A Chinese beggar refused treatment because his sores were his livelihood

Evidence

An American doctor who practiced in Chungking, China, a few decades ago records that when he attempted to rid a beggar of his sores, the latter resisted on the grounds that his deformities were essential to his occupation. — Lyn H. Lofland, World of Strangers_ Order and Action in…, 959

Categorization

• XREF: Contrasts sharply with modern assumptions about street people as victims of unexplained affliction — connects to Goffman’s stigma-work and the reader’s Lofland/Simmel thread on self-presentation in public.