6 FEBRUARY 1932, Page 1

On Sunday, while many thousands of Chinese refugees flocked into

the Foreign Settlements area for protec- tion, a Conference was held and arrangements for the truce to continue with a neutral zone were discussed and referred by the Japanese in command to Tokyo. Yet on the same day Japanese gunboats 200 miles away up the Yangtze were bombarding Nanking itself. We are not told by whose orders this was done. On Tuesday the efforts of the foreign mediators were thrown over and the Japanese resumed the attack on Chapei with

little pretence that ,they were engaged in anything but regular warfare. The Chinese troops were better organ- ized for defence, and resisted stubbornly through Tuesday an:! Wednesday. During the week there has also been, in the North, some more fighting round Harbin.