the Worst Ichang, June 14.
The prospects for the rice crop this year are bad unless an abundance of rain falls shortly. The effects of last winter's drought are still being felt and there is no supply of water to spare for the rice-fields. It is considered that about three-quarters of the ordinary planting of tice has been accomplished, but the fields are quite dry, some even have big cracks through them. The river, too, 16 not very high though the water' is sufficiently deep for summer naviga tion.
The news from Szechuan is some th} what alarming, for General Yang Sen has been badly defeated near Chengtu. He was so near that city that it is reported some of his soldiers were actually inside the walls, but there was a rally on the part of the Szechuan armies and Gendral Yang has been decisively defeated and driven back. The situation was so bad on the upper river that the Shuhun, plying between Chungking and Suifu, had to give up the run and has returned there. Meanwhile the Anning has taken up to Chungking another contingent of Kueichow soldiers from Itu, and General Chao of f|Ichang has issued a proclamation calling for recruits for his army.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.