Not long since Ngucheng was the scene of one of the village battles for which Futsinghsien has long been notorious. The fight took place not far froma mission building in which a school for girls is being conducted by an American lady, who was absent from the village when the combat began. The leaders of both contending factions sent word to the native teachers not to let the students go outside of the school building, or even near the windows, for fear that some of them might be injured; and when the missionary Indy was returning to the village, both sides ceased firing until she was in a safe place.
The danger was not very appalling, however, as may be inferred from the fact that, though this battle "raged" several days, no one was Killed and only one or two men were wounded. Possibly these fighters would have done better if they had been supplied with a quantity of tiger-bone jelly, concerning which your able correspondent at Hsing in this province, wrote amusingly in the North-China Herald of the 17th of April last.
When the combatants at Ngucheng had done about certain amount of mischief, the district magistrate, as usual, swooped down upon-them, arresting the Jeaders and imposed heavy fines, thus putting a temporary quietus on the affair Ifthe " Powers that be" would sincerely seek to redress real grievances relating to common lands, littoral rights, eic., such attempts to secure justice would-be uncalled for, but it seems as if matters' were often purposely left in such an unsettled condition on account of the increased revenues which thus accrue to the magistrate's exchequer. All this reveals the almost infinite patience of the Chinese, many of whom would doubtless welcome a better state of things. Poor China! What is to become of her?
19th May.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.