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THE OLDEST
AND
THE NEWEST EPPIRE:
CHINA AND THE UNITED STATES.
BY
WILLIAM SPEER, D. D.,
CORRESPONDING SECRETARY OF THE PRESBYTERIAN BOARD OF EDUCATION.
FORMERLY MISSIONARY IN CHINA AND TO THE CHINESE IN CALIFORNIA.
Who does not see that henceforth every year, European commerce, European
politics, European thoughts and European activity, although actually gaining
greater force, and European connections, although actually becoming more intimate, will nevertheless ultimately sink in importance; while the Pacific ocean,
its shores, its islands, and the vast regions beyond, will become the chief theatre
of events in the world's great hereafter?
WILLIAM H. SEWARD.
NATIONAL PUBLISHING CO.,
CINCINNATI, OHIO, & MEMPHIS, TENN.
JONES, JUNKIN, & CO., CHICAGO, ILLS.
1870.




Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1870, Ly
S. S. SCRANTON & COMPANY,
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States for the District
of Connecticut.
W'VESTCOTT & THOMSON,
Stereotypers, Philada.




P R E FAC E.
THE relation which the writer has held to Christian and philanthropic efforts in behalf of a race whose advent to our shores is now
awaking universal and anxious inquiry as to their character, their
capacities and their probable influence upon the future of our country
and continent, has imposed upon him the necessity of preparing the
present volume. In the years 1840 to'42 the Opium War strongly
drew his attention toward China, where was presented the strange
spectacle of a heathen but civilized nation suffering the bombardment and destruction of numerous cities, and the slaughter of thousands of its people, in its natural and righteous, but vain, resistance
to the fraudulent introduction among them of what it justly styled
"a flood of poison," the track of which in society was black and
desolate as that of a stream of lava down a mountain's side. In 1846
he was sent by the Presbyterian Board of Foreign Missions to the province of Canton, and in 1852 to California, where he was the first to
preach the gospel in their own language to the Chinese coming there.
In the very trying circumstances in which they were placed during
the first few years of their immigration to a country whose people,
language, laws and usages were so strange to them, and where their
peculiarities became the subjects of grave and pernicious misapprehensions on the part of the Americans, it pleased God to make his
labors the means of rendering to them important benefits.
These facts will explain whatever of peculiarity this book may
possess. It is largely made up of materials which have grown up in
the writer's experience, labors and intercourse with the Chinese
under circumstances which drew out the best side of their character,
3




4                        PR/EFA CE.
warmly interested his feelings and personally attached him to many
of them; and which led him to consider the nation and its institutions in a new light. He has been made to carefully and practically
examine the past relations of China with the United States and this
continent, the advantages we may expect to derive from the increasing political and commercial intimacy, and from the introduction of
many of the people into various departments of labor in all parts of
our country, and the duties we owe to these new wards which the
great Father of all has brought and placed in our national family.
It has been deemed important by judicious friends that in connection with the volume as thus constituted there should be presented
for the benefit of popular readers a summary account of the Chinese
at home, the history of their empire, their manners, arts, institutions, etc., which should be a ground-work for the information and
suggestions connected with their relations to us. For some of the
chapters devoted to this object (the third to the twelfth) I am
indebted chiefly to an English compilation published by Bohn, of
London, prepared by various hands, the materials of which were
drawn from Gutzlaff's " History of China," Williams' " Middle Kingdom," Davis' "General Description of China," and other well-known
and reliable books. To the portions used of this compilation I have
made considerable additions, have re-written parts of them, corrected
many mistakes and misapprehensions into which compilers not well
acquainted with the Chinese people and language would fall, and
given to them a more candid and Christian tone.
It is a strange thing that we Americans have acquired the fashion
of speaking of the Chinese with contempt and dislike. It is a
fashion-and it should be changed. In almost all the nations of
Southern and Western Asia and of the Continent of Europe, the
Empire of China has been generally mentioned and described in
language of honor and admiration. Louis the Fourteenth of France,
and many other distinguished European monarchs, have taken the
warmest interest in its history and institutions, and in the efforts to




PREFACE.                            5
impart to its people the advanced science and the religious knowledge of the West. Some of the most intelligent of the French
nobility have gone to China as religious missionaries, with the royal
advice and approbation, and that too at times when it was probable
that their lives would be a sacrifice. A leading German philosopher
(Frederick Von Schlegel), in summing up the characteristics of the
Chinese, says that their skill in agriculture, and "their unique and,
in their way, excellent products of industry and manufacture, prove
the very high degree of civilization to which this people has
attained;" that they are "entitled to a high, even one of the highest, places among civilized nations," and are "remarkable for the
utmost polish and refinement of manners."  It is hard to account
for the common estimate of China and its people in Great Britain
and America otherwise than by attributing it to the influence of the
bad East India Company and tlie diabolical opium trade.
The Chinese are a heathen people, and much that is evil can
truthfully be said against them. But why do we judge them  so
much more severely than other heathen empires which have not
excelled or equaled them in morality? The Romans were a far more
depraved and cruel people than the Chinese. Their idolatry was
more gross and loathsome..... " Idols of monstrous guise,
Terrific, monstrous shapes, preposterous gods,
Of fear and ignorance, by the sculptor's hands
Hewn into form and worshiped; men to these,
From depth to depth in darkening error fallen,
At length ascribe th' inapplicable Name." 1
And yet many of our poets have exhausted the language of praise
upon the Romans and their virtues.  They have painted a glory
which,....'"Like the day, diffused itself, and still
Blesses the earth-the light of genius, virtue,
Greatness in thought and act, contempt of death,
God-like example." 2
I J. DYER, Ruins of Rome.            2 SAMUEL ROGERS, Italy.




6                        PREFACE.
Can we not then exercise candor in forming our opinions of the.
Chinese?  In the case of a people in whom we and our descendants
must be so much interested, it surely becomes us to act with fairness
and with charity. They have had reason to judge us, our institlutions and our religion with severity. This book is an attempt to
make our people better acquainted with them, and to incite efforts
which shall lead them to hold a better opinion of us. It will have
subserved a good end should it accomplish no more than to bring
their manly and indignant REMONSTRANCE TO THE CONGRESS OF
THE UNITED STATES thoroughly before the attention of our legislators and people.
The volume is made as full and complete as possible, in the free
use of a mass of original and other materials which the author has
been long accumulating for this end. For any defects which may
be discerned in it he can only plead that it has been finally put in
shape for the press in hours taken from rest and relaxation amidst
the weighty cares of a sacred and responsible office which he dare
not neglect. Were he to have attempted a formal dedication of the
book it would have been in the line of the work in which he is now
engaged-to the Christian young men of the United States, whose
task and honor it will be, by the diffusion of the blessings of education and the gospel, to accomplish the regeneration of this Newest
Empire of the world as the chief human means of effecting that of
its Oldest Empire. This seems to be the consummating work which
the Church and our nation have to perform ill order to prepare
the earth for the Kingdom of the Messiah.




C ONTENTS.
PAGE
PREFACE.............                                                3
PREFACE........................................................................................  3
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS, WITH EXPLANATIONS...................................... 19
CHAPTER IL
INTRODUCTORY.
Mammoth Trees of California, a symbol of the Chinese Empire-21. Several
respects in which it is the first in the world-23. Peculiar Relations to
United States-Source of our Aborigines-23. Discovery of America"Indians" means Chinese-Marco Polo-24. Subsequent efforts to reach
China-Ponce de Leon —Object of Carver's visit to Minnesota-25. Era
of Discovery of Gold in California-Importance of the Immigration of the
Chinese to this Continent-Interest to the Historian, to the Philosopher, to
the Patriot, to the Christian-26. Future of this Immigration-The two
National Elements-Resemblances of the two Countries, of the people-Differences, as to History, Arts, Labor, Population-Probable Influence of
China on the New W~orld-Importance of understanding our Relations
and Duties-28. Influence of the two nations on others bordering the
Pacific ocean-31.
CHAPTER II.
THE CHINESE PEOPLE: THEIR ORIGIN-RACES IN THE EMPIRE.
Sir John Maundeville's accounts of wonderful races in India, China, etc.Wealth of the East —How Diamonds grow-32. Grotesque ideas of ourselves held by the Chinese-34. Heathen Origin of these fables-Tendencies of Infidel Science —35. Christian Views-36. Fuhi probably means
Noah-Early Colonization-37. First use of Silk-Origin of the name
"China"-38. References to it in the Old Testament and in the New-39.
Name "Tsin" from Tsan, the silkworm-40. Fragments of the Turanian
race in China-41. Expelled by the Aryans-42. Hill-tribes of ChinaRemarkable resemblance to our Indians-43. Various Sources of Indian
tribes on this Continent-Note, 44. Number of Population of China-Recent Census —45. Comparison of Censuses of last century-Reasons for
supposing them  true-47. Colonial Possessions-Practical bearings of
question of Population-48.
7




8                            COINTENVTS.
CHAPTER III.
GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS, ANIMALS.
Remarkable Physical Resemblances between China and the United States, Latitude, Contour, Gulf Stream, Climate, River Systems, Minerals, Vegetable
Productions, Races, Institutions-50. Extent of Empire-Varieties of Climate, etc.-52. General Aspect-53. Yang-tsz-kiang and Yellow rivers55. Provinces of North and East, Peking, Nanking, regions whence Tea
and Silk come-57. Mining regions, Volcanic signs, Petroleum, etc., in the
West-58. Cassia and Camphor districts-59. Description of Canton
Province-60. Manchuria and Colonial Regions north; Ginseng, cause of
first trouble between China and United States, letter from Rev. Jonathan
Edwards —61. Amoor region-62. Mongols-Tibetan tribes-62. Forinosa and other Islands-64. European nations long counted "tributary"
-64. Zoology-Numerous wild Animals-65. Splendid native BirdsFishing Cormorants-Quail-fighting-66.  Reptiles-67.  Fish, endless
variety-Gold and Silver fish-How brought to America-68. Curious
Insects —6. Splendid Moths-Cricket-fighting —Cicadas-69.  Sources of
5Wax-Mantis, or Soothsayer-70. Abundance and variety of Vegetable
Productions-71. Tea, sources, cultivation-72. Fortune's botanical explorations, takes Tea to Assam-72. Difference of Green and Black Tea
-74. Processes of Manufacture-75. Painted green to suit Americans
and English —77.  The national Beverage in China, Tartary, etc.-78.
Chinese Eulogies upon it-79. Rice, its Cultivation-790. Simplicity of
Agricultural Implements-80.  Sugar and its uses-81. Cultivation of
Cotton and IMulberrvy-Silk-82. Bamboo, its uses-Paper and Printing
-83. Camphor and Tallow trees-Japan, or Lacker varnish-87.
CIIAPTER IV.
SOCIAL LIFE, AM{USEMSENTS, POPULAR FESTIVALS, THE GOVERNMENT.
Chinese Civilization and Refinement, peculiar but genuine-88. Style of Houses
and Furniture-S9. Cabinets, Lanterns and Ornaments-91. Condition of
Women-Dress of Ladies-91. Dress of Gentlemen-93. Visiting, Social
Customs-94. Dress of Common People-95. Boat-people-The Queue
-96. Tables of the Ricll-Birds'-nest Soup-Sharks' fins-97. Customs
in eating and drinking-97. Cookery —98. Rob't Fortune's description
of an Inn-99. Amusements-Gambling-Kite-flying —Shuttlecock-101.
Theatrical Performances described by Tiffany-102. Religious Forms —
New Year the great Festival-Trying to Debtors-107. Feast of Lanterns
-Dragon-boat Festival-110. Public reading of Moral Essays, the Sacred
Commands-112. Abundance of Schools-114. Examinations of Boys115. Examinations of Candidates for degrees —116. Higher degrees, re.




CONTENTS.                               9
joicings over successful Candidates-117. Number and Character of Civil
officers-119. Power and responsibility of highest Officers-120. Peking,
the present Capital-Description of city-122. Principal Temples-Scenes
in Streets-The new part-Triumphal Arches-124.
CHAPTER V.
THE PATRIARCHAL AGE IN CHINA.
First nine Sovereigns of China-Arts they introduced-First Silk-weaving and
Husbandry-127. Imperial honor rendered to Agriculture —128. Eaily
Inventions-Division of Time by sixties, like Chaldeans-129. Chinese
origin of Mariner's Compass-130. Foundation of Political InstitutionsGradual Population of the Country —130. Beginning of authentic History
-131. Chinese Coinage-Useful implement for counting-Division of
Weights and Measures by decimals-133. Markets-Hunting — Early
Commerce —Warfare-13.5. Honor to Education-Estimation of the art
of Writing-Industry of females in the manufacture of Silk-138. Struggles of rival kingdoms-Beginnings of Commerce across the Continent140. Era of Babylonish Captivity-Colony of Jews upon the Yellow river
-Purpose of Dispersion, of Jews-141. Age of Confucius the turning-point
in Chinese history-Life and Character of Conficius-144. Account of his
Writings-148. Their Moral Influence-Stationary Character of Chinese
Institutions-151.
CHAPTERT VI.
AUGUSTAN AGE IN CHINA.
China during the Augustan Age in Rome, its extent and greatness —153.
"Prince of Peace" on the throne at the Birth of Christ-Universal Expectation of Christ-155. Chi Hwang-ti, Founder of the first General Dynasty
-155. Building of the Great Wall, stupendous character of the WVork156. Destruction by this Emperor of previous Literature-Burial of wife
and slaves with him at Death-158. Usurpation of throne by Liu-pang159. Invasions of the Tartars-160. Invention of Paper and Books-161.
Paper brought to Europe by the Arabs-162. Invention of Inkl-163.
Slavery-164. Traces of the Apostles-164. Introduction and Character
of Buddhism —165. Native System of Tauism-The Elixir of Life-The
Philosopher's Stone-166. Roman Embassy to China —168. Chinese Envoys to Western Nations-169. Frequent Rebellions-169. Interference
of Women with Government-171. Employments of Common PeopleSocial Customs-Rules as to Names of Children-Laws as to Inheritance
-171. Costumes of People-Faith in Omens and Astrology-174.




10                          CONTENTS.
CHAPTER VII.
THE MIDDLE AGES IN CHINA.
Superiority of China to Western Nations in the Middle Ages-176. The
Ancient Capitals-177.  Tartar Invasions-178.  Umbrella an Ancient
Emblem  of Royalty —ote i., 178. Luxuriousness of the Tsin Dynasty
— 178. Revolution under Liu-yiun-180. Five Dynasties in Rapid Succession-181. Extensive Trade with Arabians and Persians-181. Silk
brought to Europe by Nestorian Missionaries-182. Illustrious Race of
Tang-183. Justice of Tai-tsung-184.  Famous Christian Statesman,
Kwooh tsz-i-Labors of Nestorian Missionaries-185. Canals and inrease
of Trade-185. Han-lin, or Imperial College-186. Literature for the
Young-187. Advance of Arab Commerce-Mohammedans in ChinaExtant Narrative of two Mohammedan Travelers-Their account of Tea
-188. Custom of binding the Feet adopted-190. Corruption of the
Court-Invention of Printing —192. Establishment of the Lung Dynasty
-193. Irruptions of the Tartars-Famous Porcelain Factories in Kiangsi-Exports of Silks and Spices-Decline of the Empire-195. Conquests
of the Mongols in Asia-Become Masters of China-196.
CHAPTER VIII.
THE IM~ONGOL DYNASTY.
Closer Communion of China with sister Nations-Romantic history of Zingis
Khan-198. Conquest of China by Kublai Khan-His illustrious Character-199. Capital established at Peking-201. Paper Money-Grand
Canal opened, Utility of it-202. Residence of Matteo and Nicolo Polo
in China-Sent as Ambassadors to the Pope of Rome-204. Visit of
Marco Polo-Valuable Narrative of his Travels-206. His Description
of the Improvements made by Kublai Khan-Accommodations for Travelers-Extent and good order of Cities-208. War with the Japanese
-211. Grand Festival on Birth-day of Emperor-212. The Imperial
Palaces-Tartar Hunts-214. Extent of Mongol Dominions-216. Favor
to Buddhism-217. Decay of Mongols-217. A poor lad rises to the Imperial Throne-218. Comparison of China and Europe at that Period219. Character of Marco Polo-219.
CHAPTER IMX
THE LAST NATIVE DYNASTY-THE MING.
Emperor Tai-tsu, his Reforms in the Government and in Buddhist Monasteries
-221. Conflicts for the Succession-222. Proposed Invasion of China by
Tamerlane, his Death-223. First Arrival of Portuguese-Their Piracies




CONTENViTS.                            11
-224. Ferdinand AMTendez Pinto and his Companions-Their CrimesWell flogged by the Chinese-225. First Portuguese Embassy-229. Establishment of Portuguese Colony of Macao-230.  Romish MissionsFrancis Xavier-231. Spaniards at the Philippine Islands-Colony established at Manila-232. Visit of Spanish Monks to China —Sent home232. Commencement of other Romish Missions-233. Emperor Wanlieh —Red Book, or Court Calendar-233. Anarchy in the Country —Wtay
prepared for tile Manchlu Tartars-Father of Wu San-kwei-234. Downfall of the Ming Family —238. Dutch first come to China —Settlement on
Pescadore Islands-On Formosa-Dutch Protestant Missions-238. English open Trade-Captain Weddell, Destruction of Chinese Forts and Junks
-240. French in China-242.
CHAPTER X.
THE MANCHU DYNASTY-FIRST EMPERORS.
Careful Education of the Young-Emperor Shun-chi-243. Destruction of
~Nanking-Famous maritime chief Koshinga-243. The Queue, a badge
of Subjection-Black Turban worn in Fu-kien-244. Form of the Present
Government-Private Cabinet-General Council-Six Boards: Civil Office,
Finance, Rites, War, Punishments, Public Works-246. Embassy from
Rtussian Emperor Alexis-Disputes about ko-tau-249. Dutch EmbassyTheir Compliance-250. Influence of Jesuit Adam Schaal-253. Troubles
of the Dutch on Formosa-254. Quarrels of Romanist Monks and their
Effects-256. Subjection of Formosa-257. Description of the IslandTraces of Dutch Missions-258. Greatness of Emperor Kang-hi-261.
Jesuits cast Cannon for him, prepare Almanacs-Handsome presents made
by them, their success-Become Politicians and Ambassadors-263. Kang-.
hi's wars with Eleuth and other Tartars-Rejoicings on Sixtieth Anniversary of his Accession to the Throne-270. Spring Festival, Emperor
Ploughing-271. Kang-hi's "Sacred Instructions," account of the Book
-274. HI is Literary Character-276. Troubles with Mongols-277. English obtain a footing —irst exports of Tea-East India Company-Quarrels
with the Chinese-278. New Embassy of Dutch-280. Successive Missions of Russia-281. Overland Tea-286. Installation of Emperor Yungching-Severe Persecution of Romanists-288. Mild Character of Emperor-2S9. Russian Trade at Kiakhta-290. Mourning at the Decease
of an Emperor —292. Chinese Funeral Rites-294.
CHAPTER XI.
THE GREAT KIEN-LUNG.
Resemblance of Kien-lurg to Kang-hi-Extraordinary Length of their Reigns
-296. Princes of the Empire —297. Persecutions of the Jesuits-299.




12                             CONTENT$S.
Conquests in Western Tartary-Defeat in Burmah —299. Wars with the
MIountain Tribes-300. British Embassy of Lord MIacartney, Origin in
trouble with I-ong Merchants-Narrative of their Journey to Peking-303.
Their Reception at the Palace of Jeh-ho-311. Dignity and Condescension
of Kien-lung-313. Amusements-Tartar ladies-Anniversary of the Emperor's Birth-day-315. Return of the British Embassy-317. Accession
of Kia-king-His Profligate Habits-Courageous Rebuke by a MinisterYDissatisfaction of the People-319.  New Efforts to expel Roman Priests
-322. Increase of Piracy-'A Female Corsair-Unsettled state of Country
-322. Emperor's Life saved by his Son-325. Unsuccessful British Embassy of Lord Amherst-325. Floods in the Yellow river-327.
CHAPTER XII.
TAU-KWANG AND TIlE OPIUM -WAR.
Insurrections among the Tartar tribes-Among the Mountain tribes of the Interior-329.  Causes of the Opium  War-Immense amount of Opium
smuggrled —331. Lord Napier arrives as Superintendent of British Conmrlerce, his unhappy Death —333. Succeeded by J. F. Davis, he by Captain Elliott-Increase of Smuggling-335.  Celebrated Chinese Commissioner Liu-Twelve Millions of Dollars' worth of Opium destroyed —336.
English establish themselves at IIong-kong-338. Naval battle at the
Bogue-339. Chinese Army-340. Taking of the Island of Chu-san —
Negotiations at Tien-tsin —Return to Canton-341. Terrible battle at
-3ogue Forts-Slaughter of the Chinese-343. Ransom of Canton for six
millions of Dollars-345. Sir Henry Pottinger as Plenipotentiary-Capture of Amoy-346. Brave defence of Chiu-hai by the Tartars-Fearful
slaughter of them-348.  Beautiful Country about Ningpo and Hang-clhau
-349.  Capture of Ningpo-351.  Characteristic Appeal of People to
British army —352. Bloody battle with Tartars at Cha-pu-353. Fleet
in the Yang-tsz-kiang —354.  Desperate defence of Chitu-kiang-Suicide
of the Tartar General-355. City of Nankling-Porcelain Pagoda —Ancient Glory of the City-Treaty of Peace-356. Stipulations of the Treaty
-Twenty-one millions of Dollars paid for Opium and British expenses353. Resistance to opening of Fuh-chau-359.  Advantages of port of
Shanghai-360. Improvements at Hong-lrong-361. Hostile Publications
of Chinese and mobs at Canton —361. Bad Character of Itong-kong-363.
Effects of Opium War upon the Emperor Tau-kwang-Upon the Chinese
people-364.  Interest felt in Europe-HIon. Caleb Cushing Ambassador
fioml  United States-Treaty of'Wang-hia-Hon. A. H. Everett, Resident
Minister-365.  General distress in China —Rebellions in Kokonor,
etc.-Energy of Liu-366. Death of Tau-kwang-His amiable Character
-367.




CONTENTS.                             13
CHAPTER XIII.
RESULTS OF TH{E OPIUM WAR.
Opium War, Great Crisis in the history of China-370. Opium, ancient use
as a Narcotic by Greeks, Hebrews, etc.-371. Introduction from India372. Destructive Effects-Resistance of Chinese Government-Immense
Injury to the people-373. Enormous Profit to Great Britain-Its Responsibility-375. Effect on Christian Missions-Darkest Stain on the Nineteenth Century —377. Connection of America with it-Duty of Great
Britain-379. Robert Morrison, first Protestant Missionary-His translations of Scriptures and Dictionary-Bridgeman, first American Missionary
-The Chinese Repository-381. New Translations-Preaching in Chinese
-Missionary Hospitals-381. Mission Schools and extensive Results-383.
Succession of Hien-fung to the throne-Disorders in the country-384.
Hung Sew-tsuen receives Christian Books-Beginning of the Tai-ping Rebellion-Bright promise, sad End, partial good Results-385. New War
with Great Britain and France-Origin in Opium smuggling-390. Bombardment of Canton-Capture of Forts on the Pei-ho-Treaty of Tien-tsinHeavy Assessment for expenses-Legalization of Opium trade-391. Failure of Chinese government to Ratify-Capture of Peking-Sacking of the
Summer Palace-Death of the Emperor-393. New Ports opened-Treaties
with various European Powers-395. French Protection to RomanismPresent State of Romish Missions-Reason of Opposition of Government to
themn-396. Russian Treaty-Accession of territory on the Amoor riverProspective Colonization and importance —399. Present condition of Foreign Commerce with China-401. Opening of Route by Isthmus of Suez
-Its History and Importance-402. Late Rebellions-Mohammedans of
South-west-405. Troops drilled by American and European OfficersAdvantages gained by them-Rejection of Vessels of War purchased in
Great Britain-406. Youthful Emperor Tung-chi-Regency of Empress
Dowager and Prince Kung-407.
CHAPTER XIV.
AMERICAN RELATIONS WITH THE CHINESE EMPIRE.
Early Trade of East India Company with American Indians-410. Resistance
to Introduction of Tea-Destruction of cargoes at Boston-First American
ship to China —Beginning of Fur trade-411. Effect upon Discovery on
our Pacific coast-Expedition of Lewis and Clarke-Enterprises of AstorBenefits to United States-412. Influence in Christianizing Sandwich and
other Islands-415. Advancement of the art of Ship-building —Era of
Clipper Ships-Of Steam Vessels-417. Important Provisions of treaty of
Wang-hia-419. Friendly feeling to the United States-Interesting Trib



14                           CONTENTS.
ute of Seu Ki-yu's Geography to George Washington —Present of Portrait
to him from our Government-His Degradation and restoration to power
-420. New American treaty-Its Provisions-First Announcement by
the Atlantic Cable-426. Recent Development of Foreign trade-Danger
of Alienation of Chinese territory-427. Honorable career of Mr. Burlingame-Origin of Mission to Western Powers-429. Recent treaty with
China, its Effects-Honors to the Embassy-431. Treaty with England,
Presentation to Queen-Address of Lord Stanley-433. Treaties with
other European Powers-Probable Effects-435.
CHAPTER XV.
ANCIENT CONNECTIONS WITH TitIS CONTINENT.
Vairiety of Races found on this Continent-Civilization of Aztecs, Toltecs,
Peruvians, etc.-438. Question of their Origin-438. Asiatic SourceDates of their Arrival-438. Evidence from Agencies of Nature-Great
Ocean Currents, Pacific Gulf Stream-Courses of Winds, Monsoons-Typhoons-439. Evidence from Recent Wrecks on our coast-Japanese and
Chinese junks, Remains on this Continent and the neighboring Islands-442.
Spread of the Malay family among Pacific islands-444. Evidence from
Legends among Asiatic nations, Tartars, Japanese, etc.-445. Translation
from Chinese Encyclopadia, on Fu-sang-Interesting Discussions as to Application-Opinions of eminent Scholars-446. Corroborations from Aztec
Customs, etc.-Letters of Cortez-Oriental character of Aztec life and institutions-Answer to objections-Aztecs certainly Buddhists-Other Legends
-449. Evidence from Resemblances of Modern American Languages and
Customs to Asiatic-454. Tribes on either side of Behring's straits-Resemblances of Tchuktchis, Malemutes, Esquimaux, etc.-455. Athapascas
and Apaches —456. Customs and Legends in Peru, Oriental and Buddhist
-457. Remains of Wonderful Military Roads, described by Humboldt459. Future of Peru and Mexico-461.
CHAPTER XVI.
CHINESE IMMIGRATION.
Ancient Separation of Old and New Hemispheres-Anglo-Saxon Occupation of
New-Tuition of African Race-Advent of Asiatic-462. Emigrations of
Chinese Races in former Ages-463. To other Asiatic Regions-Chinese
in Indian Archipelago-Pleasing picture of Chinese Life in Borneo-In
Java-464. Reasons for opposition to Intercourse-468. Commencement
of Immigration here-Early Usefulness-470. Interest in them, subsequent
Opposition-471. All from Province of Canton-472. No Coolies in California-What are Coolies?-No Caste in China —473. Motives and Means
of Emigration-478. HindA Coolies in Guiana-479. Chinese in Cuba
-In Peru and Chincha Islands-Terrible Crimes of Coolie trade-479




CONTENTS.                              15
Prohibitions of by various Nations-English, French and American Conventions with Chinese Government-483. Validity of Contracts for Labor
— 485. Extent of future Immigration-Causes of Increase in the Past486. Number of Chinese in California-487. Their Dispersion over other
States, Territories and Countries-488. Influence of Varieties of Population of different Provinces on future Immigration-489. They must be
treated as Freemen-Laws necessary for Emigrant Ships-490. Fidelity
to Contracts-491. Families should be brought-Our Duty-492.
CHAPTER XVII.
CHINESE LABOR.
Elements which make Chinese Labor peculiar-493. Its Characteristics-Industry of the People-Exhibitions of this in China-Illustrations to foreigners-494. Economy-Utilization of Materials-Regard for Utensils, Time,
etc.-Wages-496. Intelligence-General Information-Cheerfulness and
Patience in Work-497. Variety of Employments-Early Occupations in
this Country-499. Faults of Chinese-500. Difference in IndividualsPractical Difficulties in Employing Chinese-502. Fields for Application
of Chinese Labor-Characteristic of Servants-502. Usefulness in Agriculture-Value in California-503. Cultivation of Cotton-Original Seats of
it in Asia-Cotton Regions of China-Peculiar Adaptation of Pacific Coast
to Cotton-504. British Plans for Cotton Culture in Indian Archipelago —
Superiority of our Advantages-506. Manufacture of Silk, its great Value
-Extraordinary Advantages of Pacific coast-Chinese Labor an important
item —509. Silk at recent Agricultural Fair-Japanese Colony-Comparison of Japanese and Chinese-510. Variety of Moths which produce Silk,
a provision for various climates-512. English Experiments in IndiaVarieties in China and America-English Silk Supply Association-513.
Manufacture of Silk in the United States, Extent, Results, Prospects-517.
Other Chinese Textile Plants-520. Introduction of Tea-Success of British in Assam-Tea Plant in Java, Brazil and our Southern States-521.
Rice-Slugar-Fruits-Pea-nuts-Value of Bamboo-523. Capacity of Chinese as Common Laborers-Workmen in factories —Miners-524. Era.ployment on Public Works-Our Debt to them in construction of Pacific
Railroad-Immense Field for their employment-525. Value as Consumers of American products-527. Favorable Testimonials from various
classes of Americans-528.
CHAPTER XVIII.
POPULAR GOVERNMENT IN CHINA.
Objectionable Sources of Information as to Chinese institutions-Roman Priests,
British Opium  Traders-531. Juster Estimate needed-Resemblance to




16                           CONTENVTS.
the United States-532.  Analogies in Ancient Rome-In  India- In
Russia-534. Leading Features of the Chinese Government-Beautiful
Theory of the Imperial power-537. Principles of the Administration of
it-Preferment based on Education —Interest of Literary Examination538. Guards against Abuses-Detachment from Local Influences —Terml
of Office three years-Imperial Board of Review-System of Official Reports-" The Peking Gazette"- 540. Popular Organizations-The ClanAnalogy to Jewish Kindreds-General Benefits, Number and Influence543. Trade Associations or Guilds-547. Local government by Town
and District Councils — Resistance to Foreigners after Opium War-To
Imperial Government-Robber in the Wa-lam Ternple-547. Disturbances at Canton-Bombardment of the City by English and French Allies
-549. Opinions of Eminent Scholars-550. Practical Corruptions and
Abuses-Foundations for Better Things-551.
CHAPTER XIX.
THE CHINESE COMIPANIES IN CALIFORNIA.
Continual Puzzle to Americans-Absurd Stories-554. Ui-kuns or Companies
-Description of a Building in San Francisco-Account of Members-555.
Translation of "Rules of the Yeung-wo Company"-Membership-FeesRegulations as to Building-Provisions as to Charity-Settlement of Difficulties-557. Conduct of Members-Rules as to Meetings-Arrangemnents
for Collecting of Debts-Officers to be elected, their Duties-560. Amusing
attempt of a Company to be freed from Taxes-Introduction of first Idol564. Translation of Account of Sze-yap Company-Property —MIembership
-Numbers —Fees-Objects for which Money is expended-Officers elected
— No Slaves-565. General Character-Utility and Propriety of these Institutions-567. Objections to permanent Continuance-569.
CHAPTER XX.
A REMIONSTRANCE TO CONGRESS.
Scene in Chinese MIining Camp-Night attack of Robbers-A Remarkable Plea,
and its Confirmation-572. Barbarous Occurrence at a Mining Bar-573.
Cloud of Villains around Chinese Camps-Conscientiousness in Robbing
Heathen —Illuminating influence of an act of Justice-574. Acts of violence by Tax-collectors-575. Threefold cover to Atrocities-Astonishing
Decision of Supreme Court of California-Prudent Conduct of the Chinese
-576. Gov. Bigler's Messages-Admirable Reply of Lai Chun-chuenExtracts —Why Families are not brought —Why Chinese Customs differ
from ours-Objections to Gamblers answered-Charges of bad character
replied to-Protest against being confounded with Negroes and IndiansWillingness to leave the Country-578, Repeal of Oppressive Law-581.




CONTENTS.                             17
Continued Troubles- Injury to Americans-Favorable Testimonies of
Newspapers-582. Preparation of a Remonstrance to Congress-The Author-Character of the Paper-Moral Tone-Indignation of Chinese-Summary of Topics-583. Translation of REMONSTRANCE TO CONGRESS-588.
Reasons for making the Appeal-Americans do not conform to their Religious Knowledge-Chinese Principles of Government-Treatment of Foreigners by the Chinese Government —588. Continual Trials of Chinese in
California-Murderous Injuries-Persecutions of Miners-Illegal Conduct
of Tax-collectors-594. Objectionable Usages-Request as to Abandoned
Women-As to Punishment of Gambling-599. Proposition as to Testimony in regard to Criminals-Request either to Grant Justice or Enact a
Law fixing time for Departure of Chinese from the Country-601. Duty of
Congress and State Legislatures as to this Plea-603.
CHAPTER XXI.
MBORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE IMMIGRATION.
What are Heathen?-Generic Attributes-605. Touching admissions of Ignorance as to Divine things by Confucius and Mencius-606. Ideas of Hierarchies in Earth and in'Heaven-Worship of the Moon-Origin of Theatrical Performances connected with it-607. Worship of god To-ti-History
as a man-Worship in California of the god of Fire-Of god of HealthOf goddess of Mercy-Temples —610. Favorite Religion, Worship of the
Dead-Annual Celebration of it-Most popular Festival in China-612.
Transportation of the Bones of the Dead-Benevolent Association for the
purpose-Translation of an extract of a Report-Divinations as to Places
of Burial-614. Superstition as to Powers of Nature-Translation, Flagstaff to the god Tsz-mi-yuen to counteract evil influences-Bondage to ideas
of Luck-Translation of list of Unlucky Days-Remedies for Evil Influences-616. Ideas of Future Reward and Punishment —Translation of
tract by Lau-tsz-Buddhist ideas of ten Judgment gods and of Punishment
of Sin-619. Buddhist Monastic Institutions-People worship what and
when they please-No Caste, or indecent or cruel Forms-Appointment of
Sacrifices by City Officers-621. Fragments of Primeval Truth-No Evil
Spirits known as "Joss"-Imaginary Monsters-622. Toleration of heathenism does not imply the Immunities of Christianity-Basis of our Common Law-624. Right of Chinese to bear Testimony-Grounds of Competency-Legal Authorities-Form of Oath-Notions of American Justice,
"Plenty money, no hang"-627. Bad females in California —Blame cast
on Americans-Children-High Character of Female Sex in China-630.
Gambling in California, bad effects, censured by Better Class-633. Opiumsmoking, sad Cases-635. Good traits-Few  Brawls-No Public Drunkenness-Charity to Poor, and to Whites-Charitable Associations —635.
Diverse elements of Morality-637.
2




18                           CONIWETNTS.
CHAPTER XXII.
THIE GLORY OF AMERICA.
The two great Streams of the World's Civilization, Eastward and WestwardDivine Purpose in our Continent and Nation-638. Preparation in AsiaIn California-640.  Effects upon Europe and Asia, Humboldt's opinion641. Religious Results-Interest of the greatest minds in the office of
America-The philosopher Berkeley-Objects of his College in Rhode
Island-Gifts to Yale College-642. Jonathan Edwards-His labors and
writings-645. The Point from which to settle questions as to the Chinese
here-646. America the School of the Nations —Lessons of our Arts to the
Chinese, Steamers, Railroads, etc. —Of our various Sciences and Discoveries
-Of our Politics-Of our Religious Forms and Influences-646. Political
Questions as to Chinese Residence, Employments, Testimony, Voting and
Education - Generic Principle in them —Great Principles which decide
these Questions-Ideas of Alex. Hamilton-651. Preparatory Qualifications
needed by Chinese-655. Three Chief Elements of Danger to America from
them-Their Paganism and its relation to our Politics-Their Ignorance
of our Language and Laws, our Duty to Educate them-Their Temporary
Residence, Necessity of care as to Naturalizing them-656. Our Social and
Personal Influence-658. Sketch of Presbyterian Mission in California659. Baptist, Episcopal and Methodist missionaries-661. Recent general
Religious Interest in the Chinese-Spirit which should animate our People
-662.
CHAPTER XXIII.
THE FUTURE OF THE CHINESE RACE.
The three Empires of the Future, the United States, Russia and China-General
Resemblances-663. Remarkable Prophecies of Napoleon as to Russia
and America, as to Results of English Wars with China-663. Predictions
of William H. Seward, twenty years ago-664. The Future of Asiatic Russia, of our Pacific Coast, of South America, of the Pacific Islands —Illustrations in Sandwich Islands, Decrease of Natives, Introduction of Chinese
Labor, Results-666. Classes of Americans needed in China for Development and Advancement-668. Efforts of Government in the way of Progress-Military Discipline, Arsenals, Wrar Steamers built at Shanghai, San
Francisco Mission-scholar made a high Official, Another represents his
People before a Congressional Committee, Opening of Coal Mines, Inland
Navigation, Coast-trade, Telegraphs, Difficulties as to Railroads, University
at Peking and other Schools of Foreign Science, Indifference of Chinese
Statesmen as to Prevalence of Christianity-General Concern in the Empire
as to Foreign Religion and Trade-669. Joyful Picture of China all and
completely Christian-The Gospel the Primary Power of Civilization-671l




LIST OF ILLIJSTRATIONS.
(WITH EXPLANATIONS.)
COMPANY  HOUSE, SAN  FRANCISCO.  Miner carrying  Baggage in  baskets-Gateway —
Shops on either side..................................................................................... FRONTISPIECE.
CHINESE MINERS. California. Digging —Carrying Dirt-Washing with a Rocker.
To face page 28
SCENE  ON  THE  RIVER.  Canton.  Ferry and other Boats-Landing-Place-Gateway  to
Temple of Honan-Crowds in Street............................................................................. 48
COCHIN-CHINESE  DIGNITARIES...............................................................              64
FISHING  WITH  CORMORANTS. Fisherman on Raft, with Basket, Hand-net and BirdsTaking in Bird with a Fish........................................................................................   68
PREPARATION OF TEA. Workingmen in Factory firing the Tea-Merchant giving directions-Coolies bringing Tea-leaves in Baskets..........................................................  76
CLEANING COTTON. Workman beating up the Cotton with bow, supported by elastic rod
fastened to his back..................................................................................................  82
DOMESTIC SCENE. Ladies amusing themselves Playing Cards-Nurse with babe and small
boy-Lattice Work-Flowers in Pots...................................................                 92
IMPLEMENTS FOR EATING. Chopsticks, knives, toothpicks, etc., with cases.....................  98
PLAYING  AT SHUTTLECOCK  WITH  THE FEET,....................................  102
EXAMINATION  OF PRISONER.  Judge-Clerk recording Confession-Prisoner on his knees
-Policeman ready to apply Bamboo..........................................................................   120
ITINERANT BARBER. Case of drawers-Furnace with basin, etc.................................... 124
ARCHER IN  CHINESE ARMY. An Inferior Officer............................................. 136
CAT MERCHANT...............................................................152
TEMPLE OF BUDDHA.  Hall containing a greenish marble Monument covering a Toe-nail
of Buddha-Columns of dark-red wood-Worshipers-Musicians...................................... 166
STOCKING  MAKER. Sewing Stockings cut from cotton cloth......................................... 188
CINESE SOLDIER. The "Tiger Guard".............................................................         214
STREET PUNISHMENTS. Whipping Thief through the Streets, with gong to call attention 226
OFFICER AND WIFE. Robes of rich embroidery............................................................. 246
BUDDHIST TEMPLE. Images-Robed and shaven-headed Priests reciting Liturgies-Burning printed Paper, gathered from streets, in a furnace, as an Act of Merit....................... 276
MILITARY  OFFICER.......................................................................a.............................. 300
19




20                          LIST OF ILL USTRATIONS.
STREET SCENE IN CANTON. Head of LUin Hing, or "Associated Prosperity" Street-Placards of Charms or Advertisements-Barbers and Eating-stall outside —Meat-market inside.
To face page 336
CHAMBER OF A LADY OF RANK. Dressing the Hair-Maid-servant playing the GuitarLattice Work-Ornamented Bedstead and Furniture........................................ 356
VIEW  NEAR CANTON. Side of small Temple-Foreign soldiers...................................... 380
OUTSIDE OF WALL, CANTON. Sedan-chair-W ater-carriers............................................. 390
CHINESE BANKERS, SAN FRANCISCO. Ordinary business dress-Reading newspaper...... 418
HON. ANSON  BURLINGAME. First Plenipotentiary from  Chinese Empire to Western
Powers.......................................................................................................................  430
WIVES OF CHINESE MERCHANTS. San Francisco....................................................... 452
TOBACCO MANUFACTORY. San Francisco. Dress of workmen partly Americanized.......... 472
ILLUSTRATIONS OF RICE CULTURE, copied from a Chinese Work:
1. PLOUGHING FOR RICE. Using the Buffalo, or "Water-ox"............................. 500
2. TRANSPLANTING RICE, when half-grown-Irrigating by bucket, across the dike.......... 512
3. HULLING RICE, with a rude mill...........................................................................  524
4. RETURNING THANKS TO THE GODS AND SPIRITS AFTER HARVEST. Rural Temple-Offerings-Laborer and family gratefully worshiping...................................... 538
CHINESE RESTAURANT IN SAN FRANCISCO. Circular Door-Religious and poetical
Inscriptions on Walls-Chinese Guests and Waiters......................................................     556
INTERIOR  OF IDOL-TEMPLE  IN  SAN  FRANCISCO. Idol-Table with large CenserStandards-Large Candles.......................................................................................... 564
CHYLUNG  & CO. No. 640 Sacramento street, San Francisco. Porcelain and Silk goods in
windows-Camphor-wood Chests-Attendants............................................................... 588
CHINESE THEATRE. The Stage-Actors, one in female dress-Musicians-Spectators......... 608
CONSULTING A GOD FOR LUCK. Casting lots before idol-Priest comparing corresponding
Tables-Furnace for burning waste printed paper........................................................... 634
MR. TSUI SHING-CHEUNG, Elder of the Chinese Presbyterian Church, San Francisco........ 656
SCHOLAR OF PRESBYTERIAN MISSION SCHOOL, San Francisco........................Same plate.
CHINESE SHOP IN SAN FRANCISCO. Merchant reading American Newspaper............... 664




THE OLDEST
AND
THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
CHAPTER I.
I NT R OD U CT OR Y.
IN  the heights of the Sierra  Nevada Mountains the
Creator has set, in royal majesty, the throne of the
sovereigns of the vegetable world.l And the feelings
with which  one stands beneath  the mammoth trees resemble those which thrill the mind of a man with
awe and wonder and pleasure when he gazes on the cataract of Niagara. There before him, the grandest of
living things on earth, is a plant which began to grow
with the beginning of that era, defined by the incarnation of the Son of God, by which all Christian nations
mark the events of their history. Scores of generations
1 The mammoth trees of California well deserve this honorable title. The baobab and dragon trees of equatorial Africa are as large in diameter-some of them
measuring thirty-six feet through-but they are not more than one-third of the
height of these magnificent coniferpe; several of which are over twenty feet taller
than Trinity Church spire in the city of New York. In the section of one cut
down in 1854, I counted twelve hundred and forty-eight annual rings, and calculated the extent of the surface of its stump, at eight feet from the ground, to
be about four hundred and sixty square feet. There are some which are older
and larger.
21




22     THEE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
of men and beasts have lived and gone back to their
dust since it put forth its first leaves. Empires have
risen, swayed the affairs of continents, and fallen; but
it has continued to grow. And now it stands taller
than the tallest columns or spires that man has built in
the New World, towering in a pyramid of living green,
its foundations fixed in the everlasting rocks, its summit
crowned by the glittering clouds of heaven.
There is an empire with which we associate naturally
tuch an emblem, the oldest empire in the world. It was
planted in the earliest generations after the renovation
of the world and of human history by the Deluge.
Assyria, Persia, Egypt, Greece, Rome, have risen and
gone; their pride, their wealth, their dominion, all are
things of the past. But the Chinese race is still the
same, scarcely tinged by the admixture of others. The
primeval religion, customs and literature are still vigorous and fresh.  Virtuous examples of their own ancestors who lived four thousand years ago encourage the
generation of to-day. School-books prepared by a contemporary of the Jewish prophet Daniel are yet the
manuals of the teacher of children. The language is
the unchanged monosyllables of the infancy of mankind.
The social usages are those which have been made familiar to us in the patriarchal pictures of the book of
Genesis. We contemplate, amidst all the ruins Time
has wrought elsewhere, such an empire with constant
amazement and curiosity. And when we behold at
length a change in the wind of time beginning to blow
the seeds of this stupendous ripe tree across the waters,
so that they are seen taking root in our new virgin soil,
the study of its whole character becomes to us a subject




INT      OD OD UCTORY.         23
of such interest as has few parallel to it. We are the
newest, as China is the oldest, empire of the world. Our
institutions are but the raw experiments of yesterday.
We are only beginning to realize that we have a national
life, and that God has formed it for some great commission, the mere alphabet of which we are just learning
to stammer.
The nations of the West boast of their greatness; but
how paltry they seem in the eyes of an inhabitant of
that venerable empire! And is this pride without foundation?  It alone, in Asia-and many Chinese know
this-is equal to the whole of either of the other continents of the world in the number of its people.
Bewildering as it is to our ideas, there can be no
just exception taken to the computation which makes
its population to amount to the one-fourth of the
entire family of man. It stands first of all existing
nations in agricultural productiveness, first in some
important manufactures, first in the sum of the wealth
of its subjects. China, to one who can bring his mind
to measure what these statements embrace, seems almost
a world of itself-a world which, like those strange
binary stars which revolve about each other and communicate mutual powerful influences, but are each a distinct
sun, has moved in all time, strangely connected with, yet
separate from, the world of our ancestry and history.
Interesting as China may be to the other nations of
the world, it is related to ours and to our continent by
ties far closer than to any others. The first and the last
find themselves most nearly allied.
There is, first, the bond of interest which is suggested
in that most fascinating and romantic subject of inquiry,




24     THE OLDEST ANYD T2irE'NEW~VEST EM~PIRE.
the origin, history and character of the aboriginal races
of the New World. That they were Asiatic no honest
and unprejudiced mind, when thoroughly informed upon
the subjects which evince it, can doubt. Physical geography, the literature of China, the legends of the
American nations, and the records of the Spaniards,
all make it as manifest as any great historic question can
be which is not a matter of direct testimony.
Then we people of America may be said, in some
sense, to owe to China the discovery of our continent by
Europeans in the fifteenth century. It is the mere use
of a general for a particular appellation which prevented
our Indians from being called by us " Chinese." Columbus meant Chidnese. They were called "Indians," because
all Eastern Asia was then called in Europe the "Indias,"
or "Indies," just as the Arabian and other Mohammedan
writers style all the countries east of the Indian Archipelago, the "Chinas."  The ambition of Columbus to
cross the Western ocean was kindled by AMarco Polo's
wondrous tales, written two centuries before, of the
boundless riches and grandeur of Cathay, Mangu or
Mangi, and Cipango. The first of these words is the
Mongol name for China Proper; the second is the same
with the native name for the Manchu Tartars, who
descended from the shores of the ocean to the north of
China in the seventeenth century, and yet hold the
enviable position of its supreme lords; the third is easily
recognized by a Chinese scholar as Jih-pwan-ko, "the
land of the sunrise," which we adopt in our abbreviation
"Japan." The doctors of Florence assured Columbus
that a voyage of four thousand miles would bring him
to China. In the names and productions of the tropical




INTROD UCTOR Y.              25
islands which he discovered he endeavored to trace those
he found mentioned in the glowing narrative of the
Polos. And he died in the belief that he had only
found a new path to the empire of China, and that the
islands he had visited were upon the coasts of China.
We trace this same high visionary hope in the journals of the succeeding Spanish, English, Portuguese and
French discoverers. The grand prize at which they all
ained was China. Their long voyages, north and south,
amidst strange archipelagoes, and up rivers and deep arms
of the sea, were efforts to push their way through to the
Chinese waters. They set Chinese names on some of
the divisions of the land or sea, a few of which still
remain. They explored vast forests, and underwent
astonishing hardships and sufferings, to discover the
fountain of immortality, whose waters the Tauist priests
of China have for ages pretended to be under their
control. There is no more pathetic picture in human
history than that of the aged Ponce de Leon, exhausted
by wars, self-indulgence and disappointments, fitting out
three ships at his own expense, going forth westward in
search of the way to the fountain that was to renew the
vigor and enjoyment of youth, discovering our Florida,
and, upon the shore where he expected to find a point
of rest and departure, pierced by the arrows of the
inhabitants of his fancied paradise, and retreating to the
island of Cuba to die.
To tell all that this continent owed in geographical
explorations over every portion of it, between the Caribbean sea and the Arctic zone, to the determined and
oft-renewed efforts to penetrate barriers which Nature
had made vast beyond their supposition at that time,




26     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
would itself afford a subject worthy of a volume. Even
in the last century, the first acquaintance of one of our
own race with the new and beautiful State of AMinnesota
was made in the journey of Carver, one of whose
objects, he tells us, in his account of his travels, was to
" facilitate the discovery of a north-west passage, or a
communication between Hudson's Bay and the Pacific
ocean," and to "promote many useful discoveries," and
thus "open a passage for conveying intelligence to China
and the English settlements in the East Indies with
greater expedition than a tedious voyage by the Cape of
Good Hope."
But all the interest of America in the Chinese based
upon these matters of the past is small, very small, compared with that which arises out of those of which we
witness the beginnings in this our own generation. The
discovery of gold on the Pacific coast of North America
was the commencement of revolutions in the commerce, the politics, the religions of the world, to which
there have been no parallels in all the history of the
past.
The subject of Chinese immigration to this continent
is one of an importance and interest which language can
hardly exaggerate. The reader of history beholds in
this contact of the populations of America and China,
on the shores of the Pacific ocean, the termination of
that westward course of empire which began in the first
periods of the history of man; and in it the completion
of one great cycle of the Divine government on earth, and
the commencement of another-the glorious and golden
age of mankind. The philosophic mind finds abundant
material for the profoundest thought in the numerous




INTROD UCTOR Y.              27
questions of a political and social nature which arise
from the return of the grand current of civilization,
transformed by all the changes which so many ages and
influences have wrought, and freighted with the spoils
of so many lands, to the regions whence it originated;
and in considering the results as they will affect the
nations which hold that civilization in its oldest and in
its newest forms, the chief empire and the chief republic of the world. The patriot must speculate upon the
effects of the introduction of a new and boundless
supply of productive labor, of mechanical skill and of
commercial enterprise, as they shall tend to settle the
national embarrassments which have followed our employment of the African race; as they may prove useful
in developing the resources of the western portion of
the continent, and elevating it to a full level with the
eastern portion; and as they may modify our institutions
and possibly even our form of government. The Christian must watch with deepest concern the infusion of
new, subtle and powerful elements of religious error and
forms of vice amidst the more bold and unregulated
mind of our nation.~ And the man who waits for the
consolation of the Israel of the latter days must praise
God for the new form which his almighty power has
given to the immense work of regenerating the continent of Asia, through the multitudes of its people to be
brought hither, enlightened with Christianity and returned to it again. Taken in whatsoever aspect we will,
the coming of the Chinese to America is excelled in
importance by no other event since the discovery of
the New World. It is one of the impulses, beyond all
human conception or management, by which God is mov



28     THE OLDEST A.ND THE NEWEST EMI.PIRE.
ing the history of mankind onward to its great consummation.
To what this immigration may come, and what its
influence upon the future of this nation, upon North
America and upon South America, no finite mind can
imagine. There are two national elements of the problem. Separated by an ocean whose passage every year
becomes more expeditious and cheap, which is hemmed
not many degrees distant by a continuous shore-line,
along which already an electric telegraph has been partially constructed, lie two vast countries. Each r.esembles the other in location, contour, climate, and other
physical conditions and capacities, more than it does any
other of the countries of the earth. Each is occupied by
a people naturally thoughtful, earnest, acquisitive and
enterprising; each by a people strangely conglomerate,
yet strangely homogeneous; each by a people among
whom intellect and education constitute the only patent
of nobility; each by a people the freest upon its own
continent, and governed mainly by rulers of its own election; and each country is now in the travail of a change
from old bondage and feebleness to new power, light and
influence, which will be felt to the very corners of the
earth. But with so much that is alike in these countries,
it is easy to group together some respects in which they
differ to the farthest extremes. The foundation of the
one occurred within the memory of men now living: the
other, as has been before remarked, is one of the most
ancient, and is the most permanent, of the empires of the
world; which was extensive as Rome when Rome was
most extensive, and built the vastest work of human
architecture —its Great Wall-for its protection against




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INTR OD UCTOR Y.             29
northern barbarians two thousand one hundred years
ago. The one is a country where the utmost advances
of scientific knowledge are continually made practical
for the development of its wondrous agricultural and
luineral wealth: the other exhibits the arts which are
necessary to the increase and comfort of man carried to
the farthest limit which it is possible for them to reach
until the principles of true science, founded on the Christian religion, shall have been infused into them. In
the one, labor is scarce, more difficult to obtain and
dearer-in the other, it is more abundant and cheaperthan in any other part of the world. A man in China
receives but six cents for a day's work, while one in
America gets from two to five dollars; and many a good
workman in the former country keeps his family for a
month, or even for a summer, upon what the family of a
workman here would spend ill a day. The one is settled
only here and there, in the localities most favorable to
agriculture, to trade, to manufactures or to health: the
other is densely inhabited by a population whose numbers bewilder the mind; a province of its eighteen may
contain as many people as the United States, or Great
Britain, or France; and the whole of them sustain onefourth of the entire human race. Into the immense solitudes of the one, whose only previous occupants were a
few scanty, roving, barbarous Indian tribes, immigrants
have pressed from all the nations of the world: out of
the other are flowing, and have for two centuries flowed,
multitudes, which, after they have peopled and renovated, or rendered great benefits to, many countries of
Northern and Central Asia, and the numerous great and
rich islands within two or three thousand miles of them,




30     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EM'PIRE,
have recently begun to cross to the New World, and
already number in the United States owe-third as many
as the total remains of the aboriginal tribes. The knowledge of modern ages in the West, and the introduction
of labor-saving machines, will expel myriads from
China, as the bees swarm and hive in the spring; and
any reasonable man who will consider no more than the
statements of this paragraph must conclude that attempts
to prevent their coining to the New World are as ridiculous and futile as it would be to endeavor to change
the laws of Nature, which cause the soil of the rmountains to descend into the valleys, or the floods of the rain
to force a channel to the sea. The day is coming when
many millions of Chinese will be dispersed over the
Pacific coast, the Mississippi Valley, the wastes in the
northern portion of the continent, the provinces of
Mexico and Central America, the whole continent of
South America, where already there are several thousands of them, and over all the island groups or island
continents of the Pacific ocean, whose indolent races are
departing, having accomplished their mission, to make
room for them. To find a place and use for a handful
of poor African slaves who were brought here in a condition little above the brutes, in the plan of the great
temple of civil and religious freedom which the Supreme
Governor of the world is rearing upon this continent to
be a blessing to all its nations, has cost us an indescribable amount of discussion and trouble, ending in a stupendous and calamitous civil war. An hundred-fold
more important is it to understand fully, and to treat
with wisdom and justice from the beginning, the race
whom He is now bringing to our shores-one so incom



INVTR OD UCTOR Y.            31
parably greater than the negro in numbers, in civilization, in capacity to bestow immense benefits on our land
or to inflict upon it evils which may end in its ruin.
Our faith in that God and in his word leads us to hope
that their coming shall be for good to us and to them.
To present with satisfaction to the reader the new
world of interests opened up around the Pacific ocean,
it will be also necessary to look beyond the two nations
represented in our title, "The Oldest and the Newest
Empire," and to take some notice of the changes taking
place also in Asiatic Russia, in the countries bordering
upon China on the west and south, in other countries
besides our own in the New World, and in the numerous fertile islands of the Pacific ocean, both in the
smaller central groups and in those which separate it
from the Indian ocean, and which approach continents
in magnitude, and in the variety and extent of the products of their soil and mines. The destiny of these
parts of the world, and of the races which inhabit them,
is to be decided by the influences that shall proceed
from the United States and China.




CHAPTER II.
THE CHINESE PEOPLE: THEIR ORIGIN-RACES IN THE EMPIRE.
WHEN the valiant knight of St. Albans, Sir John
Maundeville-who informs us that he passed the sea
on St. Michael's Day of the year 1322, and has written
down his narrative in English, that "other noble and
worthy men, if he err from defect of memory, may
redress it and amend it" —traveled through many parts
of Europe and Asia, he saw or learned of "many divers
folks, and of many divers manners and laws, and of
divers shapes of men." In the far East he learned of
men and women that "have dogs' heads; and they are
reasonable and of good understanding, except that they
worship an ox for their god." There was a country
where there is " a kind of snails so great that many persons lodge in their shells, as men would do in a little
house;" another, where "are white hens without feathers,
but they bear white wool, as sheep do here." "In one
of these isles are people of great stature, like giants,
hideous to look upon: and they have but one eye, which
is in the middle of the forehead, and they eat nothing
but raw flesh and fish. And in another isle toward the
south dwell people of foul stature and cursed nature,
who have no heads, but their eyes are in their shoulders.
In another isle are people who have the face all flat,
32




THlE CHINESE PEOPLE.             33
without nose and without mouth. In another isle are
people that have the lip above the mouth so great that
when they sleep in the sun they cover all the face with
that lip. And in another isle there are dwarfs which
have no mouth, but instead of a mouth they have a little
round hole; and when they eat or drink they take it
through a pipe, or pen, or such thing, and suck it in.
And in another isle are people that have ears so long
that they hang down to their knees. And in another
isle are people that have horses' feet. And many other
divers people of divers natures there are in other isles
about, of which it were too long to tell." The account
of the empire of China by this writer is equally veracious and entertaining. "The greatest river of fresh
water in the world," he says, is there, which, "where it
is narrowest, is more than four miles broad."  "That
river goes through the land of pigmies, where the people
are small, but three spans long. These men are the best
workers of gold, silver, cotton and silk, and of all such
things that are in the world. And they have oftentimes
war with the birds of the country, which they kill and
eat. And of the men of our stature they have as great
scorn and wonder as we should have among us of
giants."  "Cathay is a great country, fair, noble, rich
and full of merchants." "They are the most skillful
men in the world in sciences and all crafts; for in subtlety, malice and forethought they surpass all men under
heaven; and therefore they say themselves that they
see with two eyes, and the Christians see with but one,
because they are more subtle than they." Of the grandeur of the emperor and his many thousands of great
lords and nobles he relates wonderful things. In thA
3




34     THE OLDEST AND THE.NEWEST ElMPIRE.
palace " all the vessels that men are served with, in the
hall or in chambers, are of precious stones; and especially
at great tables, either of jasper, or of crystal, or of amethyst, or of fine gold. And the cups are of emeralds,
and sapphires or topazes, of perydox, and of many other
precious stones. Vessels of silver there is none, for they
set no value on it to make vessels of; but they make
therewith steps, and pillars and pavements to halls and
chambers."  In order to impress the people of Western
lands more sensibly with the amazing wealth of the East,
the worthy knight Says that in India diamonds grow
upon the rocks in the sea or in the mines of gold.
"They grow many together, male and female, and are
nourished by the dew of heaven; and they engender
commonly, and bring forth small children [of their own
kind], that multiply and grow all the year. I have
oftentimes tried the experiment, that if a man keep
them with a little of the rock, and wet them with Maydew often, they shall grow every year, and the small will
grow great. He who carries the diamond upon him, it
gives him hardiness and manhood, and it keeps the
limbs of his body whole. It heals him that is lunatic,
and those whom the fiend pursues or torments. And if
venom or poison be brought in presence of the diamond,
anon it begins to grow moist and sweat." 1
Now these stories of good Sir John seem, no doubt, to
the reader grotesque and absurd enough.  But they
may be made the ground of two remarks. The first is,
that our pictures of Eastern races in the books of the
West are not a whit more -monstrous than the pictures
which they draw of ourselves. Their writers, in turn,
1 The Book of Sir John Ifauznv-devile, chaps. xiv.-xx.




MtIE CHIIrTESE PEOPLE.            35
describe nations of people with dogs' heads, of cannibals,
of pigmies, of Amazons among whom there are no men,
which are found in this opposite end of the earth. The
popular name for our people resorting there is "devils;"
and they suppose we are possessed of a roving, insatiable
disposition, are naturally fiendish and cruel, and wander
off to the Celestial Empire because of the horrible sterility and nakedness of the miserable regions to which
we belong, that we may seek there supplies of food,
raiment and medicine. In truth, they have had too
much reason for a poor opinion of us. But surely freer
and more intimate knowledge of us will disabuse the
Chinese of their prejudices, and show to them that we
possess the attributes of a common humanity; and a
similar change may perhaps be hoped for in our ideas
of them.
The other remark is, that Sir John's wonderful stories,
which our ancestors believed to be all true, are but the
repetition of the old fables which we get from  the
IRomans and Greeks. Pliny's Natural History is full of
them. They came to those countries from Oriental lands.
They are pure heathenism. They are the end of the
philosophy of man, thousands of years ago, which then,
as now, invented all manner of "imaginations" to dishonor God and his revelations of man's nature and our
duty and future destiny. The false reasoning of some
of the self-confident geologists and naturalists of our day
would end precisely in a belief of what we read as to the
various races of mankind in the ridiculous fables of
Maundeville, and would land us, a little farther on, in
the degradation of God from his rightful throne, in the
change of his truth into a lie, and in the worship and




36     THE OLDEST AND THE NE WEST EM3PIRE.
service of the creature more than the Creator. Such
men would of a truth make us all heathen again.
We are about to enter upon a survey of Chinese history. Let us assume as true what Paul says, that God
" hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell
on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the
times before appointed and the bounds of their habitation." Let us accept this divine allotment of national
localities, and of their historical events, as having reference to the planting of the light of revelation at a central
point in Palestine. "When the Most High divided to
the nations their inheritance," said he who has told us
all we know of the creation-" when he separated the
sons of Adam, he set the bounds of the people according to the number of the children of Israel." And let
us not treat with disrespect the evidences of progress in
civilization, the lessons from the lips of great and wise
men, the inferences from events that have decided the
condition of society, or the field for the study of human
nature in all its strange and deep workings, only because
a certain land is separated from ours by a tract of salt
water, or because climate, diet and circumstances have
produced in its population effects in complexion, stature,
speech or customs which are no more strange in our
eyes than our own appear in their eyes.
Which of the families that sprang from the solitary
household that was saved in the ark when the world was
drowned for its corruption first threaded its way along the
valleys of the Jihon, the Yarkana and the Hwang-ho
into the territory of the present empire of China, no
inspired chronicle relates. The Creator had prepared a
national highway in the neighborhood of the fortieth




THE CHINESE PEOPLE.              37
degree of latitude, along which some would naturally
push eastward. The dispersion at Babel was a new act
of the justice of heaven, when the insane builders attempted to renew the superstitions for which their fathers
had been destroyed, which would only spend its force
when its guilty subjects were placed far apart. And in
the legends of the Chinese there are evidences that the
settlement of the country must have been made within
two or three centuries, at longest, after the deluge. It
does not seem probable, though some have judged so,
that Noah himself led the company which formed the
first colony. But the Chinese possess traditions of one
who, omitting several mythical personages, was the first
of whom they have any distinct knowledge. Their
story is, that he came from Central Asia into what is
now the province of Shen-si, bordering upon the desert
on the north-west. His name was Fuhi, which signifies
an oblation. He was born of a virgin, who was enveloped by a rainbow upon a mountain-top. He offered
seven clean beasts in sacrifice. It has been remarked that
the date of the commencement of "the reign of Fuhi"
corresponds nearly, according to the common chronology,
in which we follow Archbishop Usher, with that of the
birth of Noah; while, if we prefer Dr. Hale's system,
it corresponds with the latter half century of the life of
that patriarch. The name of his son or successor was
Shin-nung, or Shin the husbandman, which may possibly point to Shem. And the wonderfully regular and
well-sustained chronological system of China, which
moves in cycles of sixty years, is the same with the
ancient Babylonish, and commences in the reign of
Hwang-ti, his second successor. Take all these facts into




38     THE OLDEST AND THE TEIVTEST EXtPIE.
view, and it is difficult to deny the conclusion that,
though Noah may not claim to have founded their empire, yet the Chinese possess some traditions of him as
the great second father of mankind.
The several generations after Noah, according to the
Chinese histories, were directed of Heaven to the discovery of those arts which are most necessary to man's
existence and comfort. Shin-nung is worshiped yet as
the first to commence agriculture.
It is a point of great interest that the date of manufacture of the thread of the silkworm for the first time
into useful garments is fixed by the Chinese in the reign
of Hwang-ti, the second from Fuhi. His queen, Si-ling,
is named as the foster-parent of it. And in this we
have the clue, most probably, to the source of the name
" China," by which the empire is now almost universally
known. Silk appears to have been the most characteristic article of manufacture and of export from China in
all subsequent ages. There is no other fabric so splendid, none so durable, and the source of the fibre, and
the first processes of reeling and weaving it, were successfully concealed from the nations of the West until
the reign of the Roman emperor Justinian, in the sixth
century of the Christian era. The eggs of the silkworm
were brought to Constantinople, say the Greek historians of that period, by two Nestorian monks, concealed within a bamboo staff.
The origin of the name China has been discussed with
great interest by scholars. The common declaration
that it was taken from the Tsin dynasty, which became
supreme only 249 B. C., though ingeniously proposed
and defended by some intelligent men, cannot bear the




THE CHINESE PEOPLE.              39
test of criticism enlightened by modern acquaintance
with the literature of the East. It is evident that the
word was used in the Sanskrit and other Indian languages long previous to the Tsin dynasty. The exact
word "China" is found in the Laws of Menu, and in
ancient Tamul books. It is found in the Hebrew of
Isaiah, four centuries before the reign of the Tsin, in a
prophecy of the conversion of the distant East to Christ:
"Behold, these shall come from far (the south), and lo!
these from the north and from the west; and these from
the land of Sinim."1 This remarkable passage the best
Hebrew scholars of the day have almost unanimously
settled to mean "the Chinas," the plural form of the
word being that which is often granted to notable or
extensive countries.
The probability is, that this name, of which the natives know nothing, except those of them who have discovered our use of it by intercourse with foreigners,
originated in one of two ways. It may have been derived
from some man, perhaps an ancestor or chieftain, as were
Rome, Idumea, Russia, America. The name of Shinnung, the son of Fuhi, by whom they no doubt mean the
patriarch Shem, it is barely possible, may be the source
of it. Yet the opinions of scholars lean more toward
placing the Chinese among the descendants of Ham, one
of the advocates of which view is Sir William Jones,2 or
among those of Japhet. The Mohammedan writers
hand us down an old legend of Persia and Arabia, that
Japhet had eleven soins, of whom Gin or Chin was the
eldest; that as such his father sent him for his portion
to the fertile countries of the far East, and that his de1 Isa. xlix. 12.             2 Works, vol. iii., p. 201.




40     TIIE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
scendants early became distinguished for painting, carving and the cultivation of silk.'
But we are more likely to solve this curious question
by tracing this very ancient word to some epithet derived from a characteristic product of its soil or manufacture, just as Britain meant the "land of tin;" Brazil,
the country of a certain crimson dye-wood; and Palmyra
or Tadmor, the land of the palm and its products. The
writer, after a thorough investigation of the subject
during more than twenty years, has been led to the conclusion, which he has seen nowhere else mentioned, that
the word Sin or Tsin was probably taken from a Chinese
word signifying the silkworm. In the Shu-king,2 the
most ancient historical work of China now existing,
compiled by Confucius from the primeval traditions and
writings remaining in his time, the silkworm is designated tsan. The emperor Ta-yu, who began to reign
B. C. 2205, is said to have selected land suitable for the
cultivation of the mulberry, collected silkworms and induced many people who lived among the mountains to
come down and occupy the plains. This manufacture
and trade in silk became at a very early period the most
marked characteristic of the nation upon the Yellow
river. The- Shu-king describes the commerce which
sprang up with their neighbors in furs, metals, precious
stones, silk, hemp, cotton, products of the forests and
ivory. The word Tsan seems to have been the source
of the name Tsin or Chin or Sin, by which these people
vwere distinguished in the languages of most of the nations of Asia. There is another ancient name given to
them, which we find in the Greek-the "Seres."  It
1 D'HERBELOT, Bibliothkque Orzentale; tom. iii. art. "Sin."  2 Book ii.




THE CHINESE PEOPLE.              41
occurs once in the New Testament in the adjective form,
serikos (Rev. xviii. 12), which no doubt has given to us
the word silk. The root, it has been supposed, no doubt
correctly, is from the Chinese sze, which means the silk
fibre or thread. This was in that luxurious age imported
from China and sold at its weight in gold to the wealthy
IRomans.
While the first Chinese families crossed the deserts of
the North and slowly moved down the valleys tributary
to the Hwang-ho, we trace a corresponding eastward
progress of another people as early, if not earlier, to the
southward of them.
It is a fact upon which a clear light is now thrown by
the investigations of the languages, history, customs and
religious ideas of many tribes of the more remote and
more mountainous portions of Central, Eastern and
Southern Asia, that another of the fragments of the
explosion at Babel was cast in a more southerly direction, and dissolved upon the highlands of Northern
India. Some of the ancient legends of Persia assert
that Tsin, or Gin, was not the eldest son of Japhet, but
that older than he was another, named Turk, who gave
his name to the countless and widely-dispersed Turanian
or Turkish tribes. In the Sanskrit of India also is found
the name Turushka, applied to the same race. They were
followed by the Aryans, who pushed them to the extremities of the great peninsulas, to the large islands upon the
coast of Asia, up into the mountainous tracts, and out into
the deserts. In India they thus became the progenitors of
the hill-tribes of the central parts, the Coles, the Bhils,
the Waralis, and others as impoverished, degraded and
distinct from the more powerful races that have rolled




42     TUE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMIPIRE.
over the land in successive waves. They are the Taimul
people of the South, whose language is largely overlaid
by the Sanskrit. They occupy portions of the island of
Ceylon, under the name of the Vaidas. In the mountains of Asam they are the Meris and Abors. They are
the Kambojans and Peguans, or Mlons, of the ultraGanges peninsula. They give to the Malays the character of their language. They form the great tribes of the
Kalmuks, the MIongols, the Ugrians or Uigurs, the Manchus, the Si-fans and people of Tibet. The language of
the Japanese I have found to be one-half so like to the
dialects of the neighboring coast of China that so far it
might well be considered Chinese, but the other part
carries us back to their own Turanian source. It is
polysyllabic, and is written with an alphabetic character which has been derived from some of their Tartar
cousins. But the most curious part of the history of this
Turanian family, with which the " hill-tribes" of Eastern Asia appear to be connected, is, that in the far Northeast it has begotten the Yakuts and other savage nations,
some imembers of which are found in Asia, others a thousand miles distant, on the Youcon river, which rolls its
mighty tide, the rival of the Mackenzie, across thirty
degrees of longitude, and falls into the Sea of IKamschatka,
within our new Territory of Alaska.
Tile Aryans, who, as has been said, pressed forward
the Turanians, and occupied the best lands of Southern
Asia, and who gave us the inexhaustible literature of the
Sanskrit, sent members of their race into the West. They
are the Indo-European family to which we belong. The
word " Ire-land" probably retains the ancient name as to
its people. And there is seen here in the Indian wars




TIHE CINfTIESE PEOPLE.           43
of the New World, after a lapse of more than three
thousand years, the renewal of the same transactions
which occurred in Central Asia —the descendants of the
more civilized Aryan race dispossessing and exterminating those of the earlier and barbarous Turanian.
The hill-tribes of China are denominated in that language the Miau-tsz, a name taken from buds in spring,
and signifies that they were the first inhabitants of the
central and western provinces in which they are found.
They are noticed in the most ancient records of Chinese
history. The Shu-king states that about the years 2286
to 2258 B.C. the emperor Shun made war upon three
tribes of the Miau-tsz, who dwelt south of the Yang-tszkiang river, and drove them to the West. In the reign
of Ta-yu, which dates from 2204 B.C., the war was
renewed, and continued at intervals for seventy years.
It will gratify the interest in this people to further
remark that these "aborigines" of Central China yet
occupy its mountain districts. They are divided into
small tribes, which are, many of them, so entrenched in
inaccessible and wild mountains as to be entirely independent of the Chinese government. They generally
choose their own chiefs, and are allowed to manage most
of their local affairs. They follow  in some regions
agricultural pursuits, but in others abandon themselves
to hunting and fishing. It is remarkable that some of
them are called the Blacksnakes, the Crows, the Blackfeet, and other names which remind us of our Indians,
and that the men often ornament themselves, like them,
with a plume in the hair. The women cultivate and
spin silk, dress neatly in short gowns, tying their wide
pantaloons, like the Persians, about the ankles, and are




44      THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EJIPIRE.
fond of silver and copper trinkets.  Their houses are
partially excavated in the mountain sides, or in the
forests are framed of bamboo among the branches of
spreading trees. Their language is said by the Chinese
to be wholly different from their own. A few of them
have visited Canton and other ports open to foreigners,
but I am not aware of any successful attempt to obtain
a vocabulary of it.  Many of them  read and talk the
Chinese language. They have not yielded to the Buddhist proselytes who have swept the Chinese into that
superstition. Their religion is simple. They believe
in lucky and unlucky times, celebrate the New Year
and other festivals, and live in great terror of evil
spirits. They sacrifice the dog and other animals.  The
worship which has the strongest hold upon them is that
of the spirits of their deceased kindred. They suppose
these remain with the corporeal parts.  They therefore
sometimes do not bury the body for twenty years, and
then carry a number of the corpses together out to the
place of interment with great parade.  A man revenges
himself upon an enemy by tearing up or destroying the
tombs of his kindred, or secures payment from a debtor
by stealing their bones and keeping them. They seek
to obtain the relief of one who is sick by sacrifices before
the remains of an ancestor, and perhaps by cleansing
and washing the bones. This notice of them will suggest many points of resemblance to the Indian tribes of
our own continent, whose condition in history seems so
strangely parallel and interlinked with theirs.l
1 It should be remarked here that the Indians of the New World have sprung
from several sources. In the East there were, beyond reasonable doubt, some
who, from the tenth century and later, were descended from small colonies of
Northmen, who coasted the irregular shore of the Atlantic from the frozen




THE CHINVESE PEOPLE.                      45
Of the Mongols, who conquered China under KIublai
Khan in the thirteenth century and reigned over it
ninety years, of the Manchus, who for more than two
centuries have been its rulers, and of the Jews who have
been found upon the Hwang-ho river, mention will be
made in future chapters of this volume. From what
has been said of the two primeval races in China, and
the intimation of the presence of others, the inference
is easily drawn that the population of the present empire of China is far from being the dull, uniform, stagnant mass which  some  inconsiderate  or  uninformed
writers represent. The truth is, that while there is a
dominant style of civilization, of religious sentiment
and of national character, yet the people of the north,
of the west, of the central provinces, and of the southern sea-coast differ very much in stature, in customs, in
energy; their spoken  languages are as unlike as the
German to the English, and their leading employments
are very dissimilar. This variety amidst general unity
will prove favorable to future improvement and to the
development of the vast national resources, through the
infusion of Western ideas, inventions and merchandise.
An account of the races which inhabit the empire of
China may be suitably followed by a statement of the
regions whence they ventured forth in their compact ships. This has been shown
by the investigations of the Royal Antiquarian Society of Copenhagen. (MLrmoires
de la SocietE Royale des Antiquaires du Nord; section Asiatique, 1840-3.) From the
North-west there descended, probably from a period many centuries before the
Christian era, the Turanian tribes, of which we have spoken, who crossed at Behring's Straits, and formed the bulk of those which dispersed themselves in time
over North and South America. And another distinct element is to be recognized
in the cultivated Toltecs, Otomis and Aztecs of Mexico, who were certainly Buddhists, and came, at least in part, from Chinese and Japanese stock. On this subject some interesting light will be thrown in a future chapter.




46         THEE OLDEST AND THE NEItEWEST EMPIRE.
probable number of the present entire population.  The
Marquis de Mloges states, in his narrative of the French
embassy  to  China  in  1857-8  (according  to  statements
made  in  the  Foreign   Zissionary, Jan., 1869), that the
last census of the empire makes its present population to
be nearly 415,000,000.1
The mind staggers beneath the conception of so vast
a mass of human beings being collected under one government, speaking one kindred family of languages,
writing identically the same  character, and  entertaining
so  largely the  same  general social and  religious ideas.
Can this estimate  of their number, it is asked, be  correct?   It is the  opinion  of those  best acquainted with
the empire, who have most extensively visited its accessible portions, and who have  examined  the statistics obtained from its own officers, that it is not far wrong.
In a work of M3. de Guignes, published in 1808,2 he
This population is distributed as follows:
NORTHIIERN PROVINCES.                  SOUTHERN PROVINCES.
1. Chihli (Petscheli, Pes-             12. Kwangtung (Canton). 21,152,603
cheli,)................. 36,879,838    13. Kwangsi.................  8,121,327
2. Shantung................... 29,529,877    14. Yunnan.................. 5,823,670
3. Shansi...................... 17,056,925    15. Kweichau............  5,679,128
4. Honan..................... 29,069,771
40,7767,28
112,536)411  WESTERN PROVINCES.
EASTERN PROVINCES.                       16. Shensi.................... 10,309, 69
5. Kiangsu................... 39,646,924    17. Kansuh................... 19,512,716
6. Nganhwui................ 36,596,988    18. Szchuen.................. 22,256,964
7. Kiangsi................... 26,513,889                         51,079,440
8. Chikiang.................. 30,437,974
9. Fukien (Fokien)....  25,799,556                            413,021,452
6 To wvhich  is added  the
158,995,331    number of the Chinese in
CENTRAL PROVINCES.                       Shing-king, a new prov10. Hupeh..................... 28,584,564   ince created in Manchu11. Hunan..................... 20,048,969   ria............................. 1,665,542
48,633,533     Total..................... 414,686,994
2 Voyages a Peking, Manille et I'lle de France, etc., tom. iii., pp. 55-80.




THE CHINESE PEOPLE.                         47
compiles in a table the information collected from  Amiot
and other Roman Catholic missionaries as to the population of the empire between the years 1736 and  1761.
He shows that in the former year it was 125,046,245;
in the latter, about 205,293,053.  He explains from  his
own observations how this was within the truth.  Dr. S.
W. Williams, the most thorough and reliable Chinese
scholar living, in his "Middle Kingdom"' presents the
whole subject in a clear and satisfactory light, aiming to
show that the census taken by the emperor Kia-king in
1812, which made the sum  to be 362,447,183, was probably nearly correct.2
If these enumerations be not far wrong, the increase
ill the first twenty-five years was three and  one-fifth
millions a year; for the seventy-six years previous to
1812, three and one-eighth  millions a year.  This certainly  does not seem  extravagant, and amounts to but
two and a half per cent. yearly. From  1812 to 1858 the
increase is one million  and one-fourteenth  per annum.
That the rate would diminish  is probable, since in that
time the Tai-ping rebellion, wars in the west and with
foreigners, and  consequent famines and  diseases, have
swept off many millions of people.
The general opinion of the foreign missionaries, mer1 Vol. i. pp. 206-234.
2 This census is contained in the last collection of statutes put forth by the
emperor. J. R. Morrison (son of the missionary) says: "It will probably serve to
set at rest the numerous speculations concerning the real amount of population.
WVe know, from several authorities, that in China the people are in the habit of
diminishing, rather than increasing, their numbers in their reports to government. And it is unreasonable to suppose that in a work published by the government, not for the information of curious inquirers, but for the use of its own
officers, the numbers so reported by the people should be more than doubled, as
the statements of some European speculators would require us to believe."




48     THE OLDEST AND THE NETVEST EMPIRE.
chants and official persons who have visited extensively
the provinces fronting upon the eastern and southern
seas, and lying along the great rivers, is, that the population is as great within them as the statements of the
censuses require. The multitude of cities and towns,
the swarming throngs of people in the streets of the
cities, the narrowness of the streets, the small number
of animals used for beasts of burden and the performrn
ance of their tasks by men, the garden-like cultivation
of the soil, the hills with their irrigated terraces, the
countless boats and vessels of all sizes and kinds on the
rivers, lakes and seas, the streets of them anchored in
rows for tenements, the variety of employments and the
diligence of the people in them, even the women laboring,At the oar upon the water-indeed, whatever could be
supposed to characterize a most crowded country-press
upon one the conviction that China is thus populous.
Of the number of the tribes occupying the vast
colonial and tributary regions of Manchuria, Mongolia,
Kokonor, Ili and Tibet, it is almost in vain to attempt
an estimate. Portions of them are occupied by settled
communities; still larger parts by nomadic and predatory tribes, and great deserts on the west and barren
plains on the north are silent and untenanted. Gutzlaff,
half a generation ago, estimated these entire regions to
contain thirty-three millions of human beings. But this
is probably too large a number.
There is reason to think that the empire of China
contains, within its immense area, which equals the onetenth of the dry land of the globe, one-fourth of the race
of man. The practical bearings of this question of
population are of an importance which cannot now be








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THE CHINESE PEOPLE.              49
appreciated. Commerce with such a centre of civilized
and inexhaustible productions of the field, the garden,
the forest, the loom and the mine, enriches the nations
engaged in it. These muscular and patient millions
have been schooled by Providence to supply the rest
of the world with the labor which is to make its wildernesses blossom  as the rose. There Christendom  sees
spread before it its grandest and most inviting field of
religious enterprise.
4




CHAPTER  III.
GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS, ANIMALS.
HEN we turn to consider the physical characteristics of China, the first impression made upon an
American-one which has been remarked upon by
several of our writers-is its general resemblance to his
own country. This may be traced in more particulars
than I have yet seen mentioned.
China is the great empire of Asia, as the United
States is, in a freer sense, that of America. It fronts
eastward and southward  upon the Pacific, as the
United States do upon the Atlantic ocean. Upon the
coast of each a great gulf stream, rising in the tropics,
sweeps northward and eastward, making its vicinity
stormy, and attracting to its tepid waters multitudes of
fish. The terrific cyclones or hurricanes rising in the
south move regularly in the same directions along each
continent and expire in the ocean. Though the United
States lie somewhat more to the north, the lines of
mean annual heat and of the limit of the fall of snow
at the level of the sea maintain a general correspondence. The extreme difference between the mean temperature of the coldest month of the year and that of
the warmest (550 to 950), which marks the New England, is also felt on the northern Chinese coast. For50




GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS, ANIMIALS. 51
mosa is the Florida of China.  The Philippine Islands
are its West Indies.  Two great mountain chains bind
its extremes into one grand domain, though we observe
that the all-wise ends of the Supreme Governor planned
their courses in the Old World, according to the wants
of the human tenants, from the west to the east, but
in the New World from  the north to the south. The
immense river system of the Mississippi finds its parallel
in that of the Yang-tsz-kiang-two which are only exceeded by the Amazon and La Plata in the quantity
of water which they discharge into the sea. The geographical purposes of the great fresh-water lakes of the
New World are largely provided for in the Hwang-ho
and Amoor rivers.  The United States and China have
each their great deposits of precious metals in the west
and north-west.  Each have their wheat and apples in
the north, their rice and oranges in the south, though
rice is more of a national diet with the latter.  In each,
the inhabitants of the north are more muscular and more
fair. The wild western territories of each are kept in continual agitation by barbarous tribes, whose glory is their
herds of horses, their skill in the use of the bow and the
spear, and, we might perhaps add, in taking the scalps
of their enemies, for this was also an ancient Scythian
or Tartar luxury.  It would be easy to draw the analogies between the mental character and the institutions of
the people of China and those of the United States, but
that subject it is better to reserve for another place.
With this comparison, which will convey a clearer
idea of the physical characteristics of China, I proceed
to supply, largely from the excellent English compilation mentioned in the Preface, some fuirther particulars.




52     TILE OLDEST AND TILIE NEWEST EM3PIRE.
With its dependencies and tributary states the Chinese
Empire extends from  the Sea of Japan to the head
waters of the Indus among the Himmaleh mountains in
the west-a space of seventy-one degrees of longitude,
equal, in a straight line, to three thousand statute miles.
From north to south it stretches from the Ural mountains, in north latitude 50,~ to the southern border,
about latitude 21~, being twenty-nine degrees, or nearly
two thousand three hundred miles.  Of this immense;
area, China Proper measures about twelve hundred
statute miles in length, and not much less in average
breadth. The empire proper, which the people usually
designate the Eighteen Provinces, contains nearly one
million three hundred thousand square miles. The territorial possessions contain about three million seven
hundred thousand additional. Their populations profess dependence on the Celestial Empire, or have the
laws and:manners, and speak or read the language, of
the Chinese, with whom, in  fact, they are almost
identified.
The climate of China presents every variety of temperature, from the snows and chilling blasts of Siberia
to the scorching heat of the torrid zone on its southern
borders.' That of the north-western provinces is made
distressingly hot and dry when the wind during the
summer months blows from  the great deserts of the
interior.  Even in Canton, where the tropical heat of
the season is tempered by the friendly south-west monsoon, which blows almost steadily day and night, a change
of the wind for two or three days, bringing these ovenlike blasts, is almost intolerable. It is amusing to witness
in that latitude the eagerness of the people when once




GEOGRAPHY, E; VGETABLE PRODUCTI2ONS, ANlI~AfLS. 53
in many years a slight snow falls in the winter, to gather
it into bottles, in which they suppose its precious virtues
will be preserved after it melts, and. be an efficacious
remedy for fevers.  "No country," says truly a recent
writer,1  "presents greater diversities in  its physical
geography, productions and natural history, whether we
regard its verdant and cultivated plains or its sterile and
solitary deserts, its mountains and its valleys, its gigantic
rivers, its cities teeming with intelligent and civilized
inhabitants, or its mountain fastnesses and its forests, the
abodes of wild beasts or marauding banditti."
In its general aspect China presents a series of river
basins, or broad valleys of rivers, and of low lands along
the sea-coast, divided by ranges of hills, which rise in
many places to a very considerable elevation. Yun-nan,
the south-western province, is exceedingly mountainous.
The chief range sends out two branches eastward, one of
which separates the valley of the Si-kiang river from the
coasts of the Gulf of Tung-king; the other separates it
from the valley of the Yang-tsz-kiang river and its affluents, whose basins are themselves divided by ranges
which diverge from  each other and from  the coasts of
the East sea.  The valley of the Yang-tsz-kiang is separated from  that of the Hwang-ho by a stretch  of
high land, which trends eastward from  the Pih-ling
mountains on the borders of Tartary, but which, terminating before it reaches the coast, leaves a broad alluvial
plain between the mouths of these two great rivers. The
remaining  portion of the country lying  between the
Hwang-ho and Gulf of Pe-che-lee consists of the basin
1 The Rev. W. ELLIS, Introduction to Gutzlaff's Journal of Three Voyages
along the Coast of Chinha.




54          ODSTHE OLDEST AND THIE  EWTEiST EMPIRE,
of the Pei-ho and the Yu-ho, having the hills of Shantung province on the south, and a cross range on the
west, and communicating with the basin of the Hwang-ho
by an opening at the angle formed by the two ranges.
The appearance of even that portion of the country
which has been traversed during the last century by
Europeans and Americans is exceedingly diversified.
Between Canton and Peking, a distance of twelve hundred miles, travelers have observed nearly every variety
of surface, but each variety very remarkably disposed in
large, broad masses. At first they have passed over a
great, continuous plain; then for days over precipitous
mountains, naked and unvaried, and for the remainder
of their journey through lakes, swamps and morasses, or
across extended sandy plains. There is a constant succession of large villages, towns and cities, with considerable navigable rivers, communicating with each other
by means of artificial canals.  Both canals and rivers
are crowded with boats and barges.  Hedge-rows and
trees are scarce. Generally the surface of the country
rises in terraces from the sea. As yet, its geology is
very imperfectly known. China, however, has been well
mapped. " The scientific skill of the Jesuit missionaries
accomplished a survey of the whole on trigonometrical
principles, so admirably correct as to admit of little
improvement; and, with the exception of the British
possessions in India, there is no part of Asia so well laid
down as China."'
Since the time of the Jesuits' survey, however, an
alteration has taken place in the divisions of the country;
1 Sir JoN. FRANCIS DAVIS, The Chinese; A General Description of China and
its Inhabitants.




GEOG.RAPHY, VEGETABLE PROD UCTIONS, ANIMALS. 55
the provinces, which then consisted of fifteen in all, were
increased, by the sub-division of three of the largest, to
eighteen; and another has been added of late years,
carved out of the hereditary possessions of the reigning
dynasty in Manchuria. The name Shih-2pih Sang, or
the Eighteen Provinces, is the popular name of the
empire.
The two principal rivers of China occupy a very high
rank. The Yang-tsz-kiang and the great Hwang-ho,
or Yellow river, surpass all the rivers of Europe and
Asia, and are second only to the Amazon and the Mississipi in America. The Yang-tsz-kiang, or the "Son
of the Ocean," rises in Kokonor, not far from the sources
of the Yellow river. Making a circuitous course, and
receiving the tribute of innumerable streams and the
superfluous waters of two immense lakes (the Tungting-hu and the Po-yang-hu), it flows with a strong
current past Nanking into the ocean, which it reaches
under the thirty-second parallel of latitude.
The Yellow river also rises in the country of IKokonor; but while the Yang-tsz-kiang turns to the south,
the Yellow river strikes off abruptly to the north, passes
across the Great Wall, making an elbow around the territory of the Ortous, then strikes back and again crosses
the Great Wall, whence it flows due south and forms
the boundary of Shan-si and Shen-si, from which boundary it turns sharply to the east, and, until recently,
reached the ocean in latitude 340. The Rev. Dr. W. A.
P. Martin, an American missionary, who has been
appointed a professor in the University at Peking, reports
that it has of late cut a new channel for itself, probably
during some great inundation; starting north-east below




56     THE OLDEST AiND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
the city of Kai-fung, it has pushed its way to the Gulf of
Pe-che-lee, at a point four degrees farther north.  The
stream of the Yellow river is so excessively rapid as to
be hardly navigable throughout the greater part of its
course. It carries along with it a prodigious quantity
of yellow mud in a state of solution, and its frequent
floods occasion great damage to the country, and expense
to the government in maintaining artificial embanks
ments.  But its waters fill numerous canals, which are
furnished with locks, and carry fertility to many districts which would otherwise be dry and sterile. As for
the internal commerce of the empire, the Chinese are
rendered almost entirely independent of the rivers and
of coast navigation by their Imperial Canal, which, in
point of extent and magnitude of undertaking, is, like
the Great Wall, unrivaled by any other work of the
kind in the known world.
The flat, sandy and unproductive province in which
Peking is situated offers, according to universal report,
little that is worthy of notice.  The vast plateau, or elevated plain, which surrounds that capital, is entirely devoid of trees, but wood is procured from the nearest hills
and mountains of Tartary. The provinces at the mouth
of the Yang-tsz-kiang are described as the richest provinces in all China. They are famous for their silks and
japanned goods, made principally at Su-chau, a very ancient city. Nanking, the capital of Kiang-su, and at one
time of the whole empire, measures seventeen miles in
circumference; but only a corner of this vast area is now
occupied by the habitations of men, the city having suffered greatly in the wars with the Tartars, and from its
occupation by the Tai-ping rebels, who slaughtered a vast




GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE P1R~OD UCTIONS, ANIMiALS. 57
multitude, and also in consequence of the removal of the
court and capital to Peking. In the district of Hwuichau-fu, the most southern part of the province, is grown
the best green tea; the <soil in which the tea-plants are
reared is a decomposition of granite, aboundiing in felspar, as is proved by the soil being extensively used in
the manufacture of fine porcelain. Thus, as Davis observes, the same soil produces the tea and the cups from
which it is drank.
The adjoining province of Kiang-si is described as
being, in natural scenery and climate, the most delightful part of the empire. Here the Po-yang lake, in size
approaching the character of an inland sea, spreads its
broad waters, and exhibits on its west side a long framework of strikingly beautiful mountain scenery.
The maritime province of Chi-kiang competes with the
great provinces north and west of it in the production of
silk and the extent of its plantations of young mulberrytrees, which are constantly lopped and renewed as the
most certain way of improving the silk spun by the
worms which feed on the leaves. The younger the tree,
the more tender the leaves; and the more tender the
leaves, the finer the silk. It is by want of attention to
this rule that silk, in several parts of the continent of
Europe and in various Asiatic countries, has deteriorated
in quality. The principal city of this province is the
celebrated Hang-chau, close to the famous lake Si-hu.
This beautiful lake is about six miles in circumference;
its water is quite limpid and almost overspread with the
beautiful water-lily.  It figures continually in Chinese
tales, poems, apothegms, similes and songs, and is held
as a place sacred to pleasure and enjoyment. Its exten



58     THEE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EXPIRE.
sive sheet of water is described as being covered with
barges, which are splendidly fitted up, and appear to be
the perpetual abodes of gayety and dissipation. The
province of Fukien, which is contiguous to Chi-kiang,
and like it maritime, is very far from being so fertile.
But the inhabitants are the best sailors and the boldest
and most adventurous part of the Chinese population;
they chiefly supply the emperor's war-junks with sailors
and commanders; they build an immense number of the
trading-junks that are found in the seas of China and
MIalacca; and they furnish the greater part of the Chinese
emigrants to the Indian archipelago and the neighboring
countries, and of the coolies who have gone to the West
Indies and South America in Spanish vessels. Other
coolies have been taken from Canton province, sailing
from Macao. Fukien, moreover, is the great country
of the black teas; and our word Bohea is merely a corruption of Bu-i, the name which the natives give to the
hills on which these black teas are principally grown.
The name tea was first derived from the people of this
province. In the dialect of Canton, whence it was exported afterward by the East India Company, and in
those of the court and of most of the provinces with
which we are acquainted, it is called Cha.
Yun-nan, the most western province of China Proper,
borders on the Burmese territory, and extends nearly to
Amarapura, the old capital of that kingdom. It is extremely mountainous, and abounds in metals and other
valuable minerals, among which is good coal. The copper is said to be very fine, and nearly equal in quality to
the copper worked in the islands of Japan. Gold is
found in the sands of the rivers, and the Yang-tsz-kiang,




GEOGRIAPHY VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS, ANIMALS. 59
in this part of its course, is called the "golden-sanded
river." Toward the north-west of this province, and the
borders of the Tibet country, is found the yak, or cow
of Tibet, the tail of which is famous on account of the
people of the province using the hairs of it in various
manufactures, particularly carpets. Though presenting
a more alpine character than any other part of China
Proper, Yun-nan yet contains some extensive, broad and
finely-watered plains.
The extensive province on the north-east of Yun-nan
is traversed by very lofty mountains, called the "M Iountains of Snow."  These peaks, which are probably from
ten to twelve thousand feet high, look over the mysterious, closed country of the Delai Lama. The province of
Shen-si, which also borders on Tibet, is said to abound
in mineral wealth-in mines which have been neither
worked nor visited by any people of the West for very
many ages. Both this country and the adjoining province of Shan-si, toward Peking, abound in craters and
other symptoms of extensive and tremendous volcanic
action. Sulphur, tufa, salt-water lakes, hot wells, springs
with jets of inflammable gas, pools of petroleum (which
the Chinese burn in lamps), are found all through these
regions.
The provinces of the interior and West do not seem to
require special description in this volume. The general
character of their productions resembles that of those in
corresponding latitudes upon the coast, except that upon
the western confines of the empire the land becomes
more mountainous, forests are more numerous, the population becomes more sparse, and wild tribes are found
occupying the more rugged and inaccessible regions.




60     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWTVEST ElJ13PIRE.
In those of the south-west, contiguous to Canton province, the cassia, a species of laulrus, is found, whose tender bark, carefully separated from the smaller branches,
supplies that spice which is an inferior kind of cinnamon. In the same regions the camphor tree flourishes.
The gum is obtained by macerating the leaves and wood
in water, from which it is evaporated over a slow fire.
The larger wood is made into a great variety of articles
of furniture and use. Few foreigners visit China without securing at least a bureau or a chest made of it, for
the sake of its bright yellow color, and because the odor
which long remains in the wood is a preservative of its
contents from insects.
The province best known in past ages to the people
of the West is Canton. It is the most southern in its situation. It is well watered, and all parts of it are reached
by the Pearl river and its spreading branches and other
streams~ Its extent is about eighty thousand square
miles, or nearly that of the States of Pennsylvania and
Virginia together.  Its irregular and bold shores afford
numerous harbors and are often the haunts of pirates.
The northern and western parts are mountainous.  The
city of Canton has been the great outlet of the commerce with Europe for many centuries. The Arabian
fleets from  the Red sea and the Persian gulf traded
there, and probably the Romans before them.  Its importance has diminished since the opening of the northern sea-ports and the new channels of trade created by
the rapid growth of the Pacific States of this continent.
The climate of the coast is tropical, and tropical fruits
and other products abound there. Of this province and
its people we shall have much to say hereafter, since




GEOGIAP1HY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS, ANIMALS. 61
nearly the entire body of immigrants to California and
our Pacific coast have been inhabitants of it.
The countries contiguous to, and dependent on, China
may be briefly dismissed. Manchuria consists of three
provinces. Moukden or Shing-king commences at the
eastern extremity of the Great Wall, and is bounded on
the south by the Gulf of Pe-che-lee. Here, in the
country from which they originally came, the emperors
are buried. Kirin is to the eastward of Moulkden and
borders on Corea. Here the famous wild plant, ginseng,
a mild aromatic to which the Chinese attribute, however,
for superstitious reasons, miraculous properties, is gathered as an exclusive monopoly of the emperor. Till
about a century ago they would never believe that this
plant could grow in any other part of the world. But
it then was discovered in New England also. In 1752
the celebrated Rev. Jonathan Edwards complains in a
letter to his friend, the Rev. Mr. McCulloch in Scotland,
that since it had been found' the previous summer in the
woods about Stockbridge and elsewhere in New England,
and in the country of the Six Nations, "the traders in
Albany have been eager to purchase all they could of
the root to send to England, where they make great
profit by it. This has occasioned our Indians of all
sorts, young and old, to spend abundance of time in the
woods, and sometimes to a great distance, in the neglect
of public worship and their husbandry, and also in going
much to Albany to sell their roots (which proves worse
to them than going into the woods), where they are
always much in the way of temptation and drunkenness." This was probably the first of the troubles
arising out of commercial intercourse between China




62     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
and America. The East India, Company sold the ginseng in China at a profit of five or six hundred per cent.
The trade in it yet continues. Large quantities are
annually sent to China from the newer parts of the
West, especially from Minnesota and Wisconsin, which
correspond somewhat in climate with the districts where
it is found in Manchuria and Corea.
The other province, called by the Chinese Hih-lungkiang, or "the river of the Black Dragon," borders on
the Russian territory. The river which gives its name
to the province is, in fact, the Amoor. A district of
three hundred thousand square miles in extent north of
this river was gradually taken possession of by the IRussians, who, in the year 1860, by a masterly diplomacy,
while the Chinese government was struggling against
England and France, backed, we may add, by at least
the moral influence of that nation and the United States,
succeeded in obtaining a formal cession of it. This was,
however, under Providence, a means for bringing it
more within the range of the influences of civilization
and Christianity, as well as of giving to Russia a territory much needed for the development of her vast
Asiatic possessions.
All these regions are excessively cold in winter, and
sterile and thinly peopled.  The people seem to be
chiefly employed in tending sheep or rearing horses and
other cattle. As they approach the frontiers of the dominions of the czar of Russia they become very independent of Chinese rule, yet they acknowledge the laws and
follow most of the customs of the "' Central Kingdom."
They will be described more at length in a future chapter.
The western and Mongol Tartars, commencing from




GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS, ANIMALS. 63
the western line of the Great Wall, extend as a distinct
race to the very borders of the Caspian sea, where they,
too, give the hand to the subjects of Russia. They are
thoroughly a nomadic people, wandering with their
flocks from one region to another, dwelling in tents and
still making use of the bow and arrow in warfare as in
hunting. They appear to be all Buddhists; the bonzes
or priests, who accompany them in their wanderings, are
called "shamans." They are governed through the
medium of their own princes and khans, but a vast
portion of them acknowledge a dependence on China.
On the western side of China, bordering principally
on the province of Sz-chuen, are other Tartar tribes,
called the Si-fan and Tur-fan, who occupy inaccessible
mountains, and are quite independent of the Chinese,
who, however, count them among their subjects: they are
all Buddhists, and said to be completely under the control of their Lama priests and excessively superstitious.
On the southern side of China, bordering on Yunnan, is an exceedingly mountainous and wild territory,
occupied by several Tibetan tribes, whose chief wealth
consists in their flocks and herds. The imperial authority over them is but doubtful, although their chiefs receive titles of honor from Peking. On the utmost outskirts of the empire, toward the west, are found a
number of small settlements or stations, called "native
jurisdictions," where the people are ruled to some
extent by their own khans in the name of the emperor.
Others, however, have during the last few years taken
advantage of the national troubles with foreigners to
proclaim their independence. Whether they will be
able to maintain it is doubtful.




64     TIIE OLDEST ANID THE NEWEST EXPIRE.
The principal islands of China are Formosa and Hainan. Formosa owes the name by which it is known in
the West to the Portuguese, who called it _Ilha Formosa
(the beautiful island), and it is by far the more desirable
region of the two. It lies just opposite the coast of Fuhkien, from which it is distant about twenty leagues. It is
nearly two hundred miles long, with an average breadth
of about fifty miles; the climate is delightful. The island
is divided longitudinally by a chain of high mountains;
westward of this chain it is occupied by the Chinese, but
the country eastward of the mountains is still inhabited
by the aborigines, who are described as a primitive and
savage race, bearing some common resemblance to the
Malays and to the inhabitants of the islands in the
Pacific. Hai-nan, the second island, is rather smaller
than Formosa, being about a hundred and fifty miles in
length by sixty in breadth. It is separated from the
continental province of Kwang-tung by a very narrow
and shallow strait. The climate is excessively hot, and
the island is much exposed to those terrible tempeststhe typhoons-which annually strew the Chinese seas
with wrecks. The mountains in the interior of Hai-nan
are occupied by another wild race, who not unfrequently
beat up the quarters of the Chinese on the coast.
The Chinese, previous to the treaties of the past few
years with the nations of the West, affected to treat all
foreign nations as tributary that have once sent an
ambassador to their court. In their court calendar,
Portugal, Spain, Holland, England are all tributaries.
Their list must be greatly shortened, but still there
would remain some really tributary states. The principal of these are Corea, Cochin-china, Loo-choo and Siam.




~.,~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~i
~'~...........'c.-~
I~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~6 








GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS, ANIMALS. 65
All these annually send their tribute to Peking, and,
with very little interruption, they appear to have done
so for many ages.
If we limit our observations to China Proper (which,
it must be remembered, is about twelve hundred English miles long, and nearly as broad as it is long), and
make every deduction for the less-favored parts of the
land, we must still admit, with our best informed travelers, that it deserves the name of a vast, a fertile, a
wealthy and a beautiful country.
The zoology of China is very rich and varied, for
although there are scarcely any animals which are not
to be found.'in some other countries, she has within her
wide limits and diversified surface nearly all those which
are found collectively in all the other countries of the
globe. The elephant, the rhinoceros, the dromedary
abound in various parts. Bears are very common in the
hilly country west of Peking, and the paws of these animals, which abound in fat, are eaten by the Chinese as a
delicacy. Deer of various kinds, from the majestic elk
to the diminutive tippity, wild boars, foxes and other
wild animals, swarm in some of the provinces. The
lion, the royal tiger, the leopard, the ounce, the lynx,
the hyena, the jackal and other savage creatures, are
found. It is declared by the Chinese that the tiger
abounds to a fearful extent in some parts of the empire,
but we are inclined to believe that a good many of the
animals they speak of are not tigers, but leopards.
The lion has become degenerate and scarce. The woods
of the south swarm with a breed of wild-cat, which,
though rather small, is fierce and altogether untamablek
5




66     THE OLDEST AND THE lNEWEST E1IPIRE.
This noxious creature is considered by Chinese epicures
as an exquisite kind of game, and it is served up in
ragouts and stews at table, after being fed for some time
in a cage.
They have domesticated the horse, the ox, the buffalo,
the dog, the cat, the pig and all the other animals which
have been domesticated in Europe, together with some
creatures with which we have failed.
Some of the native birds are very splendid. The
gold and silver pheasants of China are now quite familiar to the eye in America.  The still more splendid
bird, called the Reeves' pheasant, is yet a rarity, even
in China. Its tail feathers are of the extraordinary
length of six feet and surpassingly beautiful.  Another
description is called by the eminent naturalist, Mr. Bennett, the medallzion pheasant, from a beautiful membrane
of resplendent colors, which is displayed or contracted
according as the bird is more or less roused. The brilliant hues are chiefly purple, with bright red and green
spots, which vary in intensity according to the degree
of excitement. It should appear that this rare pheasant
might be acclimated in most parts of Europe and in
America. The country abounds in wild fowls of all
kinds.  The immense flocks of geese and wild-ducks
during the winter months quite cover the rivers of the
south, and excite the notice of all strangers. In the
summer season they migrate to the north. A handsome species of teal, usually called "the mandarin
duck," is very common. Unlike its fellows, it generally roosts in high situations upon trees or rocks.
The fishing cormorant, which the Chinese have perfectly tamed and trained to their will, is well known by




GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PROD UCTIONS, ANIMALS. 67
drawings, engravings and descriptions. It is a brown
bird of the pelican family, with yellow bill, white throat
and whitish breast spotted with brown, having a compact,
rounded tail. While employed in diving and fishing for
their masters these birds are prevented from swallowing
what they catch by means of a ring or tight collar passed
over the lower part of the neck; but when their work is
over, this ring is removed and they are allowed to fish
for themselves or to feed upon the refuse. It is said,
however, that they are sometimes so perfectly trained
and disciplined as to need no restraint whatever —that
they will finish the work for their masters before they
think of themselves. On many of the more considerable
rivers there exists a large aquatic population, dwelling
in boats and barges and seldom setting foot on shore.
Vith two or three good fishing cormorants, a family of
this sort can nearly support itself. Quails are very
abundant, and the Chinese have trained them to fight
like our game-cocks.  The sport is much cherished by
the common people, who will frequently stake all they
possess oil the result of a quail-fight.  A delicate species
of ortolan makes its appearance in the neighborhood of
Canton during the rice harvest.  The Chinese call it the
"rice bird."
In other parts of the empire, crocodiles, alligators and
monstrous serpents exist; but the neighborhood of Canton, though under the tropic, is little infested by these
reptiles or by any venomous creatures. There is, however, a slender snake, between two and three feet long,
which is very much dreaded by the natives, and the bite
of which is said to cause inevitable death in a few hours.
It is covered from head to tail with alternate bands of




68     THE  OLDEST AYND THE NiEWEST EiXPIEE
black and white, and is called by the Chinese the blacks
and-white snake.
Fish are in great and almost endless variety. An
immense number of people on the coast are maintained
in various ways by the fisheries; a portion of them
spend their whole lives on their boats or vessels, except
when they come ashore to purchase clothing, food and
other necessaries, or to worship at the shrine of some
favorite deity. Besides those produced in the seas, gulfs,
bays and estuaries, fresh-water fish (of which great care
is taken) swarm in most of the rivers, lakes, canals and
brooks. On the sea-coast and at Canton, sturgeon, soles,
carp, shrimps and other species are held by foreigners in
high estimation. The Chinese stew made from sturgeon
is so palatable as to have been- introduced at their
tables. The beautiful gold and silver fishes which ornament our vases and garden ponds came originally from
China, where they are very numerous. They are a
species of carp, and were perhaps carried by the Dutch
first to Java, and thence to Holland, whence they have
been brought to England and to America. Some of
them have escaped into the rivers in congenial climates
in America. We have seen some in Philadelphia which
were caught in the Schuylkill river.,
Among the curious insects of China there are some
which call for notice even in a brief and general sketch
like the present. A monstrous spider is found inhabiting trees, and attaining to such size and strength as to
be able to catch and devour small birds, as our spiders
do flies. Locusts sometimes commit extensive ravages,
but their depredations do not usually extend over any
great tract of country at once, and they seldom appear




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GEOGRIAPHIY, VEGETABLE PROD UCTIONLS, ANIMALS. 69
two years successively. Eastward of the city of Canton,
on a range of hills called Lo-fau-shan, there are butterflies of large size and night-moths of remarkable dimensions and most brilliant coloring, which are captured for
transmission to the court at Peking and for sale to
foreigners and others. Some of these insects measure
nine inches across; their ground color is a rich and
varied orange-brown; in the centre of each wing there is
a triangular transparent spot, resembling a piece of mica.
Sphinx-moths, also of great beauty and size, are common in the south, and in their splendid coloring and
rapid, noiseless flight from flower to flower at the close
of day, remind one of the humming-bird.  The common
cricket is caught and sold in the markets for gambling,
and persons of rank, as well as the coolies and lower
classes, irritate two of these insects in a bowl, betting
upon which shall prove the conqueror-an amusement
which may seem trivial to some, but which is surely far
less objectionable in every way than the brutal exhibitions in which men beat and bruise each other or torture bulls, dogs and other powerful animals worthy of better treatment. A gigantic species of the cicada-described
as being more than four times the size of the cicada of
the south of Italy and Greece-is very common among
the trees in the neighborhood of Canton, and in every
other part of the country where the climate is warm and
the pine tree abundant.  All through the summer its
stridulous sound is heard from the trees and woods with
deafening loudness. Even those who have been accustomed to the noise of the cicada in the American forests
have been astonished and almost stunned by the Chinese
insect. These loud sounds proceed solely from the males,




70     THE OLDEST AND THE NE WEST EMIPIRE.
the females being perfectly silent. This difference was
known to the old Greek epigrammatist, who said, " The
male cicada leads a happy life, for he makes all the
noise himself, and his wife makes none."  Chinese boys
often capture the males, tie a straw round the abdomen,
so as to irritate the sounding apparatus, and carry them
through the streets in this predicament, to the great
annoyance of strangers. The fire-fly, or, as it is called
here, the "lantern-fly," is very abundant in many parts
of the empire. It is far larger than the fire-fly of
Southern Europe, and s'aid to be as much more luminous. It has orange-yellow wings with black extremities.
Its appearance, when seen flitting through the skirts of
a thicket or grove in the summer evenings, is striking
and poetical, and imparts a, brilliant aspect to the shades
of night. The pih-lah-shu, or wax-tree, affords nourishment to an insect which is supposed to belong to the coccus tribe. It is covered with a white powder, which it
imparts to the stem of the particular plant it inhabits,
from the bark of which it is collected by the natives.
This substance remembles beeswax, and is used as such.
A casing of it, colored with vermilion, is often used to
enclose the tallow candle. Small as are these insects, the
quantity of wax is said to be very considerable. This
wax is used as a medicine, as well as made into candles
and tapers. The tree or shrub it inhabits resembles our
privet. Wax is also made from wild and domestic bees,
but honey is said not to be much in demand. The mnantis,
or soothsayer —so called by us from the superstitious respect paid to it in idolatrous countries on account of the
priest-like posture in which it raises up its anterior legs —
is common in Southern China. The Chinese are fond




GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS, ANIIALS. 71
of making collections of curious insects, some of which
find their way to our museums. The most valuable insect of China-that from which the name of the empire
is probably derived, the silkworm —we will briefly notice
in a future paragraph.
China is uncommonly rich in vegetable productions.
The southern provinces possess all that are found growing in the tropical regions.  In other parts, oranges,
lemons, tea, sugar-canes, rice, pomegranates, black and
white mulberries, the vine, walnut, chestnut, peach, apricot and fig are seen growing on the same spot of ground.
There are several pleasant native fruits, such as the laichi, lung-yen or "dragon's eye," and others, for which
foreigners have not yet found names.  Camellias, cypresses and bamboos, of all sorts and sizes and in immense
quantities, are also found. The mountains, for the most
part, are covered with pines and other forest trees. The
list we already possess of Chinese plants is a very copious one, but many new discoveries remain to gratify and
reward botanical research. The principal object of cultivation is rice, but in the north-western provinces,
where there are many districts too cold and dry for this
grain, rice is replaced by wheat, millet and other grains.
Yams, potatoes, turnips, onions, beans, and a white kind
of cabbage, called pih-tsai, are extensively and very carefully cultivated. The Chinese pay more attention to the
manuring of the soil of their gardens and orchards than
any other people, whether in the East or in the West.
Of all the natural productions of China, the tea-plant
is the most interesting to us, and is one of the most
important as an article of home consumption.




72      THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EM1PIRE.
Tea is grown, more or less, in many parts of the
country, but principally in the province of Fukien
and about the Yang-tsz-kiang.  It is cultivated on
the hills, these being sometimes clothed to the very summit with the fragrant shrub, a species of camellia, which
bears a white flower. The difference in the quality of
the teas depends partly on the district in which they are
grown, and partly on the season when they are gathered, as the young leaves of the spring are of much
finer flavor than the full-grown leaves of the summer
or the still coarser ones of the autumn.  The plants
produce each, on an average, about half a pound of the
dried leaves in the course of the year.
The tea-growers are generally small proprietors, who,
with the help of their families, cultivate their own pieces
of land, which are divided from those of their neighbors
by a narrow path or ditch. The farmers, after having
gathered their crops, partially dry them  in the sun, just
sufficiently to prevent their being spoiled, and in that
state they are sold to the agents of the merchants, who
usually contract with the farmer to take his whole crop
at a certain price.
The best account of tea-gathering, and of the districts
which produce the greatest quantities of tea, has been
given very recently by Mr. Robert Fortune, an intelligent English botanist and traveler.' In the year 1848
the court of directors of the East India Company were
anxious to improve the cultivation of tea in their own
dominions on the lower slopes of the Himmaleh mountains.  Government plantations existed in those parts,
His work on this subject is entitled, A Journey to the Tea Countries of
China, including Sung-lo and the Bohea Hills. London: Murray, 1852.




GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS, ANIMALS. 73
and in one or two districts in the Tenasserim provinces,
which had been ceded in 1826, after the war with the
Burmese. But the tea-plants were not of the best qualities. They had been originally imported from the southern provinces of China, where inferior teas are grown;
and in order to get at the finer varieties it was essential
to explore the northern provinces. It was thought, moreover, that the cultivation of tea did not prosper in India,
for want of good manufacturers and proper implements.
Although the treaty of peace which closed the war with
the Chinese in 1842 opened several new ports, it by no
means gave free access to the north of China or to any
part of the interior, and it was believed that no foreigner
could safely penetrate into the best tea districts. Mr.
Fortune, however, undertook the feat. This gentleman
had previously spent three years in the Middle Kingdom, absorbed in botanical pursuits; he could speak the
Chinese language, and his previous experience had induced the belief that the Chinese inhabitants of the
north, and especially of the interior, were a civil, harmless, obliging people. In 1848, Mr. Fortune, unaccompanied by any European, and himself disguised as a
native Chinaman, started on his journey. He returned
safely to England in September, 1851, having forwarded
to the Himmaleh mountains twenty thousand plants from
the best black and green tea countries of Central China,
together with six first-rate native manufacturers, two
headmen and a good supply of Chinese implements
from the celebrated "IHwui-chau districts."
The soil in which Mr. Fortune found some of the
finest of his black-tea plants was in the Bohea district,
called by the Chinese Wu-i Shan, or the Wu-i moun



74     THE OLDEST ANID THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
tains. This soil he describes as being moderately rich,
of a reddish color, and well mixed with debris of rocks.
It was kept moist by the water constantly oozing from
the sides of the rocks, and was well drained —on the
mountains in consequence of its height, and on the plains
by reason of its slight elevation above the water-courses.
In the month of June the temperature at Wu-i Shan
ranged from  850 to 950 Fahr., and in July it rose to
1000, beyond which it rarely rises. In winter the maximum shown by the thermometer was 78~, and the minimum 440.
Mr. Fortune informs us that black and green tea are
both really made from the same variety of plants, the
difference in the appearance of these teas (when the
green teas are not artificially colored) depending entirely
upon manipulation. It would appear that age, as in
the mulberry plant, injures the quality of the produce.
In the black-tea districts, as well as in the green, great
quantities of young plants are annually raised from seeds.
These seeds are gathered in October, and kept mixed
up with sand and earth during the winter months. In
spring they are sown thickly in a corner of the farm,
from which they are afterward transplanted. When a
year old they are about ten inches high, and are ready
for transplanting. They are then planted in rows about
four feet apart; five or six plants are placed in each
hole, and the holes are about four feet from each other
in the rows. A plantation of tea at a distance looks
like a shrubbery of evergreens. The plantations are
suffered to grow unmolested for three years, when they
are well established and produce strong and vigorous
shoots.




GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS, ANIMALS. 75
The tea farms at Wu-i Shan were small in extent, no
single farm producing more than a chop of six hundred
chests. A chop, or lot, is made up as follows: A tea
merchant from one of the larger towns in the interior
sends his agents to all the small towns, villages and temples in the district to purchase teas from the Buddhist
priests, who are large growers, and from small farmers.
All the teas so purchased are taken to the merchant's
house, where they are mixed together, care being taken
to keep the different grades apart as much as possible.
By such a method a chop of six hundred and twenty or
six hundred and thirty chests is made, and all the tea of
this chop is of the same general description.
The process of manufacture is briefly this: Ill the
northern provinces the leaves from which green tea is
to be made being gathered are brought from the plantations and spread thinly out on small bamboo trays, in
order to get rid of their moisture. In two hours the
leaves are dry; they are then thrown into roasting-pans
and rapidly moved about and shaken up. Affected by
the heat, they make a crackling noise, become moist and
flaccid, and yield a considerable portion of vapor. In
this state they remain five minutes, when they are drawn
quickly out and placed upon the rolling-table. Men
take their stations at the rolling-table and divide the
leaves among them. Each takes as many as he can press
with his hands and makes them up in the form of a ball.
The ball is rolled upon the table and greatly compressed
to force out the last remaining moisture and to give the
leaves the necessary twist. The leaves are then shaken
out upon flat trays, and are carried once more to the
roasting-pan, where they are kept in rapid motion by




76     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
the hands of the workmen. In an hour and a half the
leaves are well dried and their color is fixed. So ends
the first process. The next one consists in winnowing
and passing the tea through sieves of various sizes, in
order to get rid of impurities and to divide the tea into
the kinds designated by the names which we commonly
apply to them. During this process the tea is refinedthe coarse kinds once, and the finer sorts twice or thrice.
Such is the manufacture of the most grateful of our beverages. Black tea, in the Wu-i mountains and elsewhere in the southern provinces, undergoes similar treatment, but the method of manipulation, as before indicated, is not the same; the difference, according to Mr.
Fortune, being sufficient to account for some of the effects
experienced by the foreign drinker who swallows green
tea only.
The tea, being manufactured, is secured in the house
of the merchant, resident in one of the larger towns,
whence it is conveyed to the sea-coast, there to be delivered to foreign purchasers. The merchant who intends his tea for the Canton market engages a number of coolies to carry the chests northward across the
Bohea mountains to Ho-kau. If the teas are of the
common kind, each coolie carries two chests slung over
his shoulder on a bamboo pole, one being suspended at
each end. These chests are often much knocked about
during the journey over the steep and rugged mountains, and the carrier is allowed to rest theim on the
ground, which is often wet and dirty. The finest teas
must, however, never touch the soil during the whole
journey, and they are accordingly carried in single
chests across the coolie's shoulder. In six days the




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GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTION1S, ANIDMALS. 77
coolie reaches Ho-kau, where the teas are placed in flatbottomed boats to proceed by water to Canton, the time
occupied in the transport from the Bohea country to
Canton averaging from six weeks to two months. The
tea intended for Shanghai and the eastern ports is sent
in the opposite direction.
The green tea obtains its complexion, in most of what
is exported, from the presence of foreign coloring matter. By one of those perverse tastes which obtain among
us, our early tea-purchasers betrayed a strong predilection for a certain color. "Foreigners," said the Chinese,
"like to have their tea uniform and pretty;" so they
poison the herb to gratify the ridiculous tastes of England and America for bright green, just as many of our
pickle-makers poison their pickles. They throw in a
blue substance, commonly known as " Prussian blue" or
prussiate of iron (cyanide of potassium and iron), and
they mix it with a quantity of gypsum. They never
think of drinking this tea themselves, but the more
gypsum and blue they can communicate to the plant, the
higher becomes its value in the eyes of their best customers; and the dyeing process accordingly goes on in
China to an alarming extent. It is calculated that in
every hundred pounds of some of the cheaper colored
green tea consumed by our people, mIore than half a
pound of coloring blue and gypsum is contained!
The consumption of tea among Chinese themselves is
truly immense. They make it best by putting a few
leaves in the cup and pouring hot water over it when
wanted, but in shops and families it is kept in pots ready
made. A true Chinese is never seen to drink cold water,
for he thinks it destructive to health, and hates it. Tea




78     THE OLDEST AND THE NETWEST EMPIRE.
is his beverage from morning till night. He uses it
without milk or sugar. He takes it, in short, as the
Persians, Arabs and Turks take their coffee, without the
admixture of any other ingredient. If a Chinaman is
traveling, he stops at an inn to take his cup; if he pays
a visit, he is offered tea as soon as he arrives; and if he
receives a visitor, he immediately plies him with a cup of
tea and a pipe, just as the Turk produces his tiny cup
of coffee and long chibouque. Before dinner he takes a
cup of tea to stimulate appetite, and after dinner he invariably takes another cup to promote digestion. With
such incessant potations there can be little doubt that he
would be a dead man in three months if he betook
himself to the use of the colored green tea which we so
rashly consume.
Tea-drinking prevails to an almost equal extent in
regions far beyond the Great Wall. John Bell of Antermony found it universal throughout the wilds and
steppes of Tartary. Wherever the gentlemen of his
lRussian embassy stopped in those regions, scalding hot
tea was served up to them. But the Tartars had the
disagreeable custom of frequently mixing solvent mutton fat, and even salt, in their tea-cups. It has often
been said that Asia may be divided into "Tea-drinking
Asia" and " Coffee-drinking Asia." Where the use of
tea ceases that of coffee begins, and is quite as frequently
in requisition.
The following advice is from a native Chinese writer
as to how best to make tea. " Whenever the tea is to be
infused for use," says Tung-po, " take water from a running stream and boil it over a lively fire. It is an old
custom to use running water, boiled over a lively fire;




GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PRODIUCTIONS, ANIiALS. 79
that from springs in the hills is said to be the best, and
river water the next, while well water is the worst.
"When making an infusion do not boil the water too
hastily, as first it should begin to sparkle like crabs' eyes,
then somewhat like fishes' eyes, and lastly to boil up like
pearls innumerable, springing and waving about. This
is the way to boil the water."
The same Chinese author gives the names of six
different kinds of tea, all of which are in high repute.
As their names are rather flowery, Mr. Fortune quotes
them for the reader's amusement.  They are these: the
"first spring tea," the "white dew," the "coral dew,"
the " dewy shoots," the "money shoots," and the " rivulet garden tea."
"Tea," says he, " is of a cooling nature, and, if drunk
too freely, will produce exhaustion and lassitude; country
people before drinking it add ginger and salt, to counteract this cooling property.  It is an exceedingly useful
plant; cultivate it, and the benefit will be widely spread;
drink it, and the animal spirits will be lively and clear.
The chief rulers, dukes and nobility esteem it; the lower
people, the poor and beggarly, will not be destitute of
it."  Another Chinese author says, regarding tea, that
"drinking it tends to clear away all impurities, drives
off drowsiness, removes or prevents headache, and it is
universally in high esteem."
The great object of agricultural interest to the population of China is rice, the staple food of all classes,
from the prince to the peasant. The plains present an
endless succession of rice or paddy fields, which, in the
early stage of the crops, exhibit a vast surface of bright
green, but turn yellow as the grain ripens. The seed is




80     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
first sown in small patches, enriched with a preparation
of liquid manure, which promotes its immediate development, so that soon the shoots are five or six inches in
height, when they are transplanted to the fields, the
laborers dropping them into holes, about six together.
This method of cultivation requires much additional
labor, but it greatly economises the rich and valuable soil
of the river shores, and gives the plants, when of a maturity to need it, the space and sun which make them
vigorous and productive. These men stand up to the
ankles in water, for it is requisite that rice should be kept
constantly wet, or it would be spoiled; but when the rice
is ripe the fields are drained, so that the reapers, whose
labors commence about midsummer, work on dry ground.
The second harvest is ripe in November, after which
the ground is usually planted with cabbages and other
vegetables; but in some parts of the country a crop of
cotton is obtained between the two rice crops.
The Chinese are deservedly celebrated for their industry and ingenuity; yet it is to be remarked that in
their cultivation of the soil they employ very little
machinery, and are strongly prejudiced against the
introduction of any improvements which would tend to
abridge manual labor. Even their agricultural implements are as few and simple as they were in the early
days of the empire; yet, by dint of the excessive toil of
the vast numbers of people employed, the lands are as
well cultivated and as highly productive as they are
elsewhere by any improved system. The plough, the
harrow and the hoe, all of the rudest construction, are
the chief implements used by a Chinese farmer, the
spade being only seen occasionally. The plough is




GEOGRiAPIY VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS, ANIMALS. 81
usually drawn by buffaloes, but sometimes that labor is
performed by men, and even by women, among the lowest class of farmers. Water-wheels and chain-pumps
are used for irrigating the lands. The water-wheel is
an immense yet very light machine, composed entirely
of bamboo, its buckets for raising the water being made
of the same material; it is fixed adjoining the banks of
all such rivers as have the stream  running one way,
which keeps it going night and day, and supplies water
to a large trough, which empties its contents into several
channels which run through the fields in various directions, and thus keep them  constantly watered. The
chain-pump is used to raise water from the wells and
ponds for the same purpose, and, being portable, is
extremely useful to the Chinese laborer; consequently,
the making of such machines is a branch of industry
which affords employment to a great number of mechanics.
Another great edible product of the soil of China
is sugar.  It is not made, as many suppose in this
country, from the sorghum, which was brought to us by
the French. This plant is there comparatively little
known, and is only used for fodder; and the Chinese
are surprised at the ingenuity which has managed to
extract so excellent an article of sugar as we do from its
juice. The sugar-cane is sold on the fruit-stalls in
pieces a few inches in length, to be eaten thus; its expressed juice is evaporated in the sun ahd made into
coarse brown sugar, or crystallized into rock-candy,
which is pulverized to make a finer article; and it is
manufactured into a thousand forms of colored candies,
syrups, artificial and ornamental work, saturated dried
fruit, and others to, please the eye andc the palate,
/I




82     TIHE OLDEST AND TIIE NEWEST EMPIRE.
The provinces adjoining the Yang-tsz-kiang are those
where cotton is most extensively cultivated; and in the
neighborhood of Nanking the cloth known by that name
is made in large quantities. The weavers work at their
own homes, for there are no large manufactories in
China, either for silks or cottons; so that there is
scarcely a cottage where there is not some manufacture
carried on, either for sale or home consumption, and
generally for both.
The introduction of cotton instead of silk for clothing
must have proved a material benefit to the lower classes,
being so much more durable and better suited to their
occupations than silk; yet it was not till after the accession of the Ming dynasty that it was cultivated in sufficient quantities to allow of its coming into general use.
The extended cultivation of cotton was one of the causes
of the almost entire disappearance of sheep from the
southern provinces, for it was found that it would take
much.more land to supply a certain number of persons
with mutton and wool than with rice and cotton; there
the pastures were gradually turned into rice and cotton
plantations, while sheep were banished to the mountains
and less fertile parts of the country. For the same
reason, cattle, horses and other domestic animals are
scarce; the few that are kept for the purposes of husbandry are poor and ill-fed. Dairy farms are unknown
in China, where the people use neither milk nor bttter,
though they use curds in various forms.
A large portion of the peasantry in the silk districts
are chiefly engaged in taking care of the mulberry
plantations, which require constant attention that they
may produce.fine leaves.  The worms are kept in




Ar~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~-r............~:-~..........~~~~~~~~~~~~::~..........~~~~~~~~~i;;1~~~~~~:'::.::'...~~~~~~. I:-.;~.::.:..:-.;'::..:~~~~~~~~~~~:;:::::j;-':r.:: ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ I








GEOGRAPIi, VEGETAIBLE PRiOD UCTI-ONS, ANIMIALS$. 83
houses in the centre 6f the grove, for it is an essential
point in the management of them that they should be
always surrounded by perfect stillness, as it is found that
noise is extremely injurious, especially to the younger
ones. The care of feeding and tending them belongs to
the female part of the family, who also manage the silk
after it is spun by the worms.
The provinces which produce the finest silk are those
about the mouth of the Yang-tsz-kiang and the region
adjoining; but there are species of worms in many other
parts of China that feed on some of the common forest
trees, and from which are obtained coarse silk, which is
very durable, but which will not take any dye, and is less
glossy and beautiful than the silk of the worm which feeds
on the mulberry tree.
The Chinese do not sell their best silk fabrics to
foreigners; consequently we rarely see in this country
the rich sillrs which  they wear themselves.  Their
velvets are not equal to those of Europe, but their
damasks and crapes are superb.  There are skillful
workers among the women who can earn thirty dollars
a month by embroidering the beautiful shawls of China
crape which are so much admired in Western countries.
The bamboo is one of the Creator's best gifts to the
people of China, and it is wonderful to what a variety of
uses it is applied by them.  There are many varieties of
this valuable production of the East, some kinds being
much larger and stronger than others, and differing also
in color. In the construction of temporary buildings it
is far more useful than timber, on account of its lightness; and from it are made excellent water-pipes, the
cabins of the sampans, or family boats, ropes, etc., whilst




84     THE OLDEST AN~D THE lNEWEST EMPIRE~
it enters largely into the manufacture of paper. It is
shaped into a thousand articles of furniture, household
use, rude machinery, and amusement or ornament. Its
young shoots are a very delicate vegetable for the table,
not unlike asparagus; and among the innumerable minor
purposes to which it is applied, we may mention its employment at Canton in the manufacture of hats, which
are made and sold to foreigners in that city. The making
of these hats is a specimen of the ingenuity of the Chinese, who are very clever in imitating anything they see,
and will produce the counterpart of articles of foreign
dress with the most minute exactness. The body of the
hat is made of a composition formed of the inner part of
the bamboo, beaten into a pulp and mixed with glue. It
is spread on a block of the proper shape, and when dried,
is covered and lined in the same manner as gentlemen's
silk hats in this country. There is another small species
of bamboo which grows in the marshes, seldom measuring more than two inches in diameter, the pith of which
is the material commonly called rice paper. The pith
is used in its natural state, being only pared in thin slices
and rolled out into flat sheets, as we receive it in this
country. The Chinese, who make some use of everything that falls in their way, may really be said to make
almost everything out of bamboo. We have mentioned
but a few of the articles of furniture, shipping, etc., to
which this gigantic cane is applied; to name them all
would fill pages.
The most valuable of all the uses of bamboo is to make
the paper of which their books are composed. Among
a people so addicted to reading and writing, the manufacture of paper must necessarily be carried on to an im



GEOGRAPHY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTIO.NS, ANIMALS. 85
mense extent, and this is much increased by the annual
consumption of it in their sacrifices. The paper used
for printing books, being thin and transparent, is only
impressed on one side, and folded, so that every leaf is
double, with the edge uncut. Books are not bound,
like ours; but every work is divided into a number of
separate parts, with strong paper covers. The parts in
this shape are placed all together, loosely, in a square case
or envelope-a plan that seems to have been adopted for
the purpose of avoiding the inconvenience of holding a
thick volume in the hand.
Books are very cheap, for there is no duty on paper;
and the wages of printers, as of all other workmen, are
very small. There are a great many booksellers in all
the principal towns. The books are almost wholly
those of the native authors. The most ancient are those
most valued. Then, say they, men were more pure,
more honest and more wise. The most valuable are
those of a historical character.  But multitudes are seen
in the shops on medicine, agriculture, the language,
religion and poetical subjects; novels are very abundant,
and theatrical plays, which are, some of them, well written and interesting.
Printing is executed very cheaply on wood, hardened
wax or metal. The most common method is by means
of wooden blocks, which are prepared thus: The copy is
written on very thin paper, and pasted on plain blocks,
from which all the blank parts are neatly cut away, and
as the letters are left raised on the surface, they are, of
course, an exact representation of the manuscript, which
should, therefore, be very carefully written. Movable
types have been used at Peking, b'ut they are expensive.




86     THE  OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMIPITE.
In the process of printing the Chinese employ no
press; nor would it facilitate their operations while they
continue to print on paper of so delicate a texture that
any hard pressure would be likely to break through it.
The printer works with two brushes; having inked the
characters with one brush, he lays on his paper, and
runs the other over it, which makes the impression; and
this is done so quickly that a good workman can take
off two thousand copies in a day.
There are other members of the vegetable kingdom
which deserve particular mention as affording materials
for the industry of the people.  One of the most
remarkable is the tallow tree. This has some resemblance to the aspen and birch, the branches being long
and flexible, with leaves of a very dark green, which,
in autumn, turn red, with a purple tint. The fruit, or
rather seed, is contained in brown pods, which grow in
bunches at the extremity of each bough, and on opening
disclose three small white berries, which hang very
prettily by their slender strings when the husk has completely fallen off. These have each a small nut in the
middle, but the white coating is the tallow, of which
candles are made; and thus the Chinese, who from local
circumstances kill but few animals as compared with the
number killed in America, are *furnished with a vegetable substance which supplies the deficiency of the
material used here for the manufacture of candles. This,
in fact, is a very important branch of Chinese industry,
as it is not alone for domestic purposes that lights are
required, but all the temples have to be supplied with
those great candles that are set up at the festivals before
the images.




GEOGRAPTIY, VEGETABLE PRODUCTION1S, ANImIALS. 87
The camphor tree grows to a great height, and is one
of the most useful timber trees in. the empire, as it does
not split and is never destroyed by insects. It is chiefly
used for chests and household furniture, and sometimes
in boat-building. The luxuriant foliage of this fine tree
is of the brightest green, and from the fresh-gathered
branches is obtained the resinous gum which we call
camphor, and with which the wood is highly scented.
Another branch of industry, which has never been
imitated with success in this part of the world, is that
of making the lacker, or japanned material that we often
see in the shape of folding-screens, cabinets, tea-trays,
boxes and ornamental tables, so brilliantly adorned with
paintings and gildings in that peculiar style which is at
once recognized as Chinese. In some branches of this
art, however, the people of China yield the palm to those
Qf Japan, from whom it derives its name.; and costly
screens and cabinets are seen in the houses of Chinese
gentlemen, the work of the Japanese, who send them to
China. The varnish used for japanning them is the gum
which oozes from a small tree, a species of sumac which
grows both in China and Japan. The excellence of the
art consists in laying on the varnish perfectly smooth,
which is a tedious and difficult process, as many coatings
are required, and each must be spread with the same
nicety. The varnish will take any color without losing
its brilliancy, so that all the painting is executed upon
the japanned surface; and although the Chinese have no
high or pure art, we cannot refuse to give them credit
for their skill in'the execution of the ornamental
designs.




CHAPTER IV.
SOCIAL LIFE; AMUSEMENTS; POPULAR FESTIVALS; THE
GOVERNMENT.
HE habits of social life in China are peculiar, although not destitute of refinement. It is not the
difference between civilization and barbarism  that distinguishes the Chinese of the present age from their
contemporaries, but it is the more remarkable dissimilarity between ancient and modern and Eastern and
Western civilization which marks them as a nation belonging to other times and other climes.
To speak of the Chinese as a rude or uninformed
race would be quite as erroneous as to style them a
highly-civilized people-a term that can only be applied
with- propriety to those who are enlightened by modern
science, which in China has hitherto made no progress.,
The refinement of the Chinese consists in the elegance
and luxury with which the higher and richer classes are
surrounded in their own houses, and that strict attention
to the forms of good-breeding which prevails generally
through all the grades of private life. Politeness is an
indispensable accomplishment, and the rules of etiquette
are studied in all the schools of China as regularly as
grammar in those of the West. A knowledge of the
forms and ceremonies to be observed both at home and
88




SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEMENTS, ETC.         89
abroad, in the drawing-room of a friend as well as at
the court of the emperor, is essential to every one who
studies with a view of taking degrees, as he knows not
to what rank he may be called, and ought to be prepared to conduct himself with propriety in different
grades of life, from the station of the petty officer of an
obscure village to that of the chief ko-lau, or minister of
state. It must be understood that to conduct himself
with propriety does not altogether refer to his integrity
in office or his moral character-to both of which, however, his most careful attention is requisite-but he must
know how many bows to make to his visitors; what
compliments to address to them according to their rank;
whether, at their departure, he should attend them  as
far as the door or only so many paces toward it; and
other minute observances, too numerous to mention,
must be studied and practiced. These trivial ceremonies
impart a dullness and formality to Chinese society which
are found tedious by most Americans, whose easy, unstudied manners would be thought quite barbarous
among the well-bred of the Celestial Empire.
Yet there is withal a great deal of genuine courtesy
in the intercourse of the better classes, and a true refinement, which can only come from the cultivation of the
purer and better sentiments of our nature. The degree
of this existing in circles to which some of our officers,
merchants and missionaries have been admitted has often
surprised them. It is confessed that men like Keying
and Howqua would be considered gentlemen in the best
society of any country. The manners of the ladies are
often polished and agreeable.
The houses of the wealthy are built, like those of most




90     THE OLDEST AN~D THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
other Oriental nations, within a court, surrounded by a
wall, consequently they are not visible to the passers-by;
but those of government officers are always known by
two red poles which are set up before the gate. The
handsomest dwellings are those which consist of a number of separate buildings, or ranges of apartments, all
on the ground floor. The principal entrance is threefold-namely, by a large folding-door in the centre, and
a smaller one on each side, at which hang two handsome
lanterns, inscribed with the name and titles of the master of the house. This entrance leads to the saloon,
where visitors are received, which is usually the first
of a suite that may be called the state-apartments, since
they are chiefly used for the reception and entertainnent of distinguished guests. They are elegantly and
commodiously furnished; for the Chinese are not deficient in taste, nor do they spare expense in their interior decorations of their houses, which are often fitted
up in a very costly style. The walls of the best rooms
are generally adorned in different parts with scrolls of
silk or paper-hangings from the ceiling to the floor, on
which are written  or painted, in  large  characters,
maxims and moral sentences extracted from the works
of the ancient sages, which are considered far more
ornamental than the finest paintings.  Many of these
sentences bear some resemblance to' the Proverbs of
Solomon. Their chairs-which, it may be remarked,
are articles of furniture not used by the natives of other
parts of Asia, and indicate the more dignified manners
of the Chinese as compared with other Asiatics-are
rather clumsy and heavy in appearance, but they are
made of a beautiful dark brown wood which grows in




SOCIAL LIE, AMIUSEXIENTS, ETC        91
China, and is not unlike rosewood. They are all made
with arms, and sometimes are furnished with silk or
satin cushions and hangings for the back, embroidered
by the ladies of the family, who devote a great portion
of their time to needlework. Japanned cabinets and
tables, with a profusion of porcelain jars and other
ornaments, are always seen in a Chinese drawing-room;
but none of these are so striking or so characteristic as
the lanterns, suspended by silken cords from the ceiling
and ornamented with a variety of elegant designs.
In any civilized part of the world we may find Indian
cabinets and porcelain vases, but the lanterns are exclusively Chinese, and are very showy specimens of the
national taste and ingenuity. They are made in every
form that fancy can invent and of all sizes-from the
small ones carried by pedestrians at night to those that
illumine the halls of the great; the latter being sometimes eight or ten feet in height and three feet in diameter. The most costly are composed of transparent silk,
adorned with landscapes, birds, flowers and fanciful
devices in colors of dazzling brightness; the framework
being richly carved and gilt, and the cords and tassels
by which they are suspended made of silk and gold
thread. The possession of fine lanterns is a sort of passion among the Chinese, many of whom spend considerable sums in the gratification of this fancy.
The real condition of ladies in China, and the position
they hold in society, are not yet very accurately known.
They are seldom seen in the streets, it is true, but that
is sufficiently accounted for by their inability to walk
with ease; and as they do sometimes appear abroad, and
are often observed at the windows, without making any




92     THE OLDEST AND THE iNEWEST EMPIRE.
attempt to conceal their faces from the gaze of strangers,
it is evident they enjoy far more liberty than the Turkish
ladies, although it is not the custom for the sexes to mix
together in general society. When a mandarin gives a
grand entertainment, his wife frequently invites her
friends to witness the theatrical performances and various amusing exhibitions that are going forward during
the dinner. These they can see, without being seen,
from a latticed gallery provided for that purpose; and
thus they are not entirely debarred from the enjoyment
of the festivities, although they do not mingle with the
guests.
But we must consider the sex degraded wherever the
system of polygamy prevails, and wherever (as in China
and all these Eastern countries) men add to the number
of their wives according to their wealth and rank.
Another source of humiliation should seem to be the
common practice of buying and selling women. All
classes of Chinese present some equivalent to the parents or guardians of the women they marry. A family
of handsome daughters, particularly if well trained in
ceremonials and Chinese accomplishments, are often a
source of great profit to their parents.
The dress of a Chinese lady is not different from that
worn in ancient times: it consists of a short loose robe,
confined round the throat with a narrow collar. Tilhe
robe is worn over a long, full skirt, and both are frequently made of richly-embroidered silks. The sleeves
are wide, and sufficiently long to fall over the hands;
and the hair is gathered up in a knot at the top of the
head, and is fastened with golden bodkins and adorned
with flowers. They all wear trowsers; and their tiny




I            r
"~;{ *l('                    +~
I~~~~~~~.....~








SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEMENTS, ETC.         93
shoes are of satin, silk or velvet, beautifully worked
with gold, silver and colored silks, the soles being
formed of layers of paper, from one to two inches in
thickness, and covered outside with white leather made
from pigskin. The little girls are very becomingly
attired in short dresses, reaching to the throat and
worn over the full trowsers. The hair, which is combed
from the forehead, hangs down on each side, and the
black hair is plaited into one or two long tails; in which
style it remains until the young lady is about to become
a bride, when the more matronly fashion is adopted, and
the braids and curls are formed into a knot, intermixed
with flowers and jewels.
A gentleman usually wears in the house a loose robe
of silk, cloth, or, in summer, of some lighter material,
with a cap also suited to the season. If he be a mandarin, a ball is worn on the top of the cap to designate
the class to which he belongs. The summer cap is as
light as chip, to which it bears a resemblance. It is
made of bamboo, in the shape of a cone; and if the
wearer be a government officer, has attached to the ball
a crimson silk ornament, which hangs like a fringe.
The winter head-dress is of satin, with a wide brim of
black velvet turned up all around, and the usual adornments of ball and fringe at the top. A mandarin of the
first rank is known by a red ball on his cap; a transparent blue one denotes the second class; and the other
grades are distinguished by white, opaque blue, crystal,
gilt and other balls.
A Chinese is not at liberty to wear his summer or his
winter cap when he pleases, but is obliged to wait for the
time appointed by the Board of Rites for making the




94     THE OLDEST AlND THE NEiVEST EM2~PIRE.
alterations in his head-gear. The announcement is made
in the Gazette, when the viceroy of the province lays aside
the cap he has been wearing for the previous six months
to adopt that of the approaching season, and the example
is immediately followed by all other mandarins and officers
within his government. It is very usual to wear at. home
a cap of silk or velvet, fitting closely to the head. Furs
are very much used in the winter costume, for as the Chinese have no fires in their apartments, they wear a great
quantity of warm clothing, putting on one garment over
another until they are sufficiently protected from  the
cold. Dress boots are of velvet or satin, with the universal thick white soles; and a fan, in an embroidered
case hanging from the girdle, is as indispensable a part
of the costume of a Chinese gentleman as his cap or
gown.
Visiting in China is conducted in a manner which is
very formal according to our notions. A gentleman in
making a morning call does not alight from his chair
until he has sent in his visiting card, that the master of
the house may give him a proper reception according to
his rank, as it is the etiquette to hurry to the door, in
some cases, to receive a guest, while in others it is only
necessary to meet him in the middle of the room; and in
the former case the bowings are lower and more numerous than in the latter. The law has decided that the
superior shall take precedence in, entering the room, yet
it is considered polite to make a pretence of refusing to
go in first, and a few unmeaning compliments always
pass on the occasion, both parties knowing very well
which of them is to take the lead. It is not the custom
in China to uncover the head unless invited so to do;




SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSE~MENTS, ETC.      95
in warm weather, therefore, a gentleman usually says to
his friend, " Pray put off your cap!" and it would be a
mark of ill' manners to omit this compliment.
Tea is always offered to a morning visitor, and is
usually accompanied with sweetmeats and pipes, for the
Chinese are fond of smoking, and every gentleman wears
an embroidered tobacco-pouch at his girdle. It is not
exactly certain when tobacco was first introduced into
China, but it is supposed that it found its way there soon
after the discovery of America, as the Chinese were in
the habit of smoking before the time of the ManchuTartar conquest, although there is no mention of such a
custom prior to the sixteenth century. Smoking is not
confined to the male sex nor to the lower class of females,
but even a Chinese lady may have her richly-ornamented
pipe, which would really be an elegant appendage if it
did not involve so unfeminine an indulgence. It has become quite common for men, and even women, to intoxicate themselves by smoking opium. The usual employments among wealthy Chinese ladies are-working
embroidery, playing on different musical instruments and
painting on silk and rice paper. Yet some ladies are well
educated, and there are families where private tutors are
employed, and the girls are allowed to participate, to a
certain extent, in the studies of their brothers.
The lower orders in the towns-men, women and children-all wear loose gowns of nanking cloth, usually
dyed blue, without collars. The laboring men in the
country work in large cotton trowsers, with or without a
gown over them, and a broad bamboo hat, which answers
the purpose of an umbrella to shield them from the sun
and rain. But the most extraordinary article of apparel




96     THE OLDEST AND THE NVEWEST EMtPIRE.
worn by the Chinese laborer is a cloak made of long,
narrow leaves, which has a very rough, unsightly appearance, but is extremely useful in wet weather, either
in the fields or in the boats.
The river population of Canton forms a very large
portion of the community, and is considered by the people of the city to be a distinct and inferior race. Until
the time of Kien-lung these people were not permitted
to intermarry with the people on shore; but that enlightened sovereign removed the restriction, and those
who live on the water now enjoy equal privileges with
those who have their dwellings on land, and a boatman
may take to wife a village lass without incurring any
penalty. Some of the poor people who emigrate to
neighboring counties often take their wives with them,
notwithstanding the laws that so strictly prohibit women
from leaving China; but there is no doubt that the laws
against emigration are altogether very much relaxed,
and it is probable that the government may purposely refrain from being very vigilant in seeing them
enforced.
It is rather curious that, among the personal decorations of the Chinese, there is not one they prize more
highly, or on which they bestow more attention, than
the plaited queue, which, at first, was detested as a disgraceful badge of dependence, and is still a sign of their
subjection to the Tartar rule. The beauty of the queue
consists in its length and thickness, and many who have
not hair enough to make a handsome braid supply the
deficiency with false hair and silk; but whatever pains
and cost a man may bestow upon improving his appearance by the aid of art, he can have no pretensions to




SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEMENTS, ETC.        97
personal attraction unless his figure indicate that he has
not been kept upon spare diet.
The tables of the wealthy are supplied with a great
variety of rich dishes, among which is a soup that supplies the place of our turtle. It is made of the nests of
birds, the trade in which is a government monopoly.
These nests are principally brought from Java, Sumatra
and the coasts of Malacca; they are obtained among the
rocks with difficulty by men let down from their summits
by a rope. They consist of a delicate sea-moss gathered
from the surface of the waves by a species of swallow,
and formed into nests among the precipitous cliffs.
They are best when taken before they have been soiled
by the bird. After having been properly cleansed, they
are packed in boxes and sent to Canton, where they are
often worth more than their weight in silver. Sharks'
fins are esteemed a great luxury. There appears to be
scarcely an end to the number and variety of the culinary preparations of these people; but of all theiri dishes
there are very few that are palatable to an American
stomach.
The Chinese take wine with each other, and when
they have done so, turn the cup upside down, to show
that they have emptied its contents, this being a point
of good-breeding. The wine, which is a liquor extracted from rice, is taken hot, and at the tables of the rich
is poured into the cups from a silver vessel like a coffeepot. The dinner-service consists of porcelain bowls of
various sizes, with plates shaped like saucers, and sometimes a few silver dishes. Instead of knives and forks,
they use what are termed chopsticks, which are small
round sticks of ivory or ebony; but they have also
7




98     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
spoons of ebony, and silver ladles for the soups. The
dinner is preceded by fruits and confectionery. After it
the company usually adjourn to another room to take
tea and amuse themselves, but the foreigners are never
gratified by the company of the ladies.
The shopkeepers of China, and those whose appetites
are not stimulated by bodily labor, usually take only two
meals in the day —one between eight and ten in the
morning, the other between four and six in the afternoon. Their usual fare is rice and vegetables, with a
little pork or fish; their ordinary drink is tea, but they
sometimes indulge in samshu, a spiritous liquor distilled
from rice.
Flour of rice or wheat is chiefly employed in making
pastry and flat, unleavened cakes, the latter constituting
the only bread which is known in China. The ovens,
or rather baking-machines, consist of a flat plate of iron,
suspended by chains from a beam over a copper filled
with burning charcoal. The cakes are placed on the
iron plate, which can be raised or depressed at pleasure
by means of the chains; and as this is the only mode
of baking among the Chinese, their bread is necessarily
made in the form of cakes, and is eaten only as a dainty.
The process of cooking is carried on over charcoal fires;
and as there are no chimneys to any of the houses, a
part of the brick-work above the fire in their kitchens,
or cooking-places, is left open to suffer the vapor to
escape. There are plenty of eating-houses, both for rich
and poor —those for the latter being open sheds, where
they can procure a hot breakfast or dinner at any hour
of the day for a very trifling sum. The superior sort
are fine, handsome hotels, where gentlemen of the




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C]~wps&tzk ease.'       tiJ satidinr top.and bo/tn.n
2 d 6 Choppsttidxw.              7 Ckhiuese Fork.
3. Tootlpiek.                   a. SoTp Spoon;
4 by &. JI~rs1.0. k  9luuterfoi.saeer for soy
7/ ghD& Yaus   d Coo








SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEMif TS, ETC.        99
higher classes can dine when their families are out of
town.
The traveler and botanist, Mr. Robert Fortune, has
given us a description of a road-side inn in the provinces,
that will convey a good idea of such places, which have
their counterparts in some of the Chinese restaurants of
California.  The first use of the " company-houses"
there is to be a sort of general inn for the people from
the same neighborhood in their own country. It must
be borne in mind that the gentleman named was traveling in disguise and passing for a Chinese:
"The inn was a large and commodious building,
extending backward from the main street of the town.
Its front was composed of a number of boards or shutters, which could be removed at pleasure.  The whole
of these were taken down in the morning and put up
again at night. The floor of the building was divided
into three principal compartments, the first facing the
street, the second being. behind it, and the third at the
farthest end. Some small rooms which were formed on
each side were the bed-rooms.
"Coolies and chair-bearers crowded that part of the
building next to the street, in which they had their
meals and smoked their pipes. The second and third
divisions were destined for travelers, but as there were
large doors between each, which stood wide open, it was
easy to see through from the front to the back part of
the premises.
"' When I got out of my chair, I followed' mine host'
into the second compartment, in which I observed a
table at each side of the room. One of them being unoccupied, I sat down at it, and with becoming gravity




100    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMiPIRE.
lighted my Chinese pipe and began to smoke. The host
set a cup of tea before me, and left me to attend upon
some one else. I had now leisure to take a survey of
the strange scene around me. At the opposite table sat
two merchants, who, a single glance told me, were from
the province of Canton. They were evidently eyeing
me with great interest, and doubtless knew me to be a
foreigner the moment I entered the room. One of them
I had frequently seen at Shanghai. This person looked
as if he wished me to recognize him, but in this he was
disappointed, for I returned his inquiring look as if I
had never seen him before. I now observed him whispering to his companion, and thought I heard the word'Fankwai' used. In the mean time, Sing-hu, who had
just arrived, came in, and began to bustle about and get
in the dinner, which was soon ready. The host was a
civil sort of man, but very inquisitive, and as he set
down the dinner he put various questions to me. With
Chinese politeness he asked me my name, my age, where
I had come from and whither I was bound; and to all
such questions he received satisfactory answers. The
Canton merchants were all eyes and ears while this
conversation was going on, and one of them quietly
prompted the innkeeper to ask a few more questions.
These gentlemen wanted to know the starting-point of
my journey, the particular part of Fukien to which I
was bound, and the objects I had in view. As I could
not see that answers to these questions concerned them
very much, or could be of any use, I judged it better to
keep them in the dark.
"Several dishes being now set before me, and a cup
of wine poured out by the host, I took a sip of it, and,




SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEIEMENTS, ETC.     101
taking up my chopsticks, went on with my dinner.
Having had great experience in the use of chopsticks, I
could handle them now nearly as well as the Chinese
themselves; and as I had been accustomed to all the
formalities of a Chinese dinner, I went on with the most
perfect confidence.
" When I had finished dinner, a wooden basin, containing warm water and a wet cloth, was placed before
me, in order that I might wash my hands and face.
Wringing the wet cloth, I rubbed my face, neck and
hands well over with it, in Chinese style. Having finished my ablution, I returned again to the table. The
dinner and dishes having in the mean time been removed,
tea was again set before me.
"' The Canton men still remained at the opposite table,
but the greater part of the others who, at their instigation, had been taking sly peeps at me, had gone away.
I suppose when they saw that I ate and drank just like
the rest, they must have felt some little surprise, and had
their original opinion strengthened-namely, that, after
all, I was only one of themselves.
M"y chair-bearers having dined as well as myself,
they sent a message by Sing-hu to say that they were
ready to proceed. Making a slight bow to mine host,
and a slighter one to the Canton gentlemen in Chinese
style, I got into my chair and went my way."
Gambling with cards, dice, dominoes and other contrivances, and gambling by betting, are excessively
prevalent. The populace bet upon anything, from two
crickets in a basin to fighting quails and a combat of
gamecocks. This is one of the great national vices.
From childhood to old age they never get rid of the




102    THE OLDEST AND THE INETTWEST EM:lPIRE.
propensity.  Some of the games played by the wealthier
classes indoors appear to be childish; they, however,
play at draughts and have a sort of chess.
Among the outdoor amusements of the commonalty,
that of kite-fying is carried to a degree of perfection
unseen in any other country.  The kites are made in a
variety of forms, as of birds, butterflies or fishes, and
the flyers often try their skill in bringing down each
other's kites, in imitation of hawling.  Football is a
favorite pastime, and a game called jang, which is of
very ancient date, and is played with two wooden toys
in the form of a pair of shoes, one of which is placed
on the ground and its fellow thrown from a distance, the
object being to insert one within the other, and he who
succeeds in doing so is the winner.
Our child's game of battledore-and-shuttlecock is
very prevalent, and is played by grown-up people as
well as by children. There is, however, this differencethe Chinese do not play with their hands, but with their
feet, and their battledores are the broad soles of their
shoes, with the sides of which they adroitly strike the
shuttlecock as it approaches the ground.  The game
thus played is still more common among the Siamese,
whose dexterity at it is said to be surprising.
But the great amusement of the people of all ranks
and at all seasons of the year is the theatre.  A lively
American writer has given us some very amusing notes
on this subject, which are the more suitable to quote
since some of the theatrical companies have crossed
the ocean to the New World:
"' The actors are formed into strolling companies, and
travel all over China.  They perform  their parts ad



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SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEIiMENTS, ETC.      103
mirably and excel in pantomime. The Hong merchants sometimes engage a company for several days,
and throw open their hongs to the foreigners as well as
the rabble. I accepted an invitation to attend one of
these exhibitions, and the tea merchant at whose establishment the show took place politely expressed his desire that all should come.
"Two or three of us went together to the hong, and
were ushered into an apartment in the second story
looking out upon the courtyard, and furnished with
seats ascending as they retreated, so that the hindmost
spectators could see as well as those in front. These
benches, with the exception of a few reserved seats, were
densely occupied by the respectable and well-dressed
friends of the hongist.' We were politely ushered into the first seats, looking
immediately on the stage opposite. As soon as we were
comfortably seated a boy brought to us very nice tea
and fans, as the weather was warm. Below us, in the
open yard, were the closely-packed, hundreds admitted
to the exhibition without charge, but obliged to stand,
and with the sun beating down on their unprotected
heads. They were very orderly and quiet, however, and
watched every change of scene with intense interest.
The stage was formed of bamboo poles, strongly tied
together, and the floor was of boards, resting on the
horizontal reeds and covered with a carpet. The ceiling
was of a piece with the splendor of the theatre, and composed of rather dingy matting. There was no drop or
green curtain, no footlights or scenery of any description, and the orchestra was behind the performers.
There was a retiring-room at the back of the stage,




104    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMIPIRPE.
whither the actors resorted to change their dresses. The
beauty of the establishment was much improved by a
number of half-naked coolies, who had climbed up the
bamboo poles to have a better view of the scene, where
they clung like apes; and one or two, more fortunate
than the rest, had actually managed to get on top of the
frame, and sat with their dusky legs dangling through
holes in the matting. The performance was ludicrous,
and yet very good in its way; in pantomine, the actors
were masters, and the expressions of their countenances
admirably suited to the feelings they meant to express.
The dresses were truly gorgeous; it is in costume, not in
scenery, that great sums are expended, and that of actors
is always a representation of the ancient dresses of China
before the Manchu-Tartar conquest.
"They were of the richest silks and satins, stiff with
gold thread and gay embroidery, and well put on.
" The actors screamed and bawled at the top of their
voices, and seemed to lash themselves into the most furious excitement. There was a vast deal of fighting, and
on the least pretence the heroes of the piece drew their
swords and hacked at each other without mercy; and
every moment the orchestra would come in with an
awful crash, and nearly drive one frantic by the din of
gongs, the squeak of stringed instruments and the shrill
shrieks of fifes. I soon became aware that I could not
appreciate the performance, for when I laughed at the
apparent absurdities, all the Chinese looked on with
breathless interest; and sometimes, during a part that I
considered particularly stupid, I would hear loud explosions of delight, and a contagious chuckle would animate
the whole assembly.




SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEMIENTS, ETC.       105
"There were no women to be seen, either as spectators
or actors, though the impersonation of feminine character
was so admirable, and the dress so perfectly worn, that
I came away at first under the belief that I had seen
females acting. Delicate-looking lads of seventeen or
nineteen are selected to personate the softer sex; and
when the dress is put on, the false head-gear assumed,
the feet squeezed into the smallest of shoes, and the
voice mimics the high, shrill tones of womanhood, the
disguise is complete.
"The faces of the boys are painted, as is usual with
the females in China, and the womanly way of moving,
talking, and even thinking, seems to be adopted. They
make love in the most natural and sentimental manner,
assume airs of coquetery and raillery with equal ease, and
play the belle and the mother much better than ninetenths of the European actresses. There was no indecency committed.
"To the bamboo poles in front are attached boards,
with the name of the play represented inscribed on them,
and these are changed with the drama. A play will
frequently last two or three days; the one I saw occupied nearly twelve hours, and when I returned in the
afternoon the boards were unchanged, and the same old
fellows were wrapped up in the story that I had seen all
eyes and ears in the morning.
" When it is time to go to dinner, the orchestra suddenly ceases to emit its deafening clangor, the actors roll
up the stage carpet and adjourn to some eating-house,
and the audience disperses till the meal is over, when the
actors come back] as violent as ever. The crowd will
stand patiently for hours under the hot sun to enjoy a




106    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
performance which depends more on the excellence of
the actors than on the merits of the play.
"The actors vary their exhibitions by gymnastic exercises, some of which are very remarkable. In one that
I saw a number of men formed a circle, joining hands,
and on the shoulders of these stood another tier, and a
third group of three or four persons stood on the top of
the pyramid. Those beneath then commenced dancing,
and finally went whirling round like a top until they
attained a fearful velocity. I expected to see some of
the fellows go off in a tangent, but they all managed to
retain their hold, those above jumping and kicking as
they revolved.
"' As there is no scenery, of course the audience have
to imagine it, and transport the players in their fancy
from point to point; but the actors have a very cheap
and ingenious method of locomotion. If they wish to
mount on horseback, they bestride a chair and crack a
whip; and if the hero of the piece desires to go to Peking he sliips across the stage, claps his hands, bawls with
joy and informs the hearers that he has arrived. The
fashionable world at once believe him, and go to court
without presentations. There are hundreds of dramatic
authors in China; their name is legion, and their productions seenl to be the most popular reading of the Chinese. A few plays have been translated into English,
but are hardly adapted for the European stage. Books
are extremely cheap in China, and the'sing-song' books,
as they are called, are more lively and entertaining than
most others. All the plays represented can be found in
print, and a complete collection would outnumber the
British drama.




SOCIAL LIFE, AM7USEMIENCTS, ETC.       107
"The same company does not visit a city more than
once in three or four years, and each troop has a number of performances in which it is particularly skilled.
"The only harm likely to result from theatrical exhibitions arises from  the narrow  and densely-crowded
streets; if a panic ensues, many are trampled to death,
and a short time after I left Canton a lamentable tragedy
occurred.  A fire took place during a performance, and
upward of two thousand persons lost their lives by the
flames and by their frantic efforts to escape destruction."l
These theatrical exhibitions are designed partly for
the propitiation of the gods and good and evil spirits.
The first play each day is generally religious in its
character.
The Chinese are a religious people, yet far from being
so superstitious as the Hindus. Their objects of worship
are generally their deceased sages, heroes, emperors or
ancestors.  Every house, belonging either to rich or
poor, has its household gods, to which offerings are frequently made according to the mode of Chinese worship,
consisting of cakes, rice, plates of meat and cups of tea,
which are placed before the images for a certain space
of time and then taken away to be consumed by the
family.  At the great public festivals, tables covered
with offerings brought by the people are set in the
streets or in the temples, and are arranged with the nicest
care.  Each table displays a variety of choice viands,
such as ducks, fowls, pigs' heads, large cakes, fruits and
confectionery of all kinds, with wine and rows of very
IOSMOND TIFFANY, JR. The Canton Chinese; or, The American's Sojourn in
the Celestial Empire. Boston, 1849.




108    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
small cups filled with tea. Upon the tables are large
wax candles and lighted incense-sticks, which burn
slowly, and when exhausted are replaced by others.
As long as the festival lasts the tables remain untouched, but as soon as it is ended the offerings are distributed among the crowd, so that the lower orders may
be said literally to share in all public festivities.
The commencement of a new year is the great time
for feasting and merry-making in China and wherever
its people emigrate. The Christmas of the olden time
in Europe was not a season of more universal merriment
than this is in the Flowery Land. On this most important of all the Chinese festivals, high and low, the rulers
and the people, indulge in a cessation from the cares of
life and give up all their thoughts to pleasure. A regular order is issued by the Board of IRites that all government business shall be suspended from the twentieth
day of the twelfth month to the same day of the first
month; thus allowing to all the mandarins in office a
holiday of thirty days, unless any particular business
should demand their attention; and they do not fail to
avail themselves of this release by locking up their seals
and preparing to enjoy their long vacation. The rest
of the people devote as much time to amusement as they
can spare from their ordinary avocations; but those must
be miserable indeed who do not join, for two or three
days at least, in the general gayeties.
The festival, which begins at the midnight that closes
the old year, is ushered in by the ceremonies of offerings, incense-burning and numerous other rites, which
last till daylight; the temples being lighted up, the
pagodas illuminated and candles set up before the do



SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEMENTS, ETC.        109
mestic idols in every house. As soon as the day
appears, visits of congratulation are paid and received,
and new year's gifts are sent to particular friends,
always accompanied by a visiting card of red paper,
on which is written the name of the donor and a list
of the presents sent, consisting usually of silks, fine tea,
sweetmeats, ornaments, toys and other trifles suited to
the occasion. All the actors, musicians, jugglers and
tumblers in the empire are in requisition at this period
of recreation, when grand entertainments are given by
the rich, and plays are performed in the streets, at the
expense of government or by a subscription among the.inhabitants, for the amusement of the poor. The lower
orders are very much addicted to gambling, smoking and
drinking, particularly in the towns, where there are
plenty of booths for their accommodation, to which they
resort as soon as their daily labors are ended. These
taverns, which are merely open sheds, are much frequented at all seasons, but at holiday times they are
crowded from morning till night with noisy revelers.
The last day of the year is not quite so joyful a one as
the first, for among the many regulations of the Chinese
government is a law by which all men are obliged to
settle accounts with their creditors on that particular
day; and it is considered so disgraceful to leave any debt
unpaid that the unlucky debtor who cannot discharge
his pecuniary obligations at the appointed time is liable
to be treated with insult and injury by those to whom
the money is owing; and among the vulgar it is not
uncommon for an individual under such circumstances
to have his furniture broken, and his family annoyed in
every possible way; nor can he apply to the magistrates




110    THE OLDEST AND TI-IE NE WEST EMPIRE.
for redress, however serious the injury lhe may sustain,
because the fact of not having paid his debts would
render his complaint of no avail.
The Feast of Lanterns, which takes place almost immediately after the celebration of the new year, is a
popular festival of ancient date among the Chinese, and
is the occasion of a most brilliant and beautiful spectacle.
On the fifteenth day of the first moon, every city, village
and hamlet throughout the country is splendidly illuminated with an infinite variety of these beautiful lanterns,
which are hung up at every house, from the palace of
the viceroy to the hut of the humble fishermlan, the
general feeling being a desire on the part of each to outshine his neighbor. The tradition respecting this festival
is, that the wife of an emperor of one of the early
dynasties, being extravagant and fond of pleasure, chose
to have the palace illuminated every night with a thousand lights, which might supply the place of the sun and
keep up a perpetual day within her abode. This legend,
which refers to a period antecedent to the era of Confucius, may be received as an evidence that the Feast of
Lanterns was celebrated in China in very ancient times;
but its real origin, like that of many other Chinese
customs, is lost in obscurity, nor is it likely ever to be
discovered. The illumination is continued for three
nights, and is attended by a grand display of fireworks,
in which the Chinese excel all other nations.  Many of
the lanterns made for such occasions exhibit moving
figures, such as huntsmen on horseback galloping round,
ships sailing, troops of soldiers marching or people
dancing, all kept in motion by some ingenious contrivance not visible to the beholder, the propelling power




SOCIAL LIFET, AMUSEMENTS, ETG         111
of which is the current of air created by the heat of,the
lamp within. These are seen only at the houses of the
rich, and of course attract vast crowds of spectators.
The chief part of the many thousands of lanterns
manufactured for this festival are of strong, transparent
paper, or gauze, varnished, which is used in many parts
of China instead of window glass. Even the commonest
of them  are elegant in shape and gayly decorated, so
that altogether the effect of the illumination is very
brilliant.  Even the poor fishermen who dwell on the
sea-shore, and those who live in boats on the rivers,
bestow as much as they can possibly spare of their hard
earnings for the purchase of a fine lantern to exhibit on
this festive occasion; so that even the waters are lighted
up; and as the towns and villages are neither few
nor far between, the spectator placed upon any eminence
beholds on all sides an illuminated panorama of the
country.  During the festival the gates of the cities are
left open at night, that the country-people may enjoy
the pleasure of seeing the display.
Besides the annual festivals already mentioned, there
are several others, to which the people run with great
eagerness.  The " Dragon  Festival," which falls in
spring, is very pretty and interesting. It is a sort of
regatta, and is in honor of Kiuh-yuen, a famous sage,
who was drowned before the Christian era.  The boats
are shaped like Indian canoes,l with the figure of a
dragon at the prow, and are otherwise highly ornamented
and gilded, They are of great length, and the rowers
use short paddles or sculls.  They dart up and down
the rivers in vast numbers and with fearful speed, for
the long, narrow boats cut through the water like birds




112    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWiEST EI3~PIREo
through the air. Some of the boats contain more than
sixty men, and the sport sometimes continues two or
three days. The boatmen shoot hither and thither, as
if searching for some lost object; and this commemorates
the efforts made to discover the ancient sage when he
fell into the river. In the mean time, the boatmen shout
and the people on shore beat gongs, wave flags and fire
innumerable crackers to inspire the rowers to redouble
their exertions. If firing crackers can be styled a recreation, it is one which lasts in China all the year round,
and is not neglected by a human being in the empire.
There is probably no single moment in the round of
the twenty-four hours in which thousands of crackers
are not exploded in some part of the country or other.
They are extremely cheap, not costing more than a
penny a pack. No one takes the trouble to light one
cracker at a time. They set fire to a whole pack; and
generally, when a new house is finished, or when some
other pleasant event has happened, they burn tens or
hundreds of packs.
A very remarkable observance of a moral, if not religious, nature is the stated assemblage of the people of
the principal cities and towns to hear the Commands, or
edicts, of the emperors Kang-hi and Yung-ching. The
object is that the moral virtues shall be instilled into the
minds of the people by the magistrates, who are obliged
by law to give instruction in public on the first and fifteenth days of every moon, by reading one of the sixteen
discourses, which treat on all the principal duties of social
life in every station. The first lesson is on filial piety
and the respect which a younger should pay to an elder
brother. These duties are so strictly enjoined and en



SOCIAL LIFE, AMiUSEME~NTS, ETC.      113
forced that a few years since a man was put to death for
having beaten his mother, and his wife shared the same
fate for having assisted him. The act was regarded as a
crime so heinous that the house in which it was perpetrated was deemed unfit for the residence of any human
being, and was dug up from the foundation, that not a
stone of it might remain. The magistrates were all disgraced, the wife's mother was severely punished, and
the scholars of that polluted district were prohibited
from attending the public examinations for three years.
The second of the sixteen discourses exhorts the people
to preserve a respectful remembrance of their ancestors,
and enjoins them not to neglect to visit their tombs at
the proper periods. The principal subjects of the other
lectures are-the benefits of concord in the villages; the
respect due to the profession of husbandry and the culture of silk; the advantages of economy and industry;
the education of youth; application to business; obedience to the laws; and the punishments incurred by
those who are negligent of their duties.
The care of admonishing the people belongs to the
officers of small communities; but the governors have
also to perform their part as teachers by assembling the
inferior officials within their provinces about once a year
to give them instructions as to their respective duties, to
which they are bound to listen with respect, as coming
from  the emperor himself by the voice of his representative. However, all these moral lectures are now
printed from the ancient originals, and in. order to save
themselves trouble the mandarins often merely enjoin
the people or their headmen to read them at least once
in every year. At every step one must be careful not
8




114    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMIPIRE.
to confound theory with practice, and not to attribute
unreservedly the strict ancient usages to the existing
generation.
In a country where the system  of instruction is entirely regulated by the laws, and forms so material a part
of the constitution, the palpable deficiency is that there
are no free schools supported by the government.  Yet
there are numerous establishments for education founded
by the munificence of those who in past ages have acquired fame and riches by their literary attainments.
The master of a district school is paid at the rate of
two to three dollars a year for each boy; yet even this
small sum  cannot very easily be spared by a laboring
man, whose wages are not more than a few pennies a
day; so that many families of the poorer classes send
only one son to school, selecting, of course, him who
shows the most promising genius.  The boys are incited
to industry and good behavior by the hope of prizes
which are distributed at stated periods, and consist of
pencils, paper, Indian ink and ink-stones or little palettes
for grinding the ink, which are all much prized by the
Chinese, who call them "the four precious materials,"
and teach the children to keep them in very neat order.
In most of the country villages and in all large cities
there are evening schools for boys who are obliged to
work in the day-time; for the children of the poor are
inured to labor from a very tender age, so that little
fellows of five or six years of age may be seen trudging
along the roads with a stick across their shoulders carrying loads; and they are set to work in the fields almost
as soon as they can walk. It is the usual practice now
for persons of rank and wealth to engage private tutors




SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEMEN~TS, ETC.        115
for their children; but whether the latter are educated
at home or at a public school, they must undergo the
regular examinations before they are eligible to office,
nor are they taught in any way differently from the boys
at the village seminaries.
These examinations were first instituted for the purpose of selecting the fittest persons to fill all offices of
state, without regard to rank or fortune, and have as a
general rule previous to the present dynasty been conducted with impartiality. One of the favorite maxims
of the Chinese is, "By learning the sons of the poor
become great; without learning the sons of the great
are mixed with the common people."  The beneficial
influence of this maxim  is observable in the village
schools, which are generally well attended, since it is
natural for every father to hope that one of his children
at least may distinguish himself by a superior capacity,
and thus make his own fortune as well as that of his
family; for as parents are frequently degraded in consequence of the misconduct of a son, so they are often
honored and rewarded on account of his virtues.
Many years of laborious application to study are required to fit a youth to become a candidate for literary distinction.  Five or six years are entirely spent in
committing to memory the works of the ancient sages,
particularly the five canonical books of which Confucius was either the author or the compiler; and thus its
officers come to know by heart the maxims by which the
empire has been regulated from time immemorial.  Six
years more are devoted by the unwearied student to the
making himself master of the art of composition, to
which end hle studies innumerable set phrases and apt




116     G THE OLDEST AND Tif E NEWEST EMrPIRE.
similes; so that the learned Chinese all write in the same
general figurative style and use the same metaphors.
The lower examinations take place annually, when
those young men who are looking for preferment and
are qualified for trial assemble at the public hall before
a council of the literati, who are to judge of their merits;
when each candidate is furnished by the president with
a theme, on which he has to write an essay and an ode
to test his fitness for a further trial.  The best of these
compositions being selected, the authors are sent to the
chief literary mandarin of the department in which their
district is situated, who subjects them to a much more
rigorous examination than the former one, which ends
by giving certificates to a certain number, who thus gain
what is called "a name in the village," while the rest
either give up the pursuit or wait for the next opportunity of making another trial. The chosen few have
then to appear before a still higher tribunal, which is
yet stricter than the last. The hall where this trial
takes place is provided with a great number of small
apartments, so that each candidate may be shut up
alone, and the judges thus assured that their performances are entirely their own. They are even searched
on entering these little cells, to see that they have
neither books nor papers about them; and this being
ascertained, all are supplied with writing materials and
themes to try their skill in composition, both in prose and
verse. To guard against any partiality being shown by
the president and members of the board, these papers
are laid before them unsigned, and they select the best
without knowing who are the authors. The fortunate
individuals whose pieces are thus approved then receive




SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEMIENTS, ETC.        117
the first degree, styled Siu-tsai, which is equivalent to
that of our Bachelor of Arts; but the numbers are so
considerably diminished at each fresh trial that, on an
average it is reckoned that not more than ten arrive at
this degree, out of every thousand who present themselves, in the first instance, at the hall of the district;
but as the districts are numerous, these tens amount to
several hundreds in a province.
The second degree is that of Ku-jin, which may be
translated "elevated man," a rank equal to that of Master
of Arts at our colleges. All those who have attained the
first step are qualified to try for the second, but the task
is a much harder one, and as the number to be chosen is
very slmall in proportion to that of the candidates, being
not much more than one out of every hundred and forty,
the emulation and excitement are of course very great.
This trial takes place only once in three years in all the
provincial capitals, before a board composed of an imperial chancellor and some of the principal officers of the
province.  On this occasion, as before, the competitors
write their essays in separate cells, which are guarded
by soldiers to prevent the possibility of communication
with any one outside.  They have to pass through three
ordeals, with an interval of two days between each. On
the first day two or three thousand pieces are, perhaps,
sent in for inspection to the judges, who are so strict that
if one word of the composition be incorrectly written it
is thrown aside, and the mark with which it is signed
(for no names appear) is put up at the gate of the hall,
which spares all the mortification of a public rejection,
as no one knows the signature but the candidate himself,
who, on recognizing his own mark, returns quietly home;




118'   THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EM~'PIRE.
so that on the second day there are not perhaps one'
quarter of the original number, and on the third there
are fewer still.  At length the names of the successful
candidates are declared, on which handbills notifying
the same are printed and posted up in all directions;
their parents and nearest relatives are sent for to share
in the honors that are bestowed on them; they are ins
vited to the houses of the great and overwhelmed with
presents and congratulations. Their blue dress is exchanged for a brown gown with a blue border, and their
silver badge superseded by a golden or gilt one. The
happy scholar is now on the highroad to wealth and fame;
he is qualified for any office, and if his conduct and
ability are such as to entitle him to advancement, he is
expected to rise.
Such are the means by which nobility is acquired in
China, and before the reign of Yung-ching they were
the only means; but in the reign of that prince and
since his time rich merchants and others, who have not
gone through the ordeal above described, have been
allowed to purchase rank, and have thus obtained office
without possessing the necessary qualifications; but this
innovation caused much dissatisfaction, and was not
carried then to any great extent. There are still two
degrees above those already mentioned, to which all who
have taken the second degree are privileged to aspire.
Once in three years those who are ambitious of rising
another step repair to Peking for the examination by
the doctors of the HIan-lin College, who elect three hundred out of about ten thousand, which is the average
number of candidates for the honor of a rank somewhat
similar to that which among us is called Doctor of Laws.




SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEMENTS, ETC.        119
The three hundred elected to this dignity are again examined in the presence of the* emperor, and a few of
them chosen to fill up the vacancies that hIave occurred
in the Han-lin College, from which the ministers and
other high officers of state are usually appointed. The
attainment of this grade is the grand object of every one
who enters upon a literary career in China-a grade
equally open to all, yet reached only by a few.
When the last election is decided, three of the new
members whose names stood highest on the list are paraded round the city for three days with flags flying,
drums beating and all the usual pompous appendages
of a Chinese procession.
The number of civil officers in China, it is estimated,
amounts to about fourteen thousand, all of whom are
paid by the government. Every province has its viceroy, every city its governor, every village its prefect, and
each of these is assisted by a council of inferior magistrates, and has a number of officers in various departnments subordinate to him.
The officers, whatever may be their rank, are only
elected for three years, at the expiration of which they
are appointed to the government of some other place.
It was formerly a custom that when a good magistrate
of a village or district had fulfilled his term of office, the
people should testify their respect and gratitude by sending a deputation to invest him with a richly-embroidered
robe, which was proudly preserved in his family as a
memorial of his virtues; and on such an occasion, when
the time of his departure had arrived, the villagers would
set up lighted sticks of incense for some distance along
the road by which he was to pass, and kneel down by




120    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMI~PIRE.
the wayside to receive his farewell greeting. WTe regret
to say that this is a picture, of past more than of present
times. There is much corruption in the government,
and multitudes of the people pine for the expulsion of
their Tartar rulers. Yet their dynasty as a whole has
been exceeded by no other in the intelligence and justice
of those who have occupied the throne.
Each governor of a province maintains a court of his
own, and whenever he appears abroad he is attended by
a numerous retinue bearing the symbols of his high
office. He is carried in a gilded chair or sedan, and invariably followed by the public executioners, some carrying chains, others that universal instrument of justice,
the bamboo, which is very unceremoniously applied on
the spot to any unlucky wight who may chance to be
detected in a misdemeanor; consequently, the approach
of the high functionary never fails to inspire a degree
of awe, which is manifested by the respectful haste with
which the people make way for the procession, ranging
themselves close to the wall, where they stand perfectly
still and motionless till the whole retinue has passed.
The governors are entrusted with despotic authority;
but they must be careful how they use it, as they are
always liable to the visits of the imperial commissioners, who frequently arrive from  the capital without
giving notice of their approach, for the purpose of
seeing whether all is as it should be; and if they find
anything wrong it is immediately reported at the court,
when the offender is visited with a prompt, and often a
severe, punishment. A single *ord from the emperor
is sufficient at any time to deprive the first grandee in
the land of his rank, his property, or even his life. The




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SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEMENTS, ETC.          121
governor of a province or city is particularly liable to
such a reverse from the nature of the laws, which hold
him responsible for many public calamities, which are
attributed to accident in other countries, which are supposed to arise from want of vigilance on the part of the
chief magistrates, who are required to see that the subordinate officers are attentive to their several duties.
Every one holding an official situation is answerable for
the conduct of those below him, and if the inferiors are
negligent in their respective departments, the superiors
are liable to punishment.  Thus, if the country is inundated by the sudden rising of a river, the chief magistrate is considered in fault for not having attended diligently to the repairing of the embankments.  Should
lives or property fall a sacrifice to fire, it is presumed
that they might have been saved by more active measures; consequently the magistrates are blamed for not
keeping a more efficient police, and the governors are
blamed'for appointing such careless magistrates.  The
most usual punishment for maladministration is degradation to a lower rank, according to the nature and magnitude of the offence.  If the fault be a very serious
one, the offender, if of the highest degree, is perhaps
degraded to the lowest; that is, from  the first to the
ninth class of officers; but if it be only a trivial error,
he is lowered one, two or three degrees; and in most
cases the punishment is only for a certain time, at the
expiration of which he is restored to his rank and office,
and resumes his former place in society  as though
nothing had happened, for a temporary disgrace of that
kind leaves no stigma on the character of the individual.
Crimes that are considered in the light of treason are




122    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
visited with a heavier penalty. Banishment or death is
the doom of him who is discovered to have neglected or
disobeyed the commands of the emperor; and generally
the whole family of the culprit share in some measure
his fate, although they may be wholly innocent of any
participation in his crime. The enactment of this unjust law was no doubt originally intended to deter people
from ill-advising their relatives or encouraging them in
any act contrary to the interests of the government, and
even to make them watchful and anxious for the good
conduct of each other.
The seat of government is at Peking, a name which
means the "INorthern Capital," where, on the borders
of their original territory, the Manchu Tartars have
planted their imperial power.  The previous native
dynasty, the Ming, had its seat at Nanking, the
"Southern Capital." Two centuries' enjoyment of
dominion and wealth have made Peking one of the
most magnificent cities in the empire.
The city is about twenty-five miles in circumference.
It is divided into two distinct parts; the northern, or
Tartar city, and the southern, or Chinese city. The
former, which is inhabited chiefly by Tartars, is surrounded by a wall with nine gates, always guarded by
soldiers, and contains the imperial palace, which, with
its magnificent gardens, stands in tile centre, within a
space of about five miles in circumference, enclosed by
another wall, and called the Forbidden City, as no one
may enter it but privileged persons. The Tartar city
contains the residences of all the grandees of the court,
the halls of the Six Tribunals, the Han-lin College, several superb temples, a Mohammedan mosque and many




SOCIAL LIFE, AMUSEMIENTS, ETC.       123
other public buildings. The principal streets are very
long and wide, and contain numerous shops as well as
private houses; but they are not paved, which is a great
inconvenience in wet weather; neither are they lighted
at night; but as no one is allowed to be abroad after
dark unless on some very particular occasion, it is not
of much importance that they should be so, particularly
as any one who is obliged to go out must carry a lantern
with him. Large spaces of ground in this part of
Peking are occupied by ornamental gardens belonging
to the richer classes, and it is adorned with a fine lake
a mile and a half in length and more than a quarter of
a mile in breadth, crossed by a bridge of nine arches
constructed entirely of white marble. The banks of
this lake are bordered with trees, among which the
drooping willow bends its graceful branches; and in the
midst of this expanse of waters is an islet adorned with
a temple and an elegant pagoda, the never-failing ornaments of Chinese scenery. Peking is, therefore, by no
means devoid of natural beauties; and even the old, or
Chinese town, which is the trading part of the capital,
contains large gardens and fields where vegetables are
grown for the daily supply of the markets; and also
many nursery-grounds, where flowers are cultivated
expressly for the adornment of the ladies of Peking,
who wear them in their hair. This simple and elegant
mode of decorating the hair is generally adopted in all
parts of China, and when natural flowers are not to be
obtained, artificial ones are substituted; but a female head
is seldom seen without the one or the other, which, among
the higher classes, are mixed with golden bodkins, jewels
and other ornaments.




124    THE OLDEST AND THE.NEWEST EMPIREo
The temples in this part of the capital are very magnificent, especially those dedicated to Heaven and Earth;
the former standing in the centre of a spacious enclosure,
elevated by three stages, each ascended by a flight of
marble steps and surrounded by a handsome balustrade.
Within the enclosure is an edifice styled the Palace of
Abstinence, to which it is customary for the emperor to
retire for three days before the grand ceremony of sacrificing in the temple, which is performed annually at the
winter solstice, when the emperor officiates in his character of high-priest; and on this occasion the produce of
the field he ploughed in the spring, with the silks cultured and woven within the precincts of the palace, are
offered up to the Supreme Ruler of the Universe, under
the name of Tien, or Lord of Heaven. The procession
to the temple on the day of the sacrifice is very magnificent, as the emperor is accompanied by the whole
court, besides a numerous cavalcade of civil and military
mandarins, all in full dress. It is remarkable that in a
religious procession there should be no priests, nor any
symbols of its sacred character; unless we may so consider a vast number of lighted flambeaux and several
hundred gorgeous lanterns, which are carried in the
train. On the day of this solemnity, as well as that of
the ploughing festival, the emperor is visible, but is seldom seen in public at any other time, or passes the
boundary wall of his own park, except during the annual
hunting expedition or when he removes from one royal
residence to another.
The streets of Peking are crowded, noisy and bustling;
for there, as in all other great cities of China, it is a common custom for men of the lower orders to work at their




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SOCIAL LIFE, AMiUSEMIENTS, ETC.      12.5
several trades in the streets, where they sit with their
tools around them as if they were in a workshop. Cobblers, tinkers and blacksmiths set up their apparatus
wherever they may obtain a job; and medicine-venders,
who are generally fortune-tellers also, establish themselves, with their compounds ranged in order before
them, in any convenient locality. There are also a great
number of peddlers, ballad-singers and mountebanks, who
contribute no less to the noise than to the throng. But
the most remarkable persons who exercise their calling
in the streets are the barbers, who are all licensed, and
shave the heads and plait the queues of their customers
with the utmost gravity in the open air. All the men
of the lower orders, as well as some of a higher class,
have this operation performed in the public street.
The shops have open fronts, gayly painted, and before
the door of each is a wooden pillar, covered with gilt
characters describing the nature of the goods sold within; and as these sign-posts are usually decorated with
gay streamers floating from the top, they have not been
unaptly compared in appearance to a line of ships' masts
with colors flying. The windows of all the houses in
Peking are made of Corea paper, very frequently of a
rose color, and strengthened by a thin framework of
bamboo; for there is no glass in the north of China, nor
is it yet very common in the south, although more frequently seen now than in the last century. The houses
in Peking are seldom more than one story in height,
and have flat roofs, which are often covered with flowers
and shrubs; for as there are no fireplaces, so there are
no chimneys, the rooms being warmed by pans of lighted
charcoal, of which fuel great quantities are brought from




126    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
Tartary on dromedaries, and these animals are constantly
seen thus laden in the streets of the city.
The new town was partly built and greatly embellished by the emperor Yung-lo when he removed the
court from Nanking to Peking, which was then entirely
inhabited by Chinese; but when it was taken by the
Mianchus, the native people were all driven out of the
new town and the houses given to the Tartar conquerors,
since which time it has been called the Tartar city. In
this part of the city the streets are wide and handsome,
but the old town presents the same general features that
distinguish all the great cities of China; the most striking of which are the high walls, narrow streets, openfronted shops, gayly-decorated temples and triumphal
arches, with a constant succession of sedans and noisy
processions, the bustle being increased by the incessant
activity of itinerant artificers and venders of almost every
commodity, amongst whom not a few are water-sellers.
The triumphal arches, which are seen in most of the
principal streets, are ornamental gateways that have
been erected in honor of eminent persons; by which
may be understood those who have distinguished themselves by their wisdom and virtues, either in public or
private life. The emperor Kang-hi, for instance, ordained that every widow who attained to her hundredth
year without forming a second matrimonial engagement
should be presented with thirty taels of silver for the
erection of a triumphal arch, with an inscription in her
praise; for although a woman is allowed to take a second
husband if she pleases, and many do so, it is accounted
far more honorable to remain faithful to the memory of
the first.




CHAPTER V.
THE PATRIARCHAL AGE IN CHINA.
THE ancient records of China mention nine sovereigns'of the first dynasty, founded by Fuhi, whom they
suppose to have been gifted with superhuman virtues
and knowledge, by which they were enabled to rescue
the people from their original barbarism and to instruct
them in the arts of civilized life, which were undoubtedly
acquired at a very early period and promoted by the
rulers of the country.
The earliest and most useful of these arts were husbandry and silk-weaving, both of which must have been
taught by necessity as soon as the nation was established,
as the people depended for subsistence on the cultivation
of the land, and for clothing on the chief natural produce of the country adapted for that purpose, which was
found in the vast forests, where silkworms were abundant on many species of the forest trees. The merit of
teaching the people to weave silk into garments and dye
it of various colors is ascribed to one of the earliest
empresses-Si-ling; and that of instructing them in husbandry is given to Shin-nung, which may be translated
either "Shin, the husbandman," or "the divine husbandman," the immediate successor of Fuhi, whose name
is held in veneration accordingly; and even to this day
127




128    THE OLDEST A1ND THIE NEWEST EMPIRE.
the Chinese offer up annual sacrifices and hold a festival
in honor of the princess who first wove silken garments,
and the no less praiseworthy monarch who taught his
people to plough the earth.
Agricultural pursuits have always been, and still are,
held in the highest estimation by the Chinese, who commence the year with a grand festival in honor of the
spring; on which occasion the emperor, in imitation of
his ancient predecessor, performs the operations of
ploughing and sowing seed in a field set apart for that
purpose-a custom which has seldom been neglected by
the sovereigns of China, who have thus by their own
example stimulated their subjects to the performance of
these useful labors and maintained the honorable character of the husbandman, who even now holds a rank in
their theory of society next to the literary man, and
above that of the soldier or the merchant, however
wealthy the latter may be. Among the ancients, particularly the Egyptians, Persians and Greeks, it was a
common practice to hold games and festivals, mingled
with religious ceremonies, at that season when the earth
is ready to receive the seed, thus showing the cheerfulness with which the farmers returned to their rustic
toils, and the reliance they placed on a superior Being to
reward them with an abundant harvest. The old festival of Plough Monday in England was probably derived
from  these customs of the ancients, and was formerly
celebrated in all the rural districts with great merrymakings on the Monday following Twelfth Day; some of
the rites observed being not unlike those among the
Chinese; as an instance of which, the plough-light was
set up before the image of some patron saint in the vil



THE PATRIARCHAL AGE IN CHINA.                129
lage church —a custom somewhat similar to that observed
among the Chinese, who placed lighted candles opposite
certain images in their temples.
To  their ancient emperors they impute inventions
which must have been made much farther West and
previous to their existence.
One is said to have been the inventor of writing,
another of musical instruments, a third the discoverer
of the art of working in metals, while a fourth has the
credit of having taught his subjects to build bridges.
Shin-nung was the father of several inventions. His
successor, Hwang-ti, divided all the land into groups of
nine equal squares, of which the middle one was to be
cultivated in common for the benefit of the State.  He
is said, likewise, to have invented the mode of noting
the cycles of sixty years, the foundation of the Chinese
system of chronology.' Other emperors of this semifabulous period are celebrated for their skill in astronomy
and  chronological computations.  But some of these
inventions had in truth been brought from  the plains
of Chaldea.  And it is curious to observe the Chinese at
one extreme of the habitable world retaining the Babylonish sacred number of sixty for the largest division of
time, and ourselves, at the other extreme, applying it to
the smallest-the minutes and seconds.  They, like us,
preserve twelve as a numerical division for hours, though
I According to this system, which seems to have been kept up with great
care and precision, they are now in the seventy-sixth cycle, Th.e year.1863
completed the seventy-fifth; that is, exactly four thousand five hundred years
since the date assumed for a beginning, which would be 2637 B. C. Whatever
theory of chronology we adopt, this must carry us back to an early generation
after the deluge, or into the life of Noah, of whom, a.. has been shown,,they
retain a legendary remembrance.
9




130    THE OLDEST AND THIE NEWEST EMPIRE.
they reckon the hours of light and darkness as but six
each.'
Among the wonderful inventions which there is every
reason to believe originated in China is that of the mariner s compass, which, according to an old tradition, was
invented by the same Hwang-ti to guide him  through
the forests when hunting.  This story may be, and most
probably is, an utter fiction, but it forms a reasonable
ground for supposing that the powers of the magnet
were originally discovered by the Chinese ages before
the Christian era. It appears, however, from modern
research, that although the attractive power of the loadstone has been known to the Chinese from  remote
antiquity, its property of communicating polarity to iron
is for the first time explicitly noticed in a Chinese dictionary which was finished in the first quarter of the
second century of the Christian era.  The Arabs borrowed the invaluable invention from the Chinese, with
whom they then traded, and Europeans borrowed it from
the Arabs during the early Crusades; for it is now universally admitted that Gioja of Amalfi, or whoever
brought it into notice in the West, was only the introducer, and not the inventor, of the magnetic needle.
Gilbert, in his work on the Magnet, asserts directly that
iMarco Polo brought the knowledge of it to Europe about
A. D. 1260.  But it was probably used before his time,
at least east of the Red Sea; and he does not seem to
make mention of it in his own book.
The last two emperors of the line of Fuhi are celebrated, under the names of Yau and Shun, as the wisest
1 HERODOTUS says (lib. ii., ~ 109) that the Greeks obtained the division of the
day into twelve parts from the Babylonians.




TItE PATRIARCHAL AGE IN' CiA.o         131
and best of princes, and have always been held up as
bright examples to all Chinese sovereigns. They are
reckoned among the sages of China, and to them are attributed most of the political institutions by which the
country is even now governed. About this time it is mentioned that the lands were flooded. It was then that Yau
the Great, one of the ministers of Shun, distinguished
himself by draining the lands, which by his means were
again rendered fit for cultivation; and for this eminent
service, added to his wisdom and numerous good qualities, he was appointed by the emperor to succeed him on
the throne, according to the laws of China, by which the
reigning sovereign chooses his successor. Yau, to promote
Shun, set aside his own son. Even at the present day
the choice of the emperor regulates the succession to the
throne, and it is seldom  that the eldest son succeeds in
preference to the rest.  By this time the empire was extended over all the northern provinces as far as the
Yang-tsz-kiang river, not by conquest, but by the establishment of new colonies as the population increased.
The monarchs from time to time bestowed the governmuent of these new settlements on their relatives, so that
there arose by degrees a number of petty kingdoms, each
having its own sovereign, who was dependent on the emperor.  Of the southern part of the country very little
was then known, but it is supposed it had but few inhabitants, and that these were in a state of barbarism.
As time rolled on the country became more populous
and the people more civilized than in earlier days. The
emperors, who succeeded each other without interruption, employed sages to record the principal events that
occurred during their several reigns; but in these early




132    TITE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EXPIRE.
annals much fable is blended with the truth, just as in
the early traditions of the classic nations of Europe; and
yet there is much less that is extravagant and much
more that is designed to convey sound lessons of morality in those of the Chinese.  It is supposed that the earliest authentic history relating to the Chinese empire is
contained in the compilations of Confucius, who was born
in China about five hundred and fifty years before the
Christian era, and who was one of the most illustrious
characters that ever appeared in that country.  He was
nearly contemporary with Herodotus, the father of Grecian history, and Pope has given to him a very lofty
niche in his Temple of Fame:
"Superior and alone Confucius stood,
Who taught that useful science-to be good."
The monarchy had probably then made great progress
in civilization. The people lived under a regular form
of government, were skilled in agriculture and were acquainted with many useful and elegant arts.  The northern part of the country was still divided into the several
small principalities which had been granted by the emperors at different times to their sons and brothers, who
constituted the only hereditary nobility of the State, and
were all tributary to the chief sovereign. Each of these
petty states contained a city, where the prince resided,
and all around it were numerous villages and detached
dwellings inhabited by the peasantry, who held small
farms, which they cultivated for their own advantage,
growing rice and vegetables in abundance, so that every
poor man could support his family by his own industry.
They were not held in bondage by the great, like the




TIlE PATRIARCHAL AGE IN CIIINA.       133
peasantry of Europe during the feudal ages; and amongst
other privileges which they enjoyed were these: a ninth
part of the land was in common amongst them for pasturage and farming, and all the poor were at liberty to
fish in the ponds and lakes-a right which was denied to
the lower orders in feudal countries, where the mass of
the people were vassals and slaves. The peasants of
China, therefore, appear to have been at that period in a
better condition than those of any other part of the world,
working for themselves and paying taxes to their respective princes, who by that means raised the tribute which
the emperor claimed of them.
At the time of Confucius all taxes and tribute were
paid as they are at present, chiefly in kind-usually, as
Mencius, who lived in the next generation, says, to the
amount of about one-tenth of the produce of the earth.
It is, however, supposed there was always some sort of
coined money current among the Chinese, and that at a
very early period of the monarchy they had coins of gold
and silver as well as of lead, iron and copper; but many
ages have elapsed since any other than copper money
has been in use among them. Silver is also used as a
medium of exchange, beaten out into small bars or
pieces, and upon these responsible traders generally put
their stamp in a small character, so that they become in
time particularly ragged and broken. Yet even in these
bits adroit rogues make holes which they fill with lead.
In buying and selling men scrutinize them carefully
and weigh them, being always provided with a small
pair of scales for that purpose. They reckon their accounts by means of an instrument called in the Canton
dialect, the siihn-pn, which resembles the Roman abacus.




134    THE OLDEST AND THE NECREST EXIPIRE.
It consists of a frame across which are fastened thin
rods of bamboo, like the notation tables used in the primary schools of America.  But instead of ten balls, as
with us, the Chinese use seven. A cross-bar divides the
frame, so that the rods have on one side five balls each,
on the other side two each. The two balls on each rod
count, however, five apiece. This makes the process of
counting more rapid and certain.  Commencing at any
convenient rod or row, it counts as units, the second as
tens, the third as hundreds, the fourth as thousands, and
so on. To count five, either the five balls on the lower
side of the units row are pushed up or to the middle
with the finger, or one of the two balls on the other
side of it. Ten is made by the two five balls, or by one
of them  and five of the other balls.  And thus we go
on in each row successively for tens, hundreds or thousands. For. any number between five and ten a five ball
is pushed to the middle and the remainder in single balls
from the other end of the same row. An expert accountant pushes the balls with his fingers as rapidly in
adding or subtracting as a player strikes the keys upon
a piano. It is rarely a mistake is made, and when done
it is never to the disadvantage of the accountant.  The
invention of the siun-pun is attributed to the emperor
Hwang-ti, the same who is said to have found his way
through the forests by means of the compass.  Their
arithmetic, as well as their weights and measures, proceeds universally on the decimal scale; and decimal
fractions are their vulgar fractions, or those in common
use. It is remarkable that the single exception to this
consists in their kin or marketing pound-weight, which,
like ours, is divided into sixteen ounces or parts. This




THE PATiIABROIAL AGE IN CHINTIA.     135
affords another illustration of the common origin of the
Chinese and our own arithmetic and weights and measures in Central Asia. The Roman Catholic missionaries
relate that when the first of them went to China from
Europe they found Persian astronomers at the Chinese
court, who yielded the field to their superior scientific
knowledge. There are still many things in the Chinese
ideas of astronomy which remind us of those of the
ancient Chaldeans.
There were public markets in the towns to which the
people generally resorted about noon; and there were
shops also, where the artisans pursued their various
callings, and sold, or exchanged with the farmers the
produce of their. labors for rice and other commodities
of which they stood in need. Beyond the cultivated
lands were pastures for sheep; and the rest of the
country generally consisted of extensive forests, inhabited by tigers and other beasts of prey, which were so
destructive, especially among the flocks, that great hunting-parties were made every spring for the purpose of
destroying them; and this dangerous sport seems to have
been the favorite amusement of the sovereigns and great
men of the land.
For a long series of years, trade, even with foreign
nations, appears to have been remarkably free. The
markets of China were the resorts of foreign merchants
before the Romans invaded Britain, and her ports were
annually visited by great squadrons of commercial
vessels from the Red sea, the Persian gulf, Ceylon, the
Malabar coast and the, coast of Coromandel.
The principal weapons used both in war and hunting
were bows and arrows, conseqluently the practice of




136    THE OLDEST AN.D THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
archery was a constant and favorite sport of the great,
and there were particular rules by which it was conducted; as, for example, the imperial target was the
skin of a bear, while that of a stag was set up as a mark
for a prince to aim at, and that of a tiger for the grandees of the court. Yet the Chinese have not often during
their long history attempted to enter the lists of the
world as a martial nation, holding literature, as they
have done husbandry, in far higher estimation than military achievements; regarding the man who distinguishes
himself by his literary attainments beyond him who
gained renown by his warlike exploits, and the husbandman who labored in the field as a better member
of society than the soldier who fought in it. Yet the
petty princes were frequently at war with each other,
so that the whole of the empire was seldom quite at
peace.
The education of youth was considered of so' much
importance that every district was obliged by law to
maintain a public school, where boys were sent at eight
years of age to be instructed in reading, writing, arithmetic, and their several duties to parents, teachers,
elders and magistrates, as well as to their equals and
inferiors. They were also taught to commit to memory
a great number of wise maxims and moral sentences
contained in the writings of the ancient sages; and
many of their lessons were in verse, that they might be
the more readily learned and remembered. A new
school was always opened with much ceremony in the
presence of the chief magistrate, who delivered a discourse to the boys, exhorting them to be diligent and
submissive to the master, and setting forth the advan



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THE PATRIARCHAL AGE IN CHINA.       137
tages of learning, which has been, in every age, the only
road to wealth and honors in China. At fifteen, those
who had most distinguished themselves were sent to
higher schools, where public lectures were given by
learned professors on the laws and government of the
empire, and such subjects as were best calculated to fit
them for offices of state, to which those who attended
these schools usually aspired, but which were never
bestowed on any but such as had studied profoundly
and given proofs of their knowledge. Subordination,
submission to the laws, to parents and to all superiors,
and a peaceful demeanor, were strictly inculcated. This
instruction has continued unchanged. "The Chinese,"
says a modern writer, "teach contempt of the rude,
instead of fighting with them; and the man who unreasonably insults another has public opinion against him,
whilst he who bears and despises the affront is esteemed.
A Chinese would stand and reason with a man, when
an Englishman would knock hinm down, or an Italian
stab him. It is needless to say which is the more
rational mode of proceeding."
Among the arts that are held in high estimation
among the Chinese is that of writing, which was known
at so distant a period of their history that it must have
been one of their earliest steps in civilization. This art,
as practiced in China, is rather difficult of attainment,
on account of the number and not very simple formation of the characters; yet it was rare to meet even with
a poor peasant who could not read and write, for rich
and poor were all educated alike, in the manner just
described, which is mentioned as "the ancient system"
in books that were written more than two thousand




138    THE OLDEST AYND THE N~EWEIST EMIPIRE.
years ago. The autographs of distinguished men are
highly prized.
The females of China, from the empress to the wife
of the meanest peasant, practiced the spinning and
weaving of silk; which material, from the earliest times
known, was used for clothing by the poor as well as by
the rich, for the same reason that wool was used by the
ancient English-because it was the material of which
they had the greatest abundance. "When the king of
France," says Barrow, "introduced the luxury of silk
stockings, the peasantry of the middle provinces of
China were clothed in silks from head to foot; and
when the nobility of England were sleeping on straw,
a peasant of China had his mat and his pillow, and the
man in office enjoyed his silken mattress."
The empresses of those days were as zealous in promoting the branches of industry adapted for females by
their own example as were the emperors in encouraging
agriculture by similar means. A plantation of mulberry
trees was formed within the gardens of the palace, and.
a house built purposely for rearing the worms, which
were tended by the ladies of the court and often fed by
the fair hands of royalty. Every autumn a festival was
held to commemorate the invention of silk-weaving,
when the empress, attended by the princesses and ladies
of her train, made sacrifices in the temple of the Earth,
and then proceeded to her mulberry grove, where she
gathered leaves and wound the cocoons of silk, which
were afterward spun and woven by her own hands
into small webs. These were carefully preserved for
the grand spring festival, when they were burned in
sacrifice.




THE PATRIARCHAL AGE IN CHINYA.      139
Great attention was bestowed on the management of
silkworms throughout the whole of the empire; and as
it had been discovered that those which were fed on
mulberry leaves produced a finer kind of silk than the
common worms of the forest, a law was made by one of the
early emperors that every man possessing an estate of
not less than five acres should plant the boundary with
mulberry trees.
The difference between the garments of the higher
and lower orders consisted in the quality and colors of
the silks of which they were composed and the fashion
in which they were made. The robes of the grandees
were often richly embroidered with gold and silver, and
ornamented with various devices, according to their rank
and occupation. The dress of a literary man was ornamented with a bird worked on a square of black silk on
the breast, or with the figure of a tiger or some other animal or design; and these are among the innumerable
customs which have been continued from that time to
the present.
The wars among the princes, and the efforts of some
of them to render themselves independent of the emperor, led to a vast deal of disorderly conduct in the
several states, each petty sovereign being more intent
upon his own aggrandizement than on keeping good
order among his people; who, finding that the affairs of
government were neglected and the laws seldom enforced, paid very little attention to them. Such was
the state of the Chinese empire when the celebrated
philosopher Confucius was born in the kingdom of Lu,
one of the small sovereignties in the north of China.
This event occurred wlhen the ancient Greek republics




140    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
were in all their glory and Rome was just beginning to
rise into power and greatness. The Greeks and Romans,
however, knew little or nothing of China at that time,
nor did the Chinese imagine there was any truly great
empire in the world besides their own; an opinion they
have maintained even until our own days.
But on the other hand it is manifest from the remains
of great, populous and magnificently-built cities which
stretch in a chain from the Mediterranean sea to the
countries now embraced in the Chinese empire, from the
historic legends and philology of the nations existing
there, and from hints in the inspired history which the
holy men of Palestine have given us, that there was kept
up an intercourse by caravans 1 across the continent, and
also by sea between the western and eastern sides of the
continent. The silk, the cassia, the camphor, the broiddered work, the ivory, the porcelain of China, were
known through the ages of the old Jewish dispensation
to the people of India, Central Asia and Phoenicia and
her neighbors. The vessels of Solomon and Hiram,
king of Tyre, sailed two monsoons eastward and two
monsoons back-a period of three years —which connected them at the Indian archipelago with the commerce which in like manner from the beginning of
history has vibrated with the semi-annual monsoon up
and down the China sea. The prophet Isaiah (as has
been shown in a previous chapter) looked with glowing
hope to the time when China, multitudinous and vast,
and potential in Asia, should "come" to the feet of Immanuel as her Prince and Saviour.
1 The most common route is traced by A. H. HEEREN; Historical Researches,
vol. i.; Babylonians, chap. ii., vol. ii.; Appendix xiii., etc.




THIE PA TR IA RCHA L AGE IN CHINA.   141
iWe observe, with strengthened confidence in the government of the Great King over all, the historical fact
that the philosopher whose life mlarks the greatest moral
era of the Chinese people was raised up just at the
period when the Jewish nation was sent into captivity
to Babylon, and when thus from that metropolis of
Asiatic commerce, science and religious ideas there
began to stream forth to the most distant confines of
the continent the light of the clearer revelation of God
and of the promise of a coming Saviour.
The influence of the dispersion of the Jews upon the
literature and religious systems of the remoter East has
long been a subject of the deepest interest. WVe observe
the most distinct marks of it in the fragments of the religion of Zoroaster, the great philosopher of Persia; in
the traditions of Bokhara, Affghanistan and Northern
India; in the apparent hint by Confucius of "'a holy
One in the West;" in the continual pilgrimages of the
Chinese in that direction to inquire for One that was to
come; but still more plainly in the discovery in modern
times of a colony of Jews upon the Yellow river, in the
most populous part of China, whose accounts of themselves prove that they have been there since long before
Christ. They were first brought to light by Semedo
and Martini, Jesuit priests, in the year 1625. Within
the past twenty years they have been visited several
times by Protestant missionaries or Chinese members of
Protestant churches; and some of them in turn have
visited our stations on the coast. Some of their children have been sent to our schools to learn of Him of
whom Moses and the prophets bore witness. Of late
years they have become very poor, ceased some of




142    STHE OLDEST AND THiE  E,WEST E3lIPIRE.
their ancient observances, and seem prepared for a
change.
It is calculated to fill the soul of the thoughtful student of God's ways among the nations of the earth with
awe and reverence to mark, inscribed upon the walls
and tablets amidst the ancient temples upon the great
river of the north, the grand and solemn declaration:' HEAR,   0 ISRAEL!  THE LORD OUR GOD IS ONE
LORD.
" BLESSED BE THE NAME OF HIS GLORIOUS KINGDOM
FOR EVER AND EVER."5
Or elsewhere these words:
" UNSEARCHABLE IS His NAME; FOR JEHOVAH IS THE
GOD OF GODS."
What a. verse is the following in the Chinese, to meet
the eyes of the worshipers of idols!"Raise thine eyes to Heaven, the source of creation;
Canst thou refuse to render solemn praise?
Or, bowing before the Lord of eternal life,
Should'st thou not come with clean body and a pure heart?'"
At what time this Jewish colony reached the city of
Kai-fung, where now they reside, their traditions do not
mention.  No doubt they were one of many that were
either pushed forth by the oppressions of the Persians
or attracted by the fame of the wealth and grandeur of
China, and were distributed at various times into different portions of what are now the territories or provinces
of the Chinese empire.  This colony seems to have
known nothing of the fact of the advent and atonement
of Christ or of the destruction of Jerusalem.  They
"t ate not of the sinew which shrank, which is upon the
hollow of the thigh, unto this day; because God touched




TIIE PATRIARCHAL AGE IN CHIITA.     143
the hollow of Jacob's thigh in the sinew that shrank."1
They have always kept the passover; and it is only
within two centuries past that they have neglected to
circumcise their children. Large portions of the Old
Testament in Hebrew, written with the Masoretic points,
have been obtained from their rabbis.
It seems to have been a part of the purpose of the
great Governor of nations in the " captivity in Babylon"
that the Jews should be dispersed over the East as witnesses of the approaching kingdom of his Son. In all
the "hundred and twenty and seven provinces" of the
empire, "from India even unto Ethiopia," " to the rulers
of every people of every province, according to the
writing thereof, and to every people after their language,
in the name of King Ahasuerus," were written the wonderful works of the Almighty. And before any distinct
colonies of the Jews could have made their homes in
China some knowledge of them must have been carrie4
thither. A remarkable evidence of the expectations of
the Jews of Palestine and Egypt in regard to the return
of their brethren then in China, and of the conversion
of that nation to the Messiah, it is probable may be seen
in the Septuagint translation of the Scriptures. In that
version, made in Egypt at the desire of King Ptolemy
Philadelphus, nearly three centuries before Christ, by
seventy of the most learned Jews, the words, "'These
shall comie from the land of Sinim," which modern enlightened criticism supposes means China, and which they
knew most probably did so mean, they chose to render
into the Greek by the substitute, " These shall come from
the land of the Persians." Their purpose seems to have
1 Gen. xxxii. 32.




144    TEIE OLDEST AN4D MTE NE}WEST EMPIRE.
been to include the remotest East, all of which the Persians claimed as their possessions, and to signify that, as
some of their brethren were known to have been driven
to that distant empire by the God of all the earth, so
thence also would He, according to his promise, bring
them finally back again.
The age of Confucius was the great turning-point in
Chinese history. lie was to Eastern Asia what Luther
was to Westerln Europe —the great harbinger of the departure of an old, corrupt and iron age, and of the advent
of a new, thinking, progressive, silver age. Or we might
compare the new era of Chinese history from the beginning of the Han dynasty (249 B. C.) to that of the
Roman empire in the Augustan age.
These statements seem necessary as preliminary to
some account of Confucius himself.
The proper name of this greatest philosopher of the
Oriental world was Kung Chung-ni, the first, according
to the Chinese order, being the family name. He is
popularly styled Iung Fu-tsz; the last word is a title
which we may translate " doctor," or "professor." The
French missionaries have given us the Latin form of this
title, Confucius. He was born about 550 B. C., and was
nearly contemporaneous with the Jewish prophet Daniel.
He was the only son of a lady of illustrious family, if
not of royal rank. His father, who had several other
sons by another wife, held a high government employment, but dying some three years after his birth, seems
to have left the future philosopher very indifferently
provided for. He was a native of what is now Shantung, in the north-east corner of the empire, the province
where he grew up. In his nineteenth year he married,




THE PATRIARCHAL AGE IN CHINA.         145
but divorced his wife after she had borne him a son.
The Chinese tell marvelous stories of his love of study
when a child and of his early proficiency. They also
record a little fact which may interest phrenologistsnamely, that Confucius' head was remarkable for the
elevation of its crown.
His object in acquiring knowledge was to turn it to
the purposes of moral reform and good government.
When he thought himself sufficiently qualified to instruct the age in which he lived, he quitted his solitude
for populous cities and the courts of princes and rulers.
China was not then united and governed by one emperor
as now. When Confucius began his mission there were
many independent kings. The Chinese were not then
more pacific than the rest of mankind. King warred
against king, and every part of the Celestial Empire was
in its turn deluged with blood. Not long before the
birth of the philosophical reformer the horrors of internal war had been increased by some of the belligerents
calling in the foreign aid of the Tartars, but at the period when he commenced his travels a powerful international confederacy had been formed, and China was
comparatively tranquil.
He made a progress through the different states, giving public lectures on the benefit of virtue and social
order, which produced such good effects that in a short
time he was at the head of about three thousand disciples, who were converts to his doctrines and practiced
the rules he laid down for their conduct. His fame increased with his years. He now visited the different
princes, and endeavored to prevail upon them to establish a wise and peaceful administration. in. their respect7s
10




146    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
ive territories. His wisdom and birth recommended him
to the patronage of the kings; he was anxious to apply
his theory to practical government, but he had to learn
by sad experience that his designs must frequently be
thwarted. After many changes and disappointments, he
became prime minister in his native country, Lu, when
fifty-five years of age. By his influence and his prudent
measures the state of the kingdom underwent a thorough
change within the space of three years. It is said that
while he continued in power justice was so well administered that if gold or jewels were dropped on the highway they would remain untouched until the rightful
owner appeared to claim them. But the corrupt influences communicated from the neighboring kingdom of
Tsi were the means of staying the progress of reformation, and at length of compelling the departure of
Confucius.
He was repulsed at three different courts to which he
applied for office in order that he might improve the
morals of the people; and after many other wanderings
and disappointments he went into the kingdom of Chin,
where he spent some time in grief. From Chin he went
again to Lu, and vainly solicited to be re-employed in
the government of that state.  Meanwhile, war had
again broken out among the rival kingdoms. Not being
able to rule, or to make people virtuous, peaceful and
happy, Confucius devoted himself entirely to philosophy,
and the composition of those works which have rendered
his name immortal, and the precepts of which, even to
this day, regulate bath the government and the religion
of the state. His system perhaps may be more properly
termed one of morality than of religion, as it is intended to




TidE PATRIARCHIAL AGE IN CHINA.       147
inculcate the duties of men toward each other, rather
than those which they owe to a superior being. The
Confucians speak of Heaven as supreme, which, if it
nsean the great Creator, does so only in a vague and impersonal sense, and they adore the earth as the mother
of all things; but they have no regular priesthood, their
religious rites consisting solely of sacrifices made in
the temples on stated occasions, when the emperor officiates as high priest and the chief officials of the court
as his subordinates. The reformation in which Confucius was the prime mover consisted mainly in the new
force given to the idea of the parental relation, in founding firmly upon this theory the whole structure of the
government, and in the higher and purer motives infused
into the mutual obligations of society and into the acts
of religion. The books of Confucius, which are universally studied by the Chinese as sacred volumes, teach
them that the true principles of virtue and social order
are, obedience to parents, and so representatively to
elders and rulers; and the not acting toward others as
they would wish that others should not act toward them.
In the works of this great moralist the duties of the
sovereign are as strictly laid down as those of his subjects; and while they are enjoined to obey him  as a
father, he is exhorted to take care of them as though
they were his children. There was nothing absolutely
new in this patriarchal system of government, which had
existed from the very beginning of the monarchy; but
it was brought into a more perfect form, and the mutual
obligations of princes and people were more clearly
defined than they had ever been before. But it wasanot
only on the government of the empire collectively that




148    THE, OLDEST AND THE,NEWEST EMXPIRE.
this celebrated teacher bestowed his attention; he also
stated laws for private families, founded on the same
principle of obedience from the younger to the elder
and submission from the inferior to the superior.  Indeed, all classes of persons, including even young children, were instructed in the duties of their several
stations. Through his rigid principles, and firm, uncom-.
promising practice  of them, the philosopher gained
many enemies.  His life was more than once in danger,
but he looked at death with a calm, philosophic eye.
Mr. Gutzlaff has thus described the last scene of his
life: "When he was sick he did not wish that any should
pray for him, because he had himself prayed.  Whilst
approaching his end he deeply deplored the wretched
state of his country.  His great regret was that his
maxims were rejected. He exclaimed,'I am no longer
useful on earth; it is necessary that I should leave it.'
Having said this, he died, in his seventy-third year.
His sepulchre was erected on the banks of the Su river,
where some of his disciples, repairing to the spot,
deplored the loss of their master."
The envy and hatred of his contemporaries soon
passed away, and his disciples succeeded in erecting
Confucius and his philosophy as the great objects of
national veneration.  When the empire was amalgamated and peace restored, his works, which had largely
contributed to that happy issue, were looked upon as of
paramount authority, and to mutilate or in any way to
alter their sense was held a crime deserving of condigl
punishment. Unfortunately, however, the brevity and
obscurity of the language rendered alterations and mistakes of the sense numerous and inevitable. Though




THE PATI.EARCHAL AGE ILN CHINAo.      149
he had been left to conclude his life in poverty and
neglect, the greatest honors and privileges were heaped
upon his descendants, who still exist, and may be called
the only hereditary nobility of China. In all the revolutions that have happened their privileges have been
respected; every male of them holds by birth an honorary rank, and they are all exempted from the payment
of taxes.
The writings of Confucius are chiefly on the subject
of moral philosophy; but there are among them two
books which may be considered historical-the one relating to his own, and the other to more ancient times.
From the former-the Chun-tsiu, literally "' Spring and
Autumn," or "Annals "-is gathered all that is known of
the state of the country at that period. The latter is regarded more as traditionary than as historical, for it is
supposed to be merely a collection and arrangement of
the records kept at the courts of the early monarchs by
their historians; this is the Shu-king, or " Book of History." The Shi-king, or "Book of Odes," contains ancient
poems and songs, which used to be sung or recited before the emperors, the compositions of patriotic bards
who celebrated in verse the great and good actions of
the heroes and sages.  These traditional poems were
collected and revised by Confucius, who formed them
into a volume, which is still one of the standard works
of the Chinese, and must be studied by all who aspire to
preferment, as it forms the subject of a part of their examination ere they can be admitted as candidates for any
high office.  The same great man formed into a ritual
all the ancient observances, both in public and private
life, being of opinion that the preservation of order in a




150    THEY OLDEST AND THE NEWTEST EMlPIRE.
state depended much upon the outward forms of society
in general. This "Book of Rites" regulates the ceremonial observances of the whole community, from the
emperor to the most obscure of his subjects, and it has
maintained its influence from that time to the present in
forming the manners of the people. The study of this
book constitutes an important branch of the education
of every Chinese. Confucius spent the whole of his
long life in the practice and teaching of virtue. Two
thousand four hundred years have elapsed since his
death, and yet his name continues to be held in as much
veneration as ever throughout the Chinese empire; and
although he did not pretend to divine inspiration like
Mohammed, or profess to be endowed with more tha'n
human attributes, he is worshiped as a superior being,
and many temples are dedicated to him in all the provinces of China. The learned and refined are, however,
careful to distinguish the worship which they render to
Confucius from that offered by the common people to
the Buddhist and other idols. They never employ in it
an image or picture of the philosopher, but write his
name, with some eulogistic titles, as the "most holy" or
"' wise," on a tablet of wood several inches in length and a
third as wide, and before that present their oblations and
bow  themselves to the earth. The Jesuits in China
maintained long and bitter discussions with the Dominicans and some other missionaries in behalf of the permission of the worship to Confucius among their converts. They were willing to sanction it because it procured them the favor of the learned and powerful class
of the empire, and also the worship of ancestors, which was
most deeply rooted in the hearts of the whole people.




THIE PA TiIA RCIIAL AGE IN CHINA.      151
Thle Tibetan, the Buddhist and other idolatries have
divided influence with the system of Confucius, but have
never overthrown its empire.  All classes, from the emperor on the throne to the poor mariner on board the
junk, burn gilt paper and offer sacrifices to wooden idols,
practice incantations and offer up prayers to countless
false gods, but at the same time they revere the name of
Confucius, and the more enlightened of the nation pretend to be chiefly guided by his merely philosophical
dictates.  The mass of his laws and instructions is still
followed to the letter by Chinese, Japanese, Coreans,
Cochin-Chinese and other people, who, taken collectively, will probably exceed five hundred millions of
souls.
If Christianity had nothing else in its favor than the
elevation of the female condition and character, it ought
to be revered as the purest and best of faiths.  Confucius, like other Eastern lawgivers that preceded or followed him, has said little that is designed to elevate
woman, or to inspire in man proper sentiments with regard to her position and influence in society. The
worthy Protestant missionary, Gutzlaff, remarks, "We
regret to say that he treats women and the duties of
husbands toward their wives very slightly.  By not
giving a proper rank in society to females-by denying
to them  the privileges which are their due as sisters,
mothers, wives and daughters, the more sensitive and
devoted part of our kind —he has marred the harmony
of social life and put a barrier against the improvement
of society."
There was something in the system of Confucius calculated to carry the Chinese to a pitch of learning and




152    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMISPIRE.
civilization beyond the other nations of Eastern Asia.
After the fall of the Roman empire, and when all
Europe was involved in the darkness of the Middle
Ages, China might be considered as the greatest and
most civilized kingdom upon earth. But, one by one,
all the countries in the West awoke to a second dawn,
and they have generally continued to improve ever since,
while China has remained comparatively stationary.
The peculiarity and difficulty of the language of the
Chinese; the geographical situation of their country;
the fact that for many centuries their neighbors and the
only people they had frequent intercourse with were
rude barbarians, that could suggest no improvement
and no comparison, except such as was most flattering
to themselves, have further tended to make them remain
perfectly satisfied with the state of excellence in civil
polity, arts and literature at which they had arrived, and
to produce their past inflexible and self-complacent attachment to the ideas of ancient times. But a change is
coming over the empire since it has been humbled by
the late foreign wars, and since the light of Western religion and science has begun to penetrate it, which it
will be our place to exhibit in another portion of the
present volume.




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CHAPTER VI.
THE AUGUSTAN AGE IN CHINA.
THE Augustan age of IRome was the period of her
greatest power and renown. It was the boast of her
people then that her armies had conquered the world.
The Christian Church is accustomed to regard the extension of the dominion of Rome over the nations as
one principal preparation for the coming of the Messiah
and the universal preaching of the gospel. This is no
doubt true. But it is a remarkable evidence of man's
limited knowledge of the providence of the Most High
that there was at the same period an empire equally extended and powerful upon the opposite side of the globe.
The simultaneous existence of these empires, each so
little acquainted with the other, is like that wonder of
the heavens created by the moon's revolving round the
earth in exactly the same time in which it revolves upon
its own axis, so presenting to the gaze of the human race
from age to age precisely the same surface. The opposite side of our satellite is as well lighted by the sun,
and no doubt corresponds with that which we look upon
in its physical character. But if it be peopled by any
intelligent beings, they have never yet seen, from any
of those opposite lands, the great world around which
153




154    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
they unconsciously revolve. Nor, on the other hand,
has any inhabitant of our earth ever beheld that mysterious hemisphere of theirs which is turned so constantly away from us.
And so it seems to hlave been with much of the history of our world, which has moved on from age to age,
the one and the other of its two great sides each
knowing so little of that which was opposite. The side
which we see is what lies westward of the region where
man was created, where revelation was bestowed and
where Jesus Christ died. Westward  the course of
empire has moved for us. But there is another side of
the globe whither at least equal colonies of mankind at
first advanced; where God's providence has been full as
beneficent; where some of his moral precepts have been
on the whole better kept; where he as mightily prepared the way for the manifestation of the knowledge
of his Son; where it is not improbable the preaching of
the apostles was originally as successful; and where,
though, as in many portions of Europe and America,
the truth has been forgotten, yet there is reason to believe the triumphs of the kingdom of the Messiah will
be as glorious as we anticipate they will be amidst the
nations of the West.
We read of the preparation of the world for the
advent of the Saviour by the extension of the Greek
and Roman empires, and their influence upon the civilization of the West; but it is not observed by historians
that the preparation of the East for the same event was
as distinct and complete. It is not within the scope of
the present volume to trace this parallel at length. But
we are at a point where it may be mentioned, and where




IItE AUGUSTAN AGE IN CGHINA.        155
a few of the more remarkable particulars may be grouped
together.
As the Greeks spread over the West a "wisdom"
which prepared it for the "power" of the Romans, so
the philosophy of Confucius, who wonderfully resembled Socrates in many respects, prepared China for the
conquests of the Han dynasty. The Punic wars and the
downfall of Carthage in the third century before Christ
were an advance toward the consolidation of society and
the formation of the imperial power; and at the same
period we see the states of China first united in one great
empire. Civil wars had prevailed in each of these two
portions of the world. Peace reigned, it is commonly
said, just at the birth of Christ, so that, as a sign of it,
at Rome the temple of Janus was shut. In China it is
remarkable that the name of the monarch who sat upon
the throne was Ping-ti, which means the emperor, or
prince, of peace. In the West, the magi of Persia,
moved by the universal expectation, went westward to
seek the new-born King. In China, within the same
century, a royal commission was sent toward the same
quarter to inquire for "a holy One" that was to arise;
and this was the sad occasion of the introduction of
Buddhism, whose priests imposed upon the members
of it the statement that the religious founder of the
sect-a Hindh prince —was the one whose doctrines
would satisfy their spiritual longings.
The founder of the first general dynasty, which dates
from the year 249 B. C., was Chi Hwang-ti. He had
been a prince or king of the Tsin, a powerful state in
the north-west. He conquered the neighboring states in
succession, and at length established his dominion over




156    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
the most of the territory now embraced in the empire
proper. The name Tsin was given to the very brief but
memorable dynasty which he established.
When Chi Hwang-ti had subdued all the petty
princes, he turned his arms against the Tartars, who
had become very troublesome neighbors, making frequent
hostile incursions into the Chinese territories. They were
portions of the same general people who in European
history are called Huns and Turks. They consisted of
numerous tribes, who wandered about the barren plains
of Central Asia, living partly by hunting and partly by
plunder; and as they were a much more warlike people
than the Chinese, they were enemies very greatly to be
dreaded. The emperor therefore devised a plan to keep
off their invasions by erecting a wall along the whole
extent of the northern frontier, of such a height, thickness and solidity as to be proof against any attempts
which might be made either to scale or to effect a breach
in it.
In order to obtain a sufficient number of workmen for
so vast an undertaking as the building of the Great
Wall, the emperor ordered that every third laboring
man throughout the empire should be compelled to enter
his service, and they were forced to labor like slaves,
without receiving any compensation beyond a bare supply of food. The wall extended fifteen hundred miles,
from the gulf of Liau-tung, an arm of the Yellow sea,
to the most western province of Kansuh. It was carried
over the highest mountains, through the deepest valleys,
and, by means of arches, across the rivers. Its breadth
was sufficient to allow of six horsemen riding abreast on
its summit, and it was fortified by strong towers, built at




TIlE A UGUSTAN AGE IN CHINA.        157
short distances apart, in which guards were stationed.
The exterior was formed of stone and brickwork of the
most solid construction, which was filled in with earth,
so as to render it'impenetrable; and the whole was finished in the short space of five years.
Such is the account generally given of the Great Wall
of China, which has now stood for two thousand years,
and has been regarded as one of the wonders of the
world. Dr. Johnson was accustomed to say of it that it
would be an honor to any man to be able to say that his
grandfather had seen the Great Wall of China. Lord
Macartney exclaimed on seeing it that it was certainly
the most stupendous work of human hands, and he
rationally concluded that at the remote period of its
building, China must have been a very powerful and
civilized empire. Mr. Barrow, who saw it with Lord
AMacartney, went into some amusing calculations as to
the quantity of materials it contains. According to his
account, all the materials of all the dwelling-houses of
England and Scotland, supposing them at that period
(the end of the last century) to amount to 1,800,000,
and to average 2000 cubic feet of brickwork or masonry,
would be barely equivalent to the bulk of the wall,
without taking in its fortresses and towers, which he
calculated contained as much masonry and brickwork as
all London did at that time. The eastern termination
of the wall has been often visited by foreign vessels since
the treaty of Tien-tsin and the opening of the port of
Niu-chwang, to the north of it, to trade with us. The
descriptions of it corroborate the accounts of it by previous travelers. Stupendous as was the work, we shall
presently see that it failed in its object.




