AFFAIRS, The Proposed Boycott on American Manufactures.
As will be id by readers of these" Notes," it ws decided by the gentry merchants, who had agembled about month ayo to protest gainst certain clauses in the proposed delusion Treaty between the United States ani China, that, should she United States persist in inserting the obnoxious clauses, a boycott on Amer-jean goods and manufactures, or rather everything American (which includes schools and text books) should be declared "two months from dat decision." This programme whi recommended by a member of the Shanghai gentry, namely, Taotai Tseng Chu, was endorsed not only by the local gentry, merchants, and school teachers, but also by those of Canton, Macao, Hongkong, Swatow, Amoy, Foochow, Wenchow, Ningpo, Hangchow, Shaohsing, Chinkiang, Nanking, Anch'ing (Nganking) Kiukiang, Hankow,—Wuchang Hanyang, Shasi, Ichang, Chungking, Chengtu, Peking, Tientsin, Chefoo, aiféng and two or three other cities in the interior. Even Chinese in Sumatra, Singapore, Australia, New York, and San Francisco telegraphed to Shanghai their hearty approval of the steps tobe taken as a protest against the action of the Government, calling upon their friends in China to "stand firm" and not allow themselves to be coerced into giving up the line of action now adopted. Tndeed, never in the history of this country has there ever been such unanimity [be sot at liberty immediately after receiving the requisite number of blows ordered in the morning to be inflicted on them For political reasons the olticials resent his action of the police as it is claimed that the Int have uv jurisdiction over Chinese subjects who, having finished their respectivesentences, are therefore free men in the eyes of the law. We believe on the other hand that the police have been adopting the course complained of in order to prevent the yamen people from "squeezing" men who should be freed the moment after receiving the punishments ordered to be inflicted on them by the Court. We hear, however, that it has been claimed that yamen people ican easily be prevented from playing their squeezing games upon freed prisoners, by the Chinese mandarin supervising the infliction of these seutences personally setting the prisoners at liberty and inflicting the heaviest penalty on any of his subordinates attempting to bring about a squeeze." We believe that Mr. Kuan, the new magistrate, whose intelligence and honesty of purpose are well-known in native circles, Will be able to suppress the squeezing pro-pens ities of the Mixed Court yamen run-hers and by personally seeing to it that prisoners are promptly freed after reveiving their punishments relieve the police from further trouble in the matter,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.