Meanwhile the Cantonese seem to be in a stronger military
position than ever, and the threat to Shanghai has become more real. The failure of Sun Chuan-fang to check the northward advance of the Cantonese concerns all the northern provinces, and this fact may account for the sudden arrival at Tientsin of Chang Tso-lin, the Manchurian War Lord. He is said to have come to consult about ways and means for common action against the Cantonese. On the other hand, there are rumours that his real intention is to overthrow the shadowy Government at Peking and take matters into his own hands. As for the situation further south, there are stories of increasing brigandage and piracy from various quarters. The British steamer ' Sunning,' which left Shanghai in the middle of last week, was seized by pirates near Swatow. The pirates set the ship on fire, and when they departed took some hostages with them. How the ship's officers, against apparently impossible odds, outwitted and drove off the pirates is a story of pluck and resource that has few equals.
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