News has been received from Peking that Li Ping-hong, the ex-Governor of Shantung, has been appointed Imperial High Commissioner of the Yangtze, and that, on the 22nd ultimo, he had returned thanks for the high honour conferred on him. The disregard of the enmity of powerful Manchu nobles and officials with which Li Ping-hong performed his duties recently as Investigating High Commissioner in Lower Manchuria, is said to have aroused the confidence of the. Empress Dowager, and her first intention was to appoint him Governor of Shansi for which purpose she deposed the unlucky Hu Ping-chih without assigning any open reason for her action. This, as we have ona previous occasion stated, was frustrated by the opposition of the British Charge Affaires, Mr, Bax Ironside. This rather disconcerted the Empress Dowager; but she was determined to find some fitting st for her protéyé to show the country her appreciation of such a man, and sought for advice from both Prince' Ching and Jung Lu, but these becoming alarmed and jealous at the sudden appearance of a now favourite, declined to assist her in making acholoe, As a matter of fact, the Empress Dowager in her admiration of Li wished to create some important post for him, and atone time intended to retain him as a special confidant and adviser. Of course this suited Prince Ching and Jung Lu still less, Like Kang Yi, the cliques re-Bid mot deetev to have Ti g-hong in resented by Prince Ching and Jung Lu
the Capital and too near the Empress Dowager, and so one of them suggested the Imperial Commissionership of the Yangtze as a fitting post for the new favourite. The Empress Dowager seized on the idea, it being a" unique post and only held once before in this dynasty, namely, by P'éng Yit-lin of 'Taiping Rebellion fame, whose courage, honesty, and fidelity to the Throne obtained for' him the title of the 'Iron-headed" Admiral of the Yangtze. The jurisdiction of the Imperial High Commissioner of the Yangtz stretches over the waterways of fiv provinces, namely, Kiangsu, Kiangsi Anhui, Hunan, and' Hupeh, and by virtue of his title he is equal in rank to and independent of the Viceroys and Governors of the provinces named above. He has, moreover, the enormous power of executing misdemennants first and reporting the atter afterwards to the Throne, making himself responsible to no man except the Emperor above him. In the nature of things, the power of the High Commissioner frequently clashes with the territorial rights of the provinces concerned. When P*éng Yii-lin, the Tron-headed," held the post, he also was Commander-in-Chief of the naval forces of the five provinces which Li Ping-hong, will is Huang Chan-chun who has the rank rebably not be, as the present holder
of x King-pao or as it is translated now, "Mars Li, however, will be Marshal Huang's immediate chief and in this capacity can have all the military backing he may wish to call for in an emergency, without having recourse to the Viceroys and Governors concerned. This appointment also came at a time when much was being said about "spheres of influence, " especially the British sphere o influence in the Yangtze Valley, and it just suited the Empress Dowager to place her protéyé in the Yangtze provinces to watch over her interest there, and the actions of the Viceroys and Governors, the British and other foreign officials in'that portion of the Empire. The only drawback to this revival of the old post that Li Ping-hong holds such peculiar ideas and conservative views—he is thoroughly honest yand clean-handed and may make things decidedly unpleasant for El officials, such as Viceroys Chang Chih-tung xnd Liu K'un-yi, who entertain broader and more advanced views, With almost arbi trary powers over these five provinces it can easily be seen that Li Ping-hong will be able to cause unpleasantness through a territory ten times the extent of his former Governorship. He is, however, said to be afflicted with chronic rheumatism in both legs which may result in alysis, and this was the excuse he made in declining his new appointment when it was offered him. But he had to accept at last for the Empress Dowager wrote remonstrance with her own hand calling upon his loyalty and patriotism to do his duty. It may he, therefore, that we shall see Li Ping-hong' here, en route for anking, before the closing of the Peiho River at Tientsin,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.