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PRINCE KUNG. CHINA.
/
HE FLOWERY KINGDOM
ANL»
The band of the /Vlil<ddo
OR
CHINA, JAPAN AND COREA
CONTAININC, TIIKIK
COMPLETE HISTORY DOWN TO THE PRESENT TIME;
MANNERS, CUSTOMS AND PECULIARITIES OF
THE PEOPLE; SUPERSTITIONS;
IDOL WORSHIP;
INDUSTRIES; NATURAL SCENERY, ETC., ETC.
TOr.KTHKR WITH A
GRAPHIC ACCOUNT OF THE WAR
BETWEEN CHINA AND JAPAN. ITS CAUSE.S, LAND AND NAVAL BATTLES. ETC., ETC.
By henry davenport NORTHROP,
Author 1^/ ••Chaniiitifr liihlc S/orics," "/\-crless h'ailtr," rtc, etc.
WITH AN INTRODUCTION nv
HON. JOHN RUSSELL YOUNG,
LAT^: AMKliK^VN MINIHTKIt TO THK COUUT OK" CHINA.
PROFUSELY ILLUSTRATED WITH MANY SUPERB ILLUSTRATIONS.
'
MCDERMID & LOGAN.
LONDON. ONTARIO.
(9^1^
Kiitcrcl m-corrtiiiK to Act of CmiKrcss, in the year 1S94 by
J- R. JONES,
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, 1). C,
AH Rights Reserved.
PREFACE.
THE Continent of Asia is waking up from the sleep of ages. Japan is thrilled by the dawning light of Western civilization. China is learning that the world moves, and she must shake off the lethargy of centuries and take her place in the grand march of nations. Corea is suddenly stirred with a new life and becomes a central figure in the great drama of the Orient.
Public interest in America and Europe is aroused, and all intelligent persons are eager to obtain information concerning these Oriental countries from the most reliable sources. This information is contained in this volume.
BOOK I treats of the History ok China trom the Earliest Times to the Pkesent Day. Dating back to the earliest dawn of history, China has outlived all the great nations of ancient times, and is a living Empire to-day. No other nation in the world has such a lecord. Against the flood that has swept mighty kingdoms into oblivion, China has stood like an immovable rock. She is the wonder and the miracle among the august Empires of the East.
The reader traces her surprising growth, her conque.sts and her power at a period when " time was young." He sees the rise and fall of brilliant dynasties, while one Emperor after another appears upon the checkered scene, each of whom is invested with the proud title of " The Son of Heaven." He reads the graphic story of the Han Rulers, who, in arms and conquests, are worthy to be ranked with Roman C.-Esars. He learns why, for more than 2000 years, the Chinese have been proud to call themselves the " Children of Han."
Then comes the Mongolian conquest. With tramping legions, with dashing steeds and gleaming spears, the Northern hordes sweep down upon the plains of the " Flowery Kingdom." The panorama of startling events moves on, and we are brought to the dynasty by which China is governed at the present time. The Manchus ascended the " Dragon Throne," and still sway their .sceptre over nearly 400,000,000 of the human race.
The History of China within the present century is read with eager interest. With the record of other great crises, a masterly and thrilling account is given of the famous Taeping Rebellion. .Suddenly a young English officer appears upon the scene. The world knows him now as the celebrated " Chinese Gordon," who per- formed miracles of valor and conquest. Fertile in resources, brave and magnetic, silent and stern, unyielding as granite, his story reads like that of the renowned old heroes of classic fable. All lands are filled with his dazzling fame.
This is followed by an account of Prince Kung and the Regency, and the history closes with the reign of the present Emperor.
Then comes a full description of China and its people. The gorgeous splendors of
tii
iv
PREFACE.
the Emperor's Court and Palace are vividly pictured — the mystery that surrounds him, the vast power he wields, the princes and nobles that attend upon him, the curious ceremonies of his marriage, the awe with which his subjects prostrate themselves before him, the palatial magnificence, the life of the Empress and the disdain for foreign sovereigns.
BOOK II contains a complete account of Japan and the Japanese. Japan is the rising star among the nations of the Orient. The rapid strides she has made in the last thirty years have surprised the civilized world. Almost at a single bound she has taken rank among the enlightened nations of the earth.
The reader discovers the charm of her ancient history and the halo of renown that surrounds her Valiant Heroes and Famous Rulers. He reads the account of her old Feudal System ; the grand achievements of her powerful Tycoons and Daimios ; the might and majesty of her Emperors, and the heroic deeds of her brave armies.
Japan is the " Land of the Rising Sun ; " she is set like a gem in the sea. Her harbors invite the commerce of the world. Her soil is rich ; her natural scenery delights the eye of the traveller; she is wonderfully endowed by nature for the products of agriculture and the beauty of flower, field and forest. The vivid descrip- tions of her coasts and harbors, her headlands and landscapes, and likewise of her myriad Temples, her Palatial Residences, her old Castles and fragrant Gardens, present such a picture as only the far-famed Orient can furnish. This volume is especially rich and entertaining in its descriptions of Life among the Japanese.
The reader obtains a delightful view of the ancient city of Kioto, the former Capital. He wanders through the crowded streets of the great city of Tokio ; he is taken into the homes of the people and is made acquainted with their peculiar charac- teristics ; their habits of daily life ; their modes of dress ; their social customs, including marriages and funerals ; their endless amusements, and charming festivals.
The curtain is lifted from the Court of the Mikado and he is made acquainted with the grand State Ceremonies, the singular rules of Royal Etiquette, the gorgeous Dress of Officials, the brilliant Maids of Honor, and the loyal respect shown to the Emperor and Empress. The story of the Tycoons is fully told, with that of the Revo- lution of 1868, by which they were swept from power. Tremendous changes since this memorable period mark the History of Japan.
BOOK III contains a full description of Corea, the *' Hermit Kingdom," and furnishes a concise account of the war between China and Japan. The causes of the Great Conflict are stated, and an accurate estimate of the two armies is given — their numbers, discipline, equipments and the ability of their Commanders. The rapid move- ments of the Japanese Army, its brilliant achievements at Ping- Yang, and the Great Naval Battles are fully described. The whole course of stirring events is traced, and the reader sees the rolling battle-clouds and hears the shock of contending legions.
This account of China, Japan and Corea is a most captivating story. It is tinged with the golden colors of the Orient. The subjects which it treats are of great interest, as forces are at work in Asia which cannot fail to aflect the destiny of the whole world.
INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER.
By Hon. JOHN RUSSELL YOUNQ,
Late American M!inister to the Co\irt of China.
THE following pages will present to the reader a clear and eloquent narra- tive of two nations which now occupy tht attention of the civilized world. Unhappily this interest is awakened by the fearful penalty of war. In such a war Americans have no thought, but that it may end in a lasting peace. There are no real points of difference between China and Japan. They belong to the same race — they have no antagonisms invok- ing the arbitration of the world. Divided, they become the prey of the ravening Western powers which, for two centuries, have rended Asia, making implaca- ble warfare upon venerable civilizations.
Those who study the progress of this unhappy war will read in the pages of this volume many interesting lessons as to its probable effect upon our civilization. I have had occasion to recite some observations and experiences on this theme, which I may, in a measure, repeat as ray best thought upon the larger consequences of the war and the influence which China, no matter what the outcome of the contest with Japan, cannot fail to impress upon the destinies of Asia, and perhaps the Western world.
And in this connection it is well to remember that two events in the Christian era stand out from all others as the most momentous of modem history — the overrunning of Asia and the invasion of Europe in the thirteenth century by Genghis Khan, and in the fourteenth century by Timur, or Tamer- lane. These conquerors cme from the same Tartar race which now governs the Chinese Empire.
Genghis was a son of a small chief, who lived beyond the Great Wall, the head of one of those nomadic tribes which still lead a semi-pastoral, semi- warlike life on the endless stretches of Mongolia. He was to conquer and bring under suzerainty Northern China, overrun Persia, and invade Russia, going as far as the Dnieper. Timur was the descendant of Genghis Khan. A century later Timur crossed the Tigris, captured Delhi, Damascus, Baalbec, and, marching his standards to the very gates of Moscow, cut a wider swath in his conquests than any warrior of modern times. These invasions were suc-
v
nm
VI
INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER.
I
cessful because their leaders commanded myriads of soldiers of a warlike temperament and had inexhaustible sources from which to recruit their armies. We have been confronted with no such movement in recent days for the reason that China, secure in herself, has lapsed into the ways of peace. She has put aside the spear and taken up the pruning hook — is content to spin and fish, to dig and delve. We have not disturbed the dormant mammoth. There has been no modern diplomacy so daring as to provoke, to the last energies of despair, the power which marched under the Tartar's ruthless lead. There have been other invasions, world-changing, and effacing the growths of ages — the taking of Constantinople, the rise of the Ottoman power, the Empire of Charlemagne, the Napoleonic episode — but no such desolating, continent- sweeping conquest as when the warriors of the race which now govern China menaced the capital of Russia and seized the capital of Hindostan.
This lamentable contest between China and Japan is the first serious conflict that China has known in modern times. There have been opium, Tonquin and other small, despicable wars forced upon China for mercenary purposes — to acquire territor}', exact indemnities or crystallize a majority in the House of Commons. China has dealt with them as the respectable house- keeper in the Scottish lowlands dealt with Rob Roy and the freebooters. He made his best terms with the thieves and bade them return to their thievery and leave him the remainder in peace.
The situation changes. China and Japan are of the same race. We know that there is no animosity so unrelenting as that between kinsmen. China might bow to the guns of Europe, and return to her drifting, silent, peace loving life. It will be different as regards Japan. This must be in its most deplorable sense an internecine war. However or whenever it may end, the outcome can only be the disintegration of China by Russia, aided perhaps by France, or a vendetta between China and Japan to last for centuries, with consequences not to be contemplated without sorrow by those who love Japan for her beauty, her art and the charm of her sincere, gentle, exquisite ways. Apart from this consideration, however, which affects the combatants alone, there is a tliought inspired by a remembrance of what the Tartars did in other days under the lead of Genghis Khan. For centuries China, so far as the outer world is concerned, has lain at peace — repellant to what we call our civilization — wanting in enterprise, her people following the paths at their fathers, silent, indifferent, perhaps contemptuous of mankind. The more than four hundred millions who compose the Empire — compact, integral, bound together bylaws, customs, literature and faith, their ceremonies ordained a thousand years before Christ — have not for centuries troubled Christendom. A territory as large as that of the United States, with every variety of
i
INTRODUCTORY CHAPTKR.
VII
climate aud the finest of water systems. A soil as rich as that of France. The rivers and seas teem with fish. Her rice aud fish alone enable her to support a population that may be estimated at one-fourth or more, probably cue-third, of the human race. To compel the transformation of a people so great in the inherent resources of power from the ways of peace to the ways of war, is to assume a responsibility whose gravity it is impossible to over- estimate.
This apathy of China has been explained upon many grounds, mainly fanciful. She is the first nation, heathen though she be, to accept the divine admonition that peace on earth should be the highest aim of human endeavor. So, while civilized States, living under the accepted sacred light of Christian truth, have undergone centuries of throatcutting aud pillage until it has become a canon of our ethics that war is the natural state of man, that war must have its season for the good of society, that the generation is barren which knows no war, China has remained at peace.
Not only has she remained at peace, but she has taught her people that war is a crime, and the profession of arms ungracious aud undeserving of honor. This reverses the faith of the Christians since the days when the Caesars won their crowns by the sword. A foolish, heathen fancy, no doubt, but there is a good deal of the New Testament in it, and it has served the higher interests of mankind.
For if China, since the Ming dynasty, had been so far " advanced in civilization" as to realize that no god is so deserving of worship as the god of war, history would now tell a different tale. If some modern Tartar ruler, with the genius of Napoleon, had won the people's confidence, shown them the imminent peril of their fine philosophies in the presence of the mad, raging, warring outside world, and, so doing, had armed China, civilization would have had her problem. The Cliinamau contains within himself every faculty of the soldier. He is fearless. He does not dread suicide. He has extraordinary endurance. He can march all day upon a portion of rice. With reverence as the basis of his faith, he knows what is so essential to a soldier- -the law of obedience. Moreover, the walking from Moscow to Pekin is good, as the caravans of the present day will attest.
China has had no Napoleon to awaken the memories and possibilities of Genghis Khan. If there has been no violent movement as the result of so mighty an inspiration, there has been a slow, steady, glacierlike tendency to edge awaj' from the traditions and give the sword the place it holds among Christian people. This is due to the influence of Li Hung Chang, the Emperor's most powerful subject, and among the first to preach the gospel of war.
viii
INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER.
I saw a striking evidence of this change some years ago. It was my duty to make an official visit to Ningpo, and exchange courtesies with the ruling Mandarin, in company with the late Admiral John Lee Davis, then command- ing our squadron in Asia. It was part of this mission to impress our Chinese friends with the strength, and especially the discipline, of the American navy. And where could this be better done than on board of a man-of-war ? When the Mandarin made his visit he inspected the ship and witnessed a drill. The function was finely done, and the Admiral was proud of his brave and skilled men.
We returned the visit next day, and were received with fine Chinese ceremony. Admiral Davis paying the Mandarin the compliment of taking with liim, in the blaze of full dress uniform, as many of his officers as could be spared. After the tea drinking and gracious speeches, our host tendered Admiral Davis a review of his Chinese soldiery. A battalion was put through the manual of arms. The tactics and word of command were English. The "business was perfect, no military performance of that nature more commend- able. I recall the Admiral's astonishment, amounting to chagrin : " To think," he said, " that I should have asked that Chinese Mandarin to look at my people, when his own soldiers could show them how to drill." This incident made a deep impression. There in that quadrangle of Ningpo, visible to the Admiral's keen, professional eyes, was a unit of the force which, under proper conditions, might make a strange dream come true. It was my first evidence of the awakening of the warlike spirit of China, and not only awakened, but trained to the best offices of war.
I saw something at that time of Chinese troops at various ports. While in no case was there the perfection of Ningpo, the development of the military art wherever we visited was evident. At some points there were parcels of Bannermen, grotesque, not military, tumbling over one another, guarding some Tartar general. This was the incongruous mass, dumped into semblance of martial form, pensioners, loungers, who had never felt the r 1 test of war. The Taeping rebellion was little more than one body of Chinese troops falling over another, soldiers pausing in the middle of an action to dine, and resuming hostilities after dinner. Battles were continued like some of those Chinese dramas which require a week for the exemplification of the plot. Matters, however, were advancing with emphasis. The Ningpo incident was a pregnant lesson.
There is no reason why the same discipline, the same teaching in the art of war, which sent an American Admiral dazed and grieving out of the quad- rangle at Ningpo, should not, if applied to the Chinese Empire, result in an army as large as the armies of Europe combined. It would be as well armed,
INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER.
ix
as well drilled, as brave, and more easily handled in the commissary and quarter- master's departments. It would need alone the motive aud the leadership to induce such an army to try conclusions with the Asiatic and European world.
War is the science of force against force — mind against mind. There is no reason why a Chinaman may not acquire it. In i860 a French official reported to his government that a few regiments of French troops could conquer China. This was but a generation ago. Tonquin supervened, as Jules Ferry sadly remembered, and in Tonquin we saw the progress that China had made. That forlorn campaign was to the European powers the first glimpse of reawakened China. The world learned that China had divined the futility of matchlocks and calico forts, that she was studying, like the rest of us, the appalling litany of war. To measure the pace of Chinese progress in this sinister doctrine, we have but to compare China as seen by the French officers in i860 — an Empire that could have been ridden down by a few French regiments — and the China which checked France in Tonquin.
We have but to turn from the shuffling rabble which was wont to guard the Tartar General to the firm, steady lines at Ningpo. We have but to con- trast the discipline of the troops who followed Li Ht.ng Chang and the English General Gordon against the Taepings with the army now under Li's command in the northern provinces. As to the power of this army in battle with Western troops it would be idle to speculate. I presume that its condition is not so good as that of the Japanese army ; that it sutlers from lax administration ; from confiding too much to foreigners, who do not show their best side to China ; from an innate, inherited and pious aversion to war. This will yield to severe, consistent discipline. And remember, likewise, that the Chinese are not an "enthusiastic people." Their hearts are not "easily fired." They are not prone to outbursts of public emotion. China moves as a glacier rather than as the volcano or the cyclone.
But she moves ! You may defeat her to-day, you may defeat her to-mor- row, you may bombard her Taku forts, you may even land an army, and, marching over the low, alluvial fertile lands of Northern China, spring upon Pekin. What then ? You have no more gained the country than by the capture of Boston you would gain the United States. It is like warring upon waves. You may cut and slash and stab, the billows will serry up and roll. It is fighting an impalpable enemy — as if assailing the air or the clouds. Japan victorious, and she would have a country she could neither govern nor hold. Victories again and again repeated could exact from China no more than what China deigned to give — an indemnity, an island, or even an abandon- ment of Corea — which would do China no harm aud Japan no good. The vendetta alone would remain.
X INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER.
In the meantime, the awakening Chinese martial spirit is intensified. You give it the truculent motives of hatred and revenge. China learns from Japan the lesson that for two generations we have been trying to blast into her by- cannon and fires — that if she would hold her own with the Christian slie must do what Christian nations have done. She must turn aside from the deliberate and the harmonious legends of the God of love and peace, from the Sermon on the Mount, and those pearly heaven-suffused Beatitudes, and, leaving them to missionaries and Sunday-school children, accept the gospel that arms alone are the price of a people's salvation. We have forced China to throw off the sloth of peace and drink the wine of war. Japan will accelerate the process. Where will it end ? What graver menace than a nation armed — a nation that could put twenty millions of men in the field and not feel it as we did the burden of our civil war ? And especially when it is a nation governed by the descendants of the Tartars, from whom came Genghis and Timur.
The liistory of our efforts to press upon China our Western ideas in religion and trade, when we study their consequences, illustrates mj' meaning. We have been impatient to have China Anglicized — Americanized — one with the Western world. The late Mr. Burlingame, Minister to China during the Lincoln Administration, discussed this question with me, and recited the speech of a wise old mandarin who sat in the ministry of Prince Kung.
Burlingame was urging upon the Government the wisdom of China throw- ing herself into the arms of the Western powers. He pointed out, as every American Minister has done since the days of Caleb Cushing, the inestimable advantages that would accrue from the policy of progress. "You Western people," replied the Chinese statesman, " are angry with us, because we do not go ahead. You would have \is become in a day as England or the United States. You overlook the unique conditions of our society, the burdens of many ages, the exigencies of ancient and venerated customs, the wants of a teeming population, our inability to meet the crisis which a sudden change in essential matters would impose, not alone upon this population, but upon those who are responsible for its subsista.ice ; the conservative character of institu- tions which have endured beyond the uttermost limits of your historj'. You would have us topple over this past, with which for centuries we have been content, unconscious of the blessings you now bring in open hands. You would have us enter at once upon the hurrying channels of Western enter- prise. Now, let me tell you! You are, as I have said, angry. But, if we were to take your advice, you would be angrier still. You complain that we go too slow. You would soon complain, because we were going too fast."
Had Mr. Burlingame lived to see the fulfilment of the work to which lie gave so much genius and enthusiasm he would have realized, so far as the:
INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER.
Xf
United States was concerned, the prescience of the Chinese statesman. He would have seen the consequences of that Chinese progress, which was his fondly-cherished hope and dream. We remember with what acclaim he was received when he came at the head of his stately embassy. The country rose to him. He was to escort an ancient civilization into the family of nations. It was fitting, as we all felt in our enthusiasm, that the youngest of nations should give the fraternal hand to the oldest.
Apart from this sentiment, America saw in the avatar of the Burlingame embassy the solution of so many problems. Surely the heavens weie once more on the side of America. We were starving for labor. This hardy, tire- less, intelligent snd industrious people — and so cheap, too — would come and build our railways. They would develop our Pacific Empire. They would open the El Dorado mines and make the fields of California glisten and glow. This opening of a cheap labor supply, at the very time when the Californias needed it to become rich and imperial commonwealths, was accepted as one of those timely interpositions of God's providence in which, we see with what wisdom He rules the world.
This was the prevailing rhetoric when the magnanimous Burlingame — no finer American in my time — closed his mission, so far as China was concerned, and went to Europe. I saw much of him on tiie eve of his departure, and recall his pride over the welding of the two countries into an alliance, which would endure to the good of both and the welfare of mankind.
But the Chinese statesman, who had warned Burlingame against a preci- pitate acceptance by China of Western ideas, or any special relations between the two countries other than what had existed for ages, was the wiser. Bur- lingame did not live to see it, but the reaction came. With what swiftness it came! Experience soon proved that in welcoming the Chinese we were not receiving a new supply of labor like the African, but the overflow of a superior race. Wherever this labor came into competition it won. The Chinese con- quered upon every field of industry wherever he had fair play. He began in the laundry. He ascended to the cigar shop, the vine3'ard, the fisheries, the gardens. He would soon have reached th2 counting-house and the bank.
I recall the Burlingame incident as an illustration of what the Chinese have done in commerce and industry. America was compelled to reverse the Burlingame policy and protect her labor against a people who, without lessening the strength of their own Empire, could have poured into these States a popula- tion larger than that which now inhabits them. Success in peace and war arises from these same conditions. The winner in the field of labor is apt to be winner in the field of strife.
The elements, which formed an industrial invasion, against which, with
xu
INTRODUCTORY CHAPTER.
all of our vaunted prowess and invincibility, we were compelled to defend our- selves with questionable legislation, are the elements which made possible the overrunning of Asia and the invasion of Europe. So that in cheerily urging Japan into war, and in pressing upon China a policy like that which dictates the armaments of Germany and France, we come within the admonition of the Chinese statesman to Burlingame : " You complain that we go too slow. You would soon complain that we go too fast."
We are, if we would but admit it, face to face with a vast problem. Sir Harry Parkes, the famous British Minister to China, said to me one day in Pekin that he had studied it for forty-three years, and could not comprehend it. And Sir Harry Parkes was a statesman of consummate intelligence. The late John T. Delane, editor of the London Times^ and among the foremost journalists of the age, advised a young friend of mine, connected with his paper, and in a manner beginning his career in the press, to study the East. The politics of the next generation, Mr. Delane believed, would turn upon the Chinese more than upon any other questi'/a. These were wise men who looked out upon the far horizon.
As to the outcome of the present war, I have no idea that the great Powers will permit it to be fought to a finish. A hurried peace will be imposed by Russia or Great Britain as soon as either combatant has won a decisive victory. There will be a peace with *' compensations " to the intervening Powers in the way of land or seaports. The pity of it is that China and Japan are fighting under the very eyes of the ravening eagles who sit waiting in their eyrie, ready to pounce upon one or the other as their prey. It is a miserable, unnecessary business, if only one had the heart to write about it — as I have not — remember- ing so much that was hopeful and full of promise in those fair, beautiful lands, and seeing in this war the wreck of so much that was hoped for by those who wished them well.
Our main concern should lie in the fact that within this war may be enclosed the most serious question of the times. By forcing China into the lists as an armed nation we assume a measureless responsibility. China, as I have said, moves as the glacier — silent, vast, grinding, sure — undisturbed through the ages, antedating the most ancient of Western civilization, vener- able when Homer sang and before the Roman Empire wasfounded, and Time as yet bringing no decay. But the glacier may have an impulse such as China may receive from this war with Japan. Therein lies the gravity of the problem, which is worthy of study in the light of what is written of Genghis Khan and
Timur.
John Russell Young.
CONTENTS.
BOOK I.
China: From the Earliest Times to the Present Day,
CHAPTER I.
Early History of the Celestial Em- pire 17
! CHAPTER IX.
PAGE. '. PAOE.
The Punishment of Criminals . . . 180
CHAPTER II. The Story of the Han Rulers . . 30
CHAPTER III. The Mongol Conquest of China . . 44
CHAPTER IV. The First Manchu Ruler .... 74
CHAPTER V.
The Taeping Rebellion and Story of Chinese Gordon 91
CHAPTER VI. Prince Kung and the Regency . . 122
CHAPTER VII. The Reign of the Emperor Kwangsu 145
CHAPTER VIII.
The Emperor of China and His Court 162
CHAPTER X. Chinese Mechanics and Merchants 191
CHAPTER XI. Chinese Marriage Customs .... 198
CHAPTER XII. Varieties of Chinese Life .... 213
CHAPTER XIIL
Food, Dress and Amusements of the Chinese 235
CHAPTER XIV. The Religions of China 254
CHAPTER XV. Country Life in China 274
CHAPTER XVL
Agricultural Products and Exports 280
xiii
XIV
Japan chapter xvii.
Early History of Japan . . , .
CHAPTER XVIII. The Country and the People . .
CHAPTER XIX. Domestic Life in Japan
CONTENTS. BOOK II. AND THE Japanese.
CHAPTER XXV.
Amusements of the Japanese . .
PAOB.
289
PAOB.
417
303
321
CHAPTER XX. The Residence of the Shoguns . . 333
CHAPTER XXI. The Great City of Tokio .... 356
CHAPTER XXII. Shops and Industries of Tokio . . 369
CHAPTER XXIII. Popular Japanese Customs 382
CHAPTER XXIV. Shintoism and Buddhism in Japan . 401
CHAPTER XXVI. Peculiarities of the Japanese . . . 434
CHAPTER XXVII. The New- Year Festival in Japan . 455
CHAPTER XXVIII. Japanese Women 473
CHAPTER XXIX. Striking Features of Japanese Life 48^
CHAPTER XXX. Street Scenes in Yokohama .... 496
CHAPTER XXXL The New Japan
506
BOOK III.
COREA AND THE WaR BETWEEN ChINA AND JaPAN.
CHAPTER XXXII. Life and Travel in Corea. . ,
PAGE.
613
CHAPTER XXXVI.
CHAPTER XXXIII. Outbreak of the War Between China and Japan 523
CHAPTER XXXIV. The Battle of Ping- Yang . .
CHAPTER XXXV. Japan's Gueat Naval Victory .
633
PAGE.
Stirring Incidents of the Campaign 562
CHAPTER XXXVII. The Fall of Port Arthur . .
. 581
CHAPTER XXXVIII. A Japanese Account of the War . 692
CHAPTER XXXIX.
649 ' The Capital of China 599
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
FAOB
Service in a Chinese Temple 19
Floating Chinese Village 23
Cortdge Accompanying a Mandarin .... 27
Town and Harbor of Victoria, Hong Kong . . 33
Sale of Prayers in a Chinese Temple .... 38
A Traveller's Habitual Escort 41
Image of Buddha 43
Types of Mongols 47
A Chinese Bridge 50
Battle with the Mongols 53
The Giant Chang 59
Street Scene in Pekin, China 65
A Movable Cook-Shop 68
Chinese Actors in Fantastic Costumes ... 71
Chinese Wedding Procession 77
Sending Prayers to Heaven by Burning Them . 82
Heads of Criminals Displayed for a Warning . 85
Chinese Court of Justice 95
Following the Dead to the Cemetery .... 99
Street in Nam-Dirah 103
A Chinese Festival 106
General View of the Fortifications of Pekin . Ill
Chinese Mandarin and His Wife 117
General Gordon 120
Chinese Pedler 126
The Famous Porcelain Tower 138
Chinese Cobblers 142
Chinese Restaurant 148
Chinese Out for an Airing 152
View of Tientsin, China 156
A Chinese Band 159
Opium Smokers 160
The Temple of Heaven, Pekin 164
Types of Chinese Women 168
Amaricaus Dining with Prince Kung, of China 171
Chinese Mandarin 174
A Chinese Funeral Procession 175
Street Scene in Canton 178
Chinese Modes of Torture 182
Beheading a Chinese Criminal 186
Fighting Quails 190
Pagoda and Vases 193
Itinerant Chinese Barber 196
Embroidered Chinese Screen 202
Chinese Bride Carried to the House of Her
Future Husband 20")
PAOB
The Bridal Feast • . . 208
Deformed Feet of Chinese Ladies 210
The Great Wall of China 216
Li-Hung Chang, Viceroy of China 220
Pavilion Near the Mencius Temple .... 224
A High-Caste Mandarin 281
Merchante' Club at Shanghai 238
Interior of a Chinese Theatre 244
Actor of Cochin-China 248
Porcelain Vases of Northern China .... 251
The Temple of Five Hundred Chinese Gods . 256
Temple at Nankin 200
Interior of a Chinese Temple, Showing their
Idols 266
Religious Cerenjony in a Joss-House .... 270
A Chinese Pagoda 276
A C!iincse Curiosity Shop 277
Chinese Baby in its Winter Cradle 278
A Native Chinese Missionary 281
A Mandarin Receiving a Visitor 282
A Mounted Military Bowman of Ancient Times 284
A Chinese Merchant of Canton 285
Courtyard of a Chinese Hostlery 286
Chinese Students 237
Emperor of Japan 291
Empress of Japan 296
View of Kioto, Japan 298
Great Bell of Kioto 300
A Japanese School 301
Japanese Ballet of Butterflies 307
View of Yokohama 310
Japanese Bonze 311
Japanese at Tea 314
Castle at Matsuyama, Japan 318
Japanese Family 323
A Japanese Residence 326
The Court of the Mikado 3;{0
Yoritomo Invested with the Title of Shogun . 334
A Japanese Temple 336
Baptism of Buddha 343
A Japanese Lady in Her Palanquin .... 350
Japanese Custom of Freeing the Captives . . 3r)9
Japanese Lady 362
The Hero Yashitzonc 364
A Japanese Couch 3;;(i
Japanese Shop 371
XV
XVI
ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAOB
An Apothecary's Shop at Tokio 373
A Japanese Noble Passing Through the Streets
of Tokio 376
Highly Figured Japanese Vase 377
Ancient Japanese Warriors 386
Japanese Bride and Attendants 300
Interior of a Japanese Theatre 304
Lion Dance — Street Pastime in Tokio .... 308
Japanese Ferry-Boat of Ancient Times. . . . 403
Japanese Festival— Street Procession .... 406 Statues from the Temple of the Five Hundred
Genii 410
Figure from an \ncient Calendar 414
Japanese Musicians 418
Japanese Acrobats 422
A Wrestling Circus 428
A Group of Tea Pickers 437
Statue from a Japanese Temple 440
Interior of the Temple of Quannon .... 448
A Street Scene in Tokio on New Years Day . 459
PAOB
Japanese Barbers 464
The Patron of Horsemanship 468
Bridge Making Extraordinary in Japan . . . 470
Ancient Japanese Archer 471
The Procession of the God of the Sea . . . 475
A Japanese Wedding 478
Japanese Vases 481
Japanese Buddhist Priests 492
A Japanese Pagoda 404
Ornamented Japanese Bronze Vase .... 498
Americans meeting the Emperor of Japan . . 502
Ancient Warrior and Weapons 504
Execution of a Criminal in Corea 519
Regular Troops of the Chinese Army .... 527
Map of Japan, Corea and Northeastern China . 665'
Types of Coreans 571
The King of Corea and His Son 576
Fishers of Fousans 584
Corean Children 588
A Corean Porter 694
FULL-PAGE PHOTOTYPE ENGRAVINGS.
Gate Scene, Chien Mun, Pekin, China.
Prince Kung, China.
Daibstu, Kamakura, Japan.
Hon. John Russell Young.
Temple of Daibstu, Kamakura, Japan.
Commemorative Arch near Pekin, China.
Bronze Lions at Wan-Shou-Shau Gate, Pekin, China.
Stone Animals, near Pekin, China.
Street Scene in Tokio, Japan.
Hotel at Chang-Chia-Wan, Pekin, China.
Street Scene, Tien-Tsin, China.
Custom House, Shanghai, China.
Grand Canal and Pagoda at Chenza, Canton, China.
Ladies' Carriage, Japan.
Garden Surrounding the Palace of the Mikado,
Japan. Map of China, Corea and Japan.
Pagoda at Shanghai, China.
Soo<^how Creek, Shanghai, China.
Snake or Rain Temple, Tien-Tsin, China.
Japanese Palanquin.
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Tsungli
Yamen). Girls Picking Tea. A Japanese Tea Party. The Great Wall of China. Group of Japanese Girls. A Japanese Doctor and His Patient. Group of Natives, Japan. Japanese Dancers. Temple of Heaven, Pekin, China. Examination Hall, Pekin, China. Confucian Temple, Forbidden City, Pekin, China. Grand Hotel, Yokohama, Japan.
an
ipan
China
PAOE
. 4«i4 . 46S . 470 , 4"1 4TS 478 481 492 404 498 502 504 619 527 56& 671 576 684 688 594
la.
airs (Tsungli
In, China.
Cl)i
ir)a
BOOK I. r roiT) br)e Karlicsb Tiir)es io br)e Presei)b Day.
CHAPTER I. EARLY HISTORY OF THE ♦* CELESTIAL EMPIRE."
ALL Asia is astir. Old nations that have slept the sleep of ages are waking to modern ideas. For centuries China was almost a world by itself; now it forms a part of the galaxy of eastern empires and is a centre of interest to both Europe and America.
No nation in the world has been so rigid and unchangeable as China, and none has preserved with such tenacity the laws, cus- toms and national peculiarities which existed long before the Christian era. A most re- markable people are the Chinese, comprising nearly one-third of the human race, scattered over a vast realm, maintaining little inter- course with other countries, and lacking in that spirit of enterprise which, for the last few years, has distinguished the Japanese. But modern civilization advances even in Asia, and China is learning that she cannot remain the China of three or four thousand years ago. The ships of many nations touch at her ports ; commerce seeks entrance at her gates ; her most intelligent people are asking questions, and already the darkness is illu- mined with the light of a new and better era. 2
The Chinese are unquestionably the oldest nation in the world, and their history goes back to a period to which no prudent his- torian will attempt to give a precise date. They speak the language and observe the same social and political customs that they did several thousand years ago, and they are the only living representatives to-day of a people and government which were contem- porary with the Egyptians, the Assyrians, and. the ancient Jews.
Same To-Day as in Early Times.
So far as our knowledge enables us to speak, the Chinese of the present age are in all essential points identical with those of the time of Confucius, and there is no reason to doubt that before his time the Chinese national character had been thoroughly formed in its present mould. The limits of the Empire have varied from time to time under circumstances of triumph or disunion^ but the Middle Kingdom, or China proper^ of the eighteen provinces has always pos- sessed more or less of its existing proportions.
Another striking and peculiar feature:.
17
18
CHINA: PAST AND I'RKSKNT.
it
about China is tlie small amount of influuiici; ' that tiic rest of the world lias exercised upon it. In fact it is only during the present century that that influence can be said to have existed at all. Up to that point China had pursued a course of her own, carrying on her own strug^jles within a definite limit, and completely indifferent to, and ignorant of, the ceaseless competition and contests of mankind outside iier orbit, which make up the history of the rest of the old world.
The lon^ struggles for supremacy in Western Asia between Assyrian, Babylonian, and Persian, the triumphs of the Greek, fol- lowed by the absorption of what remained of the Macedonian conquests in the Flmpire of Rome, even the appearance of Islam and the Mahoniedan conquerors, who changed the face of Southern Asia from the Ganges to the Levant, and long threatened to over- run Europe, had no significance for the people of China, and reacted as little on their destiny as if they had happened in another planet.
A Curious History.
All that pertains to China has a peculiar interest to the reader. He is studying the history of one of the most remarkable na- tions that ever existed. At every step he meets with surprises, and eagerly follows the record of events, many of them startling and unparalleled, although they transpired " when time was young." As a curiosity in human existence, the earlier history of this country may justly receive careful notice. In these ancient records we see the beginning and progress of a people whose numbers, laws, customs, conservatism and strange ideas arc the wonder of the modern world. We learn the infancy of a people who have grown and multiplied to their present vast proportions and power.
Even though the details arc not recited the recollection of the antiquity of China's insti- tutions must be ever present with the stu- dent, as affording an indispensable clue to the character of the Chinese people and the composition of their government
The first Chinese are supposed to have been a nomad tribe in the])rovince of Shensi which lies in the northwest of China, and among them at last a[jpcared a ruler, Fohi, whose name at least has been preserved. His deeds and his person are mythical, bur he is credited with having given his country its first regular government.
The First Emperor.
One of his successors was Hwangti (which means Heavenly Emperor), who was the first to employ the imperial style of Emperor, the earlier rulers having been content with the inferior title of Wang, or prince. He adopted the convenient decimal division in his admin- istration as well as his coinage. His domin- ions were divided into ten provinces, each of these into ten departments, these again into ten districts, each of which held ten towns. He regulated the calendar, originating the Chinese cycle of sixty years, and he encour- aged commerce. He seems to hcive been a wise ruler and to have been the first of the great Emperors. His grandson, who was also Emperor, continued his good work and earned the reputation of being " the restorer or even founder of true astronomy."
But the most famous of Hwangti's succes- sors was his great grandson Yao, who is still one of the most revered of all Chinese rulers. He was "diligent, enlightened, polished, and prudent," and if his words reflected his actions he must have been most solicitous of the wclfiirc of his people. He is specially remarkable for his anxiety to dis- cover the best man to succeed hiiii in the
He
dis- tlic
20
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
I
government, and d'iring the last twenty-eight years of his reign he associated the minister Chun with him for that purpose.
On his death he left the crown to him, and Chun, after some hesitation, accepted the charge, but he in turn hastened to secure the co-operation of another minister named Yu in the work of administration, just as he had been associated with Yao. The period cov- ered by the rule of this triumvirate is con- sidered one of the most brilliant and perfect in Chinese history, and it bears a resem- blance to the age of the Antonines.
High Idea of Princes.
These rulers seem to have passed their leisure from practical work in framing moral axioms, and in carrying out a model scheme of government based on the purest ethics. They considered that " a prince entrusted with the charge of a State has a heavy task. The happiness of his subjects absolutely depends upon him. To provide for every- thing is his duty ; his ministers are only put in office to assist him, ' and also that " a prince who wishes to fulfill his obligations, and to long preserve his people in the ways of peace, ought to watch without ceasing that the laws are observed with exactitude." They were staunch upholders of temperance, and they banished the unlucky discoverer of the fact that an intoxicating drink could be obtained from rice.
They also held fast to the theory that all government must be based on the popular will. In fact the reigns of Yao, Chun, and Yu are the ideal period of Chinese history when all questions were decided by moral right and justice, and even now Chinese philosophers are said to test their maxims of morality by the degree of agreement they may have with the conduct of those rulers.
With them passed away the practice of
letting the most capable and experienced minister rule the State. Such an impartial and reasonable mode of selecting the head of a community can never be perpetuated. The rulers themselves may see its advan- tages and may endeavor as honestly as these three Chinese princes to carry out the ar- rangement, but the day must come when the family of the able ruler will assert its rights- to the succession, and take advantage of its- opportunities from its close connection with the government to carry out its ends.
The Emperor Yu, true to the practice of his predecessors, nominated the President of the Council as his successor, but his son Tiki seized the throne, and became the founder of the first Chinese dynasty which was called the Hia from the name of the province first ruled by his father. This event is supposed to have taken place in the year 2 1 97 B. C. and the Hia dynasty, of which there were seventeen Emperors, ruled down to the year 1776 B. C. These Hia princes present no features of interest, and the last of them, named Kia, was deposed by one of his prin- cipal nobles, Ching Tang, Prince of Chang.
The Chang Rulers. This prince was the founder of the second dynasty, known as Chang, which held pos- session of the throne for 654 years, or down to 1 122 B. C. With the exception of the founder, who seems to have been an able man, this dynasty of twenty-eight Emperors did nothing very noteworthy. The public morality deteriorated very much under this family, and it is said that when one of the Emperors wanted an honest man as minister he could only find one in the person of a common laborer. At last, in the 1 2th cen- tury before our era, the enormities of the Chang rulers reached a climax in the person of Chousin, who was deposed by a popular
EARLY HISTORY.
21
:f
rising headed by Wou Wang, Prince of Chow.
This successful soldier, whose name signi- fies the Warrior King, founded the third Chi- nese dynasty of Chow, which governed the Empire for the long space of 867 years down to 255 B. C. During that protracted period there were necessarily good and bad Empe- rors, and the Chow dynasty was rendered specially illustrious by the appearance of the great social and religious reformers, Laoutse, Confucius, and Mencius during the existence of its power. The founder of the dynasty instituted the necessary reforms to prove that he was a national benefactor, and one of his successors, known as the Magnificent King, extended the authority of his family over some of the States of Turkestan.
Confucius Appears.
But on the whole the rulers of the Chow dynasty were not particularly distinguished, .and one of them in the eighth century B. C. was weak enough to resign a portion of his sovereign rights to a powerful vassal, Siang- kong the Prince of Tsin, in consideration of his undertaking the defence of the frontier against the Tartars. At this period the authority of the central government passed under a cloud. The Emperor's perogative became the shadow of a np.me, and the last three centuries of the rule of this family would not call for notice but for the genius of Laoutse and Confucius, who were both great moral teachers and religious reformers.
Laoutse, the founder of Taouism, was the first in point of time, and in some respects he was the greatest of these reformers. He found his countrymen sunk in a low state of moral indifference and religious infidelity which corresponded with the corruption of the times and the disunion in the kingdom. He at once set himself to work with energy
and devotion to repair the evils of his day, and to raise before his countrymen a higher ideal of duty. He has been called the Chi- nese Pythagoras, very learned yet obscure, and the mysterious Taouism wiiich he founded holds the smallest or the least assignable part in what passes for the religion of the Chinese. As a philosopher and minister Laoutse will always attract attention and excite specula- tion, but as a practical reformer and politician he was far surpassed by his younger and less theoretical contemporary Confucius.
Influence of the Great Teacher.
Confucius was an official in the service of one of the great princes who divided the governing power of China among themselves during the whole of the seventh century before our era, which beheld the appearance of both of these religious teachers and lead- ers. He was a trained administrator with long experience when he urged upon his prince the necessity of reform, and advocated a policy of union throughout the States. His exhortations were in vain, and so far ill- timed that he was obliged to resign the service of one prince after another. In his day the authority of the Chow Emperor had been reduced to the lowest point. Each prince was unto himself the supreme authority.
Yet one cardinal point of the policy of Confucius was submission to the Emperor, as implicit obedience to the head of the State throughout the country as was paid to the father of every Chinese household. Although he failed to find a prince after his own heart, his example and precepts were not thrown away, for in a later generation his reforms were executed, and down to the present day the best points in Chinese government are based on his recommendations. If "no in- telligent monarch arose" in his time, the greatest Emperors h ive since sought to con-
22
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
form with his usages and to rule after the ideal of the great philosopher. His name and his teachings were perpetuated by a band of devoted disciples, and the book which con- tained the moral and philosophical axioms of Confucius passed into the classic literature of the country and stood in the place of a Bible for the Chinese.
The list of the great Chinese reformers is completed by the name of Mencius, who, coming two centuries later, carried on with better opportunities the reforming work of Confucius, and left behind him in his Sheking the most popular book of Chinese poetry and a crowning tribute to the great master.
The Warlike Period.
From teachers we must again pass to the chronicle of kings, although few of the later Chow Emperors deserve their names to be rescued from oblivion. One Emperor suf- fered a severe defeat while attempting to establish his authority over the troublesome tribes beyond the frontier ; of another it was written that " his good qualities merited a happier day," and the general character of the age may be inferred from its being desig- nated by the native chroniclers " The warlike period."
At last, after what seemed an interminable old age, marked by weakness and vice, the Chow dynasty came to an end in the person of Nan Wang, who, although he reigned for nearly sixty years, was deposed in ignomin- ious fashion by one of his great vassals, and reduced to a humble position. His con- queror became the founder of the fourth Chinese dynasty.
During the period of internal strife which marked the last four centuries of the Chow dynasty, one family had steadily waxed stronger and stronger among the princes of China. The princes of Tsin, by a combina-
tion of prudence and daring, gradually made themselves supreme among their fellows. It was said of one of them that " like a wolf or a tiger he wished to draw all the other princes into his claws, so that he might devour them." Several of the later Tsin princes, and particularly one named Chow Siang Wang, showed great capacity, and carried out a systematic policy for their own aggran- disement.
When Nan Wang was approaching the end of his career, the Tsin princes had obtained everything of the supreme power short of the name and the right to wear the Imperial yel- low robes. Ching Wang, or to give him his. later name as Emperor, Tsin Clii Hwangti,. was the reputed great-grandson of Chow Siang Wang, and under him the fame and power of the Tsins reached their culminating point. This prince also proved himself one of the greatest rulers who ever sat on the Dragon Throne of China.
A Soldier and Statesman.
The country had been so long distracted by internal strife, and the authority of the Emperor had been reduced to such a shadow, that peace was welcome under any ruler, and the hope was indulged that the Tsin princes, who had succeeded in making themselves the most powerful feudatories of the Empire, might be able to restore to the central gov- ernment something of its ancient power and splendor.
Nor was the expectation unreasonable or ungratified. The Tsins had fairly earned by their ability the - ifidcnce of the Chinese nation, and their principal representative showed no diminution of energy on attain- ing the throne, and exhibited in a higher post, and on a wider field, the martial and statesman-like qualities his ancestors had dis- played when building up the fabric of their
I
\c 11-
icr nd
CO
24
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
power as princes of the Empire. Their supremacy was not acquiesced in by the other great feudatories without a struggle, and more than one campaign was fought before all rivals were removed from their path, and their authority passed unchallenged as occupants of the Imperial office.
Ruler at the Age of Thirteen.
It was in the middle of this final struggle, iind when the result might still be held doubtful, that Tsin Chi Hwangti began his •eventful reign. When he began to rule he was only thirteen years of age, but he quickly showed that he possessed the instinct of a :Statesman, and the courage of a born com- inander of armies. On the one Land he :sowed dissension between the most formid- :able of his opponents, and brought about by a stratagem the disgrace of the ablest general in their service, and on the other he increased his army in numbers and efficiency, until it iLccame unquestionably the most formidable iighting force in China.
While he endeavored thus to attain inter- nal peace, he was also studious in providing for the general security of the Empire, and ■with this object he began the construction of a fortified wall across the northern frontier to serve as a defence against the troublesome Hiongnou tribes, who are identified with the Huns of Attila. This wall, which he began in the first years of his reign, was finished before his death, and stilt e.xists as the Great Wall of China, which has been considered -one of the wonders of the world.
He was careful in his many wars with the ;tribes of Mongolia not to allow himself to be .drawn far from his own border, and at the close of a campaign he always withdrew his troops behind the Great Wall. Towards Central Asia he was more enterprising, and jone of his best generals, Moungtien, crossed
what is now the Gobi Desert, and made Hami the frontier fortress of the Empire.
In his civil administration Hwangti was aided by the minister Lisseh, who seems to have been a man of rare ability, and to have entered heartily into all his master's schemes for uniting the Empire. While Hwangti sat on the throne with a naked sword in his hand, as the emblem of his authority, dis- pensing justice, arranging the details of his many campaigns, and superintending the innumerable affairs of his government, his minister was equally active in reorganizing the administration and in supporting his sovereign in his bitter struggle with the literary classes who advocated archaic prin- ciples, and whose animosity to the ruler was inflamed by the contempt, not unmixed with ferocity, with which he treated them. The Empire was divided into thirty-six pro- vinces, and he impressed upon the governors the importance of improving communications within their jurisdiction.
New Roads in All Directions.
Not content with this general precept, he issued a special decree ordering that " roads shall be made in all directions throughout the Empire," and the origin of the main routes in China may be found with as much certainty in his reign as that of the roads of Europe in the days of Imperial Rome. When advised to assign some portion of his power to his relatives and high officials in the pro- vinces he refused to repeat the blunders of his predecessors, and laid down the per- manent truth that " good government is impossible under a multiplicity of masters." He centralized the power in his own hands, and he drew up an organization for the civil service of the State which virtually exists at the present day. The two salient features in that organization are the indisputable supre-
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09
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EARLY HISTORY.
25
macy of the Emperor and the non-employ- ment of the officials in their native provinces, and the experience of two thousand years has proved their practical value.
When he conquered his internal enemies he resolved to complete the pacification of his country by effecting a general disarma- ment, and he ordered that all weapons should be sent in to his capital at Hienyang. This •" skilful disarming of the provinces added daily to the wealth and prosperity of the capital," which he proceeded to embellish. He built one palace within the walls, and the Hall of Audience was ornamented with twelve statues, each of which weighed twelve thousand pounds. But his principal resi- dence, named the Palace of Delight, was without the walls, and there he laid out magnificent gardens, and added building to building. In one of the courts of this latter palace, it is said he could have drawn up 10,000 soldiers.
A Standing Army.
This eye to military acquirements in even the building of his residence, showed the temper of his mind, and, in his efforts to form a regular army, he had recourse to " those classes in the community who were without any fixed profession, and who were possessed of exceptional physical strength." He was thus the earliest possessor in China of what might be called a regular standing army. With this force he succeeded in estab- lishing his power on a firm basis, and he may have hoped also to ensure permanence for his ilynasty ; but, alas ! for the fallacy of human expectations, the structure he erected fell with him.
Great as an administrator, and successful as a soldier, Hwangti was unfortunate in one struggle that he evoked. At an early period of his career, when success seemed uncertain, |
he found that his bitterest opponents were men of letters, and that the literary class as a body was hostile to his interests and per- son. Instead of ignoring this opposition or seeking to overcome it by the same agency, Hwangti expressed his hatred and contempt, not only of the literary class, but of literature itself, and resorted to extreme measures of coercion. The writers took up the gage of battle thrown down by the Emperor, and Hwangti became the object of the wit and abuse of every one who could use a pencil. His birth was aspersed. It was said that he was not a Tsin at all, that his origin was of the humblest, and that he was a substituted child foisted on the last of the Tsin princes.
Grand Coiincil Summoned.
These personal attacks were accompanied by unfavorable criticism of all his measures, and by censure where he felt that he deserved praise. It would have been more prudent if he had shown greater indifference and patience, for although he had the satisfaction of triumphing by brute force over those who jeered at him, the triumph was accomplished by an act of Vandalism, with which his name will be quite as closely associated in history as any of the wise measures or great works that he carried out. His vanquished oppo- nents left behind them a legacy of hostility and revenge of the whole literary class of China, which has found expression in all the national histories.
The struggle, which had been in progress for some years, reached its culminating point in the year 213 B. C, when a Grand Council of the Empire was summoned at Hienyang. At this council were present not only the Emperor's chief military and civil officers from the different provinces, but also the large literary class, composed of aspirants to office and the members of the academies and
26
CHINA: PAST AND PRESKNT.
college of Censors. The opposing forces in China were thus drawn up face to face, and it would have been surprising if a collision had not occurred. On the one side were the supporters of the man who had made China again an Empire, believers in his person and sharers in his glory; on the other were those who had no admiration for this ruler, who detested his works, proclaimed his successes dangerous innovations, and questioned his right to bear the royal name.
"A Vile Flatterer."
The purpose of the Emperor may be detected when he called upon speakers in this assembly of his friends and foes to express their opinions of his administration, and when a member of his household rose to extol his work and to declare that he had "surpassed the very greatest of his predeces- sors." This courtier-like declaration, which would have been e.xcusable even if it had had a less basis of truth than it unquestionably possessed in the case of Hwangti, was received with murmurs and marks of dissent by the literary class. One of them rose and denounced the speaker as "a vile flatterer," and proceeded to expatiate on the superior merit of several of the earlier rulers. Not content with this unseasonable eulogy, he advocated the restoration of the Empire to its old form of principalities, and the conse- quent undoing of all that Hwangti had ac- complished.
Hwangti interrupted this speaker and called upon his favorite minister Lissoh to reply to him and explain his policy. Lisseh began by stating what has often been said since, and in other countries, that " men of letters are, as a rule, very little acquainted with what con- cerns the government of a country, not that government of pure speculation which is nothing more than a phantom, vanishing the
nearer we approached to it, but the practicaf government which consists in keeping men within the sphere of their proper duties." He then proceeded to denounce the literary class as being hostile to the State, and to recommend the destructiou of their works, declaring that " now is the time or never to close the mouths of these secret enemies and to place a curb on their audacity."
The Emperor at once from his throne ratified the policy and ordered that no time should be lost in executing the necessary measures. All books were proscribed, and orders were issued to burn every work except those relating to medicine, agriculture, and such science as then existed. The des- truction of the national literature was carried out with terrible completeness, and such works as were preserved are not free from the suspicion of being garbled or incomplete versions of their original text. The burning of the books was accompanied by the execu- tion of five hundred of the literati, and by the banishment of many thousands.
Inexcusable Tyranny.
By this sweeping measure, to which no parallel is to be found in the history of other countries, Hwangti silenced during the last few years of his life the criticisms of his chief enemies, but in revenge his memory has had to bear for two thousand years the sully of an inexcusable act of tryanny antl narrow- mindedness. The price will be pronounced too heavy for what was a momentary gratifi- cation.
The reign of Hwangti was not prolonged many years after the burning of the books. In 2IO B. C. he was seized with a serious illness, to which he succumbed, partly because he took no precautions, and partly, no doubt, through the incompetence of his physicians. His funeral was magnificent.
28
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
and, like the Huns, his grave was dug in the bed of a river, and with him were buried his wives and his treasure.
This great ruler left behind him an example of vigor such as is seldom found in the list of Chinese kings of effete physique and apathetic life. He is the only Chinese Emperor of whom it is said that his favorite exercise was walking, and his vigor was apparent in every department of State. On one occasion when he placed a large army of, it is said, 600,000 men at the disposal of one of his generals, the commander expressed some fear as to how this huge force was to be fed. Hwangti at once replied, "Leave it to me. I will provide for everything. There shall be want rather in my palace than in your canip."
A Famous Ruler.
He does not seem to have been a great general himself, but he knew how to select the best commanders, and he was also so quick in discovering the merits of the generals opposed to him, that some of his most notable victories were obtained by his skill in detaching them from their service or by ruin- ing their reputation by some intrigue more astute than honorable. Yet, all deductions made, Tsin Chi Hwangti stands forth as a great ruler and remarkable man.
The Tsin dynasty only survived its founder a few years. Hwangti's son Eulchi became Emperor, but he reigned no more than three years. He was foolish enough to get rid of the general Moungtien, who might have been the buttress of his throne; and the minister Lisseh was poisoned, either with or without his connivance. Eulchi himself shared the same fate, and his successor, Ing Wang, reigned only six weeks, committing suicide after losing a battle, and with him the Tsin dynasty came to an end. Its chief, nay its only claim to distinction, arises from its hav-
ing produced the great ruler Hwangti, and its destiny was Napoleonic in its brilliance and evanescence.
Looking back at the long period which connects the mythical age with what may be considered the distinctly historical epoch ot the Tsins, we find that by the close of the third century before the Christian era China possessed settled institutions, the most remarkable portion of its still existing liter- ature, and mighty rulers. It is hardly open to doubt that the Chinese annalist finds in theoc iemote ages as much interest and instruction as we should in the record of more recent times, and proof of this may be discovered in the fact that the history of the first four dynasties, which we must dismiss in these few pages, occupies as much space in the national history as the chronicle of events from Tsin Chi Hwangti to the end of the Ming dynasty in 1644, at which date the official history of China stops, because the history of the Manchu dynasty, which has occupied the throne ever since, will only be given to the world after it has ceased to rule.
Folly and Incompetence. We must not be surprised at this discur- siveness, because the teachings of human experience are as clearly marked in those early times as they have been since, and Chinese historians aim as much at establish- ing moral and philosophical truths as at giv- ing a complete record of events. The conse- quences of human folly and incompetence are as patent and conspicuous in those days as they are now. The ruling power is lost by one family and transferred to another because the prince neglects his business, gives himself over to the indulgence of plea- sure, or fails to see the signs of the times. Cowardice and corruption receive their due and inevitable punishment. The founders of
EARLY HISTORY.
29
the dynasties are all brave and successful warriors, who are superior to the cant of a hyper-civilized state of society, which covers declining vigor and marks the first phase of efleteness, and who see that as long as there are human passions they may be moulded by genius to make the many serve the few and to build up an autocracy.
Nor are the lessons to be learnt from his- tory applicable only to individuals. The faults of an Emperor are felt in every house- hold of the community, and injure the State. Indifference and obtuseness at the capital entailed weakness on the frontier and in the provincial capitals. The barbarians grew
defiant and aggressive, and defeated the Imperial forces. The provincial governors asserted their independence, and founded ruling families. The Empire became atten- uated by external attack and internal divi- sion. But, to use the phrase of the Chinese historians, "after long abiding disunion, union revived." The strong and capable man always appears in one form or another, and the Chinese people, impressed with a belief in both the divine mission of their Emperor and also in the value of union, wel- come with acclaim the advent of the prince who will restore their favorite and ideal system of one-man government.
CHAPTER II. THE 5T0RY OF THE HAN RULERS.
AS the Chinese are still proud to call themselves the sons of Han it will be understood that the period cov- ered by the Man rulers must be an important epoch in their history, and in more than one respect they were the first national dynasty. When the successors of Tsin Chi Hwangti pro' cd unable to keep the throne, the victorious general who profited by their discomfiture was named Liu Pang. He had been a trusted official of the Emperor Hwangti, but on finding that his descendants could not bear the burden of government, hs resolved to take his own measures, and he lost no time in collecting troops and in making a bid for popularity by endeavoring to save all the books that had not been burned. This was in the year 202 B. C.
His career bears some resemblance to that of Macbeth, for a soothsayer meeting him on the road predicted, " by the expres- sion of his features, that he was destined to become Emperor. " He began his struggle for the throne by defeating another general named Pawang, who was also disposed to make a bid for supreme power. After this success Liu Pang was proclaimed Emperor as Kao Hwangti, meaning Lofty and August P>mperor, which has been shortened into Kaotsou. He named his dynasty the Han, after the small state in which he was born.
Kaotsou began his reign by a public pro- clamation in favor of peace, and deploring the evils which follow in the train of war. He called upon his subjects to aid his efforts for their welfare by assisting in the execution of 80
many works of public utility, among which roads and bridges occupied the foremost place. He removed his capital from Loyang in Honan to Singanfoo in Shensi, and as Singan was difficult of access in those days, he constructed a great high road from the centre of China to this somewhat remote spot on the western frontier.
The First Suspension Bridge.
This road still exists, and has been described by several travellers in our time. It was constructed by the labor of i(X),OCX3 men through the most difficult country, crossing great mountain chains and broad rivers. The Chinese engineers employed on the making of this road, which has excited the admiration of all who have traversed it, first discovered and carried into execution the suspension bridge, which in other coun- tries is quite a modern invention. One of these "flying bridges," as the Chinese called them, is 1 50 yards across a valley 500 feet below, and is still in use.
At regular intervals along this road Kaot- sou constructed rest-houses for travellers, and postal-stations for his couriers. No Chinese ruler has done anything more use- ful or remarkable than this admirable road from Loyang to Singanfoo. He embellished his new capital with many fine buildings among which was a large palace, the grand- eur of which was intended to correspond with the extent of his power.
The reign of Kaotsou was, however, far from being one of unchequered prosperity.
THE STORY OF THE HAN RULERS.
81
Among his own subjects his popularity was great because he promoted commerce and improved the administration of justice. He also encouraged literature, and was the first ruler to recognize the claims of Confucius, at whose tomb he performed an elaborate ceremony. He thus acquired a reputation which induced the King of Nanhai — a state composed of the southern provinces of China with its capital at or near the modern Canton — to tender his allegiance. Hut he was <lestined to receive many slights and injuries at the hands of a foreign enemy who at this tmie began a course of active aggression that entailed serious consequences for both China and Europe.
A Desert Chieftain.
Reference has been made to the Hiongnou or Hun tribes, against whom Tsin Hwangti built the Great Wall. In the interval be- tween the death of that ruler and the con- solidation of the power of Kaotsou, a remarkable chief named Meha, or Meta, had ■established his supremacy among the dis- united clans of the Mongolian Desert, and had succeeded in combining for purposes of war the whole fighting force of what had been a disjointed and barbarous confederacy. The Chinese rulers had succeeded in keeping back this threatening torrent from overflow- ing the fertile plains of their country, as much by sowing dissension among these clans and by bribing one chief to fight another, as by superior arms.
But Mcha's success rendered this system of defence no longer possible, and the desert chieftain, realizing the opportunity of spoil and conquest, determined to make his posi- tion secure by invading China. If the enter- prise had failed, there would have been an end to the power of Meha, but his rapid suc- cess convinced the Huns that their proper
and most profitable policy was to carry on implacable war with their weak and wealthy neighbors. Meha's success was so great that in a single campaign he recovered all the districts taken from the Tartars by the general Moungtien. He turned the western angle of the Great Wall, and brought down his frontier to the river Hoangho. His light cavalry raided past the Chinese capital into the province of Szchuen, and returned laden with the spoil of countless cities.
Rescued by a Maiden.
These successes were crowned by a signaS victory over the Emperor in person. Kaot- sou was drawn into an ambuscade in which his troops had no chance with their more active adversaries, and to save himself from capture, Kaotsou had no alternative but to take refuge in the town of Pingching, where he was closely beleaguered. It was impos- sible to defend the town for any length of time, and the capture of Kaotsou seemed in- evitable, when recourse was had to a strata- gem. The most beautiful Chinese maiden was sent as a present to propitiate the con- queror, and Meha, either mollified by the compliment, or deeming that nothing was to be gained by driving the Chinese to desper- ation, acquiesced in a convention which, while it scaled the ignominious defeat of the Chinese, rescued their sovereign from his predicament.
This disaster, and his narrow personal es- cape, seem to have unnerved Kaotsou, for when the Huns resumed their incursions in the very year following the Pingching con- vention, he took no steps to oppose them, and contented himself with denouncing in his palace Meha as " a wicked and faithless man, who had risen to power by the murder of his father, and one with whom oaths and treaties carried no weight." Notwithstand-
32
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
ing this opinion, Kaotsou proceeded to nego- tiate with Mcha as an equal, and gave this barbarian prinre his own daughter in mar- riage as the price of his abstaining from further attacks on the Empire. Never, wrote a historian, " was so great a shame inflicted on the Middle Kingdom, which then lost its dignity and honor."
Meha observed this peace during the life of Kaotsou, who found that his reputation was much diminished by his coming to terms with his uncivilized opponent, but although several of his generals rebelled, until it was said that " the very name of revolt inspired Kaotsou with apprehension," he succeeded in overcoming them all without serious diffi- culty. His troubles probably shortened his life, for he died when he was only fifty- three, leaving the crown to his son Hoeiti, and injunctions to his widow, Liuchi, as to the conduct of the administration.
A Wicked Empress.
The brief reign of Hoeiti is only remark- able for the rigor and terrible acts of his mother, the Empress Liuchi, who is the first woman mentioned in Chinese history as taking a supreme part in public affairs. Another of Kaotsou's widows aspired to the throne for her son, and the chief direction for herself. Liuchi nipped their plotting in the bud by poisoning both of them. She marked out those who differed from her, or who resented her taking the most prominent part in public ceremonies, as her enemies, to be removed from her path by any means. At a banquet she endeavored to poison one of the greatest princes of the Empire, but her plot was detected and baffled by her son. It is, perhaps, not surprising that Hoeiti did not live long after this episode, and then Liuchi ruled in her own name, and without filling up the vacancy on the throne, until
the public dissatisfaction warned her that she was going too far.
She then adopted a supposititious child as her grandson, and governed as regent in his name. The mother of this youth seems to have made inconvenient demands on the Empress, who promptly put her out of the way, and when the son showed a disposition to n.sent this action, she caused him to be poisoned. She again ruled without a puppet Emperor, hoping to retain power by placing her relatives in the principal offices ; but the dissatisfaction had now reached an acute point, and threatened to destroy her. It may be doubted vhether she would have sur- mounted these difficulties and dangers, when death suddenly cut short her adventurous career.
The popular legend is that this Chinese Lucrezia Borgia died of fright at seeing the apparitions of her many victims, and there can be no doubt that her crimes did not con- duce to make woman government more popular in China.
Better Government. It says much for the excellence of Kaotsou's work, and for the hold the Han family had obtained on the Chinese people, that when it became necessary to select an Emperor after the death of Liuchi the choice should have fallen unanimously on the Prince of Tai, who was the illegitimate son of Kaotsou. On mounting the throne, he took the name of Wenti. He began his reign by remitting taxes and by appointing able and honest governors and judges. He ordered that all old men should be provided with corn, meat, and wine, besides silk and cotton for their garments. At the suggestion of his ministers, who were alive to the dangers of a disputed succession, he proclaimed his eldest son heir to the throne. He purified
;red lith ton of fers his led
34
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
the administration of justice by declaring that prince and peasant must be equally sub- ject to the law; he abolished the too common punishment of mutilation, and had the satisfaction of seeing crime reduced such low proportions in the Empire thac t jails contained only 400 prisoners.
Wenti was a strong advocate of peace, which was, indeed, necessary to China, as it had not recovered from the effects of the last Hun invasion. He succeeded by diplo- macy in inducing the Prince at Canton, who had shown a disposition to assert his inde- pendence, to recognize his authority, and thus averted a civil war.
Purchasing Peace.
In his relations with the Huns, among whom the authority of Meha had passed to his son Lao Chang, he strove to preserve the peace, giving that chief one of his daughters in marriage, and showing moderation in face of much provocation. When war was forced upon him by their raids he did everything he could to mitigate its terrors, but the ill success of his troops in their encounters with the Tartars broke his confidence, and he died prematurely after a reign of twenty- three years, which was remarkable as wit- nessing the consolidation of the Hans. The good work of Wenti was continued during the peaceful reign of sixteen years of his sor, Kingti.
The next Emperor was Vouti, a younger son of Kingti, and one of his earliest con- quests was to add the difficult and inaccess- ible province of Fuhkien to the Empire. He also endeavored to propitiate the Huns by giving their chief one of the princesses of his family as a wife, but the opinion was gaining ground that it would be better to engage in a war for the overthrow of the national enemy than to purchase a hollow
peace. Wang Kua, a general who had com- manded on the frontier, and who knew the Hun mode of warfare, represented that suc- cess would be certain, and at last gained the timperor's ear.
Vouti decided on war, and raised a large army for the purpose. But the result was not auspicious. Wang Kua failed to bring the Huns to an engagement, and the campaign which was to produce such great results ended ingloriously. The unlucky general who had promised so much anticipated his master's displeasure by committing suicide. Unfortunately for himself, his idea of engag- ing in a mortal struggle with the Tartars gained ground, and became in time the fixed policy of China.
Annexing a Province.
Notwithstanding this check, the authority of Vouti continued to expand. He annexed Szchuen, a province exceeding in size and population most European states, and he received from the ruler of Manchuria a for- mal tender of submission. In the last years of his reign the irrepressible Hun question again came up for discussion, and the episode of the flight of the Yuchi from Kansuh affords a break in the monotony of the struggle, and is the first instance of that western movement which brought the ttibes of the Gobi desert into Europe. The Yuchi are believed to have been allied with the Jats of India, and there is little or no doubt that the Sacae, or Scythians, were their descend- ants. They occupied a strip of territory in Kansuh from Shachow to Lanchefoo, and after suffering much at the hands of the Huns under Meha, they resolved to see1< a fresh home in the unknown regions of West- ern Asia.
The Emperor Vouti wished to bring them back, and he sent an envoy named Chang
THE STORY OF THE HAN RULERS.
85
Keen to induce them to return. That officer discovered them in the Oxus region, but all his arguments failed to incline them to leave a quarter in which they had recovered power and prosperity. Powerless against the H uns, they had more than held their own against the Parthians and the Greek kingdom of Bactria. They retained their predominant position in what is now Bokhara and Balkh, until they were gathered up by the Huns in their western march, and hurled, in conjunc- tion with them, on the borders of the Roman Empire.
Meantime, the war with the Huns them- selves entered upon a new phase. A general named Wei Tsing obtained a signal victory over them, capturing 15,000 prisoners and the spoil of the Tartar camp. This succe.ss restored long-lost confidence to the Chinese troops, and it was followed by several other victories. One Chinese expedition, composed entirely of cavalry, marched through the Hun country to Soponomo on the Tian Shan, carrying everything before it and returning laden with spoil. Including some of the golden images of the Hun religion.
The Tartar King. Encouraged by these successes, Vouti at last took the field in person, and sent a for- mal summons to the Tartar King to make his submission to China. His reply was to imprison the bearer of the message, and to defy the Emperor to do his worst. This boldness had the effect of deterring the Em- peror from his enterprise. He employed his troops in conquering Yunnan and Leaoutung instead of in waging another war with the Huns. But he had only postponed, not abandoned, his intention of overthrowing, once and for all, this most troublesome and formidable national enemy. He raised an enormous force for the campaign, which
might have proved successful but for the mistake of entrusting the command to an in- competent general.
In an ill-advised moment, he gave his brother-in-law, Li Kwangli, the supreme direction of the war. His incompetence en- tailed a succession of disasters, and the only redeeming point amid them was that Li Kwangli was taken prisoner and rendered incapable of further mischief. Liling, the grandson of this general, was entrusted with a fresh army to retrieve the fortunes of the war ; but, although successful at first, he was out-manceuvred, and reduced to the unpleas- ant pass of surrendering to the enemy.
Death of a Great Ruler.
Both Li Kwangli and Liling adapted them- selves to circumstances, and took service under the Tartar chief. As this conduct ob- tained the approval of the historian Ssemat- sien, it is clear that our views of such a pro- ceeding would not be in harmony with the opinion in China of that day. The long war which Vouti waged with the Huns for half a century, and which was certainly carried on in a more honorable and successful manner than any previous portion of that historic struggle, closed with discomfiture and defeat, which dashed to the ground the Emperor's hopes of a complete triumph over the most formidable national enemy.
