1934-09-12 — Page 7

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HONG KONG DAILY PRESS, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 1934.

THE CHINESE THEATRE CORRESPONDENCE PUBLIC MONEY

Interesting Talk To Rotary Club By Mr. H. H. Sling

A GLIMPSE INTO HISTORY

An essay written by air. H. Hong Sling. Secretary of the Ro- tary Club, while he was an undergraduate at the Yale Univer- sity, was read by him at the Rotary Club yesterday and proved very acceptable. The essay was on "The Chinese Theatre and Its Afflaky with the Elizabethan" and contained many facts about the Chinese stage which is little known to foreigners. We give below some extracts of the essay which deals with the Chinese theatre.

in

Actors Enter

6.

No subject the iterature, several stately chairs. The table upon Chida has been more is soon transformed into à court neglected than that dealing with beach by simply covering it with the Chinese theatre. A large ma- a gorgeously embroidered cloth, jority of the Chinese people are which hangs over the front reach- brought up without any appre- ing down to the floor. A chair is clable book learning: their trend placed upon a slightly raised plat- the form behind the table for of thought has however, been in- fluenced to a noticeable extent by justice, and the others are ar- A the drama. An institution which ranged below on either side. exerts such widespread and tell sign is hung up to indicate the ing influence in the life or a na- title of the scene. tion deserves more than a passing remark in works which profess to be interpretive of that nation.

The theatre

the Chinese towns and cities, is housed in the conventional building similar to the ones used for such purposes It 19 in other parts of the world. not so newly painted, there is no display of polished brasswork, and mirrors and carpets are lacking. This is true only of the exterior. however, for the interior is sump-" tuously furnished. The buliding is generally larger than its con- temporaries in the chief theatrical centres; we find the customary box office and meet the usual doorman The photographs and bills present the same familiar sight in the lobby as in other theatres.

There is no need for us to go to the box office since we have pur- chased our, tickets beforehand. This was made necessary because the best class of seats is usually exhausted a long while before the performance. We merely show our tickets to the doorman, who then permits us to enter.

. Century Old Stare The stage is at the farther end of the theatre, being a survival of the type that existed centuries ago. About four feet in height, thirty five feet wide, and fifteen feet deep without curtains, it pre- sents a bare and deserted appear

ance before the performance.

The orchestra begins to play in earnest, for we can detect the pitch rising higher and higher and every plece. giv- ing forth its loudest sound, unt:1 there is a dim throughout the house, The gold embroidered curtain banging over one of the proscenium doors situated at each

end of the stage is suddenly drawn

aside and the actors enter "în a processio. They make a turn or two about the stage, ühen form in

Line to render the equivalent

to an opening chorus. After this preliminary, the play begins. The different characters are usually eliminated from the scene by finding missions for them to at- tend to in distant paris, and they leave the stage one by one.

Finally the hero and heroine are left alone, the latter is never The part is taken by a woman. a youth, who imitates, even the unsteady walk of the once preva- lent "bound feet" of the gentle- woman. By means of a falsetio voice, the portrayal approaches perfection.

[All letters intended for publi- cation must be accompanied by the name and address of the writer, not

VOTES

for publication, unless so desired. More Supplementary

but as evidence of good faith.-—En.)

(To the Editor of "The Hoog Kong Daily Press")

Sir,-After returning the verdict of "guilty" the special jury strong- ly recommended mercy. No one except members of the Special Jury know on what grounds they bad recommended mercy, but I am personally satisfied that such re- commendation would not have been made without careful consi- deration. The jury did not return their verdict there and then, but retired and deliberated for nearly two hours--and the length of time they took to deliver their verdict certainly suggests that this was not a case where there was a pro- ponderant amount of evidence on one side or the other, but a case of great difficulty.

Estimates

$149,351 REQUIRED

Supplementary votes totalling $149.351 is to come before the Finance Committee of the Legis inttve Council to-morrow.

Among the Hems particulars of which will be found below, is one for $100,000 in connection with the formation of the dumping ground at Kun Tong.

