Peking, Jan. 28.
The situation in North Shansi appears to be very serious. Pengluhsien, which the robbers recently entered, is only 80 miles from Tatungfu, on which the robbers are reported to be advancing.
The Government is doing its utmost to send reinforcements.
The robbers are estimated to number between seven and eight thousand but a recent arrival from Saratsi says that only some four thousand are armed.
After the robbers left Saratsi soldiers entered the city and stole everything in sight on the pretext of searching out the looters. All the villages in the region of Saratsi turbance, the rebels sought to capture the city of Kuangchow by first capturing Huichow. They worked at their scheme for a year and gathered as many as over ten thousand men round them for this purpose. As the various bodies of these rebels rose simultaneously, their force was quite asppreciable. Fortunately, the officere were in readiness and the men eagerly pressed forward in action and thus step by st the ed. This is the result of the able work of Lung Chi-kuang and Chang Min-chi and the bravery of the officers and men. We are greatly pleased with the great merit achiev-by these officers and men, which will give peace to the people.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.