158    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWiEST EMPIRE.
Chi Hwang-ti, a title which literally signifies the " first
emperor," seems to have been extremely ambitious of
fame; for although he had rendered his name immortal
by the work just described, he aspired to still higher
renown, and even entertained the vain-glorious desire
that his name should be handed down to posterity as the
founder of the Chinese monarchy. But there was a
great obstacle to the attainment of this end which none
but the veriest tyrant would have thought of removing;
and that was the existence of a vast number of books
wherein might be read the histories of those who had
reigned before him. The emperor, however, was one of
those who would sacrifice everything  which stands
between them and the object on which they have set
their hearts; therefore he issued a peremptory order
that all books and writings of every description should
be collected and burned by the magistrates of each district throughout the whole empire; and the decree was
so strictly enforced that many literary men were put to
death for being detected in attempts to save valuable
records.
But the tyrant whose mischievous ambition had
tempted him to commit such an act of madness missed
the end he had in view; for, in spite of all his precautions, several copies of the works of Confucius and some
other eminent authors were hidden behind the walls and
under the floors of different houses, where they remained
until the death of the emperor rendered it safe to bring
them again to light.
It is somewhere related of this same prince that when
dying he commanded that his favorite wife and a number of slaves should be buried with him. This dreadful




THE AUGUSTAN AGE IN CHINA.          159
custom had existed in the barbarous ages, and was common among the Tartars and Hindus, not only at the
death of princes, but also at those of all classes of the
people, from a superstitious belief that the wives and
domestics thus interred would pass with the deceased
into the next world and be ready to attend upon him
there. With the same idea the Chinese used in latter
times to bury clothes, furniture, and even food, for the
use of the departed, with a number of effigies in the
likeness of slaves; and this custom has been continued
down to the present time —with this difference, that most
of the articles now sacrificed are made of paper; millions of bundles being consumed annually in these
superstitious rites. The revolting practice of immolating
human beings had, however, been so long out of date
that it is mentioned in reference to this period as a relic
of the barbarism of distant ages.
Chi Hwang-ti appointed his eldest son to succeed him;
a case of rare occurrence. The custom of bestowing
territories on the princes of the royal family was abolished by Chi Hwang-ti, who saw that these petty
sovereignties were sure to occasion civil warfare. He
therefore provided for his family by giving to each of
his immediate male relatives a palace in one of the great
cities, with a suitable maintenance, and the privilege of
wearing yellow, which was then, as it is now, the imperial
color, and, as a distinctive mark of rank, is highly valued.
A yellow girdle has a greater degree of importance in
China than a blue ribbon in Europe. It is always a sign
that the wearer is nearly related to the emperor. The
prince chosen by Chi Hwang-ti as his successor happening to be absent at the time of his father's death, a younger




160    THE OLDEST AND TI-IE NET WVEST EIMPIRE.
son took advantage of the circumstance to seize on the
sovereignty, and contrived to have his brother secretly
strangled.  But the usurper did not long enjoy the
fruits of his crime, for he made himself so unpopular by
neglecting the affairs of the state and attending to nothing
but his own pleasures, that a formidable insurrection
broke out in the country, headed by the chief of a band
of freebooters, named Liu-pang, a man distinguished by
many noble qualities, although he was no better than a
robber.  It is related of this adventurer that just after
the breaking out of the rebellion he happened to meet a
fortune-teller on the road, who, falling at his feet, said
he offered him this mark of homage because he saw by
the lines in his face that he was destined shortly to become emperor.  In making this prediction the soothsayer no doubt foresaw the probability of its accomplishment, for it was not an unlikely termination of the
rebellion that the leader, if successful, should be placed
on the throne; with this belief, therefore, the stranger
followed up his prophecy by offering his only daughter
in marriage to the chief. Liu-pang accepted the proposal and married the lady, who was thus, by her
father's artifice, raised to the dignity of empress; for,
after many scenes of violence and bloodshed, in which
the lawful emperor lost his life, the insurgents were victorious and their leader was raised to the imperial
throne.
The new sovereign was a native of the kingdom of
Han, one of those small states into which the. empire
had formerly been divided; therefore he is called the
founder of the Han dynasty. The princes of his race
occupied the throne for more than four centuries. The




THE AUGeUSTAN AGE IN CHINA.         161
first of the race obtained the sovereignty two hundred
and two years before the Christian era, and commenced
one of the most celebrated periods of Chinese history.
In spite of the Great Wall, the Tartars continued their
predatory warfare, and sorely disquieted the more polished and peaceful Chinese, who vainly attempted to
propitiate them with alliances and tribute. The first
emperors of this race endeavored to make friends of the
great Tartar chiefs by giving them their daughters in
marriage. A native historian of the period exclaims:
"Our disgrace could not be exceeded: from this time
China lost her honor!"  In the reign of Yuen-ti, the
ninth emperor, the Tartars having been provoked by
the punishment inflicted by the Chinese on two of their
chiefs, who had transgressed the boundaries of the Great
Wall while engaged in hunting, the empire was again
invaded by the "erratic nations," and a princess was
demanded and yielded in marriage. These incidents
form the subject of one of the hundred plays of Yuen, an
English version of which was printed in London under
the name of the " Sorrows of Han." The impolitic system of buying off the barbarians, which commenced thus
early, led many centuries afterward to the total overthrow of the empire by the Tartars.
During this period, however, the Chinese made very
important advances in civilization. The arts and sciences
were improved, literature was encouraged, agriculture
was in a progressive state, and several useful inventions
date their origin from the same era. Among the latter,
one of the most important is the manufacture of paper,
which is supposed to have been commenced toward the
end of the first century. The Egyptians had long pos.
11




162    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EM1IPIRE.
sessed the art of making paper from the rush called
papyrus, which was also used at Rome for the same
purpose in the first century; but that the Chinese obtained their knowledge from either Rome or Egypt may
well be doubted. Before they were acquainted with this
useful art they were accustomed to write on thin slips of
bamboo, not with ink, but with pointed tools, similar to
those used by engravers, with which they cut or engraved
the characters. Books were formed of bamboo by taking
off the outside bark, and cutting it into thin sheets, all
of the same shape and size; which, after the writing was
finished, were strung together in such a manner as to
form  a compact, though rather clumsy, volume. At
length, about the year of our era 95, it was ascertained,
by what means does not appear, that bamboo might be
made into a better material for writing upon than it furnished in its natural state, by pounding it in a mortar
with water until it became a thin paste, which, being
spread out on a flat surface, was dried into what we call
paper. The earliest specimens of this new art in China
were probably of a very rough description, but the
manufacture was gradually improved by the mixture of
silk and other materials, until the Chinese were able to
produce a paper of the most beautiful texture, adapted
for printing, which we now call India paper, and another
kind for painting, known by the name of rice paper.
The history of paper, as we now possess it in Europe
and America, is curious. The Tartars borrowed the art
from their neighbors, substituting cotton, which abounded
in their country, for the bamboo. At the commencemnent of the eighth century, when the conquests of the
Arabs carried them to Samlarkand, in the heart of the




THE AUG UST AN AGE IN COHIkVA        163
Scythian wilds, they found the manufacture of cotton
paper established there.  The Arabs learned the art
from the Tartars, as the Tartars had learned it from the
Chinese, and in their turn substituted linen for cotton.
To the Arabs, therefore, we are indebted for the inestimable article or paper made from linen; but whether
the art of making it was introduced by the Italians of
Venice, Gaeta and Amalfi, who, during the eighth, ninth
and tenth centuries kept up a constant commercial intercourse with Syria and Egypt, or whether the Saracens
(Arabs under another name), who conquered Spain in
the early part of the eighth century, made known the
manufacture in that country, has not, as yet, been clearly
ascertained.  Mr. Mills reasonably supposes that the
flourishing linen manufactories at Valencia suggested
the idea of the substitution of linen for cotton in that
part of Europe, as the cotton manufactories at Samarkand induced the Tartars to employ cotton instead of
bamboo.
The invention of paper naturally leads to that of ink,
which in China is always made in those cakes which are
imported by the merchants of Western countries under
the name of Indian ink; it is used with the camel's-hair
pencils for writing by the Chinese, who do not require
such pens as ours in the formation of their hieroglyphical characters.
Most of the princes of the Han dynasty were munificent patrons of learning; they bestowed the highest dignities on men of literary fame, and thus learning, as in
earlier times, continued to be the only sure road to wealth
and honors.  Nobility was not hereditary except in the
imperial family, but depended entirely on personal merit;




164     THE OLDEST A1D) THE NTEWEST EMPIE.
and as it was always bestowed by the emperor, so it could
be taken away at his pleasure. Thus the nobles, or
highest class of mandarins in China, are not necessarily
persons of high birth, but are men of learning, who must
have passed a public examination with credit before they
can aspire to rank and office in the state.  This peculiar
constitution of the government of China has continued
down to the present time.
Under the Han dynasty lands were, for the first time,
frequently bestowed on men of rank, with people to cultivate them, who were bound to the soil and were to a
certain extent slaves: but it is not very clear how far
the authority of their masters extended, how large a
portion of the peasantry was thus held in vassalage, or
how long the system continued. There are a few slaves
in China at the present time.  They are not, however,
people of other races or countries. It is a mild servitude, like that among the Hebrews, which is sometimes
entered into voluntarily by debtors or persons in distress through famine or other calamities. Poor parents
often sell their children.  The absurd stories that rich
capitalists bring slaves to the mines in California are
without foundation; they arise from the custom of
forming " companies"9 or associations for their mutual
benefit.
Reference has already been made to the extraordinary
commission' of the emperor Ming-ti in the year 65 A. D.,
while several of the apostles were yet living and preaching in various parts of the continent of Asia, in search
of further light as to some new religion, of which he'It is said to have consisted of eighteen officers of state, with a prince of
Chu, the brother of the emperor, as the head,




THE AUGUSTAN AGE IN OILYA.          165
had heard, and which it is far from  impossible was
Christianity.  Eusebius, the historian  of the early
Church, says that to Thomas was allotted Parthia, and
to Andrew, Scythia. These names were each commonly
applied to Northern and Eastern Asia. And traces of
their primitive labors yet remain in some parts of the
East. The counsels of Heaven alone can solve the reason why China was allowed to remain in the darkness
of heathenism, while the gospel preached in the West
was efficacious in converting multitudes and became the
religion of its nations.
Some account of Buddhism will here be interesting.
One of its leading doctrines was, and is, that of metempsychosis or transmigration of souls; according to which
the Buddhists believe that the soul quits one corporeal
frame to animate another, not necessarily of the human
species; for that reason a Buddhist is forbidden by the
laws of his creed to destroy animal life in any shape.
When Buddha died, his followers believed that he was
transformed into the god Fuh, by which name he is
also worshiped; and is said to have passed through one
great incarnation, is now in another, and another will
take place in the future. These they usually represent
in their temples by three great gilded idols, which they
term the three precious Buddhas.
The Buddhist priesthood dwell together in communities in the manner of monks, subsisting chiefly upon
alms, like those of the Roman and other churches.
The head of this religion in Tibet, who holds the same
rank among the votaries of Buddhism there, at least, as
the Pope does among those of the Roman Church, is
called the Grand Lama. He resides with much state in




166    THE OLDEST AND THi3rE NEWEST EMIPTREi
Tibet, and is supposed to be immortal; for when he
dies, it is given out that his soul has passed into the
body of some infant, whom  the priests pretend to
identify by certain signs, and who is brought up in the
belief that the same spirit which animated the form of
his predecessor exists within himself. Thus the office
of Grand Lama always commences with infancy and lasts
till the close of life. There are a great many female devotees belonging to this faith, who live like nuns secluded
from the world, and never marry; but they are not so
numerous in China as in Tibet, Japan and Tartary.
The Buddhists have five prohibitory commandments,
which they strictly observe. These are-" Not to destroy animal life; not to steal; not to speak falsely; not
to drink wine; and that the priests or bonzes shall not
marry."  Their belief as to their final state is, that after
having passed through a certain term of probation upon
this earth under various forms, they shall at length be
received into the paradise of Buddha and partake of his
divine nature.
Some of the Chinese sovereigns adopted this faith,
while others encouraged the sect of Tau, "Reason," a
native system, the founder of which was Lau-tsz, a contemporary of Confucius. The Tauists might be called
magicians rather than a sect of philosophy or religion.
Among those who favored them was Wu-ti, one of the
early emperors of the Han dynasty, a prince who was
famed for many virtues, but was strongly addicted to the
belief in magic, and maintained a number of the Tauist
priests at his court, who were constantly engaged in
studies which he was credulous enough to believe would
lead at last to the discovery of the elixir of life, a




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THE AUG USTAN AGE IN CHIIVA.       167
draught of which he was extremely anxious to taste.
In this hope he was continually supplying the sages
with large sums of money to enable them to procure the
rare ingredients for making the wonderful liquid, some
of which they pretended were hidden in remote corners
of the earth, and only to be obtained with great difficulty and by the aid of magic.
In vain did the ministers remonstrate with him on the
folly of squandering the public money in such idle pursuits. He turned a deaf ear to their exhortations, and
gave his whole attention to the Tauists and their experiments. At length it was announced that the coveted
draught was really prepared, and the chief priest was
deputed to convey it in a golden cup to his royal patron;
when, in crossing the great hall of the palace, one of the
ministers, feigning a desire to look closely at so miraculous a compound, suddenly snatched the cup from the
hands of the astonished priest and drank off its contents.
The enraged and disappointed emperor ordered that the
offender should instantly lose his head; a consequence
that had been foreseen by the daring courtier, who had
provided himself with a very clever defence. "0 most
mighty prince!" said he, "how is it possible for thy
commands to deprive me of life, if the potion I have
just swallowed has really the power ascribed to it?
Then make the trial; I willingly submit to the test; but
remember, that if I die, thy system must be a false one,
and in that case my poor life will have been well bestowed in convincing my prince of his error."  The
monarch pondered on these words for a few moments,.
and then pardoned the offender; not so much, perhaps,
from motives of clemency as from reluctance to be un



168    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
deceived, or to let the world into the secret of his credulity; so that it is evident he began to waver in the faith
he had professed. The Tauists were engaged in other
researches no less chimerical than that of finding means
of prolonging human life beyond its natural time, and
many of them spent the greater part of their lives in the
search after th.e philosopher's stone. Yet we need not
wonder at the folly and credulity of the Chinese princes
in bestowing attention on such fruitless speculations so
early as the first century, when we find the most profound scholars of Europe thirteen hundred years later
engaged in the same visionary pursuits; and may read
of one of the German emperors at the beginning of the
seventeenth century neglecting the affairs of the state to
shut himself up with the alchemists whom he maintained
at his court, assisting them in their experiments, and expecting that they would at length discover the two great
secrets which would bestow on him the gifts of endless
life and inexhaustible riches.
The reign of Hwan-ti is memorable on account of a
Roman embassy which reached China, according to the
histories of that period, in the year 166 A.D. The fact
of this intercourse makes more probable the brief assertions of the preaching of Christianity in those distant
regions. The Romans are said to have come part of
the way by sea, part by land, through Cochin-China.
They are spoken of by the Chinese as remarkable for
their wealth and for their integrity and honesty. It is
interesting to remark also that accounts of Rome exist
which seem to have been furnished by Chinese who
visited that city about the same period, and even earlier,
since they refer to the election of consuls by the people




THE AUG USTAN A GE IN CHINA.        169
themselves. The Chinese armies conquered during the
Han dynasty the countries to the west and south of the
empire, which have paid them tribute until now. One
general is said to have reached the Caspian sea.
Toward the close of the second century the power of
the Han dynasty began to decline. Some of the princes
were weak, others wicked; the eunuchs of the palace
fomented discord; and at length a formidable insurrection broke out, called "The Revolt of the Yellow
Caps"-a cap of that color being the badge of the
disaffected party, whose object was to depose the reigning family and place some warlike chieftain on the
throne.
Ho-ti, the seventeenth emperor of the race of Han, is
said to have had considerable intercourse with the nations
to the west of China. It is even recorded that one of his
envoys went as far as Arabia. It is certain that eunuchs,
who afterward became numerous in China and the cause
of infinite intrigue, malice, wickedness, confusion and
revolt, were first introduced during this reign, and it
may be inferred that Ho-ti borrowed them from Western
Asia at the close of the first century of the Christian
era.
The troubles occasioned by the Yellow Caps led to
several usurpations of the imperial dignity, and opened
a new field of ambition to the kings of Han, Wu and
Wei, who each boldly asserted his claims to the throne.
A fierce contest ensued, which lasted forty-three years,
and is celebrated in Chinese history under the title of
"The War of the Three Kingdoms."  It would be vain
to seek for any rational account of the events which
marked this unhappy period of civil warfare. It was




170    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
the Chinese age of chivalry, and each chief was exalted
into a wonderful hero by the writers of the time, who
blended so much romance with history that nothing
certain can be gathered from their works beyond the
fact that the country was divided into three separate
states, the sovereigns of which were at war with each
other for nearly half a century.
The period of the " Three Kingdoms," into which the
country was divided about A. D. 184, is a favorite subject of the historical plays and romances of the Chinese.
A work designated by the above name is much prized
and very popular among them. It is said to have as
few extravagances as could be expected from an Oriental history, and, except that it is in prose, bears a resemblance in some of its features to the Iliad, especially in
what Lord Chesterfield calls' the porter-like language"
of the heroes.  These heroes excel all moderns in
strength and prowess, and make exchanges after the
fashion of Glaucus and Diomed, Hector and Ajax. One
shows his liberality in horses, another in wearing a
weight of silver or iron"And steel well-tempered, and refulgent gold."
At length there appeared among the competitors for
the imperial throne a prince who put an end to the war
and reunited the three states under one sceptre. He
assumed the title of emperor, established the capital in
Ho-nan, and commenced, in A. D. 260, the dynasty called
Tsin, a name which, though it is spelled in our alphabet
like that of the first general dynasty of the empire, five
hundred years earlier, yet is written in the Chinese
with a different character. The new dynasty ruled over




THE AUG USTAN AGE IN CHINA.        171
China somewhat more than a century and a half, during
which period fifteen sovereigns succeeded each other on
the throne.
Warned by the destructions which had arisen from
the interference and intrigues of women and eunuchs,
the new sovereign of the race of Tsin passed a kind of
Salic law, declaring that "women should not reign nor
take any part in public matters." The Chinese historian
of the period says that this was a good law and worthy of
being an example. It was, however, soon abrogated in
practice. Under weak emperors the women resumed
their influence, and the mischievous eunuchs were greatly
increased in number. This first emperor is said to have
had political relations with a province of Sogdiana, and
even to have received a Roman embassy.
The population of the country had so considerably increased that it had been found necessary to clear and
cultivate much of the forest land, that a sufficiency of food
might be raised for the people, who lived chiefly on rice.
The peasantry were exceedingly industrious, the women
and children working in the fields as well as the men;
and as the farms on which they labored were in most
cases their own, they had the greater motives for exertion. Many people at this period were employed in
rearing horses for war, and most of the farmers grazed
cattle on the commons; but this kind of farming was
gradually discontinued as the necessity of bringing the
public land under culture increased, till at length there
were very few commons or pastures left, cattle became
scarce, and sheep were only to be found in the mountainous districts.
The country people lived more together in large




172    THE OLDEST AND THE NEtWEST EMSPIRE.
families. It was customary for a son to bring his wife
home to his father's house, where she was expected to
submit entirely to the authority of her mother-in-law,
whose province it was, as elder matron, to rule over the
female part of the household; and if this part of the
domination was not always exercised in the most gentle
manner possible, it was no less the duty of the daughters-in-law to yield implicit obedience. Hence partly,
perhaps, arose the custom  prevalent among Chinese
maidens, when any one of their young friends is about
to marry, of going to sit and weep with her before she
leaves her parental home to take up her abode with
strangers. The birth of a son was always celebrated
with great rejoicings, but that of a daughter was considered as rather a misfortune than otherwise, especially
if the parents were poor; for a girl could in no way
advance the fortunes of her family, whereas a boy
always had the chance, at least, by applying himself to
learning, of attaining high honors; and in that case his
parents were sure to be exalted also as a reward for the
attention they had bestowed on his education, which was
regarded as a benefit to the state; and even if he were
not gifted with extraordinary talents, he was looked up
to for future support, as every young man was obliged
by law to maintain his aged parents, and taught by his
religion that it was one of his most sacred obligations so
to do. This point of filial duty was held in so much
importance by the government that a law was enacted
to the effect that the life of a criminal, who would
otherwise be condemned to death, should be spared, provided his parents were old, and had no other son or
grandson above the age of sixteen to work for them.




THE A UG USTAN AGE IN CHINA.         173
Different names were given to an individual at successive periods of his life. The first was bestowed at
his birth by his father, who, having assembled all his
relatives, took the infant in his arms and pronounced its
name with numerous prayers and ceremonies; the next
name was conferred on the boy's first entrance into
school by the master, and was called "the book-name;"
the third appellation was assumed at his marriage, when,
if he were the eldest son, the father also added another
character to his own name; all which alterations, one
would suppose, must at times have created some confusion, and must do so still, for these customs are even to
this day continued; as is also a law which was instituted
about this time, prohibiting any person from marrying
one of the same surname, even though the parties were
not related to each other.
In ancient times the law of primogeniture existed
among the Chinese, and remained in force until the
reign of the emperor Wu-ti, who abolished it and instituted a new one, by which, on the death of a father, his
lands were divided among all his male children; the only
difference being that the eldest had two portions. The
right to this double portion still exists. A daughter had
no inheritance, neither did she receive any marriage
portion from her parents. On the contrary, her future
husband or his friends sent presents according to their
means, as was the custom as far back as in that primitive age when Abraham sent his steward to seek a wife
for his son Isaac, who took with him jewels of silver and
jewels of gold, and raiment, which he presented to
Rebekah and her friends on his asking the damsel as a
bride for his young master. As daughters and wives,




174    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
the women of China were not held in as much consideration as they are among the nations of the West; but as
mothers, they were treated with the utmost respect,
especially by their sons, who, even when themselves
advanced in years, paid great deference to the commands
and counsels of an aged mother.
At this p'eriod the men did not shave their heads, as
they do now; but suffered the hair to grow very long
and thick, and fastened it in a knot at the top of the
head. The male attire was long and flowing, with loose
sleeves; and in the winter men of rank wore costly
furs; but the winter dresses of the poor were made of
sheepskin. As to the ladies, it does not appear that
they have much altered the fashion of their dress from
that time to this. Their costume is not altogether unbecoming. It consists in a full robe gathered into a narrow
band round the throat, from which it hangs in graceful
folds, unconfined at the waist, with large falling sleeves.
The most striking difference in the appearance of the
gentlemen of ancient and modern times relates to the
head; that of the ladies to the feet, which were then
suffered to grow to the natural size, and were not distorted and squeezed into shoes four inches long, as they
are at present.
In the ordinary affairs of life the people were much
governed by superstition, putting implicit faith in omens,
dreams and spells innumerable. A belief in astrology
was universal, and charms and talismans were frequently
resorted to even by the most learned men of the age, by
the power of which they hoped to avert an impending
evil. One of these popular superstitions was exemplified in a singular manner during the War of the Three




THE AUG USTAN AGE IN CHINA.        175
Kingdoms, by a chief named Kung-ming, who was a
great astrologer, and very often consulted the stars on
the subject of future events. One night, being thus engaged, he fancied he saw signs in the heavens predicting
that his own death would take place in a few hours; but,
as he was not willing to die so soon, he lost no time in
endeavoring to avert the fatal doom by means of a spell.
He lighted a number of lamps in his tent, placing them
in a particular order, corresponding with the position of
the heavenly bodies at the time, and then composed a
sort of prayer, which he continued to repeat incessantly
as he sat on the ground before the lamps. But all was
unavailing, for before the sun rose he had breathed
his last, most probably in consequence of the nervous
excitement produced by his own superstitious dread.
The inefficacy of the charm was thus clearly proved,
yet the superstition still remains, and many of the
Chinese occasionally light lamps and arrange them in
correspondence with the position of the stars, in the
full persuasion that a threatened misfortune may be
thus averted.




CHAPTER VI I
THE MIDDLE AGES IN CHINA.
THE study of the history of the middle ages in China
is calculated to fill the mind with surprise. Our
ancestors present the melancholy picture of nations
which had occupied a high position as to civilization
retrograding to barbarism; of races which had enjoyed
the light of the gospel of Christ allowing it to go out
in darkness, and sitting down with a closed Bible, to
accept for its heavenly teachings and comforts the " old
wives' fables" of their heathen forefathers, only altered
by the priests of Rome so far as to substitute the names
of Christian saints for those of the ancient gods and goddesses. But in China there are peace, civilization, progress in the arts, and so manifest a superiority to Europe,
that the fragmentary accounts of the travelers thither
from the West express much the same wonder and admiration at what they beheld which now a native of
Tibet might be expected to utter when he should visit
the cities of France. The Arabs, who were then well
acquainted with Europe, had such exalted ideas of the
splendor of China that their authors were accustomed to
say that " Chin" had the best inheritance of all the posterity of Noah, that he was the nmost ingenious and able
of them all, and that he was the discoverer of the arts
176




THE MIDDLE AGES IN CHINA.            177
of sculpture and architecture, of painting or dying with
colors, and of the culture and manufacture of silk. The
Persians also expressed this admiration of China. When
they wish even now to describe a very beautiful and handsomely furnished house, they call it kcaneh Chini, that is, a
"Chinese house." 1 Such were the ideas of the Nestorian
and the Roman Catholic missionaries who were drawn
thither by the hope of converting so grand an empire to
the Christian faith.  And such were the pictures which
Marco Polo2 presented, which so greatly excited the zeal
of Columbus and other European mariners to find a pas,
sage thither across the Western ocean.
But it is not our purpose to renew these extravagant
pictures, or at least what would seem to us in this age
extravagant.  We would only recall the fact of a relative position of the East to the West, as to civilization
and wealth, a thousand years ago, just the opposite from
that which now exists.
The ancient capital of the Chinese empire was Hangchau, a large, wealthy city, situated at no very great distance from Nanking, and containing an immense popiulation, chiefly engaged in the manufacture of silk and
cotton. The imperial palace, standing in the midst of
extensive gardens, was adorned with Eastern splendor,
and near it were several magnificent temples and many
fine residences belonging to the grandees of the court.
The first sovereign of the new dynasty of Tsin, however,
removed the seat of government to Kai-fung, another
large city, standing in the centre of the empire, in the
province of Ho-nan, one of the most fertile and beauti'fil
1 D'HERBELOT, Bibliotheque Orientale, iii., art. "Sin."
2 Travels, Part L, chap. lvii., etc.
12




178      THEE OLDEST AND THIE NIEWEST EMPIRE.
parts of all China-the same where the remarkable Jewish colony was found; and this was the royal residence
until the reign of Yuen-ti, the fifth emperor of the line
of Tsin, who built a very magnificent palace at Nanking,
where the court was held with more splendor than had
been exhibited by any of the former sovereigns.
There was an interval of repose which lasted  some
years, when a new invasion of the Tartars again spread
terror and desolation throughout the western provinces.
They were led by a barbarian prince, who laid claim to
the empire on the ground of being descended from  one
of those princesses of the race of Han who had married
Tartar chieftains; and the fierce invader, having made
a captive of the emperor, obliged the unfortunate monarch to wait upon him at table for several days in his
tent, and then had him  cruelly put to death; soon after
which one of his generals captured the son of the murdered sovereign, who was treated with every insult, and,
in the habit of a slave, was compelled to attend the barbarian chief on his hunting excursions, and to perform
the degrading office of carrying his parasol; for this
article of convenience was known from a very early period to the Chinese, Tartars, Hindus and other Oriental
nations as an ensign of dignity, and only used by persons of rank.l
The unhappy prince was not destined long to endure
1 The umbrella, or parasol, so universal now in China, and probably so ancient,
is depicted in the ancient paintings of the Egyptians. In the sculptures of Nineveh it is an emblem of royalty. Sometimes in them it is seen borne by an
attendant, and may have a veil suspended from one side, more effectually to
shield the royal:person from the sun, or it is fastened upon the chariot. The
sides are often ornamented with fringe and the top with an appropriate figure.
Such coilcai.den.nes, -f<customs help to illustrate the intercourse of these ancient
nations,




ITHE MZDDLE AGES IN CHIA~At        179
these -mortifications, for he was beheaded by command
of the tyrant in consequence of an attempt made to
effect his liberation. Another prince of his family was
immediately proclaimed emperor, and the Tartars were
soon driven out of the Chinese territories, but not before
they had done a vast deal of mischief in the provinces
which bordered on their own country. The monarchs of
the Tsin dynasty were not so illustrious as those of the
race of Han.  The country does not appear to have
been so well governed; and the people were very much
dissatisfied with the heavy taxes levied to support the
extravagance of the court, which had never been held
vith so much magnificence as at this period. Grand
feasts and expensive entertainments were constantly
given at the palace, where the royal banquets were
usually enlivened by dances performed by female slaves,
who were splendidly attired in dresses sparkling with
gold and jewels. Their movements were accompanied
by very noisy music, for the Chinese have always been
fond of cymbals, drums, trumpets and those deafening
instruments called gongs. They had, however, many
softer instruments, such as the lute and guitar, which
were often touched by other female fingers and accompanied by other female voices besides those of the young
slaves; but dancing was treated merely as an exhibition,
and not resorted to for amusement, as in European
countries.  The excessive luxury of the court, which
could be maintained only by burdening the people with
taxes, excited much popular discontent, which manifested
itself, as usual, by a number of insurrections, which
broke out from time to time in different parts of the
empire, and at length ended in the overthrow of the




180    THE OLDEST ANSD THtE NETVEST EMPIRE.
Tsin dynasty-a revolution which was effected in a -very
remarkable manner, and of which the following are the
incidents: A poor boy named Liu-yu, born in the city
of Nanking, had been left a destitute orphan at a very
early age, and must have perished from want, had not an
old woman, who took compassion on him, brought him
up as her own. As soon as he was old enough, he
learned to make shoes, and sold them in the streets of
the city; but he was so idle and careless that those who
knew him predicted that he would come to no good.
For a long time Liu-yu carried on his shoe trade, by
which he earned a scanty livelihood without concerning
himself much about his condition, until he happened to
attract the notice of a military officer, who had probably
stopped him to make a purchase, and who, being pleased
with the replies to some questions he had put, proposed
to him that he should become a soldier. As fighting
was an occupation better suited to his taste than shoemaking, Liu-yu at once accepted the offer, and having
been introduced into this new scene of action, he displayed so much courage and ability that he was promoted
in his profession by degrees till he became chief commander of the imperial forces, and in that capacity rendered such important services to the emperor during a
serious rebellion that he was elevated to the rank of
chief minister of state. By this time he had become
very ambitious; and taking advantage of the prevailing
disaffection toward the reigning family, and having
made himself exceedingly popular, he seized a favorable
opportunity of aspiring openly to the throne, and, by
the aid of a powerful party, compelled the emperor to
abdicate in his favor. Such was the remarkable career




THE M11IDDLE AGES INY CHINA.       181
of Liu-yu, who was proclaimed emperor under the name
of Yung-chu.
Toward the close of the dynasty of Tsin, China had
become divided into two kingdoms, each having its own
sovereign, which could scarcely fail to occasion many
troubles, particularly as one was considered subordinate
to the other. The superior prince, who alone bore the
title of emperor, resided at Nanking, while the king of
the northern part of the country kept his court at
Ho-nan; and they were frequently at war with each
other. It was fortunate for the people that the Tartars
about this time turned their attention toward Europe,
and under their renowned king, Attila, invaded the
Roman empire. The Chinese were thus relieved from
their most formidable enemies; yet there is no period of
their history more confused or more disturbed than that
which followed the downfall of the Tsin dynasty. For
nearly two centuries afterward five successive races
rapidly followed each other to the throne, and then
to ruin and extinction. The strongest ruled, and the
history of the period is a mere record of blood and
crime.'The Chinese during this time carried on an extensive
trade with the Arabians and Persians, whose caravans
made regular journeys to the frontiers, from whence
they returned laden with silks, of which a portion was
sent to Constantinople for the use of the luxurious inhabitants of that city. The Arabians also maintained
an extensive commerce by sea; so that they had formed
considerable settlements in Ceylon and in various places
on the IMalabar coast, had made themselves familiar with
the navigation of the Indian ocean, and had sent their




182     THE OLDEST AND TItE N7EWEST EXPIPEo
trading-vessels as far as China.l We must here remember that after Rome had been taken by the Goths, Constantinople, where the Roman emperors had held their
court ever since the time of Constantine the Great, remained, with a large portion of what was termed the
Empire of the East, in possession of the Romans.  It
was then the most wealthy city in the world, and its inhabitants indulged in every rare and costly luxury.
Silks were in great demand, and were supplied at immense prices by the merchants of Arabia and Persia,
who, however, could afford no information respecting the
Chinese; neither did they know that silk was produced
by insects.  It was about the middle of the sixth century, and during the time when China was in the state
of anarchy above described that the secret was discovered and brought into Europe by two Nestorian monks,
who went as Christian missionaries into distant lands.
They carried the intelligence to the emperor Justinian,
and undertook, for a large reward, to procure for him a
quantity of silkworms' eggs. The monks were fortunate
enough to escape with the stolen eggs, which they carried
to Constantinople inside a cane; and as they had made
themselves acquainted with the art of rearing the worms,
these multiplied very fast in the warm climate of Greece,
and were the progenitors of all the silkworms propagated
in Europe.
Toward the end of the sixth century the northern and
southern kingdoms of China were again united into one,
of which the city of Ho-nan was declared the capital;
I They introduced the Mohammedan religion into Southern China, where the
writer has seen tombs which it is said were erected in the seventh century of
the Christian era.




TIE 3IIDDLE AGES IN CHINA.           183
and not long afterward the country was restored to order
by another revolution and the accession of a new and
illustrious race of sovereigns, called the Tang, who reestablished the old system of government which had
been so happily pursued by the Han princes.  The
founder of the Tang dynasty was a chief or general
named Li-yuen, who deposed the last prince of the five
families which had so long. kept the country in confusion,
and ascended the throne A.D. 622. The greater part
of his reign was spent in subduiing rebellions raised by
the princes of the late dynasty, and making such regulations as were likely to lead to future prosperity; but
as soon as he saw that peace was restored, and that the
stream of government was again flowing in its proper
channel, he chose to abdicate in favor of his son, the
great Tai-tsung, after having occupied the throne about
nine years. Tai-tsung is celebrated by the Chinese as
one of their most illustrious sovereigns; and he appears
to have merited the praises bestowed on him for his
clemency, wisdom, justice and general attention to the
welfare of the people.  Under the auspices of this enlightened prince, learning and the arts flourished as in
the ancient times, and all the high offices were again
filled by men of letters; while, in order to promote the
revival of literature, which had so long been neglected
for war, an academy was instituted within the precincts
of the palace, where not less than eight thousand
students- received instruction from the most able professors. Tai-tsung  also founded  a great school for
archery, where he often attended himself for the purpose of practicing that warlike art, in which it was important for the Chinese to excel, as bows and arrows




184    THE OLDEST AND THIE NEWEST EM3PIRE.
were their principal weapons. The ministers sometimes remonstrated with the emperor on the imprudence of trusting himself among the archers, but the
good prince only replied, "Am I not the father of
my  people? What, then, should I fear from  my
children?"
The attention of Tai-tsung was constantly directed
toward improving the condition of the lower orders,
which he effected in a material degree by lessening the
taxes, and sending commissioners into all the provinces
to inquire into the conduct of the magistrates and to
see that the poor were not oppressed by them; for he
often expressed the benevolent wish that every poor man
should have enough of the common necessaries of life
to make him comfortable in his station; which may remind us of the well-known speech of Henry the Fourth
of France, that he should not be satisfied till every
peasant in the kingdom could afford to have a fowl in
his pot on the Sunday. His strict sentiments with regard to the administration of justice induced him to
pass a law for the prevention of bribery, by making it
an offence punishable with death for any magistrate to
receive a present as a propitiation in the exercise of his
power; and, in order to ascertain whether this law had its
proper effect, he employed a person to offer a bribe to a
certain magistrate of whose integrity he had some suspicion. The bribe was accepted and the guilty magistrate condemned to death; but his life was saved by the
interference of one of the ministers, who were always at
liberty to speak freely to the emperors on the subject of
their conduct. " Great prince," said the monitor, "the
magistrate is guilty, and therefore deserves to die, ac



TIE JIDDLE AGES IN CHINA.          185
cording to the law, but are not you, who tempted him to
commit the crime, a sharer in his guilt?" The emperor
at' once admitted that he was so, and pardoned the
offender.
During the reign of Tai-tsung, some Christian missionaries of the Nestorian Church first arrived in China,
where they were well received by the emperor, who permitted them to build churches and preach Christianity
among the people. They were successful in making
many converts, one of whom was the famous minister of
state, Kwoh Tsz-i. They gave to the Tartar tribes on
the north of China their own Syriac alphabet, and great
numbers of those people became Christians. When the
first Roman priests visited China they found the sign of
the cross in use, and other customs which bore evidence
of the former influence of the Nestorians. A tablet was
discovered at the city of Sin-ngan cut in the Syriac character, which related the success of their early labors.
Their missionary zeal deserves great honor. It conferred lasting benefits upon the nations of Eastern Asia.
The emperor Tai-tsung died, after a reign of twentythree years, universally regretted by his subjects, who
looked up to him as a pattern of wisdom and virtue, and
preserved many of his excellent maxims, which are frequently repeated with great veneration to this day. The
successors of Tai-tsung maintained the peace and prosperity which had been established by that great prince;
and under their dominion the country was much improved, and the people enjoyed a considerable share of
comfort and tranquillity.
Among the great national works of the seventh century were several extensive canals for the convenience




186    THIE OLDEST AND THE NETVEST EMPIRE.
of inland commerce, with locks of a peculiar construction, or slides placed in embankments, over which their
flat-bottomed vessels, without being unloaded, were
hauled'by ropes attached to large capstans. By means
of this inland communication, trade was so much increased that a great number of vessels came every year
to the port of Can-fu, which was either Canton, or Kanpu, near Hang-chau; and about the year 700 A. D. a
regular market was opened there for foreign merchandise, and an imperial commissioner was appointed to
receive the customs on all goods imported from other
countries, which collectively produced a large revenue
to the government.
The sixth emperor of the Tang dynasty founded the
Han-lin College, the leading literary institution of the
Chinese empire, consisting of forty members, from
whose number the ministers of state are generally
chosen, and from whom all successful candidates for
honors receive their degrees. The members of the
Han-lin are mentioned in old histories as the learned
doctors of the empire, and in fact possessed quite as
much knowledge in those days as they do now; for the
members of the present day are all educated according
to the ancient system, nor have any new branches of
learning, until recently, been introduced into the schools
of China; yet, when the Han-lin College was founded,
the Chinese were far in the advance of the Europeans,
both in knowledge and refinement, for the modern
nations of Europe were then only just emerging from
the barbarism into which they had been plunged by the
conquests of the Gothic tribes. England was divided
among the Saxon princes of the Heptarchy, and France




THE MIDDLE AGES IN CHINA.          187
was in that rude state which preceded the reign of
Charlemagne. It may be imagined that only a very
small proportion of the boys in any school were gifted
with such great talents as would entitle them to attain
preferment; therefore, of the many who presented themselves as candidates for honors at the hall of their
province, where an examination was held once a year,
very few perhaps were chosen; and those had to pass
other examinations by doctors of a higher degree before
they were eligible to be appointed to offices of state.
Still, each aspirant had a chance, and as the object was
so important, great pains were taken to instill into the
minds of youth a due sense of the value of learning;
and many little stories, written with that intent, were
read to children as soon as they were of an age to comprehend them. These juvenile tales are mostly very
simple, but are not uninteresting as illustrations of the
character and manners of the people. The following
are specimens of their general style: " There was a boy
whose father was so poor that he could not afford to send
him to school, but was obliged to make him work all
day in the fields to help to maintain his family. The
lad was so anxious to learn that he proposed giving up
a part of the night to study; but as his mother had not
the means of supplying him with a lamp for that purpose, he brought home every evening a glowworm,
which, being held in a thin piece of gauze and applied
to the lines of a book, gave sufficient light to enable
him  to read; and thus he acquired so much knowledge that in course of time he became a minister of
state, and supported his parents with ease and comfort
in their old age."  Another youth, who was rather dull




188    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
of intellect, found it a very laborious task to apply himself to learning, and made such slow progress that he
was often rather disheartened; yet he was not idle, and
for several years continued to study with unceasing
diligence. At length the time arrived for his examination, and he repaired, with many others, to the hall
of the province, where he had the mortification, after
all his exertions, of being dismissed as unqualified to
pass. In returning homeward, very much depressed in
spirits, and thinking it would be better to give up literary pursuits altogether and turn his attention to some
other employment, he happened to see an old woman
busily employed in rubbing an iron pestle on a whetstone. "'What are you doing there, good mother?"
said he. "I am grinding down this pestle," replied the
old dame, "till it becomes sharp enough to use for
working embroidery;" and she continued her employment. Li-pi-such was the name of the student- struck
with the patience and perseverance of the woman, applied her answer to his own case. "She will no doubt
succeed at last," said he; "then why should I despair?"
So he returned to his studies, and in a few years, on
appearing again before the board, he acquitted himself
so well that he passed with honor, and rose in time to
one of the highest offices in the state. These short and
simple tales, of which the Chinese have whole volumes,
serve to show the bias they have endeavored to give to
the minds of their children, and account for the studious habits of so large a portion of the community.
The Arabs, during the Tang dynasty, still advanced
in prosperity and wealth.. They were more civilized than
any Western Asiatic nation. Their merchants were rich,




— aid    H                                                            S                                                                        alms
--------— ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~~~~~~~~~<








THE aMIDDLE AGES IN CHINYA.        189
and lived in a style of princely magnificence in their
own country; and at Canton, where many of them went
to reside, they were permitted to have a cadi, or magistrate, of the Mohammedan religion to preside over them.
The existence of an ancient mosque at Canton, which
has all the appearance of having been built so long ago
as the time here referred to, is an evidence of their freedom to exercise their own form of worship. The Mohammedan faith is now professed by a great number of
Chinese subjects in different parts of the empire, but is
perhaps chiefly confined to those of Tartar origin, as
there must have been many Moslems, or "true believers," as they call themselves, among the followers of the
great Tartar chiefs of the race of Zingis Khan, whose
conquests commenced an important era in the history
of China.
It was during the latter part of the Tang dynasty
(A. D. 851-877) that the two celebrated Mohammedan
travelers whose accounts have been so often quoted
visited China and resided at Canton. These Arab traders, though they frequently complained of the rapacity
and venality of the mandarins, give, on the whole, a
favorable account of the country. They describe the
use of copper money, the light, transparent and elegant
Chinese porcelain, their wine made from rice, and other
things which were never before mentioned, and which
are still found in use in that country. They are the
first to describe the use of tea as a common beverage
among the Chinese. They say: " The emperor reserves
to himself the revenues which arise from the salt-mines,
and those which are derived from impositions upon a
certain herb called cha (tea), which they drink with hot




190    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPII~E.
water, and of which vast quantities are sold in all the
cities of China." They mention the relief afforded to
the people from the public granaries during famine
or scarcity. They likewise mention the bamboo as the
great panacea in all matters of police. By connecting
various disjointed sentences and paragraphs, we derive a
consistent account of a very orderly and methodical government; but the two Arabian voyagers lament that recent revolutions and troubles had greatly affected the
prosperity of the country and the administration of
justice.
It was about this period that the strange custom was
first adopted in China of binding the feet of female
children to prevent their growth. The origin of this
absurd and unnatural practice is unknown, nor is it easy
to imagine what could have induced women in the first
instance thus to deform themselves; for, although vanity
may be a poQwerful incitement for the continuance of a
custom which distinguishes the higher from the lower
classes, it hardly accounts for the first introduction of
this practice, as any other distinctive mark, less painful
and less inconvenient, might have answered the same
purpose. The daughters of all people of rank are
obliged to submit, at an early age, to have their feet
cramped up and tightly confined with bandages, which
are not removed for about three years, when the bones
are so far compressed that the feet never assume their
natural shape and size. The health of the children
generally suffers much from the want of proper exercise
during this cruel process, and the enjoyment of after life
must be greatly diminished by the difficulty which females find in walking or even standing without support.




THE?MIDDLE  AGES IN CHINA.         191
Yet they are proud of their very helplessness, and would
think it excessively vulgar to be able to walk with a
firm and dignified step. The lower classes cannot follow
a fashion which would disable them from pursuing their
daily labors, yet many parents in a very humble station
of life are not free from the vanity of desiring to have
one daughter with small feet, the prettiest child being
usually selected for that distinction; and such is the
force of fashion that the little damsel who is thus tortured and crippled is looked upon as an object of envy
rather than of pity.
Like every other dynasty. in China, that of Tang rapidly degenerated. Its emperors became mere tools in
the hands of the eunuchs of the palace, who ruled them
through the women. The third successor of the line was
so influenced by one of his wives that at his death he invested her with sovereign power.  She reigned absolutely
for about twenty years, and then left her son to succeed
her, but the son remained a slave to the wretched slaves
who had maintained her on the throne. The power of the
eunuchs was at length destroyed by the last emperor of
this race. Too weak to extirpate them himself, he called
in the aid of a powerful chief, who fulfilled his commission to the letter, but subsequently killed the emperor
and his heirs, and, after a course of atrocious cruelties,
put an end to the dynasty of Tang A. D. 897.
For the space of fifty years after the extinction of the
Tang dynasty the government was in much the same
state as it had been three centuries before, when the
Tsin dynasty was set aside by the usurper Liu-yu; and
although the present period of anarchy was of so much
shorter duration, it witnessed the accession of five differ



192    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST.EIIPIRE.
ent families, numbering in all thirteen emperors, whose
reigns were very brief, most of them having died by some
kind of violence, Yet it was in these turbulent times that
printing began to be practiced in China-an event which
occurred about five hundred years before that art was
known in Europe.' The method first adopted in China
was to engrave the characters on stone; consequently,
when the impressions were taken off, the ground of the
paper was black and the letters were white. But this
mode was shortly superseded by the invention of wooden
blocks, cut in such a manner that the letters were raised
instead of indented, and thus were impressed in black on
a white ground. This mode of printing from wood is
still practiced in China, and is well adapted to the written language of the Chinese, as its words are not formed
of vowels and consonants like those of Western languages; but a single character, of which there are many
thousands, expresses a whole word. Yet it is necessarily very slow; and for this reason must yield in the
end to the use of divisible metal type and of our swift
machinery. The superior beauty of the typography of
our books already wins the wonder and praise of the
Chinese. Before the invention of printing there must
have been a vast number of Chinese constantly employed
in writing, as they were always a reading people, and
even the poorest peasants were able to obtain books in
manuscript, while in Europe a book was a thing unknown among the lower classes, and seldom to be met
with except in monasteries or the palaces of princes.
The troubles that followed the fall of the Tang dynasty
encouraged the Eastern Tartars to make new irruptions
Paper had been invented during the first century of the Christian era.




TTH  MIDIDLE AGES IN CIIINA.       19 3
into the empire, and one of their chieftains having aided
a fresh usurper to mount the imperial throne, received
from him in return the grant of a large territory in the
province of Pe-che-lee, with an annual tribute of silks;
and thus the Tartars gained a footing in the north of
China which laid the foundation of those long and terrible wars that ended in the first Tartar conquest. But
ere these wars commenced there was an interval of repose, in consequence of the downfall of the last usurping family of the five petty dynasties, and the elevation
of a race called the Sung, of which there were eighteen
emperors.
The founder of the Sung dynasty was a popular minister, who had also had the command of the armies, and
had distinguished himself by his courage no less than
by his ability in affairs of state; therefore, as the emperor was dead and his son was but a child, it was decided by all the military leaders and other great men
that it would be better to place on the throne a man
who was able to defend the country against its enemies.
They accordingly fixed on the chief minister, and sent a
deputation to his palace to invest him with the yellow
robe, and he was proclaimed, by the title of Tai-tsu, in
the year 950. The names assumed by the emperors
usually had some appropriate meaning; thus Tai-tsu signifies " Great Sire."  The conduct of the new monarch
justified the high opinion which had been formed of his
virtues and abilities, and he holds a place in the history
of China as one of the greatest of its sovereigns. His
mother, too, is reckoned among the illustrious females
of the empire, for the Chinese annals have preserved the
names of many women distinguished by their superior
13




194    THE OLDEST AND THE NEIVEST E3MPIREo
understanding, whose wise sayings and exemplary conduct are recorded as examples for others.
Under the first and second sovereigns of the Sung line
the art of printing was improved, and still. farther disseminated.  Books were greatly multiplied, and to these
causes may be attributed the increased fullness of the
records of this period, from which the most interesting
portion of Chinese history commences. " Our lights
now multiply fast, and the Tartars begin to take a great
share in the national transactions.'In fact, the whole
history of this polished but unwarlike race is a series of
disgraceful arts of compromise with the Eastern Tartars,
called Kin (the origin of the Manchus, or present reigning family), until the Mongols, or Western Tartars, took
possession of the empire under Kublai Khan." 1 The
emperors were even content to purchase temporary cessations from war by the payment of tribute-a plan which
was pursued by the Saxon king of England at that very
time, in order to keep off the invasion of the Danes; and
in both cases it proved equally ineffectual. Yet the
commercial intercourse with Arabia and Persia had continued to increase, and great portions of the empire
might be said to be in a prosperous condition. The
first emperor of this line paid great attention to the
improvement of his army, but it was not possible either
to give that army a good organization or to revive in it
a martial spirit.
In the reign of the third emperor of the Sung dynasty
were established the famous porcelain furnaces at Kingti-chin, a large village in the province of Kiang-si, where
all the best china is still made. These manufactories
1 SIR J. F. DAVIS, The Chinese, etc.




THE MIDDLE AGES IN CHINA.          195
were erected about the year 1000 A.D., and still afford
employment to many thousands of people. At that
time porcelain was one of the principal articles of export, to which were added silks and spices; for although
the Chinese had no spices in their own country except
coarse pepper, still they were able to obtain abundance
of the finer sorts of them in their trade with the neighboring islands; and about this time they took possession
of the Moluccas, or Spice Islands, which they retained
above sixty years, when they were dispossessed by the
Malays, who were soon obliged to give them up to the
Arabs. Tea had not yet become an article of foreign
trade, although it was in very general use among the
natives of China.
In the reign of Chin-tsung, the third emperor of the
line of Sung, the Kin, or Eastern Tartars, laid siege to
a town near Peking; they were obliged to suspend the
siege and to enter into negotiations; yet they obtained
from their unwarlike foes very advantageous terms; with
a large annual donation or tribute of money and silk.
Under Jin-tsung, the fourth emperor, the Chinese entered into a still more disgraceful treaty. Ten extensive districts within the Great Wall were claimed by
the Eastern Tartars, who received an annual quit-rent
of two hundred thousand taels,jl and an enormous quantity of silk. This emperor even submitted to be styled,
and to call himself, in his treaties with the Tartar chiefs,
a tributary.
Under each succeeding ruler of the Sung family the
decline of the empire was more and more accelerated.
There was nothing but vice and effeminacy in the
l Equal to $280j000 in specie with us.




196    THE OLDEST AND THIE NEWEST EEMPIRE.
palace, and rank cowardice in the field. Large armies
took to flight at the first distant appearance of a few
squadrons of Tartar horse. Wei-tsung, the eighth emperor of this line, enslaved himself to conjurors and impostors, who promised him longevity and wealth, and to
those old pests of the country-the eunuchs of the
palace-who were again found in incredible numbers,
and in possession of all the keys to honor, promotion or
public employment, whether military or civil. Encouraged by the weakness and imbecility of this ruler, and
the spiritless, abject attitude of his people, the Eastern
Tartars advanced at a rapid pace, took possession of a
good part of Northern China, and threatened the whole
empire with their iron conquest. In this extremity the
Chinese applied for aid to the Mongols, or Western
Tartars, who had already conquered India, and who
now inhabited the vast elevated plains which extend
from the north-west of China to Tibet and Samarkand.
These hardy warriors eagerly accepted the invitation,
and in brief space of time they subdued both the Eastern
Tartars, who were their rivals for dominion, and the
enervated Chinese whom they had been invited to protect. It was now found that trade,. wealth, literature
and refinement cannot defend a state, that pacific habits
do not ensure peace or exemption from foreign conquest,
and that every country which would preserve its tranquillity, its riches, its independence and its other blessings, must keep alive its martial ardor and, be at all
times ready to maintain a war.
In the very populous cities of the empire which
attempted to stand sieges the slaughter was terrific, and
was estimated by the Chinese annalists at millions of




THE MIDDLE AGES IN CHINA.          197
souls. We turn from the revolting details to give the
great results.
By the year 1234 the Mongols, or Western Tartars,
were absolute masters of the northern half of modern
China. The Kin, or Eastern Tartars, who until then
had occupied some of the provinces bordering on the
Great Wall, were attacked on one side by the Chinese,
and on the other by the Mongols, under the command
of the celebrated Pih-yen (Hundred Eyes), who is mentioned by Marco Polo. Their principal city, called Kaifung, and described as being then the largest city in the
world, containing a population of more than two millions
of souls, was invested twice, and' taken at the second
siege, after another deplorable sacrifice of human life.
The last prince of these Eastern Tartars strangled himself in his despair; all his principal officers and five hundred other persons plunged into the river and perished.




CHAPTER VIII.
THE MONGOL DYNASTY.
THE time had come when China should be brought
into closer communion with the other members of
the great family of nations. In the thirteenth century
we begin to trace over the whole world the first throes
of the regeneration which became manifest when the
Cape of Good Hope was circumnavigated, America discovered, society renovated by a flood of inventions in
the useful arts, and the Word and Truth of God again
given to the waiting souls of men through the labors of
the great Reformers. The conquests of the Mongols in
Asia and Europe performed the same office in preparing
the way for those events, wherever their influence was
felt, which the conquests of Rome had performed in preparing that for the Founder of the Dispensation of grace.
The history of Zingis Khan and his successors is one
of the most stirring and romantic on record. It sounds
like a fiction to tell that an obscure, nomadic tribe of
Tartars was raised up by the hand of Providence to such
a height of greatness and power that in three generations its chiefs conquered the world from the coasts of the
Pacific ocean on the east to the heart of Europe on the
west; that the empires of China, India, Persia and
Russia were all subject to them; that they extended
198




THE M~ONATGOL D YE7ASTY1         199
their borders even into Silesia; and that France, Spain,
Sweden and Britain gave themselves to fasting and
prayer to God as their only hope of protection; and
that the fountain and most important centre of this
stupendous empire, far more extensive than any that
had preceded it on earth, was within the Chinese
dominions, in which its great potentate, Kublai Khan,
built the new capital, Peking, which is now the seat of
another Tartar family, the Manchus. But almost as
astonishing as the growth of the Mongol empire was its
decay when the ends of the Governor of nations had
been subserved by it. Drunk with its sudden and
boundless power, its nine emperors followed one after
another in short, dissolute and shameful reigns, which
only lasted in all for the brief period of eighty-eight
years.
The causes which led to the introduction of the Mongol power into the north of China have been mentioned
in the preceding chapter.
It was not to be expected that a people so active and
warlike as the Mongols would long remain satisfied with
the northern and poorer half of the country, and leave
the fertile, rich and delightful regions of the south to a
people so unwarlike as the Chinese. This was still less
likely when a great warrior, statesman and administrator,
such as Kublai Khan, the grandson of Zingis, ascended
the Mongol throne. Finding himself in undisturbed
possession of all the north of China, and with a countless reserve of light cavalry inu the regions beyond the
Great Wall, Kublai took advantage of the infancy of
the reigning Chinese emperor to use an argument convenient to his purpose. "Your family," said he, "owes




200    THE 0 LDEST AN YD THE NE WEST EMJIPIR E.
its rise to the minority of the last emperor of the preceding dynasty; it is therefore just that you, a child,
and the last remnant of the line of Sung, should give
place to another family."
The Mongols rapidly approached the imperial city;
the whole court fled in the utmost consternation, and
went on board some junks which were lying near the
mouth of the Canton river. Tartar vessels were sent in
pursuit of the wretched fugitives, whose terror at the
sight of the hostile fleet seems to have amounted to madness; for one of the grandees, seizing the infant emperor in his arms, jumped with him into the sea, and was
instantly followed by the empress and the chief ministers, who thus all perished. This was in the year 1281.
Thus Kublai Khan was left in undisputed possession
of the whole empire, but the conquest had not been
achieved without much bloodshed and numerous acts of
revolting barbarity. But when the great object was accomplished, and the Mongol emperor acknowledged by
the Chinese as their sovereign, he endeavored to win
their affections by conferring benefits upon them, and
sought to establish his power on the firm basis of popular esteem, rather than suffer it to rest on the uncertain
foundation of that terror which his name had hitherto
inspired.
Never did a more illustrious prince ascend an Eastern
throne, and never was there one more revered than
Kublai Khan; and, although a conqueror and of a
foreign race, he was deservedly called the father of his
people, who had no cause to regret, beyond their previous sufferings, the revolution that had placed him at
the head of the empire. He wisely abstained from




THE MONGOL DYNASTY.             201
making any alterations in the political institutions of the
Chinese, nor did he interfere with any of their ancient
customs; the high functionaries who had submitted to
his authority were suffered to retain their employment,
and in the distribution of offices of state no unjust partiality was shown toward the Tartars; and thus peace
was preserved between the conquerors and the conquered. The Chinese gladly accepted an exemption
from military service, so that the sword remained almost
exclusively in the hands of the Mongols, whose discipline and subordination to the civil authority appear
to have been exemplary throughout the reign of this
truly illustrious prince.
The tribute or rent imposed on the natives of the
country was a tenth part of all the silk, rice, wool, hemp
and other produce of their land, except sugar and spices,
on which only a very small duty was levied; but those
duties were not levied on the mechanics, who, for their
tribute, were obliged to work for the government one
day in nine, which amounted to a ninth part of their
labor; and on these days they were employed in keeping the public edifices in repair and making clothes and
warlike implements for the army.
The new emperor, under the Chinese name of Shitsu, fixed the seat of government at Peking, or Kambalu,
as it was styled by the Tartars and our early travelers.
Kambalu was near the ancient city of Yen-king, a portion of which was destroyed when it was stormed by the
Eastern Tartars.
Peking, or Kambalu, in the time of Kublai Khan, was
a wealthy and populous city, containing numerous shops
well stocked with the rich merchandise of Persia and




202    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
Arabia; for as soon as peace was restored a considerable trade was carried on overland with those countries,
from which the caravans arrived regularly every year.
Their merchants were lodged in hotels or caravanserais, of which there were many in the suburbs built
expressly for the accommodation of foreign traders, each
nation having its own particular hotels and storehouses.
The commerce of the empire had now increased to
such an extent that it was found necessary to adopt a
more convenient kind of money than the small copper
coinage that was in general use; therefore Kublai Khan
put into circulation paper money, similar to our banknotes, made of paper manufactured (like most of that
now used by the Japanese) out of the inner bark of the
mulberry tree, and stamped with his own mark, to counterfeit which was a crime punishable with death. This
great prince seems to have paid more attention to the
interests of commerce than any of the emperors who had
preceded him; and to him the Chinese are indebted for
one of the grandest of their national works-the Great
Canal-which forms the principal link in the communication by water between the southern part of the empire
and Peking.
The want of good roads had always been a check to
the internal trade of China, and this disadvantage was
at once perceived by the emperor, who projected and
carried into execution a design for facilitating the intercourse between the chief cities. This was effected by
turning the waters of some of the lakes into artificial
channels, which were made to communicate with the
rivers; many branches also extending to towns that
were not' in their course. One hundred and seventy




THE MONGOL ODYNASTY.              203
thousand men were employed for years in the construction of this mighty work, which was completed
under the immediate successors of Kublai, and which,
for real utility, far surpasses the Great Wall, being at
this moment of the utmost benefit to the Chinese, whose
inland trade would be very limited without it, as the
means of land-carriage are few, and both tedious and
expensive. Another great advantage of this canal was,
that it answered the purpose of draining large tracts of
marshy but fertile land, which had till then been quite
useless, but were thus rendered fit for cultivation.
For nearly the length of a thousand English miles
this grand canal affords the means of a safe, uninterrupted and commodious inland navigation; and from it
are derived the means of irrigating a vast extent of
country on either of its banks. On these banks, likewise, are constructed strong and wide terraces, upon
which traveling by land is rendered perfectly convenient.  "This magnificent work," says our earliest European traveler in the Chinese empire, " is deserving of all
admiration; and not so much from the manner in which
it is conducted through the country or its vast extent,
as from its great utility, and the benefit it produces to
those innumerable cities which lie in its course. No
man may count the number of bridges by which it is
crossed."
By the admirable police organized under Kublai
Khan, the Great Canal and its side communications
were kept perfectly safe for the traveler. In case of
any accident by land or water, or of sickness on the
route, houses were erected on the banks, and supplied
with proper persons to afford succor and assistance.




204    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
Many of these humane establishments have disappeared,
but many yet remain, and are still used in case of need.
The expenses are wholly borne by the state or from charitable contributions. Some of these hospices are described
as extensive, commodious and even elegant establishments.
It was in the early part of the reign of Kublai, before
he had become master of the whole empire, that China
was for the first time visited by the European travelers
who have left on record any full and satisfactory narrative of what they saw, and these were fortunate enough
-to be admitted to the court of the Great Khan and honored by his confidence and friendship.
Matteo and Nicolo Polo were two merchants of
Venice, who, having occasion to make a journey into
Persia, heard so much there respecting the splendor of
the imperial court that they felt a great desire to become
acquainted with the distant city of Kambalu, which
they found means to visit by accompanying a Persian
ambassador who was charged with despatches for the
emperor. They were received with the greatest courtesy
by Kublai, who was well pleased at meeting with such
an opportunity of gaining some correct information
respecting the people of Europe, and made many inquiries on the subject of different European countries. IIe
put minute and very sensible questions as to their religion, civil polity, forms of government, modes of administering justice Iand their system and conduct of warfare. The Polos, who were men of intelligence and wit,
satisfied him on these particulars, and gave him ample
information concerning the pope, whose influence in
pushing the nations of Europe upon Asia in the Crusades had rendered him important in the eyes of Kublai




THE MO.NGOL DYNASTY.             205
Khan. The two enterprising brothers made themselves
well acquainted with the Mongol language, so that they
had no need of interpreters, but spoke directly with the
great Tartar ruler-a vast advantage, as all must feel
who have had intercourse with any Oriental people
through the medium  of dragomans. In consequence
of the conversations he held with these Venetians,
Kublai, who was himself a votary of the Buddhist
faith, was, nevertheless, so highly impressed with their
representation of the excellence of the Christian religion that he despatched by them a letter to the pope,
containing a request that his Holiness would send proper
persons to instruct the Chinese in the doctrines of
Christianity; and the Venetian travelers departed on
this extraordinary mission.
They were furnished with a pass, or golden tablet,
displaying the imperial cipher, according to the usage
established by his majesty; in virtue of which the persons bearing it, together with their whole suite, are
safely conveyed from station to station by the governors
of all places within the imperial dominions, and are
entitled, during the time of their residing in any city,
castle, town or village, to a supply of provisions and
everything necessary for their accommodation. In the
vulgar dialect gotten up between the Chinese and foreign
merchants on the coast this is now termed the emperor's
grand chop, a word used to express seal, mark, warrant
or license or passport.  Passports existed in China
many centuries before they were introduced into Europe.
It must be confessed that a Chinese passport is a much
better thing for the bearer than a European one, as it
ensures him gratuitous lodging and accommodation, and,




206    THE OLDEST AND TilE lNEWEST EIXPIRE.
generally, food on the road. A Tartar nobleman was
also sent with them, and was to accompany them all the
way to the pope of Rome; but he sank under ill-health
and the fatigues of the journey, and the Polos were
obliged to leave him behind before they had traveled
more than twenty days. So far as the vast Mongol
dominions extended the golden tablet or passport procured them hospitality, attention, horses and mounted
escorts, and whatever assistance they and their numerous
suite required. They were as safe and as well treated
in the wilds of Tartary as in the regions southward of
the Great Wall.
Several years had passed away, during which the
klhan had been so much engaged in prosecuting the
war against the southern provinces of China that he
had almost forgotten the Venetians, whose first visit had
taken place long before that conquest; nor was the war
yet quite ended when they returned, accompanied by
Marco Polo, the son of one of them, and the most celebrated of the three, since it was he who wrote, on his
return to Italy, an account of the Chinese empire, or
kingdom of Cathay, where he had resided no less than
seventeen years, during which he had enjoyed, without
interruption, the favor of the emperor.
At this period so little was known of China in the
Western world that the history of Marco Polo gained
but little credit, and failed to enlighten the people of
the age with regard to that great country. In fact, there
were very few who knew anything about the traveler or
the book he had written; for the art of printing being
then unknown in Europe, knowledge was but slowly and
partially diffused, and those who read the work thought




THE MONGOL D YNASTY.             207
it so improbable that they treated the whole narrative
as a fiction. The extent and wealth of Cathay, the
splendor of its court, the number of its cities, the beauty
of its manufactures, the order of its government, all
faithfully described by the author, were read with a
smile of incredulity; nor was it till a much later period,
when the country was visited by other Europeans, that
justice was done to his veracity. In fact, full justice
was never rendered to this illustrious traveler until the
year 1818, when the learned Mr. William Marsden published his translation and edition, under the title of
" The Travels of Marco Polo, a Venetian, in the thirteenth century; being a Description, by that Early
Traveler, of Remarkable Places and Things in the Eastern Part of the World." This quarto volume of 860
pages contains the results of many years of labor devoted to the task of substantiating the authority of the
old traveler. The comments, notes and dissertations are
hardly to be numbered, and they are as valuable as they
are numerous. Other travelers and navigators of all
ages and of all nations are quoted wherever they describe the countries or places visited by Marco; and
from the mass of evidence thus collected, Mr. Marsden
has established, beyond the reach of rational doubt, that
the long-calumniated Venetian is in the main most remarkably veracious and correct in his descriptions. Of
these descriptions a very large portion relate exclusively
to China and its dependencies.
But to resume the subject of our history. When
the Polos set out on their return to China, they had
with them two preaching friars, deputed as missionaries
by Pope Gregory X., who also sent letters to the khan;




208    THiE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPItRE
but some of the states of Syria, through which the
travelers had to pass, were in a state of warfare, and the.friars were, from untoward circumstances, prevented from
proceeding, while the Polos, after encountering many
difficulties and dangers, safely reached their destination.
This was about the time when the Crusades were drawing to a close, and the year in which the three Italians
arrived at the court of Kublai Khan was A. D. 1274,
the same in which Edward I. returned to England from
the Holy Land.
They found Kublai Khan at Yen-king, near KIambalu, or Peking, in the midst of his court and great officers of state. They performed the ko-tau or nine prostrations, as they are now practiced in the Chinese court;
and Marco's father and uncle, then rising, related in
perspicuous language all that they had done since their
departure, and all that had happened to them, the
khan listening with attentive silence. The letters and
presents of. the pope were next laid before the tolerant
Tartar conqueror, who, it is said, received with peculiar reverence some oil from the Holy Sepulchre at
Jerusalem.
The emperor testified much delight at the return of
his former visitors, and was so much pleased with young
MIarco that he conferred on him a high post at the court,
and employed him on missions to various parts of the
empire. Marco had therefore sufficient opportunities of
observing the state of the country as well as the manners of the court. He tells us himself that he was held
in high estimation and respect by all belonging to the
court, and that he learned in a short time and adopted
the manners of the Tartars, and acquired a proficiency in




THE 3,ONCGOL DYNASTYo            209
four different languages, which he became qualified to
read and write.
The cities were, at this period, thronged with industrious artizans, who commonly worked at their own
homes, and sold the produce of their labor to the wealthy
merchants, who traded principally to India; from which
country the manufactures and produce of China were
conveyed to Alexandria, and from that port were transported to Venice, where they were all received under
the general name of Indian goods; and thus the Chinese
were for a long time considered the same people as the
Indians, and their country was supposed to be the most
remote part of India.
Among the many improvements made by Kublai
Khan during his beneficent reign was the establishment
of inns or post-houses, commencing from the capital and
continued at intervals of about thirty-six miles to all the
principal places in the empire, and at these stations relays
of horses were always kept in readiness for the. emperor's
messengers, who were there also furnished with the- requisite food and lodging. There were also ferry-boats
at convenient stations to carry them across the rivers
and lakes without delay, so that in case of need a messenger could travel two hundred miles in the twentyfour hours; and by these means fine fruits and other
luxuries for the court and rich citizens were often conveyed from the most distant provinces to Peking-an
advantage which that city would not so readily have enjoyed otherwise, since it stands in a cold and barren
plain, and depends for its supplies on the more fertile
districts of the south.
These supplies were, as now, obtained by the generality
14




210    TIIE OLDS'T AND TIHE NEWEST EMXPIRE.
of the inhabitants by means of the Great Canal, which was
constantly covered with barges laden chiefly with grain.
A great number of these barges were employed between
the different provinces and the capital in conveying the
tribute, out of which, when the harvest was abundant,
the emperor laid up in his granaries stores of rice and
corn, which in years of scarcity he sold to the poor at a
cheap rate. Although, therefore, the taxes were heavy,
the people derived benefit from them when they stood
most in need of assistance, and they were always remnitted, or at least much lightened, in a season of public
calamity. Everything, indeed, appears to have been
done by this beneficent prince that could tend to increase the prosperity and happiness of his subjects, who
seem to have enjoyed, under his paternal government,
the blessings of peace in their fullest extent.
Among the first things which struck Marco Polo were
the orderly air of the people, the strictness of the police,
the populousness of the superior cities, the extent and
usefulness of the Grand Canal, and the immense number
of bridges in all parts of the empire where rivers ran or
canals were dug. In describing " the noble and magnificent city of Kin-sai," then the capital of Southern China,
which is traversed by a river and many canals, he says:
"It is commonly reported here that the number of
bridges of all sizes amounts to twelve thousand."  He
adds: "Those which are thrown over the principal
canals, and are connected with the main streets, have
arches so high, and built with so much skill, that the
vessels of the country can pass under them without
lowering their masts, whilst at the same time carts and
horses are passing over their heads, so well is the slope




THE MONGOL DYNASTY.             211
from the street adapted to the height of the arch. In
fact, as the river or the canals run everywhere, if the
bridges were not so numerous there would be no convenience of crossing from one place to another."
In all the cities good order was preserved, and no one
was allowed to be abroad after dark, except on urgent
business, when he was required to carry a lantern-a
regulation which prevented robberies or disturbances in
the streets at night. In the centre of the capital there was
an enormous bell, suspended in a lofty building, so placed
that it could be heard all over the city; and this was
tolled every evening at a certain hour, as a signal for all
persons to retire to their homes; as the curfew, in olden
times, was rung at eve, to warn the people of England
that it was time to extinguish the cheerful blaze and betake themselves to repose.
As soon as Kublai had completed the conquest of
China, he sent an ambassador to the sovereign of the
Japan islands, who was an independent prince, ruling
over a numerous and not uncivilized people. The object
of this embassy was to demand submission and tribute
of the Japanese monarch as a vassal of the Chinese
empire; and when the indignant chief refused to comply
with so unjust a requisition, the emperor declared war
against him, and sent out a large fleet in the hope of
making another important conquest.
The Japanese, however, made a successful resistance;
and by the help of a storm, which destroyed the greater
part of the Tartar fleet, they were fortunate enough to
preserve that independence which they have maintained
to this day.
The Tartar conquest produced no alteration ini the




212    TEIE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
manners and customs of the native Chinese, which, indeed, as before observed, appear not to have been affected
by any of the revolutions that have taken place in the
country-all the national festivals being observed as in
former times, and the same laws remaining in force that
have so direct and powerful an influence on the character and social habits of the people of China.
The garments worn by the mass of the population were
at this time still made of silk, for although cotton was
then cultivated for the purpose of being manufactured,
it was not so plentiful as silk, consequently it was much
more expensive, and only used by persons of high rank;
but the case is now entirely reversed, since at the present
day the rich alone wear silks, while the poor are commonly clothed in cotton.
One of the great festivals described by Marco Polo as
having been observed in China during the reign of
Kublai Khan was the birth-day of that great prince,
which was a universal holiday, and celebrated throughout the empire with all kinds of public rejoicings. Sacrifices were made in the temples, the cities were illuminated, and people of all classes spent the day in feasting
and amusements. Among the latter were dramatic pieces
performed by companies of strolling players, either in
temporary theatres set up in the streets for the delight
of the commonalty, or in the houses of the principal magistrates, who usually hired actors on grand occasions, as
they do still, for the entertainment of their guests.
The emperor appeared on this festive day arrayed in
a robe of cloth of gold, his whole dress glittering with
jewels, and was attended by all the chief officers of his
court in theis magnificent state dresses, who stood around




THE MONGOL DYNASTY.             213
the throne while he received the homage of the tributary
princes who came to offer their congratulations. The
banquet given at the palace on this occasion was extremely sumptuous, and graced with the presence of the
empress and ladies of the court, for the Tartar ladies
were less secluded in their habits than the Chinese, and
when they first arrived in the country were frequently
seen on public occasions, but they have since adopted in
a great measure the more reserved manners of the ladies
of China.
The banquet took place in a large hall, where the
guests were seated according to their rank. The emperor's table stood on a dais at the upper end, and the
ladies were ranged according to their rank at tables by
themselves. The meats were served on -silver, and the
drinking-cups were of gold. A band of music was in
attendance the whole time, and at the lower end of the
hall a temporary stage was erected for the performances
of the players and the feats of jugglers and tumblers.
But it must be observed that the mirth of the guests was
never indulged to an extent that might have been deemed
disrespectful to the emperor. There was no noisy laughter; and whenever the imperial host raised the cup to
his lips, a signal was given and all present knelt down
and bowed their heads until he had finished his draught.
On the occasion of the birth-day presents of great
value were sent to the emperor from all the provinces;
but as they were too numerous, and some of them too
bulky, to be laid at his feet, they were merely passed in
review before him, borne by a train of camels. This
was a very general custom in the East; and the presents
made to Eastern princes by their subjects must have




214    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMJ~PIRE.
very materially contributed toward keeping up the extraordinary splendor for which their courts were so
remarkable.
Marco Polo has left us a splendid description of the
imperial place at Xanadu, or Kambalu6 Where twice five miles of fertile ground
With walls and towers were girdled round."
The picture is, indeed, dazzling and marvelous, yet it
does not appear in any essential particular to have exceeded the truth. Counting the enclosing park and
gardens, the palace of Kublai IKhan occupied considerably more than ten English miles of ground. The English gentlemen who attended Lord Macartney on his
embassy to China in 1793, and those who have visited
that capital within the past few years, have been astonished at the extent and magnificence of the imperial
palace at Peking, and their descriptions of it correspond with those given by Marco Polo in the thirteenth
century. They have found the river, the artificial lakes,
the lofty hills raised by the hands of man, and planted
to the top with shrubs and trees, surrounding summerhouses and cabinets contrived for retreat and pleasure.
The whole, at the first glance, has almost the appearance
of enchantment. In point of structure, materials and
style of embellishment there has existed an exact resemblance between the buildings of Kublai Khan, as
described by Marco, and those of the emperors of later,centuries.
Since the Tartars had occupied the throne, hunting
had been the grand amusement of the court, the sports
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THE MON'G OL D YNXASTY.          215
ical of warfare, and the fearless hunter being respected
as a brave warrior. The annual hunting expedition
into Tartary was conducted with all the solemnity of a
campaign, the emperor taking the head of a numerous
train, which had the appearance of a vast army marching to the field of battle. The three winter months were
entirely occupied with this pursuit, which, during the
season, was deemed the chief business of the state; so
that the holding of these hunts is among the principal
duties of a Tartar sovereign, and he who neglects them
excites discontent.
WVhen the sporting season was over, it was customary
for the whole court to repair to a city of Tartary, where
the emperor had a palace, with an extensive park and
pleasure-grounds; and to this summer residence he was
accompanied by the empress and all his other wives, for
he had many, although only one of them enjoyed the
dignity and title of empress. This favored lady was
surrounded with as much state as her lordly husband,
having three hundred female slaves to attend upon and
amuse her, for which purpose many of them had been
taught music and dancing, according to the custom of
the East; and besides these damsels there were elderly
females, whose occupation it was to relate entertaining
stories to the empress and ladies of the court, amongst
whom reading was then an art comparatively unknown.
It was by resorting to the cool, bracing, upland plains,
or steppes, of Tartary, and by the exercise of hunting
and hawking, that the first princes of the Tartar line
escaped the enervating effects of the hot climate of
China and the easy, luxurious mode of living in the
south.  6It is worthy of remark," says Sir John F.




216    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMfPIBE.
Davis, "that of the scores of dynasties which have
followed each other, all established themselves on the
vices, luxuries or indolence of their immediate forerunners. The present Manchu race has already shown no
unequivocal symptoms of degeneracy. The two greatest
princes by whom it has been distinguished, Kang-hi and
Kien-lung, sedulously maintained the ancient habits of
their Tartar subjects by frequent hunting excursions
beyond the Wall, in which they individually bore no
small share of the fatigue and danger.  The emperor Kia-king, and his successors during the present
century, have, on the other hand, been remarkable for
their comparative indolence; and their reigns have
exhibited a mere succession of revolts and troubles."
Kublai Khan lived to the advanced age of eightythree, and had ruled over the whole of China about
eighteen years when he died, A. D. 1294, and was succeeded by his grandson, Timur.
The empire of the Mongols had now attained its
utmost magnitude. It extended from the Chinese sea
and the Indies to the northern extremity of Siberia, and
from  the eastern shores of Asia to the frontiers of
Poland in Europe; and all this vast portion of the globe
was governed by princes of the family of Zingis, who
were all vassals of the Great Khan, or emperor of
China.  The chief of these were the khans of Persia,
Zagatai and Kipzac, who were tributary to Kublai, but
after his death they became independent sovereigns.
The Chinese empire continued under the dominion of
the Mongols about seventy-three years from the death
of Kublai, and in that time eight princes of his family
reigned in succession; not one of whom equaled his




THE MONGOL DYNvASTY.            217
great predecessor in ability, although most of them were
mild and beneficent rulers. Kublai had, with the wisdom of a superior mind, accommodated himself to the
habits and prejudices of the conquered nation; but his
successors, less politic, made innovations on the ancient
form of government, and lost by degrees the confidence
and affection of the Chinese, who are extremely jealous
of the slightest interference with their established cusp
toms, and whose dissatisfaction at length began to exhibit
itself by frequent insurrections.
During the whole of the Yuen (or Mongol) dynasty,
Buddhism was the religion favored by the state; and so
many of the priests of that sect came into China that
the people found them very burdensome, as they were a
mendicant race, who went from house to house asking
alms. Many Buddhist temples were built in the reign
of Kublai Khan, who was himself a devout professor
of Buddhism-a faith which never possessed so much
influence in China as during the sway of the Mongol
emperors.
Shun-tsung, the ninth and last sovereign of this race,
ascended the throne in 1331, and reigned thirty-five
years, or rather he suffered his ministers to reign, for he
himself was too indolent and fond of pleasure to take
much share in state affairs. When the Tartars first
arrived from their own wild deserts, they were a bold,
energetic race of barbarians; but the ease and luxury
in which they were enabled to indulge in the genial
climate of China had softened their manners, and had
thus destroyed the warlike character by which their
ancestors had gained possession of the country, and by
which alone they could hope to retain it. Shun-tsung




218    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
neglected the annual hunts and the practice of every
manly exercise and every manly virtue. He was stained
with all the vices which usually adhere to the representative of a worn-out, decaying dynasty: he was voluptuous, effeminate, indolent to excess, a coward, and yet a
sanguinary tyrant. After several insurrections against
him had failed, a revolution was commenced, which was
attended with full success, and which placed the empire
of China once more under the dominion of native
princes.
There was a poor laborer in the province of Nanking
who had a son named Chu, a lad whose constitution was
so delicate that he was quite unfit for hard work; his
father therefore placed him in one of the monasteries, to
be brought up by the priests, with a view to his becoming a member of that order. The boy, however, had no
taste for so inactive a life, and growing stronger as his
years increased, he enlisted as a common soldier in the
imperial army, in which capacity he distinguished himself so highly on two or three different occasions that he
was promoted, step by step, till he had attained to a high
rank, when he married a widow of fortune and influence,
whose family was among those who were disaffected toward the Tartar government. Chu soon imbibed similar
principles, and took the lead in a formidable insurrection
that broke out in the province in which the old capital,
Nanking, is situated. As soon as it was known that this
famous general was at the head of the insurgents, the
whole province was speedily in arms, the capital having
already declared for the rebel chief, who met and defeated the imperial forces. The numbers of the rebel
army increased  daily; the most considerable cities




THIE MONGOL DYNASTY.            219
opened their gates to them, and at length Peking itself
was taken, and Shun-ti with his family fled into Tartary,
leaving his capital in the undisputed possession of the
victor, who was proclaimed emperor by the title of
Tai-tsu in the year 1366. This was the commencement of the Ming dynasty, which was displaced nearly
three hundred years afterward by the present reigning
family.
China had reached a very high point of grandeur,
order and civilization under Kublai Khan at the close of
the thirteenth century. There has been no remarkable
progress since that period, until the recent wars with
foreign nations instituted a new order of things; in
general, there has been an evident deterioration, decline
and decay. The pictures of Marco Polo, collectively,
do certainly present a vast, most populous, prosperous
and well-governed nation, highly refined and civilized
as compared with the very best countries in Europe at
that period, and far exceeding them all in extent, unity
and consolidation. We have insisted on the authority
of Marco Polo, and not without reason. So high did he
rise in the estimation and favor of the liberal-minded
Kublai-who, unlike most of the sovereigns who preceded and followed him on the throne of China, readily
employed Arabians, Persians and other foreigners-that
when a member of one of the high tribunals was unable to proceed to the government of a city to which he
had been nominated, the emperor sent the young Venetian in his stead. Marco mentions this honorable
event of his life in the most modest manner, and only
incidentally while describing the city, which was Yangchau-fu, in the province of Kiang-nan, a place then of




220    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
great importance, and celebrated for its manufacture of
arms and all kinds of military accoutrements.
In another chapter the Venetian says, "Marco, on his
part, perceiving that the Grand Khan took a pleasure in
hearing accounts of whatever was new to him respecting
the customs and manners of people, and the peculiar
circumstances of distant countries, endeavored, whereever he went, to obtain correct information on these subjects, and made notes of all he saw and heard, in order
to gratify the curiosity of his master. In short, during
seventeen years that he continued in his service, he rendered himself so useful that he was employed in confidential missions to every part of the empire and its dependencies; and sometimes also he traveled on his own
private account, but always with the consent and sanctioned by the authority of the Great Khan. Under
such circumstances it was that Marco Polo had the opportunity of acquiring a knowledge, either by his own
observation or by what he collected from others, of so
many things, until his time unknown, respecting the
eastern parts of the world, and which he diligently and
regularly committed to writing, as in the sequel will
appear."




CHAPTER IX.
THE LAST NATIVE DYNASTY —THE MING.
AS soon as Tai-tsu was firmly seated on the throne,
ambassadors were sent by the kings of Corea and
other tributary princes to congratulate him on his elevation, and express their satisfaction that the -country
was once more under the dominion of a native ruler.
The success of Tai-tsu and his excellent government are
attributed in great measure to the prudent counsels of
his wife. The new emperor chose Nanking for his capital, and erected Peking into a principality, which he
bestowed on one of his sons, Yung-lo, who, when he
became emperor, again removed the court from Nanking to Peking, the latter city being better situated for
keeping in check the Tartars, who were constantly at
war with the Chinese after the fall of the Mongol dynasty. Tai-tsu began his reign by restoring those institutions which had been disregarded since the time of
Kublai Khan, whose successors had broken in upon one
of the most important usages of the Chinese government,
by placing military men in all the chief offices of state,
which under Kublai had been filled by the learned.
This was one of the innovations which had led to the revolution, and was among the first grievances redressed by
the new emperor, who restored the literary mandarins to
221




222    THIE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
their former rank and influence, and granted great privileges to the Han-lin College. He made several new regurations intended to promote the happiness of the people,
and, among others, that women should not devote themselves as priestesses to the religion of Buddha, and that
no man should enter a monastery till he was forty years
of age; for Tai-tsu knew by experience that young people sometimes were induced to adopt this life of seclusion
before they were old enough to judge whether it was
exactly suited to their dispositions, and were thereby
doomed to many years of misery and regret.
Tai-tsu reigned thirty-one years, and, having lost his
favorite son, appointed his grandson, a boy of thirteen,
under the imperial name of Kien-wan, to succeed him,
which gave great offence to one of his sons, Yung-lo,
who raised an army at Peking, and placing himself at
its head, marched toward Nanking to demand from his
nephew the surrender of the throne. He was opposed
by the imperial troops, and a battle ensued, in which
many were killed on both sides, but the cause was still
undecided when the gates of the city were opened by a
traitor. The assailants instantly rushed into the town,
put many of the inhabitants to the sword and set the
palace on fire. The youthful emperor perished in the
flames, and Yung-lo took possession of the vacant throne.
Some of the ministers were condemned to death, others
killed themselves, while many of. the mandarins, who
expected to be punished for their adherence to the cause
of the late unfortunate prince, shaved their heads and
assumed the sackcloth habit of the bonzes, and, thus disguised, were not recognized.
Although the new emperor had obtained the throne




THE LAST NATIVE DYNVASTY-THE.M1ING.    223
by cruelty and violence, he was not a bad sovereign, but
on'the contrary exhibited great moderation and justice
in many acts of his government.  He removed the court
to Peking, as has been before remarked, which has been
the imperial residence ever since; but he established
separate tribunals at Nanking, which city was occupied
and governed by his eldest son.
It was in this reign that the great Tartar chief
Timour, or Tamerlane, as he is more generally called,
whose conquests almost equaled those of Zingis Khan,
being ambitious of adding China to the vast dominions
he had already acquired by a long and successful course
of warfare, set out with the intention of invading that
empire; but, happily for the Chinese, he died on the
way (A.D. 1405), and the expedition was abandoned.
From time to time, however, the Tartars renewed their
invasions in the hope of recovering the empire, and
were a terrible scourge to those provinces which bordered on Tartary. When there happened to be a powerful prince at the head of the state, they were kept in
check, but whenever the government was weak, they
did not fail to turn that advantage to account; so that
the Chinese were never entirely at peace during the
whole period of the Ming dynasty, which lasted three
centuries.
It was in the reign of this race that the rapid progress of navigation which followed the discovery of
America first brought the ships of Europe to the shores
of China.1 The Portuguese, who were the great navigaI Those who love to trace the simultaneous tread of the great events which
mark the eras of the advance of our race will observe that this new link was
formed between the most distant West and the most distant East, between the
most immobile and the most progressive parts of the world, at the hour when




224     THE OLDEST AND THE NE WEST EMlfPIRE.
tors of the age, having made several voyages to India by
the newly-discovered passage round the Cape of Good
Hope, ventured still farther eastward in the year 1516,
and were the first Europeans who reached the Canton
river.  Their vessels, despatched by Alfonso Albuquerque, the captain-general of Malacca, were under the command of a bold and adventurous Portuguese named
Perestrello, who, however, did not pass the islands at
the mouth of the river.  His name will be memorable
as that of the first person who ever conducted a ship to
China under a European flag. On his return to Malacca,
Perestrello reported favorably of the country and its
commerce.  The very next year he was followed by a
squadron of eight vessels, under the command of Perez
de Andrade, who passed the islands and sailed up the
river. Some alarm was experienced at Canton on the
appearance of strange vessels, of a form altogether new
to the Chinese, who very naturally supposed an invasion
was intended; consequently, the squadron was presently
surrounded by war-junks, and it was with difficulty that
Perez de Andrade obtained permission to proceed up the
river to Canton with two of his ships.  The viceroy
granted an audience; but while successfully negotiating
for a trade, the Portuguese captain received accounts
that the rest of his squadron, left near the mouth of the
river, had been attacked by pirates. Some of his vessels
returned with cargoes to Malacca; the remainder sailed,
in company with some junks belonging to the Loo-Choo
islands, for the east coast of China, and succeeded in
Martin Luther was preparing the ninety-five theses, the nailing of which on the
door of the cathedral at Wittemberg waked up the slumbering conscience of
Europe, and was one of the first public acts of the Great Reformation.




THE LAST NATIVE DYNVASTY-THE IING.    225
establishing a colony at Ningpo. Shortly after this the
Portuguese brought their families to that port, and established a profitable trade, not only with various parts of
the Chinese coasts, but also with the islands which compose the empire of Japan-an empire then abounding
with the precious metals and other valuable productions.
But in the course of a few years the provincial government, provoked by their rapacity, piracy and general
ill-conduct, expelled them from!Ningpo; and thus the
Portuguese for ever lost an establishment on the continent of China in one of the provinces of the empire best
adapted to the ends of European trade. It must honestly be admitted that the conduct of their first visitors
from the West was not calculated to give the Chinese a
favorable opinion of Europeans, and that these Portuguese, with the subjects of some other nations of the
WVest, who very soon followed them, were little better
than buccaneers.
As the hostility of the Chinese to foreign intercourse
is a favorite subject of reproach against them in the
writings of men of our kith and creed, we may perhaps
obtain some useful light as to the grounds of it by looking into its records. The truth is, that the specimens
of Christian civilization who first went to that coastand, it must be added, some of later days-have been
scoundrels with whom the common knaves of Christendom would shrink from associating. Among the early
desperate adventurers from Portugal was Ferdinand
Mendez Pinto, who has been made memorable by the ill
names bestowed upon him by Cervantes and the dramatist
Congreve, but the bulk of whose descriptions and adventures were indisputably true. Having been plundered
15




22     SETHE OLDEST AND THE NiEWEST EMPIRE.
oy native pirates, he and his comrades turned pirates
themselves. These freebooters finally reached Ningpo,
which was as yet in the hands of their countrymen, and
which Mendez Pinto describes as a strongly-fortified
settlement. They were received with "great affection
and Christian charity:;" prayers were put up for thenm
fin the church; they were visited and feasted by the
Irichest and noblest of the settlers, who assured them
thatthfe Chinese empire was in so unsettled a state that
they might plunder and;burn even the great city of
Canton without danger or difficulty. Thirteen different
princes were contending for the imperial crown, war was
waging in all parts of the empire, and the Manchu Tartars were coming. Before quitting Ningpo, Mendez
Pinto's commodore, Antonio de Faria, furnished himself
with a Portuguese priest or friar for each of his ships,
in order that mass might be regularly performed at sea.
The very devout Portuguese settled at Ningpo had
learned from some Chinese that to the north-east there
was an island containing the tombs of seventeen Chinese
kings, all made of gold and surrounded by many idols
cast in the same precious metal. For a long time this
island seemed to evade the search of the Portuguese
captain. At last, when his crew was in despair and
mutinous, he hit upon the island and upon some of the
royal tombs. But, alas! the gold turned out to be only
burnished brass or gilded copper. The marauders, however, burst open the graves, and there, among the dry
bones of the dead, they found a great quantity of silver.
A tempest followed them, as if in vengeance, and they
were all shipwrecked in the bay of Nanking. Of the
total -nurmbe~ Qonly fourteen saved their lives by swim



N.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -








THE LAST NATIVE DYNAS7TY-THE MING.   227
ming. The people on the solitary coast were kind and
hospitable, giving them rice to eat, and pointing out the
way to a pagoda and hospital where pilgrims could
always find food and lodging..When questioned by the
bonzes or priests at the hospitium who they were and
whence they came, the Portuguese said that they were
natives of the kingdom of Siam, poor honest fishermen,
who had been cast away; and hereupon they met with a
most humane reception. When these bonzes, who were
very poor, had entertained them two or three days,
they sent them on to another hospitium, three leagues
off, which was very rich. These places of refuge for
pilgrims and for the poor of all classes were then very
numerous in China, and they had been faithfully
described by Marco Polo. Two months the shipwrecked
pirates wandered through that immense province, begging in the villages and avoiding as much as possible
the great towns, for fear of being detected as Portuguese
mariners. At last, in an evil hour, they entered the
town of Taypor. There they were seen, as they were
begging from door to door, by a sharp magistrate, who
caused them to be arrested, loaded with chains and iron
collars, and cast into a frightful prison, where one of
them died. At the end of twenty-six days they were
embarked on a canal for the city of Nanking, together
with twenty or thirty Chinese criminals and cut-throats.
Almost as soon as they arrived at Nanking, which Ferdinand Mendez correctly describes as an immense and populous city, the second in rank in the empire, they were examined by a very rigorous mandarin, who ordered them
a terrible flogging on the bare back, which caused the
death of two of them. Two more had been previously




228    THE OLDEST AND TIE NEWEST EMPIRE.
drowned in crossing an inlet of the sea. Some charitable
Buddhist priests attended the nine survivors, healed
their wounds, and then procured that they should be
sent on to the grand imperial court of appeal at Peking.
The unhappy Portuguese ascended the grand canals,
which struck them with astonishment. They were also
charmed with the number of the bridges and the magnificence of the pagodas, tombs, fountains and arches of
triumph. Ferdinand had also occasion to admire the
tranquil manners of the Chinese and the good order and
industry that prevailed among them. Shortly after their
arrival at Peking thiey were acquitted, or rather pardoned, by the supreme court, and liberated with a free
permission to go again a-begging. For two months and
a half they enjoyed this liberty in Peking, and among
that countless population they found many charitable
people. They were then sent to the city of Kin-sai,
where they were taken into the service of the governor
as part of his body-guard. They were kindly and even
liberally treated, until (strange illustration of the kind
of honor that often exists in the bosom of thieves!) there
happened a quarrel among themselves about a question
of precedence, genealogy and nobility, and a commotion
and a scuffle, accompanied with bloodshed, which the
Chinese laws have at all times held in great abhorrence.
They were again well flogged or beaten with bamboos
and thrown into prison, a miethod of settling such nice
points in which the Chinese certainly set the nations of
the West a good lesson. After eight more weeks of
captivity the governor took pity on them, and they were
released, though only to be slaves in perpetuity, and
under the doom that if they ever again quarreled and




MTIE LAST NATIVE SDYNASTY-THE MING.    229
fought among themselves, whether about the antiquity
of their families or aught else, they would all be instantly
scourged to death. Although their taskmasters made
them  work very hard, they were still obliged to beg
from door to door for their daily bread or rice. Luckily
one of them, Gaspar de MIoreyles by name, was a very
good musician, "playing the guitar and singing to it with
a voice which was not a bad one; and this music was
very agreeable to the richer sort of Chinamen, who pass
their lives in banquets and the delights of the flesh, and
so they called Gaspar in very frequently for their pastime, and never sent himr  away empty-handed."  The
minstrel generously shared the proceeds with his comrades. They were released from their present thraldom
by the Mianchu Tartars, who captured Kin-sai, carried
them; away with them, and very soon gave them good
military employment, finding that they were brave and
well skilled in the art of war. Beyond this point the
adventures of Ferdinand M1aendez Pinto are but little
connected with China.'
The first Portuguese embassy to Peking took place as
early as the year 1520. It was headed by one Perez,
who found the imperial court in a fury at the depredations committed at sea by his countrymen. He was sent
back under custody to Canton, the provincial government of which place was no doubt instructed to arrest
further attempts on the part of strangers to communicate
with the court. At Canton, Perez was robbed of his property, thrown into prison, and ultimately, it is supposed,
put to death~ " The various embassies," adds Sir J. F.
Davis, " which followed in three successive centuries to
C. ACF ARLANE, Romanc of Travel, vol. ii. chap. 5.




230    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EEMPIRE.
Peking, met with different kinds of treatment; but, in
whatever spirit conducted, they were (previous to the
Opium WVar) equally unsuccessful in the attainment of
any important points of negotiation."
The year after that in which Perez started on his
mission, his countryman, Alfonso de Melo, with six
vessels, and in ignorance of what had taken place,
arrived in China. He became immediately involved
in fierce conflicts with the indignant Chinese, who put
to death more than twenty Portuguese prisoners who
fell into their hands, and forced Melo's squadron to
retire.
About the middle of the sixteenth century, the Portuguese, however, succeeded in establishing themselves
at Macao, on a small peninsula near the mouth of the
Canton river; the only European colony-and it with
very limited success-that was planted on the coast of
China until our own days and the recent war with the
Celestial Empire. It seems that the Portuguese had a
temporary refuge on shore as early as 1537, being
allowed to erect sheds for drying goods, which were
introduced under the name of tribute. By degrees the
foreigners were permitted to build some warehouses, for
which privilege they paid an annual tribute and rent.
They erected there, by degrees, a number of good
houses, and the merchants who went to reside took with
them their wives and families, which was contrary to the
laws of the empire, but connived at by the mandarins,
who probably derived some advantage from granting
this indulgence. Macao was honored by being the place
of banishment of the great Portuguese poet Camoens,
parts of whose beautiful poem of the "' Lusiad" are said




TIHE LAST  ~ATIVE DYNASTY- TE 2IING.    231
to have been here written in a grotto which still bears
his name.
The new Portuguese town of Macao being situated at
the extremity of a small peninsula, joined by a narrow
isthmus to the island of Heang-shan, the Chinese government caused a wall to be built across the slip of land
as a barrier; for although the Chinese were not insensible to the advantages of foreign commerce, they adhered
to their system of exclusion, and while they strictly prohibited the strangers from entering their cities, or even
passing the bounds of their own settlement, they jealously watched all their proceedings. An officer was
appointed at Macao, who governed the town in the
name of the emperor, and whose duty it was to give
information to his superiors of the conduct of the
inhabitants.
The attempts of the Roman Church in the thirteenth
and fourteenth centuries had left little discernible fruit.
John III., the enterprising king of Portugal, determined to send the Christian religion to the heathen
lands which God had opened to his commerce. The devoted Francis Xavier was the first missionary who went
forth under his care. He embarked at Lisbon, April 8,
1541, arrived at Goa in India the following year, labored
there and in the neighboring countries for six years, and
then determined to carry the gospel to Japan and China.
After great success in Japan, he died upon the threshold
of his work in China, December 2, 1552. His remains
were carried to Goa for interment, but the little island
of Shang-chuen, on which he died, is a place of resort
for pilgrims till the present day.
Not long after the Portuguese had opened a trade




232    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EJMPIRE.
with China, the Spaniards, rivaling their example, began
to send out ships to the Indian ocean, and in the reign
of Philip II. established a colony at Manila (A. D.
1543), in the Philippine Islands, where they entered
into commercial dealings with the Chinese merchants,
who10 carried silks and porcelain thither for sale. But,
although they still possess the privilege of trading at
Canton, as well as at Macao and at Amoy, the Spaniards
have derived less advantage from an intercourse with the
"Middle Kingdom" than most other nations, notwithstanding the vast advantage they have in the locality of
Manila, which is within a few days' sale of China, and
approached with equal facility in either monsoon. But
if these ultra-devout people did not grasp the commercial advantages within  their reach, they paid every
attention to the propagation of their faith. Manila, in
a little time, was well stocked with churches and relig.ious houses, and with monks; and of these last two were
sent over to convert the Chinese about the year 1570.
The appearance of foreigners in a Chinese city was so
rare a sight that the house in which the monks lodged
was constantly surrounded by the populace, who mounted
the walls and the housetops to obtain a glimpse. of the
men from an unknown land. When they went out
sedan-chairs were provided for their accommodation,
but they could scarcely make their way along the streets
in consequence of the crowds that were assembled to see
them. They found the country through which they
traveled extremely fertile and well cultivated, and the
people, who were then generally employed in harrowing
and seed-sowing, appeared to be in comfortable circumstances; but the strangers were so closely watched that




TIIE LAST 1NATIVE DYNiTASTY-THE MING.    233
they had little opportunity of gaining much information
respecting the real condition of the natives or of visiting the interior of their abodes.
At length the Spaniards were politely but decidedly
informed that their visit had been sufficiently prolonged;
and without having received a direct reply with regard
to the object of their mission, they were escorted to
Canton, where a bark was in readiness to convey
them back to Manila; and thus ended their hopes of
propagating Christianity among the Chinese. Other
attempts were made with as little success until the following century, when the Jesuits, Dominicans and
Franciscans undertook missions to China. As they
were in general more politic men than monks of other
orders, and in the habit of mixing more with the world,
they succeeded better than those who had gone before
them. They commenced the great work they had in
view in a very cautious manner, giving out that they
were holy men from the West, who, having heard of the
wonders of the Celestial Empire, had come to finish their
days in that celebrated land; and one of them gained
the reputation of being a great astrologer by constructing a sun-dial and an armillary sphere, which excited
much admiration.
Having conciliated the good-will of the natives, they
were permitted to remain, and when they had gained
sufficient influence to make the attempt, they obtained
leave to build a Christian church, and succeeded in
making many converts.
Such was the state of affairs when Wan-lieh, the
thirteenth emperor of the Ming dynasty, ascended the
throne of his ancestors in the year 1571. Wan-lieh




234    THE  OLDEST AIVD S E _EITESPT EMPIRE
is highly spoken of in Chinese history as being just,
wise and benevolent, and altogether as a prince of an
excellent disposition. He caused to be published every
three months, for the convenience of the public, a book
containing the name, rank and native city of every
officer of the empire-a custom  which has been continued ever since. It is called the Red Book, from the
color; red being much used in connection with the ceremonial matters of both religion and the state: it may be
mentioned, for instance, that there are before the portals
of every official mansion two high poles which are
uniformly painted red. There are nine degrees of rank
among the officers of government, and alterations are
continually made in their body by the advancement of
some, and by the appointment of new magistrates to the
offices of each province, and the admission of fresh candidates after every examination. The nobility is therefore, in fact, a constantly fluctuating body, and the Red
Book is a court calendar corrected regularly according
to the changes that have occurred.
The long reign of Wan-lieh was disturbed from its
commencement by the irruptions of the Manchus, whose
power was fast increasing, while that of the Ming
princes was as rapidly declining; and at length the
Mlanchu prince Tien-ming, provoked by the oppressive
conduct of some Chinese officers on the frontiers, formally declared war against the empire, and published a
manifesto stating his reasons for so doing.
Just at this juncture Wan-lieh died, and was succeeded by his grandson, Hi-tsung, who reigned only
seven years, during which the war was continued with
varied success, and it was still undecided when the last of




THE LAST NA TI VE D YNASTY-THE MING.    235
the Chinese sovereigns, Hwai-tsung, ascended the throne
in the year 1627.
The late emperor, Hi-tsung, and the Tartar king,
Tien-ming, died within a few months of each other, the
latter being succeeded by his son Tien-tsung, who prosecuted the war against Hwai-tsung with a view to the
conquest of the empire. The whole country was now
in a most dreadful state of anarchy, for the regular
troops being all engaged in the contest with the Tartars,
there were none to stop the progress of rebellion, which
began to show  itself in all the provinces.  Several
daring chiefs raised revolts, and collected large armed
bands, with which they ravaged the country and plundered the cities with impunity; nor had the magistrates
any power to prevent such outrages by enforcing the
laws, which they could only do by military aid.
The way was prepared for the revolution which
placed on the throne the Maanchu Tartars, who have
held it until the present time. We will dwell a little
in our history upon the events which lifted to a position
of so vast power a race which has given to China some
of the ablest of its long line of rulers, and one which at
present seems to be the appointed agency of Providence
to introduce the civilization of the West, and with it the
knowledge of the doctrines of Christianity.
The boldest of the insurgent leaders, whose name was
Li-kung, even aspired to the imperial dignity, and
having raised an immense army, he made himself
master of the provinces of Ho-nan and Shen-si, where
he secured his authority by putting to death the principal officers of the cities, and freeing the people
from all taxes and contributions. The support of the




236    THE OLDEST AND THE N EW TVEST EMPIRE.
commonalty being thus gained, he marched toward
Peking, the capital, sending several of his party before
him disguised as merchants, who went into the city,
where they hired shops and carried on trade till an
opportunity offered for executing their project, which
was to gain over some of the soldiers of the guard and
by their assistance to open the gates to the rebel army.
All happened according to their wishes; and' the night
on which the treacherous soldiers were to keep guard
was fixed for the entrance of Li-kung and his troops,
who on the gates being opened rushed into the town
and commenced a furious attack on the palace. The
officers fled in dismay; the guards of the palace went
over to the enemy; when the unfortunate emperor,
seeing no other means of escaping from the foe, stabbed
his daughter with his own hand, and then put an end to
his own existence. The young lady was carried off by
a faithful slave, and having survived the effects of the
blow, was afterward married to a Chinese grandee; but
the empress and many ladies of the court, dreading
nothing so much as falling into the hands of the rebels,
killed themselves in despair.
The triumphant chief caused himself to be proclaimed
emperor, and taking possession of the palace, proceeded
to exercise the sovereign authority, to which the people
of Peking and the northern provinces universally submitted; but one of the loyal generals, Wu San-kwei,
who still had an army under his conmmand, held out
with determined bravery, and fortified himself in a city
on the confines of Tartary, which was speedily besieged
by the usurper, whose cruelties had already made him
hateful to all except his own soldiers. Enraged at the




THE LAST NATIVE DYNASTY-THE KING.    237
opposition of WVu San-kwei, the tyrant caused the aged
father of that general to be brought, loaded with chains,
under the walls of the city, and sent word to the general
that if he did not surrender the old man would be instantly put to death; on which the unhappy son appeared on the wall, and on his knees, while the tears
streamed down his face, received the commands of his
venerable parent never to acknowledge the base usurper
as his sovereign. Scarcely had the father uttered the
words, when his head was severed from his body: a sad
sight for the eyes of a son, whose filial affection was of
that deep character so frequently met with among the
Chinese.
Wu San-kwei had now a double cause for vengeancethe death of his prince and the murder of his father.
He therefore made terms with the 3Manchu Tartars, and,
aided by them, soon expelled the usurper from the capital. The Tartar prince determined to keep to himself
the throne which he had won; and he was so well received at Peking, where the Chinese hailed him as a
deliverer, and he conducted matters with so much dexterity and prudence, that he found scarcely any difficulty
in assuming the sovereignty and being proclaimed emperor. Scarcely, however, had he been invested with
this high dignity than he was seized with a fatal disorder, of which he died in a few days, having named as
his successor his son-Shun-chi-a child only six years
of age, whose uncle was appointed to govern as regent
during his minority.
Such was the revolution (A.D. 1644) which placed the
present imperial family of the 3Manchu Tartar race on
the throne of China; but some years elapsed before the




238    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
whole country was brought under submission to a foreign
ruler; for although the provinces of the north, which
had been disgusted by the tyranny of the usurping
chief, had not hesitated to bestow the title of emperor
on a Tartar, some of the southern cities supported the
claims of the native princes, and a long civil war ensued, during which the loyalists kept possession of the
south, and two or three princes of the Ming family were
successively proclaimed emperors of Nanking, and held
their courts in that city.
The Chinese general Wu San-kwei was raised to a very
high rank, and a principality was bestowed on him, with
the government of one of the principal cities of Shen-si.
The fate of the usurper Li-kung was never known, but
it was generally supposed he was killed in some engagement with the Manchus.
It was during the reign of the last emperor of the native Chinese dynasty of iMing, and the troubles which
ended in the overthrow of that ancient family, and contemporaneous with the new order of things established in
the supremacy of a foreign power, that the Dutch and
the English from Europe were first led by Providence
to put in their claims for a share of the productions and
trade of China.
The Dutch, who had recently emancipated themselves
from the Spanish yoke, were at this time at war both
with the Spaniards and the Portuguese. The fierce conflicts between these three nations, who waged war by
land as well as by sea, who almost invariably fought
wherever they met, and who paid very little respect to
the neutrality of the bays and harbors of China, were
certainly well calculated still farther to estrange so




THE LAST NATIVE DYNASTY-THE MING.    239
peace-loving and timid a people as the inhabitants of
the Celestial Empire, and to fill them with horror of the
foreigners of the West. And worse followed. Having
defeated several Portuguese armaments, the Dutch captured Malacca, the Spice Islands and other places, and
in the year 1622 they attacked the Portuguese settlement
at Macao on the Canton river, with a squadron of seventeen ships. Being repulsed, with the loss of their adnliral and about three hundred men, the Dutch retired
and established themselves on the Pang-hu or Pescadore
Islands. Their occupation of this position was a source
of great annoyance to the Chinese authorities and to the
Portuguese and Spaniards. According to the custom of
those days, the Dutch began to build a fort, and obliged
the native Chinese to do their work, treating them all
the while with great harshness and severity. Most of
these unfortunate Chinese had been kidnapped or made
prisoners by the Dutch in the course of their attacks on
the coasts of the continent. The Chinese authorities
offered the invaders a liberty to trade if they would only
move farther off to Formosa, an island lying in the track
of our commerce, which has of late years attracted public
attention, partly on account of the occasional massacres
of the crews of foreign vessels wrecked on some portions
of its shores inhabited by wild aboriginal tribes, which
have compelled our government to inflict severe punishinent on some of their towns, and partly as a field of
Christian missions. The beginning of foreign intercourse was characteristic. In this rich and beautiful
island the Dutch made a settlement in the year 1625,
erecting Fort Zealand on its western shore. They interfered with the ancient laws and municipal institutions




240    THE OLDEST AND TIHE NEWEST E3MPIPRE.
of the islanders, and otherwise acted precipitately and unwisely, thereby losing the good-will of the people. They,
however, did not neglect the moral and spiritual interests
of the natives. In 1626 a devoted and able iDutch Protestant minister, George Candidius, was the first appointed to labor among the people, and it is said that in
sixteen months more than a hundred of the principal
men were converted to the truths of Christianity. The
work is reported to have been advancing rapidly, with
an extending foundation of churches and schools, when
the Dutch governors in India, fearful of offending the
Japanese, among whom they had obtained a settlement,
and who were then persecuting and exterminating the
Portuguese Roman Catholics in Japan, restricted these
benevolent labors and discouraged the further conversion of the inhabitants of Formosa. These restrictions
arose entirely out of the dread of losing the then profitable trade with Japan; and it must be admitted that in
many parts of the East, if the merchant has often paved
the way for the missionary, the passion of trade and love
of lucre have not unfrecquently thwarted the best efforts
made for religious conversion. During the struggles
which ensued after the overthrow of the Chinese Ming
dynasty many thousands of families emigrated from the
continent to Formosa, but so long as the Dutch remained
on that- island their trade with the Chinese was very
limited.
The English, who were destined to have in after years
so very large a portion of the Chinese trade, scarcely
had a glimpse of success until the reign of Charles I.
A very unfortunate attempt was made by Queen Elizabeth in 1596, when some English vessels under the




THE LAST NATIVE DIYNASTY-THE l3IING.    241
command of Benjamin WVood, who bore letters from the
queen to the emperor, made sail for Canton; but the
ships were lost on their way out, and thus a damper was
cast on such English enterprises for the space of forty
years. Under the reign of Charles I. another attempt
was made to open a trade; and on the 28th of MIay,
1637, a small squadron of English ships, under the
command of Captain Weddell, passed the mouths of the
Canton river and anchored off Macao, being the first
vessels of that nation seen at the place. The jealous
Portuguese intrigued against them, and so did the Jesuit
missionaries. As for the Celestials, the acquaintance of
the English with them, as usual, commenced with a
collision and a fighdt.  The Chinese were induced by the
Portuguese, who represented the English to be a wicked
and cruel nation with whom they should have no intercourse, to fire upon the ships in the hope of driving
them away. The result was, that Weddell attacked and
captured the fort, burned and destroyed some public
buildings of the neighborhood, killed and wounded a
good many of the people, and then took as lawful prizes
several of their trading-junks. Weddell thus compelled
them to open trade with him. So far as relates to the
English, there was, as may be supposed, after this inauspicious opening, a lull in ultra-Eastern enterprise, which
lasted twenty-seven years. It was prolonged by the great
civil wars, and by the wars the English were waging
with the Dutch, whose naval force in the Eastern seas
was at that time far superior to theirs.
The French, though at times very active in the
neighboring countries of Cochin-China and Siam, never
sent a formal mission to Peking or made any strenuous
16




242    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWIEST EIMPIRE.
efforts to obtain trade until the close of the Opium War,
when a treaty was negotiated in behalf of his nation by
Mons. de Lagren6. Yet it is worthy of notice that the
missionaries of that nation have made Europeans better
acquainted with China, and given the Chinese more
knowledge of Europe, than those of any other country;
and that their treaty, above mentioned, was the first, of
those made at a time when the Chinese were in a
position which compelled them  to accede to the demands of the Western powers, which made mention of
Christianity and endeavored to remove the barriers to
its promulgation.




CHAPTER X.
THE MANCHU DYNASTY.-FIRST EMPERORS.
HE family of the youthful emperor Shun-chi with
great wisdom engaged excellent tutors, who not only
instructed him in the literature of the country, but instilled into his mind such principles as were likely to
fit him  for the government of the conquered nation.
Under the care of these able monitors he learned to be
just and moderate toward the people over whom the
fortune of war had placed him; and being naturally
well inclined, he attained to manhood with just such
principles as were best calculated to reconcile the
Chinese to foreign dominion.
While Shun-chi was pursuing his studies the regent
and his generals were engaged in reducing the southern
part of the country to subjection, and all the finest
provinces were devastated by the long and fearful contest. Many of the great cities were laid in ruins; for
wherever the Tartars met with resistance they set fire to
the houses, and demolished all the public buildings except the Buddhist temples.
The traces of this war are still visible in China, where
many an empty space is bounded by a dilapidated wall
which once surrounded a populous town, but now encloses
only a few market-gardens; and some of the chief cities
243




244     THE OLDEST? AND THIE NY7ETWEST EPIRE.o
are not much more than half their original size, as may
be seen by the extent of their walls, which at present
encompass large spaces of ground where no houses are
remaining, and which are usually devoted to the culture
of vegetables for food. A great part of Nanking, with
the imperial palace, was destroyed at this time, and there
are now within its walls orchards, fields, garden-grounds
and scattered farm-houses, not above one-third of the
area being occupied by the present city.
One of the most formidable opponents of the Tartars'was a maritime chief, whom history, inasmuch as his
cause failed, styles a pirate, known by the name of
Koshinga, a noted character in the history of the period,
not only for his loyalty to the Chinese royal race, but
for his exploits against the Dutch, who had by this time
considerably increased their Indian  trade, and  had
strengthened their settlement in the island of Formosa.
Ching Chilung, the father of Koshinga, one of the
richest merchants in China, had, in the early part of the
war, fitted out a fleet at his own expense to support the
native princes; but after the accession of Shun-chi he
accepted the offer of a high post at court, leaving the
command of his fleet to his son, Koshinga, who, instead
of following the example of his father, remained faithful
to the cause of the legitimate princes. This chief was
the terror of the Indian seas, where no foreign vessels
dared to appear during the wars, so that all trade was
for a long time suspended.  At length, the Tartars,
having taken Nanking, laid siege to Canton, which by
the aid of Koshinga's fleet was enabled to hold out for
eight months, but was at the end of that time obliged to
surrender, and the last prince of the Ming family fled




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STE 3AN7CIIU DYNYASTY-FIRST EMPEBOs S.   245
to the court of the king of Pegu, where he was received
with the greatest hospitality.
Every place of importance having now submitted to
the conquerors, the new government was acknowledged
throughout the empire; and shortly afterward, on the
death of the regent, in 1652, Shun-chi, although only
fourteen years of age, took the government into his own
hands. The young sovereign, who no doubt acted by
the advice of prudent and experienced ministers, suffered the Chinese to retain all the rights and immunities
they had enjoyed under their native rulers; but, as he
found it necessary to satisfy his Tartar subjects also, by
admitting them to a share of the honlors and emoluments
of the empire, he doubled the number of officers of state
and members of councils, making one half Chinese and
the other half Tartars-a regulation which continues to
this day.
The Chinese, however, were required to submit to one
mark of subjection which was far more obnoxious and
spread more general discontent among them than any
changes that could have been introduced into the form
of government. This was, that they should divest themselves of the thick raven locks which they had been
accustomed to cherish with peculiar care, and adopt in
their stead the Tartar fashion  of having the head
shaven, except sufficient to form a long plaited queue
behind.  A haughty and civilized people would naturally feel deeply humiliated by such a badge of subjection
to a tribe of foreign barbarians.  They resisted it with
indignation; and it is asserted that many chose to submit their heads to the executioner rather than to the
barber, for that was the cruel alternative, as it was




246    THE OLDEST ANiD THE NEWEST EBIPIRE.
found impossible to enforce the decree by any gentler
means than treating disobedience as rebellion, and puns
ishing the offender accordingly. The queues were thus
fully established, and have been worn ever since. However in one locality an alleviation was granted to this indignity. The last province to submit was that on the
southern coast, next eastward of Canton, to which, in
commemoration of the final success of their arms, the
new dyhasty gave the name Fuh-kien —" happily established." Its bold and energetic people received permission to retain the black turban to cover the shaved head,
which they hated as the badge of submission to the Tartars; and this turban they proudly continue to wear. It
is a strange phenomenon that, much as the Chinese hate
the queue, they dread the loss of it, as their acute conquerors made cutting off the queue a punishment to
mark the more ignominous crimes, and the want of it,
like cropped ears in the Middle Ages in Europe, to be a
proclamation of a rogue.
There were some few alterations made also in the
national costume, but they were not very striking, nor
would it be very easy to describe them. With regard
to the laws, the religion and the system of government,
the conquest produced no change, for the Tartar sovereigns governed, like their Chinese predecessors, according to the rules laid down in the ancient books; so that,
although the emperor of China is absolute lord of the
lands and the people, he is in some degree restrained by
the laws as well as his subjects. He has first the nuikoh, or private cabinet, composed of four chief ministers-two Tartars and two Chinese-who, together with
certain high officers of state, form the kiun-ki-chu, or




THE MANCHU C   DYNASTY-FIRST EMPIPERORS.   247
general council; but the ordinary business of the government is conducted by the luh-pu, or six boards or
departments.
These boards, or their elements, were among the
earliest institutions of this wonderful empire.  The
business of the first, or Board of Civil Office, is to
take care that all offices under the government are
properly filled, and that those to whom authority is entrusted shall use it with moderation and discharge their
several duties with punctuality.  The members of this
board are responsible for the conduct of all the viceroys,
magistrates and civil officers of every description, and
are obliged at stated periods to send in an account of
their proceedings to the emperor; so that if any of them
are guilty of misconduct, it is almost sure to be made
known, and they are punished according to their misdemeanors. Each governor of a province or city is obliged
to send a report to the board once in three years as to
the conduct of all magistrates under his jurisdiction,
and also of any injuries done by himself to his poorer
brethren when seated on the magisterial bench to dispense justice; and this statement is compared with that
of others, who have perhaps been secretly keeping a watchful eye upon him; so that it is a dangerous experiment
for a magistrate to attempt to conceal his own delinquencies, since they are almost certain to come to the
knowledge of the board; and he is then punished not
only for the offence, but also for the concealment.
These regulations are intended to protect the people
from oppression, and must certainly act as a check to an
undue exertion of power on the part of the authorities,
although they may frequently be evaded.




