Evening star., 1898-12-31
AT A CHINESE BANQUET
Observations Of the Only European Guest at
the Board.
Many Courses Served In a MysteriOu,
Way-Disbes That Will Ever
BE n Secret.
From the London Star.

From the London Star
/ had novel experience the other night
says The Stars Yokohama correspondent
in being the sole European guest at a din
ner party attended by some six hundred
progressive Cinnamon. The occasion was
the birthday of Confucius. That sage, ac
cording to Chinese calendars, was born
2 40 years ago. Confucius has still
strong hold on the educated Chinese, and
the party OF reform, of which the unfortu-
nate kang-Yin-Wei was the leader, are
particularly attached to his teachings. The
Reformers, indeed, have lately been max
ing strenuous efforts to revive the cult of
Confucius, and this was the first time for
many years that his birthday has been
celebrated in style. Probably in China the
victorious conservatives did their best to
crush the movement, but here in 4oko-
hama it was great success Nearly all the
Chinese of the place, except the ieSaton
people and the employees of the Russo
Turkish Bank-who are Manchus-joined
in.
The dinner was held at the josshouse,
which was a perfect blaze OF chinese IAN
terms, electric light and grand dragon flags,
and crowded with Chinese in their most
brilliant siiks-reds and greens and blues
of the liVelieSt possible shades. Seats were
provided for every one-an Improvement on
the Japanese custom of sitting on ones
knees-and the meal was served on small
tables to accommodate four. The dinner
commenced at $50 o'clock and 1t ended at
IL o'clock, and there was eating and drink
ing the whole time, with no laborious
speeches to distract the attention, no music
to divert one from the main object, and no
irritating humorist to waste time. Your
Chinese may be effete, but he can eat and
drink like Gothic hero.
The method of serving was peculiar. Be
fore each guest was placed a little cup
not much bigger than a thimbie, to con
tain the hot liquor beloved of the celestial;
plate about two inches in diameter,
porcelain spoon and some ivory chop
sticks. Each course was brought on in
large basin placed in the center of the
table, and the guests helped themselves as
they pleased The plate was so small as
to be quite useless, and so the chop sticks
moved from the guests lips to the basin
direct iii a manner which was little re-
peilant to European ideas. The plate and
cup, l should add, had 10 serve for about
twenty courses.
The first course was of trifes-parched al
monds, melon seeds, kind of radlsh, and
field bananas. Fancy any one but Chi
nese commencing a dinner in that dry way.
Melon seeds in particular strike one as i'm
possible as part of menu. After toying
with these for few minutes the next
course arrived 1t was no other than the
famous birds nest soup. Like Huckleberry
Finn's dream of being rich it's mot what
it is cracked up to be- but L can imagine it
being quite edible if one is hungry. Then
came sharks fin, which my palate told me
was not at all bad, though my reason re-
belied against the verdict. Then there was
a pigeon done in mysterious fashion, chick
en- and some unknown fungus, translated to
me- as mushroom (Which it was nOD; sal
mon steWed in mysterious sauces, and fried
chicken and bamboo.
Young bamboo roots are a common dish
with both Chinese and Japanese and
almost as succulent and nourishing as deal
chips. Then there was the brain of the
wong fish, which appears to be quite an in
tellcctual fish, for there was more than
enough brain for the 600 present. What the
wong fish is, its size, shape habits and
moral character. I have no idea. Then fol-
lowed a duck which had been cleverly boned
and boiled in its own skin. Then came the
awabi shellfish (of which, again, l am
ashamed TO confess gnOranCe). a prepara-
ton of pork as fat alderman and
rich as Rockefeler more mushrooms and
bamboo in cryptic sauces, chicken and ham,
and one or two other things, the component
parts Of which not even Lord Rayleigh could
have determined. Fnaliy-a blessed relief.
cakes tea and fruits A cigarette was
smoked reigiouSly after each course. and
at the end of it all each guest was given a
little box of outandish confectionery.
The Chinaman makes a jolly host, and,
when We'll educated. is by no means an un-
Interesting companion. / was speaking
with one who could talk English like pro-
fCssor. who had enlightened ideas on the
necessity of a free press and the adVan-
tageS of railways and telegra phS for China
He had passed a stiff English examination
in mathematics and ancient and modern
languages. A japanese of similar attain
ments would have made of himself a greasy
frock-coated horror, with napless pot hat
and brown boots But this man stuck man.
fully to every detail of his national cos
tune. He had most pronounced pigtail, a
yellow silk tunic and blue satin breeches
One respected him for it.