Shuichow, June 19, 1908.
The Northern part of the province of Kuangtong has been devastated by the flood, which reached a higher level than any previous inundation in the memory of the oldest inhabitants. The flood of thirty-one years ago, in the third year of the present Emperor, stopped two feet lower than this one. The prefectural city of Shinchow stands on a high peninsula formed by the confluence of the Lokchong and the Namshung rivers, Both rivers drain a wide, mountainous tract of country, and when either is in flood it causes the North river to rise considerably, but when both are in spate, the North river is speedily transformed into @ " proud swelling stream." In the middle of, last week the rain came in unwonted fulness, but the ensuing rise of ten feet on the river caused no uneasiness. On sanday, however, it rained farionsly and continued with little intermission until Wednesday. The North rose rapidly in response and by Toceday afternoon the high river path, usually 15—20 feet above water, was flooded and impassable. The tongue of land below the city was being quickly covered and many houses near the foreshore were all bat submerged, the' eaves alone being visible. By 10 p.m. T found the water up to our compound wall and still rising.
It was a wild night of wind and rain, and next morning our front steps were almost covered, part of our garden was under water. Ourboat had been torn from its moorings and whirled away towards Canton, while the surface of water was dotted with wreckage, after which numerous boats darted, vulture-like, heedless of the danger and toil of rowing up against the stream, after they had secured a share of the spoil. At one time " huge timber raft swept dowa at a rapid pace with half-n-dozen craft in hot pursuit. Dexterously swinging themselves alongside, the _boatmen fastened ropes to it us easily as if it hiad been stationary and by some clever mancnuvring worked it to the book where they anchored it alongside another raft already there.
The rain still poured incessantly and now the path behind us was converted into a canal along which little canoes were travelling with furniture from houses already flooded. Although they were homeless and had the further possibility of the houses collapsing, the F.|Chinese affected showed great nonchalance, joking with each other in the most unconcerned way. The farmers, once their cropx were under water, donned their rain-proof' coats of straw, and sallied forth to fish with nets, For a time a large field on the river bank kept the low-lying country behind it from the full force of the river, bat soon this was surmounted and the field flooded. After pouring through the brick-wall the flood brought down the wall, with " noise like an avalanche, and swept over the rice-fields. Thousands of acres, which in " few weeks would have been reaped, were ruined, and the district, unable to feed itself under normal conditions, is now faced with the prospect of famine. Hundreds of mad-brick houses collapsed before the unwonted strain, and while it is impossible in China to get complete figures, at least 300 people mast have lost th lives, and wany others have last their little all.
It is an ill wind that belows nobody good, however, and I suppose the sarreyors of the Canton-Hankow railway will be glad of this opportunity of finding the flood-level. They complained that they could get no satisfactory idea of the high-water mark from the conflicting and ambignous statements of the Chinese, but now they will know exactly what to guard against, The telegraph lines have been destroyed and we are cut off from the outside world.
The Central Relief Organizing Committee memorialized the Viceroy some time ago on the advisability of representing to the Throne the urgent appropriation of a large sum of money—fixed at $100,000,—towards the relief measures directed from Canton. His Excellency has now sivan instructions to the officials of the Shanhoucbu to appropriate a sum of $200,000 from the funds of the Government Treasury in aid of the relief measure.
The Shanhoucha has subscribed 10.000. Other donations have also reached the Flood Relief Ong ition Bureau. One is for $2,000 from the Salt Commissioner and the other $3,000 from the Salt Guild merchants.
The Viceroy has subscribed out of his own private parse the sum of $3,000. Mr. Lai Cho Chuen, the Chinese Consul for Cuba, has donated by T. T. a sum of 81,000 towards the relief funds, The Kuanchow Prefect, on his return from his expedition to the inundated districts, has reported fully to the Viceroy on the conditions prevailing in the districts which have suffered by the flood. The prefect stated that, on one when rived at the Houkong hills, he found over 2,000 sufferers gathered there la a most miserable cond They had sought shelter on the hills and were on the verge of starvation. He and his subordinates at once employed their best efforts to relieve the poor sufferers and continued their work there for two days. When all these refugees bad been supplied with their wants and were sent to a place of safety, the Protect and his party moved on to another district.
On July 2, the Legislative Council of Hongkong unanimously passed the resolution: that $30,000, be disbursed from the general revenue of the Colony as a donation from the Colony of Hongkong" to the fand for the relief of the sufferers from lie recent floods in the Kuangtung and Kuangsi Provinces.—" The Hongkong Telegraph."
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.