The San Francisco call. [volume], February 12, 1899, Image 17

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

Image provided by: University of California, Riverside; Riverside, CA

                
THE CALL Sunday Edition
KONG HE FA CHOY
• T • AST Wednesday at midnight the Chinese New Year began.
■ /■••■• At 12 o'clock four hundred millions of people had a birthday.
'..'■'.• ' For, according to the Chinese reckoning, each person considers
At 12 o'clock four hundred millions of people had a birthday.
For, according to the Chinese reckoning, each person considers
. . I ; the birth of the new year as his natal day.
j■" J ■ As the big bell In the tower of St. Mary's tolled the hour
.. y . ..of 12 Its strokes were repeated in solemn boom on the great
funeral gong in the Temple of Heaven, two blocks away on -Waverly
.;. place. ' ~.;.y •'■>■ '". ■
Yy. ■'■"'■:.. At the'last stroke of the bell there was a r-r-r-rip — —
/ .the firecrackers played a shrill treble to the deep bass of the. bamboo
y bomb — New Year's was on. yiyi .Y'V.y
••.;• lii each mercantile house the proprietor, with' hands clasped and
;,. head bowed, acknowledges the salutations of all his subordinates.
f-.fy. Then a wild rush was made by merchants from one .store to the
V ' other, each anxious to greet his neighbor and wish him prosperity.
yy "KONG HE FA CHOY!" That was the salutation with which
; each man. greeted his neighbor. Now every well-posted San Fran
;:• ciscan knows that this is "Happy New Year" in Chinese. 'Well, lt is
:•.'.;'. nothing of the sort. According to the . freest possible translation it
means "I wish thee .wealth and prosperity.".
.■; y Few residents of this city realize what a remarkably rare enter
:':;.lt tainment is unwittingly provided at this peculiar festival which prob
-:^ ably iij.no other part of the civilized world is possible. : .
•yy;.; Artists' rave over the fantastic color effects; musicians are deeply
.:•; Interested. in the strange reproduction of the old Greek scale which
'-." IB discernible in the crude semi-barbaric music of the strident Chinese
j • Orchestras of our Oriental quarter. ;'.■'
Accompanied by L*. Maynard Dixon, the artist, I started to make
■ ■■' „t he.f ounds of this peculiar "Little China," which is situated in the
.. : very, heart of San Francisco. Even after years of residence In China
,'•:. proper I could easily deceive myself into the belief that I was living
;• . oyer (again the annual recurrence of this scene in a Chinese city.
:.• The- 'same old scenes, and more particularly the same old odors which
■one- realizes throughout the Orient from the Suez to Yokohama, meet
.' the eye and offend the nostrils at every turn.
The streets are - animated by a perfect congestion of Mongolian
humanity; strange sounds greet the ear; every color of the rainbow
'. is reproduced in the gaudy dress of the New Years callers. We
stopped at the corner of the first narrow street and observed a bit
of touching devotion to the artistic, for which all Orientals are noted—
a flower stand. The extent of the stock in trade was the Suey Sin Fah
—the water spirit lily; a lovely member of the narcissus family, which
was being greedily purchased by rich and poor alike. ...
None of the haggling over price so common with the Oriental—
for it is considered a breach of good manners to mention money on
New Year's day. All were jolly— air seemed happy. The faith of the
fatalist was predominant. Every man, . woman and child was con
fident that the dawn of another year meant health, wealth and pros
perity. On every threshold and on every window sill was the bloom
ing water lily, the sign of good fortune.
What a pretty little fiction is the story of the water spirit Illy!
According to an ancient legend of the people, centuries ago there
lived in what might he called Central China a good and wise old
man who had devoted his life to study. He was a scholar of great
fame throughout the empire. His commercial Instincts were few and
. as he grew aged and decrepit he found that his small store of worldly
goods had vanished in the purchase of books, and he was destitute.
