The troops of General Ma Yii-kin are stationed in contingents all round the country, and in some places seemed to be suffering from lack of something to do. This was notably the case at Tach'engtzu (let not this town be confounded with Tachangtzu) where they Tooked to us to partake more of the old "brave" type than the smart foreign-drilled men we have at Yungp'ingfu. They managed to fairly well so long as either of the foreigners were near the bookstall, but with our backs turned, they were neither friendly nor complimentary in their remarks to our colporteurs, and in not a few cases prevented people from purchasing. At Pakou, where the old General is himself stationed, the men were a much superior type, due, no doubt, to the fact that they are Kept hard at work every day on the parade ground. We had the pleasure of an interview with General Ma, who as soon as he learned of our arrival, sent an invitation to us to visit Bim, and kindly offering us an escort to Jehol. The invitation we accopted, the escort we declined with thanks. The General was very genial and friendly when we mot him, full of questions as to what was transpiring in Manchut though possibly at that time he knew more than we did, and curious to know if there was any likelihood of friendly intervention. He was curious about some other things too, such as the price of our clothes, and the cost of the teeth that a kindly dentist supplied to your correspondent some months ago. Not that he needs any, but—well—he wanted to be knowing, that's all. We failed to discover any. signs of restlessness on the part of his troops, and it is difficult to Taagino how, with his headquarters two hundred miles from the scone of conflict, the General finds it dificult to keep hi men in hand, according to newspaper reports. One man to whom we put the question, replied: " Why, the Russians are having hard work with the Japs! Why should we be needed to do anything And Echo answers, Why
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.