Milady of the East on the Warpath: Hew the Shopkeeper Meets His Match High presi tre salesmanship is at low ebb in the realm of the bargain hunter when milady of the Orient goes on a shopping tour armed with dignity and escorted by an amah whose sole object in life, for the moment anyway, is to carry parcels. All symptoms of wariness and distrust. are wiped away from the placid face of the buyer, who enters with a measured treat and downcast eyes that, nevertheless, miss nothing of the gala banners ing a "Big, Cheap Sale."
mah follows respectfully, and milady of the East approaches the auk counter and politely asks to be shown silks.
'A landslide of silk results. Bolt after bolt is spread before her, and with the timelessness of China, milady inspects each, complaining that. this one is too old-fashioned: that one is not pure silk—sce how it wrinkles when it crushed? The material is too thin, the price is far too high. She implies that the rich dress she has: planned, ly, she orders eight and If "feet, and then the real' business begins. 'The clerk adopts superior air, and pulls the silk tight It is the pre-de.e true Far Eastern bargainer. © Milady. speaks sharely, her eyes. aflame with tiny Sparks of dark fire. She' reminds the clerk that she isnot a foreign-Jers "she lenos. values, "and she fenows how to buy. The clerk drops nig superior air. He recognizes the calibre of his buyer.
'That is no foreignised Chinese who has adopted western standards for speed; no, youthful Chinese Whose purse strings have yet Tightened by. the economy' of wi fand clover buying. 'This woman ihas foreed him to display' the best rade of silk he has for sale, and she unerringly picked the only' real bargain "from Jamongst the elts before storekeeper is a robber, courteously but, of course, most' effectively. That bolt is put aside, but not discarded. Every pattern is inspect ed, weighted, handled, tested, crushed, discarded, until of last, the clerk pulls down the best piece of silk the store affords. Ah! Milady heaves 'a sigh of relief. THAT is silk, but, the gods protect her from paying such "a price! She final-Hyd her patience rewarded the sight and touch of the highest F—grade material in stock, She once more turns her honourable attention to the piece that caught her fancy, ut is too highly priced, too thin, too old-fashioned, too thoroughly. unworthy to grace the form and person of her. impor: tance. Once more the clerk speeds it before her. Unfortunately, she hias decided to buy in a one-price store patronized by foreigners as well as, Chinese, foreign woman with that sharp, hard light of the bargain-diet appears, and milady of the ant mediately withdraws into stony silence. Without expression, lit and one she halt fect. observes calmly." "Watch how you Don't pull it tight," Tt You will stretch it. inferior silk, you mi lise care of betray the poor grade of your goods. I do not care. It is Roo} enough for me, but 1 want what T pay for. Now measure."
Ignoring her complaints, the clerk loosely measures off eight and lone half feet, and with a flip of his hand prepares to snip the A torrent of Chinsee disturbs his Jday-dreams, and his eyes in turn Answer the keen fire in those of given me short <—how poor is the
sno good-—I cannot uso it." art, foot_—wrinkled and soled. Tt
Impossible to observe that it is a fresh bolt that lies before them, randy for the slaughter of the barjeainer. The clerk gravely inspects the first foot of material. Milady points out the imperceptible traces lof her own crushing, and discovers 4 tiny thread of silk out of place the design.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.