The extraordinary gullibility of Chinese peasant folk, and the way in which this characteristic is ex-plaited by unscrupulous rascals is well illustrated by the following story, picked up on a recent trip.
Every spring a large country fair is held at the village of Liuho, near the western border of—this county, Crowds from villages over a wide area flock hither and there is the usual agglomeration of booths with itinerant merchants, displaying their wares temptingly polars the gaping rustics. Everybody is in good humour, ready to enjoy all the fun of the fair, especially the theatrical performances, lasting four or five days, given from an open air temporary stage in full view of a vast concourse of tightly packed spectators.
Naturally such an event attracts many beggars from all over the countryside, who, in addition to their daily harvest of cash, reaped from the merchants, restauranteurs, and the charitably inclined idlers, make a good profit out of foraging trips taken after dark into surrounding villages in search of firewood.
Equipped with a sharp scythe bound to the end of a fairly long stick, they hook dry branches of low hanging trees, which are then bound into bundles, and sold to the food shops of the fair. This profitable business is known as ""nai-kan-pang" (breaking off dry bundles).
After this year's spring fair, the beggar fraternity dispersed to fresh woods and pastures new, with the exception of one middle-aged man named Wang Tzu-cheng, who hailed from Lading in Shantung. This man took up his abode in a broken-down temple, near to the village of Yinpaotsai, and from this centre made his daily rounds in the neighbourhood. After some weeks be became known to the village folk, especially to the women, who often gave him the remnants of the family pot after a meal, while he fu turn, with that easy sagacity innate in the Chinese, regaled his benefactors with the gossip of the day.
THE MAGIC SPELL, A woman of Yinpactsai had a child suffering from some mysterious disease which had hitherto defied all known remedies. One day this information was retailed to the garrulous beggar, who was heard to remark that he knew of a certain cure for the complaint.
Solicitous friends soon passed on this remark to the anxious parent, who acting on the universal truth expressed in the proverb "ya ping lan ch'iu 7' (when one is sick, one seeks medical advice from all and sundry), sought out the beggar in his decayed temple and explained to him' the mysterious symptoms. After gravely listening to the w man's story, he said he was in' possession of a secret spell which could instantly bring relief to the sick child, if she would obey his instructions. Calling for some yellow paper, he proceeded to draw mystic circles with his finger upon it, to the accompaniment of equally mysterious breathings and incantations.
The paper Was then duly folded up, and given to the woman, with orders to burn it on reaching home, and to administer the ashes, dissolved in water, as a potion to her sick child.
These instructions were faithfully carried out and the child made a wonderful recovery The beggar in his dilapidated temple quarters awoke next day to find himself famous, and during the ensuing months crowds of sick folk flocked to avail themselves of his magical powers of healing, A fee.of 200 cash was charged for each consultation, and when it was discovered that the "doctor" had a weakness for wine, he never lacked liquid refreshment, brought to him in jars by his expectant and credulous patients.
At the height of his vogue in the district it was not uncommon to see a line of country carte drawn up outside the temple gate on any day of the week, each of them having brought one or more sick folk to this wonderful healer.
From each and all the old rascal, with becoming gravity, demanded his fee with an offering, and a sheet of yellow paper, and on the latter he drew with unvarying monotony his invisible circles, muttering the while weird and unintelligible spells.
THE FEW FAITHFUL, This amazing performance went on for several months, but since the fall of the year, the number of patients has been steadily dro} ping. The old charlatan has made the utmost of certain supposed cures, but latterly doubts seem to have arisen in the minds of the villagers as to the efficacy of his strange antics. However, he has enriched himself to the extent of several hundred tiao, not to mention a fine stock of warm wadded quilts, and other gifts of clothing from grateful patients. Among these superstitious and unsophisticated country folk, belief in a new shrine or wonder-worker dies hard, and the beggar of Lading still retains a small number of faithful adherents, of course chiefly women, who sing his praises, and regard his ridiculous mummery as the hall mark of supernatural power.
Tue abolition of extraterritoriality is still engaging the attention of our local Chinese bodies. A meeting has been held by the Shantung Road Residents' Association at which a resolution was passed calling upon Peking to stand firm for China's rights and to demand the abolition of extraterritoriality and the cancellation of the present powers of the Mixed Court. It is learned that a mass meeting of local residents is also being ar-anged with the object of giving these matters consideration.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.