The daily morning journal and courier., 1894-08-31
4 BELGIAN M4NDARIN,
The Romantic Career of a Chinese Custom
 Ofhcial.

Omcial.
 while the young American bicyclists Messrs. Allen and Sachtleben were crossing the desert of Gobi they heard much of mysterious and powerful official called the Ling Darin. No one could tell who or what he was. Finally as they emerged from the desert, starv- ed. i'll and ragged. they were met by a richly-dressed mandarin. according to the story they tell in the September number of the Century. He greeted them cordially in clear but broken Eng fish, and mounted on waiting horses, they were attended into the city of Su-chou. 'Tt was sometime before the idea flashed across our minds that this might indeed be the mysterious Ling Darin about whom we had heard so much. Yes said: he, that is what am called here, but my real name is Splingard.' He then went on to tell us that he was Belgian by birth; that he had travelled extensively through China as the companion of Baron Richt- hofen, and had thus become so thor oughly acquainted with the country and its people that on his return to the coast he had been offered by the Chinese gov ernment the position of custom man. darin at Su-chou, a position just then established for the levying of duty on the Russian goods passing in through the northwest provinces; that he had adopted the Chinese dress and mode of living and had even married, many years ago, Chinese girl educated al the Catholic schools in Tientsin.
 We were so absorbed in this roman tic history that we scarcely noticed the crowds that lined the streets leading to the Ling Darin's palace, until the boom of cannon recalled us to our situation. From the smile on the jolly face beside us we knew at once whom we could hold responsible for, this reception. The pal ace gates were now thrown open by a host of servants and in our rags and tatters we rolled at once from the hard ships of the inhospitable desert into the lap of luxury.
 "A surplus is not always so easily disposed of as a deficit-at least we were inclined to think so in the case of our Su-chou diet. The Ling Darin's table, which, for the exceptional occa- sion, was set in the foreign fashion, with knives and forks, fairly teemed with abundance, and variety. There was even butter, made from the milk of the Tibetan yak, and condensed milk for our coffee, the first we had tasted since leaving Turkey, more than year before. The Ling Darin informed us tn taa can of this milk which he once presented to Chinese friends, had been mistaken for face cosmetic and was so used by the ladies of the family. The Ling Darin's wife we found an ex- cellent and even artistic cook, while his buxom twin daughters could read and write their own language, rare accom- plishment for a Chinese woman.
 "As guests of our highly respected and even venerated host we were visited by l nearly all the magistrates in the city. The Ling Darin was never before com- pelled to answer so many questions. In self-defence he was at last forced to get up stereotyped speech to deliver on each social occasion. The people, too, besieged the palace gates and clamored l for an exhibition. Although our own clothes had been sent away to be boil- 1 ed, we could not plead this as an ex- cuse. The flowing Chinese garments which had been provided from the pri- l vate wardrobe of the Ling Darin flut- tered wildly in the breeze as we rode out l through the city at the appointed hour. Our Chinese shoes, also, were constant 1 ly slipping off and as we raised the foot | to readjst them shout went up from the crowd for what they thought was some fancy touch in the way of riding"