244 SHOOTING IN CHINA 



would have easy access to the house on 

 the other side. Occasionally the ex- 

 igencies of the location require the doors 

 to be placed opposite each other, but 

 when such is the case it will be observ- 

 ed that one of the doors is turned a 

 little to the side or set back and not 

 parallel with the wall. 



Another custom based on the fear of evil 

 spirits is that when a new house is being 

 built it is of the utmost importance that 

 the comb of the roof should not point to 

 the door or window of any neighboring 

 house, otherwise it may lead the evil spirits 

 into that house and bring sickness and 

 death and other calamaties to the inmates. 

 This particular superstition is widespread 

 among the Chinese, is a deep seated belief 

 and difficult to eradicate from their minds. 



There is a custom which relates specially 

 to the beggars and is strictly adhered to by 

 them. The beggars have a trade of their 

 own and, like many other trades in China, 

 is organized into a regular guild, having a 

 headman known to foreigners as the 

 "Beggar King." When one gets too lazy 

 to work or is rendered incapable by disease 



