MELBOURNE’S CHINATOWN

Greymouth Evening Star, 15 February 1930, Page 12

MELBOURNE’S CHINATOWN

ROMANCE IN SIDE LANES. ' Just inside the door of the shop, on a bamboo stool about 6in. in height, sat an elderly Chinese whetting a large knife on a stone. His skin was the colour of leather and his face was deeply wrinkled. He was absorbed in his task. As I stood in the doorway he looked up at me (writes P. L. Conigrave, in • the Melbourne “Argus.”) “Can I take your photograph? 1 ciskod* He frowned slightly and shook his head. “No like,” he'said. “No like,” and he rose from his stool and walked with dignity into the shop. The shop was in Little Bourke Street, in the centre of Chinatown. It was different from any other shop in Melbourne; its windows were closed with shutters; the only light which entered it passed through the open door. When I looked into the shop from the brightly sunlit street it seemed to be filled with deep shadows. As I entered I saw that four Chinese were seated behiid the counter. Three others were sitting on wicker chairs m the front portion of the room. They all began to talk excitedly. There was a smell of dried ginger, tea, incense, and herbs and spices, intermingled with the tang of smoked fish and ..pork and long strings of. mottled grey sausages which hung from a wire stretched between two sticks, one at each end of the countei. The flooring boards were bare and the ceiling was darkened by age. Dozens of small square drawers were ranked, tier upon tier, around the walls of the shop. Some of them were inscribed with Chinese characters. Others were bare of inscription. A narrow passage contained all sorts of mysterious-look-ing packages. Chinatown is situated between Swanston Street and Spring Street m Little Bourke Street, and m the many side lanes that dart furtively here and there from that thoroughfare. It is possible by searching to find a lane off a lane leading off another lane off Little Bourke Street. In these lanes are many quaint buildings, some of which look like stables. Some of them bear boards engraved with Chinese characters. Others are'empty and deserted. It is fascinating to wander about these lanes, which, for all their appearance of unprosperity,• have an atmosphere of romance and adventure. In some of them are Chinese restaurants ; in others are the premises of Chinese cabinetmakers ; ■ and in others still are the homes of Chinese employed by Chinese fruit merchants, warehousemen, and other business men. The Chinese population of the quarter must number several hundred, and Little Bourke Street must be of vast importance to members of it. Not only does it contain the largest Chinese 1 shops —they are not all of such oldworld atmosphere as that I have described —but it is the centre of Chinese “clubland.” The most notable club, and apparently the wealthiest, is that conducted by the or Chinese Nationalist Party, which now controls the affairs of China from Nanking. The club building is of brick, of modern design, and it is kept in excellent repair. Some of the other clubs have a secretive appearance, due either to sliuttered windows or to tho fact that the windows are painted over, while in most of them only one portion of the double doors of the buildings is opened. There seems to be an almost continuous stream of Chinese entering and leaving the clubs. The romance of Chinatown of to-day lies more in its ability to suggest, imaginative picturesque scenes and incidents than in its presentation of them, although now and again touches of real colour can be found. As I reached the doorway of one small narrow shop which seemed to be packed from floor to ceiling with all kinds of merchandise, I saw an old Chinese sitting on a box and puffing from a long-stemmed nickel metal pipe. He smiled in a friendly manner as I entered, and I observed that in one hand he held a long glowing taper. Every few seconds he applied the taper to the top of a tube inserted in the base of the pie, was filled with a sweet-smelling fluid. I learned afterwards that it was rosewater. As he puffed at the pipe the rosewater bubbled and gurgled. The mixture in the tube did not last long, but the Chinese refilled it several times from a supply kept in a compartment of the pipe next to that containing the rosewater. As I was speaking to him I heard a sound behind the counter, and looking round I saw a Chinese girl aged about two years perched on top of a stool and eating with a large curved china spoon from a highly-decorated red and white bowl. She smiled when I spoke to her and asked'her whether the food was “any good.” She looked something like one of those Chinese dolls our sisters used to play with. Her eyes were wide, but slanting, and her jet-black hair was brushed straight down on her forehead and cut as a fringe. The difference in the outlook of the Chinese of the old world and the Chinese of modern business was exemplified when I spoke of the obvious dislike of Chinese to Cameras to a Chinese fruit merchant in Little Bourke Street. “I don’t mind them,” he declared. “You can take my photograph if you like. The only way to get pictures of the others is to take them while they are not looking or to snap them and run!” He beamed broadly as if he had given me valuable advice. There are many quaint Chinese children. ini Chinatown. A fairly large number of them may be seen at the Presbyterian Chinese Mission between Russell Street and Exhibition Street. Here European teachers conduct classes in English, arithmetic, and other subjects. The classes are held daily in the morning and the afternoon. They are attended not only by children, but also by young Chinese men who, having arrived recently from their own country, intend going , into business. Apparently some Chinese find it difficult to count, for many of them use counting racks with wooden beads in their shops. Everybody has heard of the skill of Chinese as cooks, and most people know that Chinese cooks are scrupulously clean. Any doubts on this point would be dispelled by a surprise visit to the kitchens of the restaurants in Chinatown. Those 1 visited were spotless. Most of the foodstuffs were in white china howls or on plates arranged neatly on dressers. The bowls and plates contained peas, beans, bamboo shoots, tomatoes, lettuce, celery, blanched almonds, eggs, poultry, and meat ready for cooking. The floor was dustless, and the chopping blocks and tables looked as of they had just been

scrubbed with hot water. Ihe stoves had been polished the Y glistenedEach of the Chinese in the various kitchens wore a white apron which had obviously been worn for the first time since it had been ironed.