[249] A wife being an infinitely less important personage than a mother in the Chinese social scale.
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[250] Literally, of hand and foot, to the mutual dependence of which that of brothers is frequently likened by the Chinese.
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[251] Any permanent change of residence must be notified to the District Magistrate, who keeps a running census of all persons within his jurisdiction.
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[252] To be thus beforehand with one’s adversary is regarded as primâ facie evidence of being in the right.
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[253] By means of the status which a graduate of the second degree would necessarily have.
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[254] A sham entertainment given by the Fu-t‘ai, or governor, to all the successful candidates. I say sham, because the whole thing is merely nominal; a certain amount of food is contracted for, but there is never anything fit to eat, most of the money being embezzled by the underlings to whose management the banquet is entrusted.
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[255] Much more so than at present.
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[256] Thereby invoking the Gods as witnesses. A common method of making up a quarrel in China is to send the aggrieved party an olive and a piece of red paper in token that peace is restored. Why the olive should be specially employed I have in vain tried to ascertain.
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[257] Of course there is no such thing as spelling, in our sense of the term, in Chinese. But characters are frequently written with too many or too few strokes, and may thus be said to be incorrectly spelt.
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[258] A ceremonial visit made on the third day after marriage.
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