variety of ways, tossing it under and over his foot, spinning
it with the sticks behind him, and at times throwing it up into the air
twenty or thirty feet and catching it as it comes down. The principle
upon which it is operated is the quick jerking of one of the sticks
while the other is allowed to be loose.

"To-morrow," said Mr. Hsin, as he ceased spinning the top, "I will get
you some toy carts."

The Chinese cart has been described as a Saratoga trunk on two wheels.
This is, however, only one form--that of the passenger cart. There are
many others, and all of them are used as patterns of toy carts. They
all have a kind of music-box attachment, operated by the turning of the
axle to which the wheels of the toys, as well as those of some of the
real carts, are fixed.

The toy carts are made of tin, wood and clay. Some of them are very
simple, having paper covers, while others possess the whole
paraphernalia of the street carts. When the mule of the toy cart is
unhitched and unharnessed, he looks like a very respectable mule.
Nevertheless, instead of devouring food, he becomes the prey of
insects. Usually he appears the second season, if he lasts that long,
bereft of mane and tail, as well as a large portion of his skin.

The flat carts have a revolving peg sticking up through the centre, on
which a small clay image is placed which turns with the stick. Others
are placed on wires on the two sides, to represent the driver and the
passengers.

These in Peking are the omnibus carts. Running from the east gate of
the Imperial city to the front gate, and in other parts of the city as
well, there are street carts corresponding to the omnibus or street
cars of the West. These start at intervals of ten minutes, more or
less, with eight or ten persons on a cart, the fare being only a few
cash. Toy carts of this kind have six or eight clay images to represent
the passengers.

Mr. Hsin brought out from the bottom of his basket a number of neatly
made little pug dogs, and pressing upon a bellows in their body caused
them to bark, just as the hen cackled a few days before.

What we have described formed only a small portion of the toys Mr. Hsin
brought. Cheap clay toys of all kinds are hawked about the street by a
man who sells them at a fifth or a tenth of a cent apiece. With him is
often found a candy-blower, who with a reed and a bowl of taffy-candy
is ready to blow a man, a chicken, a horse and cart, a corn ear, or