Municipal Cousicil, Shanghai, 23rd July, 1877. To the Eilitor of the saStyy Mie Comal have, directed mo to enclosed documents Paypdn Saran you to be good enough to publish th
ation.
Lam, Sir, Your obedient servant, Epwaxp B, Sovrzn, Secretary.
A meeting of the Shantung Famine Relief Committee was held on 17th July; G. of a dispute which took place in 1863 wit ith B. Glover, Esq., in the chair. li Tt was Feference to money matters. Appellant's stated that the object of the meeting was "father and one of his cousins were to receive the accounts of the Treasurer, murdered on this occasion, and their and the report of the Secretary, before property carried off. Appeals to the local closing the business of the Committee. The authorities for justice have passed un-Rev, Mr. Muirhead read the report, and heeded, and acts of violence and oppression Mr. Cameron's accounts were presented have continued to be indulged in with and examined. The following resolutions impunity by the hostile faction.—Referred were then tos—1, That the Treasurer's accounts and the in the usual manner.
Tuly 12th.—(Court Circular.) Chow Ta-Wa, late General-in-chief of the provincial report of the Secretary be accepted and passed. forees in Kweichow, paid his respects 2, That these be presented to the Chair-on his arrival at Peking, and had audience. man of the Municipal Council for approval (1) Mei, K'i-chao, newly appointed and publication, as arranged at the forma-Governor of Chéh-kiang, memorializes tion of this Committee. reporting his assumption of the seal of 3, That the thanks of this Committee atlee, He arrived on the 27th May at be given to Ewen Cameron, Esq.) Hon. Hangchow, having travelled from Nanking, Treasurer of the Committee, for the kind his place of residence as Lieutenant-and able manner in which he has kept the Governor of Kiangsu, until the receipt of accounts, and remitted the monies received his present appointment, by way of to the Committee at Chefoo; also Chinkiang, Ch'ang-chow, and Soochow. In to the Rev. James Thomas and the Rev. recapitulating, as is customary, the im-Muirhead for their services as Secreportant duties he is now called to discharge, taries to the Committee. he refers to Ningpo, long established as a Gzo. B. Grover, Treaty port, and' Wenchow, but lately Chairman. opened to foreign trade, the last named edition to his responsibilities requiring, in particular, an extra degree of, attention.
Report of the Shantung Famine Relic He can only promise the most sedulous care in the discharge of his duty, conscious We have much pleasure in laying before as he is of his personal shortcomings. the contributors to the Relief Fund a state-(2) The sume functionary memoriment of the monies that have been collected, alized with reference to an expectant sub-and the manner of their distribution. Prefect named Chao Pao-shen, here-When the news of the suffering in the tofore in charge of the office established North came to hand, a Committee was for the collection of funds by the sale of formed in Shanghai to raise contributions rank and titles for the purpose of provid-here and at the outports, including Japan, ing means for the repair of the sea walls on Singapore, &c. The appeals then made the coast of Chéh-kiang. This office was have been most liberally answered, and the closed by Decree Inst year, but the Committee has been thus placed in circum-individual in question has failed to comply stances to afford timely and efficient aid to with repeated. injunctions to account for the famine-stricken sufferers. A local a balance of $39,000, and other sums, for Committee was formed in Chefoo, consist-which he remains responsible. A decree ing of Messrs. Jamieson, Cornabé and is solicited stripping him of his rank, in Fergusson, to take charge of the funds onder that he may be placed on trial.—For remitted to that place for distribution in rescript see Gazette of June 27th. the interior. Several missionary gentlemen, the Rev. Mr, Richard, Dr. Nevius and Mr. Corbett, kindly undertook to. visit the most needy' districts, and have for a Public Meetings. number of months been actively engaged in dispensing the funds placed in their
MUNICIPAL COUNCIL, tite Sppeaved in fne focal paper and bear time 9} in papers, an At the Meeting of the Council, held ample testimony not only to the widely in the Council Room, 17, Kinngse Road, existing distress, but to the important Shanghai, on Monday, the 16th July, 187, service they were able to render to many at 9 o'clock a.tr. thousands' of the starving population.
