His Excellency Li Hung-chang does not look as if his nerves were over-strung with tea in any form.
He calualy proceeds on his way, being entertained by public bodies as well as private hosts and never loses his head with the social demands made on hin.
He is rather startling in some of the questions he puts to his journalistic interviewers.
One of these was a well known lady journalist.
He was very courtly in his manner to her.
Finally he asked her if she was married, and she said she had been twice married. Then he inquired if. she had any children, and seemed surprised when she answered
could scarcely credit thes a in the negative, looking as though he ence of children in a marriage twice made.
But his third question was the most unexpected of all, for he looked straight at her with his Keen eyes, which have such regi guise depths of humour, and asked her how old she was."
She hesitated, blushed, stammered and otherwise tried to gain time, ere she perhaps made up'a fairly reasonable prevarication. Meantime the Envoy stolidly awaited her response. The interpreter Tnstened to explain that Chinese etiquette transformed question into a compliment on the. part of the questioner. To the English and the American woman such 8 question is too personal to even pretend to hear it.
Age, however, if regarded as an honour makes another matter of it. I wonder if the lady, who it is said was very Tressel, told the truth in the end?"
retty, vivacious, and most charmingly
doubt it.
She -probably preferred less honour with less years in the mind of her Oriental host, whose stay here has been
saleable articles @ la Chinoise. the means of stimulating all sorts, of A firm of ladies in' Bond Street who have a pretty afternoon tea" Cafe have not only redecorated their dainty little premises in yellow scarves and hangings, but have filled vases with flowers in every shade of yellow, doing a brisk trade in the sale of these Li Hung-chang bonquets, whose name is spelled in many ways, each claiming to be the correct method.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.