a clear distinction was drawn between an opium shop and an opiumhouse. In the former the sale was permitted but not its consumptionon the premises， in the latter both were allowed.
After 1907 no further licences had been granted to opium housesand those in existence at that time were closed in 1909.
The opium Shops did a roaring trade to the last， as habitués wereanxious to lay in a good stock of the drug.
To its credit the Municipality， contrary to its financial interests，co-operated with the Chinese Government in the suppression of thesale of opium.
The Maloo or Nanking RoadThe “Maloo” or more properly the “Ta Maloo，” meaningthe “great horse road，” at this period began to take on its presentappearance. The Maloo in the early days， which began at the oldBarrier Road （Honan Road） and ended at Defence Creek， was knownUp to the present time the evil has not been entirely eradicated and gamblingestablishments are still secretly carried on.
as Park Lane. This was the section of Shanghai on which cheap Chineseshanties had been built for the accommodation of the large numberof people flocking into the Settlement， at the time of the TaipingRebellion. This condition lasted well on into the “seventies” and thenthere came a better class of buildings， which with their ornamentedand brightly gilded hanging signboards gave the road a character of itsown.
Then a great change was introduced by a general modernizingprocess and the erection of large department stores. The first of theseto make its appearance was Sincere"s opened in October， at the cornerof Chekiang and Nanking Roads. It was followed in the next year bythe completion of the building of the Wing On company， on theopposite side of the street. Both these buildings are reinforced concretestructures， with modern equipment and high towers. At night they areilluminated by thousands of electric lights， and help to make the upperpart of Nanking Road a “great white way” In connection with eachof them is a hotel which does a flourishing business. Most significantof all， they answer to a demand， and are crowded by a throng ofshoppers， many of whom are visitors to Shanghai from other cities.
They mark both the gradual process of the modernization of Chinaand the growing proseroty of Shanghai. Some years later another largedepartment store， Sun Sun， was erected in the same locality.
Pleasure Palaces
Still another change in Shanghai was the building of PleasurePalaces. Along the Maloo， there had always been a great number oftea-houses， where visitors on pleasant afternoons sat on the verandahs，sipping their tea and watching the traffic and scenes in the street. ThesePlans are now on foot for the erection of another large Department Store on thesite of the present Town Hall.
were now largely supplanted by places of general amusement. The firstof importance was the New World on the corner of Bubbling Well andThibet Roads. At first it was exceedingly popular， so much so that anannex was built on the other side of the street. In order to connect thetwo buildings， the proprietors obtained permission to make a tunnelbeneath Bubbling Well Road. It is the only subway of the sort that hasbeen attempted in Shanghai， but owing to faulty construction， wasnot an unqualified success， more or less water seeping into it. The nextlarge place of public entertainment to be built was the Great World onAvenue Edward VII.
Contrasts in ShanghaiPerhaps one of the things making Shanghai one of the uniquecities in the world is that it contains so many striking contrasts. Therehas been an evolution from former days to the modern period， butvestiges of the old China are apparent on every side.
On some of the streets we may see at the same time thewheelbarrow crowded with passengers and the automobile， the oldfashioned Chinese shop with its front open to the street， and themodern counterpart with its plate glass windows.
On the river we can still see the old junks with their high sterns，the two large eyes at the bows， and brown sails， and， in close proximity，the modern steamship.
On the Soochow Creek some of the old craft have entire]ydisappeared. In days gone by the fastest boat was the mail boat rowedby the feet of a man who sat in the stern and steered with his hands.
Then came a large boat with a huge paddle wheel at the stern， workedlike a treadmill by shifts of men， and then came the steam 1aunch，towing a string of six or more boats， each fastened to the stern of theboat in front.
Political Events of the Year 1918
The year 1918 was a troublous one for China， politically andeconomically.
There was civil war between North and South and theSouthwestern provinces declared their independence of the centralgovernment. There were frequent changes in the administration， andthe election of a new President， Hsu Shih-chang.
For a short time there was considerable excitement over theattempt made by General Chang Hsun to restore the young Emperor，Hsuan Tung， to the throne， and there was fighting in Peking. The coupd‘état failed miserably because it received no support from the countryat large.
China became further entangled in the meshes of loans， somelegal， and some illegal； and floods in the Province of Chihli broughtsuffering and destitution upon several hundred thousands of people.
Conditions throughout the country produced a general feelingof unrest and uncertainty in Shanghai， and an increasing desire on thepart of the merchant class for peace and security.
During the year the Customs Tariff Revision commission wasagain in session in Shanghai with the object of securing an effectivefive per cent. duty on imports. After long negotiations the end wasobtained， and it resulted in a large addition to this source of revenue.
The Statistical Secretary of the Customs reported that，notwithstanding adverse conditions， due largely to the War， the year1917 had been a record one for foreign trade. Its value was Hk. Tls.