氨
August 30, 1609.]
FAR EASTERN. TELEGRAMS.
CHINA AND JAPAN.
IMPENDING SETTLEMENT OF ALL DISPUTES.
Tokyo, August 29th. Agreements are pending which settle all disputes between Japan and China as a result of the protracted conferences between the the Waiwupn and Mr. Ijuin, the Japanese Minister at Peking.
The Japanese Press welcomes the prospect of the settlement which is considered to be the outcome of the firm attitude taked up on the Antung-Mukden railway dispute. Stock Ex- change quotations, as a result of this announce- ment, show a firm upward tendency.
[FROM THE "CHUNG NGOI SAN PO."]
NEW VICEROY OF CANTON.
The
Shanghai, August 20th. new Viceroy of Canton is to leave Nanking, where he met His Excellency Chang Jen-chun, on the the 23rd instant, Monday, for Shanghai. He has appointed the 4th prox. as the date on which he will take over the seals of the office of Viceroy of the Two Kwang Provinces.
STEAMER DESTROYED BY FIRE.
Shanghai, August 22ud.
The steamer Kiang-San belonging to the China Merchant Steam Navigation Company was destroyed by fire, whilst proceeding to Wuhu yesterday.
ENGLISH OFFICER KILLED AT PEKING.
OD
Peking. August 24th. An English military officer was killed Sunday last at the Railway Station neur the city gate by being run over by a train.
YUAN SHI KAI.
Peking. August 24th. It is reported that the Grand Secretaries have recommended the Throne owing to recent troubles with the Japanese to re-appoint Yuan hikai to office:
[This is regarded in Chinese circles as doubtful.-DD.]
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
CHAIR BEARERS. AND THEIR FARES.
Two interesting cases in which chair coolies were proceeded against for refusing fares were heard by Mr. F. A. Hazeland at the Magistracy on Aug. 20.
cry of
4.
193
EXPLOSION ON H, M. S. “OTTER.
A BRAVE MAN'S DEATH.
13
A private letter received from Weihaiwei dated August 19 states that on the night of August 16 one of the boiler tubes burst on board H. M. S. Otter, torpedo-boat destro yer, and as a result two men had died and another was lying in a precarious condition. It is the custom for the torpedo-boat destroyers to leave their moorings about 8 p.m. and to go outside for night-firing about three times a week, and on this occasion steam was. being got up when › the accident occurred. The steam from the explosion was funerals took place at 8 a.m. on the 18th instant.
seen
from the
shore. The
WHAT HAPPENED ON BOARD.
110
In the first Mr. Mowbray S. Northcote pro- secuted two chair coolies for refusing hire in Icehouse Street, and his Worship, after hearing the evidence, imposed a fine of 815, each bearer being ordered to contribute $7.50 of the amount.. The Magistrate remarked that chair coolies generally declined a corpulent man as a fare.
In the second case a chair bearer prosecuted a Portuguese resident for assault, and the latter
Further details of the accident on board the cross-summoned the coolie for using abusive language and for refusing hire.
Otter disclose a story of great bravery on the It appears that as the defendant was walking up Shelley part of a second-class petty officer of the torpedo- Street with a number of friends, it was decided boat destroyer. Unfortunately, we have that they should proceed in chairs. The usual means of obtaining this man's name, but a sailor Kiu" was followed by a rush of from one of his Majesty's ships at Weihaiwei bearers, and all of the party were soon recounted the incident as it was given to him. seated with the exception of the defendant, When the tube burst below there were about who being a corpulent man was not solicited for half-a dozen men in the stoke-hold and vicinity. his patronage. When one of the bearers of the The bursting of the tube was followed by a huge vacant chair declined to take him as a passenger volume of steam rushing from the hold, and the defendant offered to pay double fare. But realizing that an accident had occurred the this was insufficient inducement to the coolie, petty officer forced his way below and imme- and after considerable argument the defendant diately set to work to secure the safety of the lost his temper and struck the coolie a blow on ship and at the same time stop the rush of the face. The latter fell to the ground as steam and scalding water. In this he was terrible experience. The though he had been delivered a knock-out blow, successful after a and as he did not apparently revive after being work of getting the other men out was begun allowed ample time, the man who struck
at once and it is reported that those who were him became alarmed, and probably had ideas of below and got alive owe their lives to the
All the men coolie to be removed to a house in the vicinity got to a future manslaughter charge. He caused the bravery of this man.
the deck alive, but one was 80 and sent post haste for a medical man. Mean-
badly scalded that he died shortly afterwards, time a
stiff nip" of brandy was poured into and another was very badly injured, but it is When all danger the coolie's mouth, and all were surprised when thought that he may recover. he very forcibly spluttered it out. Then a
was passed the petty officer came cn deck, we Are the boys all right?" doctor arrived, and after an examination assert- are told, and said ed that there was nothing wrong with the lifeless and on being answered in the affirmative he looking coolie, at the same time asserting that replied that he thought he was about finished, a "cumsha" would probably revive him. This,
The man then collapsed, and he died without His hands were however, failed, and iced water was then resorted regaining consciousness. to. With the first trickle from a bottle a
beyond description.
