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Article A VISIT TO CANTON. ← Page 13 of 14 →
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
A Visit To Canton.
pigeons' eggs , gelatinous balls , and whitish filaments which crackled between the teeth like the strings of a violin . These suspicious-looking messes were then watered with cups of tea without sugar , or cups of sam-chou , —a lukewarm drink obtained by the distillation of rice . Champagne , so called , with some Spanish and Portuguese wines , circulated
amidst this frightful pell-mell , and added their European poison to these indigenous ones . At length , when this gastronomic penance seemed to be ended , after each of us had in turn received from Ki-ing , Houan , Potin-qua , or other of the hosts , some fragment , contributed by these amiable epicures from their own plates ,- — -after we had all , bon-gre mal-gre ,
done honour to these offerings , which were skilfully transferred to our plates on the ends of the little skewers , —we found to our consternation and dismay that the veritable dinner had not yet commenced . A troop of scullions came rushing into the room , armed like a regiment returning from a marauding attack on pigs , roast sheep , fowls , geese , and ducks , at the point of the spit . Then resting the palm of their dirty hands on the meat , these heroes of the carving-knife set to work to cut off thin slices from the joints , which they presented to us .
Happy the stomachs of iron able to bear such a trial without turning with disgust ! At length the Viceroy took pity on his guests ; balls of rice were set upon the table , and after rendering homage to this cereal of China , we were at liberty to rise from table , returning thanks at not having sunk under the effects of our first Chinese dinner . Of all the guests
seated at this banquet , the most pitiable victim was our luckless interpreter ; obliged to serve as medium of all the jokes and pleasantry , all the questions , all the messages , which passed incessantly across the table from one end to the other . There was not a mandarin present who did not think himself bound to pass a complimentary toast to one or other of us
, which he did by raising with both his hands his cup full of sam-chou to a level with his lips , and giving his head a formal balancing movement . The handsome Houan , the pink of ti-mie , or fashion , distinguished himself above all the rest by his laudatory urbanity . With flattering expressions of politenesshe drank to the venerable beard of one of the
, officers of the " Bayonnaise , " modestly assigning the honours of a septuagenarian , to a man who was scarcely thirty ; but Houan knew the human heart , and his smile , full of finesse and meaning , seemed to say to his guest , " you fancy that I flatter you , but I am sure you will pardon me ! "
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
A Visit To Canton.
pigeons' eggs , gelatinous balls , and whitish filaments which crackled between the teeth like the strings of a violin . These suspicious-looking messes were then watered with cups of tea without sugar , or cups of sam-chou , —a lukewarm drink obtained by the distillation of rice . Champagne , so called , with some Spanish and Portuguese wines , circulated
amidst this frightful pell-mell , and added their European poison to these indigenous ones . At length , when this gastronomic penance seemed to be ended , after each of us had in turn received from Ki-ing , Houan , Potin-qua , or other of the hosts , some fragment , contributed by these amiable epicures from their own plates ,- — -after we had all , bon-gre mal-gre ,
done honour to these offerings , which were skilfully transferred to our plates on the ends of the little skewers , —we found to our consternation and dismay that the veritable dinner had not yet commenced . A troop of scullions came rushing into the room , armed like a regiment returning from a marauding attack on pigs , roast sheep , fowls , geese , and ducks , at the point of the spit . Then resting the palm of their dirty hands on the meat , these heroes of the carving-knife set to work to cut off thin slices from the joints , which they presented to us .
Happy the stomachs of iron able to bear such a trial without turning with disgust ! At length the Viceroy took pity on his guests ; balls of rice were set upon the table , and after rendering homage to this cereal of China , we were at liberty to rise from table , returning thanks at not having sunk under the effects of our first Chinese dinner . Of all the guests
seated at this banquet , the most pitiable victim was our luckless interpreter ; obliged to serve as medium of all the jokes and pleasantry , all the questions , all the messages , which passed incessantly across the table from one end to the other . There was not a mandarin present who did not think himself bound to pass a complimentary toast to one or other of us
, which he did by raising with both his hands his cup full of sam-chou to a level with his lips , and giving his head a formal balancing movement . The handsome Houan , the pink of ti-mie , or fashion , distinguished himself above all the rest by his laudatory urbanity . With flattering expressions of politenesshe drank to the venerable beard of one of the
, officers of the " Bayonnaise , " modestly assigning the honours of a septuagenarian , to a man who was scarcely thirty ; but Houan knew the human heart , and his smile , full of finesse and meaning , seemed to say to his guest , " you fancy that I flatter you , but I am sure you will pardon me ! "