;" nor dance under any provocation. He was, on the whole,
a rather grave, decorous, handsome gentleman. His complexion, which
extended all over his head, except where his long pig-tail grew, was
like a very nice piece of glazed brown paper-muslin. His eyes were black
and bright, and his eyelids set at an angle of fifteen degrees; his nose
straight, and delicately formed; his mouth small; and his teeth white
and clean. He wore a dark blue silk blouse; and in the streets, on cold
days, a short jacket of astrachan fur. He wore, also, a pair of drawers
of blue brocade gathered tightly over his calves and ankles, offering
a general sort of suggestion, that he had forgotten his trousers that
morning, but that, so gentlemanly were his manners, his friends had
forborne to mention the fact to him. His manner was urbane, although
quite serious. He spoke French and English fluently. In brief, I doubt
if you could have found the equal of this Pagan shopkeeper among the
Christian traders of San Francisco.

There were a few others present,--a judge of the Federal Court, an
editor, a high government official, and a prominent merchant. After we
had drunk our tea, and tasted a few sweetmeats from a mysterious jar,
that looked as if it might contain a preserved mouse among its other
nondescript treasures, Hop Sing arose, and, gravely beckoning us to
follow him, began to descend to the basement. When we got there, we were
amazed at finding it brilliantly lighted, and that a number of chairs
were arranged in a half-circle on the asphalt pavement. When he had
courteously seated us, he said,--

"I have invited you to witness a performance which I can at least
promise you no other foreigners but yourselves have ever seen. Wang,
the court-juggler, arrived here yesterday morning. He has never given a
performance outside of the palace before. I have asked him to entertain
my friends this evening. He requires no theatre, stage accessories, or
any confederate,--nothing more than you see here. Will you be pleased to
examine the ground yourselves, gentlemen."

Of course we examined the premises. It was the ordinary basement or
cellar of the San Francisco storehouse, cemented to keep out the damp.
We poked our sticks into the pavement, and rapped on the walls, to
satisfy our polite host--but for no other purpose. We were quite content
to be the victims of any clever deception. For myself, I knew I was
ready to be deluded to any extent, and, if I ha