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Show 8KAT1NG IN CHINA. Jta tltHity In Carrying on tho Internal Trado of tho Country. Skating is a business with the Chins, man rather than a sport, for he con trivesto turn frozen canals $n to convon lent highways for his merchandise, as they do in Holland and Denmark. Pas- I congers are carried in sledge ohairs, propelled pro-pelled by an active Celestial on skates, and there is no more enjoyable way of making a tour round the 17 miles of wall which enoiroles the ancient city of Peking than in a sledge uf this description. descrip-tion. The canals afford facilities for locomotion loco-motion which are not to bo found in tho dirty streets, crowded as they are witb overworked humanity. It is not likely that the Celestials will ever astonish tho world with a rival to our Smarts or &ees, for they do not Rim at great Bpeed of progression, but they are nevertheless fairly qualified adepts in their way, and there have been aomo efforts made to introduce ice yachts out thero, which would indeed be ft grand thing not only for sport, but far the transport of goods at a time when all traffio is practically as a standstill, owing to the impassable condition of thtJ wrrotched causeways whioh do duty is China for highroads. There are over 70 miles of tho Pei-Ho annually covered with ice several feet thick, bank to bank, extending from Tnng-Ohau, the port of Peking, to the mouth of the river riv-er at Taku, in the gulf of Chili. What a noble race course this would form far our fen skaters! It is not commonly known that tha capital of China is icebound for five months out of tho 12, or that the stolid '.ookiug Chinese could over be graceful skaters, yet both these facts are well established. es-tablished. The Chinese use a very inferior infe-rior stylo of skato, of their own manufacture manu-facture a mere chunk of wood arranged to tie on tho shoo and shod with a rather rath-er broad strip of iron. Thero is no attempt at-tempt at elegance of design or at anything any-thing approaohing a spring fastening. A pair of "Acmes, " when shown by tha writer to some nativo students in t)o Chinese capital, produced unbounded astonishment as-tonishment and admiration by their neatness and strength. On tho other hand, the very cheapness and simplicity of tho common native niado article tend to maku Bkatins cenoraL v" " James, tho 10-year-old son of John Ha.-tman, a farmer south of this city, had 6pinal meningitis ono year ago and was left practically deaf. Several months ago he happened to place hia baud on his mother's throat while sha was talking and found he could under-stand under-stand everything sho said. Ho experi-aiented experi-aiented with others and found that the isne-e of touch in his case would make np for the deficiency in hearing. Ho cultivated cul-tivated it and now is able to hold conversation con-versation by placing his hand upon the throat of thoho ho is talking with. Ho places the ball of tho fingers upon th larynx and understands perfectly. -' |