, 1893-08-12

sharks fins and birds nest soup was a future,
and mind you, as a resident of the West Indies
for thirty years, | have never turned my nose
up at turtle, land crab, boiled cookies or
conch.
If you are inclined for a cup Of tea, there is
nothing to prevent you getting AS good as
China can produce. There is one quality Of
tea sold as high as one hundred dollars a
pound, of which only q few leaves will make q
full pot. Of course l did not order any Of
that Perhaps, hat is the reason why my
cup did not at all resemble that which / got
at IONS in the West Indies, and which [
must say, seemed ~incomparably superior to
that made by the Chinese in the Midway
Plaisance. Such is the force of custom. Per-
haps also for a similar reason Paderouski's
playing on the piano in the Festival Hall at
the Worlds Fair appeared as q jangle Of dis
cordant sounds to a friend of NINE. who
would otherwise sit spell bound listening to
some simple air like "Home Sweet Home"
The Chinese Bazaar is another interesting
place to look at, Here you may gloat over
fine silks, rare embroideries, curiously carved
ornaments, real China with quaint figures in
queer perspective upon it, lacquered and
bronze ware and innumerable Objec Is made
from the ever useful bamboo. Conspicuous
is an imitation of o mighty serpentin all colors
of the rainbow, about forty or fifty feet
long. This is so ingeniously contrived that
when taken out upon mems heads III one of
the Midway Plaisauce PROFESSIONS, it forms a
striking object, calling forth the admiration of
every one who sees it.
An American sits at the entrance of the
Chinese Theatre, which you reach through
the Bazaar. A Chinaman takes the tickets.
Ranged IN rows for the convenience of the
cA -1s
aware that these are in use in the theatres of
China. There is but one scene all through
the playa Chinese landscape p~rettily paint
cd. In front Of it, covered with heavy gold
brocade. are three or four seats one Of them in
the centre, being higher than the othe's. On
the stage, to he left Of the spectator, are three
or four musicians, said to be of the highest
class of talent which China produces. | do not
know what our music appears like, to the
ordinary Colestial's ear, educated to a tho
rough appreciation Of the little drums which
are played by Chinese ~Grtistes and the CLASH
Of cymbals which accompany such perform
ances as these, but if it be the same to him as
their music is to me, then | am sorry for him
indeed, and would wish that a due apprecia-
ton Of music were not such an acquired taste
as it certainly appears to be with most of US.
The actors in this Chinese theatre are also
men of rank in their profession. They arc
richly dressed. full of movement and v~ivacity.
aud with a capacity for talking at each other
as remarkable as it is intere sting. There was
an amount of ground and lofty tumbling''
in the antics of one of the principal performers
that struck me from the first. How | wished
that / numbered Chinese among my linguis.
tic acc uirements. l might have been able to
understand why he threw himself about SO.
From an interp citation Of the pantomime
which came algely into play, he was the bad
boy Of the piece and the rest of the characters
the good ones. Beyond that, / could not go.
And vet it had a strange fascination for me,
this vain endeavour on my part to compre-
bend the drama which they were representing
and which undoubtedly was as soul-abSorbing
to them as a rendition of one of the plays
of our own immortal Shakespeare must be to
an Irving or a Terry. The actors did not en-,
ter as we do. from i'd -wings, but from en-
frances made in the back scene. Too much
praise cannot be given to the beautifully en-
broidered dresses they wore and to their earnest
endeavours to entertain their audience, which
testified by loud applause their approval Of
that which, if they did not understand, they
could appreciate az a novelty and an object
lesson of histrionio ait as it is shown to the
millions of China.
ITO BE- ccntinwed)