The evening times., 1897-01-16

uplifted by the wisdom of the words that
should trickle out like honey from the comb.
The young man thereupon strung out a line
of compliments that took up the better
half of an hour, and said that, other things
being equal, he would like to marry An
Fun, which. being translated, is the Ris-
ing Sun. The father OF the maiden said
that he would consider the matter. Then
they had three rounds OF drinks and thirty
seven rounds Of salaams, after which the
aspirant to matrimony went forth.
When the elder All said that he would
consider the matter he was talking through
the coils of his pigtail. Mighty glad was
he to get chance to marry off his daugh-
ter, because girl child is a sort of fam
lily misfortune, anyway, in China, and the
sooner family can get ri of her tne bet
ter it is for all concerned. Therefore, after
waiting q few days for the sake OF ap-
peaTances, the father wrote highly cere-
monious note in pink ink on black paper,
the words of which read up and down like
sum in addition, informing him that
everything was all right. Next in order
came the ceremonial call of the young man
upon his fiancee. She was chaperoned by
her mother, and he came around in charge
were there to see that the thing was prop
erly done. After all the assistants had
bow ed until they were dizzy and exchang-
ed epithets until their tongues swellcd up
and refused to work, Quong Now adj
dressed his bride-to-be and said in sub
stance.
Beautiful queen OF the morning, pearl OF
the awakening universe, | go forth into
the world to make my fortune, that in the
after time l may come and wed you"
An Fun said nothing Except Google GOO"
because she had sIIppc down upon the floor
and was busily trying to bite the gold taSSel
off the end Of her fiance's belt, which she
might not do on account OF the absence OF
the requisite teeth. But her mother an
swered for her, and the An family set up
the drinks and the salutations, which con-
clude the ceremony. 1t was afterward de-
cided that, as the An family didn't approve
of long engagements 1.-THE family of the girl
never does in Chinal, the couple should be
married in twenty years, or thereabouts
So Quong Now went to work to make a
fortune and build home for All Fun,
which is no easy thing in Nankin, because
there great many people thereabuuts who
wanttO make fortunes, and the competition
is keen.
In the course of time Quong Now con-
Cluded that the rate OfinCreaSe OF wealth
which he was then achieving he would not
be able to marry for some fifty years, by
which time he shrewdly suspected that he
might be dead. Therefore, he came to
this country, having learned that much
money was to he made ty washing the gar
meBtS Of the foreign devils, who were I'M
clean demons, and required fresh ablutions
for their clothing every week. After get
ting here he tried a variety of businesses,
and because ne could and did live on sew
enteen cents 4 day, or something ofthat sort,
he soon hadmoney in nhisleftStocking, which
is the lucky place to carry it, fact OF
which many otherwise intelligent persons
are wofully ignorant. Every now and then
when he felt flush he invested in postage
stamp, and wrote letter over seas to his
little sweetheart in Nankin, which her pa
rents read to her with iniunctions as to the
necessary qualifications for one who was to
become the wife of Chinaman in a far
country and live among foreigners who went |
aboutino open ndeccncy. wearing nopigtailS. |
All these years All Fun was growing up |
in the usual way of the Chinese girl. Be- |
were fairly well-to-do, she had no drudgery |
forced upon her, but was taught to sit for |
hours crossed-legged on mating and do /
OF d fancy nature. When a |
Chinese maid can do this without getting |
cramps in the lower eXtremities it is con-
sidercd that she has taken her first degree. |
Instruction on a misshapen banjo was |
also impaired to her, and she attained such |
perfection upon this tortuous instrument
that she could play for several minutes at
time without her auditors icing able to |
discern even the semblance of a tune AS |
a special mark OF favor She was taught TO
read and write when quite a grown girl,
because word had come from Quong Now
that he had gone into mercantile pursuits,
and 1T was thought that in the far country
she might be called upon to keep his ac-
counts or write polite letters TO lis GUS
TONERS on the Chinese New Years.
Twenty years passed and An Fun was
beautiful maiden, with eyes that set at a
very fancy angle TO each other and feetlike
the knob on the end ola cane Certain men
OF Nankin would have been glad to marry
her. but the cider All replied to all appca-
tions that she was pledged to Quong Now
in q foreign land. Incidentally he had
heard from a returned ccuntr yman that
Quong was rich. About this time came a
letter from Quong saying that he had begun
active preparations for the wedding, which
he thought might be set three years from
late in order that there should be no un-
'eemly haste. The three years passed.
Quong Now sent the passage money for his
bride and her companion, and All Fun. with
ler nurse, arrived in New York last week
What she said at the meeting or what he
,aid matters not. 1t was all very cere-
The romance of two continents and
wenty-three years concluded on Sunday
evening with wedding at the joss house
n Mott street. Chinatown didn't attend
because Chinatown wasn't invited. 1t isn't
roper to have big crow d at wedding.
luong's business partner was there and a
ew cousins and distant relative of the
ride, besides her nurse. The pair saluted
he joss, burned incense sticks under his
lignified nose. and drank some wine, after