Within a few days after the tax became applicable, the foreigners whose goods were held at the Octrot station for taxation which they would not pay, were approached by various collectors, that is dealers in revenue stamps, who offered to vell them any quantity at 80 per cent. of the face value. By mutual agreement among themselves the dealers rejected all such offers and were glad later that they had, for the street price at once fell to 30 per cent. of face value, while rome unhappy collectors who discovered that their capital was badly ins vested, trial to get out of office at a sacrifice by offering stamps ut 15 cents on the dollar, The whole thing was such a hoax and the tax was so obviously. illegal swindle, that s Legations waived decorum menced to affix their Legation sealy to the railway invoices which gave their nationals the right to clear goods consigned to them as Leation Mores. Other deulers made weir Chinese employees purchase $100 worth of stamps from the Bureau under appointment as "collectors" whereupon these alleged collectors went tothe—Octroi__ office, showed their appsintmente "and tank belt goods away without affixing any of the stamps, an arrangement at which the tax bureau winked perforce, accepting the personal assurances of the dealers that any or liquors: sold to Chinese would bear the stamps, The Chineve dealers alone pay the tax and they are quite happy to pay it. If a bottle of whiskey normally costs $3 the nominal tax on it is 60 cents, s0 dealers affix 62 cents which they have paid charge $3.60 for the whisk make an extra 42 cents profit bottle
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.