24
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
$
[January 9, 1895.
to be thrown over, and.. new Conncil of Safety, with full powers to man-
of the Council of Safety are Prince Kung, Pre- age all th affairs of the Empire without refer- ence to the Emperor, appointed. The members sident, Chang Chih-tung, in Kun-yih, Shao Yu-lien and Wang Wen-shao. In their hands the Emperor will be merely a puppet and the Empress-Dowager shelved.
waiting for the Governor's proclamation in they were restored to their owners after they the natives. Peace and ord ar, being well each case when the colony appears 10 he had been placed in a habitable condition and maintained, and the markets are now open in threatened with such disease. Under the when it was dormed safe the interest of me of the districts, and are offering great and Public Health Ordinance the by-laws made the public health. But the debate in the nient supplies to the Japanese army. J pabese currency circulates freely. A number by the Board under the sections above Legislative Council proceeded on the assump- of Chinese soldiers endeavouring to retu n to named cessed with the withdrawal of the tion that all the houses closed were in an in- Jaining were driven off by the inhabitants. Governor's, proclamation, but now if the sanitary condition. This was a mistake. The
[FROM THE "CHINA GAZETTE. simile may be allowed, the Board will be plague made its appearance in some houses
A COUP D'ETAT. kept, permanently on a war foo ing against with the sanitary condition of which no
TINTSIN, 29th December. disease instead of being called out only on fault could be found, the occupants having
It is reported here that something like a coup emergency all when possibly the enemy contracted the disease by contagion or infection d'état is being affected in Peking as the result of may have been allowed time to gain a foot outside. Should the owners of such proper-deliberations between Prince Kung and certain ing. The Ordinance throws great responsity be compensated for the loss of rent of the Foreign Ministers. The old members of bities on the Board and eadows it with large during the time their houses were closed, the Grand Council, Prince Li, O-lo-bo-pn, Chang powers. The Governor has foreshadowed or should they be regarded simply as Chilwan, Sun Yu-wen, and Hsu Kong- the extinction of the Board, but the powers innocent sufferers unentitled to compensa-sheng are conferred by the present Ordinance are such tion? If their houses had been burnt, or official, and as it is very necessary they should earthquake, they could not have claimed as could never be entrusted to any single blown down by a typhoon, or destroyed by an be veste i somewhere the result of any inquiry compensation from the state, and why, it that may take place on the subject will be may not unreasonably be asked, should they to establish that the Sanitary Board is an be entitled to compensation because the institution that cannot be dispensed with, plague has visited their houses, even if it That is no matter how keen the official antipathy to be through no fault of their own. it may be.
the view we should be disposed to take ourselves, but we do not suppose it is the COMPENSATION FOR THE CLOSING one the Secretary of State will adopt. The OF HOUSES DURING 1HE PLAGUE. Government is always very tender respecting the so-called rights of property and as the The question of compensation for loss of closing of the houses was the direct act of rent in respect of the houses closed by the the Government it will doubtless be held that Permanent Committee during the plague is the public ought to bear the loss ensuing we hear, to be brought before the Secretary from an act performed for the public beue- of State by memorial. The general argfit. With| this principle once established ment-in favour of compensation was brought it is to be feared that the owners of "out in the debate in the Legislative Council insanitary houses will step in and profit on the Insanitary Dwellings Bill, and was, as we think, very fairly met by the Government but one important point was missed by the unofficial members and was, consequently not referred to by the seaker on the other side. In respect of the close) area
1
in
no masou
THE BATTLE OF HUNG-WASAI. The battle of Hung-wasai on the 19th Decem- bar was evidently the most fiercely fought strug- gls that has taken place in the open during the war. The Chinese at Payong yang made a pro- tracted and obstinate fight, but then they were be- hind prapets. At Hung-wasai they were in the pen, yet they stood for five hours, and received four bayonet charges before they broke. There seems to have been a great disparity in the forces engaged. According to the original accounts, the Japanese had acquired information of Sung's intention to try and force his way to a junction with the troops massed northward of by it as well as those who have done Haicheng. But the Hochi Shimbun tells a their duty by their property, for it would Oseko had no idea of meeting the Chinese troops, different story. It alleges that Major-General be almost impossible to differentiate between bat was on the march for Ying-kow (Newchwang) the individual cases. We trust, however, that from Fai-cheng when he encountered Sung's the local Governuient will make the best forces between Hung wasal and Hachisho. If fight it can against the payment of any com-that be so, Major.General. Ogeko can not have pensation whatever. The state of affairs had more than 4,000 men under his command at brought to light during the epidemic was by the outside, for his force is spoken of as a détach no means creditable to laudlords as a class,
The Japanese losses, as given by the Kukkai,
Kiled.
