UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES THE LIIDI3LE KII^GDOM Vol. II Jilliaras -J CONTENTS OF VOLUME II. CHAPTER XV. INDUSTRIAL ARTS OF THE CHINESE, '^, 1_64 Tenure of land in China, 2 ; Agricultural utensils, 3 ; Horse-shoe- ing, 4 ; Cultivation of rice, 5 ; Terraces and methods of irriga- tion, 7 ; Manner of using manure, 9 ; Hemp, the mulberry, sugar, and the tallow-tree, 11; Efforts in arboriculture, 12; __ — Celebration of the annual ploughing ceremony, 13 ; Modes of catching and rearing fish, 15; Mechanical arts, metallurgy, 18; Glass and precious stones, 21 ; Ingredients and manufacture of porccflain, 23 ; Its decoration, 25 ; Chinese snuff-bottles dis- covered in Egyptian tombs,(27> The preparation of lacquered- ware, 30 ; Silk culture and manufacture in China, 32 ; Chinese ^ skill in embroidery, 30 ; Growth and manufacture of cotton, 37 ; Leather, felt, etc., 38 ; Tea culture, 39 ; Method of curing and preparing, 42 ; Green and black teas, 44 ; Historical notice, 51 ; Constituents and effects of tea, 52 ; Preparation of cassia {ciniuvmomnm) and camphor, 55 ; IngeWous methods of Chinese /- craftsmen, 56 ; The blacksmith and dish-mender, 57 ; Carving- in wood and ivory, 59 ; Manufacture of cloisonne, matting, etc., CI • General aspect of Chinese industrial society, 62. CHAPTER XVI. Science Amono the Chinese, . . 65-134 Attainments of the Chinese in the exact sciences : Arithmetic, 65 ; Astronomy, 68 ; Arrangement of the calendar, 69 ; Divisions of the zodiac, 71 ; Chinese observations of comets and eclipses, 73 ; Their notions concerning the "Action and Reaction of the Ele- ments," 74; Astronomical myths: Story of the herdsman and weaver-girl, 76 ; Divisions of the day : arrangement of the almanac, 79 ; Geographical knowledge, 80 ; Measures of length, money, and weight, 81 ; System of bitnks and use of paper 3060T IV . CONTENTS. PAOK money, 85 ; Pawnshops, 8G ; Popular associations, or httui, 87 ; The theory and practice of war, arms in use, 89 ; Introduction and employment of gunpowder, 90 ; Chinese policy in warfare, 92; Their regard for music, 94; Examples of Cliinese tunes, 97 ; Musical instruments, 99 ; Dancing and posture-making, 104 ; Drawing and painting, 105 ; Samples of Chinese illustra- tive art, 107 ; Their symbolism. 111 ; Paintings on pith-paper and leaves, 113; Sculpture and architecture, 115; Notions on the internal structure of the human body, 119; Functions of the viscera and their connection with the yin and yany, 122; Surgical operations, 123 ; A Chinese doctor, 125 ; Drugs and medicines employed, 127 ; The common diseases of China, 129 ; Native treatises on medicine, 133. CHAPTER XVII. History and Chronology of China 135-187 General doubts and ignorance concerning the subject, 136 ; The mythological period, 137 ; Chinese notions of cosmogony, 138 ; The god Pwanku, 139 ; Chu Hi's cosmogony, 141 ; The legend- ary period, Fuh-hi, 143 ; The eight nionarchs, 145 ; Hwangti and the sexagenary cycle, 146 ; The deluge of Yao, 147 ; The historical period : The Hia dynasty, 148 ; Yu tlie Great, his in- scription on the rocks of Kau-lau shau, 149 ; Records of the Hia, 152 ; The Shang dynasty, 154 ; Chau-sin, 156 ; Rise of the house of Chau, 157 ; Credibility of these early annals, 159 ; The Tsin dynasties, Tsin Chi Hwangti, 160; The dynasty of Han, 162 ; From the Han to the Sui, 165 ; The great Tang dy- nasty, 167 ; Taitsung and the Empress Wu, 169 ; The Five Dynasties, 172; Tlie Sung dynasty, 173; The Mongol conquest, Kublai Khan, 175; The Mings, 177; The Manchus, or Tsing dynasty, 179; Kanghi, 180; Yungching and Kienlung, 181; Kiaking and Taukwang, 183; Tables of the monarchs and dynasties, 186. CHAPTER XVm. JlEHGION OF THE CiTTNESE, 188-274 Causes of the perpetuity of Chinese institutions, 188 ; Isolation of the people, 189; The slight influence upon them of foreign thought and customs, 191 ; Their religious belief's, two nega- tive features, 191 ; Three sects: the State religion, called Con- fucianism, 194; Objects and methods of State worship, 195; ^J 7 4 8 CONTENTS. The Emperor as High Priest, 198 ; The Ju kino, or Sect of Literati, 15)9 ; Religious functions of government officers, 202 ; Purity and coldness of this religious system, 205 ; Rationalism {Tuo kia), Lau-tsz' its founder, 207 ; His classic, the Tao-teh King, 208 ; Visit of Confucius to the philosopher Lau-tsz', 212; Rites and mythology of the Taoists, 214; Their degeneracy into fetich worshippers, 215 ; Their organization, 217 ; The Sect of Fuh, or Buddhism, 218 ; Life of Buddha, 219 ; Influ- ence of the creed among the people, 221 ; Checks to its power, 223 ; Its tenets and liturgy, 224 ; Opposition to this sect by the literati, 227 ; Perpetuated in monasteries and nunneries, 229 ; Similarity between the, Buddhist and Roman Catholic rites, 231 ; Shamanism, its form in Tibet and Mongolia, 233 ; Buddh- ist temples, 235 ; Ancestral worship, its ancient origin, 236 ; Its influence upon the family and society, 237 ; Infanticide in China, its prevalence, 239 ; Comparison with Greece and Rome, 242 ; Customs and ceremonies attending a decease, 243 ; Funerals and burial-places, 245 ; Funtj-slnit, 240 ; Interment and mourn- ing, 248 ; Family worship of ancestors, 250 ; Character of the rites, 253 ; Popular superstitions, 255 ; Dread of wandering ghosts, 257 ; Methods of divination, 200 ; Worship at graves and shrines, 262 ; Chinese benevolent institutions and the prac- tice of charity, 263 ; General condition of religion among them, 266 ; Secret societies, 267 ; Mohammedanism in China, 268 ; Jews in Kaifung, 271 ; Their miserable condition, 273. CHAPTER XIX. ^ CiTRisTiAN Missions Among the Chinese, 275-37! Arrival of the Nestorians in China, 275 ; The tablet of Si-ngan, 277 ; Prester John and traces of Nestorian labors, 286 ; First epoch of Roman Catholic missions in Eastern Asia,^7 ; John of Montecorvino, ibid.; Other priests of the fourteenth century, 288 ; Second period : Xavier's attempt, 289 ; Landing of Ricci, 290 ; His life and character, 292 ; The Jesuits in Peking, 294 ; Faber, 295 ; Adam Schaal, 297 ; Verbiest, 298 ; Discussion con- cerning the rites, 299 ; The Pope and the Emperor Kanghi, 300; Quarrels between the missionaries, 302; Third period: The edict of Yungching expels the Catholics, 304 ; Statistics of their numbers, 307 ; Their methods : the baptism of dying in- fants, 311 ; Collisions between converts and magistrates, 312; Pagan and Christian superstitions: casting out devils, 314; Character of Catholic missionary work, 317; Protestantism in VI CONTENTS. China : The arrival of Morrison in Canton, 318 ; His mission- ary and literary work, 320 ; Comparison with that of llicci, 322 ; Protestant missions among the Chinese of the Archipelago, 323 ; Early efforts, tract distribution, 328 ; Gutzlaff's voyages along the coast, 329 ; Foundation of the Medical Missionary Society, 333 ; Success of hospital work among the natives, 338 ; Society for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledge in China, 340; The Morrison Education Society, 341 ; Protestant mission work at Canton, 34G ; At Amoy and Fuhchan, 348 ; In Chehkiang prov- ince, 351 ; At Shanghai, 352 ; Toleration of Christianity in China obtained through Ki'ying, 355 ; Policy of the government toward missionaries, 359 ; Articles qf toleration in the treaties of 1858, 360 ; Bible translation and the Term Question among missionaries, 363 ; Female missionaries, 364 ; Statistics of Prot- estant missions in China, 366 ; Notices of deceased mission- aries, 368 ; Facilities and difficulties attending the work, 369 X CHAPTER XX. Commerce of the Chinese, 372-405 Ancient notices of foreign trade, 373 ; The principal import, opium, 374 ; Peculiarities of its cultivation in India, ibid.; Its prepara- tion and sale in Calcutta, 376 ; Early efforts at introduction into China, 377 ; Rise of the smuggling trade, 378 ; Manipulation of the drug in smoking, 380 ; The pipe and its use, 382 ; Effects of the practice, 383 ; Quantity and value of the import, 3S7 ; Coast- ing and inland navigation in China, 389 ; Detail of the princi- pal exports from China, 391 ; Of the imports, 396 ; An example of pigeon-English, 402 ; Present management of the maritime customs, 403 ; Trade tables, 404. CHAPTER XXI. Foreign Intercourse with China 406-463 t- Limited conception of the Chinese as to embassies, 406 ; Earliest mention of China or Cathay, 408 ; Acquaintance between Rome and Seres, or Sin;e, 409 ; Knowledge of China under the Greek Empire, 412 ; Narratives of Buddliist pilgrims, 413 ; Notices of Arab travellers, 414 ; Piano Carpini's mission from the Pope to Kuyuk Klian, 415; Rubruquin sent by Louis XL to Mangu Khan, 418 • Travels of Marco Polo and King Ilayton of Armenia, CONTENTS. Vil pAoa 420 ; Of the Moor, Ibn Batuta, 421 ; Of Friar Odoric, 422 ; Of Benedict Goes, 424 ; Of Ibn Waliab, 425 ; The Manchus con- fine foreign trade to Canton, 42G ; Character of early Portu- guese traders, 427 ; Their settlement at Macao and embassies to Peking, 428 ; Relations of Spain with China, 431 ; The Dutch come to China, 438 ; They occupy Formosa, 434 ; Koxinga ex- pels them from the island, 437 ; Van Hoorn's embassy to Peking, 438 ; Van Braam's mission to Kienlung, 439 ; France and China, 440 ; Russian embassies to the court at Peking, 441 ; Inter- course of the English with China, 443 ; Attempts of the East India Company to establish trade, 445 ; The Co-hong, 447 ; Treatment of Mr. Flint, 448 ; Anomalous position of foreigners in China during the eighteenth century, 450 ; Chinese action in sundry cases of homicide among foreigners, 451 ; Lord Macart- ney's embassy to Peking, 454 ; Attitude of the Chinese regard- • ing Macao, 456 ; Regarding English and American "squabbles," 457 ; Embassy of Lord Amherst, 458 ; Close of the East India Company monopoly, 459 ; American trade with China, 4G0 ; Chinese terms for foreigners, 461. •^— CHAPTER XXII. OitKJiN OP THE First War with England, 463-513 Features of the war witli England, 463 ; Lord Napier appointed superintendent of British trade, 404 •, He goes to Canton, 467 ; His contest with the governor, 468 ; Chinese notions of supi-em- acy, 472 ; Lord Napier retires from Canton, his sudden death, 474 ; Petition of the British merchants to the king, 47() ; Trade continued as before, 478 ; Sir B. G. Robinson the superin- tendent at Lintin, 479 ; Is succeeded by Captain Elliot, 481 ; Hil Nai-tsi proposes to legalize the opium trade, 482 ; Counter- memorials to the Emperor, 483 ; Discussion of the matter among foreigners, 487 ; Canton officers enforce the prohibitory laws, 490 ; Elliot ordered to drive the opium ships from Lintin, 491 ; Arrival of Admiral Sir F. Maitland, 492 ; Smuggling increases, 493 ; A mob before the factories, 495 ; Captain Elliot's papers and actions regarding the opium traffic, 496 ; Commissioner Lin sent to Canton, 497; He demands a surrender of opium held by foreigners, 499 ; Imprisons them in the factories, 500 ; The opium given up and destroyed, 502 ; Homicide of Lin Wei-hi at Hongkong, 505 ; Motives and position of Governor Lin, 508; The war an opium war, 510; Debate in Parliament upon the (juestion, 512. vm CONTENTS. CHAPTER XXIII. PAOB Progress and Results of the First War between England AND China, ....." 514-574 A>./ival of the British fleet and commencement of hostilities, 514 ; Fall of Tiughai, 515; Lin recalled to Peking, 510; Kishen sent to Canton, negotiates' a treaty with Captain Elliot at the Bogue, 517 ; The negotiations fail, 519 ; Captiire of the Canton River defences, 521 ; The city ransomed, 52fj ; Amoy and Ting- hai taken, 525 ; Fall of Chinhai and Ningpo, 527 ; The Em- peror determines to resist, 529 ; Attempt to recapture Ningpo, 531 ; The British reduce the neighboring towns, 533 ; The fleet enters the Yangtsz', capture of Wusung, 535 ; Shanghai taken, 536 ; Proclamations issued by both parties respecting the war, 537 ; Storming of Chinkiang, 540 ; Terrible carnage among its Manchu inhabitants, 542 ; Singular contrast at Iching, 544 ; Kiying communicates with Sir H. Fottinger, 546 ; The envoy and commissioners meet, 547 ; A treaty drawn up, 549 ; Con- versation on the opium question, 550 ; The Treaty of Nanking signed, 553 ; Massacre of shipwrecked crews on Formosa, 554 ; iiosses and rewards on both sides alter the war, 556 ; Settle- ment of a tariff and commercial relations, 557 ; Deaths of Howqua and John R. Mori'ison, 559 ; A supplementary treaty signed, 561 ; Renewal of opium vexations, 562 ; Treaties ar- ranged with other foreign powers, 565 ; The ambassador and letter from the United States to China, 566 ; Caleb Cushing negotiates a treaty with Kiying, 567 ; Homicide by an American at Canton, and subsequent correspondence, 568 ; A French treaty concluded by M. de Lagreno at Whampoa, 571 ; Position of England and China after the war, 572. CHAPTER XXIV. TuE Tai-ping Rebellion, 575-624 Attitude of the ruling classes in China toward foreigners, 575; GoT- ernor Sir J. Davis and Commissioner Kiying, 577 ; Killing of six Eiiglishmen at Canton, 578 ; Chinese notions of treaties, ibuK ; fc&iises of the Ta^j)ing_Rebellion, 581 ; Life of Hung Siu- tsuen.^its leader, 582ThTs womlerful vision, 583; He inter- prets it by Christian ideas, 585 ; Early phases of the movement, 587 ; Commencement of the insurrection, 590 ; Political and religious tenets of the rebels, 592 ; Rapid advance to the Yangtsz' and occupation of Nanking, 596 ; The expedition against Pe- CONTENTS. ix PAoa king, 597 ; Its failure, 599 ; Dissensions among llie rebel wini(/s, or leaders, 603 ; Rebel sortie from Nanking, G05 ; Assist- ance of foreigners sought by imperialists, GOT ; Acliievements of the Chung Wang, (508 ; Colonel Gordon assumes control of the "Ever-Victorious force," (iOO ; His successful campaigns, (ill ; Environment of Suchau, Gt3 ; The city surrenders, G14 ; Exe- cution of its wangs by Governor Li, G15 ; Gordon's responsi- bility in the matter, GIG ; Further operations against the insur- gents, 617 ; The Ever-Victorious force disbanded, 618 ; FaU_of Nankin g and dispersion of the rebels, 621 J) Subsequent efforts of the Shi and Kau wangs, 633 ; Disastrous character of the re- bellion, 633. CHAPTER XXV. The Second War between Great Britain and China, . . 625-689 Relations between the ^antonese and foreigners after the first war, 626 ; Collecting of^customs duties at Slm,i^^Ji n i entrusted to for- eigners, 637 ; Common measures of defence against the rebels there, 629 ; The insurrection in Kwangtung, G30 ; Frightful de- struction of life, 632 ; Governor Yeh's policy of seclusion, 633 ; Smuggling lorchas at Hongkong and Macao, 634 ; The lorcha Arrow affair, G35 ; The initial acts of the war, 638 ; Collision with Americans at the Barrier forts, 639 ; View of the war in England, 641 ; Arrival of Lord Elgin and Baron Gros in China, G43 ; Bombardment and capture of Canton, ibid.; Problem of governing the city, 64G ; The allies repair to the Pei ho, 649 ; Capture of the Taku forts, 651 ; Negotiations with Kweiliang and Hwashana at Tientsin, 652 ; Unexpected appearance of Kiying, 653 ; Difficulties of Lord Elgin's position at Tientsin, ^54 ; The treaties signed and ratified, 656 ; Revision of the tariff undertaken at Shanghai, 657 ; Effect of treaty a>;ipulations and foreign trade on the people of China, 658 ; (Lord ^^Jgin visits the Tai-ping rebels at Hankow, 659 ; Sentiment of officials and people in China regarding foreigners, 660 ; Coolie trade outrages, 663 ; The foreign ministers repair to Taku, 664 ; Re- pulse at the Taku forts, 66G ; The American minister conducted to Peking, (iG8 ; Discussion concerning the formalities of an audience, 669 ; He retires and ratifies the treaty at Pehtang, 670 ; Lord Elgin and Baron Gros sent back to China, 671 ; War resumed, the allies at Pehtang, 673 ; Capture of villages about Taku, 674 ; Fall of the Taku forts, 676 ; Lord Elgin declines to remain at Tientsin, 677 ; Interpreters Wade and Parkes sent to Tungchau, 678 ; Capture of Parkes and Loch, 680 ; Skirmish of X CONTENTS PAGE Pa-li-kiau, 682 ; Pillage of Yuen-ming Yuen, G83 ; Its destruc- tion upon the return of the prisoners, 684 ; Entry into Peking and signing of the treaties, 686 ; Permanent settlement of for- eign embassies at the capital, 688. CHAPTER XXVI. Narrative of Recent Events in China, 690-748 Palace conspiracy upon the death of Hienfung, 690 ; The regency established at Peking, 691 ; The Lay-Osborne flotilla, 693 ; Col- lapse of the scheme and dismissal of Lay, 695 ; The Burlingame mission to foreign countries, 696 ; Its treaty with the United States, 698 ; Outbreak at Tientsin, 700 ; Investigation into the riot, 703 ; Bitter feeling among foreigners, 705 ; Memorandum from the Tsung-ii Yamun on the missionary question, 707 ; Conclusion of the Kansuh insurrection, 709 ; Marriage of the Emperor Tungchi, 710 ; The foreign ministers demand an au- dience, 712 ; Reception of the ambassadors by Tungchi, 714 ; Stopping of the coolie trade, 715 ; Japanese descent upon For- mosa, 717 ; English expedition to Yunnan, 719 ; Second mis- sion, murder of Margary, 721 ; The Grosvenor mission of inquiry, 723 ; The Chifu Convention between Li Hung-chang and Sir T. Wade, 725 ; Death of Tungchi and accession of Kwangsii, 727 ; The rebellion of Yakub Beg in Turkestan, 727 ; He overthrows the Dungani Confederation, 730 ; His forces conquered by Tso Tsung-tang, 731 ; Negotiations as to the ces- sion of Kuldja, 732 ; The great famine of 1878, 734 ; Efforts of foreigners for its relief, 736 ; Chinese boys sent to America for education, 739 ; Grounds of hope for the future of China, 741. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS IN VOLUME II. PAGE Signing of the Treaty op Peking, Frontispiece Manner of Shoeing Horses, 4 Pedler's Barrow, . 8 Group and Residence op Fishermen near Canton, , . .15 The Fishing Cormorant, 16 The Cobbler and his Movable Workshop, 88 Mode op Firing Tea, 43 Travelling Blacksmith and Equipment, 57 Itinerant Dish-mender, 58 Fancy Carved Work, (jl Fable of the Herdsman and Weaver-girl. (From a bowl.), • • 77 Representation op a Man Dreaming, U)6 The Vengeance op Heaven upon the Fai,re Grave, . . . 108 A would-be Assassin Followed by Spirits, 110 Symbols op Happiness and Old Age. (From a plaque.), . . .113 Caricature op an English Foraging Party, 116 Chinese Notions op the Internal Structure of the Human Body, 120 PwANKU Chiselling Out the Universe, 139 Gateway OP the Yuen Dynasty, Ku-yungKwan, Great Wall, to face 176 Ancestral Hall and Mode of Worshipping the Tablets, . .251 Buddhist Priests, 256 Consulting a Fortune-teller, 261 Head op Nestorian Tablet at Si-ngan 376 Xll LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAQF Roman Catholic Altar near Shanghai 315 Manner of Smoking Opium, 385 Wall of Canton City. (From Fisher.), .... to face 523 Plan of Canton and Vicinity, 645 Portrait of Commissioner KIying, to face 054 Plan of the Pei ho and Forts. (From Fisher.), .... C67 Portrait of Prince Kung, to face G90 Portrait of Wanslang, to face 715 MAP OF THE CHINESE EMPIRE. (/» poc.kst at end qf this voluim.) THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. CHAPTER XV. INDUSTRIAL ARTS OF THE CHINESE. The superiority of the Chinese over their immediate neigh- bors in the enjoyments of life and in the degree of security for which individuals can look under the protection of law have their bases chiefly in the industiy of the people. Agriculture holds the first place among the branches of labor, and the honors paid to it by the annual ploughing ceremony are given from a deep sense of its importance to the public welfare ; not alone to provide a regular supply of food and labor for the population, but also to meet the wants of government by moderate taxes, and long experience of the greater ease of governing an agri- cultm-al than a mercantile or warlike community. Notwith- standing the encouragement given to tillage, many tracts of land still lie waste, some of it the most fertile in the country ; partly because the people have not the skill and capital to drain and lender it productive, partly because they have not sufficient pros- pect of remuneration to encourage them to make the necessary outlay, and sometimes from the outrages of local banditti making it unsafe to live in secluded districts. Landed property is held in clans or families as much as pos- sible, and is not entailed, nor are overgrown estates frequent. The land is all held directly from the crown, no allodial property being acknowledged ; if mesne lords existed in feudal times Vol. II.— 1 2 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. they are now unknown. The conditions of common tenure are the payment of an annual tax, the fee for alienation, with a money composition for personal service to the government, a charge generally incorporated into the direct tax as a kind of scutage. The proprietors of land record their names in the dis- trict and take out a hung ki, or ' red deed,' which secures them in possession as long as the ground tax is paid. This sum varies according to the fertility, location, and use of the land, from $1.50 per acre for the best, down to twenty or thirty cents for unproductive or hilly fields. As the exactions for alienation oi sale of lands are high, amounting to as much as one-third of the sale price sometimes, the people accept white deeds from each other as proofs of ownership and responsibility for taxes. As many as twenty or thirty such deeds of sale occasionally accom- pany the original hung Ai, without which they are suspicious if not valueless. In order to keep the knowledge of the alienations of land in government offices, so that the taxes can be assured, it is customary to furnish a kl-wei, or ' deed-end,' containing a note of the terms of sale and amount of tax liable on the prop- erty. There is no other proof of ownership required ; and the simplicit}' and efficiency of this mode of transfer offer a striking contrast to the cumbrous rules enforced in western kingdoms. Revised codes of land laws are issued by the provincial authori- ties when necessary, as was done in 1846 at Canton.' The paternal estate and houses thereon descend to the eldest son, but his brothers can remain upon it with their families, and devise their portion inperpetuo to their children, or an amicable composition can be made ; daughters never inherit, nor can an adopted son of another clan succeed. A mortgagee must enter into possession of the property and make himself responsible for the payment of the taxes ; unless explicitly stated, the land can be redeemed any time within thirty years on payment of the original sum. Sections XC. to C. of the Code contain the laws relating to this subject, some of which bear a resemblance to those established among the Hebrews, and intended to secure a similar result of retaining the land in the same clan or tribe. » T. T. Meadows in N. C. Br. R. A. S. Transactions, Hongkong, 1848, Vol. 1 TENURE AND CULTIVATION OF THE SOIL. 3 The enclosure of recent alluvial deposits cainiot be made without the cognizance of the authorities, but the terms are not onerous; for waste hillsides and poor spots ample time is allowed for a return of the capital expended in reclaiming them before assess- ment is made. The Chinese are rather gardeners than farmers, if regard be had to the small size of their grounds. They are ignorant, too, of many of those operations whereby soils naturally unfruitful are made fertile and the natural fertility sustained at the cheap- est rate by proper manuring and rotation of crops ; but they make up for the disadvantages of poor implements by hard work. Their agricultural utensils are few and simple, and are probably now made similar to those used centuries ago. The broad hoe is used in soft land more than any other tool ; the weight of its large wooden blade, which is edged with iron, adds impetus to the blow. Spades, rakes, and mattocks are employed in kitchen gardening, and the plough and harrow in rice cultivation. The plough is made of wood, except the iron-edged share, which lies flat and penetrates the soil about five inches. The whole im- plement is so simple and rude that one would think the inventor of it was a laborer, mIio, tired of the toil of spading, called the ox to his aid and tied his shovel to a rail ; — fastening the ani- mal at one end and guiding the other, he was so pleased with the relief that he never thought of improving it nnicli further than to sharpen the spade to a coulter and bend the rail to a beam and handle. The harrow is a heavy stick armed with a single row of stout wooden teeth, and furnished with a frame- work to guide it ; or a triangular ma^^hine, with rows of iron teeth, on which the driver rides to sink it in the ooze. The buffalo is used in rice cultivation, and the ox and ass in dry ploughing ; horses, mules, cows, and goats likewise render service to the farmer in various Avays, and are often yoked in most ludicrous combinations. The team which Nieuhoff depicts of a man driving his wiie and his ass yoked to the same plough is too bad for CluTia often to present, though it has been so fre- quently repeated and used to point a comj)arison that one almost expects on landing to see half the women in the harness. It may be doubted, however, if tliis country can vie with some por- 4 THK MIDDLK KINGDOM. tions of Germany and Holland in the matter of mongrel teams employed on farms. The arrangements of farriers' shops in China are very similar to those of Enropean countries, savitig that the tools are of the simplest character. The manner of trussing up the poor beast which is to be shod would seem, however, an unnecessary exer- cise of caution in the case of a majority of the over-worked liorses and nuiles. The animal is fastened to a frame and lifted almost entirely off the ground, while a rope twisted al>out his nose and tightened at will with a turn-stick controls the least attempt at unruliness. Iron shoes are employed in the north : in the south, where horses are little used, they are usually left METHOD OF PLANTING IIICE. 5 nnsliod^ though the fore feet are often covered with leather shoes which lit the lioof. An earl}- rain is necessary to the preparation of rice-fields, except where water can be turned upon them. The grain is first soaked, and when it begins to swell is sown very thickly in a small plat containing licpiid manure. "When about six inches high the shoots are planted into the fields, which, from being an unsightly marsh, are in a few days transformed to fields clothed with living green. Holding the seedlings in one hand, the laborer wades through the nnid, at every step sticking into it five or six sprouts, which take root without further care ; six men can transplant two acres a day, one or two of whom are en- gaged in supplying the others with shoots. The amount of grahi r£(j|IU2£d to sow a Chinese mao in this way is thirty-seven and one-half catties, or three hundred and thirt}' pounds-Wbout^two and one-halTUushels to an Jiinglish acre. The produce is on an average tenfokh Rent of Taiid is usually paid according to the amount of the crop, the landlord paying the taxes and the tenant stocking the farm ; leases are for three, four, or seven years ; the terms vary according to the position and goodness of the soil.' Grain is not sown broadcast, and this facilitates hoeing and weeding the fields as they require. Two crops are planted, one of which ripens after the other; maize and pulse, millet and sesamnm, or sorghum and squash are thus grown together. The plough is an efiicient tool in soft soil, but a wide hoe, the blade set almost at a right angle, is the common implement in the north. Barrow describes a drill-plough in common use in the north which remarkably economizes time and seed. " It con- Eisted of two parallel poles of Avood shod at the lower extremity ' The amount of tribute rice sent to Peking from Kiangsu Province is 01)0,000 tons of 640 catties, or 974,400 peculs Chelikiang " 44r),000 " " " 633,000 " Kiangsi " 80,000 " " " 112,000 " Hupeh " 50,000 " " " 70,000 " 1,789,400 " Of this the Chinese Company carried in 1875 to Tientsin. . 626,900 " Went by junks 1,162,500 «♦ 6 THE middlp: kixgdom. uith iron to open the furrows ; these poles were placed upon wheels ; a small hopper was attached to each pole to drop the seeds into the furrow, which were covered with earth hy a trans- verse piece of wood fixed behind, that just swept the face of the ground." ' The extent to which terrace cultivation has been described as common is a good instance of the way in which erroneous im- pressions concerning China obtain currency from accounts not exactly incorrect, perhaps, but made to convey- wrong notions by the mode of their description. The hills are terraced chiefly for rice cultivation or to retain soil which would otherwise be washed away ; and this restricts their gradation, generally speaking, to the southern and eastern provinces. Most of the hills in Kwang- tung and Fuhkien are unfit for the plough except near their bases, M'hile in the north it is unnecessary to go to great ex- pense in terracing for a crop of cotton, wheat, or millet. Much labor has been expended in terracing, and many hillsides other- M'ise useless are thus rendered productive ; but this does not mean that every hill is cut into plats, nor that the entire face of the country is one vast garden. Terracing was probably a more important feature of agriculture in Palestine in former days than it is in China. The natural terraces of the loess districts, and their extraoi'dinary convenience as well as fertility, have already been noticed in a former chapter. These, it should however be remembered, do not occur south of the Yangtsz' Kiver. The ingenuity of the farmer is well exhiluted in the various modes he employs to insure a supply of water for his rice. In some places pools are made in level fields as reservoirs of rain, from which the Avater is lifted as occasion i-equires by well- sweeps. It is also expeditiously raised b}- two men holding a pail between them l)y ropes, and with a swinging motion rapidly dipping the water out of the tank into little furrows. A favor- ite plan is to use a natural brooklet and conduct it from one plat to another till it has irrigated the whole hillside. It is where such water privileges offer that the terrace cultivation is best ' Travels in China, London, 1804. TERRACE CULTIVATION AND IRRIGATION. 7 developed, especially in the neighborhood of large cities, where the demand for provisions promises the cultivator a sure reward for his labor. /The appearance of the slopes thus graduated into small ledges is beautiful ; each plat is divided by a bank serving the triple purpose of fence, path, and dyke, and near which the • rills glide with refreshing lapse, turning whithersoever the mas ter willeth. This primitive method of upland irrigation is car ried out far more perfectly in China than in Switzerland, where it is better known to the generality of travellers. Water is not often wasted upon grass meadows in the former country. The food these marshy plats furnish to insects, mollusks, snakes, and . birds is surprising to one who examines them for the first time. \Wheels of various sorts are also contrived to assist in this labor, some worked by cattle, some by human toil, and others carried round by the stream whose waters they elevate.j The last are very common on the banks of the rivers Siang, Ivan, Min, and their affluents, wherever the banks are convenient for this pur- pose. High wheels of bamboo, firmly fixed on an axle in the bank, or on pillars driven into the bed, and furnished with buckets, pursue their stately round, and pour their earnings of two hundred and fifty or three hundred tons a day into troughs fixed at an elevation of twenty or thirty feet above the stream. The box-trough, containing an axle to be turned by two men treading the pedals, is rather a more clumsy contrivance, used for slight elevations ; the chain of paddles runs around two axles and in the trough as closely as possible, and raises the water ten or twelve feet in an equable current. Few carts or wagons are used with animals in the southern and eastern provinces where boats are at all available, human strength supplying the means of transportation ; the implements of husbandry and the grain taken from the fields both being carried on the back of the laborer. It is not an uncommon sight about Canton to see a ploughman, when he has done his work, turn his buffalo loose and shoulder his plough, harrow, and hoe, with the harness, and carry them all home. It is when one crosses the Yangtsz' on his way north that pack animals are met transporting goods and food in great droves ; here, too, people on carts and wheelbarrows fill the roads. On the Great 8 TUE MIDDLE KINGDOM. Flain a sail is raised on tlic latter when a fair wind will heln the man to trundle it over a level way. The Chinese manure the plant rather than the ground, both in the seed and growing grain. The preparation of manure from night soil, by mixing it with earth and drying it into cakes, furnishes employment to multitudes who transport at all hours their noisome loads through the narrow city streets. Tanks are dug by the wayside, paila are placed in the streets and re- tiring stalls opened among the dwellings, whose contents are carried away in boats and buckets ; but it is a small compen- sation for this constant pollution of the sweet breath of heaven to know that the avails are to be by and by brought to market. Science may yet ascertain how the benefits of this necessai-y work can be obtained without its disgusting exposure among the Chinese. Besides this principal ingredient of manure vats, MANUFACTURE AND USE OF MANURES. 9 other substances are diligently collected, as liair from the bar ber's shop, exploded tire-ci"ackers and sweepings from the streets, lime and plaster from kitchens and old buildings, soot, bones, tish and animal remains, the mud from the bottom of canals and tanks, and dung of every kind. In Kiangsu a small leaf clover {^Medleago satlva) is grown through the winter upon ridges raised in the rice-fields, and the plants pulled up in the spring and scattered over the fields to be ploughed and harrowed into the wet soil with the stubble, their decomposition furnish- ing large quantities of ammonia to the seedlings. Vegetable rubbish is also collected and covered with turf, and then slowly burned; the residue is a rich black earth, which is laid upon the seeds themselves when planted. The refuse left after express- ing the oil from ground-nuts, beans, vegetable tallow, tea, and cabbage seeds, etc., is mixed with earth and made into cakes, to be sold to farmers. The bean-cake made in Liautung thus aids the cotton and sugar planter in Swatow with a rich compost. The ripe grain is cut with bill-hooks and sickles, or pulled up by the roots ; scythes, mowing-machines, and cradles are un- known where human arms are so plenty. Eice-straw is made into brooms and besoms ; the rice is thrashed out against the side of a tub having a curtain on one side, or bound into sheaves and carried away to be stacked. The thrashing-floors about Canton are made of a mixture of sand and lime, well pounded upon an inclined surface enclosed by a curb ; a little cement added in the last coat makes it impervious to the rain ; with proper care it lasts many years, and is used by all the villagers for thrashing rice, peas, mustard, turnips, and other seeds, either with unshod oxen or flails. Where frost and snow come the ground requires to be repaired every season ; and each farmer usually has his own. The cultivation of food plants forms so large a proportion of those demanding the attention of the Chinese, that excepting hemp, indigo, cotton, silk, and tea, those raised for manufacture are quite unimportant. The great cotton region is the basin of the Yangtsz' kiang, where the white and yellow varieties grow side hy side. The manure used is nnul taken from the canals and spread with ashes over the ploughed fields, in which seeds 10 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. are sown about the 20tL of April. The seeds are planted, aftei sprouting, five or six in a hole, being rubbed with ashes as they are put in, and weeded out if necessary. After the winter crops have been gathered cotton-fields are easily made ready for the shoots, which, while growing, are carefully tended, thinned, hoed, and weeded, until the flowers begin to appear about August. As the pods begin to ripen and burst the cultivator collects them before they fall, to clean the cotton of seeds and husks. The weather is carefully watched, for a dry summer or a wet autumn are alike unpropitious, and as the pods are ripening from August to October, it is not uncommon for the crop to be partially lost. The seeds are separated by a wheel turning two rollers, and the cotton sold by each farmer to merchants in the towns. Some he keeps for weaving at home ; spinning-wheels and looms being common articles of furniture in the houses of the peas- antry. Cotton is cultivated in every province, and most of it is used where it grows. Around Peking the plant is hardly a foot high ; the bolls are cleaned for wadding to a great extent, while the woody stalks supply fuel to the poor. Minute directions are given in Sii's EneyelojKedia of Agricultui'e respecting the cultivation of this plant, whose total crop clothes the millions of the Empire without depending on any other land.' Hemp is largely cultivated north of the Mei ling, and also grows in Fuhkien ; grass-cloth made from the iJulicltos htilhosus is used for sunuuer dresses. There are four plants which pro- duce a fibre made into cloth known under this name, viz.: the Cannahis sativa, or connnon hemp, at Canton; tlie Bn'Jnncfia nivea, a species of nettle ; the S'ula tillarfoHay or abutilon hemp, in Chihli ; and the Hibiscus cannahinus. The coloring matter used for dyeing blue is derived from two plants, the Pohjgonuin tinctoriurii at the south, and the tlen tshig {Isatls indujotlcci)^ cultivated at Shanghai and Chusan. The mulberry is raised as a sluide and fruit tree in the northern ])rovinees, where it forms a beautiful plant fiftj^ feet high ; elsewhere the consumption of the leaves renders its culture an important branch of labor in 'Fortune's Wanderings, Cliap. XIV.; Chinese Itejjository, Vol. XVIIT., pp. 449-409. COTTOX, HEMP, MULBEKKY, AND SUGAR. 11 the silk-pr(xliicing provinces. Some growers allow it to attain its natural height, others cut it down to increase the branched and the produce of leaves. In Chelikiang it is cut in January and deprived of its useless brandies, leaving only the outer ones, which are trinnned into two or three points in order to force the plant to extend itself. The trees are set out in rows twelve feet or more apart, each tree being half that distance from its neighbor and opposite the intervals in the parallel rows; the interspaces are occupied with legumes or greens. The trees are propagated by seed and by suckers, but soon losing their vigor from being constantly sti'ipped of leaves, are then rooted up and replaced by fresh nurslings. Sugar is only a southern and southeastern crop. The name che^ by which it is known, is an original character, which favors the opinion that the plant is indigenous in China, and the same argument is applicable to wheat, hemp, mulberry, tea, and some of the common fruits, as the plum, pear, and orange. The canes are pressed in machines, and the juice boiled to sugar or boiled and hawked about the streets for consumption by the people. The sugar-mill consists merely of two upright cylin- ders, between which the cane is introduced as they turn, and the juice received into reservoirs; it is then boiled down and sent to the refiners to inidergo the necessary processes to fit it for market ; much is lost by this slovenly manufacture. Many plants are cultivated for their oil, used in the arts or in cooking. The seeds of two or three species of Elcococea be- longing to the Euphorbiaceous family, and the Cu/raspu/yans, are gathered, and by pressure furnish an oil to mix with lacker and paints, or to smear boats as a preservative against teredoes and other insects. It is deleterious when taken into the sys- tem, but does not appear to injure those who use or express it. The tallow-tree {StlUiiKjia schtfera) grows over the eastern provinces ; it is a beautiful ti-ee, resembling the aspen in its shape and foliage, and would form a valuable addition to the list of shade-trees in any country. Mr. Denny, the United States Consul at Shanghai, has i-ecently sent a quantity of these seeds to California, where efforts are being made to grow them. The tree has been introduced into India for its timber. The 12 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. seeds grow in clusters like ivy berries, and are collected in Xo- veinber ; when ripe the capsule divides, and falling off dis- covers two or three kernels covered with the pure, hard white tallow. AVhen the tallow is to be pi-epared, these are picked from the stalks and put into an open wooden cylinder with a perforated bottom, in which they are well steamed over boiling water. In ten or fifteen minutes the tallow covering; the seeds becomes soft, and they are thrown into a stone mortar and gently beaten with mallets to detach it. The whole is then sifted on a hot sieve, by which the tallow is separated from the kernels, though containing the brown skin which envelops the latter and presenting a dirty appearance. The tallow in this state is enclosed in a straw cylindei", or laid upon layers of straw held together by iron hoops, and subjected to pressure in a rude press, from which it runs clear in a semifluid state and soon hardens into cakes. The candles made from it become soft in liot weather, and are sometimes coated by dipping them in col- ored wax.' From one hundred and thirty-three pounds of nuts is obtained some forty or fifty pounds of tallow. The departments of floriculture and arboriculture have re- ceived great attention, but the efforts of their promoters are di- rected to producing something curious or bizarre, rather than improving the quality of their fruits or enlarging the number of their flowers. A common mode of multiplying specimens is to slit the stem and insert half of it in damp earth tied around the stalk until it has rooted, and then cutting off the whole. Dwarfing trees or forcing them to grow in grotesque shapes employs much time and patience. The juniper, cypress, pine, elm, bamboo, peach, plum, and flowering-almond are selected for this purpose ; the former is trained into the shapes of deer or other animals, pagodas, etc., with extraordinary fidelit}', the eyes, tongue, or other parts being added to complete the resem- blance. The principle of the operation depends upon retarding the circulation of the sap by stinting the supply of water, con- finino; the roots, and bendino; the branches into the desired form when young and pliable, afterwards retaining them in ' Fortune'ii ]\'(iii(k'ri'ii(j.s, ^. 78. CEKKMONY OF PLOUGHING AND SPUING FESTIVAL. 13 clieir forced position in pots, and clipping off all the vigorous shoots, until, as is the case of the cramped fee.t of women, na- ture gives up the contest and yields to art. Thesq^Uike the similar exhibitions in sculpture and painting, indicate the un- cultivated taste of the people, who admire the fantastic and monstrous more than the natural. Some of the clumps placed in large earthen vases, consisting of bamboos, Howers, and dwarf trees growing closely together upon a piece of rock-work, and overshadowing the water in the vase, in which gold-fish swim through the crevices of the stone, are beautiful specimens of Chinese art. Without understanding the principles of an aquarium, the people have succeeded in combining animal and vegetable life in these elegant ornaments of their houses. The annual ceremony of ploughing is of very ancient origin. At Peking it consists in ploughing the sacred field in the Temple of Agriculture with a highly oi-namented plough kept for the purpose, the Emperor holding it while turning over three furrows, the princes five, and the high ministers nine. These furrows were, however, so short that the monarchs of the pres- ent dynasty altered the ancient rule, ploughing four furrows and returning again over the ground. The ceremony finished, the Emperor and his ministers repair to the terrace adjoining the plat, and remain till it has all been ploughed. The crop of wheat is used in idolatrous services. The rank of the actors ren- ders the ceremony moi'e imposing at Peking, but the people of the capital oidy know that such a performance takes place, as they are not admitted inside of the enclosure when it is ob- served by the Emperor and his suite. This ceremony is also re- quired of all high officers throughout the Empire, and is at- tended with more or less parade in April. In the provinces its celebration varies, and as there are two festivals coming near together connected with agriculture, one or the other of them is apt to predominate. Tlie annual plough- ing ritual is one, and tlie //// chan, or ' Eirst day of spring,' is the other and prior in date. The prefect of every city and his subordinates on that day repair to the appointed spot outside of the walls, accompanied i>y music and a great procession of the citizens, carrying through the streets a paper image of the buf- 14 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM, falo or ox, wliicli, with the idol image worshipped at the same time, are at some places taken into his yamun. Here the whole is placed on an altar, and the officials present walk around and whip the effigy with rods before it is set on fire and scrambled for by the people present. Besides the paper ox, a clay one is also made and taken beyond the eastern gate, sometimes accompanied by or holding hundreds of little im- ages inside ; after the ceremonies are over it is broken up, and the pieces and small images are carried off by the crowd to scatter the powder on their own fields, in the hope of thereby insuring a good crop. In Xingpo the principal features of the ceremony consist of a solemn worship by all the local officers of a clay image of a buffalo and an idol of a cow-herd. The prefect then ploughs a small piece of ground, and he and his associates disperse till the morrow, when they come together in another temple at dawn. Here a series of prostrations and recitals of pra^'ers are per- formed by the "fathers of the people" in their presence, some of whom have no respect for the worship, Mhile others, perhaps, evince deep reverence. As soon as it is over the clay ox is brought out, and a procession consisting of all the officers pass around it repeatedly, striking the body at a given signal, and concluding the ceremony by a heavy blow on the head. The crowd then rush in and tear the effigy to pieces, each one car- rying off a portion to strew on his fields.' The various modes of catching and rearing fish exhibit the contrivance and skill of the Chinese quite as much as their ag- ricultural operations. Some persons reckon that at least one- tenth of the population in the prefecture of Kwangehau derive their food from the water, and necessity leads them to invent and try many ingenious ways of securing the finny tribes. ' PereCibot in Mem. cone, les Chinois, Tome III., p. 499. Penal Code, pp. 94-106, 520. Chinese nepository, Vol. II., p. :}50 ; Vol. III., pp. 121, 231; Vol. v., p. 485. La Chine Ouverte, p 340. Foreign Mixnionari/ Chronide, Vol. XIII., p. 290. Gray's China, Vol. II., pp. 115-117. Doolittle's Social Life, Vol. TI., pp. 18-23. Revue de V Orient, Tome V. (1844), p. 297. Baron d'Hervey Saint-Denys, Recherchea stir VAc/ricnUure et VHorticuUitre des Ohi mis, Paris, 1850. Journal iV: C Br. R. A. Soc, No. IV., pp. 209 fif. FISHING ANL> FISHERMEN ALONG THE COAST. 15 Xets woven of hempen thread are boiled hi a solution of gam- bier to preserve them from i-otting. The smacks which swarm along the coast go out in pairs, partly that the crews may af- ford mutual relief and protection, but chiefly to join in drag- ging the net. In the sliallows of rivers rows of heavy posts are driven down and nets secured to them, which are examined and changed at every tide. Those who attend these nets, more- Group and Residence of Fishermen near Canton. over, attacli scoops or drag-nets to their boats, so loaded that they will sink and gather the sole, ray, and other fish feeding near the bottom. Lifting-nets, twenty feet square, are sus- pended from poles elevated and depressed by a hawser worked by a windlass on shore ; the nets are baited with the whites of eggs spread on the meshes. ' The fishermen along the coast form an industrious, though rather turbulent comnnmity, by no means confining their enter- 16 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. pi'ises to tlieir professed business when piraty, dakoity, or ma- rauding on shore liold out greater prospects of gain. When their boats become unseaworthy they are still considered land- worthy, and are transformed into houses by setting them bodily npon a stone foundation above the reach of the tide, or break- ing them up to construct rude huts. Cormorants are trained in great numbers to captui'e fish in the rivers and lakes ; they will disperse at a given signal and re- turn with their prey, but not often without the precaution of a neck-ring. A single boatman can easily oversee twelve or fif- teen of these birds, and although hundreds may be out upon the The Fishing Cormorant. water each one knows its own nuister. If one seize a fish too heavy for him alone, another comes to his assistance, and the two carry it aboard ; but such cases are very rare compared with others where the w^eak or young bird is unceremonioaisly robl)ed of its capture. When several hundreds of them fish together the scene becomes animated and noisy in the extreme. The birds themselves are fed on bean-curd and eels or fish. They lay eggs when three years old, which are often hatched under barn- yard liens, and the chickens fed with eel's blood and hash. They do not fish during the summer months. The price of a pair varies from five to eight dollai-s. Mussels are caught in cylindrical basket-traps attached to a single rope and drifted with the tide near the bottom. Simi- METHODS OF CATCIIING FIRII. 17 lar traps fur eatcliiiig laiul-crabs are laid along the edges of rice- fields, baited with dried fish. When the i-eceding tide leaves the river banks dry the boat peo^Tje get overboard and wade in the mud, or push themselves along on a board with one foot, in search of such things as harbor in the ooze. In moonlight nights low, narrow shallops, provided with a wide white board fastened to the wale and floating upon the water, are anchored in still water ; as the moon shines on the board the deceived fish leap out upon it or into the boat ; twenty or thirty of these decoy boats can . be seen near Macao engaged in this fishery on moonlight evenings. Sometimes a boat furnished witli a treadle goes up and down near the shores striking boards against its bottom and sides ; the startled fish are caught in the net dragging astern. The crews of many small boats combine to drive the fish into their nets by splashing and striking the water, or into a pool on the margin of the river at high tide, in which they are easily retained by wattles, and scooped out when the water has fallen. Divers clap sticks to- gether under water to drive their prey into the nets set for them, or catch them with their toes when, terrified at the noise, they hide in the mud. Xeither fly-fishing nor angling with hook and line is much practised ; its tedium and small returns would be poor amends to a Chinese for the elegance of the tackle or the science displayed in adapting the fly to the fish's taste. By these and other contrivances the Chinese capture the finny tribes, and it is no surprise to hear that China contains as many millions of people as there are days in the 3'ear when one sees upon what a large proportion of them feed and how they live. Their expenditure of human labor appears enormous to those who are accustomed to the manufactories and engines of western lands, but perhaps nothing would cause so much dis- tress in China as the prematui'o and inconsiderate introduction of labor-saving machines. Population is so close upon the means of production, not seldom overpassing them, tliat those who would be thrown out of employment would, owing to their ignorance as to the best resources and want of means to do anything by themselves, suffer and cause incalculable dis- tress before relief and labor could be furnished them. There Vol. II.— 2 18 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. are, for instance, six or seven 3'ards near Canton where logs are sawed by hand, but all of them together hardly turn out as many feet of boards as one water-wheel turning three or four saws would do. Yet the two hundred men emploj'ed in these yards would perhaps be half -starved if turned off in their pres- ent condition, even if they did not destroy their competitor ; though there is every reason for believing that improvements will be introduced as soon as those wdio see their superiority are assured they can be made profitable. The mechanical arts and implements of the Chinese partake of the same simplicity which has been remarked in their agri- cultural, — as if the faculty of invention or the notion of altering a thing had died with the discoverer, and he had had the best guarantee for the patent of his contrivance in the depriva- tion of all desire in his successors to alter it. This servility of imitation marks them in many things, but in machinery and metallurgy is chiefly owing to ignorance of the real nature of the ma*"erials they use, a knowledge which has only recently become familiar to ourselves. In the absence of superior models, it produces a degree of apathy to all improvement which strangely contrasts with their general industry and literary tastes. Sim- plicity of design pervades all operations, and when a machine directs in the best known manner the power of the hand which M'ields it, or aids in executing tiresome operations, its purpose is considered to be fully answered, for it was intended to assist and not to supplant human labor. Yet with all their simplicity some of them are both effectual and ingenious, and not a few are made to answer two or thi-ee ends. For example, the bel- lows, an oblong' box divided into two compartments, and worked by a piston and two valves in the upper, which forces the wind into the lower part and out of the nozzle, is used by the travelling tinker as a seat when at woi'k and a chest for iiis tools when his woi-k is done ; though it does not, indeed, serve all these purposes with efliciency. In the arts of metallurgy the Chinese have attained only to mediocrity, and on the whole do not equal the Japanese. To this deficiency may perhaps be ascribed their little progress in some other branchet^ which could not be executed without tools CONDITION OF THE MECHANICAL ARTS. 19 of peculiar size or nicety. Mines of iron, lead, coppei', and zinc are worked, though the modes employed in digging the ore, preparing and smelting it, and purifying the metals have not yet been fully examined. Gold is used sparingly for orna- ments, but is consumed in vast quantities for gilding ; gold thread is commonly imported, and the ingots are known only as bullion. Mi'. Gordon found the people in the country parts of Fuhkien quite ignorant of its value, for lie could only pass doubloons for a dollar apiece, the natives having never seen them before. The Chinese workmanship in chased, repousse, and carved work of gold and silver — baskets, card-cases, teapots, combs, etc. — is almost unequalled. Their jewelry, too, admirably ex- hibits the delicate filigree work which agrees so well with their genius. Flower-baskets wnth chased flowers and figures of various sorts enamelled on the outside of the open work of wire, and set with precious stones, may perhaps be regarded as the masterpiece of native art in the working of metals. Steel is everywhere manufactured in a rude way, but the foreign importation is gradually supplying a better article. The quality of this metal made is best shown by the carvings in the hardest stones for ornaments, which have never been exceeded elsewhere. Iron is cast into thin plates and various machines of considerable size, but the largest pieces they make, viz., bells and cannon, are small compared with the shafts and steam- hammers turned out abroad. Wrought iron is chiefly woi-ked up into nails, screws, hinges, and small articles needed in daily life, though its quality is remarkably good. The jWi tung, argentan or ' white copper' of the Chinese, is an alloy of cop- per 40.4, zinc 25.4, nickel 81.6, and iron 2.6, and occasionally a little silver ; these proportions are nearly the same as Ger- man-silver. " When in a state of ore, it is said to be powdered, mixed with charcoal dust, and placed in jars over a slow fire, the metal rising in the form of vapor in a distilling apparatus, and afterward condensed in water." ' When new, this alloy ap- • Davis' Chinese, Vol. II. , p. 235. Penny Cydopcedia, Art. Coppeb. Natalia Rondot, Commerce de la Chine, 1849, p. 142. 