The news from China is grave. British ships have been
engaged on that classical scene of naval fighting, the Yangtze River. The Cantonese troops have had no reverse yet to their success in moving northward. The Hong Kong correspondent of the Morning Post makes the interesting suggestion that the Cantonese troops have gone so far north that they are left in the air and can hardly hope to return if Sun Chuan-fang applies himself to cutting them off. But Sun Chuan-fang may prefer, in the Chinese manner, suddenly to change sides. Much the most serious news, however, comes from the Yangtze River. One of Wu Pei-fu's generals had seized two British merchant steamers, and gunboats went to release them after a prolonged effort at conciliation had failed. The British Minister had proposed an inquiry into the sinking (apparently accidental) of a Chinese sampan and compensation if blame could be attached to British action. He had even gone so far as to offer a deposit of money. Unfortunately, the rescuers had to withdraw under a heavy fire of field and machine-guns, to which they made as vigorous a reply as they could in the dusk. The losses in the British gunboats were three officers and four seamen killed.
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