The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-04-05
CHINESE NEW YEAR.
An Americans Account of Its OBJ
servnnce in Hong Kong.

John A Cockerill, New York Herald.
The Chinese celebrate the opening of
the new year very much after the man.
ner of their neighbors over in the Rising
Sun. To be exact their new year begins
on the 18th of February, but the jollih-
cation begins about two days earlier. 1t
keeps up for an entire week.
The Chinaman settles all earthly affairs
on the eve of his New Year. If he doesn't
pay all his debts he loses his face" as
the vernacular hath it. If he be caught
stealing or committing any criminal act
which he cannot deftly explain and ex-
cuse, his face is no longer recognized
and so If he fails to clear off his financial
slate at the end of the year his, face
departs from him. and he is no better
than an outcast.
For this reason the night before New
Year day in Hong Kong l found to be a
street every merchant had his goods ex-
posed in front of his shop. They were
spread out on the ground, and the whole
street was lighted with lamps and torches.
Bargains were abundant. If you asked
the price of a gimcrack you were told:
Five dolla; how muchee give?'
to secure the coveted article. oh, the
mercantile sacrifices! This street bazaar
was thronged with people Many were
there to enjoy the spectacle but the mer-
chandering was vigorous. All this went
on amid the crackle and boom of fire
crackers-a fusilading which made the
memory Oh pIlSneu OattiS anu AAAA0 AZ ms
The Hong Kong firecracker is about
three times as large as the common Fourth
of July pop used In our country, ana ny, nve
natives here know how TO produce the
greatest amount of deviltry with their
crackers. They perch on the porch of d
two-storv building, and there weave a
dozen or more packs OF crackers into one
long string. Throughout the string they in
sert the large explosives known as can
alxarS This web of the inferno
they attach to the end of a bamboo pole,
light the lower fuse and swing clear. Then
the trouble begins. Some OF these strings
are ten feet long They produce snap
ping and bombing which is distracting,
deafening and demoralizing. When fifteen
or twenty of these collocations of deViltry
are at work on one block the street be-
comes impossible The air is filled with
explosives, smoke, flame and red paper
Throughout New Year day proper / saw
scores of men going about the streets and
lanes sweeping up the red paper resulting
from the cracker explosions and Juggling
ii away in great baskets. The firing in
tensiied at night and lasted throughout
all the hours. This is near the 18th, and
the roar of the crackers is stil in my ears.
1t will not slack off for at least a couple
of more days, 1 am told. AS far as induce
ing a Chinaman to work at his vocation
during this week of jollihcation, that Is
absolutely out of the question. Even thar
patient laborious, frugal industrian, the
iaundryman, is on a pleasure strike.
Neither love nor money will persuade
laundrvman to do up a shirt and the
The washboard hangs pendant on the wall
and the washingman is swimming IN
somsu and toying in fullginous dens with
fan tan. l am coming to like the whole
souled, earnest way of whooping up holt
day II means something ] am moved
10 say that when the Asiatics go in for
a spree or celebration they throw their
concentrated energies into It and they get
something out OF IL.