Reading Tuesday's telegrams we were moved to sympathy with the "Old Lady: of the Bund" (N.C. D. News) by the announcement that the paper was obliged to reduce its size to four pages "owing to a shortage of #as.". We would it had been for some other cause for the cynics are boufid to make merry over the matter. We hope the paper will soon be able to tap a further supply that will erilt the staff to inflate that inst excellent paper to its normal, ealtying side. All China papers axe and. i valiantly 16 overcome experienting diffeuities these days thei, for newspaper offices and print ing, shops are not entirely immune from the windiness that invades and pervades other establishments, However, if we have to reduce the size of the "Tsingtao" Times it will not be owing to a shortage. of gas, but for some other reason for, fortunately, gas has not been installed in Tsingtao. Some tay say that hot' air" makes a good substitute and who are we to refute them? We dare not pass on the suggestion to our big brother N.C. D. News, so hope nobody will make it. We shall be inclined to regard it as personal if it is made. However, joking apart, we regret the Necessary reduction in size of the teat paper, which has done so. mei to foster British prestige in this land, and hope for its early return to full size,—W.L.
The heavy hoofed humourist apparently does not realize that gas is used to melt the metal for the linotype machines. As for "windiness", though a bomb fell next door but one the "Old Lady" carried on. She didn't ever evacuate, don't You Know?
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.