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20. CHINESE BOYS AND GIRLS.


1. Chinese fathers and mothers are very glad when their children are
boys. In China the boys are much petted. Their mothers give way to them,
and let them do as they please.

2. Girls, however, are not welcome. Sometimes they are called
"Not-wanted" or "Ought-to-have-been-a-boy."

3. A Chinese boy has always two names, sometimes four. He has one name
when he is a child, and another when he goes to school. He has a third
name when he begins to earn money. When he dies he has a fourth name.

4. Chinese boys are very fond of flying kites, which are shaped like
fish or butterflies or dragons. Old gentlemen are just as fond of
kite-flying as boys.

5. In China you will often see boys playing hopscotch or spinning
peg-tops. They also play shuttlecock, but they have no battledore. They
kick the shuttlecock with the sides of their feet.

6. Chinese boys love to set off fireworks, such as crackers, wheels, and
rockets. If the fireworks make a loud noise, so much the better.

7. Chinese children are taught to show very great respect to their
parents. They all bow and kneel to their fathers and mothers. A boy who
is not kind and good to his parents is thought to be a wicked wretch.