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PREFACE BY THE AUTHOR
PREFACE BY THE AUTHOR
The friendly welcome accorded by the English Public to my “Chinese Painted by Themselves” has encouraged me to publish this translation of my last work. Old Epicurus summed up his philosophy in pleasures well understood. The peoples of the world, all epicureans in a certain measure, amused themselves before him, and have amused themselves since, each after his own fashion. I do not think I shall displease the people of the Country often called “Merry England” in bringing to their notice “The Chi
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INTRODUCTORY
INTRODUCTORY
Our pleasures are not such as to shock modesty; they are simple and honest, as becomes an ancient nation, which has left the age of youthful follies long behind it, has due self-respect, and knows how to amuse itself decently. In my book, “Chinese Tales,” I endeavoured to show the minor details of the life of my compatriots, whose political and social customs I have described in my other book, “The Chinese Painted by Themselves.” The object of this new book is to give a picture of our private am
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CHAPTER I THE CHINESE HOME
CHAPTER I THE CHINESE HOME
I remember reading in Mr. Paleologue’s clever book, “L’Art Chinois,” the statement “that China never had but one single style of architecture, throughout all the periods of its history, for her public and private, civic, or ecclesiastical buildings.” Now, a close observer will notice in our buildings a great variety of styles, the fineness of which naturally is lost upon those who do not take the trouble to examine them carefully. It is just like a passer-by looking at some of the new streets in
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CHAPTER II RELIGIOUS AND NATIONAL FÊTES
CHAPTER II RELIGIOUS AND NATIONAL FÊTES
It is terribly hot, forty degrees in the shade, and summer has only just begun. It is the fifth day of the fifth moon, the date on which the Fête of the Dragon is celebrated. The town changes its aspect completely. This is owing to the numberless red papers which are stuck on every door, and on which can be read wishes of happiness formulated in the most diversified manner. At the side of these papers are two bunches of Indian grass, with the roots tightly tied up with red strings, nailed to the
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CHAPTER III THE FÊTE OF THE MOON
CHAPTER III THE FÊTE OF THE MOON
This fête is celebrated in the eighth month of the year. It lasts six days, beginning on the 10th and ending on the 15th, with the full moon. It is thought that on that night the moon is larger than at any other time in the year. This fête is made the occasion of all kinds of amusements, and specially it is kept by sending to one’s friends all sorts of presents in the shape of the moon, as also by the exhibition of nick-nacks. One buys a quantity of little statues, representing genii, immortals,
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CHAPTER IV THE FEAST OF LANTERNS
CHAPTER IV THE FEAST OF LANTERNS
The Feast of Lanterns comes almost directly after that of the New Year. It may almost be said that one is the complement of the other, as the latter in date takes place from the tenth day to the fifteenth day of the first moon, and as the holidays of the New Year are prolonged from the twentieth day of the twelfth moon of the dying year to the twentieth day of the first moon of the new year. During this month of holiday, all official business is suspended. The seals which represent the official
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CHAPTER V THE FEAST OF THE TWO STARS
CHAPTER V THE FEAST OF THE TWO STARS
The two stars, called Niou-Lang, the Shepherd, and Tsi-Nu, the Weaver, are situated, the first on the eastern shore of the Milky Way—the Tien-Ho, as we call it, or River of Heaven—and the other on the western shore. According to ancient astronomical observations they only meet once a year, and this meeting is supposed to take place in the night of the seventh day of the seventh moon. Legend pretends that the Shepherd was married to the Weaving Woman, and that to punish them for some fault commit
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CHAPTER VI THE FEAST OF FLOWERS
CHAPTER VI THE FEAST OF FLOWERS
This feast falls on the fifteenth day of the second moon, but is, in practice, prolonged until the end of spring. It is also called “the feast of mild warmth.” This is the best season of the year, the mildest and the most charming. The trees, almost all in bloom at that time, alternating with the weeping willows, drooping down their long branches laden with green leaves, form, together with the picturesque pavilions, perspectives which over and over again have inspired the poet’s song. There is
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CHAPTER VII NEW YEAR’S DAY
CHAPTER VII NEW YEAR’S DAY
This is the Feast of the Three Beginnings—that of the year, the months, and the days. From break of day, which is saluted in every house with formidable detonations of crackers, all the functionaries of the capital betake themselves to the Imperial Temple to present their respective congratulations to the Sovereign in person before the tablet which bears the name of His Majesty. This duty accomplished, they present their homages in order to the temples of Heaven, of Confucius, of the God of Lite
