Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-02-17

Yet this Is the old home of the famous
"peach-blow' vase. Peach-blow vases are
not manifold. but If you will penetrate a
shop that has a little overstepped the pave
ment. apparently for the purpose Of exhibit
Ing for sale some brass and iron cooking
utensils and secondhand household furni-
tUre, you will find within a succession of
dim back rooms jumbled and piled with
bowls. plates and snuff bottles of porce-
lain old enough and ugly enough to swal-
low up a comfortable little fortune You
will find ruinously expensive jade stone
ornaments, which Chinese mandarin val
ues as he does his diamonds. though else
where they could hardly find a purchaser,
unless some fanaticaI collector should i'm
agine them necessary to his happiness.
The ogre that preSideS over this den of Sc
GREETED treasures may prowl into some dusky
recess and bring out FOR your admiration a
box of Pekin red lacquer no larger than an
ostrich egg and shaped like one. The inn
perial dragon Is exGuisitely carved upon 1t,
but the price at which II is held makes you
gasp with surprise. \ little vase attracts
your notice. not because it is beautiful.
however. for 1t Is exceptionally ugly, but
because you have never seen one at all
like it, With renewed CONSERVATION you
learn that the best bargain YOU can FER
suasively drive Is $500. and this, not on ac-
count of grace or splendor. but because
there is no other in existence and 1t cannot
be reproduced.
Dfvertfng street Scenes.
To one unaccustomed to China sights the
trip from European Tientsin to the native
city is full of interest. The jinrikisha coolies
travel well and are always good-natured.
even to a jolly degree. Although they seem
to be melting away with the heat, and 1t
appears imminent that they will vanish and
leave TO trace but tarry spot on the pave
ment they do not slacken their speed or
narrow their grin. In the cities of any
country that Is new to US the street sights
al, Nfs.rr. HNU~ IL L. do, Sol
streets are crowded so full of remarkable
scenes those of Chinese cities. There are
BARRIERS trudging along, with their whole
establishment inclosed in two bright red
and gold boxes at each end of a pole. which
is slung the shoulder; or we may see
them at work, one of the boxes serving as
a seat for the customer. 1t is not surpris-
Ing that the streets should glow with bar
bers' boxes, when We consider how many
head tops there are to be kept closely
shaved and how many queues to be braided.
There are the besgars by profession, all I'M
der the authority of one of their craft, who
Is known as king of the beggars. These are
not numerous in the towns in summer, as
II is their business stroke to go into the
country then: but they are of hideous quail
ity. Many of them are in the worst stages
OF certain form of leprosy. 1t is not as
contagious as the leprosy of the Sandwich
Islands. but 1t is more horrible in appear
ance. There are the lawmakers dexterous-
~ painting and folding paper fans. under
little canopy like newspaper stall. There
are the Chinese doctors. carrying on their
unique treatment in booths widely exposed
TO the gaze Of the passing multitudes One
or two patients may usually be seen lying
about the tent. with long pins thrust in the
temples. or arms. perhaps. or legs-that be-
Ing the very vigorous native medical prac-
tice- And there are poor frights OF women
with their elaborate hair dressing, dangling
earrings and deformel feet. II gives one
both Tootache and heartache to see the
sad. MANNED creatures hobbling painfully
a,2hS the streets. in constant danger of top
ping over like a wooden TOW IL is NOT
merely that their feet have been SO ham
daged in babyhood that they could not grow
nut all the toes. except the great toe have
been broken and bent under the sole giving
the pointed shape demanded by Chinese
taste.
CookShOps That SMELL
Above he 81.