After a reign of fifty-four years, which must be pronounced glorious, Vouti died, amidst greater troubles and anxieties than any that had beset him during his long reign. He was unquestionably a great ruler. He added several provinces to his Empire, and the suc- cess he met with over the Huns was far from being inconsiderable. He was a Nimrod among the Chinese, and his principal enjoy- ment was to chase the wildest animals with- out any attendants.
I
i i
i(J
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
Like many other Chinese princes, Vouti was prone to believe in the possibility of prolonging human life, or, as the Chinese put it, in the draught of immortality. In connection with this weakness an anecdote is preserved that will bear telling. A magician offered the Emperor a glass containing the pretended elixir of eternal life, and Vouti was about to drink it when a courtier snatched it from his hand and drained the goblet. The enraged monarch ordered him to prepare for instant death, but the ready courtier at once replied, " How can I be executed since I have drunk the draught of immortality?" To so convincing an argument no reply was possi- ble, and Vouti lived to a considerable age Avithout the aid of magicians or quack medi- cines.
An Emperor Eight Years Old.
Of him also it may be said that he added to the stability of the Han dynasty, and he left the throne to Chaoti, the youngest of his sons, a child of eight, for whom he appointed his two most experienced ministers to act as governors. As these ministers were true to their duty, the interregnum did not affect the fortunes of the State adversely, and several claimants to the throne paid for ilvAr ambi- tion with their lives. The reign of Chaoti was prosperous and successful, but, unfortu- nately, he died at the early age of thirty-one, and without leaving an heir.
After some hesitation, Chaoti's uncle Liucho was proclaimed Emperor, but he proved to be a boor with low tastes, whose sole idea of power was the license to indulge in coarse amusements. The chief minister. Ho Kwang, took upon himself the responsi- bility of deposing him, and also of placing on the throne Siuenti, who was the great-grand- son, or, according to another account, the grandson, of Vouti. The choice was a for-
tunate one, and " Ho Kwanjj gave all his care to perfecting the new Emperor in the science of government." As a knowledge of his connection with the Imperial family had been carefully kept from him, Siuenti was brought from a very humble sphere to direct the destinies of the Chinese, and his greater energy and morepra"tical disposition were probably due to his not having been bred in the enervating atmosphere of a palace.
Compelled to Poison Themselves.
He, too, was brought at an early stage of his career face to face with the Tartar ques- tion, and he had what may be pronounced a unique experience in his wars with them. He sent several armies under commanders of reputation to wage war on them, and the generals duly returned, reporting decisive and easily obtained victories. The truth soon leaked out. The victories were quite imagi- nary. The generals had never ventured to face the Tartars, and they were given no option by their enraged and disappointed master but to poison themselves.
Other generals were appointed, and the Tartars were induced to sue for peace, partly from fear of the Chinese, and partly because they were disunited among themselves. Such was the reputation of Siuenti for justice that several of the Tartar chiefs carried their grievances to the foot of his throne, and his army became known as "the troops of jus- tice," It is said that all the tribes and coun- tries of Central Asia as far west as the Cas- pian sent him tribute, and to celebrate the event he built a kiln or pavilion, in which he placed statues of all the generals who had contributed towards his triumph.
Only one incident marred the tranquility of Siuenti's reign. The great statesman, Ho Kwang, had sunk quietly into private life as soon as he found the Emperor capable of
the partly cause Such that their his jus- oun- Cas- the hich had
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THE STORY OF THE HAN RULERS.
37
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governing for himself, but his wife Hohien was more ambitious and less satisfied with her position, although she had effected a marriage between her daughter and Siuenti. This lady was only one of the queens of the ruler, and not the Empress. Hohien, to further her ends, determined to poison the Empress, and succeeded only too well. Her guilt would have been divulged by the doctor she employed, but that Ho Kwang, by an exercise of his authority, prevented the appli- cation of torture to him when thrown into prison.
This narrow escape from detection did not keep Hohien from crime. She had the satis- faction of seeing her daughter proclaimed Empress, but her gratification was dimin- ished by the son of the murdered Hiuchi being selected as heir to the throne. Hohien resolved to poison this prince, but her design was discovered, and she and all the members of her family were ordered to take poison. The minister, Ho Kwang, had taken no part in these plots, which, however, injured his reputation, and his statue in the Imperial pavilion was left without a name.
A Head Hung on the Walls. Siuenti did not long survive these events, and Yuenti, the son of Hiuchi, became Em- peror. His reign of sixteen years presents no features of interest beyond the signal overthrow of the Tartar chief. Chichi, whose head was sent by the victorious general to be hung on the walls of Singan. Yuenti was succeeded by his son Chingti, who reigned twenty-six years, and who gained the repu- tition of a Chinese Vitellius. His nephew, Gaiti, who was the next Emperor, showed himself an able and well-intentioned prince, but his reign of si.x years was too brief to allow of any permanent work being accom- plished. One measur.; of his was not with-
out its influence on the fate of his successors. He had disgraced and dismissed from the service an official named Wang Mang, who had attained great power and influence under Chingti. The ambition of this individual proved fatal to the dynasty. On Gaiti's death he emerged from his retirement, and in conjunction with that prince's mother, sei-^ed the government.
Crime to Gain the Throne.
They placed a child, grandson of Yuenti, on the throne, and they gave him the name of Pingti, or the Peaceful Emperor, but he never governed. Before Pingti was fourteen, Wang Mang resolved to get rid of him, and he gave him the poisoned cup with his own hands. This was not the only, or perhaps the worst, crime that Wang Mang, perpe- trated to gain the throne. Pressed for money to pay his troops, he committed the sacrilege of stripping the graves of the princes of the Han family of the jewels deposited in them. One more puppet prince was placed on the throne, but he was soon got rid of, and Wang Mang proclaimed him- self Emperor. He also decreed that the Han dynasty was extinct, and that his family should be known as the Sin.
Wang Mang the usurper was certainly a capable administr^itor, but in seizing the throne he had attempted a task to which he was unequal. As long as he was minister or regent, respect and regard for the Han family prevented many from revolting against his tyranny, but when he seized the throne he became the mark of popular indignation and official jealousy. The Huns resumed their incursions, and, curiously enough, put forward a proclamation demanding the resto- ration of the Hans.
Internal enemies sprang up on every side, and \Van;j; Mang's attempt to terrify them by
38
CHINA: PAST AND I'RKSENT.
H
severity and wholesale executions only aggra- vated the situation. It became clear that the struggle was to be one to the death, but this fcict did not assist Wang Mang, who saw his resources gradually reduced, and his enemies more confident as the contest continued. After twelve years' fighting, Wang Mang was besieged at Singan. The city was soon carried by storm, and Wang Mang retired to
Liu Hiuen, was placed on the throne, and the capital was removed from Singan to Loyang, or Honan. Nothing could have been more popular among the Chinese people than the restoration of the Hans. It is said that the old men cried for joy when they saw the banner of the Hans again waving over the palace and in the field. But Liu Hiuen was not a good ruler,
SALE OF PRAYERS IN A CHINESE TEMPLE.
the palace to put an end to his existence. But his heart failed him, and he was cut down by the foe. His last exclamation and the dirge of his short-lived dynasty, which is denied a place in Chinese history, was, " If Heaven had given me courage, what could the family of the Hans have done?"
The eldest of the surviving Han princes.
and there might have been rea!5on to regret the change if he had not wisely left the con- duct of affairs to his able cousin, Liu Sieou. At last the army declared that Liu Sieou should be Eitiperor, and when Liu Hiuen attempted to form a faction of his own he was murdered by Fanchong, the leader of a confederacy known as the Crimson Eye-
THE STORY OF THE HAN RULERS.
39
regret e con- Sieoii. Sieoii -liucn ivn he der of Eye-
brows, on whose co-operation he counted. The Crimson Eyebrows were so called froni the distinguishing mark which they had adopted when first organized as a pro- test against the tyranny of Wang Mang. At first they were patriots, but they soon be- came brigands. After murdering the Em- peror, Fanchong, their leader, threw off" all disguise, and seizing Singan, gave it over to his followers to plunder. Liu Sieou, on be- coming Emperor, took the style of Kwang Vouti, and his first task was to overthrow the Crimson Eyebrows, who had become a public enemy. He entrusted the command of the army he raised for this purpose to Fongy, who justified his reputation as the most skilful Chinese general of his day by gaining several victories over a more numer- ous adversary. Within two years Kwang Vouti had the satisfaction of breaking up the formidable faction known as the Crimson Eyebrows, and of holding its leader Fan- chong as a prisoner in his capital.
Constant Wars.
Kwang Vouti was engaged for many more years in subduing the numerous potentates who had repudiated the Imperial authority. His efforts were invariably crowned with success, but he acquired so great a distaste for war that it is said when his son asked him to explain how an army was set in battle array he refused to reply. But the love of peace will not avert war when a State has turbulent or ambitious neighbors who are resolved to appeal to arms, and so Kwang Vouti was engaged in almost con- stant hostilities to the end of his days.
Chingtse, the Queen of Kaochi, which may be identified with the modern Annam, defied the Chinese, and defeated the first army sent to bring her to reason. This reverse necessitated a still greater effort on
the part of the Chinese luler to bring his neighbor to her senses. The occupant of the Dragon Throne could not sit down tamely under a defeat inflicted by a woman, and an experienced general named Mayuen was sent to punish the Queen of Kaochi.
The Boadicea of Annam made a valiant defence, but she was overthrown, and glad to purchase peace by making the humblest submission. The same general more than held his own on the northern and northwest frontiers. When Kwang Vouti died, in A. D. 57, after a brilliant reign of thirty- three years, he had firmly established the Han dynasty, and he left behind him the reputation of being both a brave and a just prince.
A Prosperous Reign.
His son and successor, Mingti, was not unworthy of his father. His acts were char- acterized by wisdom and clemency, and the country enjoyed a large measure of peace through the policy of Mingti and his father. A general named Pancliow, who was per- haps the greatest military commander China ever produced, began his long and remark- able career in this reign, and, without the semblance of an effort, kept the Huns in order, and maintained the Imperial authority over them. Among other great and import- ant works, Mingti constructed a dyke, thirty miles long, for the relief of the Hoangho, and the French missionary and writer, Du Halde, states that so long as this was kept in repair there were no floods.
The most remarkable event of Mingti's reign was undoubtedly the official introduc- tion of Buddhism into China. Some knowl- edge of the great Indian religion and of the teacher Sakya Muni seemed to have reached China through either Tibet, or, more prob- ably, Burma, but it was not until Mingti, in
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40
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
consequence of a dream, sent envoys to India to study Buddhism, tiiat its doctrine became known in China. Under tlic direct patronage of the limpcror it made rapid proj^ress, and although never unreservedly popular, it has held its ground ever since its introduction in the first century of our era, and is now inextricably intertwined with the religion of the Chinese state and people. Mingti died after a successful reign of eigh- teen years in 75 A. D. His son, Changti, with the aid of his mother, Machi, the daughter of the gf>"cral Mayuen, enjoyed a peaceful reign of thirteen years, and died at an early age lamented by his sorrowing people.
The Huns Conquered.
After Changti came his son Hoti, who was only ten at the time of his accession, and who reigned for seventeen years. He was a virtuous and well-intentioned prince, who instituted many internal reforms, and during his reign a new writing-paper was invented, which is supposed to have been identical with the papyrus of P^gypt.
But the reign of Hoti is rendered illus- trious by the remarkable military achieve- ments of Panchow. The success of that general in his operations with the Huns has already been referred to, and he at last formed a deliberate plan for driving them away from the Chinese frontier. Although he enjoyed the confidence of his successive sovereigns, the Imperial sanction was long withheld from this vast scheme, but during the life of Changti he began to put in opera- tion measures for the realization of thi.'^ pro- ject that were only matured under Hoti. He raised and trained a special army for frontier war. He enlisted tribes who had never served the F.mperor before, and who were specially qualified for desert warfare. He
formed an alliance with the Sienpi tribes of Manchuria, who were probably the ancestors of the present Manchus, and thus arranged for a flank attack on the Huns.
This systematic attack was crowned with success. The pressure brought against them compelled the Hiongnou to give way, and as they were ousted from their posses- sions, to seek fresh homes further west In this they were, no doubt, stimulated by the example of their old opponents, the Yuchi, but Panchow's energy supplied a still more convincing argument. He pursued them wherever they went, across the Gobi desert and beyond the Tian Shan range, taking up a strong position at modern Kuldja and Kashgar, sending his expeditions on to the Pamir, and preparing to complete his triumph by the invasion of the countries of the O-xus and Jaxartes.
A Brilliant Campaign.
When Hoti was still a youth, he com- pleted this programme by overrunning the region as far as the Caspian, which was prob- ably at that time connected with the Aral, and it may be supposed that Khiva marked the limit of the Chinese general's triumphant progress. It is affirmed with more or less show of truth that he came into contact with the Roman Flmpire or the great Thsin, as the Chinese called it, and that he wished to establish commercial relations with it. But, however uncertain this may be, there can be no doubt that he inflicted a most material injury on Rome, for before his legions fled the Huns, who, less than four centuries later, debased the majesty of the Imperial City, and whose leader, Attila, may have been a descendant of that Meha, at whose hands the Chinese suffered so severely.
After this brilliant and memorable war, Panchow returned to China, where he died
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CHINA: PAST AND PRKSKNT.
at the great age of eighty. With him dis- appeared the good fortune of the Han dynasty, and misfortunes fell rapidly on the family that had governed China so long and so well. Hoti's infant son lived only a few months, and then his brother Ganti became Emperor. The real power rested in the hands of the widow of Hoti, who was ele- vated to the post of Regent. Ganti was succeeded in A. D. 1 24 by his .son Chunti, in whose time several rebellions occurred, threatening the extinction of the dynasty.
Ambitious Schemes.
Several children were then elevated to the throne, and at last an ambitious noble named Leangki, whose sister was one of the Em- presses, acquired the supreme direction of affairs. He gave a great deal of trouble, but at la.st, finding that his ambitious schemes did not prosper, he took poison, thus antici- pating a decree passed for his execution. Hwanti, the Emperor who had the courage to punish this powerful noble, was the last able ruler of the Hans. His reign was, on the whole, a brilliant one, and the Sienpi tribes, who had taken the place of the Hiognou, were, after one arduous campaign, defeated in a pitched battle. The Chinese were on the verge of defeat when their general, Twan Kang, rushed to the front, exclaiming : " Recall to your minds how often before you have beaten these same opponents, and teach them again to-day that in you they have their masters."
After Hwanti's death the decline of the Hans was rapid. They produced no other ruler worthy of the throne. In the palace the eunuchs, always numerous at the Chi- nese Court, obtained the upper hand, and appointed their own creatures to the great governing posts. Fortunately this dissen- sion at the capital was not attended by weak-
ness on the frontic!, and the Sienpi were again defeated. The battle is chiefly mem- orable because the Sienpi endeavored to frighten the Chinese general by t' '-^ning to kill his mother, who was a j. or in their hands, if he attacked.
Not deterred by this menace, Chow Pow attacked the enemy, and gained a decisive victory, but at the cost of his mother's life, which so affected him that he died of griet shortly afterwards. After some time dissen- sions rose in the Han family, and two half brothers claimed the throne. Pienti became P2mperor by the skilful support of his uncle. General Hotsin, while his rival Hicnti en- joyed the support of the eunuchs. A deadly feud ensued between the two parties, which was aggravated by the murder of Hotsin, who rashly entered the palace ' it an
escort. His soldiers avenged jath,
carrying the palace by storm, and putting 10,000 eunuchs to the sword.
End of a Famous Dynasty.
After this the la.st Emperors possessed only the name of Emperor. The practical authority was disputed among several gen- erals, of whom Tsow Tsow was the most distinguished and successful; and he and his son Tsowpi founded a dynasty. In A. D. 220 Hienti, the la.st Han ruler, re- tired into private life as Prince of Chanyang, thus bringing to an end the famous Han dynasty, which had governed China for 475 years.
Among the families that have reigned in China none have obtained as high a place in popular esteem as the Hans. They ren- dered excellent work in consolidating the Empire and in carrying out what may be called the Impeiial mission of China. Yun- nan and Leaoutung were made provinces for the first time. Cochin China became a vas-
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TUl' STORY OI- 11 IK 11 AN RULERS.
43
sal state. The writ of the Kinpcror ran as far as the Pamir. The wealth and trade of the country increased with the progress of its armies. Some of the greatest public works, in the shape of roads, bridges, canals, and aqueducts, were constructed during this period, and still remain to testify to the glory of the Hans.
As has been seen, the Hans produced several great rulers. Their fame was not the creation of one man alone, and as a consequence the dynasty enjoyed a length- ened existence equalled by few of its prede- cessors or successors. No ruling family was ever more popular with the Chinese than
this, and it managed to retain the throne when less favored rulers would have ex- piated their mi.stakes and .shortcomings by the loss of the Empire. With the strong support of the people, the Hans overcame innumerable difficulties, and even the natural process of decay ; and when they made their final exit from history it was in a graceful manner, and without the execration of the masses, which generally attends the fall of greatness and the loss of sovereign authority. That this feeling retains its force is shown in the pride with which the Chinese still pro- claim themselves to be the sons of Han and glory in their ancestry.
IMAGE OF BUDDHA.
CHAPTER III.
THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA.
THE ignominious failure of the usurper Wang Mang to found a dynasty was too recent to encourage any- one to take upon himself the heavy charge of administering the whole of the Han Empire, and so the state was split up into three principalities, and the period is known from this fact as the Sankoue. One prince, a member of the late ruling family, held possession of Szchuen, which was called the principality of Chow. The southern provinces were goverened by a general named Sunkiuen, and called Ou.
The central and northern provinces, con- taining the greatest population and resources, formed the principality of Wei, subject to Tsowpi, the son of Tsow Tsow. A struggle for supremacy very soon began between these princes, and the balance of success gradually declared itself in favor of Wei.
It would serve no useful purpose to enu- merate the battles which marked this struggle, yet one deed of heroism deserves mention, the defence of Sinching by Changte, an officer of the Prince of Wei. The strength of the place was insignificant, and, after a siege of ninety days, several breaches had been matlc in the walls. In this strait Changte sent a message to the besieging general that he would surrender on the hun- dredth day if a cessation of hostilities were granted, " as it was a law among the princes of Wei that the governor of a place which held out for a hundred days and then surren- deicd, with no prospect of relief visible, should not be considered as guilty." The 44
respite was short and it was granted. But the disapnr>mfment of the besieger, already counting on success, vas great when a few days later he saw that the breaches had been repaired, that fresh defences had been impro- vised, and that Sinching was in better condi- tion than ever to withstand a seige.
On sending to inquire the meaning of these preparations, Changte, gave the fol- lowing reply : " I am preparing my tomb and to bury myself in the ruins of Sinching." Of such gallantry and resource the interne- cine strife of the Sankoue period presents few instances, but the progress of the struggle steadily pointed in the direction of the triumph of Wei.
Period of United Government.
A long period of dissension prevailed in China. Then came the powerful Tang dynasty, A. D. 617, which succeeded in largely restoring the unity of the nation. A termination was at last reached to the internal division and weakness that had lasted for more than 750 years.
The student reaches at this point firmer ground in the history of China as an Empire, and his interest in the subject must assume a more definite form on coming to the begin- ning of that period of united government and settled authority which has been established for nearly 1 ,000 years, during which no more than four separate families have held posses- sion of the throne.
After the rival dynasties of the Sungs and Kins rose to supremacy, the Chinese were
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II
rested satisfied with no secondary position, indicated the path on whicii the Mongols proceeded to the acquisition of supreme power and a paramount military influence whithersoever they carried their name and standards.
Union of Warlike Races.
The work begun by Kabul was well con- tinued by his son Kutula, or Kablai. He, too, was a great warrior, whose deeds of prowess aroused as much enthusiasm among the Mongols as those of Cceur-de-Lion evoked in the days of the Plantagenets. The struggle with Hie Kins was rendered more bitter by the execution of several Mongols of importance, who happened to fall into the hands of the Kins. When Kutula died the chiefship passed to his nephew, Yissugci, who greatly extended the influence aud power of his family among the tribes neighboring to the Mongol home. Many of these, and even some Chinese, joined the military organization of the domi- nant tribe, so that what was originally a small force of strictly limited numbers, became a vast and ever-increasing con- federacy of the most warlike and aggressive races of the Chinese northern frontier. Im- portant as Yissugei's work in the develop- ment of Mongol power undoubtedly was, his chief historical interest is derived from the fact that he was the father of Genghis Khan.
There are several interesting fables in con- nection with the birth of Genghis, which event may be safely assigned to the year 1 162 A. 1). One of these reads as follows: — " One day Yissugei was hunting in com- pany with his brothers, and was following the tracks of a white hare in the snow. They .struck upon the track of a wagon, and fol- lowing it up came to a spot where a
woman's yart was pitched. Then said Yissugci, ' This woman will bear a valiant son.' He discovered that she was the damsel Ogclen Eke {i. v., the mother of nations), and that she was the wife of Yeke Yilatu, chief of a Tartar tribe. Yissugei carried her off and made her his wife."
Birth ot the "Valiant Son."
Immediately after his overthrow of Temu- jin, chief of one of the principal Tartar tribes, Yissugei learned that the promised " valiant son " was about to be born, and in honor of his victory he gave him the name of Temujin, which was the proper name of tile great Genghis. The village or encamp- ment in which the future conqueror first saw the light of day still bears the old Mongol name, Dilun Boldak, on the banks of the Onon. When Yissugei died, Temujin, or Genghis, was only thirteen, and his clan of 40,000 families refused to recognize him as their leader. At a meeting of the tribe Genghis entreated them with tears in his eyes to stand by the son of their former chief, but the majority of them mocked at him, exclaiming, "The deepest wells are sometimes dry, and the hardest stone is sometimes broken, why should we cling to thee?"
Genghis owed to the heroic attitude of his mother, who flung abroad the cow-tailed banner of his race, the acceptance of his authority by about half the warriors who had obeyed his father. The great advantage of this step was that it gave Genghis time to grow up to be a warrior as famous as any of his predecessors, and it certainly averted what might have easily become the irretriev- able disintegration of the Mongol alliance.
The youth of Genghis was passed in one ceaseless struggle to regain the whole of his birthright. His most formidable enemy was
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48
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
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Chamuka, chief of the Juriats, and for a long time he had all the worst of the struggle, being taken prisoner on one occasion, and under- going marked indignity. On making his escape he had rallied his remaining followers round him for a final effort, and on the advice of his mother Ogelen Eke, who was his principal adviser and staunchest sup- porter, he divided his forces into thirteen regiments of i,ooo men each, and confined his attention to the defence of his own terri- tory.
Unexpected Victory.
Chamuka, led away by what he deemed the weakness of his adversary, attacked him on the Onon with as he considered the over- whelming force of 30,000 men ; but the re- sult dispelled his hopes of conquest, for Genghis gained a decisive victory. Then was furnished a striking instance of the truth of the saying that " nothing succeeds like success." The despised Temiijin, who was thought to be unworthy of the post of ruling the Mongols, was lauded to the skies, and the tribes declared with one voice, " Temujin alone is generous and worthy of ruling a great people." At this time also he began to show the qualities of a statesman and diplomatist. He formed in 1 194 a tem- porary alliance with the Kin emperor, Mada- cou, and the richness of his reward seems to have excited his cupidity, while his expe- rience of the Kin army went to prove that they were not so formidable as had been imagined.
The discomfiture of Chamuka has been referred to, but he had not abandoned the hope of success, and when he succeeded in detaching the Kerait chief Wang Khan from the Mongols, to whom he was bound by ties of gratitude, he fancied that he again held victory in his grasp. But the intrigue did
not realize his expectations. Wang Khan deserted Genghis v.liile engaged in a joint campaign against the Naimans, but he was the principal suffererer by his treachery, for the enemy pursued his force, and inflicted a heavy defeat upon it. In fact, he was only rescued from destruction by the timely aid of the man he had betrayed.
But far from inspiring gratitude, this inci- dent inflamed the resentment of Wang Khan, who, throwing off the cloak of simulated friendship, declared publicly that either the Kerait or the Mongol must be supreme on the great steppe, as there was not room for both. Such was the superiority in numbers of the Kerait, that in the first battle of this long and keenly-contested struggle, Wang Khan defeated Temujin near Ourga, where the mounds that cover the slain are still shown to the curious or skeptical visito»". After this serious, and in some degree unex- pected reverse, the fortunes of Genghis sank to the lowest ebb. He was reduced to ter- rible straits, and had to move his camp rapidly from one spot to another.
Put Him to Death.
A small section of his followers, mindful of his past success and prowess, still clung to him, and by a sudden and daring coup he changed the whole aspect of the contest. He surprised Wang Khan in his camp at night, and overwhelmed him and his forces. Wang Khan escaped to his old foes, the Nai- mans, who, disregarding the laws of hospi- tality, put him to death. The death of Wang Khan signified nothing less than the wholesale defection of the Kerait tribe, which joined Genghis to the last man. Then Geng- his turned westwards to settle the question of supremacy with the Naimans, who were both hostile and defiant.
The Naiman chief shared the opinion of
THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA.
49
Wang Khan, that there could not be two masters on the Tian Shan, and with that vigorous illustration which has never been wanting to these illiterate tribes, he wrote, "There cannot be two suns in the sky, two swords in one sheath, two eyes in one eyepit, or two kings in one empire." Both sides made strenuous efforts for the fray, and brought every fighting man they could into the field. The decisive battle of the war was fought in the heart of Jungaria, and the star of Genghis rose in the ascendant. The Naimans fought long and well, but they were borne down by the heavier armed Mongols, and their desperate resistance only added to their loss. Their chief died of his wounds, and the triumph of Genghis was rendered complete by the capture of his old enemy, Chamuka.
Nine White Yak-Tails.
As Genghis had sworn the oath of friend- ship with Chaniuka, he would not slay him, but he handed him over to a relative, who promptly exacted the rough revenge his past hostility and treachery seemed to call for. On his way back from this campaign the Mongol chief attacked the Prince of Hia, who reigned over Kansuh and Tangut, and thus began the third war he waged for the e.xtension of his power. Before this assumed serious proportions he summoned a Grand Council or Kuriltai, at his camp on the Onon, and then erect.d outside his tent the royal Mongol banner of the nine white yak- tails.
It was on this occasion that Temujin took, and was proclaimed among the Mongol chiefs by, the highly exalted name of Genghis Khan, which means Very Mighty Khan. The Chinese character for the name signifies " Perfect Warrior," and the earlier European writers affirm that it is supposed
to represent the sound of " the bird of heaven." At this assemblage, which was the first of a long succession of Mongol councils summoned at the same place on critical occasions, it was supposed and agreed that the war should be carried on with the richer and less warlike races of the south.
Rewards and Decorations.
Among soldiers it is necessary to pre- serve the spirit of pre-eminence and warlike zeal by granting rewards and decorations. Genghis realized the importance of this matter, and instituted the order of Baturu or Bahadur, meaning warrior. He also made his two leading generals Muhula and Porshu princes, one to sit on his right hand and the other on his left. He addressed them before council in the following words: — "It is to you that I owe my empire. You are and have been to me as the shafts of a carriage or the arms to a man's body." Seals of office were also granted to all the officials, so that their authority might be the more evi- dent and the more honored.
In A. D. 1207 Genghis began his war with the state of Hia, which he had deter- mined to crush as the preliminary invasion of China. In that year he contented himself with the capture of Wuhlahai, one of the Lorder fortresses of that principality, and in the following year he established his control over the tribes of the desert more fully, thus gaining many Kirghiz and Naiman aux- iliaries. In 1209 he resumed the war with Hia in a determined spirit, and placed him- self in person at the head of all his forces. Although the Hia ruler prepared as well as he could for the struggle, he was really un- nerved by the magnitudv^ of the danger he had to face. His army was overthrown, his best generals were taken prisoners, and he himself had no resource left but to throw
60
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
himself on the consideration of Genghis. For good reasons the Mongol conqueror was lenient. He married one of the daugh- ters of the king, and he took him into sub- sidiary alliance with himself.
Thus did Genghis absorb the Hia power, which was very considerable, and prepared to enrol it with all his own resources against the Kin empire. The Mongols owed their
before the time of Genghis. War had be- come a science.
But the Mongols carried the teaching of the past to a further point than any of the former or contemporary Chinese com- manders, indeed, than any in the whole world had done ; and the revolution which they effected in tactics was not less remark- able in itself, and did not leave a smaller im-
A CHINESE BRIDGE.
military success to their admirable discipline and to their close study of the art of war. Their military supremacy arose from their superiority in all essentials as a fighting power to their neighbors. Much of their knowledge was borrowed from China, where the art of disciplining a large army and manoeuvring it in the field had been brought to a high state of perfection man>- centuries
pression upon the age, than the improve- ments made in military science by Frederick the Great and Napoleon did in their day. The Mongol played in a large way in Asia the part which the Normans on a smaller scale played in Europe. Although the land- marks of their triumph have almost wholly vanished, they were for two centuries the dominant caste in most of the states of Asia.
THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA.
51
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Having thus prepared the way for a larger enterprise, it only remained to find a plaus- ible pretext for attacking the Kins, the other dynasty, ruling in southern China. With or without a pretext Genghis would no doubt have made war, but even the ruthless Mongol sometimes showed a regard for appearances. Many years before the Kins had sent as envoy to the Mongol encampment Conghei, a member of their ruling house, and his mis- sion had been not only unsuccessful, but had led to a personal antipathy between the two men. In the course of time Con-^hei suc- ceeded Madacou as emperor of the Kins, and when a Kin messenger brought intelli- gence of this event to Genghis, the Mongol ruler turned towards the south, spat upon the ground, and said, " I thought that your sovereigns were of the race of the gods, but do you suppose that I am going to do homage to such an imbecile as that ? "
All the Tribes Rallied.
The affront rankled in the mind of Chon- chei, and while Genghis was engaged with Hia, he sent troops to attack the Mongol out- posts. Chonghei thus placed himself in the wrong, and gave Genghis justification for de- claring that the Kins and not he began the war. The reputation of the Golden dynasty, al- though not as great as it once was, still stood sufficienty high to make the m.ost adventurous of desert chiefs wary in attack- ing it. Genghis had already secured the co-operation of the ruler of Hia in his enter- prise, and he next concluded an alliance with Yeliu Liuko, chief of the Khitans, who were again manifesting discontent with the Kins.
Genghis finally circulated a proclamation among all the desert tribes, calling upon them to join him in his attack upon the common enemy. This appeal was iieartily
and generally responded to, and it was at the head of an enormous force that Genghis set out in March, 121 1, to effect the con- quest of China. The Mongol army was led by Genghis in person, and under him his four sons and his most famous general, Chepe Noyan, held commands.
Ravages of War.
The plan of campaign of the Mongol ruler was as simple as it was bold. From his camp at Karakoram, on the Kerulon, he marched in a straight line through Kuku Khoten and the Ongut country to Taitong, securing an unopposed passage through the Great Wall, by the defection of the Ongut tribe. The Kins were unprepared for this sudden and vigorous assault directed on their weakest spot, and successfully executed be- fore their army could reach the scene. Dur- ing the two years that the forces of Genghis kept the field on this occasion, they devas- tated the greater portion of the three northern provinces of Shensi, Shansi, and Pechihli.
But the border fortress of Taitong and the Kin capital, Tungking, successfully resisted all the assaults of the Mongols, and when Genghis received a serious wound at the former place, he reluctantly ordered the re- treat of his army, laden with an immense quantity of spoil, but still little advanced in its main task of conquering China. The success of Khitan Yeliu Liuko had not been less considerable, and he was proclaimed King of Leaou as a vassal of the Mongols, The planting of this ally on the very thresh- old of Chinese power facilitated the subse- quent enterprises of the Mongols against the Kins, and represented the most important result of this war.
In 121 3 Genghis again invaded the Kin dominions, but his success was not very striking, and in several engagements of no
62
CHINA: I'AST AND PRlvSKNT,
very great importance the Kin arms met with some success. Tiic most important events of the year were, liowcver, tlic depo- sition and murder of Ciionghci, the murder of a Kin general, Ilusliahu, wlio had won a battle against the Mongols, and the procla- mation of Utubu as Emperor. The change of sovereign brought no change of fortune to the unlucky Kins. Utubu was only able to find safety behind the walls of his capital, and he was delighted when Genghis wrote him the following letter: "Seeing your wretched condition and my exalted fortune, what may your opinion be now of the will of heaven with regard to myself? At this moment I am desirous to return to Tartary, but could you allow my soldiers to take their departure without appeasing their anger with presents ? "
An Inhuman Massacre.
In reply, Utubu sent Genghis a princess of a family as a wife, and also " 500 youths, the same number of girls, 3000 horses, and a vast quantity of precious articles." Then Genghis retired once more to Karakoram, but on his march he stained his reputation by massacring all his prisoners — the first gross act of inhumanity he committed during his Chinese wars.
When Utubu saw the Mongols retreating, he thought to provide against the most seri- ous consequences of their return by removing his capital to a greater distance from the frontier, and with this object he transferred his residence t.> Kaifong. The majority of his advisers were against this change, as a retirement could not but shake public confi- dence. It hr.d another consequence, which they may not have contemplated, and that was its providing Genghis with an excuse for renewing his attack on China. The Mongol at once complained that the action of the
Kin Emperor implied an unwarrantable sus- picion of his intentions, and he .sent his army across the frontier to recommence his humilia- tion.
On this occasion a Kin general deserted to them, and thenceforward large bodies of the Chinese of the north attached themselves t;> the Mongols, who were steadily acquiring a unique reputation for power as well as mili- tary prowess. The great event of this war was the siege of Yenking — on the site of which now stands the capital Pekin — the defence of which had been entrusted to the Prince Imperial, but Utubu, more anxious for his son's safety than the interests of the state, ordered him to return to Kaifong. The governor of Yenking offered a stout resist- ance to the Mongols, and when he found that he could not hold out, he retired to the temple of the city and poisoned himself. Hi> last act was to write a letter to Utubu beg- ging him to listen no more to the pernicious advice of the man who had induced him to murder Hushahu.
On to Central China.
Tile capture of Yenking, where Genghis obtained a large supply of war materials, as well as vast booty, opened the road to Cen- tral China. The Mongols advanced as far as the celebrated Tunkwan pass, which con- nects Shensi and Honan, but when their gen- eral, Samuka, saw how formidable it was, and how strong were the Kin defences and garrison, lie declined to attack it, and, mak- ing a detour through very difficult country, he marched on Kaifong, where Utubu little expected him. The Mongols had to make their own road, and they crossed several ravines by improvised "bridges made of spears and the branches of trees bound together by strong chains." But the Mon- gol force was too small to accomplish any
54
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
great result, and the impetuosity of Samuka was nearly leading to his destruction. A prompt rctreat.and the fact that the Hoangho was frozen over, enabled him to extricate his army after much fatigue and reduced in nu.nbers, from its awkward position.
Sudden Successes.
The retreat of the Mongols inspired Utubu with sufficient confidence to induce him to attack Ycliu Liuko in Leaoutung, and the success of this enterprise imparted a gleam of sunshine and credit to the expiring cause of the Kins. Yclin Liuko was driven from his newly-created kingdom, but Geng- his hastened to the assistance of his ally by sending Muhula, the greatest of all his gen- erals, at the head of a large army to recover Leaoutung. His success was rapid and remarkable. The Kins were speedily over- thrown, Yeliu Liuko was restored to his authority, and the neighboring King of Corea, impressed by the magnitude of the Mongol success, hastened to acknowledge himself the vassal of Genghis.
The most important result of this cam- paign was that Genghis entrusted to Muhula the control of all military arrangemeats for the conquest of China. He is reported to have said to his lieutenant: "North of the Taihing mountains I am supreme, but all the regions to the south I commend to the care of Muhula," and he "also presented him with a chariot and a banner with nine scalops. As he handed him this last emblem of authority, he spoke to his generals, saying, ' Let this banner be an embelm of sovereignty, and let the orders issued from under it be obeyed as my own.' " The principal reason forentrust- ing the conquest of China to a special force and commander, was that Genghis wished to devote the whole of his personal attention to the prosecution of his new war with the King
of Khwaresm and the other great rulers of Western Asia.
Muhula more than justified the selection and confidence of his sovereign. In the year 1 2 1 8-1 9 he invaded Ilonan, defeated the best of the Kin commanders, and not merely overran, but retained possession ofthe places he occupied in the Kin dominions. The dif- ficulties of Utubu were aggravated by an attack from Ningtsong the Sung Emperor, who refused any lon{,er to pay tribute to the Kins as they were evidently unable to enforce the claim, and the Kin armies were equally unfortunate against their southern opponents as their northern. Then Utubu endeavored to negotiate terms with Muhula for the retreat of his army, but the only conditions the Mongol general would accept were the surrender of the Kin ruler and his resigna- tion ofthe Imperial title in exchange for the principality of Honan.
Had his Eye on India.
Utubu, low as he had sunk, declined to abase himself further and to purchase life at the loss of his dignity. The sudden death of Muhula gained a bri f respite for the dis- tressed Chinese potentate, but the advantage was not of any permanent significance, first of all because the Kins were too exhausted by their long struggle, and, secondly, because Genghis hastened to place himself at the head of his army. The news of the death of Muhula reached him when he was encamped on the frontier of India and preparing to add the conquest of that country to his many other triumphs in Central and Western Asia. He at once came to the conclusion that he must return to set his house in order at home, and to prevent all the results of Muhula's remarkable triumphs being lost.
What was a disadvantage for China proved a benefit for India, and possibly for
THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA.
65
Europe, as there is no saying how much further the Mongol encroachment might have extended westward, if the direction of Gengliis had not been withdrawn. While Genghis was hastening from the Cabul river to the Kerulon, across the Hindoo Koosh and Tian Shang ranges, Utubu died, and Ninkiassu reigned in his stead.
One of the first consequences of the death of Muhula was that the young King of Hia, believing that the fortunes of the Mongols would then wane, and that he might obtain a position of greater power and indepen- dence, threw off his allegiance, and adopted hostile measures against them. The prompt return of Genghis nipped this plan in the bud, but it was made quite evident that the conquest of Hia was essential to the success of any permanent annexation of Chinese ter- ritory, and as its prince could dispose of an army which he boasted numbered half-a-mil- lion of men, it is not surprising to find that he took a whole year in perfecting his arrangements for so grave a contest.
Battle on Ice.
The war began in 1225 and continued for two years. The success of the Mongol army was decisive and unqualified. The Hias were defeated in several battles, and in one of them fought upon the frozen waters of the Hoangho, when Genghis broke the ice by means of his engines, the Hia army was almost annihilated. The King Leseen was deposed, and Hia became a Mongol province.
It was immediately after this successful war that Genghis was seized with his fatal illness. Signs had been seen in the heavens which the Mongol astrologers said indicated the near approach of his death. The five planets had appeared together in the south- west, and so much impressed was Genghis
by this phenomenon that on his death-bed he expressed "the earnest desire that hence- forth the lives of our enemies shall not be unnecessarily sacrified. " The expression of this wish undoubtedly tended to mitigate the terrors of war as carried on by the Mongols.
How He Died.
The immediate successors of Genghis con- ducted their campaigns after a more humane fashion, and it was not until Timour revived the early Mongol massacres that their oppo- nents felt there was no chance in appealing to the humanity of the Mongols. Various accounts have been published of the cause of Genghis's death, some authorities ascrib- ing it to violence, either by an arrow, light- ning or drowning, and others to natural causes. The event seems to have unques- tionably happened in his camp on the bor- ders of Shansi on 27th August, 1227, when he was about 65 years of age, during more than fifty of which he had enjoyed supreme command of his own tribe.
The area of the undertakings conducted under his eye was more vast and included a greater number of countries than was the case with any other conqueror. Not a coun- try from the Euxine to the China Sra escaped the tramp of the Mongol horse- men, and if we include the achievements of his immediate successors, the conquest of Russia, Poland and Hungary, the plundering of Bulgaria, Roumania and Bosnia, the final subjection of China and its southern tribut- aries must be added to complete the tale of Mongol triumph. The sphere of Mongol influence extended beyond this large portion of the earth's surface, just as the conse- quence of an explosion cannot be restricted to the immediate scene of the disaster. If we may include the remarkable achievements of his descendant Baber, and of that prince's
56
CHINA: PAST AND PRESKNT.
I,
!l
l! Il !
decendant Akbar, in India three centuries later, not a country in Asia enjoyed immun- ity from the effect of their successes. I Perhaps the most important result of their great outpouring into Western Asia, which certainly was the arrest of the Mahomedan career in Central Asia, and the diversion of the current of the fanatical propagators of the Prophet's creed against Europe, is not yet as fully recognized as it should be. The doubt has been already expressed whether the Mongols would ever have risen to higher rank than that of a nomad tribe but for the appearance of Genghis. Leaving that sup- position in the category of other interesting but problematical conjectures, it may be asserted that Genghis represented in their highest forms all the qualities which entitled his riice to exercise governing authority.
The Mongol Napoleon.
He was, moreover, a military genius of the very firs^ order, and it may be ques- tioned whether either Ca;sar or Napoleon can as commanders be placed on a par with him. Even the Chinese said that he led his armies like a God. The manner in which he moved large bodies of men over vast dis- tances without an apparent effort, the judg- ment he showed in the conduct of several wars in countries far apart from each other, his rt-rategy in unknown regions, always on the alert, yet never allowing hesitation or over-caution to interfere with his enterprise, the sieges which he brought to a successful termination, his brilliant victories, a succes- sion of " suns of Austerlitz, " all combined make up the picture of a career to which Europe can offer nothing that will surpass, if, indeed, she has anything to bear compari- son with it.
After the lapse of centuries, and in spite of the indifference with which the great figures
of Asiatic history have been treated, the name of Genghis preserves its magic spell. It is still a name to conjure with when record- ing the great revolutions of a period which beheld the death of the old system in China, and the advent in that country of a newer and more vigorous government which, slowly acquiring shape in the hands of Kublai and a more national form under the Mings, has attaincc' the pinnacle of its utility and strength under the influence of the great Emperors of the Manclui dynasty. But great as is the reputation Genghis has acquired it is pro- bably short of his merits. He is remembered as a relentless and irresistible conquercr, a human scourge; but he was much more. He was one of the greatest instruments of destiny, one of the most remarkable moulders of the fate of nations to be met with in the history of the world. His name still over- shadows Asia with its fame and the tribute of our admiration cannot be denied.
The Struggle Continues.
The death of Genghis did not seriously retard the progress of the war against the Kins. He expressed the wish that war should be carried on in a more humane and less vindictive manner, but he did not advo- cate there being no war or the abandonment of any of his enterprises. His son and suc- cessor Ogotai was indeed specialK- r1i niTOfi to bring the conquest of Thinn and victorious conclusion I'li the Mongol confederal co:
nected with the proclani n of a i Khan and the necessity of summoning t > a Grand Council all the princes and gen ils of the race, although it entailed the suspension and often the abandonment of great enterprises.
The death of Genghis saved India but not China. Almost his last instructions were to draw up the plan for attacking and turning
THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA.
57
the great fortress of Tunkwan, which had provided such an efficient defence for Honan on the north, and in 1230, Ogotai who had already partitioned the territory tal<cn from the Kins into ten departments, took the field in person, giving a joint command to his brother Tuli, under whom served the experi- enced generals Yeliu Chutsia, Antchar, and Subutai. At first the Mongols met with no great success, and the Kins, encouraged by a momentary gleam of victory, ventured to reject the terms offered by Ogotai and to insult his envoy. The only important fight- ing during the )ears 1230- 1 occurred round Fongsian, which after a long siege sur- rendered to Antchar, and when the campaign closed the Kins presented a bold, front to the Mongols and still hoped to retain their power and dominions.
Attacked on Two Sides.
In 1232 the Mongols increased their armies in the field, and attacked the Kins from the two sides. Ogotai 'ed the main force against Honan, while Tuli, marching through Shensi into Szchuen, assailed them on their western flank. The difficulties encountered by Tuli on this march, when he had to make his own roads, were such, that he entered the Kin territories with a much reduced and exhausted army. The Kin forces gained some advan- tage over it, but by either a feigned or a forced retreat, Tuli succeeded in baffling their pursuit, and in effecting a junction with his brother Ogotai, who had met with better fortune. Tuli destroyed everything along his line of march, and his massacres and sacks revived the worst traditions of Mongol ferocity.
In these straits the Kins endeavored to flood the country round their capital, to which the Mongols had now advanced, but the Mongois foil upon the workmen while
engaged in the task, and slew 10,000 of them. When the main Kin army accepted battle before the town of Yuchow, it was signally defeated, with the loss of three of its principal generals, and Ninkiassu fled from Kaifong to a place more removed from the scene of war. The garrison and townspeople of Kaifong — an immense city with walls 36 miles in circumference, and a population dur- ing the siege it is said of i ,400,000 families, or nearly seven million people — oflei.:d a stubborn resistance to the Mongols, who entrusted the conduct of the attack to Subutai, the most daring of all their commanders.
The Mongols employed their most formid- able engines, catapults hurling immense stones, and mortars ejecting explosives and combustibles, but twelve months elapsed before the walls were shuttered and the courage and provisions of the defenders exhausted. Then Kaifong surrendered at discretion, and Subutai wished to massacre the whole of the population. But fortunately for the Chinese Yeliu Chutsai was a more humane and a more influential general, and under his advice Ogotai rejected the cruel proposal.
The Brave Kins.
At this moment, when it seemed impossible for fate to have any worse experience in store for the unfortunate Kins, their old enemies the Sungs declared war upon them, and placed a large army in the field under the their best general, Mongkong. The relics of the Kin army under their sovereign Nin- kiassu, took shelter in Tsaichau, where they were closely besieged by the Mongols on one side and the Sungs on the other. Driven thus into a corner, the Kins fought with the courage of despair, and long held out against the combined efforts of their enemies. At last Ninkiassu saw the struggle could not be
f
58
CHINA : PAST AND PRESENT.
I
prolonged, and he prepared himself to end his life and career in a manner worthy of the race from which he sprang.
When the enemy broke into the city, and he heard the stormers at the gate of his palace, he retired to an upper chamber and set fire to the building. Many of his gen- erals, and even of his soldiers, followed his example, preferring to end their existence rather than to add to the triLnn[)h of their Mongol and Sung opponents. Thus came to an end in 1234 the famous dyna.sty of the Kins, who under nine Emperors had ruled Northern China for i 1 8 years, and whose power and military capacity may best be gauged by the fact that without a single ally they held out against the all-powerful Mon- gols for more than a quarter of a century. Ninkiassii, the last of their rulers, was not able to sustain the burden of their authority, but he at least showed him.seif equal to end- ing it in a worthy and appropriately dramatic manner.
Warnings not Heeded.
The folly of the Sungs had completed the discomfiture of the Kins, and had brought to their own borders the terrible peril which had beset every other st, . j in Asia, and which had in almost every case entailed destruction. How could the Sungs expect to avoid the same fate, or to propitiate the most implac- able and insatiable of conquering races ? They had done this to a large extent with their eyes open. More than once in the early .stages of the struggle the Kin rulers had sent envoys to beg their alliance, and to warn them th^t if tlicy did not help in keep- ing out the Mongols, their time would cone to be assailed and to share in the common ruin.
But Ningtsong did not pay heed to the warning, and scarcely concealed his gratifi-
cation at the misfortunes of his old opponents. The nearer the Mongols came, and the worse the plight to which the Kins were reduced, the more did he rejoice. He forgave Tuli the violation of Sung territory, necessary for his flank attack on Honan, and when the knell of the Kins sounded at the fall of Kai- fong, he hastened to help in striking the final blow at them, and to participate, as he hoped, in the distribution of the plunder. By this time Litsong had succeeded his cousin Ningtsong as ruler of the Sungs, and it is said that he received from Tsaichau the armor and personal s[)oils of Ninkiassu, which he had the satisfaction of offering up in the temple of his ancestors.
Saw his Mistake.
But when he requested the Mongols to comply with the more important part of the conve tion, by which the Sung forces had joined the Mongols before Tsaichau, and to evacuate the province of Honan, he experi- enced a rude awakening from his dream that the overthrow of the Kins would redound to his advantage, and he soon realized what value the Mongols attached to his alliance. The military capacity of Mongkong insiiired the Sung ruler with confidence, and he called upon the Mongols to execute their promises, or to prepare for war. The Mongol garri- sons made no movement of retreat, and the utmost that Litsong was offered was a por- tion of Honan, if it could be practically divided. The proposition was probab'y meant ironically, but at all events Litsong rejected it, and sent Mongkong to take by force possesion of the disputed province.
The Mongol forces on the spot were fewer than the Chinese, and they met with some reverses. But the hope of the Sungs that the fortune of war would declare in their favor was soon destroyed by the vast pre-
THE GIANT CUANG,
59
60
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
parations of the Mongols, who, at a special kuriitai, held at Karakoram, declared that the conquest of China was to be completed. Then Litsong's confidence left him, and he sent an appeal for peace to the Mongols, giving up all claim to Honan, and only ask- ing to be left in undisturbed possession of his original dominions. It was too late. The Mongols had passed their decree that the Sungs were to be treated like the Kins, and that the last Chinese government was to be destroyed.
An Army of Half a Million.
In 1235, the year following the immola- tion of Ninkiassu, the Mongols placed half a million men in the field for the purpose of destroying the Sung power, and Ogotai divi- ded them into three armies, which were to attack Litsong's kingdom from as many sides. The Mongol ruler entrusted the most difficult task to his son Kutan, who invaded the inaccessible and vast province of Szchuen, at the head of one of these armies. Not- withstanding its natural capacity for offering an advantageous defence, the Chinese turned their opportunities to poor account, and the Mongols succeeded in capturing all its fron- tier fortresses, with little or no resistance. The shortcomings of the defence can be in- ferred from the circumstances of the Chinese annalists making .special mention of one governor having had the courage to die at his post.
For some reason not clearly stated the Mongols did not attempt to retain possession of Szchuen on this occasion. They with- drew when they were in successful occupa- tion of the northern half of the province, and when it seemed as if the other lay at their mercy. In the two dual provinces of Kiang- nan and Houkwang, theothei Mongol armies met with considerable success, which was
dimmed, however, by the death of Kuchu, the son and proclaimed heir of Ogotai. This event, entailing no inconsiderable doubt and long-continued disputes as to the suc- cession, was followed by the withdrawal of the Mongol forces from Sung territory, and during the last six years of his life Ogotai abstained from war, and gave himself up to the indulgence of his gluttony. He built a great palace at Karakoram, where his ances- tors had been content to live in a tent, and he entrusted the government of the old Kin dominions to Yeliu Chutsai, who acquired great popularity among the Chinese for his clemency and regard for their customs.
Died of Grief.
Yeliu Chutsai adopted the Chinese mode of taxation, and when Ogotai's widow, Tura- kina, who acted as Regent after her husband's death, ordered him to alter his system and to farm out the revenues, he sent in his resig- nation, and it is said, died of grief shortly afterwards. Ogotai was one of the most humane and amiable of all the Mongol rulers, and Yeliu Chutsai imitated his master. Of the latter the Chinese contemporary writers said " he was distinguished by a rare dis- interestedness. Of a very broad intellect, he was able, without injustice and without wronging a single person, to amass vast treasures, and to enrich his family, but all his care and labors had for their sole object the advantage and glory of his masters. Wise and calculating in his plans, he did little of which he had any reason to repent,"
During the five years following the death of Ogotai, the Mongols were absorbed in the question who should be their next Great Kahn, and it was only after a warm and pro- tracted discussion, which threatened to entail the disruption of Mongol power, and the revelation of many rivalries among the de-
>-4J.
THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA.
61
)ro- tail the de-
scendants of Genghis, that Kuyuk, the eldest son of Ogotai, was proclaimed Emperor. At the kuriltai held for this purpose, all the great Mongol leaders were present, including Batu, the conqueror of Hungary, and after the Mongol chiefs had agreed as to their chief, the captive kings, Yaroslaf of Russia, and David of Georgia, paid homage to their conqueror. We owe to the monk Carpino, who was sent by the Pope to convert the Mongol, a graphic account of one of the most brilliant ceremonies to be met with in the whole course of Mongol history.
Pushing Forward the Conquest.
The delay in selecting Kuyuk, whose prin- cipal act of sovereignty was to issue a seal having this inscription : " God in Heaven and Kuyuk on earth ; by the power of God the ruler of all men," had given the Sungs one respite, and his early death procured them another. Kuyuk died in 1248, and his cousin Mangu, the son of Tuli, was appointed his successor. By this time the Mongol chiefs of the family of Genghis in Western Asia were practically independent of the nominal Great Khan, and governed their states in complete sovereignty, and waged war without reference to Karakoram. This change left the Mongols in their original home on the Amour absolutely free to devote all their attention to the final overthrow of the Sungs, and Mangu declared that he would know no rest until he had finally sub- jected the last of the Chinese ruling families. In this resolution Mangu received the heatty support of his younger, but more able brother, Cublai, to whom was entrusted the direction n the field of the armies sent to complete the conquest of China.
Kublai received this charge in 1251,30 that the Sungs had enjoyed, first through the pacific disposition of Ogotai, and, secondly.
from the family disputes following his death, peace for more than fifteen years. The advantage of this tranquility was almost nul- lified by the death of Mongkong, a general whose reputation may have been easily gained, but who certainly enjoyed the confi- dence of his soldiers, and who was thought by his countrymen to be the best commander of his day.
When the Chinese Emperor Litsong saw the storm again approaching his northern frontier, he found that he had lost the main support of his power, and that his military resources were inferior to those of his enemy. He had allowed himself to be lulled into a false sense of security by the long inaction of the Mongols, and although he seems to have been an amiable prince, and a typical Chinese ruler, honoring the descendants of Confucius with the hereditary title of Duke, which still remains in that family, and is the only title of its kind in China, and encouraging the literary classes of his country, he was a bad sovereign to be entrusted with the task of defending his realm and people against a bold and determined enemy.
A Wise Policy.
Kublai prtp-red the way for his campaigns in Southern China by following a very wise and moderate policy in Northern China similar to that bej^iin by Muhula, and carried out with greater effect by Yeliu Chutsai. He had enjoyed the advantage of a Chinese education, imparted by an able tutor named Yaochu, who became the prince's private secretary and mentor in all Chinese matters. At his instigation, or, at least, with his co-operation, Kublai took in hand the restor- ation of the southern portion of Honan, which had been devastated during the wars, and he succeeded in bringing back its popu lation and prosperity to that great province
62
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
of Central China and retrieving the misfor- tunes of pp.nt years.
He thus secured a base for his operations close to the Sung frontier, while he attached to his person a large section of the Chinese nation. There never was any concealment that this patronage of Chinese officials and these measures for the amelioration of many millions of Chinese subjects, were the well calculated preliminaries to the invasion of Southern China, and the extinction of the Sung dynasty.
A Bold Campaign.
If Kublai had succeeded in obtaining a wise adviser in Yaochu, he was not less for- tunate in procuring a great general in the person of Uriangkadai, the son of Subutai, and his remarkable and unvarying successes were largely due to the efiforts of those two men in the cabinet and the field. The plan of campaign, drawn up with great care and forethought by the prince and his lieutenant, had the double merit of being both bold and original. Its main purpose was not one that the Sung generals would be likely to divine. It was determined to make a flank march round the Sung dominions, and to occupy what is now the province of Yunnan, and by placing an army in the rear of their kingdom, to attack them eventually from two sides. At this time Yunnan formed an independent state, and its ruler, from his position behind the Sung territory, must have fancied him- self secure against any attack by the l.i i\- gols. He was destined to a rude awakening.
Kublai and Uriangkadai, marching across Szchuen and crossing the Kinchakiang, or "river of golden .sand," which forms the upper course of the Great River, on rafts, iiurst into Yunnan, speedily vanquished the frontier garrisons, and laid siege to the capital, Talifoo. That town did not holdout
long, and soon Kublai was in a position to return to his own state, leaving Uriangkadai with a considerable garrison in charge of Yunnan. That general, believing that his position would be improved by his resorting to an active offensive, carried the standard of his race against the many turbulent tribes in his neighborhood, and invaded Burmah, whose king, after one campaign, was glad to recognize the supremacy of the Mongols.
The success and the boldness, which may have been considered temerity, of this cam- paign, raised up enemies to Kublai at the court of Karakoram, and the mind of his brother Mangu was poisoned against him by many who declared that Kublai aspired to complete independence. These designs so far succeeded, that in 1257 Mangu finally deprived Kublai of all his commands, and ordered him to proceed to Karakoram. At this harsh and unmerited treatment Kublai showed himself inclined to rebel and dispute his brother's authority. If he had done this, although the provocation was great, he would have confirmed the charges of his accusers, and a war would have broken out among the Mongols, which would probably have rent their power in twain in Eastern Asia.
Proved his Innocence. But fortunately Yaochu was at hand to give prudent advice, and, after much hesita* tion, Kublai yielded to the impressive exhor- tations of his experienced and sagacious minister. He is reported to have addressed Kublai in the following terms: — "Prince! You are the brother of the Emperor, but you are not the less his subject. You cannot, without committing a crime, question his decisions, and, moreover, if you were to do so, it would only result in placing you in a more dangerous predicament, out of which you could hardly succeed in extricating your*
THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA.
63
rince!
|nnot, his |o do
in a |/hicli
self, as you are so far distant from the capital where your enemies seek to injure you. My advice is that you should send your family to Mangu, and by this step you will justify yourself and remove any suspicions there may be."
Kublai adopted this wise course, and pro- ceeded in person to Karakoram, where he succeeded in proving his innocence and in discomfiting his enemies. It is said that Mangu was so affected at the mere sight of his brother that he at once forgave him with- out waiting for an explanation and reinstated him in all his offices. To ratify this reconcilia- tion Mangu proclaimed that he would take the field in person, and that Kublai should hold joint command with himself When he formed this resolution to proceed to China in person, he appointed his next brother, Arik- buka, to act as his lieutenant in Mongolia. It is necessary to recollect this arrangement as Mangu died during the campaign, and it led to the separation of the Chinese empire and the Mongolian, which were divided after that event between Kublai and Arikbuka.
Rapid Movements.
Mangu did not come to his resolution to prosecute the war with the Sungs any too soon, for Uriangkadai was beginning to find his isolated position not free from danger. Large as the army of that general was, and skilfully as he had endeavored to improve his position by strengthening the fortresses and recruiting from the warlike tribes of Yunnan, Uriangkadai found himself threat- ened by the collected armies of the Sungs, who occupied Szchuen with a large garrison and menaced the daring Mongol general with the whole of their power. There seems every reason to believe that if the Sungs had acted with only ordinary prompti- tude they might have destroyed this Mongol
army long before any aid could have reached it from the north. Once Mangu had formed his resolution the rapidity of his movements left the Sungs little or no chance of attack- ing Uriangkadai.
A Council of War.
This campaign began in the winter of 1257, when the troops were able to cross the frozen waters of the Hoangho, and the immense Mongol army was divided into three bodies, while Uriangkadai was ordered to march north and effect a junction with his old chief Kublai in Szchuen. The principal fighting of the first year occurred in this part of China, and Mengu hastened there with another of his armies. The Sung garrison was large, and showed great courage and fortitude. The difficulty of the country and the strength of several of their fortresses seconded their efforts, and after two years' fighting the Mongols felt so doubtful of suc- cess that they held a council of war to decide whether they should retreat or continue to prosecute the struggle.
It has been said that councils of war do not come to bold resolutions, but this must have been an exception, as it decided not to retreat, and to make one more determined effort to overcome the Chinese. The cam- paign of 1259 began with the siege of Hochau, a strong fortress, held by a valiant garrison and commander, and to whose aid a Chinese army under Luwenti was hasten- ing. The governor, Wangkien, offered a stout resistance, and Luwenti succeeded in harassing the besiegers, but the fall of the fortress appeared assured, when a new and more formidable defender arrived in the form of dysentery. The Mongol camp was rav- aged by this foe, Mangu himself died of the disease, and those of the Mongols who es- caped beat a hasty and disorderly retreat
"
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CHINA: PAST AND PRKSENT.
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!
back to the north. Once more the Sungs obtained a brief respite.
The death of Mangu threatened fresh dis- putes and strife among the Mongol royal family. Kublai was his brother's lawful heir, but Arikbuka, the youngest of the brothers, was in possession of Karakoram, and supreme throughout Mongolia. He was hostile to Kublai, and disposed to assert all his rights and to make the most of his opportunities.
A Generous Conqueror.
No Great Khan could be proclaimed any- where save at Karakoram, and Arikbuka would not allow his brother to gain that place, the cradle of their race and dynasty, unless he could do so by force of arms. Kublai attempted to solve the difficulty by holding a grand council near his favorite city of Cambaluc, the modern Pekin, and he sent forth his proclamation to the Mon- gols as their Khan. But they refused to recognize one who was not elected in the orthodox fashion at Karakoram ; and Arik- buka not merely defied Kublai, but sum- moned his own kuriltai at Karakoram, where he was proclaimed Khakhan in the most formal manner and with all the accustomed ceremonies. Arikbuka was undoubtedly popular among the Mongols, while Kublai, who was regarded as half a Chinese on account of his education, had a far greater reputation south of the wall than north of it.
Kublai could not tolerate the open defi- ance of his authority, and the contempt shown for what was his birthright, by Arik- buka; and in 1261 he advanced upon Kara- koram at the head of a large army. A single battle sufficed to dispose of Arik- buka's pretensions, and that prince was glad to find a place of refuge among the Kirghiz. Kublai proved himself a generous enemy.
He sent Arikbuka his full pardon, he rein stated him in his rank of prince, and he left him virtually supreme amongst the Mongol tribes. He retraced his steps to Pekin, fully resolved to become Chinese Emperor in reality, but prepared to waive his rights us Mongol Khan. Mangu Khan was the last of the Mongol rulers whose authority was recognized in both the east and the west, and his successor, Kublai, seeing that its old significance had departed, was fain to estab- lish his on a new basis in the fertile, ancient, and wide-stretching dominions of China.
Before Kublai composed the difficulty with Arikbuka he had resumed his operations against the Sungs, and even before Mangu 's death he had succeded in establishing some posts south of the Yangtsekiang, in the im- passability of which the Chinese fondly be- lieved. During the year of 1260 he laid siege to Wochow, the modern Wouchang, but he failed to make any impression on the fortress on this occasion, and he agreed to the truce which Litsong proposed.
Terms of the Treaty.
By the terms of this agreement Litsong acknowledged hinisclf a Mongol vassal, just as his ancestors had subjected themselves to to the Kins, paid a large, tribute, and forbade his generals anywhere to attack the Mongols. The last stipulation was partly broken by an attack on the rear of Uriangkadai's corps, but no serious results followed, for Kublai was well satisfied with the manner in which the campaign terminated, as there is no doubt that his advance across the Yangtse- kiang had been precipitate, and he may have thought himself lucky to escape with the appearance of success and the conclusion of a gratifying treaty. It was with the reputa- tion gained by his nominal success, and by having made the Sungs his tributaries, that
of a-
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Hi
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65
'
66
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
Kublai hastened northwards to settle his rivalry with Arikbuka.
Having accomplished that object with complete success he decided to put an end to the Sung dynasty. The Chinese Em- peror, acting with strange fatuity, had given tresh cause of umbrage, and had provoked a war by many petty acts of discourtesy, cul- minating in the murder of the envoys of Kublia, sent to notify his proclamation as Great Khan of the Mongols. Probably the Sung ruler could not have averted war if he had shown the greatest forbearance and humility, but this cruel and inexcusable act precipitated the crisis and the extinction of his attenuated authority. If there was any delay in the movements of Kublai for the purpose of exacting reparation for this out- rage, it was due to his first having to arrange a difficulty that had arisen in his relations with the King of Corea. That potentate had long preserved the peace with his Mongol neighbors, and perhaps he would have re- mained a friend without any interruption, had not the Mongols done something which was construed as an infraction of Corean liberty.
Uprising of the Coreans.
The Corean love of independence took fire at the threatened diminution of their rights, they rose en masse in defence of their coun- try, and even the king, Wangtien, who had been well disposed to the Mongol rulers, declared that he could not continue the alli- ance, and placed himself at the head of his people. Seeing himself thus menaced with a costly war in a difficult country on the eve of a more necessary and hopeful contest, Kublai resorted to diplomacy. He addressed Wangtien in complimentary terms and dis- claimed all intention of injuring the Coreans with whom he wished to maintain friendly relations, but at the same time he pointed
out the magnitude of his power and dilated on the e.\tent of the Mongol conquests. Half by flattery and half by menace Kublai brought the Corean court to reason, and Wangtien again entered into bonds of alli- ance with Cambaluc and renewed his old oaths of friendship.
Change of Rulers.
In 1 263 Kublai issued his proclamation of war, calling on his generals '"to assemble their troops, to sharpen their swords and their pikes, and to prepare their bows and arrows," for he intended to attack the Sungs by land and sea. The treason of a Chinese general in his service named Litan served to delay the opening of the campaign for a few weeks, but this incident was of no import- ance, as Litan was soon overthrown and executed. Brief as was the interval, it was marked by one striking and important event — the death of Litsong, who was succeeded by his nephew, Chowki, called the Emperor Toutsong. Litsong was not a wise ruler, but compared with many of his successors, he might be more accurately styled unfortu- nate than incompetent.
Toutsong, and his weak and arrogant minister, Kiasseto, hastened to show that there were greater heights of folly than any to which he had attained. Acting on the advice of a renegade Sung general, well acquainted with the defences of Southern China, Kublai altered his proposed attack, and prepared for crossing the Yangtsekiang by first making himself supreme on its tribu- tary, the Han river. His earlier attack on Wouchang, and his compulsory retirement from that place had taught him the evil of making a premature at»:ack. His object remained the same, but instead of marching direct to it across the Yangtsekiang he took the advice of the Sung general, and attacked
THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA.
67
I an any on the well )uthern attack, sekiang ;s tribu- ack on irement evil of object irching le took ttacked
the fortress of Sianyang on the Han river, with the object of making himself supreme on that stream, and wresting from the Sungs the last first-class fortress they possessed in the northwest.
By the time all these preliminaries were completed and the Mongol army had fairly taken the field it was 1268, and Kublai sent 60,000 of his best troops, with a large num- ber of auxiliaries, to lay siege to Sianyang, which was held by a large garrison and a resolute governor. The Mongol lines were drawn up round the town, and also its neigh- bor of Fanching, situated on the opposite bank of the river, with which communication was maintained by several bridges, and the V ingols built a large fleet of fifty war junks, ■with which they closed the Han river and effectually prevented any aid being sent up it from Hankow or Wouchang.
A Long Siege. Liuvven Hoan, the commandant of Sian- yang, was a brave man, and he commanded a numerous garrison and possessed supplies, as he said, to stand a ten years' siege. He repulsed all the assaults of the enemy, and, undaunted by his isolation, replied to the threats of the Mongols to give him no quar- ter if he persisted in holding out, by boasting that he would hang their traitor general in chains before his sovereign. The threats and vaunts of the combatants did not bring the siege any nearer to an end. The utmost that the Mongols could achieve was to pre- vent any provisions or reinforcements being thrown into the town. But on the fortress itself they made no impression. Things had gone on like this for three years, and the interest in the siege had begun to languish, when Kublai determined to make a supreme effort to carry the place, and at the same moment the Sunir minister came to the con-
clusion to relieve it at all hazards. It was evident that the crisis had arrived.
The campaign of 1270 began with a heroic episode — the successful despatch of provisions into the besieged town, under the direction of two Chinese officers named Changkoua and Changchun, whose names deserve to be long remembered for their heroism. The flotilla was divided into two bodies, one composed of the fighting, the other of the storeships. The Mongols had made every preparation to blockade the river, but the suddenness and vigor of the Chinese attack surprised them, and, at first, the Chinese had the best of the day. But soon the Mongols recovered, and from their superior position threatened to overwhelnr the assailing Chinese squadron. In this perilous moment Changchun, devoting him- self to death in the interest of his country, collected all his war-junks, and making a desperate attack on the Mongols, succeeded in obtaining sufficient time to enable the storeships under Changkoua to pass safely up to Sianyang. The life of so great a hero as Changchun was, however, a heavy price to pay for the temporary relief of Sianyang, which was more closely besieged than ever after the arrival of Kublai in person.
All Were Destroyed.
The heroic deed of Changchun roused a spirit of worthy emulation in the bosom of his comrade, Changkoua, who having thrown the needed supplies into Sianyang was no longer wanted in that beleagured city. He determined to cut his way back with such forces as he could collect, and to take a part in the operations in progress for the relief of the town. At the head of the few remaining war-junks he succeeded in j breaking his way through the chains and 1 other barriers by which the Mongols sought
68
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
to close the river, and for a brief space it seemed na if he would evade or vanquish such of the Mongol ships as were on the alert. But the Mongols kept good watch, and as Changkoua refused to surrender he
lamentations, and buried beside that of Changchun, whose corpse had been rescued from the river.
After this affair the Mongols pushed the siege with greater vigor, and instead of con-
A MOVABLE COOK-SHOP.
and his small band were destroyed to the last man.
