But this Daily News gives also an occasional
supplement, on a minute scrap of paper, and the
supplement is commonly worth reading.

As a fair specimen of the state of the
newspaper press in China, we translate the entire
number of the Foo-chow Daily News for the
10th of last March:

"To-day, at the Court of the Governor-General,
the following officers reported their arrival:
Wei-yin-fang, who had brought prisoners to the
capital from Yung-an; Ma-kien-shen and Ping-
pien-yuh, who had returned from public
business at Chaug-chon, and Ko-tson-spin, who had
come to announce a victory. Ma-kien-shen also
begged for leave of absence. Pien-kin-Ian called
to pay his parting visit upon going to Yen-ping,
to distribute supplies among the troops. To-day
the Lieutenant-Governor went out to the temple
of the God of Literature, and paid homage by a
presentation of broth, pork, mutton, and beef.
After offering incense in sacrifice, he returned
to his Court, when an officer, Chin-choo-lung,
announced his arrival here on special business."

And that is all the newspaper contains. A
file of it for half a year may almost be read
through at a single breakfast. Looking
through the file of it for a month, I, writing in
China, translate all that is likely to be read with
any interest in England, and interpolate among
the news a note or two of explanation. The
file is for March, eighteen 'fifty-nine, and we
begin with March the first, alias the twenty-
seventh day of the first moon of the Emperor
Hien-fung's ninth year. On that day,

"The high officials—Viceroy, Lieutenant-
Govemor, Judge, Treasurer, &c.—met in the
Great Hall, called out the malefactors Lin-
van-san and others, eight in all" (they had been
engaged in a river piracy a few months
previously, when they attacked and plundered the
Literary Chancellor, on one of his routes), "and,
after examination, deputed a military officer
respectfully to take the Imperial Command, and
drag these eight fellows to the execution-ground
outside the north gate, where they were
beheaded as a warning to the public. After the
execution he restored the Sovereign's warrant
to its usual place." The Royal Command here
mentioned is a board so inscribed which is lodged
in the Governor-General's bureau. All persons
found guilty of treason, parricide, murder, piracy,
or robbery with violence, may suffer capital
punishment by warrant of the production of this
board. It sanctions the immediate beheading
of the criminal, but requires that the execution
be reported for his Majesty's approval. Other
sentences of condemnation to death have to be
reported before execution.

Next day's paper records that the chief
authorities of the city went to pay their respects to
the Viceroy and the Lieutenant-Governor, the
day being the twenty-eighth of the moon, and
the rule being that visits of etiquette are
payable whenever the numbers two, three, five, seven,
eight, or ten appear in the dates. This happens
on eighteen days in a full month. On special
business, it is lawful to pay visits on other days

The day following, our third of March, "being
the anniversary of the Empress, wife of the
Emperor Kien-lung" (who died a century ago),
"with all due honours her funeral tablet was
placed in the Great Hall of the Two Governors."
On such a day there were to be no more friendly
visits, and no private entertainments.

March the Fourth.—An officer reports his
return from Chun-chon (a maritime department
of the province), whither he had been sent to
solicit subscriptions for the public service. This
is the mild way of obtaining contributions in
addition to the taxes. Next day the chief news
was that the Literary Chancellor had taken leave
on his departure to the lower departments for
the approaching examinations for degrees. And
on the next day to that a gentleman, "by
donation elevated," otherwise promoted by purchase,
reports his arrival from Kian-ning; another prays
for leave of absence. Records like these last
occur daily. The seventh of March was, by its
Chinese computation, one of those dates in
which a three, a six, or an eight occurs, and which
are, consequently, right days for the receiving
of petitions in high places. Therefore our Daily
News informs us that "the two Governors
deputed a military officer to go out and bring up
what petitions had been handed in—four for the
Viceroy, two for the Lieutenant-Governor. The
Lientenant-Governor went out to worship at one
of the temples, and afterwards proceeded to a
tea arbour." Our own Court Circular could not
be more explicit. On the eighth of March, two
officers waited on the Viceroy to inform him that
they were about to lodge a quantity of lead in.
one of the government storehouses. The
government had been deploring the demand of lead
for ordnance stores, and the impossibility of
finding all that was required. It had been driven
to enforce a claim of five per cent on all the lead
employed in making tea-chest linings.

Among the departures announced in the paper
of the ninth of March was that of a mandarin,
to distribute food and wages to the troops about
a large neighbouring city. A mandarin also
published his thanks for (or advertisement of)
permission from the Emperor to wear a peacock's
tail. The paper for the tenth of March we have
already translated in full. In the next number
we read of the anniversary of the demise of
another empress, and of the going forth of the
Lieutenant-Governor at five o'clock to pay his
homage to Heaven at the North Altar, outside
the city gates. This is, in fact, the season for
adoration by the high official before two altars,
a north and a south, dedicated to the Supreme
Being alone, under the name of Heaven or the
High Ruler. At Pekin the Emperor himself
leads in this service. On the day following, the
most notable fact was, that forty well-disciplined
troops were despatched on service as spies.
Then on the thirteenth of March, at a special
sitting of the Viceroy's Court, three men
were brought up for final examination,
ringleaders in tumult last year, when they moved
the people in one part of the city to shut up
shop and beset the Viceroy's palace. Sentence