The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1874-05-22
MI i S G elan Q us.
For tie IEgis & MteHigenc
LETTER FROM CHINA.

Hone KONG, March 23d, 1874.
Mr.. EDITOR: l believe in my last l left
off at this spot, having given you an &C
count ofmy journey so far. Now l have
so much to tell that don't know where
to begin; but as to hesitate is to be lost,
will begin on this place Hong Kong is
an island, very small, having been coded to
Great Britain, think, during the last war;
however, that's matter of history. 9th
Ter people may -1sHsw More about it than
do, and think livery likely too. The town
is called Victoria, and has about 1000
white inhabitants, including the garrison;
is built mostly on big hillside; little
level ground along the water front, except
theer it is ali up and down hill. 1t has one
principal street, called Victoria Road,
where most of the shops are. There are
lots of Chimes, Parsees, Malays and in fact,
if you sit on the club veranda for half an
hour, you will see pass people from all
quarters of the globe. | think | have seen
here every race of people in the world
The place is very well built, has several
Hotels a Theatre, Public Garden, Town
Hall and all that sort of thing; plenty of
policemen; good streets and well built
houses. The houses are usually three
stories, with the everlasting veranda all
around built of brick and plastercd roofs
made of tiles. Even the cornices are made
of plaster. There being no posts, it lasts
very well and the native workmen do the
work beautifully. There is an English
Cathedral, fine Gothic building, called
st. Johns, and sundry other churches,
that have not become acquainted with
yet. Most of the white people are English,
though the two best business houses here,
belong to Americans, Messrs Russell &
Co., aud Augustin, Heard & Co.
Some of the dwellings on the mountain
side look like castles, having such i'm
mense granite foundations, to bring them
up to the level of the streets.
There are no horses-a few ponies and
carts, All the merchandise is carried by
Coolies, slung on pole between them.
People are all carried in chairs; ~ stout
man requiring four Coolies to carry him. A
few evenings ago | went out to dine at a
house upon the hill, and l had only two Coo
lies. They gave out twice, and had to set
me down to rest. They were pretty much
used up. 1t has been raining steadily ever
since l arrived here, SO that | have been
continually wet and my spirits have been
dampened accordingly.
find you can purchase in the shops any
article that you could buy, say, in New
York, and also any kind of thing that is
made in this part of the world-a great
many of the shops being kept by Heather
| Chinese.
There are lots of vessels always in the
harbor, with steamers coming in from eve
ry part of the world nearly every day. So,
altogether it is IA very lively little place.
| My room at the hotel overlooks the bund
or water front, and it is very amusing to
watch the native boat people. AS in ia
pan, whole families live in the little SAN
pans; and the children that are large
enough are put ashore to amuse themselves,
the very small ones being kept all the time
strapped to their mothers backs, and when
the mothers are rowing their boats, you
can imagine what amount Of exercise the
baby gets. The larger children amuse
themselves sucking bits of sugar cane and
playing shuttle cock, using their feet to
knock the feather arrangements, instead
of little paddles, like our children. have
seen lot of them keep the thing in the
air for ten minutes They hit it with the
side of the foot as it comes down, and
away it goes up 80 feet in the air. And
then the little devils gamble. All China
men, believe, are great gamblers. At least
so Bret Harte says. A little fellow here, il
he gets cash" will go to some old fruit
woman, and instead Of buying his piece OF
sugar cane OR cake, will toss up with the
old woman for two cakes or more
On Tuesday last | went up to Canton,
some so miles from here. Went up in q
steamboat, and reached there in the after
noon. 1t is necessary here to state that
outside of Hong Kong, in China, people
travelling never stay at hotels, unless they
wish to. They are always invited to stay
at the Hong or house of the firm they have
letters to. So when l reached Canton /
went at once to the Hong of Messrs. Rus