Cleveland High School - Beacon Yearbook (St Louis, MO)

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we ,ifonfinpiece - .fggqzfucl This junk with the much patched sail represents only one of the many queer looking sailing crafts seen in Chinese harbors. This type of boat hasone to four masts and is sometimes four hundred years old. Often bumpers, woven out of rattan, are fastened upon it to protect the great eye, and phoenix feathers or dragon scales are brightly painted on its hull. Junks are native Waterfront freighters. They carry salt, rice, tea, Wood, vegetables and fruit from one city to another and often go up rivers and canals to inland China. Many junks are to be seen in all harbors and rivers. Occasionally they are operated by native pirates who prey upon the defenseless crafts especially in remote streams. There are more boats in China than in any other country of the World. DRYING NOODLES ON BAMBOO RACKS 'X fig I:- C 1xnunn .sw-,Q x A ' A. Wx M: O ,K wr. N. D'

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C H V N A 4 WK X S

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,jim QOIQL of Kiiina Let us imagine that instead of being born in the United States you were born in China. You would find conditions very different than in America. Instead of attending high school, you would be compelled to earn your own living at an early age, and not at jobs such as the children of our country are familiar. If poor, you would perhaps be a coolie. If in a little better position, you might be an apprentice to a craftsman. There would be no vacations, nothing but work at a few cents a day, and that would be perhaps all the future held in store for you. Unless one of the fortu- nate, you would have very little, if any, education. Perhaps, you would not be able to read or write the diflicult Chinese language. China's civilization is one of the oldest in the world. With four thou- sand years of history behind them, it would not seem strange if you were there, that you would look more to the past than to the future, and that you would be very proud of the old ways. One of the main reasons for this is the teachings of Confucius. Confucius taught it is better to do things as they have always been done than to adopt new ways. The teachings of Confucius go hand in hand with religion in China. Confucius taught that a good Chinese should be reverent, especially to his ancestors. No doubt, you would practice ancestral worship. In many places in China, there are shrines built for the purpose of ancestral wor- ship. Although ancestral worship is one of the main religions in China, there are many other religions. Among these is Buddhism, which came from India. There are also many Mohammedans, especially in the north- west, and a growing number of Christians. Your family would be regarded as the most important social unit. You would live in a group of houses with a court in the center. In this house, or homestead, may live as many as ten or fifteen of your relatives. The main reason for this is that when two people marry, the bride moves to her husband's home. Your house would be made of mud, because the Chinese lack an adequate supply of wood. The roof of the house is generally thatched. Occasionally, there is some wood used, mainly for coiiins and farm imple- ments. If your father could afford it, he would want to be buried in a great wooden coflin that resembles a big hollow tree. The top would be so heavy that a man could not lift it. You would think a cofiin a very pleasant piece of furniture and might give your father a beautiful coffin as a New Year's gift which he would keep in the parlor for his neighbors to see. Another important custom in China is that of holding festivals. The 9