Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-09-14
CHINESE CUNNING.
Mendacity for Which the Foreigner f.
| Not Prepared Their Main Reliance.
| From the London Pail Mall Gazette.

Mendacity for Which the Foreigner f.
Not Prepared Their Main Reliance.
From the London Pail Mall Gazette.
THE cunning of the Chinese has been
very much exaggerated, said a former
captain in conversation the other day. 81
was in the Hong Kong trade for several
years, where 1 was compelled to make a
pretty close study of the native character"
he continued and 1 soon found out that
the stories of their phenomenal astuteness
were mostly rubbish. 1t is true that the
average Chinese business man will general
ly overreach European newcomers; but II
isn't through any superior finesse or intel
hgence-it is by plain. straightout lying.
That is something the European isn't pre-
pared for, and until he learns the ropes he
can't believe that wealthy, dignified mer-
chant of high social and commercial rank
will tell him a deliberate, premeditated
falsehood. AS rule, 1t requires several
sharp lessons to get that fact into his head.
l will never forget my own first expert
ence. We had arranged with prominent
Chinese merchant Of Hong Kong for a
quantity of tea, but at the last minute
there was a hitch about the delivery of the
consignment. He told me it had been tenn
porarily tied up by the officials on account
OF some misunderstanding about the in
ternal taxes. l discovered by accident later
on that the lot bad been sold over my head
to a chance customer, and the tax story
was mere preteXt to gain time for the
substitution of an inferior grade The tea
merchant was a sedate, courtly old gentle
man, and he had told me this outrageous
lie with perfect calmneSS, looking me
squarely in the face, without a culver. 1t
never occurred to me to doubt his word.
and but for chance we would have been
heavy losers. When / exposed him indig-
nantly before all his employees and several
foreign residents l supposed he would be
ashamed and disconnected. An American OF
his standing would have been Inundated
and crushed beyond measure. l have known
men to commit suicide for less disgrace;
but he never so much as blinked. He heard
me through blandy, made no comment,
and began to talk about something else.
He had told lie, was caught, and regard
ed the episode as closed
ut is that sort of thing that throws for
eigners off their guard, continued the cap
tain. land gives the Chinese their reputa-
ton for preternatural shrewdness. Most of
their lies are clumsy and childish, and for
that very reason they are apt to be credit
ed. He wouldn't dare tell me such a thing
If 1t wasn't so,' the stranger will argue to
himself, and as consequence he gets bad
ly left. When European trader tells lie
and, l am sorry to say plenty Of them do
1t Is usually some complicated fabrication
that will leave him loophole for explana-
ton in the event of detection; but China
man takes no such pains. He confines him.
self to a plain. bald misstatement of fact,
which is rather staggering to one who is
accustomed to believe that men of large at
fairs can't afford to deliberately deceive.
But after the situation in that respect is
understood the American never has any
trouble holding his own with the oriental.
On the contrary, he gets the best of nine
deals out of ten. The native Chinese bust
ness world seems to have no conception
whatever of the meanness and criminaiity
of falsehood, yet believe 1t is matter of
custom rather than character. The hest
proof OF that is the strict int gritty Of the
Chinese tradesmen in this country. We
have a number of them here in New Or
leans, and half dozen or deal pretty
extensively with the jobbers. Without ex-
ception they enjoy a reputation for abso-
lutte truth and reliability. A. wholesaler in
Magazine street who sells large quantities
OF soap and starch to q Chinese firm near
police headquarters remarked to me recent
ly that they were the most satisfactory Gus
toners on his books, because he could place
implicit confidence in anything they told
him. 1t is the same all over the country.
You will never hear of Chinaman swim
ding a creditor. defaulting an obligation or
being involved In any trouble through mis-
representation. 30 am inclined to attrfb-
ute the crookedness Of the Cinnamon at
home to the national atmosphere Of du-
plicity and deceit. Double dealing Is so uni
versal over there that it Is simply taken for
granted. and when q native really desires
to communicate q fact he Is obliged to twist
It wrong end to or he won't get anybody
to believe It. In other words. he has to
tell a He IN order tn tell I'm fr1rfh