Many sportsmen have tried on many occasions to secure the enactment and, what is still more important, the enforcement of a rigid and humane series of Game Laws in China, but never have they met a thing but failure. Periodically. we refer to the necessity, in the hope that something will follow. matter comes up again on the cow-Plaint of a sportsman, who, while walking in the country, met a Japanese gunner returning with two pheasants, a cock and a hen, that he had shot." In a mixture of English sand Chinese he succeeded in getting the Japanese to an understanding that he was entering a protest against such "sport," but he did not manage to impress on him the folly and cruelty of shooting game birds out of season. Even an attempt to show the gunner that he would ruin his own sport at some future da failed. The point principally: to be noted is that the Japanese was not person wilfully evading a written for unwritten law, but one acting in sheer ignorance and suffering from fan incapability to. understand the consequences of his act, and he is but one of many hundreds, not all of them Japanese, Portuguese oF Chinese. "The same gentleman on another occasion engaged in conversation with a Chinese profession-gunner who was out for snipe, but who admitted "that he "shot Pheasants when. he fould. them. This fellow had some sort of an idea that he was doing at least an wise thing, but he said that there was no law against it, and at any time there was a market for phear sants. A bird meant more mon to him than he could afford to overlook when faced with the opportunity of gaining it, and s0 he shot Pheasants and would continue to Shoot them. Game laws, as against the Customs surtax, brigand' suppression and similar great questions, may seem too small a thing to worry about, but China must have them soon, and enforce them, or her game areas will be denuded, A Public Ferry-boat Service To those whose business carries them about Shanghai harbour by day and night, and to whom the private launch' services maintained by the shipping and other companies are not available, a fast Public ferry service, operating at all hours, has long' been a nece sity. The volume of. the passenger! carrying trade, by sampan, across and along the river, is so great that it is surprising that a public service, similar to some of those at Hongkong, has not been an a complished fact for many years. The need has been apparent for very long time, and it seems more than strange that business enterprise has not- acted on the undoubted possibilities afforded by this field of enterprise. It is true that four years ago, when it was estimated that in 24 hours som thing like 80,000 people crossed and re-crossed the river, or proceeded to and from their ships, by sampan, there was a serious project for the formation of a ferry service by means of a fa fleet of motor-boats, but for some reason or other the idea was not proceeded with. Now comes the news that within a few weeks a Public ferry service, touching all parts of the river, will be brought into operation, and there seems reason why enterprise, if properly conducted, should not be an outstanding success from the beginning. It is being commenced fon modest lines, but - should. the volume of traffic call boats than will be put on at frst, we understand they will be forth: coming. We on shore, our motor-cars and trams and rieshas, cannot wholly appreciate the di ficulty that confronts those who have come to: Shanghai from vessels moored or berthed a long way down the river and who want to return to their ships late at night. "Generally, the sampan is the -only means—slow and un-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.