The suspicion that last Wednesday night's fire in the Honan Road was due to incen-dintism turns out to have been only too well-founded, and yesterday morning xt the Mixed Court, before Mr. Tsai, the Magistrate, and Mr. Playfair, the British Astentor, the story of the plot' which ocensioned it was unfolded, It is certainly astonishing in many details, whilst the eagerness of the accused persons to in-ate each other has facilitated the gations of the detectives, who have een working under the direction of Detective-spector Keeling. In such cases, however, it has to be remembered that the essential point is in having something more than surmise to act upon at an early stage of enquiries, and Mr. Keeling deserves a good deal of praise fur the rapidity and skill with which he swept the accused into net and prevented his little pearing tricks of are particularly fond. The fire, it will be recalled, broke out in 93, Honan Road, a Manila Lottery shop. Strangely enough the quantity of furniture and the amount of the insurance were in inverse proportion, the furniture and contents being insured with the Imperial Fire Insurance Ca. for Tls. 1,500, assum which seems rather high considering the small display made by the articles it referred to. Evidently the proprietor must have valued them highly. Lottery shops are not generally remarkable for a large stock, and this one was no exception, Five prisoners are now in custody, Vu Hung-dai, shroff, who lived on the premises, Wang Peng-kwai, unemployed, who re:
led in Sivza, Tseng Ching-fong, shroff, Chen Fah-sun, shroff, and Ho Ab-ching, a youth, the three latter residing on the Premises. The first two are charged as principals with wilfully and feloniously setting fire to 93, Honan Road, and the three others are charged with aiding and abetting. The fire, commencing in No. 93, soon began to attack the adjoining property belonging toa Cantonese man. He seems to have had some inkling that a fire might
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.