both returned to the incense-burner. He takes the six tablets out
of the box, and wraps them up in the paper which contained the
incense guessed about. The tablets themselves keep the personal
as well as the general record,--since each player remembers the
particular design upon his own set.

The remaining nine packages of incense art consumed and judged in
the same way, according to the chance order in which the
shuffling has placed them. When all the incense has been used,
the tablets are taken out of their wrappings, the record is
officially put into writing, and the victor of the day is
announced. I here offer the translation of such a record: it will
serve to explain, almost at a glance, all the complications of
the game.

According to this record the player who used the tablets
decorated with the design called "Young Pine," made but two
mistakes; while the holder of the "White-Lily" set made only one
correct guess. But it is quite a feat to make ten correct
judgments in succession. The olfactory nerves are apt to become
somewhat numbed long before the game is concluded; and, therefore
it is customary during the Ko-kwai to rinse the mouth at
intervals with pure vinegar, by which operation the sensitivity
is partially restored.

RECORD OF A KO-KWAI.

Order in which the ten packages of incense were
used:--
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10