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CHAPTER VIII THE END OF THE YEAR
CHAPTER VIII THE END OF THE YEAR
The holidays begin ten days before the end of the year, so that everybody may have time to prepare for this great solemnity. For in China there are no legal holidays, and busy people only get a rest during the three great feasts of the Dragon, the Moon, and the change of the Year. There are five days holiday during each of the first two feasts, and thirty days during the last. It is on these dates that bills usually fall due, and when they must be paid. The last feast that we have spoken about i
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CHAPTER IX PROCESSIONS
CHAPTER IX PROCESSIONS
In China the Taoists alone have religious processions, which is logical enough, as it is their custom to represent their gods in human figures. To mention only the principal ceremonies, I may allude to the procession of the god Tai-Tchang, of the god Tcheng-Houang, of the gods of epidemic diseases, and the goddesses who protect women in labour and little children. Tai-Tchang is the god of the mountain of the same name, a function which he combines with that of seventh high judge in Hades, which
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CHAPTER X A BUDDHIST SOLEMNITY
CHAPTER X A BUDDHIST SOLEMNITY
It is on the eighth day of the fourth moon—which corresponds to the month of May of the Gregorian calendar—that the great ceremony of the ordination of the Buddhist priests, also called the Feast of the Bath of Buddha, is performed. On the eve of this day all the candidates gather together in the monastery in each town to prepare themselves for the solemnity of the morrow. At about eight o’clock in the evening a bell is rung. The priests are in their places, each on his knees before the statue o
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CHAPTER XI RUSTIC PLEASURES WALKS AND PILGRIMAGES
CHAPTER XI RUSTIC PLEASURES WALKS AND PILGRIMAGES
The districts in China most favoured by nature are, without doubt, Hang-Tcheou and Sou-Tcheou. The first possesses the lake of Sou-Hou, rich in beautiful surroundings. The river Tchinn-Houai flows through the second. A very popular Chinese proverb says: “Heaven is what is most beautiful in the skies, on earth it is Sou and Hang.” In the evening the lake and the river are covered with illuminated pleasure boats. Songs and laughter echo on every side. The banks are covered with villas glittering w
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CHAPTER XII BATHING
CHAPTER XII BATHING
There was a tropical heat that day, not a breath of wind stirring, and not a shady corner to be found anywhere. It was one of those stifling and suffocating days of our Chinese summer. I was trying to find some place where to spend the afternoon with some degree of comfort, when some one knocked at my door. They were friends of mine, who had come to ask me to go bathing with them. They had been considerate enough to bring a sedan-chair for my use with them, and so off we went. Beyond the N.E. ga
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CHAPTER XIII KITE FLYING
CHAPTER XIII KITE FLYING
Kite-flying, which since the earliest ages has been popular in China, is, without possible contradiction, the game which best exercises the bodies of children. The boy runs back, comes, goes, pulls at the string, winds it up, inhales the fresh air with all his lung-power, and develops his strength and his skill at one and the same time. In Northern and Central China it is in the spring that this pastime is indulged in; in the south it is in the autumn. Our kites, as a rule, are much larger than
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CHAPTER XIV THE ILLUMINATED BOATS
CHAPTER XIV THE ILLUMINATED BOATS
Our forefathers used to say that to find pleasure it must be sought for either on the mountains or on the water, and it is quite true that if you want to enjoy fine weather, you must look out for some place where the views are varied. But, as Mahomet very wisely remarked, the mountains won’t come to us, and we must go to the mountains. It must also be remarked that there are many flat districts in China where there are no mountains to be found, whilst water can be found everywhere; besides, moun
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CHAPTER XV GARDENING
CHAPTER XV GARDENING
A rather curious coincidence exists in the two antipodes of the globe. In France, when a man retires from business or from official life, he says, “I am going to plant cabbages.” In China we say, “I am going to retire into the mountains, or into the forest.” This is another way of saying that he is going to give himself up to gardening. This coincidence is caused by the fact that the same tastes exist everywhere. When a man has had enough of the occupations of an active life, he is glad to withd
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CHAPTER XVI THE CHASE
CHAPTER XVI THE CHASE
According to the Book of Rites, the Emperor and the Royal Princes had to go to the chase whenever politics allowed them any leisure. As for the people, the chase was a military exercise, which they took after harvest-time. The book of verses mentions stalking in carriages. Emperor Chuang-Ouong, after having reconquered the territory, used to hunt in his carriage with his feudal princes, so as to see which of them were likely to become the bravest soldiers. Holidays were selected for hunting excu