248    THIE OLDEST AND TIE ~NEWTEST EMJPIRE.
The second, or Board of Finance, has the charge of
the government revenues, and its duty is to superintend
all taxes and duties paid into the imperial treasury and
storehouses; some being collected in money and others in
kind. They regulate salaries and pensions, distribute
the proper quantities of rice, silks and money which are
allowed to princes and officers of state, and keep general
accounts of the receipts and expenditures of the government, the various monopolies, the mines, the public mint
and other sources of revenue. The third is the Board
of Rites, to which belongs the direction of the state
ceremonials observed among the Chinese. This board
appoints the days for holding festivals and royal hunts,
and for the performance of sacrifices and other religious rites. It regulates the costume to be worn by
the different orders of the people, the etiquette of the
court as well as, to some extent, of private society, the
reception of ambassadors, the entertainments given by
the emperor; and, in short, it has the superintendence
of those outward. forms and usages which in China are
considered of so much importance. It superintends also
education, the competitive examinations, and correspondence with foreign nations. The fourth is the Board of
War, which has the control of the army and navy; the
appointment of their officers, systems of discipline,
commissary matters, postal arrangement by means of
couriers, etc., and forts and garrisons.  The fifth is
judiciary in its character, the Board of Punishments,
which superintends the execution of the penal laws,
appeals, pardons, fines and cases of capital punishment.
It is a fact which exhibits the great moderation and
equity of the government that, among those hundreds




THE MANCHJU DYNASTY-FIRST EMPERORS.   219
of millions of subjects, capital punishment can in no case
be administered without the final reference of it to this
board and the imperial consent. The laws generally are
just and wise beyond those of other Asiatic countries;
indeed, they compare favorably with those of the best
monarchies of Europe. Great corruptions have, however, of late years especially, crept into the administration of them. The sixth court is the Board of Public
Works, which is charged with the care of the roads, the
canals, bridges, temples, palaces and all public edifices.
During the Ming dynasty these boards were located
both at Nanking and Peking; but Shun-chi suppressed
those at Nanking, and united the members with those
at Peking, where all the business has since been transacted, each of the six boards having its own separate
buildings.
As soon as the Tartar prince was firmly seated on the
throne, the IRussian emperor Alexius, the father of
Peter the Great, sent an embassy to China, with a view
to establish a commercial treaty between the two empires; but the attempt failed from  a curious circumstance, and one that has since been a cause of dispute
with the British government. It was a custom of the
Tartar sovereigns to exact from all those over whom
they claimed supremacy an act of submission called the
ko-tau, which consists in making nine prostrations to
the ground. This ceremony is equivalent to an acknowledgment of vassalage; therefore the Russian ambassador very properly refused to perform  it, as it would
not have become him thus to commit the dignity of his
master, who was an independent as well as a powerful
prince. The refusal of the envoy gave great offence to




250    THE OLDEST ANiD THE NEWVEST E3MPIRE.
Shun-chi, who, in consequence, declined receiving the
embassy. But this was not the only point of disagreement between the two monarchs, for the Russians had
taken possession of some territories in Siberia which
were considered as a part of Manchu Tartary; and as
they would not give them up, but, on the contrary,
erected a fort there for the purpose of defending them,
the Chinese government commenced a war for their
recovery, which was continued for a long time, the Russians still approaching nearer and nearer to China by
new conquests, until at length the dominions of the
emperor of Russia actually joined to the territories of
China.
Not long after the failure of the Russian embassy, in
1655, the Dutch, who were very anxious to open trade
with Canton and establish a factory there, sent ambassadors to the emperor with a petition to that effect.
They were very courteously received by the viceroy of
Canton, who accepted the presents they carried to him.
The governor of Canton was a handsome young Tartar of prepossessing manners, who invited the Dutch envoys to dine with him, and entertained them in a very
sumptuous style. They were received in the great hall
of the palace by his mother, who had just arrived from
Tartary, and, according to the habits of the Tartar
ladies, made no scruple of appearing before strangers
of the opposite sex. The dinner was served in the
Chinese fashion, on a number of small tables, not covered with cloths, but ornamented with painting and
gilding, at each of which two guests were seated. The
meats were served in silver dishes and the wine in
golden cups, and during the banquet a party of actors,




THE MANCHIU DYNASTY-FIRST EMPERORS.   251
splendidly habited in the ancient costume of the country, performed a play at one end of the hall for the
amusement of the company.
The Dutch were not a little surprised at the magnificence displayed by the Tartar governor, and departed
highly gratified with the reception they had met with,
and from which they augured favorably for their mission;
but in this they were mistaken, for soon after, when they
arrived at Peking, they were scarcely treated with common civility by the authorities there, who provided them
with a miserable lodging and very scanty entertainment
until the time was appointed for their audience.
The sovereigns of the East usually hold their levees
at break of day; consequently the ambassadors, to their
great annoyance, were conducted to the palace over night
and obliged to sit up in their state dresses, that they
might be ready at the moment their attendance was required. Seated on the floor in an outer apartment, which
was quite destitute of furniture, they had leisure to contemplate by the light of a few lamps a motley group of
beings in the same uncomfortable situation as themselves,
all waiting also for the honor of being admitted to the
presence of the emperor. In one corner of the room
was a barbarian envoy from a prince of the Southern
Tartars, dressed in a long coat of sheepskin, dyed crimson, with large boots, bare arms and a horse's tail dangling from his cap. Contrasted with this rough-looking
personage, was the ambassador of a Mongol khan, who
wore a blue silk dress, so richly embroidered that it
looked like beaten gold; and very different from either
of these was the representative of the Grand Lama, who
was attired in a yellow robe, with a broad hat, like that




252    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
worn by a cardinal, and a string of large beads round
his neck. There were many other figures, all equally
novel to the eyes of the Europeans, who were no less
objects of curiosity to the strangers.
At length the welcome dawn appeared, when, on a
given signal, all started up, and shaking off the weariness that had oppressed them, followed the officials
whose business it was to conduct them to the hall of audience. This hall is of white marble, the entrance to
which is by five flights of steps; the middle flight being
reserved exclusively for the emperor, and never profaned by the foot of any other person. Here a scene of
extraordinary pomp and splendor exhibited itself to the
astonished eyes of the Dutch. The glittering dresses
of the attendants; the gorgeous banners displayed by
the soldiers ranged on each side of the hall; the superb
throne, around which were displayed figures of the sun
made of gold, and silver circles representing the moon,
with the crowd of officers and attendants in their state
robes, produced altogether a most imposing effect.
The emperor had not yet made his appearance, but all
the ambassadors were directed to prostrate themselves
three times before the empty throne, and at each time
of kneeling to bow down their heads to the ground three
times till their foreheads touched the marble flooring.
This was the very ceremony the IRussian envoy had refused to perform; but as the Hollanders were extremely
anxious for the success of their embassy, they did not
think it prudent to-make any scruple about the matter,
and went through the ko-tau with a good grace. The
sound of bells soon announced the approach of Shunchi; all present fell on their knees as he ascended the




THE MAINCffU D YANASTY-FIRST E~lPE-RORS.   253
steps, every eye being bent toward the earth, as if none
were worthy to look upon him. He walked up the hall
with a stately air and seated himself on the throne, when
the whole assembly arose, and the different envoys were
led forward to do him  homage by a repetition of the
nine prostrations; but not a single word nor even the
slightest mark of notice did the haughty Tartar vouchsafe to the disappointed Europeans, who withdrew with
no very kind feelings toward a prince before whom they
had humbled themselves to so little purpose. Both the
Tartars and Chinese had, in fact, some contempt for the
Dutch people, in consequence of having learned that
there was no emperor or king in Holland; for they did
not understand the nature of a republic, but thought
the Dutch must be a very poor and mean nation, that
could not afford to maintain a king. However, before
the ambassadors quitted Peking, they were officially informed that they might come to China once in eight
years to bring presents, but not to trade. The presents
brought by ambassadors were received as a kind of tribute
and acknowledgment of vassalage; and thus the Chinese
imbibed the absurd notion that all the countries of Europe from which embassies have been sent to the emperor of China were subjects to him. The bloody wars
of the last three reigns have compelled them to see their
mistake.
It is one of the remarkable facts in the history of Romanism, which reveals how much of power, how much
of worldly policy, and how much of the elements of final
defeat of its own ambitious ends it embodies, that this
first haughty Manchu ruler of the empire of China placed
himself under the tuition of a German Jesuit, named




254    THE OLDEST AND TIHE NEYWEST EMIPIRE.
Adam Schaal, whom he at length raised to the dignity
of chief minister of state, and consulted on every
affair of importance; so that, however strange it may appear, the empire of China was for a time governed in
reality by a Christian missionary. The emperor would
often spend the whole day with him at his own house, in
order to profit by his learning and knowledge of public
and of scientific matters; and although he himself never
became a convert to Christianity, he did not prohibit
others from  embracing that faith, and allowed two
churches to be built at Peking, where several missionaries came to reside.
In the mean time, the thousands of families who still
preserved their attachment to the late dynasty and had
emigrated to the island of Formosa, remained there with
the Dutch, who were in possession of a great part of the
country. But they soon had cause to repent of having
admitted the Chinese loyalists into the island, for their
numbers rapidly increased to an alarming extent, and it
was discovered that they were holding a secret correspondence with the maritime chief Koshinga, who persisted in his opposition to the new Tartar government
of China. This discovery excited some apprehension
on the part of the Dutch, whose fears were not without
foundation; for Koshinga, who had formed the bold
project of conquering the island and setting himself up
as an independent sovereign, landed with a force of
twenty thousand men, and, being joined by the Chinese
emigrants, demanded the surrender of the Dutch forts.
A desperate conflict took place, in which the Dutch suffered very severely and were obliged to retire within the
forts, from which they sent a deputation to the camp of




THE MANCHIU DYNASTY-FIRST EM~PERORS.   255
the invader to propose terms of accommodation; but
Koshinga refused to make any terms, saying that Formosa had always belonged to the Chinese, although they
had allowed strangers to reside there, but that as they now
required it for their own occupation, the foreigners must
immediately depart, as it was no longer convenient to let
them remain. A regular warfare was then commenced
for possession of the island, which lasted many months,
when the Dutch were obliged to give up the contest and
betake themselves to their settlements in Java, on which
Koshinga assumed the sovereignty in 1662, and was
called by the Europeans "king of Formosa."  Great
parties of Chinese loyalists from time to time left their
country to place themselves under his protection, so that
the number of his subjects was constantly increasing,
and he made frequent descents on the maritime provinces of China guarded by the Tartars, who were much
harassed by his attacks.
About the time that Koshinga achieved this conquest
the emperor Shun-chi died, at the early age of twentyfour, and was succeeded by his son Kang-hi, who was
then only eight years old.
The new emperor became one of the greatest monarchs
that ever ruled over the Chinese territories. Being so
young when his father died, four of the ministers were
appointed to conduct the government during his minority; but as they were all rather advanced in years, and
strongly prejudiced in favor of the ancient usages of the
country, they employed the authority with which they
were entrusted to abolish the innovations made by the
late emperor and restore all things to their former state.
One cause of dissatisfaction was the toleration which had




256    THIE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
been granted to the Christians, which they feared mnight
in time, if it were continued, be prejudicial to the ancient
forms of manners, customs and usages which had endured
for so many ages; and as this was in their eyes the greatest evil that could possibly befall the country, they used
their best endeavors to prevent it by putting' in prison
Adam Schaal and another German Jesuit, Ferdinand
Verbiest, who had also stood high in the favor of Shunchi, and had been employed to assist Schaal in the affairs
of the state. The two churches were then destroyed,
and all who had professed the Christian faith were persecuted with the utmost severity by fines, imprisonment,
exile, and some even with death. Another cause, as influential, was that the disputes which had arisen very shortly
after their settlement in the country between the Jesuits
and the Dominicans and other Romanist monks had
degenerated by this time into a most violent and unseemly quarrel, and that these teachers of Christianity
had begun to set a woeful example of uncharitableness,
malice and contention. Precisely the same thing had
happened a few years before in Japan, and had ended in
causing the massacre of more than a hundred thousand
Japanese. The two Jesuits were after a time liberated,
but the general persecution of the Christians was continued till the young emperor was of an age to take the
government into his own hands. One of his first acts
was to put a stop to the cruelties to which the Christian
converts had been subjected, and he made amends to
Verbiest for the sufferings he had endured by raising
him to the same rank which his father had bestowed on
Adam Schaal, who had lately died of old age.
In the year 1692, Kang-hi issued a decree permitting




THE MANCHU )DYNASTY-FIRST EI'PERORS.   257
the free exercise of the Christian religion, and putting
it, with regard to privileges and immunities, on the same
footing with Buddhism, which may be called the dominant or most prevalent faith of the country; for the
doctrines of Confucius, which were followed only by the
most refined, were properly not so much a religion as a
code of morals and manners.
During the regency Koshinga had died, but his son
had taken upon himself the government of Formosa,
and as he inherited his father's hatred toward the Tartars, and was equally powerful at sea, he constantly
ravaged the whole line of the south-eastern coast of
China. The naval force of the empire not being sufficiently strong to contend with' that of the pirate king,
the government issued an order that all its subjects dwelling near the sea-shore should withdraw ten miles into the
interior, so as to leave only a barren tract of country to
the invaders. The inhabitants of the Portuguese settlement of Macao were the only persons exempted from the
general order; probably because the government was
indifferent about the safety of a foreign colony, particularly as the country beyond was defended by the
barrier-wall that confined the Portuguese within certain
limits. A great number of villages near the coast were
entirely destroyed, and thousands of families who had
lived by fishing were reduced to great distress by being
obliged to remove from the vicinity of the sea. The
fishermen, however, converted their boats into smaller
ones, in which, with the assistance of their families,
they could continue their occupation in more shallow
waters. The expulsion of the inhabitants from the
sea-coast produced the desired effect; for the Formosan
17




258    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
chief, whose principal resources had been derived from
plundering the maritime towns and villages, found his
power decline with his means of acquiring wealth; and
although he contrived, with some difficulty, to support
his authority till his death, his son, about twenty years
after the accession of Kang-hi, gave up his island in
consideration of a title and a pension for life.
Formosa was thus united to the Chinese empire, and
has proved a valuable acquisition, as it is extremely fertile, producing in abundance fruits, corn and rice, of
which large quantities are sent annually to China. The
loyalists who had taken refuge there, having lost their
leader, made submission to the Tartar emperor, and received a full pardon, but were obliged to shave their
heads, like the rest of the nation.
Such of the poor islanders as did not flee to the
mountains in the interior, where they rapidly degenerated into an almost savage condition, were compelled
to adopt the dress and manners of the people of the continent. They were cruelly treated by the Chinese because they had submitted to the Dutch and had adopted
many European customs and notions. With more prudeat management and a few hundred more troops the
Hollanders might certainly have kept possession of
Formosa.
But brief and, in some respects, unwise as was their
dominion, the Dutch left behind them deep traces of
their civilization and religion. The Jesuit Du Halde,
who wrote seventy years after their expulsion, and who
was not likely to judge too favorably of them, says of
the Chinese on the island, "There are many who yet
understand the Dutch language, who can read the books




THE 3ANtYHU DYNAS'TY-FIR$ST EXMPERORS.   259
of the Dutch, and who in writing use their letters;
many fragments of pious Dutch  books are found
amongst them."  The same Romanist writer takes pains
to misrepresent the Protestant religion by saying that
while they adored no idols, and abominated every
approach to them, they themselves performed no act of
worship whatsoever, and recited no prayers. The entire
population of the island is at this day estimated at about
three millions, which is as much as the population of
Scotland, and more than that of several independent
kingdoms on the European continent. Formosa has
long been familiarly known as the granary of the
Chinese maritime provinces, to which she stands in the
same relation as Sicily did to ancient Rome. If wars
intervene or violent storms prevent the shipment of rice
to the coast, a, scarcity presently ensues, and extensive
distress, with another certain result, multiplied piracies
by the destitute Chinese. In addition to the rice, which
annually employs in the coast trade alone more than two
hundred large junks, Formosa exports an immense
quantity of sugar. Much of the camphor sold in the
Canton market is also supplied by Formosa. Among
the merchants of the island are men with very large
capital and abundant commercial enterprise. The position of Formosa is admirable as affording facilities for
trade; within thirty leagues of China, and a hundred
and fifty leagues of Japan, its situation and resources
make it a desirable station for the commerce which is
now opening, and yet to be opened, in those long-forbidden lands. But, unfortunately, except Ke-lung, there
is no good harbor for large vessels on the whole coast.
That portion of Ilha Formosa, or "Beautiful Island,"




260    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST iEPI2EH
which is possessed by the Chinese colonists well deserves
its name; the scenery is charming, the air wholesolme
and the soil v;ery fertile. The numerous rivulets from
the mountains fertilize the extensive plains which spread
below. All the trees are so nicely ranged that when
the rice is planted, as usual, in rows or in square plats,
the vast plain of the southern part of the island resembles a garden. Almost all grains and fruits may be
produced on one part of the island or another, but rice,
sugar, camphor and tobacco are the chief exports. It
is curious to remark that, though lying opposite to the
Chinese coast, and within one day's sail of the port of
Amoy, Formosa does not appear to have attracted the
notice of the Chinese government till a modern date.
According to their history, they had no knowledge of it
till the year 1430, when an officer of the imperial court
was driven upon the island by a storm. A century after
this date it is described as being uncultivated and inhabited only by savages.  According to recent accounts,
some of these aborigines remain in a very rude condition; they occupy regions difficult of access, and are
wholly independent of the Chinese.  They have no
king or common head, but are ruled by petty chiefs and
councils of elders, and in many other respects resemble
the tribes of North American Indians. They have no
books, no written language. In their marriages, which
are made by mutual choice, it is not the bridegroom
that takes home the bride, but the bride that takes honme
the bridegroom, who lives in her parents' house and
returns no more to the house of his father; and therefore, it is said, they think it no happiness to have male
children. They are of a slender shape and olive comn



TiE HIANCIiXUU DBYNASTY-F-IRST EMPERORS.   261
plexion; they wear long hair, blacken their teeth and
tattoo their skins; they are said to be honest and frank
among themselves, but excessively vindictive when outraged. In the mountains they go clad in deer skins.
Some of them are more civilized, but these live in towns
and villages in the plains or' open, country, and are
completely in subjection to the Chinese.  Hence there
have been, and still are, frequent insurrections and internal wars. The capital of the whole island of Formosa
is called Tai-wan, and is described as ranking amongst
cities of the first class in China in the variety and richness of its merchandise and in population.
Kang-hi was a prince to make himself very popular,
for he was a great hunter, and thus acquired a high
military reputation among the Tartars, who regarded
hunting and war as pursuits equally honorable and important; and he gained the good-will of the Chinese by
honoring and rewarding literary merit, and by attending
in person to the welfare of his subjects.  Every year he
made a progress through some of the provinces, to see
that the magistrates performed their duties and that the
people were not oppressed by them. On these occasions
the people of the cities usually made a grand display;
as, for instance, on his visit to Nanking in 1689, triumphal arches were erected in all the principal streets,
at the distance of about twenty paces froi each other,
gayly adorned with ribbons, silks and fringes; and
when he made his entry on horseback, with a numerous
train of guards and gentlemen, he was met by a deputation from the citizens, bearing silken banners, canopies,
parasols and other ornamental ensigns used by the
Chinese on great occasions. The streets were crowded




262    THE OLDEST AND TIE NEW.EST EMaPIPE.
with people as he passed along; but, although so many
thousands were assembled, such was their habitual awe
of majesty that not even a whisper disturbed the solemn
silence which prevailed.
From Nanking the emperor proceeded to the wealthy
city of Su-chau, which, from the beauty of its situation,
the luxury of its inhabitants, and the circumstance of
many of the streets being intersected with canals, on
which pleasure-boats are continually gliding, has been
called the Venice of China. Here the people laid down
rich silks and carpets along the streets through which
the royal train was to pass-a mark of respect that was
highly pleasing to the emperor, who, instead of riding
over them, as was expected, dismounted at the gate of
the city, and desiring his whole suite to do the same,
proceeded on foot to the palace; an act of consideration
which probably did more toward raising the monarch in
the public estimation than many of his greater deeds.
Another incident is said to have occurred during this
progress, which may serve to show the summary mode
in which justice was executed upon those mandarins
who were found to have abused their authority.
Kang-hi, who was a little apart from his attendants,
saw an old man sitting on the ground weeping bitterly.
Riding up to him, he inquired the cause of his grief.
"M' y lord," said the old man, who was ignorant of the
rank of his interrogator, " I have cause enough for sorrow. My only son, who was the joy of my life and the
support of my declining years, has been taken from me
by force to serve the governor of the province, and I
have no one to comfort me in my old age or to mourn
over my tomb?"  The emperor asked if he had endeav



THIE MIANiCHU D YNASTY —FIRST EMPERORS.   263
ored to obtain some redress. "Alas!" replied he, "how
is it possible for me, a poor weak old man, to force a
great magistrate to do me justice?" "We will presently
see that," said the monarch; "get up behind me, and
show me the way to this governor's house; perhaps it
will not be so difficult to obtain justice as you may
imagine." The poor man mounted as he was desired,
and they forthwith rode to the magistrate's palace, where
the imperial guards and a large party of grandees, who
had missed the emperor, arrived just at the same time
in great consternation. Kang-hi, entering the palace,
charged the governor with his violent conduct. The
offender, not being able to deny the accusation, was condemned to lose his head, and the sentence was executed
on the spot; when the emperor, turning to the old man,
said, "To make you amends for the injury you have
sustained, I appoint you governor of this province, in
the room of him who has proved himself so unworthy
of that office. Let his crime and punishment be a
warning to you to use your power more justly."
It was during this reign that the Chinese learned the
art of casting cannon, in which they were instructed by
the Jesuit Verbiest, under whose inspection about four
hundred and fifty pieces of artillery were founded, to the
great satisfaction of the emperor, who made a solemn
feast under tents in the fields on the occasion of their
being tried; his majesty and the court being lodged in
an immense, splendid tent or temporary palace, containing a grand hall of audience and other apartments, all
lined with embroidered silks. Gunpowder had been
known and made in China from a very early period, but
it had been used chiefly in the composition of fireworks,




264    THE OLDEST AND THE  T EWE ST EMPIRE.
of which the Chinese always made a great display at
their festivals; and it is stated by the Jesuits that it was
not till the early part of the seventeenth century that
they became acquainted with its application as an agent
in warfare, when the Portuguese, during the war with
the Manchlus, lent them  three cannon for the defence
of the city of Nanking, with men to manage them,
The fame of Verbiest was considerably raised by the
important service he had rendered  to the state in
furnishing it with artillery, and a title of honor was bestowed on him in consequence. He also gained rmuch
credit and influence by reforming the calendar, which
had been suffered to fall into such confusion that it was
found necessary to leave out a whole month of one year
to bring it into regular order. Yet the composition of
the almanacs is considered an affair of so much importance that it is the chief business of an assembly of
learned officers, who compose what is called the Astronomical Bureau; and when the error in their calculations was discovered, the president was banished to Tartary for his incompetency for the duties of his office, and
Verbiest was placed at the head of that department in
his stead; according to that singular feature of the
Chinese government which punishes inability in office as
a crime on the ground that no man ought to undertake
that which he is not able to perform, the same principle
on which a military commander is sometimes disgraced
in consequence of the loss of a battle or the failure of
an enterprise in which he may have done his best to
succeed.
As the astronomy of the nations of the East is a very
interesting subject, some remarks upon its practical as



THE IAivCeIU D YiVASTY-FIRST EMPEERORS.  265
pects may be interesting here. The appointments which
relate to religious times and seasons or those of the
state are considered of sufficient importance to require
their regulation by a special bureau, which is subordinate
to the Board of IRites. A principal employment of its
members is to make the almanacs; they have also to
calculate the eclipses, and to present to the emperor at
the end of every forty-five days an exact statement of
the position of the heavenly bodies, together with the observatiops which have been made during that time. An
eclipse is considered a great event in China. Some time
before it takes place notices are sent to the governors of
every province and city throughout the empire, that
they may prepare for the performance of the accustomed
solemnities that are always observed on the occasion.
Large printed bills are immediately posted on the public buildings, and orders are sent to the magistrates to
assemble in the large halls appointed for that purpose,
whither they repair on the morning of the given day in
their robes of ceremony and take their seats at tables, on
some of which are said to be delineated all the eclipses
which have occurred for more than four thousand years.
The ceremonies observed on the occasion of an eclipse
have somewhat of a religious character, and originated
in ignorance of the causes of the phenomenon, which
was anciently believed to be the forerunner of some
dreadful calamity; and although the more intelligent
classes of the Chinese are now aware that the effect is
produced by natural causes, they are too much attached
to their old customs to discontinue them. The magistrates being assembled in the Hall of Astronomy, place
themselves at the tables before mentioned, waiting for




266    TLE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EPIRE.
the commencement of the eclipse. The moment the sun
or moon, whichever it may be, begins to be darkened,
drums and gongs are sounded in the town, and the people all prostrate themselves, bowing their heads till their
foreheads touch the earth, and in this position they continue as long as the orb remains shadowed; while some
of the members of the Astronomical Board are at the
observatory watching the progress of the eclipse and
noting down their observations, which are afterward examined and compared with the computations made by
the chief tribunal, and a report is transmitted to the
emperor.
The distribution of the almanacs at the beginning of
every year is also attended with many solemnities.
There is no work in the world of which so many copies
are printed as the Chinese calendar, the number being
estimated at several millions, which is not improbable,
considering the amount of population and that almost
every family uses an almanac as an oracle; since, besides
the usual information, it not only predicts the weather,
but notes the days that are reckoned lucky or unlucky
for commencing any undertaking, for applying remedies
in diseases, for marrying or for burying; and, in short, it
is consulted by the people in many cases where their own
reason would be a better guide. The calendar is an imperial monopoly, and no other than that prepared by the
Astronomical Board is allowed to be published, the law
on this point being so strict that a violation of it would
be punished with death. The almanacs are all printed
at Peking, and according to the Roman Catholic missionaries, they formerly were, and it is possible now are,
distributed through the empire in the following manner:




THE MIANCHTU IDY1ASTY-FIRST EMPERORS.   267
On a certain day appointed for the ceremonial in the capital, the principal officials repair early in the morning
to the palace, while the members of the board, arrayed in
their state dresses, proceed to their hall to escort the books,
which are carried in procession to the imperial residence.
Those which are intended for the emperor, the empress
and the queens, are bound in yellow satin, and enclosed
in bags of cloth of gold, which are placed on a large
gilded litter borne by forty footmen clothed in yellow. Then follow ten or twelve smaller litters, enclosed
with red silk curtains, and containing the books to be
given to the princes, which are bound in red satin and
enclosed in bags of silver cloth. These are followed by
men bearing on their shoulders other conveyances, on
which are piled the calendars intended for the grandees
of the court and the generals of the army; the cavalcade
is completed by the president and members of the bureau in sedans, followed by their usual attendants. On
arriving at the palace, the golden bags are laid on two
tables covered with yellow damask, when the members
of the bureau, having first prostrated themselves, deliver
them to the proper officers, who receive them kneeling,
and carry them with great ceremony to the foot of the
throne. The silver bags are sent in a similar manner to
all the princes of the royal family, after which the ministers and other great officers of state present themselves
in turn and kneel with reverence to receive their almanacs, which are regarded as gifts from the emperor.
The ceremonies of distribution at the court being concluded, the books intended for the use of the people are
sent by the bureau into every province of the empire,
where the forms observed at the imperial palace are re



268    THE OLDEST AND THE NETVEST EMPIRE.
peated at the offices of the chief officers, after which
the people are allowed to purchase their almanacs; and
as this is a privilege of which few omit to avail themselves, the sale must be immense and must largely add
to the revenue.
The Jesuits availed themselves of the superstitious
interest of the Chinese in astronomy to obtain the favor
of the government and to propagate their religion. The
Chinese had many astronomical instruments at a very
early period of their history; but these were greatly
improved and some new ones introduced by the Jesuits,
who acquired extraordinary influence by their inculcation of the arts and sciences. The first clocks of our
kind and the first watches seen in China were presented
to Kang-hi by one of the Jesuit fathers; and another
member of the fraternity, to gratify the ladies of that
emperor's court, constructed for them a camera-obscura,
an instrument with which they were much delighted, as
it enabled them  to see what was passing outside the
palace gates. In consequence of the encouragement
received by the Jesuits, Christianity made greater progress in China during the reign of KIang-hi than at any
period either before or since. Many persons of rank,
both male and female, openly professed the Christian
faith, and a church was built for their accommodation
near the palace; besides which, several places of worship
for Christians were erected in different parts of Peking,
as well as in other large cities. Some of the arts of
China were bestowed upon the people of Europe through
these missionaries.  Among  the edifices referred to
was a church built by a French Jesuit named D'Entrecolles, at the famous village or town of King-tsz-ching,




THE IANCYCHU DlYiYASTY-FIRST EMIPERiORS.   269
where a great porcelain manufacture was then carried
on; and there he made himself acquainted with the
whole process of that beautiful art, which was first
brought into Europe by him, when, on the death of
Kang-hi, the Christian missionaries were obliged to quit
the country. Among the Jesuits resident at this- time
in Peking was Gerbillon, a native of France, who was
employed by the emperor on a mission into Tartary,
the object of which was to negotiate a peace with the
Russians, who had been at war with the Chinese
ever since the rejection of their embassy by the late
emperor Shun-chi, who refused to acknowledge their
right to the territories they had occupied in Manchu
Tartary.
The negotiations were successful; peace was concluded,
and a trade established between Russia and China by a
treaty signed by the two emperors, Alexius and Kang-hi,
in the year 1689. The boundaries of the Russian enpire, which had been the ground of dispute, were precisely defined, and it was agreed that caravans should
be sent at stated periods to Peking, and be allowed to
remain there until they had disposed of their goods. A
caravanserai in the suburbs was allotted for the residence of the merchants, and their expenses while they
remained were to be defrayed by the emperor of China.
The trade thus conducted was a monopoly of the IRussian government; but there were private merchants also
who traveled to China, and transacted business on their
own account with the Chinese merchants at an annual
fair held on the frontiers; but they were not permitted to
proceed to Peking like the government agents, nor even
to enter the strictly Chinese territories.




270    THE OLDEST AIND THE tNE2WEST EMPIRE.
The principal wars of Kang-hi, after the submission
of Formosa, were with the Eleuth and Songares Tartars,
which had been very large and powerful tribes. The
former were completely subdued in the course of three
years' warfare by the victorious arms of the Chinese
emperor, who by this conquest greatly extended his
dominions in Tartary. Before proceeding to extremities
with the Eleuths, who had long given great trouble to
the government, Kang-hi (in the year 1713) sent an
embassy to the khan of the Tourgouth Tartars, then
settled on the north bank of the Caspian sea. The
Chinese wrote a curious account of the whole mission,
which has been handsomely translated by Sir George
Staunton from the original language. The details of the
journey, with the emperor's own instruction for the
conduct of his ambassador, are especially curious and
interesting. To commemorate the glory of the war
against the Eleuths, a French missionary made a series
of clever drawings, and these were sent by the desire of
the emperor to Paris and there engraved on copper
plates. In the year 1721, Kang-hi, then far advanced in
years, celebrated the sixtieth anniversary of his accession
to the throne, and as he was the first sovereign of China
whose reign had been lengthened to this term, a grand
jubilee took place on the occasion throughout the whole
empire. Sixty is a number held in especial veneration
among the Chinese, and the sixtieth birth-day of any
private individual is always celebrated with great festivities by the family; but the event of a monarch having
arrived at that epoch of his reign, particularly one who
was so much beloved and respected, was an especial
cause of rejoicing, which was testified in the usual way




THE MANCHU DYNASTY-FIRST EMPERORS.   271
by sacrifices to the gods, illuminations, feastings, fireworks and a variety of amusements.
On all festive occasions in China the sacrifices constitute an important part of the ceremonials, and as there
are no priests of the Confucian or state religion, the elmperor officiates as high priest in the capital, whilst in all
the other cities the governor or chief official acts in
that capacity. The greatest annual festival on which
the sovereign appears in his sacerdotal character is that
of the celebration of the season of spring, which takes
place about the middle of February, and is one of those
ancient observances that help to preserve the primitive
character of the nation. It is then that the emperor
performs the part of the husbandman by ploughing and
sowing seed in an enclosure set apart for that purpose
near the palace —a ceremony never omitted by KEang-hi,
who was very attentive to all observances that were held
in reverence among the people. The day for the royal
ploughing was fixed by the Board of Rites, and this
ceremony was accompanied by many solemnities on the
part of the emperor and those who were to assist at the
sacrifices; such as fasting for three days until the evening of each, and abstaining from all kinds of amusements during that period. Several princes were also
deputed on the eve of the festival to visit the Hall of
Ancestors-a temple dedicated to the memory of the
imperial relatives who had departed this life-where
many rites and ceremonies were performed before the
tablets on which their names were engraven.
Early on the morning of the festival the emperor,
attended by the great officers of state, repairs to the
Temple of the Earth, where he makes sacrifices and im



272    TIIE OLDEST AND TIEE NEWEST EMPIRE.
plores a blessing on the labors of the spring, that they
may produce a plentiful harvest; and when these rites
are ended he descends from the temple into the field,
where all the requisite preparations have been made by
forty or fifty husbandman, who are in attendance. The
emperor ploughs a few furrows with his own hand, and
sows five sorts of grain; after which twelve grandees of
the first rank plough and sow in turn, and then the
work is completed by the professional husbandmen, each
of whom receives a present of a piece of cotton cloth.
The produce of this field is held sacred, and carefully
preserved in a granary by itself, to be used for the most
solemn sacrifices. The ploughing by the imperial husbandman takes place only in the capital, but in every
large city a corresponding ceremony is performed, called
" meeting the spring," when the governor assumes the
character of high priest, and goes out in state, carried in
a finely-ornamented sedan-chair, preceded by banners,
lighted torches and music. He is followed by several
high officers in their sedans, and by a number of litters,
in which are placed children, who are fancifully dressed
and crowned with flowers, representing various deities
connected with the labors of the field. But the most
prominent figure among the dvranatis personce is a huge
earthen buffalo, the representative of the spring, which
is borne in procession to meet the high priest, who delivers a lecture on the benefits of husbandry, which is
one of sixteen discourses read annually to the people.
At the conclusion of the lecture he strikes the buffalo
three times with a staff, when it is immediately broken
in pieces by the populace, and a number of little porcelain cows with which it was filled furnish materials for a




THE MANCHU D YNASTY-FIRST Et1IPERORS.   273
scramble. The rest of the day is devoted to amusements,
among which the most popular are plays performed by
companies of strolling actors, who set up temporary
theatres in the streets; the expenses being paid, on this
occasion, by the government.
It is thus, according to the Jesuits, that the rulers
of China, both by precept and example, stimulate their
subjects to the pursuits of agriculture, so essential to the
support of the empire. The intention of these ceremonies is obviously to countenance that superiority in point
of rank which the farmers and producers have invariably held over those engaged in mercantile pursuits; for
the rulers of China, from the earliest period to the present, have always deemed it better policy to make the
empire entirely dependent on its own resources for
food and clothing, than  to obtain those necessaries
or add to its wealth by foreign trade, which  has
hitherto been only tolerated and never encouraged by
the government.
But we are describing things which, if their forms
remain, do not receive the respect they once enjoyed.
From numerous recent authorities, and more particularly
from  that excellent publication, the Chinese JRepository, formerly issued by the American missionaries
at Canton, we learn that this great agricultural celebration has in many parts of the empire dwindled into an
empty show; that only the most puerile parts of the
ceremony are performed; that the emperor is often represented by proxy; and that even the magistrates, instead
of putting their own hands to the plough, are frequently
represented by inferior substitutes, who help to turn the
whole thing into a mere mockery. In very few inl18




274    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EM3PIRE.
stances are the pictures drawn by the Jesuits and other
old writers to be taken as faithful representations of
China, its government and people as they now are; in
still fewer are we to expect that the ancient laws, rescripts and regulations are, to the very letter, carried
out in practice.
The emperor Kang-hi rendered inestimable service to
the nation by several literary productions. Two great
dictionaries of the language-one for the learned, on
which seventy-six profound scholars spent eight years
of labor, and another for general use, less comprehensive-were prepared under his careful supervision, and
are monuments, which will never decay, of his intelligence and wisdom. The production which, however,
has made his name best known to all his people, and his
influence most profoundly and beneficially felt, is the
celebrated book to which we once before briefly referred,
called the Shing-yu, or "Sacred Edict;" or, sometimes
styled, more properly, the "Sacred Instructions." It
is a collection of discourses upon practical subjects, each
headed by a suitable proverb or text. They are sixteen
in number, each a few pages in length, and are written
in a pleasing and intelligible style. They have exercised an important effect upon the moral character of the
Chinese people. He inculcates industry in the following
style:
"' Give," said he, "the chief place to husbandry and
the culture of the mulberry tree, in order to procure adequate supplies of food and raiment. Of old time the
emperors themselves ploughed, and their empresses cultivated the mulberry-tree; though supremely honorable,
they disdained not to labor; and they did this, in




TiE MIANCiU DYNASTY-FIRSiST E21iPEROPS.   276
order to excite by their example the millions of the
people. Suffer not a barren spot to remain a wilderness,
or a lazy person to abide in the cities. Then the farmer
will not lay aside his plough and his hoe, or the housewife
put away her silkworms and her weaving. Even the
productions of the mountains and marshes, and the
propagation of the breed of poultry, swine and dogs,
will all be regularly cherished, in order that food may
be supplied in their season to make up for any deficiency
of agriculture."  Kang-hi, among his sixteen maxims,
also insists on the necessity of magnifying academical
learning, and of providing amply for district colleges,
academies and schools for the common people. No one
was to be left uninstructed-no school was to be left in
poverty and neglect. Such was his desire and effort
also. Yet the end has never been attained. At present,
though the schools, both public and private, are rather
numerous, they are generally poor. The emperor, in
the strongest terms, denounced idolatries, and called the
god Buddha ail avaricious, unfilial scoundrel. But if
he hated all manner of idol-worshipings, or what he
called " new religions," Kang-hi himself did not adopt
the Roman Catholic religion taught by the European
missionaries. "Even this sect," said he, "who talk
about heaven and prate about earth and of things without shadow and without substance-their religion, also,
is unsound and corrupt. But because the teachers of
this sect understand astronomy and are skilled in mathemnatics, the government employs them to correct the
calendar. This, however, by no means implies that their
religion is a good one. You should not on any account
believe them. The law is very rigorous against these




276   TSE OLDEST AND TUE NEWEST Elf~IRE.
left-hand-road and side-door sects. Their punishment
is determined in the same way as that of the masters
and mistresses of your dancing gods or your male and
female conjurors,,  He founded all religion on the duties of children to their parents. According to the emperor's system, every family had two living divinitiesfather and mother-and therefore it was unnecessary to
go in quest of other gods or to worship on the hills, or to
travel far to burn incense, or to pray to idols or to gods
for happiness.  In his wisdom he decreed that robbery
and theft should be for ever extirpated; yet theft, robbery, piracy and murder appear to have multiplied
in each successive reign.
The Sacred Instructions. were amplified  by  Kanghi's son and successor, Yung-ching, who by statute enjoined that they should be proclaimed with great form and
ceremony throughout the empire on the first and fifteenth
of every month. Before the commencement of the reading all present performed the ko-tau.
Kang-hi endeavored, with the assistance of the Jesuits,
to make some improvements in the arts and sciences of
China, especially in that of medicine, which has always
been in a most deficient state.  But the prejudices of the
Chinese with regard to the dissection of human bodies is
so strong that although several books on the subj ect of
anatomy were published under the patronage of that
enlightened emperor, the study was never prosecuted to
any advantage; and so little is yet understood of the
medical art that the greater portion of the Chinese people put more faith in spells and charms than in any
remedies derived from  professional science, and place
very little reliance on the efficacy of a medicine unless it












THE IASANCIIU D YNASTY-FIBST EMPEROBiS.   277
be taken on a lucky day. Kang-hi died in the year
1722, having ruled over the Chinese empire sixty-one
years-the longest reign recorded in the history of China
since the patriarchal times.
The sovereign power had never been greater or more
absolute than during this period, nor had it ever been
equaled except while the sceptre was swayed by the
powerful hand of Kublai Khan. Besides extending his
dominions by his conquests over the Eleuths, Kang-hi
obliged the Mongols to remove three hundred miles beyond the Great Wall, where he gave them  lands and
pastures, while he settled his own subjects of the Manchu
race in the provinces they had vacated, thus uniting to
China a large extent of territory without the intervention of a foreign nation.  The aongols, however, are
still a constant source of uneasiness to the Chinese government, and are watched with the utmost jealousy by
the Alanchus, whom it is well known they heartily detest as the usurpers of that empire once so gloriously
ruled by their own princes. These tribes until the present time range over the vast territories to the north-west
of China Proper. They have no cities, but dwell in
tents, some of which are as richly furnished as the lhalls
of a palace, the floors being covered with Turkey or
Persian carpets, the sides adorned with silken hangings,
and every other article for domestic use being of a costly
and luxurious description, and obtained in exchange for
valuable furs from the Chinese. The Mongols are great
hunters, and thus piocure the skins of various animals
that are highly prized. They are all trained to arms,
and are also addicted to horse-racing, wrestling and other
athletic sports. Their ordinary costume is a long dark



278    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST   EWEST   PIRE.
blue robe, fastened round the waist with a leather belt 
under-garments of cotton, leather boots and a cap of
cloth or fur, according to the season. Their princes attend as vassals at the imperial court, and very often marry
the daughters of the emperor, who is not unwilling to
promote such alliances as a means of securing their fidelity. With the same view he sends rich presents to them
every year, except when any signs of rebellion appear,
in which case the gifts are withheld until submission has
been made and the disaffected have returned to their
allegiance. Their lands are held in fief and descend to
the eldest son, who cannot take possession until he has
received his investiture from the emperor-another means
of keeping them in subjection.
It was during the long reign of Kang-hi that the
English really obtained a footing in the empire. In the
year 1664, in the time of Charles II., a single English
ship had been sent to Mlacao, but such were the exactions
imposed by the Chinese, and such was the effect of the
malicious misrepresentations of the Portuguese, that the
vessel was obliged to return without effecting sale or
purchasing cargo. It is at this period that we first find
mention made of tea as a commodity abounding in China,
and very proper to be imported into England. English
ships were again sent out in 1668, which opened a little
trade at Formosa (then independent of the Manchus)
and at Amoy. The fact of this brief traffic at Amoy is
stamped upon our language in the permanent use of the
word tea to designate the shrub, which is its name in the
dialect of that vicinity; the proper name, in the court,
the Canton and other more important dialects, is chM (or
chah). In 1681 the East India Company ordered their




THE MANCHU DYNIASTY-FIRST EMPERORS.   279
small establishments at Formosa and Amoy to be withdrawn, and that, if found possible, a trade should be
established at Canton. They found the Mianchu Tartars
far more disinclined to trade and to any intercourse with
them than the Chinese had been just before their conquest. These Tartars, in fact, appear to have been beset
by the apprehension that the daring English mariners
and adventurers would join the Chinese and help them
to throw off the Manchu yoke. In 1689 the crew of an
English ship, named the Defence, became involved in
a quarrel with the natives, killed a Chinese and wounded
two or three others. The Chinese, far outnumbering
them, killed the surgeon of the ship and several seamen.
But this was not admitted in extenuation by the authorities, and the vessel was obliged to go away without any
cargo. By this time, however, tea was in so great a demand in England that it must be procured at any cost.
The efforts of the East India Company were therefore
renewed, and finally, in the year 1699, in the time of
William  III., they were allowed to have a factory at
Canton, and a royal consul's commission was sent out to
the chief of the company's council there. In spite of
obstructions, interruptions and many serious grievances
suffered at Canton, the Chinese trade has increased from
this date, or from the commencement of the eighteenth
century. But for tea it may be doubted whether England would ever have opened the trade at all.
Two hundred years ago the use of tea was unknown
in England, but since that period it has been imported
to an extent that has changed the habits and worked a
domestic revolution, not only in that country, but in
many parts of continental Europe.  The gratification




280    THE OLDEST AND THE N EW.EST EiPIRE.
of the taste thus acquired, the absolute indispensableness of
"The cup which cheers and not inebriates,"
has made that nation and our own dependent on China for
much of the comfort of a large portion of every class of
society.  Perhaps the poorest of all are those who most
of all are benefited and comforted by the introduction
and extended use of tea. But it has become, in a manner, an article of necessity to the entire population.
Queen Elizabeth and her maids of honor drank strong
ale at their breakfast-the poorest washerwoman now-adays would not take such a beverage when she can
obtain her refreshing cup of tea. That the use of the
fragrant herb, besides being a source of riches to individuals and of immense revenue to the state, has been
highly beneficial in improving the moral character and
promoting the domestic comfort of the people themselves
cannot for one moment be called in question.
Under the same great emperor, Kang-hi, the Dutch
sent another embassy to Peking, which was headed by
Van Hoorn, a phlegmatic man, who had made up his
mind to submit to any indignity that the Tartars might
be pleased to put upon him. He and his suite performed
the ko-tau over and over again, not in the emperor's
presence, but before an empty throne; and having, by
their performance of these prostrations, caused their
nation to be enrolled among the tributaries of the empire, they were dismissed as loyal subjects, but without
any benefit to their commerce or any favor or consideration whatsoever. This precedent was highly injurious
to the character and dignity of the nations of the West,
and to the cause of European intercourse and connec



THE MANCTIU DEYNASTY-FIRST FMVPERORSo   281
tion. For a hundred and thirty years the Dutch sent
no more embassies to Peking, but they were allowed to
carry on a trade at Canton on the same footing as the
English.
The Russians watched with jealousy the advances of
Western powers toward intimacy with an empire in so
close proximity to their own, and upon whose colonial
possessions they already began to cast a covetous eye.
Peter the Great of Russia sent overland two more missions to China at this period. Ysbrandt Ides started
from Moscow to Peking in 1698. His journey across
the wilds and wastes of Central Asia took up more time
than a voyage by sea, for it was not till a year and eight
months had passed that " he could return thanks to the
great God who had conducted them all safe and well to
their destined place."  Ides found it very awkward to
eat, not with knives and forks, but with little ivory
sticks (chopsticks); but his palate was particularly
gratified by the soups, of which the chief ingredient
was a green glutinous substance, said to be an herb
found at a distance on rocks in the sea; in fact, it was
the edible birds' nests, which form one of the favorite
luxuries in China, though not produced in that country.
At his first Chinese entertainment, while they were yet
at table, a person came in, and on his knees presented to
the principal officer a list of plays, out of which he
selected one, the performance of which was immediately
commenced. The prologue was spoken by a lady, who,
in the eyes of our Russian envoy, appeared to be very
beautiful and most magnificently attired in cloth of gold
adorned with jewels. The acting then began, and Ides
thought it very entertaining and equal to anything he




282    THE OLDEST AIYD THE NEWEST EEMPIRE.
had seen in Europe.  It has been remarked that the
czar's envoy had probably never witnessed at Moscow
any high displays of the dramatic art; but it appears
that Ides had been a traveler before he came to the
Great Wall, and that he had seen dramatic entertainments in Germany, if not in France. His own account
of his mission contains but slight notices regarding its
object, though it gives considerable information concerning the parts of China through which they traveled. He particularly mentions the interest of the mass
of the people in the Buddhist idolatry; the astonishing
populousness, order and tranquillity of the country, and
the spacious road, bordered by magnificent seats and
gardens, which leads to Peking. At court, Gerbillon, a
French missionary, and Thomas, a Portuguese missionary, who spoke Italian, acted as his interpreters. Business or talk being over, Ides was amused by more plays,
and by dances and juggling tricks. What amused him
most was a company of elephants, which had been
trained to assume every imaginable posture and to imitate every sound, from the blast of the trumpet, the roar
of the tiger and the low of the ox, down to the clear,
shrill note of the canary bird.  The Jesuits, then in
high favor, showed their spacious cloisters enclosed with
high walls, their church elegantly built, richly adorned
with altars and images, and capable of containing two
or three thousand persons. They had also two globes,
six feet in diameter, and a museum of European curiosities, in which their Chinese visitors seemed to take
great interest. It is understood that Ides made arrangements by which Russian caravans, under the superintendence of the Chinese government, were to visit




THE MANCHU DYLNASTY-FIRST EMPERORS.   283
Peking at regular intervals. But the subjects of the
czar were found to be much addicted to strong potations,
and to be very quarrelsome when in their cups; and this
induced KIang-hi to threaten the entire discontinuance
of the intercourse. To avert the evil, Peter the Great, in
1719 (during the last years of the long reign of Kang-hi),
despatched an embassy under Leoff Vassilovich Ismayloff, "a gentleman of a family very well known and
much respected in Russia, and a captain of the guards."
This deserving Muscovite had in his suite a Scotchman,
" honest John Bell of Antermony," who wrote a most
interesting and truthful, as well as minute, account of
the overland journeys and the doings of the mission.
These gentlemen, on the 5th of December, arrived at
the famous Great Wall, which filled them with astonishment. "The Chinese commonly call it, for its length,
the Endless Wall. The appearance of it, running from
one high rock to another, with square towers at certain
intervals, even at a distance is most magnificent."1 They
entered at a great gate, which was closed every night,
and always guarded by a thousand men under the command of two officers of rank, one a Chinese and the
other a Manchu Tartar; " for it is an established custom
in China, and has prevailed ever since the conquest of
the Tartars, that in all places of public trust there must
be a Chinese and a Tartar invested with equal power;
this rule is observed both in civil and military affairs,
the Chinese pretending that two in an office are a sort
of spies upon one another's actions, and that thereby
many fraudulent practices are either prevented or detected."
B1 ELL'S Travels fiom Petersburg, in Russia, to divers paitis of Asia.




284    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
From the Great Wall they proceeded to Peking by
nearly the same route as the former mission under Ides.
Their unhappiness began with their arrival at the capital. They wanted to escape the humiliation of the kotau, but on this point the court was inexorable. Ismaylof, however, refused to prostrate himself until it was
agreed that a Chinese ambassador, whenever sent to
Petersburg, should conform to the usages of the Russians. This, as it has been observed, was certainly a
safe stipulation to be made by a court which, till very
recently, never condescended to send missions to any
countries of the West. For their audience the Russians were conducted to a country palace, six miles
westward of Peking. There, at the end of a noble
avenue of trees, they found the hall of audience. After
having kept them waiting a quarter of an hour, the
emperor came in at a back door, and seated himself
upon a throne, whereat all the company stood up.
Then the master of the ceremonies desired the ambassador to advance, and conducted him by one hand, while
he held his credentials in the other. Having ascended
a few steps, the letter was laid on a table placed for that
purpose, but the emperor beckoned to the ambassador,
inviting him to draw nearer. Ismayloff took up the credentials, and, attended by a, Chinese officer, walked up to
the throne, and kneeling, laid them before the emperor,
who touched them with his hand and inquired after
his majesty the czar's health. Honest John Bell continues: "During this part of the ceremony, which was
not long, the retinue continued standing without the
hall; and we imagined, the letter being delivered, all
was over. But the master of the ceremonies brought




THE MfANCHU D YNiASTY-FIRST EMIPER OS.   285
back the ambassador, and then ordered all the company
to kneel and make obeisance nine times to the emperor.
At every third time we stood up, and kneeled on the
ground again. Great pains were taken to avoid this
painful piece of homage, but without success. The master of the ceremonies stood by, and delivered his orders
in the Tartar language, by pronouncing the words morgu
(down) and boss (up); two words which I cannot soon
forget."  In the afternoon, after the audience, they were
feasted in the palace and entertained with music, dancing, tumbling and wrestling. Here the emperor was
condescending and familiar, asking the ambassador
many questions. Ismayloff had a good many more
audiences, which were conducted with very little form
or ceremony. The evident desirableness of keeping on
good terms with the Russians, whose power was rapidly
increasing and whose advanced frontier already pressed
on the borders of their own empire, led the Chinese to
treat their envoys with unusual respect, and to attend to
the business they came to settle. The Russian trade,
however, was restricted to the frontier stations of Kiakhta
and IMai-mai-chin, and commissioners were appointed by
the two powers to manage its details. The Russian
caravans were no longer to be allowed to proceed to
Peking, nor were any subjects of the czar to approach
that capital. In 1727-8 a third mission was sent across
the desert, under Count Vladislavitch, to obtain more
favorable terms. The great Kang-hi was by this time
in his grave, but his son and successor gave the ambassador a favorable reception. It was agreed that a sort
of Russian college, consisting of six ecclesiastical and
four lay members, should remain at Peking to study the




286    THE OLDEST AND THE NE WEST EMPIRE.
Chinese and  Ianchu languages, in order that good interpreters might be prepared and communications carried
on more satisfactorily. The college, which still exists at
Peking, was to be maintained at the joint expense of the
Chinese and Russian governments. The members of the
college were to be changed every ten years, but it is said
that the czar often neglects to relieve them at the proper
time, and that the members have occasionally been left
there fifteen or even twenty years. The narrative of
George Timkowski, who conducted the relief party sent
in 1821, gives an account of his trip from Kiakhta across
the desert, together with considerable information relating to the Kalkas and other Mongol tribes subject to
China. His observations, illustrated by the learned
notes and comments of Klaproth, have added considerably to our knowledge of this remarkable empire. The
archimandrite, Batchourin, has written a description of
Peking; but such works as the members of the Russian
college have produced are, for the most part, still in
their difficult language. Hitherto, the Russians have
been much less given to authorship or to publication
than travelers of other European nations; but there can
be little doubt that the archives of the public offices at
Moscow and Petersburg contain a vast deal of information respecting the Celestial Empire and its dependencies.
It has frequently been remarked by travelers that the
tea brought overland by the Russians is superior in
quality to the article which we receive by sea. Some
say that the tea of the Russians is produced by better
districts than those which supply us, while others attribute the difference to its being carried by land, and not




THE XANCHU 1DYNASTY-FIRST EMPERORS.   287
exposed to the deteriorating effects of a sea voyage.
Erman, however, gives a very different account of this
famous tea. He says: "This article is a mixture of the
spoiled leaves and stalks of the tea-plant, with the leaves
of some wild plant and bullock's blood dried in the oven.
In Irkutsk, where an imitation of it has been attempted,
elm leaves, sloe leaves and some others, have been substituted with tolerable success for those of the wild plants
of China."
Some time before his death Kang-hi had nominated
as his successor his fourth son, Yung-ching, who was
installed (in the year 1722) with great pomp.
The ceremony of the installation, which is equivalent
to a coronation, takes place in the great hall of the palace,
which is decorated with the splendor always displayed
by the Chinese on state occasions. This ceremony consists in the act of homage performed by the princes and
grandees of the empire there assembled, who acknowledge
with certain forms the right of the new monarch to ascend the throne, and make the nine prostrations before
him. In former times, if the successor were the son of
the deceased sovereign, the government was left during
the period of mourning to the care of the ministers, while
the prince remained in the deepest seclusion, even shutting himself up within the tomb, or causing a hut to be
erected near it, where he would spend months in the indulgence of his sorrow. But this custom has not been followed by the Tartar rulers, who appear to be fully aware
of the impolicy of leaving the management of the state
to others, and therefore profess to respect the ancient
practice, while at the same time they evade its performance, by pretending that their own inclinations have been




288    THIE OLDEST AND THE NEWtEST EMIPIRE.
overruled by a consideration for the welfare of the people. The enthronement of an empress is worthy of
notice as an illustration of the greater respect accorded
in China to woman compared with what she receives in
most other heathen countries. Yet as polygamy is tolerated, one or more of the secondary wives often receives
high marks of imperial favor, particularly the mother
of a prince who may be selected (for the succession is
not governed by primogeniture) to be the heir to the
throne. And the proper empress, or wife of the emperor, must defer to his mother if living.  The mother
holds the first rank among the females of the empire.
The name of Yung-ching signifies "First in concord,"
but the title does not seem very appropriate to the
prince who assumed it. His reign was remarkable for
little else than for his severe persecution of the Roman
priests, whose proselytes had greatly increased, and who
had certainly rendered themselves exceedingly obnoxious
by their political intrigues and imprudent conduct. The
Jesuits were banished from the court, the churches either
destroyed or converted into heathen temples, and all
Christian missionaries ordered to leave the country as
persons dangerous to the government. Even his own
relatives, those princes who, in the time of Kang-hi,
had embraced Christianity and been allowed by that
liberal-minded monarch to have a church for the exercise of their worship, were involved in the general fate
of the converts, and sent as exiles, with their wives and
families, to the dreary deserts of Tartary. The banishment of the Jesuits put a full stop to the progress of
their religion and also of Western science; and in China
the succeeding emperors have neither tolerated the




THE MANCHU DYNASTY-FIRST EIPEBORS.   289
Christian religion nor given any encouragement to the
introduction of our improvements.
In every respect, except his enmity to the Christian
religion, Yung-ching is spoken of as a mild and beneficent sovereign, anxious to do good and extremely charitable in seasons of public calamity, such as failure of
the crops or earthquakes, which latter are not unfrequent
in China. The province of Chih-li (or Pe-che-lee) is
particularly liable to these awful visitations, which were
severely felt at Peking twice during the reign of Kanghi, who is much and deservedly praised for his humanity
to the sufferers; nor was Yung-ching less benevolent on
the occasion of a similar calamity which occurred in
1730, when many houses and temples were thrown down
in the capital and a great number of lives lost. Large
sums of money were distributed, by order of the emperor, to repair the damage; and those families who
were reduced by the destruction of their shops and goods
to temporary distress were relieved and supported at the
expense of the government until their houses had been
rebuilt and their trade had recommenced. In 1725 a
terrible famine afflicted the land, when the public granaries in every province were opened for the purpose of
supplying the people with corn and rice at a small price;
and the emperor, according to established custom, made
solemn sacrifices in the Temple of the Earth, released
numbers of prisoners who were confined, in, the dungeons
of the capital, and performed other acts sof propitiation
of the gods, hoping thereby to avert the calamity.
The care that is taken to make al provision for the
poor in time of need, by laying up stores of grain in
every province, constitutes a, main, feature of the Chinese
19




290    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
policy; and, according to the ancient laws, is one of the
chief duties of the sovereign, who is enjoined by Confucius, the revered instructor both of the prince and
*his people, to take care that the lands are cultivated so
as to produce the necessaries of life for all; to attend to
the fisheries and planting of trees; to be moderate in:imposing taxes; to see that the means of instruction are
-furnished for every class; but, above all, to assist the
people in times of scarcity, as a father would provide
for the wants of his children. Yung-ching revived an
old custom that had fallen into disuse, of inviting to a
feast all persons eminent for their virtues. In his reign
also many officers who had conducted themselves well
in an inferior station were promoted to a higher rank.
-le encouraged agriculture by bestowing rewards on the
most diligent laborers, and he brought under cultivation
new lands at the extremity of the hilly province of
Yun-nan, where he settled  colonies and conferred
honors on those who had exerted themselves to improve
the country. He modified the restrictive laws with regard to emigration, allowing the inhabitants of the maritime provinces to repair to Siam, Malacca and the neighboring islands; on condition, however, that they should
return to their native country-a stipulation that was
perfectly in unison with their own feelings, which would
lead them, even without such an injunction, to end their
days in the place of their birth, that they might be entombed among their ancestors. During this reign the
Russians fully established their trading-station on the
banks of a small stream in Tartary, called the Kiakhta,
which is about a thousand miles from Peking and more
than three times that distance from Moscow. On each




T7HE TMANCIiU DYNAST7Y —IFRST E.[PERfl ORS.   291
side of this stream was erected a small town, or rather
village, with a fort garrisoned by a few soldiers-that of
the Russians being called Kiakhta, that of the Chinese
Mai-mai-chin, which means the "dep6t of commerce."
The Chinese residents in Mai-mai-chin were agents employed by the merchants of great manufacturing cities
to carry thither such goods as were likely to be marketable, as silks, both raw and manufactured, tea, porcelain,
japanned ware, tobacco, rice, pearls, precious stones,
spices, and those elegant toys of carved ivory for which
the Chinese are so famous.  They exchanged these articles with the Russians for rich furs, woolen cloth, linen,
leather, tallow, glass and cutlery. The Chinese were
not permitted to take their wives with them, nor could
the Russians take theirs, on account of the length and
difficulties of the journey; so that there were no women
in the place, which must have been dull enough for
those who were obliged to remain there a whole year,
[he term specified for the residence of the Chinese
traders, who at the end of that time returned to their
homes, when others were sent out to replace them with a
fresh assortment of goods.
During the whole of this reign the British merchants
of the East India Company trading to China were so
much oppressed by the heavy duties imposed by the
government, and the extortions privately practiced by
its officers, that, although the commerce was never
entirely stopped, it was very often interrupted.
Yung-ching died in 1735, having reigned about fourteen years, and was succeeded by his eldest son, the warlike and highly talented Kien-lung.
The paternal character of the government of China




292     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST ~~PIR o
is illustrated by the ceremonies following the death of
an emperor. A public mourning is then observed with
the deepest solemnities throughout the whole country;
for it is not, as in Europe, optional to put on the outward symbols of sorrow, but the whole nation is bound,
both by law and custom, to exhibit the same tokens of
grief for the loss of him who is in a figurative sense the
parent of every individual as each would display on the
death of his own father or mother. On the death of
the sovereign despatches announcing the event, written
in blue ink, which is emblematic of a royal demise, are
immediately forwarded to all the provinces. The Board
of Rites then issues directions for the mourning, when
the many millions of human beings that constitute the
population of China clothe themselves in coarse sackcloth or white serge, lay aside every kind of ornament,
and refrain from all festivities, either in public or private.  During the first hundred days the men are
obliged to leave their heads and beards unshaven.
Marriages are not celebrated, nor are any sacrifices performed in the temples.  Similar ceremonies are observed
at the death of an empress-mother, but do not continue
for so long a period, fifty days being the usual time of
mourning on such an occasion; but the wives of the
emperor are not thus publicly honored at their deaths,
although in some instances the officers of the court
have been ordered to take the balls which designate their
rank from the tops of their caps, and not to partake of
any amusements for a certain time.
Kang-hi had raised successively three princesses to
the dignity of empress, and on the death of the last, to
whom he had been exceedingly attached, he commanded




THEE 1MANYHU DYffASTY-FIRST EM3PE.RORS.   293
that all the great officers of state should go in turn to
weep and prostrate themselves before the coffin, while
he shut himself up alone to indulge his grief. Being
afterward informed that four of the gentlemen of the
bed-chamber had been seen eating and laughing together
when they ought to have been sunk in sadness, he banished them  from the court and deprived their fathers
also of their employments.  "Is it to be suffered," said
he, " that my servants, whom  I treat with indulgence
and honor, should be so little touched with my affliction
as to make merry whilst I am  overwhelmed with
sorrow?"
The funeral processions of the royal family are very
magnificent. When a favorite brother of the emperor
Klang-hi was carried to the place of interment, no less
than sixteen thousand persons attended, most of whom
bore ensigns denoting the rank of the deceased, or offerings to be burnt at his tomb. Trumpeters and macebearers, umbrellas and canopies of cloth-of-gold, standards, camels and horses laden with sacrifices, the coffin
under a large yellow canopy, borne by eighty men,
princes, princesses, officers and priests, made up the great
and imposing spectacle.
The reigning family have some very magnificent
places of sepulture, one of which is in Eastern Tartary,
near the city of Shin-yang, four or five hundred miles
to the north-east of Peking.  It is there that the bodies
of Shun-ehi and his father, the great conqueror of the
Chinese, are entombed; and several officers of the Manclhu race reside there to take care that the tombs are
kept in order and to pay the customary honors and
make the sepulchral sacrifices at the proper seasons.




294    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
The tombs are built of white marble, in the Chinese
style of architecture, and the large space of ground on
which they stand is surrounded by a thick wall with
battlements, as though the builders had feared that the
-sacred spot would have need of defence. The Chinese
generally, whatever their rank, make as much display
as they can possibly afford in their funeral rites. The
procession is usually extended to a great length and
preceded by solemn music; the melancholy tones of a
sort of clarionet being accompanied at intervals by three
strokes of the drum. White standards inscribed with
the name and age of the deceased and a vast number
of white lanterns are carried in the train. The coffin
is surmounted by a canopy and followed by the chief
mourner, dressed in a garment of sackcloth, fastened
round his waist with a cord, and a cap of the same
material with a white bandage. He is supported by his
brothers or two nearest relatives; after whom succeed,
in a numerous procession, the friends and relatives, all
habited in coarse white cloth, some on foot, others in
sedan-chairs covered with white serge, these being mostly
the females of the family, who utter loud lamentations
the whole way. One of the principal objects in the
procession is the tablet, which is sometimes carried in a
gilded chair, and is taken back, after the interment, to
be placed in the hall of ancestors. At the side of the
tomb are erected temporary buildings of mat or bamboo, where refreshments are laid out on tables by the
attendants while the friends are making the sacrifices
and burning incense at the tomb. If the deceased has
been a gentleman of high rank, it is not uncommon for
his sons to remain several weeks on the spot, living in




THE MANCHU DYNASTY-FIRST EMPERORS.   295
bamboo huts, that they may renew their expressions of
grief and make new offerings each day to the manes of
the departed, and, in obedience to the injunctions of the
ancient sages, "sleep upon straw with a sod of earth for
a pillow."




CHAPTER XI.
THE GREAT KIEN-LUNGio
HE two great emperors of later ages in China were
Kang-hi and Kien-lung. Their reigns are extraordinary in history for having covered each the term of
sixty years-that of the former indeed was extended to
sixty-one-and, including Yung-ching, who came between them, the father, son and grandson occupied the
throne of China one hundred and forty-six years!
And the reigns of the former and latter were as prosperous as they were long. Kang-hi was the ablest of
the two and the more accomplished. His eminent literary character, and his solicitude for the intellectual and
moral improvement of his people, have added a special
lustre to his memory. But the name of his grandson
will ever be connected with his, as worthy of the epithet
"great," in the history of this dynasty.
Kien-lung succeeded his father Yung-ching in the
year 1735. On the day of his installation, while performing the customary rites in the hall of imperial
ancestors, the young monarch made a vow that, "should
he, like his illustrious, grandfather Kang-hi, be permitted to complete the sixtieth year of his reign, he
would show his gratitude to heaven by resigning the
crown to his heir, as an acknowledgment that he had
296




THE GREAT KIEN-LUNG.             297
been favored to the full extent of his wishes." The
vow was made in all sincerity, and the noble prince was
spared to fulfill it. Not only in longevity, but also in
the qualities which constitute a great ruler, he resembled his grandfather Kang-hi. He encouraged Chinese
learning by cultivating it himself, and some of his poetical compositions are considered to possess intrinsic merit,
independently of their being the productions of an emperor. The first public act of his reign was to recall
from exile all who were still living of those unhappy
members of the royal race who had been banished by
his predecessor in consequence of their attachment to
the Christian religion. The exiles returned in a very
destitute condition, for all their property had been confiscated to the state, and as no portion of it had been restored, they had no means of subsistence but small pensions, to which they were entitled as princes of the blood,
and which were wholly inadequate to the maintenance
of a family.
It is a custom of long standing in China to provide
for all the relatives of the emperor by granting them pensions in money, silks and rice; which allowances are larger
or smaller according to the degree of affinity in which
the pensioners stand to the throne; those who are more
than five degrees removed being allowed only a bare subsistence. These princes, who are very numerous, occupy
a most unfortunate position in society; for, with the
exception of a few of the highest rank, who may happen
to be honored with the emperor's especial favor, they
are of necessity an idle, useless class of beings, treated
as mere appendages to the court, and debarred from
those opportunities of distinguishing themselves which




298    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
are freely accorded to all other members of the state.
A prince of the blood is excluded from holding public
employments or from the pursuit of any occupation
with a view to emolument. He has therefore no inducement to give much of his attention to study, since
learning does not procure for him the same advantages
that are derived from literary attainments by men of
humbler birth. As a body, therefore, the princes of the
empire are said to be illiterate men.
There are two branches of these idlers-the first being
descended in a direct line from the famous Manchu conqueror, Tien-ming; the second, from the uncles and
brothers of that great hero. The former take precedence in rank, and are distinguished by a yellow girdle;
while the latter, being more distantly allied to the emperor, are only permitted to wear a red girdle. They
are all obliged to live within the precincts of the court,
to attend all the levees, to follow in the train of the
emperor whenever lie appears abroad; and in fact
they are mere puppets, who seem to exist for no
other purpose than to increase the pomp of the imperial
retinue.
The recall of the exiles gave hopes to those who
were interested in the diffusion of Christianity that the
emperor was inclined to countenance, or at least to tolerate, the preaching of the missionaries; which he did
for some time. At length, however, the higher officers
of the court presented a memorial on the subject to
the emperor, who suffered himself to be persuaded,
against his better judgment, not to afford any further
protection or encouragement to the teachers of Christianity.




THE GREAT KIEi-L UNrG.          299
The powerful order of Jesuits, which had attained to
great ascendency in the East, had awakened the jealousies and odium of the rival monastic orders and of
nearly every king or government in Europe that remained within the pale of the Romish Church. About
the middle of the reign of Kien-lung, or more toward
its close, it was pursued, as one which was decided to be
irreconcilable with the peace of the nation, with unremitting hostility, until it was considered to be entirely
rooted from the soil of China. The Jesuits had become
rich by trade as well as by the contributions of their followers.  Their extensive property was seized and confiscated. This put an end to the exertions of the Jesuits
for the conversion of the Chinese.
The ambition of Kien-lung was gratified by some important conquests in Western Tartary, where several
Tartar tribes were rendered tributary and the rich city
of Kashgar was brought under his dominion. But a
later attempt which he made to subjugate the Burman
empire was less fortunate. The invading army commenced hostilities by plundering a town and mart,
which the Chinese had long been in the habit of frequenting with goods for sale. The Burmese monarch
took immediate steps to repel the invasion by dividing
his forces into two separate bodies, one of which marched
direct toward the enemy, while the other, by a circuitous
route, came behind them, and thus cut off their retreat.
A terrible conflict took place, which lasted three days,
and was most disastrous to. the Chinese, who were hemmed in on all sides; so that, of all the army which entered the Burmese territories, not one man returned to
tell the miserable tale of their defeat, for those who




300    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
escaped the sword were conducted in fetters to the Burmese capital, where they were made government slaves,
according to the custom of that country. Those who
understood any trade were obliged to practice it;
those who did not, were employed as gardeners and
field-laborers, and compelled to work hard, without
recompense beyond a scanty supply of the coarsest food.
But, notwithstanding the unfortunate result of this
expedition, the emperor made some important acquisitions to his dominions, amongst which was the kingdom
of Tibet-an extensive country which is still little
known, and chiefly remarkable as being the high seat
of the Buddhist religion and the residence of Grand
Lama or pontiff of that faith. Tibet is an advantageous possession to the Chinese empire, on account of its
situation between the north-western frontier of China
and the countries of various Indian and Tartar tribes,
who might possibly be very troublesome neighbors but
that their veneration for the Grand Lama keeps them
from disturbing his dominions; so that Tibet forms a
sort of neutral ground, which prevents the approach of
an enemy on that side of the empire of which it now
constitutes a part.
But of all the wars of Kien-lung none has so much
interest as the contest with the Miau-tsz-a singular
people who have existed in China from a most remote
period of its history, yet have preserved their original
freedom, and remain to this day independent tribes,
though less numerous and powerful perhaps than before the armies of Kien-lung appeared among their
mountains spreading death and desolation on every
side.




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~.,:., -.  ~:..~..~,~i~!(.......:
~~L~~~-~ ~ ~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
_r'i ~     ~              -I  -








THE GREAT KIEL Ue.Go             301
We have mentioned in a previous chapter the mountainous districts inhabited by many different portions of
this race, who are quite distinct from the Chinese, whose
government they scarcely acknowledge, and whose civilization they do not share. The southern part of China
was in a state of barbarism long after the north had
been comparatively civilized; but how it happens that
they have been permitted to remain unsubdued and independent has not been accounted for. Perhaps the mountainous nature of the region which they inhabit, and
which gives them advantages over an enemy, may, with
other causes, have tended to discourage attempts to subject them. They are governed by their own laws and
have their own chiefs. Their independence of the
Tartar government was shown by the retention of their
hair, which was allowed to grow over the whole head,
and, being of great length, was tied up in the ancient
Chinese fashion.  The Chinese consider them  as a
people totally different from themselves, insomuch that
in their maps they even mark off that part of the country occupied by them, as though it were inhabited by a
foreign race.
The intercourse of the Chinese with the Miau-tsz was
sometimes of a friendly, sometimes of a hostile nature;
for, like most barbarians who dwell in the vicinity of a
fertile country, the Miau-tsz were addicted to plunder,
and would occasionally make incursions into the plains,
and carry off such spoils as fell in their way; while at
other times they pursued a peaceful traffic with the
Chinese, who purchased their forest timber, which
abounds on the mountains, but is scarce in the level
country, where all the ancient forests have long since




302    THE OLDEST AND THIE NEWEST EMPIRE.
been cleared away, in order to afford space for the cult
tivation of rice and cotton to feed and clothe the, overflowing population.
Although the Miau-tsz are not subjects of the emperor,
yet every hostile incursion which they make against the
Chinese is regarded by the latter as an act of rebellion.
In the year 1770 one of the tribes made several marauding expeditions into the plains, and committed such
extensive depredations that a military force was sent to
invade their mountain territory, the emperor being
resolved to subjugate or destroy their whole race. The
imperial army entered the hills, which soon presented
frightful scenes of bloodshed, for the people fought desperately in defence of their liberty; and so great was
their dread of being brought under the authority of the
Chinese government that even the women were seen
fighting by the sides of their husbands. At length the
Chinese general gained possession of their principal town,
when the chief took refuge in a strong fortress at some
distance, from whence he sent a deputation to the general, offering to acknowledge himself a vassal of the
emperor, provided he might be permitted to retain his
territories and rule over his people as before. But the
mighty monarch, bent upon crushing the liberties of the
mountaineers, sent forth his imperial mandate that the
whole population should remove from their native hills
to some distant part of the empire, where they might be
kept in subjection, which they scarcely could be so long
as they maintained the strong position they had hitherto
occupied. The chief of the unfortunate tribe, to whom
this sentence of expatriation was worse than death,
collected his warriors around him, determined to resist




THE GREAT KIEN-LUNG.             303
to the last, declaring that he would rather perish on his
native soil than rule as a sovereign in a foreign land;
but a still more melancholy fate than either awaited the
brave barbarian, for, being at length made prisoner, he
was conveyed "with many other captives to Peking,
where he was condemned to suffer an ignominious
death, together with nineteen individuals of his family,
who were beheaded at the same time with him; while
some of his people, men, women and children, were
dragged from their homes and distributed as slaves
through various parts of the empire.
Still the Miau-tsz were not conquered; for although
that one particular tribe was exterminated, there were
others in different parts of the mountains, who soon
afterward appeared in great numbers. "The emperor,"
says Sir J. F. Davis, "boasted that they were subdued,
but there is reason to believe that this hardy people,
entrenched in the natural fortifications of their rude and
precipitous mountains, lost little of the real independence
which they had enjoyed for ages. They have never yet
submitted to the Tartar tonsure, the most conclusive
mark of conquest, and their renewed acts of hostility
have given serious alarm and trouble to the Peking
government."
The latter part of the reign of Kien-lung is remarkable for the first direct intercourse ever held between the
courts of Great Britain and China. An embassy was
sent by his Britannic Majesty to the sovereign of the
Chinese empire under the following circumstances.
Soon after his accession to the throne, in 1720, Kienlung had established a company called the Hong Merchants, consisting of the principals of a number of hongs,




304    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
or mercantile houses, who were invested with the exclusive privilege of transacting all business with Europeans;
and these were prohibited from dealing with any other
Chinese traders, and were obliged to purchase their tea,
silks and other comm6dities of importance from the
hong merchants, who fixed the price of all goods, either
exported or imported, and regulated the terms on which
foreigners were to conduct their trade with China. They
were responsible to the government for the customs and
duties on all goods brought into or sent out of the
country; and they were also answerable to the foreign
merchants for the value of their cargoes after they were
landed; so that any losses sustained on either side were
to be made up by them; yet their profits were so enormous that they grew in general very rich and lived in
great splendor.
In the year 1771, however, the co-hong was dissolved,
and then there was no restriction to prevent other Chinese merchants from trading with the Europeans; yet
the hong merchants contrived to maintain their monopoly
by making handsome presents frequently to the magistrates at Canton, who, in return, sufferedcl no one to interfere with their trade. This led to very unfair dealings
on the part of the latter, who, to indemnify themselves
for the large presents they were obliged to make for the
protection of their monopoly, charged most exorbitant
prices for their goods and practiced all kinds of imposition on the European traders. The British merchants,
who were the greatest sufferers by their extortions, endeavored to get a memorial presented to the emperor;
but their petitions were never allowed to reach the court,
and they had no alternative but to submit to imposition




THE GREAT KIEN-L UNG.             305
or to give up the trade altogether. Some of the hong
merchants had contracted very heavy debts with the
English, which they refused to pay; and serious disputes
arising on that point, as well as on many others, the
British government at length determined to send an
embassy to the court of Peking, to lay all these complaints before the emperor and solicit redress. Lord
Macartney, former governor of Madras, was. appointed
ambassador on this extraordinary occasion, and being
furnished with many valuable presents for the great
Eastern autocrat, he set sail from Portsmouth, in September, 1792, and arrived at Canton in June, the following year. As the first British embassy to the Celestial
Empire its history will continue to be interesting,  The
ambassador and his train were received with the highest
marks of distinction, for the emperor had been apprised
of their coming, and had sent orders to the governors
of the different cities and provinces where they would
stop in their way to Peking that every attention should
be paid to them, and all things provided for their accommodation-a command which was most scrupulously
obeyed, so that they were, not only well entertained when
they went on shore, but ample stores of provisions, with
wine, tea and baskets of porcelain, were sent to their
ships by the magistrates of several places where they cast
anchor on the voyage from Canton toward the capital;
for, as the empire is not open to the admission of strangers except by favor, those who visit it on state affairs
are considered and treated as guests of the sovereigns or
persons in his service for the time being, and not as
travelers who are free to go where they please and to
have what they choose to order in return for payment
20




306    THE OLDEST ANiD THE IVEWEST EMPIRE.
consequently, the accommodation they meet with depends
very much on whether the mission be agreeable or not
to his majesty. This fact was duly exemplified by the
following circumstances which occurred at Chusan.
The British ships having to sail round the coast to
the gulf of Pe-che-lee, required experienced pilots to
conduct them along the shore, with which the English
sailors were totally unacquainted. The governor was
solicited to furnish proper persons for the purpose; on
which he sent into the town of Ting-hai, the capital, to
order all who had ever performed that voyage to repair
immediately to the hall of audience. A great many
men presented themselves, and among others, two tradesmen who had been to Tien-tsin, a city on the Pei-ho
river, on their own affairs, and these were the individuals
selected to perform the office of pilots to the British embassy. It was in vain they desired to be excused, on
the plea that their business would be ruined by their
absence, and their families reduced to great distress; the
governor only replied that the emperor's commands were
explicit and must be obeyed. The poor men, therefore,
were obliged to go, inconvenient as it was to them.
The Pei-ho passes near Peking in its course to the gulf
of Pe-che-lee, and has many populous towns and villages
on its banks. The number of barges and junks continually passing up and down this busy stream is a
proof of the wealth and populousness of the country,
many of them being engaged in commerce, while many
are government boats, employed chiefly in conveying to
the capital grain and other produce of the land, collected
from the people of the neighboring provinces, who pay
their taxes, or rather rents, chiefly in kind. The junks




iXHE GIEA T KIEN~.L UNiYG,       307
are strongly built and curved upward at each extremity,
the stern being much higher than the bow. The sails
are of matting or cotton, made to fold up like a fan, with
bamboo yards or stretchers. Great labor is required in
setting them, as the Chinese have no proper machinery
for that purpose, so that all their maneuvres in working
a ship are performed by actual strength.   lost of the
sailors, with their families, live constantly on board the
junks, having no home on shore; and there are many
companies of actors also who have no other dwellingplace than a covered boat on the river.
The government yachts which conveyed the embassy
up the Pei-ho were extremely handsome and commodious; but as the Chinese officers had no idea that an ambassador could come for any other purpose than to bring
tribute and do homage to the emperor on the part of
his master, they had caused flags to be attached to the'yachts, displaying these words in large Chinese characters, "6 Ambassadors bearing tribute from the country of
England;" nor would they believe that the presents
brought for the emperor were to be viewed in any other
light. The viceroy of the province of Chih-li, a venerable old man about eighty years of age, had traveled
nearly one hundred miles in obedience to the commands
of his imperial master, to be in readiness at Tien-tsin to
receive the English ambassador, who went on shore, accompanied by several gentlemen of his suite, to pay a
visit to that high functionary.
While ascending the Pei-ho, a gentleman of the mission remarks, "The approach of the embassy was an
event of which the report spread rapidly among the
neighboring towns and villages. Several of these were




308     THE OLDEST AiVD THE NEWEST EMPIRE.o
visible from the barges upon the river. -Crowds of men
were assembled on the banks, some of whom waited a
considerable time to see the procession pass; while the
females, as shy as they were curious, looked through
gates or peeped over walls to enjoy the sight. A few,
indeed, of the ancient dames almost dipped their little
feet into the river in order to get a nearer peep, but the
younger part of the sex generally  kept in the background. The strangers, on their part, were continually
amused and gratified with a succession of new objects.
The face of the country, the appearance of the people,
presented in almost'every instance something different
from what is offered to the view elsewhere.  And a general sentiment prevailed that it was well worth while to
have traveled to such a distance to behold a country
which promised to be interesting in every respect." 
Tien-tsin  is the great emporium  for the north of
China, as Canton is for the south. It extends for several miles along both sides of the river, on the banks of
which are many quays and dockyards, with large public buildings, the chief of which are the custom-houses,
warehouses and temples.  The shops are handsome and
well furnished, but the private houses are no ornaments
to the streets, being built, as in all large Chinese cities,
within a court enclosed by a brick wall.
The Chinese are never at a loss for a hall of reception,
as they can construct, at a few hours' notice, a temporary
building or pavilion of bamboo, covered with thatch
above and matting on the sides, which, being carpeted
1 Sir GEORIGE STAUNTON, Bart., in his Authentic Account of the Embassy, etc.,
taken chiefly from the Papers of his Excellency the Earl of Macartney. London,
1798.




TSIE GREAT KIEN-L UNG.           309
and adorned with silken hangings and other tasteful
ornaments, answers all the-purposes of a palace for occasions of ceremony. It was in such a hall that the
gentlemen of the embassy were received by the viceroy
of Chih-li, with all the attention due to their rank and
the well-bred politeness which generally characterizes
the manners of a Chinese gentleman.
It is remarked by Lord Macartney that men of rank
in China appear to treat their domestics with a degree
of kindness and condescension seldom  met with  in
Europe; and yet it is most probable that the servants
alluded to were slaves, for domestic slavery is common
among the Chinese, and does not seem to be a very hard
lot. In the higher walks of life the customs of society
were found not to be devoid of the elegance and refinenient of the most polished circles of Europe. The viceroy of Chih-li, whose advanced age made it extremely
inconvenient for him to go on board the yachts, returned
the ambassador's visit by being carried down to the
shore in a chair, and sending an officer to the boat to
present his visiting-card. The Chinese visiting-cards,
however, are sheets of crimson paper, ten inches in
length and four in width, the name and titles of the
visitor being written down the right side of them.
From Tien-tsin the embassy proceeded to Tung-chau,
a city distant from Peking about twelve miles, where the
whole party landed; and as it was necessary to remain
there a few days, a Buddhist temple was prepared for
their accommodation, the priests being obliged to renove for the time to another monastery in the neighborhood, with the exception of one, who was left to
watch over the lamps of the shrine. These temples are




310    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMXPIREo
always used as hotels on all occasions connected with the
government; but the priests are not required to furnish
the guests with entertainment as well as lodging, their
table being supplied, free of cost, by the governor of the
city, wherever they may be. The only thing difficult
to be procured was milk, which is never used by the
Chinese; neither do they make cheese or butter; but
when it was understood that the strangers were in the
habit of mixing -milk with their tea, and that it was not
pleasant to them without this ingredient, much trouble
was taken to procure two cows, which formed a part
of their train during the remainder of their sojourn in
China.
The whole way, from the landing-place at which the
yachts were stationed, to the temple where the ambassador and his suite were lodged, was like a fair. A
great number of petty tradesmen, such as pastry-cooks,
dealers in spirituous liquors and persons who keep eating-houses, had their booths for the sale of various refreshments, among which were tea and rice prepared for
eating, which may always be had in the streets of every
town in China, where a working-man may dine very
well at any time for one or two cents of our money.
The English travelers went by land from Tung-chau
to Peking, some in palanquins, others on horseback, and
the rest in small rude carts with two wheels, which is
the only kind of carriage used in that part of the country, and, having no springs, is a very uneasy conveyance.
The road is usually broad, bordered on each side by
willow trees of immense size, and paved with large flat
stones. The pavement is in the middle of the road, instead of at the sides as with us, which is easily accounted




THE GREAT KIEAV-L UNG.            311
for by the rarity of wheel carriages, which are less common, even for long journeys, tha-n sedans and horses.
The party was escorted by a guard of soldiers, whose
chief employment the whole way was to keep off the
crowd with their whips, of which they did not scruple
to make very free use; but curiosity was stronger than
fear, and no sooner did the whips cease to play than the
mob again pressed forward, while every wall, house-top
and tree was thronged with spectators.
It was now the middle of August, and the'emperor
had not yet returned to the capital from his palace at
Jeh-ho (called by Macartney Zehol) in Tartary, one of
his numerous residences, where it was customary for the
court to reside during the summer months. Jeh-ho is
about fifty miles to the north of the Great Wall, and
about five thousand feet above the level of the Yellow
sea; consequently it is much cooler than in China, and
on that account is pleasant as a summer retreat. The
country beyond the wall is wild and mountainous, and
bears in its principal features a great resemblance to
Savoy and Switzerland. There is a good road for general traffic all the way from Peking to Jeh-ho, parallel
to which there is a private road, kept in the highest
order by the soldiers, expressly for the use of the emperor and court. Traveling palaces or imperial hotels
are erected at certain distances all the way from the
capital, as the emperor never on any occasion condescends to take refreshment or pass the night at the
house of a subject, although the palaces of some of the
viceroys are little inferior to his own. The name Jeh-ho
signifies Hot Streams, and was doubtless derived from
some thermal and medicinal springs in the neighborhood.




312    THE OLDEST AND THE NE WEST EMPIRE.
The palace and gardens are situated in a romantic
valley on the banks of a fine river overhung by rugged
mountains. The park, which is very extensive, presents
the most magnificent specimen of the Chinese style to be
found in the whole empire, as the objects that are usually crowded together in too small a space to produce a
pleasing effect are at Jeh-ho distributed over a vast area,
the imperial park being not less than eighteen miles in
circumference, including the palace and gardens of the
ladies, which are enclosed within a separate wall. The
western side of the park is occupied by thick woods of
oak, pine and chestnut trees, covering the sides of the
steep mountains, where a great number of deer are kept
for the chase; the rest is laid out in ornamental pleasure-grounds, adorned with as many as fifty handsome
pavilions magnificently furnished, each containing a
state-room with a throne in it, and some of them having
a large banqueting-hall, where entertainments are given
on special occasions to the great gentlemen of the court.
Among the ornaments of these beautiful pleasuregrounds are small transparent lakes, filled with gold
and silver fishes; and a broad canal, on which are several islands, adorned with pagodas and summer-houses
of various forms, sheltered by groves of trees and fragrant shrubs. All Chinese buildings of this description
are highly decorated, and generally bear some resemblance to a tent, which is evidently the model from
which the architecture of China was originally designed.
iNear the palace of Jeh-ho, on the side of a steep hill,
stands the magnificent temple of Pu-ta-la, the largest
and richest in the whole empire, covering above twenty




THIE GREAT KIEN-L UiVG.            313
acres of ground, and built at an immense cost by Kienlung, for whose service this splendid pile was erected.
It consists of one large temple or monastery, with a
number of smaller buildings and pagodas attached to it.
The great temple is an immense square, eleven stories in
height, these stories being  distinguished by galleries
running round the four sides of the building, containing
the apartments of the lamas or priests, of whom there
were not less than eight hundred at the time of which
we are now speaking, so munificently was the establishment endowed by its founder.  In the centre of the
great temple is the golden chapel, where the priests perform  their devotions.  It derives its name from  its
gilded roof; and in the middle is a small space railed
off, in which, elevated by steps, stand three altars richly
adorned, each supporting a colossal statue, said to be of
solid gold, but of course only gilded. The priests, who
wear yellow robes, chaunt their service in a kind of recitative, striking drums at intervals; but there is no
congregation; and although people sometimes go into
this and other Buddhist temples from curiosity to observe the rites, none join in them.
It was at Jeh-ho that the emperor chose to receive
the English embassy. The custom of Eastern sovereigns
has always been to hold levees soon after daybreak;'
and such was the practice of the emperor Kien-lung,
although he had arrived at the advanced age of eightythree. At the first appearance of dawn, on the day
appointed for the reception of the embassy, were assem1 This will remind the reader of the hour of the meeting of the Jewish Sanhedrim to try Jesus, "when the morning was come" (Matt. xxvii. 1); "as soon
as it was day" (Luke xxii. 66).




314    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
bled all the princes of the imperial family, the principal
officers of state, with a great number of lower officers and
several Mongol chiefs, who had come, as was customary,
to be present at the celebration of the emperor's birthday, which was drawing near, and was always kept with
much ceremony. The hall of audience, on this occasion,
was a magnificent tent in the park, supported by gilded
pillars, at the upper end of which was placed a throne
under a canopy, raised several steps from the ground,
which last was covered with rich carpets and furnished
with embroidered cushions of exquisite workmanship.
From the top of the tent hung several of those elegant
painted lanterns so conspicuous among Chinese decorations and unequaled for beauty in any part of the world.
The emperor's approach was announced by the sound of
gongs and trumpets. He was carried in a palanquin by
sixteen bearers, a number that is not permitted to any
other individual in the empire; and was surrounded by
the usual appendages of Chinese dignity —flags, standards, fans and parasols. He was plainly dressed, as
suited his venerable years, in a robe of yellow silk, with
no ornaments about his person except a large pearl in
the front of his black velvet cap.
The British ambassador, who was presented by the
president of the Board of Rites, was most graciously received, although he did not pay that homage to which
the great autocrat was accustomed, but merely bent one
knee in presenting his credentials. This omission of the
ko-tau by Lord Macartney excited many criticisms and
comments. It may be reasonably supposed that the
reigning emperor, at the close of a very long and prosperous reign, felt sufficiently assured of his own power




THEIl  GREAT KIENE-L UNG.        315
and greatness to dispense with such a ceremony; and
that the authority of his son and successor, Kia-kling,
who was on the throne when the next British ambassador (Lord Amherst) appeared at court, having been
shaken by frequent insurrections, and even by some
attempts against his life, this circumstance rendered
him-or, at least, his courtiers-more tenacious of external forms. Some compliments were exchanged, and
several presents also; for the etiquette of the court of
China requires that every envoy who approaches the
throne shall be provided with a suitable offering, for
which lie usually receives a gift in return; but it should
be observed that the former is accepted as a humble
tribute due from an inferior, while the latter is conferred
as a mark of extreme condescension. When the ceremonies were ended, a sumptuous breakfast was served
up in the tent in the Chinese fashion; and while all
present partook of the repast, a band of music played on
the lawn, where tumblers and rope-dancers exhibited
various feats of agility, and a play was performed on a
raised stage. Such plays are largely historical; the
acting, however, is unnatural.
They have no scenery, but very fine dresses; and, as
no women are allowed to appear on the stage, the female
characters are always performed by boys. At Jeh-ho
the ladies of the court had a theatre for their own especial amusement, where plays were acted every day, which
were sometimes attended by the emperor and his ministers, but more frequently by the ladies only. One of
their greatest enjoyments was to form parties of pleasure
on the canal, for which purpose there were yachts always
in readiness, fitted up in the most elegant manner, but




316    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
so contrived that the fair occupants were entirely screened
from observation.
There was no empress at this period, for the princess
who had enjoyed that dignity was dead, and KIien-lung
had not thought proper to raise another to the throne.
The laws of China admit of only one proper wife; hence
the Tartar sovereigns give to one a rank above the rest,
and she alone is called empress, while the others have
the title of queen. There were eight queens at this
time-two of the first and six of the second rank; and
these had each a certain number of ladies in her train,
making altogether upward of one hundred females belonging to the court. So long as the emperor lives
these ladies usually lead pleasant lives, but their subsequent lot is not very enviable, as they are then removed
to a building near the palace, which may be termed a
nunnery, since they are obliged, by the customs of the
country, to pass the remainder of their lives within its
walls in utter seclusion.
The English visitors stayed a week at Jeh-lho, and
were present at the anniversary of the emperor's birthday, which is a holiday throughout the empire. The
ceremonies of the court consisted principally in the
grand birth-day ode, sung in chorus by voices innumerable, accompanied by deep-toned bells and solemn
music. The emperor was present, but not visible, being
seated behind a screen in a large hall, where all the
courtiers were assembled in their state dresses to pay the
customary homage, which was done by falling prostrate
at the conclusion of every stanza of the ode, which has
been thus translated: "Bow down your heads, all ye
dwellers on the earth; bow down your heads before the




THE GREAT KIE.L UNLG.             317
great Kien-lung!" an exhortation that was literally
obeyed.
The two or three days which succeeded the birth-day
were entirely devoted to shows, sports and festivities, in
which all classes participated.
When the gayeties were over, it was intimated to the
British ambassador that it would be proper to take his
leave of Jeh-ho, and return without delay to Canton,
whither the emperor's answer on the subject of the embassy would be forwarded.  Instead of returning by sea,
as they came, the strangers passed by the Canal and-rivers
through the provinces of Shan-tung, Kiang-nan, Chikiang, Kiang-si and Kwang-tung, or Canton, a journey
which occupied about ten weeks. The highly-cultivated
state of the country, the number, wealth and greatness
of its cities, its abundant resources and myriads of inhabitants, were subjects of wonder and admiration to our
travelers.  The emperor wrote a very friendly letter to
King George III., but did not accede to the request that
he would allow the subjects of the latter to trade to
Ning-po, Amoy and other maritime cities besides Canton,
as they used to do before they were restricted to that one
port. The mission, however, was in some degree successful, as the viceroy of Canton, who had encouraged
the frauds practiced on British merchants, was removed
from his office, while the governor appointed in his room
received peremptory orders to put a stop to the grievances complained of; so that for a short time the trade
was conducted on a fairer footing, when the abdication
and subsequent death of Kien-lung afforded an opportunity for the renewal of all the former oppressions.
It was in the next year but one following Lord Ma



318     TIHE OLDEST AD THE NEWEST  E  EWEST  MPIRE
cartney's embassy that the aged emperor of China completed the sixtieth year of his felicitous reign, and, in
accordance with the vow he had made at its commencement, prepared to resign the throne he had filled with
so much ability.  He had had twenty-one sons, of whom
only four were then living.  The youngest was his
favorite, and to that prince, who assumed the name of
Kia-king, he determined to resign his empire.  The
sixtieth anniversary of his accession was celebrated by
a grand jubilee throughout China, when many acts of
munificence were performed by the emperor; and among
others, he desired that all the old men who had passed
the age of seventy should be invited to a feast, prepared
for them at his expense, in every district over the whole
empire;
He reserved to himself the title of the supreme emperor, but he retired altogether from  state affairs, and
died soon afterward, at the advanced age of eighty-eight.
He was highly distinguished as a patron of literature,
to which, as we have stated, he was himself a valuable
contributor.  He was indefatigable in his attention to
business, and his extensive charities in seasons of public
distress do honor to his name. and give him a true right
to that title which it is the aim of every good ruler of
China to obtain-that of the Father of his People.
Kien-lung had not only kept together the vast empire,
but had greatly extended its limits.  Two events disturbed the equanimity of the imperial court and interfered with the British negotiations: the rajah of Nepaul
had been waging war on Tibet, and the great French
I Sixty years complete a revolution of the Chinese cycle, which corresponds
in their divisions of time with our century.




THE  GREAT KIEN-LUG.             319
Revolution had sent the echoes of its astounding deeds
as far as Peking.
On their return toward Canton the embassy and servants were conveyed -a great distance on the Grand
Canal. This great work is about six hundred and fifty
miles in length. It is called by the Chinese the Chahho, or Gated river (i. e., river with locks, or gates.) It
extends from the Pei-ho river, near Peking, to Hangchau, a great city south of Shanghai. It was commenced in the seventh century, and additions and
improvements added until the last century. Its masonry
in some places is solid and well built. The passage of
boats from one level to another is ingeniously effected
by drawing them  by windlasses over embankments
lubricated and protected by wet clay. The value of this
channel for the internal commerce of the empire is beyond calculation. On the canal the travelers often saw the
fishing-cormorants at their work. In some places there
were thousands of small boats and rafts, built entirely
for this curious species of fishery.  On each boat or raft
were ten or a dozen birds, which, at a signal from the
owner, plunged into the water to catch the fish with
their bills. It was astonishing to see the enormous size
of some of the fish with which they returned to the
boat.
The interval between the reign of Kien-lung and the
important one of Tau-kwang was occupied by that of a
man of inferior character, some notice of whom may be
most fitly introduced at the close of this chapter.
It was in the year 1795 that Kia-king ascended the
throne. The late emperor had chosen him to succeed




320    THE OLDEST AND THIE NEWEST EMIPIRE.
him, because he entertained a very high opinion of his
disposition and talents for government. But the conduct
of the new monarch soon proved that both his virtues
and abilities had been very much overrated by the partiality of his fond father; for as soon as he was his own
master he began to indulge in pleasures that would
have been extremely unbecoming in a prince of less
pretensions.
Kia-king seems to have imbibed no great taste for the
restraints and etiquette of the Chinese court, which are
doubtless excessively fatiguing, as every word and movement of the emperor ought to be in accordance with that
dignified and even sacred character with which he is
invested, and which most of the imperial rulers of China
have made it their study to maintain. The Manchu
emperors had all been eminently distinguished by the
stately air and grave deportment naturally looked for in
those who are venerated as beings partaking of a superior nature; but Kia-king was utterly destitute of these
lofty attributes, and not only indulged in an immoderate
love of wine, but selected his favorite associates from
amongst the actors, who, in China, are considered the
very lowest class of the community. It is even said
that, when heated with wine, he sometimes degraded
himself so far as to take a part in the dramatic performances of his chosen companions. An Italian Catholic
missionary, named Serra, who was for many years employed at Peking, has given a very particular account of
the extremely profligate habits of this very unworthy
son of the great Kien-lung. After the early morning
audience, from which no emperor can excuse himself,
and a hurried despatch of the business submitted to




THE GREAT KIEN~-L UNG.          321
him, he generally retired to the company of his players,
buffoons and tumblers, and afterward drank to excess.
He would frequently proceed with players to the apartments of his women, in the interior of the palace; and
it was remarked that his two younger sons bore no
resemblance to himself or to each other. He even
carried the comedians with him when he went to offer
sacrifices at the temples of Heaven and Earth. The
ministers openly remonstrated with him respecting these
disgraceful propensities, but their admonitions were in
vain; and one of them, the noble and faithful Sung Tajin,
a man of very high talent, who was exceedingly useful
to the state, was banished for presuming to speak freely
on the subject of his faults. When summoned by the
emperor and asked what punishment he deserved, he
answered, "A slow and ignominious death." When told
to choose another, he said, "Beheading."  When asked
a third time, he chose "Strangling."  [These are the
three gradations of capital punishment.] He was ordered
to retire, and on the following day the court appointed
him governor of Chinese Siberia, the region to which
criminals are exiled. Thus, as Serra observes, the emperor, though unable to bear his censure, acknowledged
his rectitude. The people soon became dissatisfied with
a monarch whom they could not respect, and insurrections broke out in many parts of the country; incited
in some cases by the elder princes, who felt themselves
aggrieved at the preference that had been: given by their
father to their youngest brother.
Kia-king was as unpopular among the Tartars as
among the Chinese; for, while the latter were shocked>
at his indifference. to: ancient customs, the former- eres
21




322    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EM3PIRE.
discontented at his neglect of the annual hunting excursions, esteemed as the grand business of life by all
the Tartar soldiers, as well as by the tributary nations
dwelling beyond the Wall. One of the consequences
resulting from this state of affairs was the formation of
secret associations, called Triad'Societies; which are
known still to exist to a vast extent, The Triads know
each other by secret signs, like the Freemasons; their
object is to overthrow the present government and to restore the native princes to the throne.
Kia-king severely persecuted the Roman Catholics in
China. Some of the Roman missionaries had concealed
themselves in remote parts of the country, where they
appear to have been cherished by the rural population.
Eighteen of them were discovered, dragged to prison
and brutally beaten; six died in confinement; three
were taken into the emperor's service, and nine were
driven out of the empire. We have no data to show
the number of native priests and converts who suffered
death, torture, imprisonment and banishment in these
sudden storms of persecution; but the total number
was probably to be counted by hundreds. Political
reasons were those which chiefly influenced the Chinese
government. Between the years 1580 and 1724 there
had been about five hundred missionaries sent out from
Europe, and we know that they traversed the empire,
and that some were very successful in propagating their
faith.
In consequence of the disturbed state of the empire,
numerous bands of robbers infested the interior of the
country, while the pirates of the Ladrone Islands renewed their depredations on the coast. Among these




TfHE GRlET ZIEi-L UNVG.           323
was a noted corsair, named Ching-yih, who was no less
renowned and feared than the famous Koshinga had
been in the time of the first emperor of the Manchu
race. This formidable chief was in the habit of levying
contributions on all the merchant vessels that appeared
in the Chinese seas; he plundered the villages on the
coast, and did not hesitate to engage in battle with the
imperial fleet. It was strongly suspected that he received secret assistance /from many Chinese merchants
of Amoy and Canton, who were disaffected toward the
reigning family. The extent of his depredations between the years 1806 and 1811 would be incredible if
not well attested by English officers and other Europeans. Fishermen and other destitute classes flocked by
thousands to his standard, and his audacity growing
with his numbers, he not merely swept the coast, but
blockaded the principal rivers, penetrated far into the
interior of the empire, surprised and plundered great
towns and took very many large war-junks. His exploits were marked with cruelty and every imaginable
atrocity and abomination.  At one time he controlled
seventy thousand men, eight hundred large vessels and
more than a thousand smaller ones.
Ching-yih was accidentally drowned, but his death.
did not put a stop to the lawless practices of his people;
for his widow, who might have been esteemed as a great
heroine in a worthier cause, took the command of the
fleet, headed the rovers in all their piratical expeditions,
and actually fought in several engagements with the
government forces.  These Amazonian qualities were
combined with very extraordinary talents as a ruler; for
she drew up a regular code of laws for the government of




324    THE OLDEST AIN'D THE NYEWEST EM1.PI E.
her people, by which they were bound to act equitably
toward each other, and thus order was preserved among
them. For some time this female corsair maintained the
sovereignty of the Chinese seas, insomuch that no mere
chant-ships could navigate them in safety without a pass
from her, which she granted on payment of a certain
toll, and this pass protected them from any pirate vessels
they might encounter on their passage. At length disputes arose among the pirate captains, and the female
chieftain, beginning to find her position a difficult one to
maintain, concluded a regular treaty of peace with the
governor of Canton, who was rewarded by government
with a peacock's feather, the usual mark of distinction
bestowed on a military or naval commander for any
eminent service rendered to the state. The lady withdrew from the conspicuous situation in which she had
placed herself to live in retirement, while most of the
pirates, being thus left without a leader, made their
peace and were received into the government.
In the mean time, the whole country was in a very
unsettled state. The province of Chih-li was overrun
with armed bands, composed partly of those who had
become robbers by profession, and partly of native
patriots, who joined with the banditti as a means of
strengthening their force. All were equally terrible to
the peaceful inhabitants, who were plundered with impunity; the robbers coming in such numbers as to intimidate the magistrates, some of whom were possibly
more inclined to encourage than to oppose them. Some
of these patriots profess merely an anxiety for the restoration of a native dynasty as the best means of promoting
internal tranquillity, good order and prosperity; but




THE GREAT KIES-LUNG.             325
many of them entertain very wild, anarchical and communistic notions.
In the year 1813 the palace at Peking was suddenly
attacked by a numerous body of armed men, who forced
the gates and rushed into the great hall, with the intention of seizing the emperor and obliging him to abdicate
the throne. A similar attempt had been made ten years
previously, since which time Kia-king had taken care
to have a strong bodyguard in constant attendance; and
besides this precaution a double guard was posted at
every gate; therefore it is supposed that the conspirators
must have had confederates within the palace, who facilitated their entrance; otherwise there must have been a
desperate struggle with the soldiers, which does not
appear to have been the case. A terrible scene of confusion ensued. The princes and attendant officers surrounding their sovereign made a gallant defence; and
one of Kia-king's sons had the good fortune to save his
father's life by shooting two of the insurgents who were
in the act of rushing upon the emperor. Much blood
was shed before the palace was cleared of the assailants,
who were, however, at length dispersed, and the insurrection was eventually subdued. Kia-king named as
his successor the prince whose timely aid had preserved
his life.
About three years after this rebellion another embassy was sent by the British government to the court
of Peking, to complain anew of the manner in which
the trade with England was conducted at Canton. The
good effect produced by the interference of Kien-lung
had been but temporary. Lord Amherst was the ambassador on this occasion. On the arrival of the em



326    THE OLDEST AND THE lNEWEST EMIrPIRE.
bassy at Peking the old dispute relative to the ko-tau,
or prostration before the emperor, was revived, and the
conduct of the ambassador was so entirely misrepresented
to him that no audience was granted; and thus the English not only failed in obtaining a redress of grievances,
but were disappointed of seeing the sovereign.  It has
been ascertained, however, that the agency of the provincial government of Canton was powerfully exerted
against Lord Amherst's embassy, and that the emperor
subsequently discovered, with muchx egret, the insulting
proceedings of his ministers.
One grand object of this unsuccessful embassy had
been, as before, to solicit a restoration of the privilege
formerly enjoyed by British merchants of trading to
other ports besides that of Canton-a privilege now obtained by other means, and not likely to be lost again.
All European trade, as already stated, had been restricted to the single port of Canton by an edict of
Kien-lung in the year 1755, when it was ordered that
foreign vessels should only go thither at a certain season
of the year, and not remain there longer than a given
time, at the expiration of which they were either to depart entirely or withdraw to Macao; and this arbitrary
decree had never been revoked.  In consequence of the
ports being thus closed against them, the British merchants were obliged to pay for the transport of tea from
an immense distance, by which its price was considerably increased; for between Canton and the principal
tea districts there were ranges of lofty mountains to be
crossed and shallow rivers to be navigated, which made
the carriage of goods a difficult, expensive and tedious
process, the more -especially as chests of tea, or any




THE GREAT KIEN-LUNG.              327
other large or heavy packages, are not conveyed overland in wagons or by horses, but are slung on bamboo
poles and carried by men, however long the distance
may be. The boats on the canals and many of the
rivers have to be towed or tracked by ropes; and this
labor also, which in most countries is done by horses, is
in China performed by men; so that, either on land or
water, the number of laborers employed in the transit of
merchandise is immense.  To the resistance of all these
interested parties in the interior and on the coast has
been attributed the failure of the embassy.
The death of Kia-king, when sixty-one years of age,
in 1820, is said to have been hastened by his excesses, and
by his uneasiness and fear on learning, during a journey
in the provinces, the sad condition to which the empire
had fallen during his reign. There were, however,
strong suspicions of secret assassination.
The emperor's will, a very singular document, was
published to the people. In it was this passage: "The
Yellow river has from the remotest ages been China's
sorrow. Whenever the mouth of the stream  has been
impeded by sand-banks, it has, higher up its course,
created alarm  by overflowing the country.  On such
occasions I have not spared the imperial treasury to
embank the river and restore the waters to their former
channel. Since a former repair of the river was completed, six or seven years of tranquillity had elapsed,
when last year, in the autumn, the excessive rains caused
an unusual rise of the water, and in Ho-nan the river
burst its banks at several points, both on the south and
north sides. The stream Wu-chi forced a passage to
the sea, and the mischief done was' immense. During




328    TIIE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRPE.
the spring of this year, just as those who conducted the
repair of the banks had reported that the work was fine
ished, the southern bank at I-fung again gave way."
The mention of this subject in the emperor's will is a
sufficient proof of its importance. If the science of European engineers could put an effectual stop to the evil,
it would be the most important physical benefit that was
ever conferred on the empire. Even the European
trade at Canton was annually taxed to meet the repairs
of the Yellow river.
"' The emperor's will," says Sir J. F. Davis, "proceeds
to state the merits of his second son, the late sovereign,
Tau-kwang, in having shot two of the assassins who entered the palace in 1813, which was the reason of his
selection. It has been even supposed that Kia-king's
death was hastened by some discontented persons of high
rank, who had been lately disgraced in consequence of
the mysterious loss of an official seal. The emperor's
death was announced to the several provinces by despatches written with blue ink, the mourning color. All
persons of condition were required to take the red silk
ornament from their caps, with the ball or button of
rank; all subjects of China, without exception, were
called upon to forbear from shaving their heads for one
hundred days, within which period none might marry,
or play on musical instruments, or perform any sacrifice."
Kia-king was succeeded by his second son, Tau-kwang.




CHAPTER XIIo
TAU-KWANG AND THE OPIUM WAR.
THE emperor Tau-kwang, whose name signifies "Light
of Reason," ascended the throne in the year 1820;
and if he possessed not the wisdom and talents of his
grandfather, Kien-lung, he endeavored to maintain the
dignity of his exalted station, and was consequently more
respected than his predecessor, the weak-minded and
vicious Kia-king.
The distant Tartar tribes have always been found very
troublesome dependants, and no sooner was Tau-kwang
seated on the throne than a serious insurrection broke
out in the western territories, which had been annexed
to the empire by Kien-lung. Kashgar was one of the
chief scenes of the revolt, which, after a struggle of several years, was at length suppressed by the Manchu imperial troops, who are said to have been guilty of dreadful barbarity toward the insurgents.
Peace was scarcely restored in the west when the
internal repose of the country was disturbed by another
rebellion of the Miau-tsz. The cause of this fresh outbreak does not appear to be known, but they poured
down in great numbers from their native hills, under the
command of a chieftain who assumed the name of Wang,
or king, and not only displayed the imperial ensign of
329




330    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWVEST EMPIRE.
the golden dragon, but wore a yellow robe, which is a
direct assumption of the imperial dignity. All the
mountain tribes, each governed by a separate chief, enlisted under the banner of this daring leader and descended to the plains, where they defeated the imperial
troops and possessed themselves of four towns, from
which they expelled the soldiers and mandarins, but did
not injure the rest of the inhabitants, declaring by a
public proclamation that they were not the enemies of
the people, but of the government. By the spring of
1832 they had established themselves in the country to
the north-west of Canton, holding a number of walled
cities, and treating the industrious portion of the inhabitants with great kindness. At this time it was rather
more than suspected that a good many members of the
"Triad Society," whose object is the emancipation of the
Chinese and the overthrow of the Tartars, had got among
the mountaineers and were directing their measures and
movements. Li, the governor of Canton, received orders
from Peking to put an end to the rebellion; and with
that view he assembled what he supposed would be a
sufficient force to defeat them, but they were more formidable than he had expected, and his army was repulsed
with great loss; in consequence of which misfortune he
was degraded and deprived of his government, for the
spirit of the law is that if a general is commanded to
conquer he ought to obey. Another officer, the governor
of Ho-nan, met with better success, and having retaken
one of the towns occupied by the mountain bands, was
rewarded with a peacock's feather, which is the highest
badge of military distinction known among the Tartars.
Still the rebellion was not terminated, and the Miau-tsz




TA U-KTWANG A1ND TIHE OPIUM WAR.     331
held out with determined obstinacy for nearly six years,
when in 1838 two imperial commissioners were sent from
Peking'to treat with them upon amicable terms, and induced them to return quietly to their homes-by what
means is not exactly known, although it is suspected
large presents were not spared. It was then publicly
announced that the rebels had been obliged to make the
most humble submission; but as they are as independent
now as they were before, it is quite evident they were
rather appeased than subdued, and, if they really were
bribed to withdraw, will most probably repeat the same
profitable experiment.' About the same period there was
also an insurrection in the island of Formosa, which was
successfully quelled by the government.
In 1838 a war broke out of a totally different nature
from any that had yet disturbed the Celestial Empire.
The commercial intercourse between England and China
had been carried on through the East India Company,
and so it continued till the year 1833, when the term
of its last charter expired, and all British subjects were
equally at liberty to send out ships to China for tea and
other produce of that country, which till then had never
been exported by any vessels but those belonging to
the privileged company. Independent merchants were
less watchful against creating trouble with the Chinese,
and less honest and less responsible in their dealings
with them than the company.  Troubles sprang up,
and mutual suspicion and hatred increased between the
two nations. But the great cause of the war was the
fearful evils inflicted upon the Chinese, from the highest
to the lowest, by the growth and illegal introduction of
opium. The company had carried on an extensive trade




332     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
in this drug.  The consumption of the narcotic had become enormous. Sir John F. Davis says, "The engrossing taste of all ranks and degrees in China for opium, a
drug whose importation has of late years exceeded the
aggregate value of all other English imports combined,
deserves particular notice, especially in connection with
the revenues of British India, of which it forms an important item. The use of this pernicious narcotic has
become as extensive as the increasing demand for it was
rapid from  the first."  The trade was contraband, for
opium had always been prohibited as hurtful to the
health and morals of the people. Yet the quantity imported into China had increased more than fivefold in
twelve years.'
This had the effect of drawing the serious attention of
the Peking government to the growing evil. Decrees
were fulminated by the imperial court against all sinokers, venders or purchasers of opium. They were to be
beaten with a hundred strokes of the bamboo, to stand
in the pillory and to receive other punishments. An
imperial state paper says, "It seems that opium is almost
entirely imported from abroad: worthless subordinates
in offices and nefarious  traders first introduced the
abuse; young persons of family, wealthy citizens and
merchants adopted the custom, until at last it reached
the common people."
The denunciation might have been made far more
1 This will be made manifest by the following statement:
Year.  Chests.             Dollars.  Total dollars.
1821    4,628   Average price,  1325    6,132,100
1825    9,621       "        723    6,955,983
1830   18,760       "        587   11,012,120
1832   23,670      6i        648   15,338,160




TA U-K WANG AND) THE OPI UM WAR.          333
general.  The highest prince of the blood smoked his
opium pipe, and so did the poorest peasant when he
could get it.  At Canton and all the frequented seaport
towns there were public houses exclusively devoted to
opium-smoking; at Peking, in the very palace, the
ladies of the imperial harem  and their emasculated attendants smoked opium, and would not be without it.
In the year 1833 opium  formed about one-half of the
total value of British imports at Canton and Lintin,
and the amount of the opium imported by that nation
was greater than that of the tea exported by the
Chinese.'
In the spring of 1834, when the British free-trading ships began to arrive and take in cargoes of tea
at Canton, there was a visible increase in the sale of
opium.  That drug was also partly supplied by American and other ships. The long series of quarrels which
led to the war between England and China did not, however, spring from opium alone.  Many grievances in the
way of trade were complained of before the issuing of
the new regulations.  In July, 1834, Lord Napier, chief
superintendent of British commerce in China, John F.
Davis, Esq., and Sir G. B. Robinson, second and third
superintendents, arrived at Canton, their appointments
having been made by the British government of that
period, and their instructions principally drawn up by
Viscount Palmerston, Secretary for Foreign Affairs, who
appears to have entertained very incorrect notions as to
The following were the exports and imports for that year:
Imports.                    Exports.
Opium................... $11,618,167    Tea......................... $9,133,749
Other imports......... 11,858,077  Other exports.......... 11,309,521
$23,476,244               $20,443,270




334    THE OLDEST AND THE NEitEST EMPIRE.
the facility of extending foreign trade to other parts of
the Chinese dominion, and as to the respect which would
be paid to representatives of his government. Lord
Napier was not treated with the respect which the authorities had been accustomed to pay to the experienced
agents of the East India Company. An edict was issued commanding his lordship to return to Macao, and
threatening to stop the trade. As the superintendent
would not move, the trade was stopped on the second of
September, and all intercourse with British subjects prohibited.  Lord Napier immediately called up two British frigates to protect the shipping and persons of
British subjects. These vessels, the Andromache and
Imogene, were fired upon by the Chinese in their passage through the Bogue; but they soon silenced those
batteries, got near to Canton and landed some sailors
and marines at the factory. The Chinese made overtures for an accommodation. At this point, Lord Napier,
affected by a sultry climate to which he was not accustomed, and by the delays and vexations to which he had
been exposed, fell very ill. On the 19th of September
it was agreed that the two frigates should be sent away,
that he should return to Macao and that the trade
should be reopened. On the 21st the frigates were ordered to leave the river, and his lordship left Canton for
Macao in a native passage-boat provided by the Chinese
authorities. The Chinese regarded him as a prisoner,
and detained him five days on a journey of less than a
hundred miles. The sufferings and annoyances he experienced on his passage down were too much for his
debilitated frame, and he died at Macao a fortnight after
his arrival there, and just three months since his land



TA U-KWANG AND THE OPIUJM WAR.        335
ing in China. The Chinese officers seized several workmen who were in the employment of Protestant missionaries and engaged in printing religious tracts, and,
having severely bambooed them, dragged them to a
filthy prison.
Lord Napier was succeeded by John F. Davis, Esq.,
with Captain Eliot for secretary. About a month after
this (in November, 1834) an imperial mandate utterly
forbade all traffic in opium. Shortly afterward, part of
the crew of the English ship Argyle, which had anchored
on the coast of China in consequence of damage at sea,
were seized by the local authorities and kept as prisoners; and when Captain Eliot, now third superintendent,
went up to Canton to demand their restoration, he was
grossly assaulted by the authorities there and forcibly
sent back. In a few days, however, the sailors were restored. The years 1836-39 were almost filled up with
disputes and quarrels, arising from the confused state of
affairs, and from the persistent efforts of the English to
force opium into the accessible ports and harbors, particularly along the southern coast. There continued to
grow up a stupendous system of smuggling, in which
many of the Chinese officers were involved, and which
those who sincerely deplored and resisted it were utterly
unable to control.
The factories belonging to the merchants of Europe
and America occupy a small space along the banks of
the river, outside the walls of the city. There were at
that time the British, American, French, Dutch, Austrian,
Danish and Swedish; each consisting of several brick or
stone edifices, built along the side of an open space of
inconsiderable dimensions. Three streets in the suburbs,




336    THE OLDE.ST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
leading from these factories, contained the shops where
foreigners purchased all they required for their own use,
for they were not allowed to enter the town. Within
these narrow limits they were now closely confined, their
lives being in danger if they ventured beyond them;
and on one occasion a mob invaded their limits and a
serious fight ensued.
In January, 1839, the government sent the police to
search the native houses of Canton and seize opium
wherever found. This led to a curious scene, highly
characteristic of the democratic character of the Chinese
institutions and the independence of the people. The
people would not allow the search to begin until they
had first searched the policemen, who were generally
known as the greatest opium-smokers in the city. A
few days after this the Canton authorities caused a
native opium-smuggler to be executed in front of the
factories, whereupon all the foreign flags were immediately struck. The governor took no notice of a remonstrance addressed to him by Captain Eliot.
A week after these occurrences the celebrated Commissioner Lin arrived from court, vested with the most
absolute powers that were ever delegated by the emperor. When he arrived at Canton there were several
British ships in the river, having not less than twenty
thousand chests of opium  on board. These he demanded should be given up without delay, to be destroyed. He blockaded the factories, and even threatened to put the occupants to death; on which the British
superintendent-Captain Eliot-deemed it advisable to
agree to the surrender of the opium, in order to secure
the safety of his countrymen. Several weeks were












TA U-I WANG AND THE OPIUit WAR.      337
occupied in the landing of the forfeited drug, during
which the merchants were still detained in the factories; but as soon as it was ascertained that all the
chests had been brought on shore, the troops were withdrawn and the captives left at liberty to depart.
In the mean time the commissioner had sent to Peking
for instructions how to dispose of the property he had
seized, and received the following order, in the name of
the emperor   Lin and his colleagues are to assemble
the civil and military officers and destroy the opium
before their eyes; thus manifesting to the natives dwelling on the sea-coast and the foreigners of the outside
nations an awful warning. Respect this. Obey respectfully." In obedience to this command, on the
3d of June, 1839, the high commissioner, accompanied
by all the officers, proceeded to Chan-hau, near the
mouth of the river, where large trenches had been dug,
into which the opium was thrown, with a quantity of
quicklime, salt and water, so that it was decomposed
and the mixture ran into the sea. The operations for
destroying the drug continued about twenty days, and
were witnessed on the 16th by several English merchants, who had an interview with Commissioner Lin.
The market value of the property at the time was about
twelve millions of Spanish dollars.
Some days before this transaction the British merchants had retired to Macao. This settlement still belongs to the Portuguese, who have their own government and the privilege of trying any offender by their
own laws, even though he be a Chinese. They have
forts garrisoned by about four hundred men, some fine
churches, a monastery and a convent for nuns. The
22




338    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMIPIRE.
Portuguese employ a great many black slaves as servants,
but all the mechanics and workmen of every description,
as well as the shopkeepers, are Chinese. The houses are
built in the European style, and there a considerable
number of English families were residing at the time.
Soon after the British merchants had removed from
Canton to Macao, it happened that some English, American and Chinese sailors quarreled in the street, and that
one of the latter was accidentally killed by a random
blow. When the governor of Canton was informed of
this unfortunate circumstance, he demanded that the culprits should be given up to justice, but as the Portuguese
territory is not amenable to Chinese law, they of course
refused to comply; however, a very short time after, the
English and American seamen were tried by their own
laws at Hong-kong, when they were acquitted of the
murder, but five of them were found guilty of riot and
sentenced to fine and imprisonment, with hard labor.
The governor now gave orders that provisions should no
longer be supplied to the English at Macao, on which
Captain Eliot removed the whole fleet to Hong-kong, a
rocky island about thirty-five miles to the east of that
settlement, inhabited at that time chiefly by fishermen,
but which has now become an English settlement, with a
good town, built by its new occupants. In the mean
time, the British superintendent had written to Lord
Auckland, the governor-general of India, requesting
vessels and men to assist in protecting the lives and
property of British subjects in China, and thus, toward
the close of 1839, the clouds of war were gathering
rapidly over the Celestial Empire.
The High-Commissioner Lin no sooner became aware




TAU-rKIFANG AND  THE OPIUMA WAR.      339
that the British fleet had removed to Hong-kong than
he issued a decree that all trade between the English
and the Chinese should be suspended until the former
had given a bond to obey the laws of the empire, signed
with the names of all the owners of vessels engaged in
the opium trade, as well as that of the superintendent.
For a time, therefore, the trade was suspended, and the
English ships remained in Hong-kong harbor, while the
Chinese fleet was preparing to make an attack on them.
Hong-kong is one of a group of small rocky islands
which are so numerous round the coast of China that one
of the titles given the emperor is, " Lord of Ten Thousand Isles."  The inhabitants were mostly poor fishermen, living on the sea-shore, in wooden sheds, and some
in huts of a rude character, made of old junks and
worn-out boats. It is not more than eight miles in
length and five in breadth, exhibiting to the eye on the
first approach a mass of steep rugged rocks, among which,
however, are found a few fertile spots, where rice is cultivated; and the inhabitants enjoy the luxury of plenty
of good water, which in many other Chinese islands
is very scarce. The island abounds in granite, which
many of the inhabitants are employed in hewing for
exportation.
A number of British merchant vessels having collected below the mouth of the river, under the protection of two British frigates-the Volage and the Hyacinth —Lin sent Admiral Kwan to attack them. On
the 3d of November, Kwan went through the Bocca
Tigris or Bogue passage, and with sixteen war-junks
gave battle. The frigates beat him off with great loss;
one of his junks was blown up, three were sunk, and




340     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST E1PIR2E.
the rest shattered and scattered.  This defeat was a
serious blow  to the authorities at Canton, who had
placed great dependence on the admiral. Lin and his
coadjutors exerted themselves to strengthen the fleet, by
building a number of gunboats of larger size and superior in construction to the generality of the war-junks,
which were little different from  the trading vessels.
Nothing of special importance occurred till the month
of June, when an armament arrived from India, under
the command of Sir Gordon Bremer, which joined the
British  ships already assembled.  There was a bold
attempt made by the Chinese to destroy the whole fleet,
by sending fire-ships into the midst of it, which failed.
Lin and the war party placed great confidence in the
valor of their troops, which began to collect in large
numbers, but in truth the Chinese army was not fitted
to resist the European soldiery.
It may be remarked here that the entire force under
the command of the government, including both the
native troops and the Tartar legions, amounts to eight
hundred thousand men, who are ranged under eight banners, and'must always be ready for duty. Their colors
are yellow, white, red and blue, which, variously bordered,
form eight different standards. The Tartar soldiers are
more effective than the Chinese, as they are warlike by
nature, trained to arms and regularly organized; whereas the Chinese merely constitute a militia, as they dwell
at their own homes, clothe and arm themselves according
to their own fancy, and are very seldom required for
actual service. Their chief duty, as military men, is to
act as police in the cities; and in case of any local disturbances or rebellions of the mountaineers, they are




TA U-KWA1Y G AND THE OPICUM WAR.       341
obliged to take the field; but, in general, they spend the
greater part of the year with their families, engaged in
cultivating the land; and as they receive pay from the
government, every countryman is desirous of being enrolled as a soldier for the sake of increasing his means
of subsistence.
Instead of striking Canton, however, Sir Gordon:Bremer established the blockade of the river, and carried the British fleet northward, on the east coast of
China. He had fifteen men-of-war, four war steamers
and four thousand land troops.
The first conquest made by the English, on the 5th
of July, 1840, was that of Chu-san-a fine island, about
fifty miles in circumference, containing a dense population, and situated near the eastern coast of China.
Tinghai, the capital, is a large city standing in a plain
not far from the sea. Its high blue walls are fortified
by twenty-two  square towers, together with a wide
moat, which runs nearly round the town; but these defences were of little use without artillery and soldiers,
with which Tinghai was but ill supplied; so that the
English took possession of it without any difficulty.
The flight of the inhabitants from Tinghai was followed by the plunder of all the houses and shops in
which any property had been left-not by the invaders
alone, but by the poorer class of Chinese. The presence of the English did not deter the pilferers from
crowding into the town and carrying off whatever they
could seize, till these depredations were in some measure
checked by the British officers, who posted sentinels at
the gates to prevent anything being taken out, except
coffins for interment. These were suffered to pass with



342    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWES'T EMPIREo
out question, until their numbers began to excite attend
tion; when they were examined, and, as had been suspected, found to contain all kinds of goods that could be
put into them. The English encouraged many of the
citizens to return and reopen their shops, while the
country people supplied them  plentifully with provisions; but the climate was found unhealthy for the
British troops, many of whom  died there, owing, it is
supposed, to the dampness of the flat lands, which
are always so wet that the fields can only be crossed
by the narrow paved causeways constructed for that
purpose.
On the 19th of August the ships Hyacinth and
Lame attacked a great Chinese force and batteries at
the Macao barrier, destroying guns, taking the camp
and killing about sixty soldiers. The men threw the
blame of their quick and scandalous flight on the cowardice of the officers, who were the first to run away.
Nearly at the same time an imposing fleet anchored off
Takoo, near the entrance of the Pei-ho river, at the North.
Captain Eliot ascended the Pei-ho in a steamer as far
as the town of Tien-tsin, where he entered into tedious
negotiations with Ki-shen, the viceroy of the province,
who had just been appointed imperial high commissionero
The grand object of this acute negotiator was to get the
British force removed from the vicinity of Peking, to
which city the distance by land was only one hundred
miles. During the protracted conferences the admiral
profited by the time to sail farther northward, and to
visit the extremity of the Great Wall where it passes
toward the sea.'" As if in mockery of all natural obstacles, this gigantic barrier, between twenty and thirty




TA U-KWA NG.AN1YD THE OPI UMP WAB.   343
feet in height and twenty feet broad, displays itself as
far as the eye can reach, traversing the very tops of the
mountains, some of them computed at three thousand
feet above the sea's level, and those farther inland much
higher." I
It was at length agreed that the negotiations should
be removed to Canton, and that the commissioners should
be sent to that city to meet Ki-shen, the very same minister with whom they had been so idly conferring on- the
Pei-ho.
The fleet once removed from the Pei-ho, the Chinese
knew that the course of the monsoon would prevent its
returning thither for another year, or at least for eight
months. The English barbarians had approached the
capital of the Celestial Empire to present a respectful
and obedient petition; they had been compelled to retire,
and they all merited extermination. So ran various
proclamations written with "the vermilion pencil."
Captain Eliot continued to treat with Ki-shen; but on
the 6th of January, 1841, an edict was issued from Peking that all English ships and Englishmen should be
destroyed wherever they should be met with near China.
At the same time high rewards were offered by the Canton authorities for the bodies of Englishmen, dead or
alive. The price put upon the commodore and the other
chiefs was fifty thousand dollars apiece, if taken alive;
for their heads, twenty-five thousand dollars. In consequence of this, Commodore Sir Gordon Bremer moved his
forces, and on the 7th of January attacked and reduced
the forts of Chuen-pi and Tai-kok-tau, near the Bogue,
capturing one hundred and seventy-three Chinese guns.
1 Sir J. F. DAVIS, Sketches of China.




