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Show LAW-MAKERS IN CHINATOWN Asslmifate Ways of Orientals. Legislators Get Pointers on Eastern Question in Plum Alley. Mysteries of Mongolian Gin and tho Noodle Route Are Investigated With Mixed Results. Clouds' of pungent Incense floating through Chlnntown, together with the angry splutter of countless llrccrackers, made It known last night that the. Chinese Chi-nese New Year had reached Its zenith. Tho noise of brazen tom-toms beaten by, perspiring Chinese was almost drowned by the monotonous sing-song peans of pralso wrenched from the vocal chords of other Mongolians. Into tho midst of thin confusion walked the members of the Legislature, tho lawmaking law-making body adjourning In ordor that It might assimilate knowledge of tho ways of Orientals, and Its members bo so enabled to discuss learnedly tho Eastern problem, when In tho presence of their constituents. Reception Committee Overlooked. Because of the absence of an official announcer, an-nouncer, no rccoptlon committee awaited tho coming of the Legislature, but as a number of tho visitors were under tho Impression Im-pression that tho gongs were ringing and the gunpowder burning In their honor, tho slight Imposed by tho Chlneso empire was not noticed. Several members. In their thirst after knowledge, fell foul of tho Insidious Mongolian Mon-golian gin. after several libations of which four members of tho upper house sat cross-legged, after tho Oriental fashion, on the floor of a Joss house, and listened gravely to the nolso mado by a cross-eyed Chinaman with a brass gong, under tho impression that thoy wero hearing Sousa's band Other persons alleged to be entitled to tho prefix of "Honornblo" were Introduced to the noodle and chop suoy route. Ono ambitious ancient attempted to cat noodles with chop sticks, and his colleagues col-leagues spent half an hour pulling them out of his beard and unwrapping them from his neck. Laundry Customers Recognized. It was not until a band of the visitors had gathered In the joss house that their true worth was recognized. Fat Louie, tho laundryninn. recognized several customers and called other Chinese of tho same profession to help In tho Identification. Identifica-tion. Fat Louie explained that the visitors wero all tho samo mandarins of tho third class, which In China Is nn honorable and profitable profession. Tho announcement brought out a fresh supply of gin and lichee nuts, but Ah Fong. who operates a fan. tan game next door to the Joss house, put the bank roll up his sleovo and closed tho game. Fat Louie caught him ns he sought refuge in a cellar and explained that tho visitors were not qulto the samo ns mandarins of the third class aro In China, at which Ah Fong was visibly relieved and transferred trans-ferred his bank roll to tho Interior of his right sock. During tho Intermission In the gong-beatlng, gong-beatlng, the pleasure of tho evening was almost marred through the rudo haste of Lin Sing, a laundryman, who had evidently evident-ly never received lessons In politeness. Lin Sing recognized a farr'liar face In the crowd, and plucking the owner of tho face by tho sleeve, oxclalmcd. "Whalla mnlla willy you one dollnh washco no halb got?" Lin Sing in Disgrace. It seemed from explanations made afterward af-terward that the face which caused tho query was not that of a legislator, but It caused much embarrassment to both law-makers and Chinese, and several of the former left hurriedly, giving the Impression Im-pression that they were highly offended. Lin Sing was condemned to take tho graveyard shift on the gong by his indignant indig-nant countrymen, who claimed that thoy lost long-sought opportunities through Sing's lack of diplomacy. f Shortly after 10 o'clock the7 legislators wero rounded up by tho guides and conducted con-ducted to tho corner of Second South and Main streets, where they wero dismissed. Judging from tho general tenor of tho conversation among tho law-makers. It appears that tho majority of them favor tho rigid enforcement of tho exclusion act and the abolishment of tho Chinese laundry. |
