15th March.
Durie the past fortnight there have come before the American Court two criminal cases in which seamen, both reputed quiet and well-behaved when sober, have, while in a drunken fury, stabbed officers of their ship.. In pronouncing sentence yesterday of j@ year's imprisonment on the man Serrano, who, but for a fortunate circumstance, might easily have found himself arraigned on the capital charge, the Court again directed attention to the unchecked facility with which the so-called Hongkew spirit is smuggled on board the vessels lying in port. The trouble is an old one, and has been quite recently discussed by the Municipal Council, who have, however, been brought up against the well-established fact that the liquor in itself is not more poisonous than that which can be obtained across the bar of the Shanghai Club. The real. danger lies in its extreme cheapness, which enables the unhappy victims to indulge themselves without restraint. The American Court has undoubtedly hit upon the only effectual remedy in expressing the opinion that the sale of spirits on the river should be forbidden and that the harbour police should be empowered to enforce such prohibition. It should not be beyond 1 the ability of the harbour authorities to make and enforce such a regulation, and every shipmaster who comes into port would be grateful, to say nothing of the peace-loving res dents of the Settlement, and who samen them-elves wen they ae im their suber 8@ Ses.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.