30 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. pears as lustrous as silv^er, and is uuiTiufactured into incense- jars, flower-stands for temple service, boxes, a vast variety of fancy articles, and a few liouseliold utensils not intended to be used near tlie fire. Puzzling specimens of work are made of it, sucb as teapots enclosed in chinaware and ornamented with a handle and a spout of stone, and having characters on the sides. The white copper varies a good deal in its appear- ance and malleability, owing probably to mixtures added after distillation. Copper is less used than iron for culinary vessels, but will probably increase as rapid importation diminishes the cost, for iron rusts quickly in the southern parts. The manufactures of gongs, cymbals and trumpets, lamps, brass-leaf for working into the hin kwa, or tinsel-flowers used in worship, and the copper coin of the country, consume probably four fifths of all the copper used. The gong is employed on all occasions, and its piercing clamor can be heard at any time of day and night, especially if one lives near the water. It is an alloy of twenty parts of tin with eighty of copper, and is made b}"" melting one hundred catties of hung tung, or ' red copper,' with twenty-five catties of tin. The alloy is run into thin plates, and the gongs are made by long and expert hammering until the requisite sonorousness is obtained. Bells and tripods are frequently cast of a large size. The bells at Peking (mentioned in Volume I., p. 79) are peculiarly rich in quality of tone ; they are almost invariably made with- out tongues, being sounded with a mallet. The tripods for receiving the ashes of papers consumed in worship also bear inscriptions of a religious character ; the priests of temples con- taining them take great pride in showing their ancient bells, tripods, and other like rarities. The pieces of bronze formerly produced under the patronage of the Emperor Ivienlung, as incense tripods, lions, astronomical instruments, and the infinite variety of ornaments, probably represent their highest attain- ments in this branch of metallurgy for beauty and excellence. The metallic miri-ors, once the oidy reflectors the Chinese manufactured, are now nearly supei-seded by glass ; the alloy is like that of gongs with a little silver added. These mirrors CHINESE ATTAINMENTS IN METALLURGY. 21 have long been remarkable for a singular property which some of them possess of reflecting the raised characters or device on the back when held in the sun ; this is caused by their outline being traced upon the polished surface in very shallow lines, the whole plate being afterward rubbed until the lines are equally bi;ight with the other parts, and only rendered visible by the strongest sunlight.' Besides the metallic articles already men- tioned, the ornamental and antique bronze and copper figures, noticeable fur their curious forms and fine polishing and tracery, afford the best specimens of Chinese art in imitating the hu- man figure. They are mostly statuettes, representing men, gods, birds, monsters, etc., in grotesque shapes and attitudes ; some of them are beautifully ornamented with delicate scrolls and flowers in niello work of silver or gold wire inserted into grooves cut in the metal. The manufacture of glass is carried on chiefly at Canton, and its increasing use for windows, tumblers, lamps, mirrors, and other articles of household furniture, shows that the Chinese are quite ready to adopt such things from foreign countries as they find to be advantageous. The importation of broken glass for remelting has entirely ceased, but flints are carried from England for the use of glass-blowers. The furnaces are small, and from the ignorance, on the part of the workmen, of the constituents of good glass, their products are not uniform. Foreign window glass is now brought so cheaply that the native inferior article, which distorts objects seen through it, is disap- pearing ; colored articles and chandeliers are still made. The most finished articles which the Chinese have yet produced are ground shades for Argand lamps. Beautiful ornaments are made of the liao-ll, the old native name for a vitreous com- position like strass, between glass and porcelain. Ear-rings, wristlets, snuff-bottles, jars, cups, etc., are made of it, plain, colored, and variegated, in vast variety. Some of these articles exhibit different tints in layers, each layer being ground away w'here it is not wanted, as in cameo carving ; blue, red, and yel- ' Other and perhaps more correct explanations of this peculiarity have been given. 22 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. low are the prevailing colors. The art of producing it has been known longer than glass-making, but was invented later than that of porcelain. The cutting and setting of liard and precious stones is carried on to some extent. Spectacles are cut and ground in lathes from crystal, smoky quartz, and a variety of rose quartz resem- bling the cairngorm-stone, which the Chinese call cha-tsing^ or ' tea-stone,' from its color. Their spectacles are not always true, and the wearer is obliged to have tliem ground away until his eyes are suited. The pebble is cut in a lathe, by a wire-saw working in its own dust, into a round shape Avitli plane edges. When worn, the rim rests upon the cheek-bones; the frame has a hinge between the glasses, and the machine is sometimes kept on the ears b}' loops or weights. Foreign-shaped specta- cles are supplanting these primitive optics, but the prejudice is still in favor of crystal. The cutting of diamonds is sometimes attempted, but it is not a favorite gem among the Chinese. Diamonds and corundums are both employed to drill holes in clamping and mending broken glass and porcelain ; tumblers, jars, etc., are joined so securelj'' in this way without cement as to hold fluids. Both these gems are used to cut glass, but another mode, not unconnnon, is to grease the place to be fractured, and slowly follow the line along by a lighted joss- stick until it breaks. Sir John Davis condensed all the important information known half a centur}' ago concerning the materials and manu- facture of porcelain in his valuable work, but great advance has since been made in a better understanding of this branch of Chinese industry. The wordj)o?'ccla/'}i is derived h'on\ p<»\'el- lana, which was given to the ware by the Portuguese under the belief that it was made from the fusion of egg-shells and fish's glue and scales to reseml)le the nacre of sea-shells (Cypr?ea) or porcellana. This instance of oft-hand nomenclature is like that of the Chinese calling ca,outchouc elephmifs skin horn its appearance. M. Julien's translation of the Klmj-teh chin Tun Luh (Paris, 1856) furnishes the native accounts of the porcelain manufac- tures at Kingteh chin, in Kiangsi, and adds so nmch from MATERIALS AXD M ANrKACTUIlE OF I'OIICKLAIX. 23 other sources that his work is a veritable classic in its special branch. He places the invention of porcelain between b.c. 185 and A.D, 85, and opening the first kiln, at Sinping (not far from the present centre of llonan province), nnder the reign of Changti of the Eastern Ilan dynasty. From this the manu- facture gradually extended as raw materials were found in other localities, especially in Fauliang, on the eastern shores of the Poyang Lake, where the best ware is still made. A second preface to this work, written by M. Salvetat, of the manufac- tory at Sevres, gives the details of the introduction of the art into Europe about 1722, and the subsequent improvement to the time when European Avares far exceeded the Chinese or Japanese for beauty. During the dreadful ravages of the Tai- ping rebellion the manufactories at Kingteh were all stopped. A very brief epitome of M. Salvetat's paper will indicate the ingredients of porcelain and their manipulation : Two sub- stances enter into all kinds of this ware ; one a strong, infusible material which endures great heat, and the other, fusible at a low temperature, which communicates its transparency to the other as they together pass through the furnace. The first of these is called Ixiolin, fi-om the name of a range of hills east of Kingteh chin, known as Kao Lituj or ' High Ridge,' a word that has been adopted in Europe as a term for all varieties of the argillaceous or feldspathic components of porcelain. The other is known as jx'h-tun-tss'', a Chinese term properly applied to the bricks of prepared silex, called tun, but now generally adopted to denote the fusible element. The discovery near Taochau fu of both of these in great purity led to the establish- ment of the kilns there in a.d. 583 ; and Chinese artists dis- criminate many varieties of each. It is apparently only since A.D. 1000, or thereabouts, that these kilns have produced the choice pieces now^ so highly prized. The kaolin comes from decomposed granite, and is reduced by trituration and several washings to an impalpable powder ; this last precipitate is put on cloths, one above another, and dried under slight pressure to a uniform paste ready for the furnace. The a^ka?- oi j>eh-Ui n-Uz' are prepared in a similar man- ner ; other workmen mix the clay and the quartz— the bones 24 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. and the flesh, as thej are aptly called bv the Chinese — in such proportions as the ware requires. In general, Chinese porce- lain is more silicious than European, containing 70 parts of silex, 22 of alumine, G of potash and soda, with traces of lime, man- ganese, magnesia, and iron. Sevres ware has 58 silex, 34^ alu- mine, 3 alkali, and 4^ lime ; as the feldspar decreases the beauty of the ware diminishes, but its durability and usefulness increase. To make ready the paste for the furnace, the Ijricks of both ingredients are trodden in a large basin by buffaloes or men till they are well mixed into a watery mass, which is then worked and kneaded again on slate slabs in small pieces till it is deliv- ered into the hands of workmen to be fashioned on lathes and frames into the desired forms and sizes. These craftsmen work with very simple machinery, as is apparent from the rude draw- ings of their operations. M. Salvetat gives high praise to their skill in producing large jars without the aid of the machinery used in Europe, and indicates the great use they make of their feet in these operations — a feature of all Asiatic artisans which attracts the traveller's notice wherever he goes. Some of their procedures are inferior and ruder than the Japanese potters ex- hibit, but space does not allow them to be described in this sketch. The glazing on Chinese ware contains silex mixed with lime and the ashes of burnt ferns, in such proportions as are found suitable for the diiferent varieties. During the mixing of these ingredients the ashes are mostly eliminated, and the glazing really consists of quartz flexed by carbonate of lime. The liquid glaze is applied to the biscuit by dipping, by aspersion, and by washing, according to the nature of the ware ; sometimes it is blown through a tube in a dewy shower oft repeated. When ready for the furnace, the pieces are carried to work, men specially skilled in properly firing them, where the differ- ent sizes are placed in ovens particularly fitted to bake each kind. Large jars require a separate oven so as to adapt the fire to their size and thickness, continuing it at a uniform blast for several days. Cups and small pieces are baked one on top of another in smaller ovens, some of which are open and others closed. Coal and wood are both used for fuel. The pieces are STYLES AND MATERIALS OF PORCELAIN DECORATION. 2.1 taken from the furnaces when successfully baked, to be decor- ated and colored in all the various hues and pictures which have made Chinese porcelain so much sought after. Some of their ground colors of red, yellow, and green have not been equalled elsewhere ; a careful analysis indicates the presence of the oxides of copper, cobalt, iron, lead, antimony, and manganese. Some of the rarest and most beautiful tints seem to have been the result of happy experiment, the knowledge of which died with its manufacture. It is not often that the Chinese artist adorns his plaque or jar with mythological or religious charac- ters, preferring to let his fancy run riot in grotesque combi- nations of natural scenes, amid which, however, the unerring instinct or tlie accumulated experience of many successive gen- erations seldom permit him to wander from a truly artistic conception. The amount of labor devoted to some minute treasure of porcelain decoration is little short of fabulous. Mr. Matthew x\rnold"s picture of the "cunning workman" who Pricks with vermilion some clear porcelain vase, An emperor's gift — at early morn lie paints, And all day long, and when night comes, the lamp Lights up his studious forehead and thin hands, could probably be seen scores of times in the humbler quarters of great cities in China. Their ignorance of analytical chemistry compels them to fol- low a rule of thumb in the composition of their colors ; but generally they use oxide of copper for green and bluish greens, gold for reds, oxide of cobalt for blues, of antimony for yellows, and of arsenic and tin for whites. The preparation and appli- cation of these materials admit of less scope and beauty than are found on the finest European ware, and their result is more like enamelling than painting. M. Salvetat admits that the Chinese potter has excelled in producing craqii^ele ware, and cei'tain hues, as sea-green, deep rosedon reds, and brilliant blues, which have not been equalled in Europe. One elegant mode of ornament peculiar to them is seen in the tao-mhi(j ts3'-Vi, lit., 'clear, bright porcelain,' called eyelet-hole ware or grains of rice, made in the reign Kienlung. The paste 36 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. is cut throiigli by a kind of stamp wliich takes out enougii to form tlie figui'c, in which the glaze is inserted before the piece is tinally joined and ready for the kihi. When tired the glaze becomes transparent ; different patterns are frequently painted on the two surfaces, in wliich advantage is taken of the eyelet- holes to adapt them to two sets of iigures. An instance of mechanical skill is occasionally seen in their articulated vases, in which one jar is baked inside of another, the outer one being perforated so as to show off the object within; the baking of such pieces must be very difficult and uncertain. The ware sold at Canton for foreign use is painted in that city to suit the caprice of purchasers, and during the present century has become identified abroad witli Chinese art, wdiile it is really a combination of two or three styles. Its peculiarity consists in covering the dish with medallions and vignettes in bright colors, containing figures of heroes, arms, birds, etc., or scenes oti a colored or white ground. Such ware is not com- monly nsed by the Chinese, but its manufacture is unhappily beginning to affect their national taste. This style is quite dif- ferent from the well-known blue willow pattern which has long been regarded as the real CdeHtlal ware. This color does mark the common pottery and stoneware used all over the Empire by the poor, but the pattern is not so common. It is not possible to enter here into all the niceties of this subject, which is now attracting great attention, and has been examined by Jacqnemart, Prime, Young, and many others. Further researches into native and foreign books and collections will bring out new facts, legends, and specimens, while we may look for rare old pieces, as has been the case with the discovery of the small perfume bottles in Egypt, as soon as full liberty is given over all Asia to seek and dig. Besides table furniture, porcelain statuettes and idols are common, and vases often bring extravagant prices, owing to some quality of fineness, coloring, antiquity, or shape, which native connoisseurs can only appreciate. The god of porcelain liimself is usually made of this material. D'Entrecolles, in his account of the manufacture of the ware, says that this deity owes his divinity to his self-innnolation in one of the furnaces. CHINESE BOTTLES DISCO V EKED IN EGYPT. 27 in utter despair at being able to accomplish the Emperor's or~ ders for the production of some vases of peculiar fineness ; the pieces which came out of the furnace after the wretch was burned pleased his Majesty so much that he deified him. Cheap stoneware is made at Shaukinii;, in Kwangtung, and many other places, some of it very pure and white. The exportation of })orcelain has formed a ver}^ ancient branch of commerce westward, and it is not strange that speci- mens should occasionally be met with even at a great distance from China. The discovery of Chinese bottles in Egypt and Asia Minor, containing quotations from Chinese poets, shows 'that intercourse existed between the extremes of Asia in the tenth or eleventh centuries. Rosellini seems to have been the earliest to notice these relics of an ancient trade, during his re- searches in Egypt in 1828, when he obtained two or three. In a letter written in reply to one from Sir J. F. Davis, he states that he found one of these little bottles in a " petit panier tissn de feuilles de palmier," with other objects of Egyptian manu- facture, in a tomb, whose date he places between b.c. 1800 and 1100. His words are, " Ayant penetre dans un de ces trois tombeaux j'y ai trouve," etc., which is as explicit as possible. He also adds, that many fragments of similar bottles had been of- fered to liim by the peasants, which he had looked upon as quite modern till this discovery showed that they were real antiques. Since then, several more have been picked up ; Dr. Abbott's Egyptian collection in Kew York contains seventeen, all of which came from Egypt, but none, besides llosellini's, out of a tomb directly into the hands of an Egyptologist. Layard and Cesnola bought similar bottles in Cj'prus and Arban. However, one well-authenticated fact, like that of llosellini's discovery, gives some evidence of a similar ancient origin to others pre- cisely like it in shape, coloring, and inscriptions, for the trade between Arabia and Egypt to China has long since ceased ; but as fifty years have passed without another bottle occuri'ing in any of the numerous tombs opened by careful and competent persons, one is inclined to think that Ttosellini's tomb may have been twice used to bury mummies in, or that he mistook its age. 28 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. The inscriptions ;inJ style of writing of five different kinds have been engraved, and Sir Walter H. Medhnrst gives a trans- lation of each, tracing the lines to their original authors. One of them is from AV' ang Wai (a.d. 702-745), and reads, JSLlng yueh sung chung chao, ' The bright moon shines amidst the firs.' A second i-eads, Chlh isai Uz' shan chung, ' Only in the midst of these mountains,' and it dates a.d. 831-837. A third is contracted from a line b}^ Wei Ying-wuh (a.d. 702-795), being part of a stanza of eight lines, as follows: IIivo lal ijta yih nien, ' The flowers open, and lo, another year ! ' A fourth dates from a.d. 1068-1085, and is from the famous poet Su Tung-po : Hang hioa hung sJiih 11, 'The apricot flowers bloom for miles around ; ' this is abridged from a distich in penta- meter as follows : One mass of color, the apricot flowers bloom for miles around ; The successful graduate urges on his steed as if flying. . Sir John Davis ascribes this inscription to a Chinese song written prior to the Christian eia, but gives no proof of so early a date, and he is probably in error. The fifth inscription is of the same date as the last ; it forms part of a quatrain by Chao Yung, and reads, Liao teh shaojhi eld, ' Which few, I ween, can compre- hend.' In Prime's work on pottery he has given fac-similes of five bottles whose inscriptions are the same as those explained by Medhnrst ; his No. 142 and Xo. 14G is the second in this list ; his Xo. 143 is the first ; his 144 is the third ; and his 145 is the fifth and is different in shape from the others. The char- acters on the one found at Arban by Layard are wi'itten in a very cursive style.' The age and origin of these bottles lias excited much inquiry, l)ut the weight of evidence points to their having been taken to Egypt and Arabia by the Arabs who traded at Canton and Ilangchau down to the end of the Sung dynasty in 1278. They were, as AVilkinson suggests in his Ancient Kgijpthin^, prob- ably used by the purchasers to hold Void, to paint the eyes and ' Davis' Sketches, Vol. II., pp. 72-84. Medhurst's Ohinn, p. 135. Julien's His- toire de la Porcelain Ohinow', pp. xi-xxii. Prime's Pottery and Porcelain^ p. 232. N. G. Br. R. A. S. Tranmctions, 1852, pp. 34-40 ; 1854, p. 93. INSCRIPTIONS UPON THE BOTTLES. 2l3 eyelids of women ; their original use was probably to liokl pep- permint and other oils, bandoline and tooth-powders, though snuff is now generally carried in them, as glass bottles contain the essences and oils seen in shops. The uniformity in size, shape, coloring, and decoration in these bottles indicates that the trade was rather confined to one port in China, for at present a vast variety in all these particulars would be seen, as I ascer- tained some years ago at Canton when unsuccessfully looking in the shops for some having inscriptions like those discovered in Egypt. Mr. Fortune found one having the same inscription as Xo. 2, and Sir Harry Pai-kes came across three others, but their rarity now proves the change ; and these were probably real antiques. The latter found two other inscriptions on similar bottles in China, whose authors lived a.d. 584 and later; and argues against their high antiquity from the metre having been introduced in later times. The strongest proof of their modern origin is the material and the date of the style of writing, neither of which could have been prior to the Han dynasty if Chinese records are Avorth anything ; such simple lines as these five could indeed have been handed down and adopted by later poets from lost authors, but this possibility weighs nothing against the others. The more antiquarian researches extend in Asia, however, the more shall we find that the books and inscriptions now extant do not contain the earliest dates of in- ventions and travels. The cheap pottery of the Chinese resembles the Egyptian ware in color and brittleness, but is less porous when unglazed. Tea-kettles, pans, plates, teapots, and articles of household use, bathing-tubs, immense jars, comparable to hogsheads, for liold- ing water, fancy images, statuettes, figurines, toys, flower-pot >, and a thousand other articles are everywhere burned from clay and sold at extremely low prices. The jars are used in shops to contain liquids, powders, etc. ; in gardens to keep fish, collect rain, and receive manure and offal ; and in boats and houses for the same purposes that barrels, ])ails, and pans are put to else- where. "Water will boil sooner and a dish of vegetables be cooked more expeditiously in one of these earthen pots than in metal ; the caloric seems to permeate the clay almost as soon as 30 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. it is over the fire. Druni-shaped stools and garden seats, vitru- vian ornaments for balustrades, fanciful llower-pots in the shape of buffaloes, representing the animal feeding under the shade of a tree growing out of its body, lishes, dragons, phoinixes, and other objects for decorating the ridges and for gargoyles are manufactured of this ware. Flat ligures of the human form are set into frames to represent groups of persons, or elegantly shaped characters are arranged into sentences, both of them to put on the walls of rooms, making altogether a great variety of purposes to which this material is applied. The lacquered-ware peculiar to China and Japan owes its histre to the prepared sap of a kind of sumach {IlJius verniei- fera) cultivated in both countries for this purpose. AVood oils are obtained from other plants, such as the C'urcas, Augia, J^Jleococcus, and lihus semi-alatus^ and the different qualities of lacquered-ware are owing to the use of these inferior ingredients. The real varnish-tree is described bv De Guiiiiies as resemblini»; the ash in its foliage and bark ; it is about tif teen feet in height, and when seven j-ears old furnishes the sap, which is carefully collected in the summer nights from incisions cut in the truidv. It comes to market in tubs holding the cakes, and those who collect it are careful to cover their faces and hands from contact with this irritating juice as they prepare it for market. A good yield of a thousand ti-ees in one night would be twenty pounds avoirdupois weight of sap. The best sort is tawny rather than white in its inspissated state, and is kept well protected from the air by tarred paper. The body of lacquered- ware is usually seasoned pine, well smoothed, and the grooves covered with hempen lint or paper. A sizing of pig's gall, often mixed with very fine sand, makes a priming. The prepared lacquer is composed of the sap dissolved in spring-water, adding ground-nut oil, pig's gall, and rice vinegar in the sunshine with broad flat brushes till it is thoroughly mixed. The principal object in preparing the wood is to cover it with a priming that wall receive the lac(]uer and remain impervious to changes in temperature. This preparation varies a good deal according to the quality of tlie ware ; it is laid on evenly, coat after coat, allowing each to dry before the next is spread. UlANUFACTUKE OF LACQUEKED-WARE. 81 The last coating is rubbed with puiuice or the finest sandstone, finishing this priming with ;i .smooth piece of slate. When ready the piece is taken into a close room having paper lattices and shut out from any air, where it receives a coating of clear lacquer. It is then put into a dark room to dry. The opera- tion is repeated ten or fifteen times for the best kinds. Some workmen are so sensitive to the liquid lacquer that they can- not safely do this part of the manufacture ; others go through all the processes without annoyance. Coloring matter to give the lacquer a brown hue, or to make an imitation of ven- turuia (or aventui'lne^ a brownish glass spangled throughout with copper filings) by mixing gold leaf, is added during these operations. The gilding is performed by another set of workmen in a large workshop. The figures of the design are drawn on thick paper, which is then pricked all over to allow the powdered chalk to fall on the table and form the outline. Anotlier workman completes the picture by cutting the lines with a burin or needle, and filling them with vermilion mixed in lacquer, as tliick as needed. This afterward is covered by means of a hair- pencil with gold in leaf, or in powder laid on with a dossil ; the gold is often mixed with fine lampblack. The proper lacquer is seldom used otherwise than in making this ware. The Chi- nese term for UiU includes this and all kinds of oils and paints, so that some confusion arises in describing their materials.' A beautiful fabric of lacquered- ware is made by inlaying the nacre of fresh and salt-water shells in a rough mosaic of fiowers, ani- mals, etc., into the composition, and then varnishing it. Another highly prized kind is made by covering the wood with a coat- ing of fine powdered cinnabar and varnish three or four lines in thickness, and then carving figures upon it in relief. The great labor necessary to produce this ware renders it expensive, and it is not now produced. The oils obtained from the nuts of other trees by simple pressure and by refining them afterward are quite numerous. ' N. Rondot, Commerce (le la Chine, p. 120 ; Journal Asuttique, IV. Series, Tome XI., 184y, pp. 34-05 ; Clduene Commercial Cruidc, 5th Ed., p. 134. 32 THE MIDDLE KINGDOSI. The details of their manufacture and application may yet fur- nish many new hints and processes to western arts. The oil of the Eleococcus, after pressing (according to De Guignes), is boiled with Spanish white in the proportion of one ounce to half a pound of oil ; as it begins to thicken it is taken off and poured into close vessels. It dissolves in turpentine and is used as a varnish, either clear or mixed with different colors ; it defends woodwork from injury for a long time, and forms a good paint- er's oil. Boiled with iron rust it forms a reddish brown var- nish. In order to prevent its penetrating into the wood when used clear, and to increase the lustre, a priming of lime and hog's blood simmered together into a paste is previously laid on. The manufacture of silk is original among the Chinese, as well as those of porcelain and lacquered-ware, and in none of these have foreigners yet succeeded in fully equalling the na- tive products. The notices of the cultivation of the nmlberry and the rearing of silk-worms found in Chinese works have been industriously collected and published by M. Julien by order of the French government — another instance of the intelligent care of this nation to aid one of its great indus- tries. The introduction by M. Beauvais indicates certain })oints worthy of the notice of cultivators ; it has been remarked that the hints thus obtained from Julien's translation have been of more value to the peoj)le employed in silk culture in France than all that has been paid by the govei-nment for the promo- tion of Chinese literature from their first outlay in tlie last century. The earliest notice in the SJuo Kimj of silk culture occurs in the Yu Kiing. It is said the mulberry grounds were made fit for silk-worms, when speaking of the draining of Yen Chau (parts of Shantung and Cliihli), as if it was an usual culture ; other references to silk in the same book show it to have been a well-known fabric at that date (n.c. 2204). The allusion, there- fore, in the Book of Odes to silks of many sorts also strengthen the notice in the Wei li'i^ which says : Slling shi, the Empress of Hwangtl, began to rear silk-worms : At this period Hwangti invented the art of making clotliing. ORIGIN AND IMPOUTANCE OP^ THE SILK INDUSTRY. 33 This legend carries tlie art back to u.r. 2600, or perhaps five centuries after the Deluge. Siling is said to have been her birthplace, and Lui Tsu her right name ; she was deified and is still worshipped as the goddess of silk under the name of Yuenf i. In this act, as De Guignes observes, the Chinese resemble other ancient nations in ascribing the invention of spinning to women, and deifying them ; thus the Egj-ptian Isis, the Ljdian Arachne, and the Gi-ecian Athene also handled the distaff. A temple called the Sten-tsaii Tao exists in the palace grounds dedicated to Yuenfi, wherein she is worshipped annually in April by the Empress. The altar, grounds, sacrifices, ritual, and buildings are all in imitation of those in the Temple of Agriculture, of which they are a counterpart. The Book of Rites contains a notice of the festival held in honor of weaving, which corre- sponds to that of ploughing by the Emperor. " In the last month of spring the young Empress purified herself and offered a sacrifice to the o:oddess of silk-worms. She went into the east- ern fields and collected mulberry leaves. She forbade noble dames and the ladies of statesmen adorning themselves, and ex- cused her attendants from their sewing and embroider}-, in order that they might give all their care to the rearing of silk- worms." The present enclosure was put up by Yungching in 17-12, but its buildings are now much dilapidated. The attention of the Chinese government to this important branch of industry has been unremitted, and at this day it sup- plies perhaps one-half of all the gai'tnents worn by the people. In the paraphrase to the fourth maxim of the Shing Yu, it is remarked : " In ancient times emperors ploughed the lands and empresses cultivated the mulberiy. Though the most honora- ble, they did not disdain to toil and labor, as examples to the whole Empire, in order to induce all the people to seek these essential supports." One-half of the lllastrations of Agricul- ture and Weaving are devoted to delineating the various pro- cesses attending this manufacture ; and Julien quotes more than twenty works and authors on this subject. Among other uses to which this material is put, may be remembered, in the second chapter of this work, the burning of many thousand pieces of plain, coarse silk as part of the offerings to the gods Vol. II— 3 34 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. at Peking, and in the annual sacrifices before the tablets of Confucius. ' AVhile the worms are growing, care is taken to keep them undisturbed bj either noise or bright light; they are often changed from one hurdle to another that they may have roomy and cleanly places ; the utmost attention is paid to their condition and feeding, and noting the right time for preparing them for spinning cocoons. Three days are required for this, and in six it is time to stifle the larvae and reel the silk from the cocoons ; but this being nsnally done by other workmen, those who rear the worms enclose the cocoons in a jar buried in the ground and lined with mats and leaves, interlaying them with salt, which kills the pnpfe but keeps the silk supple, strong, and lustrous ; preserved in this manner, they can be transported to any dis- tance, or the reeling of the silk can be delayed until convenient. Another mode of destroying the cocoons is to spread them on trays and expose them by twos to the steam of boiling water, putting the upper in the place of the lower one according to the degree of heat they are in, taking care that the chrysalides are killed and the silk not injured. After exposure to steam the silk can be reeled off immediately, but if placed in the jars they must be put into warm water to dissolve the glue before the floss can be unwound. The commission sent from France to China in 1844 to make inquiries into its industries consisted of skilled men, and their reports embody a great amount of details nowhere else to be found. The digested catalogue of the exhibits of M. Iledde at St. Etienne in 1848 contains four hundred and flfty-three ar- ticles relating to silk and mulberry alone. The amount of silk goods exported has never regained its value previous to 1854, in consequence of the destruction of skilled workmen and manufac- tories during the Tai-|)ing rebellion, and raw silk still forms the bulk of the export. The finest silk comes from Chehkiang province, and is known as tsatli,, tay-saam, and yuenhwa in com- ' Julien, Culturer des Muriers, 1837 ; Pauthier, Chine Moderne, p. 21; Hedde, Cat(tlo(pu' (JcH Prodvits Serigenes, 1848, pp. 100-287; Chinese Fepos/ton/, Vol. XVIII,, pp. :K)8-;314 ; Commercial Guide, 5th Ed., p. 136 ; Mailla, Ilistoire de la Chine, Tome I., p. 24 ; Biot, Tcheon-li, passim, 1851. REARING AND TltKATMENT OF SILK- WORMS. 85 merce ; the centre of the culture is at Ilii-chau, a pi-efecture in the northwest of that province. The mulberry grows every- where, and none of the provinces are without some silk, but Kwangtung, Sz'chuen, and Chehkiang furnish the best and most. Great attention is paid in Shantung, Sz'chuen, and Kwei- chau to collecting wild silk from the cocoons of worms which feed on the ailantus, oak, and xanthoxylum. The insect is the Attacus ei/nthia, and its food the tender leaves of the ailantus and Quercus mongholica in Shantung, where great quantities of durable silk is woven. It is not so lustrous as that produced by the bombyx-worm, which feeds on the mulberry leaf, and com- paratively little is exported. The proportion of manufactured silks sent abroad is less now than it was fifty years ago, but the h ome c onsu mption is so enormous that an annual export to the value of nearly ninety millions of dollars has little effect on the prices. In 1854 the price of the best raw silk was about $330 a bale, and the expoi-t over fifty-one thousand bales ; in 1860, the sanie sort was $550, and the export nearly eighty thousand bales ; this increase in price was owing chiefly to disease in the trees in Europe, though the ravages of war in both Chehkiang and Kwangtung had destroyed much property in this branch. The loom in China is worked by two hands, one of whom sits on the top of the frame, where he pulls the treadles and assists in changing the various j^arts of the machine. The workmen imitate almost any pattern, excelling particularl}' in crapes, and flowered satins and damasks for oflficial dresses. The common people wear pongee and senshaw, which they fre- quently dye in gambler to a dust or black color ; these fabrics constitute most durable garments. Many of the delicate silk tissues known in Europe are not manufactured by the Chinese, most of their fabrics being heavy. The lo, or law, is a beauti- ful article like grenadine and seldom sent abroad ; it is used for summer robes, muscpiito curtains, festoons, and other pur- poses. The English words .satin, .senshaw, and sill' are prob- ably derived from the Chinese terms sz'-twan, sien-sha, and sz\ intermediately through other languages. 36 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. The skill of the Chinese in embroidery is well known, and the demand for such work to adorn the dresses of officers and ladies of every rank, for ornamenting purses, shoes, caps, fans, and other appendages of the dress of both sexes, and in working shawls, table covers, etc., for exportation, furnishes employment to myriads of men and women. The fj'ame is placed on pivots and the pattern marked out upon the plain surface. There are many styles, with thread, braid, or floss, and an infinite variety in the quality, pattern, and beauty of the work ; it is the art of Chinese women, and every young lady is expected to know how to do it. (3n fire screens the design ap- pears the same on both sides, the ends of the threads being neatly concealed. This mode of embroidery seems also to have been known among the Hebrews, from the expression in De- borah's song (Judges V. 30), "Of divers colors of needle-work on both sides," which Sisera's mother vainly looked for him to bring home as spoil for her. Books are prepared for emljroid- erers containing patterns for their imitation or combination. The silk used is of the finest kind and colqr, gold and silver thread being introduced to impart a lusti'e to the figures on caps, purses, and shoes. Tassels and twisted cords for sedans or lanterns, knobs or buttons worn on the winter caps, and ele- gant fan and pipe-cases, purses or fobs, constitute only a few of the products of their needles. Spangles are made from brass leaves by cutting out a small ring by means of a double- edged stamp, which at one drive detaches from the sheet a wheel-shaped circle ; these are flattened by a single stroke of the hammer upon an anvil, leaving a minute hole in the centre. Another way of making them is to bend a copper wire into a circle and flatten it. Their own needles are very slender, and are rapidl}' giving way to the foreign article ; in sewing the tailor holds it between the forefinger and thumb, pressing against the thimble on the thumb as he pushes it into the cloth. Our ascertaining the date of the introdnctioii of cotton as a textile plant into China depends very nmch on the meaning of certain words rendered eofton. by some amiotators in the Slia King. The weight of proof is, however, strongly adverse to this view ; but a historical notice dated about a.d. 500 plainly COTTON-GROWING AND MANUFACTURE. 37 refers to cotton robes ; in a.d. G70 it was called by a foreign name kih-pei, a contracted foi"m of the Sanscrit name harjya-n. The present name of nuen-hwa^ or ' cotton Hower,' was natu- rally given to it from the resemblance of its seed envelope to the silky covering of the seeds of the muh-iriien shu^ or tree cotton {Boniba.i'), common in Southern China. It was, how- ever, one thing to admire cotton cloth brought as tribute, and quite another to introduce cotton-growing into China, which does not seem to have been attempted until the Sung dynasty. Early in the eleventh century the plant was brought over and cultivated in the northwestern provinces by persons from Khoten, where it M'as grown. If this tardy adoption seems difficult to explain, the still slower introduction of silk-growing (in A.D. 550) into Asia Minor from Cliina, twelve centuries after her fabrics had been seen there, is more surprising. The opposition to cotton cultivation on the part of silk and hemp growers was so persistent that the plant had not fairly won its way into favor until the Yuen dynasty ; and this was owing to a public-spirited woman, Lady Hwang, who distributed seeds throughout Kiangnan, now the great cotton region. The duvable cotton cloth made in the central provinces, called nankeen by foreigners, because Kanking is famous for its manufacture, is the chief produce of Chinese looms. It is now seldom sent out of the country, and the natives are even taking to the foreign fabric in its stead. Cotton seed in that part of China is sown early in June, about eighty pounds to an acre ; in a good year the produce is about two tliousand pounds, diminishing to one-half in poor seasons. It is manured with liquid bean-cake, often hoed, and the bolls gathered in October, usually by each family in its own plot. The seeds are sepa- rated by passing the pods between an iron and wooden roller on a frame, which presses out the seeds and does not break them. The cleaned cotton is then bowed ready for spinning, and the cloth is woven in sinq^le looms by the people who are to wear it after it is dyed blue. The looms used in weaving cotton vary from twelve to sixteen inches in M'idth ; they are sim- ple in their construction ; no figures are woven in cotton fabrics, nor have the Chinese learned to print them as chintz or calico. 38 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. Whether the varied articles from the west now brought intc close competition with this primitive Chinese manufacture will finally captivate the consumer's choice, and neutralize its pro- duction, depends chiefly on what can be substituted therefor. At present, such is the extent of the native crop that prices would not probably advance ten per cent, if the whole foreign importa- tion of raw and manufactured cotton should suddenly stop. The only attempt to estimate the product has been in Kiangnan, at The Cobbler and his Movable Workshop. twenty-eight thousand five hundred tons, a figure below rather than above the truth." Leather is used to protect the felt soles of shoes and make saddles, bridles, quivers, harness, etc., but the entire consump- tion is small, and the leather extremely poor. Buffalo and horse-hides are tanned for sole leather, and calf-skin for upper leather to supply shoes for foreigners at the ports. Alum, salt- petre, gandjicr, and urine are the tanning materials employed, and the rapid manner in which the process is completed renders the leather both porous and tender. Cobblers go about the streets plying their trade, provided ' Journal N. G. Dr. li. A. 8. (1859); Ghinese Repository, XVIII., pp. 449- 469; N. Rondot, Counnnre de In Oliiiie, 1849, p. 72; Fortune, Wander iiKja, Chap. XIV. (18.47) ; Grosier, Ilidolrc dc la Chine, Toiiiu 111., pp. 193-204. LKATIIEK AND WOOLLEN FABRICS. 39 M'itli a few bits of nankeen, silk, and yellowish sole leather with which to patch their customers' shoes. It is no small conveni- ence to a man, as he passes along the street, to give his old shoe to a cobbler and his ragged jacket to a seamstress, while he calls the barber to shave him as he waits for them ; and such a trio at work for a man is not an unconnnon sight. The chief woollen fabrics produced are felts of different qual- ities and rngs or carpets woven from coarse camel's-hair yarn. Tanned sheep-skins furnish the laboring poor in the northern provinces with clothing, and elsewhere felt supplies them with material for shoes, hats, and carpets. The fulling process is not very thoroughly done, and the fabric soon disintegrates unless protected by matting or cotton. The consumption of the good qualities for hats is large among out-door workmen, who prefer the doubled kind made in the shape of a hollow cycloid, so that it can be turned inside out. Camel's-hair rugs supply a durable and cheap covering for the brick divans and tiled floors in the colder districts, but the thick soles of Chinese shoes obviate the need of additional protection to the feet. Some of these rugs are fine specimens of art in their arrangement of pat- terns and figures in colored woollen yarns, though far inferior to the Persian. Pretty rugs are also made of dog, deer, and fox- skins sewed together in a kind of mosaic. Knitting and orna- mental works in wool are unknown, since the far more elegant and durable embroidery in silk takes the place of these as fancy work amone; dames of hio-h and low deiiiee. o C* O The subject of tea culture and the preparation of its leaf have engaged the attention of writers among the Chinese and Japanese ; while its effects on the human system as a beverage have been discussed most carefully by eminent western chem- ists and pathologists. Its virtue in restoring the energies of the body and furnishing a drink of the gentlest and most salubrious nature has been fully tested in its native land for many cen- turies, and is rapidly becoming known the world over. The following are some of the leading facts relating to the plant and the preparation and nature of the leaf, derived from pei'sonal observation in the country or from the writings of competent observers. 40 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. Tea does not grow in the northern provinces of China and Japan ; its range lies between the twenty-third and thirty-fiftli degrees of latitude, and reaching in longitude from Yedo to Assam. Xo accounts have come to us of the tea shrub being cultivated for its infusion till a.d. 350. The people in different parts of China gave different names to the successive pickings of the leaves, which have now become disused. Our word tea is derived from the common sound of the character for the pla!it at the city of Anioy, where it is tay ; at Canton and Pe- king it is clta, at Shanghai dzo, at Fuhchau ta. The Russians and Portuguese have retained the word cha, the Spanish is te or tay, and the Italians have both te and cha. Tea is so nearly akin to the various species of camellia that the Chinese have only one name for alL The principal difference to the common observer is in the thin leaf of the tea and the leathery glabrous leaf of the beautiful Camellia Japonica. When allowed to grow they both become high trees. The tea flower is small, single, and y white, has no smell, and soon falls; its petals are less erect than the camellia. The seeds are three small nuts, like filberts in color, enclosed in a triangular shell which splits open when ripe, with valves between the seeds. Its taste is oily and bitter. Two species of camellia are cultivated for their oily seeds, the oil being known as tea-oil among the natives ; it is used for lamps and cooking. There is probably only one species of the tea plant, and all the varieties have resulted from culture ; but the Thea vh'idls is most cultivated. The nuts are ripe in October. They are put in a mixture of sand and earth, dampened to keep them fresh till spring ; they generate heat and spoil if not thus separated. In March they are sown in a nursery, and the thrifty shoots transplanted the next year in rows about four feet apart. Leaves are collected when the plant is three years old, and this process is continued annually to a greater or less ex- tent, according to the demand and strength, until the whole bush becomes so weak and diseased that it is j)ulled up for fire- wood to give place to a new shoot. On the average this is about the eighth year. The plants seldom exceed three feet; most of them ai'C half that height, straggling and full of twigs, often covered with lichens, but well hoed and clean around their roots. TEA CULTURE. 