California holidays are jrood but! tumultuous; the quietest and prettiest holiday-makers T know are the Japanese. The Japanese when he wants recreation goes to look at flowers. And when he reaches the flowers he does not, curiously ough, tear them up ly the roots, or sit down on them, or put on his female companion's hat, or turn on a portable gramophone—nor does, hie even eat bananas of shrimps out of paper bags and throw the bags on to the grass.
No; he simply goes on looking at the flowers; he and his humble wife and his flowery babies walk-elickjelick, click-elack—on their clogs. round and round the flowers, talk flowers. ing in soft, light voices about the
By and by they all take out of] bright, neatly-folded handkerchiefs! neat straw boxes of "bento"—(rice mixed with a few poppers or fragments of dried fish)—and they nea ly make use first of their chopsticks and then of their toothpicks, looking at the flowers, all the time.
Chinese holidays are, of course. the holidays I know best. of recent years, at least. The Chinese are a naturally gay people, but, like the, Engl'sh, they seem to huve a, pro-density to put all their gaiety into Last September, in Manchuria, remember, we celebrated some outing day in the short and ver history of the Chinese Re-went as a humble and unmattering female, and was buffeted about among coolies in the outer fringes of the public park, but all the officials—Chinese, Japanese and European—squeczed themselves into long-forgotten forms of frock-coats, morning-coats, Prince Al-herts. tophets, and other gentlemanly disguises, and stood in one omer of a square formed of glorously epauletted but perspirings State employees.
As the last grandee stepped gig-along into his place, a posse of buzz les blew a terrific blast into the back of my neck and all the, soldiers saluted, and the police—rather unlexpectedly—raised their hats. Then a master of the ecremontes—a policeman with specially enormous epaulettes—came forward and Axed with a glittering eye, Somg of the higher grandees were, indeed, very difficult not look' at—especiaily one Chinese major, a man with almost as large la wheel-base as a pyramid and rather same shape; he was obliged by democracy he served to appear sky-blue, voluminously skirted and tightly.thronted, and on the peak of the pyramid quivered a Tittle helmet with a very tall splash of a white plume waving above it.
"Pheee bows to China," shouted the master' of the ceremonies. We all began our first bow before he gave the word of command, "Firat ow," #o that by the time he orderced us to do our third, we wore clasp~ ing our tummies preparatory to doing our fourth, A "Wow" Parade Meanwhile a flag ran up halting ly to the top of a flagpole in the middle of our square, On this, the square began to sing, with an effect like "Three Blind Mice" as rendered by the deaf and d First. the soldiers groaned a few staves, then the police bean to moo, then a squeaking as of slate pencils was gard from the Boy Scouts, and finally a faint breathing sound proved to be the refined melodious contribution, of the Girl The master of the ceremonies looked enutiousiy round to see if any us were preparing and then ordered us to give Ure cheers for China—(wow) first. cheer—(woe)—seeond cheer (ow)—third -choer—(wo%r) dash, Wall, one too many again.
Then we groundlings disperses ait the bands "roared any all {ie on instruments corked with Saying different thnes at the sare
paper plumes and flowers and flags andthe krandces went off to drink China's health in sweet Japanese Owixe to the Red plot to secure control of Hulunbor, Marshal Chang Hsueh-liang (according to the vor= {nacular press) has issued strict orders for a search to be made of passengers on the Chinese Eastern Railway and their luggage with a view to preventing the smug ling of arms and reactionary liters ature.
Preparations are being made by the headquarters of the Fourth Na-Group Army Corps establish an asylum in Peking for officers and men who have, become North campaign. The asylum will ibe open to all the crippled members of various Nationalist army corp who will be taught handicrafts and other work, in order to help them to become ' independent and sett supporting.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.