Shaohsing, Dec. 1.
Robberies have become more frequent of late in the country districts. Last week a band attacked the house of a wealthy man in the prosperous town of Tongkuaen. The attack took place at night and was repulsed by the Mingdon, a body of locally raised and supported guards. During the raid help was sought from the police force stationed at Tongkuaen, but they refused to aid because, forsooth, they were only paid for day work! The papers are constantly holding up the police to ridicule; hardly a week is allowed to pass without some officer or member of the forces being denounced for extortion or some other glaring injustice.
Ricshas have been reintroduced into the city, and the steps of many of the important bridges have been filled with wedge-shaped pieces of stone to facilitate the transit of the new vehicles. Two years ago when ricshas were first introduced they seemed to do a flourishing business. The success, however, of the new venture came to a sudden stop, owing to a certain action of the military authorities: who seized a well-known bad character on the great street, commandeered @ passing ricsha and hurried the unfortunate victim through the streets, in broad daylight and in the presence of thousands of spectators, to the ex-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.