Pakhoi, May 18.
During the past three months the rainfall has been very scanty, and in certain districts the prospects for the rice crops had every appearance of ing serious. To-day, a good soaking rain is falling, and there is every hope that this is general throughout the district. In the town itself the functions that should be performed the Sanitary Board are left to this "universal cleanser."
At the present time we have some four or five steamers running between Hongkong and here. Dissatisfaction is expressed because of all the vessels coming from or returning to Hongkong within a day or two of each other. The consequence is that we are at times left with an interval of ten days or so without any mail from or to Hongkong. 3 We have in the port a British subject who is a member of an American Mission. His wife is of German parentage. On one occasion this lady was riding in her private riesha when she was stopped by the police, and forced to pay a fine—with the alternative of having the ricsha confiscated. The offence was stated as using the ricsha in prohibited area. It appears that there is a certain section of the town in which the use of rieshas is forbidden, though no notice to that effect has been sent to the foreign community.
The miettae was reported to H. B. M. Consul (Mr. H. H. Bristow) on his recent visit here. The question was settled by the return of the fine. Incidentally, it may be mentioned that the Chief of Police who performed this brilliant indicia) chef-d'eurre was dismissed—recently, the reason alleged being that he had passed the accepted mark in the matter' of bribery.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.