Hankow, March 17.
The Hupeh Provincial Treasury! announces that there was a shortage of $5,000,000 on the Provincial K' accounts for 1930 despite the amount collected as likin, and that since the abolition of likin and the failure to organize any other adequate source of revenue, matters] are now so bad-that no payments can be made to the sehéols for February. The plans for collecting] the Business Tax have been 50 much delayed that there will now! be no collection for March. On the other hand pressure has been put} on the Province to complete the issue of Treasury Notes to the extent of $3,000,000 and after many delays it has been arranged—that the' Wuhan cities. shall purchase all but $250,000 of this sum. The Bankers are to take up $800,000; the three Chambers of Commerce, 500,000; the Exchange Banks, $300,000; the Opium Bureau, $500, 000;' the Cotton Dealers, $100,000 the Waterworks Ce., $50,000; Which each house is to contribute one month's rentals and each shop half a month's rentals, The balance divided between the Chambers of Commerce at Ichang, Shasi, Wa-such, Fancheng, Lachokow,' Hsinti, Tsaitien and Yokow. The' Chinese press expresses the opinion that even though the allocation is made the state of business will not allow scheme. of an early completion of the]
'A Race Course Fracas weather was chilly about 10, Sunday last although Person assembled at the Chinese face Club to witness the races. All went well till the eighth race, when the two favourites. were. left behind from the start and the race was won by three outsiders. angry crowd at once yelled that the matter had been manipulated so that the favourites should loss and demanded the return of their stake of. This demand was refused, Whereupon stones were thrown af} the offices and & rush made at the judges. A posse of soldiers appear. ed with fixed bayonets ant one of the crowd, a tailor by trade, got in the way of a bayonet and was slightly injured. Mattern then took serious turn, but the determined Attitude of the soldiers and a heavy downpour of rain saved the situation. The wounded man, after his wound had been dressed, was able to return to his home.
'The Hankow City' police have laid by the heels. the gang which has been terrorizing the—silversmiths Their leader was Chien of the Fifth Star, who had been in military service but had been dismissed. He formed band of sixteen men, all discharged soldiers, and hed _'successfully held up the An Ho, Hang! Vu, Foo Chiang and Hxich ai silver shops during the last—few! months. Probably owing to a dis agreement with Chien, one of the band gave information to the police and after raids in the Chang Ching Lee and other places, Chien and his associates were all arrested.
Word has just come that the! Mei Shou, a Chinese owned passenger launch has been pirated between. Shasi and chang, ten of the passengers suddenly producing arms and collecting $2,000 from their fellow-passengers. And it may be mentioned subject to correction that mounted bandits are believed to be Tooting. the foreign properties _on Kikungshan despite the presence of troops in the immediate vicinity.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.