Weihaiwei, June 14.
The long. looked for rain has at last fallen, much to the relief -of the farmers. It began to fall last Thursday and about three _fingerbreadths has fallen up to the present, while for the past few days we have been enveloped in fog which keeps the ground in a moist state. The peanut crop has now been put in and more sweet potato shoots planted, so the prospect for the Autumn crops is more reassure ing.
H.M.S. Ambrose and five submarines left on Friday for Kobe. H.M.S. Marazion left on Saturday about noon with the mail just arrived from Hongkong also bound for Kobe, to give general leave to the men. I hear that H.M.S. Colombo and six submarines and store ship are expected to arrive here about the last week of June.
Commander and Mrs. House and family, also Mrs. H. L. Beer and Miss Eileen Beer, all leave here this day week (June 21) for Shanghai, homeward bound, sailing by the P. & O, Karmala about Tune 25.
Commander House is retiring from the service with the rank of Captain, " reward for his services during the war period on the China Station.
Captain Stevenson is now duo to relieve Commander House and will take up the duties of Naval Executive Officer and King's Har-hour Master.
Mrs. Beer is having a brief holiday after some yeara of strenuous duty at the Weihaiwei School, and is also ploding her daughter at a school in England to complete her education. We wish all these homeward bound friends bon voyage.
Japan papers state that workmen blasting away a Willside near the Kure Naval Arsenal came neat wrecking the whole plant on May 31. A two-ton charge was explode ed and the concussion played havoc with buildings in the vieirlity. An ordnance factory was demolished and several guns damaged and a structure for the trial firing of torpedoes, half a mile away, was blown into the sea. More' than a dozen torpedoes were rendered useless. The explosion also set fire to a crude oil tank, which burned for more than an hour. The damage is estimated at more than
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.