The Express.
London, England, 1864-09-01 00:00:00

[S4amped, ld. Additiona]

possessed by cue party and the absolutoWgnorance
of Chinese betrayed by the other. None of these
young men could have been more than thirty, and
though of the ordinary high-obeeked, small-eyed
Tartar type, and plain-visaged enough, there was a
comic, pod-tempered expresinon in their dark eyes
land . bright smile which made them far from tin
pleasing. Shopmen at some of the large and en-
terprising tea dealers, who avert all suspicion of
sloe leaves by having their counter adorned with a
real pig-tail ; successful jugglers, who make
good incomes by the knife-throwing, or word-
swallowing, or ball-catching tricks ; even
mercantile clerks, and of course seamen,
have Chinamen in their ranks. To all of these the
establishment before us is well known ; and the
people to whom we talk severally belong to one or
other of those callings in life. The young fellow
with the particularly jolly smile, whose mastery of
"pigeon-English" has made him the principal
spokesman of the party, shows us how a pipe is
charged, lighted, and smoked. One of the blanket
pins is thrust into the syrup, and then twisted
round and round in the flame until all the etringi-
nees hardens down, and a globule can be
inserted in /the small bole in the thick barrel
of the pipe. This is lit, and finished in a
series of vigorous puffs which am apparently
continued for about a minute.' • The half-
tumbler of black brown syrup is opium
duly prepared for smoking, sad Is -vele& twenty-
five shillings, while the thimbles at its aide each
hold a shillingsworth. There is no payment made
during our stay. Each man helps himself, potters
about the little pima, and lounges on the bed with
perfect freedom ; as if in the habit of doing the same
thing nightly, and so periodically reimbursed the
landlord in a lump sum. The Club-night at, say,
the Three Jolly Pigeons, when the grocer, the
baker, the parish clerk, and the small farmer meet
to chat over the gossip of the week, with pipe and
glare, is a fair English illustration of the manners,
demeanour, and general free-and-easiness of this
batch of smokers. Enter tall, athletic, young
Chinese sailor, who ie greeted by all present, save
comatose old host, who has now dropped his pipe,
and is looking with glazed eyes up to the ceiling. A
few words tell the new arrival our mission,
the extreme humour of which tickles him
hugely. " Aba, sar ! you not see-se opium
smoke before, ear—eha, then you see-ee him
now." He takes off all clothes save trowsers and
shirt, finds his own pipe stowed away in a dark
corner, and forthwith plunges into his opium treat.
" How many pipe I smoke, ear t ten, twelve, all
day, ear, when I get him." " Old genelman not do
without at all, ear. I not likes do without, but old
genelman he die without smoke-ee." Miss Tear-
sheet seeing soother opportunity for breaking into
the conversation, here furnishes details concerning
a lady of her acquaintance, one " Cheeney-
Emma," who lives next door but one, and who
from long consorting with Chinamen has ac-
quired their habits, and " cries fit to kill
herself" when deprived of ber daily pabulum
of opium. " You like tobacco, sar, aba ! you
smoke. em cigar, aha ! we smokes opium ; you un-
derstand, sar ;" which means that the aphorism,
" one man's meat another man's poison,' is tho-
roughly understood by our Chinese friends. No-
thing can be jollier or more scrupulously courte-
ous than our companions of the hour. Pipes are
hospitably proffered (" Try him, sar, he no hurt
you, he very good "), but are cautiously declined,
for the fumes gather in intensity, and though we
sit near the open door, it is not without an op-
pressed feeling about the bead—es if the crowning
towel of a Turkish bath bad petrified, after being
more than ever tightly bound over the temples—
aud a blinking soreness in the eyes, that we recroes
the court after shaking hands and reciprocating
hearty greetings with our hosts. We learn
that the establishment we have left has
been Lunch maligned, and that in the opinion of
the police-inspector who acted as our guide the
house stands forth as a model of reputability when
compared with its immediate neighbours. Out and
about the sordid Albert-street and square, through
the equally wretched and vicious Bluegate-fields,
with shadowy figures flitting across our darkened
pathway, and whistling and other sounds signalling
the presence of strangers and the imminent approach
of the polioe; past men and women, whose language
and appearance made the Chinamen we had left
shine out as specimens of chivalric courtesy and
polished civilization ; and we are amongst the
flaring gaslights of Ratcliff-highway once more,
with the same hideous street nymphs sans cap or
bonnet promenading the pavement,tbe same rough-
looking Jack tars lounging in and out of taverns,
the same coarse efforts at dramatic representation
and musical entertainment in the long saloons, and
the same chronic smell of bilge-water, cordage, and
fried fish permeating the air.

