THE GATEWAY TO CHINA

MR. BAO ON LEFT, ONE OF THE THREE FOUNDERS OF THE COMMERCIAL PRESS, WITH OTHER MEMBERS OF THE STAFF

(See chapter “A Wizard Publishing House”)

THE

GATEWAY TO CHINA

PICTURES OF SHANGHAI

BY

MARY NINDE GAMEWELL Author of “We Two Alone in Europe”

ILLUSTRATED

New York Chicago Toronto

Fleming H. Revell Company

London and Edinburgh

Copyright, 1916, by FLEMING H. REVELL COMPANY

New York: 158 Fifth Avenue Chicago: 17 N. Wabash Ave. Toronto: 25 Richmond St., W. London: 21 Paternoster Square Edinburgh: 100 Princes Street

TO MY HUSBAND

PREFACE

SHANGHAI is a little world, where all China in miniature may be studied at close range. Thither drift Chinese from every province in the country, who for the most part in the new environment follow their age-long customs and cherish their inherited traditions. But the city is also remarkable for its rapid and constant changes. A member of a local book-firm declared not long since, “We have never tried to publish a guide to Shanghai because in six months it would be out of date.” To an Occidental the chief fascination of this busy metropolis lies in the curious commingling of things old and new, practices ancient and modern, which meet one at every turn. More strikingly than any other city in the Far East, Shanghai represents the Orient in transition. To catch and portray some of these shifting scenes, the following “Pictures” have been drawn, with the hope that they may stimulate interest in China and awaken a new love and admiration for the Chinese people. It need hardly be explained that no attempt has been made at a complete study of the subjects described. This is particularly true of the last chapter, where several phases of missionary activity have been touched upon by way of illustration, while societies and organizations doing an equally valuable work have not been mentioned. The history of the Christian Literature Society, for example, reads like a romance and it is a well-established fact that its books had much to do in shaping the radical policy of the late Emperor Kuang Hsü and the liberals of that period, which eventuated in the dawn of progress and a New China. To all friends, Chinese and foreign, whose suggestions and criticisms have helped make possible this little book, warmest thanks are extended.

M. N. G.

Methodist Episcopal Mission, Shanghai, China.

CONTENTS

I. Evolution of a City 13

II. Civic Features 20

III. Street Rambles 42

IV. The Lure of the Shops 57

V. Housekeeping Problems 73

VI. Something About Vehicles 91

VII. A Peep into the Schoolroom 106

VIII. A Wizard Publishing House 127

IX. The Chinese City 140

X. Customs Old and New 155

XI. A Typical Shanghai Wedding 172

XII. Foreign Philanthropies 185

XIII. Chinese Successes in Social Service 199

XIV. The Romance and Pathos of the Mills 217

XV. A Page from the Story of Protestant Missions 234

ILLUSTRATIONS

Mr. Bao on Left, One of the Three Founders of the Commercial Press, with Other Members of the Staff Title

Chinese Policemen Drawn up for Inspection 20

Some Shops on Nanking Road 58

High, Black Rickshas Outside the Foreign Settlement 92

Advertising Singer Sewing Machine Products 106

Miss Zee’s New School Building. Kindergarten in the Rear 120

Chinese Composing Room 128

The Original Willow Pattern Tea House 140

A Modern Chevalier and His Happy Family 156

The Coffin in a Funeral Procession 160

School Girls in Gymnasium Drill 168

Rescued Child Just Brought to the Children’s Refuge—Old Men at the Home of the Little Sisters of the Poor 186

Rescued Kidnapped Children as They Were Photographed for Advertisement in the Chinese Daily Newspapers 200

On the Way to the Mill 218

Chinese Boy Scouts 234

Corner Stone of Boys’ Building, Y. M. C. A. 244