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CHAPTER XVII FISHING
CHAPTER XVII FISHING
If a certain number of men of letters take refuge in the pleasures of gardening, fishing also has its number of votaries. The bulk of these are men who, having lost all the illusions of life, and finding that politics are, after all, a hollow mockery, give themselves up to a quieter and less disappointing pastime. The philosopher Tchang-Tseu used to fish on the banks of the river Han every day of his life. The Prince of Tchou, having heard him spoken about, sent an ambassador one day to the phil
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CHAPTER XVIII CHARMING WOMAN COQUETRY
CHAPTER XVIII CHARMING WOMAN COQUETRY
One is none the less a woman for being a Chinese woman. Woman is the same everywhere. It is she who charms us—not to say who rules us. And no matter in what part of the globe, it is she who is always the great attraction of life. They all know it; and without any need of a general understanding amongst themselves, all the sisters of the universe do the best they each can to render themselves more beautiful, or prettier, or merely more agreeable. They need for that no other master that that insti
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CHAPTER XIX FANS
CHAPTER XIX FANS
I say fans in the plural, because we have two kinds, the folding fan and the round fan. We use the former during the mild seasons, and the latter during the very hot weather. The reason of this is not easily understood, as the round fan fans much less effectively than the other one. Doubtless it offers this advantage—that it can be used as a substitute for the parasol, which we never carry, and thus plays a double part. I may add, that in summer men and women alike go out bareheaded, so that som
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CHAPTER XX CELEBRATED BEAUTIES
CHAPTER XX CELEBRATED BEAUTIES
Beautiful women are called in China flowers, or jade jewels, or still better, the destroyers of the empire, or the destroyers of cities. The latter nicknames originated in a poem of the celebrated Li-Yan-Nein, of the dynasty of Han, thus conceived: The poem fell under the eyes of the Emperor, who immediately asked if such a woman really did exist, or was only the creation of the poet’s imagination. On receiving an affirmative answer, he expressed his desire to know this beauty, and it was upon h
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CHAPTER XXI SYSTEM OF EDUCATION THE STUDENT
CHAPTER XXI SYSTEM OF EDUCATION THE STUDENT
When a child in China reaches the age of five or six years, his parents, no matter what their position may be, begin to think about giving him a master, so that his education may be commenced. Although instruction is not compulsory in China, I do not know of any children who do not go to school. Of course, more or less time is spent there by the different scholars, according to their several intelligences or the position of their parents. A lucky day at the beginning of the year is chosen, and o
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CHAPTER XXII POETICAL COMPETITIONS
CHAPTER XXII POETICAL COMPETITIONS
In literary circles in China, the most popular amusement is to make verses. Instead of shooting, or playing lawn-tennis, or croquet, or of indulging in any of the many pleasures enjoyed in Europe, our literary folk, as soon as a certain number of them have a little time to spare, meet together in turn at each other’s houses, and give themselves up to poetical tournaments. For, in China, open receptions, political meetings, and public lectures are totally unknown, and the only way that people hav
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CHAPTER XXIII PAINTERS
CHAPTER XXIII PAINTERS
China has had its great art epochs, but for the last few centuries, education having been a purely literary one, art seems to have lost ground to a certain extent. However, it must be admitted, by those who care to look into the matter, that all is by no means lost. If we have not progressed during some centuries past, and if we have limited ourselves to the reproduction of certain types which were created long ago, if, in short, we show no originality, but only elegance and ease in our artistic
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CHAPTER XXIV CHESS
CHAPTER XXIV CHESS
This game differs very much from the one played in Europe, and which is the delight of the habitués of the European chess clubs. In our game there are three hundred and sixty-one pawns, divided into two camps, one white and the other black. These pawns are like round draughts. The game is played on a square chess-board which has nineteen squares on each side. The players set down pawn after pawn, and the one who succeeds in closing his adversary in, so that there is no possible issue for him, wi
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CHAPTER XXV AT TABLE THE PLEASURE OF DRINKING
CHAPTER XXV AT TABLE THE PLEASURE OF DRINKING
Wine was first manufactured in China by a functionary named I-Ti, under the reign of Emperor U (22,000 years before Christ), from fermented rice. The sovereign was the first to taste this new beverage. He found it delicious, and said, “I am sure that hereafter there will be families of kings who will lose their thrones through drinking wine.” But his prophecy was never realised in spite of his prophetic tone, and literary men continue to indulge themselves in wine to their heart’s content. There
