474 



substitution is that, the lighter the apparel may 

 be, the more unincumbered will be the soul's 

 flight to heaven, and, as red is the emblem of joy, 

 the brighter the color, the higher i.s the state of 

 beatitude supposed to be obtained. 



When the spirit has departed, the body of the 

 deceased is washed, the time of high water being 

 generally selected, as the wells are then generally 

 fuller. Two pice* are then thrown into the well 

 as an offering to Tai-soo-kwee, the god of the 

 sea, of devils, and disembodied spirits— The body 

 is then clothed in silken garments and stockings 

 (all red, of course), and the number of suits, thus 

 put upon the corpse, varies from seven to fourteen, a 

 corresponding number of prayers being offered 

 up, with an interval of three days between each, 

 so that the prayers for a person enveloped in se- 

 ven suits would occupy a space of three weeks, 

 and those for one clad in fourteen, of double that 

 period. 



The coffin, in which the body is to be placed, 

 is of a very solid and massive construction, and 

 has in general been built for many years previous 

 to the occurrence of the event which demands its 

 use. With the Chinese, the body is by far the 

 most important constituent portion of humanity, 

 and, as to pamper it during life is the summum 

 bonum of a Chinaman, so is there no one so solicit 

 tons as to its disposal after death, their ideas on 

 the subject of a future state of existence being 

 vague and obscure, and chiefly centering in anti* 

 cipation of sensual gratifications. A Chinese, 

 therefore, not only ofteti selects his place of se- 



• Pice or doits, « Clipper coin iotrtHjnced by tha Dutch, a boudred 

 ftttd »tv«iitv of Kbkb are tquti to (loe ikca nupee. 