After the brief struggle was ended the Mongols sent the body of Changkoua into Sianyang, where it was received with loud
centrating their efforts on Sianyang they attacked both that fortress and Fanching from all sides. The Mongol commander, Alihaya, sent to Persia, where the Mongols were also supreme, for engineers trained in
THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA.
69
; that of en rescued
lUshed the id of con-
yang they Panelling mmander, Mongols trained in
the working of mangonels or catapults, engines capable of throwing stones of i6o- Ibs. weight with precision for a considerable distance. By their aid the bridges across the river were first destroyed, and then the vvalls of Sianyang were so severely damaged ihat an assault appeared to be feasible.
Letter from the Mongol Emperor.
But Fanching had suffered still more from the Mongol bombardment, and Alhaya, therefore, attacked it first. The garrison offered a determined resistance, and the fight- ing was continued in the streets. Not a man of the garrison escaped, and when the slaughter was over the Mongols found that they had only acquired possession of a mass of ruins. But they had obtained the key to Sianyang, the weakest flank of which had been protected by Fanching, and the Chinese garrison was so discouraged that Liuwen Hoan, despairing of relief, agreed to accept the terms offered by Kublai. Those terms were expressed in the following noble letter from the Mongol Emperor :
"The generous defence you have made during five years covers you with glory. It is the duty of every faithful subject to serve his prince at the expense of his life, but in the straits to which you are reduced, your strength exhausted, deprived of succor and without hope of receiving any, would it be reasonable to sacrifice the lives of so many brave men out of sheer obstinacy? Submit in good faith to us and no harm shall come to you. We promise you still more; and that is to provide each and all of you with honorable employment. You shall have no grounds of discontent, for that we pledge you our Imperial word."
It will not excite surprise that Liuwen Hoan, who had been practically speaking deserted by his own sovereign, should have
accepted the magnanimous terms of his con- queror, and become as loyal a lieutenant of Kublai as he had shown himself to be of the Sung Toutsong. The death of that ruler followed soon afterwards, but as the real power had been in the hands of the Minister Kiassetao, no change took place in the policy or fortunes of the Sung kingdom.
At this moment Kublai succeeded in obtaining the services of Bayan, a Mongol general who had acquired a great reputa- tion under Khulagu in Persia. Bayan, whose name signifies the noble or the brave, and who was popuLarly known as Bayan of the Hundred Eyes, because he was supposed to see everything, was one of the greatest mili- tary leaders of his age and race. He was entrusted with the command of the main army, and under him served, it is interesting to state, Liuwen Hoan. Several towns were captured after more or less resistence, and Bayan bore down with all his force on the triple cities o( H.^.nkow, Wouchang and Hanyang. Bayan concentrated all his efforts on the capture of Hanyang, while the Mongol navy under Artchu compelled the Chinese fleet to take refuge under the walls of Wouchang. None of these towns offered a very stubborn resistance, and Bayan had the satisfaction of receiving their surrender one after another. Leaving Alihaya with 40,000 men to guard these places Bayan marched with the rest of his forces on the Sung capital, Lingan or Hangchow, the cele- brated Kincsay of mediaeval travellers.
The National Defence. The retreating fleet and army of the Sungs carried with them fear of the Mongols, and the ever-increasing representation of their extraordinary power and irresistible arms. In this juncture public opinion compelled Kiassetao to take the lead, and he called
70
CHINA: PAST AND PRKSKNT.
upon all the subjects of the Sung to contri- bute arms and money for the purpose of national defence. But his own incompe- tence in directing this national movement deprived it of half its force and of its natural clianccs of success. Bayan's ativancc was rapid. Many towns opened their gates in terror or admiration of his name, and Liu- wen I loan was frequently present to assure them that Kublai was the most generous of masters, and that there was no wiser course than to surrender to his generals.
"A Little Too Late."
The Mongol forces at last reached the neighborhood of the Sung capital where Kiassetao had succeeded in collecting an army of 130,000 men, but many of them were ill-trained, and the splendor of the camp provided a poor equivalent for the want of arms and discipline among the men. Kiassetao seems to have been ignorant of the danger of his position, for he sent an arrogant summons to the Mongols to retire, stating also that he would grant a peace based on the Yangtsekiang as a boundary. Bayan's simple reply to this notice was: "If you had really aimed at peace, you would have made this proposition before we crossed the Kiang. Now that we are the masters of it, it is a little too late. Still if you sin- cerely desire it, come and see me in person, and we will discuss the necessary condi- tions." Very few of the Sung lieutenants offered a protracted resistance, and even the isolated cases of devotion were confined to the official class who were more loyal than the mass of the people.
Ciiao Maofa and his wife Yongchi put an end to their existence sooner than give up their ciiarge at Chichow, but the garrison accepted the terms of the Mongols without compunction and w'ithout thinking of their
duty. Kiassetao attempted to resist the Mongol advance at Kien Kang, the modern Nankin, but after an engagement on land and water the Sungs were driven back, and their fleet only escaped destruction by retiring pre- cipitately to the sea. After this success Nankin surrendered without resistance, although its governor was a valiant and ap- parently a capable man. He conmiitted suicide sooner than surrender, and among his papers was found a plan of campaign, after perusing which Bayan exclaimed, " Is it possible that the Sungs possessed a man capable of giving such prudent counsel ? If they had paid heed to it should we (;ver have reached this spot?"
After this success Bayan pressed on with increased rather than diminished nnerg/, and tlie Sung Emperor and his court fled fri.rn the capital. Kublai showed an inclination Ic temporize and to negotiate, but Bayan woult not brook any delay. "To relax your grip even for a moment on an enemy whom you have held by the throat for a hundred years would only be to give him time to reccvf r his breath, to restore hi> forces, and ir thf. end to cause us an infinity of tiouble."
Repulsed with Heavy Loss.
The Sung fortunes showed some slight symptoms of improving when Kiassetao wa'i disgraced, a»id a more competent gencal was found in the person of Chang Chikia. But t'ic. Mongols never abated the vigor of their attack or relaxed in their efforts to cut off aU possibility to succor from the Sung capital. When Chang Chikia hoped to im- prove the position of his side by resuming the offensive he was destined to rude disap- pointment. Making an attack on the strong position of the Mongols at Nankin he was repulsed with heavy loss. The Sung fleet was almost annihilated and 700 war-junks
71
72
CHINA: PASl AND PRESENT.
were taken by the victors. After this the Chinese never dared to face the Mongols again on the water. The victory was due to the courage and capacity of Artchu.
Bayan now returned from a campaign in Mongolia to resume the chief conduct of the war, and he signalized his return by the cap- ture of Changchow. At this town he is said to have sanctioned a inassasre of the Chi- nese troops, but the facts are veiled in uncer- tainty; and Marco Polo declares that this was only done after the Chinese had treach- erously cut up the Mongol garrison. Alarme'i by the fall of Changchow the '^ung ministers again sued for peace, sending an imploring V.tter to this effect : — " Our ruler is young ai.a cannot be held responsible for the differences that have arisen between the peoples. Kiassetao the guilty one has been punished; give us peace and we shall be better friends in the future."
The Surrender. Bayan's reply was severe and uncompro- mising. " The age of your prince has nothing to do with the question between us. The war musi. 2^0 on to its legitimate end. Furthur argument is useless." The defences of the Sung capital were by this time re- moved, and the unfortunate upholders of that dynasty had no option save to come to terms with the Mongols. Marco Polo describes Kincsay as the most opulent city of the world, but it was in no position to stan(i a siege. The Empress-Regent acting for her son sent in her submission to Bayan, and agreed to proceed to the court of the conqueror. She abdicated for herself and family all the pretensions of their rank, and she accepted the favors of the Mongol with due humility, saying, " Tlie Son of Heaven (thus giving Kublai the correct Imperial .';tyle) grants you the favor of sparing your
life ; it is just to thank him ibr it and to pay him homage."
Bayan made a triumphal entry into the city, while the Emperor Kongtsong was sent off to Pekin. The majority of the Sung courtiers and soldiers came to terms with Bayan, but a few of the more desperate or faithful endeavored to uphold the Sung cause in Southern China under the general, Chang Chikia. Two of the Sung princes were sup- ported by this commander and one was pro- claimed by the empty title of emperor. Capricious fortune rallied to tlicir side for a brief space, and some of the Mongol detach- ments which had advanced too far or with undue precipitancy were cut up and de- stroyed.
Capture of Cantcn.
The Mongols seem to have thought that the war was c'cr, and the success of Chang Chikia's effort*" may have been due to their negligence rather than to his vigor. As soon as they realized that there remained a flickering flome of opposition among the supporters of the Sungs they sent tv/o armies, one into Kwantung and the other into Fuhkien, and their fleet against Chang Chikia. Desperate as was his position, that officer still exclaimed, " If heaven has not resolved to overthrow the Sungs, do you think that even now it cannot restore their ruined throne?" but his hopes were dashed to the ground by the capture of Canton, and the expulsion of all his forces from the main- land. One puppet emperor died and then Chang proclaimed another as Tiping. The last supporters of the cause took refuge on the island of Tai in the Canton estuary, where they hoped to maintain their position. The position was strong and the garrison was numerous ; but the Mongols were not to be frijjhtened by appearances. Their fleet
' 1;
THE MONGOL CONQUEST OF CHINA.
73
bore down on the last Sung stronghold with absolute confidence, and, although the Chi- nese resisted for three days and showed great gallantry, they were overwhelmed by the superior engines as well as the numbers of the Mongols.
Chang Chikia with a few ships succeeded rn escaping from the fray, but the emperor's vessel was less fortunate, and finding that escape was impossible, Lousionfoo, one of the last Sung ministers, seized the emperor in his arms and jumped overboard with him. Thus died Tiping, the last Chinese Emperor of the Sungs, and with him expired that ill- fated dynasty. Chang Chikia renewed the struggle with aid received from Tonquin, but when he was leading a forlorn hope against Canton he was caught in a typhoon and he and his ships were wrecked. His invocation to heaven, " I have done everything I could to sustain on the throne the Sung dynasty. When one prince died I caused another to be proclaimed emperor. He also has per- ished, and I still live I Oh, heaven, shall I be acting against thy desires if I sought to place a new prince of this family on the throne ?" sounded the dirge of the race he had served so well.
Thus was the conquest of China by the Mongols completed. After half a century of warfare the kingdom of the Sungs shared the same fate as its old rival the Kin, and Kublai had the personal satisfaction of com- pleting the work begun by his grandfather Genghis seventy years before. Of all the Mongol triumphs it was the longest in being attained. The Chinese of the north and of the south resisted with extraordinary powers of endurance the whole force of the greatest conquering race Asia ever saw. They were not skilled in war and their generals were generally incompetent, but they held out with desperate courage and obstinacy long after other races would have given in.
The student of history v/ill not fail to see in these facts striking testimony of the extra- ordinary resources of China, and of the capacity of resistance to even a vigcrous conqueror possessed by its inert masses. Even the Mongols did not conquer until t' "^y had obtained the aid of a large section oi the Chinese nation, or before Kublai had shown that he intended to prove himself a worthy Emperor of China and not merely a great Khan of the Mongol Hordes, a bar- barous conqueror and not a wise rule;.
I
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[I ,
CHAPTER IV. THE FIRST MANCHU RULER.
THE history of China from this time on presents a succession of wars and conquests, and rising and falling dynasties. The Mongol dynasty gave way to the Ming, and this in turn went into decline. In the first half of the 17th century the country was conquered by the Manchus who established the present reigning Tsin dynasty.
How a small Tartar tribe succeeded after fifty years of war in imposing its yoke on the .skeptical, freedom-loving, and intensely national millions of China will always remain one of the enigmas of history. The military genius of Wou Sankwei, the widely prevalent dissensions among the people, and the effete- ness of the reigning house on the one hand, and the superior discipline, sagacity, and political knowledge of the Tartars on the other, are some of the principal causes of the Manchu success that at once suggest them- selves to the mind.
But in no other case has a people, Iioldly resisting to the end and cheered by occasional flashes of victor)-, been subjected after more than a wKole generation of war, with a des- pised an truly insignificant cn^.'my in the tlurableform in wWch the Manchus trod the Chinese under their heel, and .secured for themselves all the perquisites and honor accruing to the governing class in one of the richevt and largest empirs.'^ under the sun.
The Chinese were made to feel all the
bitterness of subjection by the imposition of
a hated badge of servitude, and tiiat they
proved unable to succeed under this aggra-
74
vation of circumstances, greatly increases the wonder with which the Manchu conquest must ever be regarded. But the most signifi- cant featr.re of the Manchu conquest is that it provides a durable proof of the possibility of China being conquered by a small but determined body of men. Once Wou Sank- wei had opened the door to the foreigner, the end proved easy, and was never in doubt. The Chinese were subjugated with extraor- dinary ease, and the only testimony to their undiminished vitality has been the quiet and silent process by which the conquerors have been compelled to assimilate themselves to the conquered.
Lives and Property Respected.
While the Manchu generals and armies were establishing their power in southern China the young Emperor Chuntche, under the direction of his prudent uncle, the regent v\ma Wang, was setting up a ^ekin the central power of a ruling dynasty . In dcing so little or no opposition was experienced at the hands of the Chinese, who showed that they longed once more for a settled govern- ment; and this acquiescence on the part of the Chinese people in their authority no doubt induced the Manchu leaders to adopt a far more conciliatory ami lenient policy towards the Chinese than would otherwise have been the case. Ama Wang ga\e special orders that the lives and property of all who surrendered to his lieutenants should be .scrupulously respected.
This moderation was only departed from
THE FIRST MANCHU RULER.
lin
in the case of some rebels in Shensi, who, after accepting, repudiated the Manchu authority, and laid close siege to the chief town of Singan, which held a garrison of only 3,000 Mr.nchus. The commandant wished to make his position secure by mas- sacring the Chinese of the town, but he was deterred from taking this extreme step b_\' the representations of a Chinese officer, who, binding himself for the good faith of his countrymen, induced him to enrol them in the ranks of the garrison. They proved faithful and rendered excellent service in the siege; and when a relieving Manchu army came from Pekin the rebels were quickly scattered and pursued with unflagging bitter- ness to their remotest hiding places.
A Bride Carried Off.
In the adjoining province of Shansi another insurrection temporarily upset Man- chu authority, but it was brought about by an outrage of a Manchu prince. In 1649 Ama Wang sent an embassy to the principal khan of the Mongols, with whom it was the first object of the Manchus to maintain the closest friendly relations, in order to arrange a marriage between Chuntche and a Mongol princess. The mission was entrusted to a Manchu prince, who took up his residence at Taitong, in Shansi, a place still held by a Clnncse garrison under an officer named Kiangtsai. The Manchu prince and his attendants behaved in a most arrogant and overbearing manner, and at last their conduct culminated in an outrage which roused the indignation of the Chinese populace, and converted a loyal cit}- into a hostile centre.
The daughter of one of the most influen- tial citizens of Taitong was being led through the streets in honor of her wedtling day when s'.'veral of the ambassador's associates broke into the procession and carried oiif the bride.
The Chinese were shocked at this outrage, and clamored for the prompt punishment of its perpetrators. The governor, Kiangtsai, supported the demand of the citizens, but. unfortunately, the Manchu prince was indif- ferent to the Chinese indignation, and made light of his comrades' conduct. Then the Chinese resolved to enact a terrible ven- geance, and Kiangtsai organized a move- ment to massacre every Manchu in the place. He carried out his intention to the letter, and the Manchu prince was the only one to escape, thanks to the swiftness of his horse.
Became a Rebel.
The inevitable consequence of this act was that Kiangtsai passed from a loyal ser- vant into a rebel. Ama Wang might have condoned liis ofifence out of consideration for the provocation, but Kiangtsai, thinking of his own safety, decided that there was no course open to him save to pose as the enemy of the Manchu. He seems to have done everything that prudence suggested to strengthen his position, and he showed the grasp of a statesman when he turned to the Mongols and sought to obtain their alliance by begging them to restore the lunpire, and to assert their national superority over the Manchus. His policy at first promised to be signally successful, as the Mongol chief entered into his plans and promiscil to render him all the aitl in his power.
But his hopes on this score proved short- lived, for Ama Wang, realizing the situation at a glance, nipped the alliance between Kiangtsai and the Mongols in the bud by sending a special embassy with exception ally costly gifts to the Mongol camp. The cupidity t>f the Mongols pre\aile(l, and they repudiated with scant ceremony the conven- tion they had just concluded with Kiangtsai.
76
CHINA: PAST AND PRESP:NT.
i!
Then the Manchus bore down from all sides on Kiangstai, who had assumed the title of Prince of Han. He had gathered round him such a considerable force that he did not hesitate to march out to meet the M,in- chus. and he trusted for victory to a skil- fully-devised artifice as much as tc superior numbers. He sent forward, under a small guard, a number of wagons containing can- isters of gun-powder. ' ud when the Tartar cavalry saw this baggage train approaching they at once concluded that it was a valu- able prize, and pounced down upon it. Tlic Chinese guard having fired the train took to flight, and the Manchus lost many men in the ensuing explosion, but the most serious consequence was that it threw the whole Manchu army into confusion, and thus enabled Kiangtsai to attack it at a disad- vantage, and to overthrow it with a loss of 15,000 men. In a second battle he con- firmed the verdict of the first, and it is almost unnecessary to add that the reputa- tion of Kiangtsai was raised to a high point, and that the Manchus trembled on the throne. If the Mongols had only joined him, it is impossible to say what might not have happened.
Takes the Field in Person. So grave did the possible consequences of these defeats appear that Ama Wang decided to take the field in person, and to proceed against Kiangtsai with the very best troops lie could collect. Matters had reached such a pass that, if a general insur- rection were to be averted, the Taitong ris- ing would have to be put down without delay. Ama Wang resolved to strike promptly, yet he had the prudence to adopt Fabian tactics in front of an opponent w lio.se confidence had been raised by two successes in the field. The opposing armies each
exceeded 100,000 men, and Kiangtsai was as eager to force on a battle as Ama Wang was to avoid it.
During two months there was much man- oeuvring and counter-manteuvring, and at last Kiangtsai, apprehensive of losing Tai- tong and finding his supplies failing, retired into that place, flattering himself that an enemy who feared to attack him in the open would never venture to assail him in a fort- ress. But the object of Ama Wang was accomplished, and he proceeded to invest tilt place on all sides. Then Kiangtsai realized his error, and saw that he had no alternative between fighting at a disadvan- tage to cut his way out and remaining besieged until the want of supplies should compel him to surrender. He chose the more valiant course, and haranguing his men in the following words he led them out to assault the Manchua lines. " I will not lose a moment in exposing to you the dan- ger which threatens us, it must be evident to yourselves. Your valor alone can avail to secure safety for us all. Success is not impossible, but it will require a great effort of valor on your part. Whom have we to fight after all? Men already weakened and discouraged by two defeats, and whc so much feared a third battle that all our effori"^ to bring them to an engagement failed. The part which alone remains for us is not doubtful. If we must perish,, let it be with arms in our hands. Is it not better to sell our lives like brave men than to fall inglori- ously under the steel of the Tartars?"
A Terrible Onslaught.
Such was the impetuosity uf the Chinese onslaught that after four hours' fighting the Manchus were driven from their first entrenchments. The Chinese were as much elated as their adversaries were depressed by
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
this initial success, and counted on victory. A single incident served to change the for- tune of the day. Kiangtsai placed himself at the head of his men to lead them to the attack of the remaining Manchu positions when he was struck in the head by an arrow. The death of their leader created a panic among the Chinese troopS; who, abandoning all they had won, fled in irre- trievable confusion back to Taitong, where they were more closely beleaguered than before by the Manchus. The discouraged and disorganized Chinese offered but a feeble resistai:ce, and in a very short time the Manchus were masters of Taitong; and the most formidable Chinese gathering which had, up to that time, threatened the new dynasty was broken up. The Taitong insur- gents acquired all their strength from the personal genius and ascendancy of Kiang- tsai, and with his death they collapsed.
" King of the West."
In the province of Szchuen a Chinese leader of ver} 'ifferent character and capa- city frmn Kiai:^^tsai set up an administra- tion. He disti' uished himself by his brut- ality, and although he proclaimed himself Si Wang, or King of the West, he was exe- crated by those who were nominally his sub- jects. Among the most heinous of his crimes was his invitation to literary men to come to his capital for employment, and when they had assembled to the number of 30,000, to order them to be massacrud. He dealt in a similar nianntM- with 3,000 of his courtiers, because one of them happened to omit a portion of his full titles. His excesses culminated in tlie massacre of Clu-ntu, when 600,000 innocjsnt persons are said to have perished.
E\-en allowing for the eastern e-xaggera- tion of numbers, the crimes of this inhuman
monster have rarely, if ever, been surpassed. His rage or appetite for destruction was not appeased by human sacrifices. He made equal war on the objects of nature and the works of man. He destroyed cities, levelled forests, and overthrew all the public monu- ments that embellished his province. In the midst of his excesses he was told that a Manchu army had crossed the Lontier, but he resolved to crown his inhuman career by a deed unparalleled in the records of his- tory, and what is more extraordinary, he suc- ceeded in inducing his followers to execute his commands. His project was to massacre all the women in attendance on his army, and his motives can only be described in his own words.
Murder by the Wholesale.
"The province of Szchuen is ni more than a mass of ruins and a vast de iert. 1 have wished to signalize my vengeance, and at the same time to detach you from the wealth which it offered, in order that your ardor for the conquest of the Empire, which I have sttU every hope of attaining, should not flag. The execution of my -Droject is easy, but one obstacle which t prevent
or delay the conqiiest, I meditate, J'sturbs my mind. An effeminate heart is not 'e'.i suited to great enterprises ; the only passio. heroes should cherish is that glory. All of you have wives, and the greater number of you have several in your company. These women can only prove a source of embar- rassment in camp, and especially during marches or other expeditions demanding celerity of movement. Have you any appre- hension lest you should not find elsewhere wives as charming and as accomplished ? In a very short time I promise you others who will give us every reason to congratulate ourselves for havincr made the sacrifice which
THE FIRST MANCHU RULER.
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I propose to you. Let us, therefore, get rid of the embarrassment which these women cause us. I feel that the only way for me to persuade you in this matter is by setting you an example. To-morrow, without further delay, I will lead my wives to the public parade. See that you are all present, and cause to be published, under most severe penalties, the order to all your soldiers to assemble there at the same time, each accom- panied by his wives. The treatment I accord to mine shall be the general law."
Killed by an Arrow.
When the assembly took place Si Wang sle\v his wives, and his followers, seized with an extreme frenzy, followed his example. It is said that as many as 400,000 women were slain that day, and Si Wang, intoxicated by his success in inducing his followers to exe- cute his inhuman behests, believed that he had nothing to fear at the hands of the Manchus. But he was soon undeceived, for in one of the earliest affairs at the outposts he was killed by an arrow. His power at once crumbled away, and Szchuen passed under the authority of the Manchus.
The conquest of Szchuen paved the way for the recovery of the position that had been lost in Southern China, and close scige was laid to the city of Canton, where the Chinese leaders had collected all their forces. The Manchus adopted the astute course of giving the highest nominal commands to Chinese, and consequently many of their countrymen surrendered to them more readily than if they had been foreigners. One officer, named Kiuchessa, who is said to have been a Christian, remained f.iithful to the Ming prince of Southern China until his execution, and he refused to accept a pardon as the price of his apostac\'.
Outside Canton the Manchus carried
everything before them, and that city itself at last was captured, after what passed for a stubborn resistance. Canton was given over to pillage, and the sack continued for ten days. The Ming pretender fled to Yunnan, and afterwards into Burmah, where he en- joyed shelter for seven years. At this moment of success Ama Wang, the wise regent, died. His last years had been full of anxiety from the dangers that had arisen in the path of the Manchus, but he lived long enough to see it much allayed, and the most serious perils removed. He gave all his time and energy to improving his nephew in the work of government, and to looking after his interests. Towards the Chinese he assumed an attitude of modera- tion, and even of studied conciliation, which produced a beneficial effect on the public mind. To this attitude, as well as to the successful measures of his government, must be attributed the success he experienced in tranquillizing the country. He was not the first nor the last of the great rulers and statesmen which the present imperial family of China has produced in the last three cen- turies.
Choosing an Emperor.
Some of the elder princes of the Manchu family attempted to succeed to his position, but the principal ministers and courtiers com- bined together and insisted that the Emperor Chuntche was old enough to rule for him- self, and that they would not recognize any other master. This extreme step settled the question, and Chuntche assumed the reins of government. He at once devoted his atten- tion to administrative reforms. It is said that corruption had begun to sway the public examinations, and that Chuntche issued a special edict, enjoining the examiners to give fair awards and to maintain the purit)- of the
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
service. But several examiners had to be executed and others banished ueyond the Wall before matters were placed on a satis- factory basis. He also adopted the astro- nomical system in force in Europe, and he appointed the priest Adam Schaal head of the Mathematical Board at Pekin.
But his most important work was the in- stitution of the Grand Council, which still exists, and which is the supreme power under the Emperor of the country. It is composed of only four members — two Manchus and two Chinese — who alone pos- sess the privilege of personal audience with the Emperor whenever they may demand it. They are far higher in rank than any member of the Six Tribunals or the Board of Censors, whose wide liberty of expression is limited to written memorials.
As this act gave the Chinese an equal place with the Manchus in the highest body of the Empire it was exceedingly welcome, and explains, among other causes, the popu- larity and stability of the Manchu dynasty. When allotting Chuntche his place among the founders of Manchu greatness allowance must be made for this wise and far-reaching measure, the conseqjences of which cannot be accurately gauged.
Embassies from Europe.
Another interesting event in the reign of Chuntche, was the arrival at Pekin of more than one embassy from European States. The Dutch and the Russians can equally claim the honor of having had an envoy resident in the Chinese capital during the year 1656, but in neither case could the result be described as altogether satisfactory. After some delay and difficulty and on making the required concessions to the dignity of the Emperor — which means the performance of the Kotao, or making the
prostration by beating the ground with the forehead — the Dutch merchants, who were sent as envoys, were admitted to audience, but although they bribed freely, the only favor they obtained was the right to present tribute at stated intervals, which was a doubtful gain. The Emperor restricted their visit to once in every eight years, and then they were not to exceed one hundred persons, of whom only twenty might pro- ceed to the capital.
An OiBcial from Siberia.
The most interesting circumstance in con- nection with this embassy is that it provided Nieuhoff, the secretary, to the envoys, with the material for a description of Pekin at a time when it had not recovered from the effects of the wars we have described. The conquest of Siberia by the Cossack Irmak had brought the Russians into immediate contact with the Chinese, and it was held desirable to establish some sort of diplomatic relations with them. An officer was accord- ingly sent from Siberia to Pekin, but as he persistently refused to perform the Kotao, he was denied audience, and returned without having accomplished anything. The com- mence^ment of diplomatic relations between Russia and China was therefore postponed to a later day.
With Tibet, Chuntche succeeded in estab- lishing relations of a specially cordial nature, which preserve their force to the present time. In 1653 he received a visit from the Grand Lama of Lhasa, and he conferred upon him the title of Dalai, or Ocean Lama, because his knowledge was as deep and pro- found as the ocean. It says much for the influence of China, and the durability of the tie thus established, that the supreme Lama of Lhasa, has been generally known by this title ever since its being conferred on him.
THE FIRST MANCHU RULKR.
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During the last years of the reign of Chuntche, the growth of the naval power of Koshinga, son of Ching Chelong, attracted considerable attention. When Canton fell, many Chinese escaped in their junks, and as the Manchus had no fleet they were unable to follow the fugitives, and the Chinese derived fresh confidence from this security at sea. The daring and activity of Koshinga became the solace and admiration of his countrymen. He first established his head- quarters on tlic island of Tsong-ming, at the mouth of til iver Yangtsekiang, and had he been content with operations along the sea- coast, he might have enjoyed immunity from attack, and an indefinite scope for plunder for many years. But his ambition led him to take an exaggerated view of his power, and, by attempting too much, he jeopardized all he had gained, and finally curtailed his sphere of enterprise.
The Opportunity Lost.
In 1656, he sailed up the river to attache Nankin, and his enterprise was so far well- timed that the Manchu garrison was then very weak, and the chances of a popular rising in liis favor were also at their highest point. But he seems to have relied for suc- ces mainly on the latter contingency, and in the desire to spare his men, he postponed his attack until the favorable opportunity had passed away, and the Manchu garrison being strongly reinforced, the townspeople were both afraid to revolt, and Koshinga to deliver his attack. When at last he nerved himself to assault the place, the Manchus anticipated his intention by delivering a night attack upon his camp, which was completely suc- cessful. Three thousand of his best men were slain, and Koshinga and the remainder were only too glad to seek shelter in their ships.
The repulse at Nankin destroyed all
Koshinga's dreams of posing as a national deliverer. After this episode he could only hope to be powerful as a rover of the sea, and the head of a piratical confederacy.
In 166 1, the health of Chuntche became so bad that it was evident to his courtiers that his end was drawing near, although he was little more than thirty years of age. Authorities differ as to the precise cause of his death. Philirpc Couplet says that it was small-pox, but the more general version was that it was grief at the dea*h of his favorite wife and infant son. Probably his domestic affliction aggravated his malady, and nullified the efforts of his physicians. On his death- bed he selected as his successor the second of his sons, who afterwards became famous as the Emperor Kanghi, and the choice proved an exceedingly fortunate one.
The reign of Chuntche was specially remarkable as witnessing the consolidation of Manchu authority, the introduction of the Chinese to a share in the administration, and the adoption of a policy of increased moder- ation towards the subject people.
Engraved on Iron Tablets.
When Kanghi was placed on the throne he was only eight years old, and the admin- istration was consequently entrusted to four of the chief and most experienced officials. These co-regents devoted themselves to their duty with energy and intelligence. Their first act was to impeach the principal eunuchs who had acquired power under Chuntche, and to issue a decree prohibiting the employment of any of that unfortunate class in the public service. This law was engraved on iron tablets weighing more than 1,000 pounds, and the Manchu rulers have ever since remained faithful to the pledge taken by these Manchu regents in the name of the young Emperor Kanghi
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
The very first year of Kanghi's reign wit- i to carry out this plan, Koshinga had to oust,
nessed the zcnitli and the fall of the power of not tiie aboriginal tribes who held most of
of Kosiiinga. After the failure (jf his attack the interior of the island, but the Dutch
on Nankin, Koshinga fixed his designs on | traders who had seized most of the ports and
SENDING PRAYERS TO HEAVEN BY BURNING THEM.
the island of Formosa, which offered, as it ! had fortified them. Koshinga found willing seemed, the best vantage ground for a naval allies in the Chinese emigrants who had fled confederacy such .-'s he controlled. In order | from the mainl?nd to Formosa. They rose
THE FIRST MANCHU RULER.
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up against the Dutch, and before they were subdued the warlike aboriginal tribes had to be recruited against them.
But the Dutch, wiio had been on the island for 35 years, flattered themselves that they could hold their own, and that it might not be impossible to live on friendly terms with Koshinga. They themselves had acquired their place in Formosa by the retire- ment of the Japanese from Taiwan, in 1624, when the Dutch, driven away by the Portu- guese from Macao, sought a fresh site for their proposed settlement in the Pescadore group, and eventually established themselves at Fort Zealand. The Dutch seem to have been lulled into a sense of false security by their success over the Chinese settlers, and to have believed that Koshinga was not as formidable as he was considered to be.
End of a Remarkable Career.
Koshinga did not strike until all his plans were completed, and then he laid siege to Fort Zealand. The Dutch fought well, but they were overpowdered, and lost their pos- sessions, which passed to the Chinese adven- turer. Koshinga assumed the style of King of Formosa, but he did not long survive this triumph. In the year after this conquest he died of a malady which was aggravated by resentment at the insubordination of his eldest son, and thus terminated his remarkable career when he was no more than thirty- eight. The Chinese province of Formosa endured for another twenty years, but its spirit and formidableness departed with Koshinga. In his relations with the English and Dutch merchants he showed all the pre- judice and narrow-mindedness of his country- men.
One of the earliest incidents in the reign (^f Kanghi was an agitation got up by some of the most bigoted courtiers, and fanned bv
popular ignorance and fanaticism, against the Christian priests, who had obtained various posts under the Chinese government. They had not not been very successful as the propagators of religion, but they h,id undoubtedly rendered tiie Chinese valuable service as mathematicians and men of science. The Emperor Chuntche had treated them with marked consideration, and there was little to cause surprise in this favor being resented by the Chinese officials, and in their intriguing to discredit and injure the foreigners whose knowledge was declared to be superior to their own. They formulated a charge against them of " propagating a false and monstrous religion," which was easily understood and difficult to refute. The Abbe Schaal was deposed from the President- ship of the Mathematical Board, and cast into prison.
A Narrow Escape.
The other Europeans were also incarcerated. They v/ere all tried on a common charge, and, the case being taken as proved, all condemned to a common death. The only respite granted between sentence and execution was for the purpose of discovering some specially cruel mode of execution that might be commensu- rate to the offence, not merely of being a Chris- tian, but of holding offices, that were the pre- scriptive right of the followers of Confucius. The delay thus obtained enabled one of the regents, named Sony, and a man of an enlightened and noble mind, to take steps to save these victims of ignorance. Supported by the mother of Kanghi, he succeeded in gaining his point, and in obtaining a reversal of the iniquitous sentence of ignorant jealously, Init the reprieve came too late to save the life of the Abbe Schaal, who escaped the public executioner, only to perish from the consequences of his sufferings in prison.
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Unfortunately, Sony did not live long after this for his country to profit by his clemency, or to display it in other acts of the government. It was during these inci- dents that the young Emperor Kanghi gave the first indication of his capacity to judge important matters for liimself, by deciding after personal examination that the astro- nomical system of Europe was superior to that of China, and by appointing Father Verbiest to succeed the Abbe Schaal.
The death of the regent Sony threatened not merely disorders within the supreme administration, but an interruption of the good work of the government itself. Kanghi, with, no doubt, the support of his mother, solved the difficulty by assuming the personal direction of affairs, although he was then only fourteen years of age. Such a bold step undoubtedly betokened no ordi- nary vigor on the part of a youth, and its complete success reflected still further credit upon him. He seems to have been specially impelled to take this step by his disapproval of the tryannical and overbearing conduct of another of his regents, Baturu Kong, who had only been kept in check by the equal influence of Sony, and who promised him- self on his rival's death a course of unbridled power.
The Regency Dissolved.
Baturu Kong had taken the most promi- nent part in the agitation against the Chris- tians, and the success of his schemes would have signified the undoing of much of the good work accomplished during the first twenty years of Manchu power. The vigi- lance and resolution of the young Emperor thwarted his plans. By an imperial decree the regency was dissolved, and Kong was indicted on twelve separate charges, each sufficient to receive the punishment of death.
A verdict of guilty was returned, and he and his family suflered the supreme punishment for treason. This act of vigor inaugurated the reign of Kanghi, and the same resolu- tion and courage characterized it to the end. In this early asf-jrtion of sovereign power, as in much else, it will be seen that Kanghi bore a striking resemblance to his great con- temporary, Louis the Fourteenth of France
Kwei Wang Taken Prisoner.
The interest of the period now passes from the scenes at court to the camp of VVou Sankwei, who, twenty years earlier, had introduced the Manchus into China. During the Manchu campaign in Southern China he had kept peace on the western frontier, grad- ually extending his authority from Shensi into Szchuen and thcnceover Yunnan. When the Ming prince, Kwei Wang, who had fled into Burmah, returned with the support ol the King of that country to make another bid for the throne, he found himself con- fronted by all the power and resources of Wou Sankwei, who was still as loyal a servant of the Manchu Emperor as when he carri'xl his ensigns against Li Tseching. Kwei Wang does not appear to have ex- pected opposition from Wou Sankwei, and in ihc first encounter he was overthrown and taken prisoner.
The conqueror, who was alreadj* under suspicion at the Manchu Court, and whom e\ cry Chinese rebel persisted in regarding as a natural ally, now hesitated as to how he siioultl treat these important prisoners. Kwe: Wang and his son — the last of the Mings — were eventually led forth to execution, although it should be stated that a less authentic report affirms they were allowed to strangle themselves. Having made use of Wou Sankwei, and obtained as they thought the full value of his services, the Manchus
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
sought to treat him with indifTerence and to throw him into the shade. But the splendor of his work was such that they had to con- fer on him the title of Prince, and to make him Viceroy of Yunnan and the adjacent territories. He exerted such an extraor- dinary influence over the Chinese subjects that they speedily settled down under his authority; revenue and trade increased, and the Manchu authority was maintained with- out a Tartar garrison, for Wou Sankwei's army was composed exclusively of Chinese, and its nucleus was formed by his old garri- son of Ningyuen and Shanhaikwan.
A Cunning Plot.
There is no certain reason for saying that Wou Sankwei nursed any scheme of per- sonal aggrandizement, but the measures he took and the reforms he instituted were cal- culated to make his authority to become gradually independent of Manchu control. For a time the Manchu Government sup- pressed its apprehensions on account of this powerful satrap, by the argument that in a few years his death in the course of nature must relieve it from this peril, but Wou Sankwei lived on and showed no signs of paying the common debt of humanity. Then it seemed to Kanghi that W^ou Sankwei was gradually establishing the solid foundation of a formidable and independent power. The Manchu generals and ministers had always been jealous of the greater fame of Wou Sankwei. When they saw that Kanghi wanted an excuse to fall foul of him, they carried every tale of alleged self-assertion on the part of the Chinese Viceroy to the Im- perial ears, and represented that his power dwarfed the dignity of the Manchu throne and threr.tened its stability.
At last Kanghi resolved to take some de- cisive step to bring the question to a climax.
and he accordingly sent Wou Sankwei an invitation to visit him at Pekin. This was in 1 67 1, when Kanghi had reached the age of eighteen. There was nothing unreason- able in this request, for Wou Sankwei had not visited Pekin since the accession of Kanghi, and any tender of allegiance had been made by deputy.
It was the practice of the time that all the great governors should have a son or other near relative at the Manchu Court as a host- age for their good conduct, and a son of Wou Sankwei resided in this character at Pekin. He had been treated with special honor by the Manchu rulers, and was mar- ried to a half sister of the Emperor Kanghi. He received the title of a Royal Duke, and was admitted into the intimate life of the Palace. When he heard of the invitation to his father he sent off a message to him, warning him of the disfavor into which he had fallen, and advising him not to come to Pekin. The advice, although prompted by affection, was not good, but Wou Sankwei took it, and excused himself from going to court on the around that he was very old, and that his only wish was to end his days in peace. He also deputed his son to tender his allegiance to the Emperor and to per- form the Kotao in his name.
The Old Man's Answer. But Kanghi was not to be put off in this way, and he sent two trusted officials to Wou Sankwei to represent that he must comply with the exact terms of his command, and to point out the grave consequences of his refusing. There is no doubt that they were also instructed to observe how far Wou Sankwei was borne down by age, and what was the extent of his military power. The envoys were received with every courtesy and befitting honor, but when they repeated
THE FIRST MANCHU RULER.
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Kanghi's categorical demand to come to Pekin on penalty of being otherwise treated as a rebel, he broke loose from the restraint he had long placed upon himself, and there and then repudiated the Manchu authority in the most indignant and irrevocable terms, which, at least, exposed the hoUowness of his statement that he felt the weight of years and thought only of making a peaceful end. His rely to the envoys of Kanghi was as follows: — " Do they think at the Court that I am so blind as not to see the motive in this order of summons? I shall, indeed, present myself there if you continue to press me, but it will be at the head of twice forty thousand men. You may go on before, but I hope to follow you very shortly with such a force as will speedily remind those in power of the debt they owe me." Thus did the great Wou Sankwei cast off his allegiance to the Manchus, and enter upon a war which aimed at the subversion of their authority.
A Daring Conspiracy.
Such was the reputation of this great com- mander, to whose ability and military prowess the Manchus unquestionably were indebted for their conquest of the empire, that a large part of southern China at once admitted his authority, and from Szchuen to the warlike province of Hunan his lieutenants were able to collect all the fighting resources of the State, and to array the levies of those provinces in the field for the approaching contest with Kanghi.
While Wou Sankwei was making these extensive preparations in the south, his son at Pekin had devised an ingenious and daring plot for the massacre of the Manchus and the destruction of the dynasty. He engaged in his scheme the large body of Chinese slaves who had been pl.iced in servitude under their Tartar conquerors, and these, incited by the
hope of liberty, proved very ready tools to his designs. They bound themselves together by a solemn oath to be true to one another, and all the preparations were made to mas- sacre the Manchus on the occap<on of the New Year's Festival.
This is the grand religious and social cere mony of the Chinese. It takes place on the first day of the first moon, which falls in our month of February. All business is stopped, the tribunals are closed for ten days, and a state of high festival resembling the Carnival prevails. The conspirators resolved to take advantage of this public holiday, and of the excitement accompanying it to carry out their scheme, and the Manchus appear to have been in total ignorance until the eleventh hour of the plot for their destruction. The discovery of the conspiracy bears a close resemblance to that of the Gunpowder Plot. A Chinese slave, wishing to save his master, gave him notice of the danger, and this Manchu officer at once informed Kanghi of the conspiracy.
Arrested and Executed.
The son of Wou Sankwei and the other conspirators were immediately arrested and executed without delay. The Manchus thus escaped by the merest accident from a danger which threatened them with annihilation, and Kanghi, having succeeded in getting rid of the son, concentrates his power and attention on the more difficult task of grappling with the father.
But the power and reputation of Wou Sankwei were so formidable that Kanghi resolved to proceed with great caution, and the Emperor began his measures of offence by issuing an edict ordering the disbandment of all the native armies maintained by the Chinese Viceroys, besides Wou Sankwei. The object of this edict was to make all the
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
I
governors of Chinese race to show their hands, and Kanghi learnt the full measure of the hostility he had to cope with by every governor from the sea coast of Fuhkien to Canton defying him, and throwing in their lot with Wou Sankwei. The piratical con- federacy of Formosa, where Ching, the son of Koshinga, had succeeded to his authority, also joined in with what may be called the national party, but its alliance proved of little value, as Ching, at an early period, took umbrage at his reception by a Chinese official, and returned to his island home.
A Cavalry Raid.
But the most formidable danger to the young Manchu ruler came from an unexpected quarter. The Mongols, seeing his embarrassment, and believing that the hours of the dynasty were numbered, resolved to take advantage of the occasion to push their claims. Satchar, chief of one of the Banners, issued a proclamation, calling his race to his side, and declaring his inten- tention to invade China at the head of 100,000 men. It .seemed hardly possible for Kanghi to extricate himself from his many dangers. With great quickness of percep- tion Kanghi saw that the most pressing danger was that from the Mongols, and he sent the whole of his northern garrisons to attack Satchar before the Mongol clans could have gathered to his assistance. The Man- chu cavalry, by a rapid march, surprised Satchar in his camp, and carried him and his family off" as prisoners to Pekin. The capture of their chief discouraged the Mon- gols and interrupted their plans for invading China. Kanghi thus obtained a respite from what seemed his greatest peril.
Then he turned his attention to dealing with Wou Sankwei, and the first effort of his armies resulted in the recovery of Fuhkien,
where the governor and Ching had reduced themselves to a state of exhaustion by a contest inspired by personal jealousy, not patriotism. From Fuhkien his successful lieutenants passed into Kwantung, and the Chinese, seeing that the Manchus were not sunk as low as had been thought, abandoned all resistance, and again recognized the Tar- tar authority. The Manchus did not dare to punish the rebels except in rare instances, and, therefore, the recovery of Canton was unaccompanied by any scenes of blood. But a garrison of Manchus was placed in each town of importance, and it was by Kanghi's order that a walled town, or " Tar- tar city," was built within each city for the accommodation and security of the dominant race.
The Old Warrior Defeated.
But notwithstanding these successes Kang- hi made little or no progress against the main force of Wou Sankwei, whose sup- remacy was undisputed throughout the whole of south-west China. It was not until 1677 that Kanghi ventured to move his armies against Wou Sankwei in person. Although he obtained no .signal success in the field the divisions among the Chinese commanders were such that he had the satis- faction of compelling them to evacuate Hunan, and when Wou Sankwei took his first step backwards the sun of his fortunes began to set. Calamity rapidly followed calamity. Wou Sankwei had not known the meaning of defeat in his long career of fifty years, but now, in his old age, he saw his affairs in inextricable confusion. His adherents deserted him, many rebel officers sought to come to terms with the Manchus, and Kanghi's armies gradually converged on Wou Sankwei from the east and the north.
Driven out of Szchuen. Wou Sankwei
THE FIRST MANCHU RULER.
89
endeavored to make a stand in Yunnan. He certainly succeeded in prolonging the struggle down to the year 1679, when his death put a sudden end to the contest, and relieved Kanghi from much anxiety, for although the success of the Manchus was no longer uncertain, the military skill of the old Chinese warrior might have indefinitely pro- longed the war. Wou Sankwei was one of the most conspicuous, and attractive figures to be met with in the long course of Chinese history, and his career covered one of the most critical periods in the modern existence of that empire.
A Brilliant Career.
From the time of his first distinguishing himself in the defence of Ningyuen until he died, half a century later, as Prince of Yun- nan, he occupied the very foremost place in the minds of his fellow-countrymen. The part he had taken, first in keeping out the Manchus, and then in introducing them into the State, reflected equal credit on his ability and his patriotism. In requesting the Man- chus to crush the robber Li and to take the throne which the fall of the Mings had ren- dered vacant, he was actuated by the purest motives. There was only a choice of evils, and he selected that which seemed the less. He gave the empire to a foreign ruler of intelligence, but he saved it from an unscru- pulous robber. He played the part of king- maker to the family of Noorhachu, and the magnitude of their obligations to him could not be denied. They were not as grateful as he may have expected, and they looked askance at his military power and influence over his countrymen.
Probably he felt that he had not been well treated, and chagrin undoubtedly induced him to reject Kanghi's request to proceed to Pekin. If he had only acceded to that
arrangement he would have left a name for conspicuous loyalty and political consistency in the service of the great race, which he had been mainly instrumental in placing over China. But even as events turned out he was one of the most remarkable personages the Chinese race ever produced, and his military career shows that they are capable of producing great generals and brave soldiers.
The Uprising Ended.
The death of Wou Sankwei sig^nified the overthrow of the Chinese uprising which had threatened to extinguish the still growing power of the Manchu under its youthful Emperor Kanghi. Wou Shufan the grand- son of that prince endeavored to carry on the task of holding Yunnan as an independent territory, but by the year 1681 his posses- sions were reduced to the town of Yunnanfoo, where he was closely besieged by the Man- chu forces. Although the Chinese fought valiantly, they were soon reduced to extremi- ties, and the Manchus carried the place by storm. The garrison were massacred to the last man, and Wou Shufan only avoided a worse fate by committing suicide. The Manchus not satisfied with his death, sent his head to Pekin to be placed on its principal gate in triumph, and the body of Wou Sank- wei himself was exhumed so that his ashes might be scattered in each of the eighteen provinces of China as a warning to traitors.
Having crushed their most redoubtable antagonist, the Manchus resorted to more severe measures against those who had sur- rendered in Fuhkien and Kwantung, and many insurgent chiefs who had surrendered, and enjoyed a brief respite, ended their lives under the knife of the executioner. The Manchu soldiers are said to have been given spoil to the extent of nearly two millions
90
CHINA: PAST AND PRKSKNT.
sterling, and the war which witnessed the final assertion of Manchu power over the Chinese was essentially popular with the soldiers who carried it on to a victorious conclusion. A very short time after the final overthrow of Wou Sankwei and his family, the Chinese regime in Formosa was brought to an end.
Kanghi, having collected a fleet, and con- cluded a convention with the Dutch, deter- mined on the invasion and conquest of Formosa. In the midst of these preparations Ching, the son of Koshinga died, and, no doubt, the plans of Kanghi were facilitated by the confusion that followed. The Man- chu fleet seized Ponghu, th" principal island of the Pescadore group and thence the Man- chus threw a force into Formosa. It is said that (.h^v were helped by a high tide, and by the superstition of the islanders, who ex- claimed, " The first Wang (Koshinga), got possession of Taiwan by a high tide. The fleet now comes in the same manner. It is the will of Heaven." Formosa accepted the supremacy of the Manchus without further ado. Those of the islanders who had ever recognized the authority of any government, accepted that of the Emperor Kanghi, shaved their heads in token of submission, and
became so far as in them lay respectable citizens.
The overthrow of Wou Sankwei and the conquest of Formosa completed what may be called the pacification of China by the Manchus. From that period to the Taeping rebellion, or for nearly 2CX) years, there was no internal insurrection on a large scale. On the whole the Manchus stained their conclusive triumph by few excesses, and Kanghi's moderation was scarcely inferior to that of his father, Chuntche. The family of Wou Sankwei seems to have been rooted out more for the personal attempt of the son at Pekin than for the bold ambition of the potentate himself The family of Koshinga was spared, and its principal representative received the patent of an earl. Thus, by a policy judiciously combined of severity and moderation, did Kanghi make himself supreme, and complete the work of his race. Whatever troubles may have beset the gov- ernment in the last 220 years it will be justifiable to speak of the Manchus and the Tatsing dynasty as the legitimate authorities in China, and instead of foreign adventures, as the national and recognized rulers of the Middle Kingdom. They gained an empire and have kept their great prize.
CHAPTER V.
THE TAEPINQ REBELLION AND STORY OF «* CHINESE GORDON."
THAT part of Chinese history which lies within the present century, has a special interest to all readers The year 1850 found Hienfung on the throne, confronted by old abuses in the administration of the government and great national discontent. During this year an abundant harvest and voluntary contributions served to remove the worst features of the prevailing scarcity and suffering. But these temporary and local measures could not improve a situation that was radically bad, or allay a volume of popular disaffection that was rapidly developing into unconcealed rebellion.
The storm at length burst under the Tae- ping leader, Tien Wang. This individual had a very common origin and sprang from an inferior race. Hung-tsuien — such was his own name — was the son of a small farmer near Canton, and was a hakka, a despised race of tramps who bear some resemblance to the gypsies. He seems to have passed all his examinations with special credit, but the prejudice on account of his birth prevented his obtaining any employ- ment in the civil service of his country. He was therefore a disappointed aspirant to office, and it is not surprising that he became an enemy of the constituted authorities and the government. As he could not be the servant of the state he set himself the ambi- tious task of being its master, and with this object in view he resorted to religious prac-
tices in order to acquire a popular reputation and a following among the masses.
Tien Wang announced his decision to seize the throne by issuing a proclamation, in the course of which he declared that he had received " the Divine commission to ex- terminate the Manchus, and to possess the Empire as its true sovereign ; " and, as it was also at this time that his followers ijecame commonly known as Taepings, it may be noted that the origin of this name is somewhat obscure. According to the most plausib'e explanation it is derived from the small town of that name, situated in the southwest comer of the province of Kwangsi, where the rebel movement seems to have commenced. Another derivation gives it as the style of the dynasty which Tien Wang hoped to found, and its meaning as " Univer- sal peace."
A Daring Chieftain.
Tien Wang was a man of great native force, very resolute and daring, and gather- ing to himself a large number of discon- tented spirits he gained some successes, finally leading his rebellious followers to Nankin, where they maintained themselves with some difficulty against two Imperial armies raised by the loyal efforts of the inhabitants of the central provinces. This was at the begjinning of 1857, and there is no doubt that if the Government had avoided a conflict with the Europeans, and concen-
01
CHINA: PAST AND I'RKSIIM.
tratcd its efforts and power on the contest with tlic Tacping rebels they would have speedily annihilated the totterinjj fabric of Tien Wang's authority, But the respite of four years sccuretl by the attention of the central jjovcrnnient beinjj monopolized by the forei^jn question enabled the Tacpings to consolidate their position, augment their fighting forces, and present a more formid- able front to the Imperial authorities.
Prompt Action Required.
When Prince Kung, who may be styled the Chinese Premier, learned from Lord Elgin the full extent of the success of the Taepings on the Yangtse, of which tne officials at Pekin seemed to possess a very imperfect and inaccur.ite knowlege, the Manchu authorities realized that it was a vital question for them to reassert their authority without further delay, but on beginning to put their new resolve into practice they soon experienced that the posi- tion of the Taepings in 1861 differed materi- ally from what it was in 1857.
The course of events during that period must be briefly summarized. In 1858 the Imperialists under Tseng Kwofan and Chang Kwoliang renewed the seige of Nankin, but as the city was well supplied with provisions, and as the Imperialists were well known to have no intention of delivering an assault, the Tacpings did not feel any apprehension. After the investment had continued for nearly a year, Chung Wang, who had now risen to the supreme place among the rebels, insisted on quitting the city before it was completely surrounded, with the object of beating up levies and generally relieving the pressure caused by the besiegers.
In this endeavor he more than once experienced the unkindness of fortune, for when he had collected 5,000 good troops
he was defeated in a vigorous attempt to cut his way through a far larger Imperial force. Such, however, was his reputation that the Imperial commanders before Nankin sent many of their men to assist the officers operating against him, and Chung Wang, .seizing the opportunity, made his way by forced marches back to Nankin, ovcrcominrj such resistance as the enfeebled besiegers were able to offer. The whole of the year 1859 was pas.sed in practical inaction, but at its close the Tacpings only retained posses- sion of four towns, besides Nankin, on the Yangtse.
A Remarkable Campaign.
It again became necessary for Chung Wang to .sally forth and assume the offensive in the rear and on the line of supplies of the beleaguering Imperialists. I lis main diffi- culty was in obtaining the consent of Tien Wang, who was at this time given over to religious pursuits or private excesses, and Chung Wang states that he only consented when he found that he could not stop him. In January, 1 860, Chung Wang began what proved to be a very remarkable campaign. He put his men in good humor by distribu- ting a large sum of money among them, and he succeeded in eluding the Imperial com- manders, and in misleading them as to his intentions. While they thought he had gone off to relieve Ganking, he had really hastened to attack the important city of Hangchow, where much spoil and material for carrying on the war might be secured by the victor. He captured the city with little or no loss, on March 19, i860, but the Tartar city held out until relieved by Chang Kwoliang, who hastened from Nankin for the purpose.
Once again the Imperial Commanders in their anxiety to crush Chung Wang had re- duced their force in front of Nankin to an
iers in
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to an
i
o
CD
CQ
o
»
"CHINESE GORDON."
98
o
excessively low condition, and the Taeping leader, placed in a desperate position, seized the only chance of safety by hastening from Hangchow to Nankin at full speed, and at- tacking the Imperial lines. This battle was fought early in the morning of a cold, snowy day — May 3, i860 — and resulted in the loss of 5,000 Imperialists, and the compulsory raising of the siege. The Taeping cause might have been resuscitated by this signal victory if Tien Wang had only shown him- self able to act up to the great part he had assumed ; but not merely was he incapable of playing the part of either a warrior or a statesman, but his petty jealousy prevented his making use of the undoubted ability of his lieutenant Chung Wang, who, after the greatest and most opportune of his successes was forbidden to re-enter Nankin.
Takes Possession of Soochow.
The energy and spirit of Chung Wang impelled him to fresh enterprises, and see- ing the hopelessness of Tien Wang, he deter- mined to secure a base of operations for himself, which should enable him to hold his own in the warring strife of the realm, and perhaps to achieve the triumph of the cause with which he was associated. It says much for his military energy and skill that he was able to impart new vigor to the Taeping system, and to sustain on a new field his position single-handed against the main forces of the Empire. He determined to obtain possession of the important city of Soochow, on the Grand Canal, and not very far distant from Shanghai.
On his way to effect this object he gained a great victory over Chang Kwoliang, who was himself killed in the battle. . As the ex-Triad chief possessed great energy, his loss was a considerable one for the govern- ment, but his troops continued to oppose
the advance of the Taepings, and fought and lost three battles before Chung Wang reached Soochow. That place was too large to be successfully defended by a small force, and the Imperialists hastily abandoned it. At this critical moment — May, i860 — Ho Kweitsin, the Viceroy of the Two Kiang, implored the aid of the English and French, who were at this moment completing their arrangements for the march on Pekin, against these rebels, and the French were so far favorable to the suggestion that they offered to render the assistance provided the Eng- lish would combine with them.
Curious Incident.
The British minister, Mr. Bruce, however, declined the adventure, which is not sur- prising, considering that England was then engaged in serious hostilities with the Chi- nese, but the incident remains unique of a country asking another for assistance during the progress of a bitter and doubtful war. The utmost that Mr. Bruce would do was to issue a notification that Shanghai would not be allowed to again full into the hands of an insurgent force. The Viceroy who solicited the aid was at least consistent. He mem- orialized the Throne, praying that the de- mands of the Europeans should be promptly granted, and that they should then bo cm- ployed against the Taepings, His memorial was ill-timed. He was summoned to Pekin and executed for his very prudent advice. With the possession of Soochow, Chung Wang obtained fresh supplies of money, material, and men, and once more it was impossible to say to what height of success the Taepings might not attain. But Chung Wang was not satisfied with Soochow alone ; he wished to gain possession of Shanghai.
Unfortunately for the realization of his
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESKM
project, the Europeans had determined to defend Shan^liai at all hazards, but Ciiua^ Wanjr believed either that they would not, or that their army being absent in the north they had not the power to carry out this resolve. The necessity of capturing Shang- hai was rendered the greater in the eyes of Chung Wang by its being the base of hos- tile measures against himself, and by a measure which threatened him with a new peril.
Two Americans in the War.
The wealthy Chinese merchants of Shang- hai had formed a kind of patriotic associa- tion, and provided the funds for raising a European contingent. Two Americans.Ward and Burgevine, were taken into their pay, and in July, i860, they, having raised a force of 100 Europeans and 200 Manilla men, began operations with an attack on Sunkiang, a large walled town about twenty miles from Shang- hai. "This first attack was repulsed with some loss, but Ward, afraid of losing the large re- ward he was promised for its capture, renewed the attack, and with better success, for he gained possession of a gate, and held it until the whole Imperial army had come up and stormed the town.
After this success Ward was requested to attack Tsingpu, which was a far stronger place than Sunkiang, and where the Taepings had the benefit of the advice of several Eng- lishmen who had joined them. Ward at- tacked Tsingpu on August 2, i860, but he was repulsed with heavy loss. He returned to Shanghai for the purpose of raising another force and two larger guns, and then renewed the attack. It is impossible to say whether the place would have held out or not, but after seven days' bombardment Chung Wang sud- denly appeared to the rescue, and, surprising Ward's force, drove it awav in utter con-
fusion, and with the loss of all its guns and stores.
Encouraged by this success, Chung Wang then thought the time opportune for attack- ing Shanghai, and he accordingly marched against it, burning and plundering the vil- lages along the road. The Imperialists had established a camp or stockade outside the western gate, and Chung Wang carried this without any difficulty, but when he reached the walls of the town he found a very differ- ent opponent in his path. The walls were lined with English and French troops, and when the Taepings attempted to enter the city they were received with a warm fire, which quickly sent them to the rightabout.
Compelled to Retreat.
Chung Wang renewed the attack at dif- ferent points during the next four or five days, but he was then obliged to retreat. Before doing so, however, he sent a boast- ing message that he had come at the invita- tion of the French, who were traitors, and that he would have taken the city but for foreigners, as " there was no city which his men could not storm." At this moment the attention of Chung Wang was called off to Nankin, wliich the Imperialists were invest- ing for a sixth time, under Tseng Kwofan, who had been elevated to the Viceroyalty of the Two Kiang. Tien Wang, in despair, sent off an urgent summons to Chung Wang to come to his assistance, and although 1 went with reluctance he felt that he had no course but to obey.
Chung Wang found matters in great con- fusion at Nankin, and the chief Wangs quite incapable of following a wise course under the critical circumstances of the hour. When they enunciated such ridiculous statements that Tien Wang, as the lord of Heaven, h?d only to .say the word, and there would be
lat con-
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
peace, he curtly admonished them to buy rice and prepare for a seige. Having done what he could to place Nankin in an effi- cient state of defence, Chung Wang hastened back to Soochow to resume active prepara- tions. It is unnecessary to describe these in detail; but although Chung Wang was twice defeated by a Manchu general named Paochiaou, he succeeded, by rapidity of movement, in holding his own against his more numerous adversaries.
"The Ever Victorious Army." "n the meantime an important change had taken place in the situation. The peace be- tween China and the foreign powers com- pelled a revision of the position at Shanghai. Admiral Hope sailed up to Nankin, inter- viewed the Wangs, and exacted from them a pledge that Shanghai should not be at- tacked for twelve months, and that the Taep- ing forces should not advance within a radius of thirty miles of that place. In conse- quence of this arrangement Ward and Burgevine were compelled to desist from re- cruiting Europeans ; but after a brief interval they were taken into the Chinese service for the purpose of drilling Chinese soldiers, a measure from which the most important consequences were to flow, for it proved to be the origin of the Ever Victorious Army.
These preparations were not far advanced when Chung Wang, elated by his capture of Ningpo and Hangchow, resolved to disre- gard Tien Wang's promise, and make a second attack on Shanghai, the possession of which he saw to be indispensable if his cause was to attain any brilliant triumph. He issued a proclamation that " the hour of the Manchus had come! Shanghai is a little place, and we have nothing to fear from it. We must take Shanghai to complete our dominions." The death of Hienfung seems
to have encouraged Chung Wang to take what he hoped would prove a decisive step.
On the 14th of January, 1862, the Taep- ings reached the immediate vicinity of the town and foreign settlement. The surround- ing country was concealed by the smoke of the burning villages, which they had ruth- lessly destroyed. The foreign settlement was crowded with thousands of fugitives, imploring the aid of the Europeans to save their houses and property. Their sufferings, which would at the best have been great, were aggravated by the exceptional severity of the winter. The English garrison of two native regiments and some artillery, even when supported by the volunteers, was far too weak to attempt more than the defence of the place ; but this it was fortunately able to perform.
Important Capture.
The rebels, during the first week after their reappearance, plundered and burned in all directions, threatening even to make an attack on Woosung, the port at the mouth of the river, where they were repulsed by the French. Sir John Michel arrived at Shang- hai with a small reinforcement of English troops, and Ward, having succeeded in dis- ciplining two Chinese regiments about one thousand strong in all, sallied forth from Sunkiang for the purpose of operating on the rear of the Taeping forces. Ward's cap- ture of Quanfuling, with several hundred rebel boats which were frozen up in the river, should have warned the Taepings that it was nearly time for them to letire.
However, they did not act as prudence would have dictated, and, during the whole of February their raids continued round Shanghai. The suburbs suffered from their attacks, the foreign factories and boats were not secure, and several outrages on the per-
CHINESE GORDON."
9^1
} take stqj. Taep- of the round- oke of I ruth- ilement gitives, to save ferings, ri great, severity of two y, even was far defence ;ely able
ek after arned in nake an : mouth d by the Shang- English in dis- lout one [th from iting on d's cap- Ihundred in the aepings etire. irudence le whole round im their ^ats were the per-
sons of foreigners remained unatoncd for. It was impossible to tolerate any longer their enormities. The English and French com- manders came to the determination to attack the rebels, to enforce the original agreement with Tien Wang, and to clear the country round Shanghai of the presence of the Taep- ings for the space of thirty miles.
Guns on the Walls.
On the 2 1 St of February, therefore, a joint force composed of 336 English sailors and marines, 160 French seamen, and 600 men fronj Ward's contingent, accompanied by their respective commanders, with Admiral Hope in chief charge, advanced upon the village of Kachiaou, where the Taepings had strengthened their position, and placed guns on the walls. After a sharp engage- ment the place was stormed. Ward's men leading the attack with Burgevine at their head. The drilled Chinese behaved with great steadiness, but the Taepings were not to be dismayed by a single defeat. They even resumed their attacks on the Europeans.
On one occasion Admiral Hope himself was compelled to retire before their superior numbers, and to summon fresh troops to his assistance. The reinforcements consisted of 450 Europeans and 700 of Ward's forces, besides seven howitzers. With these it was determined to attack Tseedong, a place of great strength, surrounded by stone walls and ditches seven feet deep. The Taepings stood to their guns with great spirit, receiv- ing; the advancing troops with a very heavy fire. When, however. Ward's contingent, making a detour, appeared in the rear of the place, they hastily evacuated their positions, but the English sailors had carried the walls, and, caught between two fires, they offered a stubborn but futile resistance. More than
seven hundred were killed, and three hun- dred were taken prisoners after fighting with the most resolute bravery.
The f ivorable opinion formed of the Ever Victorious Army by the action at Kachiaou was confirmed by the more serious afiair at Tseedong; and Mr. Bruce at Pekin brought it under the favorable notice of Prince Kung and the Chinese Government. Having taken these hostile steps against the rebels, it neces- sarily followed that no advantage would ac- crue from any further hesitation with regard to allowing Europeans to enter the Imperial service for the purpose of opposing them. Ward was officially recognized, and allowed to purchase weapons and to engage officers. An Englishman contracted to convey nine thousand of the troops who had stormed Ganking from the Yangtse to Shanghai. These men were Honan braves, who iiad seen considerable service in the interior of China, and it was proposed that they should garrison the towns of Kiangsu accordingly as they were taken from the rebels.
Repulsed with Heavy Loss.
The arrival of General Staveley from Tientsin at the end of March, with portions of two English regiments (the 3 ist and 67th) put a new face on affairs, and showed that the time was at hand when it would be pos- sible to carry out the threat of clearing the country round Shanghai for the space of thirty miles.
The first place to be attacked towards the realization of this plan was the village of Wongkadza, about twelve miles west of Shanghai. Here the Taepings offered only a brief resistance, retiring to some stronger stockades four miles further west. General Staveley, considering that his men had done enough work for that day, halted them, in- tending to renew the attack the ne.xt morn-
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CHINA: PAST AND PRKSKNT.
I I
ing. Unfortunately, Ward was carried away by his impetuosity, and attacked this inner position with some five hundred of l»is own men. Admiral Hope accompanied him. The Taepings met them with a tremendous fire, and after several attempts to scale the works they were repulsed with heavy loss. Admiral Hope was wounded in the leg, seven officers were wounded, and seventy men killed and wounded.
The attack was repeated in force on the following day, and af^er some fighting the Taepings evacuated their stockades. The next place attacked was the village of Tsipoo; and, notwithstanding their strong earthworks and three wide ditches, the rebels were driven out in a few hours. It was then determined to attack Kahding, Tsingpu, Nanjao and Cholin^ at which places the Taepings were known to have mustered in considerable strength.
Attempt to Burn Shanghai.
The first place was taken with little resis- tance, and its capture was icllowed by prepa- rations for the attack on Tsingpu, which were hastened rather than delayed by a des- perate attempt to set fire to Shanghai. The plot was fortunately discovered in time, and the culprits captured and summarily e.Yecuted to the number of two hundred. Early in May a strong force was assembled at Sun- kiang, and proceeded by boat, on account of the difficulties of locomotion, to Tsingpu. The fire of the guns, in which the expedition was exceptionally strong, proved most de- structive, and two breaches being pronounced practicable the place was carried by assault. The rebeis fought well and up to the last, when they found fight impossible. The Chinese troops slew every man found in the place with arms in his hands.
A few days later Nanjao was captured.
but in the attack the French commander. Admiral Protet, a gallant officer who had been to the front during the whole of these operations, was shot dead. The rebels, dis- heartened by these successive defeats, rallied at Cholin, where they prepared to make a final stand. The allied force attacked Cholin on the 20th of May, and an English detach- ment carried it almost at the point of the bayonet. With this achievement the opera- tions of the English troops came for the moment to an end, for a disaster to the imperial arms in their rear necessitated their turning their attention to a different quarter.
A Cunning Stratagem.
The troops summoned from Ganking had at last a nved to the number of five or six thousand men ; and the Furai Sieh, who was on the point of being superseded to make room for Li Hung Chang, thought to employ them before his departure on some enterprise which should redound to his credit and restore his sinking fortunes. The operation was as hazardous as it was am- bitious. The resolution he came to was to attack the city and forts of Taitsan, a place northwest of Shanghai, and not very distant from Chung Wang's headquarters at Soo- chow. The Imperialist force reached Taitsan on the 1 2th of May, but less than two days later Chung Wang arrived in person at the head of ten thousand chosen troops to relieve the garrison.
A battle ensued on the day following, when, notwithstanding their great superiority in numbers, the Taepings failed to obtain any success. In this extremity Chung Wang resorted to a stratagem. Two thousand of his men shaved their heads and pretended to desert to the Imperialists. When the battle was renewed at sunrise on the following morning this band threw aside their assumed
I I
mmander, who had : of these ebcls, dis- its, rallied o make a ced Cholin sh detach- (int of the the opera- le for the ter to the itated their :nt quarter.
k.
anking had five or six h, who was ;d to make hought to ire on some bnd to his unes. The it was am- to was to an, a place /ery distant rs at Soo- led Taitsan two days son at the troops to
following, I superiority to obtain lung Wang Ihousand of tetended to the battle following lir assumed
V>..
FOLLOWING THE DEAD TO THE CEMETERY.
3ft
100
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
character and turned upon the Imperialists. A dreadful slaughter ensued. Of the seven thousand Honan braves and the Tartars from Shanghai, five thousand fell on the field. The consequences of this disaster were to undo most of the good accomplished by General Staveley and his force. The Im- perialists were for the moment dismayed, and the Taepings correspondingly encouraged. General Staveley's communications were threatened, one detachment /as cut ofl* and the general had to abandon his intended plan and retrace his steps to Shanghai.
