"That's queer; why doesn't it fall down?"

"When a thing's moving," I answered, "it can't fall down," which
might apply to other things than bicycles.

The next day when he called he said:

"The Emperor would like that bicycle," and my wife allowed him to
take it in to Kuang Hsu, and it was not long thereafter until it
was reported that the Emperor had been trying to ride the
bicycle, that his queue had become entangled in the rear wheel,
and that he had had a not very royal tumble, and had given it
up,--as many another one has done.



IX

Kuang Hsu--As Emperor and Reformer

In 1891 the present Emperor Kuang Hsu issued a very strong edict
commanding good treatment of the missionaries. He therein made
the following statement: "The religions of the West have for
their object the inculcation of virtue, and, though our people
become converted, they continue to be Chinese subjects. There is
no reason why there should not be harmony between the people and
the adherents of foreign religions."
--Hon. Charles Denby in "China and Her People."