It is practically impossible now to got the facts as to the loss of life in this territory. Reports vary from hundreds, to thousands, and tens of thousands. 'The truth probably. will never be known, and the approximate figures can only' be determined some time after the water have subside: fed to distant vho left early were counted among those who escaped, may have met disaster in the attempt way. Undoubtedly the exaggerated in many cases.
Where the land is inundated, the loss of property {is tremendous. have seen many houses crumbling to pieces under the pressure of the water and I have seen others still standing with water over the roots, almost sure to collapse in a short time, Here too, it is impossible 10 ell the extent of the damage. Probably the greatest loss is "in the crops which were ruined. Few families have anything left from one crop to another, so when they lose crop it means great distress and when they fail to get two crops in succession, many are sure to perish from hunger, unless help comes from the outside, 'In many' places forced tabour has been used in building dykes and in strengthening river banks. In other eases people have gone out and built dykes" which they. hope will hold. Often these dykes proved the ruin of those who built them, because the waters were held back just long enough to gather suMicient force to break the dykes and rush torrentially fon the stricken people. Had the yes not been built, the water would have come slower and less damage would have been done. In many cases, the attempt on the part of some to save their land at the expense of others resulted as disastrously for them, When flood first reached the Hal-
'The inauguration ceremony was! held this morning at ten o'clock, in the presence of a large gathering. After the oath of allegiance Mr. Lo 'Tro-tsao, Chairmen of the local Kuomintang spoke, giving a short history of Gen. Li' and his hopes in him in the welfare of the people under his administration.
In reply Gen. Li said that he hoped to perform his duties at the level Dest and faithfully, but since he was more or less a stranger in this dis-{trict and general conditions were unfamiliar to him that he expected his friends would help him, It is understood that his troops will remain at Loachang, except a company of his personal body-guards who arrived here by gun-boat Hua
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.