Somme or ARUM, BILYINGHAM.—Yesterday
wee the " private view" of this year's exhibition of this
society. The pictures "ea the Rae" in the great room are
apes tbe whole the finest collection the society has ever
exhibited. They include " Tbe Eve of the Deluge," W.
Lineal ; " Christ Blessing Little Child es," H. La Joao.,
A. R.l. ; " The First &ere of Sorrow; J. &at ; " St.
Valentine's Morniag," J. C. Horsley, A.K.A. ; " Milsa
Cathedral," David Roberta, B.A. ; "An Autumnal Even-
ing," Viest Cote ; " The Silken Gore, T. Feed, A.B.A. ;
IHegartles Stadia. 173 k" & IL Ward, 8.A.; " Pbcorem
Barg from Sea," the late F. Dishy, B.A. ; " Ca-
lais° Bay, Rock of Gibraltar." R. W. Coolie, 8.A.;
" &eat Pig," the late T. Webster, B.A. ; "Lady and Pea-
°sok,' F. Leighton, A.B. A. ; " Street&ere in Cairo," the
lags W. Mailer ; " The Grape Gatherer," W. C. T. Deb-
✓a, A.R.A. ; " Idlers's" and " Industry," C. W. Oom
8.A.; "For the last Tier," and "Half the World
&owe not how the other half Lire," Miss E. Osborn ;
" The Ledr Bridge," J. Byra ; „View in Cumberland," H.
Mere. Ammer the most attroctive pictures in the other
rooms are " Pilgrims Liars' to the Biagi g, of the
Anthem." G. Cate:stole ; "lowness," 8. F. Watts;
"The Breakwater of Perlock Weir, North Sower-
ast," B. W. Cooke, B.A. ; " The Coqoette sod
the Devotee," C. Lucy ; " The Pathway to the Shrine."
J. A. Houston. R.B.A. ; "Carriage and Pair," Mims E.
Other ; "Doubtful Guides.' 8. Orreenale ; "A Preach
Fishing Lugger off Port.t,"L Hayes, R.S.A. ; " Highland
Look—Eveoing," J. A. Heastoo, R.S.A. "Christ Blew
lag Little Children," H. Tidy; "Garibaldi Landing in
Si Carl Werner ; " Boston Castle, Cheshire," the late
David Cox ; sad a portion of the series of studies of pictures
painted by G. Smith. The eogributiess of the loam! artists
are most meditoble. Mr. Charles Bart lea several speci-
mens, the best of which is "On the Memories, Barmooth,
North Wales." Mr. H. Burris, Mr. Sebastian Enos,
Mr. 0. W. Rade:rife, Mr. Howard Hanle, Mr. H. H. Hew
ley, Mr. B. Deakin, Mr. J. Steeple, and Mr. C. W. Bragg.
the priacipal contributors. Portrait prat s& is well repre-
sented, but as usual of very unequal merit ; by far the beet
specimen is Mr. Redin's "Portrait of Prolamin. Chamber-
lain ;" Mr. R. Bockoer's portrait of "The Lady Maria
Alford " is a good picture sod a good Ilkeston ; Mr. Alias
E. Everett's AMU' &pieties " intereeta" is manifested in
earn! epee-imams, the most interesting and faithful of
which are " The Old Manor-hour at !Rotary, near Lud-
low, Moonlight," and " Baddsely Clinton, Warwickshire,"
the ancient esomtral hall of Kaneko FORM. Esq., one of
the 00-beirs to the Barony of Monolog. Is the water-oolour
room Messrs Mentos gad Clumberlala exhibit the &ago
for the Albert Memorial as approved by the committee and
now about to be enoted is Birmingham.
WOeffllto MINI; CLUE AND INNYFfITIR
This valuable society is about to enter oc a third sears of
metal labour. Oa every hand there is proof that the ob.
Sets proposed to be sooosoplished by the nabs are &trott-
ing public atteetios, and shandy commanding hese:felt
sympathy mewl the beoevolent, as well as wincing appro.
&roe sad con&rom from the charm for whose special
benett lb. 1110/11011111% was commenced. The coming cam-
paign promisee to be even more crowded with
for the secretary. the Rev. Henry Bolly, Ora :="bat
gar before. Already arrangements are in prove, for
visite to York, flearborough, Psniogtou, Bradford. Leeds,
Honalet, Holbeck, Woodhouse, Brainliam. Huddersfield,
Dasgr, Bmettiriet, Maseisedleld, Nottingham, Leicester.
Bedford, Halemowes, Warwick, Rugby, Glasgow, sad other
parts of Elootland, as well as several press is the home
oweaties. There ems be se queries that if the anion be
elleiestly maistaised for • few years, it will confer Uteri-
mable bend& is the working dares of Great &Rale.
0111111TAL YLLLOL ONI BZILLDNI
WFTOMODAY, Amain. 3L—Admirions on rayseent,l9,ols ;
ditto by earns &gets. 5,774 ; total, KM.
The number of_petienta relieved at the Hospital
for Diseases of the Hear* 67, Nawport-sWest, Camodisk-
soar% was 127 dada. As wink.