Sharp County record., 1888-04-19
SCENES IN HONG-KONG.
Hindoo Policemen, Professional Members
and Female Hod- Carriers.

tall, fnely-built Hindoos, with the
classic, fnely-cut features Of that race.
In summer they wear u military uni
form of white duck, and at this time
coat and trousers of dark blue cloth
with silver buttons. At all other times
their heads are wrapped up in the huge
turbans of bright red muslin. n broad
FORWARD strip being wound around
their heads in some way that they only
can do. The Sikhs have great au-
thority over the Chinese, and at fires
they keep the schreeching heathens
roped off at good distance, and
maintain order that ''our finest
might envy. Oher Hindoos, in less
SNOWY and more primitive clothes,
pass by with the multitude, and
on the higher terrace roads one sees
Indian ayahs or nurses, out with
focks of little children. The avahS'
scant winding-gowns and head cloths
are generally white, and there is
omething ghostly in these slender,
silent figures. The ayahs carry them
selves well, and their tinely-cut noses
and gazelle eyes show what fine and
noble race they spring from.
The Parsees, with their black horse
hair, chimney-pot hats with II step in
the crown, and their close turbans Of
cameI's hair exquisitely woven and
embroidered with fine gold thread,
and their protruding eyes. are the
most serious beings in existence, yet
they suggest something comic TO one.
1t may be all in the cut of their coats,
which are q straight sack, buttoned
from the chin to the hem in front, and
falling straight and tight at the back
without flap, q crOss-line, or curved
seam. This coat reaches nearly
to the knees, and the man has some-
thing the look of wearing a coffin. In
each of the side seams under the arms
there is q pocket hole, and altogether
the Parsee's Prince Albert is fine
caricature on that garment of day
light ceremony. Cingalese, with their
one big bandana-sort of q handker-
chief or tablc-cloth wrapped about
them for petticOat. and n child's
round hair comb set on their heads
like q coronet set backwards, are
matched by the Malays, who wear any
sort of costume that they have been
able to gather up.
To my mind the unique feature Of
Hong Kong streets are the profes.
sional members or sewing women,
ugly, old Chinese women, with half
lwarfed feet, who come out in the
morning with low stools and basket
# rags and sit by the curbstones or
in archways, rccesses or doorways
and sew away all day long. They do
not exactly darn stockings and sew on
buttons, but their laborS correspond
% that, and for irife poor work.
nan can have his tattercd coat
patched and mendcd or his old
garments made over. Peddlers Of
ranges, Of dry goods, lamps, toys and
ancy wares stop bowling their wares
hrough the streets TO chat with the
Professional members. and of all Chi.
lese women the members seem to have
lie pleasanteSt lot. They are wise
ooking old Bottys, all of them, and
ometimcs they wear huge horn
immcd srectacles that make them
0ok like Minerals bird. To watch
hem planning, and turning and
visiting their garments and rags is
most diverting; and two old members
own the road here are beginning to
ook upon me as an intending GUS
omer, from the way in which they try
3 further engage my attention each
ime and display their skill. The
lenders look down the social ladder
great ways at the coolio women en-
loyed on pubic works in the streets,
ut The coolie women probably find
ONE one further below to drop their
nperior gaze upon. 1t jars one a
tile TO see women and children
alrying baskets of earth slung from
ole balanced over one shoulder, but
| this way all the digging out and
ling up of the Hong Kong hillsides
nd Terraces have been done. These
urden- bearers are not above the
nall vanites of the sex either, and
10Y wear bracelets and anklets of
hite metal, earrings and hair orna-
tents of imitation jlde-stone, poor
lings. One might expect these female
d-carriers to be careless of, or in
ifferent TO- the charm of delicate
,mplexion; but they are human and
sminine even in that point, and to
le edge of their fiat coolie hats they
,wa deep founce of blue cotton that
atters about their ugly faces after the
ime manner as the priceless lace
file of her garden hat that shades
ie face of the Empress Eugene in
/ finterhalter' famous portrait of that
vely woman. Cor. 81. Louis Globe
)emocrdt.
What looked like the largest,