If anything, an improvement has been brought about by the inability of the regular police force adequately to furnish protection. The "Ted: got away with the larger part of the Store of small-arms belonging to Bureau of Public Safety, and it then was necessary for the government to call upon the merchants and householders to devise ways and means of guarding their property. At once a petition was got up, ask: ing for permission to call into being the old defunct merchant volunteers aystem, which came to an end when Dr, Sun's troops slaughtered many of this body in endeavouring to di farm. it, Permission easily was ecuted to organize such a force, but few permits to carry weapons have been issued, the government contending that, if too many are granted, some unforeseen enemy may get into Canton and benefit greatly by com-{ng into possession of the rifles and revolvers of this civic guard.
Even the householders have a voice in the administration of the now police service. In every small section of the city, the people have together to discuss this quest 2 small group of stores and hou constituting separate community Which makes its own rules and re-
Zulations, and selects its own guards. The outcome is that there are so many guards that no standing room has been left for the undesirables, and one rarely hears. of the commission of crime in Canton. Even the most petty thieves are keeping under cover of have gone elsewhere o ply their trade, paper compositors, the postal and Customs workers, and the tea-house employees. Because of the pressure which the merchants have brought to bent, he has gone even further. and, during the past week, 175 ions have had their charters forfeited for no better reason than that they are counted with the Left, having been many months ago, members of the radically-inclined central Inbour, organization known as the Labourers Delegates Union.
The government has sct its foot down on the proposal that even the unions of the Right should be broken and during the week General Li told a delegation of store-owners that it.had to be remembered that Some unions, such as that of the mechanics, had been of great service to the government, and had rendered valuable services in the fight to drive out the communists. As a consequence of the government's attitude, those merchants who had been blessed with ultra-radical employees now find themselves specially favourable position. The worst of their workers have run away or have been put to death; the others do not dare to make trouble, and cannot act unitedly, for their unions are no more. The moderates among the workers are bad enough, and the shopkeepers have good cause for fearing that those unions which have been allowed to continue in existence will become as bad as were the radical unions which have been dissolved. As an illustration of the extend to which they will go, four or five days ago, pickets from the Mechanics Union, carrying arms, went to see the management of the
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.