Liu-kuen, lieutenant-governor of Hunan, reports dolefully upon the squeezes, 0 which he is subjected. During the twelfth snonth of last year Tseng Pi-kuang, lieuten nant-governor of Kueichow, received a despatch from the Board of Revenue in answer toa request for permission to levy money from Hunan. That answer conveyed the Imperial approbation of a plan previously proposed by the Board, under which Liu-kuen was to collect as much money as possible from his province and divide it equally between Kansuh and Kueichow. But in the first month of this year the memorialist received despatch covering an Edict which ordained that the KCiangee should be made general. That is practice adopted by the office-sellers in
to say, each office-seller was to get as much as he could for his own province, but none of the funds were to go to the provinces in which the money was raised. In the case of Kansuh and Kueichow the total amount was to be divided equally between the two. The memorialist was exhorted by the Board to lose no in helping the office-sellers toa good business. Accordingly he sent on the despatch to the provincial treasurer, and directed him to consult with the Kan: suh and Kueichow office-sellers and conclude as to what seemed best to be done. The treasurer and the intendants of circuit have since represented that ever since the Taiping rebellion the Hunan people have been constantly subjected to exactions in aid of other provinces whose officials send at once to Hunan when they want money. Thus between home claims and the demands from outside the resources of the province have been exhausted. For the last few years moreover disastrous floods have occurred bringing poverty with them, so that even the annual rice tribute could not be raised in spite of all the pressure Drought to bear on the people by the provincial officers. The people of many districts make no reply to the attempts of the collectors save by showing that they have nothing and therefore can give nothing. This is quite true and the officials cannot shut their eyes to it. Moreover all the Hunan troops that are fighting in the disturbed provinces ought to be paid and supplied with necessaries from their own province. This would entail a monthly expenditure.of more than Tls. 200,000, but for this the likin is insufficient and therefore there is no escape from the. need for opening places for the sale of office on local account. The. Kiangse plan as detailed above is now in full force in Hunan. But soldiers are Hunan men, and so soon as any official needs them no longer for what ever purpose he may have had in hand, he simply clears them out, and they return to their province needy and riotous. Do keep them in check an army must be maintained and this involves a large expenditure. The Hunan troops in Kueichow are now fighting well, so that it is more than ever necessary to keep them supplied. Yet in consequence of the poverty of the province there is at the present moment a deficit of no less than two millions of taels in the subsidy claimed by Kucichow, and this deficit is continually on the increase. The treasurer and intendants see no Way out of their difficulties except by sending office-sellers to Fukien, but whether the speculation will be successful or not they cannot, say. Already the plan of accepting grain instead of silver in payment for rank has been played out in nan, Now there is neither money nor rice forthcoming, but if every other province were not draining Hunan, there is no doubt that she would lieable to support herself very well. Further, though the tariff differs in every office, Kansuh offering rank according to one scale, Kueichow 2ccording to another, and Hunan according toa third, the people have no money to invest in any. It is therefore quite evident that the continual drain for Kansuh and Kueichow aust be cut off somehow. The Throne ought therefore to be requested to direct the Board of Revenue to frame some suitable plan. The lieutenant-governor fully endorses everything that has been said by his subordinates.—Peling Gazette,—Cycle.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.