Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1892-10-21
CHINESE ACROBATS.
PERFORMANCES OF ATHLETES
IN THE FLOWERY KINGDOM.
How They Are Trained, Their Pay
and Their Social Disadvan-
tages-Some Wonderful
AcrObatic Feats.

eAN 80 EOR0tNA 80 a.
. America, the newest. The Celestia
artist is exactly like his Western col
league. He is genial, generous to q
fault, improvident and enthusiastic il
bis calling to utter recklessness. AL
though he is we'll paid, his ups and
downs are proverbial. To-day he is the
favorite star in great Canton theatre,
changing $500 per week. Tomorrow
he is street performer glad to get SO
from free-handed patrons, or obliged to
pass his hat around to get enough to buy
bite to eat.
He labors under social and legal dis
qualifications. Socially he, like every
actor in China, belongs to the lowest
caste and is classed with criminals,
drunkards aud opium smokers. In
nearly every district of the Empire it is
a misdemeanor for a tradesman or other
citizen TO be seen in his company or to
have friendly conversation with him.
He suffers from a curious Chinese law.
Any magistrate or other high official can
summon him at twenty-four hours notice
to come and perform for him privately.
He may be playing an engagement at
theatre on the highest terms; he or his
family may be sick; his child may be
dying; it matters not, he must obey the
summons, and appear in due season in
the ysmen, or yard of the official, aud
then and there perform in his best style.
To add insult to injury, he cannot name
his own price, but must accept the star
walton rates prescribed by law.
In one instance a company OF twelve
artists were summoned in this way in
Annoy by a great Mandarin and played
from noon till nine o'clock at night with
the thermometer at ninety degrees. They
did not please their august auditor, and
received only their legal fee, viz, 1925
for the entire company.
In spite of these disadvantages they
are quite joviai lot, aud, as a class,
quite prosperous. Their profession is
hereditary aud their teachers are usually
their parents. When a good performer
is without issue he generally buys one or
more children from poor people and
adopts them as his own. Under Chinese
law "pocket child" enjoys all the rights
and privileges of legitimate one. 1t is
very rare for acrobats to take any one
into their ranks excepting their chill
dren or pocket children. On the other
hand it is equally rare for them to put
their offspring into any other vocation
than their own. Now and then a very
successful performer will indenture his
son to some one in a more respectable
calling, but the price demanded by the
latter is so high as to be practically pro.
hibitiye.
The cases in which they have passed
from their professions into the higher
ones, are those in which great personal
herOism has been displayed. In many
wars and rebellions, acrobats, have sur
passed soldiers and officers alike, and
thus obtained a personal distinction
which became stepping stone to mill
tary and official position.
The Chinese acrobat begins his edu-
cation in babyhood. His training is
wider than that given his Western
cousins. In addition to the regular
tricks, he practices with the sword, spear,
shield and fan. He masters Chinese
shuttlecOck, a singular game, in which
the shuttlecOck is kept in the air by being
kicked with the heel backwards or side
ways. He learns also the tight rope, slack
wire, and other familiar functions. He
never ceases exercises and practices
which tend to increase agility aud en-.
durance. At four years of age be Is so
proficient that alone, or with professional
comrades, he will give street perform
auces, and make more money in day
than the average workman does in
week.
Outside OF his profession he receives
little or DO education. At full age he
can seldom read and write, and has no
ideas beyond the Insignificant world in
which he lives and moves. He is very
and in every town patro-
nizes JOSS house, where there is sup
posed to be a divinity particularly favor
able to his craft
Take him all in all, he is a better
acrobat than those Of any other country,
except Japan. He performs feats which
are seldom or never seen at home. A
common act, for instance, is for the
performer to fold his arms upon his
chest, sit down and fold his legs 90 that
tie soles touch the trunk. In this
strained attitude be moves about on his |
knees as we'll as upon his feet, jumps, |
hops on one stump or knee, springs up
stairs step by step backward and for
ward, and closes by throwing back |
without unlocking his limbs
from start to finish.
"Upside-down work" is OF common
Two tumblers appear upon
he stage and begin walking on their
hands. They run races, make wide and
high jumps, and do nearly everything
With the hands that is done with the
eet, and vice versa Among the more
interesting or grotesoue feats are iump.