June 1éth.—(1) In the spring of last year the chair of the Emperor was stopped, and a petition presented by aman from Shantung named Wang Chiehchang. The petitioner was arrested and examined, and was then sent back to Shantung in order that the governor. might enquire into the matters which formed the cause of his complaint. 'The governor now reports the result of his investigation. It appears that in 1877 some farm labourers, employed by neighbour of the petitioner, named Chu Chan-kuei, were working ina' field adjoining the graveyard of the petitioner's family, and happened to trample on and damage one of the graves. The petitioner's mother Inid an action in the district court against Chu Chan-kuei and obtained damages to the- amount of forty strings of cash. His grandfather, who was away at the time, returned home soon after and brought a fresh action, which, however, was decided in the same way as the former one. But the petitioner, misled by a false report that Chu Chankuei had broken open the grave and taken from it some valuables, pearls and articles of jade, was not content to let the matter rest. He sued Chu Chan-kuei i the case on appeal into all the courts of the province, and in order to ensure attention added various accusations, of which the most important was that the defendant had bribed the officers of the district court and induced them not to make an inspection of the grave. Finally he travelled to Peking and presented his appeal to the Emperor in person. The Memorialist has had the record of the case and all the parties to it brought, al. A thorough vestigation has been held, and the' petitioner now acknowledges the accuracy of the facts as stated above. He appears, however, at the time he made his charge tu have lionessly believed its truth, and not to have been actuated by secret spite nor to have been instigated by other persons, Still he committed a grave offence in stopping His Majesty's chair in order to present a petition ona case already closed, and for this the Meniorialist proposes to sentence him to the punishment laid down in the law for such cases, wamely, banishment and a flogging of one hundred Llows.—Reseript Let the Board of Punishments take note.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.