Discovered Just in Time.
Chung Wang then laid regular siege to Sunkiang, where Ward was in person, and he very nearly succeeded in carrying the place by escalade. The attempt was fortu- nately discovered by an English sailor just in time, and repulsed with a loss to the rebels of one hundred men. The Taepings con- tinued to show great daring and activity before both Sunkiang and Tsingpu ; and although the latter place was bravely defended, it became clear that the wisest course would be to evacuate it. A body of troops was therefore sent from Shanghai to form a junction vith Ward at Sunkiang, and to effect the safe retreat of the Tsingpu gar- rison.
The earlier proceedings were satisfactorily arranged, but the last act of all was grossly mismanaged and resulted in a catastrophe. Ward caused the place to be set on fire, when the Taepings, realizing what was being done, hastened into the town, and assailed the retiring garrison. A scene of great con- fusion followed ; many lives were lost, and the Commandant who had held it so cour- ageously was taken prisoner. Chung Wang could therefore appeal to some facts to sup- port his contention that he had got the better
of the Europeans and the Imperialists in the province of Kiangsu.
From the scene of his successes Chung Wang was once more called away by the timidity or peril of Tien Wang, who was barely able to maintain his position at Nankin, but when he ha.stened off to assist the chief of the Taepings he found that he was out of favor, and that the jealousy or fear of his colleagues brought about his temporary disgrace and loss of title. Shortly after Chung Wang's departure Ward was killed in action and Burgevine succeeded : i the command, but it soon became apparei.t that his relations with the Chinese authori- ties would not be smooth. General Ching was jealous of the Ever-Victorious Army and wished to have all the credit for himself.
A Sharp Quarrel.
Li Hung Chang who had been appointed Futui or Governor of Kiangsu entertained doubts of the loyalty of this adventurer, an J a feud broke out between them at an early stage of their relations. Burgevine was a man of high temper and strong passions, who was disposed to treat his Chinese col- leagues with lofty superciliousness, and who met the wiles of the Futai with peremptory demands to recognize the claims of himself and his band. Nor was this all. Burgevine had designs of his own. Although the pro- ject had not taken definite form in his mind — for an unsubdued enemy was still in pos- session of the greater part of the province — the inclination was strong within him to play the part of military dictator with the Chinese ; or failing that, to founa an inde- pendent authority on some convenient spot of Celestial territory.
Burgevine's character was described at a later period as being that of "a man of large promises and few works." " His popularity
CHINESE GORDON."
101
rialists in the
was great among a certain class. He was extravagant in his generosity, and as long as he had anything would divide it with the so- called friends, but never was a man of any administrative or military talent ; and latterly, through the irritation caused by his unhealed wound and other causes, he was subject to violent paroxysms of anger, which rendered precarious the safety of any man who ten- dered to him advice that might be distasteful. He was extremely sensitive of his dignity, and held a higher position in Soochow than any foreigner did before." The Futai antici- pated, perhaps, more than divined his wishes. In Burgevine he saw, very shortly after their comi;v» into contact, not merely a man whom he cis'.iked and distrusted, but one who, if allowed to pursue his plans unchecked, would in the end form a greater danger to the Imperial authority than even the Tae- pinjs. It is not possible to deny Li's shrewd- ness in reading the character of the man with whom he had to deal.
Patriotism of the Merchants.
Although Burgevine had succeeded to Ward's command, he had not acquired the intimacy and confidence of the great Chinese merchant, Takee and his colleagues, at Shanghai, which had been the main cause of his predecessor's influence and position. In 'Vard they felt implicit faith ; Burgevine was comparatively unknown, and where known only regarded with suspicion. The patriot- ism of the Shanghai merchants consisted in protecting their own possessions. Having succeeded in this they began to consider whether it was necessary to expend any longer the large sums voluntarily raised for the support of the contingent.
The Futai Li, in order to test his obedi- ence, proposed that Burgevine and his men should be sent round by sea to Nankin to
take part in the siege of that city. The ships were actually prepared for their conveyance, and the Taotai Wou, who had first fitted out a fleet against the rebels, was in readiness to accompany Burgevine, when Li and his col- league, as suspicious of Burgevine's com- pliance as they would have been indignant at his refusal, changed their plans and counter- manded the expedition. Instead of carrying out this project, therefore, they laid a number of formal complaints before General Staveley as to Burgevine's conduct, and requested the English Government to remove him from his comniand, and to appoint an English officer in his place.
An Unsafe Adventurer.
The charges against Burgevine diJ not at this time amount to more than a certain laxness in regard to the expenditure of the force, a disregard for the wishes and predju- dices of the Chinnese Government, and the want of tact, or of the desire to conciliate, in his personal relations with the Futai. If Burgevine had resigned, all would have been well, but he regarded the position from the stand-point of the adventurer who believes that his own interests form a supreme law and are the highest good. As commander of the Ever-Victorious Army he was a per- sonage to be considered even by foreign governments. He would not voluntarily surrender the position which alone preserved him from obscurity. Having come to this decision it was clear that even the partial execution of his plans must draw him into many errors of judgment which could not but embitter the conflict.
The reply c.f the English commander was to the effect that personally he could not interfere, but that he would refer the matter to London as well as to Mr. Bruce at Pekin. In consequence of the delay thus caused the
102
CHINA. I'ASl AND rRKSKNT.
project of removing the force to Nankin was revived, and, the steamers having been char- tered, Burgcvinc was requested to bring down his force from Simkiang and to embark it at Shanghai. This he expressed his willingness to do on payment of his men wlio were two months in arrear, and on the settlement of all outstanding claims. Burgevinc was sup- ported by his troops. Whatever his dislike to the proposed move, theirs was immeasur- ably greater. They refused to move without the payment of all arrears ; and on the 2d of January they even went so far as to openly mutiny.
Struck a Mandarin.
Two days later Burgevine went to Shang- hai, and had an interview with Takce. The meeting was stormy. Burgevine used per- sonal violence towards the Shanghai mer- chant, whose attitude was at first overbearing, and he returned to his exasperated troops with the money, which he carried off by force. The Futai Li, on hearing of the assault on Takee, hastened to General Staveley to complain of Biirgevinc's gross insubordination in striking a mandarin, which by the law of China was punishable with death. Burgevine was dismissed from the Chinese serxicc, and the notice of this re- moval was forwarded by the iMiglish General, with a recommendation to him to give up his command without disturbance. This Burge- vine did, for the advice of the English general was equivalent to a command, and on the 6th of January, 1863, Burgevine was back at Shanghai.
Captain Holland was then placed in tem- porary command, while the answer of the Home Government was awaited to General Staveley's proposition to entrust the force to the care of a young captain of engineers, named Charles Gordon. Chung Wang re-
turned at this moment to Soochow, and m Kiangsu the cause of the Taepings again revived through his energy. In February a detachment of Holland's force attacked Fushan, but met with a check, when the news of a serious defeat at Taitsan, where the former Futai .Sieh had been defeated, compelled its speedy retreat to Sunkiang. Li had some reason to believe that Tait.san woukl surrender on the approach of the Imperialists, and he accordingly .sent a large army, including 2,500 of the contingent, to attack it.
The affair was badly managed. The assaulting party was stopped by a wide ditch ; neither boats nor ladders arrived. The Taepings fired furiously on the exposed party, several officers were killed, and the men broke into confusion. The heavy guns stuck in the soft ground and had to be aban- doned ; and despite the good conduct of thp contingent the Taepings achieved a decisive success (13th February). Chung Wang was able to feel that his old luck had not deserted him, and the Taepings of Kiangsu recovered all their former confidence in themselves and their leader. This disaster inflicted a rude blow on the confidence of Li and his assistants ; and it was resolved that nothing .should be attempted until the Enf,]ish officer, at last appointed, had as- sumed the active command.
Gordon in Command.
Such was the position of affairs when on 24th of March, 1863, Major Gordon took command of the Ever-Victorious Army. At that moment it was not merely discouraged by its recent reverses, but it was discontented with its position, and when Major Gordon assumed the command at Sunkiang there was some fear of an immediate mutiny. The new commander succeeded in allaying
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104
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
their discontent, and believing that active employment was the best cure for insubor- dination resolved to relieve Chanzu without delay. The Taepings were pressing the siege hard and would probably have cap- tured the place before many days when Major Gordon attacked them in their stock- ades and drove them out with no inconsider- able loss.
The Next Move.
Having thus gained the confidence of his men and the approbation of the Chinese authorities Major Gordon returned to Sun- kiang where he employed himself in ener- getically restoring the discipline of his force, and in preparing for his next move which at the request of Li Hung Chang was to be the capture of Quinsan. On the 24th of April the force left Sunkiang to attack Quinsan, but it had not proceeded far when its course had to be altered to Taitsan, where, through an act of treachery, a force of 1,500 Imperialists had been annihilated. It became necessary to retrieve this disaster without delay, more especially as all hope of taking Quinsan had for the moment to be abandoned.
Major Gordon at once altered the direc- tion of his march, and joining en route General Ching, who had, on the news, broken up his camp before Quinsan, hastened as rapidly as possible to Taitsan, where he arrived on the 29th of April. Bad weather obliged the attack to be deferred until the 1st of May, when two stockades on the west side were carried, and their defen- ders compelled to flee, not into the town as they would have wished, but away from it towards Chanzu. On the following day, the attack was resumed on the north side, while the armed boats proceeded to assault the place from the creek. The firing continued from nine in the morning until five in the
evening, when a breach seemed to be practi- cable, and two regiments were ordered to the a.ssault. The rebels showed great courage and fortitude, swarming in the breach and pouring a heavy and well-directed fire upon the troops.
The attack was momentarily checked; but while the stormers remained under such cover as they could find, the shells of two howitzers were playing over their heads and causing frightful havoc among the Taepings in the breach. But for these guns, Major Gordon did not think that the place would have been carried at all ; but after some minutes of this firing at such close quarters, the rebels began to show signs of wavering. A party of troops gained the wall, a fresh regiment advanced towards the breach, and the disappearance of the snake flag showed that the Taeping leaders had given up the fight. Taitsan was thus captured, and the three previous disasters before it retrieved.
Gordon's Difficulties.
On the 4th of May the victorious force appeared before Quinsan, a place of consider- able strength and possessing a formidable artillery directed by a European. The town was evidently too strong to be carried by an immediate attack, and Major Gordon's movements were further hampered by the conduct of his own men, who, upon their arrival at Quinsan, hurried ofl*in detachments to Sunkiang for the purpose of disposing of their spoil.
Ammunition had also fallen short, and the commander was consequently obliged to return to refit and to rally his men. At Sunkiang worse confusion followed, for the men, or rather the officers, broke out into mutiny on the occasion of Major Gordon appointing an English officer with the rank of lieutenant-colonel to the control of the
'CHINESE GORDON."
105
commissariat, which had been completely neglected. The men who had served with Ward and Burgevine objected to this, and openly refused to obey orders. Fortunately the stores and ammunition were collected, and Major Gordon announced that he would march on the following morning, with or without the mutineers. Those who did not answer to their names at the end of the first half-march would be dismissed, and he spoke with the authority of one in complete accord with the Chinese authorities themselves.
Anxioiis for the Fray.
The soldiers obeyed him as a Chinese official, because he had been made a tsung- ping or brigadier-general, and the officers feared to disobey him as they would have liked on account of his commanding the source whence they were paid. The muti- neers fell in, and a force of ne irly 3,000 men, well-equipped and anxious for the fray, returned to Quinsan, where General Ching had, in the meanwhile, kept the rebels closely watched from a strong position defended by several stockades, and supported by the Hysan steamer. Immediately after his ar- rival, Major Gordon moved out his force to attack the stockades which the rebels had constructed on their right wing. These were strongly built; but as soon as the defenders perceived that the assailants had gained their flank they precipitately withdrew into Quinsan itself. General Ching wished the attack to be made on the Eastern Gate, opposite to which he had raised his own intrenchments, and by which he had announced his intention of forcing his way; but a brief inspection showed Major Gordon that that was the strongest point of the town, and that a direct attack upon it could only succeed, if at all, by a very considerable sacrifice of men
Like a prudent commander Major Gordon determined to reconnoitre; and, after much grumbling on the part of General Ching, he decided that the most hopeful plan was to carry some stockades situated seven miles west of the town, and thence assail Quinsan on the Soochow side, which was weaker than the others. These stockades were at a village called Chumze. On the 30th of May the force detailed for his work proceeded to carry it out. The Hyson and fifty imperial gunboats conveyed the land force, which consisted of one regiment, some guns, and a large body of Imperialists.
The rebels at Chumze offered hardly the least resistance; whether it was that they were dismayed at the sudden appearance of the enemy, or, as was stated at the time, because they considered themselves illtrc:ited by their comrades in Quinsan. The Hyson vigorously pursued those who fled towards Soochow, and completed the effect of this success by the capture of a very strong and well-built fort covering a bridge at Ta Edin. An Imperialist garrison was installed there, and the Hyson continued the pursuit to with- in a mile of Soochow itself.
A lively Panic.
The defenders of Quinsan itself were terribly alarmed at the cutting off of their communications. They saw themselves on the point of being surrounded, and they yielded to the uncontrollable impulse of panic. During the night, after having suf- fered severely from the Hyson fire, the garri- son evacuated the place, which might easily have held out; and General Ching had the personal satisfaction, on learning from some deserters of the flight of the garrison, of lead- ing his men over the eastern walls which he had wished to assault. The importance of Quinsan was realized on its capture. Major
106
CHINA: PAST AND PRP:SENT.
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Gordon pronounced it to be the key of Soo- chow, and at once resolved to establish his headquarters there, partly because of its
The change was not acceptable, however, to the force itself; and the artillery in parti- cular refused to obey orders, and threatened
A CHINESE FESTIVAL.
natural advantages, but also and not less on account of its enabling him to gradually des- troy the evil associations and vicious habits which the men had contracted at Sunkiang.
to shoot their officers. Discipline was, how- ever, promptly reasserted by the energy of the commander, who ordered the principal ringleader to b" shot anH the Ever Victori-
"CHINESE GORDON."
107
jwever, ti parti- satened
IS, how- pergy of Irincipal iVictori-
ous Army became gradually reconciled to its new position at Qiiinsan. After the cap- ture of Quinsan there was a cessation of active operations for nearly two months. It was the height of summer and the new troops had to be drilled. The difficulty with Ching, who took all the credit for the cap- ture of Quinsan to himself, was arranged through the mediation of Dr. Macartney, who had just left the English army to become Li's right-hand man.
Removal of a Commander.
Two other circumstances occurred to em- barrass the young commander. There were rumors of some meditated movement on the part of Burgevine, who had returned from Pekin with letters exculpating him and who endeavored to recover the command in spite of LI Hung Chang, and there was a further manifestation of insubordination in the force, which, as Gordon said, bore more resemblance to a rabble than the magnificent army it was popularly supposed to be. The artillery had been cowed by Major Gordon's vigor, but its efficiency remained more doubt- ful than could be satisfactory to the general responsible for its condition, and also relying upon it as the most potent arm of his force. He resolved to remove the old commander, and to appoint an English officer, Major Tapp, in his place.
On carrying his determination into effect the officers sent in " a round robin," refusing to accept the new officer. This was on the 25th of July, and the expedition which had been decided upon against VVokong had con- sequently to set out the foUowmg morning without a single artillery officer. In face of the inflexible resolve of the leader, however, the officers repented, and appeared in a body at the camp begging to be taken back, and expressing their willingness to accept " Major
Tapp or anyone else " as their colonel. They were promptly reinstated.
With these troops, part of whom had only just returned to a proper sense of discipline, Gordon proceeded to attack Kahpoo, a place on the Grand Canal south of Soochow, where the rebels held two strongly-built stone forts. The force had been strengthened by the addi- tion of another steamer, the Firefly, a sister vessel to the Hyson. Major Gordon arrived before Kahpoo on the 27th of July; and the garrison, evidently taken by surprise, made scarcely the least resistance. The capture of Kahpoo placed Gordon's force between Soochow and Wokong, the next object of attack. At Wokong the rebels were equally unprepared.
The Place Surrendered.
The garrison at Kahpoo, thinking only of its own sai'ety, had fled to Soochow, leaving their comrades at Wokong unwarned and to their fate. So heedless were the Taepings at this place of all danger from the north, that they had even neglected to occupy a strong stone fort situated cibout i ,000 yards north of the Wc-.lls. The Taepings attempted too late to repair their error, and the loss of this fort caused them that of all their other stock- ades. Wokong itself was too weak to offer any effectual resistance ; and the garrison on the eve of the assault ordered for the 29lh of July sent out a request for quarter, which was granted, and the place surrendered with- out further fighting. Meanwhile an event of far greater importance had happened than even the capture of these towns, although they formed the necessary preliminary to the investment of Soochow. Burgevine had come to the decision to join the Taepings.
Disappointed in his hope of receiving the command, Burgevine remained on at Shang- hai, employing his time in watching the vary-
I
108
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
tng phases of a campaign in which he longed to take part, and of which he believed that it was only his due to have the direction, but still hesitating as to what decision it behoved him to take. His contempt for all Chinese officials became hatred of the bitterest kind of the Futai, by whom he had been not merely thwarted but overreached, and pre- disposed him to regard with no unfavorable eye the idea of joining his fortunes with those of the rebel Taepings.
Jealous of Gordon.
To him in this frame of mind came some of the dismissed officers and men of the Ward force appealing to his vanity by declar- ing that his soldiers remembered him with affection, and that he had only to hoist his flag for most of his old followers to rally round him. There was little to marvel at if he also was not free from some feeling of jealousy at the success and growing fame of Major Gordon, for whom he simulated a warm friendship. The combination of mo- tives proved altogether irresistible as soon as he found that several hundred European adventurers were ready to accompany him into the ranks of the Taepings, and to en- deavor to do for them what they failed to perform for the Imperialists.
On the 1 5th of July, Dr. Macartney wrote to Major Gordon stating that he had positive information that Burgevine was enlisting men for some enterprise, that he had already col- lected about 300 Europeans, and that he had even gone so far as to choose a .special flag, a white diamond on a red ground, and con- taining a black star in the centre of the dia- mond. On the 2 1st of the same month Burgevine wrote to Major Gordon saying that there would be many rumors about him, but that he was not to believe any of them, and that he would come and see
him shortly. This letter was written as a blind, and, unfortunately, Major Gordon attached greater value to Burgevine's word than he did to the precise information of Dr. Macartney. He was too much disposed tc think that, as the officer had to a certair extent superseded Burgevine in command, he was bound to take the most favorable view of all his actions, and to trust implicitly in his good faith. Major Gordon, trusting to his word, made himself personally respon- sible, to the Chinese authorities for his good faith, and thus Burgevine escaped arrest.
Burgevine's plans had been deeply laid. He had been long in correspondence with the Taepings, and his terms had been ac- cepted. He proclaimed his hostility to the Government by seizing one of their new steamers.
Immediate Danger.
At this very moment Major Gordon came to the decision to resign, and he hastened back to Shanghai in order to place his with- drawal from the force in the hands of the Futai. He arrived there on the very day that Burgevine seized the Kajow steamer at Sunkiang, and on hearing the news he at once withdrew his resignation, which had been made partly from irritation at the irregular payment of his men, and also on account of the cruelty of General Ching. Not merely did he withdraw his resignation, but he hastened back to Quinsan, into which he rode on the night of the very same day that had witnessed his departure. The im- mediate and most pressing danger was from the possible defection of the lorce to its old leader, when, with the large stores of artil- lery and ammunition at Quinsan in their pos- session, not even Shanghai, with its very weak foreign garrison, could be considered safe from attack.
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109
As a measure of precaution Major Gor- don sent some of his heavy guns and stores back to Taitsan, where the English com- mander, General Brown, consented to guard them, while he hastened off to Kahpoo, now threatened both by the Soochow force and by the foreign adventurers acting under Burgevine. He arrived at the most critical moment. The garrison was hard pressed. General Ching had gone back to Shanghai, and only the presence of the Hyson pre- vented the rebels, who were well armed and possessed an efficient artillery, from carrying the fort by a rush. The arrival of Major Gordon with 150 men on board his third steamer, the Cricket, restored the confidence of the defenders, but there was no doubt that Burgevine had lost a most favorable oppor- tunity, for if he had attacked this place in- stead of proceeding to Soochow it must have fallen.
Moving on the Rebel Stronghold.
General Ching, who was a man of almost extraordinary energy and restlessness, re- solved to signalize his return to the field by some striking act while Major Gordon was completing his preparations at Quinsan for a fresh effort. His headquarters were at the strong fort of Ta Edin, on the creek leading from Quinsan to Soochow, and having the Hyson with him, he determined to make a dash to some point nearer the great rebel stronghold. On the 30th of August he had seized the position of Waiquaidong, where, in three days, he threw up stockades, admir- ably constructed, and which could not have been carried save by a great effort on tiie part of the whole of the Soochow garrison.
Towards the end of September, Major Gordon, fearing lest the rebels, who had now the supposed advantage of Burgevine's pres- ence and advice, might make some attempt
to cut off General Ching 's lengthy communi- cations, moved forward to Waiquaidong to support him ; but when he arrived, he found that the impatient mandarin, encouraged either by the news of his approach or at the inaction of the Taepings in Soochow, had made a still further advance of two miles, so that he was only I.CXK) yards distant from the rebel stockades in front of the East Gate. Major Gordon had at this time been rein- forced by the Franco-Chinese corps, which had been well disciplined, under the com- mand of Captain Bonnefoy, while the neces- sity of leaving any strong garrison at Quin- san had been obviated by the loan of 200 Belooches from Geneial Brown's force.
Effective Fire of the Gunboat.
The rebel position heaving been carefully reconnoitred, both on the east and on the south. Major Gordon determined that the first step necessary for its proper beleaguerment was to seize and fortify the village of Pata- chiaou, about one mile south of the city wall. The village, although stockaded, was evacu- ated by the garrison after a feeble resist- ance, and an rttempt to recover it a few horrs later by Mow Wang in person resulted in a rude repulse chiefly on account of the effective fire of the Hyson. Burgevine, instead of fighting the battles of the failing cause he had adopted, was travelling about the country : at one moment in the capital interviewing Tien Wang and his ministers, at another going about in disguise even in the streets of Shanghai.
But during the weeks when General Ching might have been taken at a disadvan- tage, and when it was quite possible to recover some of the places which had been lost, he was absent from the scene of military operations. After the capture of Patachiaou most of the troops and the steamers that had
110
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
taken it were sent back to Waiquaidong, but Major Gordon remained there with a select body of his men and three howitzers. The rebels had not resigned themselves to the loss of Patachiaou, and on the 1st of October they made a regular attempt to recover it. They brought the Kajoiv into action, and, as it had found a daring commander in a man named Jones, its assistance proved very con- siderable. They had also a 32-poundcr gun on board a junk, and this enabled them to overcome the fire of Gordon's howitzers and also of the Hyson, which arrived from Wai- quaidong during the engagement. But not- withstanding the superiority of their artillery, the rebels hesitated to come to close quarters, and when Major Gordon and Captain Bon- nefoy led a sortie against them at the end of the day they retired precipitately.
Wishes to Surrender.
At this stage Burgevine wrote to Major Gordon two letter.s — the first exalting the Taepings, and the second written two days later asking for an interview, whereupon he expressed his desire to surrender on the pro- vision of personal safety. He assigned the state of his health as the cause of this change, but there was never the least doubt that the true reason of this altered view was dissatis- faction with his treatment by the Taeping leaders and a conviction of the impossibility of success. Inside Soochow, and at Nankin, it was possible to see with clearer eyes than at Shanghai that the Taeping cause was one that could not be resuscitated.
But although Burgevine soon and very ' ;ar!v^ 3aw the hopelessness of the Taeping kn> ivom, nt, he had by no means made up his n.i.id to go o\er to the Imperialists. With a ci li ■• jcrable number of European followers at his beck and call, and with a profound and ineradicable contempt for the whole
Chinese official world, he was loth to lose or surrender the position which ga\e him a certain importance. He vacillated between a number of suggestions, and the last he came to was the most remarkable, at the same time that it revealed more clearly than any other the vain and meretricious charac- ter of the man.
A Scheme of Treachery.
In his second interview with Major Gor- don he proposed that ihat officer should join him, and combining the whole force of the Europeans and the disciplined Chinese, seize Soochow, and establish an independent authority of their own. It was the old fili- bustering idea, revived under the most unfavorable circumstances, of fighting for their own hand, dragging the European name in the dirt, and founding an indepen- dent authority of some vague, undefinable and transitory character. Major Gordon listened to the unfolding of this scheme of miserable treachery, and only his strong sense of the utter impossibility, and indeed the ridiculousness of the project, prevented his contempt and indignation finding forcible expression.
Burgevine, the traitor to the Imperial cause, the man whose health would not allow him to do his duty to his new masters in Soochow, thus revealed his plan for defy- ing all parties, and for deciding the fate of the Dragon Throne. The only reply he received was the cold one that it would be better and wiser to confine his attention to the question of whether he intended to yield or not, instead of discussing idle schemes of " vaulting ambition."
Meantime, Chung Wang had come down from Nankin to superintend the defence of Soochow; and in face of a more capable opponent he still did not despair of success,
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
or at the least of making a good fight of it. He formed the plan of assuming the offensive against Chanzu whilst General Ching was employed in erecting his stockades step by step nearer to the eastern wall of Soochow. In order to prevent the realization of this project Major Gordon made several demon- strations on the western side of Soochow, which had the effect of inducing Chung Wang to defer his departure.
At this conjuncture serious news arrived from the south. A large rebel force, assem- bled from Chekiang and the silk districts south of the Taho lake, had moved up the Grand Canal and held the garrison of Wokong in close confinement. On the loth of October the Imperialists stationed there made a sortie, but were driven back with the loss of several hundred men killed and wounded.
Hard Fought Battle.
Their provisions were almost e.xhausted, and it was e^'ident that unless relieved they could not hold out many days longer. On the 1 2tii of October Major Gordon therefore hastened to their succor. The rebels held a position south of Wokong, and, as they felt sure of a safe retreat, they fought with great determination. The battle lasted three hours; the guns had to be brought up to within fifty yards of the stockade, and the whole affair is described as one of the hardest fought actions of the war. On the return of the contingent to Patachiaou, about thirty Europeans deserted the rebeis, but Burge- vine and one or two others were not with them.
Chung Wang had seized the opportunity of Gordon's departure for the relief of Wokong to carry out his scheme against Chanzu. Taking the Kajow with him, and a considerable number of the foreign adven-
turers, he reached Monding, where the Imperialists were strongly intrenched at the junction of the main creek from Chanzu with the canal. He attacked them, and a severely contested struggle ensued, in which at first the Taepings carried everything before them. But the fortune of the day .soon veered round. The Kajnv was sunk by a lucky shot, great havoc was wrought by the explosion of a powder-boat, and the Imperialists remained masters of a hard- fought field.
Succeeded in Escaping.
The defection of the Europeans paced Burgevine in serious peril, and only Major Gordon's urgent representations and acts of courtesy to the Mow Wang saved his life. The Taeping leader, struck by the gallantry and fair dealing of the English officer, set Burgevine free, and the American consul thanked Major Gordon for his great kindness to that misguided officer. Burgevine came out of the whole complication with a reputa- tion in every way tarnished. He had not even the most common courage which would have impelled him to stay in Soochow and take the chances of the party to which he had attached himself Whatever his natural talents might have been, his vanity and weakness obscured them all. With the in- clination to create an infinity of mischief, it must be considered fortunate that his ability was so small, for his opportunities were abundant.
The conclusion of the Burgevine incident removed a weight from Major Gordon's mind. Established on the east and south of Soochow, he determined to secure a similar position on its western side, when he would be able to intercept the communication still held by the garrison across the Taho lake. In order to attain this object it was necessary.
'CHINESE GORDON."
113
in the first place, to carry the stockades at Wuliungchow, a \illagc two miles west of Patachiaou. The place was captured at the first attack and successfully held, notwith- standing a fierce attempt to recover it under the personal direction of Chung Wang, who returned for the express purpose.
This success was followed by others. Another large body of rebels had come up from the south and assailed the garrison of VVokong. On the 26th of October one of Gordon's lieutenants, Major Kirkham, in- flicted a severe defeat upon them, and vigor- ously pursued them for several miles. The next operation undertaken was the capture of the village of Leeku, three miles north of Soochow, as the preliminary to investing the city on the north. Here Major Gordon re- sorted to his usual flanking tactics, and with conspicuous success. The rebels fought well; one officer was killed at Gordon's side, and the men in the stockade were cut down with the exception of about forty, who were made prisoners.
The Force too Small.
Soochow was then assailed on the northern as well as on the other sides, but Chung Wang's army still served to keep open com- munications by means of the Grand Canal.
That army had its principal quarters at Wusich, where it was kept in check by a large Imperialist force under Santajin, Li's brother, who had advanced from Kongyin on the Yangtse. Major Gordon's main diffi- culty now arose from the insufficiency of his force to hold so wide an extent of country ; and in order to procure a reinforcement from Santajin, he agreed to assist that commander against his able opponent Chung Wang. With a view to accomplishing this the Taep- ing position at Wanti, two miles north of Leeku, was attacked and captured.
8
At this stage of the campaign there were I3,5<X) men round Soochow, and of these 8,500 were fully occupied in the defence of the stockades, leaving the very small number of 5,000 men available for active measures in the field. On the other hand, Santajin had not fewer than 20,000, and possibly as many as 30,000 men under his orders. But the Taepings still enjoyed the numercial superiority. They had 40,000 men in Soochow, 20,000 at Wusieh, and Chung Wang occupied a camp, half-way between these places, with 18,000 follo^-ers. The presence of Chung Wang was also estimated tc be worth a corps of 5,000 soldiers.
Petty Rivalries.
Had Gordon been free to act, his plan of campaign would have been simple and decisive. He would have effected a junction of his forces with Santajin, he would have overwhelmed Chung Wang's 18,000 with his combined army of double that strength, and he would have appeared at the heail of his victorious troops before the bewildered garrison of Wusieh. It would probably have terminated the campaign at a stroke. Even the decisive defeat of Chung Wang alone might have entailed the collapse of a cause now tottering to its fall. But Major Gordon had to consider not merely the mili- tary quality of his allies, but also fheir jealousies and differences.
General Ching hated Santajin on private grounds as well as on public. He desired a monopoly of the profit and honor of the campaign. His own reputation would be made by the capture of Soochow. It would be diminished and cast into the shade were another Imperial commander to defeat Chung Wang and close the line of the Grand Canal. Were Gordon to detach himself from General Ching he could not feel sure what that
114
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
H'
jealous and impulsive commander would do. He would certainly not preserve the vigilant defensive before Soochow necessary to ensure the safety of the army operating to the north. The commander of the Ever-Victorious Army had consequently to abandon the tempting idea of crushing Chung Wang and to have recourse to slower methods.
An Unexpected Retreat.
On the 19th of November Major Gordon collected the whole of his available force to attack Fusaiquan, a place on the Grand Canal six miles north of Soochow. Here the rebels had barred the canal at three dif- ferent points, while on the banks they occu- pied eight earthworks, which were fortu- nately in a very incomplete state. A desperate resistance was expected from the rebels at this advantageous .spot, but they preferred their safety to their duty, and retreated to Wusich with hardly any loss. In consequence of this reverse Chung Wang withdrew his forces from his camp in face of Saiitajin, and concentrated his men at Men- ding and Wu.sieh for the defence of the Grand Canal. The investment of Soochow being now as complete as the number of troops under the Imperial standard would allow. Major Gordon returned to General Ching's stockades in front of that place, with the view of resuming the attack on the Eastern Gate. General Ching and Captain Bonncfoy had met with a slight repluse there on the 14th of October. The stockade in front of the east gate was known by the name of the Low Mun,and had been strengthened to the best knowledge of the Taeping engineers. Their position was exceedingly formidable, consisting of a line of breastworks defended at intervals with circular stockades.
Major Gordon decided upon making a r.ijht attack, and he arranged his plans from
the information provided by the European and other deserters who had been inside. The Taepings were not without their spies and sympathizers also, and the intended attempt was revealed to them. The attack was made at two in the morning of the 27th of November, but the rebels had mustered in force and received Major Gordon's men with tremendous volleys. Even then the disciplined troops would not give way, and encouraged by the example of their leader, who seemed to be at the front and at every point at the same moment, fairly held their own on the edge of the enemy's position.
The Troops Confused.
Unfortunately the troops in support behaved badly, and got confused from the heavy fire of the Taepings which never slackened. Some of them absolutely retired and others were landed at the wrong places. Major Gordon had to hasten to the rear to restore order, and during his absence the advanced guard were expelled from their position by a forward movement led by Mow Wang in person. The attack had failed, and there was nothing to do save to draw off the troops with as little further loss as possible. Phis was Major Gordon's first defeat, but it was so evidently due to the accidents inseparable from a night attempt, and to the fact that the surprise had been revealed, that it produced a less discourag- ing effect on officers and men than might have seemed probable. Up to this day Major Gordon had obtained thirteen distinct vic- tories besides the advantage in many minor skirmishes.
Undismayed by this reverse Major Gordon collected all his troops and artillery from the other stockades, and resolved to attack the Low Mun position with his whole force. He also collected all his heavy guns and mor-
•CHINESE GORDON."
116
tars and connonaded the rebel stockade for some time ; but on an advance being ordered the assailants were compelled to retire by the fire which the Taepings brought to bear on them at every available point. Chung Wang had hastened down from Wusieh to take part in the defence of what was rightly regarded as the key of the position at Soo- chow, and both he and Mow Wang super- intended in person the defence of the Low Mun .stockade.
Superb Bravery.
After a further cannonade the advance was again sounded, but this second attack would also have failed had not the officers and men boldly plunged into the moat or creek and swum across. The whole of the stock- ades and a stone fort were then carried, and the Imperial forces firmly established at a point only 900 yards from the inner wall of S jochovv. Six officers and fifty men were killed, and three officers, five Europeans and 128 men were wounded in this successful attack. The capture of the Low Mun stockades meant practically the fall of Soo- chow. Chung Wang then left it to its fate, and all the other Wangs except Mow Wang were in favor of coming to terms with the Imperialists. Even before this defeat Lar Wang had entered into communications with General Ching for coming over, and, as he had the majority of the troops at Soo- chow under his orders, Mow Wang was practically powerless, although resolute to defcMid the place to the last.
Several interviews took place between the Wangs and General Ching and Li Hung Chang. Major Gordon also saw the former, and had one interview with Lar Wang in person. The English officer proposed as the most feasible plan his surrendering one of the gates. During all this period Major
Gordon had impressed on both of his Chinese colleagues the imperative necessity there was, for reasons of both policy and prudence, to deal leniently and honorably by the rebel chiefs. All seemed to be going well. General Ching took an oath of brotherhood with Lar Wang, Li Hung Chang agreed with everything that fell from Gordon's lips. The only one exempted from this tacit understanding was Mow Wang, always in favor of fighting it out and defend- ing the town ; and his name was not men- tioned for the simple reason that he had nothing to do with the negotiations.
A Gallant Enemy.
For Mow Wang Major Gordon had formed the esteem due to a gallant enemy, and he resolved to spare no efforts to save his life. His benevolent intentions were thwarted by the events that had occurred within Soochow. Mow Wang had been murdered by the other Wangs, who feared that he might detect their plans and prevent their being carried out. The death of Mow Wang removed the only leader who was hearlily opposed to the surrender of Soo- chow, and on the day after this chief's murder the Imperialists received possession of one of the gates. The inside of the city had been the scene of the most dreadful con- fusion. Mow Wang's men had sought to avenge their leader's death, and, on the other hand, the followers of Lar Wang had shaved their heads in token of their adhesion to the Imperialist cause.
Some of the more prudent of the Wangs, not knowing what turn events might take amid the prevailing discord, secured their safety by a timely flight. Major Gordon kept his force well in hand, and refused to allow any of the men to enter the city, where they would certainly have exercised the
116
CHINA: PAST AND I'RKSHNT.
privilcj^es of a mercenary force in respect of pillage. Instead of this Major Gordon en- deavored to obtain for them two months' pay from the Futai, which that official stated his inability to procure. Ma^or Gordon there- upon resigned in disgiLst, and on succeeding in obtaining one months' pay for his men, he sent them back to Quinsan without a ilis- turbance.
Nine Headless Bodies.
The departure of the Ever Victorious Army for its headquarters was regarded by the Chinese officials with great satisfaction and for .several reajons. In the flu.sh of the success at Soochow both that force and its commander seemed in the way of the Futai, and to diminish the extent of his triumph. Neither Li nor Ching also had the least wish for any of the ex-rebel chiefs, men of ability and accustomed to command, to be taken into the service of the government. Of men of that kind there were already enough. General Ching himself was a sufficiently for- midable rival to the Futai, without any as- sistance and encouragement from Lar Wang and the others. Li had no wish to save them from the fate of the rebels; and al- tliough he had promised, and General Ching had sworn to, their personal safety, he was bent on getting rid of them in one way or another.
He feared Major Gordon, but he also thought that the time had arrived when he could dispen.se with him and the foreign- drilled legion in the same way as he had got rid of Sherard Osborn and his fleet. The departure of the Quinsan force left him free to follow his own inclination. The Wangs were invited to an entertainment in the Futai 's boat, and Major Gordon saw them both in the city and subsequently when on their way to Li Hung Chang. The exact
circumstances of their fate were neve? known ; but nine headless bodies were dis- covered on the opposite side of the creek, and not far distant from the Futai's quarters It then became evident that Lar Wang and his fellow Wangs had been brutually murdered. Major Gordon was dispo.scd tc take the office of their avenger into his own hands, but the opportunity of doing so for- tunately did not present itself He hastened back to Quinsan, where he refused to act any longer with such false and dishonorable colleagues. The matter was reported to Pekin. Both the mandarins sought to clear themselves by accusing each the other ; and a special decree came from Pekin conferring on the English officer a very high order and the sum of 14,000 dollars. Major Gordon returned the money, and expressed his regret at being unable to accept any token of honor from the Emperor in consequence of the .Soochow affair.
Gordon Again in the Field.
A variety of reasons, all equally credit- able to Major Gordon's judgment and single mindedne.ss, induced him after two months' retirernent to abandon his inaction and to sink his difference with the Futai. He saw very clearly that the sluggishness of the Imperial commanders would result in the prolongation of the struggle with all its at- tendant evils, whereas, if he took the field, he would be able to bring it to a conclusion within two months. Moreover, the Quinsan force, never veiy amenable to discipline, shook off all restraint when in quarters, and promised to become as dangerous to the government in whose way it was as to the enemy against whom it was engaged to fight.
Major Gordon, in view of these facts, came to the prompt decision that it was his
"CHINKSK GORDON."
117
(!uty, and the course most calculated to do I of February, 1864, lie accordingly left gOL i for him to retake the field, and strive ( Quinsan at the head of his men who showed
CHlNliSli MA.NDAUIN AND II l> WUi:.
as energetically as possible to expel the rebels from the small part of Kiani^su still remaining in their possession. On the i8th
threat satisfaction at the return tu active cam- paigning. Wusieh had been evacuated on the fall of Soochow, and Chuni,^ Wang's
118
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
I i
force retired to Changchow, while that chief himself returned to Nankin. A few weeks later General Ching had seized Pingwang, thus obtaining the command of another en- trance into the Taho Lake. Santajin estab- lished his force in a camp not far distant from Changchow, and engaged the rebels in almost daily skirmishes.
This was the position of affairs when Major Gordon took the field towards the end of February, and he at once resolved to carry the war into a new country by crossing the Taho lake and attacking the town of Yesing on its western shores. By seizing this and the adjoining towns he hoped to cut the rebellion in two, and to be able to attack Changchow in the rear. The operations at V'jsing occupied two days ; but at last the rebel stockades were carried with tremend- ous loss, not only to the defenders but also to a relieving force sent from Liyang. Five thousand prisoners were also taken.
Marching Onward.
Liyang itself was the ne.\t place to be attacked ; but the intricacy of the country, which was intersected by creeks and canals, added to the fret that the whole region had been desolated by famine, and that the rebels had broken all the bridges, rendered this undertaking one of great difficulty and some risk. However, Major Gordon's fortitude vanquished all obstacles and when he ap- peared before Liyang he found that the rebel leaders in possession of the town had come to the decision to surrender. At this place Major Gordon came into communication with the general Paochiaou, who was cover- ing the siege operations against Nankin which Tseng Kwofan was pressing with ever-increasing vigor.
The surrender of Liyang proved the more important, as the fortifications were found to
be admirably constructed, and as it contained a garrison of fifteen thousand men and a plenti- ful supply of provisions. From Liyang, Major Gordon marched on Kintang, a town due north of Liyang, and about half-way between Changchow and Nankin. The capture of Kintang, by placing Gordon's force within striking distance of Changchow and its com- munications, would have compelled the rebels to suspend these operations and recall their forces.
A Resolute Garrison.
Unfortunately the attack on Kintang re- vealed unexpected difficulties. The garrison showed e.xtraordinary determination ; and although the wall was breached by the heavy fire, two attempts to assault were repulsed with heavy loss, the more serious inasmuch as Major Gordon was himself wounded below the knee, and compelled to retire to his boat. This was the second defeat Gordon had ex- perienced.
In consequence of this reverse, which dashed the cup of success from Gordon's hands when he seemed on the point of bringing the campaign to a close in the most brilliant manner, the force had to retreat to Liyang, whence the commander hastened back with one thousand men to VVusieh. He reached Wusieh on the 25th of March, four days after the repulse at Kintang, and he there learnt that Fushan had been taken and that Chanzu was being closely attacked. The Imperialists had fared better in the south. General Ching had captured Kash- ingfoo, a strong place in Chekiang, and on the very same dr.y as the repulse at Kintang Tso Tsung Tang had recovered Hangchow.
Major Gordon, although still incapacitated by his wound from taking his usual foremost place in the battle, directed all operations from his boat. He succeeded, after numer-
CHINESE GOPDON."
119
contained d a plenti- ng, Major town due y between :apture of •ce within d its com- the rebels ecall their
wintanLi re- lie garrison ition ; and y the heavy e repulsed i inasmuch nded below to his boat, jn had ex-
rsc,
m
which Gordon's
point of in the most retreat to
hastened o Wusieh. of March, intang, and jeen taken y attacked, ter in the ured Kash- ig, and on at Kintang Hangchow. capacitated al foremost
operations
er numer-
ous skirmishes, in compelling the Taepings to quit their position before Chanzu ; but they drew up in force at the village of Waisso, where they offered him battle. Most unfortunately Major Gordon had to entrust the conduct of the attack to his lieutenants. Colonels Howard and Rhodes, while he superintended the advance of the gunboats up the creek. Finding the banks were too high to admit of these being use- fully employed, and failing to establish com- munications with the infantry, he discreetly returned to his camp, where he found every- thing in the most dreadful confusion owing to a terrible disaster.
Routed with Great Loss.
The infantry in fact had been out-man- oeuvred and routed with tremendous loss. Seven officers and 265 men had been killed, and one officer and sixty-two men wounded. Such an overwhelming disaster would have crushed any ordinary commander, particu- larly when coming so soon after such a rude defeat as that at Kingtang. It only roused Major Gordon to increased activity. He at once took energetic measures to retrieve this disaster. He sent his wounded to Quinsan, collected fresh troops, and, having allowed his own wound to recover by a week's rest, resumed in person the attack on Waisso. On the loth of April Major Gordon pitched his camp within a mile of Waisso, and paid his men as the preliminary to the resumption of the offensive.
The attack commenced on the following morning, and promised to prove of an ardu- ous nature; but by a skilful flank movement Major Gordon carried two stockades in per- son, and rendered the whole place no longer tenable. The rebels evacuated their position and retreated, closely pursued by the Imper- ialists. The villagers who had suffered from
their exactions, rose upon them, and very few rebels escaped. The pursuit was con- tinued for a week, and the lately victorious army of Waisso was practically annihilated. The capture of Changchow was to be the next crowning success of the campaign. For this enterprise the whole of the Ever- Victorious Army was concentrated, including the ex-rebel contingent of Liyang. On the 23d of April Major Gordon carried the stockades near the west gate. In their cap- ture the Liyang men, although led only by Chinese, showed conspicuous gallantry, thus ju.stifying Major Gordon's belief that the Chinese would fight as well under their own countrymen as when led by foreigners. Batteries were then constructed for the bom- bardment of the town itself. Before these were completed the Imperialists assaulted, but were repulsed with loss. On the follow- ing day (April 27th) the batteries opened fire, and two pontoon bridges were thrown across, when Major Gordon led his men to the assault.
A Bridge of Casks.
The first attack was repulsed, and a second one, made in conjunction with the Imperial- ists, fared not less badly. The pontoons were lost, and the force suffered a greater loss than at any time during the war, with the exception of Waisso. The Taepings also lost heavily ; and their valor could not alter the inevitable result. Changchow had conse- quently to be approached .systematically by trenches, in tl'c construction of wliicii the Chinese showed themselves very skilful. The loss of the pontoons compelled the formation of a cask-bridge ; and, during the extensive preparations for renewing the attack, several hundred of the garrison came over, reporting that it was only the Cantonese who wished to fight to the bitter end.
t'l
i I
120
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
On the 1 1 til of May, the fourth anniver- sary of its capture by Chung Wang, Li requested Major Gordon to act in concert with him for carrying the place by storm. The attack was made in the middle of the day, to the intense surprise of the garrison, who made only a feeble resistance, and the town was at last carried with little loss.
\
GENKRAL GOKDON.
The commancl.;n , PL o Wang, was made prisoner and excculed. This pnned to be the last action of the P>cr Victorious Army, which then returned to Quinsan, and was quietly disbanded by his commander before the 1st of June.
To su:n i:p the closing incidents of the Tacping war, Tayan was evacuated two days after the fall of Changchow, leading
Nankin alone in their hands. Inside that city there was the greatest misery and suffer- ing. Tien Wang had refused to take any of the steps pressed on him by Chung Wang, and he heard the people were suffering
fron ;-.t, all he said was, " Let them eat the . .-t dew." Tseng Kwofan drew up his lines on all sides of the city, and gradually drove the despairing rebels be- hind the walls. Chung Wang sent out the old women and children ; and let it be recorded to the credit of Tseng Kwot- siuen that he did not drive them buck, but charitably provided for their wants, and despatched them to a place of shelter.
In June Major Gordon visited Tseng's camp, and he found his works covering twenty-four to thirty miles, and constructed in the most elaborate fashion. The Imperialists numbered eighty thousand men, but were badly armed. Although their pay was very much in arrear, they were well fed and had great confidence in their leader.Tseng Kwofan. On the 30th of June, Tien Wang, despairing of suc- cess, committed suicide by swal- lowing golden leaf. Thus died the Mungtsiuen who had erected the standard of revolt in Kwangsi thirteen years before. His son was proclaimed Tien Wang on his death becoming known, but his reiL^n was brief.
The last act of all had now arrived. On
the iQlh of July the Imperialists had run
a gallery under the wall of Nankin, and
charged it with forty thousand pounds of
j powder. The explosion destroyed fift)- jards
I of the walls, and the Imperialists, attacking
"CHINESE GORDON."
121
le that suffer-
ke any
Wang,
uffering
lem eat
V up his
adually
bels be-
r Wang
len and
ccorded
r Kwot-
ive them
arovided
spatchcd
Iter.
)n visited
bund bis
^-four to
ructed in
lion. The
i eighty
:re badly
heir pay
ear, they d great
|er,Tseng of June, of sue- by swal- hus died erected iKwangsi claimed jown.but
|ed. On Ihad run |l<in, and kinds of fty yards Ittackin"
on all sides, poured in through the breach. Chung Wang made a desperate resistance in l!-.e interior, holding his own and the Tien Wang's place to the last. He made a fur- ther stand with a thousand men at the ■outhern gate, b.it his band was over- whelmed, and he r.nd the j-oun;^' Tien Wang fled into the surrounding country. In this supreme moment of danger Chung Wang thought more nf the safety of his young chief than of himself, and he gave him an exceptionally good pony to escape on, while he himself took a very inferior animal. Asa consequence Tien Wang the Second escaped, while Chung Wang was captured in the hills a few days later.
Captured and Beheaded.
Chung Wang, who had certainly been the hero of the Taeping movement, was beheaded on the 7th of August, and the young Tien Wang was eventually captured and executed also, by Shcn Paochen. For this decisive victory, which extinguished the Taeping re- bellion, Tseng Kwofan, whom Gordon called " generous, fair, honest and patriotic," was made a Hou, or Marquis, and his brother Tseng Kwotsiuen an Earl.
Although Gordon took no direct part in the closing scene of Taeping power at Nan- kin, everybody felt, and history accepts the view, that the triumphant and speedy sup- pression of the rebellion was due to his ex- traordinary military successes. He himself, with characteristic modesty, was disposed to minimize the importance of his services ; and he often declared that the Imperialists were c rtain to have overcome tiie Taepings eventu- ally, although their caution and military in- cxiiericnce might have prolonged the strug- i;le. Another opinion to which he strongly atlhercd was, that the Chinese did not require European leading, that they were very good
under their own officers, and that the inevi table consequence of their being placed undei Europeans was that they became rebels to their government.
These opinions show the disinterested spirit in which he served the Chinese. He fought the Taepings not for any empty or vain- glorious desire to make a military reputa- tion, but because he saw an opportunity of rendering a great service to a suffering people, among whom the horrors of a civil war had spread death and disease. It is impossible to exaggerate the impression made by his disinterestedness on the Chinese people, who elevated him for his courage and militar}' prowess to the pedestal of a national god of war. The cane which he carried when lead- ing his men to the charge became known as "Gordon's wand of victory;" and the troops whom he trained, and converted by success from a rabble into an army, formed the nucleus of China's modern army.
Brilliant Services.
The service he rendered his adopted coun- try was, therefore, lasting as well as striking, and the gratitude of the Chinese has, to their credit, proved not less durable. The name of Gordon is still one to conjure with among the Chinese, and if ever China were placed in the same straits, she would be the more will- ing, from his example, to entrust her cause to an English officer. As to the military achievements of General Gordon in China, nothing fresh can be said. They .speak in- deed for themselves, and they form the most solid portion of the reputation which he gained as a leader of men. In the history of the Manclui dynasty he will be known as "Chinese Gordon;" although for others his earlier soubriquet must needs gi\ e place, from his heroic and ever-regrettable death, to that of " Gordon of Khartoum."
I
CHAPTER VI. PRINCE KUNQ AND THE REGENCY.
i^l
WHILE the suppression of the Taeping rebellion was in pro- gress, events of great interest and importance happened at Pekin. When the allied forces approached that city in i860, the Emperor Hienfung fled to Jehol, and kept himself aloof from all the peace negotiations which were conducted to a successful conclusion by his brother, Prince Kung. After the signature of the convention in Pekin, ratifying the Treaty of Tientsin, he refused to return to his capital ; and he even seems to have hoped that he might, by asserting his Imperial prerogative, transfer the capital from Pekin to Jehol, and thus evade one of the principal concessions to the for- eigners. But if this was impossible, he was quite determined, for himself, to have nothing CO do with them, and during the short re- mainder of his life he Kept his Court at Jehol. While his brother was engaged in meeting the difficulties of diplomacy, and in arranging the conditions of a novel situation, HienfunLr by collecting round his person the most b"^ - oted men of his family, showed that he pre- ferred those counsellors who had learnt nothing from recent events, and who would support him in his claims to undiminished superiority and inaccessibility. Prominent among the men in his confidence was Prince Tsai, and among his advisers were several inexperienced and impulsive members of the Manchu family. They were all agreed in tiie policy of recovering, at the earliest possible moment, what they consiilercd to be the natural and prescriptive right of the occupant 122
of the Dragon Throne to treat all othei potentates as in no degree equal to himself. But the continued residence of the Empe- ror at Jehol was not popular with either his own family or the inhabitants of Pekin. The members of the Manchu clan, who re- ceived a regular allowance during the Empe- ror's residence at Pekin, were reduced to the greatest straits, and even to the verge of starvation, while the Chinese naturally re- sented the attempt to remove the capital to any other place. This abnegation of author- ity by Hienfung, for his absence meant nothing short of that, could not have been prolonged indefinitely, for a Chinese Empe- ror has many religious and secular duties to perform which no one else can discharge, and which, if not discharged, would reduce the office of Emperor to a nonenity. .
His Case Hopeless.
Reports began to be spread of the serious illness of the Emperor, and a pamphlet which enjoyed considerable circulation stated that " his doctors declared his case to be hopeless, and that, even if he promptly abandoned some pernicious habits, he could not hope to live beyond .si.x months." All the available evidence went to show that he did not take any precautions, but during the summer nothing definite was stated as to his health, although rumors of the gravity of Hienfung's complaint continued to circulate so freely that the announcement of his death at any moment would not have caused surprise. The superstitious were the more disposed to
PRINCE KUNG AND THP: REGENCY.
123
believe that something extraoi Jinary might happen, because a comet appeared in the sky and remained some weeks ; for in China, as in mediaeval Europe, it was held —
"When beggars die there are no comets seen, The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes."
In August Prince Kung hastened to Jehol, the object of his journey, and indeed the journey itself, being kept secret. Not merely was Hienfung dying, but it had become known to Prince Kung and his friends that he had left the governing authority during the minor- ity of his son, a child less than six years of age, to a Board of Regency composed of eight of the least intelligent and most arro- gant and self-seeking members of the Im- perial family, with Prince Tsai at their head. The Emperor died on the 2 2d of August. A few hours later the Imperial decree notify- ing tht last wishes of the ruler as to the mode of government was promulgated. The l^oard of Regency assumed the nominal control of affairs, and Hienfung's son was proclaimed Emperor under the style of Chiseang.
Intrigue to Obtain Power.
In all of these arrangements neither Prince Kung nor his brothers, nor the responsible ministers at the capital, had had the smallest part. It was an intrigue among certain inembers of the Imperial clan io possess themselves of the ruling power, and for a time it seemed as if their intrigue would be only too successful. Nothing happened during the months of September and Octo- ber to disturb their confidence, for they remained at Jehol, and at Pekin the routine (if government continued to be performed by Prince Kung. That statesman and his colleagues employed the interval in arrang-
ing their own plan of action, and in making sure of the fidelity of a certain number of troops.
Throughout these preparations Prince Kung was ably and energetically supported by his brother, Prince Clnm, by his col- league, VVansiang, and by his aged father- in-law, the minister Kweiliang. But the conspirators could not keep the young Emperor at Jehol indefinitely, and when, at the end of October, it became known that he was on the point of returning to Pekin, it was clear that the hour of conflict had arrived. At Jehol the Board of Regency could do little harm ; but once its preten- sions and legality were admitted at the capital, all the ministers would have to take their orders from it, and to resign the func- tions which they had retained. The main issue was whether Prince Kung or Prince Tsai was to be supreme.
Arrival of the Emperor.
On the 1st of November the young Em- peror entered his capital in state. It was said that he was driven through the streets in a carriage, sitting on his mother's lap, while the Empress Dowager, or the princi- pal widow of Hienfung, occupied another seat in the same carriage ; but no European actually saw the cortege, because Prince Kung had asked the ministers as a favor to keep their suites at home until the procession reached the palace. A large number of soldiers, still dressed in their white mourn- ing, accompanied their Sovereign from Jehol; but Shengpao's garrison was infinitely more numerous, and thoroughly loyal to the cause of Prince Kung. The majority of the Re- gents had arrived with the reigning prince; those who had not yet come were on the road, escorting the dead body of Hienfung towards its resting-place.
I*
1«
124
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
If a blow was to be struck at all, now was the time to strike it. The Regents had not merely placed themselves in the power of their opponent, but they had actually brought .vith them the young Emperor, without whose person Prince Kung could have accomplished little. Prince ''■" , ■; had spared no effort to secure, a..d hart fortunately succeeded in obtaining, the assistance and co-operation of the Empress Dowager, Hienfung's principal widow, named Tsi An. Her assent had been obtained to the pr'Vi..si>d plot before the arrival in Peki . ^n.i ■'■ .\ov only remaimd to carry it out.
Not Given a Choice.
On the day f>. '!'^*"<7i^; the <:• -.to the capital. Prince Kung ha: u.;cu :-> . ">i'. .", and, producing before the astor;: Jir d ixcgcuis an Imperial Edict ordering their dismissal, he asked them whether they obeyed the decree of their Sovereign, or whether he must call in his soldiers to compel them. Prince Tsai and his companions had no choice save to signify their acquiescence in what they could not prevent ; but, on leav- ing the chamber in which this scene took place, they hastened towards the Emperor's apartments in order to remonstrate against their dismissal, or to obtain from him some counteredict reinstating them in their posi- tions. Thc)' were prevenicd from carrying out their purpose, but this proof of contu- macy scaled their fate. They were promptly arrested, and a second decree was issued ordering their degradation from their official and hereditary rank. To Prince Kung and his allies was entrusted the charge of trying and punishing the offenders.
The next step was the proclamation of a new Regency, composed of the two em- presses, Tsi An, principal widcnv of Hien- fung, and Tsi Thsi. motiicr of the young
Emperor. Two precedents for the adminis- tration being entrusted to an empress were easily found by the Hanlin doctors during the Ming dynasty, when the Emperors Chit- song and Wanleh were minors. Special edicts were issued and arrangements made for the transaction of business during the con- tinuance of the Regency, and as neither of the empresses knew Manchu it was specially provided that papers and documents, which were always presented in that language, should be translated into Chinese.
Concurrently with these measures for the settlement of the Regency happened the closing scenes in the drama of conspiracy which began so successfully at Jehol and ended so dramatically at Pekin. For com- plete success and security it was necessary that all the ringleaders should be captured, and some of them were still free.
Arrested and Executed.
The bravest, if not the ablest, of the late Board of Regency, Sushuen, remained at large. He had been charged with the high and honorable duty of escorting the remains of Hienfung to the capital. It was most important that he should be seized before he became aware of the fate that had befallen his colleagues. Prince Chun volunteered to capture the last, and in a sense the most for- midable, of the intriguers himself, and on the very day that the events described happened at Pekin he rode out of the capital at the head of a body of Tartar cavalrj'.
On the following night Prince Chun reached the spot where he was encamped, and, breaking into the house, arrested him whilst in bed. Sushuen did not restrain his indignation, and betrayed the ulterior plans entertained by himself and his associates by declaring that Prince Chun had been only just in time to prevent a similar fate befalling
PRINXK KUNG aND THE REGENCY.
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himself. He was at once placed on his trial with the other prisoners, and on the loth of November the order was given in the Em- peror's name for their execution. Sushuen was executed on the public ground set apart for that purpose; but to the others, as a special favor from their connection with the Imperin! family, was sent the silken cord, with which they were permitted to put an tnd to their existence.
Strange Stroke of Misfortune.
The events of this introductory period may be appropriately concluded with the strange stroke of misfortune that befell Prince Kung in the spring of 1865, and which seemed to show that he had indulged some views of personal ambition. The affair had probably a secret history, but if so the truth is hardly likely to be ever known. The known facts were as follows : On the 2d of April, 1 865, there appeared an edict degrad- ing the Prince in the name of the two Regent- Empresses. The charge made against him was of having grown arrogant and assumed privileges to which he had no right. He was at first "diligent and circumspect," but he has now become disposed " to overrate his own importance." In consequence, he was deprived of all his appointments and dis- missed from the scene of public affairs.
There was not much likelihood that a man who had taken so decisive a share in arrang- ing the accession of the ruling prince, and in the appointment of the Regents during his minority, would tamely acquiesce in being set on one side by the decree of two women. All his friends on the Imperial Council peti- tioned the Throne, representing in the plainest terms the great inconvenience that would be entailed by the withdrawal of Prince Kung from the control of public affairs. It was significantly ob.served in one of these memo-
rials that " if the Imperial household be the first to begin misunderstandings " there was no telling where the excitement would not extend. These representations could not fail to produce their due effect.
Five weeks after his fall Prince Kung was reinstated, on the 8th of May, in all his offices, with the exception of that of Presi- dent of the Council. This episode, which might have produced grave complications, closed with a return to almost the precise state of things previously existing. There was one important difference. The two em- presses had asserted their predominance. Prince Kung had hoped to be supreme, and to rule uncontrolled. From this time forth he was content to be their minister and ad- viser, on terms similar to those that would have applied to any other official.
Trouble in Remote Quarters.
The year 1865, which witnessed this very interesting event in the history of the Chinese Government, beheld before its close the de- parture of Sir Frederick Bruce from Pckin, and the appointment of Sir Rutherford Al- cock, who had been the first British minister to Japan during the critical periotl of the in- trodu'-f.ion of foreign intercourse with that country, to fill the post of Resident Min- ister at Pekin.
While the events which have been set forth were happening in the heart of China, other misfortunes yet had befallen the exe- cutive in the more remote quarters > f the realm, but resulting nor.e the less in the loss and ruin of provinces, and in the subversion of the Emperor's authority. Two great uprisings of the people occurred in opposite directions, both commencing while the Taep- ing rebellion was in full force, and continu- ing to disturb the country for many years after its suppression. The one had for its
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scene the great south-western province of Yunnan ; the other the two provinces of the north-west, Shcnsi and Kansuh, and extend- ing thence westwards to the Pamir. They resembled each other in one point, and that was that they were instigated and sustained by the Mahomedan population alone.
The Panthays and the Tungani were either indigenous tribes or foreign immi-
The Panthay rising calls for description in the first place, because it began at an earlier period than the other, and also because the details have been preserved with greater fidelity. Mahomedanism is believed to have been introduced into Yunnan in or about the year 1275, and it made most progress among the so-called aboriginal tribes, the Lolos and the Mantzu. The officials were
CHINESE PEDLER.
grants who had adopted or imported the tenets of Islam. Their sympathies with the Pckin Government were probably never very great, but they were impelled in both cases to revolt more by local tyranny than by any distinct desire to cast off the authority of the Chinese ; but, of course, the obvious embarrassment of the central executive en- couraged by simplifying the task of rebellion.
mostly Chinese or Tartars, and, left practi- cally free from control, they more often abused their power than sought to employ it for the benefit of the people they governed. In the very first year of Hienfung's reign (185 1) a petition reached the capital from a Mahomedan land proprietor in Yunnan named Ma Wenchu, accusing the Emperor's officials of the gravest crimes, and praying
PRINCK KUNG AND THK RKGKNCY.
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\h
m
that "a just and honest man" might be sent to redress the wrongs of an injured and long-suffering people.
The petition was carefully read and favor- ably considered at the capital ; but beyond a gracious answer the Emperor was at the time powerless to apply a remedy to the evil. Four years passed away without any open manifestation of the deep discontent smoul- dering below the surface. But in 1855 the Chinese and the Mahomedan laborers quar- relled in one of the principal mines of the province, which is covered with mines of gold, iron, and copper. It seems that the greater success of the Mahomedans in the uncertain pursuit of mining had roused the displeasure of tlie Chinese. Disputes ensued, in which the Mussulmans added success in combat to success in mining ; and the official appointed to superintend the mines, instead of remaining with a view to the restoration of order, sought his personal safety by precipi- tate flight to the town of Yunnan. During his absence the Chinese population raised a levy cH masse, attacked the Mahomedans who had gained a momentary triumph, and compelled them by sheer weight of numbers to beat a hasty retreat to their own homes in a different part of the province.
lU-Will Against the Mahomedans.
This success was the signal for a general outcry against the Mahomedans, who had long been the object of the .secret ill-will of the other inhabitants. Massacres took place in .several parts of Yunnan, and the followers of the Prophet had to flee for their 'ives.
Among those who were slain during these popular disorders was a young chief named Ma Sucheng ; and when the news of his murder reached his native village, his younger brother. Ma Sien, who had just received a small military command, declared his inten-
tion to avenge him, and fled to join the Mahomedan fugitives in the mountains. In this secure retreat they rallied their forces, and, driven to desperation by the promptings of want, they left their fastnesses with the view of regaining what they had lost. In this they succeeded better than they could have lioped for. The Chinese population experienced in their turn tiie bitterness of defeat ; and the mandarins had the less difficulty in concluding a temporary under- standing between the exhaused combatants. Tranquillity was restored, and the miners resumed their occupations.
Plot for a General Massacre.
liut the peace was deceptive, and in a little time the struir'ile was renewed with increased furj'. In this emergency the idea occurred to some of the officials that an easy and efficacious remedy of the difficulty in wliich they found themselves would be provided bj' the massacre of the whole Mussulman popu- lation. In this plot the foremost part was taken b)' Hwang Chung, an official who bitterly hated the Mahomedans. He suc- ceeded in obtaining the acquiescence of all his colleagues with the exception of the Viceroy of the province, who exposed the iniquity of the design, but who, destitute of all support, was powerless to prevent its exe- cution. At the least he resolved to save his honor and reputation by committing suicide, and he and his wife were found one morning hanging up in the hall of the yamen. His death simplified the execution of the project which his refusal might possibly have pre- vented.
The 19th of May, 1856, was the date fixed for the celebration of this Chinese St. Bartholomew. But the secret had not been well kept. The Mahomedans, whether warned or suspicious, distrusted the authori-
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
ties and tlicir neighbors, and stood valiantly on their guard. At this time they looked chiclly to a higii priest named Ma Tcsing for guidance and instruction. But although on the alert they were, after all, taken to some extent by surprise, and many of them were massacred after a more or less unavailing resistance. But if many of the Mussulmans were slain, the survivors were inspired with a desperation which the mandarins had never contemplated. From one end of Yunnan to the other the Mahomedans, in face of great personal peril, rose by a common and spon- taneous impulse, and the Chinese population was compelled to take a hasty refuge in the towns.
They HtlJ the City.
At Talifoo, where the Mahomedans formed a considerable portion of the population, the most desperate fighting occurred, and after three days' carnage the Mussulmans, under Tu VVensiu, were left in possession of the city. Their success inspired them with the hope of retaining the freedom they had won, and, impressed with the conviction that noth- ing would atone for their acts of rebellion in the eyes of the government, they had no choice save to exert themselves for the reten- tion of their independence. The rebels did not remain without leaders, whom they will- ingly recognized and obeyed ; for the kwan- shihs, or chiefs, who had accepted titles of authority from the Chinese, cast off their allegiance and placed themselves at the head of the popular movement. The priest Ma Tesing was raised to the highest post of all as Dictator, but Tu Wensiu admitted no higher authority than his own within the walls of Talifoo. Ma Tesing had performed the pilgrimage to Mecca, he had resided at Constantinople for two years, and his repu- tation for knowledge and saintliness stood
highest among his co-religionists. He was therefore a man in high repute.
While Ma Tesing exercised the supremacy due to his age and attainments, the young chief Ma Sien led the rebels in the field. His energy was most conspicuous, and in the year 1858 he thought he was sufficiently strong to make an attack upon the city of Yunnan itself. His attack was baffled by the resolute defence of an officer named Lii* Tzuchin, who had shown great courage as a partisan leader against the insurgents befoie he was entrusted with the defence of the provincial capital. Ma Sien was compelled to beat a retreat, and to devote himself to the organization of the many thousand Ijen or Lolos recruits who signified their attachment to his cause. For the successful defence of Yunnan, Lin was made a Titu, and gradually- collected into his own hands such authority- as still remained to the Emperor's lieutenants.
Suicide of a Mandarin.
On both sides preparations were made for the renewal of the struggle, but before the year 1858 ended Ma Sien met with a second repulse at the town of Linan. The year 1859 was not marked by any event of signal importance, although the balance of success- inclined on the whole to the Mussulmans. But in the following year the Mahomedans drew up a large force, computed to exceed; 50,000 men, round Yunnanfoo, to which they laid vigorous siege. The Imperialists were taken at a disadvantage, and the large number of people who had fled for shelter into the town rendered the small store of provisions less sufficient for a protracted defence. Yunnanfoo was on the point of surrender when an event occurred which not merely relieved it from its predicament, but altered the whole complexion of the struggle.
The garrison had made up its mind to
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lade for efore the second le year ■ signal success- ulmans. medans exceed ch they sts were large r shelter store of otracted point of hich not lent, but struggle, mind to
yield. Even the brave Lin had accepted the inevitable, and begun to negotiate with the two rebel leaders, Ma Sien and the priest Ma Tesing. Those chiefs, with victory in their grasp, manifested an unexpected and surprising moderation. Instead of demand- ing from Lin a complete and unconditional surrender, they began to discuss with him what terms could be agreed upon for the cessation of the war and for the restoration of tranquillity to the province. At first it was thought that these propositions con- cealed some intended treachery, but their sincerity was placed beyond dispute by the suicide of the mandarin Hwang Chung, who had first instigated the people to massacre their Mahomedan brethren.
Deserters to the Government.
The terms of peace were promptly ar- ranged, and a request was forwarded to Pekin for the ratification of a convention concluded under the pressure of necessity with some of the rebel leaders. The better to conceal the fact that this arrangement had been made with the principal leader of the disaffected, Ma Sien changed his name to Ma Julung, and received the rank of general in the Chinese service; while the high priest ac- cepted as his share the not inconsiderable pension of $28, OCX) a month.