Present—Meisrs. J. Hart (Chairman), Nothing requires to be said, on these points, Geo. J. W. Cowie, E. H. Lavers, E. but it is gratifying that the gentlemen have Low, A. McLeod, C. W. Siegfried, and performed the work in such an able and the Secretary. useful manner, and have recorded in The Minutes of the previous meeting emphatic terms the profound gratitude of are read and confirmed, and passed for the multitudes who received their bounty. publication.
The Catholic Missionaries at Tsinan and Cash Statement for week ending 14th inst. various places kindly volunteered their is submitted, and cheques for sundry help in the distribution of the funds, and accounts are signed. have expressed themselves as most thankful Extensions Markham Road and New for the assistance theyrreceived, and the large Cemetery Road.—Resolved to renew efforts amount of good they were thereby-able to toget these extensions carried through. effect. Applications'also came before us of lo north-eastern parts of Shantung, where the suffering has been very great, and their demands were fully niet.
Tt was pleasing to sco a notice Bepers, though unofli oot resented to the Foreign Ministers at eking by the members of, the Foreign Ofice, indicative of their warm appreciation of the benevolence shown by foreigners in the familia-stricken districts.
We. have lately received from Dr. Nevius four beautiful scrolls with inscriptions in gold letters, as a sample of a number more that were presented him by a large number of the people among hom hho was residing for several months, These inscriptions give pleasing utterance to the views and feelings of the natives, who were the witnesses and recipients of the charity so generously dispensed in their behalf, Jand, aeknowlsdgo it was owing to the kindness of the foreigners th thousands of lives were saved. Translations have been made of these and published for general information, and copies have also appeared in the Shuin-pao, which it will be a satisfaction to the donors to have cir-together the hap have fallowed the work that has thus been ether jest effect ay to
done. A most favourable impression has been made in regard to foreigners over a wide extent of country, and we hope it Yul be useful in abating the prejudices that have so long existed in relation to those who have proved to be their friends in time of need.
While acknowledging the ready response made to our appeal from all quarters on the f eat of facie, We must not omit the fact that the Chinese have equally aided us in the work. Their contributions form a most material portion of the funds that have been collected, and their. confidence in our just and right distribution of them, is satisfactory not only in this way, but in the. testimony borne by some of them who have gone north to the needy districts, and spoken with high commendation of the manner in which the work was carried on.
As to the continued necessities of the province, there is no doubt they are still in many' places very urgent. Though the wheat harvest has been abundant in some regions, both the want of money on the one hand, and the destruction caused by locusts and hail-stones on the other, together with the prevalence of famine fever over a lange extent of country, aggravate the misery of the people in an extreme degree. We are aware of severe famine in other provinces and districts, which it is impossible for us to reach, but even in the places where our funds have been dispensed, the want will long continue to be felt from' the causes we have mentioned, and from the intense destitution everywhere induced by the homes of the people having been torn down, their lands sold, their instruments of husbandry pawned, their families broken up, and many other calamities that have come upon the land. Still much has been done to alleviate the prevailing distress, and we are glad to hear that the Chinese fare now vigorously at work in that part of the country where our funds have. been chiefly used. It is reported they have a large amount of money in hand, and are pursuing a method very similar to what our friends engaged in the distribution followed out.
Owing tothe famine fever that has spread far and wide, and the number of patior!s that have crowded into Chefoo, a Hospital was established there, and kindly superintended by the late Dr. Carmichael. We regret to say that his lamented death was in no small measure occasioned by his assiduous attention to these fever cases, and the sad event deserves this ial mention in our report. The Local Committee has greatly assisted the institution by the funds-at their disposal,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.