"How long does he want to be away?" we asked Wong, a ready sympathy suggesting that perhaps after the honeymoon the coolie and his wife would like to come and settle with us in the room which at present was vacant in the servante" quarters.
"Uh, She no come this side, Mus' wantchee stay Kompo side. His mothah wantehee she "do pidgin He mothah pay fittee doliai foh he. No can come this side." And Wong gazed on us reprovingly.
Whatever Wong thought, our intentions were of the best. We were once the financial means of adopting a baby boy, a derelict of a West River flood, into the hous of our cook in Hongkong, and the mere acquisition of a wife for one of our servants and her lodgnient in adequate quarters, was a mere A little pink colourwash of the room, some bright looking chintz draped round an old lamp shade over the electric light, would, we thought, make life brighter for the young But Wong would stand none of that nonsense. No "love pidgin" where Wong was.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.