Page:Illustrations of China and Its People vol. III.pdf/22



IT may seem incredible to some of my readers when I inform them that, in Shanghai, wheelbarrows are substituted for cabs! Such a conveyance is shown in No. 11, and, after all, is not unpleasant, when one has grown accustomed to its use. These wheelbarrows, if they have no other advantages to recommend them, are at any rate cheap, and comparatively safe. There is here no risk lest the steady-going coolie who propels the vehicle should shy at a sheet of paper, or lamp-post, or bolt with his burden. For all this, the wheelbarrow is not in much favour with the foreign residents, and at one time, indeed, was threatened with abolition, as the screeching of the wheels on the dry axles disturbed the even flow of business in the offices of the foreign residents. To ensure silence the constant use of oil was enforced, and thus the difficulty was got over. There are a number of wheelbarrow stands scattered over the settlements, for these conveyances are in constant demand among the natives, and present a striking feature on the Bund, when the hours of business are at an end. Then the Chinese merchants and their servants are wheeled along in their bright silks and satins to enjoy the cool breezes off the river, their faces aglow with good humour and enjoyment. 1 have frequently seen the filial feeling and economy of the race displayed in a fearfully overburdened wheelbarrow, laden with a whole family, who thus reaped the full benefit of a single hire. The unfortunate coolie, streaked with perspiration over his dusty face, was all the while straining every nerve with the effort to propel his patrons and doing his utmost to make the ride agreeable in order that he might secure a regular hire. The Chinese coolie is a willing and constant labourer in whatever sphere you find him at work. He has to fight a hard battle for existence, and he fights it manfully* conquers, and is, as a rule, contented, although he has nothing to show for it all, when the day is done, except the barest necessaries. Who, therefore, can wonder at him if he seeks a cheap elysium in the dreams of the opium pipe ? Wheelbarrows are not only used for passengers, they are also extensively employed for the inland transport of goods; I have met with them in different provinces, travelling in trains, laden with native and foreign produce, armed each with a long matchlock, and, in some instances, partly propelled by a sail.

IN China some of the finest mechanical appliances are found in a rudimentary form, containing, so to speak, the germs of our own more complex machines. No. 12 presents to the reader a simple spinning machine driven by the foot. To me it was full of interest, as its work is very effectually performed. The left foot is placed upon the beam, which rests in a crescent-shaped axis of iron, so as to keep it in position, while the other extremity of the beam lias a pivot which works in an aperture in the wheel. The right foot of the spinner imparts to this beam the eccentric motion which sets the wheel agoing, a belt on the wheel communicating the rotation to three upper spindles whose motion is as many times accelerated as the circumference of each spindle is contained in the circumference of the wheel. By this contrivance a great velocity is obtained The spindles not only spin the cotton, but they act as bobbins, and reel the thread as it is spun. Here we have the early dawn of that complex system of mechanism, which now feeds the looms of Bradford and Manchester. The picture has an additional attraction as showing the winter dress of a Shanghai mother and child of the labouring class.

In a great cotton-growing province like Kiangsu, cotton may be had cheaply in the cities, and it is therefore used freely to pad the winter costume of the poor; while in the country it is raised by the small farmers, and then dressed, spun, and woven by the women and children of their households into domestic fabrics. The band round the head is that commonly worn by the women of Shanghai, and the ample hood of brilliant coloured cloth is in use for children all over China.

THE administration of justice in Chinese courts of law is conducted on principles different from those which prevail among Western nations. There are no counsel for the prosecution, or to defend the accused. Instead of these, certain officers attached to the Yamuns of the Mandarins, and in the pay of the presiding judge, make law their special study, and are expected to guide him in all technical points. These men, however, are not recognized by their government. In addition to these functionaries there arc clerks, or Shiye, who attend to the business of the courts, and draw up the depositions; but there