The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1903-12-03


, right; a significant fact to archaeolo-
gists, reminiscent of primitive man,
whose motions were all centriyetal in
stead of centrifugal; toward instead Of
away from himself.
Little Gums writing book is built on
precisely the same plan: long and mar
row, with transparent leaves. She be-
gins on the last edge Of the last page,
and makes a row of characters from top
to bottom of the page.
81 am making the A B Cs," she ex-
plains.
Then she remarks, This word is peo-
pie. That one over there is dying"
People? Dying?" says the visitor.
/ IT thought You said it was the A B Cs.''
"Oh, we'll, mean it is the same thing
as the a B Cs," she says. eontentedly.
In fact, these blessed Chinese infants
begin in their youth and innocence to
/ learn a system of writing beside which
ordinary stengraphy is child's play.
Every word in the Chinese language
has a character of its own. There are
at least fifty thousand In ordinary use,
besides innumerable dialect signs, and
Others used only by scholars. Merciful-
1
Every idea that ever occurred to the
| Chinese mind has it's written symbol,
and this symbol is in reality hero
glyph, originally picture Of the idea.
But, just as the stenographer masters
with ease the four or five hundred
words used in ordinary correspondence,
and only stumbles when an inconsider-
able dictotor uses one of the rest of the
hundred thousand words in the Eng
lish language, so the Chinese child can
acquire a fair working vocabulary for
ordinary letter writing in his school
days.
Actually, however. Chinese writing is
endless. No Chinaman ever lived who
mastered the whole of it. Mr.. Fong's
Little Gun, when she begins to write,
takes a small, oblong box. Opening it,
block of soapstone is found to fill it
exactly. On this she pours few drops
/ of water from a cumming little squat
Chinese tea kettle about big enough for
a doll. .<.>I .... 81. q.r
Into the water she rubs her ink stick.
Then she takes up her pen. which is a
wooden pencil, ending in fine, soft
brush, instead of lead. She holds this
brush straight UP between her fingers,
and proceeds to paint her writing lesson
instead Of writing it.
n Gun confides to the visitor that her
pen cost only six cents; and that 1t is
only the eight cent ones which do artis-
tic work, last satisfactorily, and are
good for anything anyway.
Gun has little sister named Chi. All
Chinese children are cutter the smaller
they are, and Chi is one of the smallest
and most ravishing Of her sex. ...
She is round and roly poly like kit
n ten, and her plumpness is accumulated
| by the wadded lining to the warm little
| purple skirt she is wearing this cold
j weather. Beneath this outside blouse a
pair of the little skyblue trousers ex-
tend straight to her tiny red shoes.
II Chl's cheeks are as fat as butter balls
Her mouth Is perfect little Cupid''
bow, about as large as a very small
cherry, and on each side Of it are large
enticing dinples much larger than TIL
mouth itself.
II Her eyes are narrow strips of blacl
velvet, cut on the bias. The beginning
of a little pigtail sticks straight out be
hind, and on her head is a jolly littl
r pink capote, with two little knots stick
s ing up in the back, like the tying place
8 of a southern mamrny's bandanna.
s Gun says this is a baby's hood. Sh
e herself wears hat. L.
Gums hat is band Of green silk
e thickly embroidered In pink and white
e 1t passes straight around her forehea
d and ties under her hair behind wit
It two lapels dropping over her ears
# Gun further conf1des that Chi has al
lie American name. 1t is Rosy.
y Little Chi-Rosy Is commonly the mos
e self-possessed and Unconditional of NOR
tails, trait Of all the Chinese girls, VIII
le are very sedate little creatures. Blu
n one day in the kindergarten games an
other boy hit her brother. Chi was in
lie stantly transformed into an evengin
s. fury.
l. With immense dignity and delibera
d ton eshe walked up to the offendin
lie one and hit him back. Then she stoo
" off and said freckled things in Chinese
AS both her cherished brother and hi
* oppressor were about as large as two c
Is her, the whole school was convulse
le with mirth at the revolt Of Chi-Rosy.
l. Choy is the oldest girl in school. Sh
IF is about eleven, so this is her last yea
of freedom before she becomes Of maj
s. riageable age and retires to seclusio
1s with her mother, to do sweatshop wor
10 on the loose outer garments worn by tn
lg men of the quarter.
IN Choy's hat has large pearl bead i
the center Of the front and it is a matte
g. Of concern with Choy to keep this es
"a actly over her nose. She frequentl.
,r while writing, runs her finger up til
". bridge of her nose and reaches to sc
oil If the bead is in place. The desire
ne get her hat on straight was probably
ga primeval feminine instinct.
m Choys matronly soul is vexed wit
I'd the charge Of two young brother
Charlie, being seven, has attained tt
dignity Of queue, and sits over on tt
- boys side, eshouting moral philosoph
a. at the top Of his voice. But Loo, fou
A year-old in perfectly tight pink SAT-
he trousers and a very fetching little shi
ia of crushed raspberry velvet, Is a n
W. markab1y lively young man.
There are two small footed women
y the colony, but all the pure-bloode
es Chinese women in the quarter practis
I'll the same seclusion as their more ari
tocratic sisters. This is not so in Oh