Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1871-06-27
Adventures In PIgtsiI and Petit.
coats.

From the N. Y. Commercial Advertiser
An English trader, who essayed to
make his way by land from China to
Calcutta, and for that purpose assumed
the dress of a Cinnamon" the same
with intent to deceive has given to
the world the story of his adventures, in
a volume which he calls the Travels OF
a Pioneer of Commerce in Pigtail and
Petticoats." His name is 7. I. Cooper.
1t appears from his unpretentious nara
tive that he encountered every kind of
discomfort during the whole journey.
Once the casual removal of his specta-
cles brought mob of Cinnamon around
him. he was loudly hooted, and one
man, being the worse for drink, caught
hold of his skirts and nearly pulled him
backward. Luckily, Mr.. Coopers as
sailant happened to be lumpbacked and
very ugly, SO profound bow to him, and
a reverential exclamation of Surely
this is a great soldierl" tickled the keen
sense of ridicule which is implanted in
the Chinese, and turned the tables. Mr..
Cooper was not quite so pacific when he
met great mandarin on his journey,
and was upset into newly Hooded pad
dyfeld by the great man outriders.
"The soldiers" says Mr.. Cooper, "or-
dered my fellows off the road into the
field; and on their naturally objecting,
one of the soldiers, without more ado,
rode at my chair, knocking chair
and coolies head over heels into
the field. Fortunately, no great harm
was done beyond wetting and bespat-
tering with the soft mud, about two feet
deep, in which / left my satin boots
while struggling to regain the road.
For moment Mr.. Cooper showed fight,
making a rush at the soldier, and in
tending to drag him off his pony; but he
thought better OF it, for the mandarin,
who followed with large escort, would
no doubt have taken summary ven
geance. Another danger to which Mr..
Cooper was exposed may seem to cast
some reflection on the system Of COM
petitive examinations in China. One of
the towns that he visited was crowded
with the candidates for literary and
military honors; and the result of their
presence in the place was that all the
Christian inhabitants had left and a
stranger could not show himself in pub
lie. Bands of riotous and excited stu
dents were constantly going up and
down the streets; and Mr.. Cooper heard
that the year before a number of these
candidates had wrecked the house Of a
Christian bishop.
Mr.. Cooper had more than one expe-
rience of the superstitious fears of his
Chinese boatmen. He once happened
to spit over the bow, and was imme-
diately pulled violently back by one Of
the men, who said he had offended the
wind god. 1t was necessary to propiti-
ate the deity by an offering Of crackers,
and these we're solemnly let of the same
evenining. Another time, when the
boat was in narrow and rocky gorge,
with perpendicular sides rising 800 feet
or 900 feet high, Mr.. Cooper gave the
Australian cry of "cohee," which was
by a thousand echoes. ALI of
a sudden large mass of rock, several
tons in weight, fell with a noise like
thunder, crashing first on a projecting
crag, 200 feet or 300 feet above the boat,
and then plunging into the river within
ten yardscf it, delugiug itwith the spray,
Mr. Cooper himself shuddered at the
danger be had so narrowly escaped;
bat his crew were on their knees, and
did not stir till every echo awakened
by the crash and plunge had died away !