Six or seven sweet puddings, all very highly coloured, but very tasteless, and every now and then the waiting 'Boy' keeps pouring hot "Samshu," Chinese wine, into tiny silver cups, which he continually presses you to drink. They play a game, at which the loser must drink this cup of "Samshu," and this goes on until one or the other falls down on the floor, and not until one Chinaman does so is there any thought of breaking up this dinner party.
THE RACE COURSE, On the race course the business man, who is conspicuous by his absence, is the bookmaker, more's the pity! If you can imagine a race course without a."ring" shouting that stirs the blood, the sudden hush when "'they're off," witty men with white hats and beefy faces, ever ready with jokes and repartee, I candidly confess I cannot. The race meetings here are tame, and the absence of the bookies in the reason. One usually has to play evens, or odds on to bet on the totalizator.
Most residents of Shanghai go away at the week-ends on house boats, to a place known as the hills, accompanied by a "chow" dog. These house boats are large, roomy affairs, their clumsiness being amply compensated for by their comfort, and they are eminently suitable for the creek and river work for which they are constructed. They are propelled by sail and '"'yuloh."
This "'yuloh" is a long oar, with about three feet of the handle bent down from the plane of the blade, which latter is feathered down from the centre ridge with one flange larger than the other.
At the point of fulcrum is a little socket made to. receive a pin with a broad head, like the round end of a bolt, and to the inboard handle of the "yuloh'' is attached a line about four fect six inches long which is fastened down to the deck.
The boatman or "Laodah'"' rests the "yuloh" on the pin, grasps the line with one hand and the yuloh with the other, gives a peculiar swing to his body, concentrating all his force on the rope which is now strained. taut, and, presto! you are wriggling through the water at a surprising rate by means of a perfect system of applied mechanics that was in use probably before the time of Noah.
One has to be very careful in arranging these trips, as these creeks are very congested and one must not be surprised if the most deafening noises assail one's ears, and the bows of a native "Cargo boat"? come through the window, and borne in on the evening breeze is the most searching, heartrending, and altogether astounding stench that one has ever been introduced to in any part of the world.
On one trip -of ours this happened, and pu looking for our "Chow" discovered he must have jumped on board the cargo boat, and missed his footing after getting on board.
We gingerly wrapped him in newspapers and threw him through the window on to the bank side, but the evil smelling beast, however, returned during the night'and slept on my clothes, Until after dawn I got no sleep, and just as I was dozing off, another terrific crash came and threw me across the cabin.
"What thing Laodah?" I asked.
"Oh Maskee. Missy, have make hit one small piece stone bridge!"
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.