s are no
longer living; that she has passed with her spouse through the years of
mourning for his parents; and that he has become rich after being poor.
The children are often affianced in childhood, and probably this fact
furnishes many of the grounds for proceedings in the divorce court.

"Infanticide is not an uncommon crime in China, female children being
almost always the victims. Probably its prevalence is somewhat
exaggerated. It is among the poorest class that this atrocity prevails,
the universal desire for male children, in connection with the ancestral
worship of the people, being the root of the evil. Public opinion is
against the practice, though not as decidedly as might be wished.

"The complexion of the Chinese is yellowish, as you have seen in our
streets; and from the extreme north to the Island of Hainan, they all
have long black hair, almond or oblique eyes, high cheek-bones, and
round faces. They are greatly addicted to opium and gambling wherever
you find them. Dr. Legge says that the longer one lives among them the
better he likes them, and the better he thinks of them; but we are not
likely to be able to test the correctness of this remark.

"The Chinese bury their dead in graves in the form of a horseshoe, and
with an almost infinite variety of ceremonies and sacrifices. Where the
friends are able to pay the expense, the last rites are ostentatious and
very costly. You may chance to see something of them before you leave
the country. When a very rich Chinaman travels, he takes his coffin with
him.

"They have no day in the week corresponding to our Sunday, but they have
an annual universal holiday at New Year's. It is a season of rejoicing
and festivity all over the country. Stores are closed for several days,
and the government offices are shut up for a month. The people 'dress
up,' and the temples are visited, the gambling resorts are in full
blast, and crackers and other fireworks make Fourth of July of the
season.

"There is some sort of a festival every month, such as the 'Feast of
Lanterns,' on the full moon, of the tombs, 'Dragon Boats,' and 'All
Souls,' in honor of departed relatives, when the supposed hungry spirits
from the other side of the Styx are fed at the cemeteries. The people
are extravagantly fond of theatricals; and a kind of bamboo tent is
erected for the performance, which is usually of inordinate length.
Females, as in India, do not appear on the stage.

"It would b