Hankow Sailors Afraid to Take a Ship to Swatow We understand, says the "Central China Post" (Hankow) of March 8, that a quite interesting side issue of the Hongkong seamen's strike is being enacted at the present moment locally with regard to the sailing of the Butterfield & Swire str. Chungking, which has been chartered to carry a cargo of beancake from here to Swatow.
When it became known to the crew of the Chungking—who are, we believe, northern men—that the vessel was to proceed to Swatow, considerable agitation arose amongst them and they finally expressed their refusal to sail to that port, decliving that they were afraid of being roughly handled by the strikers on their arrival and possibly prevented from returning to their mes. As the strike has been declared off, it would seem to be a little doubtful as to how much the sailors' objections were really due to fear of being man-handled and. how much of it was put on with a view to extorting higher wages for the voyage. One account which we have heard is to the effect that the men were willing to proceed prot vided a lump sum of $3,000 were forthcoming to ease their fears. At any rate the men removed their baggage from the steamer on Monday evening, and the matter, as far as we can learn, has not yet been adjusted.
Telegrams have been sent by the authorities in question both to Swatow and Hongkong with a view to receiving officio] accounts of the conditions actually obtaining in those ports. Meanwhile, however, we leam that the crew of the Chungking succeeded in getting away unbeknown down river yesterday morning on board the steamer Woosung.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.