The wonted stillness of the Tungchou mill-pond has been seriously ruffled this Inst week, to the discomfort of foreigners and Chinese alike. A fortnight ago two members of outstation left by bicycle for a five days' trip to an outstation, forty miles to the north-east. Their road lay through, the heart of the region that has been lately chosen as the winter camping groand of Tung Fuchsiang's troops) though at the time we were all of us ignorant of this fact. As one of the gentle-had-been attacked by a rowdy with a ord only afew days previously, both of them carried revolvers, and one a sporting gun as well.
Two days later, rumours began to float about the city, to the effect that two foreigners, travelling on bicycles, had been SEIZED AND CARRIED AWAY BY SOLDIERS, at a point on the road, forty Zi north of this city. It was not until evening of the following day that these rumours were brought to us directly by one of our own teachers, who considered that they were too serious longer to be disregarded. The report as he brought it described so accurately ths two men arrested that there was no room to doubt their identity. None of us were to give full credence to the report, but the matter was manifestly too serious to be dist as the soldiers in question were the very ones who had had the affray with foreigners at Lukouch'iao, and were known tobin an ugly temper.
The Erhfu Yamen or sub-prefect, at once sent out runners to ascertain the facts." We also sent a man often used by us as. quick messenger—s scissors-grinder by trado—to make all possible speed to the reported scene of the abduction, and bring back trustworthy information. He was back by daylight of the next day, and
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.