GINSENG. 11 



price, much the same as a smooth potato will bring a better price 

 in our market than a freak. Even some people of scientific attain- 

 ment unhesitatingly pronounce its healing properties a myth, but 

 the same thing could be said of some of our own medicines. 



We have too much respect for the intelligence and commer- 

 cial astuteness of the Chinese and Japanese, ■ for the latter also 

 use the root, to be willing to credit all the stories told of their 

 faith in things of no value. Matched with the Caucasian in our 

 schools they have repeatedly shown themselves our equals in capa- 

 city for any sort of brain work, while in natural art they are far 

 and away our superiors. Anyway it is just as well to suspend 

 judgment on the medicinal properties of ginseng until we know 

 more about it. 



The Chinaman has his philosophy of right living, and who 

 shall say it is not a better one than our own? And we should not 

 flatter ourselves, though a trading people, that we are moie than 

 his match at a bargain. At our trickiest of tricky games he has 

 sometimes shown remarkable aptitude- 



