Connecticut western news., 1896-01-09
YAP'S DUCK DINNER.
HOW A HoSPlTABLe cHlNAMAN eN
 RETAINED FRIENDS.

A Queer Building With Dingy Piacarded
 wsIls-A Host Who Condemns His Own
 Table-The Chinese Method of Cooking
 . Duck Explained.
 "Did you ever eat boiled duck cooked a la Chinois with noodles and string beansS" asked MT. B. P. Tasker, the rectifler, of a seeker for information. II have been in- vited by my friend, Tap Wing, at 217 South Eighth street, to go there and par take, and you ought to try It." Colonel Wings restaurant is inside dingy brick sarcophasus that reminds one of those brick graves they build for aristocrats at the cemeteries for $50 each. One reaches 1t up palsy stricken stairway, and as one waits at the door for entry one is confront ed with a number of placards with Chinese characters in black on @ red ground Translated they run as follows:
 "The house of the eight bepevolenoes will tonight provide inferior duck badly boiled and seasoned with unworthy curry, together with such wilted> and cheap bought vegetables as may be required by those who honor its unworthiness with their presence. The extravagant price of this inferior repast will be 25 cents in American money"
 Beside It was another:
 "The negro woman Matta in the alloy behind the singing place is thief. Now she has stolen Ss from Fong Plung The sagacious will avoid this black woman."
 Some of the placards were wholly un- printable and deadly libelous. Some were of light and frivolous character. Some were advertisements, pure and simple. Some were poems written in spare mo- ments and exposed that all might see.
 There are also some galling allusions to the police and Celestial critiques on the municipal government, but before the in- terpreter could work through the lot Tap Wing had the little party under his hos pitable wing and was marshaling 1t into the restaurant.
 "No gooda reada Chinaman write" he said. "Chinaman write when he get mad. You come eat duck. ITS vera bad duck tonight, but how can helpS S's vera bad curry. S's evlything rotten, but you try him, and then you dam Tap Wing, and you solly you ever see him-hein?"
 "This means,' MT. Tasker whispered, "that Tap has an especially good duck for us and that all other things are out of sight. It is the Chinese way. It Is DO iiteness,
 The eating room is little below the level of Hop alley. It Is scrupulously clean and scrupulously bare. At the table where the present party was to sit were grouped a number of chairs. A spotless linen cloth covered 1t, and quaint china dishes were all about. Others in the re- factory were eating off delft and tin, and they sat on benches. The "high place in the synagogue" had two lamps; the other tables shared one, Whom the ouests xvere seated a coolp came in with largo tray that he sat be- | fore Yap Wing and uncovered. It had the | duck on it, and to Caucasian eyes that | duck did not look like 1t had ever beer | cooked at all. The skin had the fresh ap | pearance of the market place. The other | dishes came on quickly. There was some | kind of ragout. There were string | beans, tomatoes and what one would take l to be salad, although 1t was really 6 | cabbage omelet,
 The host stuck his fork into the breast | of the duck and then, instead of carving | as we do, he began slicing right through i the fowl, turning of flake after flake a. though it had been so much sausage. | "Say, what kind of duck is thatY' | queried startled guest, who had never seen bird cut crossways before.
 Him vera bad duck" Wing stated | "You try him." And a portion that | looked like a chicken croquette bound 1T skin was put on the plate, with spoonful of noodles and lot of sauce. Tho othel l vegetables were added, and the guest 1 clumsily adjusting his chopsticks, begar | to work. The beauty about chopsticks il ! that you can use them as a fork once you get piece of meat cornered where 1t can not elude you. Until then you have exer else and all the pleasures of the chase But the duck once won was worth win ming. It was heavy with curry and ret peppers, so that 1t was shade too hot fol an uneducated palate, but 1t melted in tn, | mouth, luckily, and the rice and tn, | noodles seemed to fit 1t exactly.
 | Explain the way you do 1t, MT. Wing, | one asked. What has become of tn, bonesp'
 Isis yer poor duck" said Mir. Wint complacently, "but l tell you. WheI Chinaman buy duck, he buy him alive, st he can kill right. He hang duck In celia and cut he throat, so he bleed plenty Then he soald duck, so him fleathels conn of. Then he skin duck and save skin, s. he one piece Then he take duck and GU him into little bits of pieces and he no GU bones, but put them in pot for boil. WheI he choppee, choppee duck so he small littl bits of meat Chinaman take rice and talk curry and take noodle and put 'em all il pot for boil-other pot. Then he take duel skin and piece of ducks gut and needl and he sew up that skin " here he hav cut him, only leave one big hole for stuf him. When the meat Is boil, he take 1 and cram and cram that duck skin til bimeby that skin he chock full of duel and rice and noodle and curry. Then b sew up that big hole what he stuff him b. and put him in pot for boil minute more and when he not bad duck like this hin \ vera good. He look like duck what go bones in him, but he just boil duck" | But you can't get all the duck bacl into the skin, can you'"
 "Oh, no. Chinainan not try. Tha rest of that duck we boil in other pot wit bones and more rice, and we sell him |
 cents a bucket. Plenty people buy"
 And this was true. While the little sup per was being eaten at least half a dozel
 people came in, bought bucketful of tn
 mess--and 1t was nice mess-and went o
 their way rejoicing.
 | The other comestibles were much 1ik
 the American preparations except the cat
 bage omelet, which was indescribable-
 and also inedible. The tea was served Il
 transparent porcelain without sugar O
 cream, but with few drops of what tast
 ed like brandy In 1t This was also uu
 usual to the United States palate-th
 combination, that is. Finally came grea
 tray of little pots full of candied ginger
 melon rind, some queer Asiatio fruits an
 some more tea--this time without tn \ t. a. 1-L--