina sta fence of the Fortress. There is wides-proad disagreement with the Government's policy, especially its decision against evacuation.—Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.