Old newspapers were filled with reports of different customs from around the world. People in the United States could not learn enough about other cultures. In the following article, found in The Rice Belt Journal on October 16, 1903, the Chinese living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania were the subject of much fascination.
Feeding Chinamen’s Spirits
The spirits of all the dead Chinamen resting in the old Philadelphia cemetery, at Twenty-first street and Passyunk avenue, were recently banqueted. Every six months Chinatown feeds the spirits of its departed ones. Steaming dishes of rice, roast duck, chop suey, chow mein, bird’s nest and other delicacies, with bottles of Chinese wines, were taken to the cemetery and placed at the heads of the graves. Incense was burned, and the little column of blue smoke was supposed to carry the best of the food to heaven. After the service the Chinamen gathered up the food. In the evening they ate the repast prepared for the dead and drank the wine. [Source]