80
Taipingshan the Government agreed to give to, the owners of the resumed property in- ferest on the amount of the valuation from the date of the closing of the houses untiland, still speaking of them as a class, they the date of payment of the purchase money,
are not deserving of public sympathy. Some This, it was argued by the Hon. C. P.
of them may be Flameless, but even CHATER in the debate in Conncil, was equi- valent to compensation for loss of rent, and they have suffered no more, nor not nearly so much, as the forunate tenants whose wliy, he asked, if one class of landlords business was utterly runed by the closing was given compensation for loss of Fen, of their shops and am no one has ever should not the others be treated in the samë
entertained a thought of compensating. way. The reply was that if too múch had been given in one can that was why too much should be given in another, also that it was impossible to apply the same principles in the case of the absolute resumption of property and in the case of the temporary closing of houses subse- quently handed back to the owners in a clean and wholesome condition, and, further- more, that it would be fairer that the owners of insanitary property who by their neglect and greed had brought the plague upon the colony should compensate the sufferers ratller than that they should them. selves receive compensation. It may be admitted
THE WAR.
RETERS PELIORA
1st January. Operations to the south : [Monkdeu are at a standstill.
LONIOON, 41] Jaavary. Newchwang is still i the hands of "the Chinese,
FROM THE CERCURY. CIVIL ADMINISTRATION IN LIACTUNG PENINSULA.
ment.
were :-
Officers
2
Wounded. Total.
412
Sergeant-majors. 2 Rank and Allo} 5*
345) That is the heaviest loss sustained by the Japanese in any single engagement after Phyong- yang sine the commencement of the war. What
The Chinese casualties' were remains still un ascertained, but there is no doubt that they were very large, especially if we include the men drowned or killed by cold in attempting to oross the Diao, Sung's attempt to effet a juneș fion with the forces northward of Hai-Chene was completely defeated. His army of 10.000. broke into three, sections and fled by various routes in the direction of Shan-hai-kwan. T distane from Newchwang to Shan-bai-kwang is bon! 200 miles, but of course it is not to be sup posed that Sung and his braves are so demora. bizód as to make no rally on this dof the latter place. At any rate the advent of heaten troops flying for their lives has a distinct y dɩ moralizing effect upon their comrades-Japan Mail.
Japon THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF TE CITINESE ARMY. that the analogy between
Telegraphic intelligence has reached the Can- the case of Taipingshan and that of houses outside the resumed area may be pressed too
ton authorities to the effect that on Friday last far. In the former the owners have been
an Edict was issued by the Emperor appoiut- deprived, of the use of their property or of
ing the former Viceroy of Liang Kiang, Liu Kwan-yi, to the Principal 'irectorship of War the capital it represents for a longer period
Affairs, with full command of the armies at home than might have been necessary had the
and abroad. In spite of refusal by the said off- houses been dealt with individually instead
ciul His Majesty issued a second Edict on the following day peremptorily appointing him to of by the district, for they have been kept
the post. The Edict states that as the veteran. out of their money months after the dis-
had been so many years commander in the army appearance of the plague, by the necessary delay in the adjudication of their claims A telegram has been received from Lieut and is so well noted for his experience, he should in respect of the compensation to be paid for General Nodza, dated Aatnog, 29th Decem-accept the offer and exert himself to the best of resumption. Some few of the houses were ber stating that the natives belonging to the his ability to fight against the enemy. not in an insanitary condition, others were districts which have been occupied by different anyone disobey his orders he has full power to
divisions of the Jap neso remy have been great. inflict punishment. a capable of being readily placed in ly influened by the ceme cy of the Japanese
YOKOH MA, 29th December. In order to preserve strict discipline and to pacify the people of Linotang Peninsula, Mar- shal Oyama has determined to establish., civil administration at Kinchow, similar to that of the first army at Altung, which has been fully working since the 16th December, according to the custom of the people. The objects are to maintain law and good order in the locality, to protect peaceful inhabitants, and relieve those in distress.
THE CHINESE APPRECIATE JAPANESE RULE
YOKOHAMA, 3 th December.
the majority were sanitary condition,
authority. The Chinese have returned, with hopelessly bad, but under the circumstances their wives and fat lies, and resnined their dif. all had to be closed alike and kept closed.ferent occupations.
Army whils In the case of the houses situated elsewhere, I on the march receive very willing services from
:
Should
on
The Empress of China, which arrived Wedne day, had very heavy weather in her ron gross from Vancouver to Yokoh»ma - z She suɛ" ained some slight damage to her bridge.