El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-08-20
The Tragedy OF Sin Gee
(By Angus Lynne.)

Sin Gee was born, not so many years
ago, in a narrow street off the main
road through Malacca, and, in conse-
querce, when he played happily with
his little fellow citizens in the lovely,
joidy mud, he had his absurd little pig
tail-abOut two inches Iong-carefUlly
braided with crimson silk by his anx-
ious mother, thereby proclaiming. to
all the sundry that. under the little
beaded "stomacher'-his sole garment
a tiny Straits born" Chinaman existed
His family was not very prosperous
then, though Sin Thye, his father, had
put away a respectable amount since
the days when 10 years before he had
run, naked and perspiring, in front
OF a rickshaw in Singapore And it was
not until Sin Gee was s that the fam
ilv-there were a few girls, but Of
course, they didn't count-moved into
the wonderful blue-fronted house on the
main street and Sin Thye took his
proper place as rich, influential Tow
key" member of the local council, and
respected in Tin and Rubber circles.
Here. in the cool darkness, among
the few heavy, black, carved chairs the
two tiny tables, and facing the shrine
with its row of smouldering Joss
sticks" Sin Thye would sit of an even
ing IN MS DTOWn, OlIeQ Sllh SUN Tune
fat. bare foot under him, the other
fishing for, catching and dropping a
slipper under his chair). in endless con-
versations-which would cease on Sin
Gees noiseless approach-with strange
men of varied garb-
Then. through a doorless arch, the
big living, dining, and bathroom Of
the house, roofless, in the center
where the tap and bath were-was a
grand place for hide-and-seek. If play
ed with great skill and without a
sound The kitchen and other rooms
up the narrow stairs, windowless most
of then-had no attraction for little Sin
Gee: but his won tiny room at the back
overlooking the sea when the tide was
in. the mile of much when it was out,
Sin Gee fell in love with at once
At II a great trial came into his
young life. 1t was decreed that ne
should go to Singapore TO school. and
IS a weeping disheveled Sin Gee accom-
panied his father on the Bentong-ror
once without attraction for the boy
to the seat of learning. and was duly
installed as scholar in the famous Raj
files institution.
a very different and blase, Sin Gee
returned at II. after periodical visits,
TO the blue fronted house in Malacca-
He had acquired, among other things
more or less desirable, thorough
knowledge of what passed for Euro
pean slang" the ability to smoke Gig
arets with marvellous rapidity; taste
for dress acquired from Eurasian
school fellows) which ran to bright
colors and jewelry. and a knowledge of
evil (from the same source) that, had
he known of it, would have astonished
hard hearted old Sin Thye himself One
thing saved the boy. His wonderful In
tellfgence, enabling him at once to pick
out the good from the bad, while it
drove him to lengths from which
timid spirit would have shrunk. kept
him calm, cold, and slightly contemptu-
Gus through the worst orgies. gave him
the power of striking a balance after
wards and, even when it went against
him, seeing the humor of the great
game Of life.
His clothes took a milder form. TIL