"Toward Righteousness!"

Kublai, the mighty Khan who in the 13th Century ruled from the Yellow Sea to Poland, used to decree the pitching of his gorgeous Mongol tent every summer on the wide grasslands of Xanadu or Shangtu a few hundred miles north of Peking, which he enlarged and made his Capital. Last week this same region of "Xanadu" was news again. Its trading post Dolonnor ("Seven Lakes") had been captured by the "Christian War Lord" Feng Yu-hsiang (TIME, July 24). Last week the great voice of War Lord Feng rumbled out of his barrel chest: "I command 100,000 soldiers! So long as there is one breath in my body I will lead these hungry soldiers to recapture Manchuria and Jehol from Japan!"

Probably War Lord Feng was bluffing but his words produced the effect sure to follow when Chinese hear a leader of their race actually grow bold enough to threaten Japan. The Canton Government of South China headed by General Chen Chi-tang promptly pitched into the Nanking Government "of all China" headed by Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek who has made a truce with Japan (TIME, June 5). In view of this truce. Generalissimo Chiang had dispatched 60,000 troops to quell War Lord Feng, only to receive demands from General Chen that he call them back. "Canton," wired Canton's Chen, "will not look on [at the sending of troops against Feng] but will lead the whole nation toward righteousness!"

Righteously the Canton Association for Relief and Assistance to Volunteers [against Japan] shipped 50,000 Canton dollars to "encourage" War Lord Feng. This was too much for the Nankingers who promptly charged Feng with being at the same time 1) an agent provocateur for Japan and 2) an agent of Soviet Russia which was supposed to be sending him munitions.

Joyful amid charge and countercharge, War Lord Feng boomed that he was really going to fight Japan. His troops did no fighting last week but they all offered their right sleeves to Chinese needlemen who nimbly stitched on armbands reading: "We represent the real fighting forces of the Chinese people. We are battling for China's independence against Japanese invaders."

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