344    THIE OLDEST ANID THE NEWEST EXMPIRE.
Above these forts the river expands considerably in
width, being in some places five or six miles broad, but
toward Whampoa it again becomes narrow, and a little
below that village divides itself into two branches, from
which numerous streams and canals run in all directions
through many miles of paddy-fields.
On the 26th of February all the [Bogue forts were
battered and taken. Poor Admiral Kwan was killed at
his post, and four hundred and fifty guns were captured. There was a very strong Chinese force on the hills
behind the forts, but they ran away in a panic as soon
as the batteries were taken. Many lost their lives in attempting to swim across the river; and of the thousand
men probably who did not escape on this day, nearly
every one met his death.
The cruelty of the British in shooting the poor men as
they vainly endeavored to escape in the water is spoken
of among the Chinese with deep indignation. Those
who had fought for a short time in the batteries were covered by very strong walls, and suffered little loss there.
On the morrow the smaller ships were moved up to
the first bar. Here were found a long fortification on
the river bank, an entrenched camp of over three thou-:sand troops, defended by more than one hundred cannon, and a strong raft thrown across the river from bank
to bank. The ships and steamers knocked the batteries
to pieces, and some British troops and Sepoys being
landed, drove the enemy before them, burned the camp
and removed or destroyed all the stores, and then the
steamers leisurely removed the great raft. In this affair
some of the imperial troops displayed considerable courage; but, with their wretched discipline, the best of




TA U-KWANG AND THE OPIUM WAR.        345
them could not stand even before the Sepoys. By the
1st of March the lighter part of the squadron proceeded up the river to Canton, and on the following day
Sir Hugh Gough arrived to take the command of the
forces. On the 6th a proclamation was issued to the
people of Canton, offering to spare the city from bombardment on condition of the population remaining
quiet. The Chinese having fired upon a flag of truce,
the British forces destroyed a fleet of their junks and
boats, took possession of some of the suburbs of Canton
and captured four hundred and sixty more guns. At
this juncture, Ki-shen, degraded and deprived of his
office, was removed as a state prisoner from Canton.
A new imperial commissioner arrived at Canton, and
hosts of txoops from the interior marched to the coast.
Captain Eliot, for the third time, prepared to attack
Canton. While so doing the ships were attacked by
the Chinese with great guns and fire-rafts, which, however, were speedily disposed of. The Nemesis burned
upward of sixty of the fire-rafts, and some small ships
of war silenced the batteries along shore. Three days
after this (on the 24th. of May, 1841) the British forces
commenced operations in earnest against Canton. On
the morning of the 25th, Sir Hugh Gough, with about
twenty-five hundred men and his artillery, moved toward
the forts and camps on heights behind the city, distant
about three miles. After firing at long shots about half
an hour, the Chinese in immense numbers evacuated
forts and camps, leaving ninety guns behind them. The
British troops burned the camps, occupied the heights
and bivouacked there for the night. With much reluctance, on the 27th of May, when everything was in




346    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMIPIRE.
readiness for opening the fire, the authorities of Canton
agreed to pay six millions of dollars for the ransom of
the city. Four days after this five millions were paid,
security was given for the remainder, and the British
forces withdrew from Canton. Ferocious conflicts took
place within the city between the lawless troops from the
interior and the citizens, the soldiers wanting to plunder
and the citizens defending their property. It is stated
that in one of these affrays more than a thousand pert
sons were killed in the streets.
Sir Henry Pottinger arrived on the 10th of August,
1841, at Macao, as sole plenipotentiary of Her Britannic
Majesty. Before his arrival trade with Canton was fully
reopened, and opium was smuggled more abundantly
and more openly than ever. The court of Peking had
not ceased levying troops to prosecute the war. The new
British negotiator adopted a different line of conduct
from that pursued by his predecessor, giving the Chinese
authorities to understand that they must either accede to
all the demands of the British government, or expect
that very decided steps would be taken to force them
into compliance. Not only did he require payment for
the opium, but that other ports besides that of Canton
should be opened to British trade; and he resolved not
to terminate the war on any other conditions.
An expedition was immediately undertaken against
Amoy, a strongly-fortified city and port in an island of
the same name belonging to the province of Fu-kien,
and situated within a spacious bay about halfway between Canton and Chu-san. The town is large and populous, defended by stone walls and batteries, and has
from time immemorial been a place of great trade, its




TA 7-KWANG AND THE OPIUM WAR.         347
merchants being classed among the most wealthy and
enterprising in the Eastern world. It has a very fine
harbor, with every convenience for loading and unloading ships, which can sail close up to the houses; and it
also possesses a fine citadel, with a cannon foundry and
vast magazines for military stores in the suburbs, which
are separated from the city by a chain of rocky hills,
over which a paved road leads through a pass with a
massive gateway on the highest point. The streets of
the city are narrow, but they contain several handsome
temples and houses belonging to the officers and merchants.
The fleet destined to attack this important place appeared off Amoy on the 26th of August. The broadsides
of the ships had little effect on the stone works, and it
was not until a body of troops landed and drove out their
garrisons, who stood manfully to their guns, that the
fire slackened and the Chinese took to flight. The tremendous cannonading was continued for four hours,
without the least real damage to the fortifications, and
without killing more than between twenty and thirty
Chinese.
When the city was entered by the British troops, it
was found in much the same state as Ting-hai on a similar occasion. The most respectable of the inhabitants
had fled and a great deal of property had been removed,
but much had been necessarily left behind. The streets
were soon filled with plunderers, who, in spite of the
efforts of the soldiery, contrived to appropriate a vast
quantity of goods to which they had no claim. Leaving
a garrison at Ku-long-su, a small rocky island, forming
part of the fortifications of Amoy, the expedition pro



348    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
ceeded to Chu-san, which was speedily reoccupied, but
not without the sacrifice of many lives on the part of
the Chinese, who made an attempt to defend Ting-hai,
but were soon obliged to surrender.
The next conquest was that of Chin-hai, a large and
opulent city at the mouth of the Ningpo river, the occupation of which was a preliminary step to the attack
upon Ningpo itself. Chin-hai stands at the foot of a
lofty hill, and is enclosed by a high wall, about thirtyseven feet in thickness, over which may be seen the tall
masts of vessels gliding along a branch of the river which
runs through the town. On the summit of the hill is
the citadel, which, from its commanding position, is
most important as a military station, being, as it were,
the key to both Chin-hai and Ningpo, the latter situated
about fifteen miles up the river. This fortress is also
surrounded by a strong wall, with massive gates, and on
two sides the height is so precipitous that it is inaccessible, except at one point, where a narrow path winds
from the sea, which skirts the base of the hill, and to
this path there is no way by land. The citadel communicates with the town by a steep causeway to a barrier
gate at the bottom of the hill, where a bridge over a
moat leads to one of the city gates. When the British
fleet arrived every point was fortified with batteries
and guns mounted, while the hills were covered with
encampments.
On the morning of the 10th of October about twentytwo hundred men, with twelve field-pieces and mortars,
were landed to attack the citadel and entrenched camp.
In these positions alone there were about nine thousand
Chinese and Manchu Tartars, who formed in tolerable




TA U-KWANG AND THE OPIU~F WAR.       349
order as the English advanced, opening a well-directed
fire upon their front column, but quite neglecting two
smaller columns sent round to turn their flanks; as
these three columns opened upon them nearly at the
same time, their whole force was completely bewildered,
and soon broke and fled in all directions. Knowing
nothing of the mode of asking for quarter, and not
being themselves in the habit of giving quarter, while
some fled into the country the greater part retreated toward the water, pursued by the British soldiery. Hundreds were shot or bayoneted, and hundreds more were
drowned. Sir Hugh Gough sent out a flag, with a Chinese
inscription on it, to inform them that their lives would
be spared if they yielded, but not more than five hundred understood it so far as to throw down their arms.
The water was covered with dead bodies, and, besides a
large number of wounded, full fifteen hundred lost their
lives. Meanwhile, the town and its defences on the
north side of the river were bombarded by the ships
and the troops driven out. Yu-kien, the very high official who commanded, on seeing that the day was lost,
attempted to drown himself; and being prevented from
so doing, he fled beyond Ningpo and committed suicide
in another manner. At Chin-hai about a hundred and
fifty pieces of brass ordnance, many iron guns, matchlocks and other military stores, were captured, together
with great quantities of rice and other provisions. The
bombardment caused the death of many poor, inoffensive
townspeople, who offered no resistance.
Chin-hai was taken on the 10th of October, and on
the following day the fleet proceeded up the river to
Ningpo, having left a guard of three hundred men in




S50    THE OLDEST AND THE iNEW}EST EMPIRE.
the captured city. The country is a highly-cultivated
plain, intersected with numerous canals and abounding
with cattle, which is an unusual sight in China. The
villages are numerous, and a large town is situated at
every five or six miles along the river, while in the distance are seen ranges of lofty hills, forming the boundary of a very charming prospect. The whole province
of Chi-kiang is luxuriant and beautiful, and contains an
immense population, all the towns and villages being
crowded with inhabitants.  Numerous families also
dwell on the waters, which are enlivened by verdure,
as the poor people who lead this amphibious kind of
life cultivate some vegetables and flowers in pots on
their barges.
In the same province, Hang-chau, which, under some
of the early dynasties, was the capital of the empire, is
still one of the most wealthy and pleasant cities of China.
It is supposed to contain a population equal to that of
Paris, and is adorned with many elegant buildings.
The shops are handsome, and well stocked, not only
with native produce, but with British manufactures,
particularly broadcloth, which is very much used in
this and the more northern parts of China. The country around Hang-chau is studded with ornamented
villas and lofty pagodas, and is beautifully diversified
with hill and dale, the former covered to the summit
with a variety of trees and shrubs, among which the
camphor and tallow trees are conspicuous-the one by
its bright green, the other by its purple leaves; and
as Chi-kiang is one of the principal silk provinces,
plantations of mulberry trees are found in every part.
The city of Ningpo, now a place of interest as an im



TA U-KWANG AND THE OPIUMJ WAR.         351
portant open port and field of successful missionary
efforts, was taken without the least opposition on the
part of the inhabitants, many of whom assisted the English to scale the walls and open the gates which had been
barricaded, so that the terrible scenes which had occurred
at Chin-lai were not'enacted on this occasion. The inhabitants wrote on the doors of their houses the words
shun nin, meaning "submissive people."  About one
hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars in silver,
many tons of copper cash, with rice, silk and porcelain,
made up the most valuable prize yet taken. It was determined to occupy the city as winter quarters. Ningpo
is a much larger city than Chin-hai, and being in the
vicinity of the green-tea districts, it is very conveniently
situated as a trading station for foreign vessels. It has
six arched gates and is almost surrounded by water, the
river running on one side almost close to the walls, and
a canal forming a boundary to the remainder of the city,
with the exception of a small part of the suburbs. The
ramparts are high, and so wide that three carriages
might be driven abreast on their summit, and the walls
are strengthened by huge square buttresses on the
inside.
The houses in Ningpo have generally two stories, the
one raised above the other on pillars, each story having
a separate tiled roof. All the good houses are within a
small court, the latter paved with flag-stones, and ornainented with flower-beds and tanks for gold-fish. The
principal entrance to these abodes consists of triple doors,
but those which form a communication between different
apartments are of many fantastic shapes. There are no
glass windows, and when the English first arrived there




352    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
were no fireplaces, but the officers very soon supplied
that deficiency in the houses where they established
themselves.
A curious incident, illustrative of the Chinese character, is related by a British officer as having occurred
during his residence at Ningpo. A paper was one day
thrown over the wall addressed to the English, containing, among other arguments, this appeal to their feelings,
so characteristic of the people of China, on the impropriety of remaining any longer in that country:
"You have been away from your country long enough;
your mothers and sisters must be longing for your return. Go back to your families, for we do not want you
here."
In the month of March, 1842, the Chinese made a
desperate effort to recover the cities of Chin-hai and
Ningpo, which they entered at night by scaling the
walls, but in both cases they were repulsed with considerable loss. At Ningpo about two hundred and fifty
soldiers were killed in the market-place. This attack
appears to have been the result of a plan concerted
among the chiefs of the army and some of the governors, as a fleet of junks was sent just at the same time
against Chu-san, but equally without effect.
Having failed in their enterprises, the Chinese forces
assembled at Tsz-ki, a town about eleven miles from
Ningpo, where they formed an extensive encampment,
and endeavored to cut off the supplies that were carried
every day by the country people into the city. This
measure brought on an immediate engagement, and again
the imperial troops were put to flight, leaving about six
hundred dead upon the field. For two months after this




TA U7-KWANG AND TIE OPIUM      ~ WAR.  353
battle hostilities were suspended, and the markets, as in
time of peace, were plentifully supplied with poultry,
fish and very fine vegetables.
About this time the emperor removed to Jeh-ho for
the summer, but haughtily refused to listen to the proposed terms of peace. On the 7th of May the British
army left Ningpo on its progress toward the north.
The intention of the general was to proceed to Nanking,
and take possession of that important city as a prelude
to the attack on Peking, provided the emperor should
persist in refusing to make peace on the terms demanded
by the government of Great Britain. On the coast of
Chi-kiang stands the town of Cha-pu, the chief port of
communication between China and Japan. It is situated
at the foot of a chain of wooded hills, which, on the
landing of the English, were covered with Tartar troops,
who fled without making any attempt to prevent the invaders from entering the city. The Tartar inhabitants
of Cha-pu-those who were able to bear arms being all
soldiers —occupied a small division of the town, separated from that of the Chinese by a wall, and built with
the regularity of an encampment, where they dwelt with
their wives and children, many of whom were made
widows and orphans on that fatal day; for when the
soldiers fled from the heights a party of about nine hundred Tartars took refuge in a temple, to which they were
pursued, and under the mistaken idea that if they surrendered no quarter would be given, they fired on the
enemy, killing and wounding several British officers,
upon which -the British soldiery commenced an indiscriminate slaughter of these brave people, in which they
spared but forty, whom they made prisoners, but after23




354    THE OLDEST AND THE NATEWEST EMPIRE.
ward released. Many of the families of the city endeavored to escape from these horrible scenes, but were
unable to do so from their terror of the barbarity and
licentiousness of the Hindoo troops in the British army.
Most of the poor women whose husbands were killed
threw their helpless infants into the tanks and wells,
and then destroyed themselves or each other.
Soon after the capture of Cha-pu the fleet entered the
river Yang-tsz-kiang, or the " Son of the Ocean." This
noble stream, which rises in Tibet, and flows through
near three thousand miles of country ere it reaches the
sea, is the largest river in the world except the Mississippi and the Amazon; and, considering the innumerable canals which it supplies with water to keep the
country through which it passes under constant irrigation, the commerce carried on upon its bosom, the fruitfulness of its banks and the depth and breadth of its
waters, it may well claim a place among the great rivers
of the globe. The right bank of the Yang-tsz-kiang is
more picturesque then the left, on account of the chains
of hills which rise behind each other, and which are
covered with rich and varied foliage, not merely in the
distance, but sweeping down to the banks of the stream;
while the country on the other side is flat and cultivated with rice, but rendered pleasing to the eye by
many neat little villages. As the fleet sailed up the
river the villagers flocked in crowds to the shore, to
gaze at the novel spectacle of steamships on the waters
of China. On the 20th of July the fleet anchored at
Chin-kiang, a strongly fortified city, which, being situated at the point where the Grand Canal enters the
Yang-tsz-kiang river, is looked upon as one of the keys




TAIU-KWANG AND TlE? OPIUM WAR.       355
of the empire, and forms a barrier for the defence of the
interior.
The river was in this part about a mile and a half broad,
and near the shore, crowned with temples, since then
destroyed by the rebels, rose the Kin-shan, or Golden
Island, the beauties of which were so highly celebrated
by foreigners who had seen it. The town was garrisoned by Tartars, and the hills overhanging the river
were covered with encampments of Chinese troops; who
fled. The Tartars, however, bravely defended the city,
disputing every inch of ground, and firing incessantly
from the ramparts, which were at length ascended by
scaling-ladders, and after some desperate fighting, in
which many Englishmen were killed, the British flag
was planted on the walls. Still, the Tartars continued
to resist with determined valor, fighting in the streets
with their long spears and firing with matchlocks from
the houses for several hours, till night came on, when
they were obliged to give up the contest, and the inhabitants then began to make their escape from the city.
The taking of Chin-kiang is memorable for an extraordinary act of individual resolution. The Tartar general, who had made the greatest exertions to save the city,
when he found that the contest was decided in favor of
the enemy, went into his house, and, taking his accustomed seat in an arm-chair, had his official papers
heaped around it, and ordered his servants to set fire to
the dwelling.  His body was found the next day much
burned, but retaining the sitting posture in which he
had placed himself to meet the approach of death. On
the morning after the battle the streets were found
strewed with the dead, the houses were mostly de



356    THE OLDEST AND THE YEWEST EL~PIRE.
serted, those of the government officers were in flames,
the shops were broken open and plundered by the
Chinese' rabble, and female suicide was committed to a
more fearful extent than even at Cha-pu.
But let us leave this scene of horror and proceed with
the fleet to the famous city of Nanking, forty miles
higher up the river. This ancient capital was still a
large, populous and wealthy city; and although exhibiting none of that splendor which depends on the residence
of the court, was still superior, in many respects, to the
present metropolis. It was the residence of a great number of literary men, and had many flourishing manufactures, particularly those of silk and the cotton cloth
which is known by its name. The city and its vicinity presented many objects of attraction, among which the
Porcelain Tower occupied the first place. This celebrated work of art, and the temple to which it was
attached, were built by the emperor Yung-loh before
he removed the seat of government from Nanking to
Peking.
The pagoda was the most elegant structure of the kind
that had hitherto been seen by foreigners in China,
and took its name from the tiles of white porcelain with
which the solid brickwork of the building was covered,
every tile being cast in a mould, with an indenture in
the shape of a half cross, the bricks having a projecting
piece of a similar form, which fitted into the cavity. The
tower consisted of nine stories, and was remarkable for
its correct proportions.  Its form was octagonal, the angles being marked on each side by a row of tiles,,red and
green, placed alternately.  A light balustrade of green
porcelain ran round each story, at every corner of which




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TA U-KFVANG AND THE OPIUM bWAR.        357
hung a bell. The staircase was within the wall and
communicated with every floor. Each story formed a
room with a painted roof, and contained a number of
idols placed in niches; and each room had four windows,
placed toward the four cardinal points. There were
priests attached to this pagoda to keep it in good order
and to see that it was illuminated at all festivals, the expenses being paid by the contributions of those who bestowed money for such purposes in the hope of propitiating the deities. Within a few years past, in a great
fire which desolated the portion the city in which it
stood, this remarkable structure was destroyed.
The ancient palaces, observatories and  sepulchres
were destroyed by the Tartars two centuries previously.
Nanking before the rebellion was an eminent seat of
learning, and sent more members to the Imperial College
of Peking than any other city.  The books, the paper
and the printing of Nanking were celebrated through the
country as being unrivaled. The best Chinese (called
by us Indian) ink is manufactured in the neighboring
cities. The silks, the teas and the various other products
of this province render it the most valuable part of the
whole empire, and its climate is excellent.  The famous
pirate, Koshinga, who so long possessed the island of
Formosa, once sailed up to Nanking and laid siege to it.
It was about the middle of August when the British
fleet arrived within sight of Nanking, which was garrisoned by about fourteen thousand troops; and here
another sanguinary conflect was expected; but happily
this anticipation was not realized, for just as the attack
was about to be commenced, letters reached camp, and
the British general, Sir Hugh Gough, was informed that




358    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST 3EMPIRE.
certain high commissioners, deputed by the emperor,
were on their way for the purpose of negotiating a peace.
These joyful tidings were speedily confirmed by the arrival of the three delegates. At the head of it was
Keying, an uncle of the emperor, a man of extraordinary ability, who seemed fully to cast away the
prejudices of his people against foreign improvements,
and spoke in kind terms of Christianity and its benevolent principles, which seem to have impressed him, notwithstanding the tremendous calamities inflicted upon
his nation by the nominal professors of it. The other
members were Elepoo, the former governor of Chi-kiang,
a member of the royal family, and a Tartar general.
These high functionaries were conveyed on board the
Cornwallis in a steam vessel, and opened the negotiations which terminated in a treaty of peace. The negotiations were renewed on shore, Sir Henry Pottinger
being assisted by Colonel Malcolm, and Messrs. Morrison,
Thom and Gutzlaff; and on the 29th of August, 1842,
the treaty was fully concluded and signed on board the
Cornwallis.
As the British plenipotentiary had yielded nothing of
his demands, all the concession was on the part of the
Chinese government. The articles of the treaty were
summarily these: Lasting peace and friendship to be
preserved between the two empires; China to pay the
immense sum of twenty-one millions of dollars (of which
twelve millions were to pay England the expenses of the
war, three millions were claimed for debts due to English
merchants, and six millions of dollars were required to
remunerate the owners of the smuggled opium which Lin
had seized in the Canton river); the five ports of Can



TA U-IKTVAANG A~ND THE OPIUMf WARo    359
ton, Amoy, Fu-chau, Shanghai and Ningpo to be open
to the British, who should have the liberty of appointing consuls to reside in those towns; regular tariffs of
import and export duties to be established, so that the
merchants might not be subjected to impositions; and
the island of Hong-kong was to be ceded for ever to the
Crown of England. All subjects of Great Britain,
whether European or Indian, then prisoners, were also
to be released, without ransom or condition of any kind.
And, lastly, the emperor was to grant a free pardon to
all those of his own subjects who had incurred penalties
by holding intercourse with the British officers.
The emperor objected strongly to the opening of Fuchau, on account of its vicinity to the principal black-tea
districts, alleging that if the English shipped their tea
at this port, instead of at Canton, the trade of the latter
place would be ruined, and great numbers of his subjects thereby injured; but as the object of gaining
access to this port was the very one that formed the
ground of objection on the part of the Chinese government-namely, to avoid the inconvenience and expense
of bringing goods several hundred miles for shipmentthis point was insisted on and eventually gained by the
British plenipotentiary, who, as a security for the execution of the treaty, announced his intention of keeping possession of Chu-san and Ku-long-su until all
the money should be paid and the rest of the terms
fully completed.
Fu-chau, a place of considerable trade, and the capital of the province of Fu-kien, is seated on the banks of
the Min, one of the large rivers of China. The country
around is mountainous, and the scenery on the borders




360    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
of the river is described as being very romantic and
beautiful, resembling here and there the most picturesque parts of the banks of the Rhine; and as the climate
is much more temperate than in the southern provinces,
Fu-chau will probably be more pleasant as a place of
residence than Canton. The city stands on both sides
of the river, the two parts being connected by a celebrated stone bridge, consisting of thirty-three arches,
which is mentioned as a wonderful work of art by the
Jesuit writers of the seventeenth century. The liberty
of trading to Fu-chau is of importance, as the black teas
can be brought in boats direct to the ships from the
farms where they are grown, and thus the enormous expenses of land carriage to Canton will be obviated.
Shanghai is one of the greatest commercial emporiums
of Eastern Asia, being advantageously situated for native
trade on the river Woo-sung near the Yang-tsz-kiang,
and thus communicates with the Great Canal and the
Yellow river. This port has a commodious harbor, and
is frequented by trading junks from all parts of the
empire. The streets are narrow, and most of them are
paved with tiles. Although the shops are small, they
are plentifully stocked with native commodities of all
descriptions; and many of them  contain  European
broad-cloths and other foreign goods. The great advantage of Shanghai as a port is its easyI communication
by water with the interior provinces of the empire, and
with the populous cities on the Yang-tsz-kiang and the
Imperial Canal. It has since the war become the great
port of entry and exit for foreign commerce, and its
population and wealth have increased fourfold.'A
large trade has been done on the Yang-tsz-kiang in




TAU-KWANG AND THE OPIUM WAR.          361
foreign steamers, which, though temporarily checked,
will no doubt increase in the future to vast dimensions.
Native steamers have already been built; a line of
American steamships connects it and other ports less
favorably situated with California and the New World.
After the signing of the treaty at Nanking, Lord
Saltoun was appointed governor of Hong-kong, where
very extensive improvements had been made since the
British had been in possession of the island. The new
town, the principal part of which is built on a hill, contains many fine buildings, has an important commerce,
and is a depot of military and naval stores for the
British government; but the climate is found to be
unhealthy.
The Chinese, not without reason, view the Opium
War, and its exactions and results, with great bitterness.
The following is a specimen of the papers published by
some of their writers in regard to the conduct of the
English.
"' Behold that vile English nation!'Its ruler is at one
time a woman, then a man, and then perhaps a woman
again; its people are at one time like vultures, and then
they are like wild beasts, with dispositions more fierce
and furious than the tiger or wolf, and natures more
greedy than anacondas or swine. These people have
long stealthily devoured all the Western barbarians, and,
like demons of the night, they now suddenly exalt themselves here. During the reigns of the emperors Kienlung and Kia-king these English barbarians humbly
besought an entrance and permission to deliver tribute
and presents; they afterward presumptuously asked to
have Chu-san, but our sovereigns, clearly perceiving their




362    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
traitorous designs, gave them  a determined refusal.
From that time, linking themselves with traitorous Chinese traders, they have carried on a large trade and
poisoned our brave people with opium. Verily, the English barbarians murder all of us that they can. They
are dogs, whose desires can never be satisfied. Therefore we need not inquire whether the peace they have
now made be real or pretended. Let us all rise, arm,
unite and go against them. We do here bind ourselves
to vengeance, and express these our sincere intentions in
order to exhibit our high principles and patriotism.
The gods from on high now look down on us; let us not
lose our just and firm resolution." The popular opposition to foreigners at Canton was remarkable in several
ways, as showing the energy and freedom of the people.
The paper above was agreed to at a great public meeting
at Canton, and the officers of the province declared that
they could not prevent its publication. Outbreaks continued to take place from time to time in Canton, and
life and property were less secure for a number of years
than they were before the war and treaty of peace. On
the 8th of July, 1846, the patriots and the -mob and
thieves endeavored to burn and destroy factories. The
foreign merchants on shore, being without any military
or naval assistance, armed themselves and shot about
twenty of their assailants, and thus restored tranquillity
for a time.
At length it became evident that the local government
had no faculty of suppression or coercion, and that it was
utterly powerless to carry the stipulations of the treaty
into effect. In May, 1847, several British vessels of war
proceeded to the Bogue Forts and captured and removed




TA U-KWANG A.ND TIE OAPIUM WAR.       363
or destroyed all their guns. After this the populace of
Canton became more submissive, and the Europeans were
authorized by the local government to extend the limits
of their factories and permitted to enjoy more freedom.
The British colony of Hong-kong, instead of proving
a representative of the blessings of Christian institutions
upon which the people of China would look with admiration, was the scene of every vice in its boldest and most
unrestrained form. It was the headquarters of the diabolical opium traffic. The police, knowing as yet little
of the Chinese or their language, were impotent to detect and punish crime. "It is very natural," says Dr.
Gutzlaff, describing its condition, "that depraved, idle,
wicked characters from the adjacent main should flock
to the colony. The islanders themselves, nearly all fishermen are pirates when the opportunity presents. They
are a roving set of beings, floating on the wide face of
the ocean with their families, and committing depredations whenever it can be done with impunity. The
stone-cutters have been working here for many years
before our arrival; the majority of these men are unprincipled; they cannot be considered as domesticated
among us, and are in the habit of going and coming according to the state of their trade. The most numerous
class, who since our arrival have fixed themselves on the
island, are from Whampoa; many of them are of the
very worst character, and are ready to commit any atrocity."  Under the very shadow of the British flag there
were formed numerous nocturnal clubs and secret societies. The members of these societies bound themselves
to stand by one another and afford mutual protection.
Thus the other Chinese were afraid of denouncing their




364    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
crimes or informing against them. The proclamations
of the governor had no effect toward dissolving or even
checking these combinations.
The great Governor of nations made the Opium War a
means, evil as it was, of breaking down the fence with
which Manchu jealousy and Chinese pride had begirt
the empire. But some of the immediate effects were
most prejudicial to Christianity. The causes, the history
and the results of the war created intense hatred and
detestation of Christian nations. It was remarked at
the time that one very visible effect of the English war
upon the emperor Tau-kwang was his return to idolatry. Formerly he had professed to be a strict Confucian
and to hold in contempt all manner of graven images.
But now the idols in the empire were not sufficiently
numerous for him, and new ones were imported and old
ones brought again to light from the obscurity and neglect into which they had been allowed to fall. He prostrated himself and burned his incense before these deities, thinking that if he had done so before his hosts would
not have been beaten by the unbelieving barbarians.
This superstitious state of mind was rendered still worse
by the occurrence of a scarcity which in many parts of
the empire amounted to a famine, and by the void presented in the imperial treasury, which had been emptied
by the war and the money paid for the peace.
Tau-kwang changed his chief ministers, but he could
not find one with power and means to remedy the evils.
He sent out circulars to the governors of the provinces,
calling upon them for a correct statement of their debts
and annual revenues, and he asked his grand council
what was to be done to avert a general bankruptcy.




TAJU.KWANG AND THE OPIUMl  WTAR.      365
Many of the poor people gave up their lands and huts
because they could not pay the taxes, many emigrated to
foreign countries, and others turned robbers on land or
pirates at sea and on the great rivers. The last class
became so exceedingly numerous and so daring that
even foreign ships were not always safe. But for the
British squadron these pirates would have become far
more formidable. The emperor ordered that a fleet
should be built, and even that steam vessels, like those
used with so much effect by the English, should be constructed. The Chinese workmen made a steamer in all
outward appearances very like theirs; it had its funnel
and its paddle-wheels, but to make a steam engine was
quite beyond their skill at the time. They also constructed a few ships on the European model, but these
were weak and badly manned, and they remained quietly
at anchor under the protection of the Bogue Forts while
the pirates were ravaging the coasts.
If the British negotiators had neglected many important points (as that of religious liberty in China),
and had not concluded the best treaty which might have
been made, they had neither done nor intended anything in an illiberal, exclusive spirit. The announcement of the British treaty of Nanking caused considerable sensation among the commercial circles, both in
Europe and in America. The governments of Belgium,
the [Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, and even Prussia, deputed agents to confer with the Chinese authorities. at
Canton, to examine into the prospects of trade, and, if
possible, to make commercial arrangements in the country. The United States sent a minister extraordinary
to the court of Peking with a letter from the President




366    TIHE OLDEST ANTD) THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
to the emperor. Mr. Cushing and his suite arrived in
China in the frigate Brandywine in February, 1844, and
took up their residence at Macao. They were very
positively told that they could on no account be allowed
to proceed to Peking, as the United States of America
had never yet sent tribute to the emperor, and could not
therefore be included among the tributary states of the
empire, which merely meant that the Americans had
not previously sent out any ambassador or minister.
Although his negotiations were impeded by a riot in
the city, which is subject to the Portuguese, Mr. Cushing succeeded in concluding commercial arrangements
with the Chinese commissioners. The treaty of Wanghia, as it is called, was ratified by the President and
Senate of the United States, and they sent the Hon. A.
H. Everett to China as resident minister.
The war had caused great confusion and distress,
without producing any considerable diminution of the
population, which ever pressed too closely on the means
of subsistence. Though contrary to the old laws,
the government winked at the emigration which was
going on at an increased ratio; yet the year 1846
brought a recurrence of scarcity and financial embarrassment. The servants of government, receiving no
pay, were left to shift for themselves; and in so doing
they had recourse to the most oppressive means of extortion, by which the poor people were frequently driven
into open rebellion. Great bands of robbers traversed
the country with impunity, for many of the troops sent
against them joined their ranks, and the rest of the imperial forces were either too weak or too spiritless to
attack them. At the same time the pirates reappeared




TAsI4U-KWANG AND THE OPIUM WAR.       367
all along the coast. In 1847 there was a rebellious
rising in several of the dependent states; the city of
Kashgar and another place of importance were stormed
and taken, and the whole of the imperial Manchu army
was put to the rout. The chiefs of Kokonor, a very
independent, unruly race, declared open war against the
government, made inroads into the country, committed
great ravages, levied contributions at the point of the
sword, returned to their mountains loaded with booty,
and left poverty, terror and despair behind them.
Buddhists though they were, these terrible chiefs stopped an envoy of the Grand Lama of Tibet (in their
faith a most sacred person), and plundered him as he
was on his way to the emperor's court at Peking. A
Tartar-Chinese army tardily took the field, and a long
and desultory border war commenced, in which the cattle and other property of the Chinese and the quieter
tribes of Tartars were plundered to a ruinous extent by
the active enemy.  These depredations scarcely left
horses and camels enough to mount the imperial troops
and carry their provisions and stores. Coummissioner
Lin gradually recovered from the disgrace he had incurred for not conquering the English, and being now
in favor at court, he was sent to quell this and other rebellions on the borders. He retired in triumph, believing that by his address and energy he had quelled the
insurrection, but some of those tribes took up arms and
rallied as soon as he was gone, and he was again and
again obliged to return to the scene of action. The
holy land of Tibet was overrun by wild clans from the
Himmaleh mountains and from Ladakh; the Grand
Lama, believed to be the impersonation of the Divinity,




368    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
was made to tremble inl Lassa, his remote capital, and
his lainas or priests, after witnessing the plunder of their
temples, were drowned by hundreds in the sacred river
Sansoo.
As Tau-kwang approached his own end, the woes and
miseries of the country thickened. In Ho-nan and elsewhere fearful inundations swept away the crops and deprived a vast population of their subsistence. Many of
the sufferers were relieved by death; others dragged out
a miserable existence by feeding on roots and wild herbs;
everywhere-in those districts were wretchedness, disease
and death.
As the year 1849 was approaching, when, according
to treaty, the city gates of Canton were to be thrown
open to foreigners, the. populace vowed that the barbarians should not go at large within their walls, and
addressed a petition  to the emperor, insisting that
they had the right of settling this matter themselves.
They threw up barricades, adopted other measures to
repel the barbarians, and threatened to set fire to the
factories. It is believed that these deeds were very unpalatable to Tau-kwang, who feared that they might
bring upon him another war with the English. However, the poor potentate was compelled to yield to the
Canton rabble, and to write back that "the will of the
people was the will of Heaven."
Battered by all these storms and tempests, and sorely
wounded in his pride, the health and strength of Taukwang rapidly gave way. He was never himself after
the Opium War. About this time an event occurred
which shows him to have been a man of great tenderness
of heart, and reflects honor upon his character. On




TA U-K WANG AND THE OPIUMV WAR.       369
ascending the throne, he had, according to a custom of
his nation, adopted as mother a widowed princess of the
imperial lineage, and this lady he continued to respect,
to love and almost to idolize. His devoted, unvarying
affection to her was that of the most affectionate of sons.
This lady fell sick; he attended on her in person, as he
had always done when she was ill, for twenty-nine years.
On the 19th of January the lady took an airing in the
garden, and he rejoiced in the belief that she was convalescent; but only five days after that time "she mounted
the spirit chariot, and went the long journey." The
emperor himself drew up the official account of her
death and his own great grief. " We have been happy,"
said the paper, "in attending to her behests, as men are
rejoiced by the sun which prolongs their lives; but we
shall never see her again, we can never more look upon
her affectionate countenance, and we are inconsolable!
We received her last orders that mourning should be
worn only twenty-seven days; but we cannot be satisfied
with this, and therefore, as is right, we ourselves shall
put on the filial garb for a hundred days, twenty-seven
of which we shall pass in deep mourning."  By his
command divine honors were rendered to her throughout the whole empire; and in every important city
tablets were erected to commemorate her extraordinary
virtues.
Tau-kwang passed the twenty-seven days near the
coffin, dressed in sackcloth, fasting with severity, drinking nothing but water, and sleeping near the remains of
the dead on a hard couch. This seems to have finally
broken the health of the aged emperor, who died about the
end of March, 1851, after a troubled reign of thirty years.
24




CHAPTER  XIII.
RESULTS OF THE OPIUM WAR.
THE Opium War may be considered to be the grand
crisis in the history of China-the point whence
may be dated the change from the old things which
had existed for twenty centuries to the new things
which are to give her a place in the sisterhood of
Christian nations, in the temple illuminated by the
thousand new lamps wherewith modern scientific labors
have dissipated the superstitions of the past, and
cheered with new hopes and enjoyments the heart of
man. Its decisive events have been related in the preceding chapter of this volume. It was watched with
extraordinary interest by all the nations of the civilized
world. Let us now proceed summarily to trace its
results.
The most painful one was the ascendency which it
gave to those who used their power for the purpose of
forcing opium upon the Chinese nation and for overawing or corrupting the officers of the government.
And the advantage gained was pushed until it was consummated in the legalization of the opium trade. Not
that there were not other objects before the mind of the
British people; but the most valuable article of the
commerce which they hoped to extend wvs opium; none
370




RESULTS OF THE OPIM11 WAR.                             371
was more vitally connected with the prosperity of their
finances in India, none more necessary as a commercial
equivalent for Chinese exports,  Opium  has more than
any other cause been at the bottom of the difficulties
with the Chinese government and people for two generations past.
The growth of the use of opium by the people of this
empire is one of the strange mysteries in the history of
mankind. The poppy and its extract, opium, were known
to the ancient world.  The Jews seem to have employed
its virtues as a narcotic several centuries before the
Christian  era.'   The Greek  and  Latin  classical writers
often introduce allusions to it in their prose and poetry52
The Turks, Persians and several Asiatic nations have
1 Neither of the words "poppy" or "opium" occurs in our translation of the
Scriptures, but there are evident allusions in both the Old and New Testaments to the poppy, which abounds in Palestine. The capsules or "heads"
of it are supposed by'Gesenius to be referred to in the Hebrew  (rosh) of
Deut. xxxii. 32 and elsewhere.  The word rendered "hemlock" in Hos. x. 4
is the same. The " water of gall," in Jer. viii. 14, was a decoction of it.
2 HOMER gives us descriptions of the effects of opium  as used on the coasts
of the Mediterranean sea three thousand years ago. In the Odyssey (book x.)
he narrates how  Circe stupefied the companions of Eurylochus and then
changed them to swine. The following is Pope's translation of the passage:
"On thrones around, with downy coverings graced,
With semblance fair, the unhappy men she placed.
Milk newly pressed, the sacred flour of wheat,
And honey fresh, and Pramnian wines, the treat;
But venomed was the bread, and mixed the bowl
With drugs of force to darken all the soul:
Soon in the luscious feast themselves they lost,
And drank oblivion of their native coast.
Instant her circling wand the goddess waves,
To hogs transformed them, and the sty receives.
No more was seen the human form divine;
Head, face and members bristle into swine.
Still cursed with sense, their minds remain alone,
And their own voice affrights them when they groan.s"




372   THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EXMPIRE.
long used it to a limited extent.    But it was not till the
present century that the demon of opium seemed to
awake to  the  dreadful appetite  for destruction, and  go
forth to be one of the direst enemies of the human
race.
In  China, the  British, observing the  passion  of some
of the Hindius for its  use, and  the readiness with  whicl
it was communicated to the quiet and thoughtful Chinese, began to import it to Canton just before the period
of the Revolutionary War in this country, and at a time
when the profligacy and insane greed for money of Warren Hastings and his corrupt associates in the East India
Company seemed to have stupefied the conscience of the
nation.  From a few hundreds of chests in a year the
trade had grown at the time of the Opium War to thirty
The stimulating and intoxicating influence of opium was often infused into
wine. This is described in book iv. of the same poem:
" Bright Helen mixed a mirth-inspiring bowl;
Tempered with drugs of sovereign use to assuage
The boiling bosom of tumultuous rage;
To clear the cloudy front of wrinkled care,
And dry the tearful sluices of despair.
Charmed with that potent draught, the exalted mind
All sense of woe delivers to the wind.
Though on the blazing pile his parent lay,
Or a loved brother groaned his life away,
Or darling son, oppressed by ruffian force,
Fell breathless at his feet, a mangled corse,
From morn to eve, impassive and serene,
The man entranced would view the deathful scene."
The source whence the knowledge of these medicinal or intoxicating vir
tues was derived is mentioned. It was in Egypt, that India of the West —
"' Where prolific Nile
With various simples clothes the fattened soil;
With wholesome herbage mixed, the direful bane
Of vegetable venom taints the plain."




.BESaULTS OF THE OPI UMr WAR.        373
thousand chests, and has now risen to eighty thousand
chests yearly.
The effects of this dreadful poison upon the human
system are utterly destructive to the health of the body
and the clear use of the faculties of the mind, to the
happiness of the unfortunate family of the victim, to his
success in business and to his usefulness to society. The
face becomes pale and haggard, the eyes moist and vacant, the whole expression miserable and idiotic. The
body wastes to a skeleton, the joints are tortured with
pain. The sensation of gnawing in the stomach when
deprived of the drug is described by those addicted to
its use to be like the tearing of its tender coats by the
claws of an animal of prey, while a return to it fills the
brain with horrid and tormenting visions like the mania
of delirium  tremens.  I have seen strong men, when
unable to obtain their accustomed dose, crazy with the
suffering, the face crimsoned in some cases, and the perspiration streaming down in a shower. Few individuals
of those whom it possesses are able to find a sufficient
antidote.  The subject lingers a few years, and a dreary
and unpitied death ends the scene. This is the history
of tens of thousands in China, as well as in other countries. This most terrible form of intemperance affects all
classes of society, from the most powerful, wealthy and
learned to the most wretched beggar.  One sees the
lowest and vilest, even the impoverished and rotten lepers without the walls of the cities, drunk with it. When
they cannot find money to purchase the drug, they buy
the dirt which remains after it is refined, and abjectly
scrape the bowls of the pipes used by their more favored
brethren, and smoke this refuse.  Women learn the




374    THE OLDEST AND TIHE.NEWEST EMPIRE.
habit from their husbands and brothers, and when the
woeful penalty of this indulgence comes upon the family,
they find in opium a ready and familiar instrument to
cut the thread of life and drop into the gulf of an unknown and dark future.
The introduction of opium was resisted with the most
noble fidelity to the best interests of his subjects by the
emperor Tau-kwang. When importuned by some of
the officers of the government to consent to the legalization of the trade, he replied that he would not consent
to derive a revenue from that which destroyed the lives
and happiness of his people. No words could present
the case more strongly than those used by one of themselves, who thus describes the calamities which he saw
around him or in the future: "Opium is the author of
the most pressing evils to the nation, the consumer of its
substance, the destroyer of its people, the corrupter of
its officers and the plotter of its final subjugation."
At first, the foreign supply, with the severity of the
laws against its cultivation and use, sufficed to prevent
attempts toward a home production of opium. But of
late years, in the west, and in provinces where the control
of the government is less recognized, considerable quantities of it are now raised, adding probably to the total
amount used in the empire not less than one-half more
than the quantity which is obtained from abroad. When,
beyond the loss produced by the sending out of the country about fifty millions of dollars a year in specie, and
the abstraction of that vast sum from the industrial and
commercial employments of the people, we consider that
which arises from the devotion of a large number of
people at home, and of a very extensive share of the




RESULTS OF THE  OPIUI WAR.                      375
soil to the growth of this noxious plant, and the incalculable amount of corruption and vice which directly flow
from the whole traffic, then we are able to imagine
something of its general disastrous results to the nation.
If we would  form   a  more  exact conception  of the
greatness of the injury wrought by this poison, we must
follow  it to the homes of the individuals who  use it,
amounting  to not less than  twelve  millions of adults,
representing the interests, the moral character and the
happiness of sixty millions of the population who suffer
directly from its effects.
The profits of the opium  trade to Great ~Britain  are
enormous-not less than twenty to twenty-five millions
of dollars a year. According to the estimate of an English newspaper published in China,' the total profit
from  the time when the trade began until the year 1854
was in round  numbers three hundred  and ten millions
of dollars, and from that time to the present it is three
hundred  and  forty  millions more.  The total is about
six hundred  and  fifty millions in  sycee silver-that is,
silver without alloy, paid by weight. This is the actual
net profit to the producer upon a trade which amounts
to from   sixty to eighty  thousand  chests a year, which
are worth in all from  forty to sixty millions of dollars.2
The North China tHerald, of Shanghai.
2 The total import of opium into China at fourteen ports (as computed by the
China Overland Trade Report) amounted in 1866 to 81,750 chests. Of this
amount, 37,775 chests contained Malwa opium, the average price of which at
Hong-kong was $807.70 per chest, amounting to $30,510,867. The remaining
43,975 chests contained Patna and Benares opium, the average price of which
was $630.30 per chest, amounting to $27,717,442. Adding these two quantities,
we have the number of chests of opium imported into China in 1866, amounting
in value to the sum of $58,228,309. If we compare this with the balance of the
commerce of foreign nations with that country, the conclusion is most painful




376    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST E~MPIRE.
The extent of the responsibility of the British government for the production and sale of opium I prefer to
state in the words of one of its own subjects.  The Calcutta correspondent of the London Times thus presents
the case for the consideration of the readers of that influential paper:
"What are the  facts?   As to  Bengal, I  have  gone
through  the poppy-fields of Shahabad, and  have witnessed every detail of the manufacture in the enormous
go-downs of Patna. Under a severe contract law, twice
as penal as any that has ever been proposed for ordinary
agricultural progress, and scouted by England, advances
of money are annually made to the peasants of Behar,
Benares and  elsewhere.  The state lies out of these advances  for a year.   Its  establishment of highly-paid
officials and oppressive or colluding native subordinates
supervises every detail-the preparation of the fields, the
sowing, the weeding, the scraping of the capsules, the
collection of the crude juice, its transit to the state factory and its sale in Calcutta.  Yet, in spite of its establishments, smuggling is the rule.
"The state of the case is this: China will have opium
just as England  will have gin  and  Scotland  whisky.
The amount of tea exported from the open ports of China in 1866 was 1,183,042
peculs (of 140 lbs. each, amounting to 165,625,880 lbs.), which, at an average
price of $36 per pecul, amounted to $42,589,512. The amount of raw silks exported from Chinese ports in 1866 was 32,462 peculs, which, at an average rate
of $600 per pecul, amounted to $19,477,200. So that the entire exports of tea
and raw silk were worth $62,066,712; for which the Chinese received in imports beyond the opium mentioned but $3,838,403, or about one-sixteenth of the
value of what they gave.
In 1867, we learn from another source, the total value of the opium imported
was 45,000,000 of taels, or about $63,000,000. The total exports from China of
tea and silk together, for the same year, were 49,500,000 taels, or $69,300,000.




RESULTS OF THE OPIUM WAR.           377
All facts go to show that the abuse of opium in China,
while great, is by no means equal to that of alcohol in
Europe. The moral question is not whether China may
be supplied with opium, but whether England as a nation, as the ruling power of India, ought in its official
and national character, to grow, manufacture and export
the drug, the use of which has after two or three wars
been legalized in China. Yet this is the position of
England at this moment in relation to three-fourths of
the opium exported from India."
What is the effect of the opium trade upon Christian
missions?  The writer, and every man who has been
engaged in the work of preaching the gospel, healing
the sick, instructing the young and disseminating the
word of God, knows that the incessant and bitter objection urged by all classes to his efforts is that it is
impossible that nations which carry opium in the right
hand can have any boon of mercy in the left. An eminent official of the British government has, in a late
work,l tried to throw the blame of the great hostility of
the Chinese to the residence of foreigners at the ports
which have been "opened" by the cannon and the
sword, upon the Christian missionaries. He says in it:
1" What, in effect, is the natural and necessary effect of
Christianity as the gospels have delivered it to us?
Is it not of necessity antagonistic, entirely subversive to
the whole scheme of government, which claims for the
head of the state divine honors, and places the will of
the emperor on the footing of a decree from Heaven?"
No! It is subversive of the idolatry of the government,
but not of the monarchical form of it. The emperor Con1 SIR RUTHERFORD ALCOCK, Three Years in Japan, chap. xxxvii.




378    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
stantine held the throne of Rome no less firmly when he
inscribed the cross upon his standard, and exchanged
the superstitions of paganism for the principles of justice
and charity. Nor is the authority of Queen Victoria
and of British law less submissively obeyed because the
British people are disciples of Jesus Christ. The emperors Shun-chi and Kang-hi did not resist and persecute Christianity when it presented itself as a wise and
beneficent system of truth, or until the sects of Roman
priests contradicted its first reputation by their quarrels,
covetousness and interference with the political affairs of
the empire. Since the book referred to was written this
gentleman has urged upon the government which he
represents a restrictive policy with reference to missionary operations in the interior of China; and his views
have been brought before Parliament by Lord Clarendon
and other members. The consequence has been a reply
containing a fair statement of the truth from the missionaries in China. They confirm this by some forcible
illustrations. The following is one of them: A missionary
was driven out of Ho-nan by a mob led on by the native
gentry, whose feeling was shown by shouting these
words after him, "You burned our palace; you killed
our emperor; you sell poison to our people; now you
come professing to teach us virtue!"
The opium traffic in India and China is the darkest
stain upon the. Christianity of the nineteenth century.
Its calamitous effects are felt wherever the people of
China emigrate and wherever the products of China are
carried over the whole world. In the arrest of it the
citizens of the United States are more deeply interested
than any other people outside of China, Opium puts a




RESULTS OF THE OPIUM WAR.         379
great stone in the path of the commerce with Eastern
Asia; it hinders the development of departments of industry on our Pacific coast, which would discover and
furnish numerous useful materials and manufactures to
supply that commerce, and thus render great benefits to
either continent; it is planting seeds of enervation, crime
and disease in the Chinese who are coming to our shores,
and creating corresponding vexation and injury to us;
it keeps the sword of war continually unsheathed and
wet with blood, the torch of conflagration constantly
burning, and every puff of hostile wind distributing its
sparks amidst materials which are ever ready to burn
hotly; it makes the benevolent efforts of the preacher
of the gospel of mercy, and of the Christian physician
and teacher, appear like shallow and abominable hypocrisy, and the word of God itself something false and
hateful, when offered by hands imbrued with so stupendous a crime against humanity and justice, against the
conscience of man and against the laws of Heaven.
Would that it were possible to say that the hands of
American merchants have not been stained by connivance with the crime of the opium trade in China! We
are grateful to God that it has not been made " an official and national" business "to grow, manufacture and
export the drug" by any other nation than Great
Britain and its Indian dependencies. But our ships
have helped to convey and distribute the poison; our
merchants have partaken to some extent in the profits
of the work; and we have given it a garment of respectability by the deceitful pleas with which we have palliated its enormity.
Nor do we lightly or censoriously tell the tale of




380   THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
England's shame. She is our great Protestant sister
amidst the European nations; the nearest to us in blood
and  spirit;  and  the  one  most interested  with  us in
breaking every yoke and letting the oppressed go free,
in sending forth the light which alone can dispel the
gross darkness of the heathen. But in the spirit of one
of her faithful sons we would point out her offences, that
they may be amended.  The opium  trade was begun by
a most unprincipled and avaricious Company. One of
her noblest poets has painted its picture.  His admonition as to the end of such policy should be heeded:
"Merchants, unimpeachable of sin
Against the charities of domestic life,
Incorporated, seem at once to lose
Their nature; and, disclaiming all regard
For mercy and the common rights of man,
Build factories with blood, conducting trade
At the sword's point, and dyeing the white robe
Of innocent commercial justice red."Britain "is rigid in denouncing death
On petty robbers; and indulges life
And liberty, and ofttimes honor too,
To peculators of the public gold,
That thieves at home must hang; but he that puts
Into his gorged and bloated purse
The wealth of Indian provinces, escapes;
Nor is it well, nor can it come to good." 1
The reign of the emperor Tau-kwang will be commemorated in history on another account than that of the
direct events of the Opium War. In the forests, when
a fire has burned off the old trees of one kind, it is ob.
served that it is another kind generally which springs
up vigorously in its place.  So the great Husbandman
orders  it with  the race  of  man.  The calamities  of
1 WM. CowPER, Task, books i. and ivo




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RESULTS OF THE OPIU'3I WAR.        381
nations-war, pestilence, famine-allow Him  to plant
among them some better seed and secure some more useful crop. Great religious reformations are often seen to
follow them.
For twenty-seven years previous to the termination of
the charter of the East India Company, a solitary, humble Dissenting minister, amidst the unconcealed contempt
and scoffing of its aristocratic merchants and clerks, sat
engaged in the great elementary work of Christian missions, the compilation of a dictionary and the translation
of the revelation of God to man into the language of the
people. The company's charter expired in the year
1834; and in that year he died. Its work and his
work were to give place to a new order of things.
Morrison was joined at Canton but four years previous
to his death by Bridgman, an American. The life of
this first missionary from our country was spent, chiefly,
in company with S. W. Williams, who had also charge of
the printing, in the editorship of the Chinese Repository,
a monthly magazine which for twenty years continued to
pour out information designed to inform and interest our
country and Great Britain in regard to the character,
literature, public affairs and religion and spiritual wants
of the empire of China. It has been replaced by several
weekly newspapers published by foreigners at the ports
open to their trade; by another monthly missionary periodical, the Chinese Recorder, issued recently by the
American Methodist missionaries at Fuh-chau; and by
several periodical publications at various ports in the
Chinese language and character.
New translations of the Scriptures in more idiomatic
Chinese have been made by Drs. Medhurst and Gutzlaff,




382    THE OLDEST AlD THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
by missionaries connected with Baptist societies, and by
a committee of missionaries of different societies meeting at Shanghai, in behalf of the great Bible Societies
of this country and Great Britain. The last mentioned
is the most satisfactory, yet it must in time yield to some
one more perfect, in which Oriental students of the Oriental styles of thought and illustration shall be able to
give to the Church of the Land of Sinim a translation
which shall be universally acceptable and permanent.
The living expositor, taking the Word in his hand,
followed the openings of commerce. Chapels were speedily opened at ports where foreigners were allowed to
resort, and in the neighboring villages. And multitudes
of the Chinese crowded to see and hear them-to see
their strange raiment; and to hear warnings against the
worship of gods, sages and ancestors, which in some
breasts aroused bitter scorn and rage, but in others curiosity to know what better things these men had to
give, for many are weary of the silly and vapid fables
which their fathers brought from India.
Numerous translations of foreign books, or compilations from them in Chinese, were prepared by the missionaries; among which were histories of the world, of
the United States and of the Jewish nation; treatises on
geography, astronomy, medicine, anatomy and vaccination; almanacs filled with a variety of information; and
other volumes and tracts suitable for family reading and
to interest both young and old readers.
Next in the train  followed missionary hospitals.
Charitable surgeons of the East India Company had
done something for the relief of the unlimited amount
of suffering about them. In 1835, Dr. Peter Parker




RESULTS OF THE OPIUM WAR.           383
commenced a hospital at Macao, which was transferred
to Canton. Several thousands of patients each year
have received gratuitous medicines from its dispensary
or been cared for in its wards. The writer enjoyed the
privilege of assisting there in medical labors and in
preaching statedly the gospel in the native tongue, while
residing in that city. The institution is now under the
care of Dr. J. G. Kerr. Several pupils have been made
well acquainted with medical science by the instruction
there furnished. Some of the most distinguished officers
and gentry of the province and of other parts of the
empire have been indebted to the hospital for relief.
And probably millions of copies of tracts and Christian
gospels have been distributed thence, with the glowing
tongue of grateful patients to interpret their truths, to
every part of the country. Several other hospitals have
followed in the work of doing good to both body and
soul; those at Ningpo, Shanghai and Hong-kong have
been specially useful. A medical society, supported by
contributions from the foreign merchants, has for more
than twenty years paid the expenses of medicines and
other necessaries. The building was generously furnished for the hospital at Canton by Howqua, a leading
Chinese merchant, who thus became in reality the principal contributor to its support.
Provision for the education of the young was the
next step in the great work of Christian missions. The
Morrison Education Society, formed at Hong-kong, established a school in 1835 as a monument to the memory
of the founder of Protestant missions in China. Its
pupils have been well trained, and several of them have
become efficient and useful men in various spheres of




384    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
life. The missions of the several boards and societies
represented in China-American, British, or composed
of men from the continent of Europe-have generally
aimed to plant good schools at their more prominent
stations. Thousands of youths have in these been taught
the most useful elements of our knowledge and the principles of Christianity. Some of the young men have
been made acquainted with the more advanced departments of science. A few of the most promising of them
have been sent to institutions of learning in America
and Great Britain; and, what will seem almost incredible to our people, they have not only held their own as
students in competition with those of our own race, but
some of them have taken prizes or honors in various departments, as in botany, whose nomenclature at least
might have been supposed too difficult for a native of
China to master, and in English composition.
And yet the missionary work was but in its infancy at
this period. Missionaries dared not go much beyond
the six ports opened by the several treaties, and a few
localities in their immediate vicinity; and even in those
places life and property were not safe, and the labors of
missionaries were hampered by the restrictions of the
government and the opposition of the people. And yet
the seed sown was taking root far and wide. There
were evidences that people even in remote provinces
were hearing of the new truths which strangers from
the West preached to their countrymen, and were beginning to inquire what they meant. The Christian Scriptures were carried even to the palace of the emperor.
Tau-kwang-the "Light of Reason "-was succeeded
on the throne by his son Yih-chu, with the title of




RESULTS OF THE, OPIUM WAR.          385
Hien-fung-" Universal Prosperity;" alas that the
promises- of hope should so often become the mock of
experience! Instead of agricultural prosperity, the reign
of the young monarch was ushered in with a widespread and exhausting famine. This, as usual, was followed by pestilence. The cities and villages became
scenes of indescribable wretchedness; the poor being
driven by suffering to desperation and crime, and the
rich to severity toward them and to dissatisfaction with
the government. The young and inexperienced emperor, worn out with vain attempts to relieve and propitiate his subjects, gave himself at length to indifference,
and retreated to the chambers of the seraglio and the
society of truculent courtiers, for peace. The western
portion of the empire, remote and comparatively independent, was overrun with bands of robbers, and its
population was banded in treasonable associations. The
officers of government were inefficient and corrupt.
There were witnessed such scenes of universal vice
and misery as those which so often in European history have prepared the way for great and radical
reformations.
In the summer of 1850 the foreigners upon the seacoast began to hear rumors of a strange religious movement in the interior, under the name of Christianity.
A remarkable man, named Hung Sew-tsuen, at this
time about thirty-seven years of age, had in his twentieth year, when animated with the ambition for liberty
and political distinction which is common with the
brighter youths of China, gone to present himself at
an annual examination in Canton. There our faithful
old friend Leung A-fah, the preacher and colporteur,
25




386    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
put into his hands, as he did into those of thousands
of others each year, some copies of Christian books compiled from the Scriptures or explanatory of them. He
threw them carelessly aside on reaching home, after
some superficial scanning of their contents. Four years
afterward, strange dreams or visions during a period of
sickness brought some of their features to remembrance.
But their truths did not powerfully affect him till 1847,
when a friend of his became acquainted with these books,
urged them upon his attention, and together they began
the anxious study of their truths. The great doctrines
of Christianity, even dimly seen through the medium of
an idolatrous education, and interpreted by the stern
precepts and examples of the Mosaic books, so fired the
hearts of these lonely men that they could not but speak
what they believed. Hung Sew-tsuen determined to revisit Canton and search out the disciples of his new
creed. He found the Rev. I. J. Roberts, a Baptist missionary, who gave him further instruction, but refused,
on account of his imperfect acquaintance with him, to
baptize him or license him to preach.
He went back home, and commenced, with the addition of numerous converts made already by the labors
of his believing kinsmen and friends, to preach his
mongrel but earnest creed. They resisted the exactions
of the surrounding idolaters, were persecuted, driven to
organize, arm and discipline themselves for self-defence,
then, encouraged by success, to destroy idol temples and
priests and make battle with the local'government.
Their numbers increased. In October, 1850, they won
an important victory over the imperial soldiery. They
moved north-ward, conquering as they went. The prov



RESULTS OF THE OPIUrI TVAR.         387
inces of Kwang-si and Ho-nan were subdued. In March,
1853, they besieged the populous and rich capital of the
last native dynasty, Nanking, and in eleven days took
it by storm, having effected an entrance through a breach
made in the northern wall by springing a mine. They
put the Manchu garrison and their families, twenty
thousand in all, to the sword. Their discipline until
this time had been most severe and efficient. They
strictly punished crimes, and counted in the list the use
of opium. They observed the Jewish Sabbath with the
scrupulousness of the ancient Pharisees; and the effect
of their hymns, as sung by the strong masculine voices
of many thousands of soldiers in the acts of worship, is
described by the American and European visitors who
went from  Shanghai to see them  as very grand and
inspiring.
The Christian world was thrilled with the first news
which reached them from Nanking of this wonderful
movement. It seemed as if a nation had been born in a
day, and as if the prophecies of Isaiah as to the mighty
victories of the gospel were indeed about to be realized.
But it soon became manifest that there was much political corruption, proud fanaticism and heathen ignorance
of the principles of Christian truth mixed with it all.
It was a mercy of Heaven that this revolution was
brought to naught. A campaign against Peking failed.
The European powers expelled them from the vicinity
of the ports of Shanghai and Ningpo. Their discipline
grew lax. Their forces were dispersed and demoralized.
And the last sad scene of all this bright promise was the
fall of Nanking in July, 1864, when multitudes of the
miserable remnant of their host were mercilessly slaugh



388    THE OLDEST AND THE IJEWEST EXCPIE
tered by the triumphant and revengeful imperialists.
The poor man who started to be the reformer of his
native empire came to a bloody end by his own
hands.
This strange moral tempest in the sultry and diseased atmosphere of China, while it left wrecks in its
course, yet did something to purify it. It taught the
empire that there is one true God, the Creator and
Governor of all. It made the claims of the Sabbath
universally and forcibly understood. It lifted a protest
against the curse of opium, at, least for the time, even
though some of these men fell afterward into its use.
It distributed many hundreds of thousands of copies of
the Scriptures, to be a seed which in his own time God
will water in the hearts of millions with the influences
of the Holy Spirit, and make a great means in the final
renovation of Eastern Asia. And it is something most
affecting, among the ravings of fanaticism  and folly,
to find in the proclamations of the leaders of this Taiping rebellion many of the most precious and consolatory Christian truths and announcements, such as these:
"'The kingdom of heaven is at hand."-" The whole
world together sings the songs of peace."-"' Jesus came
into the world to ransom sinners by his death, and became an atonement for ten tforusand times ten thousand
of the inhabitants of the world."  Not China alone will
feel the power of this movement. To save his own capital the terrified emperor sent into the wilds of the north,
and brought thence, to contend with the Tai-pings, large
forces of Manchu and other Tartars, who were thus made
acquainted with their principles and printed books. It
was to no small extent by their efforts that Peking was




RESULTS OF TITE OPIUM WA R,          389
delivered. Miany a Christian Bible has been carried
back by them to the tents of their tribes.
The government was also under the necessity of calling in European and American aid. Several able officers were employed to drill native troops, which they did
so successfully as to make them quite effective in battle.
The manifest superiority of the people of Western
nations in the art of war has greatly increased the respect of the Chinese for them, and prepared the way for
the introduction of the sciences of peace.
Having briefly sketched the Tai-ping rebellion, we
may return to observe that the brief reign of Hien-fung
Was made memorable by the tremendous calamities inflicted upon his country and capital by a war of another
character, and with foreign powers.
The Opilum War was far from subduing the pride of
the Chinese. At Canton the population refused to accept the British interpretation of the treaties made at its
close. Those of us who resided there were subject to
the incidents of a prolonged conflict. Difficulties frequently occurred in which foreigners or natives were
killed; and we could,not go into the streets of Canton
without meeting bitter insults and personal hazard, or
venture into its suburbs or the neighboring villages with
the assurance of a return alive. At the north, too, there
were occasional troubles.  At Shanghai they arose in
connection with questions relating to the introduction
of opium, the payment of duties, and the reasonable resistance of the Chinese authorities to the efforts of foreign
merchants to extend their excursions and trade into the
interior. Fruitless attempts were made by the British,
French and Americans to obtain concessions of larger




390    THE OLDEST AND TIHE EWEST E1MPIRE.
liberty.  They  and  the  Chinese  were  mutually  irritated.
At length, in  1856, the smouldering fire burst forth,
and, as has been too often the case in China, in a way to
put Christian nations apparently in  the wrong  and  the
Chinese  in  the  right.  It had  been  for some time, in
consequence of the disordered state of things upon the
coast, the  habit of the  English  authorities  at  Hongkong  to  grant the  protection  of the  British  flag  to
native vessels engaged in  carrying  passengers and merchandise.'  These  vessels, however, often  took  opium
on  board, using  the  dread  of the  British  power as a
shield under which to smuggle  it into  the  interior.   A
Chinese vessel on the Canton river, manned by Chinese,
and thus engaged in  smuggling, but whose register had
expired a month before, was seized by the  Chinese officers. The governor, Teh, at first refused to surrender
the crew, averring as an additional reason that some of
them were pirates; but, in compliance with the determined  demands of the  British, he at length  sent them
back, without an  apology.   He, however, subsequently
promised not to seize foreign craft, but required that foreign nations should not sell registers to  Chinese vessels.
1 The English newspapers at the time complained bitterly of the injury which
this practice was doing to their own legitimate commerce. The Friend of China,
published at Hong-kong, declared that it tended to prolong the rebellion.  That
paper said: " Canton's character for supplying furniture of cunning workmanship
must soon cease altogether, unless we have a change; the best of the bambooworkers and hard-wood carvers having gone to the wars. Quiescent as matters
appear on the surface, we doubt whether the rebellion was ever before at such a
stage of what may be termed' scientic action,' as it is now; and if foreign powers
will but hold aloof, the thing may work out quicker than at present is gener.
ally expected. To Sir John Bowring's mischievous practice last year of granting the British flag to the Chinese vessels, are we now indebted. for the long
delay and its attendant consequences."




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RESULTS OF THE OPIUM WAR.           391
For this "' insult" of capturing a vessel of their own nation, engaged in the violation of their laws, and in introducing a poison which was destroying multitudes of
their people, it was resolved that the Chinese must be
punished.
The first flagrant act of the war then inaugurated was
the bombardment of the great metropolis of southern
China in December, the destruction of a wealthy and
important portion of the city, the slaughter of many innocent people, the beggary of many through the plundering of their property by the Chinese rabble amidst
the confusion, and the subjection of the place to the control of a garrison of British and French soldiers for two
years. Amidst these scenes of horror were some that
were very affecting. One of them was the distress occasioned in a benevolent institution, the "Asylum for Indigent Females," through its being occupied by the foreign
troops; another was the carrying forth by the Chinese
of the coffins of their deceased kindred, which many of
them seemed more anxious to bear away from the dangers of warfare and conflagration than to save their
wealth and furniture, or even their own lives.
It may be briefly stated that in 1858 the allied forces
went to the Pei-ho river with the purpose to reach Peking; they took the fortifications at its mouth, but were
met by commissioners of the Chinese government, who
formed with them a treaty, which was signed on the
26th of June. The force which went on shore at the
taking of the forts found, in his rooms in a temple, the
body of the commanding officer, Teh Kwei, covered with
his own blood, which he had shed by cutting his throat,
rather than submit to the degradation and ruin inflicted




392    THE OLDEST AND TIFE NEWEST EMPIRE.
upon himself and his family by his defeat. A touching
and affectionate poem in memory of his deceased wife,
by the commissioner Tan Ting-siang, who was afterward banished to the frontier for his misfortune in being
connected with this calamity, was also picked up.
In the treaty of Tien-tsin are found two conspicuous
articles. One guarantees the protection of the Chinese
government to Christianity, with the preface that "the
Christian religion, as professed by Protestants or Roman
Catholics, inculcates the practice of virtue and teaches
man to do as he would be done by."  Upon this point it
may be remarked that in the British treaty at the close
of the Opium War in 1842 the subject of Christianity
was not mentioned. It is not strange that after the East
India Company had systematically labored to prevent
Christian missions for two hundred years, these diplomatists should be loth to assume any interest in them.
The commissioner Lagren6 made provision for the protection of Christians in the French treaty of the following year. The other article in the treaty of Tien-tsin
states that in evidence of her desire for the continuance
of a friendly understanding, her majesty the queen
of'Great Britain consents to receive the "'sunl of two
millions of taels ($2,800,000) on account of losses sustained by British subjects through the misconduct of
the Chinese authorities at Canton, and a further sum of
two millions of taels ($2,800,000 additional-making
$5,600,000 in specie) on account of the military expenses
of the expedition which her majesty the queen has been
compelled to send out for the purpose of obtaining redress, and of enforcing the due observance of treaty provisions;" which was to be paid " by the authorities of the




RESULTS OF THE OPIUM WAR.            393
Kwang-tung (Canton) province." There was another
very memorable result of this treaty.  In the tariff
based upon the treaty, which was settled subsequently
by a commission of two representatives from each nation,
the legalization of the trade in opium was so urgently
pressed by the English that the Chinese yielded their
consent to its introduction, subject to a duty of thirty
taels (forty-two dollars) per chest.
The next year -the Chinese met in a very different
manner from what they had anticipated the English and
French, who appeared off the Pei-ho to have their treaties
ratified, accompanied by several American and Russian
vessels of war, containing representatives of those nations,
which had also effected treaties. They had thoroughly
fortified the mouth of the river, and refused the fleet
admittance, and repulsed the attacks made by the allies
both from sea and shore with a mortifying and disastrous
defeat. In 1860 the allies returned with heavy reinforcements both of vessels and troops, destroyed the defences of the river, and soon took possession of the imperial capital.
The sacking of one of the luxurious palaces of the
Chinese emperor was a scene such as has had few parallels in the rapine of modern war. The wealth of Eastern rulers is accumulated in depositories of costly robes
of ermine, sable, sea-otter, Astrakhan lamb and other
rare furs, or of rich satin loaded with splendid embroidery; in stores of silk and crape in rolls; in magnificent collections of vases and other ancient porcelain,
and figures in jade and other stones; in vessels of gold,
silver and bronze, of great value; in caskets of ornaments,
glittering with diamonds, pearls, emeralds, rubies and




394    TiHE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EmPI.REo
other precious stones; in museums of curiosities from
foreign lands-clocks, watches, musical instruments and
specimens of curious machinery and art; in large mirrors; in images and articles connected with the worship
of the gods. Added to these are libraries of books,
maps and pictures, and much that is of real and permanent value.
Into these great depositories of Oriental wealth, which
had been multiplying for centuries, the regiments of
European and Hindh soldiers, maddened by liquor,
utterly beyond all restraint of their officers, profanely
plunged, to gorge themselves with what pleased their
drunken fancy, and to destroy an equal amount out of
the pure love of destruction. They dashed the vessels
and figures through the mirrors; knocked down chandeliers with clubs; smashed to pieces or took off porcelain jars and jade-stone figures and curious carvings
of ivory; and carried away cartloads of costly silks and
heaps of yellow imperial robes and court costumes. Low
and vile men made themselves rich with the secret treasures of royalty. The officers shared in the intoxication
of the hour. Some loaded their horses with the costly
spoil and walked leading them to the camp. And the
defenceless chambers of princes were crowded, after the
foreign soldiery had left, with hundreds of native marauders from the neighborhood, who satiated themselves
with the strange pillage. It was a grand national
burglary!
For weeks after this scene of stupendous robbery the
troops held a carnival of license. They turned upon
their native companions in plunder and stripped their
houses of their ill-gotten wealth. The want of coin to




RESULTS OF THE OPIUMS WAR.          395
pay for the liquor and the eatables they wanted was
supplied by a factitious currency of articles stolen.
Thus a roll of silk, which was worth in China fifteen to
twenty-five dollars, and in this country two or three
times that amount, was rated at one dollar. It was a
sutlers' paradise.
Poor Hien-fung, on the approach of the "foreign
demons," fled in terror to Jeh-ho, the summer retreat of
his family in Tartary. There, crushed with mortification and abandoning himself to dissipation, he died the
next year (August 22, 1861), at the early age of thirty.
Amidst the bloodshed and desolations of the war with
China there was One overruling all for the accomplishment of His omnipotent ends of good, "calling a ravenous bird" from the West-" the man that executed his
counsel from a far country." The immediate fruit of
the British treaty was the opening of the new ports of
Niu-chwang far to the north, Tung-chau in the northern
province of Shan-tung, Tai-wan in the beautiful and fertile island of Formosa, Chau-chau or Swatow, east of Canton, and Kiang-chau in the large island of Hai-nan on
the southern sea-coast, west of Canton; to these was added
afterward Tien-tsin, the seaport of Peking. Treaties
have since been made with Belgium, Italy and other
secondary powers of Europe, which have added also to
the advantages of the rest, inasmuch as each has usually
claimed the introduction in its articles of a clause assuring to it all the privileges granted to'" the most favored
nation." Thus in the treaty with Denmark, in 1863,
sixteen ports are enumerated as being open for trade,
among which appear those of Nanking, Hang-chau,
Chin-kiang and Kiu-kiang; the advantages allowed in




396    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
regard to trade on the Yang-tsz-kiang river are important; the coasting trade is thrown open to foreign shipping, and the restrictions are removed from the exportation of some important articles of food.
The chief anxiety of the French in their recent claims
has been for increased protection to the Roman Catholic missions, through which chiefly their political influence is maintained. Thus we find the following article
in their late treaty:'The Christian religion, having for its essential object to lead men to virtue, the members of all Christian
bodies (communions) shall enjoy full security for their
persons, their property and the free exercise of their religious worship; and entire protection shall be given to
missionaries who peacefully enter the country furnished
with passports, such as are described in article eight. No
obstacles shall be interposed by the Chinese authorities
to the recognized right of any person in China to embrace Christianity if he pleases, and to obey its requirements without being subject on that account to any
penalty. Whatever has been heretofore written, proclaimed or published in China, by order of government,
against the Christian faith, is wholly abrogated and
nullified in all of the provinces of the empire."
The government of France means by " the Christian
religion" simply Romanism. It is advancing the interests of Roman Catholic missions by all the means at its
command. The French minister has recently secured
from the Chinese government an edict granting to the
foreign priests the right to decide all questions of law
between their followers and those natives who do not
profess Romanism. The priests are thoroughly in con



RESULTS OF THE OPIUM WAR.           397
cert with their political supporters, and are working
with great energy to regain the political influence which
they enjoyed two centuries ago. Their statistics are not
to be relied on. Multitudes whom they claim as Christians are simply idolaters baptized in the name of the
Trinity, with no Christian knowledge, faith or life. But
it is asserted by the Romanists that they possess throughout the empire twenty-four Catholic missions, under the
charge of nineteen bishops and five apostolic prefects,
who are of French, Italian, Spanish and Belgian origin.
Each bishop has under him from four to twenty European missionaries. Each mission is subdivided into'idistricts, according to the number of European missionaries.
They claim several thousand native Christians in each
mission. They profess to have twenty-four seminaries, in
which natives are taught Latin, philosophy and theology; and numerous schools and orphan asylums. The
most important college is near Shanghai, and has three
hundred pupils, who are taught trades, painting, drawing and Chinese literature, and some are sent to Peking
to take the degrees. The missions support several printing-establishments, and have issued several works on
mathematics and theology. The French government
has demanded, and obtained, the restoration of large
amounts of property, formerly belonging to various
orders of missionaries, which had been confiscated when
they were banished from the empire. Their successors
are employing this to re-establish themselves firmly in
some of the principal cities. At Canton they are rearing a magnificent cathedral, which it is expected will
cost three millions of dollars, overshadowing in size and
effect every other edifice in the city. One at as great a




398    THE OLDEST AND THE.NEWEST EMPIRE.
cost is to be built in Peking; others are in progress iln
other cities.
It requires little explanation to show the anxiety
which the advances of Romanism awaken in the mind
of the Chinese government. Having in view the experience of his grandfather Shun-chi, and his father Kanghi, the emperor Yung-ching, upon whom, previous to
his accession to the throne, they had counted as a friend,
presented the reasons for it in words which are remembered by those who have succeeded him until this day.
He well knew the control which the Roman priests
assume over the political actions of their people. He
said:
"Certain Europeans in the province of Fu-kien have
been endeavoring to defeat our laws and trouble our
people. The chief men of the province have applied to
me, and I must repress this disorder. It is the business
of the government with which I am charged; and I
neither can nor ought to act now as I did when I was a
private prince. You say that your creed is not a false
one, and I grant this. But what would you say if I were
to send a troop of Buddhist priests and lamas into your
country to preach their creed? How would you receive
them? You wish to make Christians of the Chinese, and
that is what your creed demands, I know very well; but
what, in that case, would become of us?  The subjects
of your king, the Christians whom you make, recognize
no authority but you; in times of trouble they would
listen to no other voice. I know well enough that there
is nothing to fear at present, but when your ships shall
come by thousands and tens of thousands, then, indeed,
we may have disturbances."




RESULTS OF THE OPIUM WAR.          399
An unanticipated but very important effect of the war
was the opportunity which it gave to Russia to settle
favorably to herself several long-standing questions of
difficulty with China, and to secure the cession to her
of a vast district of territory which she had long coveted
in vain. The Russians began to settle in Siberia about
the year 1587. By the treaty of Nerchinsk, made in
1689, it was agreed that the dividing line between the
Russian territories and those of the Mongols and Manchus subject to the Chinese should be the river Argun
and the range of mountains bordering the valley of the
Amoor on the north. In order to watch her interests
in Eastern Asia, in 1728 Russia succeeded in establishing a mission at Peking, which was to be renewed each
ten years. She has gradually appropriated extensive
portions of Sungaria. The war with England and France
afforded an opportunity not to be lost for urging a claim
to the valley of the Amoor river, which is the artery of
communication between Eastern Siberia and the Pacific
ocean, and the key to mining and agricultural regions
of great value to her. Russia had already been pressing
colonization to that region. A treaty was made, on the
behalf of Russia, by Count Nicholas Muravief, governor
of Eastern Siberia, May 28, 1858, at Aigun. This was
repudiated, on the ground of some informality, by the
Chinese government. A general treaty of peace between the two empires was, however, concluded by Count
Putiatin, at Tien-tsin, June 13, 1858, in which Prince
Kung represented the Chinese government. In 1860
another opportunity arose. Amidst the troubles of that
year the demand for the cession of the northern shore
of the Amoor was again urged; and on the 14th of No



400    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
vember the Russian ambassador, M. Ignatief, signed
another treaty with Prince K(ung at Peking, by which
that and far more was yielded. The vast regions between the Amoor river and the Olekma mountains, extending from the forty-eighth to the fifty-sixth degree
of latitude, and from the one hundred and eighteenth to
the one hundred and forty-first degree of longitude,
with a tract several degrees in width running down the
coast of Mlanchuria below the forty-third degree, were
handed over to Russia, so far as the document shows,
without an equivalent. The same treaty granted to the
Russians, who had before been limited to Kiakhta, the
right to trade at Urga and Kalgan, with ground for a
trading-post and church at Kashgar. Arrangements
were also made for frequent and rapid mail communications between St. Petersburg and Peking by way of
Kiakhta. These have been much increased since that
time, so that now our earliest telegraphic news from
Peking comes by way of St. Petersburg. A portion of
the territory granted by the treaty, it is true, had been
long claimed by Russia. Its extent has been estimated
to be over three hundred and sixty thousand square
miles, which is equal to the surface of the New England
and Middle States, with the Atlantic States of the South
down to the Florida line. It contains valuable mines.
Its commercial and industrial resources will be rapidly
developed by the Russian " Amoor Company," incorporated in 1858 with a capital of $800,000, and power to
increase it to $2,250,000. The trade with California
has already been considerable. In 1861 there were
eleven steamers running on the Amoor river, seven of
them iron. Four of the eleven had been obtained in




RESULTS OF THE OPIUMS WAR.         401
America, and several others were soon to be added to
the number there.
The Amoor is estimated to be over two thousand
miles in length. The two branches which form it,
called the Argun and Shilka, extend several hundred
miles farther into the heart of the continent.  The
chief value of the vast country which the Amoor opens
up to commerce lies in its mines. Gold, platinum,
silver, lead, copper, iron, arsenic, marble, precious
stones of various kinds, coal of good quality and salt,
have been found in it. The sable, ermine and other furs
exported have been valuable. Pearls have been found
in some of the rivers. Large quantities of ginseng are
dug by the Chinese on the Usuri, a southern branch of
the Amoor, the sales of which in one year have amounted
to two hundred thousand dollars. The port at the
mouth of the Amoor is Nicolayevsk. The Russians are
exporting thence their metals, woolen cloths, leather,
glass and hemp, and receiving in return the products
of China, Japan and the west coast of North America.
The trade is, however, yet in its infancy. The Russian
government is pushing its railroad connections toward
Chita, on the head-waters of the Amoor (52~ N. 113~ W.).
And it is urging the colonization of the valley of the
Amoor. It has recently offered to the Fins, who have
suffered greatly from the failure of crops in their own
country, inducements in the shape of tracts of farminglands, loans of money to procure cattle and agricultural
implements, and freedom  from  taxes for twenty-four
years. The influence of these colonies upon the future
history of China will be very important.
The foreign commerce of China has increased im26




402    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST 3EMPIRE.
mensely during the past few years.  Previous to the
termination of the charter of the East India Company,
in 1834, the exports amounted to about thirteen millions of, dollars a year, and the imports to ten and a
half millions; in a dozen years afterward they had more
than doubled; in 1868 the total exports were one hundred and three and a half millions of dollars, the imports one hundred and ten millions.  The chief articles
imported were opium, various kinds of cotton and woolen
goods, the precious metals and coal. Six-sevenths of
the whole trade is carried on with Great Britain and
her Asiatic and Australian colonies.'
The extent and character of the commerce between
the continent of Europe and China has been greatly:hanged by the gradual increase  of the  facilities  for it
by the way of the isthmus of Suez.  The first attempt
to open an overland route for the mails and passengers
1 The following is a summary of the total foreign trade for the year 1868:
Imports.       Exports.       Total.
Great Britain.............................. $36,718,000   $63,062,000   $99,780,000
Hong-kong..................................... 23,510,000    13,455,000    36,965,000
India................................... 39,147,000  396,000    39,543,000
Australia and New Zealand.............. 1,102,000  4,428,000  5,530,000
Straits Settlements and Cape............. 1,116,000     506,000      1,622,000
Canada........................................  355,000     355,000
Total for Great Britain and depend'cies.101,593,000    82,202,000    183,795,00
United States............................  1,249,000  9,875,000    11,124,000
Continent of Europe and Channel
Islands....................................   489,000  7,831,000  8,320,000
Japan.............................................  3,921,000  1,405,000  5,326,000
Siam and Cochin-China.................... 1,612,000    186,000      1,798,000
Philippine Islands and Java..............   870,000     618,000      1,488,000
Russia (overland), Siberia and Amoor
provinces.......................   141,000  1,207,000  1,348,000
South America..................................   102,000  348,000    450,000
Grand total........$109,977,000   103,672,000   213,649,000




RESULTS OF.ITE OPIUMf WAR.          403
to the East was made by Lieutenant Thomas Waghorn
of the British navy.  He encountered great difficulties,
having been compelled to make part of his transit upon
the [Red sea in an open boat. But his indomitable energy
and courage triumphed over every obstacle and proved
the feasibility of this route. An attempt in 1838 to obtain
the co-operation of the merchants in China failed; but in
1844 he succeeded in interesting the Lords of the Admiralty and British merchants in the establishment of
the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Company, which, in
August, 1845, commenced to run a monthly steamer
from Suez, by Point de Galle in Ceylon, to Hong-kong.
The first vessel that arrived in China was the Lady
Mary Wood, which brought the mails in fifty days from
London. The mail service is now performed semimonthly, and is extended to Shanghai and other ports
to the north, and to Yokohama in Japan.  The ports on
the Mediterranean where connections are made in order
to avoid the length of the sea-passage to Southampton
are Marseilles, Trieste, and recently Brindisi in Italy.
No achievement of the age is more grand and memorable than that of the completion of the Suez Canal,
which  reopens, after it had  been  closed  at least
twelve centuries, the communication between the Red
sea and the Mediterranean.  Conceived by Sesostris
about the time of the captivity of the Israelites in
Egypt, partly excavated by Pharaoh Necos previous to
the Babylonish captivity of that people, again undertaken by Darius the Persian,l completed by the Greek
l HERODOTUS (ii. 258) describes the course of the canal. He says that Pharaoh Necos sacrificed the lives of a hundred and twenty thousand Egyptians in
excavating it, and that he did not complete it, in consequence of an oracle which




404    TiHE OLDEST A.YD THE  rE NWEST EMiP IREe
Ptolemies, and after long disuse again opened for a time
by the Mohammedan Khalif Omar in the seventh century of our era, the history of this work covers more
than three thousand years of time, and shows how important the commercial ends which could thus inspire
so many dynasties of rulers.  The route of the ancient
canal was explored by the officers of Napoleon Bonaparte during his campaign in Egypt.  Count Ferdinand
de Lesseps, after overcoming difficulties which would
have discouraged any mind but one capable of appreciating the grandeur and usefulness of the enterprise, and
of looking to the perpetuation of his name in all future
history as his chief personal reward, has succeeded in
uniting the two seas, at an expense of eighty millions
of dollars.  The canal is one hundred miles in length,
three hundred feet wide at the surface of the water, and
twenty-four feet deep.  It connects Port Said on the
Mediterranean with Suez on the Red sea. The distance
to the ports of the East will be made about nine thousand miles shorter to vessels sailing from  the commercial centres of Western Europe, and seven thousand
miles to those from  our seaports, than by the passage
by the Cape of Good Hope.  It is estimated  that
six millions of tons of merchandise will annually pass
through this gateway of the oceans, and that the income
from  it will be twelve millions of dollars.  Passengers
from England will reach Hong-kong in China in nearly
the same time by Suez or by the Pacific Railroad across
warned him against it as being a work that would accrue to the benefit of. barbarian nations.
RAWLINSON, in a note upon the above passage, says that a stone at Suez is
inscribed in the Persian cuneiform character with the words, "Darius, the
Great King."




ESIULTS OF THE OPIUM WAR.          405
this continent and the Pacific mail steamers from San
Francisco-that is, in forty-one to forty-three days.
The past few years of the internal history of the Chinese empire have been, like those preceding, full of
troubles.  In the provinces north of the Yellow river
large districts, laid waste by previous rebellions, remain
waste and desolate, and have been overrun by another
crop of the same pestilent marauders, who are designated the:Nien-fi or " Northern Rebels."  Three
years ago they several times defeated large imperial
forces sent against various divisions of them, and threatened the great cities of Chefoo, Han-kau on the Yangtsz-kiang river, and even the capital itself. But little
danger, however, is now apprehended from them.
The present condition of the western provinces of
China it is difficult to ascertain. The country in the
south-west is mountainous, and partially inhabited by
tribes of people who differ much from the Chinese in
customs, language and religion.  There is a large Mohammedan element, which has found its home there for
some centuries at least. Marco Polo says that the population of that part of the empire six hundred years ago
consisted of a mixture of idolaters, Nestorian Christians
and Saracens or Mohammedans.  The latter, according
to the Chinese accounts, were the descendants of some
tribes who were called in by the emperors of the Tang
dynasty in the years 750 to 800 A.D., to aid them in
quelling domestic rebellions., They are denominated by
the Chinese "Hwuy-sz," or "T Iwui-hwui," which means
the Ouigour Tartars. The most intelligent of them read
the IKoran in Arabic. They are described as more fair
and taller than the Chinese. }Many of them wear turbans.




406    THE OLDEST AND THSE NEWEST EIPI RE.
It is declared by British officers in India, who have seen
documents circulated in Nepaul by these Mohammedans,
that in the year 1855 those of them who were working
in the Lu-sunfu silver mines of Yun-nan rebelled against
the Chinese government, and elected a sultan'for themselves, whom they arrayed in the imperial yellow; and
that they have maintained their independence until this
time. Other rebellions have been reported in the western provinces or dependent territories in the west and
north-west. But this is evident, that on the whole the
government is stronger than it was some years ago.
The prophecies, then so frequent and so confident, of
the speedy downfall of the Manchu dynasty, are now
rarely heard. The presence and aid of foreign nations
have contributed largely to this result.
The numerous and dangerous insurrections against
the imperial authority, and the manifestations of the
vast superiority of the nations of the West in the art of
war, have compelled the Chinese to seek instruction and
assistance from them. Several American, English and
French officers of ability have been employed to discipline and command Manchu troops. General Ward, an
American, especially, was respected and trusted by the
imperial government, to which he rendered important
services in putting down the Tai-ping rebellion, and in
the service of which he sacrificed his life in a battle near
the city of Ningpo, in September, 1862. He was succeeded in command by General Burgevine, also an
American, who, however, lost the confidence of the
authorities, and at length abandoned them  for their
enemies, on account of difficulties about the payment of
the soldiers and foreign officers. He lost his life by




RESULTS OF THE OPIUM WAR,           407
drowning. All excellent English officer, Major Gordon,
was of great service in 1863, in leading the imperial
troops in the sieges of Fu-shan, Tai-tsan, Su-chau and
other important cities. He afterward gave instruction
in military science to Chinese officers, and drilled bodies
of soldiers for them  at Shanghai. The French commanders lent several intelligent officers for the same
purposes. Two of these, Captains Lebreton and De
Moidry, were killed by the rebels at Kiu-ting. Admiral
Protet lost his life in the same battle.
The English inspector-general of customs at Shanghai, Mr. Lay, used his influence with the Chinese
government to obtain a commission to purchase for it
several vessels of war in Great Britain. A million of
dollars was put in his hands for the purpose. But he
went far beyond his instructions, incurred a heavy debt,
which he secured in favor of the British government
upon the vessels themselves, and added certain unjustifiable conditions designed to favor English interests. This
discreditable proceeding provoked the just indignation
of Prince Kung and of the representatives of other governments; and, in consequence, the purchase was repudiated by the imperial government and the vessels were
sold. It has been announced to be the judicious policy
of the Chinese to establish manufactories and shipyards, and make their own arms and build their own
ships.
The young son of Hien-fung, Tsai-chun, then only
seven years of age, was on the death of his father proclaimed emperor, under the name of Tung-chi. The
empress-dowager, who was not his own mother, but
who, having no children of her own, had adopted him as




408    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
her own son, according to the Chinese law, which imputes to the first and proper wife the children of the
secondary wives, was made regent at Jeh-ho. Several
other members of the royal family claimed a share in the
authority, but the brother of the late emperor, Yih-su,
Prince Kung, a very able and determined man, went
there, promptly seized and condemned to death three of
these rivals, and had himself proclaimed joint-regent with
her. He set himself at once vigorously to work in rectifying abuses, enforcing the laws over the empire, repressing the rebellious disposition of some portions of the
population, and encouraging the resumption of industry
and commerce. He found an intelligent and faithful
coadjutor in the queen-dowager, and in another female
member of the royal household possessing a rank nearly
equal to hers.
The young emperor, at this time in his sixteenth
year, is placed in the hands of strict and honest tutors,
who not only teach him faithfully the morality and
wisdom of Confucius, but continually hold before him
the noblest actions of his ancestry for his imitation, and,
it is said, do not fear severely to reprove his faults. It
is expected that he will during the present year assume
the throne, as he will soon reach the age which has been
fixed as appropriate for him to do so by the precedents
of previous emperors, especially that of Kang-hi.
What imagination dare make the bold conjecture of
what the condition of the empire will be at its close, should
the reign of Tung-chi equal in length that of Kang-hi or
Kien-lung? Will the career of this boy have been that
of a persecuting Nero or that of a believing Constantine?
Will China in the year of our Lord 1930 lie torn into




RESULTS OF THE OPIUM.f WAR.        409
bleeding fragments by the resistance bf paganism to the
necessary progress of the gospel and the science of civilized lands-or will it be a homogeneous Christian empire, one of the grandest and strongest in the history of
mankind, shedding blessings over the entire continent
and its adjacent islands, and communicating them to
distant lands to which it will have owed not alone a
debt of great evil, but also a debt of greater good?




CHAPTER XIV.
AMERICAN RELATIONS WITH THE CHINESE EMPIRE.
HE relations between our country and China date
back to the period when the United States were yet
the colonies of Great Britain, and even had something
to do with the measures which resulted in giving us
national independence.
The East India Company early set itself to the development of a trade in the Colonies which would be
profitable to its treasury. It sent here some of the tea
which it brought from China, and sought for such products of the New World as would afford a profitable
return cargo for its ships, and a means through which
it could save the payment of specie in exchange for the
merchandise of the Celestial Empire. The ginseng of
the Northern Colonies was one of the first articles which
proved advantageous to its purposes. Agents were sent
to New England, who induced the Indians to search for
this medicinal root by rewards of money, whisky,
trinkets and calico. The Christian people who were
interested in civilizing these wild tribes, elevating their
morals and giving them the blessings of the worship of
God on the Sabbath and of education for their children,
were sorely grieved by the vagrant habits, the drunkenness and other vices which were fostered by this busi410




AMERICAN.RELATIONS WITH CHINA.       411
ness, and some of the first missionaries to the Indians,
in their letters to the churches of the mother-country,
made complaint of the injury which it did to religion.
The East India Company had some share in the
political oppression which led the Colonies to revolt.
Their charges for tea were so grievous that the people
were compelled to smuggle it from their Dutch neighbors of the colony of New Amsterdam, on the Hudson.
Lord Townshend, in 1767, carried a bill through Parliament which laid a duty of three pence a pound on
tea, with something upon paper, glass and paints. This
only increased the evil, and it aroused the question of
the right to impose taxation upon those to whom the
mother-country allowed no political representation.
The colonists refused to use tea brought from England.
The losses to the East India Company were, in consequence, so great as to threaten it with bankruptcy. It
could not pay its dividends or debts, and its stock went
down to half its former value. At the suggestion of
Lord North, Parliament authorized the company to
ship its tea to America without previously paying the
duty in England. The people of Boston, of Philadelphia, of New York, of Charleston and of other places,
now determined that tea should not be brought to the
country. The first cargoes came to Boston. And there
was performed one of the acts which began the great
struggle for Independence. On the evening of the sixteenth of December, 1773, a company of citizens, disguised as Indians, seized three ships, which had recently
arrived, and without injuring any other articles, in three
hours broke open three hundred and forty chests of tea,
and emptied what the company had bought at the fac



412    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
tories at Canton, and transported twenty thousand miles,
out into the icy and briny waters of the harbor. So the
East India Company, the ill-gotten wealth it poured
into the British treasury and its Chinese trade, have a
niche in the history of this nation.
As soon as the war was ended, our people hastened to
engage for themselves in the rich trade with China.
The ship Empress, commanded by Captain Green, left
New York for Canton on the anniversary of the birthday of General Washington, February 22, 1784, six
months after the definitive treaty of peace with Great
Britain was signed at Paris.
The development of the commerce with China has
been in a remarkable and very important manner connected with that of our national territory, our internal
trade and prosperity, and even with our missionary
efforts in other parts of the world.
The winter climate of Southern China is raw and
changeable; that of the north is quite cold. The people
cannot afford fuel to warm their houses, and so protect
themselves by an increase of clothing.  The better
classes, from the earliest history of the empire, have
been accustomed at that season of the year to clothe
themselves with an abundance of warm and rich furs.
Robes and capes of various kinds are worn, some of
which are very elegant and very expensive. They constitute, indeed, a not unimportant item of the wealth
which is transmitted in families. Previous to the discovery of America these furs were supplied by the wild
Asiatic tribes on the north and the west of the empire.
The exportation of them from the colonies of the New'World to China was begun. by the English, Dutch,




AMERICAN RELATIONS WITHI CTINA.       413
French and Spaniards. The English North-west and
Hudson's Bay Companies planted their posts and sent
forth their agents and trappers over the vast regions
north of the great lakes to the borders of the Arctic
zone, and westward even beyond the Rocky Mountains.
They collected the furs of the muskrat, otter, marten,
ermine, beaver, silver and other species of fox, fitch,
chinchilla, mink and the coarser ones of several other
animals. But a sudden and great impulse was given to
the fur trade by the discovery of the abundance of the
sea-otter and other fur-bearing animals on the northwest coast of the continent, which was made by Captain
James Cook and his companions during his third voyage
to the Pacific ocean. When the information which they
obtained was published in the winter of 1784, the attention of the mercantile world was at once directed to this
new field for adventure. Numerous vessels were sent
there within the next few years. These discovered new
groups of islands in the Pacific ocean, and explored the
scarcely known western shores of the continent. Captain
Gray, who was the first man that carried the American
flag round the world in 1787 to 1790, at that time* explored Queen Charlotte's Sound, and during his next
voyage, in May, 1792, discovered the Columbia river
and named it after his own vessel. This was the basis
of the American claim to the territory which the Columbia river drains.
The opening up of these sources of wealth upon the
coast naturally suggested the importance of securing a
connection with them across the continent, whose interior
until that time was almost as unknown as the heart of
Africa. It was considered to be as wild and incapable




414    THE OLDEST AND THE NTEWEST EMPIRE.
of cultivation as the Sahara, and its place was marked
upon the maps as the " Great American Desert."  The
first to penetrate and explore it were the hardy French
and English trappers and hunters. They were encouraged by the support of rich merchants and companiesEnglish, Russian, French and American-who furnished
them supplies and purchased the spoils of their expeditions. In January, 1803, President Jefferson suggested
an exploration of the Missouri and Columbia rivers at
the expense of the government. This was agreed to by
Congress, and Captain M. Lewis, who had been Jefferson's private secretary, and Lieutenant W. Clarke were
sent forth upon the arduous work the next year. They
reached the Pacific coast November 17, 1805, and spent
the winter there. The narrative of their expedition was
read with great interest throughout the country. Its
great object was to show the possibility of commercial
intercourse between the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of
the American continent.
The fur trade now received a new impulse. Companies for its prosecution were formed in New York and
in the valley of the Mississippi. The most successful of
them was the American, which afterward became the
Pacific Fur Company, projected by John Jacob Astor,
of New York. He determined to establish a line of
trading-posts along the Missouri and down the Columbia
to the mouth of the river, where there should be a great
central dep6t for the interior and coast trade, and a post
for the vessels which should connect it with the distant
market in China. " He considered his projected establishment at the mouth of the Columbia as the emporium
to an immense commerce; as a colony that would form




AMERICAN RELATIONS WITH CHINA.            415
the germ of a wide civilization, that would in fact carry
the American population across the Rocky Mountains
and spread it along the shores of the Pacific as it already
animated the shores of the Atlantic." The great end of
all was to supply "China, that great mart for peltries,"
to avoid the long and hazardous voyage round Cape
Horn and to bring our own nation into more close connection with the trade of Asia.'
The acquaintance which was formed by our merchants
and trappers with the Pacific coast in the prosecution of
this fur trade with China led, in the end, to its colonization by our people, to our acquisition of Oregon and
California, and to the magnificent results which have
followed in later years through the discovery of the
abundance of the precious metals in the mountains of
that slope of the American continent.
The ships engaged in the fur trade visited, in their
course around the world, the ports on the eastern and
western sides of South America, in which they tarried
and bought and sold; and thus were made to exercise
an important influence upon the character of that continent. And they brought into connection with the
great world the lonely islands which lay in their track.
The history of the Sandwich Islands is peculiarly
connected with this commerce.  The fur ships were
accustomed to time their departure from  the Atlantic
ports so as to reach the North-west coast in the spring.
They traded during the summer up and down it with
1 Many interesting facts relating to the fur trade can be gathered from
LEWIS & CLARKE, Expedition, etc. (Philada., 1814); WASHINGTON IRVING,
Astoria, chap. iii.; H. M. BRACKENRIDGE, Views of Louisiana (Pittsburg,
1814); ROBERT GREENHOW, Hstory of California and Oregon, chaps. vi., vii.
(Boston, 1845).




416    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EM. PIRE.
the Indians. In the fall they went down to the Sandwich Islands, and there refitted and laid in fresh provisions; dried, cleaned and preserved their furs; and
purchased sandal-wood, sharks' fins and tortoise shells
for the China trade. The second spring they returned
north for a further supply of furs, in the fall touched
at the islands again to put them in order and thence
sailed away for China. An exchange of their cargo for
tea, silk and porcelain was soon effected there, and they
joyfully hastened upon the wings of the monsoon toward
their Atlantic homes.
The name given by the Chinese to the Sandwich
Islands was Tan-hiang Shan, the " Sandal-wood Islands."
This name they bear commonly in the Chinese language
till this day, though the sandal-wood has long ago been
cut off, so that now only a bush of it can be found here
and there on the mountains. It is wonderful to trace
out the chain of influences as they affected the people of
these and other islands. The trade in sandal-wood enriched a few of the prominent chiefs. Kamehameha, an
ambitious chief of the island of Hawaii, was furnished
by it with a part of the means necessary to prosecute his
determination to make himself master, first of the large
island on which he lived, then of the whole group. He
compelled his people to search for the precious fragrant
wood, hew and clean it and carry it down the mountain
sides upon their backs. He traded it for vessels, guns,
ammunition and stores. He succeeded in conquering
the whole of the islands. This removed some of the
greatest obstacles to the future efforts of the missionaries
of the gospel. Through the tractable native Hawaiians,
who were employed as seamen on the ships engaged in




AMtERICAN RELATIONS TITIi CHINAA.     417
this same trade, the attention of American Christians
was turned to those interesting people. The presence
of two of them, Obookiah and Hopu, at New Haven,
helped to kindle the missionary impulses which created
the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, in June, 1810, and led one of its first missionary
companies, in 1819, to undertake the conversion of the
Hawaiian nation to Christ. Thus the commerce whose
end was to clothe with costly furs the wealthy inhabitants of the empire of China was appointed by the Providence which wisely and mercifully manages the world
to be a means to surround it with a rich belt of celestial
blessings to our race.
It would be exceedingly entertaining to trace the
effects of the commerce between China and America
upon the development of the civilization of the New
World in other respects besides those mentioned. Our
space in this volume permits us, however, to speak now
of but one of them-that is, the advancement of the art
of ship-building.
The fresh teas were brought down from the interior
to Canton in the autumn. The first "chops," or lots, in
the market were sold at several cents a pound higher
than those which came in from two to four weeks later.
There was much comrpetition among the foreign merchants for the early teas, and anxiety to be the first to
get them into the markets of this country or Europe.
And this will be understood when it is remembered that
a difference of only two cents in the pound, in a cargo
of one thousand tons of tea, makes forty thousand dollars
more or less in the profits of it. The decline in the
prices of the teas after the sale of the first chops sug27




418    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMIPIRE
gested the construction of swift ships, which would
enable the owners to take advantage of the fall, and yet
land their cargoes first in the Atlantic ports. Hence,
immediately after the Opium War, there began to appear
in the Chinese waters long, trim vessels, whose narrowness of beam, sharp lines, tall masts, heavy spars and
weight of canvas, appalled the old salts of the trade, who
shook their heads and pronounced them nothing but
coffins, that could not stand up in a hard storm. However, these "clippers" were but the forerunners in a
great reformation of the art of ship-building; and now
the days of the " Cleopatra" and the " Bull-dog" and
the "Duke of MIarlborough" have passed away, and the
generation of the "Wings of the Morning" and the
"Carrier Dove" and. the "Morning Star" has taken
their place. Other nations have caught the spirit of
advancement in the construction of sailing vessels, especially for the China trade. And with each returning
spring we read of the splendid races of the clippers from
China, a grand and exhilarating contest over an ocean
track from one to the other side of the globe, compared
with which the strifes between the youths of rival universities in England and America look like child's play.
And the same great causes will in time dispense with
canvas. The age of steam on the ocean is already begun.
The commerce with China and India has cut out for
itself a new channel through the Isthmus of Suez. It
will soon cut another through the Isthmus of Darien.
But either isthmus is adjacent to tropic seas, in which a
vessel with sails'alone may lie for days, and even for
weeks together, upon a surface as smooth as polished
glass, but made dangerous in places by currents and




' --... 9:-)                                   ~








AME7RICAN R]ELATIONS WITH CEHINA.      419
submarine rocks. Steam is essential to the accelerated
communication of the future. Within a generation or
two fronm the present one the great oceans of the world
will be covered with fleet lines of vessels propelled by
steam or some more compact, economical and effective
power, and engaged in the universal distribution of the
gifts with which Providence has favored the different
climes and races of man. And it is interesting to consider, in connection with the subject before us, that it is
the necessities of the intercourse with China which will
most imperatively demand this great advancement and
inaugurate this great commercial era.
The history of American diplomacy in China presents
nothing of special interest previous to the Opium War.
As soon as possible after its close, the Hon. Caleb Cushing was dispatched as the first minister plenipotentiary
from the United States to that empire. A treaty was
made with Ki-ying, a member of the royal fanily, and
three subordinates acting in connection with him, which
was signed at WTang-hia, July 3, 1844. There were some
remarkable advances manifest in this treaty upon those
previously made by Sir Henry Pottinger, the British
plenipotentiary. In a dispatch on the subject from Mr.
Cushing to the Secretary of State, he enumerates sixteen
"4 provisions which are not embraced either in the English treaty of Nanking or in the treaty supplementary
thereto."  Some of them are important and remarkable,
as exhibiting the different spirit which animates the
treaty of Wang-hia.  The protection of Christian converts or the right of Christian missionaries to follow the
openings of commerce had not been brought forward in
the British  treaty.  But in that of WTang-hia, as M-r.