It is impossible to divine the true reasons which actuated these instigators ot rebellion in their decision to go over to the side of the government. They probably thought that they had done sufficient to secure all practical advantages, and that any persistence in hostilities would only result in the increased misery and impoverishment of the province. They thought that their kinsmen and fol- lowers would obtain justice and security; and, as for themselves, no moment would be more opportune for securing the largest pos-
sible personal advantage with the minimum of risk. But they were also influenced by other considerations. Powerful as they were, there were other Mahomedan leaders seeking to acquire the supreme position among their co-religionists ; and foremost among these was Tu VVensiu, who had reduced the whole of Western Yunnan to his sway, and reigned at Talifoo.
The Mahomedan cause, important as it was, did not aflbrd scope for the ambitions of two such men as Ma Julung and Tu Wensiu. The former availed himself of the favorable opportunity to settle this difficulty in a prac- tical and, as he shrewdly anticipated, the most profitable manner for himself person- ally, by giving in his adhesion to the govern- ment.
Every Man for Himself.
This important defection did not bring in its train any certainty of tranquillity. Incited by the example of their leaders, every petty officer and chief thought himself deserving of the highest honors, and resolved to fight for his own hand. Ma Julung left Yunnan- foo for the purpose of seizing a neighboring town which had revolted, and during his absence one of his lieutenants seized the capital, murdered the Viceroy, and threat- ened to plunder the inhabitants. Ma Julung was summoned to return in hot haste, and as a temporary expedient the priest Ma Tesing was elected Viceroy.
When Ma Julung returned with his army- he had to lay siege to Yunnanfoo, and although he promptly effected an entrance into the city, it took five days' hard fighting in the streets before the force in occupation was expelled. The insurgent officer was captured, exposed to the public gaze for one month in an iron cage, and then executed in a cruel manner. Ma Tesing was deposed
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
from the elevated position which he had held for so short a time, and a new Chinese Vice- roy arrived from Kweichow. The year 1863 opened with the first active operations against Tu Wcnsui, who, during these years of dis- order in central Yunnan, had been governing the western districts with some prudence. It would have been better if they had not been undertaken, for they only resulted in the defeat of the detachments sent by Ma Julung to engage the despot of Talifoo.
Rejected with Disdain.
Force having failcil, they had recourse to diplomacj', and Ma Tesing was sent to sound Tu Wcnsiu as to whether he would not imi- tate their example and make his peace with the authorities. These overtures were re- jected with disdain, and Tu Wensiu pro- claimed his intention of holding out to the last, and refused to recognize the wisdom or the necessity of coming to terms with the government. The embarrassment of Ma Julung and the Yunnan officials, already sufficiently acute, was at this conjuncture further aggravated by an outbreak in their rear among the Miaotzc and some other mountain tribes in the province of Kwei- chow. To the difficult)' of coping with a strongly placed enemy in front was thus added that of maintaining communications through a hostile and difficult region.
A third independent party had also come into existence in Yunnan, where an e.c-Chi- nese official named Liang Shihmei had set up his own authority at Linan, mainly, it was said, through jealousy of the Mahome- dans taken into the .service of the govern- rpent. The greatest difficulty of all was to reconcile the pretensions of the different commanders, for the Chinese officials, and the Futai Tsen Yuying in particular, re- garded Ma Julung with no friendly eye.
With the year 1867, both sides having collected their strength, more active opera- tions were commenced, and Ma Julung pro- ceeded in person, at the head of the best troops he could collect, to enga -^ Tu Wensiu.
The Red Flag.
It was at this time that the Imperialists adopted the red flag as their standard in contradistinction to the white flag of the insurgents. A desultory campaign ensued, but although Ma Julung evinced both cour- age and capacity, the result was on the whole unfavorable to him; and he had to retreat to the capital, where events of some import- ance had occurred during his absence in the field. The Viceroy, who had been staunchly attached to Ma Julung, died sudden)" and under such circumstances as to si' t a suspicion of foul play; and Tsen ig
had by virtue of his rank of Futai assuined the temporary discharge of his duties. The retreat of Ma Julung left the insurgents free to follow up their successes; and in the course of 1868, the authority of the Em- peror had disappeared from every other part of the province e.xcept the prefectural city of Yunnanfoo.
This bad fortune led the Mussulmans who had fallowed the ad\ice and fortunes of Ma Julung to consiiler whether it would not be wise to rejoin their co-religionists, and to at once finish the contest by the destruction of the government. Had Ma Julung wavered in his fidelity for a moment they would have all joined the standard of Tu Wensiu, and the rule of the Sultan of Talifoo would have been established from one end of Yunnan to the other, but he stood firm and arrested the movement in a summary manner.
Tu Wensiu, having established the security of his communications with Burmah, whence
PRINCE KUNG AND THE REGENCY.
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he obtained supplies of arms and munitions of war, devoted his efforts to the capture of Yunnanfoo, which he completely invested. The garrison was reduced to the lowest straits before Tsen Yuying resolved to come to the aid of his distressed colleague. The loss of the prefectural town would not merely entail serious consequences to the Imperialist cause, but he felt it would per- sonally compromise him as the Futai at Pekin. In the early part of 1869, there- fore, he threw himself into the town with three thousand men, and the forces of Tu Wensiu found themselves obliged to with- draw from the eastern side of the city. A long period of inaction followed, but during this time the most important events haj)- pened with regard to the ultimate result.
No Hope of Success.
Ma Julung employed all his artifice and arguments to show the rebel chiefs t e utter hopelessness of their succeeding against the whole power of the Chinese Empire, which, from the suppression of the Taeping rebel- lion, would soon be able to be employed against them. They felt the force of his representations, and they were also op- pressed by a sense of the slow progress they had made towards the capture of Yunnanfoo. Some months after Tsen Yu- ying's ai rival, those of the rebels who were encamped to the north of the city hoisted the red flag and gave in their adhesion to the government.
Then Ma Julung resumed active opera- tions against the other rebels, and obtained several small successes. A wound received during one of the skirmishes put an end to his activity, and the campaign resumed its desultory character. But Ma Julung's ill- ness had other unfortunate consequences ; for during it Tsen Yuying broke faith with
those of the rebel leaders who had come over, and put them all to a cruel death. The natural consequence of this foolish and ferocious act was that the Mahomedans again reverted to their desperate resolve to stand firmly by the side of Tu Wensiu.
The war again passed into a more active phase. Ma Julung had recovered from his wounds. A new Viceroy, and a man of some energy, was sent from Pekin. Lin Yuchow had attracted the notice of Tseng Kwofan among those of his native province who had responded to his appeal to defend Hoonan against the Taepings si.xteen years before ; and shortly before the death of the last Viceroy of Yunnan, he had been made Governor of Kweichow. To the same pa- tron at Pekin he now owed his elevation to the Viceroyalty. It is said that he lost the energ}' which once characterized him ; but he brought with him several thousand 1 loonan braves, whose courage and military experience made them invaluable auxiliaries to the embarra'' jd authorities in Yunnan.
Many Towns Recovered.
The details of the campaiijn that followed would fail to be instructive, and the mention of names that are not merely uncouth but unpronounceable would only repel the reader. The result is the principal, or, in- deed, the single fact worthy of our consid- eration. In the course of the year 1870 most of the towns in the south and the north of Yunnan were recovered, and com- munications were re-opencd with Szchucn. As soon as the inhabitants perceived that the government had recovered its strength, they hastened to express their joy at the change by repudiating the white flag which Tu Wensiu had compelled them to adopt. The imperialists even to the last increased the difficulty of their work of pacification by
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
exhibiting a relentless cruelty ; and while the inhabitants thought to secure their safety by a speedy surrender, the Mussulmans were rendered more desperate in their re- solve to resist.
The chances of a Mahomedan s' -cess were steadily diminishing when Yang Yuko, a mandarin of some military capacity, who had begun his career in the most approved manner as a rebel, succeeded in capturing the whole of the salt-producing district which had been the main source of their strength. In the year 1872 all the prelimi- nary arrangements were made for attacking Talifoo itself A supply of rifles had been received from Canton or Shanghai, and a few piccL's of artillery had also arrived. With these improved weapons the troops of Ma Julung and Tsen Yuying enjoyed a distinct advantage over the rebels of Talifoo.
A Terrible Plague.
The horrors of war were at this point in- creased by those of pestilence; for the plague broke out at Puerh on the southern frontier, and, before it disappeared, devastated the whole of the province, completing the effect of the civil war, and ruining the few districts which had escaped from its ravages. The direct command of the siege operations at Talifoo was entrusted to Yang Yuko, a hunchback general, who had obtained a re- putation for invincibility ; and when Tsen Yuying had completed his own operations he also proceeded to the camp before the Mahomedan capital for the purpose of tak- ing part in the crowning operation of the war.
Tu Wensiu and the garrison of Talifoo, although driven to desperation, could not discover any issue from their difficulties. They were reduced to the last stage of desti- tution, and starvation stared them in the face.
In this extremity Tu Wensiu, although there was every reason to believe that the Im- perialists would not fulfil their pledges, and that surrender simply meant yielding to a cruel death, resolved to open negotiations with Yang Yuko for giving up the town. The Emperor's generals signified their desire for the speedy termination of the siege, at the same fhne expi\,?sing acquiescence in the general proposition of the garrison being admitted to terms. Although the Futai and Yang Yuko had promptly come to the mutual understanding to celebrate the fall of Talifoo by a wholesome massacre, they ex- pressed their intention to spare the other rebels on the surrender of Tu Wensiu for execution and on the payment of an inden>- nity.
The terms were accepted, although the more experienced of the rebels warned their comrades that they would not be complied with. On the 15th of January, 1873, Tu Wensiu, the original of the mythical Sultan Suliman, the fame of whose power filled the world, and who had been an object of the solicitude of the Indian government, accepted the decision of his craven followers as express- ing the will of Heavv^n, and gave himself up for execution.
Rode in State to His Death.
He attired himself in his best and choicest garments, and seated himself in the yellow palanquin which he had adopted as one of the few marks of royal state that his oppor- tunities allowed him to secure. Accom- panied by the men who had negotiated the surrender, he drove through the streets re- ceiving for the last time the homage of his people, and out beyond the gates to Yang Yuko's camp. Those who saw the cortege marvelled at the calm indifference of the fallen despot. He seemed to have as little
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PAGODA AT SHANGHAI CHINA
PRINCE RUNG AND THE REGENCY.
133
fear of his fate as consciousness of his sur- roundings. The truth soon became evi- dent. He had baffled his enemies by taking slow poison. Before he reached the presence of the Futai, who had wished to gloat over the possession of his prisoner, the opium had done its work, and Tu Wensiu was no more. It seemed but an inadequate triumph to sever the head from the dead body, and to send it preserved in honey as the proof of victory to Pekin.
A Frightful Slaughter.
Four days after Tu Wensiu 's death, the Imperialists were in complete possession of the town, and a week later they had taken all their measures for the execution of the fell plan upon which they had decided. A great feast was given for the celebration of the convention, and the most important of the Mahomedan commanders, including those who had negotiated the truce, were present. At a given signal they were attacked and murdered by soldiers concealed in the gal- lery for the purpose, while six cannon shots announced to the soldiery that the hour had arrived for them to break loose on the de- fenceless townspeople. The scenes that fol- lowed are stated to have surpassed descrip- tion. It was computed that 30,000 men alone perished after the fall of the old Pathay capital, and the Futai sent to Yun- naiifoo twenty-four large baskets full of human ears, as well as the heads of the seventeen chiefs.
With the capture of Talifoo the great Mahomedan rebellion in the south-west, to which the Burmese gave the name of Panthay, closed, after a desultory struggle of nearly eighteen years. The war was con- ducted with exceptional ferocity on both sides, and witnessed more than the usual amount of falseness and breach of faith
common to Oriental struggles. Nobody benefited by the contest, and the prosperity of Yunnan, which at one time had been far from inconsiderable, sank to the lowest pos- sible point.
A new class of officials came to the front during this period of disorder, and fidelity was a sufficient passport to a certain rank. Ma Julung, the Marshal Ma of European travellers, gained a still higher station ; and notwithstanding the jealousy of his col- leagues, acquired practical supremacy in the province. The high priest. Ma Tesing, who may be considered as the prime instigator of the movement, was executed or poisoned in 1 874 at the instigation of some of the Chinese officials. Yang Yuko, the most successful of all the generals, only enjoyed a brief tenure of power. It was said that he was dissatisfied with his position as commander- in-chief, and aspired to a higher rank. He also was summoned to Pekin, but never got further than Shanghai, where he died, or was removed. But, although quiet gradually descended upon this part of China, it was long before prosperity followed in its train.
Wide-Spread Discontent.
About six years after the fust mutterings of discontent among the Mahomedans in the south-west, disturbances occurred in the north-west provinces of Shensi and Kansuh, where there had been many thousand fol- lowers of Islam since an early period of Chinese history. They were generally obedient subjects and sedulous cultivators of the soil ; but they were always liable to sudden ebullitions of fanaticism or turbul- ence, and it was said that during the later years of his reign Keen Lung had meditated a wholesale execution of the male popula- tion above the age of fifteen. The threat, if ever made, was never carried out, but the
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report suffices to show the extent to which danger was apprehended from the Tungan population.
The true origin of the great outbreak in 1 862 in Shensi seems to have been a quarrel between the Chinese and the Mahomedan militia as to their share of the spoil derived from th« defeat and overthrow of a brigand leader. After some bloodshed, two Impe- rial Commissioners were sent from Pekin to restore order. The principal Mahomedan leader formed a plot to murder the commis- sioners, and on their arrival he rushed into their presence and slew one of them with his own hand. His co-religionist deplored the rash act, and voluntarily seized and sur- rendered him for the purpose of undergoing a cruel death. But, although he was torn to pieces, that fact did not satisfy the out- raged dignity of the Emperor.
The Hated Mahomedan.
A command was issued in Tungche's name to the effect that all those who per- sisted in following the creed of Islam should perish by the sword. From Shensi the out- break spread into the adjoining province of Kansuh ; and the local garrisons were van- quished in a pitched battle at Tara Ussu, beyond the regular frontier. The insurgents did not succeed, however, in taking any of the larger towns of Shensi, and after threat- ening with capture the once famous city of Singan, they were gradually expelled from that province. The Mahomedan rebellion within the limits of China proper would not, therefore, have possessed more than local importance, but for the fact that it encour- aged a similar outbreak in the country further west, and that it resulted in the sever- ance of the Central Asian provinces from China for a period of many years.
The uprising of the Mahomedans in the
frontier provinces appealed to the secret fears as well as to the longings of the Tungan settlers and soldiers in all the towns and military stations between Souchow and Kash- gar. The sense of a common peril, more perhaps than the desire to attain the same object, led to revolts at Hami, Barkul, Urumtsi, and Turfan, towns which formed a group of industrious communities half-way between the prosperous districts of Kansuh on the one side, and Kashgar on the other.
Another Insurrection.
The Tungani at these towns revolted under the leading of their priests, and imi- tated the example of their co-religionists within the settled borders of China by mur- dering all who did not accept their creed. After a brief interval, which we may attribute to the greatness of the distance, to the vigi- lance of the Chinese garrison, or to the apathy of the population, the movement spread to the three towns immediately west of Turfan, Karashar, Kucha, and Aksu, where it came into contact with, and was stopped by, another insurrection under Mahomedan, but totally distinct, auspices. West of Aksu the Tungan rebellion never extended south of the Tian Shan range.
The defection of the Tungani, who had formed a large proportion, if not the majority, of the Chinese garrisons, paralyzed the strength of the Celestials in Central Asia. Both in the districts dependent on Hi, and in those ruled from Kashgar and Yarkand, the Chinese were beset by many great and per- manent difficulties. They were with united strength a minority, and now that they were divided among themselves almost a hopeless minority.
The peoples they governed were fanatical, false, and fickle. The ruler of Khokand and the refugees living on his bounty were always
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on the alert to take most advantage of the least slip or act of weakness on the part of the governing classes. Their machinations had been hitherto baffled, but never before had so favorable an opportunity presented itself for attaining their wishes as when it became known that the whole Mahomedan population was up in arms against the Emperor, and that communications were severed between Kashgar and Pekin. The attempts made at earlier periods on the part of the members of the old ruling family in Kashgar to regain their own by expelling the Chinese are a part of history.
Fled from the Country.
In 1857 Wali Khan, one of the sons of Jehangir, had succeeded in gaining temporary possession of the city of Kashgar, and seemed for a moment to be likely to capture Yark- and also. He fell by his vices. The people soon detested the presence of the man to whom they had accorded a too hasty wel- come. After a rule of four months he fled the country, vanquished in the field by the Chinese garrison, and followed by the exe- crations of the population he had come to deliver.
The invasion of Wali Khan further embit- terei' the relations between the Chinese and their subjects ; and a succession of governors bore heavily on the Mahomedans. Popular dissatisfaction and the apprehension in the minds of the governing officials that their lives might be forfeited at any moment to a popular outbreak added to the dangers of the situation in Kashgar itself, when the news arrived of the Tungan revolt, and of the many other complications which ham- pered the action of the Pekin ruler.
The news of the Mahomedan outbreak in China warned the Tungani in Hi that their opportunity had come. But although there
were disturbances as early as January, 1863, these were suppressed, and the vigilance of the authorities sufficed to keep things quiet for another year. Their subsequent inca- pacity, or hesitation'^to strike a prompt blow, enabled the Mahomedans to luisband their resources and to complete their plans. A temporary alliance was concluded between the Tungani and the Tarantchis and they hastened to attack the Chinese troops and officials.
The year 1865 was marked by the pro- gress of a sanguinary struggle, during which the Chinese lost their principal towns, and some of their garrisons were ruthlessly slaughtered after surrender. The usual scenes of civil war followed. When the Chinese were completely vanquished and their garrisons exterminated, the victors quar- relled among themselves. The Tungani and the Tarantchis met in mortal encounter, and the former were vanquished and their chief slain. When they renewed the contest, some months later, they were, after another sanguinary struggle, again overthrown.
Horrors of Civil War.
The Tarantchis then ruled the state by themselves, but the e.xample they set of native rule was, to say the least, not en- couraging. One chief after another was deposed and murdered. The same year wit- nessed no fewer than five leaders in the supreme place of power ; and when Abul Oghlan assumed the title of Sultan the cup of their iniquities was already full. In the year 1871 an end was at last put to these enormities by the occupation of the province by a Russian force, and the installation of a Russian governor. Although it is probable that they were only induced to take this stop by the fear that if they did not do so Yakoob Beg would, the fact remains that the Russian
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
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government did a good thing in the cause of order by interfering for the restoration of tranquillity in the valley of the Hi.
The Mahomcdan outbreaks in southwest- ern and northwestern China resulted, there- fore, in the gradual suppression of the Panthay rebellion, which was completed in ithe twelfth year of Tungche's reign, while the Tungan rising, so far as the Central Asian territories were concerned, remained unquelled for a longer period. The latter led to the establishment of an independent Tungan confederacy beyond Kansuh, and also of the kingdom of Kashgaria ruled by Yakoob Beg. The revolt in Hi, after several alternations of fortune resulted in the brief independence of the Tarantchis, who were in turn displaced by the Russians under a pledge of restoring the province to the Chinese whenever they should return.
Only a Question of Time.
Judged by the extent of the territory involved, the Mahomedan i\,L»ellion might be said to be not less important than the Taeping ; but the comparison on that ground alone would be really delusive, as the numeri- cal inferiority of the Mahomedans rendered it always a question only of time for the cen- tral power to be restored.
The young Emperor Tungche, therefore, grew up amidst continual difficulties, although the successes of his principal lieutenants affor- ded good reason to believe that, so far as they arose from rebels, it was only a question of time before they would be finally removed. The foreign intercourse still gave cause for much anxiety, although there was no appre- hension of war. It would have been un- reasonable to suppose that the relations between the foreign merchants and residents and the Chinese could become, after the sus- picion and dangers of generations, absolutely
cordial. The commercial and missionary bodies, into which the foreign community was naturally divided, had objects of trade or religion to advance, which rendered them apt to take an unfavorable view of the pro- gress made by the Chinese government in the paths of civilization, and to be ever skep- tical even of its good faith.
Trying to Obtain Justice.
The main object with the foreign diplo- matic representatives became not more to obtain justice for their countrymen than to restrain their eagerness, and to confine their pretensions to the rights conceded by the treaties. A clear distinction had to be drawn between undue coercion of the Chi- nese government on the one hand, and the effectual compulsion of the people to evince respect towards foreigners and to comply with the obligations of the treaty on the other. Instances repeatedly occurred in reference to the latter matter, when it would have been foolish to have shown weakness, especially as there was not the least room to suppose that the government possessed at that time the power and the cajDacity to secure reparation for, or to prevent the repetition of attacks on foreigners.
Under this category came the riot at Yangchow in the year 1868, when some missionaries had their houses burnt down, and were otherwise maltreated. A similar outrage was perpetrated in Formosa ; but the fullest redress was always tendered as soon as the Executive realized that the European representatives attached import- ance to the occurrence. The recurrence of these local dangers and disputes served to bring more clearly than ever before the minds of the Chinese Ministers the advisa- bility of taking some step on their own part towards an understanding with European
PRINCE KUNG AND THE REGENCY.
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governments and peoples. The proposal to depute a Chinese ambassador to the West could hardly be said to be new, seeing that it had been projected after the Treaty of Nankin, and that the minister Keying had manifested some desire to be the first man- darin to -serve in that novel capacity.
The American Minister.
The favorable opportunity of doing so pre- sented itself when Mr. Burlingame retired from his post as Minister of the United States at Pekin. In the winter of 1867-68 Mr. Burlingame accepted an appointment accredited representative of the Chinese gov- ernment to eleven of the principal countries of the world, and two Chinese mandarins and a certain number of Chinese students were appointed to accompany him on his tour. The importance of the Burlingame Mission was certainly exaggerated at the time, and the speculations to which it gave rise as to the part China was about to take in the movement of the world were no doubt based on erroneous data ; but still it would be a mistake to say that it failed to produce any of the beneficial effect which had been expected. It was something for the outer world to learn in those days that the Chinese represented a great power.
Mr. Burlingame was sanguine as to the future development of China and the inten- tion of her Executive, and the expectations of his audiences both in America and in Europe over leapt all difficulties and spanned at a step the growth of years ; but only shallow minded observers will deny that Mr. Burlingame's widest stretches of fancy were supported by an amount of truth which events are making clearer every year. Of course those who only looked on the surface, who saw the difficulties under which China staggered, and the dogged pride with which
she refused the remedy forced upon her by foreigners, who had at least as much their own interests as hers in view, declared that Mr. Burlingame's statements were " enthu- siastic fictions."
The Chinese themselves did not attach as much importance as they might have done to his efforts, and Mr. Burlingame's Mission will be remembered more as an educational process for foreigners than as signifying any decided change in Chinese policy. His death at St. Petersburg, in March, 1870, put a sudden and unexpected close to his tour, but it cannot be said that he could have done more towards the elucidation of Chinese questions than he had already accomplished, while his bold and optimistic statements, after awakening public attention, had already begun to produce the inevitable reaction.
Great Popular Outbreak.
In 1869 Sir Rutherford Alcock retired, and was succeeded in the difficult post of English representative in China by Mr. Thomas Wade. In the very first year of his holding the post an event occurred which cast all the minor aggressive acts that had preceded it into the shade. It may perhaps be surmised that this was the Tient- sin massacre — an event which threatened to reopen the whole of the China question, and which brought France and China to the verge of war. It was in June, 1870, on the eve of the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian war, that the foreign settlements were startled by the report of a great popular outbreak against foreigners in the important town of Tientsin.
At that city there was a large and ener- getic colony of Roman Catholic priests, and their success in the task of conversion, small as it might be held, was still sufficient to excite the ire and fears of the literary and
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
official classes. The origin of mob violence is ever difficult to discover, for a trifle suf-
were spread about as to the cruelties and evil practices of those devoted to the service of
THE FAMOUS PORCELAIN TOWER.
fices to set it in motion. But at Tientsin specific charges of the most horrible and, it need not be said, the most baseless character
religion. These rumors were diligently cir- culated, and it need not cause wonder if, when the mere cry of "Fanquai" — Foreign
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139
Devil — suflficied to raise a disturbance, these allegations resulted in a vigorous agitation against the missionaries, who were already the mark of popular execration.
It was well known beforehand that an attack on the missionaries would take place unless the authorities adopted very efficient measures of protection. The foreign resi- dents and the consulates were warned of the coming outburst, and a very heavy responsi- bility will always rest on those who might, by the display of greater vigor, have pre- vented the unfortunate occurrences that ensued. At the same time, allowing for the prejudices of the Chinese, it must be allowed that not only must the efforts of all foreign missionaries be attended with the gravest peril, but that the acts of the French priests and nuns at Tientsin were, if not indiscreet, at least peculiarly calculated to arouse the anger and offend the superstitious predilec- tions of the Chinese.
Might Have Been Prevented.
Had the officials in the town acted with promptitude and instituted an official inquiry, it is probable that the outbreak might have been averted. Such a course had proved availing on equally critical occasions in some of the towns along the Yangtse; and the responsibility of not taking it rested in equal proportions between the Chinese officials and the French Consul. At that time Chung How, the Superintendent of Trade for the three Northern Ports, was the principal offi- cial in Tientsin ; but although som.e represen- tations, not as forcible however as the occasion demanded, were made to him by M. Fontanier, the French Consul, on the 1 8th of June, three days before the massacre, no reply was given, and no precautions were taken.
On the 2 1st a large crowd assembled out-
side the Mission House. They very soon assumed an attitude of hostility, and it was clear that at any moment the attack might begin. M. Fontanier hastened off in person to Chung How, but his threats seem to have been as unavailing as his arguments. On his return he found the attack on the point of commencing. He made use of menaces, and he fired a shot from his revolver, whether in self-defence or in the heat of indignation at some official treachery will never be known. The mob turned upon him, and he was murdered. The Chinese then hastened to complete the work they had begun. Chung How, like Surajah Dowlah, was not to be disturbed, and the attack on the Mis- sion House and Consulate proceeded, while the officials responsible for order remained inactive. Twenty-one foreigners in all were brutally murdered under circumstances of the greatest barbarity, while the number of native converts who fell at the same time can never be ascertained.
Feeling of Great Alarm.
This event naturally produced the greatest feeling of alarm, and for the moment it was feared that the rioters would proceed to attack the rest of the foreign settlement. The mandarins still refrained from interven- tion, and as there happened to be no gun- boat at Tientsin, the foreign residents were for the moment placed in an extremely dan- gerous predicament. They, of course, took all the measures they could to defend them- selves, but it was said at the time that if the mob had only attacked at once they would probably have overcome such resistance as the Europeans could then have offered. They did not do so, however, chiefly because they distrusted or failed to realize their strength; and the massacre of Tientsin did not assume the larger proportions that were
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CHINA: PAST AND PRKSENT.
at one moment feared. The turbulent ele- ments were partially quieted.
The Tientsin massacre was followed by a wave of anti-foreign feeling over the whole country; but although an official brought out a work — entitled "Death-blow to Cor- rupt Doctrine " — whicii obtained more than a passing notoriety, and notwithstanding that some members of the Imperial Family, and notably, as it was stated. Prince Chun, regarded the movement with favor, the argu- ments of Prince Kung and the more moderate ministers carried the day, and it was resolved to make every concession in the power of the government for the pacific settlement of the dispute that had arisen with France. Compensation was offered and accepted, and the unfortunate affair was settled.
Marriage of the Emperor.
It had been known for sometime that the young ruler had fixed his affections on Ahluta, a Manclui lady of good family, daughter of Duke Chung, and that the Empresses had decided that she was worthy of the high rank to which she was to be raised. The marriage ceremony was deferred on more than one plea until after the Emperor had reached his sixteenth birthday, but in October, 1872, there was thought to be no longer any excuse for postponement, and it was celebrated with great splendor on the 1 6th of that month.
The arrangements were made in strict accordance with the precedent of the Emperor Kanghi's marriage in 1674, that ruler having also married when in occupa- tion of the throne, and before he had attained his majority. It was stated the ceremonial was imposing, that the incidental expenses were enormous, and that the people were very favorably impressed by the demeanor of their young sovereign. Four months after
the celebration of his marriage the formal act of conferring upon Tungsche the per- sonal control of his dominions was performed. In a special decree issued from the Board of Rites the Emperor said that he received "the commands of their Majesties the two ICmpres.ses to assume the superintendence of business."
This edict was directed to the Foreign Ministers, who in return presented a col- lective request to be received in audience. Prince Kung was requested "to take his Imperial Majesty's orders with reference to their reception." The question being thus brought to a crucial point, it was not unnatural that the Chinese Ministers should make the most vigorous resistance they could to those details which seemed to and did enroach upon the prerogative of the Emperor as he had been accustomed to exercise it. For, in the first place, thcj- were no longer free agents, and Tungche had himself to be considered in any arrangement for the recep- tion of foreign envoys.
A Spirited Controversy.
The discussion of the question assumed a controversial character, in which stress was laid on the one side upon tlie necessity of the kotow (touching the head to the ground), even in a modified form, while on the other it was pointeu out that the least concession was objectionable as the greatest, and that China would benefit by the complete settle- ment of the question. It says a great deal for the fairness and moderation of Prince Kung and the ministers with him that, although they knew that the Foreign govern- ments were not prepared to make the Audi- ence Question one of war, or even of the suspension of diplomatic relations, they determined to settle the matter in the way most distasteful to themselves and most
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GIRLS PiCiKINa TEA.
PRINCE KUNG AND THl-, RKG1:NC\
14 1
agreeable to foreigners, thus showing a con- ciliatory disposition.
On the 29th of June, 1873, Tiingche re- ceived in audience the ministers of the principal Powers at Pekin, and thus gave completeness to the many rights and concessions obtained from his father and grandfather by the treaties of Tientsin and Nankin. The privilege thus secured caused lively gratification in the minds of all foreign residents, to whom it signified the great surrender of the inherent right to superiority claimed by the Chinese Emperors, and we have recently seen that it has been accepted as a precedent. •
The Illustrious Dead.
The sudden death of Tseng Kwofan in the summer of 1872 removed unquestionably the foremost public man in China. After the fall of Nankin he had occupied the highest posts in tlie Empire, both at that city and in the metropolis. He was not merely powerful from his own position, but from his having placed his friends and depen- dents in many of the principal offices throughout the Empire. At first prejudiced against foreigners, he had gradually brought himself to recognize that some advantage might be derived from their knowledge.
But the change came at too late a period to admit of his conferring any distinct benefit on his country from the more liberal policy he felt disposed to pursue with regard to the training of Chinese youths in the science and learning of the West. It was said that had he been personally ambitious he might have succeeded in displacing the Tartar regime. But such a thought never assumed any prac- tical shape in his mind, and to the end of his d-\ys Tseng Kwofan was satisfied to remain the steadfast supporter and adherent of the Manchus. In this respect he has been closely imitated by his most distinguished
lieutenant, Li Hung Chang, who succeeded to some of his dignities and much of his power.
Anothci of Tseng's proteges, Tso Tsung Tang, had been raised from the Vice-royalty of Chekiang and Enhkien to that of Shcnsi and Kansuh. The promotion was of the more doubtful value, seeing that both those provinces were in the actual possession of the rebels ; but Tso threw himself into the task of reconquering them with remarkable energy, and within two years of his arrival he was able to report that he had cleared the province of Shensi of all insurgents. He then devoted his attention to the pacification of Kansuh ; and after many desultory engage- ments proceeded to lay siege to the town of Souchow, where the Mahomedans had massed their .strength.
A Signal Victory.
At the end of the year 1872 the Imperial army was drawn up in front of this place, but Tso does not seem to have considered him- self strong enough to deliver an attack, and confined his operations to preventing the in- troduction of supplies and fresh troops into the town. Even in this he was only partially successful, as a considerable body of men made their way in in January, 1873. In the following month he succeeded in capturing, by a night attack, a temple outside the walls, upon which the Mahomedans placed con- siderable value. The siege continued during the whole summer, and it was not until the month of October that the garrison was reduced to such extremities as to surrender. The chiefs were hacked to pieces, and about four thousand men perished by the sword. The women, children, and old men were spared, and the spoil of the place was handed over to the soldiery.
It was Tso's distinctive merit that, far
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
from being carried away by these successes, he neglected no miUtary precaution, and devoted his main efforts to the reorganiza- tion of the province. In that operation he may be left employed for the brief remainder of Tungche's reign ; but it may be said that in 1874 the campaign against Kashgariahad been fully decided upon. A thousand Man- chu cavalry were sent to Souchow. Sheep-
Chinese predominance, at the same time their insular position has left them safe from the attack of the Pekin govern.Tient. The attempt made by the Mongol, Kublai Khan, to subdue these islanders had been too disas- trous to invite repetition. In Corea the pre- tensions of the ruler of Yeddo had been repelled, if not crushed; but wherever the sea intervened the advantage rested more or
CHINESE
skins, horses, and ammunition in large quantities were also despatched to the far west, and General Kinshun, the Manchu general, was critriisted with the command of the army in the field
The year I874 witnessed an event that claims notice. Thc-rc never has been much good-will between China and her neighbors in Japan. T!.e latter are too Independent in their bearing to please the advocates of
conni.EF<s.
less decisively with him. The island of For- mosa is dependent upon China, and the western districts are governed by officials duly appointed b)' the Viceroy of Fuhkien. But the eastern half of the island, separated from the cultivated districts by a range of mountains covered with dense if not impene- trable forests, is held by tribe3 who own no one's authority, and who act as they deem fit. In the year 1868 or 1869 a junk from
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Loochoo was wrecked on this coast, and the crew were murdered by the islanders. The civil war in Japan prevented any prompt claim for reparation, but in 1873 the affair was revived, and a demand made at Pekin for compensation. The demand was refused, whereupon the Japanese, taking the law into their own hands, sent an expedition to For- mosa. China replied with a counter-demon- stration, and war seemed inevitable. In this crisis Mr. Wade offered his good services in the interests of peace, and after considerable controversy he succeeded in bringing the two governments to reason, and in inducing them to agree to as equitable terms as could be obtained without having recourse to arms. The Chinese paid an indemnity and the Japanese evacuated the island.
Fortunes of Prince Kung.
In all countries governed by an absolute sovereign it is as interesting as it is difficult to obtain some accurate knowledge of tlic character of the autocrat. A most important change had been effected in the government of China, yet it is impossible to discover what its precise significance was, or to say how far it influenced the fortunes of the countiy. The Empresses had retired into private life, and for a time their Regency came to an end. Prince Kung was only the minister of a young prince who had it in his power to guide affairs exactly as he might feel personally disposed.
Prince Kung might be either the real gov- ernor of the state or only the courtier of his nephew. It depended solely on that prince's character. There were not wanting signs that Tungche had the consciousness, if not the capacity of supreme power and that he wislied his will to be paramount. Such evidence as was obtainable agreed in stating tliat lie was impatient of restraint, and that the prutlent reflections of his uncle were not
over much to his fancy. On the loth of September the young ruler took the world into his confidence by announcing in a Ver- milion Edict that he had degraded Prince Kung and his son in their hereditary rank as princes of the Empire for using " language in very many respects unbecoming."
Whether Tungche took this very decided step in a moment of pique or because he perceived that there was a plan among his chief relatives to keep him in leading-strings, must remain a matter of opinion. At the least he must have refused to personally retract what he had done, for on the very fol- lowing day (September nth) a Decree appeared from the Two Empresses rein- stating Prince Kung and his son in their hereditary rank and dignity, and thus re- asserting the J ">wer of the ex-Regents over the sovereign.
Startling Rumors.
Not long after this disturbance in the interior of the palace, of wliich only the ripple reacheil the surface of publicity, there were rumors that the Emperor's healtli was in a precarious state, and in the month of December it became known that Tungche was seriously ill with an attack of small-pox. The disease seemed to be making satisfactory progress, for the doctors were rewarded ; but on tile iSth of December an edict appeared ordering or requesting the Em- presses Dowager to assume the personal charge of the administration. Six days later another edict appeared which strengthened the impression that the Emperor was making good progress towards recovery. But ap- pciranccs were deceptive, for, after several weeks' uncertainty, it became known that the Emperor's death was inevitable. On the I2th of January, 1875, Tungche " ascended upon the Dragon, to be a guest on high,"
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
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without leaving any offspring to succeed him. '
There were rumors that his illness was only a plausible excuse and that he was really the victim of foul play ; but it is not likely that the truth on that point will ever be revealed. Whether he was the victim of an intrigue similar to that which had marked his accession to power, or whether he only died from the neglect or incompetence of his medical attendants, the consequences were equally favorable to the personal views of the two Empresses and Prince Kung. They resumed the exercise of that supreme author- ity which they had resigned little more than twelve months before. The most suspicious circumstance in connection with this event was the treatment of the young Empress Ahluta, who, it was well known, was preg- nant at the time of her husband's death.
The Queen's Mysterious Death.
Instead of waiting to decide as to the suc- cession until it was known whether Tungche's posthumous child would prove to be a son or a daughter, the Empress Dowager hast- ened to make another selection and to place the young widow of the deceased sovereign in a state of honorable confinement. Their motive was plain. Had Ahluta's child hap- pened to be a son, he would have been the legal Emperor, as well as the heir by direct descent, and she herself could not have been excluded from a prominent share in the gov- ernment. To the Empress Dowagers one child on the throne mattered no more than another ; but it was a question of the first importance that Ahluta should be set on one side. In such an atmosphere there is often grievous peril to the lives of inconvenient personages.
Ahluta sickened and died. Her child was
never born. The charitable gave her credit for having refused food through grief for her husband, Tungche. The .skeptical list- ened to the details of her illness with scorn for the vain efforts to obscure the dark deeds of ambition. In their extreme an.xiety to realize their own designs and at the same time not to injure the constitution, the two Empresses had been obliged to resort to a plan that could only have been suggested by desperation. For the first time since the Manchu dynasty occupied the throne, it was necessary to depart from the due line of suc- cession, and to make the election of the sovereign a matter of individual fancy or favor instead of one of inheritance.
Choice of a New Emperor.
The range of choice was limited ; for the son of Prince Kung himself, who seemed to enjoy the prior right to the throne, was a young man of sufficient age to govern for himself; and, moreover, his promotion would mean the compulsory retirement from public life of Prince Kung, for it was not possible in China for a father to serve under his son, until Prince Chun, the father of the present reigning P^mperor, established quite recently a precedent to the contrary. The name of Prince Kung's son, if mentioned at ail, was only mentioned to be dismissed. The choice of the Empresses fell upon Tsai Tien, the son of Prince Chun or the Seventh Prince, who on the 13th of January was proclaimed Emperor. As he was of too tender an age to rule for himself, his nom- ination served the purposes of the two Em- presses and their ally Prince Kung, who thus entered upon a second lease of undis- puted power. They ruled in reality, the boy Emperor only in name.
CHAPTER VII. THE REIGN OF THE EMPEROR KWANQSU.
THUS after a very brief interval the governing power again passed into the hands of the Regents who had ruled the state so well for the twelve years following the death of Hien- fung. The nominal Emperor was a child of little more than three years of age, to whom was given the style of " Kwangsu," or " il- lustrious succession," and the Empresses could look forward to many years of author- ity in the name of so youncr a sovereign. The only opposition to their return to power seems to have come from the Palace eunuchs, who had asserted themselves dur- ing the brief reign of Tungche and hoped to gain predominance in the Imperial councils. But they found a determined mistress in the person of Tse An, the Eastern Empress, as she was also called, who took vigorous action against them, punishing their leaders with death and cffbctually nipping in the bud all their projects for making themselves su- preme.
The return of the Empresses to power was followed by a great catastrophe in the relations between England and China. For the moment it threw every other matter into the shade, and seemed to render the out- break of war between the two countries almost inevitable. In the year 1874 the government of India, repenting of its brief infatuation for the Panthay cause, yet still reluctant to lose the advantages it had prom- ised itself from the opening of Yunnan to trade, resolved upon sending a formal mis- sion of exploration under Colonel Horace 10
Browne, an officer of distinction, through Burmah to that province.
The difficulties in the way of the under- taking seemed comparatively few, as the King of Burmah was friendly and appeared disposed at that time to accept his natural position as the dependent of Calcutta. The Pekin authorities also were outwardly not opposed to the journey ; and the only oppo- sition to be apprehended was from the Yun- nan officials and people.
Long Journey Across China.
It was thought desirable, with the view of preparing the way for the appearance of this foreign mission, that a representative of the English embassy at Pekin, having a knowl- edge of the language and of the ceremonial etiquette of the country, should be deputed to proceed across China and meet Colonel Browne on the Burmese frontier. Tlie officer selected for this delicate and difficult mission was Mr. Raymond ..Augustus Margary, who to the singular aptitude he had displayed in the study of Chinese added a buoyant spirit and a vigorous frame that peculiarly fitted him for the long and lonely journey he had undertaken across China. His reception throughout was encouraging. Mr. Margary performed his journey in safety; and, on the 26th of January, 1875, only one fortnight after Kwangsu's accession, he joined Colonel Browne at Bhamo. A delay of more than three weeks ensued at Bhamo, which was certainly unfortunate. Time was given for the circulation of rumors as to the approach
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of a foreign invader along a disturbed fron- tier held by tribes almost independent, and whose predatory instincts were excited by the prospect of rich plunder at the same time that their leaders urged them to oppose a change which threatened to destroy their hold on the caravan route between Bhamo and Talifoo.
When on the 17th of February Colonel Browne and his companions approached the limits of Burmese territory, they found them- selves in face of a totally different state of affairs from what had existed when Mr. Mar- gary passed safely through three weeks before. The preparation for opposing the English had been made under the direct en- couragement, and probably the personal direction, of Lisitai, a man who had been a brigand and then a rebel, but who at this time held a military command on the fron- tier.
Last News Received.
As Colonel Browne advanced he was met with luiiiors of the opposition that awaited him. At first these were discredited, but on the renewed statements that a large Chinese force had been collected to bar his way, Mr. Margary rode forward to ascertain what truth there was in these rumors. The first town on this route within the Chinese border is Monicin, which, under the name of Tengyue, was once a military station of importance, and some distance east of it again is another town, called Manwein. Mr, Margary se out on the 19th of February, and it was arranged that only in the event of his find- ing everything satisfactory at Momein was he to proceed to Manwein ; and on the first suspicious occurrence he was to retreat at once to the main body.
Mr. Margary reached Momein in safety, and reported in a letter to Colonel Browne
that all was quiet at that place, and that there were no signs of any resistance. That letter was the last news ever received from Mr. Margary. On the 19th of February he started from Momein, and the information subsequently obtained left no doubt that he was treacherously murdered on that or the following day at Manwein. An ominous silence followed, and Colonel Browne's party delayed its advance until some definite news should arrive as to what had occurred in front, although the silence was sufficient to justify the worst apprehensions.
A Brave Little Band.
Three days later the rumor spread that Mr. Margary and his attendants had been murdered. It was also stated that an army was advancing to attack the English expedi- tion; and on the 22nd of February a large Chinese force did make its appearance on the neighboring heights. There was no longer any room to doubt that the worst had hap- pened, and it only remained to secure the safety of the expedition.
These Chinese numbered several thousand men under Lisitai in person, while to oppose them there were only four Europeans and fifteen Sikhs. Yet superior weapons and steadfastness carried the day against greater numbers. The Sikhs fought as they retired, and the Chinese, unable to make any im- pression on them, abandoned an attack which was both perilous and useless.
The news of this outrage did not reach Pekin until a month later, when Mr. Wade at once took the most energetic measures to obtain the amplest reparation in the power of the Pekin government to concede. The first and most necessary point in order to ensure not merely the punishment of the guilty, but also that the people of China should not have cause to suppose that their rulers
THE REIGN OF THE EMPEROR KWANGSU.
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secretly sympathized with the authors of the attack, was that no punitive measures should be undertaken, or, if undertaken, recognized, until a special Commission of Inquiry had been appointed to investigate the circum- stances on the spot. Mr. Margary was an officer of the English government traveling under special permission and protection.
Mysterious Delay.
The Chinese government could not expect to receive consideration if it failed to enforce respect for its own commands, and the English government had an obligation which it could not shirk in exacting reparation for the murder of its representative. The treacherous killing of Mr. Margary was evi- dently not an occurrence for which it could be considered a sufficient atonement that some miserable criminals under sentence of death, or some desperate individuals anxious to secure the worldly prosperity of their families, should undergo painful torture and public execution in order to shield official falseness and infamy. Although no one ever suspected the Pekin government of having directly instigated the outrage, the delay in instituting an impartial and search- ing inquiry into the affair strengthened an impression that it felt reluctant to inflict pun- ishment on those who had committed the act of violence.
Nearly three months elapsed before any step was taken towards appointing a Chinese official to proceed to the scene of the out- rage in company with the officers named by the English minister; but on the 19th of June an edict appeared in the Pckin Gazette (iidering Li Han Chang, Governor-General of Houkwang, to temporarily vacate his ]3ost, and " repair with all speed to Yunnan to investigate and deal with certain matters." Even then the matter dragged along but
slowly. It was not till the end of the year that the Commission to ascertain the fate of Mr. Margary began its active work on the .spot.
The result was unexpectedly disappoint- ing. The mandarins supported one another. The responsibility was thrown on several minor officials, and on the border-tribes or savages. Several of the latter were seized, and their lives were offered as atonement fbr an offence they had not committed. The furthest act of concession which the Chinese Commissioner gave was to temporarily sus- pend Tsen Yuhing the Futai for remissness ; but even this measure was never enforced with rigor. The English officers soon found that it was impossible to obtain any proper reparation on the spot.
Strong Demand for Reparation.
Sir Thomas Wade, who was knighted during the negotiations, refused to accept the lives of the men offered, whose compli- city in the offence was known to be none at all, while its real instigators escaped without any punishment. When the new year, 1876, opened, the question was still unsettled, and it was clear that no solution could be dis- covered on the .spot. Sir Thomas Wade again called upon the Chinese in the most emphatic language allowed by diplomacy to conform with the spirit and letter of their en- gagements, and he informed the government that unless they proffered full redress for Mr. Margary's murder it would be impossi- ble to continue diplomatic relations. To show that this was no meaningless expres- sion, Sir Thomas Wade loft Pckin, while a strong reinforcement to the English fleet demonstrated that the government was re- solved to support its representatixe.
In consequence of these steps, Li Hung Chang was, in August, 1 876, or more than
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CHINA: PAST AND PRp:SENT.
eighteen months after the outrage, entrusted with full powers for the arrangement of the difficulty; and the small seaport of Chefoo was fixed upon as the scene for the forth- coming negotiations. Even then the Chinese sought to secure a sentimental advantage by requesting that Sir Thomas Wade would change the scene of discussion to Tientsin, or at least that he would consent to pay Li Hung Chang a visit there. This final effort
Ambassador, whose dispatch had been de- cided upon in the previous year. When the secret history of this transaction is revealed it will be seen how sincere were Li Hung Chang's wishes for a pacific result, and how much his advice contributed to this end.
The most important passage in the Chefoc Convention was unquestionably that com- manding the different viceroys and gov- ernors to respect, and afford every protec-
CHINESE RESTAURANT.
to conceal the fact that the English demanded redress as an equal and not as a suppliant having been baffled, there was no further attempt at delay.
The Chefoo Convention was signed in that town, to which the Viceroy proceeded from Tientsin. Li Hung Chang entertained the Foreign Ministers at a great banquet ; and the final arrangements were hurried forward for the departure to Europe of the Chinese
tion to, all foreigners provided with the necessary passport, and warning them that they would be held responsible in the event of any such travellers meeting with injury or maltreatment. The ne.xt most important passage was that arranging for the despatch of an Embassy to London bearing a letter of regret for the murder of the English official. The official selected for this duty was Kwo Sungtao, a mandarin of high rank and unex-
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THE REIGN OF THE EMPEROR KVVANGSU.
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ceptionable character. It was a delicate mission with which he was entrusted.
The letter was submitted to Sir Thomas Wade in order that its terms should be exactly in accordance with Chinese etiquette, and that no phrase should be used showing that the Chinese government attached less importance to the mission than the occasion demanded. The Embassy proceeded to Europe, and, whatever may be thought of its immediate effect, it must be allowed that it established a precedent of friendly inter- course with that country, which proved an additional guarantee of peace.
A curious incident arising from the pas- sion of gambling which is so prevalent in China, and bearing incidentally upon the national character, may be briefly referred to. The attention of the Pekin government was attracted to this subject by a novel form of gambling, which not merely attained enor- mous dimensions, but which threatened to bring the system of public examination into disrepute. This latter fact created a pro- found impression at Pekin, and roused the mandarins to take unusually prompt meas- ures.
Lottery on a Large Scale.
Canton was the headquarters of the gam- bling confederacy which established the lot- teries known as the VVeising, but its ramifica- tions e.vtended throughout the whole of the province of Kwantung. The Weising, or examination sweepstakes, were based on the principle of drawing the names of the suc- cessful candidates at the official examinations. They appealed, therefore, to every poor vil- lager, and every father of a family, as well as to the aspirants themselves. The subscribers to the Weising lists were numbered by hun- dreds of thousands. It became a matter of almost as much importance to draw a suc-
cessful number or name in the lottery as to take the degree. The practice could not have been allowed to go on without intro- ducing serious abuses into the system of public examination.
The {irofits of the owners of the lottery were so enormous that they were able to pay not less than eight hundred thousand dollars as hush-money to the Viceroy and the other high officials of Canton. In order to shield his own participation in the profits, the Vice- roy declared that he devoted this new source of revenue to the completion of the river de- fences of Canton.
Severe Penalties Threatened.
In 1874 the whole system was declared illegal, and severe penalties were passed against those aiding, or participating in any way in, the Weising Company. The local officers did not, however, enforce with any stringency these new laws, and the Weising fraternity enjoyed a further but brief period of increased activity under a different name. The fraud was soon detected, and in an Edict of August 1 1, 1875, it was very rightly laid down that " the maintenance of the purity of government demands that it be not allowed under any pretext to be re-established," and for their apathy in the matter the Viceroy Yinghan and several of the highest officials in Canton were disgraced and stripped of their'official rank.
In China natural calamities on a colossal scale have often aggravated political troubles. The year 1 876 witnessed the commencement of a drouth in the two great provinces of Honan and Shansi which has probably never been surpassed as the cause of a vast amcunt of human suffering. Although the provinces named suffered the most from the prevalent drought, the suffering was general o\er the whole of Northern China, from Shantung
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
and Pechihli to Honan and the course of the Yellow River.
At first the government, if not apathetic, was disposed to say that the evil would be met by the grant of the usual allowance made by the Provincial Governors in the event of distress ; but when one province after another was absorbed within the famine era, it became no longer possible to treat the matter as one of such limited importance, and the high ministers felt obliged to bestir them- selves in face of so grave a danger. Li Hung Chang in particular was most energetic, not merely in collecting and forwarding supplies of rice and grain, but also in inviting con- tributions of money from all those parts of the Empire which had not been affected by famine.
Efforts to Relieve the Famine.
Allowing for the general sluggishness of popular opinion in China, and for the absence of any large amount of currency, it must be allowed that these appeals met with a large and liberal response. The foreign residents also contributed their share, and even the charity of London found a vent in sending some thousands of pounds to the scene of the famine in Northern China. This evidence of foreign sympathy in the cause of a common humanity made more than a passing impres- sion on the minds of the Chinese people.
While the origin of the famine may be attributed to either drought or civil war, there is no doubt that its extension and the apparent inability of the authorities to grapple with it may be traced to the want of means of communication, which rendered it almost impossible to convey the needful succor into the famine districts. The evil being so ob- vious, it was hoped that the Chinese would be disposed to take a step forward on their own initiative in the great and needed work
of the introduction of railways and other mechanical appliances. The Viceroy of the Two Kiang gave his assent to the construc- tion of a short line between Shanghai and the port of Woosung.
The great difficulty had always been to make a start; and now that a satisfactory commencement had been made the foreigners were disposed in their eagerness to overlook all obstacles, and to imagine the Flowery Land traversed in all directions by railways. But these expectations were soon shown to be premature. Half of the railway was open for use in the summer of 1 876, and during some weeks the excitement among the Chi- nese themselves was as marked as among the Europeans. The hopes based upon this satisfactory event were destined to be soon dispelled by the animosity of the officials. They announced their intention to resort to every meai.s in their power to prevent the completion of the undertaking. The situa- tion revealed such dangers of mob violence that Sir Thomas Wade felt compelled to request the Company to discontinue its operations, and after some discussion it was arranged that the Chinese should buy the line.
Opposition to the Railway.
After a stipulated period the line was placed under Chinese management, when, instead of devoting themselves to the interests of the railway, and to the extension of its power of utility, they wifuUy and persistently neglected it, with the express design of de- stroying it. At this conjuncture the Viceroy allowed the Governor of Fuhkien to remove the rails and plant to Formosa. The fate of the Woosung railway destroyed the hopes created by its construction, and postponed to a later day the great event of the introduc- tion of railways into China. Notwithstand-
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ing such disappointments as this, and the ever present difficulty of conducting relations with an unsympathetic people controlled by suspicious officials, there was yet observable c\ marked improvement in the relations of the different nations with the Chinese.
Opening New Ports.
Increased facilities of trade, such as the opening of new ports, far from extending the area of danger, served to promote a mutual good-will. In 1876 Kiungchow, in the island of Hainan, was made a treaty port, or rather the fact of its having been included in the treaty of Tientsin was practically accepted and recognized. In the following year four new ports were added to the list. One, Pakhoi, was intended to increase trade intercourse with Southern China. Two of tne three others, Ichang and Wuhu, were selected as being favorably situated for com- merce on the Yangtse and its affluents, while Wenchow was chosen for the benefit of the trade on the coast.
The close of the great work successfully accomplished during the two periods of the Regency was followed within a few weeks by the disappearance of the most important of the personages who had carried on the government throughout these twenty years of constant war and diplomatic excitement. Before the Pekin world knew of her illness, it heard of the death of the Empress Dowager Tsi An, who as Hienfung's princi- pal widow had enjoyed the premier place in the government, although she had never possessed a son to occupy the throne in person. In a proclamation issued in her name and possibly at her request, Tsi An described the course of her malady, the soli- citude of the Emperor, and urged upon him the duty of his high place to put restraint upon his grief. Her death occurred on i8th
April, from heart disease when she was only forty-five, and her subsequent obsequies were as splendid as her services demanded. For herself she had always been a woman of frugal habits, and the successful course of recent Chinese history was largely due to her firmness and resolution. Her associate in the Regency, Tsi Thsi, who was always more or less of an invalid, survived her.
The difficulty with Russia had not long been composed, when, on two opposite sides of her extensive dominion, China was called upon to face a serious condition of affairs. In Corea, "the forbidden land" of the Far East, events were forced by the eagerness and competition of European states to con- clude treaties of commeace with that primi- tive kingdom, and perhaps also by their fear that if they delayed Russia would appropriate some port on the Corean coast.
Corea a Source of Trouble.
To all who had official knowledge of Russia's desire and plan for seizing Port Lazareff, this apprehension was far from chimerical, and there was reason to believe that Russia's enroachment might compel other countries to make annexations in or round Corea by way of precaution. Practi- cal evidence of this was furnished by the English occupation of Port Hamilton, and by its subsequent evacuation when the neces- sity passed away, but should the occasion again arise the key of the situation will probably be found in the possession not of Port Hamilton or Quelpart, but of the Island of Tsiusima. Recourse was had to dip- lomacy to avert what threatened to be a grave international danger; and although the result was long doubtful, and the situation sometimes full of peril, a gratifying success was achieved in the end.
In 1881 a draft commercial treaty was
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drawn up, approved by the Chirese author- ites and the representatives of the principal powers at Pekin, and carried to the Court of Seoul for acceptance and signature by the American naval officer, Commodore Schu- feldt. The Corean king made no objection to the arrangement, and it was signed with the express stipulation that the ratifications of the treaty were to be exchanged in the following year. Thus was it harmoniously
aroused the jealousy of Japan, which has long asserted the right to have an equal voice with China in the control of Corean affairs ; and the government of Tokio, on hearing of the Schufeldt treaty, at once took steps not merely to obtain all the rights to be conferred by that document, to which no one would have objected, but also to assert its claim to control equally with China the policy of the Corean Court. With that ob-
CI11NK.-E our arranged at Pekin that Corca was to issue from her hermit's cell, and open her ports to trading countries under the guidance and encouragement of China. There can be no doubt that if this arrangement had been carried out, the influence and the position of China in Coiea would ha\e been very greatly increased and strengthened.
But, unfortunately, the policy of Li Hung Chung — for, if he did not originate, he took the most important part in directing it —
FOR AS AIRING.
ject, a Japanese fleet and army were sent to the Seoul river, and when the diplomatists returned for the ratification of the treaty, they found the Japanese in a strong position close to the Corean capital.
The Chinese were not to be set on one side in so open a manner, and a powerful fleet of gunboats, with 5,000 troops, sent to the Seoul river to uphold their rights. Under other circumstances, more especially as the Chinese expedition was believed to be the
THE REIGN OF THE EMPEROR KWANGSU.
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superior, a hostile collision must have en- sued, and the war which has so often seemed near between tiie Chinese and Japanese would have become an accomplished fact; but fortunately the presence of the foreign diplomatists moderated the ardor of both sides, and a rupture was averted. By a stroke of judgment the Chinese seized Tai Wang Kun, the father of the young king, and the leader of the anti-foreign party, and carried him off to Pckin, where he was kept in imprisonment for some time, until matters had settled down in his own country.
Rivalry Between China and Japan.
The opening of Corea to the Treaty Powers did not put an end to the old rivalry of China and Japan in that country, of which history contains so many examples ; and the attack on the Japanese Legion in 1 884 was a striking revelation of popular antipathy or of an elaborate anti-Japanese plot headed by the released Chinese prisoner, Tai Wang Kun.
At the opposite point of the frontier China was brought face to face with a danger which threatened to develop into a peril of the first magnitude, and in meeting which she was undoubtedly hampered by her treaties with the general body of foreign Powers and her own peculiar place in the fa iiily of nations. It is the special misfor- tune of China that she cannot engage in any, even a defensive, war with a maritime power without incurring the grave risk, or, indeed, the practical certainty that, if such a war be continued for any length of time, she must find herself involved with every other foreign country through the impossibility of confining the hostility of her own subjects to one race of foreigners in particular.
In considering the last war with a Euro- pean country in which China was engaged,
due allowance must be made for these facts, and also for the anomalous character of that contest when active hostilities were carried on without any formal declaration of war — a state of things which gave the French many advantages. Towards the end of the year 1882, the French Government came to the decision to establish a "definite protectorate" over Tonquin. Events had for some time been shaping themselves in this direction, and the colonial ambition of France had long fixed on Indo-China as a field in which it might aggrandize itself with comparatively little risk and a wide margin of atlvantage. The weakness of the kingdom of Annam was a strong enough temptation in itself to assert the protectorate over it which France had, more or less, claimed for forty years ; but when the reports of several French ex- plorers came to promote the conviction that France might acquire the control of a con- venient and, perhaps, the best route into some of the richest provinces of interior China without much difficulty, the tempta- tion became irresistible.
France is Quick to Act.
French activity in Indo-China was height- ened by the declaration of Gamier, Rocher and others that the Songcoi, or Red River, furnished the best means of communicating with Yunnan, and tapping the wealth of the richest mineral province in China. The apathy of England in her relations with Burmah, which presented, under its arrogant and obstructive rulers, what may have seemed an insuperable obstacle to trade in- tercourse between India and Ch>na, afforded additional inducement to the French to act quickly ; and, as they felt confident of their ability and power to coerce the Court of Hue, the initial difficulties of their undertak- ing did not seem very formidable.
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CHINA: PAST AND TRRSKNT.
That undertaking was, in the first place, defined to be a protectorate of Cliina, and, as the first step in the enterprise, the town of Hanoi, in the delta of the Red River, and the nominal capital of Toncjuin, was cap- tured before the end of the year 1882.
Tonquin stood in very mucli the same re- lationship to China as Corca ; and, although the enforcement of the suzerain tie was lax, there was no doubt that at Pekin the opin- ion was held very strongly that the action of France was an encroachment on the rights of China. But, if such was the secret opin- ion of the Chinese authorities, they took no immediate steps to arrest the development of French policy in Tonquin by proclaiming it a Chinese dependency, and also their inten- tion to defend it. While Li Hung Chang and the other members of the Chinese Gov- ernment were deliberating as to the course they should pursue, the French were acting with great vigor in Tonquin, and committing their military reputation to a task from which they could not in honor draw back.
Movements of the "Black Flags."
During the whole of the year 1883 they were engaged in military operations with the Black Flag irregulars, a force half piratical and half patriotic, who represented the national army of the country. It was be- lieved at the time, but quite erreoneously, that the Black Flags were paid and incited by the Chinese. Subsequent evidence showed that the Chinese authorities did not take even an indirect part in the contest until a much later period. After the capture of Hanoi, the French were constantly engaged with the Black Flags, from whom they cap- tured the important town of Sontay, which was reported to be held by Imperial Chinese troops, but on its capture this statement was found to be untrue.
The French were in the full belief that the conquest of Tonquin would be easily effected, when a st;rious reverse obliged them to realize the gravity of their task. A considerable detachment, under the command of Captain Henri Riviere, who was one of the pioneers of French enterprise on the Songcoi, was surprised and defeated near Hanoi. Riviere was killed, and it became necessary to make a great effort to recover the ground that had been lost. Fresh troops weie sent from Europe, but before they arrived the French received another check at Phukai, which the Black Flags claimed as a victory because the French were obliged to retreat.
Extreme Measures by the French.
Before this happened the French had taken exteme measures against the King of Annam, of which state Tonquin is the northern pro- vince. The King of that country, by name Tuduc, who had become submissive to the French, died in July, 1883, and after his death the Annamese, perhaps encouraged by the difficulties of the French in Tonquin, became so hostile that it was determined to read them a severe lesson. Hue was at- tacked and occupied a month after the death of Tuduc, and a treaty was extracted from the new king which made him the depend- ent of France. When the cold season began in Tonquin, the French forces largely in- creased, and, commanded by Admiral Cour- bet, renewed operations, and on the nth of December attacked the main body of the Black Flags at Sontay, which they had reoccupied and strengthened.
They offered a desperate and well sustained resistance, and it was only with heavy loss that the French succeeded in carrying the town. The victors were somewhat recom- pensed for their hardships and loss by the magnitude of the spoil, which included a
THE REIGN OF THE EMPEROR KWANGSU.
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M
large sum of money. Desultory fighting continued without intermission ; Admiral Courbet was superseded by General Millet, who determined to signalize his assumption of the command by attacking Bacninh, which the Black Flags made their headquarters after the loss of Sontay, On the 8th of March, he attacked this place at the head of 12,000 men, but su formidable were its defences that he would not risk an attack in front, and by a circuitous march of four days he gained the flank of the position, and thus taken at a disadvantage, the Black Flags abandoned their formidable lines, and retreated without much loss, leaving their artillery, including some Krupp guns, in the hands of the victors.
A Treaty of Peace.
At this stage of the question diplomacy intervened, and on the i ith of May a treaty of peace was signed by Commander Fournier, during the ministry of M. Jules Ferry, with the Chinese government. One of the prin- cipal stipulations of this treaty was that the French should be allowed to occupy Lang- son and other places in Tonquin. When the French commander in Tonquin sent a force under Colonel Dugenne to occupy Langson it was opposed in the Bade defile and repulsed with some loss. The Chinese ex- onerated themselves from all responsibility by declaring that the French advance was premature, because no date was fixed by the Fournier cunvcntion, and because there had not been time to transmit the necessary orders.
On the other hand, M. Fournier declared on his honor that the dates in his draft were named in the original convention. The French government at once demanded an apology, and an indemnity fixed by M. Jules Ferry, in a moment of mental excitement, at
the ridiculous figure of $50,000,000. An apology was offcrcil, but such an indemnity was refused, and eventually France obtained one of only $800,000.
After the Bade affair hostilities were at once resumed, and for the first time the French carried them on not only against the Black Flags, but against the Chinese. M. Jules Ferry did not, however, make any formal declaration of war against China, and he thus gained an advantage of position for his attack on the Chinese which it was not creditable to French chivalry to have asserted. The most striking instance of this occured at Foochow, where the French fleet, as repre- senting a friendly power, was at anchor above the formidable defences of the Min river. In accordance with instructions telegraphed to him, the French admiral attacked those places in reverse and destroyed the forts on the Min without much difficulty or loss, thanks exclusively to his having been allowed past them as a friend.
Upholding the Laws of Neutrality. The French also endeavored to derive all possible advantage from there being no for- mal declaration of war, and to make use of Hongkong as a base for their fleet against China. But this unfairness could not be tolerated, and the British minister at Pekin, where Sir Harry Parkes had in the autumn of 1883 succeeded Sir Thomas Wade, issued a proclamation that the hostilities between France and China were tantamount to a state of war, and that the laws of neutrality must be strictly observed. The French resented this step, and showed some inclination to retaliate by instituting a right to search for rice, but fortunately this pretension was not pushed to extremities, and the war was closed before it could produce any serious consequences.
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
The French devoted much of their atten- tion to an attack on the Chinese possessions in Formosa, and the occupation of Kelung; a fort in the northern part of that island was captured, but the subsequent success of the French was small. The Chinese displayed great energy and resource in forming de- fences against any advance inland from Kelung or Tamsui, and tl)e French govern-
may be gathered from the fact that tlie com- pulsory retreat, in March, 1885, of the French from before Langson, where some of the Chinese regular troops were drawn up with a large force of Black and Yellow Flags — the latter of whom were in Chinese pay — did not imperil the negotiations which were then far advanced towards completion. On the 9th of June of the same year a treaty of
VIEW Oi-' TIENTSIN, CHINA.
me.it was brought to face the fact that there peace 'vas signed by M. Patenotre and Li
was nothing to be gained by carrying on Hung Chang which gave F'rance nothing
these desultory operations, and that unless more than the Fournier convention.
they were prepared to send a large expedi- The military lessons of this war must be
tion, it was computed of not less than 50,000 pronounced inconclusive, for the new forces
men, to attack Pckin, there was no alternative which China had organized since the Pekin
to co,;:;iig to terms with China. . campaign were never fully engaged, and the
How strong this conviction had become ' struggle ended before the regular regiment
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sent to Langson had any opportunity of showing their quality. But the impression conveyed by the fighting in Formosa and the northern districts of Tonquin was that China had made considerable progress in the military art, and that she possessed the nucleus of an army that might become for- midable. But while the soldiers had made no inconsiderable improvement, as much could not be said of the officers, and among the commanders there seemed no grasp of the situation, and a complete inability to con- duct a campaign.
Incapable Commandt i^.
Probably these deficiencies will long remain the really weak .spot in the Chinese war organization, and although they have men who will fight well, the only capacity their commanders showed in Tonquin and For- mosa was in selecting strong positions and in fortifying them with consummate art. But as the strongest position can be turned and avoided, and as the Chinese, like all Asiatics, become demoralized when their r 'ar is threatened, it cannot be denied that, considerable progress as the Chinese have made in the military art, they have not yet mastered some of its rudiments. Ail that can be said is that the war between France and China was calculated to tcacli tlie advisability of caution in fi.xing a quarrel upon China. Under some special difficulties from tlio char- acter of the war and with divided councils at Pekin, the Chinese still gave a very good account of themselves against one of the greatest Powers of Europe.
During the progress of this struggle a coup di'tat wai, effected at Pekin of which at the time it was impossible to measure the whole significance. In July, 1884, the Chinese world was startled by the sudden fall and disgrace of Prince Kuny, who had
been the most powerful man in China since the Treaty of Pekin. A decree of the Empress Regent appeared dismissing him from all his posts and consigning him to an obscurity from which after many years he had not succeeded in emerging. The causes of his fall are not clear, but they were pro- bably of several distinct kinds. While he was thv,' leader of the peace party and the advocate of a prompt arrangement with France, he was also an opponent of Prince Chun's desire to have a share in the practical administration of the state, or, at least, an obstacle in the way of its realization.
Prince Chun, who was a man of an imperious will, and who, on the death of the Eastern Empress, became the most important personage in the palace and supreme Council of the Empire, was undoubtedly the leader of the attack on Prince Kung, and the immediate cause of his downfall. Prince Kung, who was an amiable and well inten- tioned man rather than an able statesman, yielded without resistance, and indeed he had no Iternative, for he had no following at Pekin, and his influence was very slight except among Europeans.
Sudden Death of Prince Chun.
Prince Chun then came to the front, tak- ing an active and prominent part in the government, making himself President of a new Board of National Defence and taking up the command of the Pekin Fiekl Force, a specially trained body of troops for the defence of the capital. He retained posses- sion of these posts after his son assumed the government in person, notwithstanding the law forbidding a father .serving under his son, which has already been cited, and he remained the real controller of Chinese policy until his sudden and unexpected death in the first days of 1891.
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
Some months earlier in April, 1890, China had suffered a great loss in the Marquis Tseng, whose diplomatic experience and knowledge of Europe might have rendered his country infinite service in the future. He was the chosen colleague of Prince Chun, and he is said to have gained the ear of his young sovereign. While willing to admit t..c superioritj' of European inventions, he was also an implicit believer in China's destiny and in her firmly holding her place among the greatest Powers of the world. In December, 1890, also died Tseng Kwo Tsiuen, uncle of the Marquis, and a man who had taken a prominent and honorable part in the suppression of the Taeping rebellion.
Tax on Opium.