4J All tea plantations are mei-ely patches of the shrnbs cared for by small fanners, who cultivate the plants and sell the leaves to middle-men, or more often pick the crop themselves if they can afford to do so. The gi'eat plantation or farm, with its landloi-d and the needy laborer, each class trying to get as nmch as possible out of the other, are unknown in China ; the farmer has not there learned to employ skill, machinery, and capital all for his own advantage, but each farmstead is worked by the family, who i-ather emulate each other in the reputation of their tea. Tea is cultivated on the slopes or bases of hills, where the drainage is quick and the moisture unfailing. This is of more consequence than the ingredients of the soil, but plants so continually depauperated and stripped require rich manure to supply their waste. In Japan the tea shrubs are sometimes grown as a hedge around a garden lot, but such plants are not stripped in this way. In gathering the earliest leaves, the pickers are careful to leave enough foliage at the end of the twigs ; and the spring rains are depended on to stimulate the second and full crop of leaves. When these are scant or fail the tea harvest diminishes, and the regularity of the rains is so essential to a profitable cultivation that it will be one of the causes of failure whei-e everything else in soil, climate, ma- nuring, and manufacture may be fav(;»i"able. The first gathering is the most carefully done, for it goes to make the best sorts of black and green tea ; and as the greatest part of the leaves are still undeveloped, the price must neces- sarilj' be very nmch higher. Such tea has a whitish down, like that on young birch leaves, and is called ijecoe, or ' white hair,' and is most of it sent to England and Russia. In the last cen- tury, the green tea known as Young Ilyson was made of these half -opened leaves picked in April and named from two words meaning ' rains before.' The second gathering varies somewhat according to the latitude — May 15th to June, when the foliage is fullest. This season is looked forward to by women and children in the tea districts as their working time ; they run in crowds to the middle-men, who have bargained for the leaves on the plants, or apply to farmers who have not hands. The aver- age produce is from sixteen to twenty-two ounces of green 42 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. leaves for the healthiest plants, down to ten and eight ounces. The tea when cured is about one-fifth of its first weight, and one thousand square yards will contain about three hundred and fifty plants, each two feet across. They strip the twigs in the most summary manner, and fill their baskets with healthy leaves as they pick out the sticks and yellow leaves, for they are paid in this manner. Fifteen pounds is a good day's work, and six to eight cents is a day's wages. The time for picking lasts only ten or twelve days. There are curing houses, where families who grow and pick their own leaves bring them for sale at the market rate. The sorting emploj'S many hands, for it is an im- portant point in connection with the purity of the various de- scriptions, and much care is taken by dealers, in maintaining the quality of their lots, to have them cured carefully as well as sorted properly. The management of this great branch of industry exhibits some of the best features of Chinese country life. It is only over a portion of each farm that the plant is grown, and its cul- tivation requires but little attention compared with rice and vegetables. The most delicate kinds are looked after and cnred by priests in their secluded temples among the hills ; these often have many acolytes who aid in preparing small lots to be sold at a high price. When tlie leaves are brought in to the curers they are thinly spread on shallow trays to dry off all moisture by two or three hours' exposure. Meanwhile the roasting pans are heating, and W'hen properly warmed some handfuls of leaves are thrown on them, and rapidly moved and shaken up for four or five min- utes. The leaves make a slight crackling noise, become moist and flaccid as the juice is expelled, and give off even a sensible vapor. The whole is then poured out upon the rolling table, where each workman takes up a handful and makes it into a manageable ball, which he rolls back and forth on the rattan table to get rid of the sap and moisture as the leaves are twisted. This operation chafes the hands even with great pre- caution. The balls are opened and shaken out and then passed on to other workmen, who go through the same operation till they reach the headnum, who examines the leaves to see if they THE MANUFACTUKE OF TEA. 43 liave become curled. When i)roperly done, and cooled, they are returned to tlie iron pans, under which a low cliarcoal fire is burning in the brickwork which supports them, and there kept in motion by the hand. If they need another rolling on the table it is now given them ; an hour or more is spent in this manipu- ng Tea. lation, when they are dried to a dull green color, and can be put away for sifting and sorting. This color becomes brighter after the exposure in sifting the cured leaves through sieves of various sizes ; tliey are also winnowed to separate the dust, and afterward sorted into the various descriptions of green tea. Finally, the finer kinds are again fired three or four times, and 44 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. the coarse kinds, as Twankay, Hyson, and Hj'son Skin, once. The others furnish the Young Hyson, Gunpowder, Imperial, etc. Tea cured in this way is called luh cha^ or 'green tea,' by the Chinese, while the other, or black tea, is termed hung cha, or ' red tea,' each name being taken from the tint of the infu- sion. After the fresh leaves are allowed to lie exposed to the air on the bamboo trays over night or several hours, they are thrown into the air and tossed about and patted till they be- come soft ; a heap is made of these wilted leaves and left to lie for an hour or more, when they have become moist and dark in color. They are then thrown on the hot pans for five minutes and rolled on the i-attan table, previous to expos- ure out-of-doors for three or four hours on sieves, during which time they are turned over and opened out. After this they get a second roasting and rolling to give them their final curl. When the charcoal fire is ready, a basket shaped something like an hour-glass is placed endwise over it, having a sieve in the middle on which the leaves are thinly spread. AYlien dried five minutes in this way they undergo another rolling, and are then thrown into a heap, nntil all the lot has passed over the fire. When this firing is finished, the leaves are opened out and are again tliinly spread on the sieve in the basket for a few minutes, which finishes the drying and rolling for most of the heap, and nuxkes the leaves a uniform black. They are now replaced in the basket in greater mass, and pushed against its sides by the hands in order to allow the heat to come up through the sieve and the vapor to escape ; a basket over all retains the heat, but the contents are turned over until perfectly dry and the leaves become uniforml}- dark. It will be seen frojn this that green tea retains far more of the peculiar oil and sap in tlie leaves than the black, which undergo a partial fermentation and emit a sensibly warm va- por as they lie in heaps after the first roasting. They thus become oxidized by longer contact in a warm moist state with the atmosphere, and a delicate analysis will detect a greater amount of oxidized insoluble extract in an infusion of black than green tea. The same difference has been observed in GREEN AND BLACK TEAS. 45 diying medicinal plants, as hemlock, belladonna, etc., for the apothecary's shop. Green teas are mostly produced in the region south of the Yangtsz' River and west of Kingpo among the hills as one goes toward the Poyang Lake in Chehkiang and Xganhwui. The black tea comes from Fuhkien in the southeast and llupeh and Hunan in the central region ; Kwangtung and Sz'chuen provinces produce black, green, and brick teas. While the leaves of each species of the shrub can be cured into either green or black tea, the workmen in one district are able, by practice, to produce one kind in a superior style and quality ; those in another region will do better with another kind. Soil, too, has a great influence, as it has in grape culture, in modifying the produce. Though the natives distinguish onl}^ these three kinds, their varieties are far too numerous to remember, and the names are mostly un- known in commerce. Of black teas, the great mass is called Congou^ or the ' well- worked,' a name which took the place of the Bohea of one hundred and fifty years ago, and is now itself giving way to the term English Breakfast tea. The finest sorts are either named from the place of their growth, or jnore frequently have fancy appel- lations in allusion to their color or form. Orange Pekoe is named " superior perfume ;" pure Pekoe is " Lau-tsz' eyebrows ;" "carnation hair," "red plum blossom,"" "lotus kernel," "spar- row's tongue," " dragon's pellet," " dragon's whiskei-s," " au- tumn dew," " pearl flower," or Chilian, are other names ; Sou- chong and Pouidiong refer to the modes of packing. In the trade, teas are more commonly classified by their locality than their names, as it is found that well-marked differences in the style of the produce continue year after year, all ecpially well-cured tea. These arise from diversities in soil, climate, age, and manufacturing, and furnish materials for still further nuiltiplying the sorts by skilfully mixing them. Thus in black teas we have Ilunan and llupeh from two provinces, just as Georgia uplands and Sea Island indicate two sorts of cotton ; Ningyong, Kai-sau, Ho-hau, Sing-chune-ki, etc., and many others, which are unknown out of Ohina, are all names of places. One gentleman has given a list of localities, each furnishing its 46 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. quota and peculiar product, amounting in all to forty-five for l)lack and nine for green. The area of these regions is about four hundred and seventy thousand square miles. It will have been seen already that the color of green tea, as well as its quality, depends very much on rapid and expert dry- ing. When this kind is intended for home consumption soon after it is made, the color is of little consequence ; but when the hue influences the sale, then it is not to be overlooked by the manufactui'er or the broker. The first tea brought to Europe was from Fuhkien and all black ; but as the trade extended prob- ably some of the delicate Hyson sorts were now and then seen at Canton, and their appearance in England and Holland ap- preciated as more and more was sent. It was found, however, to be very difficult to maintain a uniform tint. If cured too slightly, the leaf was liable to fermentation during the voyage ; if cured too much, it was unmarketable, which for the manufac- turer was worse yet. Chinese ingenuity was equal to the call. Though no patent office was at hand to register the date when coloring green tea commenced, it is probably more than one hundred j-ears since. The three hundred and forty-two chests and half chests wdiich were so summarily opened on board the Dart- mouth, the Eleanor, and the Beavei", when their contents were thrown overboard in Boston harbor, on December 16, 1773, furnishes probably no index of the consumption of tea in New England at that time. It was all called Bohea by John Adams, who speaks of three cargoes, as if the vessels had nothing else of note in their holds. Dr. Holmes, in his ballad on the Boston Tea Party at its centennial celebration, says in the last verse : The waters in the rebel bay Have kept the tea-leaf savor — Our old North Enders in their spray Still taste a Hyson flavor ; And Freedom's teacup still o'erflows With ever fresh libations, To cheat of slumber all her foes And clieer the wakening nations. It has been noticed that emigrants to Au^^ti-alia, who had seldom tasted green tea before leaving England, usnally prefer it in COLORING GREEN TEAS, 47 tiieir new homes, as new settlers do in tins country. The pre- vailing notion that green tea is cured on copper arose, no doubt, from the conclusion that real verdigris was the only source of a verdigris color, and the astringent taste confirmed the wrong idea. A more difiicult question to answer is the inquiry, Why is it still believed ? The operation of giving green tea its color is a simple one. A quantity of Prussian blue is pulverized to a very fine pow- der, and kept ready at the last roasting. Pure gypsum is burned in the charcoal fire till it is soft and fit foi easily tritur- ating. Four parts are then thoroughly mixed with three parts of Prussian blue, making a light blue powder. About five minutes before finally taking off the dried leaves this powder is sprinkled on them, and instantly the whole panful of two or three pounds is turned over by the workman's hands till a uniform color is obtained, llis hands come out quite blue, but the compound gives the green leaves a brighter green hue. The quantity is not great, say about half a pound in a hundred of tea ; and as gypsum is not a dangerous or irritating substance,, being constantly. eaten by the Chinese, the other ingredient re- mains in an almost infinitesimal degree. If foreigners preferred yellow teas no doubt they coiild be favored, for the Chinese are much perplexed to account for this strange predilection, as they never drink this colored or faced tea. Turmeric root has been detected, too, in a very few analj'ses, but probably these were lots that needed to be refined at Canton to cover up mil- dew or supply a demand. The reasons for not drinking this tea are, however, owing more to the nature than the color of the leaf. The kinds of green tea are fewer than the black, and the regions producing it are less in area. Gunpowder and Im- perial are foreign-made terms ; the teas are known as siau elm and ta chu by native dealers. The first is rolled to resemble shot or coarse gunpowder; the other is named "sore crab's eyes," "sesamura seeds," and "pearls." Ilyson is a corruption of yu- tsieny ' before the rains,' and of Ili-chun, meaning ' flourishing spring.' The last is alleged to be the name of a maiden who sug- gested to her father as long ago as 1700, or thereabouts, a better mode of sorting tea, and his business increased so much as his 48 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. fine Hyson became known tliat he gave it her name. Members of this same family are still engaged in making this same tea, and the chop, known as the Ut Yih-hing, or ' Li's Extra Perfume,' is now in market, and has maintained its reputation for nearly two hundred years. Oolong is obtained in Fuhkien — a black tea with a green tea flavor, named Black Dragon from a story tliat Su was struck with the fragrance of the leaf from a plant Mdiere a black snake was found coiled. The great mart for green tea is Twankay, in Chehkiang province. A chop is a well-known term in the tea trade ; it is derived from the Chinese word ehoj), or ' stamp', such as an ofiicial uses, and in the tea trade denotes a certain number of packages from the same place, and all of the same quality. In the course of years the uniform excellence of a certain chop, like that of a certain vineyard, gives it a marketable value. A laAvsuit arose in 1873 between two American houses at Canton in regard to the right to a certain chop of tea, among two brokers, each of whom claimed to sell the genuine lot. Such chops range from fifty to one thou- sand two hundred chests, averaging six hundred. English tea- tasters have learned that an admixture of scented teas in com- mon sorts of Congou adds much to the flavor and sale. This is not often done for native-drank tea, and is chiefly practised at Canton. The flowers used are roses, Olea fragrans, tuberose, orange, jasmine, gardenia, and azalea. The stems, calyx, and other parts are carefully sorted out, so that only the petals re- main. When the tea is ready for packing, dry and warm, tlie fresh flowers are mixed with it (forty pounds to one liundred pounds for the orange), and left thus in a mass for twenty -four hours ; it is then sifted and winnowed in a fanning mill till the petals are separated. If the odor is insuflicient, the opera- tion may be repeated with the jasmine or orange. The pro- portion of jasmine is a little more than orange ; of the azalea, nearly half and half. The length of time required to obtain the proper smell from these flowei-s difi'ers, and among them all tea scented with the azalea is said to keep its perfume the longest. The mode of scenting tea diifei-s somewhat according to the flower itself, for the small blossom of the Qloa cannot be separated by sifting as rose or jasmine leaves can. Tea thus SCENTED AND ADULTERATED TEAS. 49 perfumed is sent to England as Orange Pekoe and Scented Ca- per. It is mixed witli fiiu; teas ; and there is much to commend in thus increasing tlie aroma and taste of this healthy beverage. The Scented Caper comes in the form of round pellets, which are made of black tea softened by sprinkling water on it until it is pliable ; it is then tied in canvas bags and rolled with the feet by treading on it for a good while till most of the quantity takes this form ; as soon as perfumed it is packed for shipment. When rolled and dried, such tea needs only a facing to make it into Impei-ial and Gunpowder among the green teas. The Chinese have been charo;ed with adulteratino; their tea by mixing in other leaves with the true tea-leaf, and adding other ingredients far vvoi-se than rose, jujube, and fern leaves, and the cases which have been proved of lie-tea being sent off have been applied to the entire export. The stimulus for some of this adulteration has come from the foreigner, who desires to get good pure tea at half its cost of manufacture. The fore- going details will plainly show that an article which has to go through so many hands before its infusion is poured out of the teapot on the other side of the world, and where the only machin- ery used is a fanning mill and a roasting pan, cannot be fur- nished at much under twenty-five cents a pound for the common sorts. The villanous mixture known at Shanghai as ma-hi cha^ or ' race-course tea,' was the answer on the part of the native manufacturer to the demand for cheap tea, mitil the consumers in Great Britain protested at the deception put on them, and its importation was prohibited. Which of the parties was most blameworthy may be left for them to settle, but in our own papers, of course, most of the blame rested on the tempted party. It is not to be inferred, however, that all cheap tea is adulterated. The process of manufacture leaves a large percentage of broken material, which can be worked into passable tea ; the produce of many regions has not the flavor of the finest sorts, and, as it is with wines, will not bear so much cost in curing. The tea brokers know this, and things equalize themselves. The dust, the leaf ribs, and the siftings are all consumed by the poor na- tives, who mix other leaves, too, with the real leaf. Tea can perhaps bear comparison with any other great staple of food in Vol. II.— 4 50 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. this respect ; and when we can fairly estimate the consumption of tea sent out of China and Japan at more than three hundred millions of pounds, it must be conceded that it is a very pure article — not as much, probably, as even five per cent, of false leaf. One mode of using tea known among Tibetans and Mongols remains to be noticed. The rich province of Sz'chuen, in the w-estern part of China, furnishes an abundance of good tea'; much of which is exported to Ilussia by way of Si-ngan f u and Kansuh, to supply the inhabitants of Siberia. This brick tea is cured by pressing the damp leaves into the form of a brick or tile, varj'ing in size and weight, eight to twelve inches long and one thick ; in this form it is far more easily carried than in the leaf. In Tibet, as we have seen, it appears more as a soup than an infu- sion. The brick tea is composed of coarse leaves, or of stalks mois- tened by steaming over boiling water, and then pressed till dry and hard. When used, a piece is broken off and simmered with milk and butter and water, with a touch of vinegar or pepper. The dish is not inviting at first, but Abbe Hue endorses its refreshing qualities in restoring the failing energies. The press- ing and drying is assisted by sprinkling the mass with rice- water as it is forced into the moulds. The Chinese mix other leaves with real tea to eke it out, in districts where it is not commonly grown, but they do not regard this as adulteration. Willow leaves are common in such mixtures. Large caravans cross the plateau laden with brick tea. Packing tea is mostly done in the interior, where it is cured. The large dry leaves frequently found inside are usually fur- nished by a peculiar species of bamboo ; the lead is made into thin sheets by pouring the melted metal on to a large square brick, covered with several thicknesses of paper, and letting another brick drop down instantly on it. In order to test the honesty of the packing, the foreign merchant often walks over the three hundred to six hundred chests which make a chop, and selects any foui* or five he may choose for examination. If they stand the inspection the whole is taken on their guaranty, and are then -weighed, papered, labelled, and mottoed ready for shipping. In all these matters the Chinese are very expert. It INTRODUCTION OF TEA INTO EUROPE. 61 is impossible to calculate the number of persons to whom the tea trade furnishes employment ; nor could machinery well come into use to displace human labor. The introduction of tea among western nations was slow at first. Marco Polo has no notice of its use. The Dutch brought it to Europe in 1591 according to some accounts ; but a sample or two did not make a trade, and there would have been refer- ence to it if it had been used. In 1G60 Samuel Pepys writes, September 28th : "I did send for a cup of tea (a China drink), of which I had never drank before." Nearly seven ^-ears after he says : " Home, and thei-e find my wife making of tea, a drink which Mr. Pellin, the pothicai-y, tells her is good for her cold and defluxions." In 1670 the importation into England was 79 pounds ; in 1685 it was 12,070 pounds ; most of it came from Batavia and sold for a long time between £10 and £5 a pound weight. In 1657 Mr. Garney opened a shop in London to sell the infusion, and paid an excise of 8d. per gallon ; the present duty is 2s. Id. per pound, or 4^ pounds to each person in a year, nearly all of which, as it is in Europe and elsewhere, is black tea. In 1725 only 375,000 pounds were consumed in Great Britain. The actual quantity now in the United Kingdom is 126,000,000 pounds, besides much on the way. The importa- tion into the United States is worth $18,000,000 to $19,000,000, say 60,000,000 pounds. Russia takes more good tea than any other nation and pays more for it, because the former overland trade to Siberia could not afford to transport pooi- tea. The ex- port from Assam is now 20,000,000 pounds, but those sorts are too strong for the public taste when used alone, and are con- sumed in mixtures. Tea is a native of Assam, but its discovery only dates from 1836 or thereabouts. It is cultivated in Java and Brazil, but there is not much to encoui'age the manufac- turer in any country where coffee supplies a similar beverage, and the price of labor makes it equal to the imported article. The remarkable work on agriculture of Paul Sii, a convert to Christianity in 1620, contains a brief account and directions for cultivating tea. In concluding the chapter he urges the greater use of tea as against spirits. " Tea is of a cooling nature, and if drunk too freely will produce exhaustion and lassitude. Country 62 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. people before drinlciiig it add ginger and salt to eoiniteract this cooling property. It is an exceedingly usefnl plant ; cnltivate it and the benefit will be widely spread ; drink it and the ani- mal spirits will be lively and cleai". The chief rulers, lords, and great men esteem it ; the lower people, the poor and beggarly, will not be destitute of it ; all use it daily and like it." The chemical analyses which have made known to us the components of the four or five substances used as warm bever- ages, viz., tea, coffee, mate, cocoa, guarana, and kola, indicate three constituents found in them, to which, no doubt, their vir- tues are owing. A volatile oil is observed when tea is distilled with water ; about one pound conies from one hundred pounds of dried tea, possessing its peculiar aroma and flavor to a high degree. Much of it is pressed from the leaves when rolled and cured, but little as still remains, its effects upon the human system are noticeable and sometimes powerful. Tea-tasters who continually taste the rpiality of the various lots submitted by sample for their ap- proval, do so by breathing upon a handful of leaves and instantly covering the nose, so as to get this volatile aroma as one impor- tant test. They also examine the infusion in several diffei'ent ways, by its taste, color, and strength. Long practice in this business is alleged to have deleterious influence upon their ner- vous systems. The other beverages we drink, as well as tea, derive their peculiar and esteemed flavor and aroma from chemical substances produced in them during the process of drying and roasting; at least nothing of them can be perceived in their natural state. Another substance in tea regarded as the chief inducement and reward in its effect on the system is the peculiar pi'inciple called theine. If a few finely powdered leaves are placed on a watch-glass, covered with a paper cap and placed on a hot plate, a white vapor slowly rises and condenses in the cap in the form of colorless crystals. They exist in different proportions in the different kinds of tea, from one and one-half to five or six per cent, in green tea. Theine lias no smell and a slightly bitter taste, and does not therefore attract us to drink the infusion ; but the chemists tell us that it contains nearly thirty per cent, of nitrogen. The salts in CONSTITUENTS AM) EFFECTS OF TEA. 53 other beverages, as coffee and cocoa, likewise contain nnicli ni- trogen, and all tend to repair the waste going on in the human system, reduce the amount of solid food necessary, diminish too the wear and tear of the body and consequent lassitude of the mind, and maintain the vigor of both upon a smaller amount of food. Tea does this more pleasantly, perhaps, than any of the others ; but it does more than they do for old people in supplementing the impaired powers of digestion, and helping them to maintain their flesh and uphold the system in health longer than they otherwise would. It is no wonder, therefore, that tea has become one of the necessaries of life ; and the sexagenarian invalid, too poor to buy a bit of meat for her meal, takes her pot of tea with M'liat she has, and knows that she feels lighter, happier, and better fitted for her toil, and en- joys life more than if she had no tea. Unconsciously she echoes what the Chinese said centuries ago, " Drink it, and the animal spirits will be lively and clear." The third sul)stance (which is contained in tea more than in the other beverages mentioned) forms also an important ingredient in l)etel-nut and gaml)ier, so extensively chewed in Southern Asia, viz., tannin or tannic acid. This gives the astringent taste to tea-leaves and their infusion, and is found to amount to seventeen per cent, in well-dried l)lack tea, and much more than that in green tea, especially the Japan leaf. The effects of taimin are not clearly ascertained as apart from the oil and the tlieine, but Johnston considei-s them as conducing to the exhilarating, satisfying, and narcotic action of the bev- erage. A remaining ingredient worthy of notice in tea, in common with other food-plants, is gluten. This fornjs one-fourth of the weight of the leaves, but in oi'der to derive the greatest good from it which proper methods of cooking might bring out, we must contrive a mode (»f eating the leaves. The nutritious property of the gluten accounts for the general use of brick tea throughout the Asiatic plateau. Hue says he drank the dish in default of something better, for he was unaccustomed to it, but his cameleers would often take twenty to forty cups a day. 54 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. If the sanitary effects of tea upon the system are so great and wholesome, its inliuence since its general introduction among occidentals cannot be overlooked. The domestic, quiet life and habits of the Chinese owe much of their strength to the con- stant use of this beverage, for the weak infusion which they sip allows them to spend all the time they choose at the tea-table. If they were in the habit of sipping even their weak whiskey in the same way, misery, poverty, quarrels, and sickness would take the place of thrift, quiet, and industry. The general tem- perance seen among them is owing to the tea nmch more than any other cause. It has, moreover, won its way with us, till in the present generation the associations that cluster around the tea- table form an integral part of the social life among English- speaking peoples. One of the most likely means to restrict the use of spirits among them is to substitute the use of warm beverages of all kinds by those whose s^-stem has not become vitiated. Tea is one of the greatest benefits to the Chinese, Japanese, and Mongols, and its universal use, for at least fifteen centuries, throughout their territories has proven its satisfaction as a nervine, a stimulant, and a beverage. If one passing through the streets of Peking, Canton, or Ohosaka, and seeing the good-natured hilarity of the groups of laborers and loiterers around the cha-hwan and the cha-ya of those cities, doubts the value of tea as a harmonizer and satisfier of hmnan wants and passions, it must be taken as a proof of his own unsatisfied cravings. It is a necessary of life to all classes of natives, and that its use is not injurious is abundant!}^ evident from its general ac- ceptance and increasing adoption ; the pi-ejudice against the beverage out of China may be attributed chiefly to the use of strong green tea, which is no doubt prejudicial. If those who have given it up on this account will adopt a weaker infusion of black tea, general experience is proof that it will do them no harm, and they may be sure that they will not be so likely to be deceived by a colored article. iS'either the Chinese nor Japanese use milk or sugar in their tea, and the peculiar taste and aroma of the infusion is much better perceived without those additions. Tea, when clear, cannot be drunk so strong PREPARATION OF CASSIA AND CAMPHOR. 55 without tasting an unpleasant bitterness, which tliese diluents partly hide.' Among other vegetable productions whose preparation af- fords employment are cassia and camphor. The cassia ti-ee {Cinnamomuvi cassia) grows connnonly in Ivwangsi, Yunnan, and further south ; the leading mart for all the varieties of this spice in China is Ping-nan, in the former of tliese provinces. The kind known as l"wei-jA, or ' skhiny cassia,' affords the prin- cipal part of that spice nsed at the west. The bark is stripped from the twigs by running a knife along the branch and gradu- ally loosening it ; after it is taken off it lies a day in the sun, when the epidermis is easily scraped off, and it is dried into the quilled shape in which it comes to market. The immatm-e flowers of this and two other species of Cinnamonnnn are also collected and dried nnder the name of cassia IjiuIk^ and of- ten packed with the bark ; they re<|uire little or no other prepa- ration than simple drying. The leaves and bark of the tree are also distilled, and furnish oil of cassia, a powerful and pleasant oil employed by perfumers and cooks. • Few genera of plants are more useful to man than those included under the old name of Laurus, to which these fragrant spices of cassia and cinnamon belong; their wood, bark, buds, seeds, flowers, leaves, and oil are all used by the Chinese in carpentry, medi- cine, perfumery, and cookery. The confusion arising from using the term cassia for the spice instead of confining it to the medicine {Cassia senna) has been a constant source of error. The camphor tree {Cam])1ioi'a ojjicinarum) is another species of Laurus, found along the southern maritime regions and For- mosa, and affords both timber and gum for exportation and do- mestic use. The tree itself is large, and furnishes excellent planks, beams, and boards. The gum is procui'ed from the branches, roots, leaves, and chips by soaking them in water un- til the liquid becomes saturated ; a gentle heat is then applied to this solution, and the sublimed camphor received in inverted cones made of rice-straw, from which it is detached in impure 'Fortune's Tea DistricU (1852); Chinme Ticpositwy, Vol. VIII., pp. 182- 164, Vol. XVIII., pp. 13-18; Davis' ChiiicHC, Vol. II., pp. 336-449; Chineim Cominercial Guide (1863), pp. 141-148 ; Ball's Tea Vulture and Manufacture. 56 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. grains, resembling unrefined sugar in colore Grosier describes another mode of getting it by Taking out the coagulum in- spissated from the solution into an iron dish and covering M'ith powdered earth ; two or three layers are thus placed in the dish, when a cover is luted on, and by a slow heat the camphor sub- limes into it in a cake. It comes to market in a crude state, and is refined after reaching Europe. The preparation of the gum, sawing the timber for trunks, articles of furniture, and vessels in whole or in part, occupies great numbers of carpenters, Bhipwrights, and boat-buildci*s. The increasing demand for the gum and boards has caused the rapid destruction of so many trees in Formosa that there is some ground for fear lest they ere long be all cut off. Many of the common ni;uii])ulations of Chinese ^vorkmen af- ford good examples of their ingenious modes of attaining th© same end which is elsewhere reached by complex machinery. For instance, the l)aker places his fire on' a large iron plate worked by a crane, and swings it over a shallow pan embedded in masonry, in* which the cakes and pastry are laid and soon baked. The price of fuel compels its economical use wherever it is em}>loyed ; in the forge, the kitchen, the kiln, or the dwelling, no waste of wood or coal is seen. As an instance in point, the mode of burning shells to lime affords a good ex- ample. A low wall encloses a space ten or twelve feet across, in the middle of which a hole connnunicates underneath the wall through a passage to the pit, where the fire is urged by a fan turned by the feet. The wood is loosely laid over tlie bottom of the area, and the fire kindled at the orifice in the centre and fanned into a blaze as the shells are rapidly thrown in until the wall is filled up ; in twelve hours the shells are calcined. Toward evening scores of villagers collect around the burning pile, bringing their kettles of rice or vegetables to cook. The good-humor manifested by these gi'oups of old and young is a pleasing instance of the sociability and equality witnessed among the lower classes of Chinese. The lime is taken out next morning and sifted for the mason. Handicraftsmen of every name are content with coarse-look- ing tools compared with those turned out at Sheflield, but the APPLIANCES OF CHINESK WORKMEN. 67 work prodnced by some of tliem is far from conteiriptible. The bench of a carpenter is a low, narrow, inclined form, like a urawing-knife fi'ame, upon which he sits to plane, groove, and work his boards, using his feet and toes to steady them. His augurs, bits, and gimlets are worked with a bow, but most of the edge-tools employed by him and the blacksmith, though similar in shape, are less convenient than our own. They are sharpened with hones or grindstones, and also with a cold steel like a spoke-shave, with which the edge is scraped thin. The aptitude of Chinese workmen has often been noticed, and Travelling Blacksmith and Equipment. among tliem all the travelling blacksmith takes the palm for his compendious establishment. " T saw- a blacksmith a few days since," writes one observer, " mending a pan, the arrangement of w'hose tools was singularly compact. His fire was held in an iron basin not unlike a coal-scuttle in shape, in the back corner of which the mouthpiece of the bellows entered. The anvil was a small scpiare mass of iron, not very unlike our own, placed on a block, and a partition basket close by held the charcoal and tools, with the old iron and other rubbish he carried. The water to temper his iron was in an earthen pot, which just at this time was most usefully employed iii boiling his dinner over the forge fire After he had done the job he took off his 58 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. dinner, threw the water on the fire, picked out the coals and put them back into the basket, threw away the ashes, set the anvil astride of the bellows, and laying the tire-pan on the basket, slung tlie bellows on one end of his pole and the basket on the other, and walked off." ' The mode of mending holes in cast- iron pans here noticed is a peculiar operation. The smith first files the lips of the hole clean, and after heating the dish firmly * C, I 11 111 Itinerant Dish-nnender places it on a tile covered with wet felt. He then pours the liquid iron, fused in a crucible by the assistance of a flux, upon the hole, and immediately patters it down with a dossil of felt until it covers the edges of the pan above and below, and is then, while cooling, hannnered until firndy fixed in its ]>lace. Another ingenious and effectual method of mending porcelain and all manner of crockery ware is performed by itinerant workmen, who travel about with their workshop on their * Chinese Repository, Vol. X., j). 473. WOOD AND IVORY CARVING. 59 shoulders, as seen in tlio cut. By means of minute copper clamps, even the most delicate article of China-ware may be re- paired and made to answer the purpose of a new piece ; since no cement is used in this style of mending, it has the additional advantage of standing innnei'sioiv in water. The great number of craftsmen who ply their vocations in the street, as well as the more mmierous class of hucksters who supply food as they go from house to house, furnish mucli to annise and interest. Each of them has a peculiar call. The barber twangs a sort of tweezers like a long tuning-fork, the peddler twirls a hand-drum with clappers strung on each side, the refuse-buyer strikes a little gong, the fruiterer claps two bam- boo sticks, and the fortune-teller tinkles a gong-bell ; these, with the varied calls and cries of beggars, cadgers, chapmen, etc., fill the streets with a concert of strange sounds. The delicate carving of Chinese workmen has often been de- scribed ; many specimens of it are annually sent abroad. Few products of their skill are more rcnuxrkable than the balls con- taining ten or twelve separate spheres one within another. The manner of cutting them is ingenious. A piece of ivory or wood is first made perfectly globular, and then several conical holes are bored into it in such a manner that their apices all meet at the centre, which becomes hollow as the holes are bored into it. The sides of each having been marked with lines to indicate the number of globes to be cut out, the w^ork- man inserts a chisel or burin with a semicircular blade, bent so that the edge cuts the ivory, as the shaft is worked on the pivot, at the same depth in each hole. By successively cutting a little on the inside of each conical hole, the incisures meet, and a sphericle is at last detached, which is now turned over and its faces one after another brought opposite the largest hole, and firmly secured by wedges in the other a})ertures, while its surfaces are smoothed and carved. When the central sphere is done, a similar tool, somewhat larger, is again introduced into the holes, and another sphere detached and smoothed in the same way, and then another, until the whole is completed, each being polished and carved before the next outer one is connnenced. It takes three or four months to complete a ball 60 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. with fifteen inner globes, the price of which ranges from tvventji to thirty dollars, according to the delicacy of the carving. Some writers have asserted that these curious toys were made of semispheres nicely luted together, and they have been boiled in oil for hours in order to separate them and solve the mystery of their consti-uction. Fans and card-cases are carved of wood, ivory, and mother- of-pearl in alto-relievo, with an elaborateness which shows the great skill and patience of the workman, and at the same time his crude conception of drawing, the figures, houses, trees, and other objects being grouped in violation of all propriety and perspective. Beautiful ornaments are made by carving roots of plants, branches, gnarled knots, etc., into fantastic groups of birds or animals, the artist taking advantage of the natural form of his material in the arrano-ement of his figures. Models of pagodas, boats, and houses are entirely constructed of ivory, even to representing the ornamental roofs, the men working at the oar, and women looking from the balconies. Baskets of elegant shape are woven from ivoiy splinths; and the shopmen at Canton exhibit a variety of seals, paper-knives, chessmen, counters, combs, etc., exceeding in finish and delicacy the same kind of work found anywhere else in the world. The most elaborate coat of arms, or complicated cypher, will also be imi- tated by these skilful carvers. The national taste prefers this style of carving on plane surfaces ; it is seen on the walls of houses and granite slabs of fences, the woodwork of boats and shops, and on articles of furniture. Most of it is pretty, but the disproportion and cramped position of the figures detract from its beauty when judged by strict rules of western art. The manufacture of enamels and cloisonne wares has lately received a great stimulus from their foi'eign demand. A copper vase is formed of the desired shape by hammering and solder- ing, on whose clean surface the figures to be enamelled are etched to show where the strips of copper are to be soldered before their interspaces are enamelled. This solder is made of borax and silver, and melts at a higher temperature than the enamel, which is reduced to a paste and filled into each cell of the pattern by brushes and styles, until the whole design is MANUFACTURE OF CLOlSONNfi, MATS, ETC. 61 gone over. Tlie various colored liao, or ingredients, are pre- pared in cakes by artists who keep their composition secret, but all the substances occur in China. The (piality of the ware depends on the skill in mixing these cakes and fusing the colors in a charcoal fire, into which the piece is placed ; imperfection^ and holes are covered and tilled up when it is cooled, and the piece is again and again exposed to the fire. After the thii-d ordeal it is ground smooth and pol- ished on a lathe, and the brass work gilt. The specimens now made show very fine work, but their coloring hardly equals those of Kienlungs reign or still earlier in the Ming dy- nasty. Much inferior work has also been palmed off for that of the golden period of this art. The manufacture of mats for sails of junks and boats, floors, bedding, etc-., employs thousands. A sail con- taining nearly four hundred square feet can be obtained for ten dollars. The rolls are largely exported, and still more extensively used in the countiy for covering packages for shipment. A stouter kind made of bamboo splinths serves as a niatei'ial for huts, and fulfils many other pur- poses that are elsewhere attained by boards or canvas. Rattans are largely worked into mats, chairs, baskets, and other articles of domestic service. Several branches of manufac- ture have entirely grown up, or been much encouraged by the foreign trade, among which the preparation of vermilion, beating gold-leaf, cutting pearl buttons, dyeing and trimming pith-{)a])er for artificial flowers, weaving and painting fancy window-blinds, and the preparation of sweetmeats are the principal. The beautiful vermilion exported from Canton is prepared by triturating one part of quicksilver with two of sulphur until Fancy Carved Work. 62 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. they form a blackish powder, wliich is put into a crucible having an iron lid closely luted down. When the fire acts on the mix- ture the lid is cooled to effect the sublimation ; the deposit on the top is cinnabar and that on the sides is vermilion, according to the Chinese ; all of them are powdered, levigated, decanted, and dried on tiles for use in painting and pharmacy, coloring candles and paper, and making red ink. The excellence of Cliinese vermilion depends on the thoroughness of the grind- ing.' It has often been said that the Chinese are so averse to change and improvement that they will obstinately adhere to their own modes, but, though slow to alter well-tried methods, sucii i.s not the case. Three new manufactures have been introduced during the present century, viz., that of glass, bronze-work, and Prussian blue. A Chinese sailor brought home the manufactnie of the latter, which he had learned thoroughly in London, and the people now supply themselves. Works in bronze and bi'ass have of late been set up, and watches and clocks are both exten- sively manufactured, with the exception of the springs. Fire- engines in imitation of foreign hand-engines are gradually eomino; into use. Brass cannon were made durins; the war M'ith England in imitation of pieces taken from a wreck, and the frames of one or two vessels to be worked with wlieels by men at a crank, in imitation of steamers, M'ere found on the stocks at Ningpo Mdien the English took the place. Since then the establishment of government arsenals at Fuhchau, Shanghai, Xanking, and Tientsin has stimulated and suggested as well as taught the people many applications of machinery. Yet until they can see their Avay clear to be remunerated for their outlay, it is unwise to urge or start doubtful experiments. This was shown at Canton ten years ago when a native company was formed to spin cotton yarn by steam machinery, and when the apparatus was all ready for work the cotton gi-owei-s were quite unwilling to trust their raw cotton out of their hands. More- over, it should be observed that few have taken the trouble to ' Compare an article by Julien in the Nouv. Journ. Asiatique, Tome V., 1830, pp. 208 ff. PHASES OF CHINESE INDUSTRIAL LIFE. 63 explain or show them tlie improvements thej are supposed to be so disinclined to adopt. Ploughs have been given the farm- ers near Shangliai, but they would not use them, which, how- ever, may have been as mucli owing to the want of a proper harness, or a little instruction regarding their use, as to a dislike to take a new article. The general aspect of Chinese society, in an industrial point of view, is one of its most pleasing features. The great body of the people are obliged to engage in manual labor in order to subsist, yet only a trifling proportion of them can be called beggars, while still fewer possess such a degree of wealth that they can live on its income. Property is safe enough to afford assurance to honest toil that it shall generally reap the reward of its labors, but if that toil prosper beyond the usual limits, the avarice of officials and the envy of neighbors easily find a multitude of contrivances to harass and impoverish the fortunate man, and the laws are not executed with such strictness as to deter them. The mechanical arts supply their wants, but having no better models before them, nor any scientific acquaintance with elementary principles and powers applicable to a great number of purposes, these arts have remained stationary. The abundance of labor must be employed, and its cheapness obviates the necessity of finding substitutes in machinery. The adoption of even a few things from abroad might involve so many changes, that even those intelligent natives who saw their advantages would hesitate in view of the momentous contin- gencies of a failure. The conflict between capital and labor in its various phases and struggles is becoming more and more marked the world over as civilization advances, and the Chinese polity is destined to endure its greatest strain in adjusting their forces among its industrious millions. Imitation is a remarkal)le trait in the Chinese mind, though in- vention is not altogether wanting ; the former leads the people to rest content with what they can get along with, even at some expense of time and waste of labor, where, too, an exhibition of ingenuity and science would perhaps be accompanied with sus- picion, expense, or hindrances from both neighbors and rulers. The existence of the germ of arts and discoveries, whose devel- 64 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. opnient would liave brought witli them so many advantages and pointed to still further discoveries, leads one to inquire the reason why they were not carried out. Setting aside the view, which may properly be taken, that the wonderful discoveries now made in the arts by Europeans form part of God's great plan for the redemption of the race, the want of mutual con- fidence, insecurity of property, and debasing effects of heathenism upon the intellect will explain much of the apathy shown toward improvement. Invention among them has rather lacked encouragement than ceased to exist : — more than that, it has been checked by a suspicious, despotic sway, while no stimulus of necessity has existed to counterbalance and urge it forward, and has been stunted by the mode and materials of education. It was not till religious liberty and discussion arose in Europe that the inhabitants began to improve in science and arts as well as morals and good government ; and when the ennobling and expanding principles of an enlarged civilization find their way into Chinese society and mind, it may reasonably be expected that rapid advances will be made in the comforts of this life, as well as in adopting the principles and exhibiting the conduct which prove a fitness for the enjoyments of the next. CHAPTER XVL SCIENCE AMONG THE CHINESE. That enlargement of the mind whicli results from the collec- tion and investigation of facts, or from extensive reading of books on whose statements reliance can be placed, and which leads to the cultivation of knowledge for its own sake, has no existence in China. Sir John Davis justly observes that the Chiniese " set no value on abstract science, apart from some ob- vious and immediate end of utility;'' and he properly com pares the actual state of the sciences among them with their condition in Europe previous to the adoption of the inductive mode of investigation. Even their few theories in explanation of the mysteries of nature are devoid of all fancy to make amends for want of fact and experiment, so that in reading them we are neither amused by their imagination nor instructed by their research. Perhaps the rapid advances made by Euro- peans, during the two past centuries, in the investigation of na- ture in all her departments and powers, has made us somewhat impatient of such a parade of nonsense as Chinese books ex- hibit. In addition to the general inferiority of Chinese mind to European in genius and imagination, it has moreover been hampered by a language the most tedious and meagre of all tongues, and wearied with a literature abounding in tiresome repetitions and unsatisfactory theories. Under these conditions, science, whether mathematical, physical, or natural, has made few advances during the last few centuries, and is now awaiting a new impulse from abroad in all its departments. Murray's China (Vol. III., Chap. IV.) contains a fair account of the attainments of the Chinese in mathematics and astronomy. The notation of the Chinese is based on the decimal principle, Vol. II.— 5 66 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. but as their figures are not changed in vahie by position, it is difficult to write out clearly the several steps in solving a prob- lem. Experiments have shown that it is easy encmgh to per- form them with Chinese figures used in our way, omitting the characters for 100, 1,000, and 10,000 {2)ch, tslcn, and wan) ; but it will be long before tlie change will become gcnei-al, even if it be desirable. Arithmetical calculations are pei-formed with the assistance of an abacus, called a stranjxin, or ' counting board,' which is simply a shallow case divided longitudinally by a bar and crossed by several wires ; on one side of this bar the wires bear five balls, on the other two. The five balls stand for nnits, the two balls behig each worth five units. When the balls on any wire are taken for nnits, those next to the right stand for tens, the thii'd for hundreds, and so on ; while those on the left denote tenths, hundredths, etc. Simple calculations are done on this machine with accuracy and rapidity, but as it is only a convenient index for the progress and result of a cal- culation performed in the head, if an error be made the whole must be performed again, since the result only appears when the sura is finished. There are three sorts of figures, partly an- swering to the English, Itoman, and Arabic forms — as Seven, VII., and T — the most connnon of which are given on page 619 of Yol. I. ; the complicated form is used for securit}- in drafts and bills, and the abbreviated in common operations, accounts, etc., and in setting down large amounts in a more compact form than can be done by the other characters. This mode of nota- tion is employed by the Japanese and Cochinchinese, and pos- sesses some advantages over the method of using letters prac- tised by the Greeks and Romans, as well as over the counters once employed in England, but falls far behind the Arabic sys- tem now in general use in the west. Treatises on arithmetic are connnon, in which the simple rules are explained and illustrated by examples and questions. One of the best is the Sinan-fdh Tung T,Httng, or ' General Gompre- hensive Arithmetic,' in five volumes, octavo, the author of which, Cliing Yu-sz', lived in the Ming dynasty. The Tsu-wei-shan Fang Sho ITioh, or 'Mathematics of the Lagerstra'mia Hill Institution,' in thirty-eight books, octavo, 182S, contains a com- CHINESE MATHEMATICS. G7 plete course of mathematical instruction in geometry, trigonom- etry, mensuration, etc., together with a table of natural sines and tangents, and one of logarithmic sines, tangents, secants, etc., for every degree and minute. Both these compilations derive most of their value from the mathematical writings of the Roman Catholic missionaries ; it is stated in the latter work that "• the western scholar, John Kapier, made logarithms." The study of arithmetic has attracted attention among the Chinese from very early times, and the notices found in his- torical works indicate some ti'eatises even extant in the Ilan dynasty, followed by a great number of general and particular works down to the Sung dynasty. One author of the Tang dynast}', in his problems on solid mensuration, offered one thousand taels of silver to whoever found a single word of error in the book. The Hindu processes in algebra were known to Chinese mathematicians, and are still studied, though all intel- lectual intercourse between the countries has long ceased. Down to the end of the Ming dynasty, these branches made slow prog- ress. Since foreigners have begun to apply western science, the development has been rapid. Mr. Wylie has given, in his Notes 0)1 Chinese Literature (pp. 86-104), a digested account of the most valuable native works on astronomy and mathe- matics. One very comprehensive work on them is the Thesau- rus of Mathematics and Chronology, published b}' imperial or- der about 1750. The knowledge of mathematics, even among learned men, is very small, and the common people study it only as far as their business requires ; the cumbersome notation and the little aid such studies giv^e in the examinations doubtless discourage men from pursuing what they seem to have no taste for as a people.' A curious fact regarding the existence of six errors in these tables, discovered by Bal)bage to have been perpetuated in most of the European logarithmic tables since the publication of the Trigonometria Artijicialis of Vlacq in 1633, proves the source whence the Chinese derived them, and their imitative fidelity in copying them. Chinese authors readily acknowledge the ' See Notes and Queries on C. and /., Vol. I., p. 166, and Vol. III., p. 153. CS THE MIDDLE KINGD03I. superiority of western inatlieinaticians, and generally ascribe their advances in the exact sciences to them. The attaiinnents made by the ancient Chinese in astronomy are not easily understood from their scanty records, for the mere notice of an eclipse is a very different thing from its cal- culation or description. They have been examined recently with renewed interest and care in view of the discoveries at ]S"ineveh, which have furnished so many reliable notices in "Western Asia of early days, and may lend some rays of light to illustrate the history and condition of Eastern Asia when more fully studied. The Booh of liecords contains some notices of instructions given by Yao to his astronomers Hi and IIo to ascertain the solstices and e(|uinoxcs, to employ intercalary months, and to tix the four seasons, in order that the husband- man miglit know when to connnit his seed to the ground. If the time of the deluge be reckoned, according to Hales, at b.c. 3155, there will be an interval of about eight centuries to the days of Yao, ];.<•. 2357 ; this would be ample time for the ob- servation that the primitive sacred year of three hundred and sixty days in Noah's time was wrong; also that the lunar year of about three hundred and fifty-four days was (piite as incor- rect, and required additional correction, which this ancient monarch is said to have made by an intercalation of seven lunar months in nineteen years. It is remarkable, too, that the time given as the date of the conunencement of the astronomical ob- servations sent to Aristotle from Babylon by command of Alex- ander should be b.c. 2233, or only a few years after the death of Yao ; at that time the five additional days to complete the solar year were intercalated by the Chaldeans, and celebrated as days of festivity. Dr. Hales, who mentions this, says that many ancient nations, and also the Mexicans, had the same custom, but there are no traces of any particular observance of them by the Chinese, who, indeed, could not notice them in a lunar year. The intercalation made by Yao has continued with little vari« ation to this day. The Romish missionaries rectified the calendar durinf>; the i-eio;n of Kan2;hi, and have contimied its preparation since that time. The adoption of the Julian solar DIVISIONS OF THE YEAR. 60 year of tlircc Inmdred and sixty-five and one-fonrth days at this remote period is far fioni certain, tliougli tlic fact of its exist- ence among nations in the west is' mentioned hy the commenta- tor upon the Iloolx of liecordH, who tlonrislied a.d. 1200. The attention tlie ('liinese paid to the hniar year, and tlie veiy small difference tlieir seven intercahitions left hetween the true hai- monizing of the lunar and solar years (only Ih. 27m. 32s.), would not derange the calculations to a degree to attract their notice. The period of the adoption of the cycle of sixty years, called In/i-sJiiJt hwa hiah-tsz\ cannot be ascertained even with any close approach to pi-obahility. Though negative evidence is always the poorest basis on which to found a theory in any branch of knowledge, it still bears great influence in early Chinese history and science, and in no department more than astronomy. This sexagenary cycle, the Chinese assert, was con- trived nearly three centuries before the time of Yao (b.c. 2637), and seems to have been perfectly arbiti-ar^', for no explanation now exists of the reasons wliicli induced its inventor, llwangti, or his minister, Kao the Great, to select this number. The years liave each of them a separate name, formed by taking ten characters, called shih Jicuu or ' ten stems,' and joining to them twelve other characters, called the shih-'ih c7ii, or 'twelve branches,' five times repeated. These two sets of horary characters are also applied to minutes and seconds, honrs, days, and months, signs of the zodiac, points of the compass, etc. By giving the twelve branches the names of as many animals and apportioning the ten stems in couplets among the five elements, they are also made to play an important part in divination and astrology. The present year (1882) is the eighteenth year of the seventy- sixth cycle, or the four thousand five hundred and eighteenth since its institution ; but no trace of a serial nnmbering of the sexagenary periods has yet been found in Chinese writings. The application of the characters to hours and days dates from about B.C. 1752, according to the Shu Klmj, pei'haps even before they were combined in a cyclic arrangement. This sexagenary divi- sion existed in India in early times, too, and is still followed there, where it is named the Cycle of Jnpiter, " because the 70 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. length of its years is measured by the passage of that phiiict, bv its mean motion, through one sign of the zodiac." liev. E. Ihirgess, in his translation of "the Surija jSuld/ianta, says that tlie length of Jupiter's years is reckoned in that book at 361d. Oh. 38m., and adds : " It was doubtless on account of the near coincidence of this period with the true solar year that it was adopted as a measure of time ; but it has not been satisfac- torily ascertained, as far as we are aware, "where the cycle origin- ated, or what is its age, or why it was made to consist of sixty years, including five whole revolutions of the planet." It is not improbable, therefore, that the cycle, the two sets of char- acters, the twenty-four solar terms, witli the twelve and twenty- eight lunar mansions or zodiacal asterisms, all of which play such an important part in Chinese astrology and astronomy, will be found to have been derived from the Chaldeans, and not from the Hindus, as has been confidently asserted. Though confessedly ancient in both India and China, their adoption was slow in its growth, while some striking similarities indicate a common origin, and so remote that its genesis is all a mystery. The year is lunar, but its commencement is regulated by the sun. Kew" Year falls on the first new moon after the sun enters Aquarius, which makes it come not before January 21st nor after February lOtli. Besides the division into lunar months, the year is apportioned into twenty-four tsie/i, or ' terms,' of about fifteen days each, depending upon the position of the sun ; these are continued on from year to year, irrespective of the in- tercalations, the first one commencing about February 6th, when the sun is 15° in Aquarius. Tlieir names have i-eference to the season of the year and obvious clianges in nature at the time they come round, as rain-vxtter, vernal-eqitifiox, spiked- grain, little-heat, etc. The Chinese divide the zodiac {hviang tao, or 'yellow road') into twenty-eight siu or I'ung, ' constellations ' or ' lunar man- sions,' but instead of an equable allotment, the signs occupy from 1° up to 31°; the Hindus arrange tliem nearly in spaces of 13° each. Their names and corres])onding animals, with the prmcipal stars answering to each asterism, are given in the table. DIVISIONS OF THE ZODIAC. 71 Chin siu. Corresponding Animal. Constellation. 15 Chin siu. Corresponding Animal. Constellation. 1 Kioh. Earth Dragon. Spica, C Virgo. Kioei. Wolf. Mirac. 2 Kami. Sky Dragon. ikKh Virgo. 16 Leu. Dog. a)3 Aries. 3 Ti. ' Badger. afiyS Libra. 17 Wei. Pheasant. Musca. 4 Fang. Hare. S Scorpio. 18 Mao. Cock. Pleiades. 5 Sm. Fox. Antares. 