. When the last cash was spent he fell on his knees and kow-towed to
" the Deity above and asked for help to sustain his failing body until
the end. -should come* ■
• .According to this legend his prayer was heard in high heaven
.and that very night he was visited by a spirit who asked: "What
■ Wduldst.thou ?" • The old man answered: "Only the wherewithal that
:. ;.I : may : liv.e out my allotted days on earth." The spirit handed the old
:; /.scholar a small package wrapped in silk and said: "The contents
'.. this package will bring thee fame and prosperity. Guard it well."
r: • ••' ".' The old. man fell into a deep slumber and awoke at sunrise and
fj : found by his bedside the little red silk package, which he had pre
sumed a part, of a dream. ' Tearing the wrapping asunder he dis
; .covered only a. couple of dried up bulbs, most unostentatious In ap
. pearance.. His anger arose. "Here have I devoted my life to "religion
'•y and literature: In my old age I find myeelf helpless. I pray to my
.; Maker for.. assistance a spirit descends from Heaven and. in answer
..to my appeal, places at my bedside these worthless bits of decaying
vegetation. 'My lands are sterile; the soil is but gravel; only the
. . Btfeam which passes my threshold can help to sustain my failing
'..'. body. : At least I. shall not die of thirst."
.-■;.:.".:' He gathered the worthless bulbs In his palsied palm and threw
them Into the bed of the stream.
;'•':• These little bulbs took root and grew. In time they." bloomed,
producing a most delicate and fragrant blossom, which soon became
the -national' flower of China. Strange as it may seem in no other
. 'part of the world can this peculiar flower be grown.
',-■ Customers flocked to the old student's wondrous nursery, fostered
by the Fates, and in five years he became the richest of China's
V-Bubjec.s... . ...
„:."• : Ih the. Temple of Heaven, known In the language of the laity aa
Together With the Beautiful Legend of the Lily, the National Flower, and the True Story of the Dragon and the Pearl.
AVC AC TLJC YXA MUCH ACI I VCfID
JOYS Or THE CHINESE NEW YEAR ;
i the Joss House, we found all a blaze of light and color. The acolytes
I on duty attended the many who were anxious to worship at the sacred
shrine, with its perpetual representing the immortality of man.
The scene was strange and weird. . Before the altar, with queue un
rolled, knelt a devotee. In his hands ,he clasped two bits of wood
rounded on one side and flat on the other, which he repeatedly tossed
In the air as - he mumbled his prayers to the Deity.
"Oh, thou above, indicate to me by the fall of these blocks If my
prayers will be answered." .-,■». v ''.'.'/- * ...
"Oh, ; thou creator of mankind, should. the blocks fall upon th©
flat surface I interpret lt j that 'my prayers . are answered ln ' th©
affirmative." ."... .... ■••■■■•.' . , > ">:
"Three times do I touch my forehead 3to earth In obeisance to
' thee"— then the blocks are thrown ■ aloft , and fall at will, but as one
may Imagine, according to" the - strict | laws jof gravity they usually
fall upon the rounded side, this being much the heavier.
• Again the fatalist accepts the Inevitable. -Another throw— another
prayer. Again the flat Bide is uppermost. " With the patience born
\ of centuries of blind faith and persistency- he makes another cast.
i By the dim light of the; flickering oil lamp we can see that he has
I been successful— the rounded side uppermost. He arises from his
By the dim light of the flickering oil lamp we can see that he has
been successful— the rounded side is uppermost. He arises from his
I devotions upheld by the faith of his persistency and his forefathers,
and exclaims: "All. will be well with me and mine." Indeed, this is
a comfortable belief! '/ yYyYfyyf :y ■ fl fyVff * - YYyfyYyy
From the temple to the house of the opulent merchant is but a
step from the- religious to the commercial* side of our diminutive
Orient. The merchant had returned to his place of business and each
member of his household was prostrate before the family shrine, with
out which no Chinese residence is complete. Over the little altar, rep
resenting the ancestors of this particular house, was a picture of a
peculiar trinity which is noticeable in every Chinese house during
the New Year's festivities. It represents a man with flowing mus
tache and hair dressed in a most peculiar manner. He is accom
panied by two attendants, which one might mistake for women, but
in reality they are boys. This is Quong Kung — the god of war, who
centuries ago was. known as the most honest man in all China. He
was presumed to have descended from heaven and fought the battles
of the empire until no foes were left to conquer. In gratitude for his
devotion and services he was beheaded by the ruling dynasty and,
through sympathy, ; his two devoted followers took their lives and
were burled with their .beloved leader. fffyyf
As we stepped into the street the brilliantly lighted roof gardens,
decorated ln true Oriental style, attracted our attention. It Is a bit
of Importation from the Far , East, most picturesque and attractive
to the Occidental eye. Every piece of shrubbery and verdure is in
miniature. Dwarf of, great age rest in diminutive jars, with
their gnarled and twisted trunks a.nd branches, presenting a most
grotesque and interesting sight to the experienced Western horti
culturist. Above each building floats the national ensign of China
the Dragon and j the ; Pearl. „ Here is another bit of legendary lore."
