Page:Illustrations of China and Its People vol. II.pdf/56



TERRACING is greatly resorted to in China for the irrigation and cultivation of what would be otherwise waste land. No. 48 represents such a terraced hill taken on the roadside in the neighbourhood of Foochow, near a place called “ The Plantation,” which all foreign residents know well. Many of the hills are by this means, and by the skill and industry of the small farmers, made to yield three crops a year, and the land thus taxed is never allowed to lie fallow. The sewage of the city of Foochow is carried out by labouring women to fertilize the country. The women employed in this and other field work are represented in No. 49. They are strong, healthy, and many of them attractive-looking. Their olive cheeks are warmed with a glow of colour, and their glossy black hair is decked with silver ornaments and fresh flowers. I heir dress is simple, and remarkable for its bright cleanliness. They never compress their feet, but rather draw the eye to their natural smallness by wearing prettily embroidered shoes.

THIS is the nearest approach made in China to the triumphal arch of Europe. The Pailau or memorial arch *s always erected by special permission of the emperor, and not always as with us, in memory of the noble deeds and virtues of the dead. A man, if he has done anything remarkable, and has funds at his command, may during his lifetime erect a Pailau for himself. A widow who has led an exemplary life to the age, say, of fifty, and abstained from marrying a second husband, may erect an arch to commemorate her virtues, and in this she will be aided by a small grant from the imperial treasury. In general design these monuments are similar to the triple gateways in temples and in the mansions of the great. The words “ Shing-chi,” signifying “erected by imperial favour,” are inscribed over the central archway. The Pailau shown in No. 50 was erected to the memory of a virtuous widow.