KAI TAK FIRE ENGINE Air Services: Fire Engine

for Kal Tak Aerodrome. $10.000 It is considered" essential that eficient tre fighting conipment be maintained at the aerodrome and it is therefore necessary to pur- chase a Morris Six-cylinder Chasṣig Fire Engine equipped with trussed

This strongly is my argument in support of the recommendation.

ladder and a suit of Merryweathers' The convicted prisoner is, I under-

Mefisto" Flame-Resisting cloth-| He has not stand, a poor man. the means of rousing public feeling at a cost of £893. 148. Or,

$0.793.41. ings in his favour, but none-the-

Railway: less, deserves equally all the con- Kowloon - Canton "sideration that the authorities can Materials for Repairs and

give him

Renewals...

.....$10,000 Force: Emoluments

$6,475 With the administration of the Registration of Persons Ordinance, 1934 the following increases in the establishment of the. Police Depart- ment are required.

I trust that the recommendation of mercy. coming from a special Jury, will not be overlooked- Yours, etc.

-

"Toy "Pun Ching Ming" Hong Kong, Sept. 11th 1934.

PROFITEERING IN

JAPANESE GOODS

Ceylon To Take Action

4

Profiteering by dealers in Jap- anese textiles is understood to have been. among the 'matters considered by the Board of Minis- ters at Colombo.

No decision was reached, but it is learned that the Minister of Home Affairs reported to the Board that he had instructed the Police to keep a strict watch on the situation and to warn all dea- lers in Japanese goods that if they sold their articles at enhanced prices, they had no warrant for doing so.

Police

Personal

One European Sub-Inspec-

Lor

One European Police Ser-

geant One Class

(J.C.S.)

.* (7 months).

$3,453*

$2,127!

VI.

Clerk

.$" 59€*

$6,476

Fubilc Works Recurrent: Kowloon, Maintenance

53.000

of Buildings ....... It has been found necessary to carry out considerable repairs to piany old buildings in Kowloon,

largely owing to the ravages of white ants. These repairs, have 'been more extensive than the usual maintenance for which funds were provided in the 1934 Estimates, Public Works Recurrenti,

Kowloon, Improvements to Buildings

...... $1,500 Mary minor improvements to buildings have been effected in Kowloon and further improve- ments, to the end of the year, are now found to be necessary to the extent of $1,500 in excess of the

Scenery is not used on the Chinese stage. The plays are written for the simple boards of many ages ago. Location of scenes is indicated by the lines and ac- tions of the players, as well as by hanging up a signboard bearing they persisted in

If, in spite of these warnings, selling their this information. The costumes goods at prices greatly in excess Our places are in one of the

and furniture also

denote the of prices prevailing before the boxes which line the sides of the situation of the scene. Flowing

about level

quotas, were imposed; it is under-amount approved to date. buliding

with the

beards are invariably worn bystood that the Minister of Home Public Works Recurrent: stage. The cheaper seats are wood- officials, patriarchs, and other im- en benches and are located on the main floor below us; the cheapest seats are at the extreme rear, where there is also a space provided for those who can only afford to stand. A small ledge about three inches wide is fasten.. ed to the back of each sea. This is used as a miniature shelf for refreshments of tea, candy, and cakes, which may be obtained

from vendors throughout the theatre.

We discover our box to be a luxurious place. There dire two lounges supplied with cushions, each one of which is equivalent to four seats. There are also chairs

or stools for our servants, who usually accompany us on these occasionis. Soon after our arrival an attendant provides us with tea. This is compulsory expense and is collected by the ticket taker when he comes for our tickets. Besides this tea we are asked to pay a tax of ten per cent on, our tickets which goes to the atten- dants of the theatre. This is "an ancient custom and as old as the theatre itself.

A QUEER ORCHESTRA Contrary to foreign practice, 'the orchestra is located on the stage, at the extreme rear. The musk- cians do not dress uniforms.