In 1885 an important and delicate negotia- tion between England and China was brought to a successful issue by the joint efforts of Lord Salisbury and the Marquis Tsen". The lew uf the lekin or barrier tax on opium had led to many cxacticns in tlie interior which was injurious to the foreign trade and also to the Chinese government, which obtained only the customs duty raisetl in the port. y\fter the subject had been thorough!}- discussed in all its bearings a convention was signed in London, on 19th July, 1885, by which the lekin was fixed at eighty taels a chest, in addition to the cus- tom? due of thirty taels, and also that the whole of this sum should be paid in the treaty port before the opium was taken out of bond.
This arrangement was greatly to the advantage of the Chinese ^;:<'>vernment, which came into possession of a large revenue that had previously been frittered away in the provinci's, and much of which had gone into the pockets of the Mandarine. The Kmperor
issued an edict in 1890 formally legalizing the cultivation of opium, which, although practically carried on, was nominally illegal. An immediate consequence of this step was a great increase in the area under cultivation, particularly in Manchuria, and so great is the production of native opium now becoming that that of India may yet be driven from the field as a practical revenge for the loss inflicted on China by the competition of Indian tea. But at all events these measures debar China from ever again posing as an injured party in the matter of the opium traffic.
During these years the young Emperor Kwangsu was growing up. In February, 1887, in which month falls the Chinese New Year, it was announced his marriage was postponed in consequence of his delicate health, and it was not until the new year of 1 889, when Kwangsu was well advanced in his eighteenth year, that he was married to Yeh-ho-na-la, daughter of a M<...chu general named Knei Hsiang, who had been specially selected for this great honor out of many hundred candidates.
Magnificent Marriage Ceremonies.
The marriage was celebrated with the usual state, and more than $$,( - ,000 is said to have been expended on the attendant ceremonies. At the same time the Empress Regent issued her farewell edict and passed into retirement, but there is reason to believe that she continued to e.xercise no inconsider- able influence over the young Emperor.
The marriage and assumption of govern- ing power by the Emperor Kwangsu brought to the front the very important question of the right of audience by the foreign ministers resident at Pekin. This privilege had been conceded by China at the time of the Tient- sin massacre, and it had been put into force
THE REIGN OF THE EMPEROR KWANGSU.
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as a result of that concession. The Em- perors of China do not appear al any time to have taken up the position that their own person was so supremely sacred as to render audience with a foreigner an indignity. On the contrary, in olden days, when the Im- perial state and prestige were immeasurably greater than they now are, audience was freely granted, and the person of the Sover- eign was less hermetically concealed than is now the fashion.
The Two Great Questions.
Two questions, however, have successively been made uppermost in the settlement of the matter, namely, the character of obeis- ance made by the foreigner admitted to the interview, and the nature and locality of the building in which it took place. As regards the former the favored individual was ex- pected to comply with the Chinese usage by performing the kowtmv, that is, kneeling thrice and knocking his forehead nine times upon the ground.
The theory of Chinese sovereignty being that the Emperor is the de jure monarch of the whole earth, of which China is the Mid- dle Kingdom, all other nations, therefore, must be either his tributaries or his subjects; whence the exaction of this mark of defer- ence from their envoys. As regards the site of audience, the practice of emphasizing the lowliness of the stranger in presence of the Son of Heaven by fixing the audience in a building that carries widi it some implication of inferiority, appears to have been the growth only of the last fifty years, if not more recently.
In the seventeenth and eighteenth cen- turies both the Jesuit Fathers who were in the service of the Emperor and the envoys of European Courts or Companies, who came to Pekin for complimentary purjioses
or to secure facilities for trade, performed the kowtow without apparent compunction. One Russian official, however, who arrived at Pekin in the reign of the first Manchu Emperor Shun Chih (1644-1661) was re- fused an audience because he declined to kowtow.
In those days the audience commonly took place in one or other of the great Ceremonial Halls of the Imperial Palace in the heart of the Forbidden City, where no European is now permitted to enter. Here stands the Tai Ho Tien, or Hall of Supreme Harmony, a magnificent structure, no feet in height, erected upon a terrace of marble 20 feet high, with projecting wings, ascended from the outer court by flights of steps.
Seated on a Raised Throne.
The Great Audience Hall on the summit of the platform is a vast pavilion, in design not unlike the Memorial Temple of Yung Lo at the Ming Tombs, 200 feet in length by 90 feet in depth, sustained by 72 immense columns of painted teak. In this Hall the Emperor held and still holds the splendid annual Levees at the Winter Solstice, at the New Year, and on his own birthday. Here in the Tai Ho Tien the Emperor takes his seat upon a raised throne in the centre.
A few Manchus of exalted rank alone are admitted to the building. Outside and below the marble balustrades arc ran^^cd tlie no- bility and officials in eighteen double rows, the civil officers on the cast side, and the military officers on the west, their respective ranks and positions being marked by low columns. The utmost care is observed in appointing places for the officials according to their respective ranks and titles.
The privilege of audience, as wc see, had been conceded, and it had been put into force
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on one occasion during the brief reign of Tungche. The time had again arrived for giving it effect, and, after long discussions as to the place of audience and the forms to be observed, Kwangsu issued in December, 1890, an edict appointing a day soon after the commencement of the Chinese New Year, for the audience, and also arranging that it should be repeated annually on the same date.
In March, 1891, Kwangsu gave his first
ians' made on him the idea which they carried away of the Emperor Kwangsu was pleasing and almost pathetic. His air is one of exceeding intelligence and gentleness, somewhat frightened and melancholy look- ing. His foce is pale, and though it is dis- tinguished by refinement and quiet dignity it has none of the force of his martial ancestors, nothing commanding or imperial, but is alto- gether mild, delicate, sad and kind.
" He is essentially !Manchu in features, his
OI'lUM -SMDKKKS.
reception to the foreign ministers, but after it was over some criticism and dissatisfaction were aroused by the fact that the ceremony had been held in the Tse Kung Ko, or Hall of Tributary Nations. As this was the first occasion on which Europeans saw the young Emperor, the fact that he made a favorable impression on them is not without interest, and the following personal description of the master of so many millions may well be quoted :
"Whatever the impression 'the Barbar-
skin is strangely pallid in hue, whicii is, no doubt, accounted for by the confinement of his life inside these forbidding walls and the absence of the ordinary pleasures and pur- suits of youth, with the constant discharge of onerous, complicated am! difficult duties of state which, it must x remomhercd, are, according to Imperial Chinese etiquette, mostly transacted between the hours of two and six in the morning. His face is oval shai)cil with a very long narrow chin and a sensitive mouth with thin nervous lips ; his
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tics ire, tte, ;\vo ival da his
nose is well shaped and straight, his eye- brows regular and very arched, while the eyes are unusally large and sorrowful in ex- pression. The forehead is well shaped and broad, and the head is large beyond the average."
Owing to the dissatisfaction felt at the place of audience, which seemed to put the Treaty Powers on the same footing as tribu- tary states, the foreign ministers have en- deavored to force from the government the formal admission that a more appropriate part of the Imperial city should be assigned for the ceremony, but as the Powers them- selves were not disposed to lay too much stress on this point, no tlefinite concession WP.5 yet made, and the Chinese ministers held out against the pressure of some of the foreign representatives. But, althongh no concise alteration was made in the place of audience, the question was practically settled by a courteous concession to the new English mir'ster, Mr. O'Conor, who succeeded Sir John Walsham, and it is gratifying to feel that this advantage was gained more by tact than by coercion.
When Mr. O'Cc^nor wished to present his credentials to the Emperor, it was arranged that the Emperor should receive him in the Cheng Kuan Tien Palace, which is f)art of the Imperial residence of Peace and Plenty witliin the Forbidden City. The British representative, accompanied by his secre- taries and suite in accordance with arrange- ment, proceeded to this palace on the 13th
I of December, 1892, and was received in a specially honorable way at the principal or Imperial entrance by the officials of the Court. Such a mark of distinction was con- sidered quite unique in the annals of foreign diplomacy in China, and has since been a standing grievance with the other ministers at Pekin.
It was noticed by those present that the Emperor took a much greater interest in the ceremony than on previous occasions. This audience, which lasted a considerable time, was certainly the most satisfactory and en couraging yet held with the Emperor Kwangsu by any foreign envoy, and it also afforded opportunity of confirming the favor- able impression which the intelligence and dignified demeanor of the Emperor Kwangsu made on all who have had the honor of coming into his presence. One incident in the progress of the audience question de- serves notice, and that was the Emperor's refusal, in 1891, tu receive Mr. Blair, the United States Minister, in consequence of the hostile legislation of our country against China. The anti-foreign outbreak along the Yangtsekiang, in the summer of 1891, was ;'.n unpleasant incident, from which at one time it looked as if serious consequences might follow ; but the ebullition fortunately passed away without an international crisis, and it may be hoped that the improved means of exercising diplomatic pressure at Pekin will render these attacks less frequent, and their settlement and redress more rajwd.
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CHAPTER VIII. THE EMPEROR OF CHINA AND HIS COURT.
THE foregoing concise and graphic history from the able pen of the well-i<no\vn historian, Mr. D. C. Boulger, may appropriately be fol- lowed by Mr. Robert K. Douglas's interest- ing and entertaining acconnt of the manners and customs of the Chinese. This enables the reader to sec China as it has been in the past and as it is at the present time. He is now conducted from one point of observation to another, while before him are pictured the customs, the domestic life, the manners, dress, idol-worship and singular ideas and habits of this remarkable people.
With the exception of fashions in trivial matters, nothing has changed in China for many centuries. E\ery institution, every custom, and every idea has its foundation in the distant ages md draws its inspiration from the sages of a: uity. Immutability in all I that is essential i rittcn on the face of the empire. No fear of organic change perplexes ; monarchs, or anyone else, in that changeless land, and the peo[)!e love to ha\'e it so. : Sovereigns reign and pass away, dynasties come and go, and even foreign powers take possession of the throne, as at the present time, when a line of Manchu emperors reigns at Pekin ; but the national life in all its char- i acteristics goes on unmoved by political change and revolutionary violence.
One of the most remarkable .spectacles in the world's historj- is that of this strange emi)ire which, having been umc after time thrown into the crucible of political unrest, has always reap^:ared identical in its main 162
features and institutions, and absorbing rathei than being absorbed by the foreign elements which have occasionally thrust themselves into the body politic.
The political constitution, the social rela tions and customary ceremonies were crys- tallized in their present forms by those ancients on whom, according to the opinion of the people, rested the mantle of perfect wisdom. If the death of the emperor is an- nounced, it is proclaimed in words used by Yao, who lived before the time of Abraham.
Fondness for Antiquity.
If a mandarin writes a controversi:.! de- spatch, he bases his arguments on the sayings of Confucius ; if a youth presents himself at the public examinations, he is expected to compose essays exclusively on themes from the four books and five classics of antiquity; and if a man writes to congratulate a friend on the birth of a daughter, he does so in phraseology drawn from the national primi- tive odes, which were sung and chanted uc fore the days of Homer.
This immutability gives certain advantages in writing on Chinese society, since the author is not called upon
"To shoot foUv IS il flies Ami catch the manners living as they rise."
It is enough for him to keep in view the rock from which the people have hewn their lives, and to draw from the current literature, which refects that foundation, the picture which he may propose to sketch.
What, then, are the constituent elementi.
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THE EMPEROR AND HIS COURT.
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tages Jithor
the
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of Chinese society ? They are very simple, and are free from the compHcations and enlacements of European life. At the head is the emperor and his court, next comes the bureaucracy, and after them the people. With the exception of some few families, such as those of Confucius, of Tseng, and five or six others, there is no hereditary aristocracy of high rank and importance. All are equal until the examiners have elected into an aris- tocracy of talent those whose essays and poems are the best. The remaining divisions of "farmers, mechanics, and traders," repre- sent one level.
High-Sounding Titles.
Above these classes the Emperor reigns supreme. The possessor of a power which is limited only by the endurance of the people, the object of profound reverence and worship by his subjects, the holder of the lives of "all under heaven," the fountain of honor as well as the dispenser of mercy, he occupies a position which is unique of its kind, and unmatched in the extent of its influence. T' 11 is much magic in a name, and the tit -s by which the potentate is known help u' to realize what he is in the eyes of the f ;'~>ple.
He is the "Son of Heaven," he is the 'Supreme Ruler," the "August Lofty One," the "Celestial Ruler," the "Solitary Man," the " Buddha of the present day," the "Lord;" and, in adulatory addresses, he is often entitled the " Lord of Ten Thousand Years." As the Son of Heaven, he rules b)- the express command of the celestial powers, and is sustained on the throne by the same supreme authorities, so long as he rules in accordance with their dictates. He alone is entitled to worship the azure heaven, and at the winter solstice he performs this rite after careful preparation, and with solemn
ritual, a desciiption of which cannot fail to be of interest to the reader.
The Temple of Heaven, where this august ceremony is performed, stands in the southern portion of the city of Pekin, and consists of a triple circular terrace, two hundred and ten feet wide at the base, and ninety feet at the top. The marble stones forming the pave- ment of the highest terrace are laid in nine concentric circles. On the centre stone, "which is a perfect circle, the Emperor kneels, facing the north, and "acknowledges in prayer and by his position that he is inferior to Heaven, and to Heaven alone. Round him on the pavement are the nine circles of as many heavens, consisting of nine stones, then eighteen, then twenty-seven, and so on, in successive multiples of nine until the square of nine, the favorite number of Chinese phil- osophy, is reached in the outermost circle of eighty-one .stones."
The Burnt Sacrifice.
On the evening before the winter solstice the Emperor is borne in a carriage drawn by elephants to the mystic precincts of the temple, whence, after offering incense to Shangti, "the Supreme Ruler," and to his ancestors, he proceeds to the hall of pene- tential fasting. There he remains until 5.45 A.M., when, dressed in his sacrificial robes, he ascends to the second terrace. This is the signal for .setting fire to the whole burnt sacrifice, which consists of a bullock two years old and without blemish. The Su- jireme Ruler having been thus invoked, the Emperor goes up to the highest terrace, and offers incense before the sacred shrine, and that of his ancestors.
At the same time, after having knelt thrice and prostrated himself nine times, he offers bundles of silk, jade cups, and other gifts in lowly sacrifice. A prayer is then
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THE EMPEROR AND HIS COURT.
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read by an attendant minister, while the Emperor kneels in adoration, to an accom- paniment of music and dancing. One solemn rite has still to be performed before the sacri- ficial service is complete. While the Em- peror remains on his knees, officers appointed for the purpose present to him " the flesh of happiness," and the "cup of happiness." Thrice he prostrates himself before the sacred emblems, and then receives them with solemn reverence. It is curious to find these marked resemblances to Jewish and Christian wor- ship in the C nese ritual.
Claims Divine Authority.
By this solemn sacrifice the Emperor assumes the office of Vice-regent of Heaven, and by common consent is acknowledged to be the co-ordinate of Heaven and earth, and the representative of man in the trinity of which those two powers form the other per- sons. As possessor of the Divine authority, he holds himself superior to all who are called gods, and takes upon himself to grant titles of honor to deities, and to promote them in the sacred hierarchy.
On one occasion a memorial was pre- sented to the throne by the Lieutenant- Governor of Kiangtsu, asking the Emperor to confer higher honors on the Queen of Heaven, the God of the Wind , the God of the Sea, and the God of the city of Shanghai, in consideration of their having brought the tribute rice safely on its way to Tientsin, and for having favored the vessels bearing it with gentle zephyrs and a placid s^a. To this rc- (|uest the Emperor was pleased to accede, and the gods and goddesses reaped the re- ward of his benignity by the issue of patents which were held to vouch for their promo- tion on the heights of Olympus.
One other instance of this form of super- stition may be mentioned, which is remark-
able as having for its advocate the redoubt- able Tseng Kwofan, the father of the Mar- quis Tseng, and the foremost man of the day in the empire. To him, more than to any other mandarin, is due the suppression of the Taeping rebellion. He was the inti mate adviser of the throne, and was held in the highest esteem as a learned and enlight- ened man.
This viceroy, in conjunction with the Viceroy of Fuhkien, "petitioned the throne to deify two female genii who had worked a great number of miracles for the good of the people." In the district of Chiangtu, write the viceroys, "there is a place called Hsien-nii-chen, which has long had a temple to the two genii, Tu and Kang. This temple was once upon a time the scene of a benefi- cent miracle, which is duly recorded in the liistory of the district. Moreover, in the eighth year of Hiengfung (1858), when the Taeping rebels were attempting to cross on rafts at Fuchiao, on the east side of Yang- chow, a frightful storm of thunder and rain burst over the place and drowned countless numbers of them.
Lamps and Fairy Godesses. "The refugees from the city all stated that, on the night in question, when the rebels were attempting to cross, they saw the opposite bank lined, as far as the eye could reach, with bright azure-colored lamps, and in the midst of the lamps were seen the fairy goddesses. Scared by this apparition the rebels abandoned the attempt, and the town and neighborhood were saved from fall- ing into their hands." " Some time ago," the memorialists add, "Tseng Kwofan petitioned the throne to deify the two female genii, Tu and Kang ; but the Board of Rites replied that the local histories only mention Kang, and asked what authority there was for
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CHINA: PAST AND PRKSKNT.
ranking Tu among the genii. There appeared to be no doubt in respect to Kang.
"The memoralists have, therefore, re-in- vestigated the whole case, and find that Kang was a priestess in Tu's temple, and that she ascended from the town in question on a white dragon up to fairyland, and that in consequence of this the iniiabitants placed her on a par with Tu and worshipped them together. The names of the fairies, Tu and Kang, are to be found in the official registers, and they have long been objects of worship. Such are the representations of the local gentry and elders, and the memoralists would earnestly repeat their request that his majesty would be graciously pleased to deify tiie two genii, Tu and Kang, in ac- knowledgment of the many deliverances they have wrought, an i in compliance with the earnest wish of the people."
In the pages of the Pckin Gazette, such memorials, presented by the highest officials in the empire, are constantly to be met with, and are treated with all seriousness both by the suppliants and the Son of Heaven.
His Subjects Adore Him.
In harmony with these lofty attributes his subjects, when admitted into his presence, prostrate themselves in adoration on the ground before him, and on a certain day in the year he is worshipped in every city in the empire. At daylight on the day in question the local mandarins assemble in the city temple, where, in the central hall, a throne is raised on which is placed the imperial tablet. At a given signal the as- sembl" 1 officials kneel thrice before the throne, and ni: , times strike their heads on the ground as though in the presence of the Supreme Ruler.
In speaking of this title, the Supreme Ruler, it is interesting to go a step beyond
the English rendering of the term, and to look at the native characters which repre- sent it. They form the word Hivangti, and are of considerable interest both as imlicating the very lofty idea entertained by the inven- tors of the first character of what an emperor should be; and, in the case of the second, as confirming a theory which is now commonly accepted, that the Chinese borrowed a num- ber of their written symbols from the cunei- form writing of Babylonia. The character Hwang was formerly made up of two parts, meaning "ruler" and "one's self," and thus conveys the very laudable notion, in har- mony with the doctrines taught by Confu- cius, that an emperor, before attempting to rule the empire, should have learnt to be the master of his own actions.
Supreme White Ruler.
In the same .spirit Mencius, about two hundred years later, said, " The greatest charge is the charge of one's self " An idea which appears in the mouth of Polonius, where he says —
"This above all : to thine own self be true, And it must follow, as the night the day. Thou canst not then be false to any man."
By a clerical error the character is now written with the omission of a stroke in the symbol for one's self, and, so altered, the compound reads, " the white ruler." The second character means " the supreme."
The Emperor is also the Buddha of the present day. This is a title which has little meaning among the skeptical Chinese, who agree wi'^h Confucius in preferring to leave the question of a future existence unex- plored. But in the weary wastes of ]\Ion- golia and Tibet, the ignorant natives give an interest to their dreary existences by blindly following the superstitious teaching of their priests. In Tibet, more especially, Budd-
THK EMPKROR AND HIS COURT.
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hism has gained complete possession of tlie people, and the priestly profession is crowded with men who seek for power, ami who find it easier to make a living out of the supersti- tious fears of the people than from the barren soil at their feet.
Not content with managing the spiritual concerns of their followers, these men have made themselves masters of the political situation, and in the hand of their chief, the Grand Lama, rests the government of the country. To these people the title of the " Buddha of the present day " is full of mean- ing, and a command from the potentate at Pekin is readily obeyed as coming from the suzerain of the land, and the spiritual head of their religion. The Grand Lama is sur- rounded by several dignitaries, and on the death of any one of these ecclesiastics the re-embodiment of his spiritual essence is re- ferred to Pelcin, and is not considered valid until the sanction of the Emperor has been received. On occasions the Emperor actu- ally forbids the transmigration of the soul of any dignitary who may be under his ban, which thus remains in a state of suspended animation during his good pleasure.
A Strange Decree.
The Pckin Gazette tells us, that one such, a llut'ukht'u, was once impeached for desert- ing his post, and carrying off his seal of office, in consequence of a disturbance which arose through a distribution of alms. For this dereliction of duty his title and seal were cancelled, and it was at the same time decreed by the Emperor that his soul should not be allowed to transmigrate at his decease. On receiving this extinguishing sentence the offender came to Pekin for the purpose of appealing, and soon afterwards his death produced the crisis in his spiritual state which the sentence contemplated.
The sympathy produced by his condition prompted the despatch of petitions to Pckin to plead for his soul, and such success attended them that an edict was shortly afterwards issued in the following terms: " We decree that as is besought of us, search may be made to discover the child in whose body the soul of the decased Hut'ukht'u has been re-born, and that he be allowed to resume the government of his proper lama- sery, or dominion."
Compelled to Fall on Their Faces.
The title of "the solitary man" is emi- nently applicable to a potentate who thus not only claims temporal dominion, but who assumes the position of high priest over the household of the gods. It is a common complaint with emperors and kings that they have no fellows; but here is one of their number whose cherished attributes place him beyond the reach of mortals. With the exception of those immediately about his person, his subjects are not allowed to gaze upon his face. When he goes abroad the people are compelled to fall on their faces to the ground until his cavalcade has passed on, and on all occasions he is to them a mystery.
A sovereign so exalted and so worshipped would naturally expect to receive from foreigners entering his presence, homage equal to that to which he is accustomed from the pliant knees of his subjects, antl at first, no doubt, the refusul of British repre- sentatives to kotcnv, or prostrate themselves before him, came as a surprise. From the time of Lord Macartney's mission, in 1792, down to a few years back, the question of the kotow was a burning one, and was as consistently resisted by foreign ministers as it was urgently pressed by the Chinese. At the present time, on two or three occasions on which the European ministers have been
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granted audiences, they have paid the Empercr the same reverence, and no more, that they pay to their own sovereigns.
Gazette, and to the plays and novels of the people, for sketches of his monotonous and dreary existence. The palace, as befitting
TVI'ES <»r CHINi:.SE WO.MK.N.
Being so entirely withdraw n from the pub- lic gaze, very little can possibly be known of the Emperor's private life, and we arc driven to that very candid periodical, the Pikhi
the abode of so exalted a personage, is so placed as effectual ly to cut off its occupants from the rest of the empire. Situated in the " Forbidden City," it is surrounded with a
THE KMPKROR AND HIS COURT.
169
triple barrier of walls. Beyond the inner and secret enclosure is the Imperial city, which is enclosed by a high wall topped with tiles of the Imperial yellow color; and outside that at;ain is the Tartar city, which forms the northern part of the capital.
Strict guard is kept day and night at the gates of the Forbidden City, and severe pen- alties are inflicted on all unauthorized persons who may dare to enter its portals. One of the highest distinctions which can be con- ferred on officials whom the Kmperor delights to honor, is the right to ride on horseback within these sacred precincts. Only on rare occasions, and those almost exclusively occa- sions of ceremony, does the Emperor pass out of the palace grounds. These no doubt present a miniature of the empire. There are lakes, mountains, parks, and gardens in which the Imperial prisoner can amuse him- self, with the boats which ply on the artificial lakes, or by joining mimic hunts in miniature forests ; but it is probable that there is not one of the millions of China who has not a more practical knowledge of the empire than he who rules it.
Stirring Before Daylight.
Theoretically he is supposed to spend his •days and nijjhts in the affairs of state. The t;atcs of the I'orbiddcn City are opened at midnight, and the halls of audience at 2 A. M. Ik-fore daylight his cabinet ministers arrive and are received at veritable levees, and all the state sacrifices and functions are over by lo o'clock. Even the court amusements are held before the dew is off the grass. The following prugramme, taken from the Pckin Gazette, describes a morning's work at Court :
"To-morrow, after business, about 6 o'clock A.M., the Emperor will pass through the Hwa-Yuen and Shinwu gates to the Takaoticn temple to offer sacrifice. After-
wards His Majesty will pass through the Yung-suy-tsiang gate, and, entering the King-shansi gate, will proceed to the Show • hwang temple to worship. His Majesty will then pass through the Pehshang gate from the Sishan road, and, entering the Shinwu gate, will return to the palace to breakfast. His Majesty will then hold an audience, and at 7 o'clock will ascend to the Kientsing Palace to receive congratulations on his birthday. At 8 o'clock he will take his seat to witness the theatrical performance."
Putting On the Purple.
And if wrestlers and conjurers are sum- moned into the Imperial presence, they must be ready at an equally uncongenial hour to show their skill. But such relaxations are the glints of sunlight which brighten the sombre life of the solitary man. The sov- ereign announced his assumption of the Im- perial purple in 1875, when he was quite an infant, in the following edict :
" Whereas, on the fifth day of the moon " (January 12, 1875), "at the yeo hour" (5-7 P.M.), "His Majesty the Emperor departed this life, ascending upon the Dragon to be a guest on high, the benign mandate of the Empress Dowager and Empress Mother was by us reverently received, commanding us to enter upon the inheritance of the great suc- cession. Prostrate upon the eartii we be- wailed our grief to Heaven, vainly .stretching out our hands in lamentation. For thirteen years, as we Iiunibly reflected, His Majesty now departed reigned under the canopy of Heaven. In reverent observance of the an- cestral precepts, he made the counsels prompted by maternal love his guiile, apply- ing himself with awestruck zeal to the toil- some performance of his duty. The welfare of the people and the policy of the State were ever present in his utmost thoughts.
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CHINA: PAST AND I'RKSKNT.
Not in words can \vc give expression to tlie sadness which pierces our heart and shows itself in tears and blood."
The Pckin Gazette bears testiinoii)- lo tiie desire which was felt by the ICmpcror's tutors to rear the tender thought aright. And in that journal the following memorial on this subject was published with approval. " His Majesty, being .still of tentler age, it is beyond question expedient that effectual training in the right path be studied. All those who surround His Majesty, and are in near employment about his person, should be without exception of tried capacity and solid character. No youthful and thought- less person should be suffered to be in at- tendance."
A Wife for the Emfwror.
From time to time the outer world was informed of the progress which this tenderly guarded youth was making in his studies. At last the time came — in 1889 — for him to assume the reins of power hitherto helil by the dowager empresses, and to take to him- .self a consort. The question of choosing a wife for the Imperial rcckisc was a more serious matter to arrange than the transfer of power. It was necessar)' that the lad\' should be of the .same nationality as himself — a Manclui — and that she should satisfy the requirements of the Dowager Empresses as to looks and ap|)earance.
Levees of aspirants to the honor were hekl by the Dowagers, and a lady iiaving been chosen, the personage most interested in the event was made aware of the sc!ectit)n. According to custo.n, and possibly to jiro- vide against any disappointment which the appearance of the bride might produce in the imperial breast, two young ladies were also chosen to accompany the Empress as second- ary wives. This trio forms the nucleus of
the royal household, in which secondary wives are coimted by tens and fifties.
.'\s is natural in the case of .my matter affecting so exalted a personage as the .Son of Heaven, the ceremonies connected with his m.iniage are marked by all tlie dignity and .splendor which are peculiar to Oriental -States. Unlike his subjects, even of the highest rank, who are bound as a preliminary to pay court to the parents of their future brides, the I'.mperor finds it sufficient to issue an edict announcing his intention to marry the lady on whom his choice may have fallen, and she, trembling with the weight of the honor, bUishingly obeys the command. Unlike his subjects, also, the E.iiperor is by law entitled to wives of three ranks.
The first consists of the Empress, who is alone in her dignity except when, as has happened, on some rare occassi(5ns, two Princesses have shared the imperial throne. The second rank is unlimited as to number; and it is from these ladies that, in case of the death of the Empress, the Emperor com- monly chooses her successor. The third rank is fillctl up as the taste of the Emperor may direct, and it is rarely that the ladies of this graile e\er succeetl to the loft_\* dignity of the throne.
Imposing Ceremonies.
To the weilding of the lunpress alone are reserved the courtly ceremonials which grace
[ the imperial marriage. These ceremonies are ten in number. First comes an edict .iniionncing the intended marriage. Ihe Hoard of Ceremonies next proclaims tin f,nt throughout the empire, and having ciinsiilteii
' the Imperial astronomers as to the choice ot a fortunate day for sentling the customarj' presents to the bride-elect, prepares for the occasion ten iiorses with accoutrements, ten cuirasses, a hundred pieces of .silk an 1 two
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hundred pieces of nanking. To the Board of Rites belongs the duty of preparing a golden tablet and a golden seal on which the scholars of the Hanlin College inscribe the necessary decrees relating to the marriage.
Armed with these imperial pledges a President of the Board invites the imperial order for the presentation of the gifts. When this has been received, the officials, at early dawn on the day appointed, place a table in the hall of "Great Harmony" for the recep- tion of the imperial seal, while others set out a pavilion ornamented with dragons, in which the cuirasses, the silks and the cloths are reverently deposited.
The Imperial Mandate.
When the assembly is complete, the master of ceremonies orders every one to his al- lotted place, and exhorts all to assume a grave and decorous attitude. In the hear- ing of this attentive gathering a commis- sioner, after bowing the knee, reads aloud the Imperial mandate, which runs as follows : " The august ruler has, in accordance with the wishes of the revered Dowager P^m- prcss, promised to take Miss of the
as his consort, and orders the min- isters to take the seal of the empire with the nuptial presents, in accordance with the sacred rites."
So soon as the herald has ceased speaking a Secretary of State takes the seal from the table and hands it to an Imperial messenger who, in company with officials carrying the pavilion and other gifts, and preceded and followed by the Imperial guards, goes to the house of tlie future Empress. Everything there has been prepared for his reception. A table has been placed in the centre of the hall between two others, draped with ap- propriate hangings. On the arrival of the messenger the father of the lady salutes him
on the threshold, and kneels while he carries the Imperial gifts to the tables in the great hall. On the centre table the envoy places the Imperial seal, and on the others the vari- ous portable presents, while the horses are arranged on the right and left of the court- yard.
When all are disposed in order, the father of the lady receives the gifts kneeling, and prostrates himself nine times as a token of his gratitude for the Imperial favor. The departure of the messenger, who carries the Imperial seal away with him, is surrounded with the same ceremonies as those which greeted his arrival.
Two banquets form the second part of the ceremony. The mother of the bride is, by order of the Emperor, entertained by the Imperial princesses in the apartments of the Dowager Empress, while the Imperial cham- berlains and high officials olTer the same hospitality to her father.
The Nuptial Presents.
On the wedding-day officers appointed for the purpot present to the bride two hun- dred ounces of gold, ten thousand ounces of silver, one gold and two silver tiaras, a thou- sand pieces of silk, twenty caparisoned horses, and twenty others with equipments. To her father and mother are, in like man- ner, offered gold, silver and precious orna- ments ; pieces of silk, bows and arrows, and countless robes.
The declaration of the marriage follows. An ambassador is sent with an Imperial letter to the father of the future empress. On his knees, this much genuflecting man listens to the words of his future son-in-law, and makes nine prostrations in the direction of the Imperial seal, which again stands on his table. On this occasion his wife and two ladies of his household take part in the cere-
THE KMPKROR AND HIS COURT.
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mony. Six times they bow low, thrice they bend the knee, and twice as often tiiey pros- trate themselves before the seal. This done, tliey receive from the envoy the tablet of gold, on which is inscribed the declaration of marriage, and retire with this evidence of the fulfilment of their hopes to the apartments of the bride.
On the eve of the eventful day ministers are sent to announce the auspicious event to Heaven, and Earth, and to the deities of the Imperial temple. On the following morning, so soon as the august procession is formed, the Emperor enters his sedan-chair, and is borne to the Tzuning palace, where the dowager Empress awaits him seated on a throne of state. With dutiful regard he kneels, and thrice, and again nine times bows low at the feet of his mother.
The Great Seal.
Having thus manifested his respect, he proceeds to the " Hall of Great Harmony," accompanied by bands discoursing music from an infinite variety of instruments. There, at a signal given, the members of the Board of Rites kneel and prostrate them- selves before their august sovereign. This done, a herald advances and reads aloud the Imperial decree, which runs as follows: " The Emperor, in obedience t.) the desire of the Empress his mother, agrees that the
princess shall be his consort. In this
propitious month, and under this favorable constellation, he has prepared the customary gifts and the usual contract, and now com- mands his ministers to escort the chosen bride to his palace."
In harmony with this last clause, the Imperial envoy, followed by chamberlains and officers of the guard, and accompanied with music, takes the great seal and starts on his mission. Following in his train come
officers carrying the tablet and seal of gold, and bearers with the sedan-ciiair destined (or the bride. In strange contrast to the ordi- narj' .state of the streets, the thoroughfares on this occasion are swept, garnished, and made straight.
On arriving, over these unwontedly smooth ways, at the dwelling of the bride, the envoy is received with every mark of honor and reverence, not only by the father of the bride, but by the elder ladies of the hou.se- hold, dressed in their most brilliant costumes. In the grand hall the father kneels before the envoy, who hands the .seal to a latly in wait- ing, while his lieutenant delivers the tablet and the Imperial letter to the lad'es appointed to receive them. As those things are borne to the private ap.artments of the bride, her mother and ladies kneel in token of rever- ence, and then, following in their wake, listen with devout respect to the terms of the letter addressed to the bride.
The Bride Escorted to the Palace.
When this ceremony is concluded, the bride, with lier mother and ladies in attend- ance, advances to the " Phcwii-x Chair," in which, preceded by ministers bearing the Imperial .seal, and followed by musici;ins and guards of honor, she proceeds to the palace. On arriving at the gate, the officers and attendants dismount from their horses, while porters bearing aloft nine umbrellas orna- mented with plci;ni.\es lead the procession to the Kientsin^.' gate. Heyond this the attendants and officials are forbidden to go, and the britle proceeds alone to meet her affianced husband.
One more ceremony has to be performed to complete the marriage. A banquet is spread for the august pair, at which they pledge each other's troth in cups of wine, and thus tie the knot which death alone un-
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ravels. This, liowcvcr, iIol's not ciuitc coii- cliidc the laborious ceiemoiiial which falls to the" lot of liic jjiiile. On the morning after !he weiUlin^ it beeoines her duty to testify !ier respect to the dowaijer luupiess by ')rinj;ing her water in which to wash her iiands, and by spiculin.,' viands bef ire her, in return for which courtesies the dowajjer entertains her dauLMiter-in-law at a feast of welcome.
Meanwhile the Ivnpcror receives the
following valedictorj- manifesto was put in his mouth :
"It was owin^f to the exalted love of Our late Imperial father, Our canopy and support, that the Divine Vessel (that is, the throne) was bestowed upon Our keeping;. Having set foot in Our childhood on the throne, We from that moment ha<l, gazing upwards, to thank their two majesties the lunpresses for that, in ordering as Regents the affairs of government, they devoted night and day to the laborious task. When, later, in obe- dience to their divine commands. We personally assumed the supreme power, We looked on high for guidance to the Ancestral precepts of the Sacred Ones before Us, and in devotion to Our govern- ment and love towards Our people, made the fear of Heaven and the example of Our Forefathers the mainspring of every act.
" To be im wearied day by day has been Our single purpose. Our bodily constitution has through Our life been .strong, and when, in the nth moon of this year. We were attacked by small- pox, We gave the utmost care to the preservation of Our health; but for .some days past Our strength has gradually fiiiled, until the hope of recovery has
ClllNliSE MANDARIN. , ,,. • • .1 • .1
pas.sed away. We recognize m this the homage of the princes, dukes, and officers of ! will of Heaven." And then the dying man
state, and for some days the palace is given up to feasting and rejoicing — an echo of which reaches the remotest parts of the empire when the proclamation announcing the joyful event is made known in the pro- vinces. The long and formal ceremonies aie now concluded and the Emperor is married. But the Imperial mentors not only teach the Emperor how to live, but they teach the "still harder lesson how to die." On the approaching death of the late Emperor, the
named his successor in the person of his first cousin.
So soon as the august patient has ceased to breathe, his heir .strips from his cap the ornaments which adorn it, and " wails and stamps" in evidence of his excessive grief. The widow and ladies of the harem in the same way discard the hair-jiins and jewelry which it is ordinarily their delight to wear, and show their practical appreciation of the position by setting to work to make the
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mourning clothes and habiliments. The coffin prepared for the remains having been carried into the principal hall of the palace, is inspected by the heir, and receives its august burden. By an ordinance, which is probably more honored in the breach than in the per- formance, the new Emperor and his courtiers sacrifice their queues as a token of their sor- row, and the ladies of the harem, not to be outdone, submit their flowing locks to the scissors of their attendants.
Periods of Mourning.
For three years, which by a fiction is reduced to twenty-seven months, the young Emperor mourns the decease of his prede- cessor. The exigencies of administration, however, make it necessary that he should confint the period of unrestrained grief to a hundred days ; while twenty-seven days are considered sufficient for the expression of the regrets of the concubines of the third rank. During the twenty-seven months members of the Imperial family are not supposed to marry or indulge in any of the pleasures of married life.
A curious punishment was inflicted on a late Emperor for an infraction of this last rule. Most inopportunely a son was born to him at a time which proved that, in accord- ance with Chinese notions, its existence must have begun during the mourning for the deceased Emperor. The question then arose how the august offender was to be dealt with. Banishment would have been the sentence naturally passed on any less exalted person- age, but as it was plainly impossible to send the Son of Heaven into exile, it was deter- mined to banish his portrait across the deserts of Mongolia into a far country.
On a day of good omen the will of the deceased Emperor is carried, with much pomp and circumstance, to the gate of
" Heavenly Rest." From the balcony above this portal the contents of the document are announced to the assembled crowd. The terms of the testament having been commu- nicated to the people of the capital, it is printed in yellow, and distributed not only throughout the empire, but throughout every region which owes allegiance to the Son of Heaven — Corea, Mongoli.i, and Manchuria, and Liuchiu, and Annam.
When the time named by the a.strologers arrives for the removal of the coffin to the temporary palace on the hill within the Impe- rial enclosure, a procession, formed of all that is great and noble in the empire, accom- panies the Imperial remains to their appointed resting-place, where, with every token of re- spect, they are received by the Empress and the ladies of the harem.
The Three Names.
In a mat shed adjoining the temporary palace the Emperor takes up his abode for twenty-seven days. With unremitting atten- tion he presents fruits and viands to the de- ceased, accompanying them with sacrificial libations and prayers. The choice of a post- humous title next occupies the attention of the ministers, and from that moment the names which the late sovereign has borne in life disappear from Imperial cognizance. To every Emperor are given, during Hfe, and at his death, three names. The first may be called his personal name ; the second is assigned him on coming to the throne, and resembles the titles given to the occupants of the papal chair; the third is the style chosen to commemorate his particular virtues or those which he is supposed to have pos- sessed.
So soon as the posthumous title has been decided upon it is engraved upon a tablet and seal; and in order that the spiritual powers
TH^: KMPKROR AND HIS COURT.
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should be tnaclc acquainted with the style adopted, especially appointed ministers an- nounce the newly chosen epithet to Heaven, and Earth, and to the gods of the land and of grain. On the completion of these long- drawn-out ceremonies a day is chosen for the removal of the coffin to its tomb. In a wooded valley, forty or fifty miles west of Pekin, lie all that is mortal of the emperors of the present dynasty. Thither, by easy stages, the coffin, borne by countless bearers, is carried, over a road levelled and carefully prepared for the cortege.
Funereal Pomp.
As in duty bound, the Emperor accom- panies the coffin, but does not find it neces- sary to join in the actual procession. By pursuing devious ways he reaches the travel- ling palaces, at which the halts are made, in time to receive the coffin, and without having experienced the fatigue of the slow and dreary march. Finally, with many and minute cere- monies, among which occurs the presentation to the deceased of food, money, and clothes, the remains are laid to rest in the august company of Imperial shades.
With much the same pomp and ceremonial a deceased Empress is buried in the sacred precincts, and the proclamation of her death is received in the provinces with much the same demonstrations of grief and sorrow as that which greets the announcement of the decease of a Son of Heaven.
Some years ago, on the death of the Em- press Dowager, a curious proclamation, prescribing the rites to be performed on the occasion, was issued to the people of Canton. From this paper we learn that the notification of the death was received from the hands of the Imperial messenger by the assembled local officials, and was borne on the " dragon bier" to the Examination Hall. As the 12
procession moved along the officers fell on their knees and, looking upwards, raised a cry of lamentation. On reaching the pre- cincts of the hall the mandarins, from the highest to the lowest, thrice bowed low, and nine times struck their foreheads on the ground. So soon as the notification had been placed on the table prepared for it, the herald cried aloud, " Let all raise the cry of lamentation."
Anon, the same officer proclaimed, " Pre- sent the notification," upon which the officer appointed for the purpose presented the paper to the governor-general and governor of the province, who received it on their knees and handed it to the provincial treas- urer, who, in like manner, passed it to the secretary charged with the dutj' of seeing that it was reverently copied and published abroad. At another word of command the mandarins retired to a public hall, where they passed the night abstaining from meat and from all carnal indulgence.
Mourning in White Apparel.
For three days similar ceremonies and lamentations were performed, and for nine times that period white apparel was donned by the mandarins, who had already dis- carded the tassels and buttons of their caps on the first arrival of the Imperial messenger. From the same date all official signatures were written with blue ink, and seals were impressed with the same color. No drums were beaten, no courts were held, and a blue valance was hung from the chair and table of all officers in lieu of the ordinary red one.
On each of the first three days a state banquet was offered to the deceased, when, in the presence of the assembled mandarins, the herald cried aloud, " Serve tea to Her Majesty." Upon which attendants, preceded by the governor-general and governor.
178
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
ascended the dais, and, kneeling, poured out a cup of tea, which they handed to the governor-general. With every token of res- pect this ofBcer placed the cup before the
STREET SCENE IX C.ANTON.
tablet representinpf the late Empress. With the same ceremonies rice, water, and wine were offered to the spirit of the deceased Empress. Finally, at a word from the herald, the viands were committed to the
flame, and with prostrations and bows the ceremony came to an end.
Sucl: is the side of the shield presented to us in the pages of the Pvkin Gascttc. It represents a cloistered vir- tue which, even if genuine, we should admire more if it sallied out to seek its ad- versaries. Probably, how- ever, a truer presentment of the inner life of the palace is to be found in the native novels and plays, where the natural effects of confining the Son of Heaven within the narrow limits of the Forbidden City, and of depriving him of all those healthy exer- cises which foster a sound mind in a sound body, are described as resulting from the system. It can only be men of the strongest will and keenest intellects, who would not rust under such conditions, and these quali- ties are possessed as rarely by Emperors as by ordi- nary persons.
For the most part we see the Emperor portrayed as surrounded by sycophants and worse than sycophants, who fawn upon him and add flattery to adulation in tlieir attempts to gain and to hold his favor. Ener- vated by luxury, he, in a vast majority of cases, falls a ready victim to these blandish- ments, and rapidly degenerates into a weak and flabby being. It is true that occa- sionally some hardy Son of Heaven enjoys
THK kmi'i;ror and his court.
17S>
a long reign, but the more common course of events is tliat a short and inglorious rule is brought to a premature close by the effects of debauchery and inanition.
In so complicated an administrative ma- chine as that of China it is difficult to say what part the Emperor really takes in the government of the country. We know that some have been powerful for good and many more for evil. Over the Imperial princes and nobles the Emperor holds complete sway. He regulates their marriages, and in cases of failure of issue he chooses sons for their adoption. He appoints their retinues, and orders all their goings with curious minute- ness. Over them as over all his other sub- jects, his will is, theoretically, law.
No Indian Rajah, no Shah of Persia, ever possessed more autocratic power. We have some knowledge of the debasing effect of eastern palace life from the histories of the better known countries of Asia, and we may safely draw the deduction that, since the same conditions produce the same effects, the records of the Forbidden City would, if written at length, reflect the normal condi- tion of society in the old palace of Delhi or that at Teheran.
Rewarded for Bravery.
As has already been said, the hereditary aristocrats of rank and importance form but a small and unimportant body, while the lower grades are well supplied with men who have earned distinction in the battle-field and in other arenas of honor. For example, the man who was first to mount the wall of Nanking when it was recaptured from the rebels was rewarded by a title of the fourth rank. To all such distinguished persons annual allowances are made, and though in- dividually small in amount, the total sum becomes a serious burden on the provincial
exchequers, when by Imperial favor the number of those holding patents of nobility is multiplied. On one occasion the governor of Kiangsi complained that he had to pro- vide 50,000 taels a year for the income i of the four hundred ami eighty-three hereditary nobles residing within his jurisdiction. This number he considered to be quite large enough, and he begged his Imperial master to abstain from throwing any more nobles on the provincial funds. In Hunan the number, he alleged, was confined to four hundred, in Nanking to *hree hundred and forty-eight, in Soochow to a hundred and fifty, and in Anhui to a hundred and seventy- six. Beyond these areas his investigations had not travelled.
The Chinese Nobility.
The hereditary nobility of China may be divided into the Imperial and National. Of the former there are twelve denominations which, with certain subdivisions, extend over eighteen classes of persons ennobled because of their descent. These are, of course, under the present dynasty, exclusively Manchus. The members of the National nobility may be Manchus or Chinese elevated for their merits to one of nine degrees. The five su- perior of these, viz.: Kung, Hou, Pih, Tzu, Nan, t';e ICnglish in general describe by duke, marquis, earl, viscount, and baron; the re- maining four, for convenience sake, they call orders of knighthood.
The highest of these and the fi\c above sepecified are each divided into first, second, and third classes, making in all twenty-six degrees. Unless the title given be conferred h. perpetuity it loses one degree of nobility with each step of descent. Thus the Kung, duke, of the first class will reach the lowest round in twenty-six generations ; the first class Tzu, viscount, in fourteen.
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CHAPT^ER IX. THE PUNISHMENT OF CRIMINALS.
IT has often been said that the laws of a nation furnish the best and truest description of the manners and cus- toms of the people. In all respects the Chinese Code is an exceptionally good instance of the truth of this maxim. Unlike many of the legal systems of the east and west, it avoids all useless redundancies, and represents in a concise form, the laws which are intended to govern the courts of justice. Further, following the bent of the national mind, it does not concern itself only with the duties of men as citizens, but follows them into their homes and provides legislation for their social conduct, their relations in the family, and even for the clothes which they should wear.
Regarded as a whole it is obvious that its provisions are mainly directed to keeping the people quiet and loyal. The Emperor is surrounded with enactments which are in- tended to ensure that such divinity shall hedge him in " that treason can but peep to what it would," and every disturbing motive and exciting cause is studiously suppressed among his subjects.
The code begins by enumerating the pun- ishments to be inflicted for offences, and defines them as (i) flogging with a straight polished piece of bamboo, the branches cut away and reduced to five Chinese feet five inches in length, varying in breadth from one to two inches, and in weight from one and a half to two Chinese pounds, and when used to be held by the smaller end ; (2) the canque, consisting of " a square frame of dry wood, 180
three feet long, two feet nine inches broad, and weighing in ordinary cases twenty-five pounds," which is carried on the shoulders; (3) the capital punishment, which is inflicted either by strangulation or by the execu- tioner's sword.
Most punishments for the less serious crimes are redeemable by fines, and even capital sentences, in such cases as are not legally excluded from the benefits of general acts of grace and pardon, are commutable for sums of money varying in amount with the heinousness of the crime and with the wealth of the criminal. A man sentenced to a hundred blows with the bamboo can save his skin by the payment of five ounces of silver, and an officer above the fourth rank who is sentenced to be strangled may avoid the cord by paying twelve thousand ounces into the coffers of the state.
Pardon Often Granted.
But besides these pecuniary modifications, there are certain conditions which are held to justify the mitigation of sentences. In the case of an offender surrendering himself to justice, he shall, in some circumstances, be entitled to a reduction of two degrees of punishment, and in others he absolves himself from all consequences by giving himself up. If, again, "an offender under sentence of death for an offence not excluded from the contingent benefit of an act of grace, shall have parents or grandparents who are sick, infirm or aged above seventy years, and who have no other son or rmnd-
THE PUNISHMENT OF CRIMINALS.
181
dec! t of ents enty and-
son above the age of sixteen to support them, this circumstance shall be submitted to the consideration of His Imperial Ma- jesty."
lu any case offenders under fifteen years of age, or over seventy, are allowed to re- deem themselves from any punishment less than capital. Even when the crime is capital, if the offender is less than ten or more than eighty, his case, unless he be charged with treason, is to be recommended to the con- sideration of the Emperor; antl no punish- ment, except for treason and rebellion, shall be visited on those who are less than seven or more than ninety.
Flogging and Imprisonment.
Especial regulations lighten punishments to be inflicted on four classes of the popula- tion. Astronomers sentenced to banish- ment may submit to one hundred blows with the bamboo instead, and redeem them- selves from further punishment, unless they have been guilty of "poisoning, murdering, wounding, robbing, stealing, killing by magic, or of any such offences as may subject the party to the punishment of being branded."
Artificers and musicians who have incurred sentences of banishment may be flogged, and, instead of being sent to Central yVsia, may be kept in the magistrate's yanuui aiul employed in the service of government; while women who are sentenced to banish- ment can always redeem themselves by pay- ing a fine.
In cases where women are convicted of offences punishable by flogging, it is pro- \ided that they shall be allowed to wear their upper garment unless the crime should be adultery, when that privilege is withdrawn.
Such are some of the main provisions which condition the laws laid down in the code. These appl>' with strange minuteness
to all sorts and conditions of men, from the Emperor in his palace down to actors who are regarded as the meanest of his subjects. In every kingdom and lilmpire the life and repose of the sovereign is jealously guarded by all the precautions which the law can provide, and in eastern countries, where the dagger and poison are the constant terror of potentates, the preventive measures are always carefully devised.
No doubt many of the observances prac- ticed at the Chinese Court, such, for instance, as standing with the hands joined as in sup- plication, and kneeling when addressing the sovereign, were instituted as safeguards from harbored weapons or from violence. In the code, pains and penalties of every intensity are laid down as the portion of those who directly or indirectly raise any suspicion of evil design against the throne.
Barbarous Punishments.
Any one passing without jjroper authoriz- ation through any of the gates of the Fur- bidden City incurs a hundred blows of the bamboo. This law is invariably enforced, and quite lately the Pckin Gazette announced the infliction of the penalty on a trespasser, and the degradati(jn of the ofiicer of the guard at the gate through which he had en- tered. Death by strangulation is the punish- ment due to any stranger found in any of the Emperor's apartments ; and with that curious introspection which Chinese laws profess, any one passing the jialace gate with the intention of going in, although he does not tlo so, is to lia\e a definite number of blows with tile bamboo.
E\ery workman engaged within the palace has a pass given to him, on which is a detailed description of his figure and appearance, and which he is bouiul to give up to the officer of the identical gate
I?:
I!
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
through which he was admitted. To carry drugs or weapons into the Forbidden City is to court a flogging in addition to perpetual banishment, and any one " who shall shoot arrows or bullets, or fling bricks or stones towards the Imperial temple, or towards any Imperial palace, shall suffer death by being strangled at the usual period."
No convicted person or relative of a con-
thereon while the Emperor's retinue is pass- ing is to be strangled. If the Emperor ar- rives unexpectedly at a place, "it shall be sufficient for those who are unable to retire in time, to prostrate themselves humbly on the roadside."
But there are other and more insidious dangers than these to be guarded against. Doctors and cooks have it readily within
CHLNKSK MODKS OF TURTUKK.
victed person is to be employed about the Imperial city, and any one found disputing \ or quarrelling within the precincts of the palace is to be punished with fifty blows. If the quarrelling leads to a personal encounter the penalty is doubled. Even the roads along which the Emperor travels and the j bridges which he crosses are not to be pro- I faned by vulgar use, and any one intruding
their power to do all the evil that the da jLjcr or club can accomplish, and it is, theref -ve, enacted that if a physician inadvertenly mixes medicines for the Emperor in any manner that is not sanctioned by established practice, or if a cook unwittingly introduces any prohibited ingredients into the dishes prepared for his Imperial master, they shall each receive a hundred blows. The same
THE PUNISHMENT OF CRIMINALS.
183
ref lie, jrtenly n any )lishccl jtluccs dishes shall same
punishment is due to the cook, if he puts any unusual drug into an article of food, and, in addition, he is compelled to swallow the compound.
Marriage is regarded as an incentive to political peace and quiet. It is con.sidered, and rightly considered, that a householder is less likely to disturb the peace of the realm than a waif and stray, and the Government therefore considers marriage a subject worthy of careful legislation. In Chinese parlance the State is the father and mother of the people, and it is part of its office to see that parents do not neglect their duty in this respect towards their offspring.
Shall Receive Fifty Blows.
When a marriage contract is in contem- plation it shall be made plain to both of the families interested that neither the bride nor bridegroom are " diseased, infirm, aged, or under age." If, no objection having been raised on any of these .scores, the preliminary contract be made and the lady aftenvards wish to decline to execute it, the person who had authority to give her away shall receive fifty blows, and the marriage shall be at once completed. If a son, when at a distance from his family, enters into a marriage con- tract in ignorance of an engagement which his father may have made on his behalf at home, he shall give up his own choice and shall fulfil the contract made for him by his parent.
Rigamy is punished with ninety blows, and the same fate awaits any man who, dur- ing the lifetime of his wife, raises a concubine to the rank which she enjoys. The times and seasons proper for marriages are, in western lands, left to individual taste and judgment; but in China, where etiquette is a matter of State policy, it is necessary to lay down rules for the guidance of the people in such mat-
ters. The same authority which makes it incumbent on a son on the death of his father or mother to go unshaved for a hun- dred days, and if he is in office to retire into private life for twenty-seven months, forbids him to marry while in mourning for a parent, under a penalty of a hundred blows for dis- obedience.
The same punishment is to be inflicted on any misguided widow who embraces a second husband before her weeds should be legally dispensed with ; while the frisky widow, who, having been ennobled by the Emperor during the lifetime of her first husband, should dare to marry again, is ordered to be bambooed, to lose her rank, and to be separated from her second venture.
Strict Matrimonial Laws.
Marriage is strictly forbidden within cer- tain recognized degrees of relationship, and even persons of the same surname who in- termarry are liable to separation, and to for- feit the wedding presents to Government. Indeed, the matrimonial prohibitions au; both numerous and far-reaching. A man may not marry an absconded female criminal — a law, one would imaj^ine, which it cannnt often be necessary to enforce. A mandarin may not marry the dauujhter of any one living under his rule, nor may he make eitiicr a female mu.sician or comedian his wife. A priest of Buddha or of T<io may not marry at all. A slave may not marry a free woman, ami so on.
Rut though the State in its w isdoni is a great promoter of marriage, it affortls many loopholes for escape to people who find that they have made mistakes. Of course the law of divorce only applies to tlie wife, and apart from the supreme crime of wives, the following seven causes are held to justify the annulling of the marriage ; namely, barren- ness, lasciviousness, disregard of her hus-
184
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
band's parents, talkativeness, thievish pro- pensities, envious and suspicious temper, and inveterate infirmity.
It must be admitted that this list offers many chances of escape to a restless husband, and the further enactment that when " a husband and wife do not agree, and both parties are desirous of separation, the law limiting the right of divorce shall not be enforced to prevent it," leaves nothing to be desired.
Of all offences treason is, in the opinion of Chinese legislators, the gravest and most worthy of severe and condign punishment. So atrocious is it that capital punishment as laid down in the general provisions is considered an insufficient requital, and the equivalent of the old English sentence, "To be hung, drawn, and quartered," is met with in China in the shape of an even more cruel sentence, namely lingchi, or death by a slow and lingering process.
Gashes on the Body.
A culprit, condemned to this form of death, is tied to a cross, and, while he is yet alive, gashes are made by the executioner on the fleshy parts of his body, varying in number according to the disposition of the judge. When this part of the sentence has been carried out, a merciful blow severs the head from the body.
It is a principle of Chinese jurisprudence that in great crimes all the male relatives of the principal are held to be participators in his offence. Thus, for one man's sin, whole families arc cut off, and in cases of treason " all the male relatives of the first degree, at or above the age of sixteen, of persons con- victed— namely, the father, grandfather, sons, grandsons, paternal uncles and then- sons respectively — shall, without any regard to the place of residence, or to the natural or
acquired infirmities of particular individuals, be indiscriminately beheaded."
But this is not all. Every male relative, of whatever degree, who may be dwelling under the roof of the offender, is doomed to death. An exception is made in the case of young boys, who are allowed their lives, but on the condition that they are made eunuchs for ser\'ice in the Imperial palace. In the appendi.x to Stanton's translation of the code an imperial edict is quoted from the Pekin Gazette in which a case is detailed of a sup- posed treasonable attempt on the life of the Emperor Kiaking (1796- 1820).
Horrible Cruelty.
As the Imperial cortege was entering one of the gates of the palace a man pushed through the crowd, with, as it was con- sidered, the intention of murdering the Emperor. He was promptly seized by the guards and put on his trial, when he made, or is said to have made, a confession of his guilt. In grandiloquent terms the Emperor proclaimed the event to the Empire, and ended by confirming the sentence of lingchi on the offender, and by condemning his sons, " being of tender age, to be strangled."
Lingchi is the invariable fate pronounced on any one who kills three people in a house- hold, or on a son who murders his father or mother. Some of the most horrible passages in the Pckin Gazette are those which announce the infliction of this awful punishment on madmen and idiots who, in sudden outbreaks of mania, have committed parricide. For this offence no infirmity is accepted, even as a palliation. The addition of this form of execution to those generally prescribed is an instance of the latitude which is taken by the powers that be in tlio interpretation of the code.
To read the list of autliorized punishments
THE PUNISHMENT OF CRIMINALS.
1 85
one would ima^rjnc that the Chinese were the mildest mannered men who ever had culprits before them. Admitting that tor- ture is necessary in China to extract con- fessions from obdurate witnesses, the kinds authorized are probably as unobjectionable as could well be devised. But they are but a shadow of the pain and penalties actually inflicted every day in all parts of the Empire. Even in the appendix to this code it was found advi.sable to add the Imperial sanction to more stringent measures in cases of rob- bery or homicide.
Instruments of Torture.
Instruments for crushing the ankles, and for compressing the fingers, arc there ad- mitted on the canonical list. The first of tb'isc, it is laid down, .shall consist of "a middle piece of wood, three (Chinese) feet four inches long, and two side pieces three feet each in length. The upi)cr end of each piece shall be circular and rather more than one inch in diameter, the lower end shall be cut square and two inches in thickness. At a distance of six inches from the lower ends, four hollows or sockets shall be excavated — one on each side of the middle piece and one in each of the other pieces to correspond. The lower ends being fi.xed and immovable, and the ankles of the criminal under exami- nation being lodged within the sockets, a painful compression is effected b}' forciblj- drawing together the upper ends."
The finger squeezers are necessarily smaller, but are arranged on much the same principle.
But even these tortures are considered insufficient to meet the requirements of the courts of justice. Mandarins, whose minds have grown callous to the sufferings of their fdlow-creatures, are always ready to believe that the instruments of torture at their dis-
po.sal are insufficient for their purposes. Unhappily, it is always easy to inflict pain; and in almost every yamun throughout the Empire an infinite variety of instruments of torture are in constant use.
To induce unwilling witnesses to say what is expected of them, they are not unfrequcntly made to kneel on iron chains on which their knees are forced by the weight of men stand- ing on the calves of their legs. Others are tied up to beams by their thumbs and big toes. Others are hamstrung, while some have the sight of their eyes destroyed by lime or the drums of their ears deadened by piercing.
This list might be extended indefinite!)', but enough has been said to show that, like so many Chinese institutions, the penal code only faintly represents the practice which is actually in force.
Penalty for Murder.
Beheading is the ordinary fate of a mur- derer, while accessories to the deed, when not actual perpetrators, enjoy the privilege of being strangled. In the case of the mur- der of a mandarin the accessories as well as the principal arc beheaded, and if a man strikes a mandarin so as to produce a severe cutting wound his fate is to be strangled.
The charge has of kite years been cnn- stantly made against missionaries, that they kill children ami others to procure fmm I'.irts of tile body drugs fw medicinal pur- poses. This sounds so barljarous that it will readily be believed that tlie charge had its origin in the wild imaginations of the mo.st ignorant of tiie people. But this is not quite so. Some .sanction is certainly given to the idea b)' the code, which provides, for instance, that "the principal in the crime of murdering, or of attempting to murder any person, with a design afterwards to mangle
m
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186
CHINA: PAST AND I'RKSENT.
the body, Jind divide the Umbs of the de- ceased for magical purposes, shall suffer death by a slow and painful process."
Even, if the crime is only in contempla- tion the principal offender on conviction shall be beheaded, and the chief inhabitant of th ..' \illage or district who, on becoming aware of the design, shall fail to report it, shall suffer to the extent of a hundred blows.
the throne that " alarming rumors were cir- culated among the people concerning the cutting off of queues, the imprinting of marks on the body by 'paper men,' and the appearance of black monsters which played the part of incubi on sleeping persons."
It would be natural to expect that the governor being learned in all the wisdom of China wouln have reproved these foolish
BliUliAUlNG A CHINESE CRIMINAL.
Like most uncivilized nations the Chinese are firm believers in magic, and place full belief in those arts of the sorcerer which have a congenial home among the inhabit- ants of Central Africa, and of which dim traces are still to be found in the highlands of Scotland, and among the most ignorant of English rustics. Not long since the gov- ernor of the province of Kiangsu reported to
imaginings, and would have used his influ- ence to check the spread of such ridiculous rumors. But the course he took, with the subsequent approval of the Emperor, was a very different one. He professed to have discovered at Soochow a " wizard," named Feng, and others who, after trial, were all condemned to be beheaded. Several others in different parts of the province suffered
THK rUNISHMKXT OF CRIMINALS.
187
the same pLiialt}-, and a man named Hu and his wife were arrested on a cmfession made by FcH}^ that they hal imparted to him the words of tiie incantation necessary to invoke the "paper men."
As the statements made by the Hus were " stubbornly evisive, the prefect with the district magistrate and other officers sub- jected the prisoners to repeated interroga- tions, continued without intermission even by night, instituting rigorous and searching inquiry in an unprejudiced spirit ; as a result of which the woman Hu at length made the following confession. She acknowledged having met a man whose name she did not know, and whose manner of speech was that of a person from distant parts, who gave her some foreign money and taught her the words of an incantation, and how to send off the "paper men " to go and crush people.
Head Stuck on a Pole.
"She told this to her husband, and he, animated by the desire of gain, communi- cated the secret to their acquaintance Feng. On the woman being confronted with Hu, he made fuH confession to the same effect ; and after it had been established by thrice re- peated interrogatories that the confessions were truthful, the governor arrived at the conclusion that, in having been so bold as to follow the advice of an adept in unholy arts; in practising incantation ; and in communi- cating the secret, the guilt of the two pris- oners was such that death could barely ex- piate it.
"He gave orders fialiuitli to the pro- vincial judge, directing him to cause Hu and the woman to be subjected together to the extreme penalty of the law, and to cause the head (jf Hu to be exhibited on a pole as a salutary warning. It is now ascertained
on iiuiuir\-," adds the sapient governor, "that tile entire province is free from practi- tioners if unholy arts of this description, and that the population is in the enjoyment of its accustomed tranquillity, whereby grounds are afforded for allaying the anxie- ties of the Imperial mind."
This case affords an excellent example of the gross superstition which exists even among the most highly educated Chinamen, and it also draws a picture which, to those who can read between the lines, stands out very clearly, of the gross cruelty and shame- ful abuse of the use of torture.
Compelled to Lie.
There cannot be a doubt that P'eng, having under the influence of torture falsely con- fessed his own guilt, was further called upon by the same pressure to give up the names of his associates, and that, in his agony, he wrongfully implicated Hu ami his wife. The " repeated interrogations " t" which this couple were subjected mean the inlliction of sufferings so acute that even the prospect of death became a welcome vision, and by a self-condemning lie they escaped by means of the executioner's sword from the hands of the more inhuman torturer.
It must not be supposed that this particular governor was more ignorant than the rest of his kind. The code, which was based on the laws existing during the Ming dynast)-, was thoroughly revised by a committee of the highest functionaries of the realm, and received the Imperial approval in 1647, after careful consideration. In it we find, there- fore, the mind which was in these gramiees, and that they deliberately adopted a section providing that " all persons convicted of writ- ing and editing books on sorcery and magic, or of employing spells and incantations, in order to influence the minds of the people,
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188
CHINA: PAST AND PRKSKNT.
shall be beheaded." This was a fair warn- ing to all parties concerned.
Lesser punishments, on what principle awarded it is impossible to say. are incurred by magicians who raise evil spirts by means of magical books and dire imprecations, by leaders of corrupt and impious sects, and by members of superstitious associations in general. Even fortune-tellers, unless they divine by the recognized rules of astrology, are liable to be bambooed.
As Bad as Others.
By analogy, persons who rear venomous animals, and prepare poisons for the purpose of murder, are treated on a par with those who commit murder.
In all Chinese legislation the principal that the family is the basis of government is con- spicuously apparent. The authority of the father is everywhere recognized, and it is only in supreme cases that the State inter- feres between the head of a household and his family belongings. If a man discovers his wife in criminal relations with another man, and kills her on the spot, he is held blameless ; and if a husband punishes his wife for striking and abusing his father, mother, grandfather, or grandmother, in such a way as to cau.se her death, he shall only be liable to receive a hundred blows.
With equal consideration a man who kills a son, a grandson, or a slav , is punished with seventy blows and a year and a half's banishment, and this only when he falsely attributes the crime to another person. Though the code affords no direct justifica- tion for punishing disobedient sons with death, or for infanticide, it is an incontro- vertible fact that in cases whicii constantly occur, both crimes are practically ignored by the authorities. A particularly brutal case, of the murder of an unfiial son, was recently
reported. The report was in the form of a memorial addressed to the throne by the governor of Shansi, in svhich that officer .stated that there had been in his district a lad named Lui, who was endowed by nature with an " unamiable and refractory disposition."
On one occasion he stole his mother's head ornaments, and another time he pilfered 2,o<X) cash belonging to her. This last mis- demeanor aroused her direst anger, and she attempted to chastise him. Unwilling to en- dure the indignity, Lui seized her by the throat, and only released her on the expostu- lation of his sister. This behavior so angered the old lady, that she determined on the death of her son.
A Helpless Victim.
Being physically incapable of accomplish- ing the deed herself, she begged a sergeant of police on duty in the neighborhood to act as executioner. This he declined to do, but softened his refusal by offering to flog Lui. To do this conveniently he bound the lad, and, with the help of three men, carried him off to a deserted guard-house on the out- skirts of the village. Thither Mrs. Lui followed, and implored the men to bury her son alive.
Again the sergeant declined, and empha- sized his refusal by leaving the hut. The other men were more yielding, and having thrown Lui on the ground they proceeded, w ith the help of his mother and sister, to pull down the walls and to bury their victim in the ruins. When the case came on for trial it was decided "that the death in this case was properly deserved, and that his mother was accordingly absolved from all blame." The sergeant, however, was sen- tenced, for his comparatively innocent part in the affair, to receive a hundred blows, and the three men and the daughter each re-
THK PUNISHMKNT OF CRIMINALS.
189
ceived ninety blows, which was considered only a just punishment.
This case is significant of the supreme power which practically rests in the hands of parents, and is exemplified by the countless acts of infanticide which go unpunished every year. In the volume of the Pckin Gazette from which the above account is taken, a wretched case is reported, in which a husband drowned an infant born to his wife, of which he had reason to believe he was not the father. On another and subse- quent issue the case came before the man- darins, but the infanticide was not so much as mentioned in the finding.
Children Placed at Disadvantage.
Throughout the whole code sons and daughters, as well as daughters-in-law, stand at a marked disadvantage with regard to their parents. Not only is parricide pun- ished by liiigihi, but even for striking or abusing a father, mother, paternal grandfather or grandmother, the punishment is death ; and the same penalty follows on a like offence committed by a wife or her husband's father, mother, or paternal grandparents.
A still more one-sided provision ordains that " a son accusing his father or mother ; a grandson, his paternal grandparents ; a prin- cipal or inferior wife, her husband or her hus- band's parents, or paternal grandparents, shall in each case be punished with a hun- dred blows and three years' banishment, even if the accusation prove true, and that the individuals so accused by their relatives, if they voluntarily surrender and plead guilty, shall be entitled to pardon." If such accu- sation should, however, turn out to be either in part or wholly false, " the accuser shall suffer death by being strangled."
Though neither wives nor slaves are so entirely in the hands of their husbands and
masters as sons and daughters are in those of their parents, they suffer, from a Western point of view, many and great legal inequali- ties. A wife who strikes her husband is liable to be punished with a hundred blows, while the husband is declared to be entitled to strike his wife so long as he does not pro- duce a cutting wound.
