The Sun.
London, England, 1860-11-14 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, NOVEMBER 14, 1860.

large, and lofty, and two successful attempts at a
garden have been made in the inner courts. The
English and French Ambassadors and the Eng-
lish Commander-in-Chief, with their numerous
Staffs, are accommodated without being crowded,
while from the construction of the building eaeh of
their Excellencies virtually has a separate house.
General Montauban's residence, at the junction of
the river and canal, is quite coquet in appearance.
The verandah is covered with flowers snd exotics,
and I never enter the enormous building occupied
by the Artillery and Engineers without fear of
losing myself midst its courts and corridors. Let
us walk down " the Street of Everlasting Pros-
perity," the Regant-street of the north suburb. At
its entrance is a crowd of Chinamen, which, con-
stantly renewed from dawn to sunset, stand gaping
through a gateway at the head-quarters horses
picketed in a large courtyard. Forcing our way
through these unsavoury Celestials, we find our-
selves in a small square occupied by the " eel-pie"
and " baked-potato" men of the place. Your
working man dines in the street, and this square is
a favourite al fresco restaurant. Li, on our right,
deals in meat pies. He has a small charcoal fire
below his oven, and in a trice his pate is com-
pounded and cooked before the public. Ho, by his
side, supplies vegetable diet, turnips, onions,pump-
kins, yams, cut into small slices and served in the
water wherein they are boiled. Here is a man
with swcetstuff, pastry, and tuck." There ano-
ther with fruit—grapes, peaches, lotas fruit, water-
melons, apples, and pears. All tastes are supplied.
But even in dining the ineradicable love of the
Chinaman for gambling is evinced. Every one of
these dealers has a box like a dice box, in which 20
small sticks are placed. Two of these sticks are
prizes, the remainder blanks. Each portion of food
is supposed to be worth 10 cash, and on staking one
cash every corner may try his luck. From morning
to night is the rattle of these sticks to be heard in
the square as the dealers invite their customers.
From morning to night may the Chinaman be seen
yielding to the invitation. Here is an old fellow,
a " bargee" on the river. He has 10 cash, which
he stakes, and loses one after the other. His face
is rueful, and his belly empty, so we give him 10
cash, witi which he may insure the meal hecovets.
He takes the cash, but, instead of buying his food,
he recuunnences to gamble for it. One cash after
another is drawn from him, and when he loses his
last he walks away dinnerless. The fishmonger is
perambulating about. His fish, in a shallow round
wooden bowl, lie gasping in their three or four
inches of water. Here are eels, brown and silver,
large fat muddy carp, soles, and a fish speckled
like a trout and of much the same flavour. At,
an open cookshop Chinese artistes are preparing
the dinner of the day. The favourite dish
is a stew composed of chopped pork, onions, sea-
weed, shrimps, and eggs. We taste, but its flavour
is by no means agreeable to our western palate.
And now, in a quiet secluded nook,_ is a good-
humoured laughing crowd, enjoying the feats of a
juggler. A wonderful man ! He takes two pieces
of sharp wire a couple of feet long, inserts them in
his nostrils, and passes them thence down his throat.
There is no deception, for he opens his mouth wide,
and we see the wires down his gullet. Then he
takes two leaden bullets, one the size of an ordi-
nary musket ball, the other weighing 12 ounces.
He swallows the little one first. With many con-
tortions he brings them up again, and the small
bullet is the first to reappear. He draws the wires
back through his nose, and spits blood. A shower
of cash rewards his feat. Then he swallows a
sword, crams pointed sticks into his ears and eyes,
and performs a variety of tricks too numerous to
be detailed. Could Mr. E. T. Smith secure him for
Drury-lane he would make a fortune. We enter a
perfumer's shop, full of knick-knacks and neces-
saries for my lady's toilet. Pearl powder is made
up in neat little packages, and with rouge and
paints of various hues. Lotions for the complexion,
perfumes, dyes for the hair, and here, in a corner,
" thine incomparable oil, Macassar." A barber is
plying his trade. He shaves the head, combs and
plaits the tail, and extracts wax from the ears. The
latter operation is evidently a favourite with the
Celestials. Alas " false tails" are common here, as
they are said to be in England. The shop is full of
them at a dollar the half-dozen. A distinguished
officer of irregulars bought a few to make a plume
-for his helmet. A "curio" stall contains very ordi-
nary china at very exorbitant prices. Among its
prizes are a common English bottle, price half a
dollar, and an English earthenware plate, with
" Swiss scenes" painted thereon, for which double
that amount is demanded. Here, also, are small
boxes labelled " Superior congreve matches, without
smell or sulphur." They would cost a halfpenny at
home ; their price at Tientsin is 20. We come to a
linendraper's, and find Manchester and American
goods—linen, cotton, and calico. Here is blue stuff
for the common tunics and trousers. It is labelled
" Manchester, John Pender and Co." By its side arc
calicoes marked " Saunders," and printed cottons
from the Manchester looms in great abundance. The
prices are 100 per cent higher than at Shanghai.
