180 
WANDERINGS IN CHINA. 
Chap. XI. 
tea-house, and remained there for some hours. It con- 
tinued to rain, however, and we were glad to proceed a 
little further on to a small village, where there was an 
inn, in which we took up our quarters for the night. 
The landlord paid me the most marked attention. 
When I entered the hall tea was set before me as 
usual, but in this instance a curiously shaped tea-spoon 
was in the cup, and the tea was sweetened with sugar. 
I had never seen the Chinese use either sugar or tea- 
spoons before, and was rather surprised ; and it is still 
a question with me whether we are not indebted to 
them for our mode of making tea, as well as for the tea 
itself. It was only on our first entering that this was 
done, for when tea was brought afterwards it was always 
made in the usual way, that is, the leaves were put into 
a cup and boiling water poured over them. 
To the question usually put to Sing-Hoo, of " who his 
master was,'' he invariably returned the same answer, 
" A Loi-ya from a far country beyond the great wall.'' 
I much doubt whether he had himself a clearer idea of 
the position of England than this answer conveyed to 
his interrogator. In the present case, however, this 
being in a small village, and our host himself a simple 
countryman, the information that his guest was a Loi-ya 
produced a marked effect, and his attentions were re- 
doubled, until they became quite irksome. He made a 
great many excuses for the poorness of the fare which 
he set before me. " Had I only sent him notice of the 
honour I intended doing him by coming to his house, he 
would have been better prepared,'' and so on. I praised 
