Mowsteur te Coxsvt,—Ihavethe honour to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch on the subject of the burning and pillaging of mission chapels in the various districts of this province, with its enclosed schedule in 33 sheets drawn up, in compliance with orders from your office, by the missionaries, giving an account complete in every detail of the damage done, showing the total loss suffered by the missionaries and their converts on this occasion to be $383,388.34, You state that these outrages took place" in the years 1884 and 1885, and that they were the result of the inability of the local officials to give protection, in spite of the issue by His Imperinl Majesty of several Eqicts enjoining on local officers the duty of affording adequate protection to fore interests. Youstate that H.M, Edicts were not vigorously executed, and the consequence was, you maintain, that the people were allowed to maltreat the missionaries and their converts at their pleasure.
The loss of property of this great value you say is most deplorable, and you appeal
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.