19 Pih. Raven. Hyades. 6 Wei. Tiger. € lu. Scorpio. 30 Tsui. Monkey. A Orion. 7 Ki. Leopard. 78 Sagittarius. 21 Tmn. Ape. Rigel, Orion. 8 Teu. Griffon. i A. Sagittarius. ! 22 I'sinq. Tapir. Gemini. 9 Niu. Ox. 0/3 Sagittarius. 23 Kwei. Sheep. ylB Cancer. 10 mi. Bat. 6^*7 A(|uarius. 24 Liu. Muntjak. 5 6 C Hydra. 11 mi. Rat. P Aquarius. 25 Sing. Horse. Alphard. 12 Wei. Swallow. a Aquarius & 26 Chang. Deer. kKjx Hydra. e Pegasus. 27 Yih. Snake. a Crater. 13 8hih. Boar. Markab. 28 Chan. Worm. 7 e Corvus. " PJi. Porcupine. Algenib. Instead of being equally divided in the four seasons, they are apportioned very empirically. Those numbered 7 to 14 belong to Aquarius and the north, and measure 98^° ; those from 1 to 7 belong to Scorpio and the east, and measure 75° ; those from 15 to 21 belong to Taurus and the west, and measure 80° ; and the last 7 belong to Leo and the south, and measure 112°. All these things show very crude knowledge of the heavenly bodies. The zodiac is further divided into twelve signs or palaces, varying from 25" to 38° in length, named after the twelve branches or animals representing them, commencing with Aqua- rius or the rat, followed by the o.\, tiger, hare, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, cock, dog, and bear. These animals also occur among the twenty-eight asterisms, but they are used to denote the twelve branches in all astrological calculations, and not often referred to the zodiac. They are in constant use among the nations of Eastern Asia, so that the common people of Mongolia, Siam, and Japan are really more conversant with them, through their application to times of various length, than they ai-e M'ith the technical characters. The Hindus and Arab- ians, on the other hand, do not associate these or any othei animals with the twelve signs, hours, and months, nor with the twenty-eight mansions ; and this fact tends to show that the Chinese obtained them from a more ancient source. The name 72 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. •of one of tlie twentj-eiglit liiiiar mansions is given to every day in tlie year in perpetual rotation, consequently the same day of our week in every fourth week has the same character applied ro it. The days are numbered from the first to the last day of the month, and the months from one to twelve through the year, except the intercalaiy month, called jun yueJi y and there is also a trine division of tlie month into decades.' The astronomical ideas of the common Chinese are vague and inaccurate. Tlie knowledge contained in their own scientific hooks has not been taught, and they still believe the earth to be a plain surface, measuring each way about one tliousand five hundred miles; around it the sun, moon, and stars revolve, the first at a distance of four tliousand miles. This figure comes so near the earth's radius that it is reasonable to infer, with Chal- mers, that it was calculated from the different elevation of the sun in dift'erent latitudes. The distance of the heavens from the earth was ascertained by one observer to be 81,304 //', and by another subsequent to him to be 216,781^ li, or about 73,000 miles ; all of which indicates the lack of careful observation. The con- stellation of the Peh Tao, or Dipper, plays an important part in popular astronomy ; the common saying is : ' When the handle of the Northern Peck points east at nightfall, it is spring over the land ; when it points south, it is summer ; and when west or north, it is respectively autumn and winter.' The Dipper has become a kind of natm-al clock from this circumstance, and as its handle always points to the bright stars in Scorpio, these two constellations are among the most familiar. These popular notions must not, however, be taken as a test of what was known in early times; it is quite as just to their scientific attainments in this branch to give them credit (as Wjdie does) for having known more than has come down to our days; as to deny belief in the little that remains, because it presents some insoluble difificulties, as Chalmers is disposed to do. ' Chinese Eepositorii, Vol. IX., pp. 573-584. De Giiignes' V»i/iif/rs, Vol. II., p. 414. Chinesf! ChrcHtoriutthy. Legge's Shoo Kinn, passim. Chalmers, On the Astronomy of the Ancient GJdnese. Journal of the Am. Oriental Society, Vol. VI., Art. III., and Vol. VIII., Arts. I. and VII. Whitney's Orientaland Linfjuisiie Studies, Art. XII. North China Br. R. A. S. Journal, Nos. III. and IV. CHINESE NOTIONS OF ASTRONOMY. 73 Astronomy has been studied by the Chinese for astrological and state pur{)oses, and their recordetl oI)servatioMS of eclipses, comets, etc., have no small value to European astronomers and chronologists. Mailla has collected the notices of 460 solar eclipses, extending from n.c. 2151) to a.d. 1699, and Wylie fur- nishes a careful list of 925 solar and 574 lunar eclipses, extracted from Chinese works, observed between 2150 and a.d. 1785. Comets have been carefully noted whenever their brilliancy has enabled them to be seen, for they are regarded as portents by the people, and their course among the stars somewhat deter- mines their influence. A list of 373 comets mentioned in Chi- nese records has been published by John Williams,' mostly extracted from Ma Twan-lin's Antiquarian Researches, and the Shi K'i. They extend from n.c. 611 to a.d. 1621 ; the general value of these records is estimated by the learned author as entitling them to credence. The curious and intimate con- nection between geomancy, horoscopy, and astrology, which the Chinese suppose exists, has a powerful influence in maintaining their errors, because of its bearing on every man's luck. Even with all the aid they have derived from Europeans, the Chinese seem to be unable to advance in the science of astronomy, when left to themselves, and to cling to their superstitions against every evidence. Some clouds having on one occasion covered the sky, so that an eclipse could not be seen, the courtiers joy- fully repaired to the Emperor to felicitate him, that Heaven, touched by his virtues, had spared him the pain of witnessing the "eating of the sun." A native writer on astronomy, called Tsinglai, who published several works under the patronage of Yuen Yuen, the liberal-minded governor of Kwangtungin 1820, even at that late day, " makes the heavens to consist of ten con- centric hollow spheres or envelopes; the flrst contains the moon's orbit ; the second that of Mercury ; those of Yenus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and the twenty-eight constellations, fol- low ; the ninth envelops and binds together the eight interior ones, and revolves daily ; while the tenth is the abode of the ■ Observations of Comef.,% from u.c. Gil to a.d. 1640. Extracted from the Chi- liese Annuls. Loudon, 1871. 74 IIIK .MlUDLi: Kl.NcatO.M. Celestial tSovereit'n, the Great lluler, with all the ii^ods and sao'es where thej enjoy eternal tranquillity." lie further says, "there are two north and two south poles, those of the equator and those of the ecliptic. The poles of the ecliptic regulate the varied machinery of the heavenly revolutions, and turn round unceasingly. The poles of the equator are the pivots of the primitive celestial body, and remain permanently unmoved. What are called the two poles, therefore, are really not stars, but two immovable points in the north and in the south.*' ' The author of this astute cosmogony studied under Europeans, and published these remarks as the fruit of his researches. The action and reaction of the elements furnish a satisfactory explanation to Chinese philosophers of the changes going on in the visible universe, for no possible contingencj' can arise which they are not prepared to solve by their analysis of the evolution of its powers. Through their speculations by this curious system they have been led away from carefully recording facts and processes, and have gone on, like a squirrel in a cage, making no progress tow^ard the real knowledge of the elements they treat of. The following table contains the leading elementary cori-espondences which they use, but a full explanation would be out of place here. This fanciful system is more or less received by their most intelligent mcTi ; and forms a sort of abracadabra in the hands of geomancers and foi-tuue-tellers, by which, with a show of great learning, they impose on the people. The sun, moon, and planets influence sublunary events, especially the life and death of human beings, and changes in their color menace ap- proaching calamities. Alterations in the appearance of the sun announce misfortunes to the state or its head, as revolts, fam- ines, or the death of the Einperor ; when the moon waxes red, or turns pale, men should be in awe at the unlucky times thus foreomened. The sun is symbolized by the figure of a raven in a circle, and the moon by a rabbit on his hind legs pounding rice in a mortar, or by a three-legged toad. The last refers to the Chinese ChrcHtoiiuitlii/, p. 391 ACTION AND UEACTIOX OF THE ELEMENTS. 75 O 5 H I-:; < H P3 O a: o I— ( H O !^ P P^ Q ;?; 0) 1* M a tx) -2 i^ s g> •suosvag anoj a Xfl <1 ^ Si- Ifi §» 'ii •saojadraa ^[JBa 3Atj s^. c cw ■f 43-' -^cj g^'. ^s ■sa}ox iBoisuj^i a-m 'Z bb sb a m J3 •ejaosjA BAi^ >5 a s > to a ffi tj h^ W CO d •SIOIOQ aATJ u S i -2 is •s^auEij 3 <-< -t3 d S-l 3 ampuodsauoo aAij; 1 s •-5 ^ e8 CO 3Ai^ aq^t JO saitjAipY if 3 g S th £ S >3 !» Ph ^ p 35 ■i5?(?^ aAijf am iCq e '0 .5 > Mti 2^ to - S p30Ut»nt}ui stuajs s iiaX am JO saiqjlBnci ^.M Ph-^ w -^ w" ^ •sscd -uioo JO s^uiod saIjI 1 52i 1 3i 1 45 u C flMjy aAi£ am ^q -g § 73, 0) paanpojd sa^sBX 3ai^ 02 S GO < CO feb to to t ^^ tb bb 'Biii^ nys •S^^S ^-2 C fl ai}-) ut aaAia i6(/i// Imbu anc Descen ?8 i fl '^ g- aAi J am JO sapn^nf) P3 g <1 SI ^1 r-~~' v^,. -^^r^- r~' — , — •MaaA\oj iB^uatu -aia JO 'bujif aAij ^1 H ^1 76 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. legend of an ancient beauty, Cliang-ngo, who drank the liquor of imniortality and straightway ascended to the moon, where she was transformed into a toad, still to be traced in its face. It is a special object of worship in autumn, and moon-cakes dedicated to it are sold at this season. All the stars are i-anged into constellations, and an emperor is installed over them, who resides at the north pole ; five monarchs, also, Yivc in the five stars in Leo, where is a palace, called Wu Tl tao^ or 'Throne of the Five Emperors.' In this celestial government there is also an heir-apparent, empresses, sons and daughters, tribunals, and the constellations receive the names of men, animals, and other terrestrial objects. The Dipper is worshipped as the residence of the fates, where the duration of life, and other events relating to mankind, are measured and meted out. Doolittle's Social Life contains other popular notions connected with the stars, showing the ignorance still existing, and the fears excited by unusual phenomena among the heavenly bodies. Both heaven and the sun are worshipped by the government in appropriate temples on the west and east sides of Peking. The rainbow is the product of the impure vapors ascending from the earth meetino; those descendino; from the sun. If their knowledge of astronomy can be criticised as being anything but an exact science, the Chinese should not be denied credit for a certain amount of beauty in what may be called the romantic side of this study. In the myths and legends which have clustered about and doubtless in many cases perverted their observations of the stars, there are the sources of fetes and subjects for pictorial illustration Mithout number. One of these stories, forming the motive of a bowl decoration given upon the opposite page, is the fable of Aquila (;^/'i'/.) and Vega, known in Chinese and Japanese mytliX)logy as the Herdsman and Weaver-girl. The latter, the daughter of the sun-god, was so continually busied with her loom that her father became wor- I'ied at her close habits and thought that by marrying her to a neighbor, who herded cattle on the banks of the Silver Stream of Heaven (the Milky Way), she might awake to a brighter manner of living. " No sooner did the maiden become wife than her habits FABLE OF THE HERDSMAN AND WKAVEIt-GIRL. 77 78 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. and character utterly changed for the worse. She hecame not only very merry and lively, but quite forsook loom and needle, giving up her nights and days to play and idleness ; no silly lover could hav^e been more foolish than she. The sun-king;, in great wrath at all this, concluded that the husband was the cause of it and determined to sepai'ate the couple. So he or- dered him to remove to the other side of the river of stars, and told him that hereafter they should meet only once a year, on the seventh night of the seventh month. To make a brids-e over the flood of stars, the sun-king called myriads of magpies, which thereupon flew together, and, making a bridge, supported the poor lover on their wnngs and backs as if it were a roadway of solid land. So bidding his weeping wife farewell, the lover- husband sorrowfully crossed the River of Heaven, and all the magpies instantly flew away. But the two were separated, the one to lead his ox, the other to ply her shuttle during the long hours of the day wdth diligent toil, and the sun-king again re- joiced in his daughter's industry. "At last the time for their reunion drew near, and only one fear possessed the loving wife. AVhat if it should rain ? For the River of Heaven is always full to the brim, and one extra di'op causes a flood which sweeps away even the bird l)ridge. But not a drop fell ; all the heavens were clear. The magpies flew joyfully in myriads, making a way for the tiny feet of the httle lady. Trembling with joy, and with heart fluttering more than the bridge of wings, she crossed the River of Heaven and was in the arms of her husband. This she did every year. The husband staid on his side of the river, and the wife came to him on the magpie bridge, save on the sad occasion when it rained. So every year the people hope for clear weather, and the happy festival is celebrated alike by old and young." ' These two constellations are worshipped principally by wom- en, that they may gain cumiing in the arts of needlework and making of fancy flowers. AVatermelons, fi-uits, vegetables, cakes, etc., are placed with incense in the reception-room, and ' Somewhat abridged from Mr. W. E. Griffis' Japdneae Fairy Worhl, a book which has given us the cream of a great variety of stories from Eastern won' der-lore. DIVISIONS OF THE DAY— THE ALMANAC. 79 before these offerings are performed the kneelings and knoek- ing-s in the usual wav. The entire day is divided into twelve two-hour periods caUed shin., coumiencing at eleven o'clock, p.m.; each hour is further subdivided into kik, or eighths, equal to fifteen of our minutes, and receives the same characters. There are various means employed to measure time, but the people are rapidly learning to reckon its progress by watches and clocks, and follow our di- visions in preference to their own. A common substitute for watches are tl/ne-sticks, long round pieces of a composition of clay and sawdust, well mixed and wound in a spiral manner; the lapse of time is indicated by its equable slow combustion from one hour mark to another, until the whole is consumed, which in the longest is not less than a week. Dials are in common use, and frequently attached to the mariner's compass, by making the string which retains the cover in its place cast a shadow on the face of it. This lesson in dialing, Davis supposes they learned from the Jesuits. Clepsydras of various forms were anciently employed, some of which, from their descrip- tion, were so disproportionately elegant and costly for such a clumsy mode of noting time, that their beauty more than their use was perhaps the principal object in preparing them. The almanac holds an important place, its preparation having been early taken under the special cal-e of the government, which looks upon a present of this important publication as one of the highest favors which it can confer on tributary vassals or friendly nations. It is annually prepared at Peking, under the direction of a bureau attached to the Board of Rites, and, by making it a penal offence to issue a counterfeit or pirated edition the governmental astrologers have monopolized the management of the superstitions of the people in regard to the fortunate or unlucky conjunctions of each day and hour. Be- sides the cabalistic part of it, the ephemeris also contains tables of the rising of the sun according to the latitudes of the prin- cipal places, times of the new and full moon, the beginning and length of the twenty -four terms, eclipses, application of the horary characters, conjunction of the planets, etc. Two or three editions are published for the convenience of the people, 80 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. the prices of which vary from three to ten cents a copy. Xo one ventures to be without an ahuanac, lest he be liable to the gi'eatest misfortunes, and run the imminent hazard of under- taking important events on black-balled days. The Europeans who were employed for many years in compiling the calendar were not allowed to interfere in the astrological part ; it is to the discredit of the Chinese to aid thus in perpetuating folly and ignorance among the people, when they know that the whole system is false and absurd. Such governments as that of China, however, deem it necessary to uphold ancient supersti- tions, if they can thereby influence their security, or strengthen the reverence due them. If their astronomical notions are vague, their geographical knowledge is ridiculous. The maps of their own territories are tolerably good, being originally drawn from actual survej's by nine of the Jesuits, between the years 1708-1718, and since that time have been filled up and changed to conform to the alterations and divisions. Their full survey's were engraved on copper at Paris, by order of Louis XIV., on sheets, measuring in all over a hundred square feet, and have formed the basis of all subsequent maps. The Chinese do not teach geography in their schools, even of their own empire. The conimon people have no knowledge, therefore, of the form and divisions of the globe, and the size and position of the kingdoms of the earth. Their common maps delineate them very erroneously, not even excepting their own possessions in Mongolia and tli — scattering islands, kingdoms, and continents, as they have heard of their existence, at haphazard in various corners beyond the frontiers. The two Americas and Africa are entirely omitted on most of them, and England, Holland, Portugal, Goa, Lugonia, Bokhara, Germany, France, and India, are arranged along the western side, from north to south, in a series of islands and headlands. The southei'n and eastern sides are similarly garnished by islands, as Japan, Lewchew, Formosa, Siam, Pirmah, Java, the Sulu Islands, and others, while Kussia occupies the whole of the northern frontier of tlieir Middle Kingdom. The geographical works of Tsinglai are not (juite so erroneous as his astronomical, but the uneducated peoj^lc, notwithstanding GE0(4KAnTICAL KNOWLEDGK OF THE CHINESE. 8\ Ills efforts to teach them better, still generally su})pose the earth to be an inniiense extended stationary plain. Their notions of its inhabitants are equally whimsical, and wonld grace tlie pages of Sir fJohn Mandeville. In some parts of its surface they imagine the inliabitants to he all dwarfs, who tie themselves together in bunches for fear of being carried away by the eagles; in others they are all women, who conceive by looking at their shadows ; and in a third kingdom, all the people have holes in their breasts, through which they thrust a pole, when carrying one another from place to place. Chai'ts for the guidance of the navigator, or instruments to aid him in determining his position at sea, the Chinese are nearly or quite destitute of; they have retrograded rather than advanced in navigation, judg- ing from the accounts of Fa-hian, Ibn Batuta, and other travel- lers, M'hen their vessels frequented the ports in the Persian Gulf and on the Malabar coast, and carried on a large trade with the Archipelago. Itineraries are published, containing the dis- tances betw^een places on the principal thoroughfares throughout the provinces, and also lists of the ports, harbors, and islands on the coast, but nothing like sailing directions accompany the latter, nor do maps of the routes illustrate the former. Such knowledge as they have on these points is hidden away in their libraries, as the Latin and Greek classics were in European con- vents and castles a thousand yeai's ago. In the various branches of mensuration and formulae used to describe the dimensions and weight of bodies, they have reached only a practical medioci'ity. With a partial knowledge of trigo- nometry, and no instruments for ascertaining the heights of objects or their distances fi'om the observer, still their lands are well measured, and the area of lots in towns and cities accurately ascertained. The cht/i or foot is the integer of length, but its standard value cannot be easily ascertained. In the Chinese Commercial Ouide^ p. 285, is a table of eighty-four observations on this point, taken at different times and places in China, whose extremes differ more than six inches. It is fixed by the Board of Works at 13^ in. English, but tradesmen at Canton employ foot measures varying from 14.625 to 14.81 in. ; according to the tariff, it is reckoned at 14.1 in. English, and the ehang Vol. II.— 6 83 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. of ten chih at Z\\ yds. During the past thirty years, the tariff weights and measures have gradually obtained acceptance as the standards, and this will probably result in securing uniforniity in course of time. The chih is subdivided into ten tsun or pun- tos, and each tsun into teny^n. The I'l is used for distances, and is usually reckoned at 1,825.55 ft. English, Avh'ich gives 2.89 I'l to an English mile ; this is based on the estimate of 200 I'l to a degree, but there were only 180 li to a degree before Euro- peans came, which increases its length to 2,028.39 ft. or 2.6 Vi to a mile, which is nearer the common estimate. The French missionaries divided the degree into 250 li (each being then ex- actly 1,460.44 ft. English, or one-tenth of a French astronomical league), and also into sixty minutes and sixty seconds, to make it correspond to western notation ; this measure has not been adopted in common use. The present rulers have established post-houses very generally, at intervals of ten li^ or about a league. The land measures are the mao and l:'inc(-, has four strings arranged and secured like those of a violin ; it is about three feet lung, and the unvarnished upper table has twelve frets to guide the performer. The strings are tuned at the intervals of a fourth, a major tone, and a fourth, so that the outer strings are octaves to each other ; but the player gener- ally avoids the semitones. The j'U''^ frequently accompanies the songs of strolling musicians and ballad singers. The san hlen, or 'three-stringed guitai',' resembles a rebeck in its con- tour, but the neck and head is three feet long, and the body is cylindrical and hollow, usually covered with snake's skin, upon which the bridjire is set. The strini:;s are tuned as fourths to each othei', and in this respect it seems to be the counterpart of the Grecian mercurian ; their sound is low and dull, and the instrument is sometimes played in company with the 2n2>a. Another kind of guitar, called yueh kin, or ' full moon guitar,' has a large round belly and short neck, resembling the theorbo or arch lute of Europe, but with only four strings, while that had ten or more. These four strings stand in pairs that are unisons with each other, having an interval of a fifth interposed between the pairs. Tiie sound is smarter than that from the pij[)a or Jiin, and it is used in lively tunes, the strings being WIND INSTRUMENTS. 101 struck briskly witli the iniil or .a plectriiin. Similar in its con- struction to the san hien is the rebeck, or two-stringed fiddle, tlie rude appearance of which corresponds to the thin grat- ing sounds which issue from it. This instrument is merely a bamboo stick thrust into a cylinder of the same material, and having two strings fastened at one end of the stick on pegs, and passing over a bridge on the cylinder to the other end ; they are tuned at intervals of a fifth. The bow passes between the two sti-ings, and as they are near each other, much of the skill required to play it is exhibited in wielding the bow so as not to make discord by scraping it against the wrong string while tvy- ing to produce a given sound. Europeans wonder how the Chi- nese can be delighted with the harsh gratings of this wretched machine, but none of their musical instruments are more popu- lar, and the skill they exhibit in playing it deserves a better reward in the melody of the notes. A modification of it, called ti kin, or 'crowing lute,' is made by employing a cocoanut for the belly ; its sounds are, if anything, more dissonant. The 1/ang hin is a kind of dulcimer, consisting of a greater or less number of brass wires of different lengths, tuned at proper intervals, and fastened upon a sounding-board ; it is played with light hammers, and forms a rudimentary piano-forte, but the sounds are very attenuated. The samj is in like manner the embryo of the organ ; it is a hollow conical-shaped box, which corresponds to a wind -chest, having a mouthpiece on one side, and communicating with thirteen reeds of different lengths in- serted in the top ; some of the tubes are provided with valves, part of them opening upward and part downward, so that some of them sound when the breath fills the wind-box, and others are only heard when it is sucked out and the air rushes down the tubes to refill it. The tubes stand in groups of four, four, three, two, around the top, and those having ventiges are placed so that the performer can open or close them at pleasure as he holds it. By covering the first set of holes and gently breath- ing in the mouthpiece, a sweet concert of sounds is produced, augmented to the octave and twelfth as the force of the breath is increased. By stopping certain groups, other notes, shriller and louder, are emitted ; and any single tube can be sounded by 102 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. inhaling the wind from tlie wind-box and stopping the other lioles. It is a simple thing and no doubt among the most ancient of musical instruments, but it possesses no scope nor means of varying the tone of the tubes. Mr. Lay thinks it to be identical in principle and form with the organ invented by Jubal ; the Chinese regard it more as a curious instrument than one possessing claims to adnuration or attention. Their wind instruments are numerous, but most of them are remarkable rather for clamor than sweetness or compass. The' h icang tih^ or flute, is about twice the length of our fife, and made of a bamboo tube neatly prepared and pierced with ten holes, two of which ai'e placed near the end and unused, and one mid- way between the enibouchuro and the six equidistant ones for the fingers. This additional hole is covered with a thin film ; the mouth-hole is bored about one-third of the way from the top. Tliei'e are no keys, and the performers generally blow upon the embouchure so violently that the sounds are shrill and harsh, but when several of them play together the concert is more agreeable. The congener of the flute is the iiliii tlh, or clarinet, which takes the lead in all musical performances, as it does in western bands. It has seven effective lioles, one of which is stopped by the thumb, but no kej-s; the bell is of coppor and sits loose upon the end, and the copper mouthpiece is ornamented Mith rings, and blown through a reed. The tones produced by it are shrill and deafen- ing, and none of their instruments better characterize Chinese musical taste. A smaller one, of a sweeter tone, like a flageolet, is sometimes fitted with a singular shaped reed, so that it can be played upon by the nose. Street musicians sometimes endeavor to transform themselves into a travelling orchestra. One of these peripatetic Orpheuses will fit a flageolet to his nose, sling a small drum under one shoulder, and suspend a framework of four small cymbals upon the breast; the man, thus accoutred, aided by a couple of monkeys running after him, or sitting on his head and shoulders, goes from street to street singing a ])liiin- tive ditty, and accompanying his voice with his instruments, and drawing a crowd with his moidceys. The horn i-csenibles a trombone in principle, for the shaft is retractible within the cylindrical copper bell, and can be length- tup: horn, gong, etc. 103 ened at pleasure. The sound is very grave, and in processions its hollow booming forms a great contrast to the shrill clarinets and cymbals. Another kind of horn, less grave, is made of a crooked stem expanding into a small l)ell at tlie end ; the shaft is of two parts, one drawing into the other, so that the depth of tone can be modified. A long straight horn, resembling the funeral pipe of the Jews, is sometimes heard on funeral occasions, but this and the clarion, ti-umpet, and other kinds of pipes of ancient and modern make are not common. The Zo, or gong, is the type of Chinese music : a crashing harangue of rapid blows upon this sonorous plate, with a rattling accompaniment on small drums, and a crackling symphony of shrill notes from the clarinet and cymbal, constitute the chief features of their musical performances. The Emperor Kanghi endeavored to introduce foreign tunes and instruments among his courtiers, and the natives at Macao have heard good music from the Portuguese bands and choirs in that city from child- hood, but not an instrument or a tune has been adopted by them. It seems to be a rule in Chinese music that the gong should only vary in rapidity of strokes, while the alternations of time into agreeable intervals are left to the drums. " This want of perception as to what is pleasing in i-hythmical succession of sounds," Lay well observes, " is connected with another fact — the total absence of metrical effect in national poetry. The verses contain a particular number of words and set pauses in each line, but there is nothing like an interchange of long and short sounds. Among the Greeks the fall of the smith's ham- mer, the stroke of the oar, and the tread of the soldier in armor suggested some poetic measure, and their music exhibits a world of curious metres. But nothing of the sort can be heard in China, amid all the sounds and noises that salute the ear in a noisy country." It is pi-obable that the impracticable, monosyl- labic nature of the language has contributed to this result; though the genius and temperament of the people are the chief reasons. A Chinese orchestra or band, when in full note, strikes upon the ear of a European as a collection of the most discordant sounds, and he immediately thinks of Hogarth's picture of the 104 THK 3IID1)LK KINGDOM. Enraged JMusician, as tlie best likeness of its dissonance. It seems, wlien hearing them, as if each performer had liis own tnne, and was trying to distinguish liimself above liis competitors by his zeal and force ; but on listening carefully he will ob- serve, amid the clangoi', that they keep good time, one taking the octave, and the different instruments striking in with some regaj'd to parts, only, however, to confound the confusion still more because they are not tuned on the same key. Bands and orchestras are employed on occasions of marriages and funerals, theatrical exhibitions, religions or civic processions, and recep- tion of officers, but not to a verj' great extent in temples or ancestral worship ; no nation makes more use of such music as they have than the Chinese. The people have an ear for music, and young men foi'm clubs to learn and practise on various instruments and fit themselves for playing at weddings or birth- day festivals. In respect to adopting foreign harmonies, which youths soon learn to appreciate when taught in mission schools, there is likely to be no competition, owing to the great differences between them. ' From this account of Chinese mnsic, it may be readily inferred that it is not of such a character as to start the hearers off in a lively dance. A sort of nnimmer or posture-making is practised by persons attached to theatrical companies, and pantomimic art seems to have been understood in ancient times, but the exhibitions of it were probably as jejune as the caperings of puppets. As acrobats the Chinese are equal to any nation, and companies have performed in many western capitals within a few years past. Some of their performances are highly exciting, as throwing sharp cleavers at a man fastened to a post, till he cannot stir without cuttinji; himself afirainst their blades, is a common exhibition. To go through the tragedy of trying, con- ' Chinese as Ihey Are, Chap. VIII. Chinese Repository, Vol. VIII., pp. 30-54. Chinese Chrestouyithy, pp. 85G--3G5. Journal N. C. Br. R. A. Soc, No. II., 1859, p. 176 ; No. v., 1808, p. 30. Journal of tlie Asiatic Soc. of Japan, 1877, Vol. v., pp. 170-179. German Asiatic Soc. of Japan, 1876. Grosier, Description fjenerale (U la Chine, Tome VI., p. 258. Doolittle, Soricd TAfe, Vol. II., p. 216. Barrow's Travels, pp. 313-323. Memoires cone, les Chinois, Tomes I., III., VI., etc.; for ancient musical knowledge, the last still furnishes the best an« alysis yet made. DANCING AND THE FINK ARTS. 105 delnning, and killing a boy by stabbing him in the belly is not so connnon ; the imitation of the gasping chest and pallid death hue are wotiderfnlly natural. Ventriloquism, writing answers to questions asked of the spirits by means of rods moving over a dusted table, and other black art or magical tricks have long been known. In dancing and other forms of graceful motion they are entirely wanting, and one would almost as soon think of associating music and medicine as that Chinese music should be accompanied by quadrilles and cotillons, or that men witli shoes like pattens could lead off women with feet like hoofs through the turns and mazes of a waltz or fandango. Their deficiencies in music will not lead us to expect much from them in painting or sculpture, for all flow so much from the same general perception of the beautiful in sound, form, and color, that where one is deficient all are likely to be unap- preciated. This want in Chinese mind (for we are hardly at liberty to call it a defect) is, to a greater or less degree, ob- servable in all the races of Eastern Asia, none of whom exhibit a high appreciation of the beautiful or sublime in nature or art, or have produced much which proves that their true principles were ever understood. Painting is rather behind sculpture, but neither can be said to have advanced bej'ond rude imita- tions of nature. Even the best painters have no proper idea of perspective or of blending light and shade, but the objects are exhibited as much as possible on a flat surface, as if the painter drew his picture from a balloon, and looked at the country with a ver- tical sun shining above him. As might be inferred from their deficiencies in linear drawing and landscapes, they eminently fail in delineating the human figui-e in its right proportions, position, and expressions, and of grouping the persons intro- duced into a piece in natural attitudes. The study of the hu- man figure in all its proportions lias not been attended to by painters any more than its anatomy has by surgeons. Shadows upon portraits are considered a great defect, and in order to avoid them a front view is usually taken. Landscapes are also painted without shading, the remote objects being as minutely depicted as those in the foreground, and the point of view in 106 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. pieces of any size is changed for the nearer and remote pavts. There is no vanishing point to their pictures, as might be in- ferred from their ignorance of perspective and tlie true elements of art. Outline drawing is a favorite style of the art, and the wealthy adorn their houses with rough sketches in ink of fig- ures and landscapes; but the humblest of such compositions as are common in the galleries and studios of western countries have never been produced by Chinese artists. Some of their Representation of a Man Dreaming. representations of abstract ideas are at least singular to us, and, like many other things brought from their country, attract no- tice from their oddity. Their coloring is executed with great skill and accuracy — too nuich, indeed, in many cases, so that the painting loses something of the effect it would otherwise have from the scrupulous minute- ness of the detail, though it looks well in j"»aintings of flowers, animals, costumes, ornaments, and other single objects where this filling up is necessary to a true idea of the original. The tints of the Innnan countenance are no better done, however. ATTAINMENTS IN DRAWING AND COLORING. 107 tliaii its liueaiiieiits, aiul tlie lifeless opacity suggests tlie idea that the artist was not called in until his patron was about to be entombed from the sight of his soi-rowing family. The paintings obtained at Canton may, some of them, seem to dis- prove these opinions of the mediocrity attained by the artists in that country, but the productions of the copyists in that city are not the proper criteria of native uneducated art. Some of them have had so nnich practice in copying foreign produc- tions that it has begun to cori-ect their own notions of design- ing. These constitute, however, a very small proportion of the whole, and have had no effect on national taste. The de- signs to 1)0 seen on plates and bowls are, although not the best, fairer specimens of art than the pieces sometimes procured at Canton. The beautiful fidelity with which engravings are copied at Canton is well seen in the paintings on ivory, es- pecially miniatures and figures, some of which fully equal simi- lar productions made elsewhere.' As samples of Chinese illustrative art, the two adjoining wood-cuts may be considered as quite up to the average of their fairest achievements. The story of the first in bi-ief is as follows: In the district of Tsungngan lived a crafty plebeian, who, envying the good fortune of all about him, became es- pecially covetous of the burial ground of his district magis- trate Chu. Hoping to gain a surreptitious benefit from the felicitous luck of the plat, he secretly buried his own tomb- stone there, and at the end of several years brought suit for its recovery. Unable to comprehend the affair, Chu repaired to the burial spot, where indeed the geomancy of the grave was found to be entirely in accord with the rules, but upon remov- ing the earth the stone of his enemy's remote ancestry was dis- closed. The suit was in consequence declared against him, Chu removed his residence to the black tea country, and his envious neighbor entered in triumph upon possession of the graveyard. Xot so readily, however, did the powers above condone this iniquity. One night there arose a tempest of unheard-of vio- ' Compare Owen Jones, Grammnr of Ornament, Chap. XIV. , and Examples of CMiieHe Ornament (London, 18()7). Gazette des Beaux-Artu for Octoher and November, 187:5, and January, 1874. 108 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. The Vengeance of Heaven upon the False Grave. EXAMPLES OF CHINESE ILLUSTRATIVE ART. 109 leiice, when the thundei- iuul lightning were indescribable, the hideons roar and Hash of which terrified the countiy far and near, boding no good to its wretched inhabitants. The follow- ing morning the grave was discovered in ruins, stone and epi- taph uprooted, even the corpse and coffin missing. The ven- geance of liea\eu had repaired tlu; injustice of man. The illustration which depicts the tempest personified in its full terror shows us the Lai Kttiuj, or God of Thunder, almost the only Chinese mythological deity who is drawn with wings. The cock's head and claws, the hammer and chisel, represent- ing the splitting peal attending a flash, the circlet of fire encom- passing a number of drums to typify the reverberating thunder and the ravages of the irresistible lightning, present a grotesque ensemble which is quite unique even among the Vizarrerie of oriental figures ; the somewhat juvenile attempts of the artist to sketch the destruction and rifling of the grave are much less notable. Concerning the subject of the second illustration (taken, with the other, from the Sacred Edict of Kanghi), we are told that one Yuen, having conceived a violent hatred against an ac- quaintance, set out one morning, knife in hand, with the pur- pose of killing him. A venerable man sitting in a convent saw liim pass, and was amazed to observe several scores of spirits closely following him, some of whom clutched his weapon, while others seemed endeavoring to delay his progress. "About the space of a meal-time" the patriarch noticed Yueirs return, accompanied this time by more than a hundred spirits wearing- golden caps and bearing banners raised on high. Yuen himself appeared with so happ}' a face, in place of his gloomy counte- nance of the early morning, that the old man sadly concluded that his enemy must be dead and his revenge gratified. " When you passed this way at daybreak," he asked, " where were you going, and how do you return so soon ? " " It was owing to my quarrel with Miu," said Y^ien, " that made me wish to kill him. But in passing this convent door better thoughts came to me as I pondered upon the stress his wife and children would come to, and of his aged mother, none of whom had done me wrong. I determined then not to kill him, and return thus promptly 110 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. A would-be Assassin followed by Spirits. SYMBOLISM OF THE CHtN^ESE. Ill from my evil purpose." It hardly needed the sage's commen- dations to increase the reformed murderer's inner contentment, imparted by the train of ghostly helpers ; he continued on his way rejoicing. The reader may notice a pictoi-ial idea as well as a moral not unlike those of more western countries. The syml)olisni of the Chinese has not attracted the notice of foreign writers as much as it deserves. It meets us every- where — on plates and crockery, on carpets, rugs, vases, wall pictures, shop signs, and visiting cards. Certain animals stand for well-understood characters in the language, and convey their sense to the native without any confusion. Owing to the similarity of sound, fuh denotes hat and ha_i>p\nem, and luh stands for deer and official emolument. The cliaracter shao, mtaning 'longevit}',' is represented in many ways — an old man leaning on his staff; a pine tree cut into the form of the char- acter; a tortoise, which is among the longest-lived reptiles; a stork, supposed to be a bird which attains a great age, and a fabulous peach which is a thousand years ripening. A dragon and a phoenix, c^x fung-iokang, are emblems of a newly wedded pail*, and various modes of combination are adopted to repre- sent marriage relations. A rug w'ill sometimes tell a story very neatly to the eye. In the centre is the Raxtstica, or 'hammer of Thor,' which denotes all., and symbolizes all happiness that humanity desires. On the right is the luh, or 'deer,' which denotes lionor and success in study, carrying the yii-'i, or Buddhist sceptre, in its mouth, meaning success in literary labors. On the left is pictured a goose, indicating domestic felicity, and two bats complete the rug, with its good wishes. In the plate represented in the picture the central figure is clad in the ancient costume of officials bearing the insignia or baton of a minister of State. The old man, with his gourd and peach, indicates an extreme and happy old age ; and the figure with the basket corresponds to the cornucopia of western emblems. The five hats symbolize the wufuh, or 'five happi- nesses,' Avhich all mankind desires— riches, longevity, sound body, love of virtue, and a peaceful end. The visiting card and note paper often indicate in their 112 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. adornments a good wish and a motto whieli does credit to the taste and lieart of the designer. A most graceful and not nn- common way of wishing a guest good luck is to depict some happy emblem or a sentence of the language with a fortunate meaning on the bottom of his tea-cup. The characters " May your happiness know no bounds " frequently occur in this posi- Symbols of Happiness and Old Age. (From a plaque.) tion, and the oft-recurring five bats or three peaches can be einployed M'ith like signification. The mandarin duck is a well- understood emblem for conjugal affection ; again, a cock and hen standing on an artificial i"ock-work symbolize the pleasures of a country life. Sometimes the eiglit symbols peculiar to the Buddhist sect, or the pah s/'en (' eight genii') indicative of their protection, are seen in the border of a plaque amid a device of running arabesques. The favoi-ite dragon, in an infinite di- PAINTING ON PITir-I'ArER AND LEAVES. 113 versity of sliapes, adorns the fiiici- qualities of cups, plates, bowls, and vases, to represent imperial grandeur, but connnon people are not wont to use such patterns. The brilliant paintings on pith-paper, or rice-])ajpei\ as it is connnonlj but incorrectly called, deserve special mention for their singulai- delicacy aiid spirit. This substance, whose vel- vety surface contrasts so admirably with bi-ight colors, is a deli- cate vegeta1)le film, consisting of long hexagonal cells, whose length is parallel to the surface of the film, and which are filled with air when the film is in its usual state ; the peculiar soft- ness which so well adapts it for receiving colors is owing to tliis structure. It is obtained from the pith of a species of Fatsia, a plant allied to the Aralia, growing in Formosa and Yunnan, in nuirshy districts. It is cultivated to some extent, but mostly gathered \i\ cutting the branches of the wild plants, which re- semble the elder. This pitli forms a large item in the internal trade of China, and is worked up into toys as well as cut into sheets. The fragments are used to stuff pillows or fill up the soles of shoes, or wherever a light, dry material is needed. The largest and best sheets (ten l)y fifteen inches) are selected for the painters at Hongkong and Canton, where many hundreds of workmen are employed in making them. Under the direc- tion of foreign ladies at Amoy and elsewhere, most accurate imitations of flowers and bouquets are now made I)y natives out of pith-paper. The pieces are cut nearly a foot long, and the pith is forced out by driving a stick into one end ; it is then wet and put into bamboos, where it swells and dries straight. If too short to furnish the i-equired breadth, several bits are pressed together until they adhere and make one long straight piece. The paring knife reseml)lcs a butcher's cleaver, a thin find sharp l)]ade, which is touched u]) on a block of iron-wood at the last moment. The pith is pared on a square tile, having its ends guarded by a thin strip of ])rass, on which the knife rests. The pith is rolled over against its edge with the left hand ; the right firmly holds it, slowly moving it leftward, as the workman pulls and rolls the pith in the same direction, as far as the tile allows. The pared sheet runs under the knife, and the paring goes on until only a centre three or four lines thick is left ; and Vol.. II.— 8 114 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM, tliis remnant the tlirifty workmen use or sell for an aperient The paring resembles the operation of cutting out corks, and produces a smooth slieet about four feet long, the first half foot being too much grooved to be of use. The fresh sheets are pressed in a pile, smoothed by ironing and their fractures mended with mica. Most of the paper is trimmed into square sheets for the makers of artificial fiowers, and sold in Formosa at about eight cents for five hundred sheets. An India-ink out- line is first transferred l)y dampening and pressing it upon the paper, when the ink strikes off sufliciently to enable the work- man to fill up the sketch ; one outline will serve for limning several copies, and in large establishments the separate colors are laid on by different workmen. The manufacture of these paintings at Canton employs between two and three thousand hands. Another tissue sometimes used by the Chinese for painting, more remarkable for its singularity than elegance, is the reticu- lated nerve-work of leaves, the parenchyma of the leaf having been removed by maceration, and the membrane filled with isinglass. The appearance of a painting on this transparent substance is pretty, but the colors do not retain their brilliancy. The Chinese admire paintings on glass, and some of the moon- light scenes or thunderstorms are good specimens of their art. The clouds and dark parts are done with India-ink, and a dark shade well befitting the subject is imparted to the whole scene by underlaying it with a piece of blackish paper. Portraits and other subjects are also done on glass, but the indifferent execu- tion is rendered still more conspicuous by the transparency of the ground ; the Hindus purchase large quantities of such glass pictures of their gods and goddesses. Looking-glasses are also painted on the back with singular eifect by removing the quick- silver with a steel point according to a design previously sketched, and then painting the denuded portion. Statuary is confined (thiefiy to molding idols out of clay or cutting them from wood, and carving animals to adorn balus' trades and temples. Idols are generally made in a sitting pos- ture and dressed, the face and hands being the only pai'ts of the body seen, so that no opportuility is afforded for imitating the CHINESE SCULPTURE AND CARICATURE. 115 muscles and contour of tlie figure. The hideous monsters which guard the entrance of temples often exhibit more artistic skill than the unmeaning images enshrined within, and some even display much knowledge of character and proportion. Among their best performances in statuettes are the accurate baked and painted models of different classes of people ; Canton and Tien- tsin artists excel in this branch. Animals are sculptured in granite and cast in bronze, showing great skill and patience in the detail work ; deformity in the model has resulted in the production of such animals, indeed, as were probably never beheld in any world. Images of lions, tigers, tortoises, elephants, rams, and other animals ornament bridges, temples, and tombs. The elephants in the long avenue of warriors, horses, lions, etc., leading up to the tomb of the Emperor Ilungwu at Xanking are the only tolerable representa- tions of their originals ; the gigantic images guarding the tomb of Yungloh, his son, at Changping, near Peking, are noticeable for size alone. The united effect of the elaborate carving and grotesque ornaments seen upon the roofs, woodwork, and pillars of buildings is not devoid of beauty, though in their details there is a great violation of the true principles of art, just as the expression of a face may please which still has not a handsome feature in it. Short columns of stone or wood, sur- mounted by a lion, and a dragon twining around the shaft, the whole cut out of one block ; or a lion sejant with half a dozen cubs crawling over his body, are among the ornaments of tem- ples and graves which show the taste of the people. The Chinese have a sense of the ridiculous, and exhibit it both in their sculpture and drawing in many ways. Lampoons, pasquinades, and caricatures are common, nor is any pei'son below the dragon's throne spared by their pens or pencils, though they prefer subjects not likely to involve the authors — as in the one here selected from the many elicited during the war of 1840. By far the best specimens of sculpture are their imitations of fruits, flowers, animals, etc., cut out of many kinds of stone, from gnarled roots of bamboo, wood, and other materials ; but in these we admire the unwearied patience and cunning of the workmen in making gi'otesque combinations and figures out of 116 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. apparently intractable materials, and do not seek for any indica- tions of a pni'e taste or embodiment of an exalted conception. Inscriptions of a religions or geomantic cliai'acter are often cnt npon tlie faces of rocks, as was tlie case in India and Arabia,* and tlie pictnrescpie characters of the language make a pretty ap- pearance in such situations. The small advances made in architecture have already been noticed in Chapter XIII. — a deficiency exhibited in the Iluns and other nations of the Mongolian stock long after they had Caricature of an English Foraging Party. settled in Europe and Western Asia ; nor was it imtil their amalgamation with the imaginative nations of Southern Europe had changed their original character that grand performances in architecture appeared among the latter. If the Chinese had a model of the Parthenon or the Pantheon in their own country, belike they would measurably imitate it in every part, but they would erect dozens in the same fashion. Perhaps an infusion of elegance and taste would liave been imparted to them if the people had had frequent intercourse witii more im- ' Compare Job XXX., 24. LIMITATIONS OF TIIKIll AlinilTKOTURE. 