The last week has been unusually quiet, while the students have been engaged in the examination, The number who entered the Hall was something over 8,000, in contrast to about 12,000 last year. This change ig due to the impoverished condition of so many of the districts.
The chief examiner is Pao Ch'ang, a Vice President of the Board of Rites and a Manchu. The Chief Supervisor in place of the Governor has been the Literary Chancellor, Té Yi, also a Manchu.
Immediately after the arrival of the Examiners, the Governor left for his duties on the Yellow wr. It is rather amusing time, that we have had this year. Half the to see how the memorials of the Governor millet and bean crops are still standing. recognise only the gap in Chang Chin and Rain of this character a little later would account for all other floods by an overflow de very welcome as permitting the saving of the river. The people, however, are of one wheat crop. able to detect a few gaps on both sides of The question of the Decree authorising the river and in all the embankments. railway construction seems to have worked What will be the effect of the extensive much more largely in the minds of the floods on the feeling of the people it is residents at Tientsin and Shanghai than impossible to conjecture. There seems, with the inhabitants of the so-called Slewpy however, to be in the air rather the liability Hollow. There is no use in going into of discontent and rebellion. For multitudes hysterics over it. There is many a slip of people and innocent at that to be suddenly submerged again in deep distress without between the cup and the lip. As your northern contemporary very well puts it, food or homes, is by no means a safe occur-"the real opposition of the populace, gentry rence. Why was not the river dredged and officials has not yet been tested." The and embankments strengthened during a line has to "'pass through the turbulent whole year of rest from the Yellow water? populations of southern Chihli, Honan, Such were the orders of the Emperor. and Hupeh, where, especially in Honan, The Governor has had a remarkable foreigners and foreign things are held in faculty of appointing officials trained in cordial detestation." The same paper adds opposing foreigners at the capital to places "the line is not a commercial, nor even where foreigners are located, rather than strategic one, but rather a line of least men who have given proof of ability and tance." This is rather strange lan-justice. One was specially commissioned to Yen-chow-fu to examine into the proguage 0 use when in the same article general Annenkofl is styled "the true perty difficulties of the Roman Catholics. father of Chinese railways." This is an Another was sent to the district of En-absurd, though an original idea. If it hsien, where missionaries of the Americwn were true, one would have expected the Board are located. A third was sent to Tine to be above all things strategic and Wei-hsien, where the American Presby-instead of running south from the capital one terious are posted. And a fourth was sent: to the Prefecture of T'ai-an, where would have expected it to take a norther!; direction to meet the proposed Trans-Siberithe Anglican Mission is located. It is an railway, and the Taku line to be pushed on needless to say that such a method is not to Shan-hai-kwan and thence to the Corean helpful to the cause of peace. frontier and also to the Amour. The Rus-'A change has occurred in the attitude in sian railway projector had nothing what-Chi-nan-fu. Some time since I noted the ever to do with it or the question of the death of the wealthiest man among the adoption of a railway system in China, gentry, and now I have to record the death In an otherwise able article on railway of the most influential of the gentry, and one progress, the Chinese Times falls into an who has opposed foreigners, both Roman error in placing "the call by the Imperial Catholics and Protestants, in one case after Government for reports by the maritime another. This man is Mr. Li Ch'ing-ao, a Viceroys Governors of provinces affected Hanlin, formerly Treasurer and Acting on the general question," as subsequent to Governor in Shanse, and afterwards Go-the abandonment of the Tungchow line, vernor in Honan. Last year one of his The fact is that it was the very opposition sons was degraded in Kiangsu, and another tothe Tungchow line which produced the son died, and now he, too, has gone the callforthe reports. The question was too way of all the earth. 'Thus the two men upon whom the Governor has been wont Portant and the opposition was too powerul, and hence the reference of the question to call and for whose face' he resisted the to the high officials of the Empire, If the efforts of foreigners, Kaye retired from Tungchow line which had been sanctioned service. and was afterwards abandoned, not alone Also one of the ringleaders in the nut two years ago against Mr. Reid has died, by the strong opposition offered before but after the call for reports, had been previously receiving the punishment for his evil deeds abandoned, we should not have had Chang in that way. There is something of a feeling among the Chinese that alt the cala-Chih-tung for example opposing the Tung: chow line, not to speak of the other memo-mities are a punishment of Heaven for rialists. "The expression quoted above, opposing the efforts of missionaries. Any-Governors of provinces. affected," la way it is remarkable that almost entirely in without meaning, for at that time no this province those who have given trouble southern line was in contemplation, except to missionary work have sooner or later jthe Tungchow one; and the maritime come to grief. It is a coincidence that Governors were consulted partly because speaks. they were supposed to be inure qualitied The American Mission some two months to pronounce an opinion, and answer ago rented anew large house on an import-{from them could be more speedily oboutstreet. The people adjoini tained. Moreover the Viceroy Chang and able and friendly.
Governor Liu Ming-chuan ruled over 9th September. ravinees which were never intended to affected by the present railway move: ment. At first there was no intention
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.