American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1872-11-30
A Chinese Boarding House.

| WHEN we had wearied ourselves with
| the alley inspection the officer said, ssLet
us 90 to the Chinaman's boarding house
and you will see something strange" No.
| 66 Cherry street is the favOrite home OF
the Celestials. and is an old and tumble
down structure, the timbers frail and
trembling and the windows and doors
broken and decayed. Look out for your
head and feet said the officer, as we en-
tered the narrow doorway, and ''don't
move until l strike a light" AS he spoke
| stumbled over and fell against the wall,
down which the damp was pouring in
streams. A faint odor of opium pervaded
the building, which became more marked
the further we entered. The officer after
some difficulty succeeded in striking a
light and carefully picking our steps we
went along the corridors, the floor of
which was thick with holes. Numbers of
rats, disturbed by our approach, scamp
lar at the further end of the hall. When
we reached the end we assembled misera-
BILE flight of stairs; and the chattering of
voices proclaimed that we were among
the Cinnamon. Pushing open a door we
entered into an apartment in which seven
or eight Cinnamon and an equal number
OF white women (their wives or para
mours) were dOmiciled, some of them
sleeping, but all lying stretched upon the
ground. Bed there was none; pillow OF
rude construction under the head of some
of the men, being the only evidence of
comfort that the room presented. The
women started up at our approach and
some of the men, but the greater number
of the latter were so stupid in the drunk
enness of opium that they were incapable
of speech or action. Their dark, oval
eyes were wide open, but they betrayed
no other sign of consciousness. A huge
supply of opium and pipe were placed
in the middle of the room for the use of
the men when they would wake up in the
middle of the night. The room was al
most destitute of furniture or cooking
utensils, stove being all it contained.
The woman gOod-naturedly handed us
some specimens of the cigars retailed on
Chatham street fol five cents but it is I'M
necessary to say the offer was declined
with thanks. The women are mostly
English, and say they get on very well
with the Cinnamon, though they occasion
ally get badly used. cit was in this
building" said my guide, ''that some
three years ago the great murder was
committed" what murder do you al
Jude to-" said 1. ''I allude to the muir
der by the Chinaman one Winters night.
A Celestial who had been rendered insane |
by opium and drinking came in late in the |
night and found his wife in bed. Selling
a knife, he literally hacked her in pieces, |
and after finishing her he went for an
other Chlnaman, whom he also killed. |
He then went i'm search of his child, which |
he could not find, and, disappointed in |
this, he repaired to another room in the |
house and attacked second man, whom |
he stabbed in the back, hut did not kill. |
He then took the knife and turned it upon |
himself. 1nflicting seven wounds, any one |
Of which would have proved mortal. This
is the room (pOinting to a small hole
about six feet by eight in which he killed
his two victims, and this other one is
where he attempted to despatch the third.
was on duty that night in the locality,
md full as the ward always is of horrors,
The sensation the affair caused was terri
Die. But let us go down, we are long
up here.''
We descended the stairs, and in doing
30 would have stumbled into the cellar
mad it not been that the officer caught me.
We went down into the cellar, a fearful
cooking vault, infested with rats and YER
min of all kinds. There was no light,
md here also Cinnamon We're sleeping,
stretched upon The damp floor. The
character of the place may be guessed
when, even in broad day, a ray of light
lOes not penetrate into the recesses of the
living tomb. and no breath of pure air
AN reach those who nightly sleep in it.
Sick at heart and stomach, we did not
ong remain here, and when we got into
he street the cool night breeZes seemed
o be blessings direct from Heavenly.
z. Herald Nov 9.