As proof of the ignorance that prevails among the leading military officers of China, as to the requirements necessary to place their country on a war footing with Western Powers, the following narrative, culled from the Shanghai correspondent's otter to the Zimes, is important Regarding the prospects of war, or pi for war, the Chinese military mandarin with whom I have convert know very little. The following is the substance of conversation I had with ay admiral the other day, aman of more than ordinary intelligence, as military mandarins yo Phe Viceroy has sent mo a list of the Russinn fleet, of the size of its ships, the weight of the guns carried, and the number of their crews. They number about 16,000 men in all, and are stationed ata place I never heard of, called Wiadivostock. How far is that from Ruasia? Is it in China? The Russians cannot possibly come up the Yangtaze, and Peng, our Admiral in-chief, has written to the Emperor not to be afraid; Peng gunranteos with his head that not a single Ruesian ship will ever go up the. Min (to Foochow) the Whangpoo (to. Shanghai,) or the Yangtsze, the embouchure of the Grand Canal at Kvachow, and the commanding positions at Chinkisng are being well looked a Liu Kun-yi, the Viceroy at Nanking, has orders to stake the Yangtazo, if necessary. If your foreign merchant steamers are stopped, it can't be helped. You need not laugh ut our troops being armed with matchlocks, 1 consider it a grent advantage. If we fight, we shall beat the Russians, and capture their rifles, and our soldiers will uso them, becnuso they know rifle drill. But it the Russians beat us, and capture our muatehlocks, they won't be able to use them, because they do not know mateilock drill, So the advantage is clearly with us, Tam a Hunan man, and nine-tenths of the Chinese army officers and men are Hunan men. Over 200,000 men have boon enlisted in my province during the Inst fow years, and there are plenty more of us who do not fear death. The recruiting agents of vincial Governments are busy ore men now. The war party against the anti-war party at Peking, is simply Hunan against the rest of China, At the present moment in our Empire, there are four Governor-Generals, eight Imperial Commissioners, and seven genoa rals, all eager for war, and every one of them isa Hunan man, Liu Chin-tang at Kashgar; ''so Taung-tang, Governor-General of Kansu; eng Kuo-chuan, the Commander-in-Chief at Shanhai Kuan Peng, the Admiral of the Yangtezo; and Pao Chao, in command of the reserves and the recruiting at Hankow, are every one of them Hunan men, What can Li Hung-chang and the Tsung-li Yamen do tthe influence of ull these? As for chang, his brother, he is no better
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.