Chinatowns -- Pacific States -- Fiction; Chinese Americans -- Fiction; Short stories
Grandfather Chan was dozing in a big red chair. Beside him stood the
baby’s cradle, a thick basket held in a stout framework of wood. Inside
the cradle lay the baby. He was very good and quiet and fast asleep.
The cottage door was open. On the green in front played Yen. Mother
Chan, who was taking a cup of afternoon tea with a neighbor, had said to
him when she bade him goodbye, “Be a good little son and take good care
of the baby and your honorable grandfather.”
Yen wore a scarlet silk skullcap, a gaily embroidered vest, and purple
trousers. He had the roundest and smoothest of faces and the brightest
of eyes. Some pretty stones which he had found heaped up in a corner of
the green were affording him great delight and joy, and he was rubbing
his fat little hands over them, when there arose upon the air the cry of
Bo Shuie, the candy man. Yen gave a hop and a jump. In a moment he was
at the corner of the street where stood the candy man, a whole hive of
little folks grouped around him. Never was there such a fascinating
fellow as this candy man. What a splendid big pole was that he had slung
over his broad shoulders, and, oh, the baskets of sweetmeats which
depended from it on either side!
Yen gazed wistfully at the sugared almonds and limes, the ginger and
spice cakes, and the barley sugar and cocoanut.
“I will take that, honorable candy man,” said he, pointing to a twisted
sugar stick of many colors.
“Cash!” said the candy man holding out his hand.
“Oh!” exclaimed Yen. He had thought only of sugar and forgotten he had
no cash.
“Give it to me, honorable peddler man,” said Han Yu. “I have a cash.”
The peddler man transferred from his basket to the eager little hands of
Han Yu the sugar stick of many colors.
Quick as his chubby legs could carry him, Yen ran back to the cottage.
His grandfather was still dozing.
“Grandfather, honorable grandfather,” cried Yen. But his grandfather did
not hear.
Upon a hook on the wall hung a long string of cash. Mother Chan had hung
it there for her use when passing peddlers called.
Yen had thought to ask his grandfather to give him one of the copper
coins which were strung on the string, but as his grandfather did not
awaken at his call, he changed his mind. You see, he had suddenly
remembered that the day before he had felt a pain, and when he had
cried, his mother had said: “No more candy for Yen.”
For some moments Yen stood hesitating and looking at the many copper
coins on the bright red string. It hung just low enough to be reached,
and Yen knew how to work the cash over the knot at the end. His mother
had shown him how so that he could hand them over to her for the
peddlers.
Ah, how pleasant, how good that smelt! The candy man, who carried with
his baskets a tin saucepan and a little charcoal stove, had set about
making candy, and the smell of the barley sugar was wafted from the
corner to Yen’s little nose.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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