The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-07-29

the servant to buy" said Mrs. Loehr, flor admirable as the Chinese servant is in every other way, he has one fault; he thinks it is his spscial privilege to
 squeeze his master ssi purchases made He will collect commissions from the tailor, the laundry man and all oth
 CTS with whom his master deals; the
 Chinese servant feeds himself, conse- quently he markets accordingly Coal in
 China sells for $26 ton; at least it did last winter. I presume the coming win ter it will be at least $32 a ton. Game of all kinds and descriptions sells for practically nothing, you might say. In
 China, pheasants, the biggest incest things you ever saw, sell at 40 cents each, and on account of being so large serve two or three meals. A whole deer sells for $2. In American money it would be about s1. 50.
 | Houses, though-rents-are simply pre-
 posterous," Mrs. Loehr said, and when
 the cost of living is summed up 1t would
 take $500 month to live in China, where
 s200 a month would cover the expenses
 here. .e
 l "I must tell you about the wonderful 1 furs that can be bought in China,' Mrs.
 Loehr sail. "I bought the most lovely set
 of furs for s5 in Shanghai for little
 cousin of mine here. She was offered in New York by leading furrier, who ap- praised them at his own valuation. $7o. l And the silks are simply exquisite Heavy
 duchesse satin embroidered in gorgeous
 gold roses or beautiful gold butterflies, | the kind of gold that never tarnishes,
 sells there for about $7.50 yard now.
 Before the war it could be bought at ! $2. 50 a yard The same materials in this | country would sell for $2o yard. F1let faces of the most exquisite workmanship
 sell for practically nothing, and every thing we have is trimmed with filet,
 while the native embroidery is shown in
 every style and varietly from the simple luncheon cloth to the brides wedding
 gown. which by the way is usually rent
 ed and scarcely ever owned.
 Mrs. Loehr brought home with her a
 most exquisite Chinese wedding gown,
 one that she assured me dozens and doz-
 ems of Chinese brides had rented ana
 been married in: all brilliant brick dust
 red in color, with marvellous sprays and
 designs in old blue, black and gold em-
 broideries of the most gorgeous workman
 ship; each flower having an especlai
 meaning; all just too lovely for words fairly beggaring description, as all the
 lovely Chinese embroideries do!
 Mrs. Loehrs collection of Chinese cos
 tunes is very interesting, including the
 kind her own servants wear, repnca
 in fact. and the little costumes worn py
 the tiny one-year-old children. for you
 know in China a child is not provided
 with 'layette" as is the custom Tn
 America, but is wrapped i'll sWaaohne
 clothes-any old garments-until 1t IS one
 month old, and then great feast IS
 given to which friends are bidden. Eacn
 brings a garment and an egg, prlgnt
 colored in red tints, sometimes a nttie
 design painted on the egg. and then when the youngster is one year old, II nes d
 boy a wonderful embroidered costume is provided for him. with a funny iittie cal ! which makes him look like little !kltteI } or rabbit, this being designed so una. ,i the "evil spirits come to take hlm away , they can be fooled into believing ne IS kitten or a rabbit or something equally ] as impossible ] China is bound by superstitution Mrs Loehr said and fetish or Cnlna ; religion is that woman is lost unless she bears a man child girls count 1o' , very little in China; they don't bothel l with them at all; when boy oapy II : born he is put in a little basket an( } every attention showered upon nm } but a little girl is put in box-ant l never peeps out except through tin! little holes just big enough for he little eyes to see through. mai in China may have as many wives al
 he can support" Mrs. Loehr went oI , to say. "and the first wife has su : premacy in the government of domestic affairs over all the others, althougf the mother in-law is supreme in Cnlna The first wife has jurisdiction ove all inc children-not only her own but those of the other wives and hel word is law in the list of wives"
 T must tell you how difficult I was for me to speak with my servants when I first went to housekeeping 1T Shanghai, Mrs. Loehr continued The, talk what is known as Pidgin English and they absolutely bewildered me with their queer lingo. In Pidgin English one word usually does for several My
 is used for T. me- mine ours ant we. 'Catchee' is a modification of the English word catch signifying own ership or acquisition. He have catches one piece wifee.' means he has mar ried. When one of my servants thu