420     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMiIPIEEo
Cushing mentions, "Citizens of the United States are
permitted to have all accommodations at each of the five
ports, not only as heretofore in the construction of mercantile and dwelling-houses, but also for churches, cemeteries and hospitals. Chinese scholars, who might act as
teachers or assistants of Missionaries, had formerly been
liable to severe punishments. To guard against this in
the future an article was inserted in the treaty making
provision for the employment by Americans of persons
to teach the languages of the empire, and the purchase
of books was legalized."  It was argued by the American
minister, and assented to by the Chinese commissioners,
that to persecute and oppress such of its subjects as
either gave instruction or sold books to foreigners in
China was a great obstacle to the study of the languages
of China, and thus to the acquisition of the means of
satisfactory intercourse with its government. The painful and delicate subject of the opium trade was discussed.
This had not been directly mentioned in the English
treaties; but it was provided by the treaty of Wang-hia
that citizens of the United States engaged in this, or
any other contraband trade, should receive no protection from  the American government, nor should the
flag of the United States be abusively employed by
other nations as a cover for the violation of the laws
of China.
The general character awarded to the people of the
United States by the Chinese has been that they are
more peaceable and more friendly to them  than any
other foreigners. It suits the subjects of European governments to ridicule this assertion when it is made by
Americans; but I know by experience that it is true,




AMIEBICAN RELATIONS WITH CHINA.       421
and so well have other nations been aware of it that
individuals of them have been known, when threatened
by a furious Chinese mob, to declare that they were
"4 men of the country of the flowery flag."  The activity
of the American missionaries in preparing and circulating gospels and tracts in the native tongue, and the influence of the hospital of Dr. Parker, which was resorted
to by thousands of patients annually from the whole
province and from great distances in the interior, had
more to do with producing this kindly feeling than even
the republican and pacific character of our nation.
A beautiful and touching illustration of this feeling
occurred at Amoy. The amiable and devoted Rev. Dr.
David Abeel was one of our missionaries at that port.
Among the Chinese gentlemen with whom he was acquainted there was Seu Ki-yu, an intelligent and able
officer, who was subsequently made governor of the province of Fu-kien. The results of the war greatly excited
the interest of this gentleman in regard to the geography
and history of the nations of the West.  He procured
translations from works in our language, more especially
extracts from Murray's Cyclopedia of Geography, and
spent many hours with Dr. Abeel and others gathering
information from them. This was thrown together and
published by him in 1848, in a work containing ten parts
or volumes, under the name of "A General Survey of
Maritime Countries."  He gave in this work a fair account of the colonization of America and of the NVar of
Independence. But it was the character of our Washington which specially and deeply impressed him. He
dwelt upon the life and actions of Washington in one
of his chapters as something which equaled the ancient




422    THE OLDEST AND THE  NEWEtT E3IPIRE.
Chinese ideals. The following extracts will convey an
idea of this portion of the workl
" Washington was born in the ninth year of the emperor Yung Ching. His father died when he was but
ten years of age. He was trained up by his mother.
While yet young he manifested much intelligence, both
in regard to civil and military affairs, and excelled in
personal strength and courage. Washington first held
a commission in the war of the English against the
French, in which he led out ihis troops against the marauding aborigines of the southern parts of the country,
and conquered them. But the English general did not
fairly represent to the government his worthy deeds.
His countrymen, however, desired his acceptance of an
important office; but this sickness compelled him to
decline.
"At the period when the people rose up in rebellion
against England, they urgently besought Washington to
become their commander-in-chief. He at once accepted
the position. Without arms, ammunition or provisions,
Washington roused his countrymen to action by his own
patriotic spirit. He planted his army first near to the
capital of one of the provinces, before which the English commander-in-chief had collected his ships of war.
Suddenly a storm rose and dispersed the ships, which
gave Washington an opportunity to attack and obtain
possession of the city.
"The English general subsequently collected his
forces and drove Washington from his position. His
soldiers now became greatly disheartened, and wished to
lay down their arms, but he, with the same heroic spirit
which he had exhibited from the first, having reorgan



AMERICAN RELATIONS WITH CHINA.        423
ized his army, again attacked the English, and this time
with success. From that time, during eight years of
bloody conflict, while his army was often reduced and
weakened, the spirit of Washington was undiminished.
The English army in the mean time became exhausted.
The French raised a large force, crossed the sea and
joined Washington in resistance to the English. The
Spanish and Dutch governments favored peace. The
English, unable to continue the contest, concluded a
treaty with Washington, according to which the northern part of the continent, a cold region, was retained by
them, while they yielded the southern part of it, a fertile
country.
"' When Washington had established the government
upon a firm foundation, he disbanded the army and desired to return to the pursuits of husbandry, but the
people would not consent to it, and pressed upon him
the office of Chief Magistrate. In an address to Congress, Washington said,'To obtain a kingdom for one's
self, to transmit it to posterity, were a criminal ambition,
Integrity should distinguish those who are to be elevated
to this position in the nation.' Surely Washington was
an extraordinary man. His successes as a soldier were
more rapid than those of Shing and Kwang, and in per-t
sonal courage he was superior to Tsau-pi and Liu-pang.
With the two-edged sword [of justice] he established
the tranquillity of the country over an area of several
thousand miles, He refused to receive pecuniary recompense. He labored to rear an elective system of govern,
ment. Patriotism like this is to be commended under
the whole heavens. Truly it reminds us of our own
three great ancient dynasties! In administering the




424     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST E31~PIRE.
government he fostered virtue, he avoided war and he
succeeded in making his country superior to all other
nations.  I have seen his portrait.  His countenance
exhibits great mental power. Who must not concede to
him the character of an extraordinary man?"
The subsequent career of the author of this remarkable tribute to the character of the Father of his Country
is full of interest to us, and may be mentioned here.
Such encomliums paid to a person of the West, whose
nations seemed to be the fountain of all evil to China,
offended the imperial government.  In 1850, the noble
and candid Seu Ki-yu was degraded and sent into private life, in his native province of Shan-si.  There he
remained until after the accession of the present youthful
emperor to the throne, under the regency of Prince
Kung.  Since that his intelligent acquaintance with
foreign countries has led to his being summoned to
the council for foreign affairs.  In March, 1867, when
seventy years of age, he was placed by an imperial decree at the head of the new "Institution for Giving
Instruction in the Arts and Sciences of the West,"  which
has been established at Peking, and has excited so much
interest in America and Europe.  On learning of this
appointment, the President of the United States, through
the Hon. W. H. Seward, as Secretary of State, sent to
Peking a portrait of Washington, which IMr. Burlingame presented to the venerable Seu Ki-yu, with a
written expression of the gratification of the government
of the United States on account of the honor done him.'
1 On this occasion, after the act of presentation, an interesting conversation
took place between Mr. Burlingame and the Chinese ministers present, of
which the following is a portion:




AMERICAN RELATIONS WITH CHINA.                      425
The  government of the United  States viewed  with
anxiety the new breaking out of hostilities between
Mr. Burlingame: "The presentation of this picture indicates a commerce of
thought. We have borrowed many useful ideas from you. Some of our arts
were originally derived from China, and perhaps we may have some things
to offer in exchange-industrial arts, physical sciences, and religious truth."
Wen-Siang: "Our maxim is, in everything to inquire for the best method
and to adopt it for our own, no matter where it may originate."
Mr. Burlingame: "The institutions of our country present many points of
resemblance to your own. For instance, the elective principle which pervades
us is quite analogous to your practice of admitting all honest citizens to the
privilege of a fair competition for the honors and emoluments of office."
Wen-Siang: "With you that excellent system descends from Washington,
who refused to transmit to his successor a legacy of hereditary power, but preferred to leave it in the hands of the people."
Mri. Burlingame: "Like your ancient sovereigns, Washington honored agriculture by himself holding the plough, and, like them, he inculcated the doctrine
that rulers should employ moral influence in preference to physical force."
Tan: " Nothing is more desirable than that nations should conform in their
practice to a principle which is at once so just and so humane."
Tung: "That is the surest way to conciliate the love and respect of other
nations, for our. sacred books lay down the principle that'those who respect
others will be respected, and those who love others will be loved.'"
The written reply which Mr. Burlingame received to his letter to the
Chinese statesman was as follows:
"SIR: I yesterday perused your highly-prized address, in which you have
bestowed upon me such high commendation, in presenting me the painting
of the portrait of Washington, the founder of your honorable country. As I
and my associates again and again looked at this beautiful and elegant gift
our pleasure and admiration increased, and we could all only the more value
and appreciate this worthy remembrance of you.
"Among all the great men of your land, I think that Washington stands
first, for his surprising capacity. He founded and planned its enduring institutions as a pattern for all ages, and his merit makes him a perfect link to
connect the great men of antiquity with those who will come in all time, so
that his name will surely be honored by mankind through all ages.
"I beg to renew my thanks, in sending you this answer, and avail myself
of the opportunity to offer my wishes for your highest happiness."
"SEU KI-YU."
"His Excellency Hon. ANsoN BURLINGAME,
"United States M~inister"9




426    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EM. PIRE.
Great Britain, supported by France as an ally, and
China in the year 1856. President Buchanan sent
thither the Hon. William B. Reed to watch the course
of events, and to act the part of a mediator and peacemaker when the opportunity should offer. In this he
was sustained by the influence of Russia. Mr. Reed
arrived in Hong-kong, on the fine war steamer Minnesota, November 7, 1857. He at once set himself to
remove the difficulties between the English and Chinese,
and save if possible the further effusion of blood. He
endeavored in vain to persuade the proud and obstinate
governor Yeh to yield, and save Canton from bombardment. He proceeded to the north, and made on behalf
of his government a treaty of peace with China which
was signed June 18. The first article of the treaty contains a significant reference to the posture of the United
States in relation to the war then in progress, as well as
to any which might thereafter arise. The article says:
" There shall be, as there have always been, peace and
friendship between the United States of America and
the Ta-Tsing Empire, and between their people respectively. They shall not insult or oppress each other for
any trifling cause, so as to produce an estrangement between them; and if any other nation should act unjustly
or oppressively, the United States will exert their good
offices, on being informed of the case, to bring about an
amicable arrangement of the question, thus showing their
friendly feelings."
A subsequent article of this treaty is to be interpreted
by keeping in view the bitter root of the difficulties between Great Britain and China which led to the previous
war of 1839 to'42, and to this war. After stating the




AMIERICAN RELATIONS WITH CEINA.      427
ports where Americans shall be permitted to reside and
their vessels to trade, it continues in the following language:
"But said vessels shall not carry on a clandestine
and fraudulent trade at other ports of China not declared to be legal, or along the coasts thereof; and any
vessel under the American flag violating this provision
shall, with her cargo, be subject to confiscation to the
Chinese government; and any citizen of the United.
States who shall trade in any contraband article of merchandise shall be subject to be dealt with by the Chinese
government, without being entitled to any countenance
or protection from that of the United States; and the
United States will take measures to prevent their flag
from being abused by the subjects of other nations as a
cover for the violation of the laws of the empire."
It was a very interesting fact, which was remarked at
the time with great pleasure in our country, that the
first announcement of news from the Old World made
by the Atlantic telegraph cable, August 25, 1858, after
the ascription of thanks and utterance of hope in the
words, "Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace,
good-will toward men," was that peace had been made
between China and the European allies!
The development of the foreign trade with China
during the brief time which has passed since the last war
has been very great. The exports and imports at its
close amounted to some eighty millions of dollars a
year-now it is two hundred and thirteen millions. The
American government has been represented most of the
time by the Hon. Anson Burlingame, who has taken the
lead, with remarkable ability and success, in establishing




428    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
the policy of peaceful co-operation between the chief
treaty-powers, in encouraging the Chinese to adopt a
more wise and progressive policy in their intercourse
with foreign nations and in the introduction of the improvements of the age. He has been cordially supported
in this by Sir Frederick Bruce, the late British minister,
by M. Berthemy, the late French minister, and by the
representatives of the other powers. Several very important reforms have been inaugurated, and the germs
of beneficial Western systems or institutions planted;
upon which-subject we cannot, however, dwell now.
It has been a point of the first magnitude to arrest at
once the alienation of Chinese territory to any foreign
power. The history of British India has illustrated the
results of even small and feeble beginnings in that way.
The sites for factories and forts at Surat, Armegum and
Hoogley, two centuries ago, were the little acorns whence
grew the oaks which came to overshadow the nations of
the Indian peninsula. The sites of the factories at Canton, Shanghai and other ports were claimed already by
some of the consuls to be wholly under foreign jurisdiction. That at Shanghai, as the centre of the extensive
trade at that point, covered several square miles, was
occupied with costly and capacious foreign buildings,
and was becoming the abode of a large and wealthy
Chinese population. The representatives of the several
commercial powers came to see the dangers to their common interests and those to the future unity and permanence of the Chinese empire, which were involved in
the permission of the claims to the jurisdiction of any
one of them over these seats of trade; and they agreed
together, notwithstanding the indignation and protests




AM2IERICAN BELA TIONS WITH CHINA.     429
of some of their subjects, to sustain the original authority
of the Chinese government, while they maintained whatever local administration of justice might be required
by the necessities of their own people.
Some of the foreigners claimed privileges which had
not been conceded by treaty. There was a continual
disposition to transgress Chinese forms and laws. And
some well-meaning and some interested parties pressed
the construction of railroads, telegraphs and other accessories of trade and travel in a manner calculated to
thwart the increasing sense of their usefulness among
the Chinese and delay their final establishment.
While these and other serious matters were pressing
upon the minds of the able officers of the Council of
Foreign Affairs at Peking, 3Mr. Burlingame, who had
been in China six years, determined to resign his post
and return to America. The news of it excited much
regret among both Chinese and foreign diplomatists.
The former endeavored in vain to dissuade him from
his purpose. Failing to accomplish this, he was invited
by Prince Kung to a farewell entertainment, at which
were present many of the leading officers of the government. During it they expressed to him their gratitude
for his offices to them as an intelligent and disinterested
counselor and friend. And they seem to have conceived at this time the thought of putting the relations
of the empire with foreign countries upon a more just
and equal basis, by sending to them an imperial embassy
of which he should be the head. They promptly consulted some of their more reliable friends among the
foreign gentlemen at the capital, and in two days after
they tendered to Mr. Burlingame, much to his surprise,




430    TfIE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EM1:PIRE.
the appointment of minister plenipotentiary of China to
the Western powers.
The designation of Mr. Burlingame to the most responsible and honorable office of being the first plenipotentiary of the empire of China in modern ages to any
nation of the West may be considered to be a national
compliment to the United States, for the following reasoils. It was, no doubt, their experience of the sincere
and generous friendship of the representative of the
government of the United States which induced the
proposal of the Chinese to him to undertake this mission. The burning and terrible memories of the past,
and the peculiar temptations to the abuse of the trust to
their own advantage, would probably have prevented
the appointment of a subject of any first-class European
government, and that of one of a secondary nation would
not have carried with it sufficient weight. The jealousies
of the leading European powers, it would be foreseen,
would probably defeat the general ends of the embassy
under the leadership of any one of them. And it was
doubtless the same causes, and the liberality and friendship it had always shown, which led to the selection of
the government of the United States as the first one to
which the embassy should be sent, in order to secure its
general designs. And subsequent facts have proved that
had the embassy been otherwise constituted, or had it
gone first to either of the European courts, it would
have wholly or comparatively failed in the attainment
of its splendid successes.
Mr. Burlingame left the Chinese capital on the 25th
of November, 1867. The embassy consisted, besides the
principal, of Chih-kang and Sun Chia-ku,'a Manchu




MES








AMERICAN RELATIONS WITH CHINA.        431
and a Chinese officer, each wearing the red ball on his
cap which indicates an official of a rank next to the
highest in the empire; J. McLeary Brown, formerly of
the British legation, and M. Deschamps, as secretaries;
Teh Ming and Fung I as Chinese attaches, and several
other persons in subordinate positions. The embassy
was detained five days on the way to Tien-tsin, which
was distant but two days' journey, and put in some peril,
by bands of mounted robbers. It went to Shanghai,
thence to San Francisco, where it was most cordially
welcomed by both the American and Chinese mercantile
communities. It reached Washington in May, 1868.
The embassy was treated with much distinction at the
American capital. No American statesman was so capable and disposed to enter cordially into its objects as the
Secretary of State at that time, the Hon. William H.
Seward, whose mind had long apprehended the great
features of the policy which American and foreign nations should pursue in relation to the Chinese empire.
On the 16th of July the Senate of the United States ratified a treaty which he had made in behalf of this country
with the representative of the Chinese government.
The treaty defines and fixes the principles of the
intercourse of Western nations with China, of the importance of which I have already spoken. It secures
the territorial integrity of the empire, and concedes to
China the rights which the civilized nations of the
world accord to each other as to eminent domain over
land and waters, and jurisdiction over persons and
property therein. It takes the first step toward the
appointment of Chinese consuls in our seaports-a measure promotive of both Chinese and American interests.




432    THE OLDEST ANVD THE NEWEST EMIPIRE.
It secures exemption from all disability or persecution
on account of religious faith in either country. It
recognizes the right of voluntary emigration and makes
penal the wrongs of the coolie traffic. It pledges privileges as to travel or residence in either country such as
are enjoyed by the most favored nation. It grants to
the Chinese permission to attend our schools and colleges, and allows us to freely establish and maintain
schools in China. And while it acknowledges the right
of the Chinese government to control its own whole
interior arrangements, as to railroads, telegraphs and
other internal improvements, it suggests the willingness
of our government to afford aid toward their construction by designating and authorizing suitable engineers
to perform the work, at the expense of the Chinese government.
The treaty expressly leaves the question of naturalization in either country an open one. And we would
fain hope that no attempt will be made to construe the
clause granting exemption from all disability or persecution on account of their religious faith, which should
properly protect the Chinese against injustice or violence
as to their religious worship or professions, so as to imply
that Buddhism possesses equal civil privileges and immunities with Christianity, or may, violate our Sabbaths
with the clamor of its public demonstrations, or interfere
with our common-school education or our judicial oaths.
This the Christian sentiment of the nation would justly
abhor, and the omnipotent God surely chastise.
aWhile slavery existed in the United States the Senate
would not have ratified a national covenant which accords so freely the rights of equal humanity and equal




AiJIEItA~N RiELATIONS WITH CHINA.       433
civilization to a tawny race not of European blood.
That covenant will be kept with good faith on our part.
It is in harmony with the article of the Constitution
recently adopted,' which says that no State shall "deprive any person of life, liberty or property without due
process of law, nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of its laws."  This article
we accept as the text in the Constitution of which this
treaty is one example.  It must sweep away the legal
disabilities to which the Chinese have been subjected on
the Pacific coast, permit them to obtain the sheer rights
of humanity, and punish the villains who now plunder,
abuse or murder them under the assurance that the testimony of witnesses of that race will be rejected in our
courts.
The members of the embassy visited a few of the
leading points of interest in the country, though they
refused as a rule to accept municipal honors tendered to
them. They were particularly interested in a visit to
the grand cataract of Niagara and to the State prison at
Auburn, New York, the order, discipline, cleanliness
and healthfulness of which impressed upon these ministers a lesson that should be imitated in the terrible
places of punishment in China, which are in the condition of those of Europe during the Middle Ages.
They enjoyed visits to the cities of Boston and New
York. Reviews of bodies of soldiers, of fire-brigades
and other honors were offered to them, which would
exert an important influence upon their estimate of the
value of Western civilization.
It is not necessary to follow in detail the progress of
The Fourteenth Amendment, section 1.
23O




434    THE OLDEST AND TiE NEIVEST EMPIRE.
this first imperial Chinese embassy. In England it was
received at first very coldly, and it was some months
before proper attention could be secured from the government to its objects. At length, however, on November 20, it was presented to the queen at Windsor Castle.
The audience-room was filled with the royal family and
distinguished members of the nobility. Mr. Burlingame
was presented to her Majesty by Lord Stanley. He
addressed her in the name of the emperor of China,
expressing desires for her continued health and happiness and the prosperity of her reign, making a hasppy
allusion to her friendship to the nation of which he was
a citizen, that whence the embassy had last come. He
then presented his credentials from the emperor of
China as his ambassador, a document richly painted
upon a sheet of yellow satin. The Chinese members of
the embassy were then introduced to the queen. At a
luncheon served to the company in the castle, Lord
Stanley took occasion to say that his own sentiments
perfectly accorded with those of Mr. Burlingame relative to China. He said: "It is true that a certain
degree of opposition, originating in ignorance of the real
object of the Chinese mission, coupled with a desire to
adhere to the old traditional British coercive policy, met
Mr. Burlingame on his arrival in England, but this
has all passed away. Mr. Burlingame, by his dignified
course and feeling the grandeur and importance of the
high trust confided to his care, -has conducted himself in
such a manner as to completely disarm opposition and,
create a favorable impression not only for China, but for
the United States; for, while acting as the representative of the emperor of China, his dignified bearing and




AMERICAN RELATIONS WITH CHINA.         435
progressive ideas have exhibited him as a true type of
the representative American." Lord Stanley then concluded by expressing the belief that the cordial principles which are fast influencing the nations of the world
have changed foes to friends.
What heart is there that will not join in the cordial
wish that the treaties made by the embassy with Great
Britain, France, Prussia and other European powers
may be the commencement of a new era in the diplomatic and national intercourse of China with those and
all other lands of the West!
It has been questioned whether the government of
China really means to fulfill the pledges made in its behalf by Mr. Burlingame and realize the hopes he has
excited. This is certain, that the sense exists of the necessity of new relations with foreign governments, of a
larger accordance with their spirit and principles, and of
the introduction of many of those arts which make them
superior in warfare and in influence over the happiness
and condition of mankind. It is certain that the powerful party which supports him will be greatly affected by
his personal influence and that of the members of the
embassy and others who have of late years become acquainted with foreign lands and the improvements of
modern science, among whom must be classed the scholars of Protestant missions, and even the returned Chinese
visitors to California, Australia and other countries.
But it is no less certain that the bad behavior of foreign
smugglers of opium, acts of violence at the ports frequented by foreign shipping, the political intrigues of
Romish priests and the failure of the powers which have
contracted with China to fulfill their part, in the letter




436    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
or the spirit, may defeat or procrastinate the benefits
which have been hoped for.
But whatsoever the course of other powers in the
future toward China, we may trust that the posture of
the government of the United States toward her will be
unchanged; that the oldest and the newest empire of
the world will mutually support, enrich and benefit each
other, and that the younger will continue to act for the
elder the friendly part of a mediator and interpreter
with the other nations of the West.




CHAPTER  XV.
ANCIENT CONNECTIONS WITH THIS CONTINENTE
OUR  ancestors four centuries ago found numerous
races of men, very different from any they had ever
before seen, occupying this newly-discovered continent.
And our further acquaintance with them shows that
these races differ as much from each other as they differ
from the people of Europe. In stature, in complexion,
in the features of the face, in the shape of the skull, in
pursuits, in domestic usages, in religious worship, in the
measure of intellect and in energy, they widely vary.
The widest contrasts have existed among those on the
Pacific coast. The wretched Digger tribes are among the
lowest of mankind. They lie on the ground in the sun,
their low foreheads, bushy thickets of short hard hair
filled with vermin, black skins, large mouths and small
vacant eyes indicating a nature little above that of the
brutes. And yet down that coast formerly ranged the
Toltec and the Aztec, the remains of whose cities still
exist, whose civilization compares with that of the nations
of Southern Asia; and southward we find the remains of
those of the former inhabitants of Central America and
of Peru, which are fully as wonderful.. One of the most
interesting topics of the present. volume will be the evidence that these civilized lePople were of Asiatic origin.
437:




438     THE OLDEST AND THE.NEWEST EMPIRE.
Whence originated the tribes of the Atlantic coast?
-is a question which we will not here discuss.  They
have been claimed by learned men writing in behalf of
the Jews, the Phoenicians, the Irish and the Welsh.
Some men of learning do not doubt that the Scandinavian mariners traced our Atlantic coast from Greenland southward the whole length of our New England
States, and deposited the seeds of communities which
sprang up in wild forms there.l And yet the narratives
of those of them who returned to Europe show that they
had found races of men already existing there. Whence
came those races? The legends of some of them-translated by Schoolcraft and others-point to a long and
dreary path, by many successive migrations, from  the
farthest north-west.  And in this we find one cause of
so great diversities in their character.
The way in which the first colonies were formed upon
the Pacific shores must be borne in mind. They certainly neither originated from  one spot, nor were commenced at one period. It seems reasonable to suppose
that the earliest individuals found their way hither in
the most remote ages of history, that as their number
increased they slowly moved toward the south and west,
forming naturally as they progressed new habits, new
ideas, new sounds in speech, new peculiarities of constitution. Those longest here would impart most powerfully their acquired characteristics to the whole.  And
yet there would be manifest features impressed by the
The most satisfactory accounts of these are contained in the Antiquitates
Americance of REAFN (Danish Counselor of State) and the communications of
himself, Repp and others in the 3iemoires de la Societe -Royale des Antiquaires
du Nord;.Copenjhague; 1836-39,~ pp. 369 —385 and 1840-43, pp. 5-15, 80-131,
155-162.




ANCIENT CVONYVFCTIONS WI7iTH TiSS COLYNTI-XEIVT. 439
elements added from time to time by successive additions
from the Old World. Thus we may trace the sources
of peculiarities which we find among the races of the
New World.
The first class of evidence of the Asiatic origin of the
former races of this continent we find in the great agencies of nature employed from age to age by the great
Governor of the world, as it were appointed to bring
them hither.
The ocean was by our fathers regarded as a great salt
pond; its waters only moving in the disturbance of its
surface by the winds, or as they rose and fell by the
attraction of the moon. But later generations have discovered that it is animated by a mighty universal life,
which circulates from pole to pole and around the globe.
Cook and the earliest adventurers upon the mild Pacific
observed the great currents which sweep, some with
great rapidity, governed by the zone and by the conformation of the opposite continents, with majestic flow
from shore to shore. They have now been laid down
upon our charts and described by geographers.'Much
light has been thrown upon those of the North Pacific
by the careful observations made in our naval and mercantile vessels. Great interest has attached to the suc.cessive developments of the fact that a vast current
almost fills the immense surface of that portion of the
Pacific within the temperate zone, resembling the Gulf
Stream in the Atlantic ocean. Rising in the tropical
zone, south of the Chinese coast, its genial warmth is
expended at last upon the shores of California and
Mexico, and even upon those of Peru. Its velocity,
opposite the Japanese Islands, reaches seventy or eighty




440     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIREo
miles a day. Its effects upon the climate of the Armeri;
can coast are very great, "The winters are so mild in
bPget's sound, in latitude 48~ north, that snow rarely
falls there, and the inhabitants are never enabled to fill
their ice-houses for the summer; and vessels trading to
Petropaulowski and the coast of Kamtschatka, whien they
become unwieldy from accumulation of ice upon their
hulls and rigging, run over to a higher latitude on the
American coast and thaw out, in the same manner that
vessels frozen up on our own' coast retreat again into the
Gulf Stream until favored by an easterly wind."' Just
as the current of the Atlantic Gulf Stream transports the
tropical logs from the shores of the Caribbean sea and
strands thema upon the Hebrides and Norway, so that
of the Kuri-siwu, or " Black Stream," as the Japanese
style it, bears the waifs of Asia to the Aleutian Islands
and the north-west coast of America.
The winds, too, have a great commission to fulfill.
The lesson of modern observation is that they too move
in their courses according to the appointment of a
supreme and all-wise will. The monsoons of the Indian and Pacific oceans are linked in a continuous chain.
What is known in the Western Pacific as the south-west
monsoon commences in gentle breezes, blowing steadily,
however, day and night in one direction from April till
October, off Madagascar, sweeps along the whole length
of the continent of Africa and the whole breadth of
Asia, whitening the billows of the China sea with the
violence of a gale, and is felt with diminishing power to
the centre of the Pacific ocean; and so is most important
as an aid to the solution of the question we are now con1 Narrative of the United States Japan Expedition, vol. ii, pp. 363-370.




ANCIENT CONNECTIONS WITH THIS COCONTINENT. 441
sidering, as to the origin of the American races. The
effects of this vast atmospheric tide, whose semi-annual
ebb and flood outreach the opposite extremes of the
eastern hemisphere, in awakening and facilitating intercourse and trade among the numerous countries and
islands within its limits, impress the attention of one
who is conversant with that part of the world. But it
has further ends. It is like the gifts of revelation to the
Jews, which find their highest significance and their
wisest interpreters in the opposite side of the world and
in the end of time.
The stupendous hurricanes of the Indian and Pacific
oceans have of late years been explained. They were
formerly regarded by seamen with the utmost terror.
Whence and how they came and went was as incomprehensible to that class of men as any other awful calamity
with which he that is permitted to go to and fro in the
earth, walking up and down in it, chose to visit them.
But now it is known that an arm of infinite wisdom
sways their great movements. Those of the northern and
southern hemisphere rise respectively near the equator
and move outward toward either pole. Those of the
southern hemisphere invariably revolve on their centre,
in the same direction with the hands of a watch; that is,
from north to east, south and west. Those of the northern hemisphere whirl in the opposite direction, or contrary to the course of the hands of a watch. Those
which rise in the China sea are guided by the geography of the coast and move in its general direction,
and within two or three degrees of it pass the Japanese
Islands, vex in their wrath the waters of the North Pacific, and often stretch away even to the vicinity of the




442    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
Sandwich Islands. It requires little imagination to conceive how potent an agency are these typhoons, or hurricanes, in distributing the populations of the shores which
they visit.
Now let us present a second class of evidence as to the
source whence these races in America sprang. We have
abundant proof that vessels from the Asiatic side have
been wrecked upon the American coast and upon the
island groups of the Pacific ocean within the memory
of man.
The voyager through the seas that skirt the empires
of China and Japan will be amazed to see the countless
vessels of every kind whose heavy, yellow mat sails and
high, painted poops spot the blue waves. Some of them
are transports, deeply laden with rice, salt fish, provisions
of every kind and all manner of wares and dry goods.
There is a boundless internal commerce between city
and city, or province and province, or with neighboring
countries within two thousand miles' distance. Some are
the homes of a population of probably several millions
in all, that, like aquatic birds, are ever on the wing and
subsist wholly by fishing. Families are born, live and
die upon them, who only visit the shore to obtain the
necessaries of life or to propitiate the gods that rule the
sea. Merchants, pilgrims, emigrants and others travel
upon these various classes of vessels.
These craft sometimes are driven from or mistake
their course. And when the demons of the terrible
typhoon drive through their fleets, numbers are hurried
far off into seas unknown to them, to be speedily sunk,
or to be tossed about they know not whither for weary
months, subsisting upon the cargoes of provisions on




ANCIENT CONNECTIONS WITH THIS CONTINENT. 443
board of them, the fish they catch and the rains of
heaven, or to be cast upon remote islands or countries
and see their native land no more.
A  dozen cases of Japanese or Chinese junks picked
up at sea, or wrecked upon our north-west coast or the
Sandwich Islands, have come to my knowledge, by the
newspapers or in conversation with seamen, within but
a few years. I have seen Japanese in San Francisco
thus rescued at different times.  Captain C. J. W. Russell, for some time a resident among the Indian tribes
north of the Columbia river, informed me that he found
there legends of vessels which had been cast upon that
coast, having people of a strange nation on board; and
he presented me with two copper coins obtained from
the Indians, which both contain the inscription, in- Chinese characters, 6"KWAN-YUNG.  CURRENT ]MONEY."
"Kwan-yung" is the name of the emperor under whose
reign the money was coined, but I have been unable to
ascertain whether he was Chinese or Japanese, or when
he lived. If Chinese, they are more than two centuries
old, since they do not possess the 5Manchu characters
which distinguish the issues of the present dynasty.
Part of the crew of a Japanese junk, wrecked upon our
shores about 1832, found their way to England and
thence to China, and there they assisted the Rev. ]Mr.
Gutzlaff to translate into their native tongue portions of
the word of God.l
Four thousand years may have elapsed since the first
1 DIBBLE, History of the Sandwich Islands, pp. 12, 13, mentions a crew of
Japanese brought there in 1839, and another in 1840, by whale-ships. The
Hawaiian Spectator, vol. i., describes at length a Japanese junk that came in
there with four survivors on board in 1832. The natives when they beheld
them exclaimed, "It is plain now that we are from Asia!"




444    TIHE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMi]PIRE.
craft coasted from point to point along the Asiatic shores.
Who shall say when the first wretched band, after weary
months of hunger and thirst, wakened the echoes of the
human voice among the wildernesses of this virgin hemisphere? From that day to this it is probable no century
has passed without involuntary additions from the parent
climes.
An analogical argument as to the origin of the American races may be drawn from the spread of the Malay
family. The migrations of mankind in every age seem
to pursue, if possible, nearly the same threads of the
earth's latitude along which they were commenced.
They naturally prefer kindred climates and productions
of the earth to which men and the domestic animals
have been accustomed. And, as has been shown, the
winds of heaven and the currents of the ocean are disposed to gratify this tendency. Thus the Malay stock
is essentially tropical and nautical. From their primeval starting-point upon the shores of the Indian
ocean they have crept eastward and westward, following
their burning native sun, until now we behold the remarkable expansion of affiliated tribes and dialects, from
Madagascar upon the one extreme as far as to the
Sandwich Islands, the last Polynesian group, upon the
other.  Never penetrating far inland upon the Asiatic
and African continents, they have yet displayed a maritime enterprise and endurance that has bridged vast
oceanic expanses. The islanders of the Pacific voluntarily hazard voyages to distant groups, carrying them
several days out of sight of land in their tiny canoes.
At the Sandwich Islands, after a careful comparison of
the native language with several dialects of the Chinese,




ANCIENT CONNECTIONS WITH THIS CONTIENT.o 445
I could observe no analogies of importance beyond the
natural infantile sounds common to all the tongues of
the globe. And it appears to have not much connection
with the Japanese, Corean and other branches of the
Chinese family of languages at the north.  But on the
other hand, there are many of its words found in the
vocabularies of the Malay, and of the Marquesan, the
Samoan, the New Zealand and other Pacific groups;
and the Rev. Mr. Bishop and other intelligent missionaries assured me that, stretching far over all the intervening and disordered forms of human speech, they have
been astonished to find almost the accents of their Hawaiian disciples half-way around the world, among the
persecuted Christians of Madagascar.l This dispersion
of the Malays over a breadth of ten thousand miles of
the tropic zone renders just the inference that the Chinese race especially, which is so much more numerous
and energetic, employing vessels so much more capacious,
some of them measuring hundreds of tons burden, and
freighting these vessels with provisions so much more
substantial and cured with salt or sugar, should have
successfully endured even longer and more perilous voyages over the flowing seas of their own temperate zone.
The manifest Malayan origin of the Pacific Islanders
is a premise which almost of necessity implies the Chinese and Japanese origin of the swarms that we trace
from all parts of our continent back to the north-west
coast.
Third. Reference may be made to the fact that legends
1 Vi. ELLIS, the well-known English missionary, comes to the same conclusion
(Polynesian Researches, vol. iv., p. 461. London, 1854): "The aboriginal languages of Madagascar and the South Sea Islands are strikingly analogous, if not
identical."




446     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST.EMPIRE.
exist among the Asiatic nations of people that have wandered to and populated regions far to the east of them.
The Jesuit missionaries among the Tartars heard them
narrate traditions that some of their ancestors had been
borne across the waters to a far-off continent upon cakes
of ice. Humboldt advances the idea that the Toltecs or
Aztecs may be the descendants of a body of Huns, who,
according to the Chinese historians, emigrated under
their leader Punon, and were lost in the north parts of
Siberia.1 The intelligent Japanese appear to have possessed not only some ideas of the existence of regions far
toward the sunrise from their island home, but to have
familiarized them in connection with the designation of
the land by the name Fusang. But the Chinese afford us
more distinct information than any other nation as to the
locality and character of this Oriental Atlantis. They
seem to have borrowed for it the Japanese appellation
Fusang, unless that be imagined to owe its derivation to
the language of the land itself. The following article,
translated from an extensive Chinese Encyclopaedia (the
Yuen-kien-lui-han, pp. 44 and 45, of the 231st volume
or book), will entertain the reader:
" FUSANG.-In the first year of the reign of the emperor Wing-yuen, of the Tsi dynasty [about A.D. 499],
some Shaman priests, men of learning, came to Kingchau from Fusang.  They described the country as situated some twenty thousand Chinese furlongs2 to the east
of Ta-han, and eastward also from China.  It derives
its name from the wood called fusang, which abounds
1 Tableaux de la Nature, i., 53, and Political Essay on the Kingdom of New
Spain, vol. i., p. 101.
2 The Chinese li, or furlong, is rather longer than two of our furlongs.




ANCIENT CONNECTIONS WITH THIS CONTINENT. 447
there.  The foliage of the fusang tree resembles that of
the jatropha.  The early sprouts are like those of the
bamboo. The fruit is eaten as we do pears. The bark
is woven into cloth for garments and for embroidery.
The cities are unwalled. They possess some literature,
their paper being made of the bark of the fusang. The
soldiery are not clad in mail, and do not venture to engage in open battle."
The account proceeds to mention some circumstances
to illustrate the severity with which crimes were punished by imprisonment for various terms, and even for
life; the penalty, according to the grade of the offence,
involving either self alone or the immediate offspring,
or sometimes even those to the seventh degree of relationship, and the sale into slavery of children born in
prison. It notices as a peculiarity of the trial of prisoners, that they "ate and drank in the presence of the
judges." It continues as follows:
"The king is styled the yih-kli, the first rank of nobility the tui-lu, the second the inferior tui-lu, the third
the na-tuh-sha. The king travels in great state, attended
by bands of martial music. The royal apparel is varied
each two years, and the five colors-green, red, yellow,
black and white-are adopted for that period in succession. Many kinds of wheeled vehicles are in use, drawn
by horses, oxen and deer. Deer are raised also to furnish milk for the manufacture of fermented spirits.
Pears grow there of a red species which keeps sound
throughout the year. The cat-tail reed or rush is exceedingly abundant. So also is the peach. Of iron there is
none, but copper is found there.  The mode of contracting marriage is for the lover to erect a temporary




448    THE OLDEST AND THE NE WEST E-MPIRE.
dwelling close beside that of the maiden he desires, and
to serve her, even in menial offices, for a whole year.
If not pleased with him, she is then at liberty to discard
him; if mutually satisfied, the nuptials are consummated.
Buddhism did not originally exist in that country. But
in the second year of the emperor Ta-ming of the Sung
dynasty  [about A.D. 459] five pi-keu, or mendicant
priests, from  Ki-pin, went through the country distributing Buddhist writings and setting up images. Its
form of religion has in consequence undergone a change."
The question whether the Chinese by Fusang can
mean  North  America  has  been  discussed with  much
interest by American and European scholars. There
was no knowledge here, it is objected, of the peach; and
there were certainly no horses.  Yet the points of resemblance between their descriptions of it and those of the
Aztec empire furnished by the Spanish writers are so
numerous and distinct that the general opinion favors
the view that they are the same. It was advocated by
IDe Guignes, by several of the French missionaries,l by
Horn, Scherer, Sir William  Jones, Paravey, Neumann
and Humboldt.  Bradford,2 Schoolcraft,3 Gallatin, Mc1 There is an interesting presentation of the subject in Lettres EdMfiantes et
Curieuses (Paris, 1843); iv., 1-75.
2 BRADFORD expressly says that the Japanese ships once visited the countries
west of them as far as the Indian Archipelago, and had reached the shores of
North America to the east, which they knew by the designation Fusang.American Antiquities, p. 233.
s H. R. SCHOOLCRAFT, in his numerous and valuable works on Indian antiquities, often takes occasion to speak of the Oriental origin of the language,
legends, religions and customs of our aborigines. For example, in the Algic
Researches (vol. i., pp. 44, 45) he says:
"That the tribes themselves are of Oriental origin is probable from the
grammatical structure of their languages and their mode of expressing thought.
But it is apparent that their separation took place at a very ancient period."




ANCIENT C'ONiNECTIONS WVITh THIS COlyTINENT. 449
Culloh, Squier and other writers on American antiquities, maintain the same opinion.
It has been asserted that the name Fusang probably
means Japan. The reply may be made that the Chinese
have no such name for Japan, and say that the country
spoken of is six thousand miles eastward of Japan. It
has been imagined that the name is derived from a
species of wood produced in the latter country; but the
Japanese have no such name for any tree, as I am
assured by Dr. J. C. Hepburn, the author of the dictionary of that language which has been lately published, and one of the best scholars in that literature.
There are several points of the Chinese accounts from
which I have quoted that deserve to be compared with
what we know of the Aztecs. Among them are their
use of the bark of various trees for cloth and for paper,
their possession of a hieroglyphic system of writing, and
the number of their written volumes, which was so great
that the Spaniards say they heaped up " mountains of
them" and burned them. The observation that the
criminal on trial " eats and drinks in the presence of the
judges" finds a remarkable counterpart in the words of
the familiar history of Prescott: "The judges wore an
appropriate dress, and attended to business both parts
of the day, dining always, for the sake of dispatch, in
an apartment of the same building where they held their
session —a method of proceeding much commended by
the Spanish chroniclers, to whom dispatch was not very
familiar in their own tribunals."  The abundance of
copper and the want of iron is mentioned, while it is
said "they did not esteem silver and gold." Here again
we notice a strange coincidence. "The use of iron,,with
29




450     THE OLDEST ANTD THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
which their soil is impregnated, was unknown to them.
They found a substitute in an alloy of copper and tin,
and with tools made of this bronze could cut the hardest
metals" and stones. The extraordinary assertion that
they " did not esteem silver and gold," meets its parallel
in the enumeration of the revenue of the Aztec emperor,
where our American historian says: "In this curious
medley of the most homely commodities and the elegant
superfluities of luxury, it is singular that no mention
should be made of silver, the great staple of the country
in later times, the use of which was certainly known to
the Aztecs."'
The letters of Cortes to his sovereign, the emperor
Charles V., containi numerous pictures which seem as if
painted from Asiatic originals. Thus, in describing the
palace of Mutezuma, he says of the carvings, " The gold
and the silver are wrought so naturally as not to be surpassed by any smith in the world; the stone-work is
executed with such perfection that it is difficult to conceive what instruments could have been employed, and
the feather-work is superior to the finest productions in
wax or embroidery."  Its separate edifices were beautifled by numerous " conservatories of flowers." Its royal
meals were "served by three or four hundred youths, who
brought on an infinite variety of dishes." Its etiquette
was so tedious that "no sultan or other infidel lord,.
of whom any knowledge now exists, ever had so much
ceremonial in their courts."  The members of the court
wore dresses of cotton which " could not be equaled in
the whole world, either in texture or in the variety and
1 Ilstor'y of the Conlquest of Mexico, vol. i., pp. 32, 138, 140.




AiNIEyNT CONNECTIONS WITHI THIS CONTINENT. 451
beauty of the colors, or in the workmanship."   These
letters of Cortes strongly remind one of the narratives
of Marco Polo, Rubruquis and the early Roman Catholic
missionaries to India, China and Japan.  And, indeed,
it was not to be wondered at that he should imagine
he had reached the remoter provinces of those countries.
There was everything to beguile the Spaniard into
the belief that he saw before him "' the Indians" themselves. WThen he cast his eyes over the country he
beheld the same respect paid to agriculture as a profession, the same dependence of government on the products of the soil chiefly for its revenue, and the payment
of taxes in kind; also similar modes of irrigation to
increase the yield of the earth, hills terraced and cultivated to their very summits, and large public granaries
in which the excess of the luxuriant harvest was deposited for years of drought and famine.  In the place
of trade he saw the same association of merchants and
mechanics into powerful guilds for the protection of
their privileges and their prices.  In the street the
coolies bore the burden that belongs, in our ideas, to the
horse or the ass, and there were no wheeled carriages.
The soldier strutted by him in armor of quilted cotton
holding the bow and arrows.  In the workshop he was
delighted by the same dazzling exhibition of fine porcelain, of lacquer-work in wood, of cotton cloth, of silk spun
from the thread of a worm, of precious stones skillfully
cut and polished and of different metals splendidly enchased.  About the abodes of wealth he wandered in
brilliant gardens, containing collections of plants then not
excelled by any in Europe, adorned by sparkling pools
1 Letter ii., chap. v. (Translation by George Folsom; New York, 1843).




452     THE OLDEST AIND THE NEWEST EAPIRNE
and airy pavilions, whose graceful pillars were inscribed
with poetic or fanciful quotations,'Withlin those abodes
he witnessed the same regulation of marriage, one
proper wife, with an unlimited number of inferiors in
concubinage; the same jealous separation of males and
females at their meals, and the same frivolous employment of high-born females in the arts of embroidery,
music, gambling and the toilet.  Did he mingle in the
social life of the Aztecs, the abundance of sweetmeats at
their feasts and the succeeding exhibitions of plays and
juggling, the ceremonious gifts, the use of snuff and the
peculiar mode in Which'the smoke of tobacco was inhaled
into the lungs, might have cheated him into the belief
that he enjoyed the hospitality of some mandarin of
Kwang-tung.  Should he converse with a company of
students, their attention to astrology, their use of a
hieroglyphic and ideographic system  of characters in
writing, the surprising resemblance of the calendar and
the principle of the annotation of time, which has been
so much remarked by the learned of Europe, nay, even
as minute a circumstance as the mode of preserving their
books, not in scrolls, but in alternate fan-like folds, would
have confirmed his delusion.  And how would he have
accounted for some things still more peculiar, such as
that remarkable usage, common to the Chinese and
Aztec emperors, of appointing stated days for the public
assemblage of their courts to hear something like a hortatory moral discourse addressed to them, or such an institution as the establishment of public literary examinations of prose and poetical compositions and the bestowment of prizes and rewards to successful candidates?
The Chinese descriptions of Fusang say that Buddhist




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ANCIENT CONNLECTIONS WITH THIS CONTINENT. 453
priests went there in the fifth century of the Christian
era and converted the people to their faith. To those
who judge according to Western ideas of the facility of
the communication of such a fact, if anything like it did
occur, back from the one continent to the other, this
statement will seem incredible.  But it will not seem so
to those who know that, rapidly and widely as important
news fly by the agency of the newspaper, inl the nations
of the East they spread almost as swiftly by the mouths
of merchants and sailors and monks and government
couriers, and by beacons, and almost as by some instinct
of the sharp-sighted and quick-eared people. And there
are strange links which lead parts the remotest from each
other to feel a mutual religious sympathy.  Alfred the
Great sent the bishop of Sherborne to bear his greetings
from Britain to the Syriac Christians in India; Prester
John sent a commission from Tibet to the pope of Rome;
and the roving tribes of Northern Asia and America communicate to vast distances, and from one side to the other
of the straits which divide the Old from the New World,
important matters of concern, either social or spiritual.
But whether the information of the success of Buddhisin across the waters ever became known at its original
seats is a secondary question. The main one is that it
really did give its character to the Aztec institutions.
This is very manifest to one acquainted with it in Asia
who will trace the countless points of resemblance in this
respect between the Aztecs and the Buddhist nations of
Eastern Asia.  They resemble each other in their primary ideas of the divine Being, of good and evil spirits,
of the depravity of matter and of the transmigration of
the soul; in their general use of monastic forms and dis



454     THE OLDEST AN'D THE NEWETIST ESIPIRE.
cipline; in their penances, ablutions, almsgivings ancd
public festivals; in the employment of water as a symbol
of sanctification; in the worship of their household gods;
in the offices of their tutelary gods; in the devotion of
the priests to the studies of astrology and astronomy; in
the admission of virgin females to the vows and rites of
the cloister; in some of the titles and functions of
various prominent deities; in the bells struck with a
wooden mallet; in the incense, liturgies and chants of
their worship; in their use of charms and amulets; in
their erection of charitable hospitals for the sick and
asylums for the disabled classes of society; in the
assumption of the right to educate the youth; in some
of their forms of burial, or burning the dead and the
preservation of the ashes in urns.
Besides the notices of Fusang in the Chinese literature which we have considered, there are imperfect
legends found among other Asiatic nations of the ancient
discovery and population of distant regions across the
"' Great Eastern Ocean." The French father Aquila, for
instance, mentions the existence among the Tartars of
some relating to ancestors of theirs who, they said, walnl
dered far to the north-east and crossed to another
country upon cakes of ice.
A fourth class of evidence, as to the Asiatic origin of
the early races of this continent, I will notice but briefly.
It is analogous to that employed under the last head to
explain and illustrate the Chinese accounts of Fusang.
It consists in the resemblances of language, customs and
religion among the people of this continent to those of
the nations of Eastern Asia.
The straits named by the empress Catharine of Russia




ANCIENVT CON~1NECTIONlS  WITH  THIS COINTIiENT.  455
after a German officer in her employ, Vitus Behring, are
far more  narrow  and  easily  passed  than  is commonly
supposed. From East Cape in Asia to Cape Prince of
Wales in America the  distance is but thirty-six  miles.
They are each high and prominent, so that they may be
seen  from   the opposite sides in  clear weather.   In  the
summer, large canoes, under sail or paddled by the natives, often cross, either singly or in fleets. In the winter
the straits are frozen solid, and the people come and  go
on the ice as upon the snow  of the mainland.'  It is not
strange then that the dialects of the Tchuktchis and
other tribes on the Asiatic side should be easily traced
in those of the people occupying the higher latitudes of
this continent. A large number of Tchuktchi words are
the same in the Esquimaux language.2
I The narratives of Captain Cook and several of the Arctic voyagers illustrate these statements. The following is from a late visitor to that region, in
the service bf the United States expedition which explored a route for the proposed telegraph to the Russian possessions (FREDEl RICK WHYMPER. Travel,
etc., in Alaska, pp. 278, etc.):
"Scientific men are now agreed as to the Asiatic origin of the Esquimaux,
even of those who have migrated as far as Greenland. Of the Mongolian origin
of the Tchuktchis themselves no one who has seen individuals of that people
would for a moment doubt.  [A story is here told by the author of a Tchuktchi
boy, taken to San Francisco by Colonel Bulkley, the engineer-in-chief of the
telegraph expedition, who constantly passed there for a Chinese.] That the
Aleuts also are of an Eastern stock is to my mind undoubted. The inter-tribal
trade carried on so regularly every year vid Behring's Straits proved with how
little difficulty a tribe of wandering Tchuktchis might cross from Asia and
populate the northern coasts of America. Open skin-canoes, capable of containing twenty or more persons with their effects, and hoisting several masts
and sails, are now frequently to be observed among both the sea-coast Tchuktchis
and the inhabitants of Northern Alaska."
2 WHYMPER gives the following comparative vocabularies of a tribe in
Alaska and the Esquimaux of Greenland (Travel, etc., pp. 253, 254):
Malemute.       G'reenland Esquimaux.
I..............................Wounga.............. Uanga.
T-e-.......................... Oona    O..................   UT na,




456    TIHE OLDEST AND THE iYEWtEST E3IPIR.E.
The Athapascas, or. Chipewyans, occupy the vast
regions between Hudson's Bay and the Rocky Mountain range, south of the Esquimaux.  They declare that
they came  from   Siberia, and  of the  truth of this their
dress  and manners  and religious practices bear witness.
At far-distant points upon the continent connections may
be observed with them. The language of the Apaches
in  Mexico  has been found  to very closely resemble  that
of the Athapascas.'
Commencing with  the  portion of the continent occupied  by the Toltecs  and  the Aztecs, of which  sufficient
has been  said, we find  the Pacific shore  occupied  down
to  Peru  in South America with  a succession of nations
whose  civilization  is of the  same Asiatic  kind, not inferior in the grandeur of its remains, and as distinctly
marked by the symbolism of the religions of the lands
of the East.  The prevailing style of the ruins of the temples of Yucatan  is Buddhist.   The  paintings  in  which
the sacred red is the prevailing color, the rich and orna3lialenmute.     Greenland Esquimaux.
Wie.       ~............Wurgut.................Uagut.
You..........................Itlepit...................Iblet Illipse.
Man.................... Inuet.....................Angut Innuit.
Woman...............Achanuk.................Arnak.
Day..........................Oblook.................Utlok.
Sun e........................Sickunyuk..............Sekkinek.
Water.....................Imuk..................Imek (salt water) Imak.
Snow........................ Kanik............annik.
Ice..........  Seko.................... Sikk6.
Head.......................Neakuk..................iakok,
4Face........................ Keenyuk............... Kenak.
{Mouth....................Kanuk.. K.... Kanneko
Teeth........................Keetik................. Kigutit.
Wood........................KUShU k...kK. su........ k.
Canoe.......................Omeuk-puk.......... Oomiak.
Prof. WV. W. TURNER, of Washington city, quoted in Pritchard, ii., 519.




ANCIENT CONiVECTIONS WVITII THIS CONVTIENT. 457
mented cornices, the heavy beams of carved wood, the
elaborate sculpture in stone, the recurrence of symbols
common in Chinese and Japanese temples, especially the
figures of serpents, or dragons, encircling the ornaments
and prominent parts of the edifices, give an Oriental
aspect to them.' A good enamel covered some of the
excellent specimens of earthenware. And the taste exhibited in some of the palaces was so cultivated and
correct that some of the ornaments " tried  by  the
severest rules of art recognized among us would embellish the architecture of any known era."2
The great Japan or North Pacific current, after warming the coasts of North America, is lost upon the northwestern shores of South America; just as its Atlantic
counterpart, after imparting its mild temperature to
Western Europe, disappears on the coast of Africa.
And it is finally upon the coast of Peru that this giant
river of the ocean would land things borne upon its
surface.
The legends of Peru indicate the occasional mysterious appearance among them of men and women of races
superior to that which had existed there. Such were
Manco Capac and Mama Oello Huaco, a man and woman
who said they were "children of the sun," which is an
exact translation of the name of Japan, and also of a
title commonly given to the emperor of China; and who
taught them the arts of civilization much higher than any
1 STEPHENS (Travels in Central America, etc., i.; 314) says of the House of
the Dwarf at Uxmal: "The emblems of life and death appear on the wall in
close juxtaposition, confirming the belief in the existence of that worship practiced by the Egyptians and all other Eastern nations, and before referred to as
prevalent among the people of Uxmal."
2 STEPHENS. Travels, etc., i., 389.




458     TIEE OLDEST AND TIHE NEWVEST EYMPIRE.
before known in Peru.'aWhence came these strange
visitants? There seems no explanation possible save by
the presumption either that they found their way from
the land of the Aztecs, or that they were passengers
upon one of those ancient vessels, built with the greatest
solidity, and laden with rice, wheat, barley, dried and
salt provisions and fruits, which traffic through the
Eastern Pacific and are swept abroad over the surface of
that great ocean by the typhoons, of which there are
several in a single autumn. Save for the difficulty of
collecting water from the rains after the supply on board
has been exhausted, there is no reason why a few persons might not survive upon such a ponderous craft as
long as some of our shipwrecked seamen have done upon
rocky islets in the heart of the same ocean. The history
of many a European or American Alexander Selkirk,
who midst such a scene has cried,
"I am out of humanity's reach,
I must finish my journey alone,"
puts in our hand a thread which may guide us out of
the darkness and mystery of the origin of the empire
of the Incas into the light of a rational interpretation of
it.  The hindrance to this is more in the imaginations
of our scholars in their closets than in the facts of providence annually transpiring in that hemisphere.
The customs and institutions of the Peruvians, when
first visited by tile Spaniards, wonderfully resembled
what the same discoverers found in Mexico. They have
been painted with such life, minuteness and beauty by
numerous writers in our own tongue that we can dispense
with a description of them at this time.  What has been
previously said of those of the Aztecs may almost be




ANCIENT CONNECTIONS WITH THIS CON=TINENVT. 459
applied to those of the Incas. The Oriental character
of the South American race, if there be difference, is
even more marked than that of the people of the North.
The construction of the royal roads which led to Cuzco
and Quito is equaled by no masonry outside of the Chinese empire.l   The skill in the composition and working
1 This whole most interesting subject is presented with the greatest possible
brevity; but in relation to the military roads of the Peruvians I may be allowed
to quote the following paragraphs from the most eminent philosopher of our day,
who himself inspected these wonderful remains, which are so Asiatic in their
character, to show how broad and fertile is the field of research:
"The impressions produced on the mind by the natural characters of these
wildernesses of the Cordilleras are heightened, in a remarkable and unexpected
manner, from its being in those very regions that we still see admirable remains
of the gigantic work-the artificial road of the Incas-which formed a line of
communication through all the provinces of the empire, extending over a length
of more than a thousand English geographical miles. We find placed, at nearly
equal distances apart, stations consisting of dwelling-houses built of well-cut
stone; they are a kind of caravanserai, and are called tambos and sometimes
Inca-pilca (from pircca, the wall?). Some of them are surrounded by a kind
of fortification; others were constructed for baths, with arrangements for conducting hot water; the larger were designed for the use of the family of the
monarch himself.... In the pass between Alausi and Loxa, called the Paramo
del Assuay, as we were leading our heavily-laden mules with great difficulty
through the marshy ground on the elevated Plain del Pullal, our eyes meanwhile were continually dwelling on the grand remains of the Inca's road, which
with a breadth of twenty-one English feet ran by our side for above a German
mile. It had a deep understructure, and was paved with well-cut blocks of
blackish trap-porphyry. Nothing that I had seen of the remains of Roman
roads in Italy, in the south of France and in Spain, was more imposing than
these works of the ancient Peruvians, which are, moreover, situated, according
to my barometric measurements, at an elevation of 12,440 (13,258 English) feet
above the sea, or more than a thousand feet higher than the peak of Teneriffe.
There are two great artificial Peruvian paved roads, or system of roads,
covered with flat stones or sometimes even with cemented gravel (macadamized);
one passes through the wide and arid plain between the Pacific ocean and the
chain of the Andes, and the other over the ridges of the Cordilleras. Milestones, or stones marking the distances, are often found placed at equal intervals.
The road was conducted across rivers and deep ravines by three kinds of bridges
-stone, wood and rope bridges (Puentes de Hamaca, or de Maroma), and there
were also aqueducts or arrangements for bringing water to the tambos (hostelries




460    TI-ID OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
of metals, in the cutting of gems and  in the weaving of
fine  tissues, carry  us back  to  Eastern  Asia.   The  extended canals for the irrigation of large districts of
country, often carried along mountain ranges or piercing
them   by  stone-paved  aqueducts;  the  postal arrangements for the use of the court; the military organization
of able-bodied  men  by  decimal numbers;  the  solemn
ceremonial of the Inca going forth in the spring and inaugurating  the  general agricultural labors' of the  year
by ploughing with a golden plough; —where but to the
same far-off source shall we look for the origin of such
works or usages?  And in Peru we find Buddhism in
all its characteristics-the twofold principle in nature,
the  transmigration  of  souls, the  perpetual celibacy of
or caravanserais) and to the fortresses. Both systems of roads were directed to
the central point, Cuzco, the seat of the government of the great empire, in 130
31/ south latitude, and which is placed, according to Pentland's map of Bolivia,
10,676 Paris, or 11,378 English, feet above the level of the sea. As the Peruvians employed no wheel carriages, and the roads were consequently only designed for the march of troops, for men carrying burdens and for lightly-laden
lamas, we find them occasionally interrupted, on account of the steepness of the
mountains, by long flights of steps, provided with resting-places at suitable
intervals.
" Sormiento, who saw the roads of the Incas whilst they were still in a perfect
state of preservation, asks, in a Relacion which long lay unread, buried in the
library of the Escurial,'How a nation unacquainted with the use of iron could
have completed such grand works in so high and rocky a region (caminos tan
grandes y tan sovervios), extending from Cuzco to Quito on the one hand, and
to the coast of Chili on the other? The Emperor Charles,' lie adds,'with
all his power, could not accomplish even a part of what the well-ordered government of the Incas effected through'the obedient people over whom they
ruled.' Hernando Pizarro exclaims,'In the whole of Christendom there are
nowhere such fine roads as those which we here admire!' The two important
capitals and seats of government of the Incas —Cuzco and Quito-are one thousand English geographical miles apart in a straight line (S. S. E., N. N. W.),
without reckoning the many windings of the way; and including the windings,
the distance is estimated by Garcilasso de la Vega and other Conquistadores at'five hundred leagues.' "-A. Vo.N HUMBOLDT, Aspects of Nature, pp. 415-418.




ANCIENT CONNECTIONXS WITH THIS CONTINVENT. 4G1
both monks and nuns, the fasts, the penances, the cloisters and convents, the sacrifices, the processions,.the
schools for youth and novices, the burial with the face
toward the west. The imprint is so distinct that Rivero
and Von Tschudi plainly infer that "Quetzalcoatl,
Bochica, Manco Capac, and other reformers of Central
America (including Mexico and Peru), were Buddhist
priests, who, by means of their superior learning and
civilization, sought to rule the minds of the nativies, and
to elevate themselves to political supremacy." 
It is pleasant to review the several branches of evidence, which I have stated in its most condensed form,
that to Eastern Asia we are to look for the great fountain whence flowed the ancient races whose architectural
remains on this continent are so wonderful, whose history
is so full of romantic interest, and whose mission it was
to occupy the New World until the appointed time when
from Europe the Protestant Christian nations should be
brought to prepare a mould which should be the final
ideal of just and beneficent government, into which
should be cast first the forms of European nations and
finally those of their own offspring in Asia.
And poor Mexico! Happy will be the day when the
intelligent industry of the Chinese shall restore the Oriental fertility and beauty and wealth of the land of. the
Aztecs. A generation or two more, and they will begin
to find their way to its rich mines and tropical valleys.
It will bu strange indeed if it be to become servants to
those who have fallen so much from the manly vigor
of the men who conquered the country three hundred
years ago!
1 Peruvian Ant quities (translated by F. L. Hawks), p. 17.




CHAPTER XVI.
CHINESE IMMIGRATION.
DURING  fifty-five centuries, at least, it pleased the
Creator of the world to confine its population, its
history, its good and its evil, chiefly to one of its hemispheres. Three centuries ago the other hemisphere,
which had been visited by but a few of the inhabitants
of the one opposite, and had been kept in the shadow
until the hour for the sun of an unending day to rise
upon it, was suddenly revealed. Its mountain tops began then to receive the light which had so long shone
upon the Old World.  Now that light has descended to
every plain and valley. And the atmosphere is purer
here, and the light shines brighter here than it did
through any of the clouded skies of that other side.
God had a meaning in this great plan of human history. All the nations of Europe hastened to secure each
a possession in this New World. But they have been
all dispossessed save one. The Protestant Anglo-Saxon
race now occupies all that is valuable of North America,
and mnoulds the destinies of the rest of the continent and
of South America.
Three centuries and a half ago the African was
brought here. He was taught agriculture, the uses of
clothing, of various valuable arts and of letters, and the
462




CHINESE IMMIGRA TION.           463
knowledge of one great God, who stretched out the
heavens, who " formed the earth and made it, and he
created it not in vain; he formed it to be inhabited."
The task of his tuition has been accomplished. A door
has been opened for his return.
The Asiatic comes-a very different pupil.  Rich,
acute, polished, dextrous in many arts, what he asks is
chiefly the knowledge of the way of life, eternal life.
Shall we impart to him of the fruits of the vineyard
which we are enjoying, or shall we entreat him shamefully and send him away empty?
The commencement of the emigration of the Chinese to this country is so important as an era in the
history of both hemispheres that we may well devote a
chapter to considering its nature and circumstances.
That any of that nation should leave their own
country and come to one so remote from it strikes many
persons with surprise. But this is only because their
information or reflections have been bounded so much
by the circle of the interests of their own and kindred
races. The Chinese are an enterprising people. At a
remote period they were somewhat acquainted with
Western lands. Some notice has been taken in another part of this volume of the very ancient intercourse
between China and the nations of Central and WV/estern
Asia, of that later with Rome in the days of her pride,
and of that with India and Arabia in the earlier ages of
the Christian era. Mutual commercial connections then
existed; caravans passed and repassed; imperial embassies went and came; religious pilgrimages were made
far into the West, and some seem to have gone eastward
in return, men groping over the face of the world for




464    THE OLD.EST AND THEE NEWEST EM2PIRE.
some favored spot where they hoped that the veil which
covers the throne of mercy might be more transparent,
and where they imagined the sounds of the invisible
world might be more intelligible. And some of the
great invasions of barbarians, those of the IHuns, the
MAIongols, the Turks and other tribes, which destroyed
the pagan empire of Rome or scourged the nations which
relapsed into its idolatries, were simply great emigrations of Chinese nomads, who, held at bay by the power
which had built the Great Wall, opened for themselves
a path of advance by conquest into the heart of Europe,
and to the shores of the North sea. There is then no
reason in the history of ages past for supposing that
motives may not be presented which will attract the
merchant, the herdsman, the religious pilgrim or the
ambassador from  China or the adjacent countries to
make a temporary, or in the end permanent, home in a
country which our own commerce has made so accessible
to them.
And in the present age great numbers of the Chinese
have gone abroad to traffic, labor, work in mines, or
as devotees or to see the world. There are millions of
Chinese emigrants in all the countries north and west of
the empire, even as far west as India, in the streets of
whose capital Chinese workmen manufacture excellent
shoes, which are distributed over the country for the use
of European residents, and among whose hills Chinese
agriculturists are raising tea which is adding a new item
to the revenues of the British crown.
A favorite field for Chinese emigration during many
centuries past has been the islands of the Indian Archipelago. To many of these their labor and their com



CHINESE IDIMMIGrA TION.         465
mnerce has been a boon beyond price. They have built
and manned vessels of the wood cut from the native
forests, created valuable departments of trade, turned
wild jungles into cultivated gardens, and opened mines
of gold, silver, tin, diamonds, and other metals and precious stones. They have proved beyond all other races
the most intelligent and energetic associates of the European in the development of the boundless mineral and
commercial wealth which the Creator has so prodigally
lavished on those islands. In China and in the Indian
Archipelago I have observed with great interest the
benefits of this commerce.
The narratives of disinterested travelers among those
islands are interspersed with pictures of the pleasing resuits of Chinese labor there. The following specimen
is from the pen of an intelligent English gentleman.
The scene is among the mountains of Borneo.
"After crossing the swamps we ascended a hill, and
on arriving at the top, a sudden turn of the path brought
to view one of the finest. prospects I had ever beheld.
Immediately below us stretched an extensive valley
teeming with cultivation and covered with villages and
cottages; the Sinkawan river, here about fifteen yards
wide, winding through it. The south-east side of the
valley was bounded by a range of mountains about fifteen hundred feet in elevation; but to the north-west
the ground stretched in gentle undulations as far as the
eye could reach.
"Our path led through a series of gardens, which, in
addition to many kinds of culinary vegetables,, produced
sugar-cane, maize, plantains and a variety of fruits.
After a delightful walk through the valley for about
30




466    THE OLDEST AND THE lYE;VEST EMPIRE.
three miles, crossing the river several times by means of
wooden bridges, we arrived at the large village where
we were to breakfast. The street was crowded with people, who left a small space in the centre for us to pass
on to the court-house, where I found the kung-sze had
prepared an excellent repast, having been informed of
my intended visit by a messenger, who had been sent to
Montradok from the coast the previous night.
" After leaving this place, we continued our route in
a north-east direction. A few miles beyond the village
we crossed several trenches about three feet wide and
from three to fifteen feet deep, which I discovered to be
exhausted gold mines. The soil in which the trenches
were dug was of a clayey nature and rather poor, but
not so much so as to render its cultivation unprofitable,
for the rice-fields in the neighborhood appeared to be in
a very flourishing condition. We continued to cross
these trenches for about six miles, the distance between
them being from twenty yards to half a mile, and then
struck to the south-east over several ranges of small
hills, the valleys between them being generally cultivated.
"' Many of the farmers' cottages were built of unburnt
brick and covered with thatch, and being invariably
surrounded and shaded by fruit trees, they bore a
stronger resemblance to those which adorn an English
landscape than any habitations I had seen since my departure from  my own home. Houses for the entertainment of travelers were erected at intervals on the
roadside, and at noon we entered one of them to rest
ourselves and to partake of some refreshment." 1
The position of the Chinese in Borneo is thus de1GCE.. Nx.DSO  EARL, The Ecasterin &Secas, pp. 280-282.




CHINESE IiLIATIGi DA TIO N0    467
scribed by a sprightly German lady who visited the island in the course of a journey round the world:
"The Chinese play in Borneo very much the part of
the Jews in Poland and Hungary. All trades and met
chanical arts are in their hands; they farm or work the
mines, and also cultivate the land with incomparably
more care than either Dyaks or Malays.  Their food,
as might be expected, is much better. They keep, as I
have said, both pigs and poultry, and they raise vegetables and fruit.
"In general, the Chinese may be regarded as the
citizens of the country, the Malays as the peasants and
the dependant Dyaks as the slaves."
The Americans who judge of the habits of the Chinese from what they witness in the crowded and filthy
shops of San Francisco may obtain a more just conception
of their disposition when allowed scope to exercise it,
from  the following sketch by the same writer of a
Chinese residence in Java:
" In the evening we paid a visit to the Chinese campan,
which, with its pretty houses and remarkable cleanliness,
forms a favorable contrast to that of the Malays. The
houses are built of brick, but are as neat and white as if
the whole campan had been that moment finished. They
are not large, but are enough so to lodge even a numerous family with convenience. Neither windows nor doors
are wanting-the former provided with handsome balconies, and all the wood and frame-work painted in dark
oil colors. The front of the house is encircled by a
verandah, from which you enter a reception-room, which
takes up the whole length of the house, and where you
find the ground covered with matting and the walls with




468     THE OLDEST ANiD THE NEWEST EMiPIRE.
looking-glasses and pictures, and a sufficient number of
tables, chairs and presses. In the background are doors
leading into the ordinary sitting-room, and almost in
every house there is a small altar in the state apartment,
"As we entered several of the houses we found the
inhabitants seated at supper.  The wives of the Chinese,
like those of the Malays, are excluded from their company at meals, and dine and sup in the kitchen or in their
own little chambers. The table was covered with a white
cloth; there were plates, glasses and bottles upon it, as
well as good food.  One could have joined them  in the
meal with pleasure; while when the Malays eat they are
disgusting to look at, crouching on the ground wherever
they may happen to be, and cramming handfuls of rice
into their wide-open jaws.
" The Chinese in the towns are merchants or artizans 
they are unwearied in their industry, but not unwilling
to allow  themselves some domestic conveniences and
comforts." 1
Other testimonials to the industry, thrift and usefulness of the Chinese from recent visitors to the islands of
this great archipelago might here be presented if necessary, but these are sufficient to show their character.
It is true that the laws of China have forbidden emigration to foreign countries, just as its government has
endeavored to exclude the commerce of those countries
from its seaports, or to keep it confined in fetters at one
of them. The present imperial dynasty has been averse
to permitting other nations to enjoy free intercourse with
1 IDA PFEIFFER, Second Journey Round the World, pp. 109, 279, 280.
2 The recent volume of Prof. BICKMORE contains some useful facts and
statistics relating to the Chinese in the islands under the dominion of the
Dutch.




CHINESE IMMIIGiRA TIO           469
its subJects, perhaps for the same reasons which it has
had for not allowing its subjects liberty to visit lands
where they might imbibe sentiments that would make
them troublesome at home. This is a policy quite natural in a small tribe of bold semi-barbarians suddenly
lifted to the control of an empire so great, the intelligence and enterprise of whose population has made their
own position constantly precarious. The Manchus were
too shrewd not to be made wary also by their experience
of the superior abilities of the people of the West, and
their acquaintance with the arts of a higher civilization
and more effective warfare; especially by what they
early obtained from their acquaintance with the Roman
Catholic missionaries, who cast cannon for them  and
conveyed to them many presents of a kind suited to
show the superiority of Europe in those respects. The
intrigues of those same men showed them also how dangerous would be the encouragement of an increase in
their numbers; they were even compelled to expel the
Europeans, useful as they were to them. The convenient
concentration of the foreign commerce in the hands of
the wealthy company at the port of Canton, called the
Hong merchants, added large sums to the imperial treasury. Thus it has seemed in several important respects
to the interest of the government to put a barrier round
the avenues of entrance and egress, and almost to cut
off the communication of the nation with others. And
this jealous and despotic policy, sad to say, has been
justified to the nation itself by the selfish and inhuman
behavior of Europeans who visited its ports; by the
piracies, the wars, the forcible introduction of the opium
poison, and other gigantic crimes against humanity and




470    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
offences against the sense of right that belongs to the
heathen as well as the Christian breast. Outside of the
range of these causes, we are not justified in the assertion
that a spirit of national exclusiveness exists.  Certainly,
with the same provocations we would have hurled a race
of intruders from our shores with more of resentment
than the Chinese have manifested toward us.
The commencement of the immigration of the Chinese
to California was one of the events which made the year
1848 so memorable in modern history. In the same
year in which so many of the thrones of Europe were
abased and liberal constitutions given to the people, the
thrill of a new life was communicated to the nations
around the Pacific ocean by the discovery of gold in
California.  No magnet less powerful than  reputed
mountains of this precious metal would have so thoroughly excited them. The stream from China began to
set in when the tidings were borne across the Pacific by
our merchant vessels. At once the Americans, English,
French and other foreigners hastened to prepare in the
Chinese ports cargoes of such merchandise as would be
suited to the wants of the new country so suddenly filled
with people. Clothing, articles of food, even houses constructed in parts which could be easily put together, were
hurriedly collected and sent over. The Chinese were
equal to the occasion. The most remarkable monument
of their capacity is a large and handsome pair of stone
buildings, under one roof, three stories in height, which
have been generally occupied by banks or express-offices,
upon Montgomery, the principal business street of San
Francisco.  This pair of buildings is composed of granite, in our style of architecture, of which every stone was




CHIiNESE IMMIGRATION.           471
cut, fitted and laid in its place without mortar in -the
province of Canton; the whole was then taken down,
shipped with the men who were to erect it on this side
of the ocean and erected in 1852, to the entire satisfaction of the gentleman who contracted for it. The cost
of these buildings was a hundred and seventeen thousand
dollars; they were at once rented for, the sum of thirtysix thousand dollars a year.
Chinese of all classes and occupations were infected
with the same' fever" which spread over our own Atlantic States. And those who remember the strange
compound of the refined and the base, the good and the
bad, the men of all professions and employments, who
were cast together into the mines of California, will understand how the same variety existed among those who
were drawn by the same motives and in the same haste
firom the opposite shore of the Pacific ocean.
The sudden commixture of races like ours and the
Chinese, which had never before been freely brought
face to face on equal terms, at first excited among our
people a warm interest in them. The Chinese were
kindly treated, publicly welcomed, and the imaginations
of men looked forward to the commercial advantages
which this practical contact of the West and the East
seemed to promise to our nation.
But when it was found that the industrious Chinese
miners to some extent interfered with the whites, that
they willingly continued to work while others were idle,
that they could be hired for less wages than our miners
chose to accept, that they did not learn our language
readily or mingle freely with our people, or join in our
amusements, which often were barbarous enough, then




472    TIE OLDEST ANTD THIE NETWEST EMIPIRE.
the public sentiment began to turn against them. Their
very common-sense arrangements for lodging and other
conveniences, in their "companies," became a ground of
alarm, and the superintendents and clerks whom they
elected to attend to the club or company-houses which
they built were imagined to be rich capitalists who had
imported the members of the company and were using
them as their slaves.
The Chinese who have thus far emigrated to California
are almost exclusively from the province of Canton in
the South, a region whose people have been more ready
to venture to a country inhabited by a European race
since it has been there that European trade has centered
for the past three centuries. Canton is a rich and fertile
province. It is usually estimated to cover about eighty
thousand square miles, and to contain a population of a
little over twenty-seven millions of people —that is, three
hundred and thirty-seven to the square mile. It may
be said to be the Italy of the empire, being the most
southern  province and the mildest in  its climate.
Though but four-fifths the size of Italy, it has more
people. It contains fifteen departments, which are subdivided into ninety-one districts. The most populous
department is that of Kwang-ehau, in which is the city
of Canton, the capital of the province and the great seat
of foreign trade. This department embraces fifteen districts. It is about one hundred and twenty miles long
and about as broad, if a long, irregular projection into
the sea be considered. It lies around a fine bay,
studded with high islands, and the mouths of three
large rivers come together near the city. The alluvial
districts in the region of the city of Canton are the




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CHINESE IMIMIGRATION.             473
most populous.  Towns embowered in bamboo, a species
of banyan and other trees meet the eye on every hand.
The level portion of the soil is cultivated as only the Chinese know how to do in order to obtain the utmost possible returns from Nature. The view appears like a great
garden bounded by ranges of hills.  The narrow streets
of the towns are densely crowded with men following
every trade and means of procuring a subsistence which
the necessities of human nature can suggest. The waters swarm with vessels and boats devoted to a far greater
variety of uses than vessels upon the water are applied
to among the nations of the West.  Hundreds of thousands of the people of the province live wholly upon the
rivers and sea. In the front of Canton the scene upon
the water presents as great a variety of employments
and structures as that upon the land.  It is from these
towns and hamlets that the Chinese in California have
come, and the women here are chiefly from this population upon the water, which is considered to be of an inferior race and more vicious than that on shore. These
women are purchased from their parents or owners and
brought to this country mainly that they may be devoted
to licentious and wretched lives.
The word "coolie" is wholly inappropriate to the
Chinese immigrating to this country, as much so as it
would be to apply it to the mixed population of our
own race which may be found laboring in the mining
regions.
The origin of the word is to be found in India.1 And
1 It is properly from the Hindustani. Quli, or kuli, signifies simply a porter
or bearer of burdens. There are several subdivisions of the quli caste, according to the nature of the burdens they bear.




474    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
the mistaken ideas which have arisen on this subject
have come from confounding the Chinese people and
customs with those of India, where the entire social system is widely different. The English writers familiar
with Indian usages, and viewing all the nations of the
East through the medium of the press in their great
colonial presidencies of Bengal, Bombay and Madras,
have originated in Great Britain and America gross
mistakes in regard to the other countries of whose trade
the East India Company held also a long monopoly.
The British traders in Canton attached Indian appellations to many articles of solely Chinese produce or use.
Of all the names of weights, measures, coins and officers,
scarcely one is properly a Chinese word. Indeed, the
difficulty of pronouncing intelligibly the native sounds
has led to the gradual formation at Canton of a jargon
the words and grammar of which are the most novel
and ludicrous. The Hindustani word "'coolie" is one
of those thus inflicted upon the Chinese, who have no
caste among them, and no class whom it exactly represents.
It must not be supposed that because the Chinese
received their Buddhist religion from India therefore
they adopted the system of caste. Much as it is interwoven with the customs of India, the Chinese mind,
which is so practical and reasonable, has revolted against
it. And this is indeed one of the most convincing illustrations of the superiority of the Chinese race to that
which inhabits India.  The system of "caste" prevalent
in the latter country is familiar to all. It is known that
there exist there four distinct and fixed divisions of
society. We designate them by the word which the first




CHtINYESE IM1 GRATIOC..           47 5
Portuguese and Spanish navigators applied to them from
their own language-casta, "a race or lineage."  The
native Sanscrit name for them is varras, " colors."  Of
these castes the Hindus say that the highest, the Bracamins, came originally from  the head of the supreme
creator, Brahm. They form the chief of all the castes,
and are the authoritative expounders of the sacred
books. The Vishy'a, or Bias, sprang from his body, constituting the chief supporters of the body politic, the
agriculturists and capitalists.  From his arms issued the
defenders of the state, the Kshatriya, or military caste.
The Sudras, or laborers, sprang from his feet. They are
the most degraded of all, performing only servile duties.
They are employed in tilling the soil and in menial
occupations. The Vedas, or sacred books, are closed
against their perusal. Thus caste is regarded as a divine
and sacred ordinance, and the Hindhs consider the nature of the people of the different employments to be
entirely dissimilar, so that it would be as impossible
for a man belonging to one of the lower castes to be
transformed into a higher caste, or perform the offices
of it, as it would be to change a dog into a horse or a
tiger into an elephant. Under these four great divisions
there is a multitude of inferior distinctions of caste, each
like a band of iron round its members, so that a man
can scarce perform a solitary act-can neither eat,
drink, be born, nor die —but he is made to feel its
power. It is the most complicated, burdensome and
despotic superstition with which the human race has
been cursed.  A man who breaks his caste becomes an
outcast, is abandoned by his relations and friends and
so wanders about till death. The fear of losing it, or




476    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
being exposed for acts which would hazard this, often
causes the most shocking murders, and infanticide and
other crimes.
It should be kept very clearly before the minds of our
people, by all who are interested in the Chinese at home
or in our country, that with this diabolical system that
nation has no sympathy whatsoever. In the social system  of China there is no such thing as caste. The
less imaginative, calculating Chinese adopts Buddhism
because it is all around him, the religion of every land
with which his is contiguous, just as the furniture is
tinged green in the room whose windows are curtained
with green; but many of its characteristics are repulsive
to his spirit.  Buddhism is positive, systematized and
minatory;  his cherished  patriarchal traditions are
neither. He rejects the odious perceptive portions of
the Hindu creed.  He offers no human sacrifices; he
burns no widows; he sanctifies no abominable licentiousness, as a part of temple worship; he perplexes
himself with no frequent or minute ritual; he eats,
drinks and is merry; nor is he at all sensible of such
sin before Heaven as to require the painful mortifications and grievous burdens so eagerly borne by the
Hindh. The whole apparatus of caste the Chinese flings
away as something uncomfortable and unnecessary. And
so the social and political system which is built upon this
pantheistic base. There are no fixed divisions in the
body politic; no employments necessarily hereditary;
no essential differences of nature; no permanence of
rank; few offices beyond the reach of the humblest
individuals gifted with talent and energy. And, strange
as the declaration may appear to many who have formed




CHINESE IM2IMIGRA TION.           477
their ideas from  the writings of men wholly unacquainted with the real character of the Chinese and
their institutions, or of some who have only repeated the
perverse or unfounded assertions of calumniators, it is
yet true that few nations maintain opinions or practices
on many points in politics which are more democratic
than theirs.
There is not a solitary "coolie" in California in the
Hindui sense of the word.  The laboring classes of
China in the employment of foreigners have been
sometimes styled "coolies."  If justly, then a porter
or- laborer of any nation similarly employed is a
6' coolie;" for there is no more essential degradation in
their case than in that of others.  If it be said that
European or American laborers often acquire wealth
and assume a more elevated station in society; so, it may
be replied, does the Chinese "coolie" about the factories
at Canton or Shanghai. The bearer of the sedan-chair
or the porter of the tea or silk warehouse belongs to a
class subject to no cincture of contempt-one from which
some of the wealthiest and most influential merchants
have sprung, and embracing occupations sometimes accepted in turn by their sons for the sake of learning the
language and customs of foreigners who trade there.
The "coolie" becomes the comprador, or butler, who is
entrusted with the care of the money and other property
of the foreign merchant, and in time accumulates a
fortune which enables him to purchase some high and
honorable position under the government.  Then, as it
would be justly held to be degrading to style a laborer
of our own race in any country, whatsoever his particular
occupation, a "coolie," so it is not right to attach to the




478    THEE OLDEST AND THE YNEW EST EMPIRE
Chinese the odium of a social debasement which is peculiar to another country, to other institutions, and to
another and most dissimilar race of people. The word
is one which ought to be wholly dropped when speaking of the Chinese. It represents a class, a caste and
a man, in its proper sense and original use, for which
there is no equivalent in their own empire or among
the Chinese in California, Peru, the West Indies or any
other land.
The means to pay the expenses of the voyage are obltained by Chinese emigrants to California in the same
way in which they are by our own people in similar circumstances. One sells out his little shop. Another
leaves the farm on which he was born, and where his
father lived before him, in the hope of bringing back
money enough to pay off some troublesome debts, or to
enable him to add a few acres to it, or to give to his son
a good education. A third is aided, if he has been unfortunate in business or afflicted in his family, by contributions from a few of his relatives.  A fourth borrows
money at a high rate of interest, which is to be paid on
his return.  After the most careful inquiry on the subject from all classes of Chinese, I have never been able
to hear that any were brought over by capitalists and
worked as slaves are, against their will and for the advantage of the employer. This fiction, so often repeated
to their disparagement in print and otherwise in this
country, arose from the clubs or companies which the
Chinese are accustomed to organize in any region where
a number of them may be temporary strangers together.
Very different from the entirely voluntary emigration of the Chinese from the neighborhood of Canton,




CHINESE JMMIGRATION.              479
paying their own expenses, is that to which the distinctive epithet of "coolies" has often been applied,
which has been directed principally to the West India
Islands and Peru.
After the abolition of slavery in British Guiana in
1838, the planters in that country anxiously turned their
eyes abroad in search of free labor. In 1839 several
hundred Hindus, most of them  of the coolie caste,
some of them  Mohammedans, were carried there from
the presidencies of Calcutta and Madras.  The experiment, though at first not satisfactory, proved sufficiently encouraging to lead the colonial government to
send for more. It also brought their wives, when
willing, without cost to them.  The contracts were generally for a term of five years, the coolies to be returned
at the expense of the colony. They were paid four dollars a month, and food and clothing were found them.
But the length and expense of the voyage and return,
the sickness of the coolies on the plantations, the shortness of the term  of service, and the uneasiness of the
British people lest this might lead to a renewal of what
would be virtual slavery, have interfered greatly with
this emigration. It has been, however, very beneficial to
the colony, whose most important products were multiplied fourfold in twenty years. English missionaries
have interested themselves in the instruction of these
coolies, but their temporary residence and the temptations around them have made it an unpromising field for
religious efforts.
About 1850 the Spaniards began to export cargoes of
coolies from Amoy to the island of Cuba. The region
in the first place was flooded with placards inviting men




480    THE OLDEST AN D THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
to engage in sugar-planting and as shepherds and laborers there for terms of five to eight years. They were
offered four dollars a month, which was twice the amount
they could earn at home, with besides two suits of
clothes, medical attendance, sufficient fixed allowances
of rice or flour, beef, pork or fish, sugar and tea, land to
cultivate vegetables, Sunday as a day of rest, free passage for wife and children, with pay to these also if able to
work, and permission to be released from their contract
in one year, if desired. Many Chinese at ports along
the coast were entrapped and Ikept in confinement in
barracoons until they could be carried against their
will on shipboard. Lewd women, intoxicating drinks,
debts at gambling-tables, were part of the machinery.
Once on the ships, they were shamefully abused, confined
like criminals, and not sufficiently fed. In a cargo of
five hundred and six, two hundred and twenty-eight
died; in one of two hundred and ninety-six, a hundred
and sixty-three pined to death with hunger, grief and
sickness.
When landed in Cuba the contract was sold commonly
for about four hundred dollars to planters or others
needing labor; and this was the commencement of the
brutal infliction of all the wrongs of practical slavery.
It was to the interest of the employer to get all the
work possible out of the amount of bone and muscle put
in his power for a limited time. Their death was a discharge from all debts due to them. If they survived
the term, he forced them into new contracts. Friendless, helpless, their condition, as some of their friends in
China said, was that of "hell on earth."  Some committed suicide. Not a few of the Spanish mayorals, or




CHINESE IMMIGRA TION.           481
overseers, were murdered by the desperate objects of
their cruelty.
The more recent accounts from Cuba show that the
general impression as to the usefulness of Chinese labor
is becoming more definite in its favor. And the present
tendency is toward the abolition of African slavery and
the employment of the Chinese. Some of these people,
notwithstanding the fearful odds against them, have done
well pecuniarily. They have become peddlers, gardeners, mechanics, and even doctors, and shown a native
enterprise which may at some future time place the
relations between them and the indolent Spaniards upon
a very different footing from that in which they stand
toward each other at present.
The coolie trade to Peru and the Chincha Islands,
which was begun in 1849, was one which crimsons the
cheek with shame that we belong to the same race of
beings which could enact all its crimes, or that we in
any wise as a nation share in the proceeds of its chief
end, the procuring of guano as a manure for our markets
and those of other Christian countries. In the digging
of the guano, which consists of the deposits of a small
sea-bird like a pigeon, upon the broken cliffs of the
islands, to the depth of from one to two hundred feet,
the coolies were forced to prepare their food before the
dawn of the day and commence work as soon as they
could see. They were obliged daily to dig five- tons of
guano and wheel it to a distance of over one-eighth of a
mile. If not able to accomplish the task,, they were
flogged in the most cruel manner. No Sunday was
allowed for rest. Many were made sick, or disabled! by
sores caused by the guano on their limbs. In their de31




482    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EM'TIPIR.E.
spair numbers of them committed suicide, some drowning
themselves by leaping from the cliffs into the sea, others
going beneath the masses of guano when about to fall
while digging it, so that they were buried alive.
The crimes engendered by this coolie trade were as
fiendish as any that ever disgraced the slave trade with
Africa. I have spoken of the villanies by which the
victims were first duped and entrapped. Being com.pletely in the power of the foreign seamen, on the bosom
of the ocean, ignorant of where they were going, starved,
sick, in despair, life was of small account to them. They
committed the most desperate acts and provoked the like
upon them. The scenes enacted upon the ships which
carried them there were sometimes truly horrible. The
Waverly, an American ship, in October, 1855, put in
at the MJanila, in the Philippine Islands, to bury the
captain, who had died of dysentery. Having anchored
in the bay, the mate, who was in command, was proceeding to lower the body into a boat, when the Chinese,
either because some of them wished to go ashore, or, as
some thought, on account of some superstitious prejudice,
interfered to prevent his doing so. The mate discharged
a revolver among them, and shot one man dead. The
crew then having armed themselves drove the whole of
the Chinese below and battened down the hatches, and
the mate proceeded on shore with the body of the captain. He returned to the ship in the evening, but took
no measures to learn the condition of the Chinese who
were shut down without air or light. When the hatches
were opened the following morning, two humndred and
fifty-one of them were found dead! Scenes as terrible
occurfred on several other ships about the same period.




EIiJNESE IMMTIGRATZON.          483
Within the past few years they have from time to time
startled the people of Christian countries. In the winter
of 1865 the captain of an Italian ship, the Napoleon
Canavero, when the Chinese became rebellious, drove
them  below by force of arms and fastened down the
hatches. The Chinese, rather than be suffocated to
death, set fire to the ship. The Italians, finding they
could not extinguish the flames, abandoned the ship
without opening the hatches, and the whole of the Chinese on board are supposed to have in this awful way
perished.
There were acts permitted by a just God which now
and then paid back upon the whites a portion of the
debt of vengeance due. Chinese pirates suffered themselves to be taken aboard coolie-ships, armed with concealed weapons, and at a suitable' opportunity rose and
murdered the officers and such of the crew as they did
not need for the management of the vessel, and then
made their escape to the nearest land.
The representation of these terrible transactions to the
several governments interested led our Congress, in
1862, to prohibit ships of the United States engaging in
the transportation of coolies or involuntary emigrants;
to conventions between the Chinese government and the
English and French ministers regulating it, in 1860 and
in 1866, the provisions of which were adopted by the
United States, according to instructions from the Secretary of State, in August of the same year; and subsequently to the closing of the Portuguese port of Macao
against this trade by a proclamation of the governor of
MIacao and Timor, in 1868.
The agreement between the English,l French and




484    THE OLDEST AND THIE NEWEST EPIRE.
American  authorities and the Chinese government contains  some  admirable  points.  It requires  emigration
agents to be responsible men, under the supervision of
the consuls of the various countries, and acting through
a license from the Chinese authorities, which may be
revoked  for abuse of its privileges; it minutely  states
the  points which  should  be  specified  in  contracts in
order to protect the emigrant;' it provides for rest from
labor on the Sabbath, that is, one day in seven, and
against any man being forced to labor more than  nine
hours and a half in the day; the engagement must not
exceed five years; the cost of the passage home of the
emigrant and famiry is to be paid, or if he re-engage for
another five years, one-half that amount shall be paid in
addition as a premium; each emigrant is required to
appear before the Chinese officer previous to embarking
and to give his voluntary assent and signature to the contract; a list of names of emigrants is to be sent to the
1 It may be of importance to mention these points. The article reads as
follows:
"ARTICLE VIII.'"The contract shall specify:
"1st. The place of destination and the length of the engagement.
"2d. The right of the emigrant to be conveyed back to his own country, and
the sum that shall be paid at the expiration of his contract to cover the expense
of his voyage home, and that of his family should they accompany him.
"3d. The number of working-days in the year and the length of each day's
work.
"4th. The wages, rations, clothing and other advantages promised to the
emigrant.
"5th. Gratuitous medical attendance.
"6th. The sum which the emigrant agrees to set aside out of his monthly
wages for the benefit of persons to be named by him, should he desire to appropriate any sum to such a purpose.
"7th. Copies of [the most important] articles of these regulations.
"Any clause which shall purport to render invalid any of the provisions
of this regulation is null and void."




CHIiNESE IMMIGBA TION.                 485
foreign consul interested and the local authorities at the
place of destination, and provision is made for inspection
of the vessels as to health and fitness for the voyage.
At the close of this valuable document, Prince Kung, in
behalf of the imperial government, formally revokes the
old prohibitions and declares " that the Chinese government throws no obstacle in the way of free emigration —
that is to say, to the departure of Chinese subjects, embarking of their own free-will and at their own expense
for foreign countries."  But he threatens punishment
with the extreme rigor of the law upon attempts to bring
Chinese under engagements except according to these
regulations; declares death to Chinese found kidnapping,
and  forbids unlicensed  foreign  emigration-agents, or
operations at other than the open ports.
The interesting question, whether contracts compelling
coolies to labor for a term of years can be so made in
China by one who designs to import them to the United
States as to be of substantial value on their arrival here,
has been decided in the negative by the Department of
State of the United States, and its opinion has been expressed that anything like "the apprentice system" is
not to be encouraged in this country.l  However, Chinese laborers, like any others, are at liberty to come
voluntarily, and under contracts which are assignable,
and if these be violated, they are subject to action for
pecuniary damages.2
1 Papers relating to Foreign Affairs, etc., 1866: Part I, pp. 492-494, 506-507.
2 The following is an extract from the act of Congress, passed July 4, 1864,
entitled "An Act to Encourage Immigration." Having authorized the appointment of a " Commissioner of Immigration," it continues as follows:
" SEC. 2. All contracts that shall be made by emigrants to the United States,
in foreign countries, in conformity to regulations that may be established by the
said commissioner, whereby emigrants shall pledge the wages of their labor for




486       THE OLDEST AND  THIE NfEWEST EXMPI.RE.
The extent of the emigration  of the people of China
to this country in the future will be largely governed by
ourselves. It is true that their numbers are vast, that
their wages are small, and that they love work and are
capable of doing much that we need to be done.  But,
on the other hand, they are proud, afraid of the sea and
afraid of our race, and love home and kindred.  They
will not come in considerable numbers without pressure
on our part.
The early rush of Chinese immigration  to California
was largely the result of the efforts of our own people.
In  the year 1849  three hundred  came over, in  1850
four hundred and fifty, and two thousand seven hundred
in 1851.  Many of these took back gold and confirmed
the fact of its existence.  Foreign  shipping merchants
hastened to take advantage of the disposition to emigrate.  Those  in  Hong-kong   and  Canton  circulated
placards, maps and pamphlets, presenting highly-colored
accounts of the "Golden  Hills."   Numerous ships sent
out native agents to obtain passengers. The consequence
was the increase of the number of immigrants in  1852
to  over eighteen  thousand, of whom   only  twenty-five
were women.  More than eleven thousand arrived in the
months of June and July.  But several of the vessels
a term not exceeding twelve months, to repay the expenses of their emigration,
shall be held to be valid in law, and may be enforced in the courts of the United
States, or of the several States and Territories;, and such advances, if so stipulated in the contract, and the contract be recorded in the Recorder's office in the
county where the emigrant shall settle, shall operate as a lien upon any land
thereafter acquired by the emigrant, whether under the Homestead law, when
the title is consummated, or on property otherwise acquired, until liquidated by
the emigrant; but nothing herein contained shall be deemed to authorize any
contract contravening the constitution of the United States, or creating in any
way the relation of slavery or servitude2'




CHINESE IJIMMIGRATI ON.            487
were old, filthy, rotten craft that had gone through
their term of'ordinary service, been used then for whalers and afterward abandoned.  So much sickness was
produced among the Chinese on them that those at home
became alarmed, and the next year not one-fourth the
number came.
The number of Chinese on this side of the ocean in
1856 amounted, as I found by careful investigations
made at my request into the records of their companies,
to about forty thousand men and perhaps three thousand
women.' iNine thousand more had returned, and fourteen
hundred had died.  The number of men in this country
in 1868 the Rev. A. W. Loomis, who is better acquainted
with them as a people than any other person on the Pacific coast, judged from his inquiries then to be about
sixty-one thousand, and there had been over forty-six
thousand departures and nearly four thousand deaths.
Mr. H. C. Bennett,l of San Francisco, at the close of
last year made an examination by the aid of their companies which led him  to estimate that there are now
about ninety thousand in this country; that is, that
there had arrived from  China, since 1848, a hundred
and thirty-eight thousand men, of whom thirty-seven
thousand had returned and over ten thousand were dead.
Of' the number here less than half are in California.
There is no reason for supposing that there are more
Chinese than the number which this gentleman supposes now in the country. Of these ninety thousand
persons, it is supposed nearly five thousand are women
l Secretary of the San Francisco Chinese Protection Society, an organization
which was formed on account of the cruel and unprovoked injuries sometimes:
inflicted upon these industrious people by bad characters about the city.




488    THE OLDEST AND TITE NEWEST EMPIRE.
and about two thousand are children. Probably twofifths of these are females and children living in San
Francisco, as it is difficult to provide for them outside of
the large towns.
The stream which begins to set in from China to the
New World does not remain in California. It flows
wherever a channel is open for it by the discovery of
new mines, by the opening of new opportunities of trade
or by the requirements for human labor. It is supposed
that fifty thousand Chinese are distributed over other
Pacific States and Territories. Half of these are in
Montana and Idaho; a fourth of them are in Oregon and
Nevada; the remainder are distributed along the lines
of railroad eastward and in Colorado and Utah, and a
few in Mexico and in the Mississippi Valley. As the
number increases, they will press on into all the States
and Territories of the West and South, into all the
provinces of Mexico and into all the countries of South
America and all the islands of the Pacific ocean. The
wants of those vast, almost untenanted portions of the
globe, abounding in all the requisites of productive soil,
of variety of esculent plants, of mineral wealth, of
water communication to sustain a large population, can
only be met by the immigration of a race so capable as
the Chinese. And the Creator has prepared a treasury
of labor in that empire from which those lands and
islands can draw without danger of exhaustion. This
only we can now foretell, that the handful of Chinese
now on this continent is but the trickling of the rivulet
which will swell into a river that will spread over all
the New World, and over all the islands of the great
ocean which fills the side opposite to that which has




CHIiNESE IMMIGBRATION.          489
been the scene of the civilization which has been our
heritage.
The general subject of Chinese immigration is so
broad that it might readily be expanded into a volume;
but I must dismiss this chapter with some practical
suggestions which it is important that our people should
consider.
It must have forced itself upon the observation of
most well-informed persons that the populations of different parts of the Chinese seacoast are quite dissimilar
in character. Those of the province of Canton have
more of that which might be supposed to result from
many centuries of communication, and of conflicts too,
with foreigners; they are more enterprising and intelligent. Those of the province of Fu-kien and the portions of Canton near it, who have traded more largely
with the Indian Archipelago, Siam and the neighboring
semi-civilized countries, are bold and energetic, but more
rude; it is there that infanticide abounds, and the people
are more uncultivated and ignorant than they are in any
other part of China visited by foreigners. The inhabitants of the valley of the Yang-tsz-kiang river are more
mild, timid and inefficient. The people of the northern
provinces begin to approach the Tartar type; they are
physically larger, their food, temperament and habits
are those of a northern latitude. The " coolie" emigration to Cuba and in the hands of the Spaniards has
been largely from Fu-kien; there has been very little
from any' ports of the north; the emigration to California has been almost exclusively from the districts
about Canton. It is probable that these differences of
temperament may exercise a considerable influence upon




490    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
the directions which the large emigrations of the future
shall take.
It is a most criminal and perilous matter to attempt
to treat the intelligent Chinese race after the same
fashion as was formerly done with the negro, and deceive
and confine them in " coolie-ships." The horrible transactions, of which I have mentioned a few, will continually recur with similar provocation. Vessels will be
burned, officers and crews slaughtered, and cargoes of
men will destroy themselves and all on board rather
than be enslaved. The Chinese know what liberty is in
their land beyond any other in Eastern Asia. They
will do just what a body of Americans would do if
driven to desperation.
Emigrant ships on the Pacific should be subjected to
legislative requirements, in respect to the amount of
room allowed to passengers, as to diet, as to ventilation,
as to cleanliness and as to medical attention, and should
be inspected by disinterested and capable agents of the
government, just as the same class of vessels on the Atlantic ocean. There can be no excuse before God or
man for the terrible mortality which has occurred on
some of the vessels containing Chinese passengers. Let
the government attach a legal and sufficient pecuniary
penalty to the loss of life on shipboard and it will cease.
The improvements in the whole matter of hygiene on
shipboard have accomplished results within the present
century that to many must seem truly wonderful, especially in connection with those which make long voyages.
A report on the subject of quarantine, made by a committee of the British Parliament, consisting of Lord
Carlisle and others, some years ago, brought out the




CHINESE IMM~IGJRATIONl          491
facts that when the system of transportation of convicts
to Australia was first adopted, in s6me of the earlier voyages one-half of those who embarked were lost; later, on
the passage to New South Wales, in the " Hillsborough,"
out of 306 who embarked, 100 were lost, and in the
"Atlas," out of 175 who embarked, 61 were lost. In the
period from 1795 to 1801, out of 3,833 convicts who embarked, 385 died, or nearly 1 in 10. But after the principle of pecuniary responsi6ility for the lives of passengers began to be applied, in 1801, out of 2,398 who
embarked only 52 died, or 1 in 46. The improvement
has continued up till the present time, when it amounts
to only 1 i per cent., which is even lower than the average mortality of the same class living on shore. On the
steamers of the Pacific mail line from San Francisco to
Shanghai and Hong-kong there appears to be reasonable care exercised. But there are numerous sailing
vessels, carrying Chinese passengers elsewhere, which
should be made the subjects of strict supervision, and,
where the laws are violated, of just punishment.
Those Chinese who make voluntary contracts, which
they clearly understand, if honorably and kindly treated,
will as a general rule be disposed to abide by. them.
But it should be a point most carefully guarded by the
legislatures and courts in the parts of the country where
they shall be employed that they shall be only subjected
to pecuniary liabilities in cases of violations of contract.
The infliction of corporeal punishment upon them will
not alone be a great wrong which may lead to very grave
results in the case of the parties inflicting it; it will
moreover be a door to the return of those who may have
them  in their power to the scenes of barbarity and




492    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
tyranny for which our nation has too recently atoned to
eternal Justice by a sea of blood!
An immigration which does not include virtuous
females will of necessity be a vicious, unhappy, troublesome and unprofitable one in any country. It is cheaper
to pay the passage of such women-wives, mothers,
daughters, sisters-than for any community or any employee of a considerable number of men to be without
their offices and influences. The Chinese is a race among
which the affection for kindred holds a high place, and
over which it exerts a powerful control. Every possible
means ought to be employed to check the coming of the
wretched, pestilential creatures now brought over, and
to encourage the men to bring their families.
And in all the general measures, legislative or commercial, which we adopt in reference to this element of
our population, we ought to remember that we are not
acting for temporary, or personal, or our own national
interests; but that we are set by divine Providence in a
position which demands that we should be inspired by
loftier and broader motives, which are derived from the
suggestions of an enlarged observation of history, a sincere devotion to the best interests of humanity, and by
a humble and earnest desire to be but the instruments
by which the Supreme Being shall execute his great and
beneficent plans.




CHAPTER XVII.
CHINESE LABOR,
IT is important before as a nation we introduce to a
large extent Chinese labor that we should form some
distinct conception of its character, of the probabilities
of its usefulness and the objections to the employment
of it.
The close observer will soon discern that several elements are fundamental in regard to Chinese laborthe antiquity of the social system, the respect for intellectual employment, the density of the population
and the difficulty of obtaining subsistence. These make
it peculiar in any of those respects in which it differs
from labor in any other country. They imply that the
institutions have become thoroughly settled; that the
arts have attained a high degree of perfection; that
there are broad lines between the rich and the poor, and
between the intelligent and the ignorant; that the poor
must exercise ingenuity, industry and thrift to support
life; that the characters of men will be more definite;
that the employments will be more numerous and each
branch better understood; and that remuneration will
be fixed at lower rates.
WVe may group the characteristics of Chinese labor
under four heads: the industry of the people, their
493




494    THE OLDEST AIND THE IVETVEST E1JMPIRE.
habits of economy, their intelligence, and the variety
of their employments. Let us consider each of these
more fully.
The first impression made upon the traveler in China
in relation to the teeming multitudes around him, after
that of the mere novelty of forms and costumes, is the
intense industry of nearly every one he sees. The river
people do not wait for wind or tide, but drive vessels as
large as our brigs and schooners by numerous long sideoars or immense sculling-oars behind or on either quarter of the stern; and the water is crowded with men and
women and children, toiling in their vessels of various
shapes, buying and selling the commodities of the loom,
the garden or the shop. On the shore he looks over a
landscape every portion of which except barren hillsides
is cultivated to the highest degree and covered with different kinds of grain, vegetables and fruit. The narrow
streets are packed with men intent upon all the varied
employments of the inhabitants of great cities, and are
lined on either side with shops for the manufacture and
sale of the countless articles which a numerous and
luxurious population can require. Abodes of wealth
adorn the more retired streets or the suburbs. The rich
project and push their larger schemes; the poor struggle
and toil for the subsistence of the passing day. There
is no Sabbath known, and few holidays are observed.
No equal population of any other part of the Old World
is more intently and incessantly busy than that of the
cities and towns of China.
The physical system of the Arab or the North American Indian through successive generations has become
conformed to his roving and predacious habits. His




CHINESE LAB O.                495
blood and flesh are like those of the wild animals of the
forest or the desert. But ages of toil seem to have
tamed the nature of the Chinese till now patience and
diligence have become elements of both mind and body.
They work because they love work, honor work and
maintain happiness and self-respect by work. Work is
a necessity of the muscular and mental, like food for the
digestive, or air for the pulmonary system.
Foreigners in China see this national characteristic
exhibited in manifold ways. The tea they purchase is
prepared with an amount of manual labor that is almost
beyond belief. The tender leaves are separately rolled,
and finished with a twist in the preparation of some
kinds of it. The amount and variety of manipulation
which the Chinese think necessary and cheerfully bestow upon the tea, to retain its highest flavor, is the
principal reason why its culture has not become extensive in any of the numerous other countries where
the plant itself thrives. Silk is wrought with a care
and embroidered with a delicate and patient skill which
are not elsewhere known in the preparation of the fabric.
The paintings upon rice-paper are so elaborately finished
in every vein and stripe and spot and tint of a butterfly's
wing, or of the petals of a tiger lily, or of the bright
feathers of a tropical pheasant, that one has to examine
them carefully to be satisfied that they are not the article itself attached to the surface. In the ordinary employments of the household, whatever faults may be
attributed to the Chinese indolence is not included
among them. They are ready, at all hours, promptly
and patiently to obey all orders which they understand
and which relate to their own sphere.




496    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMiPIRE.
The next cardinal virtue of the Chinese is economy.
The sustenance of the masses of humanity within the
limits of the empire requires the utilization of every possible material suitable for food, raiment, fuel or the mechanical arts. There is scarcely any imaginable form
of matter for which some use is not found. And the
ingenuity with which cheap and common materials, such
as bamboo, paper, slate or pottery, are applied to purposes of necessity, comfort or ornament is remarkable
and sometimes even amusing.
The employer may be sure that in any department of
labor in which he can trust the honesty, or be thoroughly cognizant of the conduct of laborers, there will
be care exercised as to tools, utensils, raw material and
the odds and ends, the saving of which may possibly
constitute the chief advantage in the business. lWhen
food is provided it will not be wasted, though it may be
disposed of otherwise. Clothing will be kept, so long as
the native pride is maintained, scrupulously neat, as to
external appearance at least. And we may remark, as
a special virtue in a people who possess so few means
of accurately measuring time, the punctuality of the
Chinese.  They understand the value of time and are
economical of it, just as they are of money. They are
willing to give full measure of time in work when they
are satisfied with the wages. They claim few holidays,
except some days at the New Year, and possibly one in
the spring and fall to repair the tombs of kindred and
friends.
The wages paid for Chinese labor in this country will
in the first place be cheaper than any other. The sum
obtained by laboring men in their own country, from




CHINESE LABOR.               497
their own people, is equal to but a few cents a day;
from foreigners they expect, as cooks, coolies, etc., from
three to seven dollars a month, and to find themselves.
In California they are paid thirty dollars a month in
factories and on railroads. In the mines they have
usually been hired at about two-thirds the wages of
white laborers.
Yet it may usually be expected that the wages of Chinese laborers, when they become acquainted with the
work to be done and with our people and language, will
rise. They are shrewd, ambitious, and will not be satisfied to be placed upon a much lower scale than others
who can do no better work than themselves. They will
in the future probably not command the rates paid to
white laborers. They have qualities which will always
make them valuable.
A  third general characteristic of Chinese labor is
intelligence. In the south of China the people are so
generally taught to read that it is rare to meet with a
man who does not know the common printed characters
in books. They think for themselves, and generally
perform their work in a straightforward and sensible
manner. When necessary to learn foreign methods of
mechanical or other work, they readily comprehend the
explanations, ascertain what is essential, and learn the
necessary manipulations or forms. It is however important to teach them correctly at the beginning, since
their arts and methods are so very different from our
own, and they have been so long accustomed to follow
their old precedents, that when they take up ours and
once fix them in their memory it is difficult to induce
them to change.
32




498    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMIPIRE.
In this feature of the Chinese there is a ground of
great superiority over laborers of some other races. The
painful stolidity of some of the ignorant European
whites and of most of the degraded Africans of this
country is rarely seen among this swarthy people.
Combined with intelligence is willingness. It amounts
to cheerfulness and mirthfulness among each other and
those with whom they feel at ease. But to employers
generally they manifest a most refreshing promptness
and willingness to do just what they are asked to do.
The habit of deference and politeness is instilled with
their mother's milk. The first care of a father is to
teach his son the language of proper respect toward
kindred and superiors. Amid all the necessary jarring
and jamming of the crowded streets of a Chinese city,
or of the countless boats in a swift tide upon a Chinese
river, the amount of good nature, forbearance and courtesy exhibited is a constant source of pleasant surprise
to those who have been accustomed to the oaths, the bad
passions and the blows seen and heard in similar circumstances in our sea-coast cities or on our rivers in the
East or West. Many are the times in which the missionary in China., acquainted with the language, when he
hears the angry and bitter words which the presence of
foreigners provokes, turns to the crowd and appeals to
them in some little pleasantry, or with the inquiry
whether they consider such conduct to be polite; in a
moment the sound of their own tongue and manifestation
of acquaintance with " good manners" disarms them, and
they express regret for what has been offensive. The
ordinary labor of servants is done without the surliness
and muttering and reluctance which are considered by




CHINESE LABOR.               499
many persons of that class to be a prerogative in virtue
of their condescending to an inferior position.
One other characteristic of Chinese labor may be noticed-its variety. In an old country the employments
of men are far more numerous than they are in a new
one. Society, as some classes become wealthy, multiplies
its demands for articles of use, comfort and luxury; and
as other classes become poor, they quit the ordinary and
crowded paths of industry, and ever seek to discover
some which may be more untrodden and remunerative.
Different as are the society and employments of China
from those in America, yet it may be said that there is
scarcely a generic want there which has not some counterpart here. Hence it is one of the principal elements
of value in the Chinese immigration that we find men
acquainted with a great variety of useful knowledge, and
skill in the agricultural, mechanical and other arts.
The first aim of those who early came to this country
was to work in the mines. Seeing the want of cooks,
washermen and waiters, many soon were induced to
adopt these less laborious and hazardous employments,
and quickly amassed sums sufficient to satisfy them, at
a time when cooks in families were paid forty or fifty
dollars a month and washermen received three dollars a day for renovating soiled clothes. In the mining
regions of Montana, Nevada and other portions of the
Pacific coast the people now eagerly welcome this neat,
sober, industrious race to fill these offices in the household or community. Many an exhausted and sick
American wife greets a Chinese servant as a boon beyond price.
The Chinese soon after their first advent upon this




500    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST E~PIRE.
coast began to explore other avenues of gain. Some
became shopkeepers of various kinds. Representatives
of wealthy mercantile firms in Canton or Hong-kong
established houses in San Francisco, with branches in
the mining towns. Doctors and druggists opened their
shops for the relief of the suffering. Butchers sold
pork and poultry as in their own cities and villages.
Tailors and shoemakers began to ply their trades. And
thus the Chinese quarters of San Francisco, Sacramento
and other places in California began to assume the appearance of the streets of their native cities. And
gamblers and lewd women followed, and became' even
more bold and wicked than the same classes at home.
Employm ents useful to our own people were early established by the Chinese among us. The gardens upon
the hillsides, thoroughly irrigated, manured and tilled,
supplied to our towns a constant abundance and variety
of fresh and cheap vegetables. A few men cut and prepared kindling and other wood for fuel. A large number
found employment in fishing, and in various kinds of
common labor.
The good points of Chinese labor have been enumerated. Have these people no faults? Yes. They are
suspicious until they become thoroughly acquainted with
us; they are often dishonest; they often lie; they feel
unsettled in this country; and they are in danger of
temptations to sensual indulgences.
Suspicion of whites is not to be wondered at in a people who for ages past have been plundered and harassed by Western nations as have the inhabitants of the
southern coast of China. But, beyond this, suspiciousness is an attribute of all heathen races. The want of




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CHINESE LABOR.                501
the virtues of Christianity necessarily creates mutual
want of confidence. But when the experience of the
Chinese shows them that an American is a sincere and
disinterested friend, they exhibit their esteem and gratitude in numerous pleasing ways, and are ready often to
load him with gifts beyond their means.
They generally require to be watched to prevent dishonesty and pilfering.  But when articles are committed to their care, and their honor and better feelings are
appealed to, they are punctiliously faithful.  And when
they are won to unreserved confidence in employers, the
mcst implicit trust may be reposed in them.
They are not sensible of the evil of lying like those
educated under the light of the inspired word of Him
who searcheth the heart and bringeth every secret thing
into judgment. Yet they are sensitive to moral considerations, and may be made to feel the shamefulness
and wrong of falsehood.
They feel here like strangers in a strange land; and
this sometimes, as in the case of our own people in new
countries, makes them unsettled and unhappy. But, on
the other hand, their habits at home are just the opposite from this; and when satisfied with employers and
wages, they often continue in one place a long time.
The pure and stable morality of those who know the
truths of Christianity of course they lack. They are a
heathen people.  And yet their very heathenism is not
the fantastic, obscene and bloody religion elsewhere seen
in Asia, which insults the reason and the sense of mankind, and sends its stench into the heavens.
These are the chief defects of Chinese labor.  And
yet it requires our people a considerable time to become




602    THE OLDEST AND THE NZEWEST EMPIRE.
accustomed to the strange-looking race who go so quietly
and, as some unused to them would imagine, slowly
about their daily tasks. They will not bear goading and
harsh language. They abhor irritability and despise
fitfulness. They rebel against irregular hours of toil
and bad and insufficient food. When cruelly maltreated
and wronged they become sullen, and at last burst out
in acts of self-destruction or desperate resistance-not
vengeance, properly, for they do not nurse revenge.
To this grouping of the better and worse characteristics of Chinese labor the remark must be added, that
the individuals of it differ greatly from each other. We
too much judge nations by particular people of them
with whom we happen to be acquainted. There are as
great diversities of temperament and capacity to be found
under swarthy as under white skins.
There are some practical difficulties also in connection
with the employment of the Chinese. One is, the slowness and labor with which they learn our language. Its
polysyllabic character, and the combination of several
consonants in a single syllable, make it hard for them to
pronounce it; and the entire dissimilarity of its sounds
from  those by which they represent names or ideas
makes them difficult to remember.  It is almost as hard
for them to learn English as it is for us to learn Chineseo
Yet there are among them  some who speak English
fluently and accurately. Another difficulty sometimes
arises in employing them  from  their clannish disposition. This leads them to act in concert for the accomplishment of their purposes, and to indulge hostility
toward their countrymen with whom they are at feud.
The fields for the application of Chinese labor in this




CHIINESE LABOR.              503
country are chiefly those of agriculture, manfufactures,
mining, public enterprises and the wants of the household.
Of the capacity of the Chinese as domestic servants so
much has been said that I shall add to what has been
said before but a word. Their characteristics of industry, economy and intelligence must make them a treasure
in many an American home. And it is the pleasant experience of their usefulness in families which has made
so many of the better class of people in California and
the neighboring States their warm friends, and impatient
with the injuries which chiefly low white foreigners have
inflicted upon them.
In agriculture we may occupy these immigrants in employments familiar to our nation, or we may use their
knowledge and skill to introduce new products and processes.
In the cultivation of the cereals the farmers have been
able to accomplish a great deal toward making California
a great producing and exporting State. The wheat crop
is now more valuable pecuniarily to the State than the
gold. It was expected that the surplus alone of the
produce of wheat the last season in California would be
sixteen and a half millions of bushels, that there would
be three and a half millions more in Oregon, and that
these twenty millions would bring in from abroad not
less than eighteen millions of dollars. Farmers have
introduced other remunerative crops. Hops have handsomely rewarded the labors of some of them. Fruits have
attained a perfection under the long-continued and unclouded sun of California such as is nowhere else seen;
and the abundance of them  is almost beyond belief.




504    TIIE OLDEST AND TIIE NEWEST E3IPIRDE.
Tons of delicious peaches and pears last summer went to
rot under the trees in many orchards around the bay of
San Francisco simply because there were such quantities
that it would not pay to bring them to market. With
all this boundless wealth of nature, it is chiefly Chinese
labor that is, and must be, employed to carry on the
various processes of cultivation and the garnering of the
proceeds. By this means they can be brought within the
range of successful competition with the same products
in the markets of Europe and of the Atlantic States.
Without this labor the contest may as well be given up.
No doubt, however, the time is coming when these vegetable richles will prove a boon to the regions less favored
of the skies. The fruits of the Pacific coast especially
will, in a variety of ways, be prepared by careful Chi'
nese fingers for safe exportation, and be distributed over
this and distant lands.
But it is not the mere toil of these people which will
profit us. They have for ages been acquainted with the
cultivation of plants whose products form the most valuable constituents of the wealth of nations. Chief among
these stand cotton and silk.
The most profitable production of the soil. of the
United States has been cotton. Southern and Eastern
Asia are the original seats of the culture of cotton. It
was taken from Eastern Asia to Persia and Arabia. Our
common names of some of its tissues are derived from
the Chinese. Nanking, or Nankeen, the ancient capital,
is the region from whence the most substantial web has
been obtained.
The name of this most valuable species of mallow has
been, by some philologists, derived from the Arabic;




CHINESE LAB OR               505
but we may look for it with more probability in the designation of the district of Khoten, in the western extreme
of the Chinese dominions, one of the most ancient and
fertile spots in the world. The name is but slightly
changed to Kustana in the venerable Sanscrit language
of India. The word kat has passed into the Chinese.
Marco Polo found cotton and skillful artisans in that
region six hundred years ago. He says that in the
kingdom of Cotan "they have all things in abundance,
a large supply of silk, with vineyards and good orchards.
They carry on merchandise and manufactures, but are
not men-at-arms."  They still pay their tribute to the
emperor of China in home-grown cotton, and a Chinese
geographer states that the plant in that country " covers
the fields like yellow clouds."
The favorite cotton region of China is the alluvial
valley of the great Yang-tsz-kiang river, which is somewhat like the Sacramento in its moist, fat soil and frequent inundations. However, it is also cultivated in
Canton province. I have made inquiries, and find there
are some natives of that province in California who are
acquainted with the process.
It has been asserted by some intelligent men that
California is unsuited to the growth of cotton. The
sensitiveness of the plant to cold, the dryness of the
summer winds and the absence of dews have been urged
as reasons for the failure of some experiments in raising
it. But while these causes may hinder the cultivation
of some favorite varieties, it should be remembered that
other varieties have been found indigenous to that coast,
and which formed material for thread and cloth before
the white races visited it; others still are natives of the




506    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIREo
island groups of the Pacific, where they grow to be stout
trees a dozen feet in height and some inches in diameter,
and others inhabit Eastern Asia, which though less rermunerative in their yield or choice as to fibre, yet supply hundreds of millions of pounds to those nations,
and are so hardy as to be cultivated upon the mountain
sides five thousand feet above the sea. There are parts
of the Pacific coast where superior cotton has been found
to grow well, the staple being long, the texture strong
and the appearance silky; and competent judges in the
Southern States have declared that specimens shown
them have been of a quality superior to that commonly
seen there. Some remarkably fine specimens have been
sent from the neighborhood of Los Angelos.
The manufacture of the cottons for the insatiable
markets of China and India will certainly in the end
find its centre on the Pacific coast of North America.
It is a mere question of time. There the material, the
capital, the laborers and the markets most naturally
come together. The most far-seeing minds of Great
Britain begin to regard the fact with anxiety. They are
projecting English colonies upon Borneo, New Guinea
and other tropical islands, where the same advantages
may possibly be concentrated in the hope of retaining
the predominent national advantages of this trade under
their own control. The following extract is taken from
an article which appeared a few years ago in the London
Times; and it may be remarked that its recommendations have engaged the attention of practical Englishmen, who are endeavoring to carry them out in the
islands of the Indian Archipelago or ocean south of it.
The writer says:




CHINESE LABOR.                507
"I The various places hitherto suggested for the extension of cotton cultivation —such as India, the west coast
of Africa, the West India Islands, etc. —may always be
serviceable as an auxiliary supply, but it will never be
grown in sufficient quantities to influence the market.
By the plan I propose, cotton may be grown so extensively that the short and inferior qualities would be only
used in the manufacture of paper, for which there is a
great scarcity of material.
"A tropical climate is undoubtedly the indigenous and
most suitable one for the production of cotton, the plant
being perennial, and yielding two crops annually;
whereas in the Southern States of America the plant is
annual, one crop only being produced, which is liable to
injury by the variableness of the season. The requisites,
therefore, are to obtain a large tract of land of adequate
fertility, at a nominal value, and a plentiful supply of
laborers adapted to a tropical climate, who would work
at a moderate rate of wages, and thereby render production as remunerative as slave labor. The great field
for obtaining tropical laborers is China (India can also
furnish a large number of emigrants). The low rate
of wages they obtain in their own country makes them
admirably adapted to compete with coerced labor, which
they will eventually supersede. The natural disposition
of the Chinese to emigrate in search of employment,
which they cannot obtain in their own country, is well
known, the sugar estates in Java, the gold mines of
Borneo, etc., being worked principally by Chinese settlers; and even the wilds of Australia and California
have long abounded with these enterprising people.
In the British and foreign West India colonies and




608    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
Brazil many have been imported, though the expense
of transporting them such a distance is very great.
"The large island of New Guinea, or one of the adjacent islands to the north of Australia, offers the greatest
facility for the establishment of a cotton colony on the
grandest scale. WVith a fertile soil, and within a few
days' sail of China and India, there can be no doubt the
most extensive and rapid colonization would take place,
and that in a few years the settlement would become one
of the most flourishing in the world."
This English writer assumes what facts do not support-that a tropical climate is that which best suits
cotton. The cotton of tropical Asia and Africa has not
been equal to that"of Georgia and the American Gulf
States; and in China the cotton of Kiang-su and other
provinces about the mouth of the Yang-tsz-kiang river,
in lat. 31~ north, is preferred to that of the coast several
hundred miles to the south. On our Pacific coast there
are, climatic conditions probably as favorable to its
growth as those which exist in the Gulf States. The soil
is alluvial and rich. The location is in the great line of
intercontinental trade. The genius of the people, the
certainty of commanding the best improvements in
machinery, and the presence of capital at the fountainhead of the precious metals, are pledges of success.
And the labor required for successful cultivation,
manipulation and the work of the mill will be obtained from the natural source across the ocean of that
which is among the cheapest and best suited to these
ends. It will be our own fault if that region of our
continent, through this conjunction of advantages in respect to the supply of Eastern Asia with manufactured




CHINESE LABOR.                509
cotton, does not become one of " the most prosperous in
the world."
There is another textile fabric which is naturally suggested to the mind in connection with cotton; it clothes
millions, it is more valuable in the same amount than
cotton, and its great source has been the empire of
China. Were it possible to make ours a country which
should largely produce, use and export silk, all the disadvantages of the Chinese immigration would be indeed
comparatively incidental and easily to be overlooked.
China is emphatically the land of silk-the name was
probably derived from silk-and silk is its most rich,
beautiful and universally cultivated production. Its
exports of raw, unmanufactured silk alone are worth to
the nation from  twenty to thirty millions of dollars a
year. Its value to it in all the countless forms of use
cannot be estimated in money.
California possesses extraordinary advantages for the
cultivation of silk, among which are, first, the climate.
Some of the best French silk-growers, after having
thoroughly examined the relative adaptation of different
parts of Europe, Asia and America, have pronounced
California the best country in the world for this great
department of industry. The chief reason is the regularity of the long and warm  summer, with the entire
absence of thunder or storms during the month of June,
when the worms feed. The same cause has much to do
with the remarkable freedom of the worms from diseases
which carry off from one-fourth to three-fourths of the
entire number of them yearly in France. Another advantage connected with the climate is that the heat of
the sun in summer has been found sufficient to hatch in




510    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
three days the eggs when placed under roofs exposed to
its rays and properly protected, while in other countries
this process must be accomplished by means of artificial
heat and with much expense and trouble.
The best food of the silkworm, the mulberry, has been
found to flourish remarkably well in California. The
soil is so rich that it grows and leaves with great luxuriance, without the cost of the heavy manuring and the
amount of cultivation required on the shores of the
Mediterranean.  Some of the silk-growers have also
asserted that the worm in California produces from a
third to a half more eggs than it does under less favorable circumstances.
The cost of land and buildings is very small in California compared with what it is in France or Italy.
The rent of an acre there will purchase three acres here.
And there is here no need of the heavy and extensive
buildings used there.
The relative cost of labor is a principal item of advantage. It has been ascertained that in California one
attendant, on account of the advantages which have been
described, will suffice for the production of the amount
of silk which would require in France eight attendants.
And the wages for which the Chinese can be procured,
who understand the cultivation of silk better than any
other nation and love this kind of quiet and regular employment, renders it certain that our Pacific coast will in
the future be, next to China, one of the largest sillk-producing countries in the world.
At the State agricultural fair held at Sacramento in
September, 1869, I saw a fine assortment of silk in all
stages of advancement. The progress of this interesting




CHINESE LABOR.               511
business has recently been very rapid. The number of
mulberry trees in the State, which was twenty millions
last year, had multiplied fivefold within three years. It
was estimated that from seventy-five to one hundred
millions of cocoons would be produced. The State encouraged this by the offer of a bounty of three hundred
dollars for each hundred thousand good, marketable
cocoons, and an award of two hundred and fifty dollars
for each plantation of five thousand trees of two or more
years' growth. Individuals were embarking actively in
the culture of silk in the central and southern counties
of the State. A firm at the Mission of San Gabriel had
made a contract to hire forty Chinese families for a
period of four years, agreeing to furnish to each family
a small house and garden, which would become its property in case of its remaining there. Much interest is
felt in the success of a Japanese colony near Placerville.
A Dutch gentleman, Mr. J. H. Schnell, has purchased
there two thousand acres of land and planted upon it a
colony of Japanese at his own expense. He had been a
resident of the principality of Aidzu, and interested in
the improvement of the condition of its people. The
civil war having unsettled him, he determined to emigrate to California, and induced these families to accompany him. They have built twelve houses in Japanese
style for residences and places for the care of silkworms
and the weaving of the fibre into various fabrics for the
California market. They have set out fifty thousand
mulberry trees. The cocoons exhibited at the State fair
were very large and fine. These people have also introduced tea, bamboo, oil and other plants, some specimens
of which were shown there.




