The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1900-06-22
S17zEH4f 55Ez77,
Ia CONNER- ).I
-HTNN'
THE YOUNG FOLK.
A Chinese Talks Of His Childhood in
the Old Country.

the OLD Country.
when / was a boy" said MOy Kce,
tea merchant, laundryman and inter
prefer, at 216 North Delaware street,
Indianapolis. to a News reporter, Il
went to school in my native village
Of Shrinking eighty-seven miles from
Pekin. | was years old when / start.
ed 10 school and, of course, the teach
or was a man. Now there are women
teaching in China. Chinese women,
but that is a new thing. We sat on
stools with desks before US and stud.
led aloud At 10 years old l could
write very well, and had to learn ev'
cry word of a long lesson by hear
The teacher had stick, and some
times, but not often, he would punish
a boy, either by striking him on the
hand or on the seat Of his trousers.
There are no bad boys in China as
there are in this country. The boys
are respectful and polite TO all who
are older than themselves, and while
they have their plays and their fun,
they do not think II fun 10 hurt any
one
you have seen boys place a pace.
age on the sidewalk and when pee.
son stoops to pick it up you have seen
that package (for there Is a string
tied to it, and boy at the other cad
Of the string move away unde a
crack in the fence That Is an old trick
in China.
"The boys here in America do not
know what long school hours are. l
went to school early in the morning
before the birds began to sing. Afte-
that we went to breakfast and then 10
dinner and In the evening to supper
Those were long. long days, the boys
here would say, but we Chinese boys
nd not say anything about 1t. We
just sat on our stools and sung out our
as we could.
Vacation came along in the harvest
time when the rice was gathered.
Then we played at flying kites. We
did not, as boys do here, fly kites any
time No, there was a season for it,
anu w new lllFll4 ut III Ollltl lllItS.
The boys in China walk on stills just
as boys do here, and play at blindfold,
hide and seek and leap-frog, but all in
"A different way from here.
NO nelghborhood in China can az.
ford 10 have bad boy in it. Suppose
a Chinese New Year, when we are all
shooting frecrackers some one would
shoot a revolver. There would be great
trouble Not only would the one who
shot the revolver be punished, but his
relatives and neiahl ors and the maglc.
trate Of the district would be punished
or reprimanded. because in China
such things must not happen. ii
stranger could walk through my vii.
lage day or night with no one to hurt
him. He would be safe all the time. 1t
is not 50 in this country.
I'VE had great sport in shooting at
sparrows with bow and arrow, and
nobody ever shot at persons, as some
boys do here with airguns. The boys
in China laugh a great deal, ard
laugh very loud sometimes. but they
nave plenty OF sport without hurting
any one.
when | was years old my mother
died and my father gave me a step.
mother When | was u years old my
uncle, a tea merchant in San Francis.
co, brought me to this country. Tween.
tyeight years ago q am now SO years
old, | went back to China and got a
wife. My father and my stepmotrrr
found a wife for me. | did not know
her. | did not see her until we were
married, but she is a good wife and
came to America with me. She is TIC
only Chinawoman in INDIANAPOLIS
and think the only one in indiana.
have been back 10 China eighteen
times, but | am a naturalized Ameri
can citizen, and vote at elections"