The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1876-09-02
The History Of Chinese Queues.

Xn0 history OF Vn1nose 00cueSs
The history of the Chinese queues is
told by the Rev. Julius Doolittle, a mis-
first Emperor of the present dynasty,
who began to reign in l644, having
usurped the throne, determined to make
the tonsure of Manchuria, his native
country, the token of the submission of
the Chinese to his authority. He or.
dered them to shave all the head, ex-
cepting the crown, and allowing the
hair on that part to grow long and dress
it according to the custom of Man
churia. The Chinese had been accus-
toned, under native emperors, to wear
long hair over the whole head, and to
arrange it in a tuft or coil. The change
was gradual. but finally prevailed
through the Empire. At first those who
shaved their heads and conformed to
the laws. received, it is said, a present
of a tael of silver, after while only
half a tael, and then only tenth of a
tael, and afterward only an cgg-finally
even an egg was not allowed. The law
requiring the people to shave their
heads and braid the queue was not often
rigidly enforced by the penalty of inn
mediate death, but became very mani
fest that those who did not conform to
the wishes Of tho dominant dynasty
would never become successful in q
lawsuit against those who did conform,
nor would they succeed at the literary
examinations"
EUROPEAN LAcRs.-The statement is
made that the number of lace makers in
Europe is five hundred thousand, and
of these, nearly one-half are employed
in France, almost all of whom work at
home. OF the French lace the most
noted is the point d'Alencon, which has
centuries. and been styled the queen of
lace. 1t is made entirely by hand, with
fine needle, on q parchment pattern,
in small pieces, which are afterward
united by invisible seams. The firmness
and solidity of the texture are remarka-
BILE, and horse-hair is often introduced
along the edge to insure greater strength.
Although the workmanship of this lace
has always been of great beauty, the de.
signs i'll the older specimens were sell
dom copied from nature. This circum-
stance gave marked advantage to the
laces Of Brussels, which represented
flowers and other natural designs with O
great degree of accuracy. The defect,
however, has disappeared III the point
d'Alencon of recent manufacture-speci-
mems containing admirable copies of
natural flowers, intcrmixed with grasses
and ferns, being now produced in
abundance. Owing, however, to its
elaborate construction, this lace is sell
dom seen in large pieces. A dress made
Of point dAlencon, the production OF
Bayeux, consisting of two founces and
trimmings, was exhibited at the EXPOSE
ton of 1867. Its price was SIT 900, and
it required forty women seven years to
complete it.
INVISIBLE MUsIC.-Thomas Moore, in
his diary, tells an tan asing story of an
English nobleman who wished to sur
prise his guests by invisible music.
His plan was so original and ingenious
that he felt certain no one could dis
cover the secret. He designed to place
"sevcn and twenty fiddlers in an apart
mcnt underground, from which music
might be communicated by tubes to any
part of the house." The project was
never fully carried out, and the estate
was sold. But Lord Landsdowne, who
purchased it, confirmed the truth of the
story, with tho single exception of sub
stituting an organ in place of the fid-
dlcrs. He said that in making some re-
pairs in the house the pipes were dis
covered which had been laid by the
former proprietor to carry out the mu-
steal scheme.
IL Co. I,rkk II I,
rowed his idea from project published
by an inveterate joker. When the
water-works were established at Chel-
sea, this joker, ", a serio-comic article,
suggested that a huge organ might cas-
lily be built underground, with con-
Meeting pipes, SO TINT families could be
supplied with sacred music by turning
o cock.
GOVERNMENT RECEIPTS AND ExpEN-
DITUREs FOR FORTY-TwO YEARs.--An
official statement has been prepared at
the Treasury Department showing the
receipts and disbursements of the Gov
eminent from January l, 1884, to Juno
80, 1875; exhibiting also the amount of
defalcations and the rates of losses per
81 900. The amount collected during
that period from customs was 50, OS2,-
OS6, O93 and the losses 81, 434. 632. The
amount collected from internal revenue
was 50. O66 ,371 $40, and the losses. 49,
ass, 1926. Collected from miscellaneous
sources, S462, 573 ,453; the losses, ST.
161 ,634. Disbursements for the War
Department, 81, 800, 566, O21; losses, ST.
512, 63S. Disbursements for the Navy
Department, $816, 252, $50; losses, So.
572, 1927. Disbursements on account Of
the Indians, $144, 1921, 1854; losses, ST.
482, $40. Pension disbursements, $343,-