Kiang provinces and Imperial High Commissioner of the Nanyang administration, reports that having received " despatch fom Hsiang Hang, Tartar General of Hupeh province and Military Governor ity of Chingchoulu, Hupeh, requesting the memorialist to supply him with modern firearms and ordnance, owing to the wretched condition of the ordnance department of the Manchu garrison of the last named. city which has only antiquated firearms of the o'd style, and, further, as memorialist took into account the importance of the city of Ghingchou which domin tes and guards all the Iuperial highways connecting the south with the northern parts of the province and those provinces to the north of it, the said memorialist considered it of the first importance that the troops of Chinge'iou should be properly armed in order to be able to cope with any of the numerous bands of brigands infesting the borders of Hupeh and the northern provinces. Hence, although the request of the said Tartar General was rithe- irregular, since he should have made hi request through the Viceroy at Wuchang, the importance of the mater prevented the memorialist from taking exception, and he has therefore sent by special gunboat 500 stand of breach-loading c-ntre-fire Remington rifles with 600 cartridges for euch rifle, and also a battery of four 6- centimetre calibre steel breach-loading Krupp guns, to be used as horse artillery, together with 300 rounds for each gun. Uls Majesty's apr-val is now asked for this matter—Rescript: Let the Bo ws of War and of Recenne take note, 23rd May.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.