Peeps Into China; Or, The Missionary's Children

was very narrow, and, like many other streets in Canton, was so covered over at the top that in w

indeed with sign-boards. Just in front of the shops were

n within. Every heathen Chinese merchant and shopkeeper has some little spot set apart for this worship, although all the shops have not an altar, but many only a piece of red paper pasted upon

OF APOTHECA

's desk was at the end of the hong, and here again the red colour was not abse

-man will sometimes make an agreement with a hong proprietor, that if he will pay a sum of money down beggars shall not molest him; and when he agrees to this, a notice on red paper, stating the arrangement made, is hung up in the shop, after which any native beggar applying for aid can be shown this, turned out of the hong, and upon refusing to go, he can be beaten. Bu

troublesome in the Street of Apothecaries, and heard the law with regard to them. "I wi

EGG

ought into the reception-room of her home for her, she having eaten nothing that morning, and having kow-towed very often to her parents, they covered her head and face with a thick veil, so that she could not be seen. The floor, from her room to the sedan, was covered with red carpet. When in the sedan, four bread-cakes were tossed into the air by one of the bridesmaids as an omen of good fortune. In front of the procession two men carried large lighted lanterns, havin

DES

exchanged with bows. The two men at the head of the procession then walked, with their lanterns, between the sedan-chair and the lantern-bearers, who carried the bride's family name, and returned to their places in front, when the bride's party turned

e bridegroom's door when the bride arrived. Her bridesmaids, who h

e floor was again covered with red carpet. The bridegroom then came and knocked at the bridal door, but a married woman and a little boy

ND BRID

's face was hidden by her veil. She was then taken into a room, where the bridegroom was waiting for her, and here they sat down together for a few minutes, witho

goblets, chop-sticks, white sugar-cocks, and other things were on the table, when the bride and bridegroom both knelt four times, bowing their heads towards the earth. This was called "worshipping heaven and earth."

nd bridegroom ate a small piece from the sa

but her face was still partly hidden by st

eens to make all the necessary arrangements, chosen a lucky day, without the bride or bridegroom having a voice in the matter. This was the case with the young couple, a grea

the bride's heavy outer garments to be taken off, together with her head-dress, so that her hair could be well arranged; but she wa

od, as she may not, during that time, eat what her husband provides. In some districts of the province of Canton the bride leaves her husband, and goes home again for a time after she is married, but after marriage she is generally considered to belong almost entirely to her husband's fami

HINESE

Februar

ed for that he seemed like one of the family. Leonard and I fed him for some time. We both thought that the farm-house was something like a Swiss co

to which we went, very much, and it was surrounded by high trees. Father says that the stables of the Chinese are like ca

some bean-curds to drink. We liked them very much. Mother says she was told that they were made in Canton overnight, and generally sold ver

eet potatoes, yams, tomatoes, cabbages, lettuces, turnips, and carrots; and some fruits are apricots, custard-apples, rose-apples, dates, oranges, pomegranates, melons, pumpkins, and ever so many others. Canton is in the tropics, but it is not

regularly sold for food. Many people like black dogs best. At the beginning of summer nearly everybody eats dog's flesh, when a ceremony takes place. If people eat it, they think that it will keep them from being ill in the summer. I am glad, for that reason, that I shall not be here in June, as the dog

ll grow again. Horses are sometimes eaten too; and worms that spoil the rice-fields, father told me, are sent to the markets and sold to be eaten. Isn't that nasty? And a kind of swallow's nest is eaten even by ladies. It is lined with feathers, which are first removed; then it

re most beautiful. His throat and breast are like purple velvet, and his back looks like gold. The upper part of his v

ogs look so hungry, and their beasts of burden so tired. We saw a dreadful thing one day, almost too dreadful to write about-a poor little dog running yelping through the streets with its tail cut off! A Taouist priest had cut it off, so that it shou

SE LA

o many missionaries, because he goes to the disp

man reading to them. We thought he must have got hold of some of the Chinese classics. The pigeon-English people talk sometimes is so funny. They are so

words; but when we spoke to the farmer he could not understand, and so said, 'You talkee me. Very good talkee.' When he wanted to tell us that h

I must try to tell you this, although I ha

ILL

OOL

sash is tied round his waist, and from this chop-sticks, a tobacco-case, fans, and such-like things hang. The head-dress is a cap with a peak at the top. Men do not take off their hats to bow; indeed, they would put them on if they were off. In-doors they wear silk slippers, pointed and turned up at the toes. Chinese men are admired when they are stout, and women when they are thin. Women also have two robes, the top one often being made of satin, and reaching from the chin to the ground. Their sleeves are so long that they do instead of gloves. They always wear trousers, and often carry a pipe, for women smoke a great deal in China. Some, I think, are pretty. They have rather large eyes and red lips. Ol

e dry grass, and they put on very large hats, made in the same way. The Chinese are not at all lazy people, for father says after their shutters are shut, and all looks dark from the outside, they are often at work,

ads. They do all the heavy work, and are porters

letter being so long. There seems to be so much to tell you when you have not been to China, and it seems selfish to keep all the pleasure of seeing such new things

ieve

affection

l Gra