FOLK WAYS AND OFFICIALS
Several voices whispered: "It's Prince Pu Lun."
It was at President Yuan Shih-kai's reception, New Year's Day, 1914; the diplomatic corps and high officials were there. The Empress Dowager's residence, now occupied by the President, was the scene. From the side rooms, whither we had withdrawn for refreshments after exchanging greetings with the President, we looked out into the main hall and saw that its floor had been entirely cleared, and a solitary figure in a general's uniform was proceeding across the floor toward the President. Walking alone and unattended, the representative of the Chinese Imperial Family had come to bring its felicitations to the President of the Republic. For the first time since the abdication, the Imperial Family was publicly taking notice of him who had displaced it in power.
When the guests began to depart I gathered up my party and left the hall, together with Admiral Tsai Ting-kan. Outside was Prince Pu Lun, still solitary, walking with sad and pensive regard. We overtook him. I talked pleasantly with him on such non-committal matters as the Imperial collection of art, which was at this time being brought from Mukden. He seemed quite appreciative of this attention. I took him with me to the outer palace gate where his own carriage met him.
Except the automobiles used inside of the palace enclosure, few were then to be found in Peking; soon, with improved roads, many hundreds came. The Empress Dowager before her death had acquired a large collection of these foreign vehicles, which interested her greatly; but up to the time of her death the Board of Ceremonies had not succeeded in solving the problem how she might ride in an automobile in which there would also be, in sitting posture, one of her servants, the chauffeur. If they had had more time, I imagine that they might have found some way by which the chauffeur could kneel in driving the Imperial car, but, as it was, the poor Empress Dowager never had the pleasure of the swift rides she so much coveted.
Many popular superstitions still prevailed in parts of the provinces. The military attaché of the American Legation, Major Bowley, who later did distinguished service in the Great War as general of artillery, was active in visiting the military commanders in different parts of China and in observing their actions and getting their views. He had just returned from such a trip to Kiangsi Province, and related how one of the generals there strove to improve his morale by drinking the blood of enemies who had been killed. He spared Major Bowley a cupful of this precious liquid, which was to be taken before breakfast. It is startling to discover among the people so highly civilized as are the Chinese occasional remnants of barbarous doctrines and practices. There is an inverted homœopathy in Chinese popular belief—to the effect that "equals strengthen equals"; thus, to eat muscle develops strength, to eat tripe aids the digestion, to eat heart or drink blood develops courage, and so on.
One evening, at a dinner at Mr. Liang Shih-yi's house a spirited discussion developed between the host and Mr. Anderson. The latter had related a local custom of the Soochow region according to which it was permissible for a community or a crowd of people to bite to death any person who was thoroughly disapproved of by all. Apparently the method of execution was in itself a guaranty of universal condemnation, as a great many people would have to coöperate to effect the desired result by this method. Mr. Liang protested that the expression "bite to death" was in this case used only metaphorically, and there followed a long debate on Chinese folk customs.