There promises tu he an abundant harvest in the north-cast of the Province.
French Influence Paramount.
The missionaries returning to Yunnanfu found the people friendly but no special desire on the part of the officials to help the English fo rs. French influence is paramount. When too late, England will discover that in neglecting Yunnan she has lost the key to the richest province in all China—Szechuan. Is it too late to urge that 1 British Consul be appointed to Yunnanfu, are those who. shoud safeguard. British interests blind still to the needs of Western China?
The Heat of summer broke at the end of August, and there was a cold snap at Chaotung which Killed off numbers of the sparrows, who were doubtless looking forward to " share in the abundant rice harvest, A Sensation was caused in Chaotung by an old man bringing inthe heads of his faithless wife, an old' woman, and her lover, an old man, The husband had killed both, and brought in the tio white-haired heads te the officials. The ages of the three amounted to 200 years.
Partnerships.
This question, which was again brought to the notice of the Government some time ago by the Chamber of Commerce, has been threshed out by the committee appointed by H. E. the Governor to inquire into the feasibility and desirability, or otherwise, making the registration of the names partners in Chinese Hongs compulsory. The committee, who have just presented their report, decided in the negative, he-cause it was believed the Chinese would not be inclined to resister their true and that such registratis tend to fraud and litigation form ous expense would he ent to the difficulty of finding out who the partners in a Chinese firm really because in the Committee's opinic legislation would send to drive capi the Colony wussly interfere with Mr. a separate report, he does not sce the impact ability of registering partners, but he also thinks such registration inadvisable account of the trouble and expense that would be involved by the establishment of a Registry office. He is of opinion that the object sought might be more economically secured by inducing Chinese to advertise the names of their partners and the changes in their firms occurring from time to time. As a ter of fact, some of the Straits Chinese clu this already, but numbers will not do se even in Singapore, where registrar become a' burning question owing to the frauds perpetrated. I am afraid Utopian to expect the Chinese to advertise the names of partners voluntarily. But I concur with the Committee in thinking the difficulties and cost of registration are too serious to warrant the experiment being made in Hongkong, which is so close to China. I fail to see, however, any good reason why it should not be put into execution in the Straits Settlements.
20th October,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.