Punishment of Insolent Slaves.
Death by beheading is the punishment for a slave who strikes his master; but if a master, in order to correct a disobedient slave or hired servant, chastises him in the canonical way, and the offender " happens to die," the master is " not liable to any punish- ment in consequence thereof."
One of the strangest sections in the code is that which deals with quarrelling and fighting, and in which every shade of offence is differentiated with strange minuteness. On what part of the body a blow is struck, with what it is struck, and the result of the blow, are all set out with their appropriate penal- ties. Tearing out "an inch of hair," break- ing a tooth, a toe, or a finger, with countless other subdivisions, are all tabulated in due form. It is commonly observed that people, and therefore nations, admire most those qualities in which they are deficient, and on somewhat the same principle Chinese legis- lators delight to hold up to opprobrium those social misdemeanors to which they are most prone.
If an impartial observer nf Chinese man- ners and customs were to name the two most prominent civil vices of the Chinese, he would probably give his decision in favor of bribery and gambling. Against both these vices the code speaks with no uncertain sound. The mandarin who accepts a bribe of one hundred and twenty taels of silver and upwards, when the object is in itself
190
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
lawful, or eighty taels and upwards when the object is unlawful, is pronounced guilty of death by strangulation. It is no exaggera- tion to say that if this law were enforced it would make a clean sweep of ninety-nine out of every hundred officials in the Empire.
Gambling also is denounced with equal fervor, and eighty blows is the punishment for any person f iind plajin^j at any game of chance for money or for goods. The same
Fir.HTING QUAILS.
penalty awaits, in theory, the owner of a gaming-house, with the additional fine of the loss of the house to Government. The existence of such a law, side by side with the open and palpable violation of it in streets and alleys, as well as on country roads and in village lanes, reduces it to an absurdity. At breakfast-time workmen stream out of their places of employment, and throw dice or lots for their meal at the nearest itinerant cookshop.
Coolies, in moments of leisure, while away the time with cards and di:e as they sit at the sitlcs of the streets, and the gaming- houses arc always full of eager excited crowds, who are willing to lose everything they possess, and more also, in .satisfaction of the national craving. Like opium, games of chance have a peculiar fa:cination for Chinamen. One of the commonest games is known as /<»«/"<///, an:l ii so simple that it can be played by anyone. The croupier throws down a heap of cash, and each gambler stakes on what the re- mainder will be when the pile has been counte 1 out in fours. This and otiiei games are publicly played at liie gambling -houses, the owners of which purchase security for their trade by bribing the r.ian Jarin 5 and their police. Qii;.il-fighting, cricket - fighting, and public events are also made subjects of wagerin;^^ and the ex- pected ap[)earance of the names of the suc- cessful candidates at the local examinations is a fruitful source of desperate gambling. With the object p.ssibly of discouraging speculation and games of chance, the code fixes the legal rate of interest at thirty-six per cent., but the enactment, if that is its object, fails signally to effect its purpose.
The love of games is .so deeply imbedded in the Chinese nature that all sorts of expe- dients are resorted to in order to escape detection .
CHAPTER X. CHINESE MECHANICS AND MERCHANTS.
NEXT to farmers in popular estima- tion stand mechanics, and even a deeper state of poverty than that which afflicts agriculturists is the common lot of these men. They live per- petually on the verge of destitution, and this from no fault of their own and in spite of their untiring devotion to their callings. No one can have seen these men at work in the streets, or in their workshops, without being struck with the indefatigable industrj' which they display.
From an hour in the morning at which European workmen are still in bed until a time at night long after which the same men have ceased to toil and spin, the patient Chinaman plods on to .secure for himself and family a livelihood which would be con- temned by all but the patient Asiatic.
As in every branch of science and art, mechanics in China have remained for cen- turies in a perfectly stagnant condition. The tools and appliances which were good enough for those who worked and labored before our era, still satisfy the requirements of Chinese craftsmen. The rudest tools are all that a workman has at his disposal, and the idea never seems to occur to him that an improvement in their structure is either called for or necessary.
The abundant population and over-crowded labor market may have something to do with the disinclination of the people to the use of labor-saving machinery. It is not so long ago that, in civilized countries, there arose an outcry that the adoption of railways
would be ruin to all those who made their living by the earlier methods of travelling, and it need not therefore surprise us to find Chinamen ranging themselves in opposition to any contrivances which may appear to compete with human labor.
The mason who wishes to move a block of stone knows no better means for the pur- pose than the shoulders of his fellow-men supplemented by bamboos and ropes. The carpenter who wants to saw up a fallen tree does so with his own hand, without a thought of the easier device of a saw-mill. So it is with every branch of industry. Many of the contrivances employed are extremely ingenious, but since their inven- tion no further advance has been made towards relieving the workman from any part of his toil.
Great Mechanical Skill.
In many cities. Canton, for example, bricklayers and carpenters .stand in the street for hire, and often, unhappily, remain all the day idle. Even when employed their wages are ridiculously small compared with the pay of their colleagues in our own country, or even in Europe, whose hours of labor are short compared with theirs, and whose relaxations furnish a relief from toil to which Chinamen are complete strangers. In the higher branches of mechanical skill, such, for instance, as gold, silver and ivory work. Chinamen excel, and they are excep- tionally proficient in the manufacture of bronzes, bells, lacquer ware and cloisonne.
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CHINA: PAST AND PRKSKNT.
With the appliances at their command their skill in casting bells of great size and sonorousness is little short of marvellous. The famous bell at Pekin weighs I20,cxx> pounds, and is one of five of the same weight and size which were cast by order of the Emperor Yunglo (1403- 1 42 5). Like all Chinese bells, it is struck from outside with a mallet, and its tones resound through the city to announce the changes of the watch.
Jacks of All Trades.
A feature in the workaday life of China is the number of itinerant craftsmen who earn their livelihood on the streets. Every domestic want, from the riveting of a bro- ken saucer to shaving a man's head, is supplied by these useful peripatetics. If a man's jacket wants mending, or his shoes re- pairing, he summons a passing tailor and cobbler, and possibly, while waiting for his mended clothes, employs the services of a travelling barber to phiit his queue, or it may be to clean his ears from accumulated wax.
Even blacksmiths carry about with them the very simple instruments of their trade, and the bellows which blow the flame are commonly so constructed as to serve when required as a box for the tools and for a seat to rest the owner when weary.
It is characteristic of Chinese topsy-turvy- dom that that class of society which has done most to promote the material prosperity of the nation, should, in theory at least, be placed on the lowest round of the social ladder. The principle, "that those who think must govern those who toil," is justly upheld in China, but why the men who have made her the rich country which she is, and who have carried the fame of her wealth and power into every market in Asia, should be
subordinate in the social scale to laborers and mechanics it is difficult to understand.
The merchants and traders of China have gained the respect and won the admiration of all those who have been brought into con- tact with them. For honesty and integrity they have earned universal praise, and on this point a Shanghai bank manager, in acknowl- edging a valedictory address, presented to him on his leaving the country, bore the following testimony: "I have," he said, " referred to the high commercial standing of the foreign community. The Chinese are in no way behind us in that respect ; in fact, I know of no people in the world I would sooner trust than the Chinese merchant and banker. I may mention that for the last twenty-five years the bank has been doing a very large business with Chinese at Shanghai, amounting, I should say, to hundreds of millions of taels, and we have never yet met with a defaulting Chinaman."
Chinese Merchant Princes.
It was such men as these that built up the commerce which excited the wonder and ad- miration of Marco Polo and other early European travellers ; and it is to their labors and to those of their descendants that the existence of the crowded markets, the teem- ing wharfs and the richly laden vessels of the present day are due. However much in theory the Chinese may despise their mer- chant princes, their intelligence gains them a position of respect, and their riches assure them consideration at the hands of the man- darins, who are never backward in drawing on their overflowing coffers.
It is noticeable that while novelists are never tired of satirizing the cupidity of the mandarins, the assumption of the literati, and the viciousness of the priesthood, they refrain from reflections on a class which at
CUINKSE MECHANICS AND MKRCIIANTS.
1U3
least Ijonestly toils and only asks to be allowed to reap the rewards of its own im- tirin^j industry. As for everything else in China, a vast aiitiiiuity is claimed for the beyiiininy of commerce. In the earliest n.itive works extant men- tion occurs of the eflbrts made to barter the products of one district for those of another, and to dispose of the super- fluous goods of China by exchange with the merchandise of the neighboring countries. The subject was not consid- ered beneath the notice of the earliest philosophers, and Confucius on several occasions gave utterance to his views on the matter. Wise as many of his sayings were, it is a fact tl'at his dicta on practical affairs were for the most part either plati- tudes or fallicies.
It is not difficult to determine in which class his best quoted pronouncement on trade should be placed. " Let the pro- ducers," said the .sage, " be many and / the consumers few. Let there be activity in the production and economy in the expenditure. Then the wealth will al- ways be ample."
It might have occurred even to Con- fucius that, if the producers of a certain commodity were in the majority, and the consumers in the minority, the only people who could possibly benefit would be the few, more especially if they further reduced the demand for the product by following the philosopher's advice and practising economy in the use of it.
Fortunately, the merchants of China have not found it necessary to accept Confucius as an infallible guide in mer- cantile concerns ; and they, in common with the rest of their countrymen, have benefited by the disenthralment from the
bondage which still binds the literary 13
classes to the chariot-wheels of the sage. The same problems which were at an early
PAGODA AND VASES.
date worded out in the commercial centres of Europe have been presented for solution to the frequenters of the marts in the Flowery
Mi
1!»1
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
Land, and occasion as much controversy as they did long ago.
Long before the establishment by Lom- bard Jews of banks in Italy (A. D. 808), the money-changers of China were affording their customers all the help and convenience which belong to the banking system ; and three hundred years before the establish- ment at Stockholm of the first bank which issued notes in Europe, paper currency was passing freely through all the provinces of the Empire. A later development of trade has been the adoption of guilds, whose Imlls are often among the handsomest build- ings to be nicl with in the busy centres of trade.
For Mutual Protection.
The idea first took shape inacurious way. Provincial mandarins on visiting the capital found that they were quite unable to cope singly with the exactions of the officials and the insults which their local pronunciations and provincial attires drew upon them from the people. They determined, therefore, to combine for niutual protection, and to estab- lish guilds as common centres for protection ill case of need, and for the more congenial purpose of social intercourse.
Strange as it may seem to those who only hear of the opposition shown by Chinamen to foreigners, it is yet a fact that a like host- ility, though in a mitigated form, is com- monly displayed towards natives of other provinces and districts. Like the provincial mandarins at Pekin, travelling merchants found the advantage of being of being able to show a united front to the annoyances -which they suffered from the natives of " outside provinces," and, following the ex- ample set in the capital, they founded pro- vincial guilds in all parts of the country where trade or pleasure made their presence either necessary or convenient.
Natives of Canton visiting Chehkiang or Hunan are now no longer subjected to the insults to which they were accustomed at the native inns. In their provincial guilds they may count on security and comfort, and, if merchants, they are sure to find among the frequenters of the clubs, either customers for their goods or vendors of the products which they may wish to buy. The more strictly mercantile guilds serve invalu- able purposes in the promotion of trade. Each is presided over by a president, who is helped in the administration by a specially elected committee and a permanent secretary.
This last is generally a graduate, and thus in virtue both of his literary rank and of his connection with the guild has ready access to the mandarins of the district. Through his instrumentality disputes are arranged, litigation is often prevented, and the Lekin taxes due from the members of the guild for the passage of their goods into the interior of the country are compounded for by lump sums.
Where Revenue Comes From.
The revenue of the guilds is derived from a payment of one-tenth of one per cent, on all sales effected by members. At first sight this percentage appears insignificant, but so great is the volume of internal trade, that the amount realized not only covers every requirement, but furnishes a surplus for lux- urious feasts. In one guild at Ningpo the reserve fund was lately stated to be 700,000 dollars, to which must be added the amount realized by the deposit exacted from each new member of 3,000 dollars.
A<rainst the income account must be set down large outgoings in several directions. In the case of a member going to law with the sanction of the guild he receives half his law expenses, and a not inconsiderable sum
CHINESE MECHANICS AND MERCHANTS.
196
is yearly disbursed in payment of the funeral expenses of those members who die away from their homes. Besides these outgoings money is advanced on cargoes expected, and vs lent for the purchase of return ventures. The rules regulating the guilds are numerous and are strictly enforced.
The favorite penal ly for any infraction is that the offender shall provide either a theatrical entertainment for the delectation of his brother members or a feast for their benefit. If any member should be recalcit- rant and refuse to submit to the authority of the committee, he is boycotted with a sever- ity which might well excite the emulation of promoters of the system in the Emerald Isle.
Fines for Dishonesty.
Allied to these mercantile associations are the guilds which are strictly analogous to the trades-unions among ourselves. Each trade has its guild, which is constituted on precisely the same lines as those above described. So far as it is possible to judge, the action of the Chinese trades-unions appears to tend to the promotion of fair play and a ready kind of justice. Unjust weights, or unfairly loaded goods, are unhesitatingly condemned, and substantial fines are inflicted on members found guilty of taking advantage of such iniquities.
By the influence of the unions wages are settled, the hours of work are determined, and the number of apprentices to be taken into each trade is definitely fixed. Silk- A'cavers arc not allowed to work after nine o'clock in the evening nor arc any workmen permitted to labor during the holidays pro- claimed by the guild. On one occasion, at Wenchow, the carpenters were called upon by the mandarin to contribute more than the recognized work of one day in the year for the repairing of public buildings.
The men struck, and the mandarin, fearing a popular tumult, was wise enough to give way. Perhaps, also, the recollections of a terrible retribution which was, in 1852, meted out to a magistrate near Shanghai, for blindly ignoring the just demands of the people under him, may have encouraged a yielding disposition.
Acted Like Savages.
In this instance the people, in an access of rage such as that to which Chinamen are occasionally subject, and which in an instant converts them from peaceful citizens into brutal savages, invaded the magistrate's yamun, and, having made the wretched man their prisoner, bit off his ears, each man taking his part in the outrage to prevent the possibility of a separate charge being brought against any particular rioter.
An even more brutal display of violence once took place at Soochow. It happened that more gold leaf was required for the use of the Emperor's palace than the trade as constituted at Soochow could supply. In this diflficulty the master manufacturer took the unwise step of asking the leave of the magistrate to engage extra apprentices.
Possibly with the knowledge that no one had been punished for the atrocity described above, which, having occurred in the neigh- borhood, must have been well known, the-)' determined to inflict an even more brutal punishment on the erring manufacturer " Biting to death is not a capital offence," was proclaimed amongst them, and, acting upon this dictum, they captured the offender and literally bit him to death.
On being admitted as an apprentice a lad has, as a rule, to stand treat to the workmen, and in the more skilled trades he has to serve five years before he is admitted to the rank of journeyman. Though the conduct
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
of these societies is generally beneficial, they are occasionally apt, like all similarly consti- tuted bodies, to act tyranically.
Barbers, for example, are in many parts of the country forbidden to add the art of shampooing to their ordinary craft, it having been determined by the union that to sliani- poo was beneath the dignity of the knights
ITINERANT CHINESE BARBER.
of the razor. During the last six days of the year, when the heads of the whole male portion of the Empire are shaved, barbers are forbidden to clean the ears of their cus- tomers, as it is their wont to do during the rest of the months. Any one found breaking this rule is liable to be mobbed, and to have his tools and furniture thrown into the street.
By a long-established custom, barbers and the sons of barbers used to be reckoned among the pariah classes who were disquali- fied for competing in the competitive exami- nations. Though complaints of this depri- vation had been long and loud, no formal action was taken in the matter until the union took up the question.
In their collective capacity the members appealed to the governor of Chehkiang, who, approving of the spirit of the memorial, pre- sented the matter to the Emperor, and obtained for the barbers the removal of the disability. It is too much to expect that the unions should always refrain from bring- ing to bear the influence which they collectively possess for their direct financial advancement. Strikes are of frequent occur- rence, and victory is commonly with the workmen, except when their claims are manifestly unjust. The mandarins recognize that they cannot flog a whole trade, and the poverty of the men se- cures them against those exac- tions which would probably be demanded from their employers were they to appear in court. These facts are fully recognized by the masters, who prefer rather to yield to the demands of their men than to fall into the clutches of their rulers, .A -n all primitive and un- educated states of society, the Chinese have a rooted objection to machinery of all kinds. Just as they now oppose steam navigation in the inland waters of the Empire, so, until, quite lately, they rebelled against the im- portation of all labor-saving contrivances. Some years ago a Chinaman, imbued with
CHINESE MECHANICS AND MERCHANTS.
197
Western ideas, landed at Canton a machine for sewing boots, and especially the leather soles worn by the natives. At this innova- tion the cobblers at once took alarm. They rose in their thousands and destroyed the new-fangled machine.
In the same way the promoters of the first steam cotton-mills were compelled to submit to the destruction of machinery which, if it had been allowed to work would have given employment to many thousands of people.
The absence of a hereditary aristocracy deprives the Chinese of a most useful and potent link between the crown and its sub- jects. England has learned from her own history how great is the protection afforded to the nation by the presence of a body of powerful nobles who are strong enough to resist the encroachments of the sovereign
and to moderate and guide the aspirations of the people. In China no such healthy influ- ence is to be found, and the result is that there is a constant straining and creaking in the social machine, which has many a time ended in fierce outbreaks, and not infre- quently in the overthrow of dynasties.
It was remarked by a Chinese statesman, at the time of the Taeping rebellion, that two hundred years was the normal length of a Chinese dynasty, and this bears substantial evidence to the want of some such mediat- ing influences as hereditary and representa- tive institutions are alone able to afford. The voice of the people finds no expression in any recognized form of representation. Po- litically, they are atoms whose ultimate power of asserting their claims to justice lies only in the sacred right of rebellion, which they are not slow to exercise on occasion.
I
CHAPTER XI. CHINESE JVIARRIAQE CUSTOMS.
BY the highest and most revered authorities marriage is described, and rightly described, as the great- est of the five human relationships. It is the foundation of the State, and it holds out that prospect, which is so dear to the heart of every Chinaman, of obtaining sons who shall perform at the tombs of their parents the sacrifices which are necessary for the repose of their spirits. In one respect, matrimonial alliances in China have an advan- tage over those in Western lands. They can never be undertaken in a hurry. There can be no running off of the young lady to the registry oilice some morning before her par- ents come down to breakfast, nor can a special license be obtained in a moment to gratify a sudden caprice.
In the houses of all well-to-do people the ceremony is surrounded by rites which make haste impossible, and the widest publicity is secured for the event. In dealing with social matters in so huge an Empire as China, it is necessary to remember that practices vary in detail in different parts of the country. But throughout the length and breadth of the land the arrangement of marriages of both ^ons and daughters is a matter whir.h is left entirely in the hands of the parents, who in every case employ a go-between or match- maker, whose business it ii to make himself or herself — both men and women follow this strange calling — acquainted accurately with the circumstances of both families and the personal qualifications of the proposed bride and bridegroom. 198
It is obvious that considerable trust and confidence have to be placed in these people, and it is also a fact that they not uncom- monly betray this trust and confidence in the interests of rich people who are able to make it worth their while to represent a plain and ungainly ^irl as a Hebe, or a dissolute youth as a paragon of virtue.
Archdeacon Gray, in his " China," de- scribes a tragie scene which occurred at a wedding at which he was present. A dying mother, anxiot s to see her son married before she closed r.er eyes for ever, insisted on the marriage ceremony being performed at her bedside. On the completion of the rite the bridegroom raised the bride's veil and gazed on the features of a leper. The scene which followed was of a most painful description, and ended by the bride being incontinently repudiated and sent back to her parents.
Professional Match-makers.
"To lie like a match-maker" is a common expression, and a published correspondence exists between a Chinese bridegroom and his friend, in which the former bitterly complains that his bride, far from being the beauty described by the go-between, is fat and marked deeply with small-pox. His friend being of a practical turn of mind, and not being himself the victim, reco:ninends the bridegroom to make the best of the bargain, and with cheap philosophy reminds him that if the young lady is stout ^he is probably healthy, and that, though disfigured, she may very possibly be even as " an angel from
CHINESE MARRIAGE CUSTOMS.
199
heaven," to use his own words. This was certainly very comforting.
From the time that the match-maker is employed, until the bond is tied, there are six ceremonies to be performed.
The parents of the young man send the go-between to the parents of the girl to in- quire her name and the moment of her birth that the horoscopes of the two may be ex- amined, in order to ascertain whether the proposed alliance will be a happy one. If the eight characters of the horoscopes seem to augur aright, the man's friends send the match-maker back to make an offer of mar- riage.
If that be accepted, the lady's father is again requested to return an assent in writ- ing. Presents are then sent to the girl's parents according to the means of the parties. The go-between requests them to choose a lucky day for the wedding. The preliminaries are concluded by the bride- groom going or sending a party of friends with music to bring his wife to his house.
Betrothal of Children.
So soon as the first of these ceremonies is performed, the betrothal is considered bind- ing ; and in the cases of the engagement of children, nothing but disablement, or the af- fliction of leprosy, is considered potent enough to dissolve it. Certain supersti- tions, however, render the contract more easily dissoluble when the pair are of marri- ageable age.
If, for instance, a china bowl should be broken, or any valuable article lost within three days of the engagement, the circum- stance is considered sufficiently unlucky to justify the instant termination of the under- taking, and in cases where facts unfavorable to the one side, whether socially, physically or morally, have, in the meantime, come to
the knowledge of the other party to the con- tract, advantage is taken of some such acci- dents to put an end to the negotiations.
In accordance with usage, the letters which pass between the parents during the preliminaries are couched in good set terms, the sender of presents describes them as " mean " and "contemptible," while the re- cipient regards them as "honorable" and "priceless." The parent of the bride speaks of his daughter as "despicable," and his house as " a cold dwelling," while the bride- groom's people designate her as "your hon- ored beloved one," and her home as " a ven- erable palace."
"The Best Man."
The Chinese love of indirectness comes out conspicuously in the betrothal cere- monies. The bridegroom docs nothing, and his father, who is the real negotiator, is rep- resented by a friend of the bridegroom, who alone passes backwards and forwards be- tween the two houses. The first duty of this "best man" is to carry to the lady's father a statement of the hour, day, month and year of the bridegroom's birth, together with the maiden name of his mother ; and to receive in return a document containing the same j^articulars concerning the bride.
On receipt of these facts the fathers of the pair spread the documents on the family altars, and beseech the blessings of their ancestors on the match. Astrologers are next consulted, and, should the horoscopes of the young people be propitious, the best man is again sent with a letter making a formal proposal of marriage.
The following authentic letters, appropriate to this occasion, are good specimens of the bland self-depreciatory tone which is in- dulged in by fond fathers when exchanging presents.
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
The first is from the parents of the would- be bridegroom, and runs thus : " Prostrate, I beseech you not to disdain tliis cold and mean application, but to listen to the match- maker, and to bestow your honorable daughter on my slavish son, that the pair may be bound together with silken threads, and be united in jadelike joy. In bright spring-time I will offer wedding gifts, and present a pair of geese. And let us hope that we may anticipate long-enduring happi- ness, and look forward through endless gen- erations to the completion of the measure of their sincere attachment. May they sing of the Unicorn, and enjoy every felicity. Pros- trate, I beg you to look favorably upon my proposal, and to bend the mirrorlike bright- ness of your glance upon these lines."
A Lucky Day in Spring.
In reply the lady's father, who was proba- bly a wealthy man, and whose references therefore to his impecunious condition are intended only to e.xaggerate the wealth and position of the would-be bridegroom, writes: "A respectful communication. I have re- ceived your notice of a lucky day in spring for the ceremony of e.vchanging bridal pres- ents. Your younger brother, being a plain and unpretentious man, cannot escort his daughter with a hundred chariots." [This is a reference to a king in the eighth century before Christ, who brought home his hride attended by an escort of this extent.]
" She shall not, however, be without cotton skirts, hair-pins, and wooden brooches, as I "vill surely arrange for the trousseau of my ii.ipoverished green-windowed " (that is, poor) *' daughter. If you say that you seek the ?a(ace of the moon " (wedlock), "I shall ask for a sceptre from the grassy field, and so frustrate your design."
This phrase has reference tc ?. man in
ancient times, who was to'.c! b\- a fairy that if he would plant some jewels in a certain grassy field, he should obtain a charming wife. He obeyed, and shortly afterwards made overtures of marriage to a lady who was renowned for her beauty and accomplish- ments. Her father, not particularly desiring the match, gave his consent on condition that the bridegroom presented the lady with a jade sceptre. Remembering the buried jewels, the bridegroom dug in the field and found to his delight a sceptre exactly answer- ing to the description demanded. Of course, the marriage took place, and the pair lived happily ever afterwards.
The S)mibol of Marriage.
Historical allusions of this kind abound in such communications, and a curious sym- bolism is employed in the various rites. The plum-tree is held to symbolize marriage, probably because it is conspicuous for its beauty in spring-time, when, in China, as elsewhere, "young men's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love," and no )'outh sighs in verses for a bride, nor does any maiden in the harem lament in numbers her lonely con- dition, without references to the beauty of the blossom, and the excellence of the fruit.
The letter of the bridegroom s father is sent on a lucky day chosen by the astrolo- gers, and is handed to the best man, with much ceremony, at the family altar, before which the writer performs the kotow in honor of his departed ancestors. On arriv- ing at the bride's dwelling the groomsman is received with much state and is conducted by his host to the ancestral hall, where a master of ceremonies stands reajJy to direct the rites. At a word from this potentate they both prostrate themselves before the ances- tral tablets which stand on the altar, and havins risen from their knees resume their
CHINICSK MARRIAGK CUSTOMS.
201
positions, the one on the east and the other on the west side of the hall.
The groomsman then, with a few appro- priate phrases, presents his host with the letter, and at the same time offers for his ac- ceptance boxes of confectionary and a live pig, or, in some parts of the country, a pair of wild geese. The choice of these birds as a nuptial present is so odd that one is apt to consider it as one of the peculiar outcomes of the topsy-turvy Chinese mind. But it is not quite so ; for we find from George Sand that at the marriage of French peasants in Berry, a goose, though a dead one, was com- monly borne in the bridegroom's procession.
Gifts and Music.
"Near," writes the authoress, "this bearer of a flowering and ribboned thyrsus is an ex- pert spit-bearer, for under the foliage is a trussed goose which forms the object of the ceremony ; around it are the carriers of the presents and the good singers, that is to say those who are clever and knowing and who are going to engage in an [amicable] quarrel with the followers of the bride." It is odd to find the East and West allied in so curious a detail, but such marriage customs seem to be scarcely less widely spread than the rite itself.
So soon as the cakes and the box contain- ing the letter have been placed on the altar, the host again prostrates himself and reads the letter, while the groomsman is led off to be regaled with tea and viands in the guest- chamber. The reply is handetl to the groomsman with the same ceremonies as that with which the letter was received, and he is then invited to a feast which etiquette bids him refuse twise and accept on the third occasion. On an adjournment to the ances- tral hall he is presented with return presents of cakes, and wends his way back to report proceedings to his principal.
Presents consisting of silks and satins, ear- rings, bracelets, and hair-pins, are next sent to the bride, and return gifts are offered by her parents. A sumptuous dinner, given by the bridegroom to his friends, announces the completion of this ceremony, which is known as Napi, or "The Presentation of Silks."
The Dragon and Phcenix.
When sending the presents it is customary for the bridegroom to prepare two large cards containing the particulars of the engagement. On the one which he keeps is pasted a paper dragon, and on that which he sends to liis bride, a phoenix, emblems which are held to symbolize the Imperial qualities of the one and the brilliant beauty of the other.
To each card are attached two pieces of red silk, which are tokens of the invisible bonds with which Fate has from their infancy connected the ankles of the pair, for, in China, as with us, marriages are said be made in heaven. To that power is left the choice of a lucky day for the final rite. The astrolo- gers who interpret the signs of the sky com- monly pronounce a full moon to be the for- tunate time, and so soon as this fi.xture is arranged, the bridegroom's father sends gifts of wine and mutton to the lady.
Etiquitte requires it that the groomsman should ask the bride's father to name the day, and that he should in his turn beg that the bride's future father-in-law should decide the point. This is the cue for the grooms- man to produce from his sleeve the letter of which he is the bearer, announcing the lucky date, which is already well known to all con- cerned. To this the host replies in stilted terms, expressing his concurrence, but adding his regret at having to part with his " insig- nificant daughter" so soon.
For some days before the date fi.xed the bride assumes all the panoply of woe, and
•/OS
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
weeps and wails without ceasing. On the day immediately preceding the wedding her trousseau and household furniture are sent to her future home, and though the trunks are always locked, cases have been known in which the bridegroom's female relatives, being unable to restrain their curiosity, have
EMBROIDERED CHINESE SCREEN.
picked the locks to examine the dresses of the bride.
On the eventful day the bridegroom either goes himself, attended by a procession of friends and musicians, with flying banners bearing felicitous mottoes, to carry away his Liide, or sends his faithful friend similarly
attended. In many parts of the country this ceremony takes place in the evening, and is a mere formality, whereas in others, as will be presently shown, it retains more of its original significance.
On entering the bride's house the bride- groom is received by his father-in-law, who conducts him to the central hall, and there offers him a goblet of wine, from which the visitor pours out a liba- tion to the emblematic geese in token of his nuptial fi- delity, accompanying the action with a deep rever- ence to the family altar in confirmation of his vow. The bride, covered from head to foot with a red veil, is now introduced on the scene, and makes obei- sance in the direction of the spot where the bride- groom is standing, for he is as invisible to her as she is to him.
The procession then re- forms, and the bride having been lifted into her sedan- chair by two women of good fortune, that is to say, who have both husbands and children living, is borne to her future home to the airs of well-known wedding melodies. On arriving at the portal of the house the bridegroom taps the door of the sedan-chair with his fan, and in response, the instructress of matrimony, who prompts every act of the bride, opens the door and hands out the still enshrouded young lady, who is carried bodily over a pan of lighted charcoal, or a red-hot
CHINESE MARRIAGE CUSTOMS.
203
coulter laid on the threshold, while at the same moment a servant offers for her accept- ance some rice and preserved prunes.
It is curious to observe that the ceremony of lifting the bride over the threshold is found existing in all the four continents, and we also know that in ancient Rome the bridegroom received his bride with fire and water. It has been conject'ired that the act of lifting the bride over fire may have some reference to purification, but we have no duly authorita- tive statement on the meaning of the act.
The First Sight.
In the reception hall the bridegroom awaits the bride, who prostrates herself before him, and he then for the first time lifts her veil and gazes on her features. The moment must be a trying one, especially on occasions when the go-between has concealed defects or exaggerated charms. Perhaps it is as well that etiquette forbids the utterance of a word, and in a silence which must often be golden, the bridegroom conducts his bride to the divan, when they seat themselves side by side, it being traditional that the one who sits on a part of the dress of the other is likely to hold rule in the household.
But the marriage has yet to be consecrated. For this purpose the young people repair to the hall, wliere, falling on their knees before the ancestral altar, the bridegroom announces to his ancestors that, in obedience to his parents' commands, he has taken so-and-so to wife, beseeching them at the same time to bestow their choicest gifts on himself and his partner. Prostrations in honor of heaven, earth, and the bridegroom's parents complete the ceremony, and the newly wedded couple retire to the semi-privacy of their apartments to enjoy a repast in which they pledge one another in the wedding goblet.
In some parts of the country it is cus-
tomary for the groom to join the guests at their feast in the outer hall, where he forms the subject of countless jokes, and is expected to submit to a like severe ordeal in the matter of riddles as that which enlivened Samson's wedding.
It is impossible not to recognize that many of the ceremonies which have been described are relics of the primitive right of marriage by capture. In the procession which, gen- erally at night, goes to carry the bride to her new home is plainly observable a sur- vival of the old-world usage, in compliance with which young men sallied out to snatch their consorts from their foes.
" I(0, how the woman once was wooed I Forth leapt the savage from his lair. He felled her, and to nuptials rude, He dragged her, bleeding, by the hair. From that to Chloe's dainty wiles, And Portia's dignified consent. What distance ! "
Perched in a Tree.
But even within the Chinese Empire we find almost every gradation between these wide extremes. In Western China, among some of the native tribes it is customary for the bride to perch herself on the hi^^h branch of a large tree, while her elderly female rela- tives station themselves on the lower limbs armed with switches. Through this protect- ing force the bridegroom has to make his way, and is duly assailed by the dowagers before he reaches the object of his search.
At Chinese weddings also it is not unusual for the bridegroom to be compelled to run the gauntlet on the way to the bride's cham- ber between rows of waiting women, who go through the farce of pretending to bar his progress. But the most perfect survival of the old rite is found among the Lolo tribes of China, who indulge in a long prelude of alternate feasting and lamentation before the
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204
CHINA: PAST AND PRHSKNT.
wedding, as if the occasion were one for | mourning rather thuii rejoicing.
At last, as the late Mr. Baber writes: "A crisis of tearfulness ensues, when suddenly the brothers, cousins, and friends of the hus- band burst upon the scene with tumult and loud shoutinjj, seize the almost distraught maid, place her pick-a-back on the shoulders of the best man, carry her hurriedly and violently away, and mount her on a horse, which gallops off to her new home. Vio- lence is rather more than simulated, for though the male friends of the bride only repel the attacking party with showers of flour and wood-ashes, the attendant virgins are armed with sticks, which they have the fullest liberty to wield."
Carrying off the Bride.
This practice of carrying off the bride has its counterp.irt among the more civilized Chinese in the act of bearing the lady over the threshold of her house; and it exists in full force in Orissa, where General Campbell tells us in his " Personal Narrative of Service in Khondistan," he once "saw a man bear- ing away upon his back something enveloped in an ample covering of scarlet cloth ; he was surrounded by twenty or thirty young fel- lows, and by them protected from the des- perate attacks made upon him by a party of young women. On seeking an explanation of this novel scene," adds the writer, " I was told that the man had just been married, and his precious burden was his blooming bride, whom he was conveying to his own village."
Again, in certain districts in China, where the aborigines predominate, each girl, in her choice of her husband, is solely led "by nice direction of a maiden's eyes," and pairs off without any troublesome formalities with the youth she admires and who admires her. But to return to the orthodox Chinese ; the
marriage ceremonies having been completed, the young couple take up their abode in the house of the bridegroom's father, and, speak- ing generally, the contract remains binding until death does them part.
But the obligation is more social and re- ligious than legal, and cases con.stantly occur in which the tie is broken by mutual con- sent, and freedom for the future secured without the interference of any court or proctor. On one occasion, in a case of an appeal to Pekin, it came out incidentally in the proceedings that one of the parties in the case had previously married a bride who, being discontented with the house to which she had been brought, incontinently left her spouse, and married another man.
In popular history, also, there is a well- known case of a woodcutter who, having some knowledge of books, and being a de- voted student, disgusted his flippant and foolish wife by attending more to the works of Confucius than to felling trees. Finding expostulation vain, his short-sighted partner deserted him and married a more business- like man. Left to himself, the woodcutter acquired such scholastic proficiency that he passed all the examinations with ease, and, by a coincidence, was appointed prefect over the district where he had formerly lived.
Nothing Said.
Among the men employed to make smooth the roadway for his arrival was his wife's second husband, to whom it chanced that she was in the act of bringing his dinner when her first venture's cortege passed by. A recognition was mutual, but as the prefect had equally consoled himself, nothing was said about the restitution of conjugal rights.
Difficulties often arise, however, in cases where the husband is not a consenting party to the arrangement, but in such instances
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the husband commonly takes the law into his own hands, and recovers his errant wife by force, or engages friends and neighbors to intervene and persiirde the lady to return. "The use of force not (infrequently brings the matter before the magistrate, but otherwise the law does not interfere — unless, indeed, formal complaint of a bigamous marriage is made, when the law orders that the offend- ing woman shall be .stran;^led. As a rule, however, public opinion is sufficient to bring the difference to a satisfactory conclusion.
Seven G ounds for Divorce.
But apart from these irregular matri- monial causes, the law puts it in the power of the man to annul his marriage on anyone of seven distinct grounds, among which dis- obedience to father-in-law or mother-in-law, and over-talkativeness are named. But even on occasions when these legal plaints are in question, a decree without any nisi is gener- ally granted by a court composed of the elders of the neighborhood, and not by the mandarins. In this and similar matters local social pressure takes the place of a wider public opinion.
There are no newspapers in China beyond those published at the treaty ports, and peo- ple's attention, instead of being distracted by subjects of general or foreign importance, is centered in the affairs passing around them. The very stationary nature of the population adds force to this peculiarity. In most vil- lages and small towns the majority of people are related to each other through the con- .stantly widening circles of relatives which each marriage in the family tends to multiply.
A minute acquaintance with every one else's affairs is the natural consequence of this kinship. No Chinaman ever stands alone. He forms one only of a general body, and to the opinion of this body he is compelled
to yield obedience. He would no more ven- ture to refuse to submit e\ en those concerns which we should consider most private to the arbitration of his nti;j;hbois than an Englishman would dream of flouting the de- cision of a judge and jury.
In a well-known farce this peculiarity of Chinese society is amusingly illustrated. The hero of the play is a man, who, having married a Miss Plumblcssom, has taken to himself a Miss Willow as a secondary wife, in accordance with the custom which will be presently described. To each lady a court- yard of the house is assigned, Plumblossom occupying the front part and Willow the rear premises. The first scene opens with the husband approaching his dwelling after a long absence.
A Wordy Warfare.
The evening is drawing in, and he tells his servant to drive to the back door without disturbing the elder lady. He is cordially greeted by Willow, in whose company he is enjoying a repast, when Plumblossom, hav- ing become aware of his arrival, presents herself upon the idyllic scene. Peace in- stantly vanishes. In piercing accents the intruder reproaches Willow for having robbed her of her privilege as mistress of the household of receiving her husband after his absence. Nothing daunted, this young lady defends herself, and replies with coun- ter-reproaches in the shrillest of trebles, while the husband attempts to throw oil upon the troubled waters by occasional words of expostulation.
So great is the tumult that the neighbors are disturbed, and on the essentially Chinese principle that every one else's business is your business, they determine to interfere, quoting as their justification a saying of a certain philosopher that, in cases of disturb-
CHINESE MARRIAGE CUSTOMS.
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ance if the neighbors do not interfcrc, they become participators in the guilt of the dis- putants. Two graybcards arc therefore de- puted to inquire on the spot into the circum- stances of the quarrel. Their arrival on the scene, instead of prompting a tiesire on the part of the husband to eject them inconti- nently, and to tell them to mind their own business, is regarded by all concerned as the most natural thing in the world.
Peace Finally Secured.
The ladies submit their cases to their de- cision, and, though it is some time before the storm has sufficiently subsided to enable them to arrive at the rights of the quarrel, they eventually consider themselves in a position to deliver judgment. They pro- nounce that, in the interests of peace in the neighborhood, it is necessary that the hus- band should apportion his residence equally between the two courtyards, residing in one from the first of each month to the full moon, and in the other from the full moon to the end of the month.
To this the ladies as well as the husband agree, but a further question is raised, which lady is to have which half of the month ? Plumblossom claims the time of the waxing moon, and considers the waning period quite good enough for Willow. That young lady, on the contrary, claims that as it was then the first part of the month, and that as she was in possession, that liciiod of the month should belong to her. This knotty point the graybeards find a difficulty in deciding, and they, therefore, determine to leave it to the tlirow of the dice.
The ladies readily produce a trio of those endless sources of amusement, and Plum- blossom throws first. To her infinite delight she throws two sixes and a cinque, and thinks herself secure. But, to the surprise
of all, still better fortune befriends Willow, who throws sixes and breaks out into a p.ean of triumph, amid the strains of which her rival retires discomfited.
It seems almost anomalous after this ap- parent instance to the contrary to .say that polygamy is not practised in China. Hut in the strictest sense that is true. A man goes through the full ceremonies of marriage with one woman only, except on very rare occa- sions. A certain godlike Flmperor of anti- quity gave, we are told in the canonical his- tories, his two daughters in marriage to his successor. With such an example as this before them, the Chinese have always con sidered such double marriages admissible, and in many of the best-known romances the heroes marry two young ladies of the same household, and, if the authors are to be believed, always with the happiest re- sults.
Naughty Fickleness.
In a popular novel which has been tran- slated into several European languages, the hero makes love to a young lady through the medium of her waiting-maid, and with a despicable fickleness becomes enamored of another paragon of learning and virtue, re- siding in another part of the country, who ultimately proves to be the cousin of his first love. Towards to the end of the work, when the mists and doubts which surround the plot begin to clear, the two ladies find that their happiness is centred in the same object, and, as they have become inseparable, they determine to endow the hero, who is eminently unworthy of them, except for the beauty of his verses, with the double prize.
But such marriages, though they exist, are very exceptional, and the secondary wives which men take are received into the household with a much abridged form of
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ceremony. No nuptial sedan-chair bears them in triumph to their new homes, and they enter the portals unattended by the musicians and processionists who accompany the first bride on her wedding-day. And, in fact, the relation of such a one to the mis- tress of the establishment is very much what Hagar's was to Sarah in Abraham's house- hold. By conventional laws she owes obedi- ence to the first wife, and only rises to a
and though the advent of a secondary wife is occasionally resented, this is not by any means always the case.
Not unfrequently ladies are pleased to have it so, considering that an addition to ti)c household adds to their dignity. In com- plimentary language the ch'i is compared to the moon, and the secondary wife to a star, and in a well-known collection of published letters several are met with in which friend."
THE ItRIDAL FFIAST.
level with her .ti case progeny should be denied to the ck'i, as the Chinese term the wife, and be granted to her.
A case of this kind occurred in the instance of the late Emperor, who was the son of one of the young ladies who accompanied the Empress to the palace, and whose birth raised his mother to the rank of Empress. It is dilificult for us who live under so entirely different a condition of things to realize such a state of domestic society as is here described,
arc congratulated on having taken " a star " to add lu.stre to the " moon."
It is impossible to suppose that, things being as has been described, the status of a wife can be anything but, to say the least, unfortunate. As has been remarked, how- ever, " though the lot of Chinese women is less happy than that of their sisters in Europe, their ignorance of a better state renders their present or prospective one more supportable ; happiness does not consist in absolute enjoy-
CHINESE MARRIAGE CUSTOMS.
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ment, but in the idea which \vc have formed of it. A Chinese woman does not feel that any injustice is done her by depriving her of the right to assent to whom her partner shall be ; her wishes and her knowledge go no further than her domestic circle, and when she has been trained in her mother's apart- ments to the various duties and accomplish- ments of her sex, her removal to a husband's house brings to her no great change."
Blissful Ignorance.
This is no doubt to a great extent true in common life. Ignorance is unquestionably a protecting shield against many of the wounds inflicted by the repinings and re- grets which arise from a perfect knowledge. And Chinese women are, as a rule, provided with an ample shield of this description. There arc, however, exceptions. History tells us of women who liave ruled the Empire, directed armies, and made them- selves illustrious in every walk of life com- monly trodden by men ; and novelists assure us by their creations that not a few women have an abundant taste and skill in literature.
The heroines of most novels have a pretty art in composing verses and writing essays, and so make congenial companions for the heroes, whose chief claims to distinction are gained not in the battlefield, or by personal prowess, but in their .studies before the examiners.
A monotonous and quiet existence is the most favorable ro/e which a Chinese woman can expect to play. Confucius laid it down, and it is rank blasphemy to dissent from him, that a woman should not be heard of outside her own home. Unhappily neither ignor- ance, nor the placid nature which belongs to most of them, is able to save them in all cases from the miseries inherent in the state of abject dependence which belongs to them. 14
In the estimate of the other sex. Chinamen agree with a certain well-known Kentucky editor, who described women as " a side issue," and this view of the sex we find stereotyped in some of the ideographic char- acters of the language.
If a husband is driven to make mention of his wife he speaks of her as his " dull thorn," or by some equally uncomplimentary term. In ordinary life he regards her less as a com- panion than as a chattel, which in times of adversity may be disposed of by sale. In seasons of famine an open market is held of the wives and daughters of the poorer suf- ferers; and not long since, during a period of dearth in Northern China, so great a traf- fic sprung up in women and girls, that in some places nearly every available cart and conveyance were engaged to transport the newly-purchased slaves to the central pro- vinces.
Cruel Husbands.
When such is the position which women occupy in China, it cannot but be that tiicy occasionally suffer ill-usage at the hands of such husbands as are capable of cruelty. It is not at all uncommon for husbands to pun- ish their wives severely, sometimes, no doubt, under great provocation, for Chinese women, untutored, unloved, and uncarcd for, have all the faults and failings of unreclaimed natures ; but at others for little or no reason!
The Abbe Hue tells a story of "a Chinese husband, who had a wife with whom he had li\ed happily for two years. But having con- ceived the idea that people were laughing at him, because he had never beaten her, he determined to make a beginning in such a way as to impress every spectator, and ac- cordingly, though he hail no fault to find with lier," he beat her mercilessly.
Although this story carries with it the im-
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primatur of the worthy Abbe, it may properlj' be received with a certain amount of caution. But even if this particular instance may be an exaggeration, the facts that the question " Does your husband beat you ?" is verj commonly put to English ladies by Chinese women, and that the indignant negative with which the inquiry is happily always answered, invariably excites astonishment and incred- ulity, are sufficient to prove that Chinese women are not unusually subject to ill-treat- ment at the hands of their natural protectors. Occasionally, however, the wife has her revenge, and in the collections of anecdotes which abound there are plenty of stories of
DEFORMED FEET OF CHINESE LADIES.
hen-pecked husbands and masterful wives. In one case a certain man who at times suf- fered much at the hands of his wife was driven to seek refuge from her violence be- neath his bed. Unwilling to allow her victim to escape her, the harridan called upon him to come out. " I won't," replied the man ; "and when a man and husband says he won't, he won't."
But experience shows that, after all, the rule tends in the opposite direction, and that which makes the position of a wife more than ordinarily pitiable, especially among the poorer classes, is that she has no one to appeal to, and no one to whom she can fly
for refuge. By the accident of sex she is viewed as a burden by her parents from her *"'-th onwards, and, if they succeed in marry- j her off, they are only too glad to wash leir hands of her altogether. Among our- selves a man is taught that he should leave his father and mother and cling to his wife, but the theory in China is that a man should cling to his father and mother and compel his wife to do the same.
When admitted into her new home it be- comes her duty to wait on her parents-in- law in the same way as she has been accus- tomed to serve her own father and mother, and it is often from these elders that the un- happy bride suffers the great- est hardships and cruelty. So many are the disabilities attaching to married life in China that many girls prefer going into Buddhist nun- neries, or even committing suicide, to trusting their fu- tures to the guardianship of men of whom they know practically nothing.
Archdeacon Gray, in his "China," states that in 1873 eight young girls, residing near Canton, "who had been affianced, drowned them- selves in order to avoid marriage. They clothed themselves in their best attire, and at eleven o'clock, in the darkness of the night, having bound themselves together, threw themselves into a tributary stream of the Canton river." In some parts of the same province anti-matrimonial associations are formed, the members of which resist to the death the imposition of the marriage yoke. "The existence of this Amazonian League," writes a missionary long resident in the neighborhood, "has long been known, but as to its rules and the num-
CHINESE MARRIAGE CUSTOMS.
211
ber of its members, no definite information has come to hand. It is composed of young widows and marriageable girls. Dark hints are given as to the methods used to escape matrimony. The sudden demise of be- trothed husbands, or the abrupt ending of the newly-married husband's career, suggest unlawful means for dissolving the bonds."
This is the sordid view of the position. Happily, in this and in all other matters there is a reverse side to the shield, and in their own peculiar way the Chinese certainly enjoy a modicum of wedded bliss. In a modern Pekinese play, one of the characters, a widower, describes the even current of his late married life by saying that he and his wife lived together as host and guest, and in most novels we read of husband and wife living harmoniously, if not rapturously to- gether. In poetry also the love of home is constantly insisted on, and the misery of being separated from wife and children is the common plaint of the traveller and the exile.
Dreary Solitude. In a poem entitled " Midnight Thoughts," which was translated by Sir John Davis, the poet, after describing his inability to rest in the remote district in which he finds himself, goes on to say :
" This solitary desertion ! — how bitter do I find it !
Let me Ihtu push my roving to a distance :
Let me visit the passes and mountains a hundred
leagues hence, Like some devotee of Buddha, wandering amid
clouds and torrents, Ignorant of what is passing elsewhere. How shall I forget the melancholy of my own home? Thus dull and mournful through life's whole course. My sorrows and pains can never have an end."
In the lines put in the mouths of the stay- at-home wives the melancholy of the traveller becomes a keen longing, and they lament in
tearful notes the absence of their lords. But there is other and more direct evidence of the existence of happiness in the married state. Cases constantly appear in the Pekin Gazette in which wives, unwilling to survive their husbands, commit suicide rather than live without them. One such instance was that of the wife of Kwo Sunglin, brother of a late minister to the English court. Through a long illness this lady nursed him with devoted tenderness until death came, when she ended her own existence by taking poison.
Died in Grief.
Another case was once reported to the Emperor, in which a young widow, aged twenty-seven, declared her intention not to survive her lord, and remained for three days without nourishment, "At length," writes the memorialist, " having made an effort to rise and perform the mourning rites of pros- tration, she threw herself weeping on the ground, and breathed her last." The most curious phase of this devotion is the form which it takes in some of the southern prov- inces, where after the manner of Sutteeism, the widow commits suicide in public in the presence of an applauding crowd.
In an instance described by an eye-witness, a vast procession escorted the young widow, who was dressed in scarlet and goi.l, and was borne in a richly decorated chair to the scene of the tragedy. On arriving at the scaffold, on which stood a gallows, the lady mounted the platform, and having welcomed the crowd, partook, with some female rela- tives, of a prepared repast, which, adds the narrator, she appeared to appreciate ex- tremely. She then scattered rice, herbs, and flowers among the crowd, at the same time thanking them f(ir their attendance and upholding the motives which urged her to the step she was about to take.
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She then mounted on a chair, and having waved a final adieu to the crowd, adjusted the noose round her neck, and drawing a red handkerchief over her face, gave the signal for the removal of the support. With extra- ordinary self-possession, while hanging in mid-air, she placed her hands before her, and continued to make the usual form of saluta'jon until complete unconsciousness ensued. Such devotion to the fond memory of husbands invariably receives the approval of the people, and when reported to the Emperor gains his entire ajjprobation.
From the above account of this particular phase of Chinese society it will be seen that it represents a condition of things which leaves much to be desired. Nor is the cause of the mischief far to seek. In the very sub- ordinate position occupied by the women of China we see the origin of the evil. In a State where women are degraded, the whole community suffers loss, and the first symtoms of the approach of a healthy and beneficial civilization is the elevation of women to their legitimate and useful position in society.
At present no trace of the dawn of a bet- ter day appears on the horizon of China, but the example which has been set b> Japan leads one to hope that the day is not far dis-
tant when the slow-moving Chineman will be induced to follow in the footsteps of their more advanced neighbor. Until quite re- cently the position of women in the Land of the Rising Sun was every whit as unworthy as that now occupied by their Chinese sisters. Happily the experience gained in western lands has taught the Japanese that the un- trammelled society of educated and pure- minded women exercises a wholesome and elevating effect on a nation.
With the intuitive perception which they possess for what is best and wisest in foreign systems, they have, by a course of sound education, begun to prepare the women of the country for the new position which it is intended that they should occupy, and already an example is being set by the em- press and other leaders of fashion, of the better part they are expected to play.
This change cannot be without its influence on China, and though we know that the sur- face of small pools is more easily agitated than the face of larger waters, yet it cannot but be that the spirit of reform which is now abroad will influence even the sluggish tem- perament of the Chinese nation, and will eventually stir to the depths the minds of this hitherto changeless people.
CHAPT^ER XII. VARIETIES OF CHINESE LIFE.
IT may be asked in surprise why no mention has been made of the profes- sional classes — the doctors, the law- yers and others ; and the answer may be returned in the words of the celebrated chapter on the snakes in Iceland, " There are none." That is to say, there are none in the sense to which we are accustomed. There are plenty of doctors, but they can only be described as belonging; to a profes- sional class in the sense in which itinerant quacks, who profess to cure all the ills which flesh is heir to by bread pills, can lay claim to that distinction. They are the merest empirics, and, having no fear of medical colleges or examination tests before their eyes, prey on the folly and ignorance of the people without let or hindrance.
The physicians who are privileged to pre- scribe for the Emperor are the only mem- bers of the profession to whom failure means disgrace. When the late Empcior was at- tacked by small-pox, an improvement in his symptoms with which the doctor's skill was credited, brought a shower of distinctions on the fortunate physicians. Unhappily for them, however, the disease took a fatal turn, and when his Imperial Majesty " ascended on a dragon to be a guest on high," the lately- promoted doctors were degraded from their high estate, and were stripped of every title to honor.
Such of the drugs in common use as have any curative properties are derived from herbs, while the rest are probably useless when not absolutely harmful. No Harvey
has yet risen to teach the Chinese laws of the circulation of the blood, nor has the study of anatomy disclosed to them the secrets of the human frame.
Amputation is never resorted to, it being a part the creed of the people that any mutilation of the body is an act of disrepect to the parents from whom it was received ; and cases have constantly occurred where mandarins, who have met with violent acci- dents, and who have been assured by foreign doctors that amputation alone could save their lives, have deliberately chosen to go to their graves rather than lose a limb. On the same principle, a criminal condemned to die considers himself fortunate if he is allowed to make his exit by strangulation or the hang- man's cord rather than by decapitation.
Doctors Poorly Paid.
Between the ignorance of the doctors and the fees they receive, there is a just ratio. No physician, in his wildest moments of ambition, expects t(j receive more than a dollar for a visit, and many are not paid more than a fifth of that sum. But, what- ever the amount may be, due care is taken to wrap the silver in ornamental paper bearing the inscription " golden thanks."
On entering the presence of his patient the doctor's first act is to feel the pulses on both wrists. Not only are they entirely ignorant of the difference between arteries and veins, but they believe that the pulses of the wrists communicate with, and indicate the condition of, the different organs of the body. By the
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'
make patent the disorder c patient is suffering, recourse
beating of the pulse of the left arm they pro- fess to read the state of the heart, while that on the right represents the health of the lungs and liver. If these guides are deemed insufficient t under viiii... is had to the tongue, which is supposed to yield a sure augury of the nature of the malady.
Si'itu'ar Notions.
Their g ^at ob:c.:t is, as they say, "to strengthen the i)r .' i , .i: down the phlegm, equalize and warm xhf b^ood, repress the bun' .s, pi' S"" the livt., oovc- noxious matter^, imp.o. c th apnei: tii.iulate the gate of life, and restore havMou . . dual
system of heat and cold pervades, they be- lieve, the human frame, and it is when one of these constituents is in excess that illness supervenes. The Chinese delight in numeri- cal categories, and they profess to find in the five elements of which they believe a man's body to be composed, an intimate relation to the five planets, the five tastes, the five colors, and the five metals.
" The heart," they say, " is the husband, and the lungs are the wife." and if these two main organs cannot be brought to act in har- mony, evil at once arises. In the native pharmacopoeia there are enumerated four hundred and forty -two principal medicines as being in common use. Of these three hun- dred and fourteen are derived from vegeta- ble products, fifty from minerals, and seventy- eight from animal substances.
Among the monstrous tonics prescribed by the Galens of China, are asbestos, stalac- tite, fresh tops of stag-horns, dried red spotted lizard-skins, dog-flesh, human milk, tortoise-shell, bones and teeth of dragons, shavings of rhinoceros-horns, and other pos- sible and impossible nostrums. Two thou-
sand years B. C. the Emperor Hwangti wrote, it is said, a work on the healing art. In the centuries which have elapsed since that time little advance has been made in the science, the principal exceptions being a knowledge of acupuncture and of vaccination.
It is uncertain when acupuncture was first practiced in China, but the faith of the people in its efficacy for all cases of rheumatic affec- tions and for dyspepsia is unbounded. So soon as the physician has made up his mind that a particular bone or muscle is in a state of inflammation, he thrusts a substantial steel needle into the part affected, and stirs it ruthlessly about. Happily for the patients, their race is heir to a lymphatic temperament which preserves it from many of the evils which would certainly arise from such treat- ment among a more inflammatory people.
Thrusting in a Needle.
The treatment for dyspepsia is even more calculated to produce danger and disorders than that applied to the joints and bones. A Chinese doctor does not hesitate to thrust the needle into the patient's stomach or liver, and the system of blistering wounds thus caused adds considerably to the danger sur- rounding the operation.
For many years the Chinese have em- ployed inoculation as a preventive against small-pox, but it was not till the arrival at Canton of Dr. Pearson, in 1820, that the knowledge of vaccination was introduce d into the Empire. A pamphlet on the sub- ject, translated into Chinese by Sir George Staunton, spread the knowledge of the art far and wide, and though by no means uni- versally used, it still allays to some degree the terrible scourge of small-pox which is ever present in China. It is seldom that a child escapes from an attack of the disease, and the percentage of deaths is always con-
VARIETIES OF CHINESE LIFE.
215
siderable, enough to create a panic among people better informed.
In the north of the country, it has been observed that the disease becomes epidemic every winter. The reason for this regular recurrence of the malady is probably to be found in the fact that the infection clings to the fur clothes worn by the people, which are, as a rule, sent to the pawnshops on the return of every spring, and are only brought out again on the approach of winter. Throughout all the central and southern provinces leprosy is endemic. In the pro- vince of Canton it is reckoned that there are ten thousand people afflicted with this terri- ble malady. Though it is not regarded as infectious, contagion is avoided ; and outside most of the large cities there are leper vil- lages, where the victims to the disease are supposed to segregate.
The Horrible Leprosy.
The law on this subject is not, however, strictly enforced, and in the .streets of such cities as Canton, for example, beggars suf- fering from the disease appeal for alms to the passers-by by exposing their swollen and decaying limbs to their gaze. Many are the strange remedies resorted to for cures in the first stages of the malady, but so soon as the disease is fully developed, the wretched sufferers resign themselves to their fate. It is recognized among the natives, as has been found to be the case elsewhere, that it is only by constant association with a leper that there is danger of infection, and that cleanliness is as potent a protection against the disease as damp climates and unhealthy food are promoters of it.
Epidemics of cholera and diphtheria sweep periodically over the land, and the people are powerless to allay their progress or to diminish their intensity. Though they
have succeeded in reaching that stage in which disease is recognized as a departure from the usual and harmonious working of the organism, they have yet never learnt, in the words of Harvey, "to search and study out the secrets of nature by way of experi- ment."
Charms for Cholera.
In the presence of cholera, instead of tak- ing any medical precautions, they have re- course to charms, to the worship of their gods, and, as a religious exercise, to the practice of vegetarianism. Being deprived, therefore, of every rational weapon with which to combat the malady, one would be inclined to expect that the disease would be endemic, instead of only epidemic. If the theory of infection is without qualification true, and, if no precautions whatever are taken to prevent the spread of the disease, it would be only natural to suppose that the areas of infection would increase and mul- tiply.
No care is taken to isolate the patients ; no such safeguard is invoked as the destruc- tion of the clothes of the victims, whose dead bodies are frequently allowed to remain encoflfined in the dwellings of the survivors. And yet the outbreak disappears almost as suddenly as it came, leaving no trace behind it except in the sad memories of tho.se who mourn the loss of relatives and friends. The natives believe that the outbreaks are the re- sults of atmospheric conditions, and they assert that they have seen the evil approach in the shape of clouds, which have swept over provinces, leaving disease and death in their train. Some color is given to this theory by the fact, as already stated, that the disease comes and goes without any ap- parent cause, and certainly not as a result of any unusual sanitary or unsanitary conditions.
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
Much the same may be said of the out- breaks of diphtheria, which constantly prove so fatal in the north of the country. In a recent epidemic in Pekin, it was stated by a resident linglish doctor that in a l.ouschold of twenty-si.x persons, twenty-four were car- ried off by this fatal disease. Indeed, the whole history of epidemics in China seems to siifjgcst that we have not yet arrived at the true solution cither of the origin of the out- breaks or of the cause of their cessation.
As in most Eastern countries, the cities
Tin: GKliAT W.M.L Ol' CHINA.
and villages of Cliina swarm with mangy and half-starved curs of all degrees. Ill fed, uncared for, these scavengers range through the streets and lanes, picking up a precarious livelihood from the refuse which is thrown out as unfit for the food of either man or beast. If we add to these conditions that the climate over the greater part of the lunpire is almost tropical in its heat, and that the water available to slake the thirst of the dogs is none of the purest, it will be admitted that no surrounding is wanting to promote
and encourage outbreaks of hydrophobia. It is a remarkable fact, however, that, though the disease e.vists, it is not more pre- valent than it is. Chinese doctors recognize it, and their medical works treat of it, de- scribing both the .symptoms and the remedies for its cure. One well-known authority gives the following prescription as a sure and un- failing treatment for the victims of the malady ; " Take the curd of the black pea dried and pulverized, mi.x it with liemp oil, and form it into a large ball ; roll this over the wound for some time, then break it open and the inside will present a hair- like appearance. :-% " Continue the rolling until, on
/^. breaking it open, it is found to have lost the hair-like aspect. The pa- tient must avoid eating dog-flesh or silkworms, and he must not drink wine or inhale the fragrance from hemp for a hundred days. Neither may he eat with safety diseased meat or anything in a state of decomposition. He must daily partake of plum kernels.
When the poison of the dog has entered the heart of the victim, and has produced feelings of misery and wretchedness, the stomach swells, and there is an abundant secretion of saliva ; it is then proper to try the effect of the skull, teeth, and toes of a tiger ground up, and given in wine in doses of one fifth of an ounce. If a speedy cure does not follow, the person becomes mad, and barks like a dog. The eyes become white and glaring, and death quickly ensues."
These remedies are of a kind that are used
in many of the other diseases which afflict
Chinese humanity,and are equally efficacious.
Tumors are very common amongst the
Chi»'"^e, and as the use of the knife is prac-
: a
VARIETIES OF CHINESE LIFE.
217
tically forbidden, the sufierers fail to get that relief which a knowledge of practical surgery would, in a great majority of cases, readily procure for chem.
With a knowledge so imperfect, and a profound ignorance of physical science, it is not surprising that the Chinese should be firm believers in the magical arts. Second sight, miraculous interpositions, and super- natural appearances are common-places in their systems of belief Not only in the novels and story-books which delight the people, but in the more serious works of philosophers and students, we find constant references to these occult phenomena.
Messages from the land of spirits are de- livered by means of the planchctte, which is skilfully manipulated and interpeted by the cunning professors of the art ; and the fig- ures and features of individuals whom the gazers desire to see are produced in mirrors by the exercise of that ready imagination which belongs to the credulous. Fortune- telling by means of astrology is regarded as a genuine science, and the law protects those who practice it from the punishment which is prescribed for those charlatans who follow less established methods.
That Famous Stone.
From all time the philosopher's stone has been regarded as a verity, and it is confi- dently asserted that tiie Taoist philosophers of antiquity were able by its means to achieve the conversion of dross into the precious metals. History tells us of Emperors and statesmen who have exhausted their lives and treasures in attempting to discover this priceless stone, and the elixir of longevity. The inevitable failures in which the efforts of these men have ended, has doubtless con- vinced the more educated classes of the futility of the search.
But, like all popular superstitions, this one dies hard among the ignorant population, and there are at the present daj- many thousands in China who confidently believe in the possibility of manufacturing gold, and of prolonging life indefinitely. A less base- less superstition is the faith of the people in the plant known as ginseng. The properties of this plant are said to be invigorating and life-giving. To the debauchee it gives strength, and to the old man it gives vitality and power. So precious are these qualities that the best plants are in theory reserved entirely for the Emperor's use.
How Revenue is Raised.
A large proportion of the revenue of Corea is derived from the export duty levied on this plant, and one of the principal streets of Pekin is devoted to the sale of it. The plant grows from twelve to eighteen inches in height, with five long leaves on each stalk like a horse-chestnut. In spring it bears a cluster of purple flowers on the top of the stem, replaced in summer-time by bright red berries, which the searchers for the root look out for. Only Emperors and millionaires can afford the genuine article, for a root four or five inches long realizes perhaps fiftj' dollars. Extravagant as this figure may seem, it is a moderate computa- tion, and not infrequently a thousand taels of silver are paid for a pound's weight of the root.
The plant is grown in Manchuria as well as in Corea, and the returns for 1890 state that the export duty from Manchuria into China realized in that year four hundred and fifty thousand taels. This sum does not, however, by any means represent the amount of the plant exported. Its rare value, the small compass in which it can be carried, the greed of the peasants, and
218
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
the corruption rife amongst the customs of- ficials, all tend to encouraj^e smuggling.
That an illicit trade in the root is com- monly carried on is fully recognized by the Government, who have enacted that any one found attempting to smuggle more than ten taels weight of the medicine is to be for- warded to the Board of Punishments at Pekin, and that, in case of a less amount being in question, the case may be dealt with by local authorities.
Quack Lawyers.
In legal affairs the people are even worse off than in the matter of medical advice. They have no one to give them, for love or money, even as much help as is to be got for the body at the apothecaries' stalls. The only legal advisers are those clerks and secretaries who guide the mandarins by the light of the penal code to a right judgment in all matters entailing a knowledge of law. Like magistrates' clerks among ourselves, they are carefully trained in legal practice, and were they but free from the itching palm which distinguishes the official classes, they would be a most useful section of the com- munity. Having a tabulated code to which they are bound by law to conform, less knowledge and ingenuity are required to equip them for their profession than is the case with our lawyers. The absence of public opinion, also, shelters them from criti- cism, and leaves them practically a free hand, mitigated only by the fear of a pos- sibly inquisitive censor, to work their will either for good or ill among the people.
The strange continuity of the Chinese Empire is, in the opinion of some, to be at- tributed to the respect with which the fifth commandment of the Decalogue is observed, and as this observance of filial piety is re- garded as the fundamental virtue of social
life, it is worthy of our careful attention, and withal of our imitation.
Being held in this supreme estimation, it is needless to say that Confucius laid great stress upon it. He deplored that he was not able to serve his father, being dead, as he ex- pected his son to serve him, and he defined the virtue as consisting in not being disobedi- ent, in serving the parent when alive accord- ing to propriety, when dead in burying him according to propriety, and in sacrificing to him according to propriety. The manner of performing this duty, like other Confuciaa instructions, is laid down with curious minute- ness.
Duties to Parents.
At cock-crow it is the duty of the son or daughter, who should first be dressed with scrupulous care, to go to their parents' apart- ments to inquire after their welfare, and to attend to their wants, and he or she, more commonly she, must so continue at their beck and call until the night again closes upon them. Those duties must not be per- formed in a perfunctory way, but everything must be done with the expression of cheer- fulness, and filial respect and love.
"When his parents are in error," says the- Book of Rites, " the son, with a humble spirit, pleasing countenance, and gentle tone, must point it out to them. If they do not receive his reproof he must strive more and more to be dutiful and respectful towards them until they are pleased, and then he must again point out their error. And if the parents, irritated and displeased, chastise their son until the blood flows from him, even then he must not dare to harbor the least resentment; but, on the contrary, should treat them with increased respect and dutifulness."
This kind of devotion to parents seems so
VARIETIES OF CHINESE LIFE.
21&
strained and artificial that one would be i tempted at first sight to imagine that it rep- resents merely an ideal, were it not that the records of the past and the experiences of the present reveal the existence of a precisely similar practice. For many centuries the youth of both sexes — for though daughters do not partake of the privileges of sons, they share in all their duties — have had held up to them twenty-four instances of filial piety for their guidance and imitation.
Stories of Filial Piety.
They are told, for instance, of a man named Lai, who, in order to make his parents forget their great age, being himself an elderly person, used to dress himself in parti- colored embroidered garments like a child, and disport himself before them for their amusement. They are told of a lad whose parents were too poor to provide themselves with mosquito curtains, and who used to lie naked near their bed that the insects might attack hi.n unrestrainedly, and thus cease to annoy his parents. They are told of a poor man who, finding it impossible to support both his mother and his child, proposed to his wife that they should bury the child alive, for, said he, " another child may be born to us, but a mother, once gone, will never return."
His wife having consented, the man dug a hole of the depth of three cubits, when lo! he came upon a pot of gold, bearing the fol- lowing inscription : " Heaven bestows this treasure on a dutiful son ; the magistrate may not sieze it, nor shall the neighbors take it from him." In this story we have an instance of Chinese filial piety, and an illustration of the effect of the Confucian warning against a selfish attachment to wife and children.
It is a commonplace of Chinese morality that one or all of these should readily be
sacrificed in the interests of parents, and it is interesting to find that this man, who is said to have been saved by a miracle from com- mitting murder, has been handed down through more than twenty centuries as a model of virtue. It is unnecessary to quote any more of the twenty-four instances, but it is instructive to glance at the state of things existing at the present day, as depicted in the Pckin Gazette, where cases may be met with which are scarcely less singular than those already referred to.
It is not long since that the great Viceroy- Li Hung Chang besought the Emperor that a memorial arch might be erected in honor of a man within his jurisdiction. This person had been, we are told, from his youth up a devoted student of the ancient odes from a knowledge of which he early imbibed the- principles of filial piety. With devotion he waited upon his widowed mother during her life-time, and when she died he was pros- trated with grief and misery.
Guarding a Tomb Eight Years.
