17th July. Welcome Rains.
Our long drought has been broken by a very heavy storm and after-rains. The summer crops were nearly burnt up. We hope this rain may save them. The weather has been very warm. Last week nearly every day the mercury topped the 100° mark, and on Sunday it went to 102° in a fairly well-shaded spot.
Official Tuan-T'u.
We have been having a series of s- eral "Tuan T'u" i.e., forbidding to take animal life and praying for rain, Ordinarily, as svonas trains the "Tuan T'u" is broken,
of days longer, out of especial gratitude, but, hip time it remained la fores " couple I suppose. I have never known them to be so consistent; one unfortunate butcher who followed the usual custom and killed en animal just after the rain was heavily fined; he is a sadder and poorer but wiser Chinese Imperial Post Office.
We are about to have a change in our Imperial postal clerks, Mr. Ma, the present ut, is to be transferred to Soochow.
are sorry to lose him, as he has been most faithful and efficient in his work. The Chinese Imperial Post Office is an institution we should be sorry to lose. It is vastly superior to our old method of sending by carriers or native post. The office is growing in favour with the natives, the money order and register department are especially convenient and we have found them very trustworthy. We have not yet been charged oxtrs for our foreign letters, May this change be long deferred Business Slack.
Business does not seem to be so good here as formerly, A walk along the business streets shows an unusual number of stores and money shops and banks closed. The natives give various explanations, but they usually fall back on the stock explanation for all troubles, viz, The kin Station extortions.""
T do not know how true the explanation is.
The House Tax has not yet been collected here. I hear it been partly collected in the neighbouring prefectural city. I understand it has been modified somewhat. Dwelling-houses occupied by the owners are not taxed, though if they are rented out the 10 per cent charge is made. Here we have had numerous proclamations exhorting the people to pay the tax, but no one seems to pay much attention to them, except to read and pass on,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.