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diff --git a/old/62625-0.txt b/old/62625-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 70cadc4..0000000 --- a/old/62625-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3396 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Children of China, by Colin Campbell Brown - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Children of China - -Author: Colin Campbell Brown - -Release Date: July 12, 2020 [EBook #62625] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CHILDREN OF CHINA *** - - - - -Produced by D A Alexander, David E. Brown, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - -CHILDREN OF CHINA - - “The good man is he who does not lose his child-heart.”--MENCIUS, - 371-288 B.C. - - “What the leaves are to the forest, - With light and air for food, - Ere their sweet and tender juices - Have been hardened into wood. - - That to the world are children; - Through them it feels the glow - Of a brighter and sunnier climate - That reaches the trunks below. - - Come to me, O ye children! - And whisper in my ear - What the birds and the winds are singing - In your sunny atmosphere. - - * * * * * - - Ye are better than all the ballads - That ever were sung or said; - For ye are living poems, - And all the rest are dead.” - - LONGFELLOW. - - -[Illustration: THE EMPEROR OF CHINA] - - - - - CHILDREN OF CHINA - - BY - - COLIN CAMPBELL BROWN - - AUTHOR OF - “CHINA IN LEGEND AND STORY” - - [Illustration] - - - WITH EIGHT COLOURED ILLUSTRATIONS - - OLIPHANTS LTD. - LONDON EDINBURGH - - - - -_Uniform with this Volume_ - - - CHILDREN OF INDIA - By JANET HARVEY KELMAN - - CHILDREN OF CHINA - By G. CAMPBELL BROWN - - CHILDREN OF AFRICA - By JAMES B. BAIRD - - CHILDREN OF ARABIA - By JOHN CAMERON YOUNG - - CHILDREN OF JAMAICA - By ISABEL C. MACLEAN - - CHILDREN OF JAPAN - By JANET HARVEY KELMAN - - CHILDREN OF EGYPT - By L. CROWTHER - - CHILDREN OF CEYLON - By THOMAS MOSCROP - - CHILDREN OF PERSIA - By Mrs NAPIER MALCOLM - - CHILDREN OF LABRADOR - By MARY LANE DWIGHT - - CHILDREN OF SOUTH AMERICA - By KATHARINE A. HODGE - - CHILDREN OF BORNEO - By EDWIN H. GOMES, M.A. - - CHILDREN OF WILD AUSTRALIA - By HERBERT PITTS - - - Printed in Great Britain by Turnbull & Spears, Edinburgh - Bound by Anderson & Ferrier, St Mary Street, Edinburgh - - - - -TO - -ROBIN, MARGERY AND HUGH - - - - -INTRODUCTORY LETTER - - -MY DEAR BOYS AND GIRLS, - -There is a nook among the hills in far-away China to which, if only I -possessed the famous flying carpet, I should very much like to carry -you. To know it properly one ought to find it for oneself upon a day in -spring. The road to it runs at the foot of steep hills, on which the -grey earth peeps through a threadbare carpet of dry grasses. - -Above these lower hills the mountain-sides are green, shading into -slate-colour and black; and when the sky clouds over, they look dark -and angry. The road rounds a corner and passes a wood: a few more steps -and the baby valley is in sight. - -To leave the path and pick your way through some trees is the work of a -moment. You reach an open space like a little lawn. Above the lawn is -a bank, on which, among shrubs and scattered trees, many flowers are -growing. - -A faint scent of almonds breathes in the air. You feast your eyes on -great wild roses and azaleas, rose-coloured, magenta, crimson--bushes -of red fire burning among ferns and green branches. Here, you notice -tufted flowers like feathers carved in ivory: there, white jasmine, -clematis and plants whose shining leaves are nearly covered by balls -of snow. Over the flowers and under the tree-tops great swallow-tailed -butterflies go whirling by. It is as if one of the old men of the hills -of whom Chinese stories tell, had opened a doorway in the mountain-side -and led you into a sweet wild garden of fairyland. - -The daily round of life in China is bare enough, like a worn road -winding among hills; but when one comes to know the children of the -country, it is like finding a surprise garden where one had only looked -for rocks and boulders. The love of boys and girls, and the tenderness -and self-denial which they call forth among older people, are the -flowers that grow in this enchanted spot. - -The flying carpet was lost long ago, when this old world forgot how to -be young, but you boys and girls sometimes weave one for yourselves and -fly off as far as Pekin or Peru. It is my hope in these pages to join -some of you in this pleasant task and carry you to some of the far-off -garden nooks of China. - -_The Chinese_ by Sir John F. Davies, _Child Life in Chinese Homes_, by -Mrs Bryson, and _Chinese Slave Girls_, by Miss M. E. Talmage, are books -which have helped me to write about the children of China. I am sure -they will interest you by and by whenever you can find time to read -them. But the big Chinese city in which I live, and the hundreds of -villages round it, help me most of all to tell you about China and its -boys and girls, and I greatly hope that one day some of you may come -and see them for yourselves. - - I am, - Your sincere friend, - C. CAMPBELL BROWN. - - CHINCHEW, 1909. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - PAGE - - INTRODUCTORY LETTER 6 - - I THE INVISIBLE TOP 11 - - II CHINESE BABIES 14 - - III THE CHILDREN’S HOME 18 - - IV SCHOOL DAYS 23 - - V GIRLS 30 - - VI GAMES AND RIDDLES 37 - - VII STORIES AND RIMES 42 - - VIII RELIGION 52 - - IX FESTIVALS 58 - - X SUPERSTITIONS 63 - - XI REVERENCE FOR PARENTS 73 - - XII FAITHFULNESS 76 - - XIII THE CRY OF THE CHILDREN 80 - - XIV MINISTERING CHILDREN 87 - - XV THE CHILDREN’S KING 94 - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - - - THE EMPEROR OF CHINA _Frontispiece_ - - FACING PAGE - - CHINESE BABIES 16 - - CHILD LEADING BUFFALO 20 - - KINDERGARTEN PUPILS 28 - - CHILDREN AT FOOD AND AT PLAY 40 - - GOING TO VISIT HIS IDOL MOTHER 60 - - PHŒNIX 84 - - SUNDAY SCHOOL, CHINCHEW 88 - - - - -CHILDREN OF CHINA - - - - -CHAPTER I - -THE INVISIBLE TOP - - -The beginning of the world, as it is described to Chinese boys and -girls, is stranger than a fairy tale. First of all, according to the -story, there was something called ‘khi’ which could not be seen, nor -touched, but was everywhere. After a time this ‘khi’ began to turn -round like a great invisible top. As it whirled round, the thicker -part sank downwards and became the earth, whilst the thinner part rose -upwards, growing clearer until it formed the sky, and so the heavens -and the earth span themselves into being. Presently, for the story -changes like a dream, there came a giant named Pwanku. For thousands -of years the giant worked, splitting masses of rock with his mallet -and chisel, until the sun, moon and stars could be seen through the -openings which he had made. The heavens rose higher, the earth spread -wider, and Pwanku himself grew six feet taller every day. When he died, -his head became mountains, his breath wind, and his voice thunder; his -veins changed into rivers, his body into the earth, his bones into -rocks and his beard into the stars that stream across the night sky. -But though all this is only ‘a suppose story’ of long ago, the first -part of it is wonderfully like what wise men in our time have told us -about the beginning of things. - -Now we must talk of China as it is to-day. The country in which Chinese -children live is a land of hills and plains, covered with cities, -villages and temples. You can imagine how big it is when you remember -that Szechuan, which is but one of its eighteen provinces, is larger -than Great Britain and Ireland. - -How China grew into a great empire is one of the most wonderful stories -of the world. Its people are said to have come from the west, across -the middle of Asia, settling at length in what is now the province of -Shansi, just where the Yellow River bends sharply eastwards. Small -at first and surrounded by savages, the baby kingdom soon began to -grow. Like the tiny tent of the _Arabian Nights’ Entertainments_, -which unfolded until an army could rest beneath the roof, China spread -until, a thousand years before the time of Our Lord, its borders on -the north and west were pretty much what they are to-day, and it had -crept southwards many miles beyond the Yellow River. The nation went -on growing, drawing other tribes and peoples into itself, until, not -long after King Alfred’s time, the mother kingdom, without counting its -subject countries, was fifteen times as large as Great Britain. - -What is now the Chinese Empire is said to have been gained in peaceful -ways rather than by fighting, and this no doubt is partly true. The -people knew more than their neighbours did. Their life was better and -happier. One after another the tribes wanted to join them, and so the -kingdom grew until one of the great changes of the world was made. This -will help you to understand why the Chinese have always believed in -peace rather than force, and until lately have not cared for war. - -The history of China at first, like that of other nations, is rather -misty. In spite of this, however, we can make out that long ago the -people had wise and good men to lead them, among whom were Yao and -Shun, the model rulers of the empire, and Yu the Great, who drained -the waters of a vast flood and cut down forests until the land was fit -to dwell in. Much has happened since then. Greece and Rome have risen, -flourished, and decayed. This nation, under many different families of -rulers, and in spite of some seventeen changes of capital, has outlived -them by centuries. Turks, Mongols and Manchus have fought against it, -and, as in the present day, at times have conquered the country, only -to be conquered in turn by the wonderful Chinese people. - -Of all the many changes in China’s story, perhaps none has been more -startling than that which happened in 1908, when the Emperor Kwangsu -and the Empress Dowager died, within two days of each other. The whole -country was thrown into mourning, almost all the people going unshaved -for a hundred days, until long hair and bristling faces made the -Chinese world look sad indeed. - -On the 2nd December of the same year, the Emperor Hsuan Tung, born in -1906, ascended the Dragon Throne, and so the oldest of Empires came to -have the youngest of sovereigns for its ruler, and the world discovered -that the greatest child on earth was a little Chinese boy. It is said -that the baby emperor, frightened by the sight of so many people in -state dress, began to cry when he was set upon the throne. He was soon -comforted, however, by some of the ladies-in-waiting, and sat quietly -until the grand ceremony was finished. - -The little man is the first ruler of China who, from the beginning of -his reign, has had prayer offered for him by Christian people all over -the empire, and we may be sure that blessing will be given to him in -answer to these prayers. Boys and girls everywhere ought to ask God to -help the boy sovereign of the last great heathen empire of the world. - -Here is a description which opens a window for us into his nursery: -“Young as he is, the emperor shows a great love of soldiers, and has -little spears and swords and horses among his playthings. The sight of -toy weapons will stop him from crying and make him laugh. His Majesty -is much pleased when a horse is shown to him, and will not be satisfied -until he has been lifted on to its back and taken for a ride.” - - - - -CHAPTER II - -CHINESE BABIES - - -A difference is made between boys and girls in China, but it is not so -great as the following lines might lead you to think: - - “When a son is born, - He sleeps on a bed, - He is clothed in robes, - He plays with gems, - His cry is princely loud, - This emperor is clad in purple. - He is the domestic prince and king. - - When a daughter is born, - She sleeps on the ground, - She is clothed with a wrapper, - She plays with a tile, - She has only to think of preparing wine and food - Without giving any cause of grief to her parents.”[1] - -In winter time little King Baby is rolled in clothes until he looks -like a ball, though his feet and part of his legs are usually bare. -When asleep he is laid in a bamboo cradle, on rough rockers which -loudly thump the floor. A red cord is tied to his wrist, lest he should -be naughty when grown up, and people should say, “They forgot to bind -your wrist when you were little.” Ancient coins are hung round his -neck by a string to drive away evil spirits and to make him grow up an -obedient child. When he is a month old, friends and relatives bring him -presents, a feast is made and Master Tiny has his head shaved in front -of the ancestral tablets, which stand on a narrow table at the back of -the chief room of the house. The barber who takes off the black fluff -from the little round head, receives a present of money; baby, for -his part, becoming the proud possessor of a cap, with a row of gilded -images in front, which is presented to him by his grandmother, together -with a pair of shoes[2] having a pussy’s face worked upon each toe in -the hope that “he may walk as safely through life as a cat does on a -wall.” Baby-boy also receives what is called his ‘milk-name,’ which -serves him until he goes to school. Some of the names given to babies -sound strange: Dust-pan, Pock-marked Boy, Winter Dog, One Hundred and -Ten. Ugly names are sometimes given, in the hope that the spirits may -think that babies so called are not worth troubling about and thus may -leave them to grow up unharmed. In the same way an ear-ring is put in -a little boy’s ear, and he is called Little Sister to make the demons -imagine that he is only a girl, and so not worthy of their notice, or -his head is clean-shaved all over, and he is dressed like a monk for -the same purpose. - -Girl babies, like their little brothers, are shaved at the end of the -first month, but with less ceremony. They are called Water Fairy, -Slave Girl, Likes to Cry, Golden Needle, or some such name. Though -some of the little ones suffer from neglect and hardship, many of -them are happy in their babyhood. The people say, “Children are one’s -very flesh, life, heart,” and when the traveller sees a father or a -mother proudly carrying one of them about, or patiently bearing with -its naughtiness, he can well believe that they mean what they say. -Sometimes a mother pretends to bite her baby, saying, “Good to eat, -good to eat”; sometimes she presses her nose against its tender cheek, -as if smelling it, and kisses it again and again. The little things -have shining black eyes, with long dark lashes which look so nice -against the faint olive tint of the delicate skin. - -When Master Tiny is a year old, another feast is made, and -brightly-coloured shoes and hats are given to him. After the feast -is over the little fellow is put on a table in the room where the -ancestors of the family are worshipped. Round him are placed various -things, such as a pen, a string of cash, a mandarin’s button, etc. Then -everyone waits to see which he will stretch out a fat hand to seize, -for it is supposed that the thing which he chooses will show what he is -going to be or to do in the world, by and by. If baby grabs the pen, -he will be a scholar; if the money takes his fancy, he will go into -business; but if his eager fingers grasp the shining mandarin button, -his father and mother hopefully believe that he will be a great man -some day. - -[Illustration: CHINESE BABIES] - -The Chinese are wonderfully patient and kind in treating their babies. -Much of the gladness of their lives and of their homes is bound up -with the boys and girls who play about their houses. They love their -children, in spite of things which sometimes seem to prove that they do -not When the little ones learn, at church or Christian school, to -know the Saviour, they bring a new gladness into the home. Not a few -Chinese children have been able to interest their fathers and mothers -and other friends in the Gospel, as you shall hear later on, and so the -words “A little child shall lead them,” have found a new meaning in -far-away China. - -Here is the picture of two little twin-boys, four years old. Some time -ago, one of them said to his sister: “God does not sleep at night.” His -father, who had heard the words, asked, “Lien-a, how do you know that -God does not sleep at night?” - -“The hymn says, ‘God night and day is waking, He never sleeps,’” -answered the little fellow. - -“But can’t you think of something yourself which shows that God is -awake at night?” asked his father. - -“I hear the wind at night,” said the child, after a little pause, “and -see the moon and stars.” He meant God must be awake to keep the wind -blowing and the moon and stars shining. - -One day a friend gave each of the twins a bright new five-cent piece. -Their mother took care of the coins, saying, “I will keep them for you, -until we can get enough to use as buttons for your next new jackets,” -and the little fellows were ever so happy. Not long after, people were -gathering money to build a new church, and the little boys’ father said -to them: “Children, have you got anything which you can give to help to -build the new church?” The little boys thought and thought, then one -of them said, “Yes, we have our silver buttons.” So they gave their -treasured little shining pennies most gladly. But I think that God was -gladder still. