. A'Chu and other stories. y bed consists of a numberof boards of suitable length nailed to crosswise stripsof wood to hold them together. This rests at the headand benches or tiers of bricks. A mat ofskin or quilted cotton is spread on the boards, andwith another piece for a covering and a cube of china-ware for a pillow the bed is complete. The sitting-room occupied the middle portion of thehouse where we were calling. Its walls and ceilinghad been freshly papered. The place was tidy andmuch fresher and cleaner than might have been ex-pected of a room next to the kitchen with its d
. A'Chu and other stories. y bed consists of a numberof boards of suitable length nailed to crosswise stripsof wood to hold them together. This rests at the headand benches or tiers of bricks. A mat ofskin or quilted cotton is spread on the boards, andwith another piece for a covering and a cube of china-ware for a pillow the bed is complete. The sitting-room occupied the middle portion of thehouse where we were calling. Its walls and ceilinghad been freshly papered. The place was tidy andmuch fresher and cleaner than might have been ex-pected of a room next to the kitchen with its dailysmokes. But this was at the season of the ChineseNew Year, and every loyal-hearted Chinaman will shave One Hour in a Native Village 141 his head, wash his clothes, and clean his house for thisfestival, whether he does so at other times or not. The sitting-room was furnished with a pair of guest chairs set at either side of a high table, a few stools, high and low, and two benches, like those shown in the picture ABOUND THE BICE BOWL At one side of the room was the ancestral altar,a piece of furniture present in all Chinese homeswhere the gospel is not believed. At the other sidewas the best piece of furniture the house contained, — a tall chiffonier very well made of beautiful hardwood. In its deep drawers and on its shelves onemay expect to find all the familys choicest treasures — perhaps some jade bracelets and silver ornamentsfor the women. Neatly folded in one drawer may liean embroidered skirt and a bright silk tunic, worn byall the brides in the family for four generations, and 142 AChu and Other Stories now waiting to serve once again on the bridal dayof the unmarried daughter. There, too, will be foundthe bright new garments that have kept the villagetailors and women of the house busy for days beforethe New Year time, together with gay caps for thechildren and those odd bonnets the women wear. One might not suspect how many really prettyand dainty thin
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1920, bookidachuothersto, bookyear1920