117 ainiiative nations, 1)ut wlicn tlici'c wei-c no models of this su- perior kind to follow there was no likelihood of their origina- tihg them. In lightei' edifices, as ])avilions, rest-houses, kiosks, and arbors, there is, however, a degree of taste and adaptation that is umisual in other buildings, and (juite in keeping with their fondness for tinsel and gilding rather than solidity and grandeur. On this point Lay's remark on the characteristics of the Attic, Egyptian, Gothic, and Chinese styles is apposite. " If we would see beauty, size, and proportion in all their ex- cellence, we should look for it among the models of Greece ; if we desire something that was wild and stupendous, we should find it in Egypt ; if grandeur with a never-sated minuteness of decoration please us, we need look no further than to a cathe- dral ; and lastly, if the romantic and the old-fashioned attract our fancy, the Chinese can point us to an exhaustless store in the recesses of their vast Empire. A lack of science and of con- ception is seen in all their luiildings, but fancy seems to have had free license to gambol at pleasure ; and wdiat the architect wanted in developing a scheme he made up in a redundancy of imagination." The Chinese have made but little progress in investigating the principles and forces of mechanics, but have practically un- derstood most of the common powers in the various applications of which they are capable. The lever, wheel and axle, wedge and pinion, are all known in some form or other, but the modi- fication of the wedge in the screw is not frequent. The sheave- blocks on board their vessels have only one pulley, but they understand the advantages of the windlass, and have adopted the capstain in working vessels, driving piles, raising timber, etc. They have long understood the mode of raising weights by a hooked pulley running on a rope, attached at each end to a cylinder of unequal diameters ; by this contrivance, as the rope wound around the larger diameter it ran off the snuiller one, raising the weight to the amount of the difference between the circumference of the two cylinders at a very small expense of strength. The graduations of the weighing-beam indicate their acquaintance with the relations between the balance and the weight on the long and short arm of the lever, and this 118 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. mode of weighing is preferred for gold, pearls, and other valu- able things. The overshot water-M-heel is used to turn stones for grinding wheat and set in motion pestles to hull rice and press oil from seeds, i',nd the undershot power for raising water. There is a great expenditure of human strength in most of their contrivances ; in many, indeed, the object seems to have been i-ather to give a direction to this strength than to abridge it. For instance, they put a number of slings under a heavy stone and carry it off bodily on poles, in preference to making a low car to roll it away at half the expense of human power. In other departments of science the attainments of the people are few and imperfect. Chemistry and metallui'gy are un- known as sciences, but many operations in them are performed with a considerable degree of success. Sir J, Davis gives the detail of some experiments in oxidizing quicksilver and prepa- ration of mercurial medicines which were performed by a native in the presence and at the request of Dr. Pearson at Canton, and " afforded a curious proof of similar results ol)tained by the most different and distant nations possessing very unequal scientific attainments, and bore no unfavorable testimony to Chinese shrewdness and ingenuity in the existing state of their knowledge.'' ' The same opinion might be safely predicated of their metallurgic manipulations ; the character of the work is the only index of the efficacy of the process. In bronzes they take a high place, and the delicacy of their niello work in gold and silver, upon wood as well as metal, caimot be surpassed. This compendious review of the science of the Chinese can be brought to a close by a brief account of their theory and prac- tice of medicine and surgery. Although they are almost as superstitious as the Hindus or Xorth American Indians, they do not depend upon inc^antations and charms for relief in case of sickness, but resoi't to the prescriptions of the physician as the most reasonable and likely way to i-ecovcr ; mixed up, indeed, with many strange practices to assist the efficacy of the doses. These vary in every part of the Empire, and show the power of ignorance to perpetuate and strengthen tlie strangest supersti- ' Tlie Chinese, Vol. II., pp. 260-270, 28G. IDEAS ON Till-: STKUt'TUIlE OF TIIK IIFMAN HODY. 119 tions wliere health and life are involved. Doolittle has col lected many instances, and the experience of medical mission- aries is unifoi'm in this matter. The dissection of the human hody is never attempted, though some notions of its internal structure are taught in medical works, which are published in many forms. Mr. Wylie notices fifty-nine treatises of a medical and physiological character in his Notes on Chinese Literature. They contain references to a far greater number of authors, some of whom flourished in the earliest days of China, and many of whose writings exhibit good sense and sound advice amid the strangest theories. Dr. Harland has deseril)ed the Chinese ideas of the organization of the body and the functions of the chief viscera in a lucid man- ner, and the diagram shown on p. 120 presents the popular opinions on this subject, for whatever foreigners may have im- parted to them has not yet become generally known. The Chinese seem to have no idea of the distinction between venous and arterial blood, nor between muscles and nerves, ap- plying the word hin to both tendons and nerves. According to these physiologists, the brain (A) is the abode of the yln prin- ciple in its perfection, and at its base (B), where there is a reser- voir of the marrow, communicates through the spine with the whole body. The larynx (C) goes through the lungs directly to the heart, expanding a little in its course, while the pharynx (D) passes over them to tlie stomach. The lungs («, «, r/, a^ a, a) are white, and placed in the thorax ; they consist of six lobes or leaves suspended from the spine, four on one side and two on the other ; sound proceeds from holes in them, and they rule the various parts of the body. The centre of the thorax (or pit of the stomach) is the seat of the breath ; joy and delight ema- nate from it, and it cannot be injured without danger. The heart {h) lies underneath the lungs, and is the prince of the body ; thoughts proceed from it. The pericardium {<■) comes from and envelops the heart and extends to the kidneys. There are three tubes communicating from the heart to the spleen, liver, and kidneys, but no clear ideas are held as to their office. Like the pharynx, they pass through the diaphragm, which is itself connected with the spine, ribs, and bowels. The 120 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. Chinese Notions of the Internal Structure of the Human Body. /I,/?— The brain. C— Larynx. D— Pharynx. a,a,«,«,rt, a — Lungs. 6 — Heart, c — Pericardium. U — Bond of con- nection with tho spleen, e — The (Esophagus. /— Boiidnf connection with the liver, (j — Bond of connection with the kidneys, h — The diaphragm, i — Cardiac extremity. ;— The spleen, i— The stomach. /—Omentum. »«— The pylorus. n,n,n,n,n.v — The liver, o— The gall-blndder. ;> — The kidneys, q — The small intestines, r — The largo intestines, s— Caput coli. i—Thc navel, m— The blad tier. ?' — The "gate of life."' sometimes iiUu-ed in the right kidney, zo— The rectum, x, y— The urinal and foecal passages. liver (??, ;?, ??, 71, v, 71) io on the right side and has seven lobes ; the soul re- sides in it, and schemes emanate from it ; tlie gall-bladder (0) is below and projects npward into it, and when the person is angry it ascends ; cour- age dwells in it ; hence the Chinese sometimes procure the gall-bladder of animals, as tigers and bears, and even of men, especially notorious ban- dits executed for their crimes, and eat the bile contained in them, under the idea that it will im- part courage. The spleen {J) lies between the stom- ach and diaphragm and assists in digestion, and the food passes from it into the stomach {k), aud hence through the pylo- rus {m) into the large in- testines. The omentum [l) overlies the stomach, but its office is unknown, and the mesentery and pancreas are entirely omitted. The small intestines {(j) are connected witli the heart, and the urine passes through them into the bladder, separating from the food or fseces TIIEOKIES REGARDING OSTEOLOGY AND CIRCULATION. 121 at the caput coli iV), where they divide from the larger intes- tines. The large intestines (/■) are connected with the lungs and lie in the loins, having sixteen convolutions. The kidneys {j)) are attached to the spinal marrow, and resemble an egg in shape, and the subtle genei-ative fluid is eliminated by them above to the brain and belo\v to the spermatic cord and sacral extremity ; the testes, called wal shin, or 'outside kidneys,' communicate with them. The right kidney, or the passage from it (v), is called the " gate of life," and sends forth the subtle fluid to the sper- matic vessels. The bladder (u) lies below the kidneys, and re- ceives the urine from the small intestines at the iliac valve. The osteology of the frame is briefly despatched : the pelvis, skull, forearm, and leg are considered as single bones, the pro- cesses of the joints being quite dispensed with, and the whole considered merely as a kind of internal framework, on and in which the necessary fleshy parts are upheld, but with which they have not much more connection by muscles and ligaments than the post has with the pile of mud it upholds. The Tai-i Yuen, or Medical College at Peking, contains a copper model of a man, about six feet high, on which are given the names of the pulses in different places ; it is pierced with many small holes. In a.d. 1027 the Emperor had two anatomical figures made to illustrate the art of acupuncture, which is still prac- tised. The irrigation of the body with blood is rather compli- cated, and authors vary greatly as to the manner in which it is accomplished. Some pictures represent tubes issuing from the fingers and toes, and running up the limbs into the trunk, where the}' are lost, or reach the heart, lungs, or some other organ as well as they can, wandering over most parts of the body in their course. Theories are furnished in great variety to account for the nourishment of the body and the functions of the viscera, and upon their harmonious connection with each other and the five metals, colors, tastes, and planets is founded the well-being of the system ; with all tliey hold an intimate relation, and their actions are alike built on the all-pervading functions of the yiii and ya7i(/ — tliose universal solvents in Chinese philosophy. The pulse is very carefully studied, and its condition regarded as the Bar, (( lightly (( (I heavily 'Cubit, (( lightly (C (( heavily 122 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. index of every condition of the body, even to determining tlie sex of an unborn infant ; great parade is usually made by every practitioner in examining this important symptom. Dr. liarland has made a table showing the sympathy sup- posed to exist between the different points of the pulses and the internal organs." In each wrist tiie pulses are named Inch, Ba}\ and Cuhit (the first being nearest the liand) ; a change in degree of pressure doubles the range of viscera thus indexed : LEFT WRIST. Inch, when lightly pressed, indicates the state of the small intestines. " " heavily " " " " heart. ' " " " gall-bladder. . u u « liyej. ' " " " urinary bladder. ' " " " kidneys. RIGHT WRIST. Iiicli, when lightly pressed, indicates the state of the large intestines. " " heavily " " " " lungs. Bar, " lightly " " " " stomach. " " heavily " " " " spleen. Ciibil, " lightly " " " " sail (seaott. " " heavily " " " " miiu/ man. The two latter meaning respectively ' Three Passages ' and ' Gate of Life,' being purely imaginary organs, are difficult to describe. A diseased state of an organ is supposed to be owing to a disagreement of the yin and yong, the presence of bad humors, or the more powerful agency of evil spirits, and until these agencies are corrected medicines cannot exercise their full effi- cacy. The surface of the body receives the closest attention, for there is not a square inch w'ithout its appropriate name. Plasters and lotions are applied to these places according to the diagnosis of tlie disease, predicated on the dual theory ; and the strolling quacks and regular practitioners both administer the rationale and the dose together — considering, probably, that the medicine would lose half its efficacy upon the organs it was in- tended to affect if it was not mixed with faith to operate upon the sentient principle lodged there. ' Transactions of tlie China Br. of Royal Asiatic Society, Hongkong, Part L , 1847, p. 43. mp:dical puactice of the Chinese. 123 The practice of tlic Chinese is far in advance of tlieir theory, and some of their treatises on dietetics and medical practice contain good advice, the result of experience. Dr. W. Lock- hart has ti-anslated n native treatise on midwifery, in which the author, conlining himself principally to the best modes of treat- ment in all the stages of parturition, and dwelling brieii}' on the reasons of things, has greatly improved upon the physiologists. This branch of the profession is almost entirely in the hands of women. Sui-gical operations are chietly confined to removing a tooth, puncturing sores and tumors with needles, or trying to reduce dislocations and reunite fractures by pressure or ban- daging. Sometimes they successfully execute more difficult cases, as the amputation of a finger, operation for a harelip, and insertion of false teeth. In one case of dentistry four in- cisor teeth made of ivory were strung upon a piece of catgut and secured in their place b}- tying the string to the eye-teeth ; they were renewed quarterly, and served their purpose tolerably M'ell. The practice of acupuncture has some good results among the bad ones.* That of applying cauteries and caustics of va- rious degrees of power is more general, and sometiuies entails shocking distress upon the patient. Cases have presented them- selves at the hosj)itals, where small sores, by the application of escharotics, have extended until a large part of the tissue, and even important organs, have been destroyed, the charlatan amusing his suffering patient by promises of ultimate cure. The moxa, or burning the fiovvers of the amaranthus upon the skin, is attended with less injury. Tui-ning in of the eyelashes is a connnon ailment, and native practitioners attempt to cure it by everting the lid and fastening it in its place by two slips of bamboo tightly bound on, or by a pair of tweezers, until the loose fold on the edge sloughs off : the eye is, however, more frecpiently disfigured by this clumsy process than is the trouble remedied. Poultices made of many strange or disgusting substances are applied to injured parts, 'Compare Ri'mnsat {Xoiiveau.r Melangen Asiatiqves, Tome I., pp. 358-380), who says that the first notion of acupuncture as practised in China was brought into Europe by one Ten-Rhyue, a Dutch surgeon, at the end of the seveu- teenth century. 124 Tiip; isiiddlt: KiNGDo:\r. Dr. Parker mentions the case of a man who, having injured tlie iris by a fall, was ordered by his native physician to cut a chicken in halves, laying one portion on the eye as a cataplasm and eating the other as an internal cure. Venesection is rarely attempted, but leeches and cupping are employed to remove the blood from a particular spot. Blood-letting is disapproved in fevers, " for," says the Chinese reasoner, " a fever is like a pot boiling ; it is requisite to reduce the fire and not diminish the liquid in the vessel if we wish to cure the patient." Many of the operations in cases of fracture present a strange mixture of folly and sense, proceeding from their ideas of the internal structure of the human body conliicting with those which common sense and experience teach. Pere Ripa's de- scription of the treatment he underwent to prevent the ill ef- fects of a fall will serve as an illustration. Having been thrown from his horse and left fainting in the street, he was carried into a house, wdiere a surgeon soon visited him. " He made me sit up in bed, placing near me a large basin filled with water, in which he put a thick piece of ice to i-educe it to a freezing point. Then stripping me to the waist, he made me stretch my neck over the basin, while he continued for a good while to pour the water on my neck with a cup. The pain caused by this operation upon those nerves which take their rise from the pia mater was so great and insuffei'able that it seemed to me unequalled, but he said it would stanch the blood and restore me to my senses, which was actually the case, for in a short time my sight became clear and my mind re- sumed its powers. He next bound my head with a band di-awn tight by two men who held the ends, while he struck the inter- mediate parts vigorously with a piece of wood, which shook my head violently, and gave me dreadful pain. This, he said, was to set the brain, which he supposed had been displaced, and it is true that after the second operation my head felt more free. A third operation was now performed, during which he made me, still stripped to the waist, walk in the open air supported by two persons; and while thus walking he unexpectedly threw a basin of freezing cold water over my breast. As this caused me to draw my breath with great vehemence, and as my THE PKACTICK OF CHINESE PHYSICIANS. 125 cliest had been injured b)- tlie fall, it may easily be imagined Avhat were my sufteriiigs under this inlliction ; but I was eon- soled by the information that if any i-ib had been dislocated, this sudden and hard breathing would restoie it to its natui-al position. The next ])roceeding was not less painful and extrava- gant. The operator made me sit on the ground, and, assisted by two men, held a cloth upon my mouth and nose till I was almost suffocated. ' This,' said the Chinese Esculapius, ' by causing a violent heaving of the chest, will force back any rib that may have been dislocated.' The wound in my head not being deep, he healed it by stuffing it with burnt cotton. He then ordered that I should continue to walk much, supported by two persons ; that I should not sit long, nor be allowed to sleep till ten o'clock at night, at which time I should eat a little thin rice soup, lie assured me that these walks in the open air while fasting would prevent the blood from settling upon the chest, where it might corrupt. These remedies, though barbarous and excruciating, cured me so completely that in seven days I was able to resume my journey." ' The active daily practice of a popular Chinese doctor may be very well illustrated from Dr. Ilobson's description of one Ta wang siensang, or ' Dr. Hhubarb,' a medical practitioner in Canton. This man, after prescribing for the sick at his office until the hour of ten in the morning, would commence his rounds " in the sedan chair carried in great haste by three or four men. Those patients were visited first who had their names and residences first placed in the entry book, and as the streets were narrow and crowded, to avoid trouble in finding the house, a copy of the doctor's sign-board would be posted up outside the patient's door, so that the chairmen should be able at once to recognize the house without delay." The doctor being ushered into the hall, or principal room, is met with bows and salutations by the father or elder brother of the family. Tea and pipes are offered in due form, and he is requested to feel his patient's pulse'; if a male, he sits opposite ' Pere Ripa, Memoirs and Residence ai Peking^ translated by F. Prandi, Lou- don, 1844, p. G7. 126 TIIK MIDDLE KINGDOM. to him ; if a female, afcreeii of bamboo intervenes, wliich is only removed in case it is requisite to see tlie tongue. The riglit hand is placed upon a book t»^ steady it, and the doctor, with much gravity and a learned look, places his three fingers upon the pulsating vessel, pressing it alternately with each finger on the imier and outer side, and then making with three fingers a steady pressure for scvei'al minutes, not with watch in hand, to note the frequency of its beats, but with a thoughtful and cal- culating mind, to diagnose the disease and prognosticate its issue. The fingers being removed the patient immediately stretches out the other hand, which is felt in the same manner. Perhaps certain cpiestions are asked of the father or mother con- cerning the sick person, but these are usually few, as it is pre- sumed the pulse reveals everything needful to kiiow. Ink and paper are produced and a prescription is written out, which consists of numerous ingredients, but there are one or two of only prime importance —the rest are servants or adjuvants. They are all taken from the vegetable kingdom, and are mostly simples of little efficacy. The prescrij)tion is taken to a di-nggist to be dispensed ; the prescriber seldom makes up the medicine him- self, and as large doses are popular (a quid j»;yv' J^^^), so the decoction made from the whole amounts to pints or even quarts, which are swallowed in lai'ge portions with the greatest ease; powders, boluses, pills, and electuaries are also use(). If the patient is an officer of the government or a wealthy pei-son, the nature of the disease, prognosis, and treatment are written down for the inspection of the family ; for this the doctor's fee is a dollar. But genei-ally speaking, both the doctor and the patient's friends are quite satisfied with a verbal comnnmication ; and if the man has a gift for speaking and has brass enough to use it to his advantage (i)oth of which are seldom wanting in time- serving men), he will describe with a learned, self-satisfied air the ailment of the patient, and the number of days it will take to cure him. The fee is wra]>ped up in red paper, and called "golden thanks," varying , in amount from fifteen to seventy cents or more, according to the means of the patient ; the chair- bearers being ]iaid extra. The doctor I'eturns to make another visit if invited, but not otherwise. It is more common, if tlie MKT)T("TXi:s KMI LoVKD. 127 patient is not at once benefited by the pi-escription, to pall in another, then a third, then a fourth, and even more, until tired of physicians (for the Chinese patience is soon exliausted, and their faith by no means strong in all their doctors' asseverations) they have, as a last resort, ap})lication made to one of the genii, or a god possessing wondei'ful healing powers. The result is that the patient dies or lives, not according to the treatment received, for that must be generally inefficacious, but according as his natural strength is equal to surmount the difficulties by which he is surrounded.' Dr. Hobson has given an analysis of 442 medicinal agents enumerated in one of the popular dispensatories ; of the whole number, 314 are vegetable, 50 mineral, and 78 animal. The author gives the name of each one, the organ it affects, its prop- erties, and lastly the mode of its exhibition. Medicines are ar- ranged nnder six heads — tonics, astringents, resolvents, purga- tives, alteratives of poisonous humors, and of the blood. Among the agents employed are many strange and repulsive substances, as snake-skins, fossil bones, rhinoceros or hart's horn shavings, silk-worm and liuinan secretions, asbestos, moths, oyster-shells, etc. Calomel, vermilion, red precipitate, minium, arsenic, plumbago, and sulphate of coppei" are among the metallic med- icines nsed by physicians ; Dr. Henderson enumerates thirty- three distitu't mineral medicines. The number of apothecary shops in towns indicates the great consumption of medicine; their arrangement is like the druggist shops in the west, though instead of huge glass jars at the windows filled with bright colored liquids, and long rows of vials and decanters in glass cases, three or four branching deer's horns are suspended from the walls, and lines of white and black gallipots cover the shelv'es. Hartshorn is reduced to a dust by filing, for exhibition in consumption. Many roots, as rhubarb, gentian, etc., are prepared by paring them into thin laminae ; others are powdered in a mortar with a pestle, oi- ti-iturated in a narrow iron trough in which a close-fitting wheel is worked. The use of acids ' Dr. James Henderson in Journal of the N. C. Br. of Royal Asiatic Society, 1864, No. r, p. 54. 128 THE MIDDLE KIXODOM. and reagents is unknown, for they imply more knowledge of ciiemistry than tlie Cliinese possess. Vegetable substances, as camphor, myrrh, ginseng, rhubarb, gentian, and a great variety of roots, leaves, seeds, and barks, are generally taken as pills or decoctions. Many valuable I'ecipes will probably be discovered in their books as soon as the terms used are accurately ascer- tained, and a better acquaintance with the botany and mineral- ogy enables the foreign student to test them intelligently. The people sometimes cast lots as to which one of a dozen doctors they shall employ, and then scrupulously follow his directions, whatever they may be, as a departure thei-efrom would vitiate the sortilege. Sometimes an invalid will go to a doctor and ask for how much he will cure him, and how soon the cure can be performed. lie states the diagnosis of his case, the pulse is examined, and every other symptom investi- gated, when the bargain is struck and a portion of the price paid. The patient then receives the suitable medicines, in quan- tity and variety better fitted for a horse than a man, for the doctor reasons that out of a great number it is more likely that some will prove efficacious, and the more he gets paid for the more he ought to administer. A decoction of a kettleful of simples is drunk down l)y the sick man, and he gives up both M'orking and eating; if, however, at the expiration of the time specified he is not cured, he scolds his physician for an ignorant charlatan who cheats him out of his money, and seeks another, with whom he makes a similar bargain, and probably with similar results. Sagacious observance of cause and effect, symptoms and pains, gradually give a shrewd phj^sieian great power over his ignorant patients, and some of them become both rich and influential ; a skilful physician is termed the "nation's hand." A regular system of fees exists among the profession, but the remuneration is as often left to tiie generosity of the patient. New medicines, pills, powders, and salves are advertised and pufPed by flaunting placards on the walls of the streets, some of them most disgustingly obscene ; but the Chinese do not puff new nostrums by publishing a long list of recommendations from patients. The various ways devised by persons to dispose DISEASES PREVALENT IN CHINA. 129 of their inediciiies exhibit iimcli ingenuity. Sometimes a man, having spread a mat at the side of the street, and marshalled his gallipots and salves, will commence a hai-angne npf>n the goodness and efficacy of his preparations in loud and eloquent tones, until he has collected a crowd of hearers, some of whom he manages to persuade will he the better for taking some of his potions. lie will exhibit their efficacy by first pounding his naked breast with a brick till it is livid, and then immediately healing the contusion by a lotion, having previously foi-tified the inner parts with a remedy ; or he will cut open his tiesh and heal the wound in a few moments by a wonderful elixir, which he alone can sell. Others, more learned or more pro- fessional, erect a pavilion or awning, fluttering with signs and streamers, and quietly seat themselves under it to wait for cus- tomers ; or content themselves with a flag perched on a pole setting forth the potency of their pills. Dentists make a neck- lace of the rotten teeth they have obtained from the jaws of their customers, and perambulate the streets with these trophies of their skill hanging around their necks like a rosary. In general, however, the Chinese enjoy good health, and when ill from colds or fevers, lie abed and suspend working and eating, which in most cases allows nature to work her own cure, what- ever doses they may take. They are perhaps as long-lived as most nations, though sanatory statistics are wanting to enable us to form any indisputable conclusions t)n this head. The classes of diseases which most prevail in China are oph- thalmic, cutaneous, and digestive ; intermittent fevers are also connnon. The great disproportion of affections of the eye has often attracted observation. Dr. Lockhart ascribes it partly to the inflammation which often comes on at the commencement of winter, and which is allowed to run its course, leaving the organ in an ujiliealthy condition and very obnoxious to other diseases. This inflammation is beyond the skill of the native practitioners, and sometimes destroys the sight in a few days. Another fruitful source of disease is the practice of the barbers of turning the lids over and clearing their surfaces of the mucus which may be lodged there, lie adds: ''If the person's eyes be examined after this process, they will be found to be very red Vol. II.— 9 130 THE MIDDLE KIXGDOM. and irritated, and in process of time chronic conjunctivitis super- venes, wliicli being considered proof of insutiicient cleansing, the practice is persisted in, and the inner surface of the lid be- comes covered with granulations. In other cases it becomes indurated like thin parchment, and the tarsal cartilages contract and induce entropium." Dense opacity of the cornea itself is frequently caused by this harherous practice, or constant pain and weeping ensues, both of which materially injure the sight, if the patient does not lose it. The practice of cleansing the ears in a similar way frequently results in their serious injury, and sometimes destruction. When the ill effects of such treat- ment of these delicate organs must be plain to eveiy obser\ing person in his own case, it is strange that he should still allow the operation to be repeated. The physicians in charge of the missionary hospitals suc- cessfully established at so many cities in Eastern China have attended more to tumors, dislocations, wounds, and surgical cases, ophthalmic and cutaneous diseases, than to common clini- cal ailments. The hospitals here spoken of are little more than dispensaries, with a room or two for extreme or peculiarly in- teresting cases ; there is little visiting the natives at their own houses. Asthma, even in boys, is common at Amoy, and consump- tion at Canton and Chusan. Intermittent fevers prevail more or less wlierever the cultivation of rice is carried on near vil- lages and towns. Elephantiasis is known between Shanghai and Canton, but in the southern provinces leprosy seems to exist as its equivalent. This loathsoma disease is regarded by the Chinese as incurable and contagious. Lazar-houses are provided for the residence of the infected, but as the allowance of poor patients is insuthcient for their support, they go from street to street soliciting alms, to the great annoyance of every one. As soon as it appears in an individual, he is immediately separated from liis family and driven forth an outcast, to herd with others similarly afPected, and get his living from precarious charity. The institution of lazarettoes is ])raisewortliy, hut they fail of affording relief on account of the mismaiiagonient and peculation of those who have their supervision ; and those who cannot get DISEASES PREVALENT IN CHINA. 131 in are obliged to live in a village set apart for tliein north of the city. Lepers can intermarry among themselves, but on account of })overty and other causes they do not often do so, and the hardships of their lot soon end their days. This dis- ease will probably exist among the Chinese until houses are built more above the ground, better ventilation of cities and improvement in diet are adopted, when it will disappear as it has in Southern Europe. Diseases of an inilammatoiy nature are not so fatal or rapid among the Chinese as Europeans, nor do consumptions carry off so large a proportion of the inhabitants as in the United States. Dyspepsia has been frequently treated ; it is ascribed by Dr. Hepburn to the abundant use of salt provisions, pickled vegetables, and fish, irregularity in eating, opium smoking, and immoderate use of tea ; though it nuiy be questioned whether the two last reasons are more general and powerful at Amoy than Canton, where dyspepsia is comparatively rare. The sur- geons at the latter place have successfully treated hundreds of cases of stone, losing less than fifteen per cent, of all. Some of the patients were under ten years, and a few of the calculi weighed nearly half a pound. This malady is almost md^nown in Xorthern China. The diseases which result from intemper- ate and licentious habits are not as violent in their effects as in countries where a greater use of animal food and higher liv- ing render the system more susceptible to the noxious conse- quences of the virus. The existence of tumors and unnatural growths in great abundance and variety is satisfactorily accounted for by the in- ability of the native practitioners to remove them. Those which had a healthy growth increased until a moi-bid action super- vened, and consequently sometimes grew to an enormous size. A peasant named IIu Lu went to England in 1831 to have an abdominal tumor extirpated weighing about seventy pounds ; he died under the operation. No patients bear operations with more fortitude than the Chinese, and, owing to their hnnphatic temperament, they are followed with less inflammation than Is usual in European practice. CToitre is very common in the mountainous regions of the northern provinces ; Dr. Gillan es- 132 THE ^MIDDLE KIXGDO:\r. tiniatcd tliat nearly one-sixth of the inhahitants met In the vil- lages on the liigli land between Peking and Jeh ho were atflicted M'itli this deformity, which, iiowever, is said not to be so con- sidered by the vilLigers themselves. The Asiatic cholera has been a great scourge in China, but does not often become an epidemic anywhere, though sporadic cases constantly occur. It raged at Ningpo in May, 1S20, and an intelligent native doctor informed Mr. Milne ' that it was computed that ten thousand persons were carried off by it in the city and department of Kingpo during the summers of 1820-23. In 1842 it prevailed at Amoy and Changchau and their vicinity ; more than a hundred deaths daily occun-ed at the foi'mer place for six or seven weeks. It raged violently at Hangchau in Chehkiang during the years 1821 and 1 822, persons dropping down dead in the streets, or dying within an hour or two after the attack ; many myriads were computed to have fallen victims, and the native doctoi's, finding their remedies useless, gave up all treatment. It carried off multitudes in Shantung and Iviangsu during the same years, and was as titful in its progress in China as in Europe, going from one city to another, passing by towns apparently as obnoxious as those visited. The plague is said to have existed in KSouthern China about the beginning of the sixteenth centui-y, but it has not been heard of lately. Small-pox is a terrible scath, and although the practice and utility of vaccination have been known for fifty years past at Canton, its adoption is still limited even in that city. It was introduced in 1820 by Dr. Pearson, of the East India Company's establishment, and native assistants were fully instructed by him in the practice. Vaccination has now extended over all the Eighteen Provinces, and the government has given its sanc- tion and assistance; it is chiefly owing to the heedlessness of the people in not availing tbemselves of it in time that it has ,done no more to lessen the ravages of the disease. Where children were gratuitously vaccinated it was found almost im- possible to induce parents to bring them ; and Mdien the chil- ' Chinese llepository, Vol. XII., p. 487. XATIVE TREATISES 0\ MKDICINE. 133 dren liad been va(!cinated it was increasingly difficult to get them to return to allow the physician to see the result of the operation. Inoculation has long been practised by inserting a pledget in the nostrils containing the virjs; this mode is occasionally adopted in vaccination. The slovenly habits of tlie people, as well as insufficient protection and unwholesome food, give rise to many diseases of the skin, some of them in- curable. The science of medicine attracted very early attention, and there are numerous treatises on its various branches. But the search for the liquor of immortality and the philosopher's stone, with careful observations on the pulse as the leading tests of diseases, have led them astray from accurate diagnosis age after affe. The common classification of diseases is under nine heads, viz., those which affect the pulse violently or feebly, those aris- ing from cold, female and cutaneous diseases, those needing acupunetui-e, and diseases of the eyes, the mouth and its parts, and the bones. A professor of each of these classes is attached to the imperial family, who is taken from the Medical College at Peking; but he has no. greater advantages there than he could get in his own reading and practice. Xo museums of morbid or comparative anatomy exist in the counti-y, nor are there any lectures or dissections ; and the routine which old custom has sanctioned will go on until modern practice, now rapidly taking its place, wins its way. Section CCXCYII. of the code orders tliat " whenever an unskilful practitioner, in ad- ministering medicine or using the puncturing needle, proceeds contrary to the established forms, and thereby causes the death of a patient, the magistrate shall call in oilier practitionei-s to examine the medicine or the wound, and if it appear that the injury done was unintentional, the practitioner shall then be treated according to the statute for accidental homicides, and shall not be any longer allowed to practise medicine. But if designedly he depart from tlie established f(»rms, and deceives in his attempt to cure the malady in order to obtain property, then, according to its amount, he shall be treated as a thief; and if death ensue fmiu his malpractice, then, for having thus used medicine with intent to kill, he shall be 134 TIIK MIDDLE KINGDOM. beheaded." ' This statute is seldom carried into execution, liow- ever, and the doctors are allowed to kill and cure, secundum, artem., as their patients give them the opportunity, Xatural histojy, in its various branches of geologj, botany, zoology, etc., has received some attention, because the objects which come under it could not escape the notice of all the writers in Chinese literature. As sciences, however, none of them have an existence, and the}' are studied chiefly for their assistance in furnishing articles for the materia medica of the native physician. To these persons nothing comes amiss, and, like the ingredients of the bubbling, bubbling caldron of Mac- betli's witches, the stranger it is the more potent they think a dose will be ; in this particular they now act very much as the faculty did in England two centuries ago. It is to be regretted that their investigation should have taken such a direction, but the man of conunanding influence has not yet arisen to direct their researches into nature and divert them from the marvel- lous and theoretical. On the whole, it may be said that in all departments of learning the Chinese are unscientific ; and that while they have collected a great variety of facts, invented many arts, and brought a few to a high degree of excellence, they have never pursued a single subject in a way calculated to lead them to a right understanding of it, or reached a proper classification of the information they possessed relating to it. ' Chinese CJirestomnthy, Chap. XVI., pp. 497-532. Asiatic Soc. Transac- tions, Hongkong, Art. III., 1847; No. III., 1852, Art. III. Jour. iV. C Br. R. A. Soc, No. I., 1864, and No. VI., 1809. W. Lockhart, Medical Mission- ary in China, 1861. Chinese Repository, passim. Porter Smitli's Contribu- tions to Chinese Materia Medira, Shanghai, 1871. Fliickiger & Hanbnry, Pharmacofiraphia , London, 1874. China Retieir, Vol. I., p. 176; Vol. III., p. 224. J. Dudgoon, The Diseases of China, Glasgow, 1877; id. iu the Chi- neae Recorder, Vols. U., III., aud IV., passim. CHAPTEK XVII. HISTORY AND CHRONOLOGY OF CHINA. The history of the Cliinese people has excited less attention among western scholars than it deserves, though in some re- spects no nation offers more claims to have its chronicles care- fully and fairly examined. The belief is generally entertained tliat their pretensions to antiquity are extravagant and ridicu- lous, and incompatible with the Mosaic chronology ; that they not only make the world to have existed myriads of yeai's, but reckon the snccession of their monarchs far beyond the creation, and ascribe to them a longevity that carries its own confutation on its face. In consequence of this opinion, some have denied the credibility of native historians altogether, and the whole subject of the settlement and eai'ly progress of this ancient race has been considered beyond the reach, and almost nnworthy the attempt, of sober investigation. This erroneous and hasty con- clusion is gradnally giving way to a careful inquiry into those histories which show that the early records of the sons of Han contain much which is worthy of credence, and much more that is highly probable. A wide field is here opened for the re- searches of a Gibbon or a Kiebuhr; for as long as we are desti- tute of a good history of China and its connections with other Asiatic nations, we shall not only be unable to form a correct opinion respecting the people, but shall lack many important data for a full illustration of the early history of the human race. It is easy to laud the early records of the Chinese to the skies, as French writers have done ; and it is quite as easy to cry them down as worthless — manufactured in aftei--ages to please the variety of their writers. The reputation both people and records have received is owing, in some measure, to this 136 THE 3IIDDLE KINGDOM. wulue laudation and depreciation, as well as to the intrinsic merits and defects of their histories. These, however, still mostly remain in their originals, and will reqnire the united labors of many scholars to be full}' brought to light and made a part of the world's library. The enormous difficulties arising from the extent and tedious minuteness of native historians, coupled with the scarcity of translators competent or willing to undertake the labor of even such a resume of these works as will satisfy rational curiosity, are now being slowly overcome, both by Chinese and foreign students. These researches, it is to be earnestlj- hoped, will be rewarded by promoting a juster estimate in the minds of both classes of their relative positions among the nations of the earth. China, like other countries, has her mythological history, and it should be separated from the more recent and received, as her own historians regard it, as the fabrication of subsequent times. She also has her ancient history, whose earliest dates and events blend confusedly with the mythological, but gradu- ally grow more ci'edible and distinct as they come down the stream of time to the begiiming of modern history. The early accounts of every nation whose founding was anterior to the practice of making and preserving authentic records nnist necessarily be obscure and doubtful. AYhat is applicable to the Chinese has been true of other ancient people : " national vanity and a love of the marvellous have intiuenced them all, and furnished materials for many tales, as soon as the spirit of investigation has supplanted that appetite for wonders which marks the infancy of nations as well as of individuals."' The ignorance of the '' art preservative of all arts " will greatly ex- plain the subsequent record of the wonderful, without suppos- ing that the infancy of nations partook of the same traits of weakness and credulity as that of individuals. There is neither space nor time in this work to give the details concerning the history and succession of dynasties that have swayed the Middle Kingdom, for to one not specially engaged in their examina- tion their recital is proverbially dry ; the array of uncouth names destitute of lasting interest, and the absence of the charm THE STUDY OF EAKLY CHINESE HrSTORY. 137 of association with western nations render tliein nnin\ iting to the general reader. Some account of the leading events and changes is all that is necessary to exphiin what has been else- where incidentally referred to.' Chinese historians have endeavored to explain the creation and origin of the world around them ; but, ignorant of the sublime fact that thei'e is one C^reator who upholds his works by the word of his power, they have invented various modes to account for it, and wearied themselves in theorizing and disput- ing with each other. One of them, Yangtsz', remarks, in view of these conflicting suppositions : "AVho knows the affairs of remote antiquity, since no authentic records have come down to us? He who examines these stories will find it difficult to be- lieve them, and careful scrutiny will convince him that they are wit hout fo undation. In the primeval ages no historical records were kept. Why then, since the ancient books that described those times were burnt l)y Tsin, should we misrepresent those remote ages, and satisfy ourselves with vague fables? How- ever, as everything except heaven and earth must have a cause, it is clear that they have always existed, and that canse pro- duced all sorts of men and beings, and endowed them with their various qualities. But it must have been man who in the beginning produced all things on earth, and who may therefore be viewed as the lord, and from whom rulers derive their dignities." This extract is not a bad example of Chinese writers and historians ; a mixture of sense and nonsense, partially laying the foundation of a just argument, and ending with a tre- mendous non-se(putur, apparently satisfactory to themselves, but showing pretty conclusisely how little pains they take to gather facts and discuss their bearings. Some of these writers imagine that the world owes its existence to the retroactive agency of the dual powers yhi and yang, which first formed the outline of the universe, and were themselves influenced by ' Among the works which will repay perusal on this topic are Mailla's //?'.'»' tfdre (le lw 142 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. forth great things, this may be illustrated by the revohitions of day and night. Kang-tsieh says, Heaven rests upon form, and earth reclines upon air. Tlie reason why he repeats this frequently, and does not deviate from the idea, is lest people should seek some other place beyond heaven and earth. There is nothing outside heaven and earth, and hence their form has limits, while their air has no limit. Because the air is extremely condensed, therefore it can support the earth ; if it were not so the earth would fall down. ' A third belief respecting the position of the earth in the centre of tlie universe derives great sti-ength in the opinion of intelligent natives from these speculations of Chn III. His theory considers the world to be a plane surface, straight, square, and large, measuring each way about 1,500 miles (5,600 li), and bounded on the four sides by the four seas. The sun is estimated to be about 4,000 miles from the earth. Another calculation made it 81,394 Zi, and a third 216,T81| li. One thing is observable in these fictions, characteristic of the Chinese at the present day : there is no hierarchy of gods brought in to rule and inhabit the world they made, no con- clave on Mt. Olympus, nor judgment of the mortal soul by Osiris ; no transfer of human love and hate, passions and hopes, to the powers above ; all here is ascribed to disembodied agen- cies or principles, and their works are represented as moving on in quiet order. There is no religion, no imagination ; all is im- passible, passionless, uninteresting. It ma}', perhaps, be con- sidered of itself as sensible as the Greek or Egyptian mythology, if one looks for nense in such figments ; but it has not, as in the latter countries, been explained in sublime poetry, shadowed forth in gorgeous ritual and magnificent festivals, repi-esented in exquisite sculptures, nor preserved in faultless, inqjosing fanes and temples, filled with ideal creations. P^or this reason it appears more in its true colors, and, when compared with theirs, " loses discountenanced and like folly shows " — at least to us, who can examine both and compare them with the truth. Their pure mythological history ends with the ap})earance of Fuh-hi, and their chronology has nothing to do with the long periods antecedent, varying from forty-five to five hundred Canon McClatchie's Confucian CoKiumjoiiy, pp. 5:5-59. CHINESE AND WESTERN CHRONOLOGY. 143 tliousand years. These periods are, however, a mere twinkling compared with the kulpas of the Hindus, whose highest era, called the Unspeakably Inexpressible, requires four million four hundred and fifty-six thousand four hundred and forty-eight cyphers following a unit to represent it. If the epoch of Fuh-hi could be ascertained with any probability by comparison with the history of other nations, or with existing remains, it would tend not a little to settle some disputed chronological points in other countries ; but the isolation of the Chinese throughout their whole existence makes it nearly impossible to weave in the events of their history with those of other nations, by compar- ing and verifying them with biblical, Egyptian, or Persian annals. Perhaps further investigations in the vast regions of Eastern and Central Asia may bring to light corroborative testi- mony as striking and unexpected as the explorations in Mosul, Persepolis, and Thebes. The accession of Fuh- hi is placed in the Chinese annals b.c. 2852,' and with him commences the period known among them as the " highest antiquity." The weight of evidence which the later chronological examinations of Hales and Jackson have brought to bear against the common period of four thousand and four years prior to the Advent, is such as to cast great doubt over its authenticity, and lead to the adoption of a longer period in order to afPord time for many occurrences, which otherwise would be crowded into too narrow a space. Chinese chi-onology, if it be allowed the least credit, strongly corroborates the results of Dr. Hales' researches, and particularly so in the date of Fuh-hi's accession. This is not the place to discuss the respective claims of the two eras, but by reckoning, as he does, the creation to be •live thousand four hundred and eleven years, and the deluge three thousand one hundred and fifty -five years, before the Ad- vent, we bring the commencement of ancient Chinese history three hundred and three years subsequent to the deluge, forty- seven before the death of Xoah, and about three centuries before the confusion of tongues. If we suppose that the ante- ' Or 3322, according to Dr. Legge, whose date has been used elsewhere in this work, and has probably quite as much authority as the one above. 144 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. diliivians possessed a knowledge of the geography of the world, and that ^'oah, regarding himself as the monarch of the whole, divided it among his descendants before his death, there is nothing improbable in the further supposition that the progen- itors of the black-haired race, and t)thers of the house and lineage of Sliem, found their way from the valley of the Euphrates across the defiles and steppes of Central Asia, to the fertile plains of China before the end of the third diluvian cen- tury. Whether the surface of the world was the same after the cataclysm as before does not aifect this point ; there was ample time for the multiplication of the species with the bless- ing promised by God, sufficient to form colonies, if there was time enough to increase to such a multitude as conspired to build the tower of Babel. The views of Dr. Legge, that the present Chinese descend from settlers who came through Central Asia along the Tarim Valley and across the Desert into Kansuh, about b.c. 2200, and settled around the elbow of the Yellow liiver, under the leadership of Yao, Shun, Yu, and others, are very reasonable. These settlers found the land at that time occupied with tribes, whom they partly merged with themselves or drove into moun- tain recesses in Kweichau, where some of their descendants per- haps still remain. These earlier tribes may have furnished the names and reigns prior to Yao, and the later Chinese annalists incorporated them into their own histoi-ies, taking everything in early times as of course belonging to the U imn, or ' ])lack- liaired race.' The lapse of a millennium between the Deluge and Yao allows plenty of time for several successive emigra- tions from Western and Central Asia into the inviting plains of China, which, through the want of a written language o>* the destruction of records, have come down to us in misty, doubtful legends. Fuli-hi and his seven successors are stated to have reigned seven hundred and forty-seven years, averaging ninety-three each. Those who follow Usher consider these monarchs to be Chinese travesties of the eight antediluvian patriarchs; and Marquis d'TTrban has gone so far as to write what he calls the Antediluvian History ^y CV/Y'/ic/, collecting all the notices his- THE EIGHT EAT^LY MONAlirifS. 145 tory affords of tlieir acts. The common clii-onology brings tlic delude about tliirteen years after the accession of Yao and the death of Shmi (the last of the eight), b.c. 2205, or twenty-live years after the confusion of tongues. According to Hales, the last epoch is one hundred and twelve years before the call of Abraham, and these eight Chinese monarchs are therefore con- temporaries of the patriai'chs who lived between Shem and Abraham, commencing with Salah and ending with Xahor. The duration of their reigns, moreover, is such as would bear the same proportion to ages of five hundred years, which their contemporaries lived, as the present average of twenty and twenty -five years does to a life of sixty. The Assyrian tablets, deciphered by George Smith, contain a reference to the twenty- eighth centui-y n.c, as the founding of that monarchy ; which is a notice of more value as a chronological epoch than any- thing in Chinese annals, indeed, and may help to countenance a date that had before 1»een regarded as mythological. Supposing that the descendants of Shem, Ham, and Japheth, knowing from their fathei's and grandfather, that the void world was before them, began to colonize almost as soon as they began to form families, three centuries would not be too long a time for some of them to settle in China, perhaps offsetting from Elam and Asshur, and other descendants of Shem in Persia. The capital of Fuh-hi slightly indicates, it may be thouo;ht, their route through Central Asia across the Desert to Kiayli kwan in Kansuh, and then down the Yellow River to the Great Plain near Kaifung. But these suppositions are only by the way, as is also the suggestion that teaching of fishing and grazing, the regulation of times and seasons, cultivation of nnisic, and establishment of government, etc., compare well enough with the duties that might reasonably be supposed to belong to the founder of a colony and his successors, and subse- quently asci'ibed to them as their own inventions. The long period allotted to human life at that date would allow these arts and sciences to take root and their memory to remain in popular legends until subsequent historians incorporated them into their v\'ritings. The Chinese annalists fill up the reigns of these chief?, down to the time of Yao, with a series of inven 146 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. tions and improvements in the arts of life and good government, sufficient to bring society to that degree of comfort and order they suppose consonant with the character of the monarchs. The earliest records of the Chinese correspond niucli too closely with their present character to receive full belief ; but they present an appearance of probability and naturalness not possessed by the early annals of Greece. Xo one contends for their credibility as history, but they are better than the Arabian Xights. The commencement of tlie sexagenary cycle' in the sixty- first year of Ilwangtfs reign (or u.c. 2037), five hundred and eighteen years after the deluge, eighty-two years after the death of Arphaxad, and about that time before the confusion of tongues, is worthy of notice. The use of the ten horary characters applied to days in order to denote their chronological sequence dates from the reign of Yu in the twentieth century b.c, and there are other passages in the Shu KIikj showing similar ap- plication. Sz'ma Tsien's history now contains the first attempt to arrange the years in cycles of sixty ; but he cannot fairly be claimed as the inventor of this system. lie might almost as well be regarded as the inventor of his Avhole annals, for all the materials out of which he compiled them have now per- ished except the canonical books. The mention of the indi- vidual Xao the Great, M-ho invented it, and the odd date of its adoption in the middle of a reign, do not weaken the alleged date of its origin in the minds of those who are inclined to take a statement of this kind on its own basis. Three reigns, averaging eighty years' duration, intervened be- tween that of Hwangti and Yao, whose occupants were elected by the people, much as were Shemgar, Jephthah, and cttlier judges in Israel, and probably exercised a similar sway. The reigns and characters of Yao and Shun have been immortalized by Confucius and Mencius ; whatever was their i-eal history, those sages showed g]-eat sagacity in going back to those re- mote times for models and fixing u]ion a pei-iod neither fabu- lous nor certain, one which preventel alike the cavils of scepti- cism and the appearance of complete fabrication, ^ Journal Asiatique, Avril, 183G, p. 394. THl: DELUGE OF YAO. 147 A tremendous deluge occurred during the reign of Yao, b.c. 2293, caused, it is said, hy the overflowing of tlie rivers in the north of China. Those who place the Xoachic dehige b.c. 2348 regard this as only a different version of that event ; Klaproth, who favors the Septuagint chronology, says that it is nearly synchronous with the deluge of Xisutlirus, b.c. 2297, a name derived, as is reasonably inferred by George Smith, from the Assyrian name Ilasisadra, the ancient hero who survived the deluge. The record of this catastrophe in the Shu King is hardly applicable to an overwhelming flood : " The Emperor said. Oh ! chief of the four mountains, destructive in their over- throw are the waters of the inundation. In their vast extent they embrace the mountains and overtop the hills, threatening the heavens with their floods, so that the inferior people groan and murmur. Is there a capable man to whom I can assign the correction of this calamity ? " ' They presented Kwan as a proper man, but he showed his inefficiency in laboring nine years without success to drain off the waters. Yao was then advised to employ Shun, who called in Yu, a son of Kwan, to his aid, and the floods were assuaged by deepening the beds of the rivers and opening new channels. These slight notices hardly comport with a flood like the Xoachic deluge, and are with much greater probability referred to an overflow or a change in the bed of the Yellow River from its present course into the Gulf of Pechele through Chihli northeast, to its re- cent one along the lowlands of Kiangsu. The weight of topo- graphical evidence, combined with the strong chronological argument, the discussions in council said to have taken place regarding the disaster, and the time which elapsed before the region was drained, all pre-suppose and indicate a partial inun- dation, and strengthen the assumption that no traces of the Deluge exist in the histories of the Chinese. In our view of the chronology of the Bible, as compared with the Chinese, it requires a far greater constraint upon these records to bring them to refer to that event, than to suppose they allude to a local disaster not beyond the power of remedy. ' Legge's Shu King^ p. 24, Hongkong, 1867. 