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -THE CHILDREN’S HOME - - -Homes differ as much in China as in other lands. Some are palaces, -some poor huts, some are caves cut into the face of cliffs, some are -boats upon rivers, where thousands of boys and girls learn to handle -the oar from their earliest childhood. Some are in dusty villages by -the roadside, others are set between stairs of green rice fields upon -mountain slopes, or built upon flat plains among giant millet and other -crops. - -A large number of children are brought up in cities. You cannot easily -get at their homes because of the streams of blue-clad people who -throng the streets. Come for a walk among the busy shops, so that you -may know something of the place where Chinese boys and girls spend so -much of their time. Sedan-chairs, carried by strong men, push through -the crowd, shaving butchers’ stalls and narrowly missing the heads of -running children. Burden bearers, with bags of rice on their backs, -or loaded with vegetables, pigs in open baskets, bales of cotton or -tobacco, follow one another over the slippery pavement. - -Here comes a pedlar selling tapes, needles and bits of silk. He is -called a ‘bell shaker,’ because he tinkles a little bell to call -attention to his wares. That poor man, with shaggy hair and half-naked -skin, is ‘a cotton-rags fairy,’ or beggar. He lives in a ‘beggars’ -camp’ not far away. - -Look in at this temple. The heavy scent, reminding you of rose-leaves -and stale tobacco, which comes through the open doorway, is the smell -of incense. Beyond the court, inside the door, is a big room where -idols, once bright with gilding, now blackened with smoke, sit each -upon its throne. Those spots of light inside the hall are made by -candles burning on the altar beneath the gloomy roof. - -Boys and girls do not care to go inside, unless their mothers bring -them to bow before the idols. Some of the images have ugly faces, blue, -black and fiery red, which children can scarcely look at without being -afraid. Some are gilt and have a strange smile upon their lips. Here is -description of an idol in its temple: - - “I dreamed I was an idol, and I sat - Still as a crystal, smiling as a cat, - Where silent priests through immemorial hours - Wove for my head mysterious scarlet flowers. - - * * * * * - - “There as I waited, day by changeless day, - My people brought their gifts and knelt to pray, - And I ... - ... in unavailing pity sat - Still as a crystal, smiling as a cat.” - -Let us turn down this narrow lane. Now we have left the shops and the -busy street. Look at the rows of smallish houses, each with a bit of -plain wall and a bamboo screen hanging in front of the door. You hear -the sound of children’s voices within as you pass. How happy that -little boy is, running along in bright red trousers, flying his kite. -His home is near by; when he is older he will go to school, or learn a -trade in one of the shops not far away. - -Here the streets are narrower. What strange names they have! Stone Bird -Lane, Grinding Row, Old Woo’s Lane, Bean Curd Lane, Family Ma’s Market. - -Look at this big house. Turn in by the opening at the right of the -front door. Now we are inside the first court, an open space with rooms -all around. The room in front of us is the largest in the house. A -wooden cabinet stands on the narrow table against the back wall: it is -full of slips of wood, each about a foot high. These slips of wood are -called ‘ancestral tablets,’ because the Chinese think that the souls of -their ancestors live in them. Each one has writing upon it, telling the -name of the person whose soul is said to be inside. - -To right and left of the chief room are two smaller ones, used as -bedrooms. Behind these again is another court, with rooms ranged round -it like the front one, and behind it perhaps another. Some houses have -‘five descents’; for Chinese storeys, which are called ‘descents,’ are -put one behind the other, instead of being piled upwards as are ours. - -You may see a girl seated at a loom, driving the shuttle to and fro. -How slowly the cloth grows. Every time the shuttle flies across, the -web gains a line. Thread by thread it lengthens, just as a child’s -life lengthens day by day; that is why the Chinese proverb says, “Days -and months are like a shuttle, light and dark fly like an arrow.” The -older boys of the household are at school or at work. That woman who is -washing rice in an earthen pot, has a baby slung by a checked cotton -cloth upon her back. The child rolls its bullet head and sucks a fat -thumb, whilst one dumpy foot sticks out below its mother’s arm. The -lady in a blue tunic, with bright flowers in her hair, is the mistress -of the house; see how she sways on her tiny bound feet, as she moves -across the tiled floor. - -[Illustration: CHILD LEADING BUFFALO] - -If the head of the house is a scholar he wears long robes of cotton or -silk, blue and grey, one above the other, or in the hot weather white -‘grass cloth,’ thin as muslin. He has the top of his head shaved and -wears his back hair in a long plait or queue. On New Year’s day or -at other special times, he puts on a pointed hat, with a flossy red -tassel, top-boots and a silk jacket on which is embroidered a stork -or some other bird, to show his literary rank. An officer in the army -would have a bear or some other fierce animal embroidered on his jacket -instead of a bird. - -In country homes a mill for taking the husk off rice stands inside the -door, where perhaps you might expect to find a hatstand. Sometimes -a sleek brown cow moos softly on the other side of the porch. Jars, -full of salted vegetables, share the front court with the usual pigs, -chickens and dogs. Look at that mandarin duck, bobbing her head and -throwing forward her bill, as if trying to bring up a bone which had -stuck in her throat just as she was in the act of curtsying to you. -She bows and curtsies all day, until even the fat baby, lying on a -kerb-stone at the edge of the court, grows tired of watching her antics. - -Children run in and out of the house. One plays with a big, green -grasshopper, which struggles hopelessly at the end of a string. -Somewhere outside, a little boy or girl is sure to be leading a buffalo -by a rope, on the edge of the rice fields. Farther away some boys and -girls are gathering leaves, or cutting fern on the hillside. - -About noon the household gathers for dinner. The men go to the kitchen -and return with bowls of rice and sweet potatoes or vermicelli. In the -middle of the table they have salted vegetables, bean-curd cake cut -into small pieces, dried shrimps, and on feast days, pork hash in soy, -all in different dishes. Each man has two pieces of bamboo, rather -thicker than wooden knitting-needles, which he holds between the thumb -and first three fingers of his right hand. With these chopsticks, as -they are called, he picks up a bit of meat or vegetable and begins -to eat it, but before it is swallowed he puts his bowl to his lips, -and holding it there, pushes some rice or potatoes into his mouth. -One mouthful follows another, and in no time the bowl is empty. Now -you know how to answer the Chinese riddle: “Two pieces of bamboo -drive ducks through a narrow door.” The ‘narrow door’ of course is a -mouth, the ‘ducks’ are bits of pork and fish, the pieces of bamboo are -chopsticks. - -Sometimes the country people do not eat at a table, but sit in the -shadow of the porch, or on the edge of the stone coping which surrounds -the front court. The story is told of a poor boy, who used to eat -his meals in this way. The stone on which he sat had a crack in it. -When the boy began to study, he used to bring his book and a basin of -food, so that he might read as he sat on the broken slab eating his -dinner. By and by he became a great scholar and viceroy or ruler of the -province of Szechuan. When he returned to his native place, full of -riches and honour, he rebuilt the old home and made it beautiful, but -he kept the broken kerb-stone unaltered, in front of the dining-room. -It was left with the crack in it to remind him of the time when he was -a barefoot boy and used to sit by the edge of the court, eating rice or -learning his lessons. - -When the men have finished their meal, the women and children have -theirs. How the fat little boys and girls love sweet potatoes! They -take them, pink and yellow skinned ones, in their chubby fingers and -stuff them down their throats, dogs and chickens waiting eagerly -meanwhile to pick up the skins and stringy bits which drop upon the -ground. - -Though eating apart, girls and women mix more freely with the men -in these country homes than in those of educated townspeople, where -they must keep to their own rooms at the back of the house. Into -the homes of China, so different from each other in some things, so -alike in others, the message of the Saviour’s love finds its way. -Here one, there another--man, woman or child, believes the Gospel and -begins to serve God. In spite of persecution and unkindness, the new -convert remains faithful. By and by another member of the family is -won: sometimes the whole household is changed, and the home becomes a -Christian home. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -SCHOOL DAYS - - -The Chinese people think so much of learning that they say, “Better to -rear a pig than bring up a son who will not read!” - -When the time comes for a boy to go to school, a lucky day is chosen -by a fortune-teller, and young Hopeful, spotless in dress, and with -head well shaved, is taken to be introduced to his teacher. In the neat -bundle which he carries as he trots along by his father’s side he has -‘the four gems of the study’ ready for use, that is to say, a pen which -has a brush for a nib, a cake of ink, a stone slab for rubbing down the -ink with water, and a set of books. As soon as the new pupil has been -taken into the school and introduced in the proper way, the teacher -asks the spirit of Confucius to help the little scholar with his work. -Then the master sits down and the boy bows his head to the ground, -beseeching his master to teach him letters. After this a ‘book-name,’ -such as Flourishing Virtue, Literary Rank, Opening Brightness, is -chosen and given to the lad; for a Chinese boy gets a new name when he -goes to school. The room in which the budding scholar will sit at a -little black table for many a day to come is often dark and dingy, with -tiny windows and a low tiled roof. - -A book, called _The Juvenile Instructor_, tells how children used to -be trained, in the good old days of China’s greatness. It says: “When -able to talk, lads must be instructed to answer in a quick, bold tone, -and girls in a slow and gentle one. At the age of seven they should be -taught to count and name the points of the compass, but at this age -boys and girls should not be allowed to sit on the same mat nor to eat -at the same table. At eight they must wait for their superiors and -prefer others to themselves.... Let children always be taught to speak -the simple truth, to stand erect in their proper places, and to listen -with respectful attention.” - -At an old-fashioned Chinese school the pupils have no A B C; but -they have to learn by heart ‘characters,’ that is, the signs which -stand for words in their books. Boys who expect afterwards to go into -business are taught to do sums by a clerk or shopkeeper, who is hired -to teach them; but the ordinary schoolboys are taught no arithmetic, -or geography, or dates. Perhaps you think you would like to go to a -Chinese school! But wait a bit until you hear what Chinese boys have to -learn. - -Beginners stand in a row before the master’s table and are taught to -read the first line of the _Three Character Classic_, until they know -it pretty well. Then they sit in their places and repeat it aloud. If -one of them forgets a word, he goes up to the table again and asks his -master how to read it, but he must not go too often. - -What a din there is with some twenty boys all reading at the pitch -of their voices! The teacher does not scold them, for the busier his -pupils are at their work, the noisier they become. Whenever one of the -class knows his task, he hands in his book, and turning his face away, -so that his back is to his master, he repeats his lesson aloud. This -‘backing the book’ (as it is called), is to prevent a dishonest pupil -from using his sharp black eyes to peep over the top of the page and -help himself along. - -After the _Three Character Classic_ and _The Hundred Surnames_, which -gives a list of the family names used in China, the schoolboy reads a -book called _The Thousand Character Classic_. This book, made up of -exactly a thousand characters, is said to have been written, by order -of an emperor of China, in a single night. The scholar who wrote it -worked so hard, that his hair, which was black when he began his task, -had turned white when the book was finished next morning. The _Four -Books_ and other Classics, as the standard books of Chinese literature -are called, are next begun by the pupil. - -Boys do a great deal of writing at a Chinese school: when they are able -to read and to repeat quotations from their famous books, they must -go on to the higher art. First they are taught how to hold the brush -pen. Each boy is given a small book of red characters. He dips his -sharp-pointed brush in ink and holding it straight up and down begins -painting the red letters over. After a time he goes on to tracing -letters on thin paper over a copy. A square of wood, painted white, -serves him as a slate. On this he writes characters, which balance one -another, as heaven and earth, fire and water, light and darkness. By -and by he begins essay and letter-writing, which is very difficult -in Chinese. Pupils used to spend many years on this, but nowadays -schoolboys in China have to do more sums and less writing than their -fathers did. - -Writing essays and verses used to be the chief lessons at a Chinese -school; for when scholars were fairly good at these, they entered for -the examinations. It was a difficult thing for a boy to go into the -great examination hall among two or three thousand men, and, after -having been searched to make sure that he had no books or cribs up his -sleeves, to go and sit at a bench and write his essay. Yet many gained -degrees when very young. - -One of these was called Ta Pin. He had a wonderful memory and when he -had read the _Five Classics_ once over, he could remember them every -word! When eight years old, Ta Pin was in the house of an elderly -scholar, who was pleased by his good manners and wise ways. Seeing -that he behaved more like a grown-up man than a boy, the old gentleman -pointed to a chair and said: “With a cushion made of tiger’s skin, -to cover the student’s chair.” Then he waited to see if Ta Pin could -answer this bit of poetry as a grown-up scholar would have done, by a -second line of verse, which would match what he had just said. “With -a pencil made of rabbit’s hair, to write the graduate’s tablet,” -answered Ta Pin, every word of his line pairing with the corresponding -word in the old gentleman’s verse, ‘pencil’ with ‘cushion,’ ‘rabbit’ -with ‘tiger,’ etc. The scholar struck the table with delight and gave -a present to the boy. When Ta Pin was thirteen he became a Master of -Arts, coming out higher than all the other competitors but one. He -was afterwards second in the examination for the degree of Doctor of -Letters and won the highest degree of all next year. This clever boy -lived over four hundred years ago, when the Ming emperors ruled in -China. - -The story of how Mencius’ mother looked after him whilst he was at -school, is very interesting. At first they lived together near a -cemetery and little Mencius amused himself with acting the various -scenes which he saw at the graves. “This,” said his mother, “is not -the place for my boy.” So she went to live in the market street. But -the change brought no improvement. The little boy played then at being -a shopkeeper, offering things for sale and bargaining with imaginary -customers. His devoted mother then took a house beside a public school. -Now the child was interested by the things which the scholars were -taught, and tried to imitate them. The mother was pleased and said: -“This is the proper place for my son.” Near their new house was a -butcher’s shop. One day Mencius asked what they were killing pigs -for. “To feed you,” answered his mother. Then she thought to herself, -“Before this child was born I wished him to be well brought up, and -now that his mind is opening I am deceiving him; and this is to teach -him untruthfulness.” So she went and bought a piece of the pork, to -make good her words. After a time, Mencius went to school. One day -when he came home from school his mother looked up from the loom at -which she was sitting, and asked him how far he had got with his books. -He answered carelessly that “he was doing well enough.” On which she -took a knife and cut through the web she was weaving. The idle little -boy, who knew the labour required to weave the cloth, now spoilt, was -greatly surprised and asked her what she meant. Then she told him that -cutting through the web and spoiling her work was like his neglecting -his tasks. This made the lad think and determine not to spoil the web -of his life by idle ways; so the lesson did not need to be repeated.[3] -Thanks to the care of this wise and patient mother, Mencius grew up to -be a famous man. - -An old-fashioned Chinese school opens about the sixteenth of the first -moon, or month, and continues for the rest of the year. The teacher -often goes home to attend feasts, weddings, birthdays or funerals; or -when the rice is cut, so that he may get his share of the harvest from -the family fields. In the third month he has to be away worshipping at -the graves of his ancestors; and in the fifth month, when the dragon -boats race each other, and on other festivals in the seventh, tenth and -eleventh months he will probably go home for a day or two. Whenever the -master is away, the boys play and idle in the streets, unless they have -to help with the harvest or run messages for their parents. So you see, -although they do not have regular Easter and summer holidays, they do -not fare badly. - -But such schools as this will soon be left only in country villages. -In the larger cities pupils and teachers alike are giving up the old -slow-going ways. In the Government schools the boys wear a uniform and -look like young soldiers. The classes are distinguished by stripes, -like those worn on their arms by privates, corporals, sergeants and -so forth. You can tell the class a boy belongs to by looking at his -arm. When a visitor enters the school a bell tinkles and all the boys -stand up and touch their caps, as soldiers do when saluting an officer. -Inspectors visit the new schools to see how masters and scholars are -doing their work. - -[Illustration: KINDERGARTEN PUPILS] - -Kindergartens, where little boys and girls go to learn their first -lessons, though new to China, are much liked by the children and -their parents, and before long will become a great power for good in -the land. The little ones love to sing and march in time. Their tiny -fingers are clever at making hills and islands out of sand, or counting -coloured balls and marbles. Their sharp eyes are quick to see picture -lessons, which are drawn for them upon the blackboard, and their ears -attentive to the teacher who explains them. Ears, eyes, hands, feet, -all help the little heads to learn, as reading, writing, geography -and arithmetic are changed from lessons into delightful games, by the -Kindergarten fairy. - -When the closing day comes, crowds gather to see the clever babies -march and wave their coloured flags. Fathers and mothers are ever so -proud when they hear their own little children sing action-songs, and -repeat their lessons without a mistake, and they gladly give money to -put up buildings and train teachers for the ‘children’s garden,’ for -that is what Kindergarten means. - -Chinese boys and girls are fond of study, and so they will surely make -their country famous once more. The romance of China is not connected -with making love or fighting; it gathers round the boy who is faithful -at his tasks, who takes his degree early and rises to be a great -official. When the reward of years of hard work comes, he goes back to -the old home, bringing comfort and honour to all his friends. This is -the hope which has helped on many a little scholar and made his school -life glad. - -This Chinese love of learning has opened a door by which the Gospel may -enter the minds of the people. Wherever missionaries