Girls For Sale

I iaw the sale of a family last week 'ol' 'i ■ I üid and father w::.- in California; and per h apa I can. not do better than to tcll you ibout it. There ere five childreo - ti and two boya We had pnssed thetn tlireo timos ín our chaira duriog thu day iis t lii;y stood btíi le tho rea' I ilr gsed in their huliday mire iif blaok. 'Dios: oboerved whenever aiiv p !, and their uowncast loi I ouriceily on our nrt io know their bu siere, ArrHung, our waiter, waoilled np and a-Iti d the oh uso of ibis litio parade. "Why," - "the girls, mul .erhaps the hole fntnilv, are for sule " Wegtopped our chaira au'l stepped out to havo a talk with them, using Arr Eung m ao interpretar, 'J'hr; motln-r was wriokled and gray, and bung ber head, as if shs were afraid tn lo' k ui in the face. But tlio ohildren, vii'h the excoptiou of tho olde-t girl, looked chi-erlu!, and were ij ite pleased with their bolid y uttiie. The oldrsi girl was 16 and the oldest 'oj 15. So said the g. uff old broker who bad tbe purty iu vliMtr,-, and lm seemed quite anxi to dispose f bio w.irt-. Aftr t 'i. a! . f' quizzing and ev a wi tu the broker Lo d as tha husban 1 i w us u I a : I bad cogleoted to n l . fot bis psswáge, and that bi family were n w offered lor s-ile to y the dobt. He hoped to bo alile to pay t ie d ibt ith THE salí: of iii B TWO oi.!ii:t oirls, but as yet hud r. ce ved (lo offers. liss;iii that tli lamily boc;ime Recurity voJmitarilj undhenever knewofu wheiu ti. y l,i not ol ntarilv offer ■ foi sale ií the note they s . u ed w s doi paid. lo reply t our quosti mu he aaid that whea a customer boi.gii1. a chiid or persou, tlie purohaser ide at onou the w er nf the body and siial. No Ch namao would I spute the urcbaser's rilit to do trbateoeveí be pl ased i:h tbe human h-.. ng he had [iid for. The boys would make (jood gervants, he giid, and in i,e ooiirxe -f a fe years wortha for'u;:s to the owuer Ti e girls would mak goid -'uniieis" (or nurs.g s they are o illi d in Ami rie) lie wou! their [ hy ieal beauty - wo'uld mako tlt-m md pliiy triol. if we thought of :; How much would wo givo 'í The oldesl girl lia would sl-!1 for four tiuodrcd dollur ; the next one for two hundied, an I the littlo sixvearold (or fifiy. Tho hoya he oould not sidl until the L'irls were di poned of. We t hongo t theprice too high. The market was I.TTKD W1T1I 8ALABLE QIRLS, uncí be must not tbnk of etting over one hundnd for the oldrs aud i na est, while for tlie iittle uo he must not expret ovit ten lol!irs He sneered at tbat, a:.d aid thai E gli-hineu alwiijs talk (i iu thut w:iy vtien tlwy wantid t buy While we weie talkinir a p:triy of blue-robed Chii.ese ari-tocrats c mu up and began to inpect the family. Tbey opened the mout h i f tbe oldest girl, rapped on her wbi'o teeth to see if they were s pulled opua lier d ess, liiuiu; cd Inr riba, laupbed at her titile feet, :old 1 sboif tde whites of ler eyes, ordered to einar. aniJ to how thetn tlio trinketa whioh the fond mother had fjiveii her ;i a parting gif.. All the whilo the galesman kdpt up a constant pibbor in which we took no iotoKtt. Ti i pased on, leaving the parties disputiog about the price, and discussing the probabilities of their running iftafcii to Hong Kong, Afti-r making our cali, we returoed the same way, t. aicertajn the rosult of the Bale. Only tbe nu ther and t :u boys were lef?. The deb' only $300. mul S50 of it still remained anpaid. I havo been often told by residents in China thut the pal would as sooti sell their children as n dog or a pig. And l begun u b that such was the oas u on pasoiog the g:oup the first time. Bat the sne:ie had changi'd. Thegirls wre gone, and dow a boy must go also. The sat in the dirt, with her arms arouud the yonngest, wailing in n most piteous uianiiir, and Bi Arr Hung said CURSIXO TUE UEN thatsnld her bnsbaod a ticket to America at $300, whioh oost tbem but 40. I roker i-at libllessly by, smoking his pipe, and twirliDg bia caDe, lo as if it as !he smatlest matter of busiwiih him The boys were uryiog, and seemed very mueh afraid of us now it was certaio th it oue ot' them must go. But wo pasaed on a;id lelt tiiem in thtir misury. Wo uever know whether the b y wus sn!d to a ehildless man to bo t eate 1 a.s a son, tu a Fot tugúese to b' c irricd to the West IuiJiesunder i npuimal contract, or to a nativo laodnwner t.) e hl elave. bul tliat ono of tbei was 8old '.nio servitude for :!ie siim tbure uan be do doubt. Th giri were duulitless purcbased f ir the viles ol pnrpones, uu ess ;h -y ba I the rar lu;k to í'iill aun ilie banda of some oativ in e;ich nf :i legitiiuste wife. 1 bh told th.it. the price of t:i'N lias gone u within a few muntbs, owing, erbaps, t the faot tbac a le-s iiuraber ol e'nigraDt biveforf ied th"'r bonds in Califoroi tlian wiia the oase .-ix m o. . sbown four brigbl plomp, rosj apI" :rua girla yea er lay, wlio yero puri I 11 in :i 8gO (liie h'"le lot) for $80. Now thej wil! sell readilj for $300 e iob.