Major Hilton Johnson welcomed the delegates, of whom there were some 60 or 60, and expressed the hope that their efforts that afternoon, might come to something. He promised to sort out the various petitions which had been presented. to him, and to study the suggestions contained in them at length.
The Commissioner then went on to address the delegates on the sons for the prevalency of armed beries in the Settlement. He reminded them of the conditions reigning in China at the present time, and said that there was to be found in those conditions the reason for the Inwless men and the quantity of arms existing in Shanghai. Within the last few months hundreds of thousands of soldiers had been disbanded in China, and many close to Shanghai, It was not surprising that they came to Shanghai to pick up a living, and they could not be prevented from doing so or from coming into the Settlement. With. regard to pistols and revolvers, these, unfortunately, largely came into Shanghai in foreign ships from foreign countries, Many, of course, were seized by the Customs official, but these were, necessarily, only a small proportion of the total amount that entered the port. The S.M.P. had ro jurisdiction on the water and fon the wharves, most of the latter being privately owned, and this fact teased their difficulties tremen.' ously. The Commissioner pointed out that he was making no exeusey for the polies, but was simply star.
cts us they were. But the taken certain moastr ies extended their activi the Settlement every' night, visiting lodging houses, tes and. similar institutions, questioning the inmates and ex: amining the books. Then again they had detectives working all over the Settlement at all hours of th: ight, collecting informaing suspicious characters doings. But this system was net, of course, perfect, Indeed, if they only could get_a systems of receiving information armed robberies would never occur because they could always be fore-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.