Jan. 17th.—Imperial edict. Tso Tsung-tang memorializes the Throne expatiating on the services of the late Chiang Chih-chang, lieut.-governor of Shensi, and begging the Throne to confer on him some mari of Imperial favour. When the death of this officer was first announced, an edict was issued directing that he was to receive the honours due to a lieut.-governor. Tso Tsung-tang now calls attention to the valuable services which the deceased has rendered to the Imperial cause. When he was first appointed lieut.-governor of Shensi, that province was still in a very disturbed state, and he earnestly set. himself to the task of restoring it to peace and order; and his rule has in all respects been eminently beneficial to the people. In consideration of these facts, he is to receive a posthumous title, and his son, as soon as the period of mourning is over, is to be introduced at Court and get' appointment. ledges the receipt of the Imperial mandate (2) Wang Weén-shao gratefully acknow-
appointing him acting lieut.-governor of hunan, and announces his assumption of 18th.—An edict is issued conferring brevets and pencock's feathers on two officers, in reward for their having captured an insurgent leader who has recently caused much trouble on the borders of Moukden and Kirin.
(2) Tsao-pao, chief of the censorate, and his colleagues report the following appeal case.
'A Shantung farmer, named Kwan Liang, belonging to the Hsia-chin prefecture, complains that his family has been the victim of a most relentless persecution, which has already cost it the lives of three of its members. In his native village there lived a lawless character called Kwan Ta-pao who, at the time in question, had just committed an infraction of the gabelle Inws. This crime, however, one of the local gentry and one of the police tried to father on complainant and his friends, and accordingly three of the latter were taken into custody. A party was also sent to plunder complainant's home, which they did to the last article, and he was told that if he did not buy himself uff he too would be arrested. His father offered 50 strings of cash (one string usually contains 1,060 cash) but this sum was declined, and he was told that nothing less than 1,000 strings would do. He then offered 600 strings, and paid an instalment at the time of 100 strings. But even this did not satisfy them. He therefore appealed to the district magistrate, but the above-mentioned constable, by means of bribery, got him reprinanded by the magistrate. Matters then became worse than ever. Complainant'shouse was broken into and plundered every article, and all his cattle driven off.
uncle and cousin were also led away in chains, and his grandmother. for venture ing to remonstrate, was stabbed in the face. She ran to the office of the district magistrate to implore his interference, but the underlings would not allow hor to enter. His father, uncle and brother, were put into secret prison and tortured s0 brutally that (the two former died. Complainant tried to trate, but was prevented by the Yamen underlings. "His grandmother has also died in consequence of the wound she received. He appealed to the criminal judge, bat was simply referred back to the district magistrate he dared not, however, go to the district yamen any more, and has therefore coupe to the capital, The above is recorded.
19th—Shulin, superiutendant of the Hwai-an Customs, reports having delivered over the seals of office to his successor Haihsi, on the 20th December, 1871.
20th.—An edict is issued in reference to memorial from the Board of War, reporting its awards in the case of Kwei-hsiang cerns Woshihch'Teun-cheng, come ander-in-chief of the metropolitan geodarmerie, and General Yung-in are deprived of their rank, but, as a special act Uf grace, retained la office, General Taming-al is, as the Board requests, degraded and disniseed; Kwel-hsiang is' degraded three steps and sent, as already notified, toll to serve under Yung-chuen, The rear of the memorial is approved. of e-lungechiang? (i> Amor, distin), 2) General Te-ying, military governor
and Lieut.-General To-ké-jui, military. go: vernor of Tsi-tsihar, beg the release of three officials who wore banished to the Amoct for having taken on themselves to give away some withered trees from the Imperial tombe, and for concealing the death of the trees from the proper authorities. They have undergone ten years banishment and are now old and infirm, and having spent Whatever money they' once had, are now without the means of procuring either food of clothing; their sufferings are consequently very great. One of them too hasan aged mother whose last years are saddened by the thought. of her banished son. The Tmemorialists were cut to the heart at the sight of these old men as they poured out with many tears their bitter tile of woo." The Throne is wont, in the
to permit the return of the old and infirm, exercise of ite allembracng "compassion, if not belonging to the class of unpardonables, and therefore the memorialists implore Her Majesty the Empress Dowager extend this clemency to the individuals dhe petition in granted (8) Li Hung-chang, viceroy of Chihli, petition is granted,
reports a remarkable instance of interpoal~ tion on the part of the River God, and bogs the Throng to bestow n tablet" in come memoration of the event. 'The memoria list has received a despatch from the treasurer Chien Ting-ming inclosing a petition from the gentry of Hentsin, heeded by Shen Chao-yun, ex-treasurer of Chekiang, stating that, on account of the lowness of the country' around Tientain, and owing to its being the converging point of so many rivers and canals, it has always been eubject to floods in wet seasons. Last year the fall of rain was ea great, that all the rivers burst their banks and converted. the whole country into "one vast ocean," #0 that the people had no place where lay their heads. And the water continued to rise till, in October, it was from five to six feet high. On the 24th of that month the River God appeared to some boatmen at Yung-feng, a village to the west of Tientsin, and twas received with suitable core-many into the old Tai-esang temple. The Imemorialist, accompanied ball theoficials, went to the temple and offered devout prayer, and the weather instantly cleared End the water ceased to ris. The memo-
Tialist finds that when any of the gods the calendar display their power to ward off calamity and benefit the people, it is permissible to memorialize the Throne on Tie subject. He also finds that, in the southern provinces, the Chin-lung sz-tai-wang, and all the other taiwange and tsiang-kenns, have frequently been honoured with higher titles and have been placed on the Sacrificial Register, on account 0
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.