FORCES IN CHINA

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 85, 7 October 1931, Page 9

FORCES IN CHINA

Since the early part of 1927 considerable foreign forces have been stationed at Shanghai. At the end of last year the following foreign garrisons were maintained at the port: United States, the Fourth Regiment of the Marine Corps, composing 69 officers and 1310 men; Britain, a battalion each of the Green Howards and the Worcestershire Regiment, which early this year were replaced by the Second Northumberland Fusiliers and the Second Royal Scots Fusiliers, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel O. B. Foster, M.C., and Lieutenant-Colonel E. V. G. Horn respectively. The strength of each battalion was about 25 officers and 850 men. There are in addition units of the Boyal Engineers, Royal Army Service Corps, Royal Medical Corps, and various details. The Japanese forces in Shanghai early in the year consisted of an Imperial Naval Landing Party with a strength of 42 officers and 600 men, while the French forces were the 103 rd and 104 th' Battalions of Colonial Infantry, about 1200 strong. There is also a French' volunteer corps about 50 strong. The Shanghai Volunteer Corps it maintained at the expense of the ratepayers and designed for the protection! of the Settlement. It has received munitions and arms from the British War Office, and from time to time an, officer of the Regular Army has been seconded for service as commanding officer. At present Lieutenant-Colonel N. W. B. B. Thorns, D.5.0., M.C., of the Now Zealand Staff Corps, is in command. The equipment, which is on loan from the British Government, is four 4.5 in Q.F. howitzers, four 2.75 in. mountain guns, 1000 stands of rifles and bayonets, and 20 Lewis guns. The corps also possesses ton armoured cars and a number of Viekers machine guns. The body was formed in 1854 during the Taiping Rebellion, and has always been a highly-efficient and well-organ-ised force. In later years it was mobilised to defend the settlement against, disorganised and retreating Chinese soldiery during the fighting in the autumn of 1924, and again mobilised, from June to August, 1925, to maintain, order during the riots and the general strike. The "state of emergency" which existed preceding and following the occupation of Shanghai by the Nationalists in March-April, 1927, also saw mobilisation of the corps.