Nevada County picayune., 1888-11-28
CHINESE CURIOSITiES.
Sass-Stici.s. 'i,I.,!e:-tTppd Perfumes snt
 oti.rr .Iongc.iI Toys.

S0ss-Stici.s. isf, t.1t- 70 ,a ferfumes snu
 othrr long. ian Toys.
 The oldi.Sand coaer"! excellence of thin rs CliI 5,e ha5o loIg been rec ogniz,d by us ''b tr5ariaas of the West. The demand fo" silks, china, porcelain, bronzes. notal work and curios from the Flowers Empire 'n,rea a5 from year to year aud is the ba5.s of business we'll up in the millions. Every now anS tnrn s0ma fCataro is introduced wkvA,. }REeVer Jima-h3n9tal in tue O".oI,is grta5 uoTc,tJ ia the Oeci- don't A.nDl q ta'o a:'.y''s oftlis ci2ss ara the joj4 or >. :a:. ..la'i aiI Tried slll2lwo aiI:o- usaI oA t4@ a.-.'rs oi tha Cli.t, a.ffts oi w1. nip. Moy Tao :, tt, a ba ley a ll importer said The jo5s-aticz is very old institu' tion. Originally we believe it to have been q torch used by the superstltious to drive away evil spi'jts, and even to- day it is asionally 50 employed by some of the dying churches which try to con 5orye all the idc ts and practice; of remote antiquity. AFteeWard the joss-5tick wU3 made finTrant and was used as incenso in divine worship. Then it was employei as q purifier and disinfectant. I hardly know if it does have much power in this respect, but its perfume is very penetrating ano grateful to the uJ-trlls, and ii covers uo all other od1e5 cve9 if 1t doe: not dest .3y them. You ind 1t ill every sick room in the old cointiy. Gambler; burn immense numbers of loss-sticKS for luck. not only in their own home: and gaming houses. but even ill the churches It is common sight for devotee of hazard to enter a joss house burn a few sticks 10 his joss, a few II honor of dead ance tors. dead friends and dead relatives, T few i'll token O his misdeeds and contrition, and z great many that he may be successful the week through iu every game O. chance he may play They arc made { largely near Quau-Tung-Foo and are i very inexpensive. Grass straws or | thin splnters are stained dark red and then oncrusted with d paste made oi l sawdust, nitrc, benzine and a few spices. You light it the same as 0rdi nary punk and it burns the same way 1 They are put mp in envelopes, twenty to an envelope, and ten envelopes to g | package This retails at from fifteer to fifty cents package, according te i quality, perfume and finish,
 1 "Sandalwood is taken from the trunk and roots of the tree, cut into conven. lent pieces and thoroughly dried It is ! fine yellowish-red wood, looking like cedar in color, but resembling cherry in graia and strength. IL is used chiefly in prayer urns. These are small brass or bronze vases filled with white sand and iittal with a perforated top You light a half-dozeR pieces oi sandal wood, and when they are in hot blaze you bury them in the sand just below the latter's surface. Here they shoulder for long time and send up rich. thick, white smoke, which fills d large room with its fragrance ir few minutes. It is also cheap, YOr can buy enough for a dime to last you fortnight.
 "The fre-strings are very popular toy in many parts of Cnjal. They are made very much like lire-cracKer ste ms out of intlammable paper slightly charged with powder dust and hal filled in one part with mixture of powder, steal-iling5 and some other substanco. whose exact opposition is a trade secret with the manufacturer. You ignite string, hDlmF it with your fingers, anl it b.jrl' slowly till it reaches the filled part IL bursts into flame, Da1es rapidly, and tue filling changes into little whito-hot semi. 1 liquid ball, which bJil' a moment and then throws out minute sparks stars and cOruscations, which explode ant blaze up in turn. In a dark room the effect i7 very striking and very beauti- ful. They are Hot al all dangerous and may be used by small cnjldren withou any risk whatever. Thayare extreme ly cheap, costing from three to twenty. five cents a hundrei' Here Moy li one. hanging it between his thumb anl forefngsr. The lighted end consumed slowly until th1 filling was reached, when it hamel up furiously and then died out, leaving a rsl-hot little globe on the end Of the atrinE. This seemed to boil and rcvOlye a second, and then without any noise threw out scores O. golden stars, edged hamas and lines ol silver light. Out of curiosity the TO porter put his hands into the current O hame and spark, all to his surprise found it stoue-cold " r. .HaH anc