The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-01-15
AT A CHINESE DINNER.
observations of the Only European
Guest at the Banquet.

ONGSA ~ AhC DAAVuCbs
London Star
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, according
to Chinese calendars was born 2,449 years.
ago. Confucius has stfIr a strong hold on
the educated Chinese, and the party of re-
form, OF which the unfortunate Kang Yin
Wei was the leader, are particularly at
tached TO his teachings. The reformers, in.
deed, have lately been making strenuous eff
forts 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 conserva-
tiVes did their best to crush the movement
but here in Yokohama it was a great sue
cess. Nearly all the Chinese of the place.
except the legation people and the employees
OF the Russo-Turkish bank-who are Man
chus-joined in.
The dinner was held at the josshouse,
which was a perfect blaze Of Chinese Ian
terms, electric light and grand dragon flags
ana crowded with Chinese in their most brill
liant silks-reds and greens and blues of the
liveliest possible shades. Seats were provided
Tor every one-an Improvement on the Japa-
nese custom of sitting on one knees-and
the meal was served on small tables to ac-
commodate four. The dinner commenced at
o;0O CLOCK and 1t ended at II o'clock, and
there was eating and drinking 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 little cup, not
much bigger than thimble to contain the
hot liquor beloved of the Celestial; a plate
about two inches in diameter, a porcelain
spoon and some ivory chopsticks. Each
course was brought on in a large basin,
placed in the center of the table, and the
guests helped themselves as they pleased.
me plate was so small as to be quite USE
less, and so the chopsticks moved from the
guests lips to the basin direct in a manner
which was a little repellant to European
Ideas. me plate and cup, / should add,
mad to serve for about twenty courses.
Inc first course was Of trifles-parched al
monds, melon seeds, a kind of radish. and
field bananas. Fancy any one but a Chinese
commencing dinner in that dry way Melon
seeds IN particular strike one as impossible
as part of menu. After toying with these
for few minutes the next course arrived.
IL was no other than the famous bird s-nest
soup. Like Huckleberry Firms dream of
being rich it's mot what it is cracked ltp
to be-" but I can imagine it being quite edit
ms, which my palate told me was not at all
bad, though my reason rebelled against the
verdict Then there was a pigeon done in
mysterious fashion, chicken and some I'M
known fungus, translated to me as mush-
room (Which IT was not), salmon stewed in
mysterious sauces, and fried chicken and
bamboo.
Young bamboo roots are common dish
with both Chinese and japanese, and are
almost as succulent and nourishing as deal
chips. Then there vas the brain of the
wong fish, which appears to be quite an in
enough brain for the six hundred present
What the wong fish is it's size. shape
habits and moral character 1 have no idea
Then followed q duck which had been cley-
erly boned and boiled in its own skin. Then
came the awabi shell fish (of which again
l am ashamed to confess ignorance)
preparation of pork as fat as an alderman
and as rich as Rockefeller; more mush-
rooms and bamboo in cryptic sauces chick
en- and ham. and one or two other things
the component parts of which not even
Lord Rayleigh could have determined
Finally-a blessed relief-cakes. tea and
fruits. a cigarette was smoked religously
after each course, and at the end of it ali
each guest was given q little box of OUT
landish confectionery
The Chinaman makes a Jolly host and
when Well educated is by no means an un-
interesting companion. / was speaking with
one who could talk English like professor
who had enlightened ideas on the necessity
of free press and the advantages of rail-
ways and telegraphs for China He had
passed a stiff English examination in mathe-
MATES and ancient and modern languages
A Japanese of similar attachments would
have made of himself a greasy frock-coated
horror with a napless pot hat and brown
boots But this man stuck manfully TO
every detail of his national costume He
had a most pronounced pigtail yellow silk
tunic and blue satin brooches. One respected
him for ~N