South of the Yangtze, March 12.
"Apart from the immediate vieing ity of the Yangtze River, in the southern part of Anhui soldiers have been conspicuous by their absence for well on two months. The people, however, do not appear to regret this, as all the troops fare rather costly to entertain irrespective of their political colour. A igeritleman I know in one city very courteously spread a feast for the officers of some soldiery who had just arrived, there being among the officers personal friends of his. A few hours after his guests had departed, my friend went along to a new house he was building in another part of the city. In this unliding a number of the up their quarters, snd were warming themselves by a huge fire made of some of my friend's valuable building timber. [Naturally he mildly remonstrated ]with them, with the unfortunate result that a number of the rougher im and beat him severely. 'This he reported at once to his late guests, who felt very Jashamed and made' the most abject for the uncivilized con-
Jduct of their men, yet they dared not rebuke them; consequently my friend had to settle down with as ibod grace xs might be to see hi building lumber gradually pear—in the smoke of the sol fires. He is not eager for the coming of more military!
Bandits do not seem to be quite }s0 much in evidence as before the lunar New Year holidays. They have not, however, entirely ceased operations, for attacks on belated {travellers as well as the looting of lonely farmsteads are constantly being reported. Not long azo the writer passed the smoking ruins of jone such farmstead which had been looted and burned the previous night. This was close to one of the main roads and only 20 Li distant from a large city!
Quite recently there was a successful daring daylight hold-up by bandits of three bus. loads of passengers close to the busy large town of Wanchih, 70 li from Wuhu. On account of frequent river windings which make bridging: too cost-present, passengers on the bus route from Wahu are discharg-Jed at the mouth of the small rivers Sinohokow, six li below Wanchih, land make their way to the town in the low water season either in small slow native boats or walk along the river side. For the pa: year or so the bus company has ferried armed guards on account of two or three daring attacks on the passengers by bandits. Unhappily, these guards only accompany the bus, so that although each bus between Wuhu and Sinchokow, and Wanchih and Ningkuofu has fan armed guard, there is no-protection therefore for people along the six li above mentioned.
The unique opportunity for bu ness has evidently been spotted by those who plan these holdups, with the result that one fine afternoon recently three bus loads of pass-Jengers who were making their way quietly along between Siachokow jand Wanchih, hoping to catch the Ningkouofu bus at the latter place and be safe home in an hour and half, were suddenly faced with a number of determined looking armed man and ordered to hand over their money and valuables.
they all, men, women and children, did without unnecessary Jdelay, after which the bandits permitted them to proceed. On rounding the bend of the river they could face the bus waiting to take them the rest of the distance to Ningkuofu, which, in spite of the slight de-Jay the interview with the bandits had caused, they reached before dark fon schedule time, though most of them with light pockets and heavy hearts.
The river routes between Wuhu and inland cities, whether by launch or houseboat, are scarcely less dangerous than the overland ways. The launches and boats have all to stop at the Customs and lik barriers, which gives excellent. opportunity for the bandit scouts to hang about in the crowds and cover what boats it may be nrofit-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.