After nearly three months ct Peace, the tufei have again started their kidnapping. All round us the country places night after night are visited, homes entered and persons captured, A place about 30 miles from here was entered one Sunday. It is a walled village ana was being carefully—watched. A ge cart of grass arrived th's afternoon at the gate and the name of a big fanny was given to whom the grass was being taken. Ones inside, the grass was unloaded, a cartload of guns was revealed, and the village was soon in. the brigands' hands. Several persons were killed and others carried off for ransom.
We had a big fire the other night just outside the city gate. An otl lamp hanging on a straw partition was the cause of it, and though the fire brigades turned out, it was not extinguished till about eight houses had been burned down, They were straw and mud houses. and burnt rapidly. Report has it that between 30 and 40 rooms were destroyed.
We had our first fall of snow jabour a week ago.
Nearly a month ago our soldiers all left in 9 big hurry for Anhui, probably to stop the Honan bandits, who proposed a raid on North {Kiangsu. Their place has been Glled by several ying from Yangchow. These men, report has it, are still watching events on the border of this country.
We are having a great deal ut sickness with quite an epidemic of smallpox, and many virulent cases occurred amongst children, y of whom have succumbed. We also have a kind of relapsing fever, whole families going down one after after the other.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.