Harbin, April 8.
After a steady march of nine weeks, the plague in Harbin has at last shown signs of abating, and the mortality chart has been_registering a regular decline. This tendency on the part of the epidemic to bide its time in all large centres of infection appears to be characteristic, the period needed for the decline to set in being as a rule 10 weeks.
As a result of the agitation of certain busybodies in the native city, the Taoyin granted them $4,000 to organize their own house-to-house inspection parties, isolation quarters and plague hospital where the old method of treatment may be given to patients suffering from plague. Twelve native physicians were employed at a salary of $100 per month to try their skill upon the sick. The small hospital was opened on April 1, but the physicians refused to live within the premises, preferring to write the prescriptions at home and await city. Up to April 4, 10 patients results from enetier part of She thad' been treated, and 10 had died. On the Sth I received a letter from them requesting mo not to send any more plague patients as they had come to the conclusion that thige was an incurable disease. It is. quite possible that our proper anti-plague work will henceforth run a smoother course after this incident.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.