Immense quantities of Russian cloth, both red and
blue, are to be found in every shop. This cloth is
of double width, thick, and coarse. It is sold at 25s
a-yard, the price being fixed by the Russian Go-
vernment. Coming by land all the way from Niini
Novgorod, such a price can never pay, but the Go-
vernment is careless as to profit, for this cloth forms
the principal object of barter for tea and silk. When
Tien-tsin is open to trade our Yorkshire manufac-
turers should be able to drive the Russians out of
the market. But let it not be forgotten that the
Chinaman will only purchase that to which he has
been accustomed, and for the present none but the
most ordinary woollens should be sent to the north
of China. It is somewhat remarkable that not one
yard of English cloth can at the present moment be
found in Tien-tsin. I propose addressing myself to
the commercial question at greater length when I
return to Shanghai, and hs ve more leisure and better
opportunities than camp life affords. I have seen
enough, however, to feel satisfied that the opening
of Tien-tsin to foreign commerce will encourage an
enormous trade in all the main branches of English
manufacture. The crowd at our heels laughs as we
enter a pawnbroker's shop. It is full of depositcrs,
old clothes being the principal articles in pledge. We
ssk the head roan to see the establishment. He
would be delighted, but it is against rule. He deeply
regrets that he must refuse our Majesties, but his
orders are explicit. After a little pressing he yields,
and we are conducted thr4 ugh 'me court after an-
other—the buildings containing all that man can
imagine, from pocket handkerchiefs to junks'
anchors. The goods may be pledged for 30 moons
(two years and a half), when they are sold, it unre-
deemed. The rate of interest is 12 per cent. per
annum. Here is a large icehouse, very long, very
deep, very well drained. The ice is in blocks full
two feet thick, and gives abundant evidence of a
severe winter in this district. Returning home we
enter a tea shop. The " cheering" beverage is con-
tained in a large brass kettle, a brass butterfly with
extended wings on its spout. We drink, are re-
freshed, and bid adieu to " the Street of Everlast-
ing Prosperity."
Immediately after the arrival of Admiral Hope at
Tien-tsin a proclamation was placarded on the walls
in the names of the Admiral and General, assuring
the people that the Allies would protect the city,
that the troops would be encamped two miles out-
side its walls, and inviting them to continue their
avocations as usual. A few shops were opened, but
most of the valuables and the whole of the women
had been removed from the town. Mr. Parkes, as
usual, was indefatigable. He called on the Taoutai
(Mayor), who endeavoured to assume a patronising
air, and affected to treat the Egglish Red 17.
nch
as guests of the Chinaman. He WAR
111Ckl 1111,,c.
ceived on that point, and infvrtned. +,:nat we were
masters of the place, and the; 'one Taoutai and all his'
countrymen were 0-
to take lei-
...ere on sufferance. When about
hors-
-we the Taoutai admired Mr. Parkes's
and said there were two things which he
never could accomplish, " ride in a cart or mount a
horse." " How do you travel, then P" "In a chair
ofeourse." "I thought there were none, and that
all the Mandarins travelled in carts P" " A Man-
darin travel in a cart ! Such a thing was never
heard of, they all go in chairs." " I'm very tired,
and the sun is so hot that I would gladly return fn
a chair." " Certainly, you shall have one at once !"
Within a minute the chair was brought by its four
bearers, and Mr. Parkes was carried back to the
Embassy. In truth, the place is full of chairs.
There is not a decent house which has not one
standing in the courtyard. It is therefore more
than ever certain that had Mr. Bruce consented to
enter Pekin in a cart the dignity of Great Britain
would have been lowered in the eyes of all China,
while the excuse that such was the ordinary mode
of travelling, and that chairs were not used in this
district, was a palpable, unblushing falsehood.
Mr. Parkes heard that a committee of merchants
had been appointed by Sang-ko-lin-sin to furnish
supplies for the whole Chinese army in the north.
He sought them out, and explained that, as their
office had now become a sinecure they must transfer
their allegiance to the Allies. The conawittee made
no demur, and a tariff of prices was soon arranged.
They rated the Mexican dollar at 1000, cash which
at the present rate of exchange gives 200 eash for
a shilling. The pound avoirdupois is equal to the
Tien-tsin catty, by which everything is sold.
13ullocks are divided into three classes. The first
weigh about 5001 b, and cost 25 dols. (£5) per head ;
the second, weighing about 4001 b, are fixed at 20
doll. ; the third, about 3001 b, are 15 dole. each.
Sheep of all sizes cost 3 dole. per head. Beef and
mutton are also sold by retail, the first at 3d., the
second at 4d; per lb.
Tea is ls. 2d., sugar 4d., and flour 2-1. per lb.;
oniona, turnips, and pumpkins five caah per lb.;
fowls 9d., and ducks is. 9d. each. The finest grapes