On Friday a_ representative of the "North-China Daily News" had an interview with Mr. A. Dixon, the locomotive inspector of the Imperial Chinese Railway at Tongshan, who was of the party that Jefe that place for Feitaiho.
The excitement; he said, in the country round Tongshw, and the Lutsi district generally, been gv gradually. The lower d ses of Chi changed for the worse in their attitude to foreigners, and open vituperation was more frequently heard, Still, there was nothing of any great consequence in the general behaviour until the news of the Dombardment and taking of the Taku Forts eeume generally knuwi—on the morning of Sunday, the 17th instant. The first train down to Tientsin from Tongshan that morning could not get any" farther than Lutai, It was stopped there, and those in charge were toll that the bridge, about six miles farther down, had been seized by Chinese troops, who were holding the position, and would allow noone to pass, After that eamne a report. that the troops [of the Lutai district had destroyed it; of these troops the district was supposed to have about 25.000, under General Nich, Previous to this n great many—approximately 10,000—had left by train, going in the direction of Peking. After this, and about two days before the bombardment of Taku, about 4,000 more, with 32 guns, left by march-route. It was stated that 2,000 of these were to go t" Chunliangeh'éng, and the remaining half to Taku. There is no Aoubt that these list were among the defenders of the forts.
Sunday," the 17th, also br -nght reports that the Lutai soldiers remaining in the district had taken n yrent_ many places on the road between Lutai and Taku. So that, when the morning train had returned to Tongshan, the foreigners there decided that it would be distinedy better to leave. Peitaiho was the most convenient place to make for, as the line ran through it, and H.M.S. Humber was lying there, guard in case of trouble. Accordingly a special train of an engine and two cars was made ready in the, yard, and the foreign community fore gathered. ' Altogether the, numbered about 25, being foreigners concerned either with' the Ruilway or with the China Bugineering and Mining Gompany. They got away safely, speedily, and with little previous knowledge, 80 far as the natives were concerned.
The leaving of Tongshan was evidently the righ" course to pu In the fi place they were quite ignorant of what had happened to the line at certain points—though, as far as they knew, it was act north of Taku to Shanluikuan, There was the growing excitement of the also, and the fact that, with only two exceptions, the drivers and firemen employed on the line were Chinese, and it was extremely difficult, under those conditions, to keep them to their work. They lof their houses and goods as they stood, with the probability, in the event of return, of finding them sacked-and burnt.
Mr. Dixon's party were at Taku on the 20ch instant, but lay too far out in the hat hour to see anything. At Chefoo, on the 22nd, they found all the places of accommodation filled, the inhabitants doing patrol duty at night, and a general atmosphere of scare.
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Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.