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CHAPTER XXVI TEA-DRINKING
CHAPTER XXVI TEA-DRINKING
That tea is our favourite drink is very generally known, but people may perhaps ignore the considerable part that it plays in our lives. I will not speak here either about its cultivation or the process of its manufacture, which are pretty well known. I will limit myself to telling the use that is made of this precious aromatic plant. Since tea has been known in China, a part of the first pickings of the harvest is sent each year to the Emperor by the authorities in the producing districts. This
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CHAPTER XXVII CHOPSTICKS
CHAPTER XXVII CHOPSTICKS
Although our chopsticks may have some resemblance to magic wands, the purpose they fulfil is a much more prosaic one, and, at the same time, a much more useful one. They are the auxiliaries which help us to convey to our mouths the food which we need for our bodies, the coal required by the human machine. It is generally thought in Europe that we use two chopsticks—one in each hand—for taking up the morsels of food, and for conveying these to our mouths. That is a mistake: our knife and fork exe
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CHAPTER XXVIII CHINESE COOKING
CHAPTER XXVIII CHINESE COOKING
So many dreadful things have been said about Chinese cooking, that I think it indispensable to devote a chapter to the rehabilitation of our culinary art. I do not pretend to make your mouths water, but I should like at least to be able to show you that my countrymen do not eat the extraordinary things attributed to them by certain prejudiced travellers. Our ordinary meal consists of eight dishes—two vegetables, eggs, a fish, some shell-fish, a bird, two dishes of meat, pork and goat in the sout
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CHAPTER XXIX GAMES OF SKILL CONJURING
CHAPTER XXIX GAMES OF SKILL CONJURING
There are no theatres in China, like the Egyptian Hall in London, that is to say, conjuring theatres. The conjurer has to perform in public, in the squares, and places like his European brethren at the different fairs. Conjurers are often hired to perform at family parties, and never fail to win great applause. The Chinese conjurer is, at the same time, an acrobat, and knows both his trades very well indeed. The proverbial skill of our artists is really astonishing. The performance is generally
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CHAPTER XXX THE EVOCATION OF SPIRITS
CHAPTER XXX THE EVOCATION OF SPIRITS
A number of people believe in spirits, and make it a pleasure to summon them into their presence by way of pastime. A cylindrical box, containing a number of little sticks, each of which bears a number, may be seen in every temple, and before the altars of every god. When a man wants to know his future, he first of all burns candles and incense before the god; then he kneels down at the altar, holding one of these boxes in his hands. He then asks the question that he wants to have answered, and
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CHAPTER XXXI PHRENOLOGY AND CHIROMANCY
CHAPTER XXXI PHRENOLOGY AND CHIROMANCY
In no country, so much as in China, has the belief in phrenologists and chiromancists been so general. According to these men of science, every mark on the face and body has its meaning. In consequence, as such and such a sign, say, on your left eye, may be counter-balanced by some other sign, say, on your right cheek, it will be seen that a whole series of combinations and calculations has to be gone through before the definite diagnosis of a person can be obtained. When one goes to consult the
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ORIENTAL SHOOTING MATCHES
ORIENTAL SHOOTING MATCHES
These matches were played with little rods, which the players had to throw into a long-necked and narrow-mouthed vase. According to the Book of Rites, the host at a dinner party had to offer these arrows to his guests, and it was their duty to refuse them at first, but after some pressing to accept them. A servant then brought a vase on to the table, and the guests threw each two or four arrows into its mouth. At rich dinner-parties each arrow that entered the vase was saluted with a burst of mu
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THE CANDLESTICK
THE CANDLESTICK
This game is also a very ancient one, and consists in getting a person to guess what object is hidden under a bell of non-transparent material, metal or china. Those who guess must not name the object directly, but must compose a quatrain referring to it. For instance, supposing a lizard has been hidden, this is how a clever player would tell us that he had guessed it: One day three objects were hidden under the bell—a swallow’s egg, a piece of honeycomb, and a spider. The following were the qua
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SHUTTLECOCKS
SHUTTLECOCKS
We also play with shuttlecocks, made of four duck feathers, the ends of which are passed through the square hole in the centre of one of our coins and bent down, which renders them very elastic. Ladies play with battledores; gentlemen use their feet, as in the English game of football. A certain height is fixed upon, and the player who fails to reach it loses the game. The same game is played with leather balls stuffed with cotton....
