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254 The extraordinary decorations for the occasion formed the attraction for the evening-. Fronting the great folding door—on the wings of which are painted a hideous monster, armed sentinels, etc., depending from the ceiling by crimson silken cords—hung a whatnot-like arrangement, representing in miniature the stage of a Chinese theatre, upon which a "celestial star dramatic company," in all the elaborate silk and gold embroidery, decked garments, etc., which pertain to their wardrobe, was grouped with really artistic skill and effect. The scene represented a tableau in one of their historic dramas, and each figure, which was from two and one half to three feet in height, was a perfect counterpart in miniature of one of the well-known Chinese actors of the Jackson street theatre, which is visited by every stranger from the east of the Rocky Mountains, who comes to see the wonders and curiosities of California. The features, which were of some hard material like plaster of Paris, were moulded with such cunning skill that the expression was as perfect as life itself; and each actor could be recognized in an instant by any person who had seen him once upon the real stage. Five similar groups, each representing a scene in a play illustrating the history and traditions of the Central Flowery Empire, hung in different parts of the same principal apartment. In one corner we saw two curious phantom horsemen, mounted on nondescript, half human, half animal, phantom steeds. The framework of these figures was of the lightest split-rattan, and the superstructure light tissue paper of various