The High Price of Labour From Our Own Correspondent Kueiyang, Kuei., May 29.
Things are daily growing worse in the city and unless General Wang either takes his departure or releases the men and horses he has commandeered there is no saying to what straits we may be reduced. Rice has advanced $2 the picul since he prevented the country grain from being brought into the city in any quantity by holding up the pack animals.
Labour coolies have never been such a price as they are to-day. The farmers have vied with each other in engaging the only available labour for gathering in the opium crop and coolies are offered 30 cents a day and food to induce them to take on the work.
The usual price was never more than 15 cents to 20 cents per day before. Again the merchants have endeavoured to place their opium on the markets in other places as early as possible, and in order to do so have engaged coolies to travel a distance of 120 li between dusk and daylight. The price offered being $2 per man, and each man carried only 20 oz. of the drug. At daylight they reached a city where boats were in waiting and the opium placed on board without delay, and by evening of the second day the opium was being sold at advanced prices.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.