Wing Sing of Los Angeles
“Wing Sing of Los Angeles on His Travels.” LA Express 24 February 1904: 6.
[Note – Wing Sing is the pen name of a well-known Americanized Chinese merchant of this city. He recently left Los Angeles to make a visit to his old home in China, going by way of Montreal. Before starting he promised The Express to write a series of articles in his own untrammelled style, telling of his travels. Appended is the sixth contribution – Ed.]
MONTREAL, Feb. 19 – Gung Hee Sun Neen, Happy New Year. Now we have Chinese New Year in Montreal and I keep it with my cousin and my cousin’s friends. We visit much and we have plenty feast, and my cousin he pay all that he owe and all the people owe him some bill they come pay him. The New Year big time with the Chinese. It not the same as the American New Year that come every time first day January. The Chinese New Year sometime January, sometime February. It according to the months in a year. Sometimes twelve months in a year, sometimes thirteen. The time the moon go round the earth – that one month. The moon go round the earth thirteen times in the last Chinese year. One moon to a Chinaman same as one month to American. See!
First New Year day we have big ceremony call “Rounding the Year,” and in the night we have another ceremony call “Keeping company with the gods during the night.” Pardon me if not explain what that mean. There be some things to write about and some things to be quiet about. The American people not yet come to understand all the Chinese ceremony. Next day all the Chinese people are merry. They enjoy pleasant food, they get comfortable and not think of what make them mourn. All the week they are like that.
My cousin he take me see many of his friend. Lee Chu very fine fellow. He brings his wife out from China last year, and he have one fine boy. Lee Chu, he Chinaman, but he all same Canadian man,. He wear fur coat and fur hat and he drink plenty beer. He interpreter in Montreal court. Sometime he talk English, sometime he talk Chinese and sometime he talk the French talk. When I go to bid him good-bye, he say “Au Revoir.” I say to my cousin, “What he mean?” and my cousin say, “I think he mean to tell you he know something you not know.”
After I see Lee Chu I see Wong Chow. Wong Chow he look serious and he not drink no samshu. My cousin he tell me that Wong Chow, he brought his wife from China, five, six, seven years ago, and the American lady some see and talk much foolishness to her so that when Wong Chow tell his wife do this to do that, his wife, she ask question, “What for?” This make much trouble in Wong Chow’s house, and one day, when Wong Chow away, his wife, she take the dog and the cat and she go live with American lady, and she not come back to Wong Chow for a long time, and then she tell him she never not come back to him at all unless he make agreement that he not do one thing she not advise and he not want her to do one thing she not want to do. So Wong Chow make agreement; but that great shame to Chinaman.
I say to my cousin, “I not think I bring my wife to America. What you advise?” And my cousin say, “Oh, that all right, if you not too familiar with her. Wong Chow talk to his wife too much. If a man do that his woman lose her humility. There is one place for the husband and there is one place for the wife.”
“That is very good advice,” I answer, “but if you are reserve toward the woman she become discontented. It is difficult to know how to behave toward a woman.”
Tye Loy on Bleury street in Montreal, he have a very fine store. It have plenty decorations for the New Year, and he close up all his business. Plenty people came to see him, but he not can sell, he only can give. The Chinese lily, the Chinaman call the Sui Sin Far, it bloom in all the house of the Chinese at this time and its fragrance greet me like a friend.
Wednesday evening I go pay my respects to the Gambling Cash Tiger. Why not? There is a time for business and there is a time for pleasure.
WING SING.