The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-09-21
VICEROY Ii AT HOME.
HIS ODD PALACE AT TIEN-TsIN, HIS
CAPITAL CITY.
Formalities of Visiting n VicerOy.
The Streets of Chinese CitIes-Joss
Houses and Shaded Gardens.
WheeIbarrows For Passengers.

The yamen or official residence of Ii
Hung Chang, is about four miles from the
foreign settlement of Tien-Tsin, across
the Pei-ho river. and to reach it, one must
pass through some of the hlthiest streets
Of one Of the hlthiest cities in the world.
! The houses are mostly built of mud mix
ed with chopped straw to give It a proper
consistency, but the fronts of some of the
shops are quite ornamental, especially
those that are covered with carvings and
gilded signs. The streets are very narrow
| just wide enough for two jfnrikishas or
two wheelbarrows, to pass The 'rikisha
was imported from Japan some years ago.
and is generally used by foreigners. The
natives of the upper class still stick to the
sedan chair borne either by men or
| mules, but the wheelbarrow is the vehicle
most patronized by the common people for
| passenger service and miscellaneous trans
| portation. Sometimes both passengers and
stock are taken on the same trip, and
| have seen a hog and a woman riding to-
gether. Journeys of hundreds of miles,
requiring days and weeks, are often made
on wheelbarrows, and untn recently, when
| coal
consumed in Tien-Tsin was brought in that
manner from mines that are 100 miles
away.
The Chinese barrow has one large, high
wheel, which projects above the box in
the center, and there are shelves on either
side Just even with the axle, on which the
| load is placed If the burden cannot be
divided, or If there is only one passenger,
| IL IS necessary to place a heavy stone
or some other weight upon the other side
10 get balance. But the wheelbarrow
man Will usually wait until he gets two
passengers. The load is the same and the
pay is double. The most frequent patrons
| or these vehicles are women with small
! feet. 1t is impossible for them to walk any
distance; there are no carriages and street
cars, and public sedan chairs are rare. The
rlklsha is beginning to be appreciated, but
the wheelbarrow is much cheaper The
rare is only cash, or one-tenth of l cent
| for trip of a couple of miles and back.
You see very little of high caste women,
however. Only the coolie class are visible
| TO the public, except upon holidays when
| some of the mandarins and rich mer-
chants take their wives out for an airing,
| ana Tor foreigners to admire AS a rule
they are better looking than the Japa-
nese. Their compilations are clearer their
| eyes are larger their features are not as
! fiat, and their figures are more shapeIv.
| Chtnawoman would be graceful. Her
| gestures and poses are good but when she
| MOBILES along on two stumps of what ma
| ture intended for feet she excites only
| sympathy and indignation at one of the
| most barbarous of practices. In the north
| ei1 part OF the empire, among the Man
| chus, root binding is not common, and
| great majority of the women one sees in
| Pekin and Tien-Tsin are able to wear No
SHOES with comfort The Manchus also
are handsomer than the pure Chinese.
They have lighter compilations and larger
| stature.
The lines of shops along the streets in
! Chinese cities are occasionally broken by
| nigh dead walls, sometimes of brick
| sometimes of stone. but more frequently
| of mud, which inclose and shelter the
| abodeS OF Mandarins or other persons of
| quality who usually own the real estate
| for blocks around them, and rent the lit
| tie shops and houses for a few dollars a
! year. Thirty cents month is a good
| price for an ordinary dwelling of the poor
! er class while So a month is ample for an
ordinary shop. When a merchant pays
| $l0 month for corner store he is an OBJ
| ject of as much interest as the Chiearo
firm whose rental is 81 600 a day
Behind these forbidding walls are gar
dens, trees, fish ponds. summer pavilions
and residences that are very attractive
when judged from the Chinese stand
| point of view, but bereft of all the com
forts and conveniences that we demand
One may sometimes enter them. if one
is properly introduced and enjoy a din
ner or a breakfast in the native STYLE
| The Chinese have tables and chairs and
do not take their meals off the floor like
the Japanese; but their food is about the
same and is prepared and served in
similar way. The embroideries and works
of art in these houses are often in strik-
r. zf
them The people do not seem to know
what cleanliness or comfort is. In japan
modern comforts are-few, but there is
scarcely person in the whole empire
rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief
who does not take bath once and some
times twice a day.
In four months of rambling in all cor
ners of Japan I never saw a dirty house
During two months of travel in China 7
never saw a clean one outside the foreign
settlements. In Japan there is running
water in every house and usually a fo,in-
tain in the court yard. In China they
have no public water supply but bring
the little they use from wells. In Japan
the tubs that manure is hauled in are
scrubbed with hot water every night when
work Is DONE and their slaves and hoops
shine like those of Herkimer county
churn. In China the handsonest apart
ments in the finest native houses are
porcelain that is used upon the table is
seldom washed. They give it a lick and
a promise" and leave it upon the table
for the next meal. Perhaps the topogra-
ply of the country has some influence
upon the cleanliness of the people China
is fiat and muddy, and for hundreds of
miles along the coast the people are Iiv-
ing upon made soil brought from the
mountains by floods, while Japan has lit
tie level area and is full of mountains.
hills, rocks, gravel and running streams
everywhere. The costumes of the people
also offer strong contrast. In Japan
the coolies wear clean cloth garments.
In China they wear soiled silk
Along the way to the viceroy's palace we
passed several joss houses in which servi-
ces seemed to be continuous and incense
was always burning. It's pungent aroma
was a grateful relief from the ordinary
odors VI is difficult for a stranger 10
distinguish between the Buddhist and the
Taoist temples. but the two religions do
not conflict, and a Chinaman may accent
both without Interference. Taoism. which
IS the original and native religion of Chi
ma, and entirely possessed the people be-