The San Francisco call., 1896-05-13
Frightful Fall Over a Precipice
of a Missionary Who Was
Cycling.
BOAT UPSET ON THE YANGTsE
Forty Persons Drowned-The Coptic
Breaks the Record-Nanking to
Have a Mint.

TOXIC, JAPAN, April 26.-An entente
| has been established between Japan and
| Russia with reference to Korean affairs.
The details of the arrangement have not
been definitely settled, but its general out
| lines are that the two powers will hence
| forward cooperate to preserve good order
| in Korea.
The Importance of the event in its bear
| ings upon the peace of the Orient cannot
be overestimated, but from q historical
point of view it presents some singular
| features. An inevitable outcome of the
interference of Russia, Germany and
! France last year in the matter OF
Liaotung. it is at the same time
Numerically opposed to the avowed pur-
| pose of that interference. The three
! powers insisted that Japan must retire
| from her newly acquired positions along
the Yalu, on the littoral of the Yellow
| Sea and at the entrance of the Gulf of
Pechili, because, thus posted, she would
| have Korea at her mercy, and the inde-s
! pendence of the little kingdom would be
| illusory. In a word, Russia, Germany
and France came upon the stage as assert
ers of Korean independence. Their logical
sequence of procedure would have been
to practically guarantee that indepen-
dence-to convert Korea into the Belgium
of the East. But they were not logical.
They confined themselves to step that
merely crippled Japan's controlling in
| iuence in Korea without providing any
efficient substitute for it.
A terrible bicycling accident happened
on the road from Fukui to Tsuruga, on the
west coast OF Japan, on the 14th of April.
The Rev. J. B. Porter, Kioto mission
ary, who was bicycling toward Tsuruge,
fell over cliff some $50 feet high. A
Japanese postman saw the accident and
FASTENED to give the alarm, soon collect
ing two parties of Japanese, one to pro-
ceed by boat along the coast, the other TO
follow the road over the cliff The former
found the unfortunate gentleman and
carried him to a hospital. He was seri-
ously injured, but his recovery is not de-
SPARED of.
Hand-musters of new leaf that have
arrived in Yokohama indicate that this
years crop of Japan tea will probably be
superior to that of last year in luster and
flavor.
The Occidental and Oriental steamer
Coptic, which arrived in Yokohama on
April %, made the record voyage for her
line from San Francisco, her time being
13 days, Is hours and 80 minutes.
The great English firm of Jardine,
contract in connection with Chinese rail-
way construction-10,O 900 casks of Portland
cement and 2200 tons of steel rails and
fastenings.
Chinas chances of acquiring good pos
| tai service have been immensely improved
by the appointment of Sir Robert Hart to
| be Postmaster General of the empire.
The attention OF foreign merchants in
China has been drawn 20 the fact that
whereas the japanese in Formosa collect
only 81 II export duty per picul on tea,
Chinese tea exported from Annoy has to
pay So S4 per picul. Shippers of Oolong
from Annoy are very closely touched by
this difference, which must eventually tell
materially In favor of the Formosan prod
uct.
The new French Consul and Madame
| Haas, on their way up the river to Chung
king, had a vivid experience of the DAN
gers of Yangtse navigation. A boat car
! rying some sixty people foundered in full
view and only twenty were rescued from
the swift current.
1t is noted in Peking that the Emperor of
China has not resumed his English studies,
which were interrupted by the war with
Japan.
significant and terrible incident is re-
ported from Feking. Recently young
eunuch named Kan, who had graduated
at the Tientsin College, prepared a mem.
orial, setting forth in strong terms the
faults of the Emperor and the Empress
Dowager. He presented it to the latter,
and the imperial lady, having received.his
assurance that the document emanated
from himself, and having seen him in
dorse it, ordered him to be bound and
executed. The youths only fault was that
he desired to see abuses corrected. He is
not likely to find imitators.
Hopes are not high as to the beneticent
influence of the re-established reform
society in Peking. Its head and founder,
Mr.. Wen Jingshih, has been banished
from the capital and permanently dis
qualified for holding Office. That he had
given injudicious license to his tongue
there can be no doubt but an idea pre-
walls that the gfavamen of his offense was
anxiety for reform.
The Viceroy of the Liangkiang has con-
tracted with the Shanghai firm of Bucb-
heister e. Co. for the erection of mint at
Nanking, inside the city, for silver and
copper coinage. According to accounts
published in Shanghai the mint will be
capable of turning out 100000 silver coins
and 100000 copper cash a day. The
silver coins will be dollars exactly equiva-
lent to Mexicans.
In Shantung the results of the war with
Japan are depicted in roughly sketched
pictures representing signal successes for
the Chinese arms. Among the prisoners
led along with ropes about their necks by
the victorious Celestials, Englishmen and
Frenchmen, labeled as such, usually fig.
ure.