Nanking, Dec, 16.
The Ministry of Railways issued] to-day the following statement:—
Owing to the unprecedented fall] in the price of silver, which has resulted in increasing considerably {the cost of the materials bought by the Chinese railways as well as the silver equivalent of the interest, charges on the railway bonds, the Nanking-Shanghai Railway was not} lable to meet the interest payment due on December The Ministry of Railways has now advanced to the Nanking-Shanghai Railway a sum sufficient, meet this interest payment, totalling £68,700. The money was} handed over to the serving bank to-day.
The Ministry of Railways is now engaged upon a revision of the railway rates the result of which, it is hoped, will provide adequate protection against future fluctuations in oxchango—Reuter,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.