Dorothy, with her yellow curls and wide blue eyes, was loved by everyone, and Jack, with his brave boy’s ways, could not fail to attract the notice of any passing stranger. Passengers alighting from the steamers always asked their friends, “Whose are those beautiful children?”
To Jack, Hong always seemed to possess some romantic mystery, and he pictured him as having been a pirate, or, perhaps, one of the redoubtable Tai Pings. In the gate-house he always kept a large sword, a weapon made either for theatrical or processional purposes, but round this weapon Master Jack had woven volumes of romance, so much so that he regarded the weapon as something that it would be indelicate or inquisitive for him to demand of Hong the history.
Both Jack and Dorothy understood and spoke the local dialect, but Hong was very particular to make his morning salutations in pidgin-English, and then, if any story were forthcoming, it was told in the vernacular, which, for the sake of our readers, we will translate.
Thus Master Jack: “Morning, Hong; blong velly hot, my tink.”
“Morning, Master Jack; morning, Missis Dolothy. My tink plenty hot bymby. This time no blong too hot.”
“Hong, you ever cachee torture? Cachee bamboo beating, or so fashion thing?” says Jack.
Hong’s face is almost lit up with a smile, but with imperturbable gravity he replies that he was once sentenced to a painful death, and that part of the sentence was carried out.
“Tell us at once,” says Jack; but Dorothy pouts and says, “Hong, baby no wanchee hollible stoly; s’pose you speakee hollible ting, baby go away.”
Hong’s face became at once serious as he says, “No, Missis, Hong no speakee hollible stoly; s’pose like hear he tell stoly of old time custom. No blong hollible.”
The wide-eyed Dorothy being reassured, she and Jack sit on the bench by the gate, while Hong relates as follows:—