The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1874-05-22

sell & Co. 1t is an immense two-story
house, about 100 feet square, situated in
the midst OF three acre square, called the
American reservation. This square has a
high brick wall allround it, and is nicely
laid out in walks and planted in trees,
flowers and all that sort of thing. The
house contains sundry large bed rooms,
parlors ordinary rooms, billiard room,
business offices, &C.. lots of servants and
elegant grub. There was told to make
myself at home, and that they breakfasted
at II and dined at 7.30, and betw cen times
lcould be my own master. In this part of
the world they always breakfast at 10, but
you don't go that long in the day without
something to eat. AS soon as you wake up
In the morning boy brings you cup Of
tea, some boiled eggs and toast, and as
you never stir out except in chair car
rled by Coolies, you can easily do on that
much as a starter. Being little used up,
determined to leave the city for the next
day, and see nothing that day but the flow
er boats. SO about nine at night, four of
us got into the boat belonging to the Hong
and started up the Canton River for the
aforesaid flower boats. The Canton River,
from its mouth all the way up, is almost
the color Of Deer Creek after twenty-four
hours hard rain in summer time, and is al
ways in that condition. 1t is simply IL
quid mud. Fifteen minutes brought us to
a street of flower boats. They are big iunks
about 100 feet long and 20 feet wide, with
house over all except about Is feet of the
bows. That space is left open and the
boats being all fastened together broadside
the open bows make walk all along the
front Of them. There were about twenty
OF them in this place, but only few were
| lighted up. The house is one story and
the front being open you look into one
big room, divided into three parts by lat
tice partitions, which you see right through.
| We gazed into one boat while and saw
there an animated scene. Some high up
| Cinnamon were giving dinner to some
friends, and had hired the boat for the
purpose. Some of them were in the back
end OF the room playing game; several
girls were with them. One fellow was
lying on couch, smoking an opium pipe,
| was told, and he looked as if he had
nearly reached the opium heaven. Some
were out In front with some more girls; on
each side Of the entrance were two musi-
clans, aging on Chinese fddles and horns,
and another fellow, at intervals, would do
his best to split gong. Just inside the
door was a young lady singing and ac-
companying herself by beating with two
sticks on little drum made ofwood. The
whole place was brilliantly lighted with
colored lanterns and glass chandeliers.
Besides, the inside of the room was cover
ed all over with gliding, carving and re-
markable frescoes. Immense pots of flow
ers stuck everywhere. Altogether, it was
the most remarkable sight ever saw, and
the music was beyond description. 1t
sounded more like lot of cats than any,
thing else. The young lady was singing
at the top of her voice without regard to
tune, time or melody. After RECALLING our
selves in this way for little while my friend
suggested that we should hire boat and
some girls, have the thing lighted up and
contemplate it at our leisure. We all
agreed, and for the sum of SIS we had q
boat, four musicians and six girls for half
an hour We sat down on some lounges
smoking, and awaited results. The must
clans soon began. 1t may have been u
national anthem, or it may not anyhow
it was q conundrum. Presently the girls
made their appearance dressed in blue
robes, with their hair done up in shapes
like butterflies and birds, reeking with
grease. Their checks painted blood red
fairly smeared on. They bowed very po-
litely, and we took off our hats and smiled
blandly. Of course, we could not say a
word that could be understood, but neither
could the young ladies. So we were even
there. Two of them sang Duet, which
| suppose was lovely. They were without
exception the ugliest devils | ever saw
with finger nails an inch long, and feet as
large as mine, nearly. We made them
show their feet, because had been looking
for women with feet four inches long, but l
don't believe there is such thingin China.
This small foot business is all CANNON,
something like Christian Cinnamon. No
one out here ever saw one. There are
more missionaries than converts. But to
return to the girls. They smoked our Sc
drink made from rice, and bcastly drink
it is. One of the girls was very much ia.
ken with your humble servants whiskers,
and wanted to feel them, but politely de-
clined, and informed her that they were all
right, were stuck in tight and would not
come off. So after half an hour spent in
this way we gracefully retired, very willing
never to see another flower boat.
A great many people in Canton live al
ways in boats. They are whole streets of
them, and when the tide goes out they are
all left in the mud, and the smells along the
river when the tide is out are beyond des-
cription. Consumption amongst the float
ing population is very prevalent. Even in
the city half the people coughing their
heads off.
These boats the people live in are from ten
to 100 feet long, and as in Japan, the small
children all go about with chunks of wood
tied by a rope to their necks, to keep them
from being drowned. When the mother
misses child, she casts her eyes round and
seeing block of wood floating near pulls
it in with a bamboo pole, and finds the
child at the end of it. Then she spanks it
for falling overheard. 1t don't hurt them
to stay under the water for half an hour or
so.
Next morning l got a Coolie, who spoke
"Pidgin" English, to act as guide and show
me round the city.
There are 100000 inhabitants, yet |
don't think the city covers more than one
fourth the ground that Baltimore does, if
that much. The streets are from six to
eight feet wide, that is the distance be-
tween the houses they are all paved with
granite slabs as long as the street is wide
and about II inches broad. The drainage
is through the joints of the slabs into a
gutter underneath. The houses are gene
rally one story in front, but that story is
very often 80 feet high. From tie caves of
all the houses are hung bamboo sheds
about feet wide, SO when you look up
you seldom see any sky. 1t is easy to ina
CINE how dark the streets are, and to add
to the darkness, the houses are built OF
brick very dark lead color, nearly black,
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