They come upon the stage in what ever variety of garb they please; in the summer some come with none except a pair of trousers. This however is an extreme case. The important members of the or- chestra are those who play á

|

portant personages to denote age and wisdom, while paint, powder, wigs and masks are frequently

used.

the

From The Classics.

·Chinese dramas lives in peqt. Ita plots are based on his- torical facia or legends. Some are aken from the classica and from terature. The characters are men who are famous in the his tury of the nation and familiar to mast of the audience. Even the carriage of the players conformis to the old practice, where in place of the natural walk, we find a long military stride. for the soldier, a dignified stamp for the r bigman and higher officers and a small, mincing step for the wo- man.

$1

After describing a play in great detall, the essay goes on thus:- "The play ends. We notice the absence of applause, although the cries of the vendora, throughout the theatre did not subside during, most of the time the play was in ogress. This lack of applause

is not due to the displeasure of the audience. It has never been

Affairs would again report to the Board of Misters So that the necessary action might be taken.

As regards legislation to deal with the menace of profiteering, it is understood that the machinery for it is now being prepared.

damages

New Territories, Mairi- tenance of Lighthouses... $500 The expenditure on repairs to Lighthouses has been higher than anticipated owing to caused by white ants. In con- sequence funds provided to date for maintenance are found to be insumcient to cover the cost of necessary repairs."

DUMPING GROUND

Formation

The method that is likely to be employed-for enforcing:such legis- lation will be for the Police, on a complaint by members of the pubile to prosecute the profiteer- ing shop-keeper. Under such a

of Dumping law, all buyers of Japanese goods

Ground at Kun Tong... $100,000 will be required to obtain receipts for their purchases, so that when

It is essential that this work they have been overcharged for should be completed as early as possible, in order to provide a pro- their purchases, they could com- plain to the Police who will haves-tected area for dumping the spoil tigate the complaint and charge from the dredger now operating off the west side of Kowloon Peninsula. The value of work carried out. this year to July 31 amounted to approximately $255,000.

the offending -dealer. ··

اد

Provision will be made for dea- Ters found guilty of profiteering to be subjected to flues so heavy as to act as a deterrent.

AL

AT THE MARINE COURT

THE BUDGET

Drastic Reductions Foreshadowed

COUNCIL AGENDA

The Hon, Sir Thomas Southorn, Colonial Secretary, will present the Budget to-morrow, the amount re- quired för 1935 being $28,324,219.

this, figurę (la, zoughly; seven million dollars less than the figure on the original Estimates for 1994,

No detalls have far been which was $33,348,697.

Avaliable.

The agenda for the Council Meeting to-morrow is as follows:--

Betting Tax

The Colonial Treasurer to move the following resolution:— Whereas under section 6 (1) of the Betting Duty Ordinance. 1931; as amended by the Bet- ting Duty Amendment Ordi- nance, 1934, it is provided that 03 every bet made. pn sny totalisator or pári-mutuel au thorised by the safd Ordinance there shall be charged a duty on a scale, to be determined from time to time by resolu- tion of the Legislative Counell and Whereas it is expedient that such a scale should now be determined, it is hereby resolved that in the case of bets hade on any totaligator or pari-mutuel authorised by the said Ordinance there shall be paid a duty according to the following scale:—

Where in any year ending on the 31st day of March the total gross receipts from the sale of tickets at such totalisator or pari-mutuel

do not exceed $3,000,000, 1

per cent, of such total; exccéd $3,000,000 but do not exceed $4,000,000, 11 ner cent. of such “total; .. exceed $4,000,000 but do not exceed $5,000,000, 2 per cent, of such total: exceed $5,000,000 but do not exceed $6,000,000, 21 per cent of such total;

exceed $6,000,000, 3 per cent..

q such, total

The Attorney. General to move

That the Order dated 3rd day of August, 1934, made by the Chief Justice under section 114 of the Bankruptcy Ordinance. 1931. Ordinance No. 10 of 1931, be approved.

The Colonial Secretary to move the

First reading.of

"A Bill to apply a sum not ex- ceeding Twenty-six million three hundred and twenty-four thousand two hundred and nineteen dollars to the Public Service of the year 1935.” The Attorney General to move the

First reading of

"A Bul to make provision for Anancing and carrying out a scheme for new Government House and for the development of a portion of the City of Victoria."

