China -- Social life and customs; National characteristics, Chinese
In addition to the candy, the peddler has also a very delicate sweet that
is less substantial, but none the less popular because a larger amount can
be bought for the same money. The material out of which it is made is
moist sugar, as white as the manufacturers can produce it. This is put
into a large pan and boiled over a slow fire. After a certain time it is
turned by the heat into a very consistent and a very sticky substance. At
the proper moment this is taken out of the pan and transferred to a board,
where it is moulded with deft and knowing fingers into a length of two or
three yards.
Then begins a most peculiar process that is to change the whole character
of the material before us. It is first of all stretched with a cunning
hand just as far as it will go without actually snapping. It is then
doubled back on itself and pulled again to the breaking-point, and so on
time after time until the work is done.
During this peculiar manipulation, the sweet has undergone a remarkable
change. From a dark, almost black colour, it has been turned into a golden
hue, and from being dense and heavy it is light and flaky, so that when it
is cut into lengths for sale, each one looks like a stalactite that might
have been taken out of Fingal's Cave. A bite from one of these crumbles at
once in the mouth and a crackling sound is heard and a beautiful aroma is
perceived, and before one has hardly had time to realize it, the sweet has
dissolved.
Another thing that the eager eyes of the little fellows catch amongst the
dainties is molasses candy, made in the orthodox home fashion, but cut
into little squares and sold for just one cash apiece, which is about the
thousandth part of two shillings. This is cheap and therefore popular, for
it will stand a good deal of sucking before it disappears, which is a
consideration with the generality of the buyers, for their finances are
not usually in a very flourishing condition.
Besides the above there is real sugar candy, not in sticks, but in lumps
as they have come from the sugar refinery. There are also a great variety
of sugar-coated combinations that all have their patrons, and as the
little knots of purchasers come in from different directions at the
well-known call of the peddler, one marks how varied are the tastes of the
lads by the way in which they select the articles they like from those
laid out so temptingly on the boards that contain his stock.
Another very popular peripatetic merchant is the man who is popularly
known as the seller of "sweets and sours." Like the man already described,
the people that patronize him the most are the children, though a goodly
proportion of his sales is made to persons of all ages. His goods consist
entirely of fruits prepared in such tempting and fascinating ways that the
general public is ready to put their hands in their pockets at the sound
of the little bell that announces the presence of this popular caterer to
the public taste.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account