Memorial from a Censor called Liang he subject of the necessity of a reformation of the system under which examinations are conducted, and a fresh enunciation of the old rules, He commences with the premise that the first egsontial in the conduct of examinations is strict attention to fairness and honesty on the part of the candidate. During the two hundred and amore years that the examination system has been in i millions of graduates hava been competing for one youl, and, with the growth of time, abuses wre not only easily matured, but their existence is absolutely unavoidable, The only remedy for this state of things is the adoption of periodical measures of reorganisation and reform in order to the prevention of the deterioration of the standard which should be maintained by literary class, and the check of abuses before they assume too great proportions. The Memorialist has recently read in the Peking Gazelte Memorials on this subject from two atticers, the views expressed by whom he entirely endorses, but in his opinion their suggestions are not sufficiently comprehensive, and they do not go far enough in the work of reformation, He ventures therefore to make some further suggestions which he divides into six heads they are as follows 1.—The law prohibiting the candidates from obtaining outside assistance should be enunciated afresh.
There are many ways in which this is obtained, when the subjects are announced. A candidate writes them out and has them thrown over the wail to a confeds-rate in waiting, who sends him back by the same means ready-made answers to his questions, The servant in attendance upon each alley or row of cells is often himself a professional essay-writer who obtains this position from the nonce to Babsitates, again, are often introdaoed papers
to personify the real candi 2—Care must be taken in the choice of the copyists employed to transcribe the papers of the candidates before they are submitted to the scrutiny of the Examiner.
The vices of copyists are many. Some required to be bribed, or they intentionally off a hasty copy omitting some char-assay of the candidates, which siyle. Many of the copyists, tov, are literary graduates, who, for a sideration, touch up the papers of some of the candidates and correct their mistakes, of, again, put private marks on the copies, that the author of the paper may be known; while others arrange through the servants of officers engage conducting the examination to have the copies of their papers numbered with a certain number in the series that the author may be known and his papers passed, The remedy for this state of things is the increase of official inspectors, by whom alone the papers should be numbered and stamped, instead of by their servente ollicer who receives the papers: should further note the number of corrections and addenda on each paper befure passing it on to the copyist.
3.—Care should be taken in the select ofan assistant examiner, who should variably be a now arrival in the province and not an oficial of long-standing, who would be in a position to make arraugements with the candidates beforehand.
4—Moro attention must be paid to th scrutiny of the general paper set at the Usird oF last of the three periods into which examinations are divided. This paper, which is an essay on some general subject, gives great scope for the exhibition of scholarship, but is seldom noticed by the examiner, 5.—A revision of the papers of the rojected candidates should be made. It is the practice of the assistant examiners to abandon the scrutiny of any paper that may remain after a sufficient number of good papers have been passed for subinission to the chief examiner, so that many papers are never read at all, 6.—Care should be taken in the final inspection of the papers of the successful candidates to seo that their compositions are not copies of old documents.
Zud_and 3rd.—(1) The Acting of Hunan reports the trial of certain individual for fraudulent personification and the sentences passed upon himself and others implicated in the offence. Chou Chia-pu, the individual in question, a native of Chfang-sha Hsien, and in former days was a "brave," obtaining for his services in action a blue feather and the grade of pa tsung, or sergeant, which he now holds, Sonte three years "go hi services were dispensed with, and he returned to his native town, where he came across an old acquaintance of his called Huang Shou-ch'ang, who told him that he, Huang, had in his possession a cap-commission belonging to one Chou 'Yé-fu. Chou Chia-pu bought this commission from Huang for 40 strings of cash, and, assuming the name of Chou 'Té-fu, joined the Governor's Brig that the higher rank which fraudulent assumption of Chou Té-fu's name would give him better opportunities of being employed on special service, not to mention the fact that he would obtain the pay of the higher rank. Vie fraud was subsequently discovered by Tien Fu-sheng, a Lieutenant Colonel the same Brigade, who threatened to expose Chou unless he gare him money. Chou paid the Colonel Tls. 24 to hold his tongue, and matters went on quietly for some time, until, in the autumn of the year 1883, the Colonel again made a demand upon Chou for a loan of more money. This Chou refused, whereupon the Colonel prevailed upon one Li Pi-ching to as-sumo the spurious name of Chou Té- lin, and representing himself to be the brother of Chou Té-fu to charge Chow Chia-pu at the office of the Colonel of the regiment with the fraudulent assumption of his brother's name and rank, the Volouel's object being to extort more' money from Chien Chia-pu, The charge was duly made, and the Colonel having reported into the Scting Gurernor, the Alilitary. Secretariat was ordered to investigate the circum stances of the case in concert with the Judge and Prefect of Chang-sha acting under the orders of the latter. The enquiry elicited from the parties an admission of the facts as narratedabove, andthe Memorialist, after verifying the evidence by a personal examination of the parties, proceeded to pass sentence upon them, The following are the provisions of the law upon which he based his judsmo Any person who shall purchase a commission, and fraudulently assuming the name of the rightful owner thereof, proceed to enter upon the duties of his office, shall be decapitated after the usual period of incarceration.
b.—Any person, whether official or a private individual, who shall falsely pre tend that a certain matter personally concerns him, and shall obtain a hearing of charges brought under such false pretences, shall, if upon the investigation of Ube case it be proved that the matter doos not concern him, be exposed in the cangue for three months and at the expiration of this period shall be banished into military sertitude upon anearfeoutier. Such eeutence shall be passed whether the charges brought be true or false, and irrespective of the fact whether money be or be not obtained, no distinction being made between principals and accessories."
Under the law ax above quoted, Chou Chia-pu has been sentenced to receive a hundred blows and to be banished to a distance of 3,000 li, this being " modification of the clause a which is warranted by the special circumstances of his Ho has pleaded the age of his mother, who has only him wolf to depend upon, as A justification for the remission of his sentence, but the plea has been disallowed in view of the gravity of his offence, Tien Fu-sheng and Li Pi-ching have been sentenced under clause J above quoted to exposure in the cangue for three months and banishment into" military servitude upon a near frontier, Tien Fu-sheng, being a commissioned officer, will be empted from wearing the cangue. The man Huang has absconded, and will be separately dealt with upon arrest. No trace can be found of Chou Té-fur, whose whereabouts will be elicited from Huang when the latter has been arrested. i n the Governor:
4 Provinces porting that the Mugistrate of the District in the province of Hunan has announced the perpetration of a burglary on certain premises outside the walls of the District Town by un individual called Yang, who falsely styled himself a recruiting agent. The man is still at large, but atops are being taken for The Memorialist takes th pointing out thet the provin and Hunan are afavouriterecruiting ground for troops, and recruiting mgents often come there for that purpose unprovided with credentials from the authorities of the provinces they represent. he result is that many unscrupulous individuals falsely personify recruiting agents. The local authorities, in view of the importance of the object upon which they are supposed to be etizaged, do not; it is only after the men have got away that the spuriousness of their mission is discovered. As the mischief that arises from the collection of a number of strangers in one place, who proceed to harass the locality in which they are, is very serious, the Memorialiat
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.