The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1885-09-04
A CHINESE RACE COURSE.
REMARKABLY SCENE AMONG THE
ALMOND.EYED oRIENTALS.
d. tO tn Races in Queer vehicles
The SOOiic carrier 49, outer
Horses aud


The Hong Kong race week is one of
those rare occasions when the Chinese
come out of their swarming ant hills,
habitually so difficult of penetration to
strangers. On the afternoon of the cup
day tie broad, handsome main road is
taken possession of for miles by Il swiftly
circulating mass of chhtterinr, pig.
tailed and most uncanny looking Chi
nese, with their equally strange looking
vehicles-the light covered armchair,
carried by bamboo poles on the should
ers Of two coolies, and the rickshaw, a
two-wheeled vehicle with a pair of
shafts, between which is placed not a
horse, a mule, a pony, or even a donkey,
but one of those increasingly toil;nr
Chinese. "Lickshaw, lickshaw l"-they
cannot manage our ''r"-shout half a
dozen eager competitors to the English
man. The rows of rickshaws, about
three deep. every one at a brisk trot,
with not an inch interval in front, behind,
or on one side, are kept rigidly in their
places by tall, stalwart policemen, Eng
lish or Sikhs, stationed along the route;
and if any driver or horse-one and the
same in the present c~ase-darcs to de-
vlate from the prescribed line, the
policeman, with great tact and sagacity,
instantly steps forward and whacks him
taps him, but showers down heavy
whacks on the offenders hollow sound
ing, shaver skull.
But we must not lose sight altogether
of a very important element in the
throng, the sedan chairs. These arc
more suitable for the staid elderly ladies.
The bearers, two, or-if the weight oil
the lovely burden should try the sup
porting bamboo poles-four in number,
shuttle rapidly and unweariedly along,
and the occupants, perched high in the
air, endcavor to look dignited, but only
succeed in appearing supremely absurd.
Their coolies, if in private employment,
are habitually clad in light, bright cot
ton l~iveries -bareiooted of course-and
the effect is thoroughly Oriental and
rather pretty. There, | see, is the chair
belonging 10 the establishment of the
governor of the colony. 1t is born by
four coolies in our brilliant national
scarlet uniform, and this dazzling color,
in the midst of the Chinese green, vel
low, aud blue, really looks very impos.
ing. There is a different sort of a
chair, carefully covered and closed
around with straw lattice work. 1t wells
from public view some Chinese beauty
of high degree. Soldiers under the
rank of sergeant are forbidden by garri-
son order to travel in r~ickshaws.
The Europeans are only as units
among thousands. True, the natives,
high and low, rich and poor, afoot OF
transported, will instantly shrink aside
at the incessant warning. ''IIyah,n of
the running %coolie, who thus intimatcs
that he is conveying an Englishman. but
the enormous majority Of the streaming
throng is, of course Asiatic Chinese. The
route is lined with palms, with banyan
trees, and with bamboos, and the red,
fcvcr-causing, disintcgrated granite dust
flies up into o faces. Up go the
umbrellas. Up hill, and my
hill, and his speed becomes so breakneck
that every moment expect an upset, a
collision, or a smash, irrespective Of the
contingency of broken bones to a few
English foot travellers, who would scorn
to move out of the way for any number
of Chinese cries of ''Hyah."
Here we are at the entrance to the
grand stand. A payment of about So
procurcs admission to the lawn, and
once more the strangencss of the scene
seems for a time to battle any systematic
observation, however painstaking. In
lieu Of stands are some seven or eight
large mat houses, light, picturesque
structures, supported on bamboo poles,
with sides and roofs of rushes, and deco
rated with tropical evergreens and bright
cloth or calico, the effect of which is ex
cessivcIy pretty. Each mat house is the
property Of some one private individual
or of an association, and the refresh
ments provided are SO costly and abund-
ant that the imputation of excessive eat
ing and immoderate drinking can scarce
ly be resented.
The race crowd, without which a race
meeting is as dull as a German steeple.
chase, is of large proportions, with rep
resentatives Of nearly every Asiatic state,
but, of course, Chinese enormously pre-
ponderate. Nearly all are chattcring,
and quite all are in high good humor,
enjoying the general sense of holiday.
Not a single case of drunkenness did |
see-no pickering, no rowdyism, and yet
no lack of fun.
The saddling bell rings, the numbers
arc HOlsteu, Il lnuu OF nOOlS announces
the preliminary canter. Well, what of
the racing2 Beneath criticism, almost
beneath contempt. The ponies are from
Australia, Japan or Chefoo-doubtless
serviceable for the work of their respec-
tive countries, but as racers, wretched,
wecdy, groggy, understood brutes: while
the jockeys are the paraphernalia of.
their business, the preposterous length of
their legs, their heavy weights, their
horse coping idiosyncrasies, and their
indifferent riding.
bought a very average type of racer
for So los. In fact, the sport is merely
a peg on which to hang the love OF
gnmbling, which, like the love of drink,
run very high in this part of the world.
Innumerable and high prize lotteries are
started, and three legged screws are
merely bought and entered on the off
chance of winning the stakes, which, in
addition, are very considerable.
While bordering on the scene, my at
tcntiOn is suddenly aroused NV an nm