CHINA AND JAPAN.

Otago Witness, Issue 666, 3 September 1864, Page 2

CHINA AND JAPAN.

We take the following summary from the China Overland Trade Report of 28th Juue :~

The districts about the capital were reported free from marauders, which appeared doubtful, as the Tientsin trade wa3 cWplefe'y paratyseA. The immediate vicinity of Hankow wa3 being ravaged by bands of marauding robbera, known as the Nien-fei. Abo!v of Tappings were said. to have entered the province of Fuh-ksin, and the Canton province continued to be disturbed in several places.

Colonel Gordon hid retired from the Imperial service, the force he oommandad having been disbanded, with the exception of the artillery, which had been incorporate 1 with ths provincial troops under the Footal.

The impiession which prevailed, to tho effect that the province of Chekiang was clear of the Taipings was erroneous. The insurgents still hold a great city, called Hoochow, where they have strongly entrenched themselves. It was explained how that the province of Ohekiang had suffered greatly from Taiping occupation—how that fool had become dear, and public works of great utility destroyed. Since then political affairs have remained almo3t in atatu quo- Trade at Tientsin, becomes woree and worse, although it i 3 still affirmed that the districts about the capital are clear of marauders. The hordes of Nienf'oi who hovered about Hankow have retired, not having apprpached nearer than thirty miles. Their presence created a panic amongst the Chinese inhabitants, who fearel that the place would be again sacked. There appears t> be no reason for these marauders retiring in the

manner they have done, except respect for the British ra'lial scheme, which would naturally be communicated to them as a warning. Nothing more hss been heard of the body of Taipings who were said to have penetrated into the province of Fuh-kien. The Uanton province remains in the same disturbed state as la^t advised. No progress whatever ha 3 been made duringthe fortnight in the suppression of the rebel ion. >n the proviuces of Chekiang (Ningpo); i.irl Kiangsa (^hun.hai.) In the former the Taipins>B still hod the important city of floo-^ chow, where they are in great force, and where they are so strongly entrenched by natural works that the Imperialists have not as yet approached nearer than fifteen miles. The country about the city is dotted with bills and intersected with creek*, which give the besieged a great advantage. To show how the so-called siege fe progressing, it should be mentioned that a short time since the Taipings marie a sortie on one of the Imperial encampments, which they drove back, slaying about 3.000.

This city of Hoochow may for the present be deemed the turning point of the rebellion. The Chekiang provinei d authorities have in their pay the forces known as the French an>! the tfritish. contingents -which are the only reliable troops they h tve. It was only a few weeks ago that the Chekinug mandarins, after recovering entirely by means of foreign aid the entire province (except Hooch w) determined on the suicidal step of disbanding these contingents. This circumstance forcibly illus'rat s what the mandarins really are — ignorant, impracticable, cowardly, and venial ; their implacable repugnance to foreigners is nevertheless their lea line charact-ristic.

There must bs a surest lack of confidence at Shanghai at present in the Imperial cause.'in--isra'ich as all sorts of alarming rumours have obtained credence. One was to ths effect that Buvgevine had come baok and had joined the Faipings - another that the garrison of Chaugchow had gone over to the insurgents — another, thit a bind of filibusters had passed up toward* °oochowto joii the rebels. A strong party of H.iVf. 67fch Reaiment went, in pursuit of these^ but fail d to find either traoa or tidings, The import trade ueneraly is in a ino3t depressed state A grand native settling-d y, creating a monetary tightness, is attributed ns the reason. The new congous are being shipped apace to London. One steam r has left Hankow filled with them, and the la*t French mail boat took a considerable quantity, via Suez, deliverable in. London. The coming yield of silk will be very small ; political events hive cur r ailed the supply of 'silk by one-half. Rice continues high, and pro peots generally very poor.

The state of aflairs in Japan is rather more hopaful than we concluded. Sir Rutherford Alcock, by applying diplomacy to its proper purposes, by forming a correct judgment ofwhat was necessary under the circumstances of the difficult emergency which avo3e, and by acting up to the conclusions S3 formed, has every prospect of achieving a brilliant success. There may be some fighting, and there probably will be, but even so, his measures are adapted to make hostilities conducive to tbe avoidanca of war — which appears an anomaly. Thejevil of foreign intercourse which theDaimioa complain about is principally that, in consequeuce of the ooening of the trade, every article of luxury and necessity, except rice, has become more than doubled iv value, and consequently these noble 3 cannot live in the style they did, nor keep so many retainers.

As the exchange ia heavily against us, thia enhancement in the vnlue of Jap\n produce should b'neflr, the Japanese. That is true; but then, fhis benefit enriches merchants and agriculturists -thus creating a wealthy, intpJligent and powerful clas3, naturally antagonistic to the nobles, who at present rule the roast, and who, like Demetrius of Bphesus, are alarmed at their privileges being invaded Satsuma has quite changed his tactics. He desires to have his sons educated in Kurope, and he advocates the repeal of the laws prohibiting emigration, declaring that should they not be repepled he will disregard thpm, Thtt is something from the son of the ma'i who'-e retinue killed Mr Richardson for not leading the tokaido as he passed. Satsuma his bought the wo-k^hop of the Shinghni Steam Navigation Company, for the sum of 100,000 dollars.

Drowning op a Boat's Grew op Four Msar in Patterson's Inlet.— Captain Fraser, of the Ruby, brought with him the sad intelligence of the drowning of four men, the particulars of which are given in the Southland News, 03 written by MrS. Taylor (Mr Bullock's manager of the saw-mills) :— '' It it my painful duty io Inform you that, four men have be*n drowned in Patterapn's Inlet, somewhere about the Nuggets. They started from this mill in a dingy, and lfc is supposed that the boat cap3 ; zed with them. The accident niu^t have occurred somewhere between 7 and 8 o'clock on Wednesday e/ening. Myself and others have been drag&inft the bay all day yesterday with four boats, but have not been abte to find the bodies. We have two boats engaged dragging again to-day, '20th instant, but up to the time of my writing no trace of them can be found. The boat in which the unfortunate m?n were at v the finis of the capsize was round amongst the - kelp yesterday morning. The names ot the meu are— David M'Kenzte, aged 30 years; James 1 Daly, 35 yeais; .Joseph fladden, 23 years; Muchael Morrison, 40 years. M'Kenzie and Morrison have each left a wife and child." ' '

A. Literary Dinner— While speaking of the_ press, a literary dinner occurs to my memory which, among a certain party, was long afterwards talked about as tbe " Banquet of the Wita." The dinner took place at my villa ; theguests, some tsn or twelve, comprised several choice spirits of the day, aud more than ordinary imlliatiGy was expected from the circumstanss tbafc Messrs W. M. Thackeray and (J. A. 4' Beckett (now, alas ! both deceased) were among their nu nber. Expectation was grievously disappointed. Never was the " fea»t of reason* more iisipid ; never did tho " flow oi soul" more approach stagnation. The smaller wits thought all the soarkling was to be done by tho more distinguished luminaries, and these, with distressing ma».iani(nity, refused to outshine their 1e33 notel brethren. Thus a perfect equilibrium of dalne9S was preserve \.— Reminiscences of tlie Opera. By Benjamin Lum'ey.

A. soldier of the Ist Pa. Cavalry, in the Potomac army, was a short time since found asleep near Warranton, Va , hiving slept at hoars. He stepped up to his cantain and said, " Captain, f die to-morrow at 4 o'clock, and the war will end in June. You have no more Tor ma to do." As the clock struck 4 on the following day he died without a groan.