512    THE OLDEST AND TTliE NEWEST EM~PIRE.
The inquiry is often made, whether the Japanese is
not a more desirable race, as relates to its subserviency
to our national wants, than the Chinese? Perhaps the
conception of the difference between them may be made
easy to most persons by comparing it to that which exists between the French nation and the British. The
Japanese are more quick, nervous, susceptible and easy
in their intercourse.  But they are more volatile, more
petulant and quarrelsome and more licentious. The immorality of Japanese society is shocking to the better
class of Chinese, and they so speak of it in emphatic language. The Japanese have taken what is best in their
literature from the Chinese classics, teach Confucius in
their schools and speak the Chinese as a polite language
in their wealthy. families. And they distinctly recognize the superiority of the empire, of which their own is
but a satellite, in their writings. Some of the Japanese
will come to this country, and should be welcomed, to
learn here the arts and the wisdom of which Providence
has made us the repository and the almoners. But it is
chiefly the Chinese who can repay to our nation anything like benefits equivalent to those we may communicate.
A feature of the production of silk which has within
a few years attracted much attention in Europe is that
of the variety of moths which have been found to form
the characteristic fibre. One of these is the ailanthus
silkworm  (Bombyx cynthia), which had been described
about the middle of the last century by French missionaries in China, but was brought before the attention of
the Italian silk-growers by Fantoni, a missionary from
Piedmont, in 1856. M. Gu'rin Meneville satisfied him



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CITEN7SE LABOR.              613
self of its value, and introduced it widely and successfully
in France. The emperor Napoleon has exhibited warm
interest in the business. The advantages of the fibre
over that of the common worm (Bomnyx mori), which
feeds upon the mulberry, are that the tree (Ailanthus
glandulosa) which sustains the worm is very common
and hardy, and grows even upon sterile soil; the moth
itself is not tender and subject to diseases like the other,
and is not affected by wind and rain; the product is more
strong and durable; and the goods manufactured from it
will be much cheaper than ordinary silk, though not so
brilliant in color. Another species of silk has still more
recently been manufactured in France. It was obtained
from the Japanese Tusseh moth (Antheroea yama-mai),
also through the efforts of M. Gu6rin Meneville. It is
of a brown color, wanting in lustre, but very firm and
durable. It is easily wound from the cocoon, and can be
worked to great advantage with cotton or wool. Experiments were made in California as to the usefulness of
the Saturnia ceanotha, a silkworm feeding upon a shrub
(Ceanothus) common upon the hills. Other species
adapted to our use will, it is supposed, be brought to
light in the course of our increased acquaintance with
those empires in which the manufacture of silk was a
subject of universal interest for many centuries before
our forefathers and the Romans and Greeks ever knew
of the existence of this royal material. We will thus
discover what will be suitable to the varieties of the
climate of our extended country and open up sources
of wealth to every portion of it.
The English in India, having succeedede so well in the
culture of cotton and tea, have turned, theirn attention to
33




514    TMiE OLDEST AND THE.NE WEST IEMPIBRE.
that of silk. Various species of silk-producing moths
have been long known in that country. The following
interesting description is given of those in India, China
and America, together with some hints that may be useful to us, by the entomologists Kirby and Spence:'
"The most important species known are the Tusseh and
Arindy silkworms. These insects are both natives of
Bengal. The first (Saturna paphia, Linn.) feeds upon
the leaves of the jujube tree, or byer of the Hindus, and
upon the Terminalia alata glabra (Roxburgh), the asseen of the Hindhs, and is found in such abundance as
from time immemorial to have afforded a constant sup.
ply of very durable, coarse, dark-colored silk, which is
woven into a cloth called tlusseh-doot'hies, much worn
by the Brahmins and other sects, and which would be
highly useful to the inhabitants of many parts of
America and the south of Europe, where a light and
cool, and at the same time a cheap and durable, dress,
such as this silk furnishes, is much wanted. The durability of this silk is really astonishing, as after constant
use for nine or ten years it does not show the least appearance of decay. These insects are thought by the
natives of so much consequence that they guard them
by day to preserve them from crows and other birds,
and by night from  the bats. The Arindy silkworm
(Saturnia cynthia, Drury), which feeds solely on the
leaves of the palma christi, produces remarkably soft
cocoons, the silk of which is so delicate and flossy that
it is impracticable to wind it off; it is therefore spun
like cotton, and the thread thus manufactured is woven
into a coarse kind of white cloth of a loose texture, but
I IntrocuLction ito Entomology (Phila. ed. from Gth London), pp. 224, 225.




CHINESE LA.OR                5
of still more incredible durability than the last, the lifetime of one person being seldom sufficient to wear out a
garment made of it. It is used not only for clothing,
but for packing fine cloths, etc. Some manufacturers in
England to whom the silk was shown seemed to think
that it could there be made into shawls equal to any received from India. A moth allied to this last species, but
distinct, has been described and figured by Col. Sykes,
who met with its leather-like cocoons composed of silk so
strong that a single filament supported a weight of a hundred and ninety-eight grains. There can be little doubt
but that silk might be advantageously produced from it,
as the caterpillars which spin it feed indiscriminately on
the teak tree, the mulberry, the bor (Zizyphus jujuca)
and the osana (Terminalia alata glabra).
"Other species are known in China.'We have obtained,' says the writer of a letter in Young's Annals of
Agriculture,'a monthly silkworm  from China, which
I reared with my own hands, and in twenty-five days
have had the cocoons in my basins, and by the twentyninth or thirty-first day a new progeny feeding in my
trays. This makes it a mine to whoever would undertake the cultivation of it.'
"There seems no question that silk might be advantageously derived from many native silkworms in
America. An account is given in the American Philosophical Transactions (v. 325) of one found there whose
cocoon is not only heavier and more productive than
that of the common kind, but is so much stronger that
twenty threads will carry an ounce more."  The authors
proceed to notice several moths known in various parte
of North and South America and the West Indies whose




616     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRiE.
silk has been wrought into clothing, handkerchiefs, pasteboard and other articles.
These writers' make a suggestion in regard to the
manufacture of other articles besides the thread and its
manufactured products from  the silkworm, which will
be interesting to some of our own people. They say:
"It is probable, too, that other articles besides silk
might be obtained from the larvas  which usually produce
it, particularly cements and varnishes of various kinds,
some hard, others elastic, from their gum and silk resert
voirs; from which it is said the Chinese procure a fine
varnish, and fabricate what is called by anglers Indian
grass. The diminutive size of the animal will be thought
no objection when we recollect that the very small
quantity of purple dye afforded by the Purpura of the
ancients did not prevent them from collecting it."
An English company was formed for the development
of the supply of silk from India and other colonial possessions, after the attention of the people had been
turned to the importance of this business by the Paris
Exposition.  It was styled the Silk Supply Association.
Its objects are thus stated: "1. To stimulate the production of silk, by cottage cultivation and otherwise, in
every country where the mulberry tree is capable of
giving food to the silkworm. 2. To encourage the introduction and exchange of the eggs of the best kind of
silkworms in silk-producing districts. 3. To offer practical suggestions and encouragement to the producers of
silk for improving the quality and securing a better
classification, and for ensuring greater care in the reeling
of the silk. 4. To promote the cultivation of silk in
1 KIRBY and SPENCE, p. 226.




CHINESE LABOR.               517
the various silk-producing districts in India where the
production of silk has not recently increased, and in
other districts of India where the cultivation of the silkwormn has almost ceased, but which are known to possess
special advantages, by the growth of the mulberry tree
and the habits of the people, for its propagation. 5. To
promote the exportation of cocoons from countries not
well able to reel them. 6. To communicate with the
foreign, colonial and Indian departments of Her Majesty's Government, and to obtain the aid of the English
representatives in the British colonies and consular
agents in all foreign countries to promote and extend the
cultivation of silk."
American naturalists in the Atlantic States have
sought for such kinds of native moths as might be made
useful in the manufacture of silk. Dr. Barton, of Philadelphia, made some interesting experiments upon various
native caterpillars which are found in the woods of
Pennsylvania. Dr. D. Bethune McCartee, an American
medical missionary at Ningpo, in China, when on a visit
to this country recognized anft American moth as the same
with one from which large quantities of pongee silk are
made in the northern parts of that empire. It is the
opinion of Jaeger and others that other American moths,
such as Cecropia luna, Polyphemus and Promethea, will
be employed in supplying coarse silk. The fibre obtained from them  may be made into goods of great
strength and durability, which may be worn for several
years. It will be a strange thing indeed if the practical
and inventive genius of our country will long allow
sources of national wealth, which are turned to so much
advantage in India and China, to lie uncultivated.




51 8    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EXPIRE,
The manufacture of silk has been fairly begun in
various parts of the United States. Thirty years ago
much attention was directed to the subject, and a fever
of speculation in a species of mulberry (iforus multicaulis), which is one of the best kinds of food for the
worm, swept over the country andc enriched a few, but
unfortunately left far more persons impoverished and
disgusted.
A few factories, however, in various States were kept
in operation; sufficient to show the practicability of
maintaining the business in this country.  One of them,
which I visited with much interest thirty years ago, was
that at Economy, on the Ohio river, below Pittsburg,
Pennsylvania, where the work was carried on by a
secluded and semi-monastic sect of Germans, with entire
success. The census returns of 1860 show that there
were in that year four hundred and fifteen silk manufactories in the United States; of which Connecticut had
one hundred and forty-four, New Jersey one hundred
and thirteen, New York eighty, Pennsylvania twentyeight, Massachusetts thirty-six, New Hampshire seven,
Kentucky four and California three. The amount of
capital invested in the business was estimated to be two
millions of dollars. This has rapidly increased. It was
supposed, in 1865, that the capital invested was about
five millions of dollars.
The men and women engaged in the silk factories are
at present principally Europeans.  It is supposed that
there are between fifty and eighty thousand of them.
The American Emigration Company has agents in the
seats of silk manufacture to select and forward them to
this country. It is a work well adapted to females, being




CHINESE LABOR.               519
clean and not laborious. In one trimming factory in
New York, out of three hundred employes about fifty
only are men. This factory pays six thousand dollars
per month in wages. Another factory employs women
in nearly all departments. They tend the looms and do
most of the spinning, winding and warping.  Out of
fifteen hundred hands, more than two-thirds are women.
The wages paid are high: to-men from twenty to twentyfour dollars a week, to women from four to ten dollars.
Even at these rates, which are three times what are
paid in Europe, we have been able, with the advantage
of a duty of sixty per cent. and the difference of freight,
insurance and exchange, successfully to compete with
foreign silk. A single establishment in Connecticut now
produces annually six hundred thousand yards of dress
silks, comprising gros grains, poplins, foulards and pongees; of belt ribbons one hundred thousand pieces are
produced, and this factory still further turns out each
year sixty thousand pounds of " thrawn" and an equal
quantity of "spun" silk. Large quantities of silk dress
goods are also made at Paterson, New Jersey, and at
various points in the State of New York. Foreign
sewing-silks and fine dress trimmings are being crowded
out of our markets. The latter materials are at present
manufactured at thirty establishments in Philadelphia,
and the former article is produced elsewhere in very
large quantities.
The attention of the silk manufacturers of Europe has
of late been strongly turned to the advantages offered
them in this country. Projects have been entered into
to form colonies in the Western and other States to carry
on their business. One of these, in Kansas, has so far




520     THIE OLDEST AND THE NEWTEST EM~PIRE.
made progress as to authorize the French gentleman
Tlost interested to send back flattering inducements for
his countrymen to join him.
But a few years will pass before the Chinese will be
dispersed over the Mississippi valley and Western and
Southern States, and the manufacture of the several
practicable varieties of silk will be carried on, by whatsoever advantages their knowledge and capacity for such
labor afford, in other portions of our country besides
California. There seems to be no reason why the tens
of millions of dollars which we annually pay to Eng-.
land, France and other European nations for this fabric
may not be expended in enriching our own land.
There are other textile plants, the value of which is
yet to be determined by experiment, that furnish the
Chinese with fine raiment.  One of them  is the hemp
nettle (Urtica nivea), which grows several feet high and
yields three crops in the course of the year, between
June and October.  It supplies, by boiling, pounding
and bleaching, the principal material for the beautiful
"grass-cloth," resembling our linen, though more bright
in texture and pearly in color, which the Chinese wear
in  the summer, and call hia-po, or'summer-cloth."
There is a creeper (Dolichos bulbosus) which gives to the
poor a strong yellowish fibre suitable for more common
uses.  But these materials of agricultural and manufacturing wealth can only be hinted at here.l English
botanists are inquiring into the character of some of
1 A new textile plant, the Ramie (Bcehmeria tenac'ssinza), is now attracting
much attention. It resembles hemp, nettle and other UZrticacec, and it is claimed
that it is "as fine, as white and twice as durable as flax, and more productive
than cotton, and will sell for twice the price of cotton." It was brought from
Java to France in 1844. It grows well in the Gulf States and parallel latitudes.




CHINESE LABOR.               621
them, and introducing those most suitable into their own
colonies.  The Chinese manufacture paper out of a
variety of materials, some-of which may prove useful to
us. The bamboo is the most common, and I have seen
beautiful paper made of it by mills in this country.
There is a curious plant which has been styled the
" Nepal paper plant," which has been used for centuries
in China and some of the countries west of it. It has
been said by a British botanist (Dr. Campbell) that it
makes a paper " as strong and durable as leather almost,
and quite smooth enough to write on, and for office
records incomparably better than any India paper."
The practicability of introducing or cultivating
through Chinese labor the numerous esculents and
beverages of the Oriental world cannot be more than
briefly alluded to in this volume. The question of the
cultivation of tea in this country is one which has long
interested our botanists and horticulturists. There is
nothing to prevent it in respect to climate.. The best
Chinese tea comes from between latitudes 25~ and 33~,
but it grows down to the tropical shores of the China
sea on one extreme, and in the mountain regions amid
heavy snows on the other. It is the opinion of the best
judges that good tea call be produced in almost any
climate here south of New England. The plant loves
broken hillsides, a light soil, the neighborhood of streams
and a good deal of moisture. The smooth, dark-colored,
leathery, serrated leaf is best when plucked from shrubs
between four and seven feet in height. But the plant
under the most favorable circumstances rises to five or
six times that height, with leaves proportionably large,
but too rank for use. There are many parts of the




522    TIIE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST AEM'PIRE.
United States where it could be easily grown. The preparation of the leaf for commercial uses is performed at
an expense of time and labor in China which would be
intolerable to any other nation. The cost of the finest
tea there is more than twenty dollars a pound; but that
is confined to a few fancy kinds, which our uncultivated
taste could scarce distinguish from others of one-tenth
the price. The results of all the manipulation by the
Chinese, it is believed by gentlemen who have thoroughly
examined its processes, could be readily secured by machinery, so that we could in time afford to produce our
own tea.
The success of the British in raising tea in Assam is
encouraging to us. In the year 1834 they began to cultivate the wild plant which had been found growing
abundantly in the vicinity of the Brahmapootra river.
The results induced them to form joint-stock companies
for its enlargement in England and India. Chinese laborers and workmen were imported, who taught Hindui
coolies. The difficulties and outlays connected with new
and extensive enterprises in a wild region several hundred miles from the sea have been fully met. A few
years ago sixty companies were there engaged in teaculture. A large territory has become populous and animated with life, industry and civilization through this
new source of colonial wealth. The Europeans are introducing tea into other parts of Northern India, but their
families are chiefly supplied with the article from Assam; and the exports to England from the latter region
have become considerable and will be rapidly increased.
The tea plant is cultivated in Java and other islands
of the Indian Archipelago, and in Brazil and some




CHINESE LABOR,                     523
other countries. Twenty years ago it was raised in our
Southern  States.  Dr. Junius Smith  found  it would
grow well in South Carolina. There is no reason why
so valuable a plant may not be domesticated in many
other parts of our country, particularly in the South.
There have been found in various parts of Asia more
than a hundred and thirty kinds of rice.  Those commonly used  by the  people of Canton  province they
greatly prefer to what we raise in the Carolinas, though
smaller and more yellow, on the ground that they are
more palatable and  nutritive.  Sugar is manufactured
by the Chinese in immense quantities and by economical
processes, much of it by voluntary crystallization. It is
never produced from the sorghum, which has been found
so useful in the United States, but is there only known
in a few localities, chiefly as furnishing cane for chewing.
Numerous valuable fruits may be transplanted from Asia
to the soil of the New  World.  The finest ground or
peanuts sold at the stands in the streets of the Atlantic
cities are from the Pacific coast, but it is not yet known
here that the most abundant and cheap oil of the Chinese, used like that of the olive of Europe for food and
burned in the lamps for light, is obtained from  this
nut.'
No vegetable gift of the Old World to the New will
be more truly valuable than the bamboo.  It will meet
some of the greatest wants of the prairies and plains. It
1 The cultivation of this plant, both for eating and for oil, is attracting much
attention in the South. Portions of the lowlands of Virginia and North Carolina have been more remuneratively devoted to this than to any other crop.
In 1868 it was estimated that sixty-two thousand bushels were sold and shipped;
in 1869 perhaps one-fourth more than that amount, the prices ranging from one
dollar and forty to two dollars and sixty cents a bushel, according to the quality.




524    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
is employed in various parts of the world for fences,
grows rapidly in brakes and affords a nutritious food,
when young, to cattle. There are many very different
varieties, unlike in color, size and grain, and adapted to
many valuable purposes. Poles, ropes, furniture, tubes,
paper, cups and a thousand useful and ornamental things
are made out of the bamboo. On the land and on the
water its uses are almost beyond description. It has
seemed to me in looking at the cane-brakes of the South
that Providence has already supplied the valley of the
Mississippi and our Southern States with a plant which
in the hands of the Chinese must prove valuable in
coming days. The " cane" (Arundinaria macrosperma),
though of a different botanical order from the bamboo
(Bamnbusa arundinacea), possesses some of its most useful
qualities. The hard silicious surface, the long straight
rods, the hollow tubes of various sizes, the edible sprouts,
suggest a great abundance of applications.
The capacity of the Chinese to adapt themselves to
our wants as laborers and workmen has been fully
proved. In the factories of various kinds, at San Francisco and elsewhere on the coast, they work with the
endurance of men united to the nimbleness and facility
of our women in similar occupations. They are equal
to the severe labors of foundries, brick-yards, ropewalks and tanneries. They may be seen busily wrapping
the tobacco leaf into cigars and cigarettes, or plying the
sewing-machine to manufacture flannel shirts, or cutting
and stitching light slippers for the American trade.
The Chinese upon our Pacific coast have proved themselves admirable miners. When the hostility of white
foreigners has driven them out of the better mining




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CHINiESE LABOR.             525
regions, or compelled them to remain satisfied with diggings which have already been washed over two or three
times, they have still toiled patiently and diligently.
During the dry season, while most others were lying
idle, they might be seen making repairs, digging and
collecting the dirt into the best situations to take aclvantage of the coming rise of water, or at other work. In
the employment of our people they have proved of great
value at quartz-mining.  IRock which could not be
worked by white labor, with wages at seven to three
dollars a day, can be made profitable when Chinese can
be got to extract the ore and deliver it at the mill at two
dollars or less. Thus districts which had been almost
abandoned have revived and all classes of the population
been directly benefited. For although the laboring
class of whites objected to the low wages paid to the
Chinese, yet the possibility of carrying on mining operations fuirnished themselves with other and better employments, and so sustained life in the community.
And the mining licenses, of four dollars each per month,
which have been exacted with scrupulous punctuality
and faithfulness to duty-nay, sometimes, that the collector might be sure he was on the safe side, two or three
times in the saime month-have in some counties paid the
entire ordinary expenses of the county, whose treasury
would otherwise have been bankrupt.
The public enterprises which are covering the Pacific
coast with the peculiar advantages of modern civilization
are to a large degree the fruit of the patient and cheap
labor of the Chinese, either hired there or induced to
come by. the offers of a liberal recompense published in
their own seaports. The roads among the mountains,




526    THE OLDEST AND THE NiEWIEST EMPIRE.
the leveling of the rugged and broken streets of various
cities and towns, the introduction of pure water from
distant streams into these places, the reclamation of
swamp or overflowed lands and similar important enterprises, have owed their projection and success mainly to
the fact that there were thousands of laborers to be procured at rates which would render the outlay of capital
remunerative.
The construction of railroads has given employment
to eight or ten thousand Chinese at a time. But for the
opportunity to perform this work by Chinese labor, it is
declared by the directors of the Central Pacific Railroad
that they would not have dared to undertake it. The
usual wages paid is thirty dollars a month. In the
ordinary grading and other labor they are equal to
whites. They work cheerfully eleven hours a day.
They are never drunk one day and good for nothing the
next. There is no fighting. An overseer who had had
much experience with them told me that their quiet,
steady way of working accomplished full as much as
that of any other laborers, and without driving and bad
temper. The route of the Central Pacific road, extending from Salt Lake to Sacramento, lies chiefly among
the mountains, with steep grades and numerous tunnels.
That at the summit of the Sierra Nevadas, seven thousand feet above the sea and a hundred and five miles
east of Sacramento, is one thousand six hundred feet
long. The tunnel at Emigrant Gap, near Cisco, is three
hundred and fifty feet in length; there are others, longer
or shorter. They are all cut wide enough for a double
track. A competent engineer stated that in this heavy
and laborious "rock-work," requiring patience and care,




CINVhESE LABOR.              527
the Chinese were the best hands that could be obtained.
The vice-president of the company said that he wished
they had twice as many Chinese in their employ as they
had been able to get.
When one considers the immense amount of labor
which must be performed in laying down the railroads
that are necessary to open up the incalculably vast mineral resources of all the States and Territories on the
Pacific slope and in the interior of the continent, and to
transport them to the Pacific and Atlantic sea-ports, the
presence of a race so accessible and so capable as the
Chinese impresses the mind as a divine providence appointed to meet this national want. No other nation
could furnish the supply required. And these people
seem to possess just the qualities we need in such labor.
The supposition that the Chinese are a class who work
for wages not sufficient to maintain laboring men comfortably, and who subsist upon cheap and refuse food, is
unfounded. In the towns they certainly are fond of
good living, and the costly dinners to which they have
invited their friends in California have been often described in our newspapers. In frequent visits to the
mining regions I made it a point to satisfy myself upon
this subject. I sought also the testimony of gentlemen
extensively acquainted with them. A couple of extracts
from the numerous letters which I received will set the
truth, which it is important for our people to know, in
its proper light.
A merchant doing a large business in one of the
principal cities of the interior wrote as follows: "It is
impossible for me to give an accurate estimate of the
amount of goods sold in this city to Chinamen. I have




528    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
conversed with several of the mountain merchants, and
they give it as their opinion that more than three-fourths
of their sales to Chinamen are for American products.
Almost every merchant in the mines has more or less
Chinese trade, and a good many of them are dependent
almost entirely on them for their business. The following
are the kind of goods, provisions, etc., they consume the
most of: potatoes, cabbage, pork, chickens, flour and
almost every article of vegetables raised in this State;
they buy clothing, shoes, boots, blankets, American brandy, whisky, gin, hams, beans, lard, codfish, lobsters and
almost every article of American production to some
extent. As they become Americanized, the demand for
American products increases with them. Their trade is
valuable, being almost entirely cash. They are generally
prompt in meeting their contracts. They are shrewd
and close dealers, but spend their money freely for luxuries and comforts. It is said when a Chinaman does not
live well it is because he has not the money to procure
such as he would like. The Chinamen say that the estimate is made that they spend in the country seventenths on an average of all the money they make.
Dealers with them in the mines are of the opinion that
their estimate is nearly correct; it is the opinion, at least,
of those I have conversed with."
A professional gentleman whose pursuits led him to
travel widely over the State wrote to me as follows:
"In frequent journeys extending from the head waters
of the Feather to the Merced, I can say I have reason
to believe that among the American mining population
there is no other class of foreign miners who do not speak
our language'who sustain so high a character for industry,




CHINESE LABOR.                529
honesty and direct patronage of American productions
and enterprise. I have often inquired of merchants as
to their business with the Chinese, and almost always
been answered that their trade was very extensive and
important; that while they consume large quantities of
imported provisions from China, yet they also purchase
much that is American, and often that which is most
expensive, even luxuries, such as chickens, eggs, fresh
meats in cans, pork, even when it might be twice as dear
as beef, melons, fruit, etc.; that the Chinese would purchase when the expense was such as to deter Americans,
for the Chinese would have what they wanted, cost what
it may. They are generally free from drunkenness,
quarrels and lazy habits, which characterize many others
in the mines, and labor faithfully, satisfied when none
others will work. I have just called upon an agent of
the California Stage Company in this place, and was told
by hlim that, to the best of his judgment, taking all their
stage routes together, full one-quarter of their passengers during the last year had been Chinese; that they
patronize public conveyances in proportion to their nunbers more than Americans. I find also that the Chinese
are often employed as cooks, and are very well spoken
of as such, as also in other kindred occupations. They
seem to be almost universally respected among the
mining and laboring portion of the inhabitants. I can
say decidedly, I believe that among the working-classes
in the mountains they are truly considered as worthy
of much regard, and the strong feeling is that they
ought not to be taxed as high as they are; that they
ought to have legal protection from those who rob and
steal from them, even to murdering them, for they have
34




530    THE OLDEST AND THE NE TEST EMPIRE.
no redress unless an American is witness to the deed,
and comes in with the law to their relief; and that their
oath ought to be allowed in legal tribunals, at least so
far that a jury or court might, if it judged best, receive
their testimony. I am strongly of opinion that the opposition to the Chinese arises from prejudice, and not
from their interfering with any American interests, and
is almost entirely confined to the unproducing class in
our country-to gamblers, loafers, liquor-dealers, etc."
Other testimonies would but serve to sustain the above.
They corroborate the views which I have presented in
this chapter.
I have not considered this subject now in its higher
civil and moral relations. But this much is evident,
that, looking at the advent of the Chinese race in the
New World in the light of an accession to the sum of
the physical labor which is necessary to meet our agricultural, manufacturing, domestic and other wants, both
its characteristics and the partial experience of those
who have tested it upon our Pacific coast show that it
must be regarded as a great, opportune and valuable
national benefit.




CHAPTER  XVIII.
POPULAR GOVERNMENT IN CHINA.
HE sentiments of Americans with regard to China
have hitherto been principally formed by the writings of men born and educated under monarchical institutions. The earliest and the most abundant productions which have made us acquainted with that
remote and exclusive empire have been those of the
Jesuits, Lazarists, Dominicans, Franciscans and priests
of other Roman Catholic orders, who began vigorously
to attempt the conversion of its people to their system of
Christianity more than three centuries ago. The F'rench,
German and other authors who have described China
have been chiefly indebted to the narratives, reports and
histories of these men, which have been numerous, full
and well written, for their facts and the conclusions fromr
them. But these priests fear and hate popular liberty.
"' No means must be omitted," said Pope Clement XIII.,
"to exterminate the fatal pest, which spreads through
so many works." We know how the late Gregory XVI.
was infuriated by "that pest of all others most to be
dreaded in a state-unbridled liberty of opinion""that worst and never sufficiently to be execrated and
detestable liberty of the press, for the diffusion of all
manner of writings." Thle principles, the desires, the




532    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST E~PIRE.
interests of these men all disposed them to magnify the
majesty, the authority, the wealth, the extent of the imperial power. They slavishly courted it in China; they
magnified it in Europe. They dread the power of the
people in China, as we have the evidence they do in
America. There is little for Americans to learn from
their books as to what exists of it in China.
The other chief source of American knowledge has
been the books written by servants of the British government, or by British travelers or missionaries. There
is much that is valuable in them. Yet two fatal influences corrupt most of their conceptions of the Chinese
political system. The first is that of their previous monarchical ideas. The second is that of the immense stake
which Great Britain has in the opium traffic.  The national conscience and judgment are perverted, so far as
justice to the Chinese is concerned, by the one fact that
Great Britain supports her Indian government, enriches
multitudes of her subjects and preserves the control of
Oriental commerce, by the cultivation in India and annual sale to China of fifty millions of dollars' worth of
opium. These people dare not consider the virtues of
the innocent family whom they are robbing, and whose
house they are burning over their heads.
Now that China is brought to be our nearest neighbor
on the west and her interests and ours are so much
identified, we must examine her institutions for ourselves, and from a new position.
A fairer estimate of the Chinese will take the place,
on the one extreme, of the blunders or misrepresentations
as to her political character which held up their empire
as a model government; and on the other extreme of the




POPULAR GO VERN3IELNT IN CHINA.        533
mistake and folly of those as to her moral cnaracter
Nhich painted her people as the most vicious or sensual
of the heathen.  A letter was published some years ago
from  Dr. S. Wells Williams, the Chinese Secretary to
the American Legation at Peking, and author of the
work entitled "The Middle Kingdom," in which he
says: "The Chinese race has, perhaps, risen as high as
is possible in the two great objects of human government-security of life and property to the governed,
and freedom of action under the individual restraints of
law."l The object of this chapter is to exhibit them in
such a light, as the deduction from the writer's experience among them in their own country and in California.
There are few nations of the world among whom the
freedom  of the people is more large, more squarely
founded upon their intelligence, or more  carefully
guarded against despotism, than it is in China.
To those who are acquainted with the history of mankind this will not seem strange. For though it flatters
our national vanity to assume representative forms to be
the pleasant fruit of bitter seed and of long and painful
cultivation, yet this is not the truth. The first state of
men in society is one of political equality. The first
natural advance toward its organization is their election
to authority of those most capable of protecting them
and punishing the vicious. Where society has remained
most peaceful and unchanged we may expect to find its
original institutions less disturbed. The dispersion of
great families, interferences with regular occupations,
long migrations, wars, changes of circumstances, tend to
break them up. The planting of mankind upon a new.Newr York Oserver.




534     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMWPIRE.
hemisphere is like a new  creation, in which a small
number of individuals, compelled to meet the first necessities of existence, return to the primitive ideas of
government.
To men, therefore, who are.informed as to the past
history of the nations of the earth and as to their present
relative condition, it will seem  credible that the oldest
and most unchanged of them should not be so different
as many believe from  the newest of them, which has
revolutionized the forms whose tyranny drove its founders beyond their reach to another hemisphere; that
China should be the freest nation of the East, as the
United States is of the West.  Nor will it' seem improbable that the notions which many entertain of the
Chinese, which are gathered from the writings of Europeans as prejudiced against the one as they are against
the other, and indeed very ignorant of the real condition
and spirit of either, or else formed from the partial and
superficial observations of some of our own people, should
prove to be mistaken and unjust.
The classical student will see the force of this when
he remembers the political system of ancient Rome-an
empire whose history has some remarkable points of
analogy to that of China.  Beneath the monarchical
rule, which became more and more strong until the
popular liberty was at last crushed by it, there rise constantly to view institutions which display the power of
the people. Thus the "tribes"' held their separate regular assemblies; they elected officers who at length came
1 The English word "tribe" comes indeed from the Latin tribus, signifying
originally one of the three clans, the Ramnes, the Tities and the Luceres, which
at an early period ermbraced in one or the other of them the whole of the people.




POPULAR GOVERNAMENT IN CHINA.          535
to be represented in the Senate and even administer the
government.  They were governed by their own regulations or laws; they aided the state in the collection of
debts and in the punishment of crimes; they had a certain control over the property of their members and over
its transmission to heirs; they did not permit intermarriage between families connected with different tribes;
they maintained each a particular religious worship, and
they exercised a benevolent care over their own poor,
supplying them when necessary with food. The members of various trades formed another class of popular
associations which were possessed of great power in the
state. In the time of Numa there were nine of these
colleges or associations: pipers, goldsmiths, carpenters,
dyers, girdle-makers, tanners, potters, workers in brass,
and one embracing the remaining trades.
In India the despotism of successive conquering races
has been checked and ameliorated by the continued
maintenance from the earliest ages of the system of clans
or village communities, which is described by Henry
Sumner Maine,l a very able English lawyer, a member
of the supreme council of India, to be "more than a
brotherhood of relatives, and more than an association
of partners.  It is an organized society; and besides
providing for the management of the common fund, it
seldom fails to provide, by a complete staff of functionaries, for internal government, for police, for the administration of justice and for the apportionment of taxes
and public duties."9
A nation of Europe whose extraordinary friendship
to our own has often puzzled politicians of both that and
1 In his work on Ancient Laiw, pp. 254, etc.




536    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
our continent, who did not see the deeper principles
which bind them together, Russia, which wonderfully
unites the ancient with the modern and the Oriental
with the European in her political and social structure,
may be given as another example of the power of the
ancient republicanism. It may be said that the government is more in the hands of the people than with the
emperor and aristocracy. This is the key to the astonishing advancement of Russia in wealth, freedom and
power within a few generations past. The empire was
built upon the subjugation of numerous cities and tribes,
independent and democratic in their form. And now
these elements are again leavening the whole system.
The communes hold triennial elections; voters must be
twenty-five years of age and the elders elected not under
thirty; no man can vote who has been convicted of
crime; persons of any useful employment are eligible to
office; the poor consider themselves equal with the rich;
the only distinction in the garments is in the richness
of the material, not in the shape or fashion, and they eat
together at the same table; the officers elected are the
elders, a number of councilors, a collector of taxes, with
the necessary assistants, an overseer of the public granary and the police; provision is made for the supply of
recruits for the army; and the commune is allowed, if it
desire, to establish a local bank. A general council of
representatives from these village councils is held in,each county or district once in three years, which elects
a chief elder, a permanent council, a board of arbitrators.and a secretary. Thus it will be seen how.much power
resides with the people of Russia and how far the general
government yields local affairs into their hands. Even




POPULAR GOVERNMENT IN CHINA.          537
the mines discovered on the property of individuals are
not claimed, as is the case in many countries of the West,
by the government; and to this many of the great families owe their rise.
I have mentioned these ancient republican institutions,
or their remains, in order to justify the comparison made
between those of China and the United States. It must
surprise many of our people to observe how much their
features resemble those of our own forms, save that ours
are overridden by no foreign conquests, and as yet by no
successful ambition within our own borders; and further,
that ours are more complete and extensive. But the
freedom of the people in China is superior to that in
either Rome, India or Russia; and I will now describe
in what it consists and upon what it is founded.
Let us take up three leading features of the Chinese
government: the theory of the imperial power; the principles on which the general government is administered;
and the forms of local popular government which universally exist. As the latter is the most interesting subject, the first two will be discussed more briefly.
The theory of the imperial power is that the people
are not subjects to be ruled by fear, but children to be
inspired and controlled by affection and gratitude toward
a father who with unceasing anxiety watches over and
cares for them  all. There is a book of remarkable
interest in a moral view which well illustrates this. It
is a series of moral discourses prepared by the emperor
Yung-ching upon the basis of sixteen maxims of his
father, the great Kang-hi (who reigned from A.D. 1661
for sixty years), for the purpose of having them read to
the people of the whole empire at the beginning and




538    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
middle of every month. The first of these " Sacred In.
structions" is upon "filial piety."  Yung=ching says:
" The definite design of our sacred Father was to goverr
the empire through the principle of filial piety. Upon
that principle is founded the unchangeable laws of
heaven, the government of providence on earth and the
common obligations of all men." In the second discourse, upon the duties of families and kindred to each
other, he applies the idea practically: "The kindred
which spring from the same stock are like the streams
which flow from  one fountain, or like the branches
which grow upon one tree. Though these differ, as the
one may in its course flow through extended districts, or
as the other in its branches may ramify more widely, yet
the source of the stream and the root of the tree remain
the same. Thus with the maintenance of the principle
of filial piety. Harmony is promoted by it in the family,
in the village and in the city; the spirit of unity is
breathed abroad; general happiness is enjoyed, and a
scene of peace is presented." 1 And it is but just to say
that these admirable sentiments are repeated in the statepapers of each succeeding emperor of that great nation.
The comparative freedom of the people of China is, in
the next place, made manifest in the political principles
upon which the general government is administered.
To secure an intelligent, capable and faithful magistracy,
the foundation of all preferment is planted upon education. To this fact the admiration of the world may be
boldly challenged. Hear it, nations of the West! It
is not hereditary perhaps without personal honor, it
is not the power of wealth, it is not the claims of
1 SHING-YU, Discourses i. and ii.




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POPULAR GOVERNMENT IN CHIINA.         539
favoritism, it is not pandering to popular prejudices or
interests, upon which the aspiring in China are encouraged to place their hopes, but upon education!  The
best writings of their sages from the earliest ages are
compiled into books for the instruction of the young.
Schools abound, taught at cheap rates by advanced students, or supported by endowments or charitable contributions. Books in common use are much cheaper than
in this country. The examinations of children in the
villages are conducted monthly by the elders, at which a
simple theme is proposed, upon which they write their
juvenile essays. And examinations, upon given topics
in prose and in poetry, chiefly moral, historical and
political, are held at times and places which vary according to their importance, for scholars at successive stages
of advancement until they reach the highest, which is
held once in three years at the capital of the empire.
The successful competitors at the higher ones receive
appointments to the offices under government. I was at
Canton upon the occasion of a great triennial examination of candidates for the second degree, which entitled
to the best offices of the cities and districts of a province of twenty-one millions of people. Seventy-two
were to be selected. For a chance among that number
seven or eight thousand educated men presented themselves, some of them white with old age. Two imperial
commissioners from Pekin presided. The candidates
were all shut up in the close rooms of a range of buildings provided for these occasions, and could not come
out until their essays on the five themes given were completed. The whole city and province were in a ferment
of interest.  Heralds were in waiting, who, by swift




540    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMSPIRE.
boats, horses and running, conveyed tidings of the result
to every part of the province; and in their native towns
the successful ones were welcomed with banners and
music and feasts of joy.  I have shed tears of regret that in my own dear country no such sublime and
delightful spectacles are witnessed. The incorporation
of this great elementary principle is the thing most
wanting in the republicanism of the United States. We
may not want " compulsory education," the refuge and the
instrument of despotism. But we do want sound education, not alone for the children of more favored classes,
but also in schools open to all, maintained at the public
expense, and leavened by the fundamental truths of
Christianity, to be the great avenue to social honor and
to political power. Here lies the mighty secret of the
stability of China. Without education founded upon
the revelation of God, we have little to hope for the
future of America.
The principles on which the government is administered are forcibly brought before us in the consideration
of the numerous methods which have been introduced
to guard against abuses and ensure impartiality and
honesty. Four of these are particularly worthy of
observation:
First. The officers of the general government are detached from local influences by the rule that no man
shall hold office in the province of which he is a native.
Second. The dangers connected with the growth of
such influences in any portion of the country are provided against by another rule which fixes a term for
holding office, and that a comparatively short one-only
three years. If the question be asked whether this pro



POPULAR GO VFERNMENT IN CIINiA.        541
vision may not spring from the jealousy of a foreign
ruling dynasty, the reply is at hand, that it was established in the fifth century of the Christian era, and appears to be held as a fundamental idea of the political
system.
Third. A Board of Review, or Censorate, at Peking,
is appointed to revise all documents sent to the court
and inspect the conduct of officers, from the humblest of
them even to the emperor upon the throne. Officers
connected with this department report from every part of
the empire acts of official misconduct. The courage with
which this Board and its servants expose and rebuke
even the most wealthy and powerful and secure their
punishment is often surprising and worthy of admiration. They do not spare even "the Son of heaven,"
when the welfare of his subjects seems to requite his
vices to be sternly reproved; and some of them have
suffered death in consequence. The histories of the empire hand down with language of praise the names and
actions of those who have been most faithful.  This remarkable feature of the government has attracted the
attention of the monarchical powers of the world.
Sir Geo. T. Staunton, in making the translation of the
Penal Code of the present dynasty, adds the note, that
"The Tribunal of the Censorate has the power of inspecting and animadverting upon the proceedings of all
the other boards and tribunals of the empire, and even
on the acts of the sovereign himself, whenever they are
conceived to be censurable."'l But it is not a mere censorship for criticism. The French Jesuit, Du Halde, presents it in its highest office of a constant monitor of the
1 Penal Code, etc., note to Section 171.




542     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWVEST EMPIRE.
responsibility of the government to the people.  He describes the censors in his work on Chinal as the representatives of the people, to whom the emperor himself is
compelled to yield; for, " should he injure them he would
really increase their honor, and obtain for himself odious
epithets, which the appointed historians of the empire
would scrupulously transmit to posterity."  He says the
court is compelled to degrade officers whom they persist in accusing, "to avoid disgusting the people, and
sullying its own reputation."
Fourth. Another of the methods by which the welfare of the people is secured is the system of official reports to the Six Boards, or Departments,2 of the government; which reports virtually appeal to the popular
sentiment of the nation for its support, through the
Pelkin  Gazette and other means of universal publication.  This Gazette (whose. proper name is the King
Chtau or "IReporter of the Capital") is a pamphlet of
forty to sixty pages, published each one, two or three
days, as the matter is supplied. It is distributed over
the whole empire in a limited number of copies to leading points, which are there rapidly reprinted by various
means, and supplied to officers, to men of wealth who
pay about twelve dollars a year for copies which they
retain, and to circles of readers who hire them  successively for sums which diminish according to the time
after their publication, just as the London Times and
other expensive newspapers are supplied in England
1 Vol. i. pp. 71 and 250.
2 These are, 1, the Department of State; 2, the Department of Revenue; 3,
the Department of Rites; 4, the Department of War; 5, the Judicial Depart.
ment; 6, the Department of Public Works.




POPULAR GO VERNMENT IN CHINA.         543
and on the Continent. The officers of each province in
turn publish their reports or subjects for popular information or consideration. And indeed the walls of Chinese towns are covered with placards of every kind,
political, commercial, quack-medicines, etc., just as they
are in this country. Thus a thinking and intelligent
people keep public affairs incessantly under their own
eye.
These statements as to the theory of the imperial
power and the principles of the general administration
possess great weight in estimating the true character of
the political institutions of China, and evince an amount
of popular intelligence, liberty and power which will
bear comparison with that of the monarchical countries
of Europe.
But an acquaintance with the structure of the general
government is not the true way to comprehend the extent of the freedom which the Chinese enjoy. This is
only to be learned from a careful study of their popular
forms, which are distinct from that and which often successfully oppose it. I refer to the organizations of the
clans; the town or district councils; the trade associations, and the clubs or companies established for occasional or special objects. The secret societies for political
and other purposes are numerous and powerful, but an
account of them does not come within our scope in considering the lawful institutions of the country.
The first mentioned, and, it may be justly said, the
fundamental and most ancient, organization of a political
nature is that of the clan.
The clan stands in China just where it did in the Hebrew commonwealth and the kingdoms of Judah and




544    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
Israel, at the foundation of the whole structure. No
man thoroughly conceives the polity of the Hebrew people who looks at it through the medium of European
and Western models. There are many features of it
which it is most important, as illuminated by divine
revelation, for the statesman, the scholar, the Christian,
to examine; such are the operations and effects of the
fundamental republican form, united with the primary
honor accorded to the lineal representative of the founder
of the clan; the conjunction of secular and religious
purposes and agencies in relation to the education of
the youth; the legislative and other powers of these
lesser presbyteries, or of the general assemblies, of the
representatives of the people; the functions of the elders,
judges and other officers, and their place in the Church
and State, both ancient and modern; the police regulations of villages and towns; the energy of a military
system, either for defence or offence, which is built upon
free and republican institutions and the affection of the
people; the jealousies and quarrels of clans and tribes
and their ruinous results; the regard of the general government to the rights of those of a local character, even
in the appointment of the two hundred and twelve porters at the gates of the temple at Jerusalem, "according
to their genealogy in their villages," and the provision
for "their brethren in the villages to come, after seven
days, from time to time, with them;" the careful observance of natural laws as to consanguinity and marriage,
and the effects of polygamy and other infractions of
them; the precise and scientific nomenclature of degrees
of kindred, as throwing light on the tribal systems of
the nations of the world and as an evidence of the de



POPULAR GOVERNMENT IN CHINA.          545
scent of the human species from one stock; the nature,
benefits and evils of frequent popular festivals; the laws
as to the entail, the conveyance and the restoration of
property, pledges, pawnbrokers and the collection of
debts; the provision from the public funds for the wants
of the poor and the infirm; the reservation of a proportion of the produce of years of abundance in public granaries to meet the wants of years of scarcity or famine; the
origin and obligation of the use of sevenths in respect to
time and of decimal numbers in respect to property, as
seals of the divine right in them and as measures of duty
in the consecration of them for religious purposes; the
fundamental principles in the punishment of criminals
and the modes of inflicting it; the exceeding reverence
for the aged and the honorable; the regard for the dead,
and the use to' be made of the examples of the wise and
good; the ideas as to the seminal principle of life in the
human bones, the care to be exercised in preserving
them  and collecting them  in and about the ancient
sepulchres of the family, and the resurrection of the
dead; the annual religious observances connected with
the repair and care of burial places; the peculiar force of
the prophecies of the Scripture, the comfort of the specific promises and the solemnity of the warnings as to
"families" and "kindred," and as to the "gentiles," or
nations whose peculiar social edifice- is reared upon the
relation to ancestry;-these are some of the topics which
arise in the investigation of the nature of clans as they
did exist in Palestine, and as they do exist in China and
to a less extent in other portions of the Old World, and
among the remains of the Indian tribes on our own continent. I employ the analogy of the Hebrew clans to
35




546     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
the Chinese in order to simplify the idea of the latter in
the minds of the people of this country and to show
their democratic nature; and further, that I may suggest this as one of many kindred themes which open
broad and fertile fields of remunerative research, which
is of a nature to comfort the mind and strengthen the
purposes of the foreign missionary of the Gospel, and to
peculiarly interest and instruct the people of our country
as to some relationships and bearings of republican institutions which may be new  to many of them  and are
most important for us to understand who see the beginning, but not the end, of our national life.
The general designs of the support of the clan organizations may be briefly stated to be these: defence against
the power of the general government; mutual aid and
protection in business and the common transactions of
life; festive enjoyments; and the maintenance of the
worship of the spirits of the dead.  There are about
four hundred and fifty clans in the empire.1  Branches
of the most important of them are found in nearly every
province. A town, however, never consists of people of
one clan alone, since a man is not allowed to marry a woman of the same name.  The organization of them is so
complete that, while it sometimes secures justice to the
innocent, it may besides thwart the designs of the government, and even of justice.  In some parts of the country
they keep up bitter and even bloody quarrels from generation to generation; and the chiefs of the clan at Pe1 The Pih Kia Sing or "Collection of Family Names," a book written upon
this subject, which is taught in schools, gives the whole of them, with brief notices of their origin. The foreign races, of course, are not mentioned in it, and
I have been told that there are some proper Chinese who do not belong to any
of the clans.




POPULAI GOVERNMENT IN CHINA.           647
king are able to prevent the punishment of murder and
violence committed by members of it elsewhere. In the
country in the south of China we have seen tombs broken
up and defaced, the dikes of rice-fields destroyed and
property abused, through the feuds of hostile clans.
Emigrants do not generally maintain these organizations. I know of none in California.
The second class of powerful popular organizations in
China is the trade associations, or guilds.  They resemble those for similar objects in Europe and America,
and therefore need no special description here. They
are there, as here, often beneficent in their operation,
and yet often oppressive. In a monarchical or despotic
government they are useful as a check against its
tyranny; but it is still doubtful whether they are not
more of an injury than a benefit, since they interfere with
healthful competition, remove incitements to industry,
and provide opportunities for the arts of intriguing and
worthless men, or resorts for the depraved.  It is stated
that there are a hundred and fifty of their halls in Canton. They spend a great deal of money in parades and
acts of idolatrous worship.
The third class is that of town and district councils.
This forms the highest advance toward a regular representative government.  They exercise the local powers
of government to such an extent that the imperial officers rarely dare to rouse them to general resistance.
The local administration of justice is left almost wholly
in their hands. Police arrangements and taxation for
local purposes are within their jurisdiction. The elders
elected are generally continued so long as they perform
their duties with satisfaction to the people. They are




-548    TIE OLDEST AND TIHE NEWEST EMPIRE.
allowed a salary of from two to four hundred dollars a
year. The elders of a district which may embrace fifty
or a hundred towns and villages meet in a distinct council, which has its central hall and a president and other
necessary officers, who receive sufficient salaries. The
cities are divided into large wards, which have their
separate councils, but act together by representatives
when occasion requires. Their administration is very
effective. The police of the city of Canton number
about a thousand. The streets, which are only a few
feet in width, have a gate at the end of each square,
which is closed at night, and guarded by a watchman,
who also strikes the hour upon a loud-sounding hollow
piece of bamboo.
During the stormy times succeeding the Opium War,
foreigners seeking to enlarge their former restrictions
often came into conflict with these councils and proved
the extent of the popular power. We were effectually
prevented renting houses, after agreeing to pay the most
outrageous, exorbitant rents, by a simple notification
from the council of the ward of the city in which they
were situated that if the owner admitted us to the building it would be destroyed and himself put to death.
Nor was the governor-general, with the power of the
emperor to back him, able to sustain us against such a
decree.
These democratic bodies do not hesitate to resist the
imperial officers. A mandarin who had made his name
detested by his evil deeds was met one day in going
forth with his retinue by an aged, white-haired coolie
bearing a heavy burden. The old man was unable
quickly to clear the way, and the officer commanded




POPULAR GOV ERN.MiENT IN CHINAA.      549
him to be thrown down and beaten. The enraged inhabitants of the ward closed their shops, and did not
rest until the man who treated hoary hairs with disrespect and a poor man with such cruelty was driven
from the city.
A robber of desperate character was detected amidst
a crowd in the court of the Wa-lam temple listening to
the recitations of a story-teller, He killed a soldier before he could be overpowered. He was tried, and sentenced by the judge to be beheaded in the temple, and
his vitals to be laid upon the altar as a sacrifice to the
spirit of the slain soldier. So unusual a punishment.created much excitement in the district. The ward
councils took up the matter and prohibited the execution
of the sentence, but gave permission for the head of the
soldier, if he were decapitated at the execution-ground,
to be hung up near the temple as a terror to evil-doers.
The imperial government is much less to be blamed
than the people of Western nations have supposed on
account of the disturbances which have occurred with
foreigners. The local democracy was more often the
offending party. And their resistance in turn was the
result of the misdeeds of our people. After the conclusion of the bloody Opium War, which seemed to them
a most inexcusable and tremendous crime from beginning to end, it was made one of the provisions of the
treaty with Great Britain, August 29, 1842, that five
new ports were to be opened for foreign trade, and it,
was generally understood that the same privileges would
as soon as practicable be granted at Canton. The people,
however, resisted, being alarmed at the idea of the introduction of British traders and soldiery within the city,




550    THE OLDEST ANYD THE NEWEST EMXPIRE.
confident in their numbers, and filled also with a superstitious terror of the powers of "the foreign demons,'"
whom they supposed to be of a constitution and nature
different from  their own and much to be dreaded.
Their local councils proclaimed that a hundred thousand
"braves" had been enlisted to carry on the war to the
extermination of these " devils;" Ki-ying, a most able
and intelligent governor, was completely baffled in his
efforts to maintain peace; and neither the power of their
own government nor the continued threatening demonstrations of that of Great Britain could subdue them,
until finally Lord Elgin and Baron Gros, supported by
the allied English and French fleets, bombarded the city
in December, 1857, burned down a considerable portion
of it, and placed it under a military control which continued for two years. The Presbyterian Mission buildings and library were among the property destroyed.
In what has been said in regard to the general government in this chapter, it is the theory of it, and its better
aspects chiefly, which have been presented. If it be
thought I have gone too far, I might sustain this view
by quotations from the most intelligent men who have
come into direct acquaintance with the Chinese.  The
eminent British statesman, Sir George T. Staunton,
speaks with admiration of the Chinese system of law,
and studied the language and made a translation of the
Penal Code of the present dynasty.  Concerning this
translation, the Edinburgh Revievw' said: "The most
remarkable thing in this code is its great reasonableness,
clearness and consistency; the business-like brevity and
1 In a number published shortly after the publication of the translationthat for August, 181.0.




POPULAR GOVERNMENT IN CHINA.          551
directness of the various provisions, and the plainness
and moderation of the language in which it is expressed."  To this might be added the fact that this
code is revised from time to time under the supervision
of the emperor and in accordance with the judgment of
his wisest counselors, and new editions are published
and circulated over the empire. Thus it has acquired
the force of a written constitution, and the lines of justice which it draws the emperor himself scarcely dares
to exceed. It " savors throughout of practical judgment
and European good sense."  Thomas Taylor Meadows,
Esq., a thorough student of the Chinese literature and
politics, interpreter in the British service in China, declares that the Chinese "enjoy an amount of freedom in
the disposal of their persons and property which other
European nations than the Russians may well envy
them." He says that if civilization should be moral and
mental before material, then "the Chinese civilization
has from the earliest ages been the highest in kind,
whatever it may have been in degree or in the extent to
which it has been practiced."  He urges strongly some
features of it upon the British government for its adoption, and says that in some points of it " the Chinese are
practically more Christian than the Christians of the
West." I
Nor is it denied that in the administration more especially of the general government in China there have
existed, and do exist, great abuses and corruption. In
so far as these facts relate to the general government
alone the objection built upon them does not affect the
estimate we place upon the popular forms. But it will
1 The Chinese and their Rebellions, pp. 28, 120, etc.




552    THEII  OLDEST AND THE NEWEST E-MIPIRE.
be granted that these have had a share in the universal
increase of evil which the best classes of Chinese testify
with great grief has grown up within the past half century. And this may be accounted for by the following
reasons. The imperial power is in the hands of foreigners, the Manchu Tartars, who are hated by the people,
and who have yielded to bribery to obtain means to
carry on the government. The popular mind has been
everywhere unsettled, the better classes held in anxiety
and vice allowed to prevail, on account of the prevalent
spirit of rebellion; many treasonable societies have
sprung up, and the people have freely quoted the words
of old prophecies and oracles, to the effect that the, time
has come for the overthrow of the present general government. Tremendous corruption, beggary, crime, death,
have followed the vast enlargement of foreign trade;
most terrible, most inexcusable, most widespread of
all the sources of them has been the cultivation by
Europeans and Americans of the fatal passion for
opium. And one other cause of the universal increase of evil, I hesitate not to say, has been the decay
of religious sentiment. The fruit of wars and rumors
of wars, of men's hearts failing them for fear, and for
looking after those things which are coming on the earth,
is-when superadded to religious systems which are
bad, worn-out and ready to vanish away-that iniquity
abounds. Hence the present heart-affecting condition
of China seems to hold in dark relief before our eyes
this one principal thought-the stupendous national
necessity for the gospel!
It is not assumed, superior as the institutions of China
are to those of any other heathen countries, and to those




POPULAR GOVEBRNMENT IN CHINA.        553
of not a few nominally Christian countries, that their
principles bear comparison with those which are the
ripened and most precious earthly fruit of Christianity.
On the contrary, they will be changed; the time has
come for that change; the people will enjoy a more secure, thorough, happy and abiding freedom-a rock on
which their whole social structure shall be reared anew,
high in the centre of which shall stand in its beauty
and glory a new temple upon whose front shall shine
the inscription, " Holiness unto the Lord." And all the
nations of that boundless continent shall rejoice with
them.




CHAPTER XIX.
THE CHINESE COMPANIES IN CALIFORNIA.
O NE of the most curious features of social order in
California is the Chinese companies. The quiet and
timid subordination of the Chinese to our laws, however
arbitrary and severe, and the pride or vanity which regards all swarthy races as almost beneath our consideration, have hidden from the eyes of Americans the features
and transactions of, as it were, another world all within
itself.
I have described in the previous chapter some of the
numerous popular organizations which exist in their native land-their clans, their trade associations or guilds,
their town and district councils, and their clubs or companies for various specific designs. Let me proceed to
speak of the companies which they form here.
The Chinese " companies" in San Francisco, with their
branches in the principal towns of the State and neighboring regions where that people resort in large numbers, have been a continual puzzle to Americans.  They
have regarded them as a degraded and stupid race,
reared under a cruel despotism, and most of them
brought here under the name of "coolies" to work for
capitalists who owned them and received the proceeds of
their labor, these capitalists being the heads of the com554




THE CHINESE CINESE  OPANIES IN CALIFORN~IAo   555
panies. The most absurd stories of this kind have been
incessantly repeated to the great injury of the Chinese
by newspapers and in the legislature. My acquaintance
with them, and the entire confidence they reposed in
me, on account of aid often rendered to them in their
difficulties, enabled me to obtain information which I now
proceed to lay before the reading and thinking people
of the country, just as I often have spread much of it
before the people of various parts of California.
Wherever a large number of Chinese from one province are thrown together in another province of the
empire, or in any of the countries or islands whither
they trade or emigrate, they at once form associations
for the control, protection and general benefit of their
members, which are analogous to the councils of their
native towns and districts. Among a people of so much
shrewdness and common- sense, as may be supposed,
these objects are thoroughly accomplished. First, let
us notice their houses or halls.
Upon the southern side of Telegraph Hill, which
shields on the north the harbor of San Francisco
from the ocean winds which rush through the Golden
Gate, a large frame structure stands conspicuous, that
is evidently of Chinese architecture, yet different in its
appearance from the Chinese dwellings in the city. The
front is painted light blue, and from it projects an airy
portico. A pair of lions, carved in wood, guard the
wide doorway. Above and on either side of it are
gilded tablets, with upon each an inscription of several
large Chinese characters. This building has often been
referred to as " a temple." But its object is not religious.
It is an Ui-kun (pronounced Ooy-koon) or company




556    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
house. The large tablet over the door tells, if English
alphabetic letters be employed for the Chinese characters,
the name of the company,
"YEUNG-WO UI-KUN."
The two perpendicular inscriptions on either side are
poetical lines. They read as follows:
TSEUNG KWONG HAM MAN LI.
SUI HI P'O T'UNG YAN.
" May the prosperous light fill a thousand leagues."
" May the auspicious air pervade mankind."
The two smaller lines on either board contain the
words, " et up on a fortunate day of the 8th month, 2d
year of the Enmperor Hienfung." — " Carved by Fan Y7."
Upon entering the house by the side door, an uncovered area, in accordance with the Chinese custom, is seen
in the middle, from which rooms open toward the front
and rear, and stairs ascend on either side to the second
story. The smaller apartments below are occupied by
the managers and servants of the company. The largest
room or hall is pasted over with sheets- of red paper
covered with writing. These contain a record of the
name and residence of every member of the company,
and the amount of his subscription to the general fund.
The upper story and the attic, with the outbuildings on
the upper side, are, it may be, filled with lodgers, nearly
all of whom are staying but temporarily on a visit from
the mines, or on their way to or from China. A few
sick persons lie on their pallets around, and a group
here and there discuss a bowl of rice, or smoke and chat
together. In the rear is the kitchen. All is quiet, orderly and neat.
This building is the house of the company, which em



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THIE CHINESE COMPANIES IN CALIFORNIA.   557
braces, since scarcely a solitary individual chooses to
separate himself from association with his own neighbors
and people or deprive himself of their sympathy and
assistance, the entire body of emigrants from three beautiful and rich districts which lie around the Pearl river
and its estuary down to the ocean. Heang-shan, at the
mouth of the bay, in which the Portuguese colony of
Macao is situated, is thirty miles long from north to
south, and twenty-five miles wide; Tung-kwan and
Tsang-ching are each larger, but have less intercourse
with foreigners. The company had some years ago
another building, owned by the three districts in common, at Sacramento, and the Heung-shan men had one
of their own in Stockton; to these it may have since
added others elsewhere as they have been needed for
the accommodation of the members, especially as depositories for the baggage of miners.
For the full information of the people of our own
country as to the real nature of these "companies,"
which has been so much misunderstood and widely misrepresented, and in order to show in a plain and convincing way the intelligence and capability of this very
practical people, I procured, by a formal application
to the Yeung-wo company, a copy of its constitution and
rules, a literal translation of which, sentence for sentence,
I now give:
" NEW RULES OF THE YEUNG-WO UI-KUN.
"Since it is necessary for the government of such associations, and the promotion of the common good, that
some rules should be adopted, we, members of the
Yeung-wo Company, now dwelling in a foreign country,




558    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMfPIRE.
have established those which follow. Those which formerly existed in a general form we deem it necessary to
draw up in a new and definite shape, and to publish
them to all men, since successive immigrations have become less substantial in their character, and troubles
have sprung up like thorns. They are in conformity
with the customs of the foreign country in which we
are sojourning. We trust they will be exactly observed
by common consent. They were adopted in the following order on a fortunate day of the ninth month of
the year 1854:
"People of the three districts of Heung-shan, Tungyuen and Tsang-ching are required to report themselves
at the company's room; otherwise, the company will exercise no care for them in their concerns.
"The entrance fee shall be ten dollars; if not paid
within six months, interest will be expected. These fees
may be paid to collectors sent for the purpose into the
Northern and Southern Mines, in the fourth and tenth
month of each year. No fees will be required from those
proved to be invalids, or from transient persons. Receipts for payment of fees must be entered on the books
and bear the company's seal. Disputes will not be settled between persons who have not paid the entrance fee.
Members purposing to return to China must make the
fact known to the agents, when their accounts will be
examined, and measures will be taken to prevent it if
the entrance fee or other debts remain unpaid. Strangers to the agents of the company must obtain security
in persons who will be responsible for their character
and debts. Members leaving clandestinely shall be
liable to a fine of fifty dollars; and the security for a




THE CHINESE COMPANIES IN CALIFORNIA.   559
debt for helping one thus to abscond shall be fined one
hundred dollars.
"In the company's house there must be no concealment of stolen goods; no strangers brought to lodge;
no gunpowder or other combustible material; no gambling; no drunkenness; no cooking (except in the proper
quarters); no burning of sacrificial papers; no accumulation of baggage; no filth; no bathing; no filching of
oil; no heaps of rags and trash; no wrangling and
noise; no injury of the property of the company; no
goods belonging to thieves; no slops of victuals. For
the weightier of these offences complaint shall be made
to the police of the city; for the lighter, persons shall be
expelled from  the company. Baggage will not be allowed to remain longer than three years, when it must
be removed; nor more than one chest to each person.
"Invalids that cannot labor, are poor and without
relatives, may be returned to China at the expense of
the company for their passage-money; but provisions
and fuel and other expenses must be obtained by subscriptions. Coffins may be furnished for the poor, but
of such a careful record shall be kept.
"Quarrels and troubles about claims in the mines
should be referred to the company, where they shall be
duly considered. If any should refuse to abide by the
decision of the company, it will nevertheless assist the
injured and defend them from violence. If, when
foreigners do injury, a complaint is made, and the company exerts itself to have justice done, without avail, it
ought to be submitted to. Whatever is referred for settlement to the assembly of the five companies conjointly
cannot again be brought before this company alone.




560    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
"Where a man is killed, a reward shall be offered by
the company for the capture and trial of the murderer,
the money being paid only when he has been seized; the
members of the company shall subscribe each according
to what is just. If more than the anticipated amount
is required, the friends of the deceased shall make up
the deficiency. Complaint shall be made of offenders
to the civil court, and proclamations for their arrest
shall be placarded in the principal towns; but any one
found guilty of concealing them shall pay all the expenses to which the company has been put. Difficulties
with members of other companies shall be reported to
the agents of this company, and, if justice demand, shall
be referred for the judgment of the five companies conjointly. Offences committed on shipboard, upon the sea,
shall be referred to the five companies conjointly. Difficulties brought upon men by their own vices and follies
will not receive attention. Thievery and receiving of
stolen goods will not be protected; nor will troubles in
bawdy-houses, nor those in gambling-houses, nor debts
to such, nor extortions of secret associations, nor the
quarrels of such associations, nor those who are injured
in consequence of refusal to pay their licenses, nor
smuggling, nor any violation of American laws. The
company will not consider complaints from a distance of
a doubtful character, or without sufficient proof. No
reply will be made to anonymous letters, or those without date and a specification of the true origin and nature
of difficulties. Names must be carefully given in all
complaints from the interior. No payments of money
will be made in the settlement of cases where the rules
of the company are not complied with. Where the con



THE CHIN.ESE COMPANIES IN CALIFORNIA.   561
duct of an individual is such as to bring disgrace on the
company and upon his countrymen, he shall be expelled,
and a notice to that effect be placarded in each of the five
companies' houses; nor will the company be responsible
for any of his subsequent villainies, or even make any
investigation should he meet with any violent death.
Costs connected with the settlement of disputes shall be
borne by the party decided to be in the wrong. In
difficulties of a pressing and important character in the
mines a messenger shall be sent thence, and a judicious
person shall at once accompany him to the place. In
any quarrel where men are killed or wounded the person who originated it shall be held accountable. Any
defensive weapons belonging to the company shall be
given to individuals only after joint consultation, and
the register of their names. Those requiring such weapons for defence shall give security for their return.
If any shall take them on their own responsibility, they
shall be held accountable for any consequences.
"Any one using the seal of the company, or addressing a letter in its behalf unauthorized, shall be severely
censured if the matter be unimportant; if a serious
offence, he shall be handed over to a court of law. The
parties and witnesses in cases shall be examined under
oath. Representatives from the people of different counties and townships shall be notified by the agents of
the company of the time of any meeting; and when assembled they shall not leave until the business be dispatched. Notices of meetings upon urgent business
shall be marked with the words "urgent case;' the
representatives so informed shall be fined, ten dollars
if not present within an hours of the time. InT arbitrar36




562    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE,
tions the agents of the company, the representatives and
the witnesses shall all be put on oath.
"Claims for debts, to avoid mistakes, must particularize the true name, surname, town and department of the
debtor. The manager of the company shall give the
claimant an acknowledgment, which shall be returned
again when the money is paid. No claim can be presented for less than  ten dollars.  Claims presented
through the company must, when afterward paid, bear
the receipt of the company; else the debtor will not be
allowed to return to China. Persons making false claims
against an individual shall recompense him for any expenses to which he shall be put in consequence thereof.
Accounts must be acknowledged by the debtor to be correct before collection.  A person appointed as collector
must give a receipt for the account. A creditor in returning to China must name an agent who will receive
the payment of any sums due to him. Accounts sent
from China for collection may be accepted by the comnpany. The manager will not pay over collections except upon the presentation of the paper of acknowledgment he has previously given. Part payments must bear
the receipt of the company. In cases of dispute about
debt, the debtor may return to China if a representative
from his district is willing to become his security. Debtors shall not be hindered returning to China on their
pleading poverty or chronic sickness. In losses occasioned by oversight of the agent he shall be held responsible for the amount, unless he declare them upon
oath to have been not fraudulent. Claims for debt, if
unpaid, must be again put on record at the expiration
of three years. Claims presented by a member of




THE COIfINESLE  COIPANTIE'S INY CALIFORNIA.   563
another company shall be certified by the manager of
that company, and when recorded shall be subject to a
fee of twenty-five cents.
"This company shall elect three managers; one to attend to the internal affairs, one to attend to the business
with Americans, and one to be the treasurer; and these
shall mutually assist one another.'"A faithful servant shall be hired as a house-servant
and porter.
"A committee of four shall be elected as counselors,
who shall be allowed five dollars a month for refreshments.  The monthly accounts of the company shall be
counted till the last Sunday of the month, on which day
the committee shall audit and publish them by a placard.
"The treasurer shall never retain more than four
hundred dollars in his own hands at one time; and his
deposits in the treasury, and payments from it, shall be
under the supervision of the committee of four. The
treasury shall have four different padlocks, and each of
the committee shall have one key. The treasurer must
always be present when money is taken out.
"Should the committee employ collectors who have
not been duly elected by the company, they shall be
held responsible for them. The accounts of the company
shall be closed with each month, that there be no private
or wasteful employment of its funds; and in cases of
fraud a meeting shall be called and the offender expelled.
When inadvertent mistakes are made in accounts, the
committee shall state them to be so on oath, and the correction shall then be entered.  Managers or comnmitteemen whose accounts are not clear shall be censured.
lNone but the managers shall have common access to the




564    THE OLDEST ANID TE NEWESIT EXLPIRE
account-books. Payments in behalf of the company
shall, when made at their house, be endorsed by the
committee, but in the interior they may be made by the
proper manager alone. The office of the managers shall
be kept open daily from eight o'clock in the, morning
until five in the afternoon. The doors shall be closed at
]New Year's for three days.
" Managers shall not use offensive language toward
each other; but any differences shall be settled by a
meeting of the company. If lodgers at the company's
house do not comply with the regulations and respect
the authority of the managers, they shall be expelled by
a meeting of the company. Managers who may be remiss
in attending at the offiece shall be muleted to twice the
amount of their salary for the time lost."
In the summer of 1854 I addressed to each of the
companies a series of questions in regard to their principles and operations, in order to elicit authentic information which I could use in explaining the character of
the Chinese to our own people. The answers were most
clear and satisfactory. I translate one of them verbatim:as a sample of the whole. The comparison of the company to "American churches," which is made in this
one only, and the careful detail of its benevolent purposes, had a rather amusing origin. Not long previously
the superintendent had come to me with, the inquiry
whether it would not be possible to have their building
made free of taxes, as he understood that American
churches and benevolent institutions were granted that
privilege. I explained to him that a club or company
of its character, designed in the first place for purposes
of mutual convenience, had no more right to claim such




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TEE CHIN YESE COMIPANIES IN CALIFORNIA.   565
immunity than a hotel, which often gives food and lodging to the distressed or to beggars, or than a multitude
of associations which from their nature must in some
cases relieve suffering.  He determined, however, to
attain his object by some means or other, and made
application for the release of the building from taxation,
on the ground of its belonging to a benevolent institution. He put over the entrance to it a sign designating
it an "Asylum;" and besides, to carry out his purpose,
induced the company to order an image of the god
Kwan-tl from China, and set apart a large room for the
worship of it. This he told American visitors was a
"Chinese church!"  His efforts, however, failed, for on
my furnishing the assessors with an exact account of the
purposes of the company the tax was laid upon the
house, much to his disgust. With the exception of this,
the brief compendium given is fair and reliable. The
"Four Districts," with the other two subsequently connected with them in the company, are all in the province
of Canton and not remote from its capital city.
" SZE-YAP COM1PANY.
"' Our house is built throughout of brick. It is surrounded also by a brick wall. It is situated in Pine
street, San Francisco. We have also a frame house in
Sacramento.  The company was originally composed of
people from the four districts of San-ning, San-ui, Hoiping and Yan-ping; hence our name, Sze-yap (which
means'four districts'). Afterward men from the two
districts of Hok-shan and Sze-ui also entered it. WVe
did not, however, change our name on this account.
"In China it is common to have councils, and in




566    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
foreign countries ui-hkuns, or company-halls. The object is to improve the life of their members and to
instruct them in principles of benevolence. They are
somewhat like American churches. The buildings furnish beds, fuel and water to guests who remain but for a,
short period; also a lodging-place and medicines for the
infirm, aged and sick. Means are bestowed upon the
latter to enable them to return to China.
"' There are three agents employed by the company,
also a servant who sweeps the house.
" Thie number of our members that have arrived in
this port, according to the record made at their landing,
from the first until December 31, 1854, has been about
16,500. Of these there have returned perhaps 3,700.
In April of last year above 3,400 separated and formed
the Ning-yeung Company. More than 300 have died.
There are at present in California, altogether, about
9,200. We do not know the number who have left this
for other countries.
" Except the buildings used by the company, we have
no other property. This has been purchased by the
members, who have subscribed of their free-will, some
twenty, some fifteen, some ten dollars. A portion has
been paid in; some will be paid when they are ready to
return home. This is a perfectly voluntary matter;
there has been no coercion used. Nor is any money
required from the disabled, the sick, the aged, or those
making a second voyage to this country.
"The objects to which the subscriptions of the company have been devoted are as follows:
"1. The purchase of ground and erection of the
buildings used by us.




TIHE CIINLSE COMPANIES IN CALIFORNIA.   567
"2. The salaries of agents and servants.
" 3. For fuel, water, candles and oil.
"4. To assist the sick to return home.
"5. For the bestowment of medicines.
"6. For coffins and funeral expenses of the poor.
"7. For the repairs of tombs.
"8. Expenses of lawsuits.
"9. Taxes upon our frame house at Sacramento.
"10. Drayage and other outlays for passengers landing or departing by ship.'The unpaid subscriptions amount to $35,000; the
names of others who have not yet stated the amount they
intend to give will be good for perhaps $6,700 more.
"'The agents of the company are elected. At the
election all the districts must have a voice. If from any
one no members are present, it must be heard from.
The agents must be men of tried honesty, and are required to furnish security before they enter upon their
office. Their election is for the term of six months, of
the expiration of which they must give notice and call a
new election. But if they be found faithful to their
duties, they are eligible to re-election.
" Our company has never employed men to work in
the mines for their own profit, nor have they ever purchased any slaves or used them here."
Thus ends the exact translation of the rules of these
"Chinese companies," institutions which have alarmed
and distressed so many good people in California and
throughout the United States; which have been made a
ground of so much reproach against them, on the part
of interested politicians and others inimical to them;
but institutions which have no parallel for utility and




568    TIlE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
philanthropy among the immigrants from  any other
nation or people to our wide shores.
It has been objected to these companies that they
have brought slaves to this country to work in the mines.
But they have all declared that they have never owned,
imported or employed any slaves. There is slavery, or
peonage, of a certain kind in China, but it is very different from the bondage of Africans as formerly seen in
the United States. It is said there are a few, certainly
not a hundred individuals, of that class here; but they
never have been employed by the companies and work
probably on their own account. Americans have nothing
to fear from that source.
The funds of the companies are not used for mercantile purposes, or to obtain revenue, and indeed are paid
out nearly as fast as they come in. The treasuries of
several of these companies are now empty or in debt.
Many of their people never become able to pay their
fees, and are on the other hand sources of great expense.
The salaries of the managers and clerks are usually from
eighty to a hundred dollars each per month; those of the
servants, perhaps sixty dollars. The only property held
by the companies is just what is absolutely necessary to
accomplish their objects; such as a lot of ground, house
and furniture in San Francisco, and a house perhaps
at Sacramento, Stockton and other principal towns in
whose vicinity their members mine or trade.
Conveniences are afforded by the companies' houses,
for lodging and the storage of baggage, and they are a
headquarters where friends and acquaintances from the
same locality may mleet; just as if the citizens of Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania or Louisiana should




THE CHINESE COMPANIES IN CALIFORNIA.   569
erect separate club-houses in San Francisco and other
towns in California, to be places of general rendezvous
for the people of those States. These companies are a
great saving of expense and trouble to the Chinese, and
are a remarkable illustration of their practical wisdom.
Great facilities are afforded through the companies
for the collection of debts. Accounts are sent, if there
be any doubt about their payment, to the agents at San
Francisco. Here the people are constantly going and
coming; debtors can be more easily reached; their circumstances are known; and if they refuse to pay, complaints are made to our courts of law, they are arrested
and the claims are obtained.
Disputes between miners and others are settled at the
company houses without the expense, delay and trouble
of a resort to our courts of law. A friendly arbitration
is held before a meeting of their company, or before a
joint committee of the five companies, where the case is
more difficult, or when persons of different districts are
involved. The proceedings on these occasions are generally calm, judicious and satisfactory to the disputants.
In former days, encouraged by the examples of lynching among our own people, the companies sometimes
took the law into their own hands so far as to inflict
corporal punishment upon offenders in their houses, but
such practices are now disclaimed by them. Those
doings are now past, and offenders are handed over by
them to our courts in cases which their counsels cannot
adjust. These associations have been of much service to
the Chinese. Without them California could not have
been so exempt from crime and strifes among them.
It cannot be doubted that the companies have generally




570    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
thus far been beneficial in their influence. They have
been most useful in the unsettled and lawless condition
of our own people in earlier days, and in districts where
such a state of tilings now exists. It was in such circumstances right and proper that these people should
make for themselves temporary arrangements and rules
with a binding force even akin to law, just as the same
thing is necessary among a train of emigrants crossing
the plains to Oregon or California, or a party of miners
upon a prospecting expedition to a remote or unknown
region. These rules accomplish the ends of mutual assistance, the promotion of order and the punishment of
the unruly. Yet it is, of course, understood that in all
of them the laws of the country are acknowledged to be
fundamental. WVhat may be constituted by any such
association is but supplementary to the laws of the country for purposes which they could not reach or particularize.
But when American society becomes more settled,
itself under the influence of law and a correct moral
sentiment, and the Chinese secure in the possession of
the ordinary rights of humanity, it is desirable that
these companies should be discouraged. They tend to
perpetuate the local feuds and jealousies of the far-off
communities from which these strangers come. They
give cunning and troublesome men opportunities of
undue influence over them in this land. The money
collected is a source of corruption in various ways, and
has occasioned suits in our courts in which large amounts
obtained from members, many of whom were at a distance and could not prevent the wrong, have been
squandered. There is danger of occasional interference




THE CHINESE CO0iMIPANIES IN CALIFORNIA.   571
from them with our institutions, and of their being made
in the future, when, at least, children born in this country
shall become voters, an engine for evil in the hands of
politicians. And it is in connection with these companies chiefly that the public forms of idol-worship will
be maintained, and the spirit of love of country and
kindred be appealed to in order to prevent their people
being brought under Christian influence or conforming
to our civilization. Hence it is to be hoped that; without interfering with them by legislative or public means
so long as they do not violate our laws, kindly influences
will be exerted gradually to win the Chinese individually
fromn their control, and to make these people feel that
their protection and welfare are to be promoted by a
closer union with the better elements of the American
population, and by falling into the general current of
our opinions, usages and religion.




CHAPTER XX.
A REMONSTRANCE TO CONGRESS,
A STRANGE scene was witnessed in one of the principal mining counties of California. A company
of Chinese had purchased at a large sum some claims
covering the bed of a river, and undertaken to turn the
stream, in order to reach the gold deposited there, as is
often done by the Americans. A quiet little settlement
was formed on the shore, and two firms of Chinese inerchants set up stores there. A large amount of money
was expended for lumber and other necessary articles.
The work was successful. The Chinese began to reap
the reward of their toil and outlay.
One dark night a band of seven armed white men
suddenly appeared in the camp. Attacking the unsuspecting Chinese with unearthly yells, and firing their
pistols among them, they put them to flight and chased
them to some distance from the spot. They proceeded
to seize the gold that could be found. Then they entered the stores and plundered them of money and such
articles as were of any use to them to the value of two
thousand dollars. To end the work they set fire to the
buildings, and by the light thus made carried their plunder to the opposite side of the river, where they composedly set themselves down as the proprietors of the
whole claim by the right of possession.
572




A REMOA2TSTRANCE TO CONGRESS.        573
Some friends of the Chinese brought suit against
these scoundrels before a neighboring justice for the
restoration of the property. In defence the men set
up a remarkable plea. It was simply this, that "they
thought the Chinese could not work the claim to so good
advantage as they could." And-what is still more
remarkable-their friend, the justice, gave a decision in
their favor on the ground of this plea! The friends of
the Chinese next tried to bring a suit against these men
at the county-seat for larceny and incendiarism. But
though some Americans in the vicinity of the place had
seen the fire and the carrying of the goods across the
river, none were found willing or able to identify the
robbers. The Chinese who knew them were not permitted, according to law, to bear witness against white
men. The result was that the perpetrators of these
crimes went free and remained in possession of the property which they so summarily had made their own. The
industrious Chinese, beggared and in debt, were forced
to leave the place.
There was a similar occurrence, which took place at a
bar in another river, not long afterward. A man sold a
claim to Chinese miners. They industriously began to
work it. Three days subsequently he came back, asserted
that it was his and undertook to drive them  away.
They resisted. A fight ensued, in which he struck, or
kicked, one of them so as to fracture the thigh bone.
Another he struck with a revolver under the ear so as
to terribly bruise his neck and jaw and prevent his
taking nourishment except in soup or other liquid forms.
The same man received another dangerous blow upon
the spine. His life was despaired of for a time. The




'574    THE OLDEST AND THE  EtVEWEST EMPIRIE
Chinese, however, succeeded in holding the claim. The
white man escaped without punishment.
It is not necessary to continue the painful recital.
Who committed these barbarous and cruel wrongs, such
as it would scarcely have been imagined could occur in
a civilized and Christian country? It was not often
Americans. A cloud of villains of every country and
complexion-English convicts from Australia, Spanish
and Mexican robbers, low and vicious white foreigners
of other nations-hung on the skirts of the laborious Chinese. They went in gangs and made robbery a business.
They stealthily watched the Chinese miners, kept out
of sight of the better class of white people who were
friendly to them, and when a favorable opportunity
would arrive, pounced down upon them and plundered
them, sometimes those of several camps in one night.
If resisted, they maimed or murdered them without
scruple. It was counted rather a matter of sport, like
a deer or bear hunt, to rush into a Chinese mining camp
at midnight, wake the occupants with hellish yells, discharge their pistols among them and plunder the tents
or cabins of whatever was valuable.
These robbers and murderers were, however, often
quite conscientious. Just as in Italy the same class
make scrupulous distinctions of right and wrong, honor
and dishonor in their transactions, and ask the friendly
help of the Virgin Mary and saints when about to engage in them, so these gentry in California satisfied their
minds that it was a religious duty to rob and shoot
heathen. A Mexican, who was hung at Mariposa much
in opposition to his judgment of what was right in the
matter, protested to the last that his case was a very




A REMONSTRANCE TO CONG.RESS.        575
hard one. It was true that he had killed and robbed a
good many Chinese. " But," said he, decidedly, " Christian people ought not to hang me for that."  The
Americans, however, viewed it differently and swung
him to the limb of a tree, that the example might shed
light as to some of the first principles of morals upon
the consciences of some of his companions. A few such
acts of justice have a marked illuminating effect upon
the minds of men like these.
It was the saddest feature of the terrible trials of the
Chinese that so many of them were inflicted in the name
of the law. The license law of the State subjected all
foreigners "not eligible to citizenship" to a monthly tax
of four dollars. This was applied by the tax-collectors
solely to the case of the Chinese. An army of them
ranged continually over the mining districts equipped
with blank licenses. They often compelled the Chinese
in a camp to pay the mining license, though they might
not be engaged in mining, and were traders, or cooks, or
men engaged in other work, or transient visitors, or even
sometimes though they were invalids, who were disabled
by fever or rheumatism or accidents. They frequently
came back before the month was out, or one would
follow another, giving fictitious receipts. If the men
refused to pay, they struck, stabbed or shot them; perhaps tied them to a tree and whipped them; perhaps
drove them on foot with a horsewhip, the collector
riding behind lashing them as they ran, to some town
where they could exercise other compulsory measures.
A tax-collector in the mountains once related to a company of persons, in my hearing, with great glee, how he
had so "run" some Chinamen on a dark night, when




576    T-E OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
the ground was covered with snow, in which they often
fell down, lie yelling and lashing them from his horse.
The collectors were often followed by cormorants to
whom they sold for a trifle the property of Chinese
which they had " forfeited" for non-payment. And
when there were none so to purchase, these officials
sometimes in mere wantonness destroyed bedding, boots
and other articles.
The wretches who committed all these atrocities felt
secure under a threefold cover. First, but few comparatively of the Chinese could speak our language, or knew
how to obtain justice. In the next place, the "officers
of justice" were too often under the control of the men
who committed the offences. They were nominated and
elected by them, and these villains were careful to let it
be known that their votes would be cast against any man
who favored the Chinese. And of even the poor privilege which a dog enjoys, to bark at the hand that has
smitten him, these strangers have been deprived. They
have not been allowed to speak out in an American
court and say, "This was the man that shot down before
my eyes, in cold blood, my brother, and robbed his
dying body of the gold for which he had been slavishly
toiling for years in order that he might send it home to
make more happy the old age of our father and mother."
They have not been permitted to open their lips before
a magistrate against the band of foreign cut-throats who
the winter through have gone from one lonely camp to
another among the gulches compelling the miners to reveal the place where they had hidden their dust —perhaps by the argument of a rope round their necks, the
other end of which was drawn across a beam overhead




A REMO.NSTRANCE TO CONGRESS.         577
until they had but the choice to give up or die, perhaps
by that of a loaded revolver, or a sharp knife-and to
declare, "I know this one by his black skin, by the scar
across his right cheek, by his low forehead and malicious scowl, and by his coat and sash. I know him
well —his name is-."  They could not asseverate
before a tribunal which had the power to correct the
grievance, " I paid on such a day five hundred dollars to
the defendant, and he has violently, by force of arms,
dispossessed me of the property."  The Supreme Court
of California, in 1855, made a decision, in order to exclude all Chinese testimony against white men, which
briefly amounts to this: first, a native of China is an
African negro; second, a native of China is an American
Indian; third, a native of China has no rights which an
American white man is bound to respect; therefore murderers and robbers of any nation may commit what
crime they please against such without concern as to
American courts.
The conduct of the Chinese under their accumulated
trials was wonderfully prudent, conciliatory and respectful. They did not attempt to organize resistance to those
who oppressed and injured them, even where they had
the power temporarily to do so; for they knew that this
would fearfully react upon them. They patiently bore
what they could not avoid. If driven from one place,
they quietly went to work at another. In their intercourse with the whites they were charitable to, the suffering and ready to give to public claims; and they always
supported their own poor. Thus they won, the cordial
friendship of the more respectable and moral classes who
became acquainted with them, and who, notwithstanding
37




578    THE OLDEST A ND THE NE WEST EXPIRE.
the repulsiveness of some of their vices, could not but
become enlisted in their defence.
In 1855, after one of Gov. John Bigler's denunciatory
messages to the legislature in regard to them, a very intelligent and gentlemanly merchant, Mr. Lai Chunchuen, put in my hands a reply, in behalf of the merchants of San Francisco, with the request that it might
be translated and published in our language. It attracted much attention at the time, and extracts from it
were published in the newspapers of the Atlantic States.
The following passages give a fair specimen of it. The
reader will probably join in the conclusion of most of
those who have seen it, that our Chinese friend had the
best of the battle:
"We have read the message of the Governor.
" First. It is stated that'too large a number of the
men of the Flowery Kingdom have emigrated to this
country, and that they have come without their families.' Among the reasons for this course we may mention the following: The wives of the better families of
China have generally compressed feet. They are accustomed to live in the utmost privacy. They are unused to wind and waves. And it is exceedingly difficult
to bring families upon distant voyages over great oceans.
However, a few have come; nor are they all who may
do so. But there have been several injunctions warning
the people of the Flowery Land not to come here, which
have awakened anxiety, so that our minds have not been
satisfied as to the possibility of bringing families.
"Some have remarked that'immigrants from other
foreign countries bring their families; their homes are
distributed over your State: some engage in manual ena



A IAEMONSThANCE TO CONGRESS.         579
loyrnents and amass wealth;  thus mutual interests
are created, mutual civilities extended and common
sympathies excited; but, while in every respect they
adopt your customs, on the contrary, the Chinese do
not.' To this we rejoin, that the manners and customs
of China and of foreign countries are dissimilar. Its
ancient ideas are prevalent yet. But what if, as foreigners, we do differ somewhat from your honorable nation
in hats and clothes and other small matters, while there
is much that is common?  In China itself people differ.
In China there are some dissimilarities in the inhabitants
of various provinces, or departments, or counties, or
townships, or even villages. Their dialects, their manners, their sentiments, do not wholly accord. Their articles of use are not all made by one rule. Their common
customs all differ. One line cannot be drawn for all.
And just so it must be in all parts of the world. It
would certainly appear unreasonable, when the officers
and merchants of your honorable country come to our
Middle Kingdom, were they to be rebuked for not knowing our language, or for not being acquainted with our
affairs.
"It is objected against us that'vagabonds gather in
various places and live by gambling.' But collections
of gamblers as well as dens of infamous women are forbidden in China by law. These are offences that admit
of a clear definition. Our mercantile class have a universal contempt for such. But obnoxious as they are, we
have no power to drive them away.  WVe have often
wished these things were prevented, but we have no
influence that can reach them. We hope and pray
that your honorable country will enact vigorous laws by




580    TEE OLDEST ANiD THE YEVWEST E13PIIRE.
which brothels and gambling-places may be broken up,
and thus worthless fellows be compelled to follow some
honest employment, gamblers to change their calling,
and, moreover, your own policemen and petty officials
be deprived of many opportunities of trickery and extortion. Harmony and prosperity may then prevail, and
the days await us when each man can in peace engage
in his own sphere of duty. Such is the earnest desire
of the merchants who present this.
"' It is, we are assured, the principle of the government
of your honorable country to assure the peace of the
common people, and that it has at heart benevolence to
all mankind. Now the natives of China and of other
countries possess one common nature. All must agree
that good and evil do not exist anywhere alone. All
nations are really the same. Confucius says,'Though a
city have but ten houses, there must be some in it who
are honest and true.' Suppose then we see it officially
declared that'the people of the Flowery Kingdom are
altogether without good in them,' we cannot but be apprehensive that the rulers do not exercise a liberal spirit,
and that they yield their own knowledge of right to an
undue desire to please men.
"But of late days your honorable people have established a new usage. They have come to the conclusion
that we Chinese are the same as Indians and negroes,
and will not allow us to bear witness in your courts!
And yet these Indians know nothing about the relations
of society; they know no mutual respect; they wear
neither clothes nor shoes; they live in caves and wild
places. When we reflect upon the honorable position
that China has maintained for many thousands of years,




A REMfONSTRANCE TO CONGRESS.          581
upon the wisdom transmitted by her philosophers, upon
her array of civil and of military powers, upon the fame
of her civilization, upon the wealth and the populousness
of her possessions, upon the cordial tenderness with
which successive dynasties of emperors have treated
strangers, deeming native or foreigner all as one, and
then behold the people of other nations heap ridicule
upon us as if we were the same as Indians,-we ask, is
it possible that this is in accordance with the will of
Heaven?-is it possible that this is the mind of the
officers and the people of your honorable country?-can
it be possible that we are classed as equals with this
uncivilized race of men?
" Finally. It is said that'henceforth you desire to
prevent the immigration of people of the Flowery Land.'
Hitherto our people have been interested in your sacred
doctrines.  We have tried to exercise modesty and reason.
If we can henceforth treat each other with mutual courtesy, then we shall be glad to dwell within your honorable boundaries. But if the rabble are to harass us, we
wish to return to our former homes. And we will
speedily send and prevent the embarkation of any that
have not yet come."
This letter of Lai Chun-chuen, numerous articles explaining their peculiarities, the efforts of their friends in
their behalf and the general sense of their importance
as tax-payers and laborers, created a more just public
opinion in favor of the Chinese. A law which had been
passed by the legislature of the winter of 1854-'55 to
exclude them from the mines was repealed by that of
the winter following. But yet they were unceasingly
harassed by lawless men. Sometimes a public meeting




582    THE OLDEST AiND THE NEWEST REM~PIRE.
was held in a mining district, or in a county, where they
had made large investments and were quietly and industriously pursuing their callings, and under the influence
of men who were generally either foreigners or unprincipled persons who were willing to follow at their bidding  and  help  them   in  their iniquitous  proceedings,
resolutions were adopted to drive out the Chinese. Notice was immediately served upon them  to leave by a
certain day. If they had not abandoned the ground by
the appointed time, at whatever sacrifices, losses and
suffering, they were hunted out by armed men and their
property seized or destroyed.
It was not alone the Chinese miners who suffered by
these lawless and cruel acts. Where they were beggared, their merchants and Americans to whom  they
owed money for lumber, clothing, tools, provisions, etc.,
necessarily shared in  the loss.  And  the prosperity of
various parts of the State was materially injured by the
outrages which drunken, worthless men, who were comparatively but a handful of the population, were allowed
to commit. And, indeed, there was scarcely a manufacturing, mercantile or transporting interest in the State
which was not more or less affected by the troubles of
this large and industrious class.'
1 The statement of the editor of a newspaper published in one of the northern
mining counties of California illustrates this point:
"For two years past, a very large portion of the gold taken from the mines
has been the product of Chinese labor, and the traders in mining localities can
attest that a very small portion of this has ever been carried out of the country,
the assertions of city editors to the contrary notwithstanding. Chinese labor
has literally kept alive the trade of most of the mining towns during the past
season. The richer mines-all claimed or owned by the whites-have been
poorly supplied with water; little work has been done, and little gold has
therefore been drawn from that quarter; but all the time the patient and plodc




A BEMOiNSTRANCE TO CONGRESS.                          583
NVorn out at last with their trials and  losses, some of
their more intelligent men took a lesson from  the course
of the Europeans and Americans in China, and determined to send a remonstrance to the Congress of the
United States. This document was put in my hands to
translate and take such steps as were necessary to have
it properly brought before that body. It would no doubt
have been written with a brush upon a sheet of silk and
presented with due form. But some misapprehensions
in it in regard to the powers of Congress, and certain
temporary reasons, led me to postpone the fulfillment of
their wishes.   Upon the failure of my health I brought
it with me to await the time, if life were spared, when
the wakening sense of the importance of our national
relations to the Chinese should justify my publishing it.
ding Johns are delving among the rocks and ravines of the foot-hills-in places
where a white man would starve, rather than work in at all-packing water in
buckets to rock out their six: bits a day to buy their daily provender and pay
the tax-gatherer for the poor privilege of working."
Another editor, in a county neighboring to the above, makes the following
statement in defence of the Chinese:
"Business in some of the small mining camps in our county would be wholly
suspended during the summer months were it not for them. They are content
to work laboriously for two dollars a day, and work claims which no others
would. They make good hands, and are frequently hired by the miners. We
have heard but little complaint against them by the miners, and the feeling
which at first existed against them, and which was greatly exaggerated, is —fast
wearing away. They are a sober, quiet, industrious, inoffensive class of men,
and, in our opinion, are a great benefit to our county. They pay annually into
our treasury, for licenses alone, from sixty to eighty thousand dollars-a'sum
we cannot afford to lose. They pay our merchants promptly for every article
they buy. They attend to their own business, and are rarely engaged in brawls.
The mines they work would be unproductive were it not for them, being too
poor to pay others for working them. Where is the miner in our county who
would toil from early'morn till dewy eve' for two dollars a day, with no prospect of obtaining more?  A Chinaman will do it cheerfully, but other miners
will not. For the last year but few of them have worked on their own account.
being principally hired by miners,"




584    THE OLDEST AYND THE ANEWEST Eti3PIRE.
That time seems to have arrived. It does not seem
proper now to send it to Congress, inasmuch as the persons who projected and prepared it are some of them
not in this country; the author of the paper, I have
been informed, is dead, a victim to the use of opium;
and the circumstances under which it was written are
somewhat changed.
The author referred to was Mr. Pun Chi, a young
merchant in San Francisco, a man of good Chinese education, and who had picked up some acquaintance with
our people and their institutions in his trade with them
and during his attendance at the mission-school under
my care.
This remonstrance is thoroughly Chinese, and will
aid our people to understand the views and feelings of
that people. There is an acute perception of the strong
points of their position, and of the arguments which
will have most weight with the best class of the American people, that is characteristic of them. They appeal
to us as a reasonable people. The Chinese look upon
war and the argument of the sword only as a last necessity. This paper illustrates their national character.
Such is the measure, or, if the expression be preferred,
the style, of their civilization that they regard military
men with much the same dislike that they do pugilists
or butchers. Hence they resort to diplomacy in their
management of neighboring nations, and their statesmen
are often, it must be confessed, adepts at bragging, fibbing and tricks equal to those of Europe or America.
It is certainly something at which the governments of
the West may be astonished, and from which they might
learn a lesson of the first utility, that China governs




A REMIONSTIANCE TO CONGRESS.         585
vast territories, which more than equal in extent her
own surface, chiefly by moral suasion. Every kingdom
on her borders pays her tribute, receives the writings
of Confucius as the best compendium of what is reasonable and right, makes her language that of its polite
classes of society and the medium of communication
with strangers, and imitates her arts and her usages.
It will be noticed how, therefore, with something like
amazement, the Chinese who have emigrated to America
find themselves regarded with dislike, their language
unknown to us, their philosophers despised, and insult
and wrong heaped upon them like the vagabond tribes
of Indians. And it is nothing but gold, the immense
difference of remuneration for every sort of labor, and
gain on all kinds of traffic, or the want of gold, in failing to realize what they have expected, and their consequent debts, which makes them endure the humiliation
for one day. They writhe under it, and cannot comprehend it. If the reader can put himself in their position
and in their frame of mind, he will be able to appreciate
the document now offered for his perusal.
It will be a source of surprise to many of our people,
but nevertheless it is in accordance with the national
mind, that they should dwell so emphatically upon the
moral and religious considerations of the case. There is
a quiet dignity, a deep sense of wrong, a freedom from a
threatening or revengeful spirit, and a declaration of
their entire submission to the action of our authorities
in their case when deliberate and final, which must win
for them the sincere respect, sympathy, and even admiration, of reflecting and honorable men.
There are, as they say, twelve topics which they de



586    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
sire the legislators of our nation to weigh in connection
with the appeal made to them for their interference to
rectify the abuses of provincial legislation, and for
their decision of the questions connected with the permanent residence of the Chinese here. The first three
are preliminary and general.  (~ 1). They begin with
an appeal to our religion. They say that there is a supreme and universal government which has constituted
China the most ancient, great, favored and beneficent
nation of the world. We have been granted the instructions of Jesus, the Western counterpart of Confucius. Then why do we not practice them?  (~ 2).
They then define the principles upon which good government should be founded-upon reference to moral,
not mechanical power, upon education, and upon respect
for virtue.  (~ 3). They represent (with some truth,
but too favorably) that the conduct of their own government should be an example to ours in its care of the
lives and property of foreigners, and the justice rendered
to them in its courts; and it is claimed that no other
foreign immigrants more deserve to be justly dealt with
in this country, since no others pay so large an amount
of the public revenue, or are more submissive to our
laws; and this will be more clearly seen the better we
understand them. There are seven matters in respect
to which they desire legislative interference; that is,
(~ 4) the general annoyances inflicted upon the Chinese,
beginning with the time they land, and from all kinds
of people; (~ 5) the outrageous cruelties and crimes of
which, from the want of legal protection, they are the
subjects; (~ 6) the oppression and wrongs of the miners;
(~ 7) the violations of law by the appointed collectors




A  EMOlSTRAlNCE TO CONGRESS.         587
of taxes; (~ 8) the unjust practices of the nominal
courts of justice; (~ 9) the troubles arising from the importation of abandoned women; and (~ 10) the neglect
to inflict the penalties of the laws against gambling.
Finally, they make two special requests; first (~ 11),
that their companies may be allowed, from their universal acquaintance with all the Chinese of the country,
and their responsible representative character, to take
cognizance of minor offences against the law  committed by their own people and report them to our
courts; and second (~ 12), that Congress would, as the
highest legislative authority, decide the main and most
anxious questions affecting Chinese interests in this
country; that is, if the previous policy of encouraging
trade and immigration is to be reversed, and if they are
to be for ever liable to injustice and injury, they respectfully beg that it may be plainly stated by a declaration
to that effect, and that effectual measures may be adopted
to prevent our traders from enticing further immigration and, by fixing a limit as to time (three years), to
enable and compel the present entire Chinese population
to take its departure.  They demand that in justice
Congress shall settle these questions, and make laws
which shall either banish them from the country or else
give them security and peace.
Such is the tenor of this remonstrance to the authorities at Washington.  It will be seen that it exhibits a
fair conception of the powers of a supreme legislative
assembly, and yet is defective of necessity in not discerning the lines which divide the authority of the Federal and State legislative bodies. Some of its expressions
are peculiar. But, on the whole, the doubt may be ex



588   THE OLDEST AN.D THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
pressed whether a body of immigrants from any European
nation, in some remote part of our country, who had been
here but for a short time and were still ignorant of our
language and constitution, would have prepared a plea
more intelligent, more forcible and more reasonable.
A REMONSTRANCJE
FROM THE CHINESE IN CALIFORNIA TO THE CONGRESS OF THE
UNITED STATES.1
The sincere and gracious attention of your honorable
body is earnestly requested to the consideration of certain matters important to our peace as foreigners, the
following statements of which may be relied  upon as
certainly true and correct::We are natives of the empire of China, each following
some employment or profession-literary men, farmers,
mechanics or merchantso   When your honorable government threw open the territory of California, the
people of other lands were welcomed here to search for
gold and to engage in trade.  The ship-masters of your
respected nation came over to our country, lauded the
equality of your laws, extolled the beauty of your manners and customs, and made it known that your officers
and people were extremely cordial toward the Chinese.
1 Such is the ability displayed in this appeal that I judged it best to prevent
suspicion of its being either factitious or overwrought by submitting it with
the translation to one of the most thorough and competent scholars in Chinese
literature, the Rev. Dr. Nevius, author of the interesting volume entitled
" China and the Chinese," recently published' by Harper & Brothers, New York.
He sent me, before leaving this country on his return to his labors in the North
of China, the following note, with permission to publish it:
"I have examined carefully this appeal of the Chinese to Americans made
through Dr. Speer, and find that this translation is a true and faithful rendering
of the original.
""JoarN L. NEVIUSo
"New York, October 31, 1868~"




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A REMONSTRANCE TO COlNGRESS.         589
Knowing well the harmony which had existed between
our respective governments, we trusted in your sincerity.
Not deterred by the long voyage, we came here presuming that our arrival would be hailed with cordiality and
favor.'But, alas! what times are these!-when former
kind relations are forgotten, when we Chinese are viewed
like thieves and enemies, when in the administration of
justice our testimony is not received, when in the legal
collection of the licenses we are injured and plundered,
and villains of other nations are encouraged to rob and
do violence to us!  Our numberless wrongs it is most
painful even to recite. At the present time, if we desire
to quit the country, we are not possessed of the pecuniary
means; if allowed to remain, we dread future troubles.
But yet, on the other hand, it is our presumption that
the conduct of the officers of justice here has been influenced by temporary prejudices and that your honorable
government will surely not uphold their acts. We are
sustained by the confidence that the benevolence of your
eminent body, contemplating the people of the whole
world as one family, will most assuredly not permit the
Chinese population without guilt to endure injuries to
so, cruel a degree. We would therefore present the following twelve subjects for consideration at your bar.
We earnestly pray that you would investigate and weigh
them; that you would issue instructions to your authorities in each State that they shall cast away their partial
and unjust practices, restore tranquillity to us strangers,
and that you would determine whether we are to leave
the country or to remain. Then we will endure ensuing
calamities without repining, and will cherish for you sincere gratitude and most profound respect.




590    THIE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
The twelve subjects, we would state with great respect,
are as follows:
~ 1. The unrighteousness of humiliating anid hating the
Chinese as a people.
We have heard that your honorable nation reverences
Heaven. But if they comprehend the reverence that is
due to the heavenly powers, of necessity they cannot humiliate and hate the Chinese. Why do we aver this?
At the very beginning of time, Heaven produced a most
holy man, whose name was Pwan-ku. He was the progenitor of the people of China. All succeeding races
have branched off from them. The central part of the
earth is styled by its inhabitants the Middle Flowery
KIingdom. That is the country of the Chinese. The
regions occupied by later races are distributed round and
subordinate to it. Heaven causes it to produce in the
greatest variety and abundance, so that of all under the
sky this country is the greatest, and has bestowed upon
it perfect harmony with the powers of nature, so that all
things there attain the highest perfection. Hence we
see that Heaven most loves our Chinese people, and multiplies its gifts to them beyond any other race.
From the time of Pwan-ku till the present, a period
of many tens of thousand of years, there have been born
among us a host of sages, such as Fu-hi, Shin-nung,
Hwang-ti, Yau, Shun, Yu, Pang, Wan, Wu and Chaukung. Gifted by Heaven, they attained consummate excellence, Their beneficent influence extended not alone
around them, it shed peace upon all nations. In the
days of Yau our people were styled the Tang, which
has been a favorite designation of themselves until now.




A REMONSTRANCE TO CONGRESS.          591
After some centuries, Heaven again produced a sage preeminent and alone in his excellence, whose name was
Confucius, whom it made the great teacher of China.
He combined what was greatest and best in all that preceded him, and became the teacher and exemplar of all
ages. As to things on high, he showed men the fear of
Heaven; as to things on earth, he taught them virtue.
The sages of whom we have spoken had the wisdom
to discern that all men on earth are one family. Now
what is meant in styling all men on earth one family?
It is, that the people of China, or of countries foreign to
it, are all embraced, as it were, in one great circle of
kindred, with its parents and children, its elder and
younger branches, its bonds of unity; the pervading
principle, love; no one member debased, none treated
with dislike. Again, after several centuries, I-Ieaven
brought forth one Jesus, and ordained him  to be a
teacher to foreign lands. Now Jesus also taught mankind the fear of Heaven. He showed that the chief end
is to pray for eternal life. He comprehended the reverence due to Heaven, and the obligations of virtue. He
was in accord with the holy men of China. He looked
on all beneath the sky as one great family. He did not
permit distinctions of men into classes to be loved or despised. But now, if the religion of Jesus really teaches
the fear of Heaven, how does it come that the people of
your honorable country on the contrary trample upon
and hate the race which Heaven most loves, that is, the
Chinese?  Should this not be called rebellion against
Heaven? And how is it possible to receive this as of the
religion of Heaven?




592    THE OLDEST AYND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
~ 2. An appeal to the principle which lies at the foundation of Chinese government and society.
The wise men of China plant at the very foundation
of government the idea of virtue, not that of physical
power, just as do those professing the religion of Jesus
Christ. Virtue is that which commands the intuitive
submission of the human will. Great vessels of war
and powerful artillery may destroy cities and devastate
a country. That is physical power. But moral power
is essentially different from mechanical power. The
noblest illustration of moral power is the teacher at the
head of his school-as much so as the locomotive and
the telegraph are of mechanical skill. It is the spirit
of man that deserves respect, not his form. If the
spirit be noble and good, although the man be poor and
humble, his features homely and his apparel mean, we
honor him and love him. If the spirit be not so, though
the man have wealth and position, though his countenance be beautiful and his clothing rich, we regard him
with contempt and dislike. But we do affirm that the
reason why the people of your honorable country dislike
the Chinese is this, and no other —they look at the plain
appearance and the patched clothes of their poor, and
they do not think how many spirits there are among
them whom they could respect and love.
~ 3. A brief statement of the manner in which our Chinese
government acts toward foreigners.
China possesses a mutual trade with all foreign lands.
When a man from another country arrives in China,
none of our officers and common people treat him other



A REMONSTRANCE TO CONGRESS.           593
wise than with respect and kindness. In case he be
defrauded or injured, where it is a small matter the
offender is fined or punished corporeally; in a graver
one he forfeits his life. Even though there be no witnesses, still the local officers must thoroughly inquire
into the circumstances. In murders and brawls, if the
criminal be not discovered the magistrate is called to
account and degraded from  his office. When a foreigner commits a deed of violence against a Chinese, a
spirit of great leniency and care is manifested in the
judgment of the case. Not because there is not power
to punish. But we sincerely dread to mar the beautiful
idea of gentleness and benignity toward the stranger
from afar.
Now why is it that, when our people come to your
country, instead of being welcomed with unusual respect
and kindness, on the contrary they are treated with unusual contempt and evil?  Hence many lose their lives
at the hands of lawless wretches.  Yet though there be
Chinese witnesses of the crime, their testimony is rejected.
The result is our utter abandonment to be murdered and
that of our business to be ruined.  How hard for the
spirit to sustain such trials! It is true some persons
reply that the Chinese who come here are of no advantage to the country. Yet if a calculation be made only
of the amount of licenses we pay, the value of our trade,
the revenue to steamers, stage companies and other interests, amounting to several millions of dollars. per
annum, can it be affirmed that we are of no advantage?
But, besides, it is to be considered that we Chinese are
universally a law-abiding people and that our conduct is:
very different from the lawlessness aaid violence of some




594    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
other foreigners. Were it not that each so little understands the other's tongue, and mutual kind sentiments
are not communicated, would not more cordial intercourse probably exist?
~ 4. The perpetual vexations of the Chinese.
The class that engage in digging gold are, as a whole,
poor people. We go on board the ships. There we find
ourselves unaccustomed to winds and waves and to the
extremes of heat and cold. We eat little; we grieve
much. Our appearance is plain and our clothing poor.
At once, when we leave the vessel, boatmen extort heavy
fares; all kinds of conveyances require from us more
than the usual charges; as we go on our way we are
pushed and kicked and struck by the drunken and the
brutal; but as we cannot speak your language, we bear
our injuries and pass on. Even when withindoors,
rude boys throw sand and bad men stones after us.
Passers by, instead of preventing these provocations, add
to them by their laughter. We go up to the mines;
there the collectors of the licenses make unlawful exactions and robbers strip, plunder, wound and even murder some of us. Thus we are plunged into endless
uncommiserated wrongs. But the first root of them all
is that very degradation and contempt of the Chinese as
a race of which we have spoken, which begins with your
honorable nation, but which they communicate to people
from other countries, who carry it to greater lengths.
Now what injury have we Chinese done to your honorable people that they should thus turn upon us and
make us drink the cup of wrong even to its last poisonous dregs?




A REMONSTRANCE TO CONGRESS.         595
~ 5. - Fatal ijuries unpunished.
Your Supreme Court has decided that the Chinese
shall not bring action or give testimony against white
men. Of how great wrongs is this the consummation!
To the death of how many of us has it led   In cases
that are brought before your officers of justice, inasmuch
as we are unable to obtain your people as witnesses, even
the murderer is immediately set free! Sanctioned by
this, robbers of foreign nations commit the greatest excesses. It is a small thing with them to drive us away
and seize our property. They proceed to do violence
and kill us; they go on in a career of bloodshed without
limit, since they find there are none to bear testimony
against them. Let us mention some cases. In the third
year of the present emperor, and seventh month, at
B-, Yu Lin-shing, a Chinese, was shot and killed
by an American. The murderer was apprehended and
brought to the place of justice. He was released without
condemnation. In the ninth month, at S ——, Yu Waingok was murdered by a foreigner. In the same month,
at B —, one of our countrymen was killed by an
Indian. In the fourth year, second month, near M ——,
a man named Chiu Man-sze was shot with arrows, by
Indians, and killed. In the sixth month, in L-,
Liu Kiu was put to death by an American; the murderer was captured and put in prison; but, as usual, was
released without trial. In the eleventh month, a Spaniard robbed and murdered one of our countrymen. In
the fifth year, on the fourth day of the fifth month, a
collector of the mining licenses killed Ching Ping, at
P —. About the middle of the same month, at




696    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
/ —-, the collectors of the licenses killed three men
because they would not pay more than was justly due;
their names were Wa Ion, A-Tang and A-Sui.
It would be impossible to enumerate the men that
have been killed; we have mentioned these as a few of
them. To collect a catalogue of crimes is certainly not
a work of pleasure. But behold the root of them all
in the prejudice and hate of your honorable nation! In
cases where it is possible to procure the testimony of
your people as to an injury, the Chinese may obtain reparation; but suppose there are occasions where, if none
of your people know of a crime, Chinese were allowed
to take up the case and to state their acquaintance with
it, some of these stains of blood would not continue unwashed. Some object that the Chinese bear false witness. Do such not know that the Chinese do not understand your language? —or that within your courts of
justice, too, there are corrupt men?-or that in the strifes
of public litigation there may be found men of every
country who will bear false testimony.? Why, then, is
this burden laid upon us Chinese alone? Suppose there
be false witness borne, are the judges of your honorable country blind and stupid, so that they cannot discern it and estimate testimony at its value? Because
here and there a Chinese or two has proved a perjurer,
shall it prejudice our entire nation? Shall this degrade
us beneath the negro and the Indian? This is a great
injustice, such as is not heard of in our Middle Kingdom!
It injures your fair name. Every nation under heaven
mocks at you. Hence it is not alone we Chinese that
suffer, but blessings are lost thereby to your own land.