have gone, they -have established schools, in which many children have learnt to know -God’s truth and love the Saviour. - - - - -CHAPTER V - -GIRLS - - -It is hard to begin life as one who is not wanted. Many a Chinese -girl cannot help knowing that she has come into the world bringing -disappointment to her father and mother. - -“What is your little one’s name?” said a foreigner to a woman, who was -walking along with a small child near Amoy. - -“It is a girl,” was the reply, as much as to say, “You need not trouble -to waste time asking about her.” - -“I know, venerable dame,” said the foreigner, “but what is her name?” - -“Not Wanted,” was the strange answer. - -“You should love your little girl as much as a boy. Why do you speak so -unkindly of her?” said the foreigner, thinking that the mother meant -she did not want her child. The woman laughed, but said nothing. - -“Now tell me her name,” persisted the foreigner, anxious to show -interest in the despised girl. - -“Not Wanted,” repeated the woman again. - -“Not ...” began the stranger once more, meaning to tell the ignorant -woman not to speak so unkindly of her little girl. - -“Not Wanted is her name,” said the woman quickly, before the foreigner -could finish the sentence. - -It would be sad indeed to know one was not wanted, but it would be -harder still to be reminded of it every time one was called by one’s -own name. How would an English girl like to be so treated? “Not -Wanted, come and have your hair brushed.” “Not Wanted, where are you?” -“Not Wanted, come and play with your little brother,” and so forth. -When a baby girl’s fortune, as told by the fortune-tellers, is not a -lucky one, she may perhaps be handed over to Buddhist nuns, who will -give her rice, potatoes and vegetables, but no fish or meat or eggs. -The little one, if she lives to grow up, will serve in the nunnery and -help with the worship offered to the idols. When old enough to become a -nun she will have her head shaved, till it looks as round as a bullet, -and wear tight black trousers, a short blue coat and a close-fitting -cap of black cloth; and she will learn to do the fine embroideries, -most of which are the work of Buddhist nuns. - -Sometimes, when the fortune-teller says a little girl will bring bad -luck to her own family, she is given to another household, where she -will be brought up to be the wife of one of the sons, when he is old -enough to marry. This often happens, but it is not a good plan and -leads to unhappiness, as you will hear later on. - -The everyday dress of Chinese girls is simple enough. When they first -begin to walk they are odd little bundles of clothes, topped by a -little jacket and a cloth cap, which covers their head and ears and -neck, leaving the face open. When they grow older they wear jackets of -cotton,--blue stamped with white flowers is a favourite pattern,--loose -coloured trousers and tiny embroidered shoes. They wear ear-rings, -silver bangles on their ankles, and sometimes a ring on one finger. -When they are engaged to be married, they wear a bangle on one arm. -Their hair, which has been worn in a plait behind, is, when they are -old enough to be married, put up in a neat coil at the back of the -head, and pretty pins and flowers are stuck into it. It is a great day -in a girl’s life when her hair is done up in this way. - -The first great trial which a Chinese girl has to meet is when she -has her feet bound. Her toes are pulled towards the heel, by winding -a strip of cotton cloth round them and drawing it tight. Tiny girls -of six or seven sometimes have to bear the pain of having their poor -little feet pinched together in this way, though eight or nine is the -more common age to begin. It must be extremely painful to have the -bones twisted and the flesh crushed, until it decays and dries; but -when the pain is over, and a girl has ‘golden lilies,’ only two or -three inches long, she is very proud of them, and people praise the -child’s mother for all the trouble she has taken to make her daughter -look so beautiful! So strong is the desire to be admired, that often -girls beg to have their feet bound, in spite of all the pain they will -have to bear. - -Foot-binding, being foreign to Manchu customs, is not allowed in the -Palace. Some years ago, the Empress Dowager herself issued an edict -to the people saying: “Not to bind is better.” Children brought up in -God-fearing homes seldom or never have to suffer the torture of being -thus lamed for life. And now, in many parts of China, fathers and -mothers, who do not wish their little girls to be crippled, have joined -themselves into what is called ‘The Natural Foot Society.’ Let us hope -that before long there will be no more foot-binding in China. - -Girls brought up in wealthy homes are seldom seen out of doors, but -poorer children, at a very early age, have to do something to help to -earn their living. They gather firing; they nurse the baby; they cook -and sew; they learn to scrape the soot from the bottom of the family -rice pot with a hoe; and, in some places, they very early begin to -carry loads, slung from a pole on their shoulders. Some sit beside -their mothers and help to make paper money to be offered to idols. Some -paste rags on a board, one on the top of the other, to be afterwards -made into soles for shoes; or they weave coloured tape, or twist -fibre into rough string. In some parts of China they make embroidery, -working beautiful birds and flowers with their clever fingers. All -Chinese girls learn to embroider and make up their own shoes and -the embroidered bands which they wear round their distorted ankles. -Sometimes they feed silk-worms with mulberry leaves, and afterwards -wind the threads off the cocoons which the worms have spun. When a -little older some girls may be seen making silver ornaments for women’s -hair-pins, but this is work usually done by men and boys; sometimes -poor girls, while they are quite young, sell cakes and sweets in the -streets, to help their parents; often they spin cotton and weave it -into cloth, to make clothes for all the family. - -With the exception of a very few daughters of scholars, who were taught -to read and write by their fathers, girls used never to be troubled -with learning. In spite of this, there are books giving the names of -wise and learned women, some of whom, especially in the time of the -T’ang Dynasty, wrote famous poems. This shows that ages ago women -in China were educated, but as a rule in later days they were left -untaught, to learn by slow degrees the ‘three dependencies of woman,’ -“who,” as the Chinese say, “depends upon her father when she is young, -on her husband when she is older, and upon her son when she is very -old.” The story is told of a girl, who used to sing as she toiled -at her daily tasks: “Oh, the tea-cup, the tea-cup, the beautiful, -beautiful tea-cup”--that was all the song she knew! When Christianity -comes, it brings new hope and new songs, and teaches girls and boys -alike to know of God and Heaven and a life away beyond the narrow -courts of the houses in which the earthly lives of so many Chinese -girls are shut up. - -As we have seen already, a change has come over China. At the beginning -of 1909 there were said to be thirty-seven girls’ schools in Canton -alone, one of which had over three hundred pupils, and every year adds -to the number of such schools, all over the land. Christian girls teach -in these schools. Not long ago a girl refused to become teacher in a -Government school because she would not be allowed to read the Bible -with the scholars there. Twice she said she would not go, although -offered more money each time. At last the authorities said: “We must -have you in our school; you may do what you like; you may teach the -Bible--only you must come.” Some Christian girls, after leaving school, -study in the women’s hospitals and become nurses and doctors. At -first they help the missionary lady doctors, and afterwards, in some -cases, they earn their living by going out to care for sick women and -children. Thus Christianity has opened up a new way by which women may -support themselves in China. - -When they are tiny little children girls are often engaged to be -married and go to live in their future husbands’ homes. They are -married, too, when very young. Sometimes a little girl is told only a -short time before that she is to be sent away in a great red chair and -become somebody’s wife in another home. Poor little thing, she is often -very frightened and unwilling to go. - -The story of Pink Jade will help you to understand about girls’ -marriages in China. The first hint she had of what was going to happen -was when an old woman, called the ‘go-between,’ came to her father’s -house with a silver bracelet and some hair ornaments for her, as a -present from her future husband’s family. A paper stamped with a dragon -had already been sent to her parents, giving a description of the young -man she was to marry, and a paper stamped with a phœnix, giving a -description of herself, had been sent in exchange. - -Pink Jade’s father gave her many nice clothes and dresses, five pairs -of embroidered shoes, three pairs of red wooden heels, seven pairs -of silver finger-rings, bracelets and hair ornaments. These gifts -were packed in four red boxes and a dressing-case. Then there was -some bedding in a red box, five washing tubs, a wardrobe, a table and -two red lanterns. On her wedding-day Pink Jade was dressed in black -trousers and petticoat trimmed with embroidery, an embroidered green -satin jacket, a beautiful head-band, the gift of her mother-in-law, -and many hair ornaments. Before she left her home a thick veil of red -and gold, about a foot square, was fastened to her head-band by a few -stitches. - -A little before noon the great red chair, in which she had been carried -by several men, drew near to the bridegroom’s house. The burden-bearers -now went on in front with the red boxes and other things, the little -bride following behind in her chair, attended by the ‘go-between,’ and -four men carrying lanterns. - -It was a shy little maiden that entered the new home; then came the -ceremony of bride and bridegroom together worshipping heaven and earth, -after which they bowed down before the bridegroom’s parents and their -ancestral tablets. Some hours later, the husband cut the stitches of -the veil, and for the first time saw the face of his bride. She did -not see him, however, for she dared not lift her eyes. Crowds of women -from among the guests and neighbours came to look at her, saying very -freely if they thought the bride pretty or ugly, which it is considered -quite polite to do at weddings. Later in the evening she was shown to -the men friends of the family, who repeated good wishes in verse, the -poor little bride having to stand all the time while this and the other -ceremonies were gone through. - -On the second day Pink Jade had to cook a meal and wash some clothes, -to show she understood her new duties. Her mother and sisters-in-law -were pleased with the little bride, so she was happy in her new home. -But before very long her husband went abroad, coming back to China only -now and then. - -When but a little girl of ten years old, Pink Jade had gone with her -grandmother to live in a city where there was a Christian church. She -was curious to see what happened inside the church, so she went to -service there several times; but the singing, reading and praying all -seemed strange to her, for she did not understand what they meant. Her -husband had also been in church when young, but he did not like the -‘new religion,’ and would have nothing to do with worshipping God. - -But it happened that after she was married, Pink Jade took ill and went -to the Mission Hospital at Swatow, where she heard about Our Lord Jesus -Christ, and how He came to save sinners from their sins. She became so -much interested that she persuaded her husband to attend the services -in the Hospital chapel, and before long he himself believed in Jesus -Christ, and was received into the church by baptism. Pink Jade learned -to read and in time gave her heart, too, to God’s service.[4] - -Here is a simple rime which girls learn to repeat, so that they may -know what to do, when afterwards they go as brides to their new homes. - - “Bamboos thick, thick arise, - Child in wifely love be wise, - Late take rest, soon, soon rise, - Wake, comb your hair, - Adorn your face, lips, eyes; - Chairs, tables, dust in hall, - Wash kitchen dishes all, - In chamber sewing fall. - Praise brothers, great and small, - Father, mother, worthy call, - Praise your home, both roof and wall, - Praise your lucky husband tall.” - -In China, as in other lands, the Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ brings -new love and new happiness to girls and women alike. It frees them from -being despised and ill-treated, and gives them their true place in the -home, for it teaches men that “there is neither bond nor free, there is -neither male nor female; for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.” - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -GAMES AND RIDDLES - - -Chinese children are kept so busy at work or study that a stranger -might at first be tempted to think their lives were all work and no -play. In time, however, one discovers that they have many kinds of -amusements. - -A favourite game is played with a ball of tightly wound cotton thread, -which is bounced upon the pavement, the player trying to whirl round -as often as possible, before giving another pat to make it jump again. -Boys are fond of ‘kicking the shuttlecock.’ They are wonderfully clever -with their feet, and send the shuttlecock flying from one to another, -turning, dodging, leaning this way and that, so as to kick freely. The -shuttlecock is kept on the wing for a long time in this way without -once falling to the ground. They play tipcat too, but their game is -more difficult than ours. ‘Knuckle-bones’ and a guessing game, played -with the fingers, like the Italian Mora, are also favourite amusements. - -Another game is ‘tiger trap.’ To play it, a number of boys and girls -take hands and stand in two lines, facing each other. One waits at the -end of the double row of children and bleats, as a kid does in a trap -set for Mr Stripes. Then the tiger darts in between the lines to catch -the kid. The moment he does so, the children at the ends close up. -Unless the tiger bounces out very quickly he is caught and the kid runs -away. - -There are several kinds of blind man’s buff. One is called ‘Catching -fishes in the dark.’ Each child chooses the name of a fish, calling -himself dragon-shrimp, squid, red chicken, or some other kind of fish. -The boy who is to be ‘he’ is blinded. Then the fishes run past, trying -to touch the blind man as they go. If one gets caught ‘he’ must name it -rightly. If ‘he’ names the wrong fish, away runs the boy. Another kind -is ‘Call the chickens home.’ In this game the blind man says ‘Tsoo, -tsoo, come seek your mother,’ then the other children, who are the -chickens, run up and try to touch him without being caught. If one is -caught he becomes blind man. - -When playing ‘Eating fishes’ heads and tails,’ several children take -hold of each other’s jackets to form the fish. The first one is the -head, which is supposed to be too fierce to be captured; the last one -is the tail which may be seized and eaten. One of the players stands -by himself. Suddenly he begins to chase the fish, trying to catch its -tail. Every time he makes a rush the head of the fish faces round, and -the players, forming the tail, swing to one side to avoid being caught, -as in our ‘Fox and chickens.’ - -Kite flying is an amusement of which boys as well as grown men are -very fond. Little toddlers begin with tiny kites, cleverly made out -of folded paper, but the older boys are more ambitious. Some of their -kites are made to look like birds and have a bow, strung with a thin -flat strip of bamboo, tied behind the wings. When the bird rises in the -wind it hovers like a living thing, and the strip of bamboo buzzes with -a loud humming noise. Others are shaped like butterflies, centipedes, -and other creatures. One of the most beautiful kites is shaped like a -fish, so as to curve and sway in the air, much as a fish does in water. - -There are several games played with cash, one in which the coins are -thrown into a hole scooped by the roadside; another in which they are -struck against a wall, so as to rebound and fall beside a certain mark -on the ground, but these, as a rule, are a kind of gambling. - -Here are names of some other games which may interest you: ‘Threading -the needle’; ‘Waiting for the seeker,’ a game like ‘I spy’; ‘Hopping -race’; ‘Let the prince cross over’; ‘Circling the field to catch -the rat’; ‘The mud turtle’ and ‘The water demon seeking for a den,’ -which is played by five children, but otherwise is like ‘Puss in the -corner.’ ‘Sawing wood’ is just ‘Cat’s cradle’ under another name. - -The children often play at ‘worshipping the idols.’ For a few cash they -buy a painted clay idol, about two inches high, which they carry on a -small bamboo stool, by means of two sticks. One child goes in front, -one behind, with the ends of the sticks upon their shoulders. Others -beat a tiny brass gong and carry a burning stick of incense. Then they -offer a shrimp, a small fish and some other things as a sacrifice. - -In the warm weather you may be sure that the boys and girls take -a large share in the fun when their fathers and brothers send up -fire-balloons. These rise in the night sky until they look like yellow -moons floating over the city. Sometimes a balloon catches fire, flames -for a minute, and then only a falling spark shows where its ashes go -tumbling to the ground. - -The Chinese have many riddles which grown people as well as children -play at guessing. - -Here are some for you to try your wits upon. - -“It was born in a mountain forest. It died in an earthen chamber. Its -soul dispersed to the four winds. And its bones are laid out for sale.” - -“In a very small house there live five little girls.” - -“On his head he has a helmet. His body is covered with armour. Kill him -and you will find no blood, open him and you will find his flesh.” - -“On the outside is a stone wall. In the inside there is a small golden -lady.” - -“It takes away the courage of a demon. Its sound is like that of -thunder. It frightens men so that they drop their chopsticks. When one -turns one’s head round to look at it, lo! it is all turned into smoke.” - - -“There are two sisters of equal size; one sits inside, the other -outside.” - -[Illustration: CHILDREN AT FOOD AND AT PLAY] - -“In the front are five openings; on the sides are two windows; behind -hangs an onion stalk.” - -“What is it that sits very low and eats more grass than a buffalo?” - -Here are the answers: Charcoal, a shoe, a shrimp, an egg, a cannon, a -looking-glass, a Chinaman’s head, a Chinese kitchen range (which is -generally heated with fern and grass). - -Sometimes riddles are painted on lanterns and hung in front of a shop -for people to guess: whoever succeeds in guessing right wins a small -prize. - -Chinese boys and girls have a sweet tooth. Whenever they have cash to -do so, they buy sugar-cane, peanut candy and biscuits, some of which -are flavoured with sugared kui flowers, which give them a delicious -taste. When the man who sells candied peaches and other fruit appears, -boys and girls come hopping out of the houses at the sound of his bell, -and each one hunts in his little pocket for cash, or begs a few from -his mother, to buy some favourite dainty. - -The children are filled with glee whenever a feast with plays is given -at their home. They are not allowed to sit at the feast, nor are they -supposed to look on at the plays, but they have a good share of what is -going. As the unfinished dishes are carried from the tables, one after -the other, the servants and children have a feast of their own outside. -Long before the plays begin, the children watch the erection of the -stage in the court or in the street outside the house, and examine the -masks and dresses as they are taken out of their boxes and hung up -ready for use. - -When the music strikes up they choose knowing corners, from which to -peep past the shoulders and over the heads of the big people. They -love to see the actors dressed like famous heroes who lived long ago, -although they cannot recognise the boys now beneath their red and -black masks, long beards and rich robes. How the music clamours and -the drums beat and the rattles clatter. Warriors shout and stamp, fine -ladies wave their fans. When fighting begins upon the stage it would be -difficult indeed to catch the boys among the crowd, to send them to bed! - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -STORIES AND RIMES - - -One of the best ways to know boys and girls is to learn something of -the stories they like to hear and tell. Here are one or two which will -help you to understand our friends the Chinese children much better -than pages of talk about their looks and ways. - -First, there is the story of how the yellow cow and the water buffalo -exchanged their skins. You must know that the yellow cow has a fold of -skin which hangs loose beneath her neck, and a loud bellow, while the -buffalo has a tight grey skin, that looks some sizes too small for his -great round body, and a tiny wheezing voice, which sounds strangely -coming from so large a beast. Long ago the buffalo was yellow and -his skin fitted well enough, while the cow was grey. Now it happened -that one hot day the cow and the buffalo went to bathe in the river, -leaving their clothes upon the bank, while they enjoyed themselves in -the cool, green water. Presently there was a roar, which told them that -the tiger was coming. Out of the water they dashed, and the cow, being -the nimbler of the two, scrambled up the bank ahead of the buffalo. In -her haste she picked up the first heap of clothes which she came to -and began putting them on, hopping into them one leg at a time between -the steps as she ran. The buffalo was not far behind, but so frightened -lest the tiger should catch him, that he did not notice that the cow -had run off with his clothes. He picked up hers and struggled into -them somehow, then he ran for his life. He never was very bright, but -blown by running and frightened though he was, he soon noticed that his -jacket was very tight and that it was the wrong colour. There was the -cow running in front of him, and he could see that she had put on his -nice yellow suit. He wished her to stop and give him back his clothes, -but the tiger was somewhere in the woods not far behind them. So they -ran and they ran until at last they were safe from pursuit. - -As the cow slowed her pace the buffalo overtook her. Before he had -quite made up to her he tried to shout out, “Give me back my clothes,” -but he felt so tight and puffed so hard that he could not speak. He was -very stiff about the ribs and a little angry, so instead of attempting -a long sentence he tried to say, “Oan,” one word only, which means -“change.” All he could get out, however, was “Eh-ah, eh-ah,” in a -wheezy little voice. - -The cow understood his meaning well enough, but she felt so comfortable -in her new yellow skin that she only answered “M-ah, m-ah,” “I won’t, I -won’t.” - -And so the buffalo has been wheezing “Change, change,” and the yellow -cow has been mooing “I won’t, I won’t” ever since. - -Here is another ‘just-so’ story, which tells how the deer lost his -tail. Long ago an old man and his wife lived in a lonely cottage upon a -hill not far from forests and rocky places where wild beasts had their -holes. - -One night, when the man and his wife had finished their supper, they -were talking together, as they often did before going to bed. In the -course of their talk the old man happened to say: “How happy we are in -our cottage upon this hill far from the city where thieves and beggars -bother and policemen frighten people. We do not fear thieves nor -policemen, nor tigers nor demons, nor anything at all, unless it be the -Lio--yes, we need not fear anything but the Lio.” - -There was a hush in the cottager’s voice when he spoke the last words, -and when he had spoken them, both he and his wife were quiet for quite -a long time. Now it chanced that a tiger, which had crept down from -his cave under one of the blue peaks of the mountain overhead, was -prowling round the cottage whilst they were talking together, hoping to -pick up the watch-dog or a fat pig, before setting out for a hunt in -the valleys far below. Hearing the sound of voices, he stopped outside -the door. The family dog, who was far too wise to be out at night near -the edge of the forest, smelt him and crept into the corner of the -room furthest from the door, under the bedstead. He dared not growl or -whimper. There he lay, his brown hair bristling over his shoulders, -and he breathed so quietly that the young mice in their hole by the -wall were sure that he was dead, although their little grey mother knew -better. - -At the moment the tiger began to listen to the talking inside the -cottage the old man was saying: “We not do fear thieves nor policemen, -nor tigers nor demons, nor anything at all, unless it be the Lio.” -There was something in the way he spoke the last words and in the way -he stopped after saying them, which showed that he really was afraid -of the Lio. The tiger, who had never heard of a Lio, wondered what it -could be, so he lay down quietly outside the door to listen, hoping -to hear more about the terrible beast which frightened people brave -enough to fear neither tigers nor thieves nor demons. All was dark -and the hill side was very still. Behind the cottage a thief, who had -come to rob the lonely couple, was crouching close to the wall. He too -heard the old man talking about the Lio and wondered what the terrible -creature could be like. Presently he crept round the side of the -cottage. The tiger noticed a sound coming moving through the darkness. -It was the thief. Though he slipped along as quietly as a pussy cat the -tiger heard him with his wonderful wild-beast’s ears. Dark as it was -when the thief crept round to the front wall, he felt, rather than saw, -that there was something lying beside the door of the little house. -“Good luck!” he thought to himself. “This is the old man’s cow.” It -was impossible to see, so he stole up gently to try to find out what -the creature might be. He put out his hand to feel, and touched the -tiger. In a moment he knew that this was no cow. Its hair was harsh and -its muscles like iron bands. Could it be--surely it could not be--the -dreadful creature of which he had just been hearing. Reckless as he -was, the thief felt his heart stand still. Next moment he jumped to one -side, climbed the wall of the cottage, and hid on the roof. - -Meantime the tiger, making sure that the unseen thing, which had come -upon him in the darkness, was nothing less than the Lio itself, got up -and fled. He ran and he ran, until he met a deer in the forest. The -deer drew respectfully to the side of the path, as in duty bound when -meeting his betters. “Where does his Excellency come from in such a -hurry?” he inquired in rather a timid voice. - -“Oh! from nowhere, from nowhere at all,” answered the tiger, a little -bit confused by what had just happened. Then he recovered himself and -told the deer how a terrible beast, called the Lio, had touched him in -the dark. - -“A Lio, your Excellency! Why, I never even heard of a Lio,” said the -deer in great surprise. “What is it like?” - -“A Lio is very clever,” said the tiger; “it climbs houses and comes on -you in the dark. If you would like to know more about it I will take -you to where it is. Come, let us go together.” - -“But the Lio will catch me, your Excellency, I am but a weak creature,” -said the deer, drawing back a little, for he did not wish to be gobbled -up. He never had known the tiger so quiet and polite before, and he -could see by the gleam of the great green eyes, even in the dark, that -his companion was turning his head every now and then, as if he thought -the Lio might come gliding through the forest to spring upon them at -any moment. - -“Don’t be afraid,” said the tiger, growing braver at the thought of -having a companion to go back with him, “I will take care of you.” - -“But, your Excellency, the Lio will come and you will run away and -leave me to be caught,” answered the deer. - -“Oh, no, we can tie our tails together, and then it will be all right,” -said the tiger. For you must know that at that time the deer’s tail was -much longer than it is now. - -“Tie our tails together and both get caught at once,” gasped the deer, -so surprised that he forgot to be polite. - -“Not at all,” said the tiger, with a little growl in his voice. “When -the Lio comes I will ‘put forth my strength’ and pull you away with a -whisk before it can get hold of you.” - -“Ha! ha! ha!” laughed the deer, his spotted sides shaking until the -white marks danced again, “what a clever plan.” - -So the deer and the tiger tied their tails together, and set off to -look for the Lio. They had to walk carefully through the forest, -because the bushes and trees would get between them, and as they went -along they talked in whispers about the Lio, until the deer felt creepy -all over. At last they reached the edge of the wood, where they could -just make out the black cottage looking very dark against the sky. A -branch cracked as they passed under the last tree. - -The thief, who was still crouching on the roof of the cottage, took -fright at the sound, and making sure that the terrible beast he had -heard of was coming back, jumped down from the tiles, narrowly missing -the deer as he reached the ground. - -“Help, help, your Excellency, the Lio!” cried the deer, terrified by -something, he knew not what, coming tumbling out of the night. The -tiger ‘put forth his strength’ and gave a great spring, when crack! -the deer’s tail broke off close by the root. The thief ran, the tiger -sprang, the deer bounded away, in different directions, each thinking -that the terrible Lio was close at his heels. But the Lio none of -them ever saw. What was strangest of all, the old man and his wife, -who never had seen a Lio in all their lives, went quietly to bed that -night without an idea of what was happening outside in the dark. And -now you know why the deer has only a white tuft sticking up, where his -beautiful long tail used to be. - -The following story about a bird is a favourite one with boys and girls -in some parts of China. - -There is a little grey bird, called the Bean bird, which pipes a sad -note in the spring. Its cry is said to be like the Chinese words for -“Little brother, little brother, are you there?” According to the story -a man, who had one son, married again and had another little boy. The -second son’s mother hated the elder brother and wished very much to get -rid of him so that her own child might enjoy the family property. Again -and again she did her best to get the poor lad into trouble with his -father, and too often she succeeded. - -One day in spring when the farmers were busy putting their crops into -the ground she found some beans in a flat basket with which the elder -brother was going to sow his field. The boy was nowhere to be seen, so -she popped his beans into the empty rice boiler, and putting some grass -into the fireplace below, heated them until those tiny parts which -turn into buds and sprout under the soil were killed. Then she put -the beans back into their basket and left them to cool. The boy knew -nothing of all this, but the younger son, who dearly loved his elder -brother, noticed what had been done, and hoping to save him a scolding, -quietly put his own beans into the basket and took the roasted ones -to use himself. Then they went to the fields and each one sowed his -plot of ground. After a time their mother sent the boys to see how the -crops were doing. “If the beans have not sprouted in either of your -fields you need not come home again,” said she. “We do not wish to have -useless, lazy children in this house.” - -The elder brother’s little field was covered with green plants, so he -went gleefully home and told his stepmother. The younger brother’s plot -was brown and bare, not a bean had come up through the soil. He knew -there would be trouble for his brother if he went home, so he started -off for the mountains, hoping that his elder brother would be left in -peace if he were gone. He wandered away and away, until at length a -tiger found him and ate him up. - -The stepmother was vexed when her son did not come home from the -fields, and with many threats and angry speeches sent the elder boy to -go and look for him. The lad, who was anxious to find his companion, -went everywhere calling, “Little brother, little brother, are you -there?” The workers on the upland farms and the grass-cutters on the -hills, heard his voice floating faint and far, as he wandered farther -and farther away. Now it was here, now there, always calling the same -sad cry, “Little brother, little brother, are you there?” - -When he could find him nowhere he knelt down in his despair and prayed -Heaven to show him where his brother was. As he prayed and wept he -knocked his head upon the ground. His head struck a stone, the blood -ran and he died. The blood which flowed from his wound was changed into -a little grey bird, and every year, when the beans are sprouting in -the fields, the bird comes with its plaintive cry, now near, now far, -“Little brother, little brother, are you there?” When the children hear -its call they say, “Rain is coming,” and surely enough the drops begin -to fall before long, as if the skies remembered an ancient wrong and -wept for sorrow. - -There are many stories of children famous in China long ago. Here is -one which shows how even a little child may care for others, thinking -and acting wisely in time of danger. - -Many hundreds of years ago, in the time of the Sung Dynasty, a boy -named Sze Ma Kung was playing with some other boys and girls. When -the fun was at its height, one of the party fell into a great big jar -of water. The children were so frightened that they all ran away, -except Sze Ma Kung, who at once went to try what he could do to save -his companion. The edge of the jar was too high for him to reach over, -so the little fellow could not get at the sinking child, to pull him -out of the water. There was no time to fetch a stool or call for help; -another moment and the prisoner would be drowned. A good idea struck -him. He rushed off, and picking up as large a stone as he could carry -he dashed it against the side of the jar. Crack went the pot and a -great hole opened, through which the water all ran away. Then the -child crept out like a half-drowned puppy, but not much the worse for -his drenching. When people heard of what Sze Ma Kung had done, they -knew that if he lived to grow up he would be a useful man, wise and -thoughtful and quick to help others. - -Stories are told of children diligent at their books, who were famous -in after life. One lad, who was too poor to buy oil for his lamp, used -to catch fire-flies and read by the pale-green light they gave. He put -the fire-flies inside a tiny muslin bag, which he laid upon the page of -his book, the light which they gave being just enough to let him follow -his lesson, line by line. Another used to read by the light reflected -from snow, as the day failed, or when the moon rose. A third used to -fasten his book to the horn of the cow he was tending, so as to use the -precious hours for study; while a fourth tied his queue to a rafter of -the low roof above his head, so that when he became drowsy and nodded -over his lesson, he might be wakened by the pain of having his hair -pulled. - -Another kind of story helps to fix the written ‘characters’ in -schoolboys’ memories. One of these tells how a scholar, called Li An-i, -went to visit a rich boor named Ti Shing. When he reached the house -and asked for the gentleman, a message was brought that he was not at -home. Li An-i knew that this was not true, so he wrote the character -for ‘afternoon’ on the door of Mr Ti’s house and went away. When asked -why he had done so, he said that the character for afternoon meant -‘the ox not putting out its head.’ When you know that the character -for afternoon is the same as the one for ox, but without the dot which -makes the head of it, and that a stupid person is called an ox in -China, much as he would be called an ass at home, you will understand -Mr Li’s joke. He meant that the man, who had not ‘put out his head’ to -see him, was a stupid ox. - -There are plenty of nursery rimes in China, one or two of which will -show you that Chinese children are very much like our own. Here is one -about our old friends the sparrows. - - “A pair of sparrows with four bright eyes, - Four small feet that pop, pop so, - Four wings that whirr, whirr, how they go! - Pecking rice and grain likewise.” - -Another reminds us a little of the pig that would not get over the -stile. - - “A bit of copper fell out of the sky, - And hit an old man as he passed by. - When the man began to jog, - He struck against a dog. - When the dog began to yell, - It struck against a mill. - When the mill began to fall, - It struck against a hall. - When the hall began to build, - It struck against a stool. - When the stool began to sit, - It struck against a sheet. - When the sheet began to tuck, - It struck against a duck. - When the duck began to wade, - It struck against a blade. - When the blade began to cut, - It struck against a hat. - When the hat began to wear, - Catch the thief and slit his ear.” - -The following verse, which is often shouted by boisterous little -scholars, pokes fun at a greedy schoolmaster, who has lost the respect -of his pupils. The first and third lines are from the _Three Character -Classic_, the first book a child learns; the others are hits at the -master. - - “‘Primal man’s condition’ - Teacher sly steals chicken. - ‘Good at root was his heart,’ - Teacher’s nicking gizzard. - The boys won’t touch a book, - Roll teacher in the brook.” - -The boys and girls of China are learning the stories of Joseph, -Samuel and Jonathan, of John the Baptist and of Peter. They read -the _Pilgrim’s Progress_, _Jessica’s First Prayer_, _Christie’s Old -Organ_ and many another favourite, which has been put into the Chinese -language for them by the missionaries. Best of all they learn the story -of our Lord Jesus Christ, and through it come to know the Blessed -Saviour Himself. