280 COFFEE. 



ers and fire-ca*ackers ! How I used to dream of the time when I 

 would "grow big" and enjoy an eternal elysium of the latter — 

 "have just as many as I wanted;" and how well I remember 

 when a short, stumpy boy at school, who was my particular an- ' 

 tipathy, described the difference in our build by maliciously call- 

 ing me " Shanghai ! " and how I tried to get even with him by 

 retorting " Shorty ! " How, as I grew older, the romance sur- 

 rounding this country was heightened by my becoming familiar 

 with the saying, "When our ship comes home from China," 

 and learned that with the occurrence of that auspicious event 

 every wish, no matter how extravagant, could be gratified. Later, 

 when I came to New York, a green country boy, the illusion was 

 kept up by finding that the richest and most noted merchants 

 were in the " China trade ; " the Careys, the Lows, the Olyphants, 

 the Cryders, and a host of others, were living illustrations and 

 confirmations of all I had heard and read — veritable " China As- 

 ters." And so I am prepared to appreciate and enjoy the magnifi- 

 cent, the wonderful, the Celestial Empire which I am so rapidly 

 approaching. I remember now something about my geography 

 saying that Shanghai is situated near the mouth of the " Yang- 

 tse-kiang " Eiver ; how hard it used to be for me to pronounce 

 that jaw-breaker ! Indeed I never could do it except in connection 

 with the " Hoang-ho," the other great river of China, and I used 

 to sit for hours ringing the changes upon these two names. But 

 we have passed the lightship, crossed the bar, and are entering 

 the mouth of the river — the Yang-tse, from which we pass into 

 the Woosung, a branch of the Yang-tse, upon which Shang- 

 hai is built, some fourteen miles up from the sea. The shores 

 are low, densely populated, and carefully cultivated on each side. 

 As we pass along, the Chinese fishermen are letting curious nets 

 down into the water from off bamboo stagings, each of which has 

 a funny little crow's nest of a booth to shelter the fishermen. 

 Chinese cattle, with curious horns projecting straight back from 

 the head, and birds, which are unfamiliar to us, are seen at 

 intervals as we sail along. Presently the masts of large class 

 shipping become visible over a low neck of land, i-ounding which 

 we enter the harbor of Shanghai. 



