Through waiting th return from Hor of our messenger, Wan, Hsin-cheng, this issue of the "Refugee is somewhat belated.
The passing of transports of the different nations cent unally reminds us of the trouble in the North. Chefvo, however, is quiet; 80 much so, that the grim man-of-war, the prarefice of which we seemed to think so essential to our peace of mind not Jong ago, is now mostly conspicuous by its absence.
Our messenger met with no hindrance on his long journey to and from Honan, a distance of about 1,200 miles the round trip. He left here on.he 18th of September and got back yesterday by way of Chinanfu and Yangchiakou, and thence sea to Chefoo. Chang' Hei-pin and Swan Ti came with him. LiCh'eng-land Wang Mei arrived to-day, having made the whale distance overland.
The fall crops in Honan have not been a complete success. After the rain in July there was renewal of the drought, and Huilang "ere is again no harvest. other places the crop varies from 2 or 3 tenths to-s or 9 tenths of an average one, the Latter probably on irrigated land. For the same reason the wheat land has again not been sown in places, Yet we believe the scarcity does not obtain over nearly 6o large an ares as last year, and the "distress will therefore be much less, The active persecution of Christians has for the most part ceased, and from the mes-Senger as well as from letters received from wany of the Chris ians themselves, we learn that it is nos cou.paratively peaceful. None of thr have been killed, "ud as far we cum we nain neatly all ate standing by their cobwurs. Most of then have sutored more or vss. They have been hung up, boston, and tortured for the pur-4 money or causing them to ssses of Wang Ire estimated st over $8 0 old. In all there matters the magistrate absolutely refused to. pr tect them unless they woul recant; and, however paradoxical it may sound, he is ported to actually commanded them, saying: You must recant and worship the false gods!" One man was tested by having a cross marked on the ground. "Now," said the unrighteous judge, "your saviour Jesu on the cross; dare you. to. trample Thus some lege of the truth has penetrated even to this man, Oh that the truth might make him free.
Ch'uwang station, has been pretty thoroughly destroyed. Mackenzie's. and McClure's houses have been gutted of every vestige of timber except the roof. Even the cross-pivees which xupiort the wall above the windows and doors have been dug out. The iron roof still covers the former house, but the walls of tha latter are fal ing down. The women's and men's dispensaries and chapels are in much the same dilapidated condition as the two residenc-s. All other buildings were more or less wrecked. No doubt the materials of all these buildings would have been carried away had it not been for the faith-fol guard kept over the yard by Captain Yang. But when the messenger left, Yang was at the point of death from paralysis, and probably the town vandals will carry off all they want this winter. Our next neighbour was already doing a thriving business in bricks, ete. Drags and valuable instruments are of course scattered to the four winds or destroyed.
Until an official came from Yi Ch'ang, the Governor, the loot was only sold aecrer= ly, but when he told the people it was quite right to loot the foreigners, our stuff became a regular article of commerce on the open market. Organ keys and reeds, sewing machine fixture, etc., are sold curios and playthings. Three reeds sel for one cent At Changte some military officers occupy the foreign houses, but the buildings do not appear to have been much injured. The yard, however, has had a trench dug outside the wall, and on the inside the earth has been raised so as to make convenient height for a soldier to shoot out over the wall. Embrasures have bien made in the wall, opposite which cannon have been planted. Minos have also been Jaid. Evidently they don't mean to give the place up without a struggle, For some considerable time past {probably since the fall of Peking) bands of soldiers have been passing through North Honan, but none are going North, where one would suppose duty calls them. All are fleeing southwards with the terror of the men in khaki heavy upon them. Brave officers, dressed in their country's silk embroidered robes, and ragamuffin privates all emulate one another in doing the run-and-fight-another-day act. They excuse themselves by so Who could fight with those foreign devils? We can't see where they are, and yet they shoot us down." Their sage advice to their compatriots is: When the foreign soldiers get within 100 miles of a place, it is high time to run."
The late Li Ping-hong was buried at Changtéfu during the last week of Sey tember. The district magistrate, Shih, and the two sons of the late lamented went out some distance to meet the body as it came from the North. The funeral was attended by all the civil and military officials to the burial place, about 5 miles S.W, of the city. It may be interesting to some to hear that many people in Changte say the funeral was a make-believe one, and that Li was not in the coffin. However, the evidence that his body was there seems strong enough to make one wish that all the enemies of the new China were as impotent for further mischief as is Li Ping-hong.
Yung Lu's wife and family were among the late distinguished arrivals at Changte. The former died soon after their arrival.
als" reported that Yung Lu himself is in hiding in the city.
It may be remembered that, about a year ago, society called the Liuchuang Hui created a local disturbance, refusing, to pay their taxes, plundering rich men an levying tribute of neigh-uring villages. They were promptly and effectively stamped out by the then Hsien magistrate named Yeh, and what might have become a conside able rebellion was thus averted. Li Ping-hong was then living in Chaag and Yeh, being pro-foreign, was not liking. Hence Yeh wns accused to the Governor, Yd Ch'ang, of having made war on' peaceable citizens and was promptly superseded by the present i cumbent, Shih, a protéyé of Li Ping-hong' At the present time evidence goes to show that had it not been for the firm attitude assumed by the prefect, Shan (a Manchu), in suppressing the Edict for the extermination of the Christians, it is not likely that one wou'd have remained alive. How it comes that the prefect was not previously removed it is hurd to say. Perhaps it was thought that his Manchu connection would make him safely antiforeign. Surely no settlement can be considered satisfactory which does not adequately punish the fiends who carried out the Empress's Edicts, and at the same time reward those who dared to disregard them Another incident, too, shows how little use Yi Chang has for any pro-foreign tendencies in those under him. After the looting of Chtawang mission premises, the Neihuang magistrate, Li, sent runners to arrest those implicated, His runners were, however, overpowered by the men vf Ch'u-wang, under orders of the mayor and town council, and were forced to retire without their prisoners. Instead of strength: ening the hands of his official, the Governor had him promptly deprived of office. While on. way home this ex-official had all his belongings plundered not ten miles from the city where he had held office, the people saying: This is the foreign-devil magistrate. Let us plunder him. No one will iniorfere."
As we write, a trusty messenger, sent to Shansi to make i ies about the fate of the missionaries there, has returned. His story not only confirms all the horrible tales of hellish massacres committed by YG Hsien at Tiniyuanfu and other places, but it tells of the massacre of Mr. Dixon and party, of the English Baptist Mission, who, until now, were thought to have made their escape on horseback. They did get to a mountain cave, but were discovered and, after defending themselves for fire days, were forced by hunger to accept the offer of an escorttothesoast, They must hava nova that this meaatonlr dear!:. but ther: was no alternative. They were conducted back to their own town and ko; t in the yamen for a day or two. Than they were led outside the town by the soldiers, stripped naked. and cut to pieces in the most horrible manner. The mangled remains wore left lying in the road. Such hellish atrocities wring from one's heart the ery: ' How long, O Lord How long?"
Mr, Mitchell has resigned his position on the staff of interpreters in the North, and is at present in Shanghai. All the other members of the Mission, at present in China, are where they were when the
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.