Brooklyn Eagle (December 14, 1937)
Fighting ends in Nanking as big fires rage
Japan seizes reins of China’s government as foe is routed
Shanghai, China (AP) – (Dec. 15)
Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, in a statement to the embattled Chinese people from “somewhere behind the Chinese-Japanese lines,” asserted today that the Japanese capture of Nanking would not affect China’s resistance to Japanese invasion. The head of China’s National Government said:
The chief significance of Nanking’s fall is its strengthening of China’s determination to continue a campaign of resistance. The seat of the government has been moved elsewhere and Nanking no longer possesses political or military importance.
Shanghai, China (AP) –
Great fires blazed in fallen Nanking tonight as the Japanese Army, relentlessly pursuing its punitive mission deep into China, rolled on past the conquered capital.
Japanese fliers reported flames raging through what had only a few weeks ago been the proud seat of Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek’s government.
Fragmentary reports, filtering in over disrupted communications, indicated actual fighting had ended within the walls of Nanking and the Japanese troops, without slackening their offensive campaign, were carrying their operations farther afield.
Fear for residents
Unverified reports of the Japanese virtually slaughtering the defeated Chinese soldiers around Nanking circulated here, giving rise to grave fears for the safety of Nanking residents as well.
Actual information as to the situation within the captured city was unavailable because of regular communications being out of commission and the Japanese having the only contact.
Nothing could be learned about the Americans who were in Nanking when the Japanese stormed its gates Dec. 10.
Radio messages from foreign gunboats on the Yangtze said the Japanese and Chinese were still fighting in the vicinity of Hohsien, about 45 miles upriver from Nanking. Hohsien was where American refugees of the Panay bombing were taken.
Refugees in danger
The radios said fighting was again endangering these refugees.
While rescue parties from the foreign gunboats were ashore trying to contact the refugees, several Japanese boats laden with troops entered the area and engaged Chinese detachments.
Efforts were being made to have the Japanese withdraw from the Hohsien area in order to facilitate rescue of the Panay refugees.
Japan’s Rising Sun flag fluttered at each corner of Nanking’s walls today and within the ancient stone battlements, the abandoned capital of the Chinese government was reported in flames.
Withdraw from station
Chinese sources admitted that the Japanese occupied Pukow, terminus of the Tientsin-Pukow railway into North China across the Yangtze from Nanking. Chinese troops were reported to have withdrawn to a railway station at Puchen, about a mile north of Pukow.
While tremendous clouds of smoke shrouded the fallen city, a new provisional government for China – under the aegis of conquering Nippon – was formed in Peking.
The guiding principles of the new regime, reported the Dōmei (Japanese) News Agency, were vigorous opposition to the harassed government of Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, suppression of communism and cooperation with Japan and Manchukuo.
Officials of regime
The new government was created immediately after the fall of Nanking. The Japanese command for the Nanking campaign announced its troops completed occupation of Generalissimo Chiang’s former capital when the sun set yesterday on a day of bloody street fighting.
Among the officials of the provisional regime were two former Presidents of China, three former Premiers, five former Finance Ministers and four other one-time cabinet officers, the Japanese news agency said.
Chinese press reports from Hankow, one of the temporary seats of Chiang’s government about 300 miles further up the Yangtze from Nanking and possibly one of the next Japanese objectives, said Outer Mongolian authorities had arrived to confer with the Generalissimo on plans for a rear attack against the Japanese in North China.
The Japanese have invaded or conquered five North China provinces. Peking, seat of the new Japanese-molded provisional government for China, is the capital of one of these five, Hopeh. Outer Mongolia, lying between Soviet Russia and northern China, is under strong Soviet influence.