The opposition to Lieutenant-General Nogi as Governor-General appears to have subsided. To foreigners who admire his many excellent qualities his retirement from office would be looked upon as.a calamity to the island. The frequent exchange of officials and shifts of policy which the island has been subjected have kept Formosa in an unsettled condition, and now with the establishment of the ad: trative reforms and the appointment of new officials it is to be sincerely hoped that the Cabinet and Diet will keep their hands off for a sufficiently long. period to permit of he present administration being given a fair trial. Many of the Japanese merchants are especially "opposed to Governor Nogi and it is supposed that they are responsible for the analy tales which have been circulated ridiculing his Excellency on account of the latter's strict views as to the conduct of his officials. He does not believe that it is conducive to official dignity. that the Chinese should see drunken officers reeling home from geisha sprees, npr does he believe that Japanese merchants should be permitted to get at State money without value received. He is outspoken against dishonesty and reckless dissipation. Both exist in the island and it is not possible that he opposes them without making enemies.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.