294 ART IN CHINA. 



freshly extracted fi'oni the stratiiin ; it hardens just 

 sufficiently to do the cutting, yet retains an edge. 

 The celebrated quarries of Kuen-lun are in the 

 Caracash valley of Eastern Turkestan, Ijut true jade 

 is also found in the Caucasus and the Ural mountains. 

 The largest porcelain shop is that of U-shing ; there 

 were some beautiful large vases and bowls, very dear, 

 but not a piece of genuine old ware. Chy-loong is 

 the principal fruit jDreserver ; here I tasted a great 

 many varieties, — ginger, lychees, very small limes, 

 etc. Hundreds of tin boxes I saw beino- filled with 

 jars for export, and, from the prices asked, I expect 

 that one buys these things for less money at Fortnum 

 and Mason's. My last visit was to a picture dealer, 

 and after looking into every drawer of his shop, and 

 selecting a few specimens to take home, I have come 

 to the conclusion that the art of painting in China is 

 quite in its infancy. They produce good results, as 

 far as mere colouring is concerned, but they are sadly 

 deficient in drawing, and especially of fore-shortening 

 they seem to have no idea. Their landscapes and 

 figures are without life ; birds and flowers only are at 

 all true to nature, and those painted on the so-called 

 rice paper are exceedingly pretty, owing to the 

 material partly, but also to the brilliancy of colour. 

 The name of the former, however, is a misnomer, the 