148 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. The series of chieftains down to tlie accession of Yu may liere be recapitulated. The entirely fabulous period ends with Sui-jin, and legendary liistoiy commences with Fuh-ln', who with four of his smccessors (Nos. 2, 3, 7, and 8) are commonly known as the Five Sovereigns, follows : Their names and reigns are as Names. Years reigned. Began B.C. other Events. 1 2 3 Fuh-hi Shinmmg Hwanafti 115 140 100 84 78 78 102 50 2852 2737 21597 2597 3513 3435 2357 2255 The Deluge, B.C. 3155. Death of Noah, B.C. 2805. 4 5 «5 7 8 Shauliau Chwenhiih Kuh Yao Shun Death of Arphaxad, 2715. Death of Slicm, 2555. Rise of Eyv])tian monarchy, 2450. Rise of Babyl«iiian " 2300. Abraham's bii'tli, 2153. The records in the ^hii Kin reins of government for thirteen years with a vigorous liand. He was followed l / his son, Siang (2140), who, destitute of the energy his situation required, gave liimself up to the advice of his minis- ter Yeh, and was by him, in connection with his accomplice, Ilantsu, declared incapable of reigning. The usurper ruled for seven years, when he was Idlled ; and the rightful monarch collected his adherents and gave battle to Ilantsu and the son of Yeh in the endeavor to regain his throne. Siang was completely defeated, and lost both liis crown and life ; the victors immediate- ly marched to the capital, and made so general a massacre of the family that they believed tlie name and race of Yu to be for ever extinguished. 'J'he Empress Min, however, managed to escape, and tied to a remote city, where she brought forth a son, called Shau Kang ; and the better to conceal his origin, she employed him as a shepherd boy to tend flocks. Reports of the existence of such a youth, and his occupation, at length reached the ears of Hantsu, who sent orders to bring him, dead or alive. The royal widow then placed her son as under-cook in the liousehold of a neighboring governor, where the lad soon distinguished himself by a spirit and temper so superior to this humble station, that the master's suspicions were roused, and obliged him to disclose his name and birth. The officer, being devotedly attached to the house of Yu, not only kept the secret, but watched for an opportunity to re- instate him, and meanwhile gave him a small government in a secluded situa- tion, which he prudently administered. Yet he was more than thirty years old before the governor, by engaging other chiefs in his interest, could assemble such a force as might justify the attempt to make head against tlie usurper. The latter hastily assembled his troops and led them to tlie attack, but was defeated and taken prisoner by the young prince Chu himself ; and Shau Kang, with his mother, returned with acclamations to the capital. His reign is reckoned to have been sixty-one years' duration in the chronology of the time, which includes the usurpation of forty years of Hantsu. The country was ably governed by Shau Kang, and also liy his son, Chu (2057), who ruled for seventeen yearr: ; but the succeeding sovereigns, in many instances, abandoned themselves to indolence and pleasure, and brought the kingly name into contempt. From Hwai to Kieh Kwei, a space of two hundred and twenty -two years, between B.C. 2040 and 1818, few records remain of the nine sovereigns, whose bare names succeed each other in the annals. At length the throne was occupied by Kieh Kwei (1G18), .. prince who is represented as having, in connexion with his consort, Mei-hi, practised ','very kind of violence and extortion, in order to accumulate treasure, which they spent in unbridled voluptuousness. They formed a large ])ond of wine, deep enough to float a boat, at which three thousand men drank at once. It was surrounded, too, by pyramids of delicate viands, which no one, liowever, was alloweil to taste, till he had first intoxicated himself out of the lake. The drunken quarrels which ensued wer« 154 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. their favorite amusempiit. In tlic intrrior o'' the jialaci' Die vilest orgies were celebrated, and the venerable ministers, wlio attempted to remonstrate against these excesses, were either put to deatlx or exiled. The people were at once indignant and grieved at such crimes, which threatened the downfall of the dynasty ; and the discarded statesmen put themselves under the direction of the wise I Yin, and advised Chingtang, the ablest of their number, and a de- scendant of Hwangti, to assume the reins of government, assuring him of their support. He with reluctance yielded to their solicitations, and assembling a force marched against Kieh Kwei, who came out to meet him at the head of a numerous army, but fled from the contest on seeing tlie defection of his troops, and ended his days in despicable obscurity, after occupying the throne lifty- two years. ' Chinese annals are generally occupied in this way ; the Em- peror and his ministers fill the whole field of historic vision ; little is recorded of the condition, habits, arts, or occupations of the people, who are merely considered as attendants of the mon- arch, which is, in truth, a feature of the ancient records of nearly all countries and people, Monarchs controlled the chron- icles of their reigns, and their own vanity, as well as their ideas of government and authority led them to represent the people as a mere background to their own stately dignity and acts. The Shang dynasty began b.c. 1760, or about one hundred and twenty years before the Exodus, and maintained an unequal sway over the feudal States composing the Empire for a period of six hundred and forty-four years. Its first monarch, Chingtang, or Tang the Successful, is described as having paid religious worship to Shangti, under which name, perhaps, the true God was intended. On account of a severe drought of seven years' duration, this monarch is reported to have prayed, saying, '■' 1 the child Li presume to use a dark colored victim, and announce to thee, O Shang-tien Ilao ('High Heaven's Ruler'). I«[ow there is a great drought, and it is right I should be held responsible for it. I do not know but that I have offended the powers above and below." AVith regard to his own con- duct, he blamed himself in six particulars, and his words were not ended when the rain descended copiously. The fragmentary records of this dynasty contained in the Shu King are not so valuable to the student who wishes merely 'Hugh Murray, China, Vol. I., pp. 51-55 (edition of 1843), TIIK SIIAXa DYNASTY. 155 to learn the succession of luoiiarclis in tliose (l:ijs, as to one who inquires what were the principles on which they ruled, wliat were the polity, the religion, the jurisdiction, and the checks of the Chinese government in those remote times. The regular records of those days will never he recovered, hut the preser- vation of the hist two parts of the Shic Kiiuj indicates their existence by fair inference, and encourages those who try to re- construct the early annals of China to give full value even to slight fragments. But these parts have been of great service to the people since they were written, in teaching them by precept and example on what the prosperity of a State was founded, and how theii- rnlers could bring it to ruin. In these respects there are no ancient works outside of the Bible w^ith which they can at all be compared. The later system of examination has given them an unparalleled intluonce in molding the national character of the Chinese. Of the eleven chapters now remaining all are occupied more or less with the relative duties of the prince and rulers, enforcing on each that the w-elfare of all was bound up with their faithfulness. One quotation will give an idea of their instructions. " Order your affairs by righteousness, order your heart by propriety, so shall you transmit a grand example to posterit3\ I have heard the saying. He who finds instructors for himself comes to the supreme dominion ; he wlft> says that others are not equal to himself comes to ruin. He who likes to ask becomes enlarged ; he who uses only himself becomes small. Oh ! he who would take care for his end must be attentive to his beginning. There is establishment for the observers of pro- priety, and overthrow for the blinded and wantonly indifPerent. To revere and honor the way of Heaven is the way ever to preserve the favoring regard of Heaven." ' The chronicles of the Shang dynasty, as gathered from the Bamhoo Books and other later records, resemble those of the Hia in being little moi-e than a mere succession of the names of the sovereigns, interspersed here and there with notices of some remarkable events in the natural and political world. Luxurious and despised princes alternate with vigorous and warlike ones 'Part IV., Book II., Chap. IV., 8-9. • 156 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. who coiiiinaiuled respect, :uul the coiiditiunof the State measura.' bly C'ori'espoiid.s with the character of the inonarchs, the feudal barons soinetiines increasing in power and territory by encroacli- iug on their neighbors, and then snitering a reduction from some new State. The names of twenty-eight princes are given, the accounts of whose reigns are indeed fuller than those of the dukes of Edom in Genesis, but their slight notices would be more interesting if the same confidence could be reposed in them. The bad sovereigns occupy more room in these^fasti than the good ones, the palm of wickedness being given to Chau-sin, with whom the dynasty ended. The wars which broke out during this dynasty were numerous, but other events also find a place, though hardly anything which throws light on society or civil- ization. Droughts, famines, and other calamities were frequent and attended by dreadful omens and fearful sights ; this fancied correlation between natural casualties and political convulsions is a feature running through Chinese history, and grows out of the peculiar position of the monarch as the vicegerent of heav- en. The people seem to have looked for control and protec- tion more to their local masters than to their lord paramount, ranging themselves under their separate banners as they weve bidden. The History Made Easy speaks of the twenty-fifth monarch, Wu-yih (e.g. 1198), as the most wicked of them all. " Having made his images of clay in the shape of human beings, dignified them with the name of gods, overcome them at gam- bling, and set them aside in disgrace, he then, in order to com- plete his folly, made leathern bags and filled them with blood, and sent them up into the air, exclaiming, when his arrows hit them and the blood poured down, ' I have shot heaven,' mean- ing, I have killed the gods." The names of Chau-sin and Tan-ki are coupled w'ith those of Kieh and Mi-hi of the Ilia dynasty, all of them synonymous in the Chinese annals for tlie acme of cruelty and licentiousness — as are those of Xero and Messalina in Koman history. Chau- sin is said one winter's morning to have seen a few women walking barelegged on the banks of a stream collecting shell- fish, and ordered their legs to be cut off, that he might see the CHAU-SIN — RISE OF TIFE ClIAU DYNASTY. 157 marrow of persons who could resist cold so fearlessly. The heart of one of his reprovers was also hrought him, in order to see wherein it differed from that of cowardly ministers. The last Booh of Shang contains the vain i-emonstrance of another of them, who tells his sovereign that his dynasty is in the con- dition of one crossing a large stream who can iind neither ford nor bank. Many acts of this natnre alienated the hearts of the people, nntil Wan wang, the leader of a State in the northwest of China, nnited the principal men against his misrule ; hut dying, bequeathed his crown and power to his son, Wu wang. He gradually gathered his forces and met Chau-sin at the head of a great army at Muli, near the junction of the rivers Ki and Wei, north of the Yellow River in llonan, where the defeat of the tyrant was complete. Feeling the contempt he was held in, and the hopeless struggle before him, he lied to his palace and burned himself with all his treasures, like another Sardanapalus, though his immolation (in b.o. 1122) preceded the Assyrian's by five centuries. Wu wang, the martial king, the founder of the Chan dynasty, his father. Wan wang, and his brother, Duke Chan, are among the most distinguished men of antiquity- for their erudition, integrity, patriotism, and inventions. AViln wang. Prince of Chan, was prime minister to Tai-ting, the grandfather of Chau- sin, but was imprisoned for his fidelity. His son obtained his liberation, and the sayings and acts of both occupy al)()ut twenty books in Part V. of the Shu King. Duke Chan survived his brother to become the director and support of his nephew ; his counsels, occupying a large part of the history, are full of wisdom and equity. Book X. contains his warning advice about drunken- ness, which has been remarkably influential among his counti-v- men ever since. Ko period of ancient Chinese history is mora celebrated than that of the founding of this dynastv, chieflv because of the high chai'acter of its leading men, who Avere regarded by Confucius as the impersonations of everything wise and noble. Wu wang is represented as having invoked the assistance of Shangti in his designs, and, when he was success- ful, returned thanks and offered prayers and sacrifices. He removed the capital from the province of Honan to the present 158 THE ISIIDDLE KINGDOM. Si-ngan, in Shensi, where it remained for a long period. This prince committed a great political blnnder in dividing the Em- pire into petty states, thus destroying the ancient pure monarchy, and leaving himself only a small portion of territory and power, which were (piite insufficient, in the hands of a weak prince, to maintain either the state or authority due the ruling sovereign. The number of States at one time was one hundred and twenty- five, at another forty-one, and, in the time of Confucius, about six hundred years after the establishment of the dynasty, fifty- two, some of them large kingdoms. From about b.c. 7U0 the imperial name and power lost the allegiance and respect of the feudal princes, and gradually became contemptible. Its nominal sway extended over the country lying north of the ITangtsz kiang, the regions on the south being occupied by tribes of whonj no intelligible record has been preserved. The duration of the three dynasties, the Ilia, Shang, and Chau, comprises a long and obscure period in the history of the world, extending from b.c. 2205 to 249, from the time when Terah dwelt in (Jharran, and the sixteenth dynasty of Theban kings ruled in Egypt, down to the reigns of Antiochus Soter and Ptolemy Philadelphus and the ti-anslation of the Septuagint. I. — The IliA dynasty, founded by Yu the Great, existed four Inmdred and thirty-nine years, down to n.o. lT, under seven- teen monarchs, the records of whose reigns are veiy brief. Among contemporary events of importance are the call of Abraham, in the year b.c. 2003, Jacob's flight to Mesopotamia in 1016, Joseph's elevation in Egypt in 1885, and his father's arrival in 1863. II. — The SuANG dynasty began Avith Tang the Successful, and continued six hundred and forty-four years, under twenty- eight sovereigns, down to b.c. 1122. This period was char- acterized by wars among I'ival princes, and the power of the sovereign depended chiefly upon his personal character. The principal contemporary events were the Exodus of the Israelites in 1648, tlieir settlement in Palestine in 1608, judgeship of Othniel, 1564 ; of Deborah, 1406 ; of Gideon, 1350 ; of Sam son, 1202 ; and death of Samuel in 1122. III. — The CuAU dynasty began with Wu wang, and con CREDIBILITY OF THESE EAULV RECORDS. 159 tinned for eight hundred and seventy-three years, under thirty- five monarclis, down to b.c. 249, tlie longest of any recorded in history. The sway of many of these was little more than nominal, and the feudal States increased or diminished, accord- ing to the vigor of the monarch or the ambition of the princes. In B.C. 770 the capital was removed from Kao, near the lliver Wei in Shensi, to Lohyang, in the western part of Honan ; this divides the house into the Western and Eastern Chan. The contemporary events of these eight centuries are too numerous to particularize. The accession of Saul in 1110 ; of David, 1070 ; of Rehoboam, 990 ; taking of Troy, 1084 ; of Samaria, 719 ; of Jerusalem, 586 ; death of Nebuchadnezzar, 501 ; accession of Cyrus and return of the Jews, 551 ; battle of Marathon, 490 ; accession of Alexander, 235 ; etc. The con- quest of Egypt by Alexander in 322 brought the thirty-first and last dynasty of her native kings to an end, the first of which had begun under Menes about b.c. 2715, or twenty-two years after the supposed accession of Shinnung. The absence of any great remains of human labor or art previous to the Great Wall, like the Pj'i-amids, the Temple of Solomon, or the ruins and mounds in Syria, has led many to doubt the credibility of these early Chinese records. They as- cribe them to the invention of the historians of the llan dynasty, working up the scattered relics of their ancient books into a readable nari-ative, and therefore try to bring every statement to a critical test for which there are few facts. The analogies between the records in the Shu King and the Aryan myths are skilfully explained by Mr. Kingsmill by reference to the meanings of the names of persons and places and titles, and a connection shown which has the merit at least of ingenuity and beauty. Almost the only actual known relic of these three dynasties is the series of ten stone drums [sMh ktt) now in the Confucian temple at Peking. They were discovered about a.d. 600, in the environs of the ancient capital of the Chau dynasty, and have been kept in Peking since the year 1126. They are irregularly shaped pillars, from eighteen to thirty-five inches high and about twentj^-eight inches across ; the inscriptions are much worn, but enough remains to show that they commemo- 160 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. rate a great hunt of Siien wang (b.c. 827) in the I'cgion where they were found.' AmohiT the feudal States under the house of Chau, that of Tsin, on the northwest, had long been the most powerful, occu- pying nearly a iifth of the country, and its inhabitants forming a tenth of the whole population. One of the princes, called Chausiang wang, carried his encroachments into the acknowl- edged imperial possessions, and compelled its master, Tungchau kiun, the last monarch, to humble himself at his feet. Although, in fact, master of the whole Empire, he did not take the title, but left it to his son, Chwangsiang wang, who exterminated the blood royal and ended the Chau dynasty, yet lived only three years in possession of the supreme power. The son carried on his father's successes until he had reduced all the petty States to his sway. lie then took the name of Chi Hwangti (' Emperor First') of the Tsin dynasty, and set himself to regulate his conquests and establish his authority by secur- ing to his subjects a better government than had been experi- enced during the feudal times. He divided the country into thirty-six provinces, over which he placed governors, and went throughout them all to see that no injustice was practised. This monarch, who has been called the Napoleon of China, was one of those extraordinary men who turn the course of events and give an impress to subsequent ages; Ivlaproth gives him a high ciuiracter as a prince of energy and skill, but native historians detest his name and acts. It is recorded that at his new capital, Ilienyang, on the banks of the Ilwai, he constructed a palace exactly like those of all the kings who had submitted to him, and ordered that all the precious furniture of each and those persons who had inhabited them should be ti-ansported to it, and everything rearranged. The whole occupied an innnense space, and the various parts communicated with each other by a magnificent colonnade and gallery. He made ])rogresses through his dominions with a splendor hitherto unknown, ac- companied by officials and troops from all parts, thus making ' Journrd of the N. C. Branch of II. A. Society, Vols. VII., p. 137 ; VIII., pp. 23, 133. In tlie last paper, by Dr. Bnshell, translations and fac-similes of the inscriptions are givoii, with many historical uotictjs. TSIX nil IIWANGTI, THE ' EMPEROK FIRST.' IGl the people interested in each otlier and consenting to liis sway. He also built public edifices, opened roads and canals to facili- tate intercourse and trade between the various provinces, and repressed the incursions of the Iluns, driving them into the wilds of Mongolia. In order to keep them out effectually, he con- ceived the idea of extending and uniting the short walls which the princes of some of the Xortherii States had erected on their frontier into one grand wall, stretching across the Empire from the sea to the Desert. This gigantic undertaking was completed in ten years (b.c. 20-i), at a vast expense in men and material, and not until the family of its builder had been destroyed. This mode of protecting the country, when once well begun, probably commended itself to the nation. It is impossible, in- deed, to imagine otherwise how it could have been done, for the people were required to supply a quota of men from each place, feed and clothe them while at work, and continue this expense until their portion was built. Xo monarch could have maintained an army which could force his sul)jects against their \vill to do such a work or carry it on to completion after his death. It is one of the incidental proofs of a great population that so many laborers were found. However ineffectual it was to preserve his frontiers, it has made his name celebrated throughout the world, and his dynasty Tsin has given its name to China for all ages and nations.' The vanity of the new monarch led him to endeavor to de- stroy all records written anterior to his own reign, that he might be by posterity regarded as the first Emperor of the Chinese race. Orders were issued that every book should be burned, and especially the writings of Confucius and Mencius, explana- tory of the /Shu King upon the feudal States of Chau, whose remembrance he wished to blot out. This strange command was executed to such an extent that many of the Chinese literati believe that not a perfect copy of the classical works escaped destruction, and the texts were only recovered by rewriting them from the memories of old scholars, a mode of reproduction ' Pautliier, La Chine, pp. 30, 221 ; Mem. cone, les Chinois, Tome III., p. 183. 162 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. that does not appear so singular to a Chinese as it does to ua If the same literary tragedy should be re-enacted to-day, thou- sands of persons might easily be found in China M'ho could re- write from memory the text and commentary of their nine classical works. " Xevertheless," as Ivlaproth remarks, " they were not in fact all lost : for in a country where writin": is so connnon it was almost impossible that all the copies of works universally respected should be destroyed, especially at a time when the material on which they were written was very durable, being engraved with a stylet on bamboo tablets, or traced upon them with dark-colored varnish." The destruction was no doubt as neai'ly complete as possible, and not only were many works entirely destroyed, but a shade of doubt thereby thrown over the accuracy of others, and the records of the ancient dynasties rendered suspicious as well as incomplete. Not only were books sought after to be destroyed, but nearly live hundred literati were buried alive, in order that no one might remain to re- proach, in their writings, the Emperor First with having com- mitted so barbarous and insane an act. The dynasty of Tsin, set up in such cruelty and blood, did not long survive the death of its founder; his son was unable to maintain his rule over the half-subdued feudal chieftains, ftnd after a nominal reign of seven years he was overcome by Liu Pang, a soldier of fortune, who, having been employed by one of the chiefs as commander of his forces, used them to sup- port his own authority when he had taken possession of the capital. Under the name of Kautsu he became the founder of the Han dynasty, and his accession is regarded as the commence- ment of modern Chinese history. The number and character of its heroes and literati are superior to most other periods, and to this day the term IIa)i-ts2\ or ' Sons of Han,' is one of the favorite names by which the Chinese call themselves. The first foui'teen princes of this dynasty reigned in Shensi, but Jvwangwu removed the ca])ital from (^hang-an to Lohyang, as was done in the Chau dynasty seven centuries b f :re, the old one being ruined. During the reign of Ping i {or 'he 'Em- peror ]*eacc') the Prince of Peace, our Lord Jesus Christ, was boiii in Judea, a renuirkable coincidence wliich has often THE HOUSE OF TTAN. 163 attracted notice. During the reign of Ming ti, a.d. 65, a depu- tation was sent to India to obtain the sacred books and au- thorized teachers of Buddhism, wliich the Emperor intended to publicly introduce into China. This faith had already widely spread among his subjects, but henceforth it became the popular belief of the Chinese and extended eastward into Japan. This monarch and his successor, Chang ti, penetrated with their armies as far westward as the Caspian Sea, dividing and overcoming the various tribes on the confines of the Desert and at the foot of the Tien shan, and extending the limits of the monarchy in that direc- tion farther than they are at present. The Chinese sway was maintained with varied success until toward the third century, and seems to have had a mollifying effect upon the nomads of those regions. In these distant expeditions the Chinese heard of the Romans, of whom their authors speak in the highest terms : " Everything precious and adnnrable in all other countries," say they, "comes from this land. Gold and silver money is coined there; ten of silver are worth one of gold. Their merchants trade by sea with. Persia and India, and gain ten for one in their traffic. They are simple and upright, and never have two prices for their goods ; grain is sold among them very cheap, and large sums are embarked in trade. Whenever ambassadors come to the frontiers they are provided with carriages to travel to the capital, and after their arrival a certain number of pieces of gold are fur- nished them for their expenses." This description, so character- istic of the shop-keeping Chinese, may be compared to many accounts given of the Chinese themselves by western authors. Continuing the resume of dynasties in order — lY. — The TsiN dynasty is computed to end with Chwangsiang by the authors of the Illstonj Made Easy, and to have existed only three years, from b.c. 249 to 246. Y. — The After Tsin dynasty is sometimes joined to the pre- ceding, but Chi riwangti regarded himself as the fii-st monarch, and began a new house, wliich, however, lasted only forty-four years, from b.(\ 246 to 202. The connnotions in the farthest East during this period were not less destructive of life than the wars in Europe between the Carthaginians and Romans, and the Syrians, Greeks, and Egyptians. 164 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. VL, YII. The Han and Eastern Han dynasties. — Liu Pang took the title of Han for his dj'nasty, after the name of his principality, and his family swayed the Middle Kingdom from B.C. 2U2 to A.u. 221, under twenty-six monarchs. The Han dynasty was the formative period of Chinese polity and institu- tions, and an instructive parallel can be drawn between the character and acts of the Emperors who reigned four hundred years in China, and the numerous consuls, dictators, and em- perors who governed the Roman Empire for the same period from the time of Scipio Africanus to Ileliogabalus. The foun- der of the Han is honored for having begun the system of com- petitive examinations for office, and his successors. Wan ti, Wu ti, and Ivwang-wu, developed literature, commerce, arts, and good government to a degree unknown before anywhere in Asia. In the West the Ilomans became tlie great vrorld power, and the advent of Christ and establishment of His church within its borders only, render this period the turning epoch of prog- ress among niankind. The period between the overthrow of the Han dynasty, a.d. 190, and the establishment of the Eastei-n Tsin, a.d. 317, is one of the most interesting in Chinese historj^, from the variety of characters which the troubles of the times developed. The distractions of this period are described in the Hi stori/ of the Tliree States, but this entertaining work cannot be regarded as much better than a historical novel. It has, however, like Scott's stories, impressed the events and actors of those days upon the popular mind more than any history in the language. VIII. — The Aftkk IIan dynasty began a.d. 211, and con- tinned forty-four years, under two princes, to a.d. 205. The country was divided into three principalities, called Wei, Wu, and Shuh. The first, under the son of Tsao Tsao, ruled the whole northern counti'y at Lohyang. and was the most powerful of them for about forty years. The second, under Sinn Kien, occupied the eastern provinces, from Shantung and the Yellow River down to the mountains of Fuhkien, holding liis court at Nanking. The tliird, under Liu Pi, is regarded as the legiti- mate dynasty from his affinity with the Han ; he had his capi- tal at Chingtu fii, in Sz'chuen. r:6sume of the dynasties. 165 IX. — The TsiN dynasty was foimded by Sz'ma Chao, a general in the employ of llau of tlie last house, who seated himself on the throne of his master a.d. 265, the year of the latter's death. His son, Sz'ma Yen, took his place and extended his power over the whole Empire by 280. The inroads of the Huns and internal commotions were fast ]-educing the people to barbai'ism. Four Emperors of this house held their sway at Lohyang during iif ty- two years, till a.d. 317. The Iluns maintained their sway in Shensi until a.d. 352, under the designations of the Ilan and Chau dynasties. It is related of Liu Tsung, one of this barbaric race, that he built a great palace at Chang-an, where he gathered a myriad of the lirst subjects of his kingdom and lived in luxury and magnificence quite unknown before in China. Among his attendants was a body-guard of elegantly dressed women, many of whom were good musicians, which accompanied liirn on his progresses. X. — The Eastern Tsin is the same house as the last, but Yuen ti having moved his capital in 317 from Lohyang to Xanking, his successors are distinguished as the Eastern Tsin. Eleven princes reigned during a period of one hundred and three years, down to a.d. 420. Buddhism was the chief religion at this time, and the doctrines of Confucius were highly esteemed ; " children of concubines, priests, old women, and nurses ad- ministered the government," says the indignant annalist. At this period twelve independent and opposing kings struggled for the ascendency in China, and held their ephemeral courts in the north and west. It was at this time that Constantino moved the capital of the Iloman Empii-e in 328, and the nations of northern Europe under Attila invaded Italy in 410. XL — The ScNG, or Xorthern Sung dynasty, as it is often called to distinguish it from tlie XXIId dynasty (a.d. 970), is the first of the four dynasties known as the JVan-peh C/iao, or ' South-north dynasties,' which preceded the Sui. It was founded by Liu Yu, who commanded the armies of Tsin, and gradually subdued all the opposing States. Displeased at the weakness of his master, Xgan ti, he caused him to be strangled, and placed his brother, Kung ti, upon the throne, who, fearing a like fate, abdicated the empty crown, and Liu Yu became monarch 166 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. under tiie name of Kaiitsu, A.n. 420. Eight princes held the throne till a.d. 479, many of them monsters of ernelt}', and soon cut off, when Sian Tau-cliing, Duke of Tsi, the prime minister, recompensed them as their ancestor had those of Tsin. XII. Tsi dynasty. — The new monarch took the name of Kan ti, or ' High Emperor,' bnt enjoyed his dignity only four years. Four princes succeeded him at iS'anking, the last of wdiom, Ilo ti, was besieged in his capital by a faithless minister, assisted by the pi'ince of Liang, who overthrew the dynasty a.d. 502, after a duration of twenty-three years. XIII. LiAKG dynasty. — The first Emperor, Wu ti, reigned forty-eight years, and reduced most of his opponents ; his do- minions are described as being mostly south of the Yangtsz' River, the Wei ruling the regions north of it. Wu ti did much to restore literature and tlie study of Confucius ; envoys from India and Persia also came to his court, and his just sway allowed the land to recruit. In his latter days he w^as so great a de- votee of Buddhism that he retired to a monastery, like Charles Y., but being persuaded to resume his crown, employed his time in teaching those doctrines to his assembled courtiers. Three successors occupied the throne, the last of whom, King ti, Avas killed A.D. 557, after surrendering himself, by the general of the troops, wdio then seized the crown. XIY. Chin dynasty. — Three brothers reigned most of the time this house held its sway. During this period and that of the three preceding families, the Ilunnish kingdom of Wei ruled the northern parts of C^hina from a.d. 380 to 534, under eleven monarchs, when it was violently separated into the East- ern and Western Wei, and a third one called Chau, which ere long destro\'ed the last AVci at ('hang-an and occupied northwest China. It is probable that the intercoui-se between China and other parts of Asia was more extensive and complete during the Wei dynasty than at any other period. Its sovereigns had preserved peaceful rehitions with their ancestral seats, and with tlie ti-ibes beyond Lake Baikal and the Obi River to the North Sea. Trade seems to have flourished throughout the regions lying between the Caspian Sea and Corea, and tlie records of this period present accounts of the State in this vast tract to be THE SUI AND TANO DYNASTIES. I67 found nowhere else. One of these works referred to by Rc- nriiisat is the report of officers sent by Tai-wii during liis reign to travel through his dominions (424-451) and give full accounts of them. One of the sovereigns of Chan, Wu ti (a.d. 561-572), had given his daughter in marriage to Yang Kien, the Prince of Sui, one of his ministers, who, gradually extending his influence, took possession of the throne of his master Tsiiig ti in 580. In a few years he restored order to a distracted land by bringing the several States under his sway and reuniting all China under his hand a.d. 589, after it had been divided nearly four cen- turies. XV. Sui dynasty. — The founder of this house has left an en- during name in Chinese annals by a survey of his dominions and division of them into interdependent vhau^ klun, and hleii^ with corresponding officers, an arrangement which lias ever since existed. lie patronized letters and commerce, and tried to in- troduce the system of caste from India. After a vigorous reign of twenty-four years he was killed by his son Yang ti, who carried on his father's plans, and during the fourteen years of his reign extended the frontiers through the Tarim Yalley and down to the Southern Ocean. His murder by one of his generals was the signal for several ambitious men to rise, but the Prince of Tang aided tlie son to rule for a year or two till he was re- moved, thus bringing the Sui dynasty to an end after thirty-nine years, but not before its two sovereigns had taught their subjects the benefits of an undivided sway. XYI. Tang dynasty. — This celebrated line of princes began its sway in peace, and during the two hundred and eightj'-sevcn years (018 to 90S) they held the throne China was probably the most civilized country on earth ; the darkest days of the West, when Europe was wrapped in the ignorance and degradation of the Middle Ages, formed the brightest era of the East. They exercised a humanizing effect on all the surrounding countries, and led their inhabitants to see the benefits and understand the management of a government where the laws were above the officers. The people along the southern coast were completely civilized and incorporated into the Chinese race, and mark the 168 THE .MIDDLE KINGDOM. cliange by always calling themselves Tang Jin, or ' Men of Tang/ An interesting work on the trade and condition of China at this time is the AMihar-al-Syn oual-Hind, or ' Obser- vations on China and India,' by two Arab travellers to those lands in the years 851 and 878, compiled by Abu Zaid and translated by lieinaud in 1845.' Li Shi-mii], the son of Li Ynen the founder of this dynasty, may be regarded as the most ac- complished monarch in the Chinese annals — famed alike for his wisdom and nobleness, his conquests and good government, his temperance, cultivated tastes, and patronage of literary inen. AVhile still Prince of Tang he contributed greatly to his father's elevation and to the extension of his sway over the regions of Central Asia. When the house of Tang was fully acknowl- edged, and the eleven rival States which had started up on the close of the house of Sui had been overcome, the capital was removed from Lohyang back to Chang-an, and everything done to compose the disordered country and reunite the distracted State under a reo-ular and vigorous administration. Feeline: himself unequal to all the cares of his great office, Li Yuen, known as Kau-tsu Shin Yao ti (lit. ' High Progenitor, the Di- vine Yao Emperor '), resigned the j^ellow in favor of his son, who took the style of Chlng hioan {' Pure Observer ') for his reign, though his posthumous title is Tai-tsung Wan-w^i ti (' Our Exalted Ancestor, the Literary-Martial Emperor '), a.d. 627, and still further extended his victorious arms. One of his first acts was to establish schools and institute a s^'^stem of literary examinations ; he ordered a complete and accurate edition of all the classics to be published under the supervision of the most learned men in the Empire, and honored the memory of Confucius with special ceremonies of respect. Extraordinary pains were taken to prepare and preserve the historical records of former days and draw up full annals of the recent dynasties ; these still await the examination of western scholars. lie constructed a code of laws for the direction of his high officers in their judicial functions, and made progresses through ' Chinese Repository, Vol. I., p. 6; Reinaud, Relations des Voyages, 2 Vols.. Paris, 1845. Yule, CatJiay and the Way Thithtr, Introd., p. cii. TAI-TSLTN(J, FOUNDER OF THE HOUSE OF TAXG. 169 lii.s doiniiiions to inspect the condition of the people. During liis reign the limits of the Enipii-e were extended over all the Turkisli tribes lying west of Kiinsuh and south of the Tien shan as far as the Caspian Sea, which were placed nnder four satrapies or residences, those of Kuche, Pisha or Khoten, Ila- rashar, and Kashgar, as their names are at present. West of the last many smaller tribes submitted and rendered a partial sub- jection to the Emperor, who arranged them into sixteen govern- ments under the management of a governor-general over theii- own chieftains. His frontiers reached from the borders of Persia, the Caspian Sea, and the Altai of the Kirghis steppe, along those mountains to the north side of Gobi eastward to the Inner Iling-an. Sogdiana and part of Khorassan, and the regions around the llindu-kush, also obeyed him. The rulers of Xipal and Magadha or Bahar in India sent their salutations by their ambassadors, and the Greek Emperor Theodosius sent an envoy to Si-ngan in 643 carrying presents of rubies and emeralds, as did also the Persians. The IS^estorian missionaries also presented themselves at court. Tai-tsung received them with respect, and heard them rehearse the leading tenets of their doctrine ; he ordered a temple to be erected at his capital, and had some of their sacred books translated for his examina- tion, though there is no evidence now remaining that any por- tion of the Bible was done into Chinese at this time. Near the close of his life Tai-tsung undertook an expedition against Corea, but the conquest of that country was completed by his son after his death. A sentiment has been preserved at this time of his life which he uttered to his sons while sailing t)n the River Wei : "' See, my children, the waves which lloat our fragile bark are able to submerge it in an instant ; know as- suredly that the people are like the waves, and the Emperor like this fragile bark." During his reign his life was attempted several times, once by his own son, but he was preserved from these attacks, and died after a reign of twenty-three years, deeply lamented by a grateful people. The Chinese accounts state that the foreign envoys resident at his court cut off their hair, some of them disfigured their faces, bled themselves, and sprinkled the blood around the bier in testimony of their grief. 170 THE -MIDDLE KINGDOM. Whatever may have been the truth in this respect, many proofs exist of the distinguished character of this monarch, and that the high reputation he enjoyed during his lifetime was a just tribute to his excellences, lie will favorably compare with Akbar, Marcus Aurelius, and Kanghi, or with Charlemagne and llarun Al Ilaschid, who came to their thrones in the next cen- tury. ^ Tai-tsung was succeeded by his son Kau-tsung, whose indolent imbecility appeared the more despicable after his father's vigor, but his reign fills a large place in Chinese history, from the ex- traordinary career of his Empress, Wn Tsih-tien, or AVu hao (' Empress "Wu ') as she is called, who by her blandishments ob- tained entire conti'ol over him. The character of this woman has, no doubt, suifered much from the bad reputation native historians have given her, but enough can be gathered from their accounts to show that with all her cruelty she understood how to maintain the authority of the crown, repress foreign in- vasions, quell domestic sedition, and provide for the wants of the people. Introduced to the harem of Tai-tsung at the age of fourteen, she was sent at his death to the retreat where all his women were condemned for the rest of their days to honorable imprisonment. While a member of the palace Kau-tsung had been charmed with her appearance, and, having seen her atone of the state ceremonies connected with the ancestral worship, bi'ought her back to the palace. His queen, Wang-shi, also favored his attentions in order to draw them off from another rival, but AV^u Tsih-tien soon (obtaining entire sway over the moiuirch, united both women against her ; she managed to fill the principal offices with her friends, and by a series of manonivres supplanted each in turn and became Empress. One means she took to excite suspicion against Wang-shi was, on occasion of the birth of her first child, after the Empress had visited it and before Kau-tsung came in to see his offspring, to strangle it and charge the crime upon her Majesty, which led to her trial, degradation, and impi-isonment, and ere long to her death. As soon as she became Emj)ress (in O,"),")), Wu began gradually to assume more and moi'e authority, until, long before the Em- THE EMPRESS WU TSIH-TIEN. 171 peror's death in 684, she engrossed tlie whole management of affairs, and at his demise opeidy assumed the reins of govern- ment, wliich slie wielded for twenty-one years with no weak hand. Her generals extended the limits of the Empire, and her officers carried into effect her orders to alleviate the miseries of the people. Her cruelty vented itself in the nnirder of all who opposed her will, even to her own sons and relatives ; and her pride was rather exhibited than gratified by her assuming the titles of Queen of Heaven, Holy and Divine Ttuler, Holy Mother, and Divine Sovereign. When she was disabled by age her son, Chung-sung, supported by some of the first men of the land, asserted his claim to the throne, and by a palace conspiracy suc- ceeded in removing her to her own apartments, where she died aged eighty-one years. Her character has been blackened in native histories and popular tales, and her conduct held up as an additional evidence of the evil of allowing women to meddle with governments.' A race of twenty monarchs swayed the sceptre of the house of Tang, but after the demise of the Empress Wu Tsih-tien none of them equalled Tai-tsung, and the Tang dynasty at last succumbed to ambitious ministers lording over its imbecile sovereigns. In the reign of IHuen-tsung, about the year 722, the population of the Fifteen Provinces is said to have been 52,884,818. The last three or four Em])erors exhibited the usual marks of a declining house — eunuchs or favorites promoted by them swayed the realm and dissipated its resources. At last, Li TsQen-chung, a general of Chau-tsung, whom he had aided in quelling the eunuchs in 904, rose against his master, destroyed him, and compelled his son, Chau-siuen ti, to abdicate, a.d. 907. XYH. After Liang dynasty. — The destruction of the famous dynasty loosened the bonds of all government, and nine sepa- rate kings struggled for its provinces, some of whom, as Apki over the Kitan in the north-east, succeeded in founding kingdoms. The Prince of Liang, the new Emperor, was unable to extend his sway beyond the provinces of Honan and Shantung. After ' Chinese Repository, Vol. III., p. 543 ; Canton MisceUany, No. 4, 1831, pp 24Gfif. 172 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. a short reign of six years lie was killed by liis brother, Liang Chn-tien, who, on his part, fell under the attack of a Turkish general, and ended this dynasty, a.d. 923, after a duration of sixteen years. XVIII. Aftek Tang dynasty. — The conqueror called himself (Jhwang-tsung, and his dynasty Tang, as if in continuation of that line of princes, but this mode of securing popularity was unsuccessful. Like Pertinax, Aurelian, and others of the Ro- man emperors, he was killed by his troops, who chose a succes- sor, and his grandson, unable to resist his enemies, burned him- self in his palace, a.d. 930, thus ending the weak dynasty after thirteen years of struggle. XIX. After Tsin dynasty. — The Kitan or Tartars of Liau- timg, who had assisted in the overthrow of the hist dynasty, compelled the new monarch to subsidize them at his accession, A.D. 93G, by ceding to them sixteen cities in Chihli, and promis- ing an annual tiibute of three hundred thousand pieces of silk. This disgraceful submission has ever since stigmatized Tien-fuh (' Heavenly Happiness ') in the eyes of native historians. IBs nephew who succeeded him is known as Chuh ti (the ' Carried- away Emperor '), and was i-emoved in 9J:7 by those who put Iiim on the throne, thus ending the meanest house which ever swayed the black-haired people. XX. AFrKu Hax dynasty. — The Tartars now endeavored to subdne the whole country, but were repulsed by Liu Clii-yuen, a loyal general who assumed the yellow in 947, and called his dynasty after the renowned house of Han ; he and his son held sway four years, till a.d. 951, and then were cut olf. XXI. Afti:u Chau dynasty. — Ko Wei, the successful aspi- rant to the throne, maintained his seat, but died in thi'ee years, leaving his power to an adopted son, Shi-tsung, whose vigorous rule consolidated his still unsettled sway. His early death and the youth of his son decided his generals to bestow the sceptic upon the lately appointed tutor to tlie monarch, which closed the After Chau dynasty a.d. 900, after a bi-ief duiation of nine years. He was honored with a title, and, like Richard ( h'omwell, allowed to live in quiet till his death in 973, a fact creditable to the new monarch. These short-lived houses between a.d. 907- THE WU TAI, on FIVE DYNASTIES. 173 9G0 are known in Chinese history as the Wu tai, or ' Five Dynasties.' AVhile they stiiiggled for supremacy in the valle\- of the Yellow Iliver, the regions south and west were portioned among seven houses, who ruled them in a good degree of security. Fuhkien was held l)y the King of Min, and Kiaiignan by the King of Wu ; the regions of Sz'chuen, Xganhwui, and Kansuh were held by generals of note in the service of Tang ; another general held Kwangtung at Canton through two or three reigns ; aiid another exercised sway at Kingchau on the Yangtsz' Kiver. It is needless to mention them all. During this period Europe M'as distracted by the wars of the Xormans and Saracens, and learning there was at a low ebb. XXIL— SrxG dynasty began A.D. 9TU, and maintained its power over the whole Empire for one hundred and fifty-seven years, till A.D. 1127. The mode in which its founder, Chan Kwang-yun, was made head of the State, reminds one of the way in which the Pmetorian guards sometimes elevated their chiefs to the throne of the Caisars. After the military leaders had decided upon their future sovereign they sent messengers to announce to him his new honor, who found him drunk, and "before he had time to reply the yellow robe was already thrown over his person." At the close of his reign of seventeen years the provinces had mostly sub- mitted to his power at Kaifnng, but the two Tartar kingdoms of Liau and Jlia remained independent. This return to a central- ized govei'nment proves the unity of the Chinese people at this time in their own limits, as well as their inability to induce their neighbors to adopt the same system of government. The suc- cessors of Tai-tsu of Sling had a constant struggle for existence with their adversaries on the north and west, the Liau and Ilia, whose recent taste of power under the last two dynasties had shown them their opportunity. On the return of prosperity under his brother's reign of twenty-two years, the former institutions and political divisions were restored throughout the southern half of the Empire ; good government was secured, aided by able generals and loyal ministers, and the rebels everywhere quelled. Chin-tsung was the third sovereign, and his reign of forty-one years is the brightest portion of the house of Sung. The kings of Ilia in Kansuh acknowledged themselves to be his tributaries, 174 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. but he bought a cowardly peace with the Liau on the north-east. During his reign and that of his son, Tin-tsung, a violent con- troversy arose among the literati and officials as to tlie best mode of conducting the government. Some of them, as Sz'ma Kwang the historian, contended for the maintenance of the old principles of the sages. Others, of whom Wang i^gan-shi was the distinguished leader, advocated reform and change to the entire overthrow of existing institutions. For the first time in tlie his- tory of China, two political parties peacefully struggled for supremacy, each content to depend on argument and truth for the victory. The contest soon grew too bitter, however, and the accession of a new monarch, Shin-tsung, enabled AVang to dis- possess his opponents and manage State affairs as he pleased. After a trial of eight or ten years the voice of the nation restored the conservatives to power, and the radicals were banished be- yond the fi'ontier. A discussion like this, involving all the cherished ideas of the Chinese, brought out deep and acute inquiry into the nature and uses of things generally, and the Avriters of this dynasty, at the head of Avhom was Cliu Hi, made a lasting impression on the national mind. The two sons of Shin-tsung were unable to oppose the northern hordes of Liau and Ilia, except by setting a third aspirant against both. These were the Niu-chih or Kin,' the ancestors of the present Man'chus, who carried away llwui-tsung as a captive in 1125, and his son too the next year, pillaging Lohyang and possessing themselves of the region north of the Yellow Kiver. This closed the Northern Sung. The Kin established themselves at Peking in 1118, whence they were driven in 1235 by Genghis Khan, and fled back to the ancestral haunts on the Songari and Liau Itivers, XXIII. — Southern Sung dynasty forms part of the preceding, for Kao-tsung, the brother of the last and ninth monarch of the weakened house of Northern Sung, seeing his capital in ruins, fled to Nanking, and soon after to the beautiful city of llang- chau on the eastern coast at the mouth of the Tsientang Kiver. ' Two graves of the Kin monarchs exist on a hill west of Fangshan hien, fifty miles sonth-west of Peking; tliey were repaired by Kanghi. Dr. Busliell visited them in 1870. THE NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN SUNG. 175 Nanking was pillaged by the Kin, but Ilangeliau was too far for tliem. It gradually grew in size and strength, and became a famous capital. Kao-tsung resigned in liG2, after a reign of tliirty-SiX years, and survived his abdication twenty-four years. The next Emperor was Iliao-tsung, who also resigned the yellow to Kwang-tsung, his son, and he again yielded it to his son Ning- tsung. This last, in his distress, called the rising Mongols into his service in 1228 to help against the Kin. The distance from the northern frontier, wdiere the Mongols were flushed with their successes over the Tangouth of Ilia at Kinghia in 1226, was too far for them to aid Xing-tsung at this time. He was, however, relieved from danger to himself, and the Mongols deferred their intentions for a few years. From this date for about fifty years the Sung grew weaker and weaker under the next five sover- eigns, until the last scion, Ti Ping, was drowned with some of his courtiers, one of whom, clasping him in his arms, jumped from the vessel, and ended their life, dignity, and dynasty to- gether. It had lasted one hundred and fifty-two years under nine raonarchs, who showed less ability than those of Northern Sung, and were all nnich inferior as a whole to the house of Tang. Their patronage of letters and the arts of peace was nnaccom- ])anied by the vigor of their predecessors, for they were unwill- ing to leave the capital and risk all at the head of their troops. It is the genius and piiilosophy of its scholars that has made the Sung one of the great dynasties of the Middle Kingdom. XXIV. — The YuKN dynasty was the first foreign sway tc which the Sons of IJan had submitted; their resistance to the army, which gradually overran the country, was weakened, how- ever, by treachery and desultory tactics until the national spirit w'as frittered away. During the interval between the capture of Peking by Genghis and the final extinction of the Sung dynast}', the whole population had become somewhat accustomed to Mongol rule. Having no organized government of their own, these khans were content to allow the Chinese the full exercise of their own laws, if peace and taxation were duly upheld. Kublai had had ample opportunity to learn the character of liis new subjects, and after the death of Mangu khan in 1260 and his own establishment at Peking in 1261, he in fifteen years brought 176 THE MIDDLE KIXGDOM. his vast dominions under a nietliodical sway and developed their resources more than ever. Though faihng in his attempt to eon (pier Japan, ho enlai'ged elsewhere liis vanisliing frontiei'S (hiring liis Hfe till they could neither be dehned nor governed. His patronage of merit and scholarship proves the good results of his tu*:elage in China, while the short-lived glory of his adminis- tration in other hands chielly proved what good material he had to work with in China in comparison with his own race.' He was a vigorous and magnificent prince, and had, moreover, the advantage of having his acts and splendor related by Marco Polo — a chronicler worthy of his subject. The Grand Canal, which was deepened and lengthened during his reign, is a last- ing token of his sagacity and eidightened policy. An inter- esting monument of this dynasty, erected in 1315, is the gat^ way in the Kii-yung kwan (pass) of the Great Wall north of Peking. Upon the interior of this arch is cnt a Buddhist charm in six different kinds of character — Mongolian, Chinese, Oigour, antifjue Devanagari, Niu-chih, and Tibet m.'' After the Grand Khan's death the ]^[ongols retained their power under the reign of Ching-tsung, or T'imur khan, a grandson of Kublai, and Wu-tsung, or Genesek khan,' a nephew of the for- mer, but their successors met \vith opj^osition, or were destroyed by treachery. The offices were also filled with Mongols, without any regard to the former mode of conferring rank according to literary qualifications, and the native Chinese began to be thoroughly dissatisfied M'ith a sway in which they had no pai-t. The last and eleventh, named Ching-tsung, or Tohan-Timur, came to the throne at the age of thirteen, iind gave himself up to pleasure, his eunuchs and ministers dividing the possessions and offices of the Chinese among themselves and their adherents. This conduct aroused his subjects, and Chu Vuen-cluing, a ple- beian by birth, and formerly a i)riest, raised the standard of 'See 'Remusa.t,' JVbuvemix Melanges, Tomes I., p. 437; TI., pp. 64, 88, and SO- OT, for a series of notices concerning the Mongol generalii and liistor}'. 