A REMONSTRANCE TO CONGRESS.          597
~ 6. The persecution of the Chinese miners.
If a Chinese earns a dollar and a half in gold per
day, his first desire is to go to an American and buy a
mining claim. But should this yield a considerable result, the seller, it is possible, compels him to relinquish it.
Perhaps robbers come and strip him of the gold. He
dare not resist, since he cannot speak the language, and
has not the power to withstand them. On the other
hand, those who have no means to buy a claim seek
some ground which other miners have dug over and
left, and thus obtain a few dimes. From  the proceeds
of a hard day's toil, after tile pay for food and clothes
very little remains. It is hard for them to be prepared
to meet the collector when he comes for the licensemoney. If such a one turns his thoughts back to the
time when he came here, perhaps he remembers that
then he borrowed the money for his passage and expenses from his kindred and friends, or perhaps he sold
all his property to obtain it; and how bitter those
thoughts are! In the course of four years, out of each
Zen men that have come over scarcely more than one or
two get back again. Among those who cannot do so,
che purse is often empty; and the trials of many of
them,are worthy of deep compassion. Thus it is evident that the gold mines are truly of little advantage to
the Chinese. Yet the legislature questions whether it
shall not increase the license; that is, increase trouble.upon trouble! It is pressing us to death. If it is your
will that Chinese shall not dig the gold of your honorable country, then fix a limit as to time, say, for instance,
three years, withan which every man of them shall pro



598    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
vide means to return to his own country. Thus we
shall not perish in a foreign land. Thus mutual kindly
sentiments shall be restored again.
~ 7. The irregularities of the collectors of the license.
These occur wherever the Chinese are engaged in
mining; and they are not the acts of one man. The
collectors of the license have no appointed districts:
one man comes at this time, and a stranger the next.
They have no appointed period: some come for the
month's dues to-day, and to-morrow they require them
again. In collecting from the miners who have money
they extort heavy amounts besides. To miners who have
none they refuse to grant time, and then demand the
sums which they owe from other persons. If these refuse
to pay them, the collectors seize their purses and take
their last grain of gold. Should the Chinese dispute with
them, they assault them with pistols and other weapons,
and some of the miners may lose their lives, and there
is no redress. Hence, when it is reported that the collectors are coming, those who have no gold are forced to
fly in terror; those who could pay are thus frightened
and follow; then they are pursued and beaten, perhaps
killed. Occurrences like these are common. They all
arise from the rapacity of the collectors and from the
want of just regulations. Now we ask, first, that, in the
collection of the licenses, each district shall be allotted
to a certain man; that the boundaries of it shall be
clearly defined; that other collectors shall not be allowed
to come within them; that the day of each month when
the collector will receive the license-money shall be
previously published by placards; that on the payment




A REMONSTRANCE TO COlNGRESS.        599
of the four dollars he shall give the miner a written receipt as evidence, to prevent his being compelled to pay
the money again; and that in the cases of those who are
unable to pay, firstly, some extension of time may be
granted; if at the second demand they still have no
means to pay, security may be required from their fellowminers, with some further extension of time; at the
third demand, if neither they nor their security are
ready to pay, then their property may be seized for the
amount. There are none of us who would not gladly
submit to such regulations as these. They would be
just to both parties. And your losses from the miners
running away or hiding their money would cease.
~ 8. Usages to which we object.
Our people have been told of the excellence of the
institutions of your honorable country; but when they
have come to the new State of California, they have
found them to be strange indeed. We know not from
what nation came the men that have taken the lead in
creating this condition of things, nor where rests the obligation of reforming it, but you cannot be ignorant of
some things the truth of which we have seen and known.
Allow us briefly to speak of them. Causes at law are not
judged according to what is true or false; the strongest
faction is counted to have the truth. In contentions between men it is not considered what is crooked and what
is straight; sufficient money makes a man's claim appear
straight. The treatment of men is not regulated by their
characters for virtue or for vice; a fine exterior is accepted for virtue. New laws are constantly published,
only to be changed again in a brief time. Suits that




600    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
should be determined are postponed again and again.
A person of purity and integrity appears in court and
he is but ridiculed and insulted the more; a violent and
wicked man, and he is paid the more respect. Cases
involving money come before these tribunals, and they
excite covetousness; cases of property, and they create
envy of a man's abundance. Murder is allowed to
escape without the forfeit of life; robbery occurs without
the apprehension of the offender. False rumors are
made a pretext to arrest men; officers apprehend the
innocent in order to oppress and fine them. They practice neither humanity nor justice. Their ambition and
their schemes terminate simply in gold and silver. Justice demands that political institutions such as these
should speedily be reformed, or you will meet with the
scorn of the whole world.
~ 9. A request for the adjustment of the difficulties in
regard to abandoned women.
At first all the abandoned women who came to California from Hong-kong were boat-women from the seacoast: one of them arrived here during the first year of
Hien-fung (1851). At that time, we Chinese proper,
fearing that other people would mistake these for our
own females, and thus disgraceful conceptions of us be
spread abroad, specially requested your authorities to
banish them. But the local authorities, not comprehending the evil, would not consent to their removal.
From that time the number of those coming has constantly increased, and the flood of poison has become
more and more wide and deep. It is now our request
that you will enact laws for the correction of this griev



A REMONSTRANCE TO CONGRESS.         601
ance. We beseech you to stringently require commanders of vessels, while they carry these women away,
to bring no more of them back. And a time should be
fixed within which all here shall be compelled to leave,
themselves providing the means, and returning to their
own people. Thus will we be rid of this spreading
poison and be relieved of this disgrace.
~ 10. A petition that gambling may be severely punished.
In our Middle Kingdom gambling is forbidden by
law. Formerly, on account of its not being forbidden
in your honorable country, many men learned this vice,
and the results have been deeply injurious. Now we
are fortunate in having a law against it passed by you
and put into operation. If only men knew that they
must rigidly obey it, and if from this time forth there
shall be no secret granting of licenses, then we might
hope that those who had learned this vice might return
to honest occupations.
~ 11. A request in regard to the management of criminal
cases.
At present, people from all nations are coming indiscriminately to your honorable country. Certainly many
of them are good; but there are also bad persons among
them. It constantly happens that the good are compelled to reap some of the fruits of the evil deeds of the
vicious. Among our Chinese there are some bad peopie; and only the Chinese can know who they are. If
you will permit the Chinese merchants, they will prepare private statements as to such persons, vouching for
them by the signature of their names. Thus rogues




602    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
may be justly punished, and will understand that the
laws are to be respected, and will be deterred from the
commission of crimes; and they will return to the ways
of virtue.
~ 12. A request for an enactment appointing a time when
the Chinese shall finally return to their own land.
When we were first favored with the invitations of
your ship-captains to emigrate to California, and heard
the laudations which they published of the perfect and
admirable character of your institutions, and were told
of your exceeding respect and love toward the Chinese,
we could hardly have calculated that we would now be
the objects of your excessive hatred-that your courts
would refuse us the right of testimony; your legislature
load us with increasing taxes and devise means how to
wholly expel us; your collectors, even before the law is
made, begin to demand larger sums, and to compel the
month's payment for shorter periods than that time; that
foreign villains, witnessing your degrading treatment of
us, would assume the right to harass, plunder and rob
us, possibly kill us; that injuries of every kind would
be inflicted on us, and unceasing wrongs be perpetrated;
that if we would desire to go, we would be unable to
do so, and if we desired to remain, we could not. But
now if, finally, you do not will that we should mine and
traffic in your honorable country, we beg that you will
fix by law a limit of three years, within which we may
collect our property and return to our country; and that
you will strictly forbid your ship-captains to use inducements for people to come, and, if they do not obey, severely punish them. Thus we will endeavor after the




A REMOlNSTRAN'CE TO CONGRESS.        603
lapse of three years to leave upon your honorable soil
not a trace of the Chinese population. If, on the other
hand, you grant us as formerly to mine and trade here,
then it is our request that you will give instructions to
your courts that they shall again receive Chinese testimony; that they shall cease their incessant discussions
about expelling the Chinese; that they shall quit their
frequent agitations as to raising the license fees; that
they shall allow the Chinese peace in the pursuit of their
proper employments; and that they shall effectually repress the acts of violence common among the mountains,
so that robbers shall not upon one pretext or another
injure and plunder us. Thus shall your distinguished
favor revive us like a continual dew.
To the translation of this Remonstrance I will only
add the expression of the sincere hope that the members
of the Congress of the United States and of the legislatures of those States in which Chinese are now laboring,
or may do so in the future, will give a thoughtfull consideration to the subjects presented in it. There is a
propriety about it which should ensure their respect.
There is a reasonableness and justice in the requests and
suggestions which should cause them to be weighed and
adopted, if only we except that of the reference of
questions relating to the characters of persons accused
of crimes to the opinion of "the Chinese merchants,"
meaning probably their Association, or Exchange, in
San Francisco. Personal prejudices, jealousies among
the people of different clans and districts, and their displeasure with some who leave the religion and customs
of their fathers and adopt those of our country, might




604    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
make such an opinion one which it would be unsafe for
our courts to follow. It would be better to accede to
their final petition and fix a time within which their
immigration to this country should cease, those here
depart, and intercourse be, so far as practicable, suspended, than that we should go on in a descending
course of oppression, rapacity and reckless destruction
of property and life, which can only terminate in the
greatest national calamities to us and to them.




CHAPTER XXI.
MORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE- IMMIGRATION.
IN preparing the preceding chapters of this volume,
and describing, as I have heartily done, the industry,
the gentleness, the intelligence, the charity of the Chinese, a voice has often whispered in my ear, as from
some thoughtful inquirer of my own nation, Are not
these a heathen people whom you are so praising? —have
they not the vices of heathenism?  I cannot close this
chapter without confessing that they are heathen, and
that we discover in them the vices of the tribes of mankind without the light of God's truth to teach them, and.
without the power of God's truth to give elevation and
strength to their moral character. They seem to occupy
a superior position compared with other heathen nations,
and yet, alas! they are heathen.
Then the question rises, What are " heathen?"  The
heathen were originally heath-ers-the dwellers among
the heath; those who wandered away from the fenced
abodes of knowledge and happiness and plenty; the
ignorant, desolate outcasts, who are so numerous in the
old countries; the gypsies, the lepers, and all that wild,
despised, wretched herd. Here is the typical idea. We
apply it to all the races of man who are without the
Bible; to those who are wanderers from the way of life,
605




606    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWTEST EM1IPIRE.
and are in the wilderness as respects their knowledge of
the living and true God, pardon of sin, true holiness
and heaven. They see the dim light of nature and of
their traditions from the patriarchal age; they hear the
still small voice of natural conscience; but they are
without the clear light of the revelation which we enjoy.
In the religious writings of the Chinese one discerns
the generic attributes of heathenism —ignorance and
fear with regard to God, pride and self-indulgence as to
the man. The ignorance of God is the parent of superstition, which fills heaven, earth and hell with imaginary
beings and monsters; the fear excites men to the worship of them, and this consists chiefly in offerings to
propitiate their anger. Pride conceals the sinfulness of
human nature and puffs it up with conceit of its own
powers; self-indulgence plunges the man into the gratification of his low appetites.
There are some most touching admissions of their
ignorance of all beyond the reach of their own senses or
the monitions of human reason and conscience to be
found in the pages of the great teachers of China. Thus
Confucius, when inquired of as to the nature of the gods,
used language which reminds one of that of Socrates
when the weeping disciples to whom he had taught so
much of negative truth besought him  for something
positive to dispel the fears of death and " charm" away
their sorrow. It is said he exclaimed, " How vast is the
power of the gods! Look, and you cannot see them.
Listen, and you cannot hear them. They have a personality essentially related to us. And yet how they
compel the whole race of man to fast and to array themselves in their best robes, that they may sacrifice to them,




MORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE IMMIGRATION.   607
is unfathomable as the sea. They seem to be above.
They seem to be on our right hand and on our left. As
the ode says:'The influence of the gods upon the mind
What mind can measure?
To the utmost let our duty be performed.'
Behold, the secret things they bring to light! Be sincere, for you can conceal nothing.  This is certain." 
The best lesson which Mencius, who stands next to
Confucius in the regard of the wise and good of China,
had to teach was only what related to the duty which
man owes to his fellow-man.  When the king of Wai
invited the wisest men to visit his court, he condescendingly said to Mencius, " Venerable sir, since a thousand
miles has not been esteemed too great a distance for you
to come, will you now inform me what there is of profit
to my kingdom that you can bestow?" The philosopher
replied, " 0 king! why speak of profit? I have only
benevolence and justice-nothing more."  He then proceeded to inveigh against the ambition and covetousness
of all classes of society, and declare that there were two
principles which would bring happiness and order to
every house and fidelity to every subject of the throne;
and he cried, " O king! only talk then of benevolence
and justice. Wherefore speak of profit?" 2
Both Confucius and Mencius saw with bitterness the
utter inefficacy of truth which looks no higher than earth
to reform society or to stay the power of human passions.
The vices of the courts they visited too often quenched
the flickering lamp of reason in their hands.
The popular faith has gradually shaped its conceptions
CHUNG-YUNG, leaf 10.       2 SHANG-MnG, leaf 2.




608    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
of things in the heavens in accordance with what is seen
on earth. It is supposed that there is a chief of the
gods, Shang-ti, who resembles the Jupiter of the Romans, and whose attributes are described to be infinite
power and knowledge, so that some foreign missionaries
have advocated the use of the name to signify the true
God; a mistake, however, as great as that of using the
name of Jupiter or Zeus with that sense. It is the
common belief that there is a hierarchy in the heavens
nearly corresponding with that of the empire on earth,
the rank and power of the gods being relatively the
same with those of the successive grades of civil officers.
So practical is this faith that the officer in the flesh
ruling over a province when traveling, if he finds it convenient to occupy the temple of a god of a celestial dignity inferior to his own, may not scruple to order the
god to be put out of doors for the time being. Nor, in
truth, do any evil results usually, in their experience,
follow.
The theatrical performances which the Chinese have
introduced into California, and with rather poor success
attempted, in the employment of certain Americans, who
cruelly deceived and defrauded them, to exhibit in some
of the Atlantic cities, are partly religious in their nature.
The Chinese have a legend in regard to their origin,
which is as follows:
About eleven hundred years ago, upon the night of
the annual festival in honor of the moon, Lo Kungun, an attendant upon the emperor Hieun-tsing, was
walking abroad and turning his eyes to that luminary.
In a rapture of devotion he flung up into the sky the
staff which he bore in his hand. It was instantly trans







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~i~~~~~~~~i~ ~  ~            MC?,?i~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~i!~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~~~K
R1"~~I ~-???




MORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE IIM2IIGRATION.   609
formed before his eyes into a bridge. Having invited
his imperial master to accompany him, he mounted upon
it to the moon. They found there the gates of a splendid palace. Upon entering it, the two beheld beneath a
spreading cinnamon tree a company of females of noble
aspect, clad in white and seated upon white celestial
birds, which sang with delicious sweetness. The company seemed to be amusing themselves, and their visitors heard at the same time strains of music of a wonderfully pure and majestic kind. They returned back to
earth, to the palace of Si-king, but could recall, alas!
scarce half the words or notes of the song which they
had heard. But Yang King-tah, having formed some
conception of it, wrote it down and arranged it, and presented it to the emperor. He commanded a band of
more than three hundred singing girls to be formed, to
which was committed the rehearsal of the music. These
women having performed in the inclosure of the imperial
pear orchard, play-actors have since then borne the designation of "the fraternity of the pear orchard."
The celebration of this worship of the moon in China
is very striking to the eye of a stranger from a Christian
land. The fifteenth day of the eighth Chinese month,
which occurs about our mid-autumn, is sacred to this
occasion, and is a day given to general festivity. The
shops are closed. The air is rent by continual explosions of gunpowder. Flags of many forms and colors,
most of them  painted with astrological emblems, are
seen waving in the south wind. Peculiar fatty cakes,
the upper crusts of which are enriched with various devices in red and yellow paint, and called "moon cakes,"
are presented on that day by friends to each other andc




610    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
by the rich to the poor. But one of the most interesting ceremonies of the day is the erection of lanterns on
poles above each house at nightfall amidst the thunder
of innumerable cannons, gongs and drums. Being suspended in pairs and disturbed by the wind, one sees,
from  an elevated place, a waving phosphorescent sea,
which stretches far away to the distant hills. It is an
act of idolatrous adoration from  a million of souls together to the orb which is supposed to reveal herself in
her full during this month with more splendor than at
any other period of the year.
The worship of the god To-ti has been introduced
into California. His name signifies that he is a "god
of the earth;" that is, one who guards the particular
localities where his image is set up. It is said that the
original god worshiped under this name was once a prefect named Yang Shing, who lived during the third cent
tury of the Christian era. He ruled over a department
whose' inhabitants were remarkable for being small of
stature and delicate in their appearance. It was the
practice of the emperors of that period to annually
carry off several hundred of them to the palace, where
they were mutilated in their persons and made chamberlains, and thus were devoted to a cruel, perpetual slavery
and separation from their homes. This humane officer
having strongly represented their case to the emperor,
they were relieved from that oppression. Hence after
death he was deified by the grateful people with the
name of To-ti and worship instituted in honor of him
in Taou-chau, which has spread abroad until it is now
celebrated all over the empire.  He is classed among the
gods of happiness and of wealth. iHe confers prosperity




HMOIAL ASPECT OF COHINESE IMAIWGRATIO N.   611
in business. His more especial care is the protection of
streets and dwellings from evil spirits and ill-fortune,
It is understood now, however, that it is not'this same
individual who is worshiped in connection with each image and in various streets, but a mere image is erected,
to which they attribute the presence of the spirit of some
other man of virtue and renown whom  they prefer,
especially of some one who may have lived in their own
neighborhood.
The god of fire, Hwa-kwang, is worshiped annually
on the twenty-eighth day of the ninth month by many
of the Chinese in this country, in order to secure his
protection of their shops and dwellings from  being
burned. He is commonly represented with a third eye
in the middle of the forehead, with which he is supposed to be able to see a thousand miles and to watch
over the welfare of his friends even in the darkness of
the night.
To guard their health many worship Pin Tseuh, who
was a celebrated physician of antiquity not long after
the times of Fuhi, the founder of the empire. A demigod gave to him some medicine, which he was to take
during thirty days, that enabled him to see the internal
motions and disorders of all the viscera of his patients.
He extensively exercised the power thus acquired, and
gained great fame. It is declared that he was even able
to raise the dead.
The womnen worship gods and goddesses, who they
imagine protect them in their dangers, afford them help
and comfort in their times of trial and grant them the
objects of their desire. The images often seen of a goddess with a child in her arms are generally those of




612    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST ELPIPE,
Kwan-yan, "the hearer of cries," to whom they and some
classes of men who are' much exposed to danger, such as
sailors, offer devout worship. This goddess was a virgin of the province of Fu-kien, who on account of her
holiness was granted miraculous powers, which she ex-.erted specially in behalf of those who were in trouble.
In many points her worship reminds one of that of the
virgin Mary by Romanists.
There are several rooms fitted up in San Francisco
and other places on our Pacific coast for temples. They
are chiefly,connected with " company houses," are quite
a source of revenue to some men who have the care of
them, and will be zealously maintained on that account,
and because the gods are sometimes those which are worshiped by the people of the district in China whence the
members of the company have come.
The characteristic and favorite religion of the Chinese
is the worship of ancestors and the spirits of the dead.
The interpretation of this is very simple. It is but the
affection and the reverence of children for parents following them beyond the veil of the invisible world and
attributing to them the continuance of their willingness
and power to aid. And the worship which is rendered
to these spirits may be said to be just what human
parents might be supposed to require, only in a more
ethereal form.
In San Francisco each spring and autumn a noisy
procession with gongs, drums and clarionets, having
several wagons loaded with trays containing whole roast
pigs, ducks, chickens and other meats, and pastry, confectionery, fruit and cooked vegetables, proceeds to the
neighboring cemeteries. They are despatched from the




3OfRAL ASPECT OF CHINTESE IiIIMIGRA TIOY.   613
streets of the city and received at the grounds with the
firing of innumerable crackers. The offerings are formally presented to the spirits in front of the tombs,
whisky is sprinkled in the air for their refreshment, and
paper money is burned and thus put into spiritualized
currency such as they can use. The remainder of the
day, after the public duties have been performed, is devoted to feasting and social enjoyment.
In the cities of China this festival is the most popular
of all in the round of the year.  It is celebrated with
great fervor by all classes of people. Offerings are made
by each family separately.  In the court of the house
there may be seen a heap, perhaps several feet in length,
of various articles of clothing and common household use,
generally made of paper, though sometimes of the ordinary nmaterials, with bundles of silver and gilt paper for
money. The court is lighted up with gaudily-painted
candles in rows around the sides. The dwellers of every
age all busy themselves in making the arrangements
necessary.  Hot rice and other substantials, nuts and
liquor or tea, are brought out. When all is ready, acts
of worship are performed. Then the pile is kindled, and
the rice and liquor are thrown up into the air. Every
scrap of paper is religiously gathered and burned, probably that the garments of the spirits may not be defective. The more savory articles of food, however, are not
thus profusely scattered about, but after they have stood
long enough for the worthy ghosts to abstract their
essence, they seem still capable of affording considerable
relish to the coolies and boys that scramble for them.
Many of the Chinese believe that these provisions are
insipid after the ghosts have satisfied their hunger, but




614     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST E[MPIRE.
some are so bold as to say that they do not notice much
difference in the taste.  It is not alone what is required
for food and raiment that is despatched to the unseen
world. Through the agency of flames, which spiritualize
them  and waft them  up, houses completely furnished,
horses, servants, sedan-chairs and numerous articles of
worldly luxury or ornament, find, as these deluded people believe, access there.
The same intense feeling of attachment to kindred
leads them to offer oblations to the spirits of the deceased,
to make annual visits to their tombs in order to repair
them, and to carry back to the burial-places in their native villages the bones of those who die away from them.
Thousands of skeletons have thus been taken from California. The people of various districts of the province
of Canton have formed among themselves on the Pacific
coast benevolent societies whose members pay each a fee
of several dollars. This guarantees the transportation
of their bones home in case of their own death, and helps
to do the same for those of all the individuals who have
come from the same district. Hundreds of thousands of
dollars have been paid by these societies for coffins,
internal transportation, that on shipboard and other
expenses.
These associations are purely voluntary, and may not
be connected with their ui-kuns, or "c companies."  The
following is a translation of a portion of the report of one
whose headquarters was at San Francisco, styled the
Chih-shin (or beneficial) Association:
"The benevolent purposes for which the Chih-shin
Association was established were first put into effect in
the autumn of eighteen hundred and fifty-four. The




MORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE IMMIIGRATION.   615
work was carried on till the present time-that is, the
summer of eighteen hundred and fifty-five —and now, on
the second day of the fifth month (June) is completed.
A vessel has sailed conveying the coffins to our native
villages. There remained, however, but a balance of
somewhat over four hundred dollars, which we fear
would be scarcely enough to pay for their transportation
from Hong-kong to Pun-sha-wan, and would not meet
the expenses of the sacrifices to the dead. After consultation together, it has been resolved that those who have
not paid be requested to hand over at once the subscriptions due, for remittance to China, so that the amount
necessary may be made up for the sacrifices and for the
erection of tombs, and that the accounts of the Association may be closed. We present the following report,
and request gentlemen to notify us of any mistakes in it
previous to the expiration of the eighth month. When
the subscriptions have been paid the books will be forwarded to China and the tombs be put up. No provision, however, will be made for tombs for those whose
friends here do not pay before the time limited expires, and record will be also made of their deficiency.
We desire earnestly the payment of the sums due, that
these benevolent objects may be accomplished and that
they may bear their good fruits. We pray all to exert
themselves to this effect, that the end may be attained,
no excuse left those who are negligent, and that all
may share the happiness and the merit which they
deserve."
This extreme anxiety concerning the bones of the
dead is caused by the belief that their spirits will haunt
the survivors if proper respect for them  be not shown,




616    THIE OLDEST AND TIEE NEWEST EMiPIRE.
that the fortunes and the bodily health and comfort of
their descendants depend largely upon the proper selection of the tombs of parents and kindred, and by the
interest felt in each other by members of the same clan
or neighborhood. The selection of a proper spot for the
tomb is a matter of great concern. The professional
diviner is employed to examine lucky sites and decide
upon the one most suitable. The hills around a Chinese
city are scattered over with tombs, for there are no common cemeteries. The great points in regard to sepulture
are to secure high ground on either side, especially on
the left-dry ground and yet proximity to a stream which
curves toward the tomb at its nearest point, as this tends
to direct the general good influences of nature toward
it-and the absence of any large rocks on the surface.
Wealthy men spend thousands of dollars in ascertaining
a spot where their spirits will be satisfied and which will
secure prosperity and health to their families. And
bloody fights sometimes follow the interference of one
clan or family with the tombs of another.
The fung-shwui, or powers of nature (literally, "winds
and waters"), must be consulted in regard to many indi-vidual and public affairs. It. is a mysterious superstition,
which is universal and most powerful. All classes of
society humbly bow before it. If the house be lower than
some around it, or if it front unsuitably toward some
quarter of the compass, or course of a stream, or the
ordinary currents of wind, or if it be overshadowed by
the tree of a stranger or enemy, then no expense will be
spared to correct the evil. One method is, to erect a tall
-flag-staff which shall overpower the antagonistic influences. The direction given in an almanac for the man



MORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE IMMIGRATION.   617
ner of doing this will convey an idea of its meaning. It
is as follows:
"For a fortunate flag-staff use a long, solid beam. To
a transverse pole, at the top, suspend a wooden cover
formed of four sides and an inclined roof like a house,
to protect the lantern beneath from the rain. Write
upon one side of the lantern, in a handsome character,
the word'Peace;' on the opposite the name of the god
Tsz-zmi-yuen. Then the god will enter and establish
himself there. If there be any evil influence exerted
upon you from the neighborhood, whether it be from a
large tree, from a lantern-staff, from a high residence,
from a watch-tower, from an official residence or building, or from the house of an enemy, the erection of
this staff will be found efficient for your protection.
Should there be a house in front of your family residence higher than your own, let a staff of moderate
height be raised at your back door or in the open court
behind the house.  If there be a dwelling-house or a
high wall behind you, raise a flag-staff in your front
open court, or before your door, to counteract its influence. Thus you will obtain prosperity."
There is a slavish bondage to appointed times and
seasons which are supposed to be lucky or unlucky. The
almanacs are full of directions in regard to matters which
may be done or which should be avoided on days which
the stars, the powers of nature and the gods constitute to
be lucky or unlucky.' Thus the lives of men and women
1 The following directions with regard to certain unlucky days will serve
as a specimen:
"General matters to be avoided.
"On ham chd day: to make a visit to a distance to a feast; to marry a
wife.




618    THE OLDEST AND THE NE WEST EMPIRE,
are made miserable, families are subjected to great and
unceasing inconvenience and expense, and a large class
of men, many of whom are very wicked and cunning, is
supported in a life of imposture and folly.
The blessings or calamities of life are referred to a
multitude of influences good and evil which act upon
the person, the family or the employments, and which
must be traced out and means taken to propitiate the
sources of them. Thus, on a given day, if a man be
taken with a fever, he consults the diviner or books on
the subject, and is informed that he received the evil
influence in a north-east direction. It may have originated from the evil gods of the four points of the compass,
from   wandering  gods, from   injurious  male  or female
spirits, or from the gods of the household, or from displeased spirits of one's ancestors. There will probably
be, he is told, chilliness and then heat in the extremities
and in the bones and muscles. It is a very serious disease.  He is instructed to take five hundred sheets of a
certain prepared black paper money, a horse made of
paper, a cup of water, a bowl of rice and some fruit and
"On kau lung day: to build a vessel; to start on a voyage; to build a bridge;
to finish the roof of a house.
"On sam pat chi day: to enter upon the discharge of official duties; to go to
war.." On ng pat u day: to speculate or gamble for money; to apprehend knaves;
to pay a visit for consultation as to personal affairs.
"On sz hi: to open a granary.;On tsit hi: to build an outhouse.
"On cheung tun day: to make exchanges of property; to open a place of
business; to make clothes; to have any new person enter the house.
"On hut chi day: to use moxa in the cure of disease; to kill horses, oxen,
pigs, sheep, dogs or chickens for food."
On certain other days named: "To engage in a lawsuit; to betroth a wife;
to arbitrate a business; to collect debts; to lay by money; to remove to a new
house; to return to a place from a distance."




MIORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE IMMIGRATION.   619
wine. He must arrange and offer these in a northern
direction. A return of good fortune will be the result.
There is furnished to him also a form of a charm, which
is to be written and pasted on the wall for his future
protection.
The Chinese, in common with all the other nations of
Eastern Asia, hold decided views in regard to the reward
of good and punishment of evil deeds, both in this life
and in that which is to come. Thus we find in a tract
by Lau-tsz, the founder of the Tauist, or Rationalist,
sect the following passage:
"Adversity and prosperity have no door of entrance
except as men draw upon themselves the recompense of
their good or evil deeds. Yet this follows our acts just
as shadow follows substance. For this reason there are
in heaven and on earth gods which have the oversight
of crime. In proportion to men's offences do these gods
shorten the measure of their years. With shortened years
is sent also poverty. Sorrow and care are inflicted upon
them. Mankind are stirred up to hate them. Vengeance follows them. Prosperity flies from them. The
stars of evil shed upon them calamity. Thus life is
early exhausted and they perish. The gods of the constellations about the North star stand always above men
in order to record their sins, and at the appointed hour
to snap the thread of life. Within the body the three
gods of death abide, and twice in each month ascend to
the court of heaven to report the misdeeds of men. The
gods of the fire-place do the same as each successive
month is closed. If a man's crimes be excessive, his
years are cut off by scores; if less, they are cut off in
smaller measures. But, be his sins great or small, when




620    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWVEST EMPIRE.
they have reached a few hundreds in number he must
entirely forsake evil if he would ask for length of days."
It is a doctrine of the Buddhist priesthood which is
commonly accepted by the people that the spirit, on
leaving the body, at once passes to give its account before the presence of "the ten judgment gods," and is
there confronted with the records of all its good and evil
deeds. Evil spirits stand up as its accusers and good
spirits as its advocates. According to the award then
given, it passes into some higher or lower form of being
or place of reward or of punishment. The good are sent
into some more prosperous and happy form of being, or
directly into a paradise of the gods and saints. The bad
are punished by being consigned to inhabit the bodies
of the more wretched and suffering inhabitants of earth,
or those of brutes or reptiles, or are driven by demons
into some one of the numerous hells. The punishment
corresponds somewhat in its nature with the character
of the vices or crimes of the offender. Gluttons and
debauchees, for instance, are represented as plunged in
lakes of blood and filth; those that hoard grain in order
to raise the price of it and wrong the poor as changed
into starving brutes; those that have deceived and deluded the young as freezing in lakes of ice; those
cruel to beasts as devoured by them in turn; and those
guilty of lying and falsehood as having their tongues
torn out by the roots or pierced through with red-hot
iron daggers; the most wicked are tossed by demons
into furnaces of fire. The general ideas of future reward and punishment appear to have been handed
down from a very early period in the history of
mankind.




MIORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE liMIGRATION.  621
Buddhist monastic institutions are common in every
city. The priests and nuns make vows of abstinence
from animal food, of perpetual celibacy and of poverty.
They dress in long black or gray robes, and wear their
heads shaved all over and their feet bare.  In the monasteries they celebrate matin and vesper services, recite
long liturgies in honor of various gods, which are in the
Pali, a dead language. They mark the number of the
prayers repeated with the strokes of bells, they illuminate
the gloom with long painted candles and perfume the air
with incense.  There is a multitude of points of analogy
which plainly indicate the Asiatic source of most of the
corruptions of the Christian Church in the West.
It should be understood by all our readers that a Chinese does not consider himself connected with any one sect
unless he be a regular priest or formally associated with
it. Men and women worship where and when they think
proper, and just such gods or goddesses of any sect as
may please them.  A  god of one temple may be preferred to-day, that of another for a different object, or
the same object, to-morrow. The officers of a city are
accustomed to select a variety of deities and publicly announce acts of worship to them at convenient seasons, in
order to secure habits of reverence for religion in the
popular mind.l And this is done by men of great intel1 The following appointments for the "sacrifices of the eighth month" were
made at Canton:
2d day. To Wan-chang (a god of literature) at his own temple; offered by
the commissary of grain.
6th. The provincial treasurer will offer at the temple of Wan-chang.
7th. To the gods of the soil and the gods of grain.
8th. To the gods of the wind.
12th. To the god of war, Kwan-ti; by the provincial judge.
15th. To the dragon king.




622    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EXPIRE.
ligence, who privately laugh at the follies and superstitions to which they have given public sanction.
In comparing the Chinese systems of superstition with
those of India, we observe some very marked differences
which indicate the superior mental character of the
former. Caste, while Buddhism is accepted as a general
creed, is stricken from it in China, along with all its
burdensome and odious precepts as to food, clothing and
the intercourse of men.  In  the public worship of the
gods there are no acts of indecency or licentiousness.
And there are no exhibitions of cruelty, like hook-swingi'ng, the terrible car of Jugernaut, the burning of widows
or systematic murder. There are many features of Chinese idolatry which  are absurd, painful and  offensive,
but none so revolting or terrible as those.
The very summary view  which  I have presented  of
the superstitions of the Chinese is sufficient to show
plainly that they possess important portions of the revelations made by God to the first members of the human
family, or distributed  from  their seat in  Palestine, by
the agency of the surrounding  commercial nations, into
16th. The prefect of the department of Kwang-chau will sacrifice to Chauchung.
21st. To the god of Nan-hai district, Hung Shing-wang; by the provincial
treasurer.
22d. To the Queen of Heaven; by the salt commissioner.
24th. At the temple of Yen-lang; by the prefect of Kwang-chau.
25th. To the gods of fire.
Besides the above, there are celebrated during this month the birth-days of
nine gods; among them, the gods of the moon, of the fire-place, "Buddha of
the kindling-lamp," the spirit of wine, gods of thunder, etc. The tenth day is
the anniversary of the birth-day of the emperor, on which divine honors are
paid to him in all the provinces. From the 3d to the 27th the gods of the constellation Ursa Major descend on a special visit to the earth to inspect and settle
the affairs of men, over which, since those stars never set, they are supposed to
keep incessant vigil.




MORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE IIMMIG-RATION.   623
all the ancient world, and that God follows them with
the voice of conscience and his Spirit. Yet this truth
they have corrupted, so that now all the praise and
honor which belong to God they give to their idols, to
imaginary beings, to the spirits of sinful men like thenmselves, to the stars of heaven, or to evil spirits.
The stories of their special worship of Satan under the
name of "Joss" are utterly untrue. It is strange that
they should have been so often repeated of late, even in
respectable magazines and in religious newspapers whose
editors and contributors have had abundant access to
books which give correct information on this subject.
They do use charms and other superstitious means to
avert the anger and prevent the malicious injuries of
themselves and families by evil spirits.  But it is
wholly unjust to class these among their acts of religious worship.
Outside of the realm  of what could be designated
religious worship, there exists in the Chinese mind a
multitude of imaginary monsters, bred in air, earth and
sea, which hold them in constant dread of their power.
Their books speak of multitudes of nameless things of
terrible shapes which haunt the streets, the hills, the
rivers.  When traveling on boats, I have sometimes sat
listening at night to the stories of strange sights and
sounds which the boatmen had to tell-how in the lonely
watches they had heard the flapping of unseen wings
which rushed by their heads, and heard noises which
filled them with terror. They set up in our streets and
mines the images of the gods of their native land, because they know nothing of the only true God, in the
hope of protection from  the injuries wlhich malicious




624    THE OLDEST AND TiiE NEWEST EMPIRE.
beings inflict, to shield them from influences poisonous
to health and harmful as to their pursuits.
Thus it will be seen that Chinese idolatry is the
same essentially with idolatry in other heathen landsa strange mixture of ignorance and fear; a bowing before sun, moon, stars, spirits of dead sages and dead
kindred, and imaginary beings of good and evil; blind
anxiety to avert judgments for conscious guilt; the possession of light, but refusal to follow its guidance; the
distinct knowledge of right and wrong, but the obedience
of the great mass, with here and there some noble exceptions, to the impulses of nature and of sense. In
China, the character of the people, their physical circumstances, the peculiarities of their history, have saved
the race from the utter and fearful debasement which is
seen in the case of some other heathen nations. Still,
the elements, the tendencies, the penalties, of Chinese
heathenism  are the same.
It has been maintained by some unthinking persons
that the universal toleration of religion in America requires equal respect to be paid to Buddhism as to Christianity, and this interpretation has been put upon an
article in the Burlingame treaty. It is freely acknowledged that there must be no persecution for religious
opinions; no interference with religious worship which
does not publicly violate our laws; no disabilities on
account of their faith which shall exclude these people
from security of person, peaceful possession of their
property and the defence of their natural rights before
our courts of justice; no exclusion of their children from
the advantages of public education. But it must be remembered that a multitude of decisions have established




AMORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE I3IMIIGRATION.    625
the legal maxim  that "Christianity is the basis of the
common  law."   Chancellor Kent says, "Christianity is
part and parcel of the law  of the land."    This means
specially Christianity as a system of morals. The reason
of this is that the revelation which God has given to us
1 The reflections of the profoundest foreign observer of American institutions
are very weighty in regard to this subject. A. DE TOCQUEVILLE, Democracy in
America, vol. i., pp. 332-335:
"The Americans combine the notions of Christianity and of liberty so intimately in their minds that it is impossible to make them conceive the one
without the other; and with them this conviction does not spring from that
barren, traditionary faith which seems to vegetate in the soul rather than to
live.
"In the United States religion exercises but little influence upon the laws and
upon the details of public opinion, but it directs the morals of the community,
and by regulating domestic life it regulates the state.
"' I do not question that the great austerity of manners which is observable
in the United States arises, in the first instance, from religious faith. Religion
is often unable to restrain man from the numberless temptations of fortune, nor
can it check that passion for gain which every incident of his life contributes to
arouse; but its influence over the mind of woman is supreme, and women are
the protectors of morals. There is certainly no country in the world where the
tie of marriage is so much respected as in America, or where conjugal happiness
is more highly or more worthily appreciated.
"I do not know whether all the Americans have a sincere faith in their
religion-for who can search the human heart? —but I am certain that they
hold it to be indispensable to the maintenance of republican institutions. This
opinion is not peculiar to a class of citizens or to a party, but it belongs to the
whole nation and to every rank in society.
"Religion in America takes no direct part in the government of society, but
it must nevertheless be regarded as the foremost of the political institutions of
that country; for if it does not impart a taste for freedom, it facilitates the use
of free institutions.
" It may be believed, without unfairness, that a certain number of Americans
pursue a peculiar form of worship from habit more than from conviction. In
the United States the sovereign authority is religious, and consequently hypocrisy
must be common; but there is no country in the whole world in which. the
Christian religion retains a greater influence over the souls of men than in
America, and there can be no greater proof of its utility and of its conformity
to human nature than that its influence is most powerfully felt over thie most
enlightened and free nation, of the earth,"
40




626     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
in the Bible is the infallible standard of moral truth, of
moral right and of moral duties; and that every othei
system of teaching is human, defective and more or less
perversive of morality.
Christianity and paganism are radically and for ever
irreconcilable. The one adores, worships and serves the
true God; the other adores, worships and serves false
gods and devils.  The one is founded on eternal truth,
the other on the delusions of the father of lies.  The
one civilizes, elevates, blesses men, families, nations; the
other bestializes, fosters ignorance, prejudice and deception, fills society with fanaticism or its opposite, skepticism  and contempt for all religion, degrades woman,
blights the spirit of scientific inquiry and stops the improvement of the useful arts.  The one leads to virtue
and morality, the other to loathsome vices and abounding crime. The one to prosperity, to national influence
and power; the other to decay, contempt and final overthrow, if there be an almighty God who rules the world
and is a righteous judge.
A necessary conclusion from  these premises is, that
the morality of Christianity deserves certain political
immunities in favor of the maintenance of its teaching;
which means chiefly that its edifices should not be taxed
by law, on the ground that its influence is worth far
more pecuniarily to the government than the amount of
money at which its property would be assessed for taxation. It is cheaper, that is, to remit twenty millions of
dollars to teach men principles which will make them
honest, industrious, merciful and chaste, than it is to pay
a hundred millions to punish them for murders, violence,
robberies and licentious crimes.  But it seems to be a




MORAL ASPECT OF CHI'NESE IL qIiGiRATION.   627
just conclusion that idolatry, which tends to blind even
the natural light which God has given to man through
tradition and conscience and nature, should at the least
not enjoy similar immunities.  It should not be persecuted. But its property should be counted, the same as
that devoted to all ordinary purposes, subject to taxation.
On the lowest ground of consideration, its moral influ-x
ence is not pecuniarily equivalent in value to the amount
of taxes which its property should pay.
Should the testimony of the Chinese be admitted
against white persons in our courts of justice? The decision of the supreme court of California, that they shall
be excluded on ethnological grounds, is simply contenlptible in the eyes of men of science. The Chinese is
as far removed from the Indian or the negro as is the
Indo-European family. The numerous westward migraticls of portions of the Turanian family indeed have
marde ourselves to be more closely allied with the Indian
than the Chinese are. The only conclusion from such a
method of reasoning is that if the Chinese are Indians,
then we are Indians; if the Chinese are negroes, then
we are negroes. But, without reference to the origin of
the races, this confusion of what is distinct, this dangerous mode of construing law by expediency and policy,
meet with the severe reprobation of every sound lawyer.
"Statutes, for any cause, disabling any persons of full
age and sound mind to make contracts, are to be construed strictly; for, though founded in policy and a just
regard to the public welfare, they are a derogation of
private rights."  And " statutes made in derogation of
the common law are to be construed strictly." 1
1 CURTIS, United States Digest, iii., p. 486.




628    THE OLDEST ANI~D THE NEWEST ELPIRE.
Nor is it right to exclude Chinese testimony on the
ground of religion. They have rights of humanity which
must be protected. They should be held to be competent
to bear witness where those rights are affected; the only
question can justly be as to the degree of credibility to
be allowed to them, The question arises, Should their
oath be received in our courts?  The English common
law grants that it shall.  Starkie (on Evidence) says:
"All persons may be sworn who believe in the existence of God, a future state of rewards and punishments,
and in the obligation of an oath."  This is generally
understood to include pagans, especially those of the
Buddhist and Brahminic creeds, who acknowledge a
Supreme Moral Governor above all the gods, and one or
more tribunals before which an exact account must be
given of every act in the body; and who appeal to him
and to other deities by oath. In the case of Omichund
v. Barker it is laid down as a principle that any belief
other than Christianity, which acknowledged a supreme
and future Judge, justified the admission of an oath, and
that it is to be administered in any mode that may be
binding on the conscience. An atheist may not be
sworn. "But," says the report of the case, " at this day
it seems to be settled that infidelity of any kind doth not
go to [against] the competency of a witness."  Redfield
says, " This must mean infidelity as contradistinguished
from Christianity."  The case of Omichunzd v. Barker
referred to the depositions of certain Hindhs, a people
more swarthy in color than the Chinese, and inferior to
them in intelligence and in moral and religious character. Lord Mansfield, alluding to this and others
similar, says that since that time "the nature of an ap



MORAL ASPECT OF CHlINESE IMM1IGBRATION.   629
peal to Heaven, which ought to be received as a full
sanction to evidence, has been more fully understood."
An American jurist says, "All that is now required is,
that the oath should bind the conscience of the witness."
"It is obvious that a sincere Deist, a Mohammedan, or a
pagan of any name, if he believe in the existence of God,
as above defined, may feel the sanction of an oath as binding on his conscience as the most devout Christian." 1
Pagans of perhaps every important nation of Asia have
been admitted to testimony in English and American
courts. Lord Henry Brougharm, and other most enlightened judges, have sanctioned the admission of the
testimony of Chinese, who have of late years been often
brought into the courts by the now extensive commerce
with their empire. It must be held to be a right in
common law until changed by statute.
It is a right which the State of California, following
the examples of several others in the Union, solemnly
recognizes when it says: ".No person offered as a witness shall be excluded on account of his opinions or
matters of religious belief." 2 And allowing the exceptions which its most illustrious commentator does, of
those who have committed crimes which made them
technically "infamous," or are " interested," the great
motto of the common law, as given in words, should
be blazoned on the walls of every hall of justice: "All
witnesses, of whatever religion or country, that have the
use of their reason, are to be received and examined." 3
There has been much doubt as to whether it is better
to allow Chinese witnesses to swear by their heathen
V1 Vermont Reports, xiii., p. 367.  2 Practice Act, 1856,   192,
BLACaKSTON, Corn., iii, 369.




630    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
deities. In California I resisted this, and prepared a
form of oath addressed to the Supreme and Only True
God, which was used in some of the courts. I think
such an oath will have as binding a force upon the witness as most others; and, besides, it does not give the
solemn sanction of our courts of justice to their superstitions, and can be, and should be, more justly and
severely punished as perjury.
At the present time, it must be confessed, the Chinese
opinion of our courts of justice is not high. This is
brought to view in the Remonstrance to Congress. It
is a subject of common conversation with them.  An
amusing expression of it occurred at Sacramento.  A
Chinese went into an intelligence-office in search of a
situation. While there the conversation turned upon
the case of one of his countrymen, named A-Chung,
who had been arrested a few days before for murdering
a Chinese woman. The proprietor of the intelligenceoffice expressed his opinion that A-Chung would be
hung. The man instantly replied, "He no hang. He
all same as Melican man. He got two thousand dollars!
You sabe! no hab money, he hang. Hab plenty money,
no hang."
The character of their women in California has been
an objection constantly urged against the Chinese there.
Among the better class of that people this is a very
bitter subject.  One of the first of their people who
came to California was a woman from Hong-kong. She
was a bold, cunning, bad woman, who saw at once the
profit which might be reaped from the importation of
abandoned women.  She had several brought over.
The respectable Chinese in San Francisco used their




iMORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE IMMlIGRATION.   631
utmost efforts to compel their return, but in vain. The
matter was brought before our courts, and these men
were compelled by our laws to submit to what they saw
would be a cause of untold injury to their and our people.
In my conversations with them and admonitions in regard to this vice, I was often met with this reply: "Well,
if there are bad women here, it is the American courts
that are to blame."  It is hard to see how we could
have kept them from coming, but this the Chinese could
not understand.
There are now in California probably about eight
thousand Chinese females. The most of these are from
the tan-ka, or " boat-people," an ignorant, vicious race,
inhabiting the boats upon the rivers and in the harbors
of Canton province. They are considered by the people
on shore to be foreigners from the neighboring countries.
These women have been bought generally from their
parents, guardians or owners at sums varying from
thirty to two hundred dollars each, according to their
age, personal appearance and accomplishments. Some
of them have been taken by the Chinese who are in
circumstances to do so to be their secondary wives, the
Hagars and Zilpahs of their Oriental domestic life.
There are now  several hundred Chinese children at
least on our Pacific coast; some persons have even
affirmed that there are three thousand. The Chinese
men are anxious to have children. They are fond of
them; and they desire sons, whom they may carry back
home to take care of them in their old age, and to maintain the family name and the sacrifices to the dead.
The majority of these poor women lead a dreadful
life. We prescribed for many of them in our dispen



632    THE OLDEST AND TIHE NEWEST EMIPIiRE.
sary. The diseases which are the consequence of their
depraved life are too terrible to describe. Young and
pretty girls presented masses of putrid and poisonous
rottenness. And yet the haunts of crime where they
were found were partly supported by the money of
profligate Americans.
The testimony of some Americans who go to China
as seamen and traders as to the general tone of female
character in the Chinese ports is sometimes bad enough.
And indeed many of these men possess the first qualification of competent witnesses, so far as their acquaintance extends.  But those who have had intercourse with
the better classes of society, and with the population removed from the debauching influence of the ports, testify
decidedly that woman occupies a more elevated position
in China than in any other heathen country. yWomen
are never allowed to take part in theatrical exhibitions.
The wives are generally chaste, the sanctity of domestic
life is rarely invaded, and the relation of even the secondary wife, when one is taken in order to increase the
number of children, is not abused to general licentiousness.  When women advance in life they are treated
with great respect and tenderness by their children and
grandchildren. The empire is now virtually ruled by
the widowed empress of Hien-fung during the minority
of her son Tung-chi. Some of the best fruit of missionary labor in China has been among the women. Several
missionary ladies have informed me that the estimate of
female character in China by some of our earlier missionaries was a mistaken one; that the more they had
become acquainted with the women removed from intercourse with foreigners the more they found that was




MORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE IMMIGRATION.   633
interesting and pleasant in them, and the more that
was hopeful in respect to the influence of the gospel
upon them, and upon their families and kindred.
Upon principles of Christian morality the Chinese
should be induced, by every possible means, to bring
their wives and families to this country. They must be
corrupted and their influence corrupting so long as they
do not bring them. The difficulties in the way are
great.  Their prejudices, the expenses of living here,
the wants of parents and of children in China, and
many other excuses, will be given. But inducements
should be offered by employers and ship-captains toward
bringing their families with them. Their moral improvement would be thus greatly accelerated.
I Gambling is a passion with the lower classes of the
Chinese. They are brought up to the habit of playing
games of chance and investing their juvenile pocketmoney upon the results. They bet upon dice, lots, tosses
of coin and of marked pieces of wood, the whirling of
pointers to mark letters and figures on a card, and many
other methods of appeal to the gods of fortune. When
they grow to adult years the majority of them superstitiously hope for prosperity through their favor. In
California, the favorite game is that of "squaring cash."
A handful of tsin, the common small copper coin, larger
than a silver dime, with a hole in the middle, is taken
from a quantity in a large bag,'laid down upon a table
and quickly covered with an inverted cup. Bets are
then made as to the number which will be left after all
the multiples of four have been taken away. With a
pointed stick the counter separates them by four at a
tim.e. Each one round the table is at liberty to bet




634    THE OLDEST AND TIHE NEWEST EMPIRE.
whether there will finally be a remainder of one, two,
three, or none. Over this simple game they hang entranced the night through, watching, after their bets
have been put on record, the slow act of division by the
pointer which is to decide the balance. The sad results
are the same among them as with our own people who
follow such practices-fevered excitement, heavy losses,
treachery and dishonesty to friends in business, remorse,
suicide. Many a poor fellow has destroyed himself with
opium  rather than endure the penalties of his folly.
There are among the Chinese, and especially among the
more wealthy and educated class, a large number who
hold such games to be exceedingly disreputable and immoral. They rebuke them in the severest language, and
give away small printed tracts which exhibit their bad
results. The penal code of the present dynasty declares
that persons convicted of gambling for money or goods
shall be punished with eighty blows of the bamboo, and
that the money or goods staked shall be forfeited to the
government. It condemns gambling-houses to similar
forfeiture. If an officer of government be found guilty
of the offence, he must be punished more severely than
other persons. I have seen, in China, the officers, though
sometimes they are bribed to keep their eyes shut, yet
often pounce down upon these establishments and clean
them out thoroughly. There is far more gambling in
California than among the same number of people in
China. Inviting signs to try their luck, and promising
wealth, meet the eyes of the strangers from the mines at
every turn. Many a man who has borne a reputable
character in his native town is there beguiled into evil,
beggared and ruined.




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MORAL ASPECT OF CHINESE IMMIIGRATION.   635
The national vice of opium-smoking is enfeebling and
destroying many of the Chinese in California. There is
none the influence of which is more to be regretted in
regard to its future influence upon Chinese industry in
this country. Its effects have been described elsewhere
in this volume (chap. xiii.). They need not be recited
again. I have had some sad experience in connection
with the abuse of opium. Some of the brightest young
merchants who entered my school fell victims to it.
A fine young man, who had been thoroughly educated at our boarding-school at Canton, became a slave
to it. It seems often to select the brightest and noblest.
Like a serpent, it winds around them its slow and fatal
coil and strangles them to death.
The heavy duty upon opium leads to innumerable devices to smuggle it; Thus another source of corruption
is opened. The whole effect of this abominable poison
upon all who touch it seems destructive of the first principles of morality.
But, while we dwell upon the public vices of the Chinese, let us not forget that they have been remarkable in
California for some excellences.
Though they have occasional fights between men of
different companies, who cherish the old animosities of
their native villages, yet they are the most industrious
and- peaceable race in California.  There are fewer
murderous brawls among them than among any other
people.
It is a matter of wonder to Americans that there is so
little drunkenness among the Chinese. It is their universal custom to take a small quantity of their ricewhisky, our American article, or of brandy, after dinner.




636    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EIMPIRE.
They sometimes become somewhat merry at the table,
and some even intoxicated. But while drunken men of
every other nation may be seen reeling, swearing, behaving indecently, in the streets of the cities and towns
of California, a drunken Chinese is never seen.
Their own poor are provided for out of the funds of
the companies and by subscriptions among those who
have the means. They manage to bear what is a heavy
burden. And many a sick man has been sent back to
China in the same way. I have heard of cases of sick
Americans and white foreigners in the mines to whose
relief the Chinese had contributed handsomely.
In their native land the Chinese are accustomed to
give money freely to religious and benevolent objects.
The structure of society there, the denseness of population, the number of the poor, and the distinct Buddhist
promises of reward to the benevolent and specifications
of punishment upon the cruel, the selfish and the avaricious, have a powerful effect in stimulating acts of
charity and liberality. An immeasurable amount of
poverty and suffering meets the eye of the foreigner in
China. But yet those who have the means dispense
money with much generosity. Our missionaries, particularly during the scenes of famine, sickness and general distress which have accompanied the recent wars
and rebellions, have often witnessed the most liberal
efforts made to feed the hungry with rice and other
food, to supply clothing to the destitute, and to provide
medicines for the sick and coffins for the dead. In some
cases charitable Chinese gentlemen, who were not Christians, seeing the benevolent labors of missionaries, have
voluntarily put considerable sums of money into their




MORAL ASPECT OF CHILVESE IMM1IGRATION.   637
hands, to be used in connection with them.  At Canton
there are large native hospitals for aged persons, for
lepers and for foundling children. Within a few doors
of my house was a warehouse where coffins were gratui-'tously furnished to the poor. We often saw bridges or
other conveniences erected by persons of fortune for the
accommodation of the public, and tea given gratuitously
on the street to the thirsty coolies and laboring men.
This summary view of the moral aspect of the Chinese
immigration to this country suffices to show of what
strange and diverse elements heathen morality is composed. It is like the conglomerate rock in which fragiments of what is solid and beautiful are imbedded in a
soft and worthless mass, from which they easily fall out;
the whole of which crumbles under the assaults of the
winds and rains and is unfit for the walls of a house.
It is hard to convey to a Christian mind the idea of how
so much knowledge of what is right can be mixed with
so much uncertainty and perplexity; so much of effort to
do right with such want of correct principles and motives
in it; so much of beneficence to the suffering with so
much of selfishness; such a sense of the evil and destructive nature of sin with such helplessness in resisting its
temptations; such flashes of light to show the narrow
path of life and the rewards and penalties of the future
world, with such indifference to follow their guidance
and willful turning to ways of their own choice. It is
our encouragement to know that in this mass there are
elements which, when pulverized and wet and moulded,
and subjected to the power of fire, will come out in forms
which will be valuable and enduring.




CHAPTER  XXII.
THE GLORY OF AMERICA.
F.OR America there is reserved a peculiar glory in the
history of mankind.
We seem  to see starting from the fountain-head of
history two great streams of civilization.  One tends
westward. Its course is marked by a succession of empires, each arresting its flow and spreading its waters out
into a wider area, yet existing but for a few centuries.
Such were Babylon, Egypt, Phoenicia, Persia, Greece,
Rome, the Arabs, Venice, Spain. There is a distinct
progress through a succession of forms of political life,
intellectual culture, advancement of the arts and religious experience.  At last it is barred by the shores of
the Atlantic. The leading purposes of the great Ruler
of nations were chiefly accomplished in it four hundred
years ago.
A second stream tends eastward. In two great reservoirs, in the South and in the East of the continent, it
collects its waters.  Each of these, China and India, develops within itself a characteristic and vigorous, but
entirely different, style of life, sentiment and religious
worship.  Whatever the empires of the West have
boasted of themselves, no one of them has equaled in
all respects either of these two.  To-day England styles
638




THE GLOR Y OF AMERICA.           639
India one of her colonies, but the mistress contains forty
millions of people, the colony a hundred and sixty.
China contains four hundred millions. And with the
exception of the advance which the West owes to the
power of Christianity, purifying and sweetening all the
relations of man to man, as well as of man to God, and
to that of the more true and penetrating scientific acquaintance with the works of God and its direct practical
fruits, it is questionable whether European society has
on the whole excelled that of China.
The world four centuries ago was ready for the final
expansion of the Divine purpose. The navigators Diaz
and De Gama open the way to India and China; precisely at the same time Christopher Columbus opens that
to America. Spain, enticed by its riches, presses forward
to occupy this immense new field which God has manifestly prepared in harmony with his designs. She performs her allotted part, and is set aside. France in turn
attempts, in vain, to occupy a large place here. England sends tardily, carrying in their hands an open
Bible and the articles of political and religious liberty,
a handful of humble believers in Christ. Now the English language and institutions control the whole continent. A homogeneous, free, mighty republican nation
stands prepared for whatsoever work the Almighty,
whom she spiritually serves, calls upon her to perform.
The past few years have witnessed a mighty acceleration of the great end. A series of events more strange
than any romance suddenly compels our nation to colonize the Pacific shore, enriches her with unprecedented
wealth in all the precious metals, exposes the vast agricultural capacity of the soil, spans with railroads and




640    TIE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST.EMPIRE.
telegraphs the breadth of the continent from ocean to
ocean, and connects the western shore with China by regular mail steamships. It seems like a hurried and startling
dream, but a dream in which the voice of God is heard.
Let us look at what the almighty Worker is doing
at the same time on the opposite Asiatic shore. The
series of recent events there is as full of meaning-the
termination of the East India Company's charter, the
Opium War, the translation and circulation of the Scriptures, the Tai-ping rebellion, the second war, the severe
pressure of European powers on every border and coast,
the opening of the whole empire to commerce and the
preaching of the gospel, the Burlingame embassy to the
West, and the steps toward the acceptance of Western
and Christian civilization.
It was in that year of marvels, 1848, when the thrones
of half the kings of Europe were successively shaken to
the foundation, and the pope of Rome fled from his seat
in the disguise of a footman, that the sovereign Ruler
of the nations unveiled his plan upon our Pacific coast.
Unnoticed at the moment by the multitudes who were
intently gazing upon the commotions of Europe, he commenced there a more wonderful work. The sudden uncovering of the gold of California was the means by
which the immigration of the Chinese was to be turned
to this New World. For centuries past the most philosophic minds have predicted the vast consequences which
should ensue when the two opposite currents of empire,
going the one eastward, the other westward, since the beginning of time, should at last meet and flow together.
Upon our Pacific coast this consummating event of the
history of the world has now commenced.




THE GLORY OF AMEiICAo             641
The immediate political effects must be very great both
to Europe and to Asia. Humboldt said a result of this
nature was "6important to all Europe."  "The problem
of the communication between the two seas... is of
the greatest interest for the balance of commerce and
the political preponderancy of nations." It must revolutionize the character of the governments of Asia. The
Isthmus of Panama, a mere "neck of land, the barrier
against the waves of the Atlantic ocean, has been for
many ages the bulwark of the independence of China
and Japan."  He says, in relation to the subject of the
free communication between the two oceans, "Then only
can any great change be effected in the political state of
Eastern Asia." 1 But it does not seem to be necessary,
because caste-ridden India could only be regenerated by
European conquest, that the same should be the case
with China and Japan. We may rather expect that the
interests of both America and Europe will be better subserved and the renovation of those empires be most
peacefully accomplished by the maintenance of their
independence and the application of such stimulus as
they need to their own capacities and resources.
It is the appointed office of America to be the ground
in which the best benefits of European institutions shall
be planted and be improved and indefinitely multiply,
but which the toil, the experience and some of the
peculiar products of Asia shall assist to enrich and to
beautify.
The religious results of this final commingling of the
opposite, courses of civilization we can only conceive or
describe by taking the language of inspiration. That
1 Phlitical Essays on the Kingdom of New Spain, book i., chap. ii.
41




642     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIiE.
plainly reveals the prospect of a period when there shall
be a great coming together of nations, spiritually all believe and literally most scholars also concede, which shall
cause the heavens to sing, the whole earth to be joyful
and the mountains to break forth into songs of gladness.'
And a large share of this rejoicing of the worlds above
and below shall be because "these shall come from far;
and lo, these from  the north and the west, and these
from the land of Sinim," or China, the last and largest
and stoutest nation among all that have resisted the
truth.
The office of the continent of America in the Divine
plan for re-ennobling humanity and planting again on
earth the reign of holiness and innocence, as that plan
has in recent ages become more plain to us, has powerfully affected many of the greatest minds both in the Old
and in the New World. Berkeley was one of whom Sir
James Mackintosh wrote: "His works are, beyond dispute, the finest models of philosophical style since Cicero.
Perhaps they surpass those of the orator in the wonderful art by which the fullest light is thrown on the most
subtile of human conceptions."  Nor was he liable to the
charge of being a mere visionary speculator and scholars
The same eminent critic says of a brief tract of his of a
political character, "Perhaps the Querist contains more
hints, then original, still unapplied in legislation and
political economy, than are to be found in any equal
space." 2 His whole character was so elevated that even
the cynical Pope ascribed "to Berkeley every virtue
I ISAIAH, clap. xlix.
2 Dissertation on the Progress of Ethical Philosophy, sec. vi., pp. 147-151. The
tract is contained in BEREKELEY'S Works, vol. ii., pp. 237-280.




THE GLORY OF AMERICA.                  643
under heaven."'  The conclusion to which the learning
and the piety of this extraordinary man brought him is
embodied in his famous "Verses on the Prospect of
Planting Arts and Learning in America" 2 of which the
following are the first and last stanzas:
"The Muse, disgusted at an age and clime
Barren of every glorious theme,
In distant lands now waits a better time,
Producing subjects worthy fame.'Westward the course of empire takes its way;
The four first acts already past,
A fifth shall close the drama with the day;
TIM'Es NOBLEST OFFSPRING IS THE LAST.'
In the full possession of these ideas, he dedicated his
life to giving them  practical effect so far as lay within
his power.  The noble critic before quoted says: "It
was when thus beloved and celebrated that he conceived,
at the age of forty-five, the design of devoting his life to
reclaim  and convert the natives of North America, and
he employed as much influence and solicitation as common men do for their most prized objects in obtaining
leave to resign his dignities and his revenues, to quit his
accomplished and affectionate friends and to bury himself in what must have seemed an intellectual desert.
After four years' residence at Newport, in IRhode Island,
he was compelled, by the refusal of Government to furnish hilm  funds for his college, to forego his work of
heroic, or rather godlike, benevolence."  Berkeley specially determined to found a college which would grow
to be a great institution and be a light to the colonies
from  Europe and to the aboriginal races.  As to the
former, he said:  "In Europe, the Protestant religion
1 Epiloyue to the Satires, Dial. ii.  2 Works, vol. ii., p. 294.




644     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EXiPIRE.
hath of late years considerably lost ground, and America
seems the likeliest place wherein to make up for what
has been lost in Europe, provided the proper methods
are taken."  And he expected great results from  the
spread of knowledge among the native tribes.  He said,
"Many, it is to be hoped, may become powerful instruments for converting to Christianity and civil life whole
nations, who now sit in darkness and the shadow of
death, and whose cruel, brutal manners are a disgrace to
human nature."  In truly grand and powerful language
he appeals to the people of England to give him  the
means which he needed to establish and endow such a
college.  "A benefaction of this kind seems. to enlarge
the very being of a man, extending it to distant places
and to future times; inasmuch as unseen countries and
after ages may feel the effects of his bounty, while he
himself reaps the reward in the blessed society of all
those who,'having turned many to righteousness, shine
as the stars for ever and ever.' 9 1
He pled the importance of the conversion of America,
with great effect.  On a certain occasion, in London, a
number of witty noblemen and scholars laid a plan to
turn his missionary zeal, into ridicule. The Christian
philosopher, having patiently listened to them, "begged
to be heard in his turn, and displayed his plan with such
an astonishing and animating force of eloquence and
enthusiasm  that they were struck dumb, and after some
pause rose up together, with earnestness exclaiming,'Let
us set out with him immediately.'  2
I Proposal for the Better Supplying of the Churches in the Foreign Plantations
and for Converting the Savage Americans; Works, vol. ii., pp. 288-293.
2 WARTON on Pope, quoted by MAcK:INTOSH.




HIE GLORY OF AME.RICA.              645
When Berkeley's plan of a college at Newport failed,
he took a very warm interest in the prosperity of the
institution already planted at New Haven, and on his
return to Great Britain, in 1732, left to Yale College a
tract of land, with his dwelling-house, to found three
scholarships, and his library, which President Clapp said
was "the finest that ever came together at one time to
America."1 
In the New World, high above any other intellect
which it has produced, stands that of Jonathan Edwards.
Well as his history is known in this country, I may here
recall to mind his interest in the missionary work of the
Church on this continent.  "However small the propagation of the gospel among the heathen here in America
has been hitherto, yet I think we may well look upon
the discovery of so great a part of the world as America,
and bringing the gospel into it, as one thing by which
divine Providence is preparing the way for the future
glorious times of the Church, when Satan's kingdom
shall be overthrown, not only throughout the Roman
empire, but throughout the whole habitable globe, on
every side and on all its continents." 2
And Edwards was no less sincere than Berkeley.
This man, of whom Mackintosh declares, "his power of
subtile argument was perhaps unmatched, certainly unsurpassed among men,"  spent six years in his prime,
commencing with the forty-eighlth year of his life, as a
missionary among the Housatonnuck Indians on the
mountainous frontiers of Massachusetts, and it was in
X E. BALDWIN, Annals of Yale College, pp. 45-48.
2 History of the Work of Redemption; Works, vol. i, p. 469.
3 Dissertation, etc., p. 129.




646    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EM3PIRE.
the intervals of the humblest missionary labor that he
wrote his masterpiece, the "Inquiry into the Freedom
of the Will."  From this employment he was called to
be president of Princeton College. Yet so great was
his humility that he earnestly and "with tears" resisted
the pressure of the trustees and his friends toward that
position.
Could the leaders of public sentiment in America be
led to climb to a point from which they could form some
conception of the grand, comprehensive views of an Edwards or a Berkeley, to share some of their boundless
sympathy with all human kind, as fellow-creatures of
one heavenly Father, as possessors of the same imperishable nature, and as fellow-seekers of a rest to come, far
away as some of them, bewildered and perishing, have
wandered from the knowledge of the truth; and also to
put on some of the angelic readiness of those men to forget self and to seek and save those lost members of our
race,-then how easy would it be to settle all the questions which have been started in respect to the coming
here, the employment and the relations to us of the
Chinese.
America ean be regarded, by those who look at its
geographical position and relations, at the history of its
populations, at its discovery and colonization by Europeans, and at the providential management of the concerns of our nation, only as divinely designed to be a
School of the Nations.
We would consider now specially why the Chinese
race have been brought here, and what lessons they are
to learn.
The first lessons which deeply impress the thoughts




THE GLORY OF AMERIICA.            647
of these strangers are those connected with the arts.
Men that have been passengers on the huge junk which
drifted helplessly before the wrath of the tempest and
was in continual danger in difficult places, find themselves upon a swift and magnificent vessel which does
not need a pair of big, staring eyes on the bows to find
her way, nor charms upon the rudder to enable it to act;
they learn to look for help and safety not to a dumb
wooden idol, but to a mighty power which surpasses all
they have ever imagined. It has limbs of iron, heart of
fire, lungs of steam, ravenous appetite and thirst, with
the strength of a thousand horses, and yet tractable to
the touch of a man's finger. What a teacher is the
steam-engine, in all its thousand applications in this
country, to the strangers whose nation never till recently
possessed one!
They commence work upon one of our railroads. In
what a domain of wonders do they live! The thundering locomotive and cars, instead of the train of weary
coolies-the sweep of the road, setting at defiance all the
superstitions as to winds and waters and hills-the punctual and daily requisitions, without respect to stars, or
gods, or luck. And instead of the miserable, jagged,
broken copper coin, the only one of China, the mint
lays in their willing hand the golden eagle, which is
worth twelve thousand of the other, and represents, in
recompense for a few days' work, as much as they would
have saved in a whole season among their kindred.
They had lived in abject terror of the gods of lightning, with bodies like leopards or like birds of prey;
now they learn that this mysterious power is seized and
compelled to carry our verbal messages of business or of




648   ZTHE OLDEST AND THlE NEWEST EMPIRE.
affection thousands of miles, in an instant of time, over
mountains, rivers, continents and oceans.
Their best weapon of war has been the ancient matchlock gun, with its slow fuse of nitrous rope and uncertain
results; the repeating pistol and rifle, the bomb, the
iron-clad monitor, tell them the necessity of new means
of protection and warfare for their nation.
The magic finger of the sewing-machine, armed with
its powerful needle, waiting without weariness or repining to perform, regularly and beautifully, the work of
twenty of themselves, speaks to the minds of the women.
There is an impressive message to distant friends in
every photograph, in which the subtle and fleeting shadow itself is caught and fastened upon the paper, and
the definite and expressive features of the countenance
of the absent one are represented as no human pencil or
graver could do it.
Thus in our numerous arts there are lessons taught to
wondering, attentive, reflecting pupils which will be repeated in tens of thousands of little centres of influence
upon another continent.
When the Chinese have become sufficiently acquainted
with our language, they desire to go to our schools, to
read our books and to learn something of our sciences.
What a new world expands before their mental eye!
They realize now why it was they had seen first on the
ocean the tops of the masts of an approaching ship-the
world is round, and China cannot therefore be the central country of it. They discover that each planet is
also a distant world, and cannot therefore be a palace of
a god suspended above the clouds. They ascertain the
laws of nature which they had imagined to be the opera



THE GLORBY OF AMERICA.           649
tions of dark and terrible influences connected with
spiritual powers which must be propitiated at every step.
From what bondage are they liberated! How different
the spirit which this blest tuition breathes into their
whole nature! The men who are thus disenthralled
form a new race. They are a different order of beings
from their fathers. The fruits of modern discoveries are
borne in a thousand beneficent applications to the requisitions of human life. lMfen's homes become more comfortable, their cares less exhausting, their relationships
more happy, their pleasures more refined and more connected with the mind. Those who have tasted these
fruits can nevermore sit down content under the shade
of the antiquated customs of their native villages. They
must teach in turn what they have been taught, and
kindle lamps which shall be multiplied and shine no
man can tell how manifold or where.
The Chinese learn in this country lessons of incalculable importance in politics. They behold the amazing
spectacle of an emperor chosen each fourth year and the
uttered will of every adult subject counted, in order to
decide who shall sit as the "Son of heaven," the chief
executive of the laws affecting the life, pursuits and
peace of men. They witness the expansion of their own
village and limited republicanism into a colossal and
vigorous national form. They learn principles as to
equality, freedom and the rights of man; as to the
fundamental importance of a general and elevated system of popular education; as to the rock of moral and
revealed truth upon which sound civil law must be
founded; as to the relation of a free and universally
circulated newspaper literature for the information of




650    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMfP RE.
the common people upon all the questions which affect
their interests, and many others which will most surely
be borne in their minds, work themselves out in applications to society after their return to China, and be the
beginning of a leaven which will in God's time affect
the whole lump of the social order of China and the
nations which imitate its institutions.
But the great end for which the Former of the world
planned and built this continent, introduced its successive tenants to the occupancy of their apartments, or
for their appointed terms, was that they might be instructed in the highest of all knowledge, that of his
attributes, claims and promises of grace. This divine
knowledge is imparted to the Chinese by various methods.
They are detached from the myriad superstitions of their
native homes and streets and streams and hills. They
behold here places of worship in which there are no
images, no symbols, no idolatrous pomp and noise. They
are informed of an eternal, almighty, omnipresent Creator and Judge. The expiatory sufferings of Christ, the
simplicity of his teaching and his mercy to the afflicted
impress their minds when they read of them  in the
Scriptures or hear them narrated. They feel the powerful influence of the Sabbath and its arrest of all the
ordinary current of business and amusement; some of
them are gathered into its delightful, precious schools.
They are distributed into families where they associate
with Christian parents and with children who win their
affection and talk to them of Jesus and heaven. The
first effect of residence in this country is to loosen the
religious sentiments of the past.  In this process some
float away to irreligion and immorality and are lost.




THE GLORY OF AMERICA.             651
The next effect is that of the collection of others around
the rock of truth and their salvation.
The initiatory stages of this moral training are slow.
The conversions of individuals are but the drop here and
there of the shower of the early dawn. But they will
be followed, in due time, amidst the great revivals of
which this New World appears to be the appointed field,
by simultaneous multitudes-the floods of "the rain in
the time of the latter rain" for which the prophet tells
us we may "ask."
How animating is the spectacle of all the various
agencies by which the great Teacher carries on the education of a race which he has inducted into this School
of the Nations! How potent the influence of its members when again he restores them to their native continent and sets them to scattering to vast provinces,
remote colonies, dependent nations, and even to distant
portions of the continent and to barbarous islands, the
precious seed of knowledge with which here their bosom
has been filled! 
From the elevation which embraces in the sweep of
its view all these grand outlines, movements and tendencies of human history, let us look at the political questions which have been started with regard to the Chinese
who come to America. Shall they be allowed to immigrate to this country? Shall they be encouraged to bring
their families? Shall they be permitted to engage in
mechanical occupations? Shall they be admitted to testify in our courts against white persons? Shall they be
granted the right to vote in our elections?  Shall their
children have a place in our public schools?
There is a generic principle running through the




652    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRIE.
whole of these questions.  It is that of the maintenance
of the political inequality of races in the New World.
The fruits of this principle are these efforts to expel, to
restrain, to trample upon and to degrade the Chinese
who have chosen to immigrate to America. There are
objections to their immigration, and so there are objections, which have sometimes risen to become party issues,
to the immigration of some classes of Europeans.  But
it has been wisely ordered that the great principles
which shall govern the treatment of all who choose to
make this continent their temporary or permanent home
have become firmly established, so that no efforts of men
can now move them. As they relate to the questions
under consideration, they may be grouped under the
following heads:
First. The grand designs of Providence in the establishment of this nation, some of which have been sketched
in this chapter.
Second. The announcement of the principles upon
which our government was founded. The Declaration
of our Independence stated: " We hold these truths to
be self-evident-that all men are created equal; that
they were endowed by the Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the
pursuit of happiness; that, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just
powers from the consent of the governed." These conmprehensive words seem  almost an inspiration of the
omniscient God, penned, as they were, in the interest of
those resisting oppression, to anticipate the case of
nations which possess the same self-evident and inalienable rights, but whose residence on this soil was then




THE GLORY OF A2MERICA.            653
not contemplated and who might become the subjects of
oppression at our own hands.
Third. The principles of the Constitution of the
United States, which was ordained and established "to
establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, promote
the general welfare and secure the blessings of liberty
to ourselves and our posterity;" and whose latest amendments have secured these rights and blessings to men
without distinction of race or color.
Fourth. The late explicit national covenant' that
"Chinese subjects visiting or residing in the United
States shall enjoy the same privileges, immunities and
exemptions in respect to travel or residence as may there
be enjoyed by the citizens or subjects of the most favored
nation"-which follows a provision in the same terms
applicable to citizens of the United States in China.
Fifth. The spirit of the men who make this opposition.
The most of them are ignorant foreigners, at first actuated by ignorance, prejudice and selfishness, but now
excited and led by their priests, and by demagogues, in
a spirit of opposition to humane efforts for the good of
the Chinese and with the purpose of thus obtaining
greater control over them for other ends.
Sixth. The ordinances of the law of God, "Ye shall
have one manner of law, as well for the stranger as for
one of your country."2  This principle was applied to
the civil law, and, in case of the adoption of the Hebrew
faith, to the ecclesiastical law.
Seventh. The eternal principles of right which the
Governor of the world has written in the chambers of
the human heart and made deeper and more authorita1 Treaty of 1868, Art. vi.  2 Lev. xxiv. 22; Num. ix. 14.




654    THE OLDEST AND THE NEVtEST EMPiIEo
tive than any statutes of human appointment. Alexander Hamilton presents their nature with the clearness
of the light of the sun:
"The Deity has constituted an eternal and immutable
law, which is obligatory upon all mankind, prior to any
human institution whatever. He endowed man with
rational faculties, by the help of which to discern and
pursue such things as were consistent with his duty and
interest, and invested him with an inviolable right to
personal liberty and personal safety. Natural liberty is
a gift of the beneficent Creator to the whole human race;
civil liberty is only natural liberty modified and secured
by the sanctions of civil society. The sacred rights of
mankind are not to be rummaged for among old parchments or musty records. They are written, as with a
sunbeam, in the whole volume of human nature, by the
hand of Divinity itself, and can never be erased or obscured by mortal power."'
Eighth. The stern assurance that there is a supreme
government of the Ruler of nations which looks simply
at the great principles of right and wrong in the conduct
of nations, takes no account of their prejudices and excuses, and in due time asserts and displays to the universe the divine justice and power by the terrible punishment of oppressors and wrongdoers, and the compensation
of those who have suffered from them. The history of
African slavery and the judgments it brought upon us is
surely a lesson which this nation should never forget.
If we choose to inaugurate a similar course of wrong in
the case of the Asiatic pupils whom God has sent here
to be taught from the book of knowledge which he has
1 Works, vol. ii., pp. 43, 61, 80.




TIHE GLORY OF AMiERICA           655
put for the purpose in our hands, then we and our children must make up our minds to receive a similar or
even a more tremendous retribution than that which
has filled the land with blood, with ashes and with tears.
The general abstract right then of the people of the
continent of Asia to participate in the benefits which
divine Providence has previously conferred in the New
WVorld upon those of European and African stock is as
plain as the sun in the heavens. The Chinese cannot be
refused the rights which every other race save the barbarous Indian shares, and which have been granted to
him when civilized. On the other hand, it cannot be
denied that the Chinese, like the European and the
African, needs a preparatory discipline. He is not qualifled for immediate advancement to the higher forms of
the school.
The question of the preparatory qualifications necessary for citizenship in the case of the Chinese is one of
the most serious that has come before the people of the
United States. The continent will in the course of time
be occupied by millions of them. They are naturally
one of the shrewdest races of the world. Scarcely any
other race can compare with them in capacity for organization and in adroitness in political management. This
is manifest in their astonishing control over all the nations contiguous to them, with comparatively little resort
to force, and by their dexterity in undoing by strategy
what the European powers forced them to concede at the
mouth of the cannon. Men like Mr. Meadows, who are
thoroughly acquainted with them, confess, as he does,
that the Chinese possess that "power of combination for
common purposes which distinguishes the Anglo-Saxons




656     THE OLDEST ANID TEEi NEWEST EMPIRE.
among oWestern nations." 1 Such a people, holding the
balance of power by a compact minority, may sway the
politics of a State, may decide a presidential election or
the supremacy of a political party in some crisis of the
nation. No question relating to the African race is a
hundredth part so important as that which fixes the
political power of the coming Chinese.
There are three chief elements of danger-their paganism, their ignorance of our language and laws and
simplest education, and their temporary residence.
Paganism and its mass of superstitions is in its essence
a denial of the elementary principles of that great and
eternal system of truth on which the political systems of
all the countries of the West hitherto represented in this
republic are reared.  It is in its nature subversive of
morality, even though the Chinese have maintained a
comparative purity of morals and social freedom, because
their great common sense led them to resist the introduction from  abroad of many of its worst features.
Christian America cannot unsettle the foundations of
her wondrous history, her present power, her future
hopes. "Christianity and civilization," said a most able
statesman, "have labored together; it seems, indeed, to
be a law of our human condition that they can live and
flourish only together." 2 There must be the utmost care
taken, in the case of this unprecedented and unanticipated infusion of materials into the processes of a chemistry which has hitherto produced the most beneficent
results, that they shall not precipitate all of good, and
end in combustion, explosion and ruin. The judiciary
1 The Chinese and their Rebellions, pp. 27, 114.
2 DANIEL WEBSTER, Speech on Greek Revolution, Works, vol. iii., pp. 74, 75.




I)1
~'    ~' ~' ~~~~     ~     ~~~~~''                                                               (I((,~iI1,
S'u IIo'ko  C.
ii








THE GLORY OF AMERICA.              657
of this country will abide by our treaties with China and
will enforce the provisions of the recent amendments to
the Constitution of the United States which guarantee to
all men " equal protection of law," and that no State shall
C" deprive any person of life, liberty or property without
due process of law," whatever may be his "race or
color."  But in the interpretation and execution of all
treaties and laws affecting persons, property, forms of
oaths and education, the principle of the civil toleration
of moral evil should be most carefully discriminated
from the sanction of it, and the endurance of it from the
maintenance of it.
An intelligent acquaintance with our institutions and
principles should be made imperative where application
is made for the privilege of naturalization, and the converse duty is obligatory upon us of affording all possible
aid in the way of schools and other educational advantages. And the warning cannot be given in language
too, strong, that if these claims of reason, humanity and
patriotism be despised, the hereditary jealousies of their
native districts and clans, the unavoidable control of the
masses of them by those most acquainted with our laws
and customs, the tricks of our politicians, their untaught
passions and their uncorrected fears, will inflict upon us
severe and not unmerited retribution.
Few of the American people and far fewer of the Chinese went to the Pacific coast with a purpose to remain
there. They, like ourselves, have migrated voluntarily,
in the hope of speedy fortune, leaving families, mortgaging, it may be, property to obtain money loaned at excessive rates of interest, and expecting to return within a
i So Judge SAWYER decided at San Francisco, in lOctober,,1869.
42




658    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
few years. Not one in every ten thousand of them
thinks near so much of us as we think of ourselves.
They have no idea that the American eagle is so grand
in his aeronautic displays as the Chinese dragon. Their
hearts are tenderly fixed upon provision for aged parents;
a peaceful decline for themselves, in some village shaded
by the orange, the bamboo and the mulberry; and to be
laid at last to rest by the graves of their fathers. Their
residence is essentially transient. If left to themselves,
few will seek naturalization. And since our laws relating
to it contemplate strictness as to the abjuration of foreign
allegiance, evidence of fixed purpose to make this new
world their home, and the security of the asseveration
of one or two citizens to that effect, peculiar care is
justifiable that, with reference to them, the evidence of
sincerity be sufficient. Let us be faithful to the great
principles of Christian truth, let us act wisely and yet
generously, in all our transactions with the people of
China. Upon it our prosperity and peace depend more
than is now conceived.
The tenor of this volume must have made it plain that
the beneficent work of guiding the Chinese people in the
United States to the knowledge of Christian truth may
be directed and led by the missionaries who are set
apart by boards and societies, but the great ingathering
of the Chinese into the Church must be the result of the
efforts of Christians brought in contact with them in the
family, the farm, the shop, the factory, the mine, the
highway. It must be done by the kindness of men and
women and children, by teaching them our language and
knowledge useful to them, by tender and prayerful Sabbath-school instruction, by the distribution of Christian




THE GLORY OF A1MERICA.           659
tracts and copies of the gospels with patient efforts to
acquaint them with their meaning, by interesting them
in the house and people of God, by exhibiting to them
the virtues of Christianity, and showing them that Christians are just, truthful, honest, charitable and merciful.
A tree which brings forth fruit so sweet and good they
will desire to possess, to cultivate and to propagate.
The first religious body to send the gospel to the Chinese in California was the Presbyterian Board of Foreign
Missions. The writer of this volume went in 1852 to
San Francisco to meet the thousands of those people then
pouring monthly into the country, some of whom he had
known in the course of his previous residence in China.
His labors were begun among their sick, of whom there
were great numbers on account of their crowded condition during their long passage over upon the old and
rotten ships which were engaged in transporting them,
and the bad and insufficient food given to them on shipboard. These labors were continued, while he remained
there, in a dispensary, with the assistance of some medical friends. Regular preaching in their own language
was commenced during the winter, which was well
attended.  A  church was organized November 6th,
1853, composed of several men who had been members
in China. This was the first Chinese church in the New
World. The first elder, Mr. Lai Sam, was the brotherin-law of the well-known Leung A-fah, so often mentioned in the Life of Dr. Robert Morrison, who was the
first native Protestant preacher of Christ in connection
with modern missions to China. The next step was the
opening of a night-school, with which was often connected lectures on astronomy, geography, chemistry and




660    THE OLDEST ASD THE NiEWEST EMXPIRE.
other sciences, illustrated by proper apparatus or a magic
lantern. The American population was addressed at
suitable opportunities in sermons and courses of lectures
in San Francisco and the principal towns of the State,
the object of which was to explain the character, customs
and wants of the Chinese, to remove misapprehensions;
and to enlist Christians of every name and benevolent
persons in efforts to instruct and befriend them. An
excellent brick building was erected for the use of the
mission, furnished with chapel, dispensary, school-room
and a dwelling for the family, from contributions chiefly
obtained in San Francisco.  To reach both Chinese
and Americans throughout the State and outside of
it, a newspaper named The Oriental was commenced,
and published, at first weekly, afterward monthly. Mro
Lee Kan, who had received a good English education in
China, was the assistant editor. It was lithographed in
Chinese on the one side and printed in English on the
other. The information disseminated in this sheet was
of material benefit to the Chinese. Twenty thousand
copies of it were distributed the first year. The Chinese
during the second year paid for the lithographing of
their side by contributions from the companies. The
influence of this paper, of pamphlets addressed to the
legislature and largely circulated over the State, and of
other agencies —to which many of the most influential
gentlemen of the State, connected with various departments of enterprise which were benefitted by the presence of the Chinese, and many intelligent and Christian
people, lent their. aid-were the leading means by which
the combination of powerful enemies, who had succeeded
in having a law passed in 1854 designed to expel the




THE GLORY OF AMERICA.            661
Chinese from the mines and from the State, or to degrade them to a condition of peonage or slavery, was
defeated, and a repeal of the law triumphantly carried
during the next session of the legislature. Five years of
this excessive labor brought the missionary to the borders
of the grave, and he was compelled to quit the field.
In 1859 the Rev. A. W. Loomis, formerly of Ningpo,
China, resumed the work of preaching and teaching ill
the Mission House. His faithful and incessant efforts
for the good of the Chinese have been followed with success. Converts from time to time have been added to
the Church, some of whom have been men of most sincere and active religious character and very useful in
Christian labors among their own countrymen. From
this centre an influence has been exerted over thousands
coming and going through the port of San Francisco by
tracts and other means. Frequent contributions from the
pen of Mr. Loomis in American periodicals have served
to enlist a general interest in the missionary work.
The Rev. J. L. Shuck, of the Baptist church, during
several years, commencing with 1854, performed a considerable amount of missionary labor among the Chinese
at Sacramento, in connection with his pastorate over an
American congregation. The Rev. E. W. Syle, of the
Episcopal church, spent usefully in the same cause parts
of the years 1855 and 1856, in San Francisco. Each of
these gentlemen had previously resided in China, as had
also the Rev. 0. Gibson, of the Methodist Episcopal
church, who began to labor in San Francisco in 1868,
and promises to be the means of engaging that numerous
body of Christians in effective Sabbath-school and other
instruction of the Chinese.




662    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
Within two years past numerous American churches
in California have been roused, by the enlarged communication with China and immigration of the Chinese,
and the public attention to them, to establish efficient
Sabbath and other schools for their benefit. This we
may hope will prepare the way for that general popular
interest in them as individuals which must be the chief
hope of good for them.
These are the small beginnings of the effort of American Christianity to perform the duty assigned to it by
Providence in this great School of the Nations. The
beginnings of this movement of the Chinese race are in
themselves but small. But wherever the members of it
in coming days shall be scattered, among the Christian
homes or fields or factories of all our country, let us hope
that the Divine design in bringing these strangers from
far will be kept in diligent remembrance. Our land has
been chastened by affliction to prepare it for a great
work for the good of mankind. Let us not, like the vain
king of old, display our precious things, our silver and
gold and spices and armor, and forget the " wonder that
was done in the land," to inquire of which was the chief
end for which the ambassadors of a neighboring powerful empire had been moved to come to him. God, who
in judgment made the disappointed pilgrims to be the
scourge of Israel, will visit kindred folly and sin in us
with some kindred penalty. The most noble and imperishable memorial of even a Berkeley or an Edwards
is the love which leads to the consecration of intellect,
learning and influence to a species of work which is
most of all on earth like what was assumed by the incarnate Son of GodA




CHAPTER  XXIII.
THE FUTURE OF THE CHINESE RACE.
T HREE empires fill the vision of the future-the
United States, Russia and China. Great Britain
alone compares with them in the extent of her colonial
possessions; but hers are remote and widely scattered,
and will when ripe as to the Divine purposes fall away
from her, as the United States has done, and become
centres of independent influences. Each of the three
nations named has vast contiguous colonies; each is
wholly in the northern hemisphere; and each is animated throughout by the same general spirit, and possesses a certain unity in aims, laws, language, social
habits and religious sentiments; and there are some
peculiar features of resemblance and mutual interest existing between them all.
The rapid and mighty growth of the first two of those
nations, and the prospect of the development of the longtreasured resources of the third, have deeply moved the
prophetic minds of the latter days. They were pondered by that extraordinary man, born in a little island
of the Mediterranean sea, who held at one time the continent of Europe at his feet, with whom we can compare
no other as to the energy and capaciousness of his mind
and as to his acquaintance with the secrets of European
power. He anticipated confidently the time when the
663




664    THE OLDEST AND THE NETTWVEST EJIPIRE.
Russian emperor " would make an irruption into Europe
at the head of some hundred thousand of those barbarians on horseback and two hundred thousand infantry,
and carry everything before him;" when Russia would
"become mistress of Constantinople, get all the commerce
of the Mediterranean and become a great naval power;"
when she would take India from the British, and when,
through the influence of America and Russia, all Europe
would become " either republican or Cossack."
Napoleon looked forward also to the future power of
China. He foretold the influence of the wars which
England has continued to make upon that empire as an
education of it in the art of war which was "madness"
in a European government. He said to his Irish surgeon: "It would be the worst thing you have done for
a number of years to go to war with an immense empire
like China and possessing so many resources.  You
would doubtless at first succeed, take what vessels they
have and destroy their trade, but you would teach them
their own strength. They would be compelled to adopt
measures to defend themselves against you. They would
consider, and say,' We must try to make ourselves equal
to this nation. Why should we suffer a people so far
away to do as they please to us? We must build ships,
we must put guns into them, we must render ourselves
equal to them.' They would (continued the emperor)
get artificers and ship-builders from France and America,
and even from London; they would build a fleet, and,
in the course of time, defeat you." 1
An American statesman, distinguished above others
-for comprehensiveness of intellect, said with regard to
B. E. O'MEARA; Voice from St. Helena, ii. 55-70, 179; i. 472, etc.




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THE FUTURE OF THE CHINESE RACE.        665
the great movement which is now bringing China and
America into close relations: "Even the discovery of
this continent and its islands, and the organization of
society and government upon them, grand and important
as these events have been, were but conditional, preliminary and ancillary to the more sublime result now in
the act of consuimmation-the reunion of the two civilizations, which, parting on the plains of Asia four thousand years ago, and traveling ever afterward in opposite
directions around the world, now meet again on the
coasts and islands of the Pacific ocean. Certainly no
mere human event of equal dignity and importance has
ever occurred upon the earth. It will be followed by
the equalization of the condition of society and the restoration of the unity of the human family.
"Who does not see that henceforth every year European commerce, European politics, European thoughts
and European activity, although actually gaining greater
force, and European connections, although actually becoming more intimate, will nevertheless ultimately sink
in importance; while the Pacific ocean, its shores, its
islands, and the vast regions beyond, will become the
chief theatre of events in the world's great hereafter?
Who does not see that this movement must effect our own
complete emancipation from what remains of European
influence and prejudice, and in turn develop the American opinion and influence which shall remould constitutional laws and customs in the land that is first
greeted by the rising sun? Although I am no Socialist,
no dreamer of a suddenly-coming millennium, I nevertheless cannot reject the hope that peace is now to
have her sway, and that as war has hitherto defaced and




666    THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
saddened the Atlantic world, the better passions of mankind will soon have their development in the new theatre
of human activity." 1
The past twenty years have developed most rapidly
the plans of the Almighty with regard to the great
nations which skirt the Pacific. WVe can now look forward more clearly than Napoleon, or than Mr. Seward
could when he spoke the words quoted, to their probable
future. The Asiatic Russia will excel in time the European division of that empire; and so the course of empire in this continent will westward take its way, until
the Pacific shore shall bound its advance and the civilization of its States exceed that of the rest of the continent, like that of the western shores of Europe exceeds
that which remains upon the Black sea and the Adriatic.
The exuberant forests of the Amazon, the Orinoco and
the Paraguay shall be subdued, and that magnificent
southern continent imitate the arts and the institutions
of the northern. The islands of the Pacific, which are
now rapidly expanding their agricultural and commercial
wealth, will be covered with plantations of sugar, coffee,
cotton, tea and rice, and their ports be the places of rest
and refreshment for fleets whose sails shall whiten the surface of that great and mild ocean, like clouds floating in a
blue sky, or like doves flying through it to their windows.
The manifest beginnings of this change are seen in
some of these fields. Thus in the Sandwich Islands,
where two generations ago Captain James Cook found
four hundred thousand naked cannibals and scarcely a
single useful production, there are now but one-eigh th that
1 WILLIAM H. SEWARD, Speech in the Senate of the United States on Corn.
merce in the Pacific ocean, July 29, 1852, pp. 12, 13.




THE FUTURE OF THE CHINESE RACE.         667
number of natives, and they are rapidly passing away.
But they have obtained all that is most valuable in our
manufactures, education and Christianity. The stores
in Honolulu and Lahaina are as well filled and handsome as those of an American town. These islands export now yearly a surplus of twenty million pounds of
sugar, one and a third million of rice, one-third of a million of coffee, one-quarter of a million of wool, a third
of a million gallons of molasses and considerable quantities of fine sea-island cotton, hides, goat-skins, salt beef,
tallow, pulu (a fine, yellow, cotton-like substance, which
grows upon the stalks of a species of fern, that is suitable
for mattrasses), whale and sperm oil, whalebone, oranges,
bananas and other fruits, various vegetables and salt.
They raise, in addition, wheat and other grains,' figs and
other delicious fruits and numerous domestic animals.
But the chief dependence of these products and exports
is based upon Chinese labor. This was first introduced
about 1854. For some years the planters and laborers
did not understand each other. But within a few years
past difficulties and misapprehensions have been overcome. Chinese labor is now highly prized. And some of
the Chinese have cordially embraced Christianity; one
of them, named A-heung, has been licensed to preach in
Hawaian and Chinese, and is esteemed an eloquent and
useful minister. The office of the Hawaian race is accomplished; the American and Chinese will henceforth
occupy its place. In the Sandwich Islands is illustrated
a course of things which will be repeated successively in
time all over the numerous island groups and upon the
shores and in the interior of America and elsewhere in
the world.




668    THTtE OLDEST AzND TITE NVEWEST EMPIRE.
This contact with American  and  other foreign  influences is designed  by Providence to benefit America  by
the supply of labor which is the prime want of the continent; and He will regulate its coming and its relations
here for the good of a nation whom lhe has so peculiarly
kept and favored hitherto. But his appointment of the
design of this School of the Nations will be ever kept in
view. China will be educated by the return of her
emigrants, but she will need our direct assistance in a
thousand ways. She needs able, liberal, sincere diplomatists, like  him  whose energetic  efforts have  recently
for the  first time  given  to  her a respectable  position
among  the  great powers of the  West;1  translators  to
transfer the treasures of our sciences, law and religion
into  that widely-used  language;  teachers of Western
literature; Christian  and philanthropic  merchants; intelligent and moral artisans and engineers to make the
nation  acquainted with  the  improvements of later centuries; botanists and geologists to explore her flora and
mineral deposits;2 and, above all, fervent, well-educated,
self-sacrificing and energetic missionaries of the gospel.
I The recent loss of Mr. Burlingame at this juncture in the history of China is
one which the whole world feels. The sealing of the work, which he was in the
act of perfecting, by his death has had some parallels within our remembrance
as a nation which should make that work more memorable and honored.
2 The two works of Mr. R. PUMAPELLY, entitled  Geological Researches in
China, Mongolia and Japan and Across America and Asia, are valuable contributions to the knowledge of the countries named. The spirit of them is most
liberal and honorable. Mr. P. says, in respect to his more extended knowledge
of the Chinese nation, "I learned to free myself from tile prejudices which
every traveler is apt to contract upon the coast, and during my subsequent
travels to look upon the people, with whom I was thrown much in contact, from
an entirely different standpoint."  He fully sympathized with the just and
" broad-minded policy" of Mr. Burlingame and Sir Frederick Bruce, and dated
from its establishment "a new era in the history of Eastern diplomacy."Across America and Asia, p. 269.




THE lFZUTUI RE OF THE CIITNESE RACE.                   6   9
As Napoleon prophesied, the events of the last thirty
years have thoroughly waked the Chinese government
to the necessity of fitting itself to cope with the powers
of the West. It has introduced our military discipline
among  the  Manchu  soldiers  and  has  established  four
great arsenals, one of which, at Shanghai,' employs a
thousand men, is manufacturing arms and has built
several vessels of war after foreign models. The first
of these  was a side-wheel steamer, launched  in  1868,
one hundred and eighty-five feet in length, carrying six
twenty-four-pounder  brass  naval howitzers  and  three
other guns, with every foreign appliance in the best style.
Some larger vessels  have  been  built since  then.:Mr.
Falls, an American, is the superintendent of this arsenal.
The government has sanctioned the opening of coalmines for the supply of fuel to steamers. It has granted
the  right of inland  navigation  on  the  Yang-tsz-kiang
river to an American  and Chinese company, which last
year owned six fine steamers running each alternate day
to Hankow, and  six others sailing regularly to Ningpo,
1 The good fruits of our Mission-school at San Francisco have been often
brought to the observation of the writer. One of the leading Chinese officials,
named Lam Tai-sam, connected with this arsenal, was a young man for whom
I obtained a situation in the machine-shops of the Pacific Mail Steamer Cornm
pany. He built in California a small model steamer, which worked admirably,
an engine for other purposes and a small locomotive, from patterns shown him.
This he attached to a little car' and ran it round a little track, at Sacramento
and elsewhere, as an exhibition. This Chinese locomotive and railroad were, I
believe, the first on the Pacific coast! This enterprising man will make his
mark in the future of China.
It may not be out of place to mention that Mr. Fung Tang, the able representative of the Chinese in California before the Congressional Committee of Ways
and Means and on several other important occasions, took occasion, at the grand
banquet in honor of the inauguration of the Pacific Mail line across the Pacific,
in January, 1867, to express in a handsome manner his indebtedness some ten
years previously to the same school.




670     THE OLDEST AND THE NEWEST EMPIRE.
Chefoo and Tientsin.' It has opened its coast trade —
which has been immensely increased on account of the
injuries done to the Grand Canal during the Tai-ping
Rebellion-to foreign ships. It has given license to telegraphic communication between its seaports.  It will by
degrees introduce railroads, though these will be much
interfered with by the superstitions in regard to the
fung-shwui, or powers of nature, fear of disturbing the
tombs of the dead, and apprehensions of opium-smuggling and foreign violence and crime. It has established
the university at Peking and schools at Shanghai and
Fuh-chau for the instruction of its ablest young men in
Western science.  It has encouraged the introduction
of the divisible and fine metal type and of printing by
machinery from our missions. And several of its leading statesmen have publicly declared that they are not
afraid of Christianity; inasmuch as Buddhism and other
idolatrous sects of China are foreign, and they see no reason why the doctrines of Christ may not have their day.
The good and the bad influence of our civilization has
already been powerfully felt in every portion of the
empire.  Missionaries and travelers say that whatever
provinces they visit they find opium, foreign goods,
Christian books and a surprising general acquaintance
with the leading ideas of Christianity; the latter the
result of the vast distribution of Christian Scriptures and
tracts from the missionary stations on the coast and by
the Tai-ping rebels, and of the curiosity as to the doctrines of them  created by the strange events of recent
years.  The changes of the generation past in China are
I There are about fifty other steamers, American, British and French, and
four tug-boats running to and from ports in the north and several at the south.




THE FUTURE OF THE CHINESE RACE.        671
amazing; how much more so will be those of the next
one, and of each successive one, as the tide of a new social
and moral life shall rapidly rise and roll over the land I
The eye of implicit confidence in the fulfilment of the
promises of God stretches forward to the time when
China shall be all and completely Christian. The giant
pagodas, built to concentre the favorable influences of
deified Nature upon the surrounding gardens and villages, no longer crown the lofty hills. The innumerable
altars, beneath every green tree and at every crossing or
division of the ways, and at every gate and corner and
open place among the habitations of man, no longer
reveal the delusion of souls by the prince of evil. The
flags, fluttering with symbols and inscriptions, the carved
pillars, the glaring inscriptions about the front doors
and entrances of the streets, the processions of bald and
long-robed priests, the white smoke of incense from
every house, the massive temples crowded with gilt and
painted idols, the monasteries and nunneries embowered
in groves even in the heart of populous cities, the theatres, the dens of crime, the smuggling and piratical
boats, the cruel filthy prisons, are for ever cleansed away.
The din of gongs, the scream of wind instruments, the
roar of gunpowder in crackers, guns and cannon, the
clamor of the intoxicated crowds of worshipers, all the
discordant and painful noises of idolatry and superstition
and folly and vice, are silent. The Holy Spirit has
breathed over the scene of moral corruption, and of the
debasement by the powers of hell of what is most holy
and wise and heavenly among men. Life has taken
the place of death; light prevails instead of darkness.
Lift up your eyes! See the white spires of Christian




672    THE OLDEST AND TIlE NE WEST EMPIRE.
churches and schools rise from those cities and towns.
See the Sabbath spell stop the furnaces of factories and
mills, which during the week enrich the inhabitants with
all the products of Christian civilization, but now release
their weary toilers to enjoy a holy rest and to throng
with their swarthy faces the ways that lead to the houses
of God. Yonder lie steamers waiting at the wharves for
liberty on the morrow, panting to bear their vast and
varied freight from city to city where they thickly
border the mighty rivers. The iron railways, the
telegraphic wires, stretch from valley to valley. You
survey the same loveliness, the same peace, the same
prosperity, which charm and satisfy the mind and the
heart in a summer landscape of favored America or
Britain. Hlow complete, how wonderful, how delightful
the transformation! Sinmply the faithful and unwearied
preaching of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ has
done it all. Men believed in him as the only Lord and
Saviour; they cast away their idols; the blessings of
modern Christian civilization all followed in their turn.
It began feebly and slowly but progressed with ever
multiplying rapidity and volume. And these changes
which a few years have wrought in one nation are but a
part of universal transformations, such as it were idle to
attempt to conceive or to picture, which shall extend to
all the race of man, and make this whole earth seem
like a new earth, and these heavens above us like new
heavens. Then shall Jesus' kingdom be come; then
shall his will be done in earth as it is in heaven.




THE SPEECH
OF THIE HON. ANSON BURLINGAME, THE HEAD OF THE CHINESE
EMBASSY TO TIlE WESTERN POWERS, DELIVERED IN NEW YORK,
JUNE 23, 18GS.
MR. PRESIDENT. AND CITIZENS OF NEW YORK:-Our first
duty is to thank you for this cordial greeting; to say to you
that it is not only appreciated by us, but that it will be appreciated by the distant people whom we represent; to thank you
for this unanimous expression of good-will on the part of the
great city of New York; to thank you that, rising above all
local and party considerations, you have given a broad and generous welcome to a movement made in the interests of all mankind. WVe are but the humble heralds of this movement. It
originated beyond the boundaries of our own thoughts, and has
taken dimensions beyond the reach of our most ardent hopes.
That East which men have sought since the days of Alexander
now itself seeks the West. China, emerging from the mists of
time, but yesterday suddenly entered your Western gates, and
confronts you, by its representatives, here to-night. What have
you to say to her? She comes with no menace on her lips.
She comes with the great doctrine of Confucius, uttered two
thousand three hundred years ago, "IDo not unto others what
you would not have others do unto you." Will you not respond
with the more positive doctrine of Christianity-" We will do
unto others what we would have others do unto us?" She
comes with your international law. She tells you that she is
willing to come into relations according to it; that she is willing to abide by its provisions; that she is willing to take its
obligations for its privileges. She asks you to forget your ancient prejudices, to abandon your assumptions of superiority, to
submit your questions with her as she proposes to submit her




674                 THE SPEECH  OF
questions with you-to the arbitrament of reason. She wishes
no war; she asks of you not to interfere in her internal affairs;
she asks you not to send lecturers who are incompetent men;
she asks that you will respect the neutrality of her waters and
the integrity of her territory; she asks, in a word, to be left
perfectly free to unfold herself precisely in that form of civilization of which she is the most capable to judge. She asks you
to give to those treaties which were made under the pressure of
war a generous and Christian construction. Because you have
done this, because the Western nations have reversed their old
doctrine of force, she responds; and in proportion as you have
done that, in proportion as you have expressed your good-will,
she has come forth to meet you. And I aver that there is no
spot on this earth where there has been greater progress made
within the past few years than in the empire of China. She has
extended her business and reformed her revenue system. She
is changing her military and naval organizations, and is establishing a great school, where modern science and the foreign
languages are to be taught.  She has done this under very adverse circumstances. She has done this after a great war, lasting through thirteen years-a war out of which she comes with
no national debt. You must remember how dense is her population, and how difficult it is to introduce radical changes in
such a country as that.  The introduction of your own steamers
threw out.of employment one hundred thousand junkmen, and
the introduction of several hundred foreigners into her civil
service embittered, of course, the ancient native employes. The
establishment of a school was firmly resisted by a party led by
one of the greatest men of the empire. Yet, in spite of all this,
the present government of China has advanced steadily along
the path of progress, sustained, it is true, by the enlightened
European and Arestern Powers now at Pekin, and guided
largely by a modest and able man —Mr. Hart, the InspectorGeneral of Customs, at the head of the foreign employes of
China. Yet, notwithstanding this manifest progress, there are
people who will tell you that China has made no progress; that
her views are retrograde; and they tell you that it is the duty
of the Western Treaty Powers to combine for the purpose of




HON. ANSON BURLINGAME.                   675
coercing China into reforms which they may desire, and which
she may not desire, to undertake to say that these people have
no rights which we are bound to respect. In their coarse language they say, "Take her by the throat," using the tyrant's
plea. They say that they know better what China wants than
China herself does. Not only do they desire to introduce new
reforms born of their own interests and their own caprice, but
they tell you that the present dynasty must fall, and that the
whole structure of Chinese civilization must be overthrown. I
know that these views are abhorred by the governments and
countries from which they come, but they are far away from
their countries. They are active, brave, and unscrupulous, and,
if they happen to be officials, it is in their power to complicate
affairs, and to involve ultimately their distant countries in war.
Now it is against the malign spirit of this tyrannical element
that this mission was sent forth to the Christian world. It was
sent forth that China might have her difficulties stated. That I.
happen to be at the head of it is, perhaps, more an accident
than any design. It is perhaps because I had been longer there
than my colleagues. It was because I was about to leave it. It
was because, also-and probably more than all —because my
humble name was associated with the establishment of the cooperative policy which, cooperating with abler men than myself,
was established not many years ago. It is tosustain that policy
-which has received the warm approval of all the great Treaty
Powers, and which is cherished by China-that we are sent
forth; and it is in behalf of that generous policy, founded upon
principles of eternal justice, that I would rally the strongest
thing on this earth  the enlightened public opinion of the
world. Missions and men may pass away, but the principles of
eternal justice will stand. I desire that the autonomy of China
nay be preserved; that her independence may be maintained;
that she may have equality, and that she may dispense equal
privileges to all the nations. If the opposite school is to prevail, if you are to use coercion against that great people, then
who is to exercise the coercion?'Whose forces are you to use?
ANvWhose views are you to establish?  You see, the very attempt
to carry out any such tyrannical policy would involve not only




676                 THE SPEECH  OF
China, but would involve you in bloody wars with each other.
There are men of that tyrannical school who say that China is
not fit to sit at the council-board of the nations, who call them
barbarians, who attack them on all occasions with a bitter and
unrelenting spirit. These things I utterly deny. I say, on the
contrary, that that is a great and noble people. It has all the
elements of a splendid nationality. It has the most numerous
people on the face of the globe; it is the most homogeneous
people in the world; its language is spoken by more human
beings than any other in the world, and it is written in the rock;
it is a country where there is a greater unification of thought
than in any other country in the world; it is a country where
the maxims of the great sages, coming down memorized, have
permeated the whole people until their knowledge is rather an
instinct than an acquirement. It is a people loyal while living,
and whose last prayer when dying is to sleep in the sacred soil
of their fathers. It is a land of scholars and of schools-a land
of books, from the smallest pamphlet up to voluminous encyclopedias. It is a land, sir, as you have said, where the privileges are common; it is a land without caste, for they destroyed
their feudal system two thousand one hundred years ago, and
they built up their great structure of civilization on the great
idea that the people are the source of power. That idea was
uttered by Mencius more than two thousand years ago, and it
was old when he uttered it. The power flows forth from that
people into practical government through the cooperative system, and they make scholarship a test of merit. I say it is a
great, a polite, a patient, a sober, and an industrious people;
and it is such a people as this that the bitter boor would exclude
from the council-hall of the nations. It is such a nation as this
that the tyrannical element would put under its ban. They say
that all these people (a third of the human race) must become
the weak wards of the West; wards of nations not so populous
as many of their provinces; wards of people who are younger
than their newest village in Manchuria. I do not mean to say
that the Chinese are perfect; far from it. They have their faults,
their pride, and their prejudices, like other people. These are
profound, and they must be overcome. They have their con



HON. ANSON  BURLINGAME.                  677
ceits, like other people, and they must be done away; but they
are not to be removed by talking to them with cannon, by telling them that they are feeble and weak, and that they are barbarians. No; China has been cut off by her position from the
rest of the world. She has been separated from it by limitless
deserts and broad oceans. But now, when the views of men
expand, we behold the very globe itself diminishing in size;
now, when science has dissipated the desert, and when it has narrowed the ocean, we find that China, seeing another civilization
on every side, has her eyes wide open to the situation. She sees
Russia on the north, Europe on the west, and America on the
east; she sees a cloud of sail on her coast; she sees mighty
steamers coming fiom every quarter; she feels the spark from
the electric telegraph falling hot upon her, and she rouses herselfg not in anger, but for argument. She finds that by not being
in a position to compete with other nations for so long a time,
she has lost ground; she comprehends very well that she must
come into relations with those civilizations which are pressing
all around her; and feeling that, she does not wait, but comes
out to you, and extends to you her hand. She tells you she is
ready to take upon her ancient civilization the graft of your civilization; that she is ready to take back her own inventions,
with all their developments; that she is willing to trade with
you, to buy of you, to sell to you, to help you strike off the
shackles from trade. She invites your merchants, she invites
your missionaries, and tells them to plant the shining cross on
every hill and in every valley, for she is hospitable to fair argument. She offers you almost free trade to-day.  -Iolding' the
great staples of the earth, tea and silk, she charges you scarcely
any tariff on the exports you send out to exchange for them.
She is willing to meet the interior questions which are arising
now as to transit dues; and if you will only have patience with
her and right reason on your side, she will settle these to your
satisfaction. The country is open; you may travel and trade
where you like. What complaint have you to make of her?
Show her, I say, fair play; exhibit that to her, and you will
bless the toiling millions of the world. That trade, which has
in my own day in China risen from eighty-two millions to three




678             THE SPEECH OF, ETC.
hundred millions, is but a tithe of the enormous trade that may
be carried on with China in the future. Let her alone, give her
her independence; let her develop herself in her own time and
in her own way. She has no hostility to you. Let her do this,
and she will initiate a movement which will be felt in every
workshop in the civilized world. She says now, " Send us your
wheat, lumber, gold, silver, goods from every where. We will
take as many of them as we can; we will give you back our
tea, silk, and free labor, which we have sent so largely out into
the world, which is overflowing upon Siam, the British posses.
sions, Singapore, Manilla, Peru, Cuba, Australia, and California.
What she asks is, that you will be as kind to her people as she
is to yours. She wishes simply that you will do justice. She
is willing not only to exchange goods with you, but to exchange
thoughts; she is willing to give you her intellectual civilization
for your material civilization. Let her alone, and the caravans
toward the North and Russia will swarm larger than they are
now. Let her alone, and the great steamers of the "Peninsular
and Oriental Co." and the " Messagerie Imperiale " may multiply
their coming; let her alone, and that great line which is the
pride of New York —the Pacific Mail-may increase, or as many
other lines as you choose to form, may increase their tonnage
tenfold, and they will still have to leave their freight uncarried,
as at present, on the wharf at Hong-kong and Yokohama. The
imagination kindles at the future which may be, and will be, if
you will be just and fair to China.




THE LATE TREATY  WITH CHINA.                679
THE LATE TREATY WITH CHINA, SUPPLEMENTARY TO THE
TREATY OF 1858.
ART. 1. His Majesty the Emperor of China, being of the opinion that in making concessions to the citizens or subjects of foreign powers of the privilege of residing on certain tracts of land,
or resorting to certain waters of that empire for the purposes of
trade, he has by no means relinquished his right of eminent domain or dominion over the said land and waters, hereby agrees
that no such concession or grant shall be construed to give to
any power or party which may be at war with or hostile to the
United States, the right to attack the citizens of the United States
or their property within the said lands or waters; and the United States, for themselves, hereby agree to abstain from offensively attacking the citizens or subjects of any power, or party,
or their party, with which they may be at war, on any such
tract of land or waters of the said empire; but nothing in this
article shall be construed to prevent the United States from resisting an attack by any hostile power or party upon their citizens or their property. It is further agreed, that if any right or
interest in any tract of land in China has been or shall hereafter
be granted by the Government of China to the United States or
their citizens for purposes of trade or commerce, that grant shall
in no event be construed to divest the Chinese authorities of
their right of jurisdiction over persons and property within said
tract of land, except so far as that right may have been expressly relinquished by treaty.
ART. 2. The United States of America and His Majesty the
Emperor of China, believing that the safety and prosperity of
commerce will thereby best be promoted, agree that any privilege or immunity in respect to trade or navigation within the
Chinese dominions which may not have been stipulated for by
treaty shall be subject to the discretion of the Chinese Government, and may be regulated by it accordingly, but not in a
manner or spirit incompatible with the treaty stipulations of the
parties.
ART. 3. The Emperor of China shall have the right to appoint




680      THE LATE TREATY WITH  CHINAo
consuls at ports of the United States, who shall enjoy the same
privileges and immunities as those which are enjoyed by public
law and treaty in the United States by the consuls of Great
Britain and Russia, or either of them.
ART. 4. The twenty-ninth article of the treaty of the 18th of
June, 1858, having stipulated for the exemption of Christian
citizens of the United States and Chinese converts from persecution in China on account of their faith, it is further agreed,
that citizens of the United States in China of every religious
persuasion, and Chinese subjects in the United States, shall enjoy entire liberty of conscience, and shall be exempt from all
disability or persecution on account of their religious faith or
worship in either country. Cemeteries for sepulture of the dead
of whatever nativity or nationality shall be held in respect, and
free from disturbance or profanation.
ART. 5. The United States of America and the Emperor of
China cordially recognize the inherent and inalienable right of
man to change his home and his allegiance, and also the mutual
advantages of the free migration and immigration of their citizens and subjects respectively from the one country to the other
for purposes of curiosity, trade, or as permanent residents. The
high contracting parties, therefore, join in reprobating any other
than an entirely voluntary immigration for these purposes.
They consequently agree to pass laws making it a penal offense
for a citizen of the United States or a Chinese subject to take
Chinese subjects either to the United States or to any foreign
country, or for a Chinese subject or a citizen of the United States
to take citizens of the United States to China or to any other foreign country without their free and voluntary consent respectively.
ART. 6. Citizens of the United States visiting or residing in
China shall enjoy the same privileges, immunities, or exemptions in respect to travel or residence as may there be enjoyed
by the citizens or subjects of the most favored nation:; and, reciprocally, Chinese subjects visiting or residing in the United
States shall enjoy the same privileges, immunities, and exemptions in respect to travel or residence as may be enjoyed by the
citizens or subjects of the most favored nation; but nothing




THE LATE TREATY  WITH  CHINA.               681
herein contained shall be held to confer naturalization upon the
citizens of the-United States in China, nor upon the subjects of
China in the United States.
ART. 7. Citizens of the United States shall enjoy all the privileges of the public educational institutions under the control of
the Government of China, and, reciprocally, Chinese subjects
shall enjoy all the privileges of the public educational institutions under the control of the Government of the United States
which are enjoyed in the respective countries by the citizens or
subjects of the most favored nations. The citizens of the United
States may freely establish and maintain schools within the empire of China at those places where foreigners are by treaty permitted to reside, and, reciprocally, Chinese subjects may enjoy
the same privileges and immunities in the United States.
ART. 8. The United States, always disclaiming and discouraging all practices of unnecessary dictation and intervention by
one nation in the affairs or domestic administration of another,
do hereby freely disclaim any intention or right to intervene in
the domestic administration of China in regard to the construction of railroads, telegraphs, or other material internal improvements. On the other hand, His Majesty the Emperor of China
reserves to himself the right to decide the time and manner and
circumstances of introducing such improvements within his
dominions. With this mutual understanding, it is agreed by
the contracting parties, that if at any time hereafter His Impe
rial Majesty shall determine to construct or cause to be constructed works of the character mentioned, within the empire,
and shall make application to the United States or any other
Western power for facilities to carry out that policy, the United
States will, in that case, designate and authorize suitable engineers to be employed by the Chinese Government, and will
recommend to other nations an equal compliance with such application, the Chinese Government in that case protecting such
engineers in their persons and property, and paying them a reasonable compensation for their services.




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AN ILLUSTRATED
DlieoRary of tke   be,
COMPRISING ITS
ANTIQUITIES, BIOGRAPHY, GEOGRAPHY,
AND
NATURAL HISTORY,
WITH NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS AND MAPS, ALL ENGRAVED EXPRESSLY FOR TITIS WORKE
EDITED BY WILLIAM SMITH, L L. D.
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It contains every name in the Bible and Apocrypha of which any
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(2.)




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THE DEVOTIONAL AND PRACTICAL
POLYGLOTT FAMILY BIBLE,
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TO PARALLEL AN) ILLUSTRATIVE PASSAGES, ARRANGED IN A
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Together with a Concordaace:-A Careful Index to the Bible, in which every Difficult
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of Surfacce described by Moses.
(4)




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POMILE'S EDITIONS
THE LIFE AND EPISTLES
EMBRACING
A Graphic and Eloquent Delineation of the Early Life, Education, Conversion, Teachings, Labors, Travels, Sufferings, Perils, Porsecutions, and Missionary Career of
St. Paul, thus constituting a Living Picture of the Great Apostle himself;
and of the circumstances by which he was surrounded.
BY
R ev. NV  J. CONYBE A  E, M. A. 
LATE FELLOW OF TRINITY CCLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE,
AND
Re-v. J. S. I-IOWSONI D. Do
PRINCIPAL OF THE COLLEGIATE INSTITUTION, LIVERPOOL.
With a Preliminary Dissertation by
Rev. LEONARD BACON, D. D.,
PrROFESSOR OF REVEALED THEOLOGY IN YALE COLLEGE.
This work delineates the early life, education, conversion, teachings
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modern, inspired or uninspired.  Jesus said of Paul, "HIe is a chosen
vessel unto me," and the Scripture biography before us shows the wonderful care which God took in preparing that vessel before He filled it
with his grace and set it apart for the Master's special use in His great
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and a life filled with strange, heroic, and self-sacrificing adventures,
made St. Paul the most wonderful man of all the ages. No better sub
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-of the communities upon which he labored,-of the countries through
which he traveled,-of the chief characters whom he met, both friend
and foe,-of his personal hopes and fears,-of his temporary failures
(6)




and permanent triumphs, —than any other one volume. The scenes of
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the habits of private life then prevalent; the principles which actuated
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that large part of the New Testament which he wrote than any other
book in biblical literature.  It brings more learning, and the results of
more biblical, geographical, and ethnological research than any other
work, to bear in making interesting the life, and elucidating the writings
of him who was, not only the great Apostle to the Gentiles, but also
the great Theologian of the whole Bible,-whose name is second to no
other human name in the history of the Church of God. It throws a
flood of light on the character, travels, missionary labors and writings
of the great Apostle, and throws open that wonderful period of the
world's history as no other work has ever done.  The reader is borne
along by its clear and charming style, its picturesque and vivid descriptions of scenery, and its beautiful delineations of Apostolic characters
and labors, and at every point is delighted and instructed.  It is as fascinating as any story can be, and yet it is true to life and Bible History.
The prodigious learning and power, and beauty of style, do not constitute its highest praise.  This is found in its moral and religious spirit,
in its pre-eminent Christian candor and impartiality, in its solemn earnestness for historic truth, and its manly and unvascillating faith in the
doctrines proclaimed by the fearless subject of its biography. It is every
way a masterly and unrivalled work, and so wholly worthy its subject
in all the manner of its performance, that it is not saying too much to
pronounce it a fitting tribute to the greatness of the Great Apostle.
The preliminary dissertation by Dr. Bacon, gives it additional value,
and helps further to understand the character of the great Apostle, and
the scenes of the early triumphs of the Gospel.  His abilities, studies
and travel, eminently fit him for the service he thus renders.
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