Page:Littell's Living Age - Volume 128.djvu/586

576 . For example, instead of saying "two knives," a Chinaman would say "two to-be-held-in-the-hand knives;" or, instead of "a table," he would say "one length table." These various classifiers the authors of pigeon English have melted down into one word, "piece." The writer therefore translates the Chinese equivalent of our indefinite article as "one pe-sze," and a knife he would render by "one pe-sze nai-fo." The use in Chinese of the verb "to have," which is to be pronounced "hap," has given rise to strange confusions. "No hap" is the orthodox expression for "not at home," and a death is announced by "hap tai" (has died). In the same way "fashionable" becomes hap fa-sze (fashion); "to be busy," "hap pigeon;" and "to be at leisure," "hap tim."

Expressions relating to sailors are, as would naturally be expected, of frequent occurrence in the vocabulary. "A young officer" is a "mit-chi-man" (midshipman), "a second mate" is a "sik-kan mit," a sailor" is a "say-le man," and "ready money" is "nip-te ka-she" (liberty cash). About military rank less is known. "Sho-che man" (soldier man) is the only equivalent of a military officer, and is held to include all ranks from the general downwards, the only other distinction recognized in this service being the "kan-a man," or "artillery man." It is descriptive of the state of foreign society in China to find that "a wealthy man" is translated into a "ma-chin" (merchant). The relations of life bear strange and unusual guises in "pigeon English." A wife speaks of her spouse as her "ha-sze man," and he of her as his "wai-fo." A friend is a "fo-lin" — here the r is again a puzzle; and an uncle is a "yeung-ke."

To enable him to converse with his future English master the would-be servant should make himself acquainted with such "common phrases" as "ting-ke" (thank you), "how mut-che ka-she" (how much cash), "ko aou sai" (to go out), "ko sit-te" (to go into the city), or "ko hom" (to return home); and he is given to understand that when his master says to him, "I ko she-lip," that he is going to sleep; or that if he receive the order, "No sze-pik-ke," he is not to speak. The Portuguese element in the jargon is noticeable in words such as "man-te-lin"(mandarin), "pa-te-le"(for padre, priest), and "sa-pe" (saber, to know).

The above specimens are sufficient to show the grotesque absurdity of "pigeon English." But its absurdity is not its worst feature. Its general use among foreigners at the ports has tended to create an impassable gulf between them and their Chinese neighbours. It has entirely prevented the one from gaining any intelligent information about the other. "Belong aou-lo custom," or "Belong joss pigeon," is the sum-total of the explanation which the Chinese in foreign employ are able to give of any ancient oriental rite or any strange local custom; and the same words are all that their masters have at their command to convey to an inquiring employé the meaning of any of our English usages. Thus it has been the means of stereotyping blunders and of perpetuating misunderstandings; and it does not say much for the enterprising intelligence of British merchants in China that they should have been content to accept this wretched jargon as their vernacular for more than a quarter of a century, without making an effort either to learn Chinese or to teach their servants English.