'Compare Wylie in the R. A. Sor. Join;, Vol. V. (N.S ), i>. 14; Fergusson, Hint. Ind. iind Kitxt. Airhittrtiirc, p. 708 ; YuU^^'s Polo, I., pp. '28, 400. ^ This should be Kaishaii-kuUuk klian, caUed Kdi-mnrj in (Jhinese. Remusat, Nouveaux MelanycH, Tome II., j)p. 1-4. ttr6 qui soit dans son Empire. ' Among the most serious of these was the revolt oP the Peh lien kiao. Zr<- tres EfHpirdcx, Tome III., pp. 201-29S, ;55;5, 879, etc. In 1789 the ladronea infested the southern coasts. //>., Tome II., p. 493. THE llEIGNS OF KIEXLUNG AND TAUKWANG. ]83 pirates in and al)Out the Empire. A conspiracy' against him broke out in tlie pahice in 1813, where he was for a time in some danger, but was rescued by the courage of his guard and family ; one of liis sons, Mien-ning, was designated as his suc- cessor for liis bravery on this occasion. A fleet of about six- hundred piratical junks, under Ching Yih and Chang Pan, in- fested the coasts of Kwangtung for several years, and were at last put down in ISIO by the provincial government taking advantage of internal dissensions between the leaders. The principal scene of the exploits of this fleet was the estuary of the Pearl lliver, whose numerous harbors and chaimels afforded shelter and escape to their vessels when pursued by the impe- rialists, while the towns upon the islands were plundered and the inhabitants killed if they resisted. The internal govern- ment of this audacious band was ascertained by two Englishmen, Mr. Turner and Mr. Glasspoole, who at different times fell into their hands and were obliged to accompany them in their ma- rauding expeditions. To so great a height did they proceed that the governor of Canton went to Macao to reside, and en- tered into some arrangements with the Portuguese for assistance in suppressing them. The piratical fleet was attacked and block- aded for ten days by the combined forces, but without much damage ; there was little prospect of overcoming them had not rivalry between the two leaders gone so far as to result in a severe engagement and loss on both sides. The conquered pi- rate soon after made his peace with the government, and the victor shortly afterward followed the same course. The story of those disturbed times to this day affords a fj-equent subject for the tales of old people in that region, and the same waters are still infested by the " foam of the sea,'' as the Chinese term these freebooters. The reign of Kiaking ended in 1820 ; by the Emperor's will his second son was appointed to succeed him, and took the style Taukwang. lie exhibited more energy and justice than his father, and his efl^orts purified the administration by the per^ sonal supervision taken of their leading membei's. His reign was marked by many local insurrections and disasters in one quarter or another of his vast dominions. A rebellion in Tur- 184 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. kestan in 1S28 was attended with great cruelty and treachery on tlie part of the Chinese, and its leader, Jehangir, was murdered, in v^iolation of the most solenm promises. An insurrection in Formosa and a rising among the mountaineers of Kwangtung, in 1830-32, were put down more by money than by force, but as peace is both the end and evidence of good government in China, the authorities are not very particular how it is brought about. The rapid increase of opium-smoking among his people led to many efforts to restrain this vice by prohibitions, penalties, executions, and other means, but all in vain. The Emperors earnestness was stimulated by the death of his three eldest sons from its use, and the falling off of the revenue by smuggling the pernicious drug. In 1837-38 the collective opinion of the highest officials was taken after hearing their arguments for legalizing its importation ; it was resolved to seize the dealers in it. The acts of Commissioner Lin resulted in the war with Great Britain and the opening of China to an extended inter- course with other nations. Defeated in his honest efforts to protect his people against their bane, the Emperor still fulfilled Ids treaty obligations, and died in 1850, just as the Tai-ping re- bellion broke out. His fourth son succeeded him under the style of Hienfung, but without his father's earnestness or vigor when the State required the highest qualities in its leader. The devastations of the rebels laid waste the southern half of the Empire, and their approach to Peking in 1853 was paralyzed by tioods and want of supplies more than by the imperial troops. A second war with Great Britain, in 1858-60, completely broke down the seclusion of China, and at its conclusion an inglorious reign of eleven years ended at Jeh-ho in August, 1860. His only son succeeded to the throne at the age of five years, under the style of Tungchi ; the government being under the control of two Empress-regents and Prince Kung, his uncle. During his reign of twelve years the vigor of the new authoi'ities succeeded in completely quelling the Tai-ping rebellion, destroying the Mo- hammedan rising in Yunnan and Kansidi, and opening up diplomatic intercourse with the Treaty Powers. Just as the IIEIGNS AND EVENTS OF RECENT YEARS. 185 Emperor l)e<;un to exercise his authoi'ity, lie died in JamuuT, 1875, without issue. The vacant "utensil" has been filled by the appointment of his cousin, a boy of four yeai's, whose reii^n was styled Kwangsii. Affairs continue to be conducted by the same regency as before, now still more conversant with the new relations opening uj) with other lands. The real Enipress- ilowager, or Tioig Kung^ died April IS, 1881. So far as can be judged from the imperfect data of native historians of former days, compai'ed with the observations of foreigners at present, there is little doubt that this enormous population has been better governed by the Manchus than under the princes of the Ming dynasty; there has been more vigor in the administration of government and less palace favoritism and intrigue in the appointment of officers, more security of life and property from the exactions of local authorities, bands of robbers, or processes of law ; in a word, the Manchu sway has well developed the industry and resources of the country, of which the population, loyalty, and content of the people are the best evidences. The sovereigns of the Ming and Tsing dynasties, being more frequently mentioned in history than those of former princes, are here given, with the length of their reigns. For conven- ience of reference a table of the dynasties is appended, taken from the author's SijllabiG Dlctionanj of the Chinese Language. In this list, compiled from a Chinese work (the Digest of the Reigns of Emperors and Kings\ the Tsin and After Tsin dy- nasties are joined in one (No. 4), making a total of twenty-six dynasties.' The whole number of acknowledged sovereigns in the twenty- six dynasties, according to the recei\ned Chinese chronology, from Yu the Great to Kwangsii, is 238, or 246 commencing with Fuh-hi ; by including the names of some ursurpers and mori- bund claimants, the first number is increased to 250. From Yu the Great lo th-^ accession of Kwangsii (b.c. 2205 to a.d. 1875) is 4,080 years, which gives to each dynasty a duration of 157 ' Compare the Chinese Chronological Tables by W. P. Mayers in N. C Br. R. A. S. Journal, No. IV., Art. VIII. , 1867. 186 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. Kwoh Hiao, or Reigiiing Title. Miao Hiao, or Temple Title. Began 'Length I to I of I Reign. Reign. Contemporary Monarchs. 1. Hungwu 2. Kieiiwan. . . . 3. Yungloh . . . . 4. Hunglii 5. Siuentih 6. Chingtung . . 7. Kingtai 8. Chinghwa. . . 9. Hungchi 10. Chingtih.... 11. Kiahtsing. . . 1;2. Lungking... i:!. Wanleih .... 14. Taichang .. . 15. Tienki 16. Tsungching . 1. Shunchi' ... .'. Kanghi ". Yimgching . . . Kienlung . . . i. Kiaking 6. Taukwaiig.. 7. Hienf uiig . . . ■S. Tungchi .). Kwangsii - . . Taitsu Kienwan ti . . , Taitsnng Jintsung Siuentsung. . . . Yingtsung . . . , Kingti , Hientsung . . . , Hiaut.suiig . . . , VVutsung Shi'tsung Muhtsung. ... Shintsung Kwangtsung . Hitsung , Hwaitsung. . . Chang hwaiigti. Jin hwangti . . . Hien hwangti . . 8hun hwangti. . Jui hwangti . . . . Ching hwangti . Hien hwangti . . 1368 1398 1403 1425 1426 1436 1457 1465 1488 1506 1522 1567 1573 1620 1621 1638 1644 1()62 1723 1736 1796 1821 1851 1862 1875 30 5 22 1 10 21 8 23 18 16 45 6 47 1 7 16 18 61 13 60 25 30 11 12 Tamerlane, Richard II., Robert II. Manuel-Paleologus, Henrj' IV. of Eng. Jame.s I., Henry V., Martin V. \ Amuratli II., Henry VI., Charles VII. '( Albert II., Cosmo de Medicis. James II., Fred. III. of Aus., Nich. V. Mahomet II , Edward IV., SixtuslV. JamesIII. ,Ferd. and Isabella, Lonis XI. Bajazet II., James IV., Henry VII. James V., Henry VIII., Charles V. Solyman II.,^lary, Philip II., Henry IL yelim II., Klizabeth, Cregory 111. James I., Henry IV., Louis XIII. Othman II., Philip IV., Gregory XV. Amurath IV., Charles I., Urban VIII Innocent X., Frederick the Great. Mahomet IV., Cromwell. Louis XIV. Charles II., Clement IX.. Sobioskv. Mahomet V., George II.. Lonis XV. Osman III., George III., Clement XIV Seiim III., Napoleon, Fred. Wm. II. Mahmoud, George IV., Louis XVIII. Mahmond, Victoria, Louis XVIII. I Napoleon III., Alexander II. Dynasty. 1. Hla 2. Shang 3. Chau 4. Tsin r). Han 6. East Han . . , 7. After Han. 8. T.sin , 9. East Tsin . , 10. Sung 11. Tsi 12. Liang 13 Chin 14. Sui 15. Tang 16. After Liang 17. After Tang 18. After T.sin. 19. After Han. 20. After Chau 21. Sung 22. South Sung 23. Yuen 24. Ming 25. Tsing Number of Sovereigns. Began. Ended. Duration Seventeen, averaging 26 jears to each mon- arch's reign Twenty-eight, averaging 23 years Thirtj'- four, averaging 253.j years Two, one reigning 37 years, the second 3 years. Fourteen, averaging 163,., years Twelve, averaging 16'^ years Two, one reigning 2, the other 41 years Four, averaging 1 4}{ years Eleven, averaging about 9J^ years Eight, averaging 7}£ years Five, averaging 4% years Four, one 48 years, and thiee together 7 years. Five, averaging about 6 ' ., years Three, one reigning 16, another 12, and another 2 years . . . : Twenty, averaging 1 43^ years Two. one 8 and one 7 years Four, averaging 33^ years Two, one 7 ami one 3 years Two, one 3 years, another 1 year Three, averaging 3 years Nine, averaging 183^2 years Nine, averaging 17 years Nine, averaging \)% years Sixteen, averaging 1 7 years Eight up to 1875, averaging nearly 30 years . . B.C. ;3205 1766 1122 255 206 221 265 323 420 4791 5021 557 589 I 620 i 907 923 936 947 951 960 1127 1280 1368 1644 n.c. 1766 1122 255 206 .D. 25 231 264 322 419 478 502 556 589 619 907 923 936 946 951 960 1127 1280 1368 1644 439 644 807 40 231 196 43 57 106 58 23 54 32 30 287 16 13 10 4 9 167 153 88 276 ' ShuiK^hi and the four fiiUowinpr monarchs are namwd in Manchu, Chidzuoldimbiikh6, Elkhe taitin, ivhowaligiisDMii tob, Abkai wekhiyekhu, and Siiichunga fungchuii, respectively. '^ Kwangsu was born August 14, 1871. TABLES OF M0NARCTI3 AND DYNASTIES. ]y7 years, and to eacli moiiarcli an average of 17] years. From Wu wang's accession to Kwangsii is 2,1>UT years, giving an avei-age of 125 years to a dynasty and 151 toeacli sovereign. From the days of Menes in Egypt, n.c. 2710 to 331, Manetlio reckons 31 dynasties and 378 kings, wliicli is about 77 years to each family and G^ to each reign. In Enghmd tlie 34 sovereigns from William I. to Victoria (a.d. lOGO to 1837) averaged 22| years each; in Israel, the 23 kings from Saul to Zedekiah averaged 22 years during a monarchy of 50 7 years. CHAPTER XYIIL RELIGION OF THE CHINESE. As results must have their proportionate causes, one wishes to know what are the reasons for the remarkable duration of the Chinese people. Why hav^e not their institutions fallen into decrepitude, and this race given place to others during the forty centuries it claims to have existed ? Is it owing to the geo- graphical isolation of the land, which has prevented other nations easily reaching it ? Or have the language and literature unified and upheld the people whom they have taught ? Or, lastly, is it a religious belief and the power of a ruling class working together which has brouglit about the security and freedom now seen in this thrifty, industi-ions, and practical people? Probably all these causes have conduced to this end, and our present object is to outline what seems to have been their mode of operation. The position of tlieir country has tended to separate them from other Asiatic races, even from very early times. It com- pelled them to work out their own institutions without any hints or modifying interference from abroad. They seem, in fact, to have had no neighbors of any importance until about the Christian era, up to which time they occupied chiefly the basin of the Yellow River, or the nine northern provinces as the Empire is now divided. Till about b.c. 220 feudal States covered this I'egion, and tlieir quarrels only ended by their subjection to Tsin Chi Ilwangti, or the 'Emperor First,' whose strong hand molded the people as he led them to value security and yield to just laws. He thus prepared the way for the Emperors Wan ti (B.C. 179-1.50) and Wu ti (b.c. 140-86), of the Han dynasty, to consolidate, dui-ing their long reigns of twenty-nine and fifty- four years, their schemes of good government. ISOLATION OF THE CHINESE EMPIRE. 189 The four northern provinces all lie on the south-eastern slope of the vast plateau of Central Asia, the ascent to which is con- fined to a few passes, leading nj) live or six thousand feet through mountain defiles to the sterile, bleak plains of Gobi. This deso- late region has always given subsistence to wandering nomads, and enough to enable traders to cross its o;i'assv M'astes. When their numbers increased they burst their borders in periodical raids, ravaging and weakening those M'hom they were too few to conquer and too ignorant to govern. The Chinese were too un- warlike to keep these tribes in subjection for long, and never themselves colonized the i-egion, though the attempt to ward off its perpetual menace to their safety, by building the Great Wall to bar out their enemies, proves how they had learned to dread them. Yet this desert waste has proved a better defense for China against armies coming from the basin of the Tarini Kiver than the lofty mountains on its west did to ancient Persia and modern Russia. It was easier and more inviting for the Scythians, Iluns, Mongols, and Turks successively to push their arms westward, and China thereby remained intact, even when driven within her own borders. The western frontiers, between the Kiayil Pass in Kansuh, at the extreme end of the Great Wall, leading across the coun- try south to the island of Hainan, are too wild and rough to be densely inhabited or easily crossed, so that the Chinese have always been unmolested in that direction. To invade the east- ern sides, now so exposed, the ancients had no fleets powerful enough to attack the Middle Kingdom ; and it is only within the present century that armies carried by steam have threat- ened her seaboard. The Chinese have, therefore, been shut out by their natural defenses from both the assaults and the trade of the dwellers in India, Tibet, and Central Asia, to that degree which would have materially modified their civilization. Th e exte rnal influ- ences which have molded them have^ been wholly religious, acting through the persistent labors of Buddhist missionaries from India. These zealous men came and went in a ceaseless stream for ten centuries, joining the caravans entering the north- western marts and ships trading at southern ports. 190a THE MIDDLE KIXGDOM. In addition to this geographical isolation, the language of the Cliinese has tended still more to separate them intellectually from their fellow-men. It is not strange, indeed, that a sym- bolic form of wj-iting should have arisen among them, for the Egyptians and Mexicans exhibit other fashions of ideographic writing, as well as its caprices and the difficulty of extending it. But its long-continued use by the Chinese is hardly less remark- able than the pi'oof it gives of their independence of other people in mental and political relations. Outside nations did not care to study Chinese l)ooks through such a medium, and its possessoi's had, without intending it, shut themselves out of easy interchange of thought. This shows that they could not have had much acquaintance in early times with any alphabetic writing like Sanscrit or Assyrian, for it is almost certain that, in that case, they would soon have begun to alter their ideo graphs into syllables and letters as the Egyptians did ; while the manifest advantages of the phonetic over the symbolic principle would have gradually insured it:j triumph. In that case, howevei", the rivah'ies of feudal States would have resulted, as in Euro])e, in the formation of different languages, and per- haps prevented the growth of a great Chinese race. In Jajmi: and Corea the struggle between symbols and sounds has long existed, and two written languages, the Cliinese and a derivel demotic, are now used side by side in each of those kingdoms. Tills isolation has had its disadvantageous effects on the people thus cut off from their fellows, but the results now seen could not otherwise have been attained. Their literary teiulen- cies could never have attained the strength of an institution if they had been surrounded by more intelligent nations ; nor would they have tilled the land to such a degree if they had been forced to constantly defend themselves, or had imbibed the lust of conquest. Either of these conditions would probably have brought their own national life to a premature close. Isolation, however, is merely a potential factor in this ques- tion. It does not by itself account for that life nor furnish the reasons for its uniformity and endurance. These must be sought for in the moral and social teachino:s of their sages and great rulers, who have been leaders and counsellors, and in the ITS PEOPLE UNAFFECTED BY FOREIGN THOUGHT. 101 cliaracter of the political institutions which have grown out of those teachings. A comparison of their national characteristics with those of other ancient anU modern people shows four strik- , ing contrasts and deductions. The Chinese may be regarded "^ "^X j as the only pagan nation which has maintained democratic "•^'^ -'^- habits under a purely despotic theoiy of govermnent. This government has respected the rights of its subjects by placing them under the protection of law, with its sanctions and tribu- ~"-^-^-a,^;_ iials, and nuxking the sovereign amenable in the popular mind -^i-^T-,^.,.^ for the continuance of his sway to the approval of a higher ^^ Power able to punish him. Lastly, it has prevented the doniina- ^f* tion of all feudal, hereditary, and priestly classes and interests by making the tenure of officers of government below the throne chiefly depend on their literary attainments. Kot a trace of Judaistic, Assyrian, or Persian customs or dogmas appears in Chinese books in such definite form as to suggest a western origin. All is the indio-enous outcome of native ideas and habits. The real religious belief and practices of a heathen people are hard to describe intelligibly to those who have not lived among them. Men naturally exercise much freedom of thought in such matters, and feel the authority of their fellow-men over their minds irksome to bear ; and though it is comparatively easy to depict their religious ceremonies and festivals, their real belief — that which constitutes their religion, their trust in danger and guide in doubt, their support in sorrow and hope for future I'c ward — is not rpiickly examined nor easily described. The want of a well understood and acknowledged standard of doctrine, and the degree of latitude each one allows himself in his ob- servance of rites or belief in dogmas, tends to confuse the in- quirer ; while his own diverse views, liis imperfect knowledge, and misapprehension of the eifect which this tenet or that cere- mony has upon the heart of the worshipper, contribute still further to embarrass the subject. This, at least, is the case with the Chinese, and notwithstanding what has been -written upon their religion, no one has very satisfactorily elucidated the true nature of their belief and the intent of their ritual. The reason is owing partly to the indefinite ideas of the people themselves upon the character of their ceremonies, and their consequent 192 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. inability to give a clear notion of them ; partly also to the variety of observances found in distant parts of the country, and the discordant opinions entertained by those belonging to the same sect ; so that what is seen in one district is sometimes utterly unknown in the next province, and the opinions of one man are laughed at by another. Before proceeding with the present outline two negative fea- tni'es of Chinese religion deserve to be noticed, which distinguish it from the faith of most other heathen nations. These are the absence of human sacrifices and the non- deification of vice. The prevalence of human offerings in almost all ages of the world, and among nations of different degrees of civilization, not only widely separated in respect of situation and power, but flourishing in ages remote from each other, and having little or no mutual influence, has often been noticed. Human sacrifices are offered to this day in some parts of Asia, Africa, and Polynesia, which the extension of Christian instruction and power has, it is to be hoped, greatly reduced and almost accomplished the ex- tinction of ; but no clear record of the sacrificial innnolation of man by his fellow, "offering the fruit of his body for the sin of his soul," has been found in Cliinese annals in such a shape as to carry the conviction that it formed part of the belief or })ractice of the people — although the Scythian custom of bury- ing the servants and horses of a deceased prince or chieftain with him was perhaps observed before the days of Confucius, and may have been occasionally done since his time. This fea- ture, negative though it be, stands in strong contrast with the appalling destruction of human life for religious reasons, still existing among the tribes of Western and Central Africa, and recorded as having been sanctioned among Aztecs and Egyp- tians, Hindus and Carthaginians, and other ancient nations, not excepting Syrians and Jews, Greeks and Romans. The other, and still more remarkable trait of Chinese idolatry, is that there is no deification of sensuality, which, in the name of religion, could shield and countenance those licentious rites and orgies that enervated the minds of worshippers and polluted their hearts in so many other pagan countries. No Aphrodite or Lakshmi occurs in the list of Chinese goddesses ; no weeping VICE NEYEE SAXCTIFTED. 193 for Thaiiinmz, no exposure in the temple of Mylitta or obscene rites of tlie Durga-puja, have ever been required or sanctioned by Chinese priests ; no nautch girls as in Indian temples, or cour- tesans as at Corinth, are kept in their sacred buildings. Their speculations upon the dual powers of the yln and yang have never degenerated into the vile worship of the linya and yonl of the Hindus, or of Amun-kem, as pictured on the ruins of Thebes. Although they are a licentious people in word and deed, the Chinese have not endeavored to lead the votaries of pleasure, falsely so called, further down the road of ruin, by making its path lie through a temple and trying to sanctify its acts by pnt- ting them under the protection of a goddess. Nor does their mythology teem with disgusting relations of the amours of their deities ; on the contrary, like the Romanists, they exalt and deify chastity and seclusion as a means of bringing the soul and body nearer to the highest excellence. Vice is, in a great degree, kept out of sight, as well as out of religion, and it may be safely said tluit no such significant sign as has been uncovered at Pompeii, with the inscription IIlc habitat felioitas, was ever exhibited in a Chinese city. To these traits of Cliinese character may be added the pre- servative features of their regard for parents and superiors and their general peaceful industry. If there be any connection between the former of these virtues and the promise attached to the fifth commandment, " That thy days may be long in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee," then the long dura- tion of the Cliinese people and Empire is a stupendous monument of the good effects of even a partial obedience to the law of God, by those who only had it inscribed on their hearts and not written in their hands. The last point in the Chinese polity which has had great niflu- ence in preserving it is the religious beliefs recognized by the people and rulers. There are thi-ee sects [san klao), which are usually called Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, or Ration- alism ; the first is a foreign term, and vaguely denotes the belief of the literati generally, including the State religion. These three sects do not interfere with each other, however, and a man may worship at a Buddhist shrine or join in a Taoist festival Vol. II.— 13 194 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. wliile he accepts all the tenets of Confucius and worships him on State occasions ; much as a lawyer in England may attend a Quaker meeting or the Governor of a State in America may be a Methodist minister. In China there is no generic term for religion in its usual sense. The word I'kio, which means ' to teach,' or 'doctrines taught,' is applied to all sects and associa- tions having a creed or ritual ; the ancestral worship is never called a Mao, for everybody observes that at home just as much as he obeys his parents ; it is a duty, not a sect. Xo religious system has been found among the Chinese which taught the doctrine of atonement by the shedding of blood ; an argument in favor of their antiquity. The State religion of China has had a remarkable history and antiquity, and, though modified somewhat during successive dynasties, has retained its main features during the past three thousand years. The sim- plicity' and purity of this w^orship have attracted the notice of irjany foreigners, who have disagreed on various points as to its nature and origin. Their discussions have brought out sundry most interesting details respecting it ; and whoever has visited the great Altar and Temple of Heaven at Peking, where the Emperor and his courtiers worship, must have been impressed with its simple grandeur. What \vas the precise idea connected svith the words tien, 'heaven,' and hirang tien, 'imperial heaven,' as they were used in ancient times, is a very difficult point to determine ; the worship rendered to them was probably of a mixed sort, the material heavens being taken as the most sublime manifestation of the power of their Maker, whose character was then less obscured and unknown than in after times, when it degenerated to Sabianism. These discussions are not material to the present subject, and it is only needful to indicate the main results. The prime idea in this worship is that the Emperor is Tien-tsz\ or ' Son of Heaven,' the coordinate with Heaven and Earth, from whom he directly derives his right and power to rule on earth among\ mankind, the One Man who is their vicegerent and the third of the trinity {san tsai) of Heaven, Earth, and Man. With these ideas of his exalted position, he claims the homage of all his fellow-men. He cannot properly devolve on any other mortal THE 8TATK KKLKilOX OF CIIIXA. 195 his functions of their high priest to offer the oblations on the altars of Heaven and Earth at Peking at the two solstices, lie is not, therefore, a despot bj mere power, as other rulers are, but is so in the ordinance of nature, and the basis of his authority is divine. lie is accountable personally to his two superordinate powers for its record and result. If the people suffer from pestilence or famine he is at fault, and must atone by prayer, sacrifice, and reformation as a disobedient son. One defect in all human governments — a sense of responsibility on the part of rulers to the God who ordains the powers that be — has thus been partly met and supplied in China. It has really been a check, too, on their tyranny and extortion ; for the very books which contain this State ritual intimate the amenability of the sovereign to the Powers who appointed him to rule, and hint that the peo- ple will rise to vindicate themselves. The officials, too, all springing from the people, and knowing their feelings, hesitate to provoke a wrath which has swept away thousands of their number. The objects of State worship are chiefly things, although per- sons are also included. There are three grades of sacrifices, the great, medlinn, and inferior, the last collectively called klun sz\ or ' the crowd of sacrifices.' The objects to which the great sacrifices are offered are only four, viz.: t'ten, the heavens or sky, called the imperial concave expanse ; t'l, the earth, likewise dignified with the appellation imperial ; tai Triiao, or the great temple of ancestors, wherein the tablets of deceased monarchs of this dynasty are placed ; and, lastly, the t^hii t-n/i, or gods of the land and grain, the special patrons of each dynasty. The tablets representing these four great objects are placed on an equality by the present monarchs, which is strong presumptive proof that by tien is now meant the material heavens. The medium sacrifices are offered to nine objects: The sun, or " great light," the moon, or " night light," the manes of the emperors and kings of former dynasties, Confucius, the ancient patrons of agriculture and silk, the gods of heaven, earth, and the cyclic year. The first six have separate temples erected for their worship in Peking. The inferior herd of sacrifices are offered to the ancient patron of the healing art and the innu- 196 THE MIDDLE KIXGDOM. merable spirits of deceased pliilanthropists, eminent statesmen, martyrs to virtue, etc.; clouds, rain, wind, and tlnnider; the five celebrated mountains, four seas, and four rivers; famous hills, great watercourses, flags, triviaj, gods of cannon, gates, queen goddess of earth, tlie north pole, and many other things. The State religion has been so far corrupted from its ancient simplicity, as given in the Shic King and Li K'i, as to include gods terrestrial and stellar, ghosts infernal, flags, and cannon, as well as idols and tablets, the efiigies and mementoes of deified persons. The personages who assist the Emperor in his worship of the four superior objects, and perform most of the ceremonies, belong to the Imperial Clan and the Board of Rites; but while they go through with the ceremony, he, as pontifex maxinnis^ refuses to pay the same homage that he demands of all who approach him, and puts off these superior Powers with three kneelings and nine profound bows. When he is ill, or in his minority, these services are all forborne, for they cannot properly l)e done by a substitute. When he worships Heaven he wears robes of a blue color, in allusion to the sky; and when he wor- ships earth he puts on yellow to represent the clay of this earthly clod ; so, likewise, he wears red for the sun and pale white for the moon. The princes, nobles, and officers who assist are clad in their usual court dresses, but no priests or women are admitted. The worship of Yuenfi, the goddess of silk, is alone, as we have seen, conducted by the Empress and her court. The temple of the sun is east, and that of the moon west of the city, and at the eqninoxes a regulus, or prince of the Impei'ial Clan, is commissioned to perform the requisite ceremonies and oft'er the appointed sacrifices. The winter solstice is the great day of this State worship. The Emperoi- goes from his palace the evening before, draM-n by an elephant in his state car and escorted by about two thou- sand grandees, princes, musicians, and attendants, down to the Tem})le of Tlcaveii. The cortege passes out by the southern road, reaching the Ching Yang Gate, opened only for his Ma- jesty's use, and through it goes on two miles to the Tien Tan. ile first repairs to the Chai Ktmg, or ' Palace of Fasting,' WORSHIP OF IIKAVEX BY THE KMFEKOR. 197 where he prepares himself by lonely meditation for his duty ; " for the idea is that if there be not pious thoughts in his mind the spirits of the unseen will not come to the sacrifice." To assist him he looks at a copper statue, arraj-ed like a Taoist priest, whose mouth is covered by three fingers, denoting silence, while the other hand bears a tablet inscribed with ' Fast three days.' When the worship commences, and all the officiating attendants are in their places, the animals are killed, and as the odor of their burning flesh ascends to convey the sacrifice to the gods, the Emperor begins the rite, and is directed at every step by the masters of ceremonies. The worship to Heaven is at midnight, and the numerous poles around the great altar, and the fires in the furnaces shedding their glare over the marble terraces and richly dressed assembly, render this solemnity most striking.' The hierophants in this worship of nature, so lauded by some infidels, are required to prepare themselves for the occasion by fasting, ablutions, change of garments, separation from their wives and pleasurable scenes, and from the dead ; "for sickness and death defile, while banqueting dissipates the mind and un- fits it for holding communion with the gods." The sacrifices consist of calves, hares, deer, sheep, or pigs, and the offerings of silks, grain, jade, etc. Xo garlands are placed on the victim when its life is taken, nor is the blood sprinkled on any partic- ular spot or article. " The idea is that of a banquet ; and when a sacrifice is performed to the supreme spirit of Heaven, the honor paid is believed by the Chinese to be increased by invit- ing other guests. The Emperors invite their ancestors to sit at the banquet with Shangti. A father is to be honored as heaven, and a mother as earth. In no way could more perfect revei'- ence be shown than in placing a father's tablet on the altar with that of Shangti." To these remarks of Dr. Edkins explanatory of this union of the objects worshipped, it may be added that the Emperors regard their predecessors of every dynasty as still in- vested with power in Hades, and therefore invoke their blessing and presence by sacrifice and prayers. ' Compare the frontispiece of Volume I. ; also ibid. , p. 76. 198 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. The statutes annex penalties of fines or blows in various de grees of punishment in case of informality or neglect, but "in tliese penalties there is not the least allusion to any displeasure of the things or beings worshipped ; there is nothing to be feared but man's wrath — nothing but a forfeiture or a fine." Heavier chastisement, however, awaits any of the common peo- ple or the unauthorized w'ho should presume to state their wants to high Heaven or worship these objects of imperial adoration ; strangulation or banishment, according to the de- merits of the case, would be their retribution. The ignob'de vulyus may worship stocks and stones in almost any form they please, but death awaits them if they attempt to join the Son of Heaven, the Vicegerent of Heaven and Earth, in his adora- tions to the supposed sources of his power.' In his capacity of Vicegerent, High Priest, and Mediator be- tween his subjects and the higher Powers, there are many points of similarity between the assumptions of the Emperor and of the Pope at Rome. The idea the Chinese have of heaven seems to be pantheistic, and in worshipping heaven, earth, and terrestrial gods they mean to include and propitiate all supe- rior powers. If, as seems probable, the original idea of Shangti, as it can be imperfectly gleaned from early i-ecords, was that of a supreme Intelligence, it has since been lost. Of this worship, the effects in China upon the nation have been both positive and negative. One of the nearative influences has been to dwarf the State hierarchy to a complete nullity — to prevent the growth of a class which could or did use the power of the monarchy to sti-engthen its own hold upon the people as their religious advisers, and on the government as a necessary aid to its efii- ciency. Tlie High Priests of China love power and adulation too well to share this worship with their subjects, and in engrossing it entirely they have escaped the political evils of a powerful hie- rarchy and the people the combined oppressions of a church ^ Chinese 'Repomtory , Vol. III., pp. 49-5:?. Dr. J. Edkins, Rcl/'r/innfi of China, Chap. II. ; this chapter, on Imperial Worship, gives a good account of these cere- monies. Legge's NotioriH of the Chinese concerning God and Spirits, pp. 23-36» 41-43, for the forms of pra_)er used NO STATE IIIEKARCIIY IN CHINA. 199 and State. We have seen that tlie popular riglits which are so plainly taught in the classics have been inculcated and perpet- uated by the common school education ; we shall soon see, more- over, that the ancestral worship could not admit the interference of priest, altar, or sacrifice outside of the door-posts. Yet it is probable that all combined would have been too weak to resist the seductive influence of a hierarchy in some form, if it had not been that the Emperor himself would yield his own unapproach- able grandeur to no man. Being everything in his own person, it is too much to expect that he is going to vacate or reduce his prerogative, surrender his right to make or degrade gods of every kind for his subjects to M'orship, weaken his own prestige, or mor- tify the pride of his fellow-worshippers, the high ministers of State. The chains of caste woven in India, the fetters of the In- quisition forged in Spain, the silly rites practised by the augurs in old Rome, or the horrid cruelties and vile worship once seen in Egypt and Syria — in each case done under the sanction of the State — have all been wanting along the Yellow River, and spread none of their evils to hamper the rule of law in China. This State religion is, therefore, a splendid and wonderful pageant ; but it can no more be called the religion of the Chi- nese than the teachings of Socrates could be termed the faith of the Greeks. It is, however, intimately connected with the Ju klao, or ' Sect of the Learned,' commonly called Confucian- ists by foreigners, because all its members and priests are learned men who venerate the classical writings. It is some- what inappropriate to designate the Ju Mao a religious sect, or regard it otherwise than as a comprehensive term for those who adopt the writings of Confucius and Chu Hi and their disci- ples. The word jtt denotes one of the literati, and was first adopted a.d. 1150, as an appellation for those who followed the speculations of Chu Hi regarding the tal I'ih, or ' Great Extreme.' This author's comments on the classics and his metaphysical writings have had greater influence on his coun- trymen than those of any other person except Confucius and Mencius ; whose works, indeed, are received according to his explanations. The remarks of Confucius upon religious subjects were very 200 THE MIDDLi: KIX(;DO>r. few ; lie never taught the duty of man to any liiglier power than the head of the State or family, though he supposed liimself commissioned by heaven to restore tlie doctrine and usages of the ancient kiugs. lie admitted that he did not understand much about the gods ; that tliey were beyond and above the compreliension of man ; and that the obligations of man lay I'ather in doing his duty to his relatives and society than in wor- shipping spirits unknown, "Not knowing even life," said he, " how can we know death ? " and when his disciples asked him in his last illness whom he would sacrifice to, he said he had already worshipped. Chu Hi resolved the few and obscure ref- erences to Shangti in the S/m Ivlng into pure materialism ; making nature to begin with the tal I'lh, cidlcd pre7)iierjjrlnci2)e v/afe/'ui by the French, whicli opei'ating npon itself resolved itself into the dual powers, the i/ln. and yM>(/. Sir John Davis compares this production of the yin and yan^ to the masculo-feminine principle in the development of the mundane egg in the Egyptian cosmogony, and quotes an extract showing that the idea was entertained among the Hindus, and that the androgyn of Plato was only another form of this myth. The Chinese have also the notion of an egg, and that the iai k'lh was evolved from it, oi- acted like the process of hatching going on in it, though it may be that with them the introduction of the egg is more for the sake of illustration than as the form of the cause. Some of Chu Hi's philosophical notions have already been quoted in Volume I.' Ilis system of materialism captivates his countrymen, for it is far nioi'c thoroughly worked out than any other, and allows scope for the vagaries of every individual who thinks he understands and can apply it to explain whatever phenomena come in his M-ay. Heat and cold, light and darkness, fire and water, mind and matter, every agent, power, and sub- stance, known or supposed, are regarded as endued with these princi])les, whi(^h thus form a simple solution for every question. The infinite changes in the universe, the multiform actions and reactions in nature, and all the varied consequences seen and ' Pp. 68? ff. CaiioD McClatrhic lias made a careful iraiif^lation of Chapter XLIX. of liis works, giving hi^ views on cosmogony. THE JU KIAO, OR SECT OF THE LEARNED. 201 unseen are alike easily explained by this form of cause and effect, this ingenious theory of evolution. With regard to the existence of gods and spirits, Chu Hi affirmed that sufficient knowledge was not jiossessed to say positively that they existed, and he saw no difficulty in omitting the subject altogether — a species of agnosticism or indifferentism, therefore, which has become the creed of nearly the entire body of educated men in the Empire. His system is also silent respecting the immortality of the soul, as well as future rewards and punishments. Virtue is rewarded and vice is punished in the individual or in his posterity on earth ; but of a separate state of existence he or his disciples do not speak. Tn thus disposing of the existence of superior powers, the philosophers do not shut out all intelligent agencies, but have instituted a class of sages or pure-minded men of exalted intel- lects and simple hearts, wdio have been raised up from time to time by Heaven, Shangti, or some other power, as instructors and examples to mankind, and who therefore deserve the rever- ence of their fellows. The office of these shing jin, ' perfect •men ' or saints, is to expound the will of heaven and earth ; they did not so much speak their own thoughts as illustrate and settle the principles on which the world should be governed ; they were men intuitively wise without instruction, w'hile common people must learn to be wise. Of all the saints in the calendar of the f/w Jciao Confucius is the chief ; with him are reckoned the early kings, Vao and Shun, with King Wan and his two sons Kuig AVu and Duke Chau ; but China has produced no one since the " most holy teacher of ancient times " whom his pi-oud disciples are willing to regard his equal — Mencius being only a "number two saint." The deceased Emperors of the reigning dynasty are canonized as its efficient and divine patrons, but a new line of monarchs would serve them as they did their prede- cessors, by reducing them to mere spirits. The demonolatry of the learned has gradually become so incorporated with popular su- perstitions that there is now little practical distinction ; every one is willing to worship whatever can promise relief or afford assist- ance. A student of the classical works naturally adopts theit views on these points, without supposing that they militate 202 THE .MIDDLE KINGDOM. against worsliipping his ancestors, joining tlie villagers in adoring the goddess of Mercy or any other Buddhistic idol, or calling in a Rationalist to write a charm. He also, on coming into office, expects to perform all the ex-officio religious ceremonies required of him, and add the worship of the Emperor to the rest. Every magistrate is officially required to perform various idol- atrous ceremonies at the temples. The objects of worship arc numerous, including many others besides those forming tlio " herd of inferior sacrifices/' and new deities are frequently made by the Emperor, on the same principle that new saints are canon- ized by the Pope. The worship of certain hills and rivers, and of spirits supposed to preside over particular cities and districts, has prevailed among the Chinese from ancient times, long before the rise of Rationalism or introduction of Buddhism, and is no doubt the origin of this official worship. In every city the C hiny-hivcmg miao, i.e., ' City and Moat Temple,' contains the tutelar divinity of the city called Ching-hwang, with other gods, and here on the solstices, equinoxes, new and full moons, etc., officers repair to sacrifice to it and to the gods of the land and grain. Over the door of the one in Canton is written, "Right* and wrong, truth and falsehood are blended on eai'th, but all are most clearly distiiiguished in heaven." C^apt. Loch thus describes the Ching-hwang miao at Shanghai, as it stood in' 1842 : In the centre of a serpentine sheet of water there is a rocky island, and on it a large temple of two stories, litted up for the accommodation of the wealthy puhlic Pillars of carved wood support the roof, fretted groups of uncouth figures fill up the narrow spaces, while movable lattices screen the occupants from the warmth of the noonday sun. Nothing can surpass the beauty and truth to nature of the most minutely carved flowers and insects prodigally scat- tered over every screen and cornice. This is the central and largest temple. A number of other light aerial-looking structures of the same form are perched upon the corners of artificial rocky precipices and upon odd little islands. Light and fanciful wooden bridges connect most of these islands, and are tlirown across tlie arms of the serpentine water, so that each secjuestered spot can be visited in turn. At a certain passage of the sun the main temple is shaded in front by a rocky eminence, tht^ large masses of which are connected with great art and propriety of taste, but in shape and adjustment most studiously grotesque. Trees and flowers and tufts of grass are planted where art must have been taxed to the utmost to procure them a lodgment. In anotlier part of the gar- den there is a miniature wood of dwarf trees, with a dell and waterfall ; the leaves, fruit, and blo.ssoms of the trees are proportionate to their size. Tortuous RELKilors DCTIKS OF MAGISTRATES. 203 pathways lead to tlu> toj) of tlic artificial mountain, each turn formed with studied art to surprise and charm by offering at every point fresli views and objects. Flowers and creepers sprout out from crevices, trees hang over the jutting crags, small pavilions are seen I'roni almost every vista, wliile grottoes and rocky recesses, shady bowers and labyrinths, are placed to entrap the un- wary, each with an appropriate motto, one inviting the wanderer to repose, another offering a secluded retreat to the philosopher.' Official Chinese records euunierate 1,560 temples dedicated to Confucius attached to the examination halls, the offerings pre- sented in which are all eaten or used by the worshippers; there are, it is said, 02,006 pigs, rabbits, sheep, and deer, and 27,000 pieces of silk, annually offered upon their altars.^ The munici- pal temple is not the only one where officers worship, but, like the connnon people, they bow before whatever they think can aid them in their business or estates. It has already been stated that the duty of Chinese officers extends to the securing of genial seasons by their good administration, and consequently if bad harvests ensue or epidemics rage the fault and removal of the calamity belong to them. The expedients they resort to are both ludicrous and melancholy. In 1835 the prefect of Canton, on occasion of a distressing drousi-ht of eio;ht months, issued the following invitation, which would have better befitted a chief- tain of the Sechuanas: Pan, acting prefect of Kwangchau, issues this inviting summons. Since for a long time there has been no rain, and the prospects of drought continue, and supplications are unanswered, my heart is scorched with grief. In the whole province of Kwangtung, are there no extraordinary persons who can force the dragon to send rain V Be it known to you, all ye soldiers and people, that if there be any one, whether of this or any otlier province, priest or such like, who can by any craft or arts bring down abundance of rain, I respectfully request him to ascend the altar [of tlie dragon], and sincerely and reverently pray. And after the rain has fallen, I will liberally reward him with money and tablets to make known his merits. This invitation called forth a Buddhist priest as a "rain maker," and the prefect erected an altar for him before his own office, upon which the man, armed with cymbal and wand, for three ' Events in China, p. 47. London, 1843. - During the Ilan dynasty (A.n. 59) wine was drunk and sacrifices made to Confucius in the study halls. The victim offered was a dog. Biot, Eumi »ur VTmtructiou eii Chine, p. 168. 204 THE MIPDLE KINGDOM. days vainly repeated his incantations from morning to niglit, exposed bareheaded to the hot sun, the butt of the jeering crowd. The prefect himself was lampooned by the people for his folly, the following quatrain being pasted under a copy of his invitation : Kwangchaii's grecat protector, the magnate Pan, Always acting without regard to reason ; Now prays for rain, and getting no reply, Forthwith seeks for aid to force the dragon. The unsuccessful eifortsof the priest did not render the calam- ity less grievous, and their urgent necessities led the people to resort to every expedient to force their gods to send rain. The authorities forbade the slaughter of animals, or in other words a fast was proclaimed, to keep the hot winds out of the city, the southern gate w^as shut, and all classes flocked to the temples. It was estimated that on one day twenty thousand persons went to a celebrated shrine of the goddess of Mercy, among whom were the Governor and Prefect and their suites, who all left their sedans and walked with the multitude. The Governor, as a last expe- dient, the day before rain came, intimated his intention of liber- ating all prisoners not charged with capital offences. As soon as the rain fell the people presented thank-offerings, and the southern gate of the city was opened, accompanied by an odd ceremony of burning off the tail of a live sow^ while the animal was held in a basket. The officers and literati, though acknowledging the folly of these observances, and even ridiculing the worship of senseless blocks, still join in it. As an example of this : In 18G7 a severe drought near Peking called forth a suggestion from a censor that if a white tiger were sacrificed by the Emperor to the dragon the rain would be libei-ated ; for " it was his power- ful enemies which kept the rain-god fi'oni acting.'" Wrmsiang was deputed to perform the rite ; rain came not many days later. The offieci- laughed, indeed, at the fancy, yet could not disenthrall himself from some degi-ee of belief in its efficacy. Devotees sometimes become ii-ritated against theii- gods, and resort to sunnnary means to force them to hear their petitions. STATE KELIGION AND THE CLASSICS. 205 It is said that the Governor in Canton, having I'epeatedly as- cended in a time of drouglit to the temple of the god of Ilaia dressed in his burdensome robes, through the heat of a trop- ical sun, on one of his visits said : " The god supposes I am lying when I beseech his aid ; for how can he know, seated in his cool niche in the temple, that the ground is parched and the sky hot V Whereupon he ordered his attendants to put a rope around his neck and haul his godship out of doors, that he might see and feel the state of the weather for himself. After his excellency had become cooled in the temple the idol was reinstated in its shi'ine, and the good effects of this treatment were deemed to be fully proved by the copious showers which soon after fell. The Emperor himself on such occasions resorts to unusual sacrifices, and sends his relatives and courtiers almost daily to various temples to pray and burn incense. Imperial patronage of the popular superstitions is sought after by the officers in one way and another to please the people, but it does not involve much outlay of funds.' One connnon mode is to solicit his Majesty for an inscription to be placed over the door- way of a temple, or memorialize him to confer a higher title upon the god. On occasion of a victory over the rebels in Kwangtung in 1822, the shrine of a neighboring deity, supposed to have assisted in obtaining it, received a new title connnem- orative of the event, and a temple was built for liim at the ex- pense of government. The combined effect of the State religion and classical M'rit- iiigs, notwithstanding their atheism and coldness, has had some effect in keeping the people out of the swinish ditch of pollution. It is one of their prime tenets that human nature is originally virtuous, and becomes corrupt entirely by bad precept and ex- ample. This is taught children fi-om their earliest years, and officers refer repeatedly to it in their exhortations to obedience ; its necessary results of happiness, if carried out, are illustrated by trite comparisons drawn from common life and general ex- ' Klaproth cites (among many) an instance of the manner in which favora- ble angnries are regarded and made use of by officials. Memoiren siir l*Asu', Tome T., p. 459. 