132
J. NACKEN
follow their pattern sage. They pluck and eat their fruit when still unripe; this may be partly because they are afraid of thieves, and partly because the means of sending their produce to the market are so primitive and slow.
One of the most interesting aspects of street life presents itself at noon. Tables are set in convenient places shaded by a large umbrella, A bench for guests stands in front, whilst the busy cook stands behind. He cries out his delicacies and the price of them, which varies from 2 to 8 cash a bowl. Those of the Chinese who can afford it sit down to "shik-án-chau.”* There are beef, mutton, fish, and shrimp-congee, macaroni, vermicelli, sago soup, etc. Those of the hawkers who have not yet earned so much capital as to have such a stall, offer cheaper delicacies on their perambulating tables. You may get several kinds of cooling gelatine or jelly with sugar for 3 cash a bowl, or a glass of lemon-water, or cake with meat or peanuts inside. Cakes vary according to seasons and festivals.
In the evening all the stalls and hawking tables are illuminated by paper lanterns, which, indeed, make the streets look lively and interesting. Besides the articles mentioned above you may hear cried out: Pickled, salted, or candied fruit, betel nut, almonds' milk, lotus-nut soup and a kind of whey made of milk. In winter the cooling dishes and drinks are exchanged for flour-balls and cakes boiled or cooked with oil.
I think we have now listened long enough to street cries for selling articles of food, and I should not wonder if my friend ex-claimed, "Dear me, I had no idea that the Chinese had such a variety of chow-chow." The fact is, I have not by any means exhausted my list of street cries of this nature. The Cantonese are gourmands and they pride themselves on their art of cooking. They have this saying:-
"Happy is he who is born in Soochow, who has his meals in Kwong-chow, and who dies in Laou-chow.Ӡ
* : to eat the noon meal; to take lunch. The last two characters have probably given rise to the pidgin-English chow-chow, to eat.
† The Soochowites are envied by our orange-skinned Cantonese friends, being of a fair complexion; Laou-chow is said to have the best wood for coffins.
132
J. NACKEN
follow their pattern sage. They pluck and eat their fruit when still unripe; this may be partly because they are afraid of thieves, and partly because the means of sending their produce to the market are so primitive and slow.
One of the most interesting aspects of street life presents itself at noon. Tables are set in convenient places shaded by a large umbrella, A bench for guests stands in front, whilst the busy cook stands behind. He cries out his delicacies and the price of them, which varies from 2 to 8 cash a bowl. Those of the Chinese who can afford it sit down to "shik-án-chau.”* There are beef, mutton, fish, and shrimp-congee, macaroni, vermicelli, sago soup, etc. Those of the hawkers who have not yet earned so much capital as to have such a stall, offer cheaper delicacies on their perambulating tables. You may get several kinds of cooling gelatine or jelly with sugar for 3 cash a bowl, or a glass of lemon-water, or cake with meat or peanuts inside. Cakes vary according to seasons and festivals.
In the evening all the stalls and hawking tables are illuminated by paper lanterns, which, indeed, make the streets look lively and interesting. Besides the articles mentioned above you may hear cried out: Pickled, salted, or candied fruit, betel nut, almonds' milk, lotus-nut soup and a kind of whey made of milk. In winter the cooling dishes and drinks are exchanged for flour-balls and cakes boiled or cooked with oil.
T
I think we have now listened long enough to street cries for selling articles of food, and I should not wonder if my friend ex- claimed, "Dear me, I had no idea that the Chinese had such a variety of chow-chow." The fact is, I have not by any means. exhausted my list of street cries of this nature. The Cantonese are gourmands and they pride themselves on their art of cooking. They have this saying:-
"Happy is he who is born in Soochow, who has his meals in Kwong-chow, and who dies in Laou-chow.”+
* Â*‡: to eat the noon meal; to take lunch. The last two characters have probably given rise to the pidgin-English chow-chow, to eat.
† The Soochowites are envied by our orange-skinned Cantonese friends, being of a fair complexion; Laou-chow is said to have the best wood for coffins.
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