ABSTRACT
Billions of dollars, undedicated, can be obtained at any paper shop for a few cents, but the idea of depriving some forlorn spirit of the means to alleviate his misery is wholly repugnant to the Chinese. The Buddhists, of course, sacrifice no life, either for their own or the dead's benefit, but part of the Taoist offering is nearly always a chicken. At the feast of the Ghosts, however, a duck is substituted, as a hen is always pecking and scratching. On the road to the underworld, therefore, its spirit may set to work with beak and claws on the clothing for the dead, and the souls may be forced to dress like beggars for the next twelve months. The duck's flat bill and webbed feet are wholly innocuous, so it is admirably fitted to accompany the material gifts to the Land of Shades.
