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A robber struck me-see, the scar remains
Imprinted yet beneath his floral seal.
My father died when I was two years old.
And his good brother then adopted me,
And brought me over to a happy home
In Soochow, where I've ever since remained,
And so I'm called the Prefect's daughter, now."

When Uko heard his wife narrate these facts,
He for a moment stood in wonderment.
Then, with a cry of joy, he drew her near
And, with emotion, spake impressively :—
"My loved one! by the Gods! This floral seal
Conveys a message from the realms of Fate,
Demanding just repentance for the hurt

I caused you. For 'twas I who wished you dead.
For some strange wizard had predicted this:
That we should marry; but your childish face,
Impaired by the ill-favoured phase of life.
In which it seemed apparent you were born,
Was no criterion of your beauty now-
Nor of your virtue; for indeed that place.
Was most unwholesome, and the people low.
And I-in apprehension of my fate,

Defied the just decrees which are fulfilled:

For clouds, impending, darkened as they reached The fancied horrors of futurity.

And I determined to remove from earth

The settled cause of swiftly-gathering shame.
And then I hired a villain to remove
You from my path of pictured happiness.
But now, thank heaven, it was not performed!
So, Luh-hwa, let us close the Book of Past;
For this has proved a floral seal of Fate-
That guards our love, through life-eternally!"

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VIII. THE I.G. AND I.M.C.

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IR ROBERT (now Lord) HART is the justly celebrated I.G. or Inspector-General, of the I.M.C.-Imperial Maritime Customs of China-which, through his skilful generalship and labour, has of late years become one of the most ably governed and prosperous commercial institutions in the world.

Before dealing further with the commendable life and works of this benevolent autocrat, I will endeavour to briefly enlighten the reader with regard to the management of this gigantic establishment and the nature of the appointments therein.

The Customs service, established at every Treaty Port in China, consists of an Indoor and Outdoor staff. The Indoor staff being composed of one Secretary, several Assistants (first, second, and third Assistants, A and B), and Clerks (Classed and Unclassed), who are under the immediate supervision of a Deputy Commissioner. The outdoor staff comprises Tide Surveyors (Chief and Assistant), Boat Officers, Examiners (Chief and Assistant), Tidewaiters (first, second, and third class), and Watchers, under the control of a Chief Tide Surveyor or Harbour Master, both functions being generally performed by one man, according to the numerical strength of staff, which varies in conformity with the size and commercial prominence of the port. But both these departments are under the management and control of a Commissioner, or Acting-Commissioner, who is responsible to the Inspector-General for the conduct and procedure of that station. He is also invested. with power to control the movements of the Revenue cruisers in that district, and also the Lights Department, with its engineers

and light-keepers. All communications to the Inspector-Generalreturns, reports, official despatches, and private letters-must first receive his sanction and signature before being forwarded by the Secretary to head-quarters.

Sir Robert (now Lord) Hart-the greatest and most powerful foreigner in China-is very little known, except by reputation, even by his own employés, for he lives a life of toil and seclusion. As no doubt many would like to become better acquainted with him, I cannot do better than quote from portions of an interesting article by a fellow Member of the Incorporated Society of Authors, Mr. Henry Norman, which appeared in the Hong Kong Daily Press, dated from Pekin, Nov. 30th, 1888:

"Sir Robert Hart left the Consular Service for the Customs-it was barely in existence then-in 1858, and in 1863 he became Inspector-General. And during the 30 years that have intervened he has been home twice, once for 12 months and once for sixthat is, he has had in his whole lifetime less holiday than one of his subordinates gets every five years. He has never been to the Western Hills, a few miles away, to which all the foreigners in Peking retreat in summer, and he has never even seen the Great Wall, two day's journey distant. But next spring, he says, he is certainly going home. Pooh,' say people in the Customs Service, when I tell them this, 'he's been going home in the spring for the last ten years.' As for the services he has rendered to China, to England, and to the world, the statesmen of Europe know them very well, and it would take a volume to tell them to others. Besides the creation of the Customs Service itself, which will be his immortality, to take the latest example, it was he alone who concluded the treaty between France and China. All negotiations had failed, and matters looked very black and threatening. Then, as usual the Ministers of the Tsung-li Yamen came to Sir Robert. He agreed to take up the task on his two invariable conditions-that he should have a free hand, and that his connection with the affair should be kept a profound secret till he either succeeded or failed. Then negociation began by telegraph in cipher between his 'den' in Peking and the Quai d'Orsay, and very awkward ones they were. Month after month

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