Chinese speakers’ first attempts at English were always of amusement to journalists:

One persistent story concerns Wu Sing, one of the "Pershing Chinese" and General John J. "Blackjack" Pershing himself.

When General Pershing left for World War I, "all Chinese friends came down to see General Black Jack off on train," said Wu Sing. "He was a nice man. Oh, such a nice man General Black Jack."

The general’s advice to Wu Sing was "improve your English."

Wu Sing saw the general again [in 1936] during the commander’s San Antonio visit. And the English was not improved. General Pershing asked him why.

Wu Sing replied, "I work so hard in kitchen of my restaurant, and so many my customers talk only Spanish, I no have time for practice my English . . . much."

The general is said to have clapped Wu Sing on the shoulder, smiled, and moved on.

[Taken from the notes for a Tolbert column which are in the Chinese Library Research Files, Institute of Texan Cultures, San Antonio, Texas; the quotations are in the imitation pidgin as recorded by Tolbert; the last comment comes from
San Antonio historian Charley Ramsdell as mentioned to
John L. Davis.]

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