The ladies and engineers who have fallen victims to the fury of the Honan outlaws have the sympathy of foreigners residing in the provinces of Shensi, Shansi and Kansu. Were it possible for community so widely scattered to collectively express the hearty interest and deep sympathy felt) for the sufferers, your correspondent is confident that all foreigners in the above provinces would be glad to let the Lung-hai Rail-Way engineers know that we who ave for so long looked forward to the coming of the line, and who ope in the future to greatly benefit by it, cannot but regard their vicissitudes as akin to that of soldiers facing danger for the common weal.
The work of the Lung-hai staff in Western Honan is arduous enough, but that there should be inadequate protection afforded by the Government, for whose ultimate benefit the line is being laid, is lamentable and only to Se accounted for by the fact that there no potential Government and that even the best Generals find themselves helpless. The engineers and their families live often in quite outlandish places, with neighbours who would scare Shanghai folks. A new line is being made in a very old China and among the ladies there are at least a few who, in pre-war days, aid not anticipate residence so far remote from European refinements. That any such should be exposed to the barbarities of savage bandits is fo be regretted: and that everything possible should he done for their protection is clearly a responsibility which should be insisted upon to the utmost.
Only shortly before the recent troubles, the writer, it may be remembered. drew attention to that neighbourhood, as it needed only a casual acquaintance with the district to see that things were making for coming trouble.
Mr. F. Clark, formerly in the Hongkong office of Messrs. Shewan, Tomes & Ca., hag been engaged as engineer to the British Municipal Council Waterworks in Tientsin, and is expected to leave Home early in October. a as soon as Gen. Hsu Chung-chih is ready to ce-operate.—Reuter. Peking, Sept. 19.
Foreign reports from Fukien say that fighting has occurred in southwestern Fukien between the forces of Generals Hsu Chung-chih and Li Poli and the Second Fukien Brigade, which Gen. Li Hou-chi sent against the invaders mentioned. It is reported thai Gen. Li How-chi is seeking an agreement with Canton, in order to cope with the ma-lauding forces.—Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.