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THE COIN GAME
THE COIN GAME
A coin is thrown against the wall. The player whose coin springs back farthest from the wall begins. He throws his coin in any direction, and it is agreed upon that the other players must throw their coins so as to fall at such or such a distance from the place where his is lying. Those who manage to do this, or get closest to the mark, win, those who are farthest off lose. This game used formerly to be played by the ladies of the Court, but now-a-days it is only played by children in the street
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FIRST CARD GAME—AWAITING THE CARD
FIRST CARD GAME—AWAITING THE CARD
Five players take their places at the table; the cards are shuffled, and are cut into eight packs of fifteen each. Three dice are cast, and three of the packs are removed in the order designated by the numbers on the dice. A third cast of the dice determines who is to take the first of the five remaining packs. The player on the right takes the second, and so on. The three packs that were removed are placed in a box, and the bottom card of all is turned round and given to the happy possessor of
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SECOND GAME—FISHING
SECOND GAME—FISHING
This game is played by three players. The cards are divided into eight packs of fourteen cards each, and eight cards remain over. The dice indicate which three packs are to be placed in the box. Two packs are chosen at haphazard, and are added to the eight cards that remained over. A second cast of the dice determines the distribution of the three remaining packs, which each player is to take. The player who takes the last of these three packs must spread out on the table, face upwards, and acco
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THIRD GAME—THE PECKING GAME
THIRD GAME—THE PECKING GAME
The same cards are used, and two persons play. The cards are all placed together on the table, and each player takes three cards, of which he turns one up, so as to see which is to begin pecking. The first player throws one card on the table and the other does the same. If the player whose turn it is to throw sees that with the cards in his hand and those on the table he can make up a set he picks them up, and so the game goes on; the cards being taken three by three from the pack until all have
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CHAPTER XXXIV LOTTERIES
CHAPTER XXXIV LOTTERIES
We have no official lottery, and, unless I am greatly mistaken, we never did have one. The private lottery, however, which is generally very advantageous to its promoters, does exist in China. When a person is in want of money, be it to pay for the funeral of a relation, or for the expenses connected with a marriage in his family, or to help one of his relations to go to Pekin for the examinations, he gets forty or fifty friends and acquaintances of his together, and begs them to take tickets in
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CHAPTER XXXV PUBLIC PLEASURES THE THEATRES
CHAPTER XXXV PUBLIC PLEASURES THE THEATRES
The theatre in China is always a private institution. We have no State-supported theatres, but, on the other hand, many rich people have theatres in their houses. In the north of China the public has its theatres the same as in Europe, where regular performances of fashionable pieces are given, and where people may dine in the boxes or on the balcony. Everywhere else there is nothing to be had in the way of theatrical representations, except from troupes of strolling actors, who play in the temp
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I.—CRICKET FIGHTS
I.—CRICKET FIGHTS
China never knew those horrible arena fights which were the passing pleasures, and will be the eternal shame, of ancient Rome. We never gave for the amusement of our refined folk the sight of bloody fights between men and wild animals, “the whilom joy of the young vestal virgin.” So it will be useless to look in China for any statue of a dying gladiator, or to search the ruins of the Colosseum. Nor has the bull-fight—last vestige of the tragic Circenses of long ago—ever been seen in China. We do
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II.—QUAIL FIGHTS
II.—QUAIL FIGHTS
We have just witnessed a very bloodless tournament. There are others of a more serious nature, and in which the combatants get rather more hurt. I speak of our quail-fights. Please do not think that I am about to describe such sanguinary spectacles as are afforded, for instance, to the English in their cock-fight. The quails fight, but only with the weapons with which Nature has provided them. They have no artificial spurs, and none of those perfections which add to the natural ferocity of the k
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CHAPTER XXXVII CONCLUSION THE PLEASURES OF A PHILOSOPHER
CHAPTER XXXVII CONCLUSION THE PLEASURES OF A PHILOSOPHER
There are perhaps in China alone more philosophers than could be found in all the rest of the world put together. To give an idea of the ways of thinking of these thinkers, who take their pleasure where they can find it, I will let one of them speak: “The song of birds and the cries of the swallows announce the advent of spring; the fine weather invites one to walk abroad. I should have liked to respond to this call from Nature; my daily occupations have prevented me. I met yesterday at the flow
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