body, much unnecessary trouble is saved.

When two mandarins of equal rank find themselves face to face in their
sedan-chairs, those attendants among their retinues who carry the
enormous wooden fans rush forward and insert these between the passing
chairs, so that their masters may be presumed not to see each other and
consequently not be obliged to get out.

No subordinate can ever meet a higher mandarin in this way; the former
must turn down some by-street immediately on hearing the approaching
gong of his superior officer. A mandarin's rank can be told by the
number of consecutive strokes on the gong, ranging from thirteen for a
viceroy to seven for a magistrate.

Take the case of a Chinese visitor. He should be received at the front
door, and be conducted by the host to a reception-room, the host being
careful to see that the visitor is always slightly in advance. The act
of sitting down should be simultaneous, so that neither party is
standing while the other is seated. If the host wishes to be very
attentive, he may take a cup of tea from his servant's hands and himself
arrange it for his guest.

Here comes another most important and universal rule: in handing
anything to, or receiving anything from, an equal both hands must be
used. A servant should hand a cup of tea with both hands, except when
serving his master and a guest. Then he takes one cup in each hand, and
hands them with the arms crossed. I was told that the crossing was in
order to exhibit to each the "heart," _i.e._ the palm, of the hand, in
token of loyalty.

There is a curious custom in connection with the invariable cup of tea
served to a visitor on arrival which is often violated by foreigners, to
the great amusement of the Chinese. The tea in question, known as
guest-tea, is not intended for ordinary drinking purposes, for which
wine is usually provided. No sooner does the guest raise the cup of tea
to his lips, or even touch it with his hand, than a shout is heard from
the servants, which means that the interview is at an end and that the
visitor's sedan-chair is to be got ready. Drinking this tea is, in fact,
a signal for departure. A host may similarly, without breach of good
manners, be the first to drink, and thus delicately notify the guest
that he has business engagements elsewhere.

Then again, it is the rule to place the guest at one's left hand, though
curiously enough this only dates from the middle of the fourteenth
century,