To copy a directory tree from a remote host to the local host, into
the local directory, do this

    rsh <remotehost> -n 'cd <sourcedir>; tar cf - .' | tar xpBf -

To copy a directory from one place to another on the same host without
disturbing links, go to the directory one level above the source
directory and do this:

    tar cf - <sourcedir> | (cd <destdir>; tar xfp -)