have moved the tears, as the happier portions
have moved the smiles, of an attentive and
delighted audience.

Watered by such tears, warmed by the
sunshine of such smiles, rooted in the black
mud of cities, expanding strongly in their
faint and sickly air, the drama rises, like a
good and stately tree. Beneath its boughs is
found a pleasant shade where those who live
pent up in towns, may rest after their day
of toil. Train it aright, and use it well, and
from its comely leaves a scent exhales,
wholesome and profitable to man. What, though
its growth has in the world's long history
been sometimes warped and turned aside.
What, though the boughs that should have
grown towards heaven have been—but this
not often—dragged down by wicked hands,
which forcing them to creep through mire
and offal, have caused the wholesome leaves
so steeped in poison to give a deadly
exhalation forth. Shall the tree be blamed for
this? The tree, whose culture was the life's
work of Shakespeare—whose fruit was
handed to our forefathers by Garrick, and
at whose root that friend of Garrick, whom
the world delights to honour, has been found
himself at work.

     NEW YEAR'S DAY IN CHINA.

THE Chinese year is divided into lunar
months, consequently New Year's Day is the
first day of the first moon. It is a great day
in China. It is a day of public worshipping
of the emperor by the mandarins and other
high officials. We were led to understand that
this ceremony would be observed with more
than usual splendour for certain state reasons,
and therefore determined to be present. We
were informed that four o'clock in the morning
would certainly see them at the Chingwang-meaou
or city king's temple. But woe to those who
put their faith in Chinese punctuality! Should the
Taou-tae be disturbed with evil dreams, or his thoughts
in his bed disquiet him, he is very likely to
rise at two o'clock and proceed to his devotions;
but should his sleep prove refreshing,
it is just as probable he will remain
in the arms of Morpheus until seven
o'clock.

With the warning of several failures before
our eyes, we determined not to be
disappointed;  and therefore, having fortified our
inner man with hot coffee, curry, and rice, and
our outer selves with various fur garments of
very un-English forms, a large party of us
sallied forth, a few minutes after three o'clock
in the morning, attended by six or eight
coolies with lanterns. Truly our courage
merited reward; for the night was pitch
dark, and as it had rained the whole of the
previous day, the broad rough stones along
which we had to proceed in Indian file, were
so slippery that every now and then some of;
our party made a sudden and disagreeable
descent into the mud, of which there was a
liberal supply on either hand.

As soon as we entered the city gates we
met crowds of people going from every
direction towards the temple; for, at this
season every Chinaman, however careless or
wicked he may be, thinks himself bound to
set matters straight by offering candles, gilt
paper, and incense, and prostrating himself
before the shrine. Rich men come attended
by their servants, who carry the offerings;
then, first making a bow to the idol, they take
some sticks of incense, light them, and hand
them to a priest, who places them in a tripod,
the servants giving the candles and placing
the gilt paper in a brazier. Retiring a few
steps from the shrine, they kneel down,
prostrate the head six or nine times, muttering
prayers the while.

We found crowds going through this ceremony
when we reached the Ching-wang-meaou,
which was brilliantly lighted with all
kinds of lanterns; indeed, there were so many
worshippers that they could only allow each
candle to burn for a few minutes on the
frame before the idol; it was then taken off
and replaced by another. The floor of the
shrine was actually raised some inches above
that of the temple, by the accumulated mud
brought in on the feet of the worshippers;
and the clouds of incense that arose from all
the shrines, made the temple almost dark. We
were soon tired of watching this meaningless
worship; so, after a short time, we
went to a silk-shop near, telling some of
the priests to send us word when the mandarins
were really at hand. They did so, and
this time we proceeded to the Kwan-te-meaou
or temple of the god of war, which
was also splendidly lighted. Here the idol,
of colossal size, was concealed from the
public gaze by an embroidered veil, in the
centre of which is the Yin and Yang, the
male and female principle which has existed
(say the Chinese) from eternity. This veil
has a large aperture through which the idol's
eye is supposed to gaze on his deluded
worshippers.

We wandered about in the courts of this
temple till six o'clock; and, on going into one
of the side rooms to sit down, the attendants
offered us some tea, à la Chinoise, which we
gladly accepted and found very good. At
length the official servants began to arrive;
amongst them came the executioners wearing
red caps quite in the style of the Albert hat.
The striking of gongs announced the arrival
at last of the great men, who went into one
of the side rooms to robe; meanwhile, the
temple gates being closed and a space cleared
in front of the shrine, the servants spread
fur and silk cushions for them to kneel upon,
two in front and two rows of five behind. A
man in silk robe and fur cap, like our Lord
Mayor's sword-bearer, only rather more
grotesque, entered first and took his stand in
front between the cushions and the shrine.