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -RELIGION - - -It is rather strange that the Chinese have three religions, instead of -being contented with one like most people. Confucianism is the chief -of these. It takes its name from Confucius, a wise man born in 551 -B.C., who taught men to be just, to be kind to one another, and to -agree together; but he said little or nothing about how to know God and -worship Him. The most famous saying of Confucius is: “What you do not -wish done to yourself, do not do to others.” These beautiful words are -nearer to the teaching of Our Lord Jesus than any others to be found -outside the Bible, and ought to be treasured by everyone. Following in -the steps of the earlier teachers of China, Confucius taught children -to reverence their parents, and in this way he printed the spirit -of the Fifth Commandment upon the entire nation. We must remember, -however, that Confucius did not begin what is called Confucianism, he -only handed on truths which the early Chinese had learnt. Indeed some -things, such as the knowledge of God, and of a future life, he taught -less clearly than those who had gone before him. - -A story is told which shows that, wise as Confucius was, he did not -know everything. One day, when out for a walk he found two boys -quarrelling. “What are you two quarrelling about?” asked the great man. - -One of the boys answered, “The sun. I say that when the sun has just -risen it is nearest to us.” - -“I say that it is nearest to us at noon,” insisted the other. - -“When the sun rises it looks as big as a chariot wheel. When it is -high it is quite small, no larger than a saucer. It is plain that when -things are far away they look small, and when they are close to us they -look big,” said the first youth. - -“When the sun rises,” objected the second boy, “it is chill and cold. -When the sun is overhead it is as hot as boiling water. Plainly it is -cold when it is far away and hot when it is near, so it is nearer to us -at noon than it is in the morning.” - -When Confucius had heard each of them in turn, he did not know what -to say, so he went on with his walk and left them. Then the two boys -laughed, and one of them exclaimed: “Who are the people that say that -the Sage of the kingdom of Lo is a wise man?” - -While Confucius lived, few of his fellow-countrymen would listen to -him. The princes, whom he tried to teach to govern wisely, made him -sorrowful by refusing to follow his advice. On the last day of his life -he was very sad and dragged himself about, slowly saying over and over -again to himself: - - “The great mountain must crumble, - The strong beam must break, - And the wise man wither away like a plant.” - -But his labours were not lost. His wise words were put into a book by -his followers, more than a hundred years after his death. Mencius, the -greatest of his disciples, carried on his work. His fame spread all -over China and far beyond it. Now there are 1500 temples in which he is -worshipped by millions of people, and so great is the honour given to -him that his followers say: - - “Confucius! Confucius! - Great indeed are thou, O Confucius. - Before thee - None like unto thee! - After thee - None equal to thee. - Confucius! Confucius! - Great indeed are thou, O Confucius.” - -Confucius told the Chinese people that the most precious teaching -handed down to them from long ago was that which taught them to honour -their parents and those older than themselves. But both before and -after the time of this great man, the Chinese went too far, not only -reverencing, but also worshipping the dead. Perhaps we can imagine how -this mistake crept in. They were afraid that they might forget their -loved ones. Since it was not the custom with them long ago to put names -upon gravestones, they wrote them in books and on slips of wood. These -slips of wood, or ancestral tablets, were kept most carefully, as we -have already seen, in the chief room of the house and in temples. The -Chinese believed that each person had three souls, one which went into -the unseen world at death, one which stayed in the grave, and one which -lived in the slip of wood. They also thought that the souls in tablets -or in graves depended on dutiful sons to offer food and sacrifices to -them. Girls might not make these offerings, because, when married, -they belonged to their husbands’ families. When parents had no baby -boys, they were much troubled, not having anyone to grow up and worship -their spirits, for they fear more than anything else to become ‘hungry -demons’ after death, with no one to care for their needs. Now you know -why Chinese people are anxious to have sons rather than daughters. - -Fear mixes with the worship of the dead at every turn. When people are -sick or lose money or have some other trouble, they think that the -spirits in the tablets are angry, and are bringing evil upon their -home. They offer food, and burn paper clothes, houses, money, servants -and horses to please them, thinking that when burnt, those things pass -into the spirit-land, where their relatives enjoy them, and being -pleased, give up troubling those on earth. - -A man named Wang had sickness in his family and his business was not -good. A priest told him that his father’s spirit, which lived in a red -and green tablet, was angry with him, and he must offer paper money, -incense and other things to pacify it. He offered these things, and -fruit, chickens, cakes and pork besides; but all to no purpose, things -went just as badly as ever. At last, after spending all his money in -this way, he lost faith in the priest and in the tablet. “My father was -not unkind to me when he was alive,” said he, “why should his spirit -plague me so wickedly when he is dead?” About this time he first heard -the Gospel, and in despair of finding comfort elsewhere, began to go to -church. He heard that he had a Father in Heaven, and found peace and -gladness in His service. This worship of the spirits of the dead is the -real religion of China; all the rest of their beliefs are things added -on. The fear of those who have gone into the unseen world hangs like a -weight upon the people, who are said to spend millions of money every -year in trying to please the spirits of their relatives. - -Sad as this is, we ought to remember that there is something beautiful -and right hidden beneath all that is wrong in this worship, and that is -the desire of the Chinese people to reverence and obey those who have -gone before them. When they have learned to serve God, what is wrong -will pass away, and perhaps they will teach us all to understand the -real meaning of the Fifth Commandment better than we have yet done. - -In spite of the good in it, Confucianism has been a failure, because it -has not taught men and women and children to know the one true God, who -alone can help them to follow the teaching of Confucius and be just and -kind and obedient. - -Taoism, as it is called, is the second religion of China. Its founder -is called Lao-tsze or ‘old boy.’ It is said that he was old and wise -and had white hair when he was born. After serving his country for -a time, he gave up his post and travelled towards the west. At the -frontier pass of Han Kuh, the officer in charge of the gate stopped -the traveller, and knowing that he was a wise man, persuaded him to -write down some of his teaching in a book. Taoism takes its name from -Tao, the truth, or the way, the first syllable in the name of the -Tao-teh-king, the famous volume which Lao-tsze wrote; but what is now -called Taoism does not follow the teaching of this book. - -‘The Heavenly Master,’ or pope of the Taoists, lives in the -Dragon-tiger mountain in Kiangsi. He has rows of jars, in which the -people think he keeps evil spirits shut up, like the Djinn whom the -fisherman of the _Arabian Nights_ found sealed in a copper vessel. -There are Taoist priests in every city of China, who sometimes may be -seen in red and yellow robes with a curious topknot of yellow wood tied -into their hair, going through strange rites, or cracking a whip with -a long lash to frighten away demons. The Taoist god most feared by the -people is the Kitchen God, who they think goes up to heaven once a -year, and tells what each member of the family has been doing during -the twelve months. - -Buddhism, which is an Indian religion, entered China in 217 B.C., and -was welcomed by the emperor of that time. It was afterwards persecuted, -but later spread over the country. Now, practically all the people -are Buddhists, as well as Confucianists and Taoists. The teaching -of Confucius, as we have already seen, leaves men and women without -a Saviour or strength to do the good they know. That is why, when -Buddhism came into the land, the Chinese welcomed it, hoping that it -might aid them. But though Buddhism tells men to be true, pure, humble, -courageous, it does not lead them, any more than did Confucianism, -to a personal God, who might help them to do what they were told was -right. It leaves them to their own efforts and points to no one able -to save from sin. It tells people that if they conquer their bodies -and give up doing wrong things, not taking life or eating animal food, -they will after death be born again in a new and higher life. If, when -born again, they do still better, they will be born still higher, until -at last they enter Nirvana, the Buddhist heaven, “as the dewdrops slip -into the shining sea.” - -If, on the other hand, people do wrong things, the Buddhists say they -will be born again as lower animals, dogs, rats or creeping snakes. - -There are many idols connected with these religions, and everywhere -you may see people going to the temples to burn incense and paper -money, and to offer gifts of food. They do not go regularly, as people -go to church in Christian lands, but on idols’ birthdays or when they -themselves are in trouble. - -Year by year more of the people turn from their own religions to the -peace and happiness of serving God. In Our Lord Jesus Christ they find -forgiveness of sins, and for the first time strength to follow all that -is good in the teaching of their own ancient Sages. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -FESTIVALS - - -Chinese life, which for many children is dull and full of work, has -its red-letter days. No description of the little folk of the Middle -Kingdom would be complete without an account of some of the festivals, -which add so much to the happiness of the year. - -How the boys and girls look forward to New Year’s day! The houses -are swept and tidied the night before. Inscriptions on bright red -paper are pasted on the door-posts and lintels of each home. What a -banging of guns and crackers there is, in the early morning, after the -ancestors have been worshipped. The pavement is littered with red and -white paper, wherever fireworks have been let off. A little later, the -streets are full of people going to call on their friends, and say “I -congratulate you, I congratulate you,” for this is the way in which the -Chinese wish each other a Happy New Year. - -The children are dressed in new clothes, their queues and little plaits -of hair being tied with fresh red cord. They have new shoes and new -hats and a handful of cash to rattle in their pockets. The babies are -as gay as humming-birds, in bright coloured jackets and trousers, -pussy-faced shoes, silver bangles, and wonderful embroidered crowns and -collars. - -The shops are closed, everyone is either resting or holiday-making. The -streets are lined with gambling-boards. One hears the clatter of bamboo -lot-sticks and the rattle of dice everywhere as one passes along. Boys -and girls make for the cake man’s tray. They buy candy and fruit and -toys; they jump and dance and play, and enjoy life hugely. The holidays -continue for two weeks. There are plays and feasts in the evenings, and -plenty of crackers are fired. The children wish that the fun might go -on for ever. On the fifteenth of the month the holidays are closed by -the festival of lanterns. - -For several days before this feast the streets have been gay with -beautiful lanterns of many shapes and sizes. Some are made of glass, -with flowers and birds of paper pasted over them, or painted in -bright colours. Some are made of crinkled paper, round like melons, -or jar-shaped; others resemble fishes, lions, castles, rabbits, lotus -flowers, white and red, tigers, dragons. They are all colours--red, -green, white, blue, pink, yellow, purple. The kind which the little -boys like best are ‘throwing-ball lanterns,’ which are made by pasting -bits of different coloured paper on a frame of thin bamboo. Inside -there is a tiny clay dish, filled with fat, into which a wick is stuck. -When the evening is dark enough, out come the boys. They light their -lanterns. Some have big tiger and fish lanterns, which move on wooden -wheels, the fire shining through their eyes and bodies. Some prance -along in a row, each with a bit of a long dragon on his shoulder. The -first boy carries the head, and the last one has the tail. The dragon -bobs and twists as they thread the crowded street. Some whirl their -‘ball lanterns’ round and round, by means of a string tied to the top. -The wicks keep alight because the lump of fat does not run out of the -socket as oil would do. The bright colours gleam as the light shines -out, and the lanterns whirl flashing through the dark. - -Then there is the spring festival, when troops of people go out of the -east gate of the city to see the mandarins worship at an altar to the -Earth God, which has the figure of a buffalo standing beside it. People -throw things at the buffalo; whoever hits it is sure that he will have -a prosperous year. - -[Illustration: GOING TO VISIT HIS IDOL MOTHER] - -Then comes the Tsing-Ming, or feast of tombs, when schools have -holiday. Steamed cake, brown and white, and vegetables rolled in -pancakes are eaten in every house. People put the family graves in -order. Sacrifices are made, paper money is strewed upon the earth -and crackers are fired. Tiny boys are taken to the graves, that they -may learn how to tend them, and present the offerings by and by when -older. Boys, lads and young men line the banks of the river, or some -other open space near the town or village, and throw stones at one -another. The stones fly fast, dashing up spray where they strike the -water. Now one side has the better in the fight, now the other. The -game becomes serious indeed when someone is struck and the blood flows. -Many people go to look on, believing that if the battle goes on until -blood has been drawn, the village will be free of sickness during the -year. - -In some cities a children’s festival is held about the beginning of -summer, when the little ones are carried to the temple of one of the -goddesses and devoted to her. Those taken for the first time go through -a little ceremony. Some money is paid to the nuns in charge of the -temple, and the infants become the adopted children of the idol. After -being adopted, the children go every year to the temple until the age -of sixteen is reached, when they again pay a sum of money and give up -attending. The little ones and their friends enjoy these festivals. -From early until late, streams of people pour in by the city gates -and flood the streets. The children are most gay, dressed in silk and -satin. Some wear the robe, hat, belt and boots of an official; some -wear delicate robes of green, blue, pink, crimson, apple-green; some -have head-dresses embroidered with flowers and spangled with tiny -mirrors; some wear antique crowns adorned with pheasants’ feathers; -some are dressed as old men riding on water buffaloes to represent -Lao-tsze on his journey to the west; others again are in uniform and -képi, after the fashion of the new army. - -Many of the children are mounted on horses, over which coloured cloths -are thrown. The collar-bells chime and jingle as the animals are led -along. The crush at the temple gates is great. The little people -dismount, and with others who have been brought pick-a-back, are -carried into the presence of the idols. Their parents buy red candles -and offer long sticks of incense, and go through the temple making the -children bow towards the altar. The horses are mounted once more and -carry their gay riders home, where paper money is burnt and plays are -acted. In spite of the fact that many children are stolen and lost, -or become ill from heat and exposure at these festivals, the foolish -people believe that the goddess takes special care of her adopted -children. - -The fifth day of the fifth moon is the dragon boat festival, when -schoolboys present some cash to their teacher, and teachers give a fan -with an inscription on it to each of their pupils. The children go with -their friends to look at the dragon boats racing. They love to see the -paddles splash in the water, to listen to the drums beating and the -shouts of the rowers. - -The mid-autumn festival comes in the eighth month, when scholars once -more give money to their teachers, receiving moon cakes in return. In -some districts the children build circular towers of broken tiles, and -light fires inside them. Some of these towers are six feet across and -several feet high, although the bits of tiles are laid one on the top -of the other without cement. - -In the eleventh month there is the winter festival, when ancestors are -worshipped and feasts and plays are again enjoyed. There are many other -holidays and feasts, as, for instance, on the birthdays of the idols, -but those above mentioned are the chief festivals to which the boys -and girls look forward during the year. - -Though Christian children do not join in idolatrous festivals, they -have ‘ball lanterns’ to swing, and cakes to eat, and a good share of -fun. When they learn to know and love the Saviour, they find true and -lasting joy, better far than that which heathen boys and girls know. - -Sunday is the Christian holiday, when the little ones wear bright -clothes and join the happy throng which gathers at church. They love -to sing the hymns and take part in the Bible services by answering -questions and saying the golden text, chosen for each Sunday. - - - - -CHAPTER X - -SUPERSTITIONS - - -The superstitions of China are countless, and of course differ in -different parts of the Empire, but you will like to hear of some that -touch the lives of the boys and girls. - -When boys and girls are born, their fortunes are told. The baby’s -father gets the child’s ‘eight characters’ written down on a piece of -paper. Two of the ‘characters’ tell the year, two the month, two the -day and two the hour when the little one came into this world; these -he takes to the man who ‘looks at people’s lives,’ who he believes can -tell from them whether the child will be fortunate or unhappy in this -world. This fortune-teller, who is very often blind, has a great deal -to do with baby’s fate. If, for instance, he says that fire enters -into its disposition, and someone else in the family has a fortune -connected with wood, then the child will surely bring bad fortune to -that person, for fire burns wood. The people believe what the blind -man says, and so poor little baby is given away, or even in some cases -put to death, to prevent its bringing trouble upon the family. When -baby grows older it is supposed to be in danger from wicked spirits. -Little gilt idols are put in its cap, to frighten away these demons, -a favourite figure being that of a roly-poly bald idol, called ‘Fat -Strength.’ When a little older, a tiny round tray, foot-measure and -pair of scissors are sewn on the front band of its cap, for the same -purpose. Coins, charms of copper and silver, and little square bags of -incense powder, with the names of idols written on them, are also hung -round children’s necks to keep away the evil spirits. - -If a little one takes ill the father sometimes begs one cash from a -hundred different people among his neighbours and friends. With these -coins he has a chain made to go round the child’s neck and a padlock -to fasten it tightly. In this way he hopes, poor man, to fasten baby’s -soul firmly to its body, and so prevent it from dying. If, in spite of -this, baby gets worse, its father thinks some idol is enticing its soul -away from its little body. After finding out which idol is probably the -thief, he takes one of the child’s little garments and puts it into an -empty basket, which has a length of dry straw rope tied round it. Then -he goes to the temple, and, after offering things which he thinks will -please the idol, and make it willing to let baby’s spirit go again, -he spreads out the little jacket, believing that the tiny soul will -recognise its own garment and get into it. Then he puts the garment -carefully into his basket and lights the straw rope that it may burn -slowly, and lead the little wandering spirit safely home.[5] - -In some places the father goes about with the tiny jacket hung on the -end of a stick, calling baby’s name aloud, hoping to find the little -wandering spirit in this way. - -Boys and girls early come to know the stone lions, which stand opposite -points where straight lanes or streets enter other streets, or in front -of temples and yamens. These curious images have broad noses and tufted -manes and tails. Some crouch close against a block in a wall, with -round eyes and long teeth, looking as if they were going to walk out -of the stone. Many have their heads on one side, with a double string -hanging down from their mouths. Some have a baby lion in front of them -or a carved ball under one paw. A few have a ball inside their stone -jaws and some are crouching as if to spring. The children are told that -these stone lions stand in front of houses to prevent evil spirits -or ghosts from coming along the lane to hurt people inside. They say -that in the middle of the night the lions come down from their stone -pedestals and play about the streets with their balls, rolling over and -over one another! One lion, which was supposed to change himself into -a man and roam about the streets, has been caged with bars and is kept -safely shut up in a little temple of his own in Chinchew. - -Then children are also told that coffins, which have been shone upon by -the moon, turn into ghosts and walk about the streets, trying to catch -people. They think there are demons who call and howl whenever anyone -is going to die. They say, too, that the spirits of drowned people -turn into duck demons, which swim near the edge of ponds. If anyone is -foolish enough to try to catch them, they drag him under the water and -drown him. The drowned man then becomes the duck demon, and the first -man can escape. Then children are told of serpent demons and foxes that -turn into people, and bring hurt to those who take them into their -houses. A famous story is that of a man who met a beautiful lady and -married her. One day he came home rather sooner than his wife expected -him, and could not find her anywhere. At last he peeped through a hole -in an old shed, and there he saw a hideous demon, painting its skin, -which was stretched on a board. Looking at the skin the man saw that it -was his wife’s, and so knew he had married a fox-demon and not a woman. -“If you could stretch your hand three feet above your head you would -touch the spirits,” is a common saying. - -Fork-like prongs stick out from the roofs of the houses to drive away -demons. Streets and roads often, for no reason, turn a sharp corner, -and the furrows ploughed in the fields are awry, so that the spirits -may lose their way and not come along them to hurt people. They think -there are spirits of the door and spirits under the eaves, spirits of -the rafters and spirits of the bed. - -Sometimes you will see a head with a shining sword in its mouth above a -door; sometimes a sword, made of round brass cash, tied together by a -red cord, hangs in a bedroom. If a wicked spirit comes to hurt anyone -inside the room the spirit of the sword is supposed to flash out and -drive it away. - -In the hills and waters, in graves and in houses, in great stones and -in old trees, in the moon and in the stars, there are, the Chinese say, -spirits and spiritual influences. There is the earth spirit in the -ground and there are dragons which may be made very angry if the soil -is dug too deeply. If an earth dragon is angry and moves his tail, half -a city may fall down. There are dragons too of air and water. When an -eclipse took place, the people used always to go out with drums and -pans and brass gongs to frighten away the Celestial Dog, which they -thought was eating up the sun or moon. In 1909, however, when the -Prince Regent was asked to give orders for the usual ceremonies to -drive away an eclipse, he refused, saying that now these foolish ways -must cease. - -Numbers of superstitious practices are connected with the idols. The -spirits inside them are supposed to eat the spirit of the food offered -upon the altar. Inside some of the images there is a mirror, in which -the idol is supposed to see all that passes before it. On certain days -idols are carried through cities and villages and round the fields to -let them see how their worshippers are faring. On great festivals men -may be seen bare to the waist, with their hair floating down their -backs, and thin, flat swords in their hands. The spirit of the idol -is thought to enter these men. They foam at the mouth, they whirl -round and rush about, they cut themselves, striking wildly over their -shoulders with their swords. Though they do not wound themselves badly, -yet thin streaks of red show where the skin is cut. Guns are fired and -piles of paper money send up clouds of smoke. The ‘mediums,’ as these -men may be called, put their swords between their teeth and leap on to -the carrying poles of the idols’ sedan-chair, and thus standing behind -the image, they are carried through the streets. - -Chinese boys and girls are also taught to believe that the spirits of -the idols go into women, who turn very white and ill-looking, and then -begin to speak in a strange, thin, muttering voice. The people think -that when the idol spirit is in these women, they can bring dead people -back to speak to their friends and children, just as the witch of Endor -brought back Samuel to speak to Saul. - -In southern China, a man named It-sai-peh, who was a Christian, died -before his wife had learned to believe in God. His widow was very sad -when he died, and wished to burn money, clothes, houses, servants, -horses and other things, all made of paper, so that the spirit of all -these things should be of use to her husband in the unseen world. -Before going to the expense, however, she went to ask one of these -women, who was said to be a spirit medium, whether she ought to make -the offerings or not. - -“Shall I make offerings for It-sai-peh’s soul?” asked the widow. - -“It-sai-peh is in heaven,” said the woman, “he does not need your -offerings.” - -It was a strange answer for the witch to make, but it did good, for -It-sai-peh’s widow was much comforted; she did not waste her money on -useless offerings, but she went to church to hear the doctrine which -had saved her husband, and in time herself believed in Christ. - -In addition to consulting these idol mediums, people often go to the -temples to cast lots themselves, and to divine. They first offer -incense and paper money, then they tell the idol what they want to do, -and ask it whether they may do so or not. After this they take two -curved bamboo roots, round on one side and flat on the other. They -wave these before the image, and then throw them down upon the floor. -If the two round sides or the two flat sides turn upwards, that means -_No_, but if one round side and one flat side are uppermost, that means -_Yes_. They throw three times; and twice yes, or twice no, settles the -matter. Sometimes they go to certain temples or shrines to sleep, in -the hopes that the idols will tell them in a dream the winning number -in a lottery, or something else they want very much to know. When they -have had the dream they go to someone wise in explaining dreams, to -find out its meaning. - -The idols are supposed to do strange things at times. Once when the -officials were putting out a great fire at Pekin, they said they saw -a boy with a red face, in the midst of the flames, helping their -men; everywhere the boy went the fire died down, till soon it ceased -altogether. Search was made for the useful boy, but he could not be -found. Afterwards it was said that in a distant province there was a -boy idol, deified when he was eleven years old, represented with a red -face, and sitting on a throne. This idol was now honoured with a title -and special offerings, because it was believed that he had gone all the -way to Pekin to help to put out the fire. - -The people think that sometimes idols get down from their seats and go -about in the way just described. Here is a story which will make this -superstition plain. - -In the West Street of a certain Chinese city a man kept a cake shop. -The shopkeeper began to notice that very early every morning two chubby -children used to bring some cash to buy cakes. What further surprised -him was that every night he found some sheets of yellow paper money -(such as is offered to idols) at the bottom of the till. Nobody put the -paper money into the box, but every night, as surely as he counted over -his gains, there was the yellow paper lying at the bottom. Sometimes -he wondered whether this paper money had to do with the boys who came -to buy cakes in the morning. But let him watch ever so closely, he -never saw them put anything into his till. They brought him good luck, -however, for more people came to buy his cakes every day, and he made -plenty of pennies. But the cake man could not give up wondering about -the paper money, and, at last, he made up his mind that the children -certainly had to do with the mystery. Nobody knew where the pair of -chubby-cheeked boys came from, or where they went to, and they were not -quite like ordinary boys, there was something distinguished in their -look and ways. - -One day the shopkeeper could restrain his curiosity no longer, so he -waited until the boys left the shop, and then he followed them along -the pavement, carefully keeping at a distance and noticing where they -went. After walking along the West Street for a little distance, they -turned up a narrow lane; their pursuer quickened his pace and followed -them along the lane, and out into another street, and yet another, -until they disappeared round the corner of a small temple. A minute -later the inquisitive man followed them. Inside the temple were two -images of chubby-faced child idols. The secret was out! The boys were -no ordinary children, but idol spirits which had taken to frisking -about the city. The secret was out, but the boys came no more to the -cake shop. There was no more paper money lying at the bottom of the -till at night, and, for some reason, fewer people went to buy cakes, so -that the prying shopkeeper’s business fell off from that day. That, at -least, is the legend. - -It would not be easy to tell one hundredth part of the superstitions -of a country which has followed heathen ways for so long as China has -done. It may be said that no one can be born, reared, taught, married; -no one can study, farm land, keep a shop, work or govern; no one can be -doctored or nursed, die or be buried, without numberless superstitious -customs, which entangle the lives of the Chinese people as the meshes -of a spider’s web entangle a fly. - -Who is that blind man who strikes a cow’s horn with a bit of wood as he -walks along? Kok, kok, kok, goes the horn. It is the fortune-teller, -upon whose words the fate of so many people depends. There--a woman -has stopped him. The sound of the horn is stilled. He leans his head -to one side, listening, while his poor, empty eyes stare vacantly. -Now he is speaking. You cannot hear his words, for he has lowered his -voice. Probably he is telling the old lady her fortune, or advising -her about a new daughter-in-law, or some business matter. On we go. -There, at a corner of that temple under the shadow of the red brick -wall, sits a learned-looking man with wide-rimmed spectacles. He has -a table in front of him, on which there are two small cages. Wait a -moment and you will see something of interest. Up come some people -from the country. You can tell that they are villagers by their new -clothes and the circles of silver pins which the girls have stuck in -their hair, beside their general look of being on holiday. One of them -wishes to have her fortune told. See! the old gentleman has put some -slips of folded paper, about the size of playing-cards, upon the table. -There are different fortunes written on them. If you looked closely -enough at the edge of the folded papers you would see that one of them -has a little double fold. But this is a secret of which these country -folk know nothing. Now which of the fortunes will be chosen? Wait and -you will see. Old Spectacles opens the door of one of the cages and -out hops the most friendly speckled brown bird. He stands in front -of the folded papers and looks at them, one after the other, in the -wisest way; he turns his head, down dives his clean, black bill. See, -he has picked up one of the papers. His master takes the paper and -gives birdie a grain of rice before putting him back in his cage. Now -he reads off the fortune from the paper and explains its meaning. The -country folk are much impressed, especially by the wise bird, and pay -their money willingly before they go away. They are so superstitious -that they really believe the bird chose their fortune for them, but -birdie only picked out the paper with a fold in the edge, because he -hoped to find a grain of corn in the crease. If you followed its master -home, you would see him constantly teaching his little brown pet to -choose the paper with a fold, by putting a grain of rice just inside -the crease. So when customers come to have their fortunes told, the -bird looks over the papers until it finds the one folded at the edge by -the fortune-teller, and then picks it up and gives it to be read by him. - -This account of a few of their superstitions will serve to show you in -what constant trouble and dread the Chinese children live, for fear of -the demons and spirits all round them, because they do not know and -trust in God. When living among them one cannot but feel that they are -like the people long ago, “who, through fear of death, were all their -lifetime subject to bondage.” Yet we may learn something from them too. -The constant sense of the unseen world among the Chinese and their -dread of offending the invisible spirits, should make us ask ourselves -if we remember the unseen God as often, and are as careful not to -offend against our loving, watchful Heavenly Father, as they are not to -offend the spirits. - - - - -CHAPTER XI - -REVERENCE FOR PARENTS - -“Things difficult to come by are a good son, long life, and a great -beard.”