The accident occurred at about 6 o'clock at spasm shot through the inanimate form, but as soon as he got used to the reviver the chair night and visitors on the island saw the steam bearer relapsed again, so it was decided to issuing from the deck of the Otter and the take him to the Central Police Station.
pinnaces conveying the doctors on board. The There he continued inert, so
two men who had died as a result of the injuries an ambulance
buried with full was brought along and he was taken they had sustained were
to the Government Civil Hospital. When laid naval honours,-N.-C, Daily News. on an operating table in the waiting room the invalid came to his senses almost as rapidly as if he had been galvanised, and stated that The
CHINESE IMMIGRATION INTO THE he did not wish the doctor's attention.
STRAITS SETTLEMENTS.
doctor, however, made an examination and
THE RECENT EARTHQUAKE
I JAPAN,
THE ASTOR HOUSE HOTEL, SHANGHAI
were
pronounced the man to be sound. He was im- At the annual meeting of shareholders of the mediately discharged and walked forthwith to Astor House Hotel, Shanghai, the Chairman the Central Police Station, where he took out (Mr. F. Ayscough) said the accounts showed a summons against the Portuguese for assault, that the past year's working had been an unpro- After hearing both summonses his Worship fitable oue. They have, however, wiped off last fined each of the parties 7.
year's debit balance and carried forward $2,643.73 to this year's account. The directors much regretted the small profit shown, but thought that the management had been hampered by the new building operations, which had not only frightened visitors away from the hotel but had entailed a loss of twenty-four rooms; many of them the best in the hotel. earth-There was a regrettable decrease of $12,580 in the receipts under the heading of "rooms, board bar and billiards showed a decrease and chits of $3.033: and in rents receivable, a decrease of $3.156, owing to the reduction of rents of some of the company's shops which they
submit to in
with had had to
One of the shareholders other landlords.
Under the heading "Chinese Protectorate," Mr. Bland states in the Penang administration report for 1908 that Chinese Immigration fell off by nearly a third in 1908. This was doubt. les one of the results of the acute financial, depression which prevailed during the year, but it is none the less to be regretted, for the Chinese are the most energetic of our immigrants and one Chinese coolie will do the work of two Tamils. That "Colonial-born Chinese have been taking part in the doings of certain dis- orderly gangs" has been frequently mentioned The Japan Chronicle of the 17th inst, prefaces in these columns, this presents a fresh difficulty a long report of the features of the recent for the Protectorate, as even when these disorder-quake with the following statement: ly gangs develop into organized secret societies their members, if they are British subjects' cannot be banished. It seems a little strange that "the Chinese Advisory Board held no meeting daring the year," for there have been several matters which might profitably have engaged their attention. Whether the members of the Board did not care to meet or the authorities neglected to call upon them to do so, we do not know, but we should have imagined that the Board, if pro- perly constituted, would provide the Govern- ment with a valuable means of keeping in touch with the Chinese population. We note that "the returns' show a steady decrease in the sale of chandu," and with yet greater satisfaction that the number of public house and retail liquor-ship licences also fell considerably, for we had always feared that a falling-off in the consumption of opium would be attended by a corresponding increase in the consumption of alcohol.-Pinang Gazette.
J
common
The earthquake on Saturday afternoon, which had its centre a little north of Lake Biwa, resulted in a serious loss of life and great des- truction of property. The centre of the dis turbance appears to have been not far removed from that of the great earthquake in 1891, and it is worthy of note that the vibration (Mr. McCabe) pointed out with regard to the registered in Kobe last Saturday was greater statement that "the hotel this year shows a recorded in Osaka in 1891. profit of $6,844.71," that no less than $5,100 than that when so much damage 'was caused in the represented "profit on the sale of investments, neighbouring city. Fortunately, although the and that but for the destruction of the Hankow vibration was greater, the shocks last Saturday Hotel by fire there would have been a loss of over $5,000. The report and accounts were were less acute, otherwise we might have had to record a similar disaster to that which took adopted. place on the 28th October, 1891, when close on 10,000 people were killed and double that num- ber injured in Aichi, Gifu, Fukui, and Shiga prefectures, 78 deaths occurring in Osaka fu.
As it is, on this occasion some 40 lives have
been lost, 168 persons have been injured, and 1,100 buildings have been totally destroyed.
The Directors of the Whangpoo Conservancy Board have decided to recommend to the Viceroy of the Liangkiang Provinces that the agree- ment of Mr. de Rijke, the engineer-in-chief of the Board since its establishment three years ago, be renewed for another year.
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