Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1920-11-04

The city is 20 miles up the Pearl
river from the sea. Naming the kinds
OF junks that ply about Canton re-
quires as much knowledge as picking
the makes Of automobiles that spin
along Riverside drive or Michigan ave
nue. The slipper boats are recog-
nizahe because Of striking resem-
blance to their European-gfven nick
name; the Canton sa1npans' are nu-
merous; the two-masted passenger
junks are the Canton Hongkong fer
ries. but the most curious Of the many
other kinds. perhaps. are the che-ting,
operated by Cinnamon stepping on a
treadmill in the rear. These were in
vented by an European who sensed
that man power is the cheapest and
most plentiful to be had in China
land where labor-utlllzing rather than
labor-saving devices pique the inven-
tor.
The cutters are In the middle of the
street, In Canton. The divers down
by the water front go in feet first.
The Canton bon-bon Is pit-tan, eggs
preserved In rice hulls, ashes and lime.
II man has beautiful yard or gar
den. he hides it by high wall; but
once the visitor breaks through this
privacy, in company with trusted
guide, he may find himself not only
on the premises but conducted through
an exclusive home as If 1T were a pub
hNi IN =
bers go serenely about their own affairs
while they, too. are described and ex-
planned by the cordial friend. Here
is hint Of the origin of the China
town tours in our great cities.
Temples and Legends.
If the struggle for existence sug-
gests materialism, one need only visit
the temples in Canton, to glimpse the
delicate. subtle, and daring imagina-
tion Of the seemingly literal, cautious
Chinamau. The "Flowery Pagoda,"
with the copper pillar topped by
golden ball. is where a famed Indian
missionary once spent night, and
so fragrant was his presence that the
tower still is free from mosquitoes.
To the Five Fairies Temple once
came five genii. wearing coats Of diff
ferent colors and riding goats of differ
ent colors. Each fairy brought stalk
of grain, which was given to the peo-
pie with the benediction Dwell here
in perpetual peace, and never know
fo r,1fn Thn fosr
their steeds turned to stone, and re-
main to this day In the temple. A
more mechanical curiosity is the tow
er where time is measured by water
dripping from four copper vessels, ar
ranged at different levels.
The hills about are famed no less
for their legends than for the terraces
where the ginger root is grown thai
is preserved by the Cantonese. One
peak is crowned by rock that sways
when spoken to in angry tones; there
is stream where some Oriental
Enoch drank a potion of iris leaves
and, becoming immortal, was waited
away to heaven.
There Is chamber of commerce at
Canton, but the characteristic indus
trial bodies are the guilds. - in num-
her, iron bound, lf-perpetuating Or
CARNATIONS, Of great power both eco
nomically and politically. The Chi
nese merchant and artisan is an apt
example Of the tremendous forces of
inertia, or precedent. II you like, in
Chinese life. He carves, hrews. or
sells gold foil, not only because his
father or grandfather did, but because
his remote ancestors, when Columbus
sailed westward or Marco Polo tourel
east, did that very thing in just that
| way.
Quality. not variety. is the merit he
seeks and the guilds define the exact
sphere Of their members mlnutely.
There is the Guild Of Dealers in Cloth
interviewer with Metal Threads Of
Various Colors, the Guild OF Dealers
in Kerosene Lamps. the Guild Of Deal
ers In Hand Reeled Silk, and the Guild
OF Dealers In Liquor Brewed from
Rice.
| The honesty Of the Chinese mer-
chant Is proverbial. In Canton lived
Hon Qua, a millionaire. who furnished
a conspicuous example of this quality.
When firm which owed large sums
to foreigners became bankrupt. Hon
Qua headed list Of Canton business
men who made good the debt, On the
ground that Chinese credit must mel