A remarkable case, involving much complication, and possessing some amount of public interest, was heard on adjournment, at the mixed Court, on Monday last, before the Chinese Magistrate Chen. Mr. Himly, of the German Consulate, neted as Court interpreter; and Mr, Joneph Haas, of the Austro-Hungarian Consulate, wxs intereter for the petitioners, Messrs. J. J.
juchheister and Ca., who were represented by Mr. F. W. Fal The defendants were Chinamen, named Ho-kan-chen and mu-leu-yun, the latter being compradore Known foreign house, not connected with the transaction in question, It is impossible to follow the compli tions of the case as they arose, and a narrative will be best understood In 1872, Chang, Taotai of Soochow, was directed' by the Governor of the ' province of Kiang-s00 En, to purchase from Messrs. Reid, Evans & Ca., 3,000 rifles, for the use of the army stationed in Yunan, to suppress the rebellion in that province, Chang Toatai afterwards received a despatch from the Governor-General of Ytinan and Kwei-chow Lieu, and Ts'eng, Governor of Yunan, by which he was ordered, as military operations were in Yunan, not to' send any more ar material to that district. This second dispatch arrived just after the order had been given to Mossra, Reid and Ca. for the 3,000 rifles. Chang informed Messrs. Reid' about the dispatch, and it was agreed, in order to settle the matter, that each side should take half of the number of rifles. 'The two defendants acted us the brokers in the business, and, according to the version previously given by Chang (who is now in Soochow, and therefore could not be examined' to-day), they represented to him that he would first have to pay Tle. 5000 for 500 of the rifles, which, according to sample, were to be Snider breechloaders; and with reference to the remaining 1,000, ''seu-len-yun agreed to take them himself, but as it umed that their value might.quence of the cessation of should also pay him Tls. 4,500, to cover warlike operations, he stipulated that Chang
any deficiency that might arise. Chang believing Tsou-leu-yun's representations, paid him the two amounts. On the 30th June last, Chang requested Messrs. Buch-hoister to sell the 600 rifles for they were purchased by Messr Miller ana Go. afterwards, Chang requested Tseu-leu-yun to deliver the 500 rifles, according to the sample above mentioned, at the same time enclose ing Tis, 50 to be paid to Messrs. Buch-hoister for godown rent for storage. It was found that the rifles sold to W. Miller and Ca. were not Sniders, but an inferior weapon, the allegation being that Tsou-lou-yun had "rung the changes." That firm have in consequence entered' an action in the German Consular Court against Messrs. J. J. Buchter to recover Tls. 2,687, the action being held by consent in abeyance until the case against the present defendants is disposed of. It is further alleged that Teeu-leu-yun disposed of the 1,000 rifles alluded to above, in another direction, and that they or many of them were Sniders, The petitioners, therefore, acting on the advice of Chang, now sue thetwodefendants to recover the Tis, 5,000 paid for the 500 rifles, also the Tis, 2,687, the amount claimed by Messrs, J. W. Miller & Ca., and the is, 60 for godown rent, which had not been paid to Messrs, Buchheister by them, although it had been forwarded by Chang for that purpose. The total claim was therefore Tis, 7,737—or the return of the 500 Snider rifles,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.