"A Bill to amend the Empire Preference Ordinance, 1932.".. The Attorney General to move the

Second reading of........

A Bill to amend the Printers and Publishers Ordinance, 1927,"

years, the cost of repairs and re-

normal repairs and replacements may be proceeded with, up to the end of the year.

At the present progress the ex-placements has increased. A m tent of the further work which will of $5,000 is now required so that be completed at the end of the year is estimated at $145,000 mak ing a total for the whole year: $400,000. Amount voted this year: Cheung Kuen, aged 28 years, $300,000 Supplementary vote re- described as an unlicensed hawker, quired: $100.000.

BOARDING OFFENCE

02

the custom to applaud the play-appeared before Commander Hole Removal and re-instatement ers in Chinese theatres for several at the Marine Court yesterday reasons: the dislike of the morning, charged with boarding andlence to express emotion, the

$4,400 the British the 55. Kalgan, last It is considered necessary to

of Electrical Workshop, etc.

New Year Bonuses to Chinese

Employees

31.275 The sun provided in the Estimates proved to be insufficient and a further vote for $1,275 18 now requested. The expenditure on this service was $40,180 in 1922

drowns out most of the other the permission from the master or the building formerly used as the loudness of the orchestra whichMonday morning without having carry out improvements to part of and 343,845 in 1933. AMMAL sounds, and the low social posi tion of the actory,

the officer-on-duty.

There has been a net "increase Royal Naval Canteen at Arsenal since 1933 of 120 officers qualifying It was stated by the prosecuting Street, so that accommodation for the bonus by three years: 267- omcer that the accused was seen therein may be suitable for the vice. walking around the ahip and when FWD Electrical Department's Public Works stopped and asked whether he had workshop, which has to be moved. got a pass or permit, the accused from the adjacent building now to failed to produce it.

be demolished.

Recurrent: Hong Kong, Improve- ments to Buildings

$7,000

It is considered necessary to When questioned by his Worship Certain alterations and repairs make certain minor improvements the steamer, in order to sell some ins are necessary, at an estimated Quarters, to construct a Strong the accused said that he boarded and re-wiring of the whole build-at the Leighton Hill Eenfor omcers fruits. And had nothing else to focust of $4,600, which sum includes Room at No. 7 Police Station, and A time of 310 or in default one the cost of the removal of plant, to carry out certain other minor week's hard Tabour was imposed.

We leave the theatre and re- turn to the reality of the present moment, after reaching, bick stringed instrument with a bow: through the centuries and living they play alone when accompany again with the people of that time: As we view the throng ing a monologue, or dialogue. The speeches and songs are vending their way home, we can punctuated by the leader of the not help thinking this such to

ntence as the drama has exerted orchestra, who beats upon a wood- en sounding Block At other upda host people cannot but have times, the whole complement of Its effect upon their lives. Is it drums, cymbals, Autes and cornets not possible that progress has join in the general, confusion. At been arrested by continually re- such times, te music is heard, tracing the steps which have al and little la intended. The best ready been taken, without the music is rendered during the re-fusion of plays which concern the

the present generation? ing a monolozde.” or dialogue.

The time draws near tor the A hearty vote of thanks was performance to begin. The stage accorded the speaker at the end of hands bring out a large table and the address.

MAKING FAST TO A SHIP

for

etc.

Maintenance and Supply of

Works under this expenditure head of Improvements to Buildings, at Furniture unlawfully making fast to

$6,000 an estimated cost of $7,000.

current Chong Lee while she was Provision made in Estimates. The provision in the underway Lam Foo, aged 33 years, $30,000,

year's Estimates has already been Owing to the increase in new fully allocated for mino mistress of cargo boat No. 34157.

to-offices, and the Improvements now requir admitted the offence and was fined supplies of furniture ta $10 or one week's hard labour. quarters, etc, during the past few Led have not been allowed for

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