The situation at Haichow, during the Inst few months, has. been undergoing kaleidoscopic change due to the constant shifting of the military units which have had control here. Just now, there is a feeling of relief over the departure of the soldiers of the Twenty-Soventh Regiment who have occupied the district just outside the West Gate of Haizhow, and some the towns near by. The Twenty-Seventh came down from Shantung under rather unusual circumstances, many stories of their having been recruited from the bandit hordes southern Shantung being in circulation before their arrival here, These "Djao An Di" apparently did mot thave proper eredentials to. show the military forces {the Twenty-Sixth Regiment) who were occupying Haichow. When the Soldiers of the Twenty-Seventh appeared outside Haichow, the officers of the Twenty-Sixth immediately put extra heavy guards at the City ates and did not allow the new Arrivals to enter the City.
'The report was current that the soldiers of the Twenty-Seventh had been taken into the army from the bandit band formerly controlled by the famous bandit chief Sen Mei-yao, so well-known for his part in the' Lingcheng bandit raid. The commander of the Twenty-Seventh is Sen Ching-tai, a close kinsman of this same Sen Mei-yao, For days an open break was expected Detween the Twenty-Sixth and Twenty-Seventh Regiments, it being noised abroad that the Twenty-Sixth intended to disarm the soidiers of the Twenty-Seventh. In fact, word was brought to us, through ome of the officers of the Twenty-Sixth, that we need not be overanxious should there be heavy firing of rifles and machine guns during the night, for this would be the necessary accompaniment of the disarming process.
'The Twenty-Seventh Regiment suddenly decided to leave here, and the tension has eased considerably since their departure. Saturday, Sunday, and Monday nights, when these soldi making' ready ta move and actually moving out, were nights of terror for those who Hive outside the City welss. Kidnapping has been the order of the day in the environs of Haichow for some time, but those who live just jo the City Gate have felt cure, However, on Sunday night three were kidnapped from houses Just outside the West Gate of the city. 'Two stores just opposite the West Gate Christian Chapel were entered by bandits, and from one of them a young man' named Ghiang, who had just finished his wedding festivities, was taken; and {rom the other store the proprietor of the store named Yang, and one Of his clerks, were taken, The Chiang family have considerable property and Mr. Yang has a Prosperous business. The next d the clerk was released to come bac with a message that the ransom money must be quickly forthcoming. The latest report is that the kidnappers are demanding: $30,000 for Mr. Chiang and $10,000 for Mr. Yang. The raid was made just at dark, The shooting aroused th whole neighbourhood, but the military, stationed all around the place, made no move to stop the brigands.
About twenty miles north-west of Haichow, Sha He, the second largest city in Katya Hsien, is being besieged by the Small Sword Society. Some time ago, a band of the Small Swords went into Sha He and made a demonstration against the Tang Pu, and looted some of the homes of the members of the Tang. On this visit, the raiders were not opposed and there was very little dis turbance. They went to a neigh Douring town and did some looting, and, in the clash which they had with the local militia, some of the Small Swords were wounded.. The wounded men were taken to a temple just outside Sha Ile, and left the care of a few men whom they tailed for the purpose.
In the meantime, some of the Toeal soldiers from Kaiyu Hsien came over to Sha He. These soldi-eta, according to the reports which have come from several sources, seem to have taken the wounded Small Swords and their keepers and executed them. The Small Sword Society has vowed vengeance. After a skirmish with a large body' of the Small Swords, out near Sha He, the Hsien soldiers retreated into Sha He and closed the gates, and now for several- weeks they have been besieged by the Small Swords. This is the first time this particular section has been treated to an exhibition of such activities fon the part of the Small Swords.
what this movement is going to lead, there is no use even trying Suffice it to fare' tinged definitely munist colour, are left unchecked, the future of this section will have many bloody episodes to record.
For some months now the Lunghai Railway between here and Hsuchowfu has been open to regular freight and passenger traffic. The amount of freight carried on this line is tremendous. The Haichow harbour (at Tapu) is filled ch shipping, fairly large steamers keeping up regular run tween Haichow and Shanghai Haichow and Tsingtao, It is a common sight to seo five or six of these steamers in Tap at one time, and some of the time there fare eight or ten of them in port at the same time, The difficulty of transportation by the—Tientsin-Pokow line has thro amount of freight to thi Shanghai shippers sending their goods by steamer to Haichow and thence by the Lunghai to Hsuchowfa.
When, or if, con to normal agai: construction project will almost certainly be revived. This Port Project is a very ambitious scheme, and it is not a mere dream, At-ready thousands of dollers have been spent, and, Belgian, Dutch and other foreign engineers have spent much time surveying the proposed site of the new harbour, out near Hsugou, at a spot between the beautiful Hsi Lien Tao and the mainland. The project when carrie ed out will give Haichow a harbour second to none in China, and capable of docking the largest vessels oF at present in contemplat Such a development here will mean much to all this section of China. Haichow is at the eastern terminus of the old great east-and-west caravan route through the heart of China and on to Europe. The part of the Lunghai Railway which has been finished up to this time, follows largely the line of this old trade route through a rich and productive section of China. When the western section of the Lunghai is built, and the Haichow Harbour is developed, Haichow will become a close rival of Shanghai and Hongkong for the honours as China's chief shipping centre, If the militarists could only be made to see how much they are denying themselves and the rest of their countrymen through their continu ous senseless strife, and be prevailed upon to allow the country a few years of peace, this section would immediately enter upon an era of startling commercial development.
The system of roads which Gen.
Pao-shan started when in charge of the three Hsiens of the Haichow Di have been allowed to deteriorate until many of them are practically impassable. Bridges have crumbled, and been left unrepaired. The farmers have dug trenches across the roads, and these trenches have been washed by heavy rains, until, in some cases, deep guilies have eaten out much of the roads. In many places where there formerly was a good high road, the water is now standing several feet deep, all the result of plain neglect.
When Gen. Pel was here he had 'a large number of automobiles himself, and a number of bus lines were started. Most of these bus lines have had to be abandoned. The coming of peace and order to this district would immediately reverse the process; the deterioration would stop and roads would be built and new enterprises started. Already, in spite of the unsettled conditions, [the flour mill in'Hsinpu (four miles from Haichow) has been reopened, and is running day and night.
The price of labour, skilled and unskilled, and the price of fruits
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.