Produced by Charlene Taylor, Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This book was produced from images made available by the HathiTrust Digital Library.)
[Illustration: _A Little Almond Blossom_]
_With Illustrations from Photographs of Chinese Children in California_
_Copyright, 1904_, BY LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY.
Printers S. J. PARKHILL & CO., BOSTON, U. S. A.
_This Book is lovingly Dedicated to MY MOTHER_
“The Chinese children all marched to the music in a row” 7
“Everybody giggled all the time, in their funny little Chinese way” 9
“She brought forth from the flute the most wonderful sounds” 17
“She and one of her sisters were on the step in front of their home” 67
“She sometimes longed to get out, she and her two little brothers” 109
“There was a big bouquet for Ping Pong” 147
“Two of his little friends, with their queer little Chinese caps on” 208
Chung Goy ran as fast as his little sandals would permit, up the narrow flight of steps which led to the Chinese restaurant, and out on the balcony, where a crowd of Chinamen were watching for the great Procession of the Dragon. His little legs were encased in pale green silk trousers tied at the ankles, and his lavender _shom_ (blouse) gleamed in the light of the many dragon lanterns which were swaying in the night breeze. His hair was in a long queue, and on his head he wore the little round black cap of the Chinese, with a button on top.
Chung Goy was so afraid he would miss seeing the dragon. He had never seen it as yet, for he was not so very old, and now that the long-expected moment had come he fairly trembled with excitement.
His _ho chun_ (father) was on this balcony, which was near their home, and he hurried to nestle up to him, as it was cold, and the wind was always blowing in San Francisco.
It seemed as if the procession would never come; he grew tired watching so many people pass, and perhaps the fumes of the opium his father was smoking got into his brain; but, at any rate, the first thing he
[Illustration: _Oh, what a dreadful monster!_]
knew he saw a great squirming thing approaching him.
It was spitting fire from its eyes and mouth, and at first he felt afraid. Oh, what a dreadful monster! it would surely devour him. He heard himself saying: “Velly bad snake--I no likee; go ’way! I ’flaid.” And then he heard a voice like the muttering of thunder, and the voice came out of the dragon’s mouth, and it was saying in the Chinese language: “_Samen jai_ (little boy), I have come to take you to Dragon Land. Slip away from _ho chun_, and fly with me.”