A traveller just returned from the New Dominion comniunieates the following to the Shen Pao:—Since the New Dominion was made into a province, and chow and hien officials appointed there as in China Proper, the people have come much more under the control of the Central Government; but the state of the defences on the Jong 3,000 Ni line of the Tien Shan Nan Lu and Peh Lu is still far from what it should be. At Hami and Th a stronger force should be kept to watch the frontier, Tar-" bagatai, owing to its proximity to Russia, should be very strongly garrisoned, however nich it may cost the Government to do so, The Russians have lately sent three explore ing expeditions into Tibet, and the intrepidity with which their explorers make their way over the difficult mountain roads from Kashgar to Tibet shows what importance their Government attaches to the possession of information about the country and people. These travellers lose no opportunity of ingratiating themselves with the natives by the bestowal of small presents and kindnesses, calculated to make them glad to meet Russians again. China should keep Hami and Ili strongly garrisoned in order to checkmate Russia in her insidious manceuvres._ Tsdng, Prefect of Ch'aochow Fu (near Swatow) recently underwent a painful humiliation. He had obtained, through the late Viceroy Chang Chih-tung, permiasion to enrol 1,000 soldiers tu do gendarme duty in his prefecture, considering this force necessary owing to the proverbially turbulent character of the natives, of whom General Fang executed 9,000 in 20 years to pacify the district. Not knowing that the permission to enrol these men had been rescinded since Chang Chih-tung's departure on the recommendation of the Board at Peking, he was busy taking down their names enthroned in the general pavilion on the parade-ground and 600 had already passed before him, when a courier rushed up with a telegram, from Canton commanding him instantly to cease enlisting the men if he should have begun. The unfortunate Prefect put the best face on the matter that he could under these embarrassing circumstances, He had hundreds of strings of cash brought and giving each man 600 cash (or about half dollar), he ordered them for the present to return to their homes, and after China New Year he would let them know what was to be done, He then started for Canton determined to leave no stone unturned to induce Li Han-chang, the new Viceroy, to get the per mission to enrol the 1,000 meu renewed,—Hu-Pao.
'A thief of Ninghien, near Ningpo called Lai-tow (scald-head), was robbing a house in the village of Chéngkiatuan, when he was heard by an old man left to take care of the house, the owner and his wife being at anew year's party, for it was the 7th day of the Ist moon (27th January), The old man went upstairs to look, but found no one, for the thief had hidden himself in the rafters of the roof. The watchman then proceeded to treat himself to a solitary jibe, and by some mischance set fire to the The house burned while the watchman slept on; and the thief came down again to finish his work, but was alarmed at seeing the flames and was making the best of his way off when he was caught by the villagers. Unfortunately for him, thetirespread until seventeen huts were burned down. The lynch law practised in Chinese villages is very severe upon incendiaries, and in the minds of the villagers there seemed no doubt that in Lai-tow they had caught one red-handed. His appeals for justice or merey met with no response; they tied him hand and foot with straw ropes, poured Jamp-oil on the poor wretch and hurled him into the burning mass, where death stter minutes put an end to his terrible shi The Paushen (Bandits) Lama, is one of the Pontifis of Tibet, the other being the
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.