Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1908-05-30

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high toned. Jap and Chineses them
used to be alec same, one people, but
jap war come, Jap him wheppee Rus
sian man and him get swell head.
Like American pleople more better
than Jap"
So, seated before his pile of white
bone buttons spread over his fan-tan
table aft on the shelter deck, did
Kwong Sing, a rather fat and some
what ancient Chinaman, deliver him
self, with numerous grunts and one
huge, overmastering expression of
disgust. | had caught his expression
of keen dislike when japanese of
the higher class passed his table and
my question brought forth the re-
Spouse quoted.
The setting in which Kwong Sing
had taken up his coigne of vantage
was picturesque and bizarre in the
extreme. The shelter deck, facing
the pile of machinery further for-
ward, and the two long rows of cat
tie and horses, was filled to the full
with Chinese gamblers and their
games, fan-tan, roulette, chuck-luck,
Chinese lottery and dominoes. Around
the shaky tables were gathered some
hard-looking japanese passengers
from the steerage, their chins brist-
ling with thin hirsute growth; Chi
namen of strange types, rarely seen
in the United States, very old men,
very tall men, very tough-lookins
men; Hindoos from India loftily and
abundantly turbaned In white, blue,
black and yellow; Europeans on their
way to the Orient, speaking polyglot
tongues Americans from the upper
decks come to waste a few dimes at
gambling and to idle away their
time. In corner near the box big
tin pots were cooking rice and ver-
miceli for the savagely hungry to
devour with their chopsticks.
The games are the property of the
Chinese deck hands and crew and
they are run with the permission of
the steamship COMPANY sort Of
perquisite to help exc out their mis-
cradle wage of $3.50 gold a month
and rice. The Cinnamon. they say,
will gamble anyway. so II may as
well be done open and above-board,
which is In this instance to speak
both literally and figuratively.
But in describing the setting let
me not forget Kwong Sing, for whom
It serves only as a sort of frame.
Yet" he went on, me no likee
Jap. Him got swell head velly bad.
Want to whippee whole world now.
Say he whippee United States next.
He no can. Amelca too big, too
rich. Jap him talkee too much, all
talkee."
He paused, evidently feeling better
now that he had expressed himself.
Are you going back to stay in
China?" ! asked him.
Eyes, me go back to village near
Canton, where me born. See new
China now. Old China she go fast,
soon be no more. Me velly glad, too;
for If China no wakee up, Europe
steal all land when she sleep. China,
her big country, rich country, nigh
ty country, If her only wakee up"
What will the people of your viii
lage say to you, Kwong, II you talk
to them of reform as you are talking
to me now?"
Kwong showed the fan-tan buttons
enticingly with his stick and then
proceeded: "Oh, them folks in Chi
nese villages velly glad to hear
much leform talk now. Them wakee
up, too. apanese-Russian pleople
war wake them out of long sleep.
Twenty years ago II me go home
back to China like this-no pigtail,
San francisco clothes-they spit me
in face; but now like it much and
want ANGLICAN clothes, too. Twenty
years ago my pleople makee much
swear and velly bad face II I talkee
leform No more so now; come to
listen me talk in my house. Velly
much want to learn ANGLICAN ways."
"They want to prepare themselves
for trip to America, too?"
"No; they no wantee to come Ame-
lica; Chinese IL wakee up no need
come to Amelica; much big business
then in China, much work all same
for everybody. China her velly
much rich If only wakee up. Wages
now in China them four times more