Much linterest is felt by local Chinese in a project to establish a new law court for the Shangha: Special Municipality, which would act as a court of appeal to the ternational Mixed Court. It has been felt for many years by Magix trates, legal practitioners, and indeed everyone who has given the cease any thought, that the establish~ ment of an appellate court is more than desirable. But, apart from the matter of its recognition, the further question arises whether the Court would be capable of reviewing the decisions of the Mixed Court and whether a staff could be got together efficient enough to carry on the work. A former Minister: of Justice, who recently visited Great Britain and other, European countries (Mr, Tung Kang) expressed the opinion that such a court would be filling a long-felt need and would doubtless be welcomed by everybody, because the present system of rehearings by Ube original Assessor and Magistrate has many obvious drawbacks. My, Tung therefore suggests that the preliminary work of the special court should be in connexion with caves and that criminal could be taken into conside fa later date. Another proposal in the same connexion, which is attracting interest, is that of Col. Chang Te-ying, for the establishment of a special Shanghai ant Sungkiang Military Court, under the auspices of the Shanghai and Woostng Police Department, Col. Chang's iden is that. this court should sit in his yamen and that his sta should cake over the duties which once devolved on the office of the Military Governor of Shanghai and Songkiang. The latter ha beer abolished and thus there is Tonger a military tribunal here. This means that there ix at present no tribunal with power to execute men convicted of capital crimes. and all that can be done to then is to hive them terms of imprison-went, for which, of course, they care nothing, The Mixed Court is em powered only to sentence prisoners to terms of imprisonment not exceeding five years. Shanghai and Sungkiang (including Woosung), in Col, Chang's opinion, cannot ' be without such a military court which, hie thinks, should be established solely for the purpose of dealing with en pital cases and be given powers of cubital punishment.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.