From the dragon, which is a heavenly body, presumably descended
the rulers of the empire.' The dragon is supposed to be the embodi
ment of all wisdom and learning. Just before his distended Jaws is
what appears to the uninitiated a ball of fire. It is a pearl, the recog
nized gem of the Orient. This pearl is symbolical of all his con
centrated energy, which he keeps constantly in view, that mankind
may not be deprived -of the wisdom of heaven, which is annually
transmitted to the 'sages who dwell upon the earth.
From the homes of . the - opulent ;we force . our way through the
crowd of merrymakers along Dupont to Jackson street, finally reach
ing the very heart of the ragpickers' quarter. How fare the poor on
this Joyous holiday? -Alas, it is the same the, world over— "they are
always with us." . ' . :f')'y:
Follow along this . noisome, reeking alley, . descend this creaking
stairway and stand, as it were, In the very bowels of the earth. Here
Is Charlie, the pickpocket, with ; his cat, which, like its master,. ls an
opium fiend. Charlie :is •■ opulent to-night. ■' We have .to do with worse
than mere poverty, with wretchedness and squalor and black misery.
Descending yet : lower >we enter a _ subcellar : reeking and foul. In a
narrow, brick-walled * cell '■ we find old Wong Sing, once king of the
ragpickers,* stretched upon a shred of clean matting in deference to
the day, inhaling opium." Sing Is, reticent at the outset and seems ,to
resent the Intrusion- of the Western barbarian. When addressed in
his own language, ■ however, the old man gradually grows loquacious
and seems Inclined to answer questions and to chat quite comfortably
on the subject of the • hour. '■ y --ryfyi
'In deference to his' age ; I addressed him. as; "O,! father." ,
• This seems to please the old man. The gift •of several nickels
added, to his. good nature. He arose with ; dignity and asked me to
translate his thanks to the young man of the = nickels. ,
"O, son!" he exclaimed, "does this man speak our language?"
"No," I answered, "he understands not a word of the: classics."
. "But surely he is a scholar and well-mannered, for he is kind
to the poor and aged. Ah, well, it has been written that there were
wise men In the West. Say to him that his children will be blessed.
May they never know want." v. - -.v
"Father, ; you • have f a wife, of course?" ;
"Ah, yes. And she is; still in her ancestral home and here have I
been for twenty years in - the' new world the ( land ■of I gold— and am
not yet able to return and bid the poor woman be of good heart."
"Then you grieve, O father,* for the wife at home?" ,
"Yes, son. But this," 'he exclaimed fondly patt/ '..-'. "X
hla pipe, "brings her back to m»"
SAN FRANCISCO, SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 1899.
Out of this foul dungeon, the very walls of which are reeking with
slime so suggestive • of . perspiration, we find " ourselves once more in
the brilliantly lighted streets: It is refreshing to breathe something
like pure air again. .Each moment the highways are becoming, more
crowded and the color effect more confusing. Silks and satins of _
every imaginable hue, woven in the most gorgeous designs, shaped .in !
the long graceful gown of the Confucian scholar worn by merchant
prince and house servant alike, make up a scene one need not expect
to witness in any other part of the civilized world. ' •..'.'
The din is becoming frightful. Long festoons of 'firecrackers, ex
, tending, . ln : some cases," from ; the roofs of buildings to the very street
below, make a racket : that would enthuse the heart of any American
boy with an < ounce iof Fourth of July in" his makeup.
We are obliged to pick our way carefully and keep a sharp eye
skyward ; Ins order .to ? avoid ? the loads of fireworks that are thrown
from windows and housetops. Not a 1 word of complaint do we hear;
no one seems offended, all are determined to have a good time.
'..-. vy ', ci. .■;.,.•-.'■:■:■ '*- - "•-•'• -b ■•• , W. : C. BUNNKR.