The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-11-19
RAPP[EYE BECK ( P|DGEON.
This Firm Of Reformers
Writes a Book About
New York's China
town.
"CHRISTIAHIzIHG THE HEATHEE"
Instructive and Entertaining
Topics Considered by
This Precious Trio.
"CHRISTIANIzING THE HEATHEp


refers out of crime in Hudson county
that trio of social reforrners, Beck,
Pidgeon and Rappleye have turned their
attention to literature. A book has just
made its appearance, entitled New
YorlS's Chinatown an Historical Presen-
tation of Its People and Places. Louis
J. Beck's name appears on the title
page as the authority, and the largest
picture in the book is a full length coun-
terfeit of his uninteresting features, still
Mr.. Pidgeon and Mr.. Rappleye are repre-
sented both in the text and Illustrations,
although they are obliged to be content
with a few pages only and small quar-
ter page portrait. The book contains
much that is interesting, which is pre-
sented in an entertaining manner It be-
gins with a description of New York 8
Chinatown telling how it originated and
giving brief sketches of the first Chinese
immigrants to New York. The govern
ment of Chinatown, which, strange as it
may seem. is firmly established among
the Chinese and its laws far more bind
ing upon the Celestials than those of
this country, its organization and the
manner in which it exercises its assumed
powers are well described. The domestic
life of these Orientals, for there are
some married couples among them, the
inferiority OF the wife in all things and
the ceremonies attending the birth of
child are set forth. The great majority
of the Cinnamon here, however, are sim
gle men, and the manner In which they
live, the gaudy restaurants where they
obtain their meals, the peculiar bills of
fare and some of the dishes they eat are
graphically touched up. Some pages are
devoted to Chinese laundrymen, setting
forth their organization and strict union
regulations and the peculiar industries
in which the Celestials engage in in
Chinatown are also touched upon. A
the various ways in which John is re-
lieved of his money in fan-tan joints and
other gambling establishments. The So
cial evil is treated with a frankness that
is very close to brutality and the vari-
Gus methods whereby the brothels of the
district are supplied with victims is
handled without gloves. Several chap
ters are devoted TO that great enemy of
the chinaman: opium. The subject is.
taken up at the beginning and
the Introduction and spread of the
habit in New York is Irested.
at length The manner of TAX
ing the drug is described, as well
as some very pathetic as well
as disgusting scenes in an opium joint.
There is also description of a fashiona-
Bile den in the 'sTenderloin'' where white
men and women can indulge in the deadly
drug and enact scenes on a par with those
to be witnessed in the low dives of Mott
street Sundry quaint ways and habits
of John Chinaman are considered in the
first few chapters and then the manner
in which he celebrates his New Year is
taken up The festival continues for
twenty days, and it is the one great event
of the year in the life of John Chinamar
An interesting chapter is the one which
deals with the religion and worship Of
John Chinaman. 1t declares that the
worship Of Joss is a fraud and not a form
of religion, and sets forth many of its
repulsive features. Chinese superstition is
amply illustrated and 1t is told why the
bones of dead Cinnamon must be returned
to the Flowery Kingdom and how the
work OF recovering them and shipping
them is performed. One of the most in
teresting chapters of the book is that
which tells of George Apo. the half
caste. whose father murdered his mother.
Like his father, after spending half his
life In prison, he has gone to an insane
asylum.
Up to this time Beck claims the author
ship of the book while the remainder,
an appendix is the work of several au-
thors. Here 1t is that Pidgeon and Rap
pleye are allowed to shine for one brief
moment Mr. Rappleye, with characterls-
tic soft-heartedness writes about "Chin-
ese Humanity The humanity of which
Mr. Rappleye writes was displayed by
China man whom he knew in Hope,
frontier town of Idaho, and who, contrary
to the general way of Cinnamon, appears
to the general way of Cinnamon appears 70
have had genuine affection for his Wire
to sell his wife, which is way all China
men have. One day while Mr.. Rappleye
was in Mott street a fire started IN
one of the Chinese tenement houses. His
friend from Hope rushed into the burn
ing BUILDING and dragged out a half
fainting Chinawoman. The woman soon
regained her composure sufficiently to
iabber something in Chinese to the man,
who Immediately returned to the burning
building, but did not come out again.
After the fire was over the firemen
dragged him out and laid him away for!
dead. Beside him they laid Chinese
baby, which had been found near him in
the building The Chinaman was only
overcome by smoke and soon recovered.
He met Mr. Rappleye afterward and told
him that the woman was the wife he
had sold and the baby was hers, not his.
One gets a peculiar start when he sees
the subject of Edward e. Pidgeon's con-
tribution to this work. It is christian
izing the Heather Sunday School Work
Those who only know Mr. Pidgeon from
his brief but ignominious career in this
city wonder what he knows about either
Christianity or Sunday school work. It
seems. however, as his contribution pro-
crosses that Mr.. Pidgeon once attended
Sunday school in Brooklyn when he was
young and untutored. He certainly does
not reflect much credit upon the teachings
of the Brooklyn Sunday schools. There IS
much of the hlraorist in Mr.. Pidgeon, for
near the beginning of his chapter ne
says:--aA few. years later | found myself
one of band of earnest young workers
who volunteered their services to teach
Mission OF the Methodist Episcopal
Church. the first OF Is kind established
in the very heart of Chinatown. As he
to be an *tearnesf worker OF such SOFT