Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1888-11-24
An MoYs STREET MARKET.
Queer Vegetables. with Odd Names. That
Cinnamon Delight In.

Queer Vegetables. with Odd Names. That
Cinnamon Delight In.
Lee Fong is the pioneer Chinese truck
gardener and farmer in America. His
brother, Lee Foo, is his partner, and to-
gcther they cultivate a thriving little
plantation Of two acres in the far off and
beautiful region of Astoria, l.. |.
Three mornings every week Lee Fong
or Lee Foo drives down to Chinatown
from the Ninety street ferry,
perched high on the seat of an old wagon
whose ribs and spokes still bear lingcr-
ing traces OF former beauty, and pushing
on reins connected with bay horse that
is not given to shying, curveting OF caro-
coliug to any great extent. They supply
Chinese vegetables 10 the Chinese store
keepers in Mott, Pell and Bayard streets,
and 10 Mr.. Yuet Sing, who maintains the
big grocery under the Joss house at No.
10 Chatham square. These Chinese vege-
tables all come from seeds that Fong and
Foo imported from China last winter
when they made up their minds that
farming was the proper thing for them to
try. They are called "ong qua, Ia qua
and "bak toi." The principal customer OF
the Lee Brothers Agricultural company
(limited). is n modest young gentleman
named All Moy, who does business ON
the curbstone on Mott street in the heart
OF the Chinese quarter. lie Is coy
youth and an honest He is afraid to
answer many questions about himself or
his vegetables, but he deals honestly
with his customers and gives them fair
weight. No kind of food Il sold among
tho Chinese by measure or by count
Everything is bought by weight.
An artist did some quiet marketing In
order TO establish confidential relations
with the proprietor, whose chief charac-
teristic was perpetual tendency to say
six cent pound to every question that
was asked him. Every one Of his vege-
tables. including big invoice of sugar
cane from Louisiana and some New York
state apples, was held at that figure. He
weighed everything he sold on a quaint.
old fashioned scale, whose rod was ma
hogany, very old and much polished by
long friction. The chances are that with
it Moy's ancestors weighed out food to
500 Chow citizens long before the United
States were heard of. The weight i. a
clumsy hunk of rusty iron, and the di-
visions Of weight are indicated along the
rod by hundreds Of fine brass nails, which
arc driven so skillfully that the rod is not
cracked anywhere. The vegetables sold
by All Moy attract large crowds of China
men every morning after Lee Fong has
driven sway The greatest of all these
is ouG qua, which j. Il squash with odd
convolutions and of weird, grayish green
coloring There is bloom on it like the
bloom ON a peach, aud its rind IL very
tender Him good to cook, explained
All Moy. Cook. boil. belly nice to eat
an good for pickle"
La qua and cha qua are distant rela-
ives OF oag qua. Cha qua is a cucumber
covered with furry spines and about four
times as big rs our ordinary gherkins. IL
is boiled and eaten ike squash or picked
with spices. La qua is small squash
much used for the making of sweetmeats
II is candied and put away dry in boxes,
ike candied ginger. lak tot is an odd
sort of vegetable. To an American it is
combination Of cabbage, celery and
cauliiluwer. All Moy says. You cook
him. fry IA little or boil, which are prob
ably us good as any other ways of serving
bak tot. The heart of the vegetable is like
the heart Of the caulihower. Its stalks are
white ard resemble celery stalks, and at
the top they broaden out into very fair
imitation of a cabbage leaf.
There is another variety of tot known
as gai t0i. This l. Ike the other. with
the exception that its stalks are green.
1t is used for boiling. cabbage fashion,
and is also put in soup like okra. The
sugar cane. called gam chiah, is a fine
thing for man to cat who wants to have
luck. Fan tan players are very fond Of
IT, The cane may I've eaten raw, but it is
best picked and fried in lard. All Of
tho distinctly Chinese vegetables have
the peculiar taste that all Chinese foods
show when brought into contact with
bought up and cooked before they have
time to decay New York World.