Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1891-07-04
IN FAR OFF .AMOY.
PICTURES OF LIFE On THE
CHINESE COAST.
How Rigid Economy i Practiccd in
Land That Is Over populated
tnfat homa',ic Ignorance and
Peculiar SuperStitions

maritime commerce as any European ma
ton. The bay At Annoy is always crowed
with native crait The yesSels are not
very handsome, but the, arc verF cheap.
ihey pegin with the sampan, whlch IS
ha'f scow and halt sondola. II carries
from 'hree 10 twenty passengers anu can
neither GapSiZe nor founder. Us owner
lives III Il haVlh9 immature stove anu
pantry, ustn9 the moor as bed ana max
ihS h'Sh'lv rooi out oi bamboo mat
ne pays - ioF 'iie sahpah when new,
spends - year IN Frightening up the
scarlet, ultra -ruarine, gold and green
PANT with which IL IS decorated, aud
charges two cents 70 ferry q passenger
mile Then come the freight sampans,
winch range IN size from Whitehall boat
to an elgthty-foot lighter. They bring
tea, BRICK, tiles, terra Gotta and produce
to Annoy and carry away merchandise.
\ vast fleet Of fishing boats is the next to
be noticed. They are clumsy and fragile
things in appearance, but III reality arc
strong, swift and seagoing. Their oc-
cupants fish with trawl or dragnets,
which they fasten to the stern, and are
always successful What they catch is
thrown into water tanks aboard and de
hvcred alive at the fish market. A coolic
strs the fish to keep them alive till sold.
Still larger than the fishing smacks are
the great trading junks which in build
and rig resemble the Spanish galeons of
the old buccaneer days. They are vast
structures Of bamboo, rattan and soft
light wood. The sails are constructed
of grass mating, stiffened with bamboo
ribs, and when set look IKE a bats
wings. These boats encounter the
| fiercest typhoons with impunity, while a
European ship or steamer would founder
| in a few hours.
Last are the China steamers. These
are all of English or German make and
always have Anglo Saxons Of some sort
| for captain and engineer The crew,
officers, agents and owners are Chinese.
! They do an ever increasing business and
are becoming formidable rivals to foreign
coastwise commerce. The steamers are
| managed hike our own. All the other
Chinese boats are conducted in q very
different manner. Each is floating
} home, or village. The smaller ones have
one family on board; the larger, two
'iifee anu UP - ten' oii 'heSe uh-
"leidiy craft tue ooa'heh are pofn' gro"
up marry nave laniiies' ana die' Inc
] women are as gooa sailors as inc men
III iioh9 hohS ''e COMMANDERS o' most
ooa's are "oliien- iNe o'i'''i'h arc eA-
pere' mariners '' s'A " seven years o'
age ne o'''l''H ''e : 'ia''s' 'nle'''-
gent anu pFo''''' 'aes "e7 az es''a - "
De 'oo'0'' '' ''''''i :" o''''' my ''
prosper "1'ie''''s' "l'' -'''' ~ 4'''s
"''''ns' ii''1' i''''s :
o"D''' oo''' - =. 80 49, -. " : A''''
"o's' - ~ , :, - ~''''
i''a'o' ''''' '-'0s '' 49,
o'oo''''''s's ~ "'''A'' 7''''9 ~
asA'"7 7'a' - ''''-'' 1"s ~ '''ii '''''',''
Whatever
10" mar, -''' - "''s'' : '''i'' !
o'e' i'oi'4''''' i'4''o AZ 'i''' : '''+li
hiii'oh sous III an'i "'oa' Annoy a'ohe
iheS a'e = ''o"ae'' = o-ss'''e' nat "Ae'
you see them fou forget they are human
ano imagine them ants p bees on Iarger
scale than usual They have p live, al
theydo 1t IN q way that wonli aston!s!