The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1894-12-05
THE STREETS OF CANTON,
PICTURESQUE SIGHTS IN THF
BUSY CHINESE CITY.
Thronged With People -- Narrow
Thoroughfares - Funerals Have
the Right of Way-A Busy Scene.


the Right of Way-A Busy Scene.
TTLORENCE ODRISCOLL, 6
II member of the English House
of Commons, has q timely ar.
9 ticle, 'Tn the Streets of Can
ton," in the Century. A second
paper will describe life on the river.
OF the street scenes in Canton, Mr.
O'Driscoll writes
Little if any sunlight struck down
into these ways. Their narrowness
would have prevented the intrusion oi
any but vertical beams, or those slant
ing parallel with the street, and, tc
guard against even these, shade
loving people ha | hung mating over
head. This gave the city the aspect
of huge struggling bazaar sheltered
beneath a great ragged roof.
The thorougfares in the older por.
tions of the city vary from about foul
to six or seven feet in width. In the
newer quarters there are frequently
ten and even fifteen feet of space be.
tween the houses on each side.
These narrow ways were thronged
with tens of thousands of people !;
looking along them it seemed almost
as if one could walk upon mems heads,
30 close were they. High and low,
rich and poor, all rubbed shoulders.
Coolies, carried, on each end of six
foot stick, water, frewood, and bur.
1ens of various sorts; when an excep.
tionally heavy load was to be carried,
:ome four coolies bore it, slung on the
middle of bamboo, two at each end
Of the pole. Peddlers carried their
wares In baskets slung at each end of
a stick, or in flat trays hung like an old
fashioned pair of scales, with the pole
or beam on their shoulders. Carriers
thus bore creels of fruit, fish, and all
sorts of esculents; live rats, cats, and
dogs in wicker baskets; fat pigs in
wicker cylinders, sometimes with their
legs hanging out and boxes, bales,
and trays of toys. Through the throng
exalted Cinnamon, fan in hand, IN
silken gowns, and with queues pen
dent far down the back, made their
slow way in dignity. There were
plenty of women and children also in
the crowd, some of the women hob
bling painfully along on their
tortured and distorted feet
which, from the tight binding,
were 80 shrunken and diseased that
their shin bones had become fieshlest
skeleton supports covered with /
wrinkled parchment skin, and theil
limbs seemed to be little better thar
gnarled and knotted stumps. Occa
sionally an empty chair was seen il
this crowd, or a chair in which sa
some mandarin, with awning and deli
cately fashioned lattice-blinds closel
drawn, or man who hawked smal
wares or sweets for sale, and carried
in one hand a little fiat metal plat
and string with small weight tie
to one finger. With each .twitch o
his finger clear, musical note ran
sharply in the air. Ping ping ping
sounded his little gong, heralding hi
approach from a long way off. VIII
knows? Perhaps from this primitiy
but artistic appliance has in th
course of ages been evolved our mui
fn-bell sweet music in the ears o
those setting forth in quest of fiv
O'Clock teas. Anon our progress wa
checked by funeral procession, whic
struggled past us amid blare of dis
cordant trumpets, beating of gongs
and screeching of stringed lnstru
ments, the mourners bearing aloft pa
per and tinsel dolls, bright streamer
or little trays of food and sticks of il
cense.
The coolies, who had their queue
knotted up, wore, for the most par
hat shaped like fiat lamp shad
about two feet across. A little cuI
shaped wicker basket fixed under
meath it held this covering over thei
heads, and it served more as a sun an
rain shade for the body than an actua
head covering. Clerks, merchants an
well-to-do people carried their queue
loose, and were either bareheaded @
covered with a black satin or yer
fine black wicker skull cap with
coral button on the top.
Every one seemed busy; no on
seemed unhappy; each individual wa
polite, and prepared to make way 70
another. To keep TO the right was th
rule of the road, rule strictly at
hered to, without which all progres
would have been impossible. As
looked along the crowded way,
could see always two long lines of pee
pie in single file, passing one another
and keeping close to their respectiv
right sides. In places the streets s
narrowed in that passers-by rubbe
shoulders. Every one stood aside fo
the passage of n funeral or priestl
procession. after which the acknowl
edged order of precedence was first
chair with passenger-though eve
this moved aside to allow passage t
the lowest class laborer staggering be
meath a heavy load-then any perso
carrying a loal, and lastly those VIII
were uuencumbered by burdens.
mandarin on foot, or a wealthy mel
chant with richly embroidere
gown, moved aside to allow the cool
wood carrier to pass alone unintel
ruptel. There were no policemen 1
corners to regulate traffic; old estal
lishel custom, based on policy {
mutual obligation, took the place OF
man in blue.
The City Horse Dropped Dead.
A daolar i,t horaaa raeantIxy fnok 1