'A casual visitor to the Gordon Road Riding School perhaps might not regard the assembly there of over 1,000 interned Chinese troops any thing more than just a minor incident in this latest petty war, but it attains a bigger significance when given alittle calm thought. The Riding School was built and is maintained by the Municipal Council in order that the mounted units of the S. V. C. may have a place in which to train und drill, Its use for such purposes ix only occasional during a few months in the year and in order that it-may be kept in reasonable Jcondition at a minimum cost the Council tease the school and stables for a moderate rent to two eminently respectable, thoroughly, competent and hard-working gentlemen who formerly held high the Imperial Russian Cavalry, and who have imparted a great deal of knowledge to hundreds of riding people and thereby afforded them considerable pleasure—possibly even profit—though making bu: a modest competence them-_ selves" Then comes the war the influx of thousands of defeated refugee soldiers. Accommodation is searce and the Council compelled for the time being to take over the Riding School—a right which is not questioned. So we: find two gentlemen and their assistant, none of whom can afford to lose even a little money, with their: business utterly paralyzed for some days, at least 20 foreign, Sikh and Chinese policemen detached for sentry duty at the school at one. time, and probably three times as many when one counts the reliefs, also a number of firemen, the Settlement thereby losing their services for other necessary. work, and of course the Council must be Put to a certain amount of additional expense. The Chinese Chamber of Commerce is feeding the horde, at a cost of $300 per day, and at the time a visit was paid yesterday, the fugitives were inclined to give trouble because they considered their free tiffin was somewhat late in arriving. Altogether the albas come home to Shanghai with some unpleasantness,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.