Public opinion, in a varied but not entirely satisfactory form, has been drawn to express.itself on the commercialized gambling issue since the Municipal Councit took the unusual step of publishing certain semi-official corr pondence between two of thei senior permanent officials. The result should disabuse the Council of the idea of obtaining helpful guidance by the employ: ment of this form of publicity in the future. There has beer in the columns of this journal a spate of criticism and thinly veiled abuse of the Council from correspondents writing under pseudonyms. The only signed letter—brief and—strictly relevant—firmly supported the view that steps should be taken to terminate the evils to which the correspondence drow atten-jon. There has been evidence of n desire to make facetious attacks on the two officials, brought by the publication of their letters into the limelight, rather than to deal squarely with the issue itself. On the -other hand, 80 far as can be judged, the greyhound racing interests themselves have shown commendable restraint and would probably be the first to condemn the crudities of some of their self-appointed champions: It is, indeed amazing that the Council and especially the two officials concerned should be confronted with a hostility which smacks far too much of personal pre-judi¢e and is sorely wanting in solid "argument. The explana tion most readily "occurring to the mind is that the critics, fully conscious of the weakness of their case, took shelter in. the recognized fashion. Afraid to. strike, by frankly declaring their disregard for the personal credit of -Shangha they were willing to wound by the discharge of quibbles and quips against two men who, by virtue of their position, - were not able to reply.
As was pointed out in this column from the first, the issue Is essentially one of the reputa-'
of Shanghai, Dissertations on the extent of the gambling evil, ethics of the pari-mutuel, the contributory negligence of
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.