Part 10 (1/2)
Her Majesty then spoke about the condition of things in China. She said that in case China were forced into war with another nation, we should be nowhere. We had nothing ready, no navy and no trained army, in fact nothing to enable us to protect ourselves. Yuan s.h.i.+h Kai, however, a.s.sured her there was no need to antic.i.p.ate any trouble at present so far as China was concerned. Her Majesty replied that in any event it was time China began to wake up and endeavor to straighten things out in some way or other, but she did not know where to begin; that it was her ambition to see China holding a prominent position among the nations of the world and that she was constantly receiving memorials suggesting this reform and that reform, but that we never seemed to get any further.
After this audience was over, Her Majesty held an audience with the Grand Council. She told them what had been said during her interview with Yuan s.h.i.+h Kai, and of course they all agreed that something should be done. Several suggestions were discussed with regard to national defense, etc., but a certain Prince said that although he was in perfect sympathy with reform generally, he was very much against the adoption of foreign clothing, foreign modes of living, and the doing away with the queue. Her Majesty quite agreed with these remarks and said that it would not be wise to change any Chinese custom for one which was less civilized. As usual, nothing definite was decided upon when the audience was over.
For the next few days nothing was talked of but the war, and many Chinese generals were received in audience by Her Majesty. These audiences were sometimes very amusing, as these soldiers were quite unaccustomed to the rules of the Court and did not know the mode of procedure when in the presence of Her Majesty. Many foolish suggestions were made by these generals. During one of the conversations Her Majesty remarked on the inefficiency of the navy and referred to the fact that we had no trained naval officers. One of the generals replied that we had more men in China than in any other country, and as for s.h.i.+ps, why we had dozens of river boats and China merchant boats, which could be used in case of war. Her Majesty ordered him to retire, saying that it was perfectly true that we had plenty of men in China, but that the majority of them were like himself, of very little use to the country.
After he had retired, everybody commenced to laugh, but Her Majesty stopped us, saying that she did not feel at all like laughing, she was too angry to think that such men held positions as officers in the army and navy. One of the Court ladies asked me why Her Majesty was so angry with the man for mentioning the river boats, and was very much surprised when I informed her that the whole of them would be worse than useless against a single war vessel.
Just about the end of the eleventh moon Chang Chih Tung, Viceroy of Wuchang, arrived, and was received in audience. Her Majesty said to him: ”Now, you are one of the oldest officials in the country, and I want you to give me your unbiased opinion as to what effect this war is going to have on China. Do not be afraid to give your firm opinion, as I want to be prepared for anything which is likely to happen.” He answered that no matter what the result of the war might be, China would in all probability have to make certain concessions to the Powers with regard to Manchuria for trade purposes, but that we should not otherwise be interfered with. Her Majesty repeated what had been discussed at the previous audiences on this subject and also regarding reform in China.
Chang Chih Tung replied that we had plenty of time for reform, and that if we were in too great a hurry, we should not accomplish anything at all. He suggested that the matter be discussed at length before deciding upon anything definite. In his opinion it would be foolish to go to extremes in the matter of reform. He said that ten or fifteen years ago he would have been very much against any reform whatsoever, but that he now saw the need for it to a certain extent, as circ.u.mstances had changed very much. He said that we should adhere strictly to our own mode of living and not abandon the traditions of our ancestors. In other words, he simply advised the adoption of western civilization where it was an improvement on our own, and nothing more. Her Majesty was delighted with the interview, for Chang Chih Tung's opinions coincided exactly with her own.
During the whole of these audiences the Emperor, although present each time, never opened his lips to say a word, but sat listening all the time. As a rule, Her Majesty would ask his opinion, just as a matter of form, but he invariably replied that he was quite in accord with what Her Majesty had said or decided upon.
Of the many religious ceremonies in connection with the Buddhist religion the ”La-pachow” was the most important. This was held on the 8th day of the twelfth moon each year. According to the common belief, on this eighth day of the twelfth moon, many centuries ago, a certain Buddhist priest Ju Lai set out to beg for food, and after receiving a good supply of rice and beans from the people, he returned and divided it with his brother priests, giving each an equal share, and he became celebrated for his great charity. This day was therefore set apart as an anniversary to commemorate the event. The idea was that by practising self-denial on this day, one would gain favor in the sight of this Buddha Ju Lai, therefore the only food eaten was rice, grain and beans, all mixed together in a sort of porridge, but without any salt or other flavoring. It was not at all pleasant to eat, being absolutely tasteless.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN--THE NEW YEAR FESTIVALS
WE now reached the time set apart for cleaning the Palace in preparation for the New Year festivals. Everything had to be taken down and thoroughly overhauled, and all the images, pictures, furniture and everything else were subjected to a thorough scrubbing. Her Majesty again consulted her book in order to choose a lucky day on which to commence these operations, finally choosing the twelfth day as being most favorable. As we had all received our orders previously, we commenced early on the morning of the twelfth. Several of the Court ladies were told off to take down and clean the images of Buddha and prepare new curtains for them. The rest of the cleaning was done by the eunuchs. I asked Her Majesty whether I was to clean her jewelry, but she answered that as n.o.body but herself ever wore it, it didn't need cleaning.
