A glaring piece of injustice on the part of an official has come under my notice within the last few days. I withhold names for the present, a5 the case is still "sub judice," but they can be provided when necessary. A business house in this city held last' year a sum of 10,000 tiao of small cash, in behalf of two officials of neighbouring hsien, who had joined wi some gentry ina proposal to open a pawn: shop in Yungp'ing. The idea was not carried out. and early last year 4,000 tino were returned to the magistrate concemed. Tu the interval he was removed, and the balance of 6,000 tino was paid over to acertain member of the gentry acting for the officials, in the last month of the year, an int ation being first sent to the, yamen to the effect that the money w ready. A few days ago, the present incumbent of the magistracy sent his rmners to the shop, demanding immediate payment of the 6,000 tiao. One of the clerks was sent over with the receipts, but my lord would listen to no explana: tions, had the clerk beaten with 20 blows on the face, then chained and placed in the prison usually reserved for the worst form of criminals. This done, he sent a message to say that the clerk would not be released till the money was paid. was appealed to, but could do nothing, the case had nothing whatever to do with the Church and it is against both our principles and our practice to interfere in yamen eases. The manager himself went to the city, was at first refused an interview, but eventually saw the official, who then admitted that "he knew nothing more about the money than he had learned from their own message that it was ready to be paid over; that as he had not received it, he wanted to know the reason why; that he was not on good terms with the gentleman who had received the money, and could not therefore ask him for it; that he must have the money before he would release the clerk. He finally set the man free after compel-
But the King must at that time have been suffering from the cold which developed into a very mild attack of influenza. The illness is so slight that Sir F. Laking, who is attending the King, has not thought it necessary to issue any signed bulletins;"and the ctticial announcements have all been j made on the authority of Lord Knollys, a consequence there lave been whis-red conjectures in society as to some other cause than illness for the aban'lon-[ment of the visit, but influenza, however imiid, calls for stringent—precautions, especially in the case of one wh", like the King, baa recently passed through a serious illness; nnd his Majesty's cold, alight though it was, is quila sufficient explana tion of the change of plans. Of the e: penditure which ile Duke had incurred i connection with the projected Riyal visit some idea may be formed from the fact that seven tons of fireworks were returned from Chatsworth to the makers when the visit had been Bnally abandoned.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.