15th May. A "Famine" Year.
The greater portion of Chekiang, like the neighbouring provinces, is so. fertile and gives such a variety of products as to remove the fear of actual famine which continually stares some parts of China in the face. Pevple are somewhat more well-todo, and are able to find more money with which to live, and can and do pay higher prices for the necessities of life than in the north and north-west. But, prices are now going higher and_ higher, while wages do not increase proportionately. The outlook for-this year is very dismal. The early drought ruined the small ery beans, ete., and now the silk crop bids fair to be a failure. The worms came out earlier on account of the warm weather; while the succeeding rain, cold weather, and other causes hae combined to ruin the crop. Aside from the effect of scarcity of silk on the army of spinners and weavers, the farmers will be great sufferers; for the silk crop i the main dependence of the mass of farmers throughout the plain of North Chekiang, Even the early s of wheat and rice will be very small, and the price of rice, which has been very high for a year, may become almost prohibitive! Poor China is learning that misfortunes never come singly and the rumours of rebellion and trouble in many parts of the Empire, the difficulties in the way of raising the indemnity, with the failure of crops and the high price of food, may well fill us with forebodings for thefature. The onerous and detested house-tax which is to be collected this month adds to the feeling of uneasiness on the part of the people.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.