The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-01-11
The Scroll of Woven
Silver

! That's what they all think, Sir"
! Have the natives been able to get
him yet?'
They're out after him now, Sir. 1t
seems the old women of the family
will have him surely before morning.
See that he's closely locked up
when they bring him in, and don't
let any Of his family or friends see
him on any account"
Right you are. Sir" answered the
faithful Brownlow.
The Scroll of Woven Silver which
had been carried at the funeral of TAX
Hoy, the Compradore, was. from Chi
nese standpoint, a curio of SURPRISING
value. It was not only an original
hand painting on silk by the brush Of
the immortal LANG Lu, the court
painter Of the Using Emperors, but it
contained something that the native
The waterfall IN the background,
which appeared at first sight to be
part of the painting. was a piece Of ex-
Quisitely delicate silver embroidery and
the same was true of the long gray
beard of the patriarch in the fore
ground. The curious fact was that
they were exactly the same shape and
size, So that the waterfall could have
been exchanged for the beard. without
making the slightest difference in the
perspective of the picture! Thus &
was a literal illustration Of the an
Client saying His silver beard is as the
falling of the mountain waters" 1t
had been presented to the Compra-
dore's family many years before and
hung Immediately over the central
| 11o NIr n
the vase, making the Ornaments
three" of a pefectly- fitted native re-
ception room.
| After the passing away OF the aged
merchant it had hung iQ the place Of
honor over his long wooden home"
Gas the receptacle for his mortal re-
mains was euphoniously called) and
was admired by the many mourners
and sympathizers who came to pay
their visits Of coincidence. It was fit
ting and proper that it should be car
ried in the funeral procession when the
day fixed by the lucky soothsayer had
finally arrived. Suspended from the
middle of handsome teak wood
frame, and covered with little stream
ers of colored silk. it was proudly
borne before him by four bearers clad
in the regulation garb Of sack
walked behind.
Everything passed Off satisfactorily.
as far as the admiring crowds on the
streets were concerned-and an elab-
crate funeral is one of the treats of
their 1ives-and the procession had al
ready left the streets Of the Settlement
far behind, when the very unfortunate
accident occurred which turned the
occasion into another tragedy, and
caused an evening Of very unpleasant
tension in the usual peaceful Island of
Fragrant Waters.
Every house-boy and chair coolie on
the street was discussing it and the
| tea houses were buzzing with excite
ment, while long professions of the
curious ones walked out in single file
| to the scene of the trouble. The naval
authorities. fearing resentment on the
part of the marines and sailors, very
promptly suspended all shore leave.
Some of the European residents were
apprehensive of a race riot, but the
stern British sense of law and order
prevailed and nothing whatever oc-
Cured in the nature of an outbreak.
In his little upper room in the Alley
of the Red Cloud, Wang Foo, the
thoughtful scholar and man Of mys
terry, was thinking it all over and shar-
ing with all his better fellow-residents
feeling of the deepest regret that
anything so unfortunate should have
occurred to stir UP the embers of that
rare antipathy which he was trying
Ito Quench. He was not perfectly salts
lied with the case as Brownlow had
presented it and felt very sure that the
evidence was far from satisfactory or
N jG mi ~ of tod
crossing of the funeral procession was,
OF course, only the ignorant and in
nocent act of a sailor, while he quite
| appreciated the irritation 1t would
cause to the native bearers and mourn
ers. That they should have attacked
the white man in their anger he could
understand, but the choking him to
death with mud and sand was a pun
| ishment far more terrible than he had
ever heard of in recent years. There
must have been some reason for It in
the native mind The more he
thought Of it, the more mysterious 1t
seemed. He rendered over it till late
at night, repeating to himself the
words OF Confucius, TO find the root.
to find the root" and resolved to call
on Inspector Wallace in the morning.
He was just starting out for the Of
fee when three bearers deposited a
Sc dan chair in front Of his door and
the card bearer announced to him that
Mr.. TAX Hoy's daughter-in-law was
awaiting an interview. Old Chang.
the gate-keeper. quickly threw back
the bolts when he saw a visitor had
arrived, and summoned the Venerable
Old One to receive the lady He ush-
cred her to the principal seat IN the
Hover room, bowling most respectfully