sents a million and a half in excess of the aggregate sum that was spent at Chicago for the same purposes. The recognition of the superiority of this Exposition is evidenced by the fact that most of the State and Territorial structures here are considerably larger, more ornate and more costly than were those at Chicago. The few States that have not constructed separate buildings are vieing with each

South, and East and West, meet to fraternize, and where the visitors from Old World kingdoms find convincing evidences of the greatness of this union of Commonwealths.

Canada at the World's Fair.-Canada maintains an Exhibition Branch in the Dominion Department of Agriculture and makes a regular business of participating in all expositions. It is a part of her

established policy to show to the world the vast resources of her provinces and territories whenever opportunity offers. Canada, therefore, comes equipped for a fine display at the Universal Exposition of 1904. She has built a beautiful pavilion upon the broad avenue north of the Palace of Agriculture, and in all departments of the Exposition the name of Canada will be conspicuous. In the New York Daily News not long ago Sir Thomas Shaughnessy said:

"Keep your eyes on Canada. She is well worth studying at this important period of her growth. Canada is growing every hour. She is becoming active and is making great strides in the direction of prosperity. Her people are pushing ahead with the ambitious purpose to build up industries all over Canada, and they are going to do it. Canada is going to be one of the greatest, if not the greatest agricultural center of the world, and it is toward this end that Canada is working. By making Canada a great agricultural center the people of Canada hope to make it a great industrial center. There is not the slightest doubt in my mind as to their success."

Ample Hotel Facilities.-Ample hotel and lodging facilities are provided in St. Louis for the many thousands of visitors who daily attend the world's Fair, and moreover the rates charged are not exorbitant. St. Louis now contains 173 hotels, large and small, in operation in the city. The new hotel enterprises recently inaugurated justify the belief that the number will reach 250. These hotels are situated in the down-town district, in the vicinity of Union Station, in proximity to the World's Fair grounds, and one is within the World's Fair grounds.

Besides hotels with accommodations for more than 150,000 guests, the World's Fair Free Information Bureau has lists of boarding houses and rooming houses along the street car lines leading to the World's Fair, with lodging for 15,000 guests, and a list of private houses that will let rooms for 27,000 persons. All over the city apartment houses and rooming houses are available for those who prefer rooms away from the crowds. Meals may be obtained at the restaurants.

There are 485 restaurants in St. Louis, and they have a national reputation for good fare, good service, cleanliness and moderate prices. Twenty of the larger of these restaurants can take care of 33,000 patrons daily.

Hotels of temporary construction afford accommodations for many thousands in the vicinity of the World's Fair grounds. To two of these temporary hotels, with capacity of 4,500 guests, the Exposition management has extended the encouragement of free sites on ground leased by the Exposition, but not within the enclosure. Entrances are arranged and facilities extended by the Exposition under agreements which insure patrons against high rates.

A fourth temporary hotel, with accommodations for 5,000 guests, has received such recognition from the Exposition in the way of location and relationship to the grounds that it, too, is under obligation to maintain reasonable rates. Through the exercise of its hotel policy, the Exposition management is now enabled to assert, without qualification, that accommodations are ample and rates more reasonable than have prevailed at previous expositions.

Forming a complete chain around the two square miles of the World's Fair grounds, enterprising capitalists have projected twelve big hotels, accommodating from 300 to 5,000 guests each. This list of hotels excludes the 2,500-room "Inside Inn," which is inside the Exposition enclosure under a concession from the Exposition.

Much of the territory which abuts the World's Fair grounds on the southern side is taken up by hotels. Several large hotels are close to the north side of the Exposition grounds, while others are east of Forest Park. Most of these hotels are of temporary construction, to be wrecked after the fair, but in all of them special provisions for light and ventilation, and special precaution against fire are taken.

A "Free Information Service" is maintained by the Fair management. The city has been canvassed, and all hotels, boarding houses and thousands of dwellings where visitors will be entertained have been listed. The rates and kind of accommodations available at each place are on record. The canvass shows that St. Louis can accommodate a larger attendance than visited the Columbian Exposition at Chicago. All information gathered by the "Free Information Service" is at all times available, without charge, for the use of visitors, and the list of hotels, boarding houses and rooming houses is published in pamphlet form from time to time, to be supplied free to those applying for same,

"Wait a Minute."

Wait a minute.

And what's a minute that one should bother about it?

It isn't much, yet if fifty-nine others wasted a minute each a whole hour has been wasted.

Have you ever stopped to think what may happen in a minute, or what a minute of time means in this country alone?

Well, as you are keeping someone waiting while you waste just a minute of your time, and of theirs, a whole lot of things have been accomplished.

Every minute 600 pounds of wool grow in this country, and we have to dig sixty one tons of anthracite coal and 200 tons of bituminous coal, while of pig iron we turn out twelve tons, and of steel three tons. Each minute, night and day, by the official reports, the United States collected $639 and spent $461-$178 more than necessary. The interest on the public debt was $96 a minute, or just exactly equal to the amount of silver mined in that time.

In the minute you have waited fifteen kegs of nails have been made, twelve bales of cotton were produced, thirty-six bushels of grain made into 149 gallons of spirits, while $66 in gold was taken from the earth. In the same time the United States mints turned out coin to the value of $121.

Suppose you waste 100 minutes each day for a year; you will have wasted 600 hours, or sixty working days, equal to two full months.

Have you ever figured out the value of time this way?

Well, you ought to take this view of it along with other views, for it will give you a better conception of what your time

is worth to the world.-Erasmus Wilson in Pittsburg Gazette.

Revised Regulations for Railway Construction in China.

