For 4d days Mr, Riva lived on food eaten by only the famine-stricken population: From day to day he ras given flour mixed with sand and tree leaves. Occasionally there were 'a few eggs, but the engineer only had the white, as, for some unknown reason, the bandits took all the yolk of the eggs. For the white of hardly 10° eggs, the" bandits subsequently charged the Chinese officials the sum of $80. The money had to be paid before the Italian could regain his freedom, The release of MY. Riva was] effected on July 29, The Chinese ftuthorities mast be credited for the Successful efforts in restoring freedom to the engineer. It will be remembered that, as soon as the news of Mr. Riva's capture reached the Honan provincial authorities, Gon. Han Fu-cha, Chairman of the Provincial Government, at once ordered his troops out on the trail the propetrators of the outrage. 'The Chinese station master, who was carried off with Mr. Riva, was Hheed two days after he was seized ard returned to Chengchow to give} okies fo the authorities regarding the bandits' movements, Tt was not
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.