ntributes according to
the amount of merchandise which passes through his hands, and the
books of suspected defaulters are often examined at a moment's notice
and without previous warning. The guild protects its constituents from
commercial frauds by threatening the accused with legal proceedings
which an individual plaintiff would never have dared to suggest; and
the threat is no vain one when a mandarin, however tyrannical and
rapacious, finds himself opposed by a body of united and resolute men.
On the other hand, these guilds deal fairly enough with their own
members, and not only refuse to support a bad case, but insist on just
and equitable dealings with the outside world. To them are frequently
referred questions involving nice points of law or custom, and one of
the chief functions of a guild is that of a court of arbitration. In
addition to this they fix the market rates of all kinds of produce,
and woe be to any one who dares to undersell or otherwise disobey the
injunctions of the guild. If recalcitrant, he is expelled at once from
the fraternity, and should his hour of need arrive he will find no
helping hand stretched out to save him from the clutches of the law.
But if he acknowledges, as he almost always does, his breach of faith,
he is punished according to the printed rules of the corporation. On a
large strip of red paper his name and address are written, the offence
of which he has been convicted, and the fine which the guild has
determined to impose. This latter generally takes the form of a dinner
to all members, to be held on some appointed day and accompanied by a
theatrical entertainment, after which the erring brother is admitted
as before to the enjoyment of those rights and privileges he would
otherwise infallibly have lost.

On certain occasions, such as the birthday of a patron saint, the
guild spends large sums from the public purse in providing a banquet
for its members and hiring a theatrical troupe, with their everlasting
tom-toms, to perform on the permanent stage to be found in every one
of these establishments. The Anhui men celebrate the birthday of Chu
Hsi, the great commentator, whose scholarship has won eternal honours
for his native province; Swatow men hold high festival in memory of
Han Wen-Kung, whose name is among the brightest on the page of Chinese
history. All day long the fun goes on, and as soon as it begins to
grow dusk innumerable paper lanterns are hung in festoons ov