To the Editor of the "Mokrh-Cuxg Day News"
Sin,—For the benefit of the publi let me say candidly that there is a shortage of coal in Shanghai othe wise prices would never have gone so high as kindly pointed out by your correspondent SHRAPNEL.
Kailan coal was $16.50 last yea and it is selling to-day at $22 to $26 per ton retail price delivered, Hongay anthracite coal for stoves and arcolas was selling at $28 per ton last year and is now selling freely at $36 to $40 per ton, Shansi and Honan anthracite was $26 per ton last year and is now selling at $36 per ton. Kitchen coal "first quality" is selling at $26 per ton against $20 last year. Dust and slack coal for steam purposes is selling at $22 per ton against $14 last To the Editor of the "NortH-Citya Dany News" reference to the report on "Conditions around Amoy and Kulangsu" from "On pondent" in your 1 would like to draw your readers' attention to the misleading reference to the National University of Amoy. Your correspondent mentions that the University has 50 professors and 50 students, and questions the advisability of cotiduéting classes. We only wish our budget could permit such a large staff! At present 19 professors with the help of lecturers and assistants are carrying on in spite of all difficulties. At the time of your correspondents report the teaching staff was even smaller, as rany of them had not yet returned {ror vacation. At that time, too the What I actually mean by a shortage is that while there may be enough coal to go round in Shanghai for winter consumption, stocks are much depleted and much lower than they usually are, or even may have been reduced owing to the stoppage of free importations during the past hostilities. At present it is easy to sell all stocks of coals held by owners in Shanghai at a good profit, This is not necessarily profiteering but taking advantage of a ready cash market instead of rétailimg ow and thus standing to lose on such business.
Freights on imports of coals and other transportation charges have also risen enormously during the past three months, Coni Mereuany Shanghai, Nov. 5. number of students was irrelevant since our academic year had not yet opened. Now, with the autumn semester only three weeks old, the registration has reached 260 and students from the interior are still coming in every day. In view of the facts that travelling is not easy and that the expected registration this year was between 260 and 300. we are not at all discouraged. To the question raised by your correspondent when ther it would be worth while to \continue the work of the university An this hour of national travail 1 leave it to your readers to supply the answer.
In concluding, may I hope that your correspondent in Amoy will serve you and your readers with figures "that have been duly checked and not allow his personal "grudge" attendant io the "confiscation" of his tin of coffee to prejudice sounder judgment!
E, S. Yano, Sec, National University. Amoy Amoy, Oct. 26,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.