News"-papers In this section of the report there is an interesting and instructive note on the character and influence lof the Chinese press. "Little improvement," says the report, "cam bbe seen in the general tone and sense of responsibility of the local Chinese press—a matter to which reference hus previously been made in those reports. Wild rumour fs still published as reliable news, Quite untrue accounts of import-Jant events appear in print as fact. }Statements and actions are attributed to public persons entirely without foundation. While any really useful oF constructive suggestion is unfortunately seldom forthcoming, criticism and comment lof an opposite nature, often based Jon sheer ignorance, ure common. In such circumstances, the distort led views on current events held by large section of the public which 10 other source of information than the local press is hardly sur-prism Unlike the foreign news-whose assistance in the) ublic interest is readily fortheoming and is always most valuable, the police find they can get little real help from organs of the Chinese probably owing to their javas-political and other affiliations ard to the fact that their proprieters, editors and publishers are by means free agents in the their business ix conducted."
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.