After everything had been cleaned to Her Majesty's satisfaction, she prepared a list of names of the people she desired to attend the ceremony of Tzu Sui. This ceremony was held on the last day of each year and was something like the midnight services usually held in Europe on the last night of each old year--just a farewell ceremony to bid the old year adieu. The guests were invited about a fortnight ahead, so as to give them plenty of time to get ready. Her Majesty also ordered new winter clothing for the Court ladies. The only difference between these new garments and those we were then wearing was that they were trimmed with the fur of the silver fox instead of the gray squirrel.
The next thing was to prepare cakes, which were to be placed before the Buddhas and ancestors, during the New Year. It was necessary that Her Majesty should make the first one herself. So when Her Majesty decided that it was time to prepare these cakes the whole Court went into a room specially prepared for the purpose and the eunuchs brought in the ingredients-ground rice, sugar and yeast. These were mixed together into a sort of dough and then steamed instead of baked, which caused it to rise just like ordinary bread, it being believed that the higher the cake rises, the better pleased are the G.o.ds and the more fortunate the maker. The first cake turned out fine and we all congratulated Her Majesty, who was evidently much pleased herself at the result. Then she ordered each of the Court ladies to make one, which we did, with disastrous results, not one turning out as it should. This being my first year, there was some excuse for my failure, but I was surprised that none of the older Court ladies fared any better, and on inquiring from one of them the reason, she replied: ”Why, I did it purposely, of course, so as to flatter Her Majesty's vanity. Certainly I could make them just as well as she, if not better, but it would not be good policy.” After we had all finished making our cakes, the eunuchs were ordered to make the rest, and needless to say they were perfect in every way.
The next thing was to prepare small plates of dates and fresh fruits of every kind. These were decorated with evergreens, etc., and placed before the images of Buddha. Then we prepared gla.s.s dishes of candy, which were to be offered to the G.o.d of the Kitchen. On the twenty-third day of the last moon the G.o.d of the Kitchen left this earth to go on a visit to the King of Heaven, to whom he reported all that we had been doing during the past year, returning to earth again on the last day of the year. The idea of offering him these sweets was in order that they should stick to his mouth and prevent him from telling too much. When these candies were prepared, we all adjourned to the kitchen and placed the offering on a table specially placed for the purpose. Turning to the head cook, she said: ”You had better look out now; the G.o.d of the Kitchen will tell how much you have stolen during the past year, and you will be punished.”
The following day another ceremony had to be gone through, that of writing out the New Year Greetings for the guests and Court, so in the morning we all went with Her Majesty to the Audience Hall, where the eunuchs had prepared large sheets of yellow, red and pale green paper.
Her Majesty took up a large brush and commenced to write. On some of these sheets she wrote the character ”Shou” (Long Life) and on others ”Fu” (Prosperity). By and bye, when she began to feel tired, she would get either one of the Court ladies or one of the official writers to finish them for her. When finished, they were distributed to the guests and different officials, the ones Her Majesty had written herself being reserved for her special favorites. These were given out a few days before the New Year.
Her Majesty received New Year presents from all the Viceroys and princ.i.p.al officials. She would examine each present as it was received, and if it found favor in her eyes, she would use it, but if not, she would have it locked away in one of the storerooms and probably never see it again. These presents consisted of small pieces of furniture, curios, jewelry, silks, in fact everything--even clothing. The present sent by Viceroy Yuan s.h.i.+h Kai was a yellow satin robe, embroidered with different colored precious stones and pearls designed to represent the peony flower; the leaves were of green jade. It was really a magnificent thing, and must have cost a fortune. The only drawback was its weight; it was too heavy to wear comfortably. Her Majesty appeared delighted with this gown, and wore it the first day, after which it was discarded altogether, although I often suggested that she should wear it, as it was the most magnificent gown I ever saw. Once when Her Majesty was granting an audience to the Diplomatic Corps, I suggested that she should wear this dress, but she refused, giving no reason, so n.o.body outside the Court has ever seen this wonderful garment.
Another costly present was received from the Viceroy of Canton, and consisted of four bags of pearls, each bag containing several thousands.
