There are no lottery tickets ised now, but, instead, rather over 600 cash a picul has been added to the grain tax. The officials have decided that no demands shall be made against the Christians for the lottery tickets that were formerly assigned to them. At the same time one cannot Dut feel that the populace have got out of the frying pan into the fire. The nev has already caused the price of grain to rise. The cheapest rice—rice which last year, before the floods, sold 22 cash a "shen" -now sells at 45 cash. The dealers say that the price; will rise; still higher before tis year crop comes into the market. Happily the weather has thus far been splendid and the crop bids fair to be a good one. But in the meanwhile the condition of the poor is desperate, They are living on roots and wild vegetables to a large extent,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.