In guaranteed fast colours Also to-day did come news that the NYK wd nett to open their San Francisco line until their shippo Asama Maru was once more able to ply the seas. Happening in Hongkong shortly after the September typhoon, I did travel out to the bay wherein the Asama Maru and the Conte Verde were to be found aground, and must confess to a certain degree of amusement when I discovered that the former vessel had appropriately come to a final reste noe more than a few yards from where an olde cemetery lay scattered about the face of a bille. And discerning the rockes all around the unfortunate shippo, did then attempt to wager a small but useful summer of money that she wd still be there for at least three months to come. but ed find no takers, so I am now out of pocket.
"pet Suitable for all purposes, at very reasonable prices Our prices have not been advanced.
January 9.—To-day being Sunday, the Day of Reste, did remain for a lengthy period between the blanquers, as usual, before arising for my noon repast. And in the afternoon, after laughing heartily over Authour Wodehouse's introduction to an article on Shakespeare and Jenson with words similar ie "Since the anniversary of Shakespeare' gen falls this year," was again overcome by a surfeit of drowsiness, and did nodd several times in an orme-chaire, Nonetheless, did learn of a saddle accident in the French Con-
Cescioun, wherein two detectives and two little Americkan girls were injured to a varyi", degree by the explosion of a bombo of the cigarette-finn type. The incident did bring to my inconsistent memory once again a tale told to me at one of the press conferences by a Japanese spokesman anent the activities of a large number of residentes to the north of that liquid stream of mudde, the Soochow Crique.
JO
At regular intervals, quote he, these re-siderites were to be seen a-trotting to certain corners of their small gardens and there to be busi lie watering patches of ground which obvious lie contained no flours, vegetables or other constituent partes of a respectable garden, It did appear, he said with an earnest air, that heavy, unexploded shelles are there to be found, buried deep in the soil and since the residents are most chary of digging them upp themselves, they doe busily water the sport in order to pacify the chemicales contained within the shelles A most poetic friend of mine, after my relating this tale to him, immediately shook back his chrysanthemum head of hair and went to work on an ode which commences: "Mary, Mary, quite contraries, how does your garden growe? Oh, with shelles and shelles and then more shelles, All laid deep in a rowe." 277%
January 10.—To-day, being minded to remove from the present premises in which I reside, owing to high coste and other militate ing factors, did travel many miles about the Central Districkt in the hope of being able to find me more suitable quarters, But alas for mine attempts—for where the quarters were suitable, the price was nett, and the contrary. But it was nett this that did bother me, for I still have hope, but it was the attitude of the landladies encountered. g gifted by Nature of a frame that has ever been slim (or lean, depending upon the point of view), I do seem to be a natural targett for every landladie 1 chance to meet. One and all are immediately imbued with the desire to make me fat "again," and from hintes which they have dropt concerning the method to be employed, I am led to believe that the operacioun would be somewhat similar to that used by cookes when preparing turkeys and other feathered creatures for some festive board. My poet friend agrees with me that, despite the obvious desire to be friendlie and to look after me, these landladies do appeare to have been ed with a very fowl idea.
January 11.—This eventide to the office, it being my turn on the rota to perform the duties of the night shift. And whilst thus employed, did receive what in vulgar circles in termed a "tip-off" which sent me bastille to the Louza Police Stacioun, There, did garner details of a fine foote performed by the detectives of that stacioun in that they had arrived at the scene of an armed crime and had arrested the culpritts before the robbery had gone beyond its initial stages. And I was able ta batch a good glimpse of We four gang-men concerned, which did make me marvel at the splendid work of the police in being able to differentiate between criminals and the civilian populace in their daily patrolles through this city of a million souls. Two of the crimsters were but youthes, and to my eye seemed more like two country bumpkins who had come to the city to keep out of the way of bombes and helles. The other two might be taken as rickshaw coolies, and none of the four, to a casual eye, would appear capable of even planning, let alone carrying out, a daring theft. And yet, they must have been possessed of a ready witt, as my colleague Shakespeare puts it, for as scone as the detectives did appeare, they immediately assumed the guise of inmates of the house and, hiding their weapons, endeavoured tu divert the Peelers to a course which they said the robbers had taken, The immediate arrest of everyone in sight, however, brought this planne to nought.
January 12.—To-day, did strolle along the waterfront watching the cargoes of vegetables and other such produce being brought ashore from various small vessels along the Bund. The activities of one small party of urchins attract my attencioun as they, in small dartes and rushes, did attempt to filch some small item of cargo for themselves. One dirty-cheekt youngster eventually secured a fine specimen of Shantung cabbage and was immediately away down the road, pursued by four or five others of his own tender age. The band of pursuers soon came upp with him, and there then ensued a brief fight for the poor piece of greenerie, small portions of which commenced a-flying through the air in a short while. I crobbi the road in some haste, hoping to be able to preserve a memento of the occacioun in my camera, but I had barely reach the sport and was training my lens in that direction when a rickshaw coolie retook it upon himself to adopt the role of mediator. He listened for a few minutes to the argument of counsel for both sides and then, with the skill of a chief justice, dismiss the case By cloutting the reste of the gang and fighting a rear-guard accoun while the first urchin made his sniveling way off down the Bunde. 9
January 13.—Did learne to my distress this morning of the sad death of the entire crew of the Samoan Clipper, near Pago-Page. Even more saddening was the fact that among those who perish was Captain Musick, commodore of the Pan-Americkan air fleet. Captain Musick had the reputacioun of never having embark on stunt flying or of taking those foolish risques which to a certain school of fliers seems to be the sole raison d'etre for man's conquest of the air, So excellent ahd capable a pilate was he that his company invariably employed him for their pioneer flights, and under his commande the pilotes of Pan-Americkan Airways have built upp an excellent reckord for consistent, accident-free flying. Captain Musick was nett a stunt flier, nor did he embark upon long-distance flightes for the mere purpose of making a name or garnering a useless reckord, as was the case with a number of other world-wide known pilotes. His death is a lose not on lie to the companies which employed him, but, indeed, a lose to the entire world of flying.
Anā soe to my usual reflexion, when I remarqued to my poetic friend on the strange coincidence of double-events this past yeara, notably the Amelia Earhart and Samoan Clipper disasters, similar in the respect that aeroplanes were involved in both cases; the Palace Hotel/New World and Sincere bombings; the war in Spain and in China; the earthquake in Manila and the typhoon in Hongkong, both after recent heavy arrivals of Shanghai refugees; the two crashes of Americkan naval planes; and then the Asama Maru and Presidente Hoover mishaps, when two of the Pacific's finest liners did run aground, to noe inconsiderable financial distress to all concerned. But, after considering that two nice money draughts for photographs were now on their way to me from Australia, did order a second cup of cocoa—and so to bed.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.