--_Chinese Proverb._ - - -The Chinese say that filial piety is the chief of virtues, and many -show by their actions that they believe the saying. They care for their -fathers and mothers, obey their wishes, and are careful in the use of -their property. “A good son will not use the portion divided for him; a -good daughter will not wear her marriage clothes,” say the Chinese. - -The following story shows how sorry they are when they think that they -have offended against their parents in any way. In 1908 a traveller -met a young man on his way to a famous temple on the top of a mountain -in Hunan. The lad had lost his mother and he was very sad because he -thought that her death must have been caused by some wrong thing which -he had done, either in this life or in some previous existence. He felt -sure that if he had not been guilty of some very wicked action, Heaven -never would have taken away his mother whilst he was still so young. In -order to make up for what he thought to be his crime, he vowed to walk -sixty miles to the temple, bowing down to the ground every seven steps -which he took. He must have knelt over 250 times in a mile, or more -than 15,000 times in all. - -To ill-use one’s father or mother is a fault for which there is no -forgiveness in China. Some years ago, in one of the cities of the -south, a boy who was unkind to his mother and spent his time in -gambling, instead of working for her support, was punished by being -buried alive. - -The following story shows how much power fathers and mothers have -over their children, even when they are grown to be men and women. -Once there was a Hunan man, named Chiu, who fought bravely against -the ‘long-haired rebels,’ and rose to high office in the Canton -province. His mother, a big woman with unbound feet and a face marked -by small-pox, was a person of strong character who had trained her -children to be dutiful and always to obey. - -Not long after Mr Chiu had gone to Canton, he sent for his mother to -come and stay with him in the big house where he now lived. When word -was brought that the servants, whom he had sent with his own silk-lined -chair for the old lady, were drawing near to the city, Mr Chiu left his -retinue and joined them, following his mother’s chair on foot as it -entered the gateway and passed through the city. - -The people, as they usually do when there is anything to be seen, lined -the streets, filling every doorway with their eager faces, for men, -women and children had turned out to see the great man welcome his aged -mother. - -Old Mrs Chiu sat in the sedan, her big feet sticking out from under -the silk front covering of the chair. As he walked along beside the -bearers, her son noticed how awkward they looked in that position, and -gently pushed them inside with his hand. - -On went the silken chair with its bearers and escort, the people gazing -with interest on all the marks of honour paid by a good son to his -mother. Presently the old lady again stuck out her feet, so that they -“showed like a pair of boats” on the footboard of the chair beneath the -gaze of the whole city. Mr Chiu, great man as he was, did not dare to -push them back again, much as he disliked to have everyone laughing at -his mother’s big feet. - -When the chair reached the Yamen, or official house, Mr Chiu went to -help his mother to get out. - -“What place is this?” asked the old lady, as if she did not know her -son. “What place is this?” - -“This is the Yamen, where you are to live, mother,” answered Mr Chiu. - -“I can have no such happiness,” said she. “Go and see whether there is -an inn near by, where people cook their own food, that I may go and -lodge there.” - -Mr Chiu, seeing that something had gone wrong, knelt down, careless of -his silk clothes and all the crowd of onlookers, and said: - -“O mother, I do not know what may have displeased you, but if I have -offended you in any way, I ask you to forgive my fault,” but his mother -would not answer him a word. - -Mr Chiu, finding that he could make nothing of the old lady, sent for -his wife, hoping that she might persuade her to leave the chair and -go into the Yamen. By this time the court was full of people who had -gathered to see what was going on. Her Excellency, young Mrs Chiu, came -out in her long robes and satin shoes, and kneeling down upon the stone -pavement, besought Mrs Chiu, saying: - -“What is wrong with you, mother? We do not know why you are so angry -with us. Please tell your daughter what is the matter, and why you will -not come into the house.” - -“There can be no such happiness for me,” said the old lady shortly, and -then she said no more. Young Mrs Chiu’s tears fell freely and she began -again to beseech her mother-in-law to forgive whatever might have -offended her, and not to shame her son in the eyes of his friends and -neighbours. - -On this the angry dame left her chair and walked into the midst of the -guests and the crowd of onlookers. Then she stamped one of her large -feet upon the stones and turning to her son said: - -“Your father did not find fault with my feet, who are you to be ashamed -of them? My heart is right, therefore Heaven has given me good fortune; -looks do not matter.” His Excellency bore her anger with grace and -patience, and when she had said all she wished to say, at last was able -to persuade her to enter the Yamen. - -It would be a mistake to think that old Mrs Chiu would not go into her -son’s house only because she was angry. The Chinese despise the man who -is ashamed of his parents or poor relations. The old woman’s big feet -showed that she had been of the working class. She acted as she did, -not from obstinacy or temper, but because she wished that neither she -herself nor her distinguished son should be ashamed of their humble -beginnings. - -The honour paid by children to their parents, such as this story tells -of, has kept the better heart of China alive amid much evil, and has -made her people more ready to join in the worship of our Father which -is in Heaven. - - - - -CHAPTER XII - -FAITHFULNESS - - -Faithfulness is another of those things we admire, that are taught to -Chinese boys and girls too. Many are the stories told to make the -children honour faithful men and wish to be like them. - -One of these tells of Luh Sin Fu, in the time of the Sung Dynasty. -This faithful servant of his country, after refusing to be bought over -by the Mongols who were then at war with China, was defeated in a -sea-fight near Canton. His ships were scattered, and seeing that the -hopes of the Sung rulers were lost, he took the baby heir of the throne -and jumping overboard perished with him in the waves. - -Chinese children are often reminded to be faithful by the books -which they read at school: “Hold faithfulness and sincerity as first -principles.” “Daily I examine myself in regard to three things, whether -in doing business for others I may have been unfaithful, whether I may -have been insincere with my friends, whether I may not have laid to -heart the teachings of my master;” and such lessons are made clear to -their minds by the example of men and women praised for faithfulness in -every district of the land. - -A legend is told in Chinchew city of a family which became famous in -the time of the Ming Emperors, through the faithfulness of one of its -ancestors. This man, a Mr So, kept a wine-shop in East Street, not -far from the magistrate’s Yamen. He was an honest citizen, who went -about his business in a quiet, steady way. Among his customers was a -middle-aged man, who used to go once a day to the shop to have his -earthenware bottle filled with wine. - -One day this regular customer brought a bundle, which he asked Mr So -to keep for him, until he should call for it. Mr So willingly took the -bundle, promising to take good care of it. From that moment the man -came no more to Mr So’s shop. Days passed into months, months became -years, and the familiar customer with his brown bottle was forgotten. - -The incident of the bundle had passed out of memory when one day an old -man entered the wine-shop and cast his eyes round the place. - -“Are you Mr So?” he asked the owner. - -“That is my unworthy name, venerable grand-uncle,” said Mr So. “What -may I do for you?” - -“Please give me the bundle which I left with you some time ago,” said -the stranger. - -“The bundle! I do not remember your giving me a bundle. When did you -leave it here?” - -Mr So started when the stranger mentioned a date years before, and -turned to question his men, none of whom could remember the old man or -his bundle. - -The stranger pressed Mr So to have the shop carefully searched, saying -that the package which he had left for safe keeping had some slips of -gold inside it, and it would be a terrible loss to him if they could -not find it. - -“We know nothing about the bundle, or what was in it, venerable -grand-uncle, but if you left it here, you shall certainly have it back -again,” said Mr So. - -After diligent search the bundle was found upon a shelf in the strong -room at the back of the shop. - -The old man’s eyes glittered as he undid the fastenings of the bundle, -now black with dust and cobwebs. Carefully he turned over the things -inside it, laying them one by one upon the counter. There was a clatter -and fall of metal. “The gold is here safe enough,” said the stranger, -taking up the dull yellow slips with his thin fingers. “One, two, -three,” he numbered slowly, “four, five, six,” counting until the full -tale was reached. The old man put back the gold, and did up his bundle -in silence. Then he lifted his head. - -“You are an honest man, Mr So,” said he. “You have indeed been faithful -in the trust which I committed to you so long ago.” - -“What have I done?” answered Mr So. “The bundle has lain just as you -left it,” and with that he bowed low. - -The old man waited. Then he spoke again. - -“I have some skill in finding such spots as will bring good fortune to -the children of those who are buried in them,” said he. “You have kept -my gold faithfully. I wish to make you some return for your kindness, -and happily it is in my power to do so. Listen! there is a place -outside the East Gate of the city, so fortunate that if you were to buy -it and use it for your grave, your descendants afterwards would surely -prosper in the world.” - -Mr So, who was no less superstitious than his neighbours, bought the -ground, and when he died was buried in the lucky spot. The family -prospered and in course of time one of his descendants became an -official, so high in favour with the Emperor Ban-lek, that he gave him -his sister to be his wife, and a ‘five-storied pavilion’ for her to -live in. Mr So’s heirs continued to prosper, and some of them still -live in the old home within the city. But we know that the family rose -in the world, not because of the grave, which the old man thought so -lucky, but through the blessing which follows upon doing what is right -and honest. - -Much as the Chinese praise faithfulness, the old men shake their heads -and tell their children that people born in the time of the Emperor -Hien-fung were more honest than those born during these last forty -years, and those born earlier still, in the days of Tau-kwang, were -still more faithful. It is the usual story, “the old days were better -than the new,” but the very sense of failure makes the people, young -and old, more ready to welcome that Saviour, who alone can help men to -be faithful and upright and true and good. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII - -THE CRY OF THE CHILDREN - - -From what you have read, you will think, perhaps, that Chinese children -have a merry life, but it is not always so. Little girls, who were -unwelcome to their families, used to be laid in the tiger’s track or -among woods to die. Some were choked immediately they were born, or -drowned in a bucket. In many cities of the Empire kind-hearted people -have provided places, where such little outcast waifs are nursed and -tended; for the practice of doing away with children was always against -the law of the land, although the popular proverb said, “Destroy a girl -and you hasten the birth of a boy.” Last year a Christian, after his -conscience had been awakened, confessed that years before, while still -a heathen, he had strangled a baby daughter, and put the little body -into the mud of one of his rice fields. - -Of late years, in many parts of China, the practice of putting girl -babies to death has almost entirely ceased, partly, no doubt, because -girls are scarce, and their value has risen accordingly; in some places -as much as six hundred dollars being given by ordinary people for a -wife. - -Then there are many things which bring trouble upon children and their -homes. When rain does not fall for several weeks, there is little -food for boys and girls to eat. So long as rivers and wells hold out, -the farmers, by working hard, can water their fields. When the streams -dry up, they dig holes in the sand of the river-beds and carry the -water, which collects in them, to keep the crops alive. All the family -in turns tread the water-wheel, which raises water out of such holes -or channels, tramp, tramp, they toil unceasingly until their skins -are burnt dark brown and the bones show through. If rain still does -not come, their labour is lost, the crops dry up and the poor little -children as well as their fathers, and mothers have no food to eat, so -that many of them die of hunger. - -Sometimes there is too much rain: the rivers overflow, the grain is -spoilt in the fields, pigs, goats and cows are swept away. The water -rises. People climb on to the roofs of their houses, carrying clothes -and the few things they hope to save from the flood. They crouch on -the tiles, with their babies and little children, under the pitiless -rain. Kind people, whose houses, being on higher ground, have not been -deluged, go out in boats carrying food to them, for often they have -had nothing to eat for several days. The flood rises still higher, -in places it breaks the banks of great rivers, houses, temples, city -walls and whole villages are swept away by the swift brown water, and -thousands of men, women and children perish. Often, too, fires break -out in crowded villages and towns. The flames spout from the windows, -and showers of sparks fly into the sky when roofs fall in. If a wind -happens to be blowing, a whole street of shops and houses is burnt down -in no time. The people flee with their children and whatever they can -save from their homes. The poor little babies and boys and girls fare -badly indeed, when such trouble turns them out of doors. In parts of -China, plague comes every year and carries off hundreds of people, -leaving many little children with no one to care for them. In the -south of the Empire, too, the people are constantly having clan-fights -between families or villages; often fathers or brothers are killed, and -then there are lawsuits, which ruin many a family. All these causes -bring distress and suffering upon Chinese boys and girls, such as are -seldom met with in Western homes. But most of the trouble which falls -upon children in China to-day comes from poverty. Grinding poverty -leads to hunger and starvation. Often children must work as soon as -they can toddle. When they are two or three they must look after the -baby brother or sister, while the mother is away working in the fields. -The baby is strapped on the toddler’s back, and he or she must stagger -about with it for hours, however weary the little limbs may be. Or the -tiny boy or girl must go out with a small bamboo rake and fill a basket -with leaves and grass to burn. In the country, quite small children -must carry loads, and in the city baby workers toil at trades, till the -anxieties of life have made them look old and wrinkled before they are -ten years of age. One boy of ten used to work from morning till night -in Chinchew city making clay furnaces. He was stunted, and his face was -grey and pinched, but he helped his widowed mother to get a living. -When people are very poor, two neighbours will exchange baby girls very -soon after they are born, or a mother will sell her little baby girl -for two or three dollars to another woman. The baby is then brought up -by this foster-mother to be a little servant until old enough to many -her son, and so she gets a servant, and then a wife for her son very -cheap. But this custom leads to much misery and unhappiness for these -‘baby daughters-in-law,’ as they are called. They are usually treated -as the family drudges and never know any childhood or parents’ care; -they have to work hard, and too often live a loveless, sad life. - -The saddest thing of all, is when small girls are sold to be slaves. -In places where food is dear and money is scarce, fathers and mothers -are driven to part with their children. In certain districts, towards -the end of the year, when debts have to be paid, they may be seen -carrying their little boys and girls slung in baskets to sell. A nurse -in the home of a foreign lady used to tell how she had had to let eight -children go in this way. Her husband was poor and when there was no -food to give them, she had to sell one of the children rather than see -them all starve together at home. One of the boys had been bought by -a rich family in the village, so she could see him sometimes, but of -course he was not her own little boy any more. When her husband died, -the poor woman had to let the remaining children go, one by one, for -she had no food to give them. The last little boy she gave to some -strolling players for thirty dollars, to be a little actor. When asked -how she could sell a child to such a terrible life as these little -actor-boys lead, the mother said, “Oh, after ten years he will be too -big to act, and then I shall get him back again, and he has promised to -be a good boy.” The child had his yearly holiday on New Year’s Day, and -his half-starved mother would save up enough cash to buy a chicken to -fatten for the occasion. When her boy came home she killed the chicken, -and she and he had a feast on their one happy day together. - -Sometimes slave children are well and kindly treated, but in China, as -in other lands, slavery too surely leads to cruelty and suffering. The -notices of slave girls lost, stolen or strayed, posted up on the gates -of Chinese cities, shows that many of these little girls are unhappy in -their masters’ houses, and easily persuaded to run away. Sad cases are -brought to the hospitals, too, of slave children so wasted by neglect -and starvation that the poor things are little more than skeletons. An -old woman named Ch’uan Kua used to tell how her little girl, whom she -had sold into a Viceroy’s family, was unkindly treated. One day the -poor child did something to offend her mistress, and the angry lady -stabbed her to death, with one of her long hair-pins. - -Another cause of unhappiness to the little ones is the practice of -opium smoking. When the father, or mother, or other wage-earner of the -home, smokes opium, there is little for the children to eat. In time, -some of the wretched slaves to opium sell house and land, furniture -and clothes, wife and children, in order to get money for the terrible -self-indulgence. - -The following story gives some idea of what a little girl, named -Phœnix, had to suffer from a father who was an opium-eater. The story -is doubly interesting because it is told by herself. - -“It would be very difficult to relate fully what I have passed through -from my childhood until the present. I will only tell some of the -principal events. - -“When I was three years old my mother died. My grandfather cared for -me until I was six, and then he also left this world. I had no one -to care for me, and my father brought me to Amoy and sold me to Mrs -No-te, who lived near the Bamboo-tree-foot church. From that time I had -opportunities of hearing the Gospel, but could not go to school, as I -was kept busy with house-work. When I was fifteen the Lord received me -into His church, and I was baptised.” - -[Illustration: PHŒNIX] - -Phœnix does not mention that the woman who bought her broke the -agreement made with the child’s father, that she should in time become -the wife of her son. The father, a wretched opium sot, made this an -excuse for claiming the return of the girl, in order to sell her over -again for more money. - -“When I was sixteen years old my father demanded me back, and at that -time my heart was very sorrowful. I was afraid he would not let me go -to church. I took this trouble to the Lord, and Our Lord truly heard -the prayer of His child. He also gave me the desire of my heart and let -me go to the Girls’ Boarding-school, to study and know more about the -Bible. If it had not been for this, I would have been like a person -blind. It was arranged through the earnestness and love of my pastor, -who told my father that I belonged to the church, and that he must -certainly put me to school. This he did and let me be in school for -about one year, and then he came for me and I had to go with him, and I -was very sad. - -“My father soon took me to Tung An, and all the time I was there I -could only manage to go to church once.... - -“Someone told my father that I had been to church and he was very -angry, and told me to take salt and salt down my heart, to make dead -my heart. He said he certainly would not let me go to church, and told -others that they must not let me go. He also said that if I had any -communication with the lady missionary he would throw me down stairs -and kill me. But the Lord was always with me and delivered me out of -the mouth of the lion. - -“Afterwards my father brought me to Amoy to my uncle’s house. -Two-thirds of the family are vegetarians, and early and late they -burn incense and candles to the idols. My heart was miserable in the -extreme. - -“My father tried to sell me to be the second wife of a rich man, who -was willing to give nearly three hundred dollars for me. He said: - -“‘Your old friend, the Bible-woman and the Christians will do nothing -for you, you might as well make up your mind to it. The Bible-woman -says there is no use trying to do anything more for you, that no -Christian will marry you now.’ - -“I felt that he was telling me a lie, but I could not know if the -Bible-woman, who had always been so good to me, had really said that or -not, and I was very unhappy. My father kept urging me to agree to being -sold to the rich heathen man, so that he might have the money to use. -He was very angry with me because I was so strongly opposed. I said, ‘I -have made a covenant with the Lord, which I cannot break, I am His.’ - -“One day a sister of a Christian came to speak to my uncle, and someone -said to me, ‘That person is a follower of the Gospel like you and -lives at Bamboo-tree-foot.’ I said, ‘Is that true?’ After this I found -that she knew one of my classmates, who lives at Bamboo-tree-foot, -and through her I secretly sent a letter to my classmate, asking her -to tell the pastor’s wife where I was. The letter was delayed several -days, and before it was delivered one day I saw three Christians -passing the house with Bibles in their hands, on their way to church, -and so I knew that it was Sunday--I had lost count of Sundays--and I -called to them. My father was out, or I should not have dared to speak -to them. They were pleased to find me. They told the Bible-woman, and -through them and my letter in a week’s time the pastor’s wife and the -Bible-woman both came to see me. I found out that what my father had -said about the Bible-woman was not true, and they both comforted my -heart. - -“After this, I dreamed I had fallen into a ditch up to my neck, and -someone pulled me out; that I went to school again, and was writing on -my slate, and I thought: This means that God is going to open the way -for me. In six more days, beyond all my hopes, God’s great goodness -was manifested, and I truly jumped for joy, when I was told that my -father’s consent was gained, and Miss ---- had redeemed me for two -hundred dollars, and that I was to go back again to school. - -“In two days the pastor came for me and brought me to school. This -truly manifests the love of God for sinful me, and also the love of -Miss ---- in that she gave money to save me. During the time of trial -the Lord always helped me, and now He has brought me to this place, -free from all fear. Love like this is truly great.” - -Phœnix has since become engaged to a young theological student and will -probably be married within a year. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV - -MINISTERING CHILDREN - - -In 1898 a boy named Ch’en Yo, generally known as Yo-ah, lived near the -West gate of Chinchew city. His father, who was called Poah, used to -sit by the roadside gambling with the passers-by. The boy went with -him, and sometimes when his father lost a game, would have a turn at -the board and win some money. - -When Yo-ah was thirteen years old, his father first heard about the -worship of the true God, and began to go to church, near the great -western pagoda in the city. Strangely enough, Yo-ah, who had gone -willingly enough to gamble, would not follow his father to church. For -six months Poah went to the ‘worship hall’ alone, then he told his son -that he must join him. Yo-ah did not wish people to know that he had -anything to do with the ‘Barbarian church,’ so when out of obedience -to his father he went to service, he used to creep through round-about -lanes and side streets, in the hope that none of his friends would meet -him on the way. - -After a time Yo-ah went to school, though he was most unwilling to -do so, thinking that gambling was better fun than poring over books. -Seeing how idle he was, his father said to him one day: - -“If you don’t mean to study you had better go away, for I will not take -care of you any longer.” - -Seeing that his father meant what he said, Yo-ah made up his mind to do -better, and set about his work with a will. Not only did his lessons -improve; in a short time his temper grew better, and he gave up using -naughty words and telling lies. The secret of this wonderful change was -that at school Yo-ah had learnt to know the Saviour. - -[Illustration: SUNDAY SCHOOL, CHINCHEW] - -The neighbours, who did not understand about worshipping God, noticed -that Yo-ah had given up his rude ways, and did not answer back as he -had done before he went to school. One of them, a widow who had an -only son named Wu-mei, was very much struck by the change in him. Her -son had been called Wu-mei, that is, Black Little Sister, to deceive -the evil spirits into thinking that he was an ugly little girl, not -worth troubling about, in the hope that they would let him grow up -to manhood in peace. His mother, seeing how much Yo-ah had improved by -study, sent Black Little Sister to the same school. - -The new scholar read diligently, and soon began to drink in the story -of the Gospel. Three or four months after he entered school a bad -illness, called plague, broke out and many people died, both inside and -outside the city. Black Little Sister sickened one day and had to be -carried home in a chair, slung on two long bamboo poles. - -His teacher, who wanted all the children he taught to know the Lord -Jesus, was troubled about him, for he saw that he was very ill, and -he did not know whether Black Little Sister had learnt to trust the -Saviour or not. Just as he was starting off to go to the boy’s house, -Yo-ah’s father came into the school-room and said: - -“You need not go, teacher; Black Little Sister’s mother has filled the -house with idols, and he is delirious. Even if his people allowed you -to enter his room, he would not understand what you said to him.” - -The teacher was very sorry when he heard what Poah said, for he saw -that it would be useless to go to see his little friend. - -Very early next morning Yo-ah’s father came again with news of Black -Little Sister, and best of all, he told the teacher that the dying boy -believed in our Lord Jesus as his own true Saviour. - -“Last night,” said he, “when everyone could see that Black Little -Sister was very ill and must surely die, his relations turned all the -idols out of the house. Then I went in to see him. When I entered his -room, I said, ‘Black Little Sister, people say that you have lost your -senses. Is it true?’” - -“‘No, brother Poah,’ he answered, ‘these heathen, who do not understand -what I am doing, think that I am out of my senses, because they see me -constantly getting up and kneeling upon the bed to pray.’” - -Seeing that the boy was able to talk quite sensibly, Poah brought -another Christian, a man called Ah Lin, to come and see him. - -“Shall I read some verses from the Bible to you?” asked Ah Lin, sitting -down by the bedside. - -“Yes, I should like you to read some very much,” answered the dying boy. - -Ah Lin opened his New Testament and began reading from the third -chapter of St John’s Gospel. When he reached the fifteenth verse he -stopped. - -“Black Little Sister,” he said, “do you know the next verse?” It had -been the golden text, repeated by the children at the Bible service on -the previous Sunday. - -“God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that -whosoever believeth in Him, should not perish, but have everlasting -life.” The poor dried lips slowly repeated the precious words to the -end. - -Then Poah and Ah Lin prayed. When they had finished Black Little Sister -put his hands together and said: “Thank you, God, so much for giving -your only born son, that I, a sinful one, believing on Him, might have -everlasting life.” Then the room was very quiet, for the boy was tired -and neither Poah nor Ah Lin could speak a word. - -Soon after this the fever died out of Black Little Sister’s face and -eyes. The fight was over. He had left the narrow room and its useless -idols, and gone to the home of love and everlasting life. - -Whilst Poah told the story to the good teacher, he cried for joy and -sorrow, until the tears ran down his cheeks. - -In the fourth moon of the next year, the plague came to the city once -more. On the 15th, Yo-ah was taken ill after morning school. When his -minister went to see him, he said: - -“Please do not say anything to my father about my sickness, for I am -the last of six brothers, and if he were to hear that I was ill, he -would be so sorry.” - -But the minister of course felt he must send for the father as quickly -as possible. - -When Poah reached the school he found Yo-ah sitting in bed reading his -Bible. He seemed bright enough, and had just finished doing up accounts -for one of the Christians, who had been out selling fish. - -“What is wrong with you, Yo-ah?” asked his father. - -“I have only got a small lump above my leg, which pains me a little, -father.” - -The doctor came presently and gave the boy some medicine, but the -medicine did not seem to have much effect. - -That evening Yo-ah felt poorly. “If the fever does not go down to-night -I will certainly be in Heaven to-morrow, father,” said Yo-ah. - -Next morning Yo-ah looked so much better that Poah was very glad and -exclaimed to one of his friends, “I took a straw rope for a serpent -this time,” meaning that he had been frightened by his boy’s illness -when there was no reason to be afraid. - -During the day one of the schoolboys, a great friend of Yo-ah’s, went -to see him. The sick lad was very glad to see him, and said: “Ah! -So-and-so, you will go on to the middle school by-and-by. Afterwards -you must give yourself to God’s service and work for Him.” - -“You, too, must work for God, Yo-ah,” answered his friend. - -“The Lord is not going to leave me long in this world,” said Yo-ah. - -After this he begged one of his uncles to believe in Christ and find -safety in Him. He also spoke to several of his friends asking them to -give up things which they knew to be wrong in their fives. To one, who -was careless about money, he said, “Brother Lin, you ought to live more -sparingly. How can you glorify God when you are constantly in debt and -people have to dun you for money at the end of the year?” - -His father, seeing that though Yo-ah looked better, he acted like one -about to leave this world, said to him: - -“If you die, I will go and hang myself.” - -“Daddy, if you do what Judas did, then after my death, we two, father -and son, will never see each other any more. You must live for God and -tell people His truth with all your might when I am gone.” - -After this he spoke much with his father, asking him to be faithful -to Christ. When noon came he stopped talking, saying, “Now all is -finished.” - -His poor father was very sorry and tried to speak to him, but all that -Yo-ah would say after this was “Submit, gladly submit,” repeating the -words over and over again, meaning that his father ought to be willing -to let him go if God took him. - -By seven o’clock that evening Yo-ah was restless, throwing himself from -one side of the bed to the other. His father sat by, trying to soothe -and quiet him, and as he watched through the dragging minutes he cried -to God, for he was not willing that his only son should die. - -The bell rang for evening prayer in the church, next door to the -school. The poor man in his sore trouble wished to go to the service, -but dared not leave the sick-room, fearing that Yo-ah might roll from -the bed and fall upon the ground. - -A change passed over him and a new calm came into his heart. He fell -upon his knees in front of the bed and prayed: - -“O, God! I submit to Thy will. I pray Thee to let my child go home in -peace.” - -He rose from the ground. The restless tossing had stopped. Yo-ah was -lying still upon the bed. After one long look the poor father went into -the church. The service was nearly over when he entered the building -and the minister was just saying, “If anyone wishes to lead us in -prayer, let him do so.” Poah began: “O God, I thank Thee for having -given me this son to care for these fifteen years. Now Thou hast taken -him home to Thyself. I gladly submit to Thy will. Only please help me -to remember, and to do all that he spoke of when he talked to me.” - -At the close of the service the people knew that Yo-ah had ‘crossed -over’ to the better land. Some of them wished to try to comfort his -father, but they were all so grieved for him that no one could find -a word to say. Poah, whose face was very calm, began to comfort them -instead. He told them what Yo-ah had said, and asked them to join with -him in submitting to the will of God. - -That year plague raged in the city and many people died. One of the -minister’s sons, a boy of ten, sickened and died without a word. When -Poah heard of it he said: “God has indeed been merciful to me. If my -boy had died like this without comforting me, what should I have done?” -Yo-ah’s father, who now seemed to live only for the good of others, -went everywhere to help with the sick and dying. Next year he became an -elder of the church, which he served most faithfully. A year later, the -plague came again, and joyfully submitting to God’s will he, too, went -home to be with Jesus. - - - - -CHAPTER XV - -THE CHILDREN’S KING - - “The Cross is tall, - And I too small, - To reach His Hand - Or touch His Feet; - But on the sand - His foot-prints I have found, - And it is sweet - To kiss the holy ground.” - -Until fifty years ago China, like the palace of the Sleeping Beauty, -lay under a spell. Idolatry, love of money and evil customs, like -the thorns and briars of the famous story, had overrun the land. The -sacred names of God and Heaven, were almost forgotten. What wise men -long ago had taught of peace and justice, of kindness and self-denial, -had faded into dreams. The joy of learning, the reverence of father -and mother, and the love of little children, lay under the enchantment -of the Wicked One. Then the Prince came, our princely Lord Jesus, and -China began to waken. At His touch the old-world knowledge of God, of -peace and justice, of kindness and self-denial, stirred in the people’s -hearts and prepared them to welcome the Gospel. Then history, that -wise old story-teller, began to repeat herself. The Kingdom of God, -when once founded in China, like the nation itself in bygone ages, -began to grow. Its conquests were those of peace, and not of war. -Surrounded by enemies, it drew them into itself, spreading light and -love as it widened its borders. - -Men and women came to put their trust in the Lord Jesus, and the little -ones learned that He is the children’s King. The King sent forth His -messengers into every province, and, most wonderful of all, wherever -the messengers went, the King went too, and whenever their message -entered a human heart, His own kiss woke it to love and joy. - -Churches began to grow, humble enough to look at, but more beautiful -in God’s sight than palaces of gold and precious stones. Schools were -built all over the land, and Christian homes arose in many a village -and town and great city. - -You would love to see the children gather in God’s house on the Lord’s -Day in China. Shaved heads and strange clothes would catch your eyes at -first, but you would soon be attracted by the earnest faces and intent -dark eyes of some of the little ones whose attention had been caught by -a story. After service you would see them gather in the Sunday-school, -and perhaps when you heard them repeat their texts, you would long to -borrow their wonderful memories for your own use. If you followed the -little boys and girls after service, you would find that the children’s -King had done much for them in their homes, but you would need to live -with them for a time, to discover how great the change from the old -heathen ways had really been. You would see, if you lived with them -long enough, that the girls did not have their poor little feet pinched -and bound. The babies would not be sent away or sold, unless there was -great poverty, and then they would only be allowed to go into another -Christian family, where they would be loved and cared for. You would -notice that the harsh words and sharp blows which heathen children, -and especially little girls, have to bear, were fewer. There would be -more gentleness and loving family life, less quarrelling and unkindness -among the inmates. - -When the family gathered for dinner, the little ones would put their -fat fingers over their eyes, whilst grace was said. In the evenings, -when the shadows fell, no stick of incense would be burnt in the -guest-room, nor stuck in the paper lantern outside the door, but, a -little later, hymn-books would be brought and the family would have -prayers before going to bed. When you went into their room and sat on -the edge of the children’s bed, and got the little ones to nestle dose -up to you, they would whisper, if you asked them in the right way, that -they loved Jesus. - -Chinese boys and girls learn to love Jesus, that is the proof that -Christ is the children’s King, that the Prince Himself has kissed them -and wakened them out of sin. And, if you turn back to the story of -Yo-ah and Black Little Sister, you will see that when He calls them -home to Himself, they lovingly go to be with Him. - - -FINIS - - - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[1] Dolittle, _Handbook of the Chinese Language_. - -[2] When these shoes have the character for ‘King’ on them, they are -called Tiger shoes. - -[3] James Legge, _Mencius_, p. 10. - -[4] Mrs Lyall, in _The Children’s Messenger_. - -[5] The Chinese say that man’s day is the spirit’s night, that is why -a burning rope, or candles, or a lantern, are used at such times, and -when worshipping in temples during the day. - - - - -TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES: - - - Italicized text is surrounded by underscores: _italics_. - - Obvious typographical errors have been corrected. - - Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been standardized. - - Incorrect page reference in the Table of Contents has been corrected. - - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Children of China, by Colin Campbell Brown - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CHILDREN OF CHINA *** - -***** This file should be named 62625-0.txt or 62625-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/2/6/2/62625/ - -Produced by D A Alexander, David E. 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