They were all perfect in shape and color, and would have brought fabulous prices in Europe or America. However, Her Majesty had so many jewels, especially pearls, that she hardly paid any attention to them beyond remarking that they were very nice.
The Young Empress and the Court ladies were also expected to give presents to Her Majesty each New Year. These were for the most part articles that we had made ourselves, such as shoes, handkerchiefs, collars, bags, etc. My mother, my sister and myself made presents of mirrors, perfumes, soaps and similar toilet accessories which we had brought with us from Paris. These Her Majesty appreciated very much; she was very vain. The eunuchs and servant girls gave fancy cakes and other food stuffs.
The presents were so numerous that they filled several rooms, but we were not allowed to remove them until Her Majesty gave orders to do so.
The Court ladies also exchanged presents among themselves, which often led to confusion and amus.e.m.e.nt. On this occasion I had received some ten or a dozen different presents, and when it came my turn to give something, I decided to use up some of the presents I had received from my companions. To my surprise, the next day I received from one of the Court ladies an embroidered handkerchief which I immediately recognized as the identical handkerchief I had myself sent her as my New Year's present. On mentioning the fact, this lady turned and said: ”Well, that is rather funny; I was just wondering what had made you return the shoes I sent you.” Of course everybody laughed very heartily, and still further merriment was caused when, on comparing all the presents, it was found that quite half of us had received back our own presents. In order to settle the matter, we threw them all into a heap and divided them as evenly as possible, everybody being satisfied with the result.
About a week before New Year's day all audiences ceased and the seals were put away until after the holidays. During this time no business was transacted by Her Majesty. Everything was much more comfortable and we could see that Her Majesty also appreciated the change from bustle to quietness. We had nothing whatever to do but to take things easy until the last day of the year.
Early on the morning of the thirtieth Her Majesty went to wors.h.i.+p before the Buddhas and Ancestral Tablets. After this ceremony was finished, the guests began to arrive, until by midday, all the guests, numbering about fifty, were present. The princ.i.p.al guests were: The Imperial Princess (Empress Dowager's adopted daughter), Princess Chung (wife of Emperor Kw.a.n.g Hsu's brother), Princesses Shun and Tao (wives of the Emperor's younger brothers), Princess hung (wife of the nephew of the Imperial Princess), and Prince Ching's family. All these ladies were frequent visitors to the Court. Next day many other Princesses, not of the Imperial family, but whose t.i.tles were honorary t.i.tles bestowed by previous rulers, came. Next, the daughters of the high Manchu officials and many other people whom I had never seen before. By midday all the guests had arrived, and, after being presented to Her Majesty, were taken to their different apartments and told to rest a while. At two o'clock in the afternoon everybody a.s.sembled in the Audience Hall, lined up according to their different ranks and, led by the Young Empress, kowtowed to Her Majesty. This was the ceremony Tzu Sui already referred to, and was simply a last goodbye to Her Majesty before the New Year set in. When it was all over, Her Majesty gave each of us a small purse made of red satin embroidered with gold, containing a sum of money. This is to enable each one to commence the New Year with a kind of reserve fund for a rainy day, when they would have this money to fall back upon. It is an old Manchu custom and is still kept up.
The evening was spent in music and enjoyment, and was carried on right through the night, none of us going to bed. At Her Majesty's suggestion we commenced gambling with dice, Her Majesty providing each of us with money, sometimes as much as $200. She told us to be serious about it, and to try and win, but of course we took good care not to win from Her Majesty. When Her Majesty began to tire, she stopped the game and said: ”Now, all this money I have won I am going to throw on the floor, and you girls can scramble for it.” We knew that she wanted to see some fun, so we fought for it as hard as we could.
At midnight the eunuchs brought into the room a large bra.s.s brazier containing live charcoal. Her Majesty pulled a leaf from a large evergreen tree, which had been placed there for the purpose, and threw it into the fire. We each followed her example, adding large pieces of resin, which perfumed the whole atmosphere. This ceremony was supposed to bring good luck during the coming year.
The next item was making cakes or pies for New Year's day. On the first of the New Year, n.o.body is allowed to eat rice, these cakes taking its place. They were made of flour paste, with minced meat inside. While some of us were preparing these cakes, others were peeling lotus seeds for Her Majesty's breakfast.
It was now well on into the morning hours and Her Majesty said that she was tired and would go and rest a while. She was not going to sleep, however, so we could carry on our noise as much as we liked. This we did for some time, and on visiting Her Majesty's bedroom, we found that she was fast asleep. We then all repaired to our various rooms and commenced to make ourselves tidy for the day. As soon as Her Majesty was awake, we all proceeded to her bedroom, taking with us plates of apples (representing ”Peace”), olives (”Long Life”), lotus seeds (Blessing).