The crops have all been got in, and despite the great of the season in the early summer, the harvest has been a satisfactory one. The rainfall has not been up to the average, but on the 22nd, we were favoured with a thunderstorm with hail. The cold weather is driving our residents in from the Hillsand already the Russian and American Legations have returned—the various missionary bodies are also on the eve of returning, and last will follow the: British Legation. 'The Italian Minister and' Madame and Miss de Luca have arrived at the German Legation andthe German Minister, with Madame and Miss de Luca and the German Secretary of tion have paid a
still held and are ik to be contend wae cal veees Bil ea Sir Robert's el Vedne: garden parties are during October. The Band has been rescuscitated, new recruits having been drawn from tientsin, The new amateur Manchu band is making commendable progress and during the incoming winter it is hoped will be able to discourse some fine music, A new Secretary to the Russian Legation has arrived. Mr. Sundius of the British Consular service has gone to Shanghai, and will proceed later to Amoy. The Italians have hq 4 new property for a Legation, little it of the American Methodist: Mission. M. and Madame Pity and family are now settled here having come from Corea and several additions have lately been made to the Customs staff, Large consignments of the new Science Primers in Chinese are being forwarded to Tientsin, Shanghai, Hankow, Foochow and Canton. The MIA, nine days' examination of candidates is over, and now the three high officials appointed to conduct the examination have a month in close confinement within the Hall, in which to scrutinize the essays and decide on the successful candidates—some 300 out of 17,000. It is reported that sixteen deaths' took place during the examinations. We have not heard the causes of death, but we may suppose some were cases of cholera, which has been somewhat revaleut of late, it is said, in Tientsin and ere among the Chinese, others of suicides from chagrin, ete. and probably some from opium. he quarters are far too crowded the open st are much too small and confined, and the weather at night has been more than usually severe. The new buildings in the Russian Legation are fast approaching completion. One of the two russian printers engaged on the composition of the new Russian-Chinese dictionary at the Tung-Wen College died lately of cholera.
The usual visitors from Tientsin and Shanghai representing well-known firms there, are either here or shortly expected, The arrival of Kelly and Walsh's representative is a pleasant surprise to us; we feel for the moment transported to Shanghai, when we visit the stores and view their display of goods. The best things however are usually picked pat Tientsin and Chefoo, as the expensive transport from Tientsin makes every one desirous of parting with as much as possible at these ports, New quarters have been bought for the German students, adjoining the Eastern Cathedral. Our doctors and other scientific people here think your note about beriberi in your issue of the 22nd September incorrect. The Chinse. terms' Jo. saan' or. ann tung are for a mild pain of any sort in the joints. They are also applied to a sense of fatigue in the joints, as in the feet after excessive walking, or in those of the hand after much writing. The sensation is not anzsthetic, which latter is one principal symptoms of kakki or in Chinese chian chi, feet vapour. We are Jed to make these remarks, not only by way of correction, but because the Japanese servants of H.E, the Minister here suffered
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.