The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1845-12-05
VOL. VINO. "a.

'"S Va ~ VIE LhSsC lhliiSS aAu
going on before the eye at all times
and places. Mahomedanism,
jewish, and all other religions, ex-
cept Christianity, the reason for pro-
scribing which, will be mentioned
hereafter, are freely tolerated, just
as among the ancient Romans. a.
Lamaism. The peculiar and strange
religion of Tibet prevails extensive
ly among the Ta.tar and other inte-
rior nations of the Empire, and is
somewhat favored by the Emperor
himself, as a means Of authority and
influence among the Tartars. g.
The special alteration paid to the
Emperor himself. Such are the
chief religious creeds. The dwell
lings Of the rich in China are built
of brick and stone, and are rich and
tastefplly furnished, objects of taste
being as much in request as in Eu-
rope, or with US; the houses of the
poor are of wood, bamboo predomi-
mating on account of its value and
cheapness as building material.
The favorite and chief staple Of
food is rice, very little of wheat,
maize or potato being used; food is
eaten with two sticks, and it re-
quires some skill to dexterously pick
it up and convey it to the mouth by
their means; every thing is served
cut up, in small bowls; and it is
considered a compliment TO hand
lnorsel to your neighbor with your
sticks, he taking it on his own. In
setting the table, they decorate it
with flowers, and bottles of scented
water, and musicians are employed
to play during the repast. The Chi
nese are excellent cooks, and, in
this respect, may be regarded the
French of Asia. The greatest lux
uries served on the table of the rich,
are, LIST. Trepang, or bicho de mar,
a large sea slug six or eight inches
by one, found on the flats of the
tropical islands; it is of dark COL
or, and is purified into rich gelat-
nous substance. 2. Sharks fins,
and fish maws. 8. The edible birds
nest. This is the nest of swallow,
formed of a gelatinous matter, which
the bird procures and Celebrates, it
is supposed, from some marine plant.
Purified, it is worth its weight in
silver.-They dress it in soups, &c.,
like our vermacelli. To eat some
of these things may seem strange,
but may it not be asked whether he
was not as bold a man who first
swallowed an oyster? The Tartar
dinners are very different. They
make their repasts on animals
deer, sheep, hogs, &C., cooked and
served whole. The tit-bits are
clipped off by the hand, and passed
round to the guests. The common
drinks are tea, which is seen on all
occasions, and samshoo, a liquor
distilled from rice, which is mingled
with hot water, and served in small
covered vessels vita glass to drink
from, quite in the manner of hot
whiskey toddy at some OF the fash
ionable hotels in this country. The
Chinese pledge hcalths in drinking,
and empty and reverse their glasses.
Many of the drinking vessels now
in use among us are copied from
China. Regarded commercially, the
Chinese Empire is complete within
itself, without aid from Europe. AS
to the article Of food For the pre-
duction Of necessaries, bread-stufFs
and the like, China has every facili-
ty in her vast territory and extreme
ly productive soil; in her great va
riety of climate, ranging from the
cold, through the temperate, into
the tropical ATTITUDES; and we see
that she produces immense quaint,
ties of these necessaries, importing
but little, comparative; though per-
haps positively considerable amounts
she might, however, with little moro
excrtion supply herself entirely,
Then as to semi-necessaries, such as
tea, sugars, liquors, &C.: Of tho
first, she has the complete monopo-
ly, supplying not only her own con-
sumption, but the rest of the world
besides; Of the others, she has eve
ry facility for producing as much as
she pleases, and does now produce
them in vast quantities. As to her
arts and manufactures Her fame is
for fabrics of silk, woollen,
cotton, grass, and the raw material
of these products for the shelter Of
her people she has abundant sup
plies of stone, brick and wood; sho
has ships and every requisite mate
rial for their construction of naviga-
ton; for the manufacture of uten-
sils, she has iron, copper, and coal
of the precious metals, she has gold
and silver, and her people have long
been celebrated for the perfection i.
of their workmanship in the art Of