United States Minister E. H. Conger, of Peking, China, under date of December 29, 1903, sends the following translation, by Mr. E. T. Williams, United States Chinese secretary:

Article I. This board having, in obedience to an imperial edict, taken over the direction of railway and mining affairs, which is a matter of record, besides issuing special mining regulations, hereby gives notice that all records, concerned

with railway concessions already made, have been transferred to this board by the general bureau of railways and mines, and all applicants for railway concessions, not yet granted, are required to await the approval or disapproval of this board.

Art. II. No matter whether Chinese or foreigner, official or merchant, all applicants for railway concessions must proceed in accordance with the regulations proposed by this board and sanctioned by the throne. No appeal will be allowed to regulations heretofore adopted by various provincial authorities and which are not in harmony with the present regulations. Moreover, after the concession shall have been approved by this board

there must be a careful observance of the company laws, submitted in a memorial by this board and sanctioned by the throne; there must be no disobedience.

Art. III. When the officials or merchants of any province shall have accumulated capital stock and asked for a concession for either a main line or a branch line of railway in any province, they must prepare a map in explanation and state clearly the real amount of their capital, giving the exact details, both being submitted with their petition. They shall then wait until this board shall have communicated with the local official of the district to which they belong, who shall carefully investigate the circumstances of the applicants, whether or not they are reliable persons and whether or not they are men of property, as well as whether or not they are violating these regulations. When a reply shall have been received this board shall then determine whether to approve or disapprove the application.

Art. IV. When a line of any railway shall have been surveyed and agreed upon, the local officials must first notify the people, so as to prevent any intentional obstruction. As to the purchase of the ground by the company, the local officials must fix a fair price; they must not allow any raising of the price. As to the taxes due, the company must agree to pay them from year to year; no neglect shall be allowed. Whenever any cottages or graves are found in the line of the railway, if they can be avoided by a curve, steps must be taken to do so, in order to satisfy popular sentiment. If it shall be very difficult for the railway to go around them, the local officials shall decide what payment shall be made for them, so as to prevent contention and obstruction.

Art. V. When Chinese merchants apply for a railway concession, if there be any foreign shareholder, application must not only be made to this board, but to the board of foreign affairs as well, that said board may investigate and consider the matter. If foreign merchants shall apply for a concession in their own names, they must not only file a petition with the board of foreign affairs and await its reply, but also petition this board that we may investigate and give a decision.

No matter whether the foreign merchants desire to undertake the work themselves or simply to supplement the capital stock (of a Chinese company), they must agree to uniformly observe these regulations now issued; there must be no infraction of them.

Art. VI. In accumulating capital it is important, as a rule, that the Chineseowned [shares] should be in the majority. If there be no alternative but to supplement with foreign capital, then the amount of the foreign-owned shares should not, at most, be more than equal to the amount of the Chinese-owned shares.

When the petition is presented the exact amount of the foreign-owned shares must be stated; there must be no conceal ment or deception. It will not be permitted at all to borrow foreign capital in addition to that obtained by foreign-owned supplementary shares. This prohibition is to prevent deception and insure sincerity. Should there be any deception practiced in securing a concession, immediately upon the discovery of the facts the concession will be canceled.

Art. VII. Even if foreigners apply for railway concessions in any of the Provinces and they are granted, it is no more than just that Chinese merchants themselves should obtain reasonable advantage therefrom; hereafter, therefore, whenever foreigners make application for a concession, no matter what may be the amount of the capital stock, they must reserve 36 per cent. of the shares and allow Chinese opportunity to purchase these shares at the original price.

Art. VIII. No matter whether it be a Chinese company aided by foreign capital or a foreign company aided by Chinese capital, in every case the local authorities must give equal protection. But they must not interfere with the authority of the company to manage its own affairs. Should the company meet with losses the matter must be dealt with strictly in accordance with the imperial

statutes of China; according to precedent the imperial government is not required to indemnify.

Art. IX. Should any Chinese apply for a railway concession and himself furnish the capital therefor, amounting to more than 500,000 taels,* on the successful completion of the railway this board will make a special petition in his behalf for an edict conferring extraordinary reward as an encouragement. Should he gather together Chinese shareholders and raise in this way capital to the amount of more than 500,000 taels, then on the completion of the work being reported this board will take action in accordance with Article XII of the regulations as to rewards submitted in a memorial by this board and sanctioned by the throne.

Art. X. When Chinese make application for a railway concession they must first estimate the entire amount of capital needed for the completion of the road so as to determine the number and amount of shares to be raised, and after the work has begun, if a greater sum has to be expended on account of the difficulties of the work, and the estimate made at the time of gathering shares does not meet the requirements, and the capital thus prove insufficient and there be no way to add further shares of capital, then the said company ought to be permitted to borrow foreign money by mortgaging machinery and buildings; in no case will it be permitted to mortgage lands. But the total amount of money thus borrowed may not in any case exceed three-tenths of the original estimate, and it will be necessary beforehand to send a petition to this board stating clearly the real amount of money to be borrowed. The merchants concerned will borrow and repay; in no case will the imperial government assume any responsibility. Only after this board shall have considered and approved the proposal will it be permitted to negotiate the loan. A copy of the contract for the loan must be filed with this board.

Art. XI. If the shares of capital accumulated are all Chinese owned, and if, after the work on the road for which application was made has been all completed, the company shall apply for the construction of some other road in addi

tion, and if the capital originally raised shall really have been already entirely exhausted, and they shall propose to borrow foreign money in addition to supply

*$310,000 at the present value of the tael, which is 62 cents.