wJSSrfiS?'}      Food  and  D™g  C*"**  Lecture.  457 
the  right  and  left  of  these  seats  there  was  a  large  table  on  which 
there  was  a  large  number  of  earthen  vessels,  each  of  which  was 
rilled  with  small  sticks  with  flattened  numbered  ends,  above  their 
margins.  Farther  to  the  right  and  to  the  left  of  these  tables, 
against  the  wall,  from  the  floor  to  the  ceiling,  there  was  a  set 
of  shelves  divided  up  into  pockets  eight  or  ten  inches  in  width 
and  height.  In  these  pockets  were  "all  kinds  of  numbered  pack- 
ages with  some  strange  Chinese  superscription  on  them. 
In  passing  along  this  street  the  strange  and  dejected  appear- 
ance of  the  numerous  people  passing  into  this  large  building 
attracted  his  attention.  He  sought  an  opportunity  and  walked 
in  with  the  rest,  finding  himself  in  a  large  room  with  furniture 
as  described  above.  It  was  the  time  of  the  cholera  and  the  black 
plague  in  Canton.  Probably  from  forty  to  fifty  people  were  seated 
in  the  wooden  seats  and  chairs  on  each  side  of  the  central  hallway. 
Each  new  person  who  entered  as  a  patient  went  to  the  tables  on 
one  side  or  the  other  and  selected  from  the  vase-like  dishes  con- 
taining these  long  sticks  with  numbers  on  the  ends  one  of  the 
sticks  and  passed  it  over  to  a  clerk-like  officiating  person  on  the 
same  side  of  the  central  hallway.  The  patient  then  took  a  seat 
and  waited. 
The  clerks  in  turn,  for  the  patients,  selected  packages  in  these 
pockets  or  shelves  on  the  side  of  the  room,  corresponding  in  number 
or  description  with  the  number  or  description  on  the  label  on 
the  flattened  part  of  the  stick  which  had  been  drawn  by  the  patient. 
This  determined  the  kind  of  medicine  that  would  cure  this  sick 
person.  When  the  package  was  received  the  patient  took  it  and 
left  the  room.    It  is  probable  the  directions  were  on  it. 
A  few  Chinese  medicines  were  shown  of  which  the  follow- 
ing may  be  mentioned : 
Fungus  grown  on  a  coffin. 
Cockroach  tea. 
Rhinoceros — shavings  of  horn  being  used. 
Elephant — pulverized  hide. 
Scorpions.    Prescription :  three  to  be  taken  internally. 
Toads'  eyebrows  which  are  said  to  prevent  sneezing  and  thus 
clear  the  head. 
Earthworms  rolled  in  honey  and  swallowed  alive  are  said  to  cure 
sick  stomach. 
