May Ist.—With the exception of two unimportant' memorials, the whole of this day's Gazette is occupied with a report from the Governor-General and Governor at Canton, in answer to a decree calling for reply to the accusations ofan anonymous nowuncer, who stated that one Fu Lien, who had' earlier been guilty of fraudulent practices, had ch: his name '0 Fu chang, alias FuCh'i, and was now employed a clark in the Canton Customs, in which capacity he had: been guilty of extensive frauds' and various malpractices. These charyes having been referred to Chitin Ch'i, the Hoppo, that oticer has supplied the memorialists with the information, upon which they base the following statement The Canton Customs establishment is divided into two branches, the native and the foreign. The returns of revenue collected by the native branch are made up once a year, and the returns of revenue collected. by the foreign branch are made up periodically. The Superintendent furnishes the Governor-General regularly with copies of these returns, together with copies ut his memorials to the Throne covering the returns. On perusal of these returns for the years 1876 and 1877, by the memorialists, they found the totals agreed with the books of the Customs Bank, but the items were so numerous and 80 complicated that they handed the accounts over to the Financial Commissioner for careful comparison and scrutiny. They directed him at the same time to furnish them with a statement of the official career of the man Fu Lien, alias Fu Kuang, obtained from the individual himself. {appears from his testimony, corroborated by other evidence, that he had not changed his name while employed at the Customs, and that it was his brother, and not he, who had been guilty of fraud neither' was he, as stated, a clerk in the treasury department ofthe Customs, but a writer employed in the sorting letter office. The large appropriations of the opium Fevenue with which lé is charged are shown by the books of the Customs Bank not to have been perpetrated, and as.his duties were in no way connected with the accountant's department, it would have "been impossible for him to have been guilty fraud. Other charges against him are. similarly disproved. He left the Customs in 1876, and after his departure changed his name to Fu Kuang, and bought the rank of Taotai, when Fuhkien was the province allotted to him in which to serve. Instead of then leaving Canton, however, he remained, and waa in constant relations with' a connection called Fu Jung, a clerk in the treasury department of the Customs. In this he wasin the wrong, as his intimate relations with Fa Jung gave rise to suspicion, and it is requested that ho may be cashiered and sent back to his native place.
May 2ud.—(1) Memorial from T'u Tsung-ying, Governor of Honan, reporting the results of attempt to introduce a more stem of sericulture into that province. The soil of Honan is rich and productive, and there is ample room for the cultivation of the mulberry with a view to the manufacture of silk, in addition to the growing of all kinds of cereals. Until quite recently nothing but the local mulberry and the wild worm had existed in Honan, and although silk was produced in certain parts of the province, it was by no means a universal industry. Attar the creat famine, the harvests began gradually to improve; but industry generally was in a id far from flourishing state, and the memorialist last year directed the official body throughout his jurisdiction to en cot the rearing of silk-worms, with a view to establishing a new branch of trade. The Acting Financial Commissioner brought, gut and printed a pamphlet sericulture, and the memorialist invited the provincial Government to organise a central agency for the promotion of this industry." Subscriptions were set on foot, and agents were sent by the comtteo to Chekiang to purchase 230,000 ailk-'Twenty-four mechanics were also gaged, worms, and 360 cards of auk-worm oygs. all the necessary appliances obtained, and over 30,000 mulberry saplings were purchased.' These and the eggs were distributed through the province for issue to the people, and a plot of ground was secured in the vicinity of K'ai-feng Fu, which was fenced in, and specimens of the balance of saplings imported from Hu-chow were planted there, both as an experiment and as an example to others todo likewise. These sap shave all sprouted; weavers wi then engaged from local artisans and men from other provinees, and a factory has been started in K'aicféng Fa, to which intelligent children were invited tocome and learn the process, as well as gentry and people from outlying districts, the funds required being raised by subscription. The scheme has now been in operation for nearly a year, and results have already begun to show themselves. The Department and District Magistrates, too, have gone with spirit into the enterprise, some purchasing seed and growing mulberry trees from it, others buying saplings or contributing money, and for one of these officers especially, who has contributed Tls. 1,000, the memorialist would solicit the bestowal of marks of approbation, though he himself deprecates uy recommendation of the ind.
May 3rd.—(Court Circular.) The Prefecture of Shun-tien Fu reports the death of Li Oh'ao-yi, the Governor.
Memorial from the Governor of Shantung, in reply to a decree calling for an answer to certain charges brought forward by a literary graduate called Yao Wen-han, and submitted to the Throne by the Court of Censors, in which it is alleged that a system of squeezing exists in the collection of the grain-tax by means of sampling the rice so delivered. The Committes forming the provincial Government, and trustworthy agents having been deputed to make secret enquiry in every part_of the province, the Financial Commissioner and Grain' Intendant have now sent in a report to the following effect. There are altogether 69 departments and districts in Shantung in which grain-tax should be levied. OF these, P'u-chen, and the Fan and Shou-chang districts need not, for present purposes, be taken into consideration, as the grain-tax in these places has been entirely remitted for more than ten years past, owing to the ravages of the Yellow River, This leaves only G6 districts to be dealt with. In 1864, during the incumbency of the Governor Yen Ching-ming, it was arranged that the rate at which payments should be made in commutation of grain tribute should be fixed at 6,000 small cash the picul, which was to include all weigh. ing fees, transport fees, and other items of similar nature. The convenience of the commutative system being appreciated by the people, payments have been made in money and not in kind in almost every district. In one or two districts part payment is made in kind and part in money, but it is left entirely to the option of the people to adopt either aystem. In the case of payments in kind, as there isa great variety in the quality of the rice, it is the custom of the authorities to call: upon those paying in grain to show a small quantity in a dish as a sample. If the clean, it is returned into the measure and Kernels of the sample are dry, round and accepted aa rice of the proper standard of ality. he charge of demanding double proper quantity is equally devoid of truth, Che suggestion of the graduate, that the people should be allowed to com: mute their grain-tax by a money payment based on the market rates of silver and adopted, no further natio rice, being precisely the plan that Rescri May 4th.—{1) Postscript memorial from Li Han-chang, announcing the despatch of 4 remittance of Tls. 10,000, being the first instalment of the contribution due to the Office of the Imperial Household from the lekin revenue on salt for the year 1881.
The Governor-General at anton reports the despatch of the first instalment of the quota of salt revenue due to Peking for the present year, At the close of last year the Board of Revenue, in presenting their estimates, announced that the subsidy they proposed to demand from the various provinces for the present year was Tis, 7,000,000, to be raised on and, salt, and Customs duties, A decree Was issued sanctioning this proposal, and in the returns appended to their memorial, the salt revenue of Kuanstuny was charged with a payment of Tis, 200,000 in addition to a sum of Tis, 60,000, divi-dands on Imperial moneys placed out at interest. The following sums have now boon remitted as a first instalment Due from the year 1879.
From the salt revenue subsidy for Peking 10,000 Scale allowance and' maintenance money on above 1,300 For the Imperial Houseliola.....ss" 20,000 Scale and porterage allowance on above. 660 Due for the Subsidy for Peking (sent in specie) 40,900 Do. do. '(sent in bills)...... 41,260 May 5th.—(1) The following appoint. ments and transfers are announced: Liu Ao (Bi BO, Taotai of Taiwan, with brevet rani: of Provincial Judge.
Lu Fu-lin, late Prefect of Lien-chen Fu, to be Judge of Szechuen.
Ts'én Yitying, Governor of Kueichow, to be Governor of Fuhkien,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.