157 
district was opened. Lin, 
an influential Chinese family named Chao (who reside at Tachiai 
e 
and protect the sima route into China), to hire some 400 Chinese 
d Shan coolies to work the forests in the neighbourhood of the 
mber mines. Objection to this inroad was at one d the 
local Kachin tsawbwas, who insisted on the right of working the 
forests themselves, and declined to admit other r. After 
m ussi compromise was arrived at on the following 
basis : Two hundred of the new cooli ere to re at once, 
es w 
the remainder were to be allowed to colleet rubber under the 
superintendence of the Kachins, to whom they were to pay 10 per 
cent. of the quantity collected. The place of the 200 dismissed 
coolies was to be taken by an equal number of Ka hins, who were 
In most eases India-rubber is subject to certain charges whilst 
in transit through Kachin districts other than those in which it 
necessary in order to keep the amount of transit dues at a 
om ow and the 
chin owner bear the loss in equal shares. The Kachin, however, 
is amply compensated by being housed and fed at the expense of 
the Chinese during his stay in Mogaung. 
. The circumstances of the past year have been very favourable 
to the India-rubber trade. New producing districts have been 
opened, and old districts have been better worked than before. 
Owing to the apprehension caused by the visit of the British 
services to the India-rubber traders, whose operations had at first 
been hampered by the scarcity of labour. 
The profits realised this year by the lessees must be considerable. 
There are no means at Bhamo for ascertaining how much 
