The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1880-03-26
Treasurer of the United State.
THE BoArMAN OF SHANGHAI.


The floating population of China is
immense; and one is struck with this at
every port. To build and repair their
vessels is branch of industry have
never seen described, but it must be
enormous. Millions, probably, of fami-
lies live in them and never 20 on shore.
There is no craft so small, not even the
room for its idols or gods, before which
the owner burns his Joss paper" l
will digress here little TO tell Of the
boatmen of Shanghi. They are mostly
from the distant seapoTts of Ningpo and
Swallow. being of a harder race and
better sailors than the men of this
province. By some mysterious tele
graphy they know when a ship is COM
ing, and several lie waiting for job at
the red buoy outside Woosung. Each
one has the name of the ship he served
last painted in conspicuous place aft.
The one / engaged had Halloween
and his name, Sam" underneath. Sam
is a cognomen all Chinese poatmen glory
in.
His sampan, which is exactly like all
the rest, is about sixteen feet long, and
about the shape of u half peach stone.
a couple of guards run around it, as TO
one of our little stern-wheel steamers,
projecting att over the stern and bending
up at the eXtremities like the horn of a
| crescent. What this is for ! cannot make
out. The forward half is decked over
and under this deck Sam keeps lots OF
| things. The midship section abaft this
| is not decked, but has a platform, and is
rooted over, the roof of bamboo and mat
| ting arched from side TO side Under
this roof is the scat Of honor. On the
| floor is rug, and overhead are frescoeS
taken from Harper's Weekly, The Illus
! trated London News or illustrated
/ Zeitung or an illustrated calandeT
| and many of the pictures upside
down; all begged from the differ
| ent ships Sam has attended. Over this
roof is its exact counterpart made tt
| slide, and when we are seated Sam viii
! gently slide the whole thing over if i
rains, SHOWS or the wind is raw and cold
/ and give us wrap to cover our Limbs
| with. Under this at night Sam arrangei
himself for sleep somehow or other, an(
when religious, worships his "lares an,
penaies." Abatt the seat and roof, RAISED
little, is the standing place for Sam, o.
! poop deck, where he propels the boat
He unships this deck when hungry, anC
there are. underneath. his fireplace, ket
tie and other domestic utensils, and Their
he cooks his rice and fish.
must not forget to tell how they pro
pei their boats. tits by sculling. The
have a gigantic oar which they poise OF
pin on the stern (nobody but China
man can do i), and by means of a core
attached TO the oar and the boat, thei
scull, or s>eulo,' as they call it, at verl
rapid rate Vessels of a'larger size ar
sculled this way, by means of Beam
projecting from the sides, TO the end o
which an car is attached. The tides a
| Shanghai run very swift, and the wiEte
| winds are furious and piercing; Blu
these fellows scuH right along agains
wind and tide. When all moored to
gether at some wharf for the night. the,
form larffe community, and discus
the events Of the day or gamble half TIA
night. There is nothing done within
many miles Of Shanghai, but they know
| Il irsfnrn any am else