End of Opium Usage in China in Four Years Front Oun Own Cosnsavoxeexe Peiping, Jan. 29.
The Lunar New Year" passed off here without any of the major disasters which, in accordance with the regular annual custom, duly kad been predicted. There do not seem to have been more than the average number of bankruptcies or. mysterious fires. Indeed, judging from the continuous fusillade of crackers that Fesounded far und wide on New Year's eve, from dusk to dawn next day, the celebrations seem to hav been more widespread and enthusias-He. than In many previous years.
"This may have been partly due to the fact that the new xovernment—doubt In order to show its in dependence—had lifted the ban on crackers that Nanking kad hitherto solemnly enforced. The increase in crackers may, however, also have been duc to the desire to speed the evil spirits of the departing year, or possibly to ward off those of the coming on So far there have been no marked changes. since the establishment of the new regime. The great advantages that were (o have Fesulted from compliance with the spontaneous and. widespread demand for autonomy, and especially. {rom tke retention fall revenues for uso in the North, have not yet become apparent. AS most of the revenues have already been seized, it may be said, no doubt. that they are benefitting Northerners, but as far as one can judge the circle which is benefiting Is nota wide burst in municipal activities. Road Fepalrs and the restoration of struc [tures of antiquarian interest have jocosed altogether, while the munteipal buses have been banned from tre city by the new administration atte: they had only been running a month. Nor has there been, ar far as T have [been able to discover, any reduction in: the number or amount of tke Tocal taxes. One improvement, if T may venture to call it so, must, how-fever, be recorded: the city gates are }now' kept open till midnight. This Goubtiess i the result of the recent fracas at the Chaoyangmen.
Increase of Vice one respect the Peiping public certainly has benefitted by the interes! Gnd care shown by their Japanese friends for them. The number of opium dens and gambling hells where they can now enjoy themselves un-Gisturbed, without fear of being interrupted by the fussy Chinese police, has grown enormously. T havea lis of nearly a dozen such places, opened fin the name of Japanese nationals, hick, of course, the Chinese police do not dare to interfere with.
Ik fs said that the Japanese gendar-merle from the Embassy do occasion: ally raid these places, but as some kind friend Invariably ives warning well in advance of, the proposed "visits of Inspection," nothing obnoxious ever is discovered. 'These Fouses are now considered one of the most paying forms of business modern Peiping. One ay term them bly' the van-guard of Japanese penetration.
ther aspect of what, T suppose one must call the economic develop: ment of North China is the extensive smuggling of woods into Chinese Territory that is being carried by Japanese nationals, apparently w the connivance and approval of their authorities. This contraband is pour~ ing in from) Shanhatkuan and the: passes in tke Great Wall via the Demilitarized Zone—I mean via the East Hopel Anti-red Autonomous. Council. Tt is quite correct to say "with the cognizance of the Japanese authorities," for not many weeks og) the Chinese police arrested some of these Japanese smugglers and eon Aiseated their goods, whereupon the Chinese authorities were promptly made to apologize and liberate the Smugglers and hand back the con-
Since then all efforts to cope with!
smuggling seem to have been given up entirely.
As proof of the vast dimensions this smuggling has nowadays assumed, Uhave heard of a well-known foreign firm which has given up importing a certain class of article, because it unable 10 compete with its own stuff brought in this illicit way, yet does just as large a turn-over recommending its clients to get into) touch with ils Japanese agents in Dairen. Mr, Yin- Juckeng is apparently also fully aware of the: fillet trade that is passing throug' his territory, for it fs reported that he intends setting up tax-sations in fis new state and collecting duty on li goods in transit.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.