Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1886-12-09

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think he would beat in ali his ribs.
THIS Esmnastic exercise having Been
completed, each seizes TIC other by the
queue, close "r 10 the head, and they
pull each other about until they ard
tired. or until they are separated.
But the interferchce, the peace-mak-
ing. is Sc regular, 80 universal. in every
chinese dispute, as to have become a
thorough and constitutional part of it,
and no description of Chinese character
would be complete in which that were
omitted. At certain stage in the pro-
ceedings, generally after The hair-pull.
ing has begun, two of the bystanders,
quite frequently strangers to each other
and to the parties quarreling, will in
terfcre, telling them to let go of each
other and become friends. This ex-
hortation not being heeded-it never is
each peacemnker grasps one of the
parties about the waist and gradually
but firmly pulls them apart. Each
fighter struggles and Screams calls
out: Let me get at him! let me get at
mimi" but he never uses violence
! toward his "peaccmaker, and never
pulls quite away from him.
| 1t is a remarkable fact in Chinese
quarrel that it is always perfectly safe,
no matter how bitter the struggle may
be, for any of the bystanders to inter-
fcrc, and pull those auarrelling apart
| by violence if need be. There is not
the least danger of either party so far
forgetting himself as to turn upon the
persons SO interfering, nor of the fail
ure of the peacemaker to receive the
| thanks of the parties separated, as well
as the esteem of all other witnesses.
The writer has often thought that in
no country in the world does that beat
| itude found in the Sermon on the
Mount: blessed are the peacemak-
ers, receive such practical adoption
| and fultilment rs in China. There is
but one exception to the universal rule
of interference as practiced there. For
reasons that need not be given, no man
will ever interfere in a quarrel between
two women, nor will a person of either
sex interfere in a quarrel between a
man and woman. While the time
may come when the rule of peace
making as described above may safely
be adopted in the United States, it
would probably not be wise to venture
a trial of it at present.
One day the writer saw a crowd of per-
haps hundred persons gathered by the
side OF the street in Picking, near the resi-
dence of some Americans. Pushing
his way into it, he saw the usual CHI
nese quarrel going on. two men being
engaged in pulling each others
queues, while their upper garments
lay in two little piles near at hand.
Not thinking it wise to allow such a
disturbance to go on, he spoke to the
fighters and told them to stop. They
paid no attention. Then, putting his
hand upon the shoulder of one of
them, he spoke somewhat louder,
telling them to sop their quarrcling.
The one touched merely twisted his
head sufficiently to enable him to see
who the speaker was, but no other no
tice was taken of his words. Then the
writer g:aspcd each man by his queue
as close to the head as he could, one
queue in each hand, and by a sudden,
vigorous pull, dragged them apart.
Pointing to their clothes, he said:
''Pick up your garments and come
along with me-"
Without a word, and apparently
without thought of refusal, they gath
cred their coats and girdles from the
ground, put them on and walked with
him down street, the whole crowd fol-
lowing.
Having gone about a third of a mile,
and reaching cross street, the writer
70 Of RI ho
south: "You 60 that way" and to the
other, pointing to the north: $50 that
way" Away each went as directed,
without moments hesitation, and,
for aught the writer knows to the con-
trary, they arc still travelling, one north
and the other south.
The following curious incident, show
ing one manner in which disputes are
settled in Picking. and the way taken
to show outsiders that justice has been
done, can not fail to interest the read
er. In January. 1881, the butler en-
ployed by the writer, and who had
been in his service some ten years, in
formed him that he must leave his po-
sition. Upon being asked for his rea-
sons. he stated that on the previous
evening he had gone out after dinner
and had thoughtlessly locked the room
which he and the firemen occupied to-
gether, and had taken the key with
him. The fireman was also out, and,
upon coming home about eleven
o clock, was, of course, unable to enter |
his room. He could easily have gone
into room with another servant for |
the night, but refused to do so, because |
very angry, and going to the residence
of the buffers family near by, he had |
worked himself into violent passion,
raved and stormed up and down the
street, calling the buffers wife and
mother all manner of evil names and |
had effectually reused the entire neigh
borhood.
Having performed in this manner
for about an hour, he returned to the
Legation and went to bed with anoth-
err servant, as he ought TO have done
in the first place. The butler added
that the offense was SO serious and SO
public that he had decided to stake the
law" to the fireman, and as it would
not be decent to take such step when
both remained in the masters service,
he must beg to be released.
Ipointed out to him, in the first
place, that no Chinese court could take
notice of his complaint SO long as
the fireman remained in the service of
an officer of the Legation. Hence it
would be idle for him to give up his
position unless the fireman were also
discharged. In the second place, l
pointed out to him, that to take the mat
5er into the courts would only serve
% let five hundred people hear the bad
words used when not more than fifty
people had heard it in the first in
stance. / promised to look into the