206 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. perience. The Chinese seldom refer to the vengeance of tha gods or future punishment as motives for reform, but to the well-being of individuals and good order of society in this world. Examples of this type of human perfection, fully developed, are constantly set before the people in Confucius and the ancient kings he delineates. The classical tenets require duties that cai'ry their own arguments in their obedience, as well as afford matter of thought, while the standard books of Buddhists and Rationalists, where they do not reiterate the same obligations, are mostly filled with unprofitable speculations or solemn non- sense. Consequently the priests of those sects had onl}' the superstitious fear of the people to work wpon where reason was at fault, and so could not take the whole man captive ; for his reason accorded with the teaching of the classics as far as they went, and only took up with divination and supplication of higher powers where their instructions ceased. The govern- ment, therefore, being composed chiefly of such people, edu- cated to venerate pure reason, could not be induced to take the initiatory step of patronizing a religion of such an uncertain character, and confessedly inferior in its moral sanctions to what they already possessed. The current has, more or less, always set this way, and the two other sects have been tolerated when they did not interfere with government. It is too true that the instructions of Confucius and his school are imperfect and erro- neous when measured by the standard of revelation, and the people can never emerge from selfish atheism and silly super- stition as long as they have nothing better; but the vagaries of the Buddhists neither satisfy the reason nor reprove vice, nor does their celibate idleness benefit society. Tf the former be bad, the latter is worse. The sect of the nationalists, or Tao I'la^ is derived from Lau- tsz', or Lau-kiun. According to the legends he was born bTc. 004, in Ku, a hamlet in the kingdom of Tsu, supposed to lie in Luh-yeh hien, in the provin(!e of Ilonan. His birth was fifty- four years before Confucius. The stoiy is that he had white hair and eyebrows at his birth, and was carried in the womb eighty years, whence he was called Lau-tsz\ the "old boy,' and Lau-kiun, the 'venerable prince.' Nothing reliable about hia SECT OF RATIONALISTS, OR TAO KIA. 207 early life lias come down to us, but, as was the case with Hesiod, his disciples have enveloped his actions and cliaracter in a nim- bus of wonders. M. Julien has given a translation of their his- tory, dated about a.d. 350, in liis version of the Tao Teh King. Pauthier says he was appointed librarian by the Emperor, and diligently applied himself to the study of the ancient books, becoming acquainted with all the rites and histories of foi-mer times. During his life he is repoi'ted to have journeyed west- M'ard, but the extent and dui-ation of his travel are not recorded, and even its occurrence is reasonably doubted. De Guignes says he went to Ta Tsin, a country under the rule of the Romans, but he forgets that the Romans had not then even concpiered Italy ; some suppose Ta Tsin to be Judea. His only extant work, the Tao Teh King, or ' Canons of Reason and Virtue,' ' was written in Ling-pao, in Honan, before his travels, but whether the teachings contained in it are entirely his own or were derived from hints i)nported from India or Persia cannot be decided. It contains only five thousand three hun- dred and twenty characters, divided into eighty one short chap- ters ; the text of one edition is said to have been found in a tomb A.D. 574. It has been translated by Julien, Chalmei's, and von Strauss. A parallel has been suggested between the sects of the Rationalists of China, the Zoroastrians of Persia, Essenes of Judea, Gnostics of the primitive church, and the eremites of the Thebaid, but a common source for their simi- laritv — the desire of their members, after the sect had become recognized, to live without labor on the credulity of their fellow- men — explains most of the likeness, w^ithout supposing thafc their tenets were derived from each other. The teachings of Lau-tsz' are not unlike those of Zeno ; botji recommend retirement and contemplation as the most effectual means of purifying the spiritual part of our nature, annihilating the passions, and finally returning to the bosom of Tcu>. His teachings on the highest subjects of human thought have fur- nished his countrymen ample materials for the most diverse ' Perhaps this may be rendered as the Logos of Plato, as near as any dogma can be coiu pared to it. 208 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. views on these same themes according to their various fancies. In his striving after the infinite he can only describe Tao by wliat it is not and delineate 71A as an ideal virtue which no man can attain to. In Chapter XXI. they are thus blended : " The visible forms of the highest Teh only proceed from Tao^ and Tao is a thing impalpable, indefinite. How indefinite I How impalpable ! And [yet] therein are forms indefinite, im- palpable ! and [yet] therein are things (or entities). Profound and indistinct too, and [yet] therein are essences. These essence; are profoundly real, and therein faith is found. From of old till now its name has never passed away. It gives issue to all existences at their beginnings. How [then] can I know the manner of the beginning of all existences ? I know it by this lTa6\P Such teachings are susceptible of alinost any explanation, and Julien's extracts from the commentaries give one some idea of their diversity, though probably much well worth reading still lies buried in their ])ages. The names of sixty -four commentators are known, of whom three were reigning emperors ; and their ex- planations have given their countrymen veiy doubtful guidance through this mystic l)ook. To those who can compare its aspi- rations and dogmas with the speculations of (ireek and Itoman writers, the teachings of the Zendavesta, and the declarations of the Bible, the work of Lau-tsz' becomes of innnense interest. His countiymen, however, to whom these great writers were all unknown, have looked upon this system of philosophy rather as the reveries of a wise man than the instructions of a practical thinker. In Wiapter I. he tries to define tao. It is reaching after the imknown. " The too which can be expressed is not the eternal tao- the name which can be named is not the etei'nal name. The Nameless [being] is before heaven and earth ; when named it is the mother of all things. Therefore, to be constantly passion- less is to be able to see its sj)iritual essence; and to be constantly passionate is to see the forms (or limits) [of tao'\. These two conditions are alike but have different names ; they can both be called a mystery. The more it is examined into the moi'O mysterious it is seen to be. It is the gate of all spiritual THE TAO-TKir KING OF LAU-TSZ'. 209 things." By the phrases "constantly passionless" and "con- stantly passionate '■ are denoted non-existence and existence, ac- cording to the commentators. In Chapter LXV. there is a similar striving to describe teh. " In olden times those who practised tdo did not do so to en- lighten the people, but rather to render them simple-minded. When the people have too mnch worldly wisdom it makes them hard to govern. lie who encourages this worldly wisdom in the government of a State is its misfortune ; as he who gov- erns without it is its blessino-. To know ario;lit these two things is to have a model State; and the constant exhibition of this ideal is M'hat I call sublime tc/t. This sublime virtue [teh] is profound, is incommensurable, is opposed to time-serv- ing plans. If followed it will bring about a state of general accord." In Chapter XX. the lonely cynic seems to utter his sad cry at the little progress of his teachings. "All men are full of am- bitious desires, like those greedy for the stalled ox, or the high delights of spring time. 1 alone am calm ; my affections have not yet germinated ; I am as a new-born babe which has not yet smiled on its mother. I am forlorn as one who has no home. All others have and to spare, I alone am like one who has lost all. In mind I am like a fool ; I am all in a maze. Common people are bright enough ; I am enveloped in darkness. Com- mon people are sagacious enough ; I am in gloom and confusion. I toss about as if on the sea ; I float to and fro as if I was never to rest. Others have something they can do ; I alone am good for nothing, and just like a lout. I am entirely solitary, differ- ing from other men in that I glory in my Mother who nurses [all beings]." The main object kept in view throughout this work is the in- culcation of personal virtue, and Lau-tsz' founds his argument for its practice in the fitness of things, as he tries to prove by re- ferring all the manifestations and laws of mind and matter to the unknown factor tao. In Chapter IV. he attempts to embody lus struggling thoughts in these few words describing tao: " Tao is a void ; still if one uses it, it seems to be inexhaustible. How profound it is ! It seems like the patriarch of all things. Vol. II.— 14 2flO THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. It softens sharp things, loosens tangled things, harmonizes bril liant things, and assimilates itself to worldly things of the dust. How tranquil it is ! It seems to endure perpetually. I know not whose son it is. It seems so have existed before T'l [or Shangti]." Such utterances as these carry neither comfort nor repentance to the sorrowing, sinful heart of man ; he cannot go to such an abnegation for guidance or relief in his troubles, and therefore the maxims of Lau-tsz' have fallen on callous hearts. Another extract. Chapter XLIX., is, however, more practical ; it is not the only one which furnishes instruction of the highest character. " The perfect man [.s/iui(/Ju)'] has no immutable sentiments of his own, [for] he makes the mind of mankind his own. He who is good, I would meet with goodness ; and he who is not good, I would still also meet with goodness ; [for] teh is goodness. He who is sincere I would meet with sincerity ; and he who is insincere, I would still also meet with sincerity ; [for] teh is sincerity. The perfect man dwells in the world calm and re- served, his soul preserving the same I'cgard foi- all mankind. The people all turn their eyes and ears toward him, and he re- gards them alike as his children." In order to better understand these aphorisms, they need to be read with the help of the various connnentaries ; these fur- nish us with a better estimate of their value than any other guides. Foreign \vriters necessarily judge such a work by their own higher standard ; as does M. Pauthier when he remarks upon the last extract : " La sagesse humaine ne pent ctre jamais exprime des paroles plus saintes et plus profondes." He com- pares Lau-tsz' to his own countryman Rousseau — and these two had a good deal in common in their sad reflections upon the evils of the times. In another place the French author goes even farther, and regards the vague expressions in Chapter XLH., "which show their derivation from the Yi/i K'inire, Introduction. Remusat, Melamjei Posthumes, p. 44. Klaproth in Journal Asiatique, Tome VII. (18:51), p. 190; also Tome XT. (IV-- Ser.), 1848, p. 535. Prof. E. E. Salisbiu-y in Jonrnal Am. Or. ,Sssiblo, and {K'rsoiis of all classes were questioned as to the number of children they had killed them- selves, or knew had been killed by their relatives or neighbors. One of eight brothers told him that only three girls were left' among all their children, sixteen having been killed. On one occasion he visited a small village on Anioy Island, called Bo-au, where the whole population turned out to see him and Dr. Cnmming, the latter of whom had recently cut out a large tu- mor from a fellow villager, lie says : PKEVALENOE -OF INFATs'q'lCIDE IN CHINA. 241 From till' immljor of women in tlic crowd wliich turned out to greet ;is. we were pretty well persuaded that they were under as little restraint as the men Irom indulging their curiosity ; and upon inquiry, found it to be so. We were conducted to a small temple, when 1 had the opportunity of conversing with many who came around us. On a second visit, while addressing them, one man held up a child, and publicly acknowledged that he bad killed five c,2 the helpless beings, having pre.served but two. I tliought lie was jesting, but as no surprise or dissent was expressed by his neighbors, and as there was an air of simplicity and regret in tlie individual, tliere was no reason to doubt its truth. After repeating his confession he added with affecting simplicity, "It was before I heard you speak on this subject ; I did not know it was wrong ; I would not do so now." Wishing to obtain the testimony of the assembled villagers, I put the question publicly, " What number of female infants in this village are destroyed at birth V " The reply was, "More than one-half." As there was no discussion among them, which is not tlie case when they differ in opinion, and as we were fully convinced from our own observation of the nu- merical inequality of tlie sexes, the proportion of deatlis they gave did not strike us as extravagant. The reasons assigned for committing the unnatural deed are various. Poverty is the leading cause ; the alternative being, as the parents think, a life of infamy or slaverj", since if they can- not rear their offspring themselves they must sell them. The fact of the great numbers of men who emigrate to the Archipel- ago from the coast districts has no doubt also had its effect in inducing parents to destroy daughters for v/hom they had little expectation of finding husbands if they did rear thein. Many who are able to support their daughters prefer to destroy them rather than incur the expenses of their marriage, but the investi- gation showed that the crime was rather less among the educated than the ignorant, and that they had done something to dissuade their poor neighbors from putting their girls to death. In the adjoining departments of Chauchau and Kiaying in Kwangtung, the people admit the practice, and, as their circumstances are similar, it is probable that it is not much less than around Amoj' Dr. Dudgeon, of Peking, has had very favorable opportunities for prosecuting inquiries in that region, and has shown that the stories formerly credited are wrong, and that most of the chil- dren thus disposed of are born of nuns. Inquiries instituted at Hankow by Dr. F. P. Smith, of the hospital, showed a wide prevalence of the crime among the poor and rural population, Vol. II.— 16 242 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. for which he ascribes several reasons ; the proportion of the sexes is ten men to seven women. While one of the worst features of the crime is the little degree of detestation everywhere expressed at it, vet the actual proportion is an important inquiry, and this, taking the whole nation, has been much exaggerated, chiefly from applying such facts and estimates as the preceding to the whole country. The governor of Canton once issued a dissuasive exhortation on this subject to the people, telling them that if they destroyed all their daughters they would soon have no mothers. Until in- vestigations have been made elsewhere, it is not fair to charge all the Chinese with the atrocities of a small portion, nor to dis- believe the affirmations of the inhabitants of Canton, Xingpo, and Shanghai, and elsewhere, that they do not usually put their daughters to death, until we have overwhelming testimony that they deny and conceal what they are ashamed to confess.' Comparing their lamentable practice with those of other and European nations, we find, according to Hume, that "the expo- sure of new-born infants was an allowed practice in almost all the States of Greece and Rome ; even among the polite and civil- ized xVthenians, the abandoning of one's child to hunger or wild beasts was regarded M-ithout blame or censure. This practice was very common ; and it is not spoken of by any author of those times with the horror it deserves, or scarcely even with disapprobation. Plutarch, the humane, good-natured Plutarch, mentions it as a merit in Attains, king of Pergannis, that he murdered, or, if you will, exposed all his own children, in order to leave his crown to the son of his brother Eumenes. It was Solon, the most celebrated of the sages of Greece, that gave parents permission by law to kill their children." Aristotle ' Chinese Repository, Vol. XVII., p. 11, for a native essay against it; Vol. XVI., p. 513; Vol. XII., pp. 540-548.; Vol. XL, p. 508 ; Vol. VII., p. 54. Bishop Smith's China, p. 443. Report of Pekiny Ilospital, 1865. Dr. F. P. Smith's Fire Annual Reports of ITankow Hoapit/d, 1870, pp. 45-52. Doolittle, Social Life, 11. , pp. 203-209. Notes and Queries on C. amlJ., Vol. III., pp. 156, 172. Ij infanticAde et VOeuvre de la Ste.-Enfance en Chine, par Pere G. Palatre, Changhai. Autof/raphie. de la Mission Catholique a Vorphelinat de Tou^ se-tce, 1878. M. E. Martin, Etade Medico-Legale sur I' Infanticide et VAtorte' ment dans V Empire Chinois, Paris, 1872. COMPARISON^ WITH GREECE AND ROME. 243 thought it should be encouraged by the magistrates, and Plato maintained the same inhuman doctrine. It was complained of as a great singularity that the laws of Thebes forbade the prac- tice. In all the provinces, and especially in Italy, the crime was daily perpetrated.' The ceremonies attendant upon the decease of a person vary in different parts of the country, though they are not necessarily elaborate or expensive anywhere, and all the important ones can be performed by the poorest mourner. The inhabitants of Fuhkien put a piece of silver in the mouth of the dying person, and carefully cover his nose and ears. Scarcely is he dead when they make a hole in the roof to facilitate the exit of the spirits proceeding from his body, of which they imagine each person pos- sesses seven animal senses which die with him, and three souls, one of which enters elysium and receives judgment, another abides M'ith the tablet, and a third dwells in the tomb. In some places, as a man approaches his last hour, the relatives come into the room to array him in his best garments and carry him into the main hall to breathe his life away while dressed in the costume with which he is to appear in Hades. The popular ideas regarding their fate vary so much that it is difficult to describe the national faith in this respect; transmigration is more or less believed in, but the detail of the changes the good or evil spirit undergoes before it is absorbed in Buddha varies almost according to the fancy of the worshipper. Those who are sent to hell pass through every form of suffering inflicted upon them by hideous monsters, and are at last released to wander about as houseless demons to torment mankind, or vex themselves in the bodies of animals and reptiles. When the priests come the corpse is laid out upon the floor in the principal room, and a tablet set up by its side ; a table is near, on which are placed meats, lamps, and incense. While the priests are reciting prayers to deliver the soul from purga- tory and hell, they occasionally call on all present to weep and lament, and on these occasions the females of the household are particularly clamorous in their grief, alternately uttering the ' Mcllvaine, Evidences of Christianity, p. 291. 244 THE MIDDLE KTXODOM. most dolefiii accents, nnd then tittei'injx with some of the new coiners. Papers having figni-es on tliein and Peter's pence in the form of paper money are hnrned ; white lanterns, instead of tlie common red ones, and a slip of paper containing the name, titles, age, etc., of the dead arc lumg at the door; a mat [)orch is pnt np for tlie musicians and the priests." The sonl, liaving crossed the l)ridge leading out of hell with the aid of the priests, gets a letter of recommendation from them to he admitted into the western heavens. Previous to burial a lucky place for interment, if the family have moved away from its paternal sepulchre, must be found. The body is coffined soon after death, arrayed in the most splen- did habiliments the family can afford ; a fan is put in one liand and a prayer on a piece of paper in the other. The form of a Chinese coffin resembles the trunk of a tree ; the boards are three or four inches thick and rounded on top (from Avhence a coffin is called " longevity boards "), making a very substantial case. When the corpse is put in it is laid in a bed of lime or cotton, or covered with quicklime, and the edges of the lid are closed with mortar in the groove so that no smell escapes; the coffin is varnished if it is to remain in the house before burial. The Chinese often expend large sums in the purchase and pre- paration of a coffin during their lifetime ; the cheapest are from five to ten dollars, and upward to five hundred and even two thousand dollars, according to the materials and ornamenting. Bodies are sometimes kept in or about the house for many years and incense burned morning and evening. They are placed either on trestles near the doorway and protected by a covering in the principal hall, or in the ancestral chamber, where they remain until the fortunes of the family improve so as to enable them to bury the remains, or a lucky place is found, or until opportunity and means allow the survivors to lay them in their patrimonial sepulchre. The lineal relatives of the deceased are informed of his death, ' Ball says that money is put into the month of the dead by rich people to buy favor and passage into heaven ; others affirm that the money is to make the spirit ready o? speech. The phrase "no silver to hit the mouth " has r^fer ence to this custom. FUXKIiAL CUSTO^rs AXI) (^EMEMONIES. 245 and as many as can do so repair to the liouse to condole with and assist tlie family. The eldest son or the nearest descendant repairs to an adjoining river or well with a bowl in his hand, and accompanied by two relatives, to " buy water " with money M'hich he carries and throws into it. Upon the way to the well it is customary to carry lanterns — even at noon — and to make a great wailing: with the water thus obtained he washes the corpse before it is dressed. After the body is laid in the coffin and before interment the sons of the deceased among the poor are frequently sent around to the relatives and friends of the family to solicit subscriptions to buy a grave, hire mourners, or provide a suitable sacrifice, and it is considered a good act to assist in such cases ; perhaps fear of the ill-will of the displeased spirit prompts to the charity. The coffin is sometimes seized or attached by creditors to compel the relatives to collect a sum to release it, and instances of filial sons are mentioned who have sold themselves into temporary or perpetual slavery in order to raise money to bury their parents. In other cases a defaulting tenant will retain a cofiin in the house to forestall an ejectment for the back rent. On the day of burial an offering of cooked provisions is laid out near the coffin. The chief mourners, clothed in coarse white sackcloth, then approach and kneel before it, knocking their heads up.on the ground and going through with the full kotow ; two persons dressed in mourning hand them incense-sticks, w^liieh are placed in jars. After the male mourners have made their parting prostrations the females perform the same ceremonies, and then such friends and rela- tions as are present ; during these observances a band of nuisic plays. The funeral procession is formed of all these persons — the band, the tablets, priests, etc. In Peking, where religious processions are prohibited, great display is made in funerals according to the means and raidc of the deceased. The coffin is borne on an nnwieldy bier carried by sixty-four men or moi-e and covered by a richly embroidered catafalque, attended by musicians, mourners, priests, etc. Sometimes the carts are cov- ered with white cloth and the mules wear white harness. Burial-places are selected by geomancers, and their location has important results on the prosperity of the living. The sup- 246 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. posed connection between these two things lias influenced the science, religion, and cnstoms of the Chinese from very early days, and nnder the name oi fung-shui, or ' wind and water' rules, still contains most of their science and explains most of their superstitions. As true science extends this travestie of natural philosophy will fade away and form a subject of fascin- ation among the people as it now does a source of terror. Every strange event is interpreted hy fung-shid, and its professors em- ploy the doctrines of Buddhists and Taoists to enforce their dicta, as they do their little knowledge of astronomy, medicine, and natural science to explain them. The whole has gradually grown into a system of geomancy, involving, however, their cos- mogony, natural philosophy, spiritualism, and biology so far as they have these sciences. It was in the twelfth century that it became systematized, and its influence has spread ever since. Were it only a picturesque kaleidoscope of facts and fancies it would be a harndess pastime ; but it now enters into every act of life, since the human soul and body, Mdiether in this M'orld or the next, are regarded as constantly influenced by their ac- tions, their relatives, and their locations. Thus the choice of a burial-place is supposed to affect the past, present, and future, and the fung-shui sicnsdng^ or ' wind and water doctors,' know therein how to benefit their customers and themselves. Hcgarding all nature as a living organism and each person sur- rounded by invisible beings, the Chinese try to propitiate these essences through their departed relatives. They consider them as restrained by their animal nature to the tomb where their bodies lie, while the spiritual nature seeks to hover about its old scenes and children. If a tomb is placed so that the spirit dwelling therein is comfortable, the inference is that the de- ceased will grant those who supply its wants all that the spirit world can grant. A tomb located where no star on high or dragon below, no breath of nature oi- malign configuration of hills, can disturb the repose of the dead, must therefore be lucky, and M'orth great effoi-t to secure. The principles of geonuuicy depend nuich on two supposed currents running through the earth, known as the dragon and the tiger ; a propitious site has these on its left and right. A INFLUENCE OF FUN(i-SIIUI. 247 skilful observer can detect and describe them, with the help of the compass, direction of the watercourses, shapes of the male and female ground, and their proportions, color of the soil, and the permutations of the elements. The common people know nothing of the basis on which tliis conclusion is founded, but give their money as their faith in the priest or charlatan in- creases.' At the south, uncultivated liills are selected because they are dry and the white ants will not attack the coffin ; and a hill- side in view of water, a copse, or a ravine near a hill-top, arc all lucky spots. At the north, where ants are unknown, the dead are buried in fields ; but nowhere collected in graveyards in cities or temples. The form of the grave is sometimes a simple tumulus with a tonibstone at the head ; in the southern provinces of tener in the shape of the Greek letter fi, or that of a huge arm-chair. Tiie back of the supposed chair is the place for the tombstone, while the body is interred in the seat, the sides of which are built around with masonry and approach each other in front. A tomb is occasionally built of stone in a substantial manner, and carved pillars are placed at the corners, the whole often costing thousands of dollars. The case of one necromancer is recorded, who, after having selected a grave for a family, was attacked with ophthalmia, and in revenge for their giving him poisonous food which he supposed had caused the malad^^, hired men to remove a large mass of rock near the grave, whereby its efficacy was completely spoiled. The position is thought to be the better if it command a good view. Some of the graves oc- cupy many hundred square feet, the corners being defined by low stones bearing two characters, importing whose chih, or ' house,' it is. The shapes of graves vary more at the north ; some are conical mounds planted with shrubs or flowers, others made of mason-work shaped like little houses, others mere square tombs or earthly tunuili ; not a few coffins are simply left upon the ground. It is seldom the Chinese hew graves out of ' Compare Dr. Edkins in the Chineie Recorder, Vol. IV., 1871-72. Fencj- shui ; or the Rudiments of Natural Science in China, by Ernest J. Eitel, Lon- don, 1878. The CornhiU Magazine for March, 1874 Notes and Queries on C. and J., Vol. II., p. 69. 248 TilE MIDDLE KINGDOM. the rock or dig large vaults; their care is to make a showv grave, and at the same time a convenient one for performing the prescribed rites. The mausolea of emperors and grandees occnpv vast enclosures laid out as parks and adorned with orna- mental buildings to which lead avenues of stone guardians." The tomb of Yungloh (a.d, 1403-1425) is reached through a dwmos of gigantic statues nearly a mile long — two pairs each of lions, unicoi'ns, elephants, camels, and horses, one erect, the other couchant, and six pairs of civil and military officers; each fio;ure is a monolith. The orii2;in of this custom can be traced back nearly to the tenth century, but was probably known in the Tang dynasty. Officials are allowed to erect a few statues to become their guardians.' AYhen the day of interment arrives, which is usually the nearest lucky day to the third seventh after death, the friends assemble at the house. A band of musicians accompanies the procession, in which is also carried the ancestral tablet of the deceased in a separate sedan, accompanied sometimes by a sacri- fice and the red tablets of the offices held by the family. The mourners are dressed entirely in white, or wear a white fillet ai'ound the head ; the sons of the deceased nnist put on the ex- pression and habiliments of woe, and the eldest one is at times supported along the street to the grave in all the eloquence and attitude of grief, although it may have been years since liis father went to " wander among the genii." The women and children of the family follow, and at intervals cry and wail. A man goes ahead and scatters paper money to purchase the good- will of such stray spirits as are prowling about. Diiferent figures and banners are carried according to the means and rank of the family, which, M'ith the friends and crowd attracted by the show, sometimes swell the train to a great length. The grave is deep, and lime is freely mixed with the earth thrown ' In the Yih cliin the custodian n>i)orte(i in the Peking Oazette of January 3, 1871, that there were !)'J, (>!)() trees, mostly lir, pine, elm, etc. The people in chart,'e of such grounds are used to girdling the timber, in order afterward to get tlie dead trees as firewood for themselves. ■-' Mayens in North (Jltina Jh'. Royal Asiatic Society Journal, No. XII., 1878 Doolittle, Social Life, II., p. 3;37. CUSTOMS OF INTERMENT AND MOURNING. 249 in ; a body is never pnt into an old grave while anything re- mains of the former occupant ; crackers are fired, libations poured out, prayers recited, and finally paper models of houses, clothes, horses, money, and everything he can possibly want in the land of shadows (which Davis calls a loise economy) are burned. The tablet and sacrifice are then carried back ; the family feast on the latter or distribute it among the poor around the door, while the former is placed in the ancestral hall. The married daughters of the dead are not considered part of the famil}', and wear no mourning ; nor are they invited to their father's funeral. The period of mourning for a father is nominally three years, but actually reduced to twenty-seven months ; the persons re- quired to observe this are enumerated in the Code, and Sec- tions CLXXIX.-CLXXXI. contain the penalties for concealing the death of a parent, or misrepresenting it, and of omitting the proper formalities. Burning the corpse, or casting it into the water, unfeelingly exposing it in the house longer than a year, and making the funeral ceremony and feast an occasion of merrymaking and indecorous meeting of males and females, are also prohibited. For thirty days after the demise the nearest kindred must not shave their heads nor change their dress, but rather exhibit a slovenly, slipshod appearance, as if grief had taken away both appetite and decorum. In the southern districts half-mourning is bine, usually exhibited in a pair of blue shoes and a blue silken cord woven in the queue, instead of a red one ; grass shoes neatly made are now and then worn. In the northern provinces white is the only mourning color seen. The visiting cards also indicate that the time of mourning has not passed. The expenses incurred by the rich are great, and the priests receive large sums for masses, ten thousand dollars being often spent. In the north still greater expenses are incurred in buying a piece of land for a burial plot and its glebe. Here they erect a lodge, where the keeper of the grave lives, cultivating the land and keeping the tomb in order.' When the Empress dies ofiicers put on mourning, take the » Chinese Repository, Vol. IV., p. 352; Vol. II., p. 499. 250 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. buttons and fringes from their caps, stamp their seals with bhie ink, and go through a prescribed set of ceremonies ; they must not shave their lieads for a hundred days, nor the people for a month. Full details of the ceremonies ordered on the occasion of the decease of the Empress, or " interior assistant, who for thirteen years had held the situation of earth to lieaven," were published in 1833, in both Manchu and Chinese. When the Emperor dies all his subjects let their hair grow for a hundred days, marriages are postponed, theatres and sports disallowed, and a ceremonial gloom and dishabille pervades the Empire. On the morning after the death of the Emperor Tungchi, Jan- uary 12, 1875, the streets of Peking presented a surprising con- trast to their usual gaiety in the removal of everything red. In early times human beings were immolated at the obsequies of rulers, and voluntary deaths of their attendants and women are occasionally mentioned. De Guignes says that the Emperor Shunchi ordered thirty persons to be immolated at the funeral of his consort ; but Kanghi, his son, forbade four women from sacrificing themselves on the death of his Empress.' The hall of ancestors is found in the house of almost every member of the family, but always in that of the eldest son. In rich families it is a separate building ; in others a room set apart for the purpose, and in many a mere shelf or shrine. The tablet, or shlii chu, is a boai'd about twelve inches long and three wide, placed upright in a block. The inscriptions on two are like the following: "The tablet of Hwang Yung-fuh (late (1iiiig-teh), the head of the family, who finished his probation with honor during the Imperial Tsing dynasty, reaching a sub-magistracy." His wife's reads : " The tablet of Madame, originally of the noble family Chin, who would have received the title of lady, and in the Imperial Tsing dynasty became his illustrious con- sort." A receptacle is often cut in the back, containing pieces of paper bearing the names of the higher ancestors, or other members of the family. Incense and papers are daily burned before them, accompanied by a bow or act of homage, forming 'iV. C. Br. R. As. Soc. Journal, No. II., 18C5, pp. 173 ff. De Guignes' Voyages, Tome II., p. 304. ^fe)lloires cone, les Cliinois, Tome \^., pp. 346 ff Chinese and Japanese llepository for May, 1864. TJIE WORSHIP OF ANCESTRAL TABLETS. 251 in fact a sort of family prayer. The tablets are ranged in chronological order, those of the same generation being placed in a line. When the hall is large, and the family rich, no pains are spared to adorn it with banners and insignia of wealth and rank, and on festival days it serves as. a convenient place for friends to meet, or for any extraordinary famil}^ occasion. A person residing near Macao spent aljout one thousand live hnn- Ancestral Hall and Mode of V/orshipping the Tablets. dred dollars in the erection of a hall, and on the dedication day the female members of his family assembled with his sons and descendants to assist in the ceremonies. The portraits of the deceased are also suspended in the hall, but effigies or images are not now made. In the wood-cut adjoining, the tablets are arranged on the 252 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. same level, and the sacrifice laid uu the altar before them ; the character shao, 'longevity,' is drawn on the wall behind. Dur- ing the ceremonies fire-crackers are let off and papers burned-; after it the feast is spread. In the first part of April, one hundred and six days after the winter solstice, during the term called Uing-ming, a general worship of ancestors is observed. In Kwangtung this is com- monly called j?a?^' shan, or ' worshipping on the hills,' but the general term is slu fan ti, or ' sweeping the tombs.' The whole population, men, women, and children, repair to their family tombs, carrying a tray containing the sacrifice, libations for offering, and candles, paper, and incense for burning, and there go through a variety of ceremonies and prayers. The grave is at this season repaired and swept, and at the close of the service three pieces of turf are placed at the back and front of the grave to retain long strips of red and white paper ; this indicates that the accustomed rites have been performed, and these fugi- tive testimonials remain fluttering in the wind long enough to announce it to all the friends as well as enemies of the family ; for when a grave has been neglected three 3'ears it is sometimes dug over and the land resold. The enormous amount of litio'a- tion connected with sepulchral boundaries, transfer of grave glebes or sale of the ancient plats, injury, robberj^ and repairs of tombs, all indicate the high importance of this kind of property. " Such are the harmless, if not meritorious, forms of respect for the dead," says Davis, " which the Jesuits wisely tolerated in their converts, knowing the consequences of outraging their most cherished prejudices ; but the crowds of ignorant monks who flocked to the breach which those scientific and able men had opened, jealous, perhaps, of their success, brought this as a charge against them until the point became one of sei-ious con- troversy and reference to the Pope. His Holiness espoused the bigoted and unwiser part, which led to the expulsion of the monks of all varieties." And elseAvhere he says the worship paid to ancestoi-s is " not exactly idolatrous, for they sacrifice to the invisible spirit and not to any representation of it in the fijijure of an idol." This distinction is much the same as that IDOLATRY OF THE RITES. 253 alleged by the Greek clmrcli, mIucIi disallows images but permits gold and silver pictures having the face and hands only painted, for Sir John Davis, himself being a Protestant, probably admits that worship paid to any other object besides the true God is idolatry ; and that the Chinese do trnly worship their ancestors is evident from a prayer, such as the following, offered at the tombs : Taukwang, 12th year, 8d moon, 1st day. I, Lin Kwang, the second son of the third generation, presnme to come before the grave of my ancestor, Lin Kung. Revolving years have brouglit again the season of spring. Clierisliing sentiments of veneration, I look up and sweep your tomb. Prostrate I pray that you will come and be present, and that you will grant to your posterity that they may be prosperous and illustrious. At this season of genial sliowers and gentle breezes I desire to recompense the root of my existence and exert myself sincerely. Alwaj-s grant your safe protection. My trust is in your divine spirit. Reverently I present the five-fold sacrifice of a pig, a fowl, a duck, a goose, and a fish ; also an offering of five plates of fruit, with libatnns of spirituous liquors, earnestly entreating that you will come and view them. With the most attentive respect this annunciation is presented on higli. It is not easy to perceive, perhaps, why the Pope and the Dominicans were so much opposed to the worship of ancestral penates among the Chinese when they pei-formed much the same services themselves before the images of Mary, Joseph, Cecilia, Ignatius, and hundreds of other deified mortals; but it is somewhat surprising that a Protestant should describe this worship as consisting of " harmless, if not meritorious, forms of respect for the dead." Mr. Fortune, too, thinlcs " a considerable portion of this worship springs from a higher and purer source than a mere matter of form, and that when the Chinese period- ically visit the tombs of their fathers to worship and pay respect to their memory, they indulge in the pleasing reflection that when they themselves are no more their graves will not be neg- lected or forgotten," This feeling does actuate them, but there can be no dispute, one would think, about its idolatrous charac- ter. The Chinese who have embraced the doctrines of the Xew Testament, and who may be supposed qualified to judge of their own acts and feelings, regard the rites as superstitious and sinful. It is a form of worship, indeed, which presents fewer revolting features than most systems of false religion — consisting merely 254 THE MIDDLE KIXGDOM. of pouring out libations and burning paper and candles at the grave, and tlien a family meeting at a social feast, with a few simple prostrations and petitions. Xo bacchanalian companies of men and women run riot over the hills, as in the Eleusinian mysteries, nor are obscene rites practised in the house ; all is pleasant, decorous, and harmonious. The junior members of the family come from a distance, sometimes two or three hun- dred miles, to observe it, and the family meeting on this occasion is looked forward to by all with much the same feelings that Christmas is in Old England or Thanksgiving in Xew England. Brothers and sisters, cousins and other relatives join in the wor- ship and feast, and it is this pleasant reunion of dear ones, per- haps the most favorable to the cementing of family affection to be found in heathen society, which constitutes nnich of its power and will present such an obstacle to the reception of the Gospel and removal of the "two divinities" from the house. The funeral ceremonies here described are performed by sons for their parents, especially for the father ; but there are few or no ceremonies aiul little expense for infants, unmarried children, concubines, or slaves. These are coffined and buried without parade in the family sepulchre ; the poor sometimes tie them up in mats and boards and lay them in the fields to shock the eyes and noses of all who pass. The nnmici{)al authorities of Canton issued orders to the people in 1S82 to bring such bodies as had no place of burial to the potter's field, where they M'ould l)e interred at public expense; societies, moreover, exist in all the large cities whose object is to bury poor people. In some pai'ts the body is wrapped in cloth or coffined and laid in graveyards on the surface of the ground. When one dies far away from home the coffin is often lodged in lamrmnis, or public deposi- tories maintained by societies, where they remain many years. Few acts during the war of 1841 irritated the people about Canton against the English more than forcing open the coffins found in these mausolea and mutilating the corpses. One build- ing contained hundreds of coffins ffom which, when ojiened, a pimgent aromatic smell was perceptible, while the features of the corpses presented a dried appearance. One traveller tells a story of his guide, when he was condncthig him over the hills DISPOSAL OF THE DEAD. 255 in Hupeb, ordering him to conceal his blue e^^es by putting on green spectacles as they were approaching some houses, and describes his surprise at finding them all filled with coflins arranged in an orderly manner. Graves are not enclosed ; cattle pasture among them and paths lead over and through them. Tombstones are usually made of granite and their inscriptions soon become defaced. Epitaphs are short, giving the name of the dynasty, his place of birth, number of his generation in the family, and his temple name. Laudatory expressions are rare, and quotations from the classics or stanzas of poetry to convey a sentiment entirely unknown. The corpses of ofiiceis who die at their stations are carried to their paternal tombs, sometimes at public expense. Tlie Emperor, in some instances, orders the funeral rites of distinguished statesmen to be defi-ayed. This was done during the war with England in the cases of Com- missioner Yukien and General Hailing, who burned himself at Chinkiang fu.' Besides these funeral rites and religious ceremonies to their departed ancestors the Chinese have an almost infinite variety of superstitious practices, most of which are of a deprecatorv character, growing out of their belief in demons and genii who trouble or help people. It may be said that most of their reli- gious acts performed in temples are intended to avert misfortune i-ather than supplicate blessings. In oi-der to ward off malignant influences amulets are worn and charms hung up, such as money- swords made of coins of different monarchs strung together in the form of a dagger; leaves of the sweet-flag {Aco/-us) and Ar- temisia tied in a bundle, or a sprig of peach-blossoms ; the first is placed near beds, the latter over the lintel, to drive aM'ay de- mons. A man also collects a cash or two from each of his friends and gets a lock made which he hangs to his son's neck in order to lock him to life and make the subscribers surety for ' Chinese Repositoi-y, Vol. XVIII., pp. 363-384. Doolittle, Socinl Life, II., pp. 45-48. M. T. Yates, Ancestral WoisJiip, Mism»ini-y Conference (of 1867), p. 367 Johnson, Oi-ienUd Bclif/ions : China, pp. 693-708. Gray's China, I., pp. 320-328. China Reiiew,Yo\. IV., p. 296. P. D. de Thiersant, La Piete Filiule en ChinCf Paris, 1877. E. Faber in the Chinese Recorder, Vol. IX., pp. 'J29, 401. 256 THE MIDDLE KIXGDOM. his safety ; adult females also wear a neck lock for the same purpose. Charms are common. One bears the inscription, " May you get the three viamjs and the nine Jik'es; " another, " To obtain long eyebrowed longevity.'' The three manijn are man}'^ years of happiness and life and many sons. Old brass mirrors to cure mad people are hung up by the rich in their halls, and figures or representations of the unicorn, of gourds, Buddhist Priests. tigers' claws, or the eight diagrams, are worn to insure good fortune or ward off sickness, fire, or fright. Stones or pieces of metal with short sentences cut upon them are almost always found suspended or tied al)out the persons of children and M'omen, which are supposed to have great efficacy in preventing evil. The rich pay large sums for rare objects to promote thifl end. CHARMS AND AMULETS. 257 In addition to their employment in tlic worship and burial of the dead and cultivation of glebe lands (some of which are very extensive'), priests resort to many expedients to increase their incomes, few of which have the improvement of their country- men as a ruling motive. Some go around the streets collecting printed or written paper in baskets, to burn them lest the vener- able names of Confucius or Buddha be defiled ; others obtain a few pennies by writing inscriptions and charms on doors ; and many in rural places get a good living off the lands owned by their temples. The priests of both sects are under the control of officials recognized by and amenable to the authorities, so that the vicious and unprincipled among them are soon restrained. The Buddhists issue small books, called Girdle Classics, con- taining prayers addressed to the deity under whose protection the person has phiced himself. Spells are made in great variety, some of them to be worn or pasted up in the house, while others are written on leaves, paper, or cloth, and burned, and their ashes thrown into a liquid for the patient or child to drink. These spells are sold by Rationalists, and consist of characters, like /^/A (' happiness '') or shao (' longevity '), fancifully combined. The god of doors, of the North Pole, Pwanku, the heavenly as- tronomer, the god of thunder and lightning, or typhoons, the god of medicine, demigods and genii of almost every name and power, are all invoked, and some of them by all persons. In shops the word shin is put up in a shrine and incense placed before it, all objects of fear and worship being included under this general term. The threshold is peculiarly sacred, and in- cense-sticks are lighted morning and evening at its side."* The Chinese dread wandering and hungry ghosts of wicked men, and the priests are hired to celebrate a mass called ta tsiao, to appease these disturbers of human happiness, which, in its general purport, corresponds to All Souls' Day, and from its splendor and the general interest taken in its success is very pop- ular. The streets at Canton are covered with awnings, and ^Lettres EclififinUs, Tome ITT., p. 33. '^LettreH E'l/fmiti's, Tome IV., p. 310 — where other ceremonies of the TaoistS; to ward o'H pestilence, are described. Vol. II.— 17 258 THE MIDDLE KINGDOM. festoons of cheap silk, of brilliant colors, are hung across and along the streets. Chandeliers of glass are suspended at short intervals, alternating with small trays, on which j^aper figures in various attitudes, intended to illustrate some well-known scene in history, amuse the spectators. At night the glare of a thou- sand lamps shining through niyriads of lustres lights up the whole scene in a gorgeous manner. The priests erect a staging somewhere in the vicinit}'^, for the rehearsal of prayers to Yen iiHouj (Yama or Pluto), and display tables covered with eatables for the hungry ghosts to feed on. Their acolytes mark the time when the half-starved ghosts, who have no childi-en or friends to care for them, rush in and shoulder the viands, which they carry off for their year's supply. Bands of music chime in from tiuie to time, to refresh these hungry spirits with the dulcet tones they once heard ; for the Chinese, judging their gods by themselves, provide what is pleasing to those who pay for the entertainment, as well as to those who are supposed to be bene- fited by it. After the services are performed the crowd carry off what is left, but when this is permitted the priests sometimes cheat them with merely a cover of food on the tops of the baskets, the bottoms being filled with shavings. Another festival in August is connected with this, called .shau i, or ' burning clothes,' at which pieces of paper folded in the form of garments are burned for the use of the suffering ghosts, with a large quantity of what maybe properly caWcdJiat money, paper ingots which become valuable chiefly when they are burned. Paper houses with proper furniture, and puppets to represent household servants, are likewise made. IMedhurst adds that " writings are drawn up and signed in the presence of wit- nesses to certify the conveyance of the property, stipulating that on its arrival in hades it sliall be duly made over to the in- dividuals specified in the bond ; the houses, servants, clothes, money and all are then burned with the bond, the worshippers feeling confident that their friends obtain the benefit of what they have sent them." Thus " they make a covenant with the grave, and with hell they are at agreement." This festival, like all others, is attended with feasting and nmsic. In order still further to provide for childless ghosts, their ancestral tablets are FESTIVALS FOR WANDERING GHOSTS. 259 collected in temples and placed together in a room set apart for the purpose, called irio sz' tan, or 'orbate temple,' and a man hired to attend and burn incense before them. The sensationa which arise on going into a room of this sort, and seeing one or two hundred small wooden tablets standing in regular array, and knowing that each one, or each pair, is like the silent tombstone of an extinct family, are such as no hall full of staring idols can ever inspire. The tablets look old, discolored, and broken, cov- ered with dust and black with smoke, so that the gilded charac- ters are obscured, and one cannot behold them long in their silence and forgetfulness without almost feeling as if spirits still hovered around them. All these ghosts are supposed to be pro- pitiated by the sacrifices on All Souls' Day. The patronage given to idolatry and superstition is constant and general among all classes, and thousands of persons get their livelihood by shrewdly availing themselves of the fears of their countrymen. The peepul, j)^^-^'^ {Fimi.s rdigiosa) at the south and the Sophora at the north, w'itli perhaps other aged trees, are worshipped for long life.' Special efforts are made from time to time to build or repair a temple or pagoda, in order to insure or recall prosperity to a place, and large sums are sub- scribed by the devout. A case occurred in 1843, which illus- trates this spirit. One of the English officers brought an image of Wa-kvxing, the god of fire, from Chinkiang fu, which he presented as a curiosity to a lady in Macao. It remained in her house several months, and on the breaking up of the establish- ment, previous to a return to India, it was exposed for sale at auction with the furniturb. A large crowd collected, and the attention of the Chinese was attracted to this image, wdiich they examined carefully to see if it had the genuine marks of its or- dination upon it ; for no image is supposed to be properly an object of worship until the spirit has been inaugurated into it by the prescribed ceremonies. Having satisfied themselves, the idol was purchased for thirty dollars by two or three zealous ' Compare C. F. Koeppen, Die Relujwn des Buddha, Berlin, 1857, who de- scribes the peepul (Bodhi) tree — the "symbol of the spread and growth of the Buddhist church " — in India. E. Bernouf, Introduction a Vhistoire du Bud- dhisme Indien, Paris, 1844. Notes and Queries on C. and J., Vol. III., p. 100. 260 tup: middle kingdom. persons, and carried off in trininpli to a shop and respectfully installed in a room cleared for the purpose. A public meeting was shortly after called, and resolutions passed to improve the propitious opportunity to obtain and preserve the protecting power of so potent a deity, by erecting a pavilion where he would have a respectable lodgment and receive due worship. A subsci'iption was thereupon started, some of its advocates put- ting down fifty and others thirty dollars, until about one thou- sand two hundred dollars were raised, with which a small lot was purchased on the island west of Macao, and a pavilion or tenr pie erected where Wa-hwang was enshrined with pompous parade amid theatrical exhibitions, and a man hired to keep him and his domicile in good order. Ko people are more enslaved by fear of the unknown than the Chinese, and none resort more frequently to sortilege to as- certain whether an enterprise will be successful or a pi-oposed remedy avail to cure. This desire actuates all classes, and thou- sands and myriads of persons take advantage of it to their own profit. The tables of fortune-tellers and the shops of geoman- cers are met at street corners, and a strong inducement to re- pair to the temples is to cast lots as to the success of the prayers offered. One way of divining is to hold a bamboo root cut in halves, resembling in size and color a common potato, and let it drop as the petition is put up. Sometimes the worshipper drops it many times, in order to see if a majority of trials will not be favorable, and when disappointed the first time not unfrequently tries again, if mayhap he can force the gods to be more propitious. The devotee may determine himself what position of the blocks shall be deemed auspicious, but usually one face up and one doAvn is regarded as pi-omising. The countenances of worshippers as they leave the shrines, some beaming with hope and resolutioii to succeed, and others, notwithstanding their repeated knocking^ and divinings, going away Avith vexation and gloom written on their faces at the ol)duracy of the gods and sadness of tlieir pros- pects, offer a study not less melancholy than instructive. " Such is the weakness of mortals : they dread, even af tei- mature re- flection, to undertake a project, and then entei- blindly upon it at a chance after consultin