In his loving devotion he was quite unable to tear himself away from her tomb, by the side of which he took up his abode day and night for eight years, being protected from the sun by day and the dews by night by a shed which his neighbors erected over him as he lay on the ground. Since that time he has devoted himself to distributing medicine among the sick, and to reading the book of "Filial Piety " to his neighbors. Such filial piety should not, the viceroy thought, be left unnoticed, and he therefore suggested the erection of a memorial arch, which was graciously accorded.
But the strangest development of this virtue is the practice favored by dutiful sons and daughters of cutting off pieces of their own flesh to make soup for their aged or in-
«l
220
CHINA: PAST AND I'RKSKNT.
disposed parents. A notable example of this was reported to the throne some time ago by the same viceroy, who seems fortu- nate in the number of filial sons and daughters within his jurisdiction.
This particular in.stance refers to a young lady, a Miss Wang, who from her earliest years "exhibited a decorous propriety of conduct coupled with a love of study. She
LI-HUNG CHANG, VICEROY OF CHINA
was a diligent reader of Liu Hiang's " Lives of Virtuous Women," and the poems of Muh Lan.
At the age of thirteen, when her parents' desire to betroth her reached her ears, she retired to her room, and, with a pointed weapon, drew blood from her arm, with which she wrote a sentence announcing her intention to remain single in order that she
might devote herself to the care of her par- ents. At the age of eighteen she again refu.scd a proposed matrimonial alliance; and when the remains of her fathe ' her second brother, who had perish ■. the capture of Wuchang by the rebels, were brought back to Kaoyeo, she exclaimed, with tears, that since she could not leave her mother to follow her father to the grave, she would at least varnish his coffin with her blood
Thereupon she gashed her arm with a knife, ; Ilow- ing a stream of blood to mingle with the lacquer of the coffin. She had reached the age of twenty-six when her father's obseq' s were completed, and i her
mother and elc. ^thcr
urged her to marry, but she steadfastly declined, and devoted herself to waiting upon licr mother, with whom she shortly after- wards removed to Choh Chow, on her brother re- ceiving an appointment at Pekin as a reward for his father's services.
She allowed no hands but her own to wait upon her mother, and when, in 1862, her mother was at- tacked with a dangerous illness, she cut a piece of flesh from her left thigh to be admin- istered as a remedy. In less than a year, a fresh attack of illness supervened, when she cut a piece of flesh from her right thigh, recovery ensuing as before.
On subsequent occasions, when her parent was suffering from slight ailments, she ap- plied burning incense sticks to her arms and
h,
VARIETIES OF CUINKSH LlFlv
•21
used the calcined flesh to mingle with the remedies prescribed, and always with suc- cessful results.
After her mother's death, in 1872, she re- fused all sustenance during a period of three days, and was afterwards with difficulty per- suaded to taste food. Her brother shortly afterwards died, whereupon she escorted his remains to the ancestral home at Kaoyeo, and afterwards returning thence performed the same journey once more in attendance on her mother's coffin.
"The devotion and energy she had dis- played," adds the viceroy, "exceed what might be expected from one of the opposite sex, and it is solicited, in view of th< wide repute which has been gained by her \ irtues at Choh Chow, that a monument may be erected in her honor undc i" imperial sanc- tion."
Position of Women.
The surprise expressed by the viceroy that a woman should be capable of ardent filial piety affords some indication of the esteem in which women are held in China. From their cradles to their graves they stand at a distinct disa Jvantage as compared with men. In the ancient t)ook of odes mention is made of the custom of giving tiles to female infants for playthings, and sceptres to boys ; and in the same way throughout their careers \vomen are regarded as "moulded out of faults," and as being al- together unworthy of equal fellowship with men.
Following in the footsteps of their ancient philosophers. Chinamen have learnt to re- gard women with disdain and, in ignorance of the good that is in them, to credit them with much that is evil. Some of the char- acters in which the language is written afford an apt illustration of this perverted idea.
The ciiaracter used to represent a woman is a corruption <»f an Accadian heiroglyphic meaning the same thing. When we have two women together the comjjound is in- tended to convey the meaning of "to wrangle." The addition of a third woman makes a .symbol for " intrigue," and in con- firmation of the idea conveyed by these characters, wc find the compound composed of "women" and "together" means "to suspect," " to dislike," " to loathe. '
An Old Saying.
It was a saying reverenced among the Chinese that a woman should never be heard of outside of her home, an idea which is still preserved in the symbol for "rest," "quiet," which is a woman under lier domestic roof. This ideograph is singularly appropriate in a country where women are in much the same untutored state as that enjoyed by Turkish ladies when Byron wrote —
" No chc .stry for them unfolds its j;;ases , Xo 11- .aphysics are let loose in lectures ; No circulating library niiiasses Religious novels, moral tales, and strictures Upon the living manners r.3 they pass us ; No exhibition glares '.itli annual jMctures ; They stare not on the stars froiii out their attics. Nor deal (thank God for that !) in niutheniatics. "
Nu husband or male relative ever appears outside his own portal in company with his wife or female belongings, and social inter- course is thus entirely robbed of the soften- ing influences and elevating tendencies which are everj'wherc due to the presence of women. It is a mistake, however, to sup- pose that women do not in many respects hold their own, even in the oppressive atmos- phere of China ; for there, as elsewhere, as Rosalind says in the play, " Make the doors upon a woman's wit, and it will out at the casement ; shut that, and 'twill out at the
■Jf
^22
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
keyhole ; stop that, 'twill fly with the smoke out at the chimney."
But their sphere of influence is confined to their own homes. If they have friends and acquaintances elsewhere, they .ire among the ladies in other households, to whom they pay visits in closed sedan-chairs — of course, this has references to the wealthy classes — and to whose dwellings they are ad- mitted by the side doors. In the .'^ame half furtive manner they receive the return visits and entertain their friends in the "fragrant apartments," from which even the head of the household is rigidly excluded. What we call society is therefore confined to the men, who pay visits, give dinners, and enjoy picnics and excursions like people of all countries.
Long Dinners.
The only dinner-parties, therefore, of which the outside world has any knowledge are those which lose to us half their attractions by being robbed of the presence of ladies, and which are rendered abnormally tedious by their great length.
" 'Tis merrj- in hall Where beards wag all,"
says the old ballad, and Chinamen seem to be of the same opinion. Before the guests are seated a long and protracted struggle ensues to induce the punctiliously modest guests to take the places assigned to them.
When this formality is satisfactorily ar- ranged, innumerable courses are served, with long intervals of waiting, which would be excessively wearying were they not en- livened either by theatricals or some game such as the Italian Morra, in which he who makes a mistake in the number of fingers shown pays forfeit by drinking three or more glasses of wine. If at the conclusion of the
feast the guests are sober, which they very frequently are not, and if they are scholars the probability is that they settle down to writing quatrains of poetry on given sub- jects, when again the punishment for failure is the consumption of a certain quantity of wine.
bb:>utiful Scenery.
Like the Japanese, Chinamen are ardent lovers of beautiful scenery, and delight in picnicing in favored spots to admire the prodigality of Nature. Wherever mountains, lakes, or streams contrive to form attractive landscapes, tliere in the spring and summei seasons parties congregate and exchange ideas on everything under heaven except Im- perial politics.
The etiquette observed at these gatherings is all laid down with scrupulous exactitude, and is rigidly adhered to. Even a morning call is surrounded with an amount of cere- mony which to an American suggests infinite boredom. It is not considered proper for the visitor to walk to his friend's house, and unless he be a military mandarin, when he commonly rides, he sallies out in hi.'-, sedan- chair, followed by one or more servants, and armed with red visiting-cards about eight inches long and three wide, on which is in- scribed his name, with sometimes the addi- tion of the words, " Your stupid younger brother bows his head in salutation."
On approaching his friend's house, a ser- vant goes ahead with one of these cards and presents it at the door. If the host be out, the porter tells the servant " to stay the gen- tlemen's approach," but if he should be at home the front doors are thrown open and the visitor is carried in his sedan into the courtyard, where the host attired in his robes of ceremony, greets him with many bows.
Thence he is conducted to the central
ger
ser- and out, jen- e at and the ibcs s. itral
VARIETIES OF CHINESE LIFE.
223
hall, where, after much friendly contention as to the seats they shall occupy, the guest finally and invariably is induced to take the place of honor on his host's left hand.
The practice universally followed of the speaker applying adulatory terms towards his interlocutor and depreciatory ones towards himself, adds to the stilted formalities on such occasions. Everything connected with the person spoken to — his age, his neighbor- hood, his name, his relations, etc. — are " hon- orable," "respected," "lofty," and "distin- guished," while the speaker's are "con- temptible" and "rude." His friend's house is a "palace," his is "a reed hut."
"Is the Chariot Well?"
But perhaps the strangest of these set phrases are the indirect terms by which one man addresses another. On receiving a visitor, a common expression is, "Is the honorable chariot well?" meaning, of course, the man who drives in the chariot, or "you." In the same way, the term "beneath the council-chamber," and "at the feet," are similarly used, implying a wish that those addressed may become Ministers of State, " the feet," of course, being those of the Son of Heaven. But, however much acquaint- ances may discuss subjects relating to them- selves, no mention is ever made of their wives or daughters, who arc as completely tabooed, except between very intimate friends, as though they did not exist.
This estrangement between the sexes is carried out in deed as well as in word. It is laid down on authority that in no case may a woman and a man touch each other in giving and receiving, and so literally was this command accepted, that it was held by many that it was even improper for a man to save a woman from drowning.
A hypothetical case was put to Mencius
on the subject: "If one's sister-in-law is drowning, ought she to be drawn out with the hand?" To which Mencius replied, "It is wolfish not to draw out a drowning sister- in-law." And probably most people will agree with the philosopher. Even brothers and sisters, so soon as they have ceased to be children, are entirely separated, and are allowed intercourse only on formal condi- tions. Outside the family circle young men do occasionally, like Romeo, "with love's light wings o'er-perch the walls" of etiquette which surround the objects of their admira- tion, and we have abundance of evidence in native novels that communications are kept up between young ladies and stranger youths, but always with a most circumspect regard to the conventionalities.
Punishment for Eloping.
Prenuptial elopements occur but rarely, and the penalty which awaits the hasty pair in case of capture is imprisonment, which lasts as long as the vindictiveness of the parents determines. Commonly a maidser- vant acts as the Mercury between the lovers, and in one well-known novel the heroine nurses the hero in this vicarious way through a long illness, and eventually marries him out of regard for the scrupulous way in which he had confined himself to orthodox behavior.
In another romance the heroine, who, like most heroines in Chinese novels, was a Phciini.x of learning and possessed of an exquisite poetic talent, tests the hero's capa- bilities by setting him themes on which he is expected to write pieces of poetry, but she declines to write the themes, on the ground that things written in the women's apartments should not be handed about to be seen of men. In such an artificial state of society dangers nii'«^ =»rise, and the appre-
il
f.|
224
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
hension of it prompts mothers to desire to marr}' their daughters at as early an age as possible.
It not unfrequcntly happens that, as in India, mere infants arc betrothed, and noth- ing but the death of cither is considered suf- ficient to annul the bond. Even this event is not always accepted by the survivor, when the survivor is a girl, as a cancelling of the
PAVILION NEAR THE MENCIUS TEMPLE.
engagement. The Pckin Gazette bears testi- mony to the occurrence of such cases, though it must be acknowledged that the flourish of trumpets with which they are announced to the throne suggests the idea that they form the exceptions rather than the rule. Per- sonal feeling cannot enter into the considera- tion which prompts this action, for the probability is that the couple have never seen one another, and it can therefore only
be out of regard for the letter of the law, which custom decides must be observed.
A few years since a young lady was held up to admiration in a memorial to the throne for having starved herself to death on hearing of the decease of her betrothed, and cases are often officially reported in which the surviving young lady refuses positively to listen to any other marriage proposals.
One maiden lately earned distinction by clasping her betrothed 's memorial tablet to 0 her arms and going through the marriage ceremony with it. It is quite possible, how- ever, that the edge of these ; ^ng ladies' adherence to the rules of propriety may be sharpened by an appreciation of the more than usually precarious lottery which mar- riage is in China. It is true that young men occasionally pay the same honor to the memory of their deceased lovers, and are content to wed the shades of their mistresses ; but the same constancy is not e.vpected of them, nor if it existed would be approved of by the censors of Chinese morals.
Funeral Customs.
Having spoken of marriage, we now turn to Chinese customs observed in the burial of the dead.
"I venture to ask about death," said Chi Lu to Confucius. " While you do not know about life, how can you know about death ? " was the unsatisfying reply.
And though this is the orthodo.x Confu- cian view of the momentous question, the people at large have bettered the instruction of the sage and have developed a full faith in an after life, in which those who have done good pass to the blissful regions of the west, where, surrounded with peace and happiness, they live an eternal round of joy ; and those that have done evil are relegated to the in- fernal regions, where executioners even more
I
VARIETIES OF CHINESE LIFE.
225
cruel than those to which they are accus- tomed on earth, torture with merciless bru- tality.
Authors of works of a religious nature delight in describing in detail the horrors that await the spirits of evil-doers. They are sawn asunder, they are devoured by wild beasts, they are thrown into caldrons of boiling oil, they are committed to the flames, and if there are any other shameful and \io- lent deaths, they form a treasured part of the punishments of the condemned.
Dressed for Death.
These beliefs find expression in the elabo- rate ceremonial which surrounds the burial of the dead. On the approach of death the invalid is borne into the central hall, where, on a bed of boards, he is gently laid with his feet towards the door. In preparation for the decease his robes and hat of office, if he be a mandarin, and, if a commoner, his best attire, are placed beside him, and when the last supreme moment arrives he is dressed in state, and so meets his fate in full canonicals.
After death a priest is summoned, who, after having saved the soul from perdition by the use of incantations, calls upon one of the three spirits which are said to inhabit every man, to hasten to the enjoyment of bliss in the empyrean regions of the west. Of the two other spirits, one is supposed eventually to remain with the corpse in the grave, and the other to be attached to the ancestral tablet which ultimately finds its place in tiie family hall.
When this ceremony is completed, the chief mourner, in the company of friends and supporters — for grief is supposed to have so broken him down as to have ren- dered him unable to walk without the help of a friendly arm and of a sustaining staff" — goes to the nearest river or stream "to buy 16
water" to lave the features of the dead. Having thrown some copper cash into the water, accompanied sometimes by a small fish, which is supposed to announce the transaction to the river god, he fills a bowl from the current and returns to perform his sacred office.
The coffin is a massive structure, made of four boards, from three to four inches in thickness, of a hard and durable wood. In this the body is laid on a bed of quicklime and charcoal, and the cover is hermetically sealed with cement. This is necessary for the sake of the survivors, since custom pro- vides that the coffin should rrmain above ground for seven times seven days, and it sometimes happens that the inability of the astrologers to discover a lucky day for the interment, entails a stilllonger pre-sepulchral period.
A Tragic Incident.
Much virtue exists in the style and nature of the coffin, and most men as they advance in years provide themselves with their future narrow beds, if, indeed, their sons have not been sufficiently filially minded to make them presents of them. A tragic incident, in which an old man's coffin formed a leading feature, was lately described in the Pckin Gazette. A certain Mr. Chia had a son who was as dissolute as he was disrepcctful, and who, in a moment of financial pressure, sold the coffin which his father, witii prudent fore- sight, had prepared for his final rcsling-jilace.
On the theft being discovered, Chia at once charged his son with the crime, and in his anger swore that if the coffin were not returned he would, so soon as he recovered from an illness from whicii he was suffering, bring him before the authorities and cause him to be put to death. This threat so enraged the young man that, in a moment
\i\
226
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
of drunken fury, he strangled his father. For such a crime there could be only one sentence, and the wretched criminal was con- demned to the slow and lingering process of being sliced to death.
Before closing the coffin it is customary to put in the mouth of the deceased five prec- ious substances, which vary in value with the wealth of the family. The Chinese do not offer any explanation of this practice, not even the very reasonable Roman explanation, that the money so placed serves as the wage due to Charon for the passage over the Styx.
Valuables Buried.
In some parts of the country, also, it is usual to deposit by the side of the body any object or objects, such as books, pipes, etc., which may have been especially valued by the deceased. The coffin is closed in the presence of the family, who prostrate them- selves before the bier. When the day chosen by the soothsayers for the interment arrives, offerings of cooked provisions are placed beside the coffin, and the mourners, dressed in coarse white sackcloth, perform endless prostrations before it.
Should the deceased have been a man of consideration, a vast concourse assembles to follow him to the grave. A curious super- stition attaches to the first raising of the coffin. At the moment that the bearers lift the sarcophagus, the relatives all fly from the room, it being believed that should any mis- adventure occur, the spirit of the deceased would avenge itself on all those who were present at the moment of the removal. The number of bearers is regulated by the posi- tion of the family, and varies from sixty-four to four.
When the procession is formed, a man carrying a long streamer of white cloth, known as the " soul-cloth," marches in front,
followed by two men bearing banners, on which are inscribed sentences implying a hope that the deceased may be enjoying himself in the company of the blessed. After these comes a man holding up a white cock, which is supposed to summon the soul to accompany the body, and behind him follow two sedan-chairs, in the first of which is carried the ancestral tablet of the dead man, and in the second his portrait.
Supporting themselves by the shafts of these sedan-chairs, two of the principal mourners drag themselves along. The eldest son, if there be one, immediately precedes the coffin, and affects complete inability to walk without the help of the staff of wood, or of bamboo, according to whether he is mourning for his father or his mother, which he carries in his hand.
Scattering Paper Money.
Behind the coffin follow the female rela- tives and friends. Even on this solemn occasion the frivolous rules for the separation of the sexes are rigorously observed, and a white cord, held at the ends by two men, is sometimes used to separate the male from the female mourners. As the procession advances, paper money is scattered on all sides to appease the hunger of any destitute ghosts which may be haunting the road. With the coffin a pot of rice is lowered into the grave, and grains and tea are scattered over it. In some parts of the south it is customary to bury effigies of cows in the grave as correctives against evil influences.
As the grave-diggers shovel in earth to earth, the priest takes the white cock, and, standing at the foot of the tomb, makes the bird bow thrice towards the coffin. This strange rite is repeated by the chief mourners, and the " soul-cloth " is then burned to ashes. After a short exhortation from one of the
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his
deceased, the procession re-forms, and returns to the house in the same order in which it set out.
On crossing the threshold of their home, it is sometimes customary for the mourners to purify themselves by stepping over a fire made of straw, after which their first dutj' is to carry the deceased's tablet, with every token of respect, to the principal room, where it remains for a hundred days. The mourners then proceed to celebrate " the feast of the dead," and with that the funeral cere- mony may be said to be brought to a close. For thirty days the nearest relatives of the deceased abstain from shaving their heads or changing their clothes, and for twenty-seven months sons are expected to wear all the panoply of woe.
Brief Period of Mourning.
Married daughters, having passed out of the family circle, are not always invited to the obsequies ; but when they are, they are not expected to mourn for more than seven days. At the end of that time they adorn themselves once again in jewelry and colors, and so return to their homes, it being considered contrary to etiquette for tliciii to carry the signs of lamentation into their hus- bands' presence.
Many of the ceremonials surrounding fun- erals vary in different parts of the country as much as the shapes given to the tombs. In some parts it is the practice for the mourn- ers to put on mourning only on the third day after the death has taken place, it being con- sidered that it is within the bounds of possi- bility that a trance, and not death, may hold the patient senseless. For a considerable period those who are husbands are bound to be as strangers to their wives, and all are for- bidden to seek recreation at the theatres or concert-rooms.
For seven days a widow mourning the loss of her husband is supposed to show her grief by sitting on the ground instead of on chairs, and by sleeping upon a mat instead of upon her bed. On the seventh day it is custo- mary for friends to send presents of cakes and banners, the first of which are presented as offerings to the dead man, while the ban- ners are hung ronnd the hall in which the coffin reposes. By this time all hope of his return to life has disappeared, and the letters which accompany the gifts of friends are burnt in the sacred fire and are so transmitted to the manes of the dead in the blessed regions of the West.
On the same day priests offer up prayers for the flight of the soul to its new abode, and construct a bridge by an arrangement of tables and stools over which the effigy of the deceased is carried, thus emblematizing the removal of the soul from Hell to Heaven.
Fear of Ghosts.
In many of the ceremonies we see traces of the old-world fear that the ghostly pres- ence of the dead may possibly haunt the survivors. The priest at the grave commonly adjures the spirit to remain with the body ; and, as a rule, a sufficiently weighty super- incumbent mass of earth, stone or masonry is placed over the tomb to prevent the pos- sibility of a resurrection. In the hilly south the graves are dug on the sides of hills, and the tomb is shaped like a horseshoe.
In the north, where the country is for the most part flat, conically sliaped mounds sur- rounded by a bank and ditch form the ordi- nary graves. Wealthy families generally have grave-yards of their own, surrounded by a belt of cypress trees, which are sup- posed to offer complete protection from a huge monster who, ghoul-like, delights in devouring the dead. The tombs of nobles
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are often approached by an avenue of stone figures, representing ministers of state, war- riors, horses, camels, sheep, tigers, etc., and the same kinds of statues ornament the Im- perial tombs ; the figures are, as a rule, more than life-size, and in many cases are executed with considerable taste and skill.
The body of a member of a family who dies away from home is invariably brought back to the ancestral hall with one exception. If his home should be within the walls of a city, nc ceremonial punctilios and no senti- mental feelings avail to counterbalance the law which forbids the introduction of a dead body within the walls of a city.
Honors to Mandarins.
Occasionally some mandarin who has died in his country's service, after having gained honors and distinctions, is allowed by the special edict of the Emperor to be borne through the streets of his native city, but even the body of such a one is not allowed to rest within the walls. This rule may possibly show that the Chinese are not en- tirely blind to the laws of .sanitation, and the regulation which forbids all intramural burial seems also to point in the same direction.
No such ceremonies as those described above attend the funerals of infants, un- married children, concubines or slaves, and it is no uncommon sight to see in the north of China the bodies of these unfortunates thrown out upon the plains and on the hills to be devoured by beasts of prey. Crema- tion is never practiced in China except in the case of Buddhist priests, and the only con- tingency in which the practice is sanctioned by the penal code is when relatives " happen to die in a distant country and the children or grandchildren are unable to bring the corpse to be interred in the native district of the deceased."
In all other circumstances, the penalty ot a hundred blows is to be awarded to any one " who consumes a corpse with fire or commits it to the waters." In bygone days it was the practice, on the death of an Em- peror, to immolate the favorite wives at the tomb of the deceased potentate, and at the grave of Shunchi, the first Emperor of the present dynasty, thirty persons were buried beside him. His son Kanghk'si (1661- 1 721), however, put an end to the practice by commanding that the four wives who had paid him the compliment of wishing to accompany him into Hades should be for- bidden to sacrifice their lives for so useless a purpose.
Other curious Chinese customs relate to the Emperor and his Court. The Son of Heaven admits no equality on the part of any other sovereign in the world, and this refusal his occasioned a vast amount of con- troversy. No one can have an audience with him as an equal.
Audiences With the Emperor.
The audience question has occupied a prominent place in recent negotiations with China, and probably many people are sur- prised that so ordinary a matter should have been so constantly a subject of debate. But Chinese ways are not our ways, and a cere- mony which among civilized nations is regarded as a common act of courtesy between sovereigns, has in China become complicated by the absurd pretensions of the Government to a superiority over all the world.
Like a spoilt heir who has been brought up in secluded surroundings, the Chinese have long been surfeited with dominion and glory in the midst of neighboring tribes, who stand on a lower level of civilization than that which they occupy. In the long history of
VARIETIES OF CHINESE LIFE.
22!)
the Empire such an event as an ambassador being received as representing a sovereign on terms of equahty with tiie Emperor, has never been known ; and this pretension to supre- macy, which materially contributes to the maintenance of the power which the Empire possesses, enters into the life of the nation and is, to a great extent, a matter of life and death in its present unregenerate state.
Court of the " Son of Heaven." The proposal, therefore, that the foreign ministers resident in Pekin she Id be re- ceived in the manner common in civilized countries, has deen persistently combated by the mandarins. It must be confessed that precedent has been in their favor. The Portuguese and Dutch ambassadors, who visited Pekin in the seventeenth and eigh- teenth centuries, all submitted to the degra- dation of appearing as envoys of tributaries at the court of the Son of Heaven.
From an account given of the mission of Alexander Metello de Sousa Menezes, in 1727, we learn that at the audience granted to him by the Emperor Yungcheng, " his excellency entered the western gates [of the reception hall], ascended the steps of the throne, and, kneeling, presented his creden- tials ; he then rose, went out by the same way, and in front of the middle door that was open the ambassador and retinue performed the usual act of obedience, that is, knelt and struck their heads on the ground nine times. About a century earlier a Dutch embassy was treated with even greater contempt. The ambassador and his staff met " with a vile reception and degrading treatment. They were required to humiliat° themselves at least thirty different times ; at each of which they were obliged, on their knees, to laiock their heads ni..., times against the ipound, which," adds Barrow, in his "Travels
in China," " Mr. Van Braams, in his journal, very coolly calls performing the salute of honor."
Lord Macartney, in 1793, had the honor of being the first who refused to submit to this degrading ceremony. Happily at this time a sovereign was on the throne who had sufificient independence to sanction a depar- ture from the ordinary routine, and who had sufficient good sense to do honor to the self- respect of the ambassador. On arriving at Pekin Lord Macartney found that the Empe- ror Kienlung wps at his hunting-palace at Jehol (whither, in i860, the Emperor Hien- feng fled before the allied forces of England and France). By Kienlung's invitation. Lord Macartney proceeded to Jehol, and was there received by him in a magnificent tent in the palace garden.
His Majesty Appears.
In accordance with Eastern custom, the audience was granted at sunrise, and further, in accordance with practice, the ambassador was required to be in attendance some hours before the arrival of the Emperor. This delay was sufficiently discourteous, but it was an improvement on the treatment to which the Dutch ambas.sador had been subjected in the preceding century, when the unfortunate envoy was left sitting "all night in the open air, and upon the blue stones till morning."
Soon after daylight the sound of music announced the Emperor's approach, and without further delay his majesty took his seat upon a throne set up in the tent. On all sides he was surrounded by princes of the blood and the highest officers of state, some of whom conducted the ambassador from the tent in which he had awaited the Emperor's arrival to the Imperial presence.
" The ambassador, pursuant to instructions, received from the president of ceremonies, held
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a large magnificent square gold box, embel- lished with jewels, containing his majesty's letter to the Emperor, between both hands, raised above his head, and mounting the steps which lead to the throne, and bending upon one knee, presented the box with a suitable laconic address, to his Imperial Majesty, who received it graciously with his own hands, put it by his side and represented the satisfaction he felt at the testimony which his Britannic Majesty gave to him of his esteem and good will in sending him an em- bassy, with a letter, and rare presents ; that he, on his part, entertained sentiments of the same kind towards the sovereign of Great Britain, and hoped that harmony would always be maintained among their respective subjects."
Ceremonies Set Aside.
At a feast which was subsequently given to Lord Macartney and the chief Tartar tributaries, the Emperor marked his regard for the English ambassador by sending him several dishes from his own table, and by presenting to him and his staff cups of wine with his own hand.
The reception thus accorded to Lord Macartney showed a marked advance towards the customs of civilized nations. The kotow was not insisted .upon, and though the am- bassador bent one knee in presenting his cre- dentials, the audience, taken as a whole, was as satisfactory as could have been expected. To the Emperor Kienlung succeeded Kia King, who was as bigoted and narrow-minded as his father had been liberal and enlightened.
To him Lord Amherst was accredited in 1816, and from the first opening of negotia- tions it became at once obvious that the new Emperor was determined to return from the position taken up by his predecessor to the preposterous pretensions of former times.
Even before Lord Amherst's arrival at Pekin he was met by the asseverations of the com- missioners deputed to meet him that he could only be admitted into the Imperial presence by consenting to perform what Van Braams described as " the salute of honor." This he positively declined to do, and the commissioners, who had distinct orders to arrange an audience, were at their wits' end how to reconcile the Imperial commands with the ambassador's attitude. The symbol used to express on paper the word " deceit " is made up, as has been said, of parts signi- fying a " woman's weapon."
Way Out of a Difficulty.
In China " a man's weapon " would be equally applicable, and, in this particular in- stance, the commissioners determined to use this well-worn arm to rid themselves of the difficulty. In later communications with Lord Amherst they agreed to waive the point, and assured him that all that would be demanded of him would be such a genu- flection as had been performed by Lord Macartney.
To the Emperor, however, they reported that the ambassador was ready to obey his commands, and they even drew up a docu- ment in which the whole ceremony was min- ntely described, and in which the ambas- sador and suite were made to perform the kotow on several occasions. In pursuance of his arrangement with these double-faced gentlemen, Lord Amherst went to Yuen- Ming-Yuen, where the Emperor was then residing.
It was, however, plainly impossible for the commissioners to admit him into the Im- perial presence, since they knew that it would be beyond their power to make him perform the kotow, and were equally aware that the absence of the act would bring
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down the wrath of tlic Emperor upon them. The manceuvre wliich they adopted in this difficulty is interesting. They per- suaded the Emperor to order the ambas- sador into his presence the instant he ar- rived at the palace. As the journey had been long and tedious, and the ambassador was way-worn and weary, he excused him- self from obeying this very discourteous command, as the commissioners expected he would do, on the ground of fatigue. They then prompted the Emperor to dismiss him from the court, and the luckless ambassador was obliged to return with his mission un- fulfilled.
An Opportunity Lost.
In accordance with civilized usage, the re- sidence of the foreign ministers at Pekin would naturally entail their being received in audience by the Emperor ; and, if Lord Elgin, when in command of Pekin, had in- sisted upon the fugitive Emperor Hienfeng returning to the capital to receive him in audience, no further difficulties on the sub- ject would have arisen. But the opportun- ity was allowed to lapse, and a true solution of the difficulty has still to be arrived at.
The death of Hienfeng, in 1861, and the long minority of his successor Tungchi, postponed any further consideration of the matter until 1873. In that year the Em- peror, having attained his majority, and hav- ing signalized the event by taking to himself three wives, accepted the reins of power from the Dowager Empresses, who had gov- erned the Empire during the past twelve years. The time had thus arrived when the audience question had again to be consid- ered ; and, after much negotiation with the ruling powers, it was arranged that the foreign ministers should be collectively granted a reception at such time and place
as the Emperor might determine. This was the best that could be done.
The Chinese authorities, recognizing that the kotoiv was no longer in question, directed all their efforts towards persuading the min- isters to bow the knee after the precedent set by Lord Macartney. But against this pro- position the ministers showed a determined front, and the Chinese, being compelled to give way on this point also, turned their at- tention to obtaining some advantages in re- turn for the concessions accorded.
The Dutch and Portuguese ministers, who
A HIGH-CASTE MANDARIN.
had bowed to the ground in the presence of the Son of Heaven, had been received in the Imperial audience-chamber within the pal- ace ; and Lord Macartney, who had bent the knee, had been allowed to place his creden- tials in the hands of the Emperor. As the present generation of ministers had refused either to kotow or genuflect, it became neces- sary to emphasize the superiority of the Em- peror over the sovereigns whom they rep- resented, by refusing them admittance within the gates of the palace.
A pavilion, known as the Tzu-Kuang Ko, was, therefore, chosen for the ceremony.
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According to the best autluritics, this build- ing is that in which the Mongol princes and Corean ambassadors are feasted at the New- Year. It is here, also, that Manchu military exercises are performed, and wrestling matches are held for the amusement of the Emperor.
The edifice was, therefore, not one in which ministers of sovereigns on an etjuality with the Emperor would naturally have been received. The native guide-books describe it as the place where " New Year receptions arc granted to the outer tribes," and the choice of it was doubtless intended by the mandarins to be a set-off against the conces- sions they had made. But it was also part of the arrangement that the ministers should not give their credentials into the hands of the Emperor, but should deposit them on a table set in the hall for the purpose ; and that they should then be presented by Prince Kung to the Emperor.
Costumes for the Occasion.
On the day appointed (June 29) the min- isters were early astir, as the Emperor had fi.\cd the audience at the very inconvenient hour of between si.K and seven in the morn- ing. The place of audience being close to thj Roman Catholic cathedral and mission house, the five representatives of Western powers — England, France, America, Russia and the Netherlands — met there to attire themselves in costumes befitting the august occasion. Thence they were escorted to the Shih-ying Kung, where confectionery, tea and Chinese wine from the Emperor's but- tery were offered them.
Mere they were kept waiting for more than an hour, and were then led to a tent pitched on the west side of the pavilion of audience. They might have reasonably hoped that this move meant the immediate
arrival of the Emperor. But, if this was their expectation, they were di.sappointed, and it was only after a further delay of at least an hour and a half that the representa- tive of Japan, who, being an ambassador, was introduced separately, was summoned to the Imperial presence.
The five European representatives were next introduced, and were led by a door on the west side of the pavilion into the central aisle of the hall. As they faced the north- ern end, where the Emperor was seated on his throne, they bowed in concert. They then " advanced a few paces and bowed again, then advanced a few paces further, bowing again, and halted before a long yellow table about halfway up the hall."
How they were Seated.
The Emperor, who was surrounded by his advisers and courtiers, was, it was ob- served, seated cross-legged according to the Manchu custom. When all had taken up their appointed positions, the minister of Russia, as doyen of the corps, read aloud an address in French, which was made intelligible to the Emperor by an interpreter, who delivered a version in Chinese for his benefit.
Says Sir Thomas Wade : " As soon as the adJ'ess was delivered we laid our letters of credence upon the table. The Emperor made a slight bow of acknowledgment, and the Prince of Kung, falling upon both knees at the foot of the throne, his majesty appeared to speak to him — I say appeared, because no sound reached my ears. We had been told, however, that the Emperor would speak in Manchu, and that the prince would interpret. Accordingly, as soon as his highness rose, he descended the steps, and informed us that his majesty declared that the letters of cre- dence had been received.
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"Tlicn, returning to his place, he again fell upon his knees, and the ICmpcror, ha\ing again spt)ken tij him in a low tone, he again descended the steps, and, coming up to us, informed us that his majesty trusted that our respective rulers were in good healtli, and expressed a hope that foreign affairs might all be satisfactorily arranged between the foreign ministers and the Emperor. This closed the audience, which may have lasted a little more than five minutes. We than all withdrew in the usual fashion, moving back- ward and bowing."
Departure From Precedent.
Sir Thomas Wade, and probably the other ministers, recognized that this reception con- .stituted a marked departure from precedent, although they were fully alive to the short- comings it manifested. To begin with, the Imperial decree granting the audience was worded in a dictatorial tone, which was, to say the least, discourteous. " The Tsungli Yamun " (answering nearly to our Cabinet at Washington), so runs this document, " hav- ing presented a memorial to the effect that the foreign ministers residing in Pekin have implored us to grant an audience that they may deliver letters from their Governments, we command that the foreign ministers resi- ding in Pekin, who have brought letters from tlicir Governments, be accorded audience. Respect this."
The long periods of waiting in the Shih- ying Kung, and afterwards in the tent, were doubtless intended to mark the condescension of the Emperor in granting the audience, and, together with the very perfunctory cere- mony in the hall, were indications which forbade the cherishing of any high hopes as to the effects likely to be produced by the reception. With a self-complacency which almost amounted to an impertinence, a
Chinese statesman informed one of the foreign ministers after the audience that the princes who waited on the luiiperor had been surprised and plcasetl at the demeanor of himself and his colk-agues.
Such a remark illustrates the supercilious contempt with which the Chine se tlignitaries regard foreigners generally, and emphasizes an ignorance which would be remarkable considering that the foreign legations had then been established in Pekin for twelve years, if we did not know how entirely the courtiers hold themselves aloof from the for- eign ministers.
It had been proposed that an annual reception should be given to the foreign plenipotentiaries, but the sudden death of the Emperor from small-pox put an end to this scheme. Another long minority suc- ceeded, and it was not until the assumption of the ruling power, by the present Emperor, in 1 89 1, that a reception was again held. The decree published in the Peiifi Gazette announcing this event was laconic, but at least had the advantage over that published on the previous occasion, in that the deroga- tory expressions therein used were omitted.
Request for an Audience.
The decree was dated March 4, and ran thus: "At 11.30 to-morrow the Emperor will receive in audience at the Tzu-Kuang Ko all the nations." The ceremony on this occasion was almost identical with that which took place in 1873. The intervening eigh- teen years had not taught the Chinese any- thing as regards foreigners, and their attitude then and now was and is as ante-foreign as ever it has been.
On his arrival at Pekin in 1893, Mr. O'Conor requested an audience, which was granted him with a change of venue. Instead of the Tzu-Kuang Ko, the Chcr'^-Kuang
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CHINA: PAST AND PRKSKNT.
Tien, a temple which stands outside the palace enclosure, was chosen for the cere- mony. Here again the same forms were followed, and the event was as barren of results as were those of 1873 and 1891.
So matters stand at present, and the ques- tion suggests itself, " Of what use have these audiences been ? " In civilized countries the reception of a minister by the sovereign to whose court he is accredited is a testimony of the friendship of that monarch towards his royal master. It also facilitates negotia- tions between the two countries. It serves, therefore, a substantially useful purpose.
In China, however, neither of these ends can possibly be attained by such receptions as those accorded to the foreign ministers. The Emperor, so far as it is possible to judge, is in the hands of his advisers, who, as Sir Thomas Wade told us some years ago, are as bitterly anti-foreign as ever, and in whose word, the foreign ministers solemnly declared, in 1 891, that "no faith could be put."
As to facilitating negotiations between
China and foreign countries, the wildest en- thusiasts could not hope for any such result. It may be said that this is but the beginning of things, and that we have no right to ex- pect any great and rapid change in the atti- tude of the Chinese court towards us. This would be plausible if in the thirty years dur- ing which the legations have been established in Pekin there has been shown any advance of friendliness.
On no occasion could any such change be better manifested than at an Imperial rccep-^ tion, but time has made no change in the manner in which our ministers are received; for it is impossible to see any sign of a pro- gressive movement in the exchange of the Cheng-Kuang Tien for the Tzu-Kuang Ko as an audience-chamber.
The fact is that other nations are too much inclined to pursue here, as in other dealings with China, the cap-in-hand attitude. They have humbly implored, to use the Emperor's own words, to be admitted into the Imperial presence, and have reaped reward. They have been suppliants and have been treated as such.
CHAPTER XIII. FOOD, DRESS AND AMUSEMENTS OF THE CHINESE.
IT is probable that in tlie congested dis- tricts of Southern China the population is more dense than in any other coun- try, and the struggle for existence is proportionately severe. If it were not for the small wants and meagre diet of China- men, such swarms of human beings as are to be seen in Canton, for example, where, the land being unable to contain the inhabitants, the streets may be said to have been carried on to the surface of the river, could not exist. Two bowls of rice with scraps of vegetables or pieces of fish added, suffice for the daily food of countless thousands of the people. With all classes rice and vegetables form the staple food, as we find illustrated by the fact that the native equivalents of these words are used to express food generally. In his invi- tation to partake of the most sumptuous viands the host will ask his guest " to eat rice," and a servant announcing a feast will proclaim that "the vegetables are served."
To the production of grain and vegetables every available scrap of land and all the energies of the people are devoted. There is probably not an acre of meadow land in China. Flocks of sheep and herds of cattle are, therefore, unknown ; and the beasts which arc reared on the sides of the hills, and with artificial food, are so few in number that the flesh is obtainable only by the wealthiest of those who are freed from the Buddhistic belief in the transmigration of souls. Pigs, fowls, ducks, and fish are more cheaply obtained, and it is probable that pork forms quite half the meat which is eaten.
Ducks Jire reared in enormous quantities, the eggs as well as those of fowls being for the most part hatched by artificial heat.
There being no ownership in rivers, the fishing industry is carried on without let or hindrance. By net, by line, by the clever use of light to attract, and of noise to frighten, the fish are captured from the streams and supply a cheap and most useful article of food. Every kind of living creature which moves in the waters is eaten, and even water snakes form a common article of food. These, with eels, carp, and tench, are, when caught, commonly kept in tanks, where they are carefully fed, and are sold as required. Most of the fishing-boats have tanks in which the captured fish are kept alive, and though the flesh suffers from the artificial food and surroundings, the prudent economy of the system recommends it to the frugal minds of the natives.
Disgusting Articles of Food
These, then, with rice at their head, are the staples of life. But the same poverty which induces Chinese parents to murder their female infants prompts them occasion- ally to take advantage of less savory viands to satisfy their hunger. It is an undoubted fact that rats, dogs, and horseflesh are sold in Canton and elsewhere. The passing trav- eller may see dried ra'.s hung up in poulterers' shops, and a little investigation will prove indisputably to him that horseflesh, even when the animal has met its death in another way than at the butcher's shambles, is greed-
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ily devoured. Necessity sometimes supplies St. .'.nye articles of diet.
It is an unquestionable fact that China- men will eat, and apparently without any ill effects, meat which would poison English- men and Americans. The flesh of horses which have died of glanders, and of other animals which liave succumbed to diseases of all sorts, are eaten by the beggars and other poverty-stricken people, who infest the streets of all large c.ties. A superstition also attaches to the flesh of dogs and cats, especially black ones. It is considered emi- nently nutritious, and is recommended by the doctors as a wholesome and invigorating diet in the summer season, as well as a gen- eral preventative against disease.
Strange Remedy for Baldness.
The same high authorities prescribe a course of rat's flesh for people inclined to baldness. The late Archdeacon Gray, who probably knew Canton better than any living foreigner, in speaking, in his work on China, of a cat and dog restaurant, says: "The flesh is cut into small pieces and fried with water chestnuts and garlic in oil. In the Avindow of tl j restaurant dogs' carcases are suspended for the purpose, I suppose, of at- tracting the attention of passers by. Pla- cards are sometimes placed above the door, setting forth that the flesh of black dogs and cats can be served up at a moment's notice ; " and then he proceeds to give a translation of a bill of fare such as hangs on the walls of the dininir-moms.
The supposed medicinal properties of these horrible articles of food no doubt prompt many people to partake of them. In the northern cities of the Empire it is usual in the autunm to see men selling locusts fried in oil at the corners of streets, much as peo- ple offer roasted chestnuts for sale in our
own thoroughfares. The locusts so dealt with are regartled as a luxury, and are con- sidered to be more nutritive and better fla- vored if they are thrown into the boiling oil alive. But whatever the food may be, other than grain, it is cut up into small pieces to suit the requirements of the chopsticks, which are invariably used to transfer the food from the plate to the mouth.
Onions and Garlic.
Knives and forks are unknown for this purpose, and the two sticks, which to for- eigners are such stumbling-blocks at native dinners, furnish all that a Chinaman wants with which to supply himself with even the most oleaginous food. The presence of ex- cessive quantities of oil and fat in Chinese cooking is to Europeans its great offence, lid the large admixture of onions and garlic adds another obnoxious feature to ordinary viands ; but, apart from these peculiarities, the food is always well cooked, and authori- ties affirm that it is eminently digestible.
The following Chinese dishes, taken from the mi'HU of the dinner which was given by the Chinese of Hong Kong to the Duke of Connaught, give a good idea of the sort of fare which a Chinese host presents to his guests on state occasions :
"Birds'-nest soup. Stewed shell-fish. Cassia mushrooms. Crab and sharks' fins. ' Promotion ' (boiled quail, etc ). Fried ma- rine delicacies. Fish gills, Sliced teal. Pekin mushrooms. Beches-de-mer. Sliced pigeon. Macaroni."
The mention of some of these dishes is enough to explain why it is that foreigners come away hungry from a Chinese diimer- party; nor are their appetites encouraged by the fact that the feasters, in the enjoyment of the good things provided, generally fmd it necessary to discard some of their clothing
FOOD, DRESS AND AMUSEMENTS.
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to adjust their heightened temperatures. Their system of dress is admirably adapted for this kind of emergency. Lii<e their food it possesses some admirable qualities, some doubtful ones, and others which are repul- sive. Its general character is looseness ; nothing fits tightly to the person, and com- plete freedom is thereby secured to the limbs.
Hurried by Them.
It is a canon of Chinese art that the out- line of the human frame should never be more than dimly indicated. For this reason a sculpture gallery is abhorrent to them, as was amusingly shown on the occasion of a visit paid to the British Museum by the first Chinese Minister at the Court of St. James. At the first sight of the beautiful objects in the Greek and Roman galleries he looked around him in bewilderment, and then, real- izing the situation, hurried by them with significant haste, looking neither to his right hand nor to his left.
On this principle the dress of all China- men partakes of the nature of robes, which reach from the neck to the ankles — conceal- ing loose vests, and trousers which among the better classes are encased in gaiters of materials suited to their conditions. Above the upper part of the robe there is com- monly worn a jacket made of stuffs acconl- ing to the season, silks in summer, and wadded cotton or fur in the winter months. The dresses of the mandarins and their wives are, as has been already stated, strictly regulated by sumptuary laws.
Since the rise of the Manchus to power, the buttons on the caps have been aJded to distinguish the various grades in the official hierarchy. The first to institute this system was Tsungte, the immediate pj'edecessor of Shunchi, the first Emperor of the present Manchu line, who reigned in Manchuria
from 1636 to 1644. At his command every official was obliged to wear a gold button on his cap to distinguish him from the common herd. By degrees further distinctions were introduced. To a high official was assigned a gold button set in pearls, while to a gen- eral was given one surronnded with precioi:s stones. From this beginning the present system arose.
Another and a far greater innovation than this was introduced by the Manchu invaders. As a badge of conquest, they compelled the whole male population to shave the front part of the head and to wear the queue, which now distinguishes the Chinese from the rest of mankind. The manner in which this badge was adopted, and the tenacity w.h which it is now adhered to, are worthy of note as illustrating the character of the people.
Fond of His Cue.
At first it was fiercely resisted, even unto death. The vanquished everywhere took up' aims against it, and it was only by violence varied with cajolery that the Manchus were eventually able to compel its adoption.. When once it was accepted, however, it came to be regarded with the greatest affec- tion, and no greater indignity can be inflicted on a loyal Chinaman of the present day than to cut off the queue, against the adoption ot which his ancestors fought .so strenuously.
But with the Taepings and other rebels the disappearance of the queue, and the growth of the hair on the head, have been accepted as badges of antagonism to the present dynasty, and the discovery in a dis- affected district of a man \\ith these distin- guishing marks secures him but a short shrift before he is called upon to expiate his disloyalty on the execution ground. But to return to the dress of the officials. The cap'
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varies in shape and material according to the season. In summer it consists of a round cone made of fine straw or bamboo, and is covered with a tassel of red silken cords which radiate from the apex. In winter it is turned up at the brim, and is covered with dark satin, over which falls in the same way a similar tassel.
The button is fixed in a gold setting above
irrespective of the condition of the theremo- meter.
The wives of mandarins render their offi- cial attire as splendid as rich silks, gay colors, and bright embroideries can make them. In shape they are identical with those worn by women of every degree in the Empire, and consist of a loose tunic reaching to the knees, which buttons at the neck and under
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the tassel at the centre of the crown. The changes of uniform at the summer and win- ter seasons are carefully regulated by law, and, in obedience to Imperial edicts, pub- lished as the periods approach, every man- darin, from the great wall on the north to the boundaries on Tonquin on the south, makes his official change of attire on the days exactly specified by the Emperor, quite
the right arm. A pair of trousers drawn in at the ankle completes tiie attire on ordinary occasions, but on high days and holidays an embroidered petticoat, which hangs .square both before and behind, is worn by ladies.
The hair is ahva)-s carefully dressed and gayly adorned, but in ways and fashions which differ in every part of the Empire. Flowers, both natural and artificial, are
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FOOD, DRESS AND AMUSEMENTS.
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largely used as ornaments to the head, and richly chased and jewelled hairpins are added to give taste to the coiffure. These last are often of considerable value, and are com- monly presents cither from parents or hus- bands. They not unfrequently form the principal part of the property belonging to the owners, and in cases of emergency they are the first things resorted to for the pur- pose of raising money. They are sometimes given also by their fair owners to friends as tokens of regard, and in many plays and novels their disappearance from the heads of wives is made to arouse the same suspicions in the minds of the ladies' husbands as the loss of Desdemona's handkerchief did in the poisoned brain of Othello.
Diminutive Feet.
The striking feature, however, in the women's appearance and gait is their mis- shapen feet. In most lands the desire is to give freedom of movement, but an absurd fashion, backed by the weight of centuries, has crippled and disabled countless genera- tions of the women ir China. No sufficient explanation has ever been gi\'en of the origin of this very unnatural custom, which is all the more objectionable as Chinawomen, speaking generally, are gifted with finely shaped hands and feet.
The saying of a French lad)' that one must suffer to be beautiful is certainly true — accepting the Chinese estimate of the fashion — in the case of the poor ladies of China. The size and shape of the foot which fashion requires are only to be attained by a disloca- tion which causes great pain in the first instance, and often permanent suffering. At an early age, generally when the child is about four or five, the process begins by the feet being bound tightly round in the re- quired shape. The four smaller toes are
bent under the foot, the big toe is some- times brought backwards on the top of the foot, and the instep is forced upwards and backwards. In this way the foot is clubbed and is forced into a shoe from about three to four inches long.
A Fashion that Inilicts Pain.
The little victims of this cruel fashion unquestionably suffer great pain in the early stages, but as a rule the skin, which at first is dreadfully abrased, becomes gradually hardened, and as those whose feet are .squeezed into shoes of the size mentioned are ladies who are not required to move about much, their feet probably answer all the purposes expected of them.
This is not saying much. A lady scarcely walks at all. If she goes out she is either carried in a sedan-chair, or, in the north of the countrj', in a carriage. Within doors she either hobbles about, leaning on a stick or on the shoulder of a waiting-maid, or is carried on the back of a servant. It is obvious that this extreme compression would render women of the poorer classes quite unfitted to fulfil tiieir necessary avocations, and with them therefore the feet are allowed greater sco^;"
The custom is entirely confined to the Chinese ; the Manclui conquerors having never submitted their own women to the tor- ture and discomfort of the practice, neither, also, have the boat populations thought it necessary to deform themselves for the sake of fishion. It is even said that in the neigh- borhood of Ningi)o a movement is on foot among the Christian population to abolish this fetish of fashion, but it is doubtful whether its promotion by converts from the national religion will do much to advance even so rational an object.
In their desire to make beautiful what is
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naturally so u;^!y, the women delight to adorn the shoes with licli and bright embroidery ; and fortunately for them the swaying gait whicli the fashion compels them to assume in walking has come to be re- garded as a winsome beauty. Poets are never tired of describing in verse the leaf- shaped eyebrows, the willow waists, and the swaying movements of Chinese ladies, which they liken to boughs gently waving in the wind.
It is well that it is possible to find some- thing to say in favor of the cruel custom of crippling the feet of the women, and cynic- ally minded Chinamen add to their approval of the grace which it imparts to the step, their appreciation of the fact that it prevents ladies from gadding about. This it certainly does, and even the exercise which they arc tempted to take in their gardens is confined ,^ very limited excursions.
Beautiful Flowers and Gardens.
The love of flowers seems to be inherent in the people of the extreme East, and their gardens are to both the men and women of China a never-failing delight. With much taste they lay out the ground and dispose the flowers to the best possible advantage. As landscape gardeners they are unsurpassed, and succeed by skilful arrangement in giving an impression of e.xtent and beauty to even paltry and naturally uninteresting pieces of ground. By clever groupings of r'^ck-work, by raising artificial hills, and by ■ rowing high bridges over ponds and streams, they produce a panorama which is full of fresh points of \iew and of constant surprises.
As De Guignes wrote, in describing Chinese gardens, the object of the owner is to imitate " the beauties and to produce the inequalities of nature. Instead of alleys planted .symmetrically or uniform grounds,
there are winding footpaths, trees here and there as if by chance, woody or sterile hill- ocks, and deep gullies with narrow passages, whose sides are steep or rough with rocks, and presenting only a few n.iserable shrubs. They like to bring together in gardening, in the same view, cultivated grounds and arid plains ; to make the field uneven and cover it, with artificial rock-work ; to dig caverns in mountains, on whose tops are arbors half overthrown and around which tortuous foot- paths run and return into themselves, pro- longing, as it were, the extent of the grounds and increasing the pleasure of the walk."
Profusion of Blossoms.
In the more purely floral parterres, the plants are arranged so as to secure brilliancy of bloom with harmony of color. Over the greater part of China the land is favored with so fertile a soil and so congenial a climate that flowers grow and blossom with prodigal profusion. Ro.ses, hydrangeas, peo- nies, azaleas and a host of other plants beautify the ground, while creepers of everj' hue and clinging growth hang from the boughs of the trees and from the eaves of the summer-houses and pavilions which are scattered over the grounds.
With the instinctive love of flowers which belongs to Chinamen, the appearance of the blooms on the more conspicuous flowering shrubs is eagerly watched for. Floral calen- dars are found in every house above the poorest, and expeditions are constantly made into the country districts to enjoy the sight of the first bursting into blossom of fa- vorite flowers. The presence of ponds gives a sense of coolness to the pleasure-grounds, and the white and pink water-lilies which adorn their surface furnish excuses to revel- lers for holding endless wine-feasts on their margins.
FOOD. DRESS AND AMUSEMENIS.
241
In the literature frequent references are made to such entertainments, and numerous \oUimes have been carefully compiled of the more highly esteemed poems made on such occasions in praise of the camellia, apricot, peach, chrysanthemum, hibiscus and an endless array of other flowers by the minor poets of the country.
The manner and convenience of travel supply a faithful index of the stage of civil- ization to which the people of a country h.ive arrived, and in the conveyances in vogue in China we see repeated the strange contradictions which have met us as we have glanced at each feature of Chinese society. In every case there is much to be admired ; but in every case what is good and excellent is marred by some defacing or neutralizing quality.
Discomforts of Travelling.
Just as the outward appearance of their furniture is spoiled by the exquisite discom- fort of their chairs and divans ; and their stately ceremonies, by dirt and squalor ; so their means of travelling, which in some ways are luxurious, are discredited by the discomfort of the carts, the mud and ruts of llie roads, and the miserable condition of t!ie inns. With us the question of pace enters largely into our ideas of travelling, but in the leisurely East, where hurry is unknown, the speed with which a journey can be made is not of the slightest consequence.
We have an excellent illustration of this on the waters of the Yang-tsze Kiang. Steamers go up the river to Ichang, a dis- tance of fifteen hundred miles from the mouth. For four hundred miles above that point there are a succession of rapids, to ascend which, in a native boat at certain seasons of the year, occupies six or se^ on weeks, or just about the length of time 16
it takes a fast stciimcr to make its way from Ichang to London. It has been shown to the Chinese how it would be possible to remove the greater part of the obstacles which make the voyage so difficult, and how, when this is done, steamers might readily continue their way up the river.
But nothing will induce the Government, the local officials, or the merchants inter- ested, to support the scheme, and all delib- erately prefer to put up with the delay, dan- gers and frequent losses incurred under the present .system to encouraging an enterprise which would save four-fifths of the time em- ployed, and would reduce the peril and loss to a minimum.
The particular kinds of conveyance used in China vary with the nature of the coun- try. In the north, where the huge delta plain and immense table-lands from the sur- face, carts are commonly used, and these again furnish an instance of the mixed nature of Chinese civilization. They are made on two wheels, without springs and without seats.
Chinese Carts.
As has been said, the Chinese have no idea of comfort as we understand the word, ami these vehicles are a complete justifica- tion of the statement. To an American they are the acme of misery. The occupant seats himself on the floor of the cart, and is thrown hither and thither as the ruts may determine and the skill of the driver may permit. The novice, when going to sea, is commonly advised to attempt to avoid the inevitable fate which awaits him by allowing his body to sway with the movements of the vessel, and in the same way those who drive in Chinese carts arc recommended to yield their persons to the strange bumps and rockings of the springless vehicles, but, so
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far as the experience of the present writer goes, no better result follows in this than in the other case.
It is remarkable that, though carts have been in use for thirty or more centuries, the Chinese have made no attempt to improve their very rough construction. Springs are unknown and the only method occasionally adopted to mitigate the horrors of driving is that of placing the axles and wheels behind the body of the cart, and at the rear ex- tremity of the beams of wood which consti- tute the support of the vehicle, and when produced in front form the shafts.
No Provision for the Driver.
In this way the cart is swung between the animal drawing it and the axle. No seat is provided for the driver, who commonly takes possession of the off shaft, and seriously in- terferes with the ventilation available for the passenger by almost entirely blocking up the only opening which serves both as door and window. Carts of the ordinary kind stand for hire in the streets of Pekin and of other northern cities, and are constantly employed as far south as the banks of the Yang-tsze- Kiang.
For carrying purposes large wagons are used which are commonly drawn by seven animals, a pony being in the shafts and the rest being arranged three abreast in front. Such conveyances when loaded travel from fifty to eighty Chinese miles a day, or from about si.xtecn to twenty-six English miles. In the neighborhood of Newchwang an im- mense traffic is carried on by means of these vehicles, and during the busiest two months of the year it is reckoned that upwards of thirty thousand carts, drawn by more than two hundred thousand animals, pass between the inland districts and the port, bringing the native products to the wharves of New-
chwang, and carrying back the cotton cloths and hardware which are brought from the despised lands of the "barbarians."
Sedan-chairs and horseback are also usual means of travelling, and in the southern half of the Empire these modes of locomotion are alone employed on terra firma, the roads being too narrow to allow of the passage of anything on wheels.
But in this part, as all over the Empire, the many rivers and canals which fertilize the land and add beauty to its features, are the favorite highways of travel and com- merce. The better class of passenger vessels are large and commodious, and contain all the conveniences to which Chinamen are accustomed in their own homes. They are commonly from sixty to eighty feet long, and are divided into three rooms.
Sails and Oars.
The principal apartment, which occupies about half the boat, is approached in front through a vestibule, and is connected with the bedroom which separates it from the stern. The fore part of the boat is decked over with movable planks, and affords dark and airless cabin accommodation for the crew. The vessels are supplied with masts on which, when the wind is favorable, sails are hoisted. Under less fortunate conditions oars and tack- ing are used to propel them. From this kind of vessel to the merest sampan, the waters of China furnish every variety of boats.
There is one other means of locomotion which remains to be mentioned, and that is one which has attracted more attention than perhaps it deserves. We refer to the wheel- barrow, of which Milton wrote :
" Sericana, where Chinese drive, With sail and wind their cany wagons light."
The Chinese are intensely poor, and as the possession of a horse and cart is far be-
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yond the means of the vast majority, wheel- barrows are very commonly used to carry goods and passengers. To lighten the task of the porter the wheels are placed in the centre of the barrow, and thus directly bear the weight of the burden.
But this arrangement naturally reduces the space available for use, since the load, whether living or dead, has to be placed on the two sides of the wheel, from which it is protected by a casing. On the northern plains, if the wind should be aft, a sail is very commonly hoisted, in which case consid- etable distances can be traversed in the day.
Wretched Chinese Inns.
In Western lands the prospect of his inn at the end of a journey cheers the traveller. No such consolation is afforded to wayfarers, or at least to foreign wayfarers, in China. The exchange from horseback, or from the racking of a native cart, to an inn is not much to the advantage of the last. No com- fort is provided, no privacy is secured, and no quiet is obtained. The rooms are mean and infinitely dirty, and, in the north, sur- round the courtyard, which serves as the stables for the mules, ponies, and donkeys of the travellers. It is not uncommon to see as many as fifty donkeys in one inn yard, and the pandemonium which they occasion at night can be but faintly imagined.
The poetical description of a room at an inn in Szechuan, which a traveller found scratched on the wall of this apartment, aptly supplements the above. The original, which was in Chinese verse, is rendered as follows :
" Within this room you'll find the rats,
At least a goodly store, Three catties each they are bound to weigh,
Or e'en a little more ; At night you'll find a myriad bugs.
That sting and crawl and bite ;
If doubtful of the truth of this, Get up, and strike a light."
So much has been said of the dark side of Chinese life, that it is a pleasure to turn to those amusements which break the dreary monotony of existence. The great body oi the people are hard workers, and, being so, find, like all other laboriously employed people, that amusements are necessary to life and health. From another motive the idle classes — that is, the literati, as they are called, or the unemployed graduates, and the ladies — find that to kill time they must seek excitement in some form of diversion.
For these reasons the theatres are gener- ally well filled by all sorts and conditions of men, and no opportunity is missed of engag- ing a company for the entertainment of the neighborhood. As such opportunities are prompted by many and different motives, actors are in constant request. Not un- frequently the excuse is a desire to do honor to the local deities.
Offerings to the Snake God.
Either a fall of rain afler a prolonged drought makes a Thespian display an appro- priate token of gratitude to the snake god, or the elfin fox deity is held to regard a like festivity as a due acknowledgment for his clemency in dispersing an epidemic ; but, whatever the religious objects may be, arrangements are commonly made to hold the performance in the courtyard of one of tlic temples. For the expenses the whole village or town is responsible, and so soon as the required sum, from twenty to a hun- dred dollars a day, is raised — a matter which generally gives rise to countless bickerings — a troupe of actors is engaged, and th2 ves- tibule of a local temple is made to ur Jergo the metamorphosis necessary to th' occa- sion.
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The very simple requirements of tlie Chinese staye make this a matter of easy arrangement. There is prac.ically no scen- ery in a ri>inese theatre. A few coarsely painted views hunj^ at tlie back of tiie stage are all that is necessary to furnish it. The actors make their exits and entrances by a door at the side of these paintings, and the whole series of plays — for the performances go (Ml f<jr dajs together — are acted without
wliich it is considered neces.sary for the audi- ence to understand. Commonly, however, he prefaces these confidences by repeating a few lines of poetry, which are supposed to indicate the general tenor of the very com- plete exi)lanation which is to follow. As each player treads the boards this formula is gone through.
Fortunatety the characters arc not numer- ous, and, as a rule, consist of the heavy
INTERIOR OF A CHINESE THEATRE.
any change of scenery. This has at first sight the advantage of simplicity, but it imposes on the characters the inconvenient necessity of explaining their individualities, and of describing their whereabouts.
To us an awkward spectacle 's presented when an actor comes forward and begins, " I am So-and-so, the son of Such-an-one," and then goes on to describe his trade, the members of his household, and everything
father and mother, a y >ung lady of the nature of a heroine, a young man oi ;wo, a sprink- ling of statesmen and courtiers in case the play is historical, with servants and attend- ants. For the most part the plots are quite straightforward, and no mystery is ever pre- sented to tax the intelligence of the audience. With t"-r . Chinese minuteness the mo- tives, desires, and actions of the characters are fully explained, and the only people who
FOOD. DRKSS AND AMUSEMENTS.
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arc supposed to be mystified arc citlicr the personaL;es in tiie play ulio are wronged, or the mandarins who are callcti upon to ad- judicate on tlic crimes committed by the vil- lains of the dramas. In all cases the action is direct, and is unhampered with any of those issues which add so much to the inter- est of Western performances.
Contemptible Characters.
In a vast majority of cases the object of the play is to elevate virtue, and to hold up tjranny and wrong to just execration. The means adopted to these ends are not always such as to commend them in our eyes. The dialogue is often coarse, and the virtuous characters are commonly contemptible crea- tures. It is a peculiarity which runs through the whole of Chinese society that the utter- ances of high-sounding moral sayings and extremely virtuous platitudes are held to be quite sufficient to atone for heinous moral delinquencies and personal pusillanimity.
Just as in real life Imperial edicts and offi- cial proclamations abound with lofty senti- ments and righteous phrases, while every word is falsified by the degraded and iniqui- tous actions of the writers, so an Emperor on the stage yields to a barbarous foe with- out striking a blow for his country, but ac- companies the action with so many fine words and lofty sentiments that he covers himself with all the glory of a Black Prince at Crecy or a Henry V. on the field of Agin- court.
In the same way a man breaks every com- mandment in the decalogue, but if he takes care at the same time to sprinkle his dis- course with well-seasoned exhortations to the practice of filial piety, and the exercise of profound reverence for Confucius, he re- tires from the boards purged of all his of- fences, if not in the full odor of sanctity.
This Pharisaical sanctimoniousness to some extent runs through the farces and lighter pieces in which the people delight. Some of them are very comical, and might well be adapted for first pieces at our own theatres. In some we find incidents with which we are all familiar.
For example, Desdemona's handkerchief reappears in a Pekin farce, in which a jealous waterman finds fault with his wife for asso- ciating too constantly with a Buddhist priest — the disturbers of households are generally represented as priests. The lady suspects a friend of her husband of having instilled jealously into her good man's mind, and in- duces him to quarrel with his associate. The friend being determined to pro.e the justice of his suspicions, watches for the priest, and catches him in the act of p lying a clandes- tine visit to the lady.
A Mixed Play.
In the struggle which ensues the priest drops a handkerchief which had been given him by his inamorata. His opponent seizes the token and presents it to the husband, who recognizes it as one which he had given to his faithless consort. With a more dis- cerning poetic justice than that which befell Desdemona, the priest and the lady in this case suffer an equally dire fate with that which overtook that unfortunate heroine. As seen, however, on the Chinese stage, the native dramas have drawbacks other than those mentioned above. All the female parts are played by young men or boys, and the dialogue is constantly interrupted by lines of poetry which are sung, as are all Chinese songs, in a shrill falsetto.
The musicians, also, are seated on the stage, and keep up so continuous an accom- paniment as to make much of what the actors say inaudible. Not only do they ac-
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company the songs, but on the expression of any lofty sentiment they come down with a crash of their instruments to add emphasis to the utterance. It has been said that these performances are given from a desire to do honor to the gods : but other excuses are very commonly found for indulgence in the pastime. On high days and festivals — at New Year's time, often on the first and fifteenth of the month, and on other holi- days— subscriptions are raised for the pur- pose of engaging troupes of actors who are always ready at hand.
Popular Dramas.
As a rule, the theatres are of the Thes- pian kind, and, if enclosed at all, are pro- vided only with temporary coverings of mat, which are erected in a night, and can be de- molished in a night. In surveying the gen- eral tendency of Chinese plays it cannot be said that it is elevating in character, and this is so far recognized that, though the drama is universally popular, and is patronized by the Court and by the leaders of the people, the actors are frowned upon and are officially regarded as pariahs of society.
Neither they nor their sons are allowed to present themselves at the competitive exam- inations, and the doors of official life are thus closed to them. Not long since a memorial was presented to the throne protesting against a certain man — the son of an actor — who had passed his examina- tion being allowed a degree. No personal charge was brought against the man himself beyond that of having concealed his origin before the examiners, but his descent was fatal to him ; his certificates were cancelled, and he was relegated to the outcast class from which he had sprung.
As a substitute for regular plays marion- ettes are very common, and arc so manipu-
lated as to express action with great clever- ness. Figures of a smaller kind are simil- arly exhibited in peep-shows, which are fre- quently to be met with at street corners, and on the open spaces in front of the temples. As conjurers and acrobats the Chinese are very proficient, and often manage to intro- duce an amount of acting into their tricks which adds greatly to the effect produced.
On one occasion the present writer wit- nessed the performance of a conjurer, who, with the help of a little boy, was showing off his skill in the Consular compound at Tientsin. The man made a cabbage to grow from a seed which he planted in the presence of his audience, he swallowed a sword, and, after doing a number of similar tricks, he inquired whether he should cut off his assistant's head. The answer being in the affirmative, the man turned to seize his victim, who, however, had fled on hearing the inhuman assent to his decapitation.
"The Blood Spurted."
After a keen and long pursuit he was, however, caught, and was led, struggling and weeping, to the block, to which he was pin- ioned. The conjurer then handed round his weapon that the keenness of the edge might be tested, and having taken up his position dealt what seemed to be a fierce blow on the bare neck of the boy, at which, what ap- peared to be blood spurted out in all direc- tions, and at the same instant that he drew a cloth over the quivering form he held aloft a dummy head, which bore just sufficient re- semblance to the features of the lad to favor the illusion that he had, indeed, been but- chered to make a holiday.
In the more occult arts of necromancy and enchantment Taoist priests are the ac- knowledged masters. From time immemo- rial these followers of Laotzu have, in popu-
FOOD. DRESS AND AMUSKMKNTS.
247
lar belief, possessed the power of controlling the elements, of annihilating space and of making themselves invisible. In one well- known historical battle a Taoist priest in- voked such a storm of rain and hail in the face of the opposing forces that they fell easy victims to the swords of their adver- saries.
Story of Empty Oranges.
On another accepted occasion it is said that as a troop of coolies were carrying oranges to the capital, they were overtaken by a lame Taoist priest, who offered to ease them of their burdens, and who carried the whole quantity with the greatest ease for the rest of the journey. On arrival at the palace, however, the fruit were found to be hollow, and the coolies were only saved from con- dign punishment by the appearance of the priest, at whose word the oranges were again converted into rich and luscious fruit.
Another well-known instance of super- natural power is that attributed to Tieh Kwai, who possessed the power of projecting himself wheresoever he would. On one occasion the magician sent forth his inner self to the mountain of the gods. Before starting on his spiritual journey he left a disciple to watch over his body, promising to return in seven days. Unfortunately, when six days had expired the watcher was called away to the death-bed of his mother, and being thus placed in a dilemma between his duties as a son, and his obligation to his friend, determined to carry the body of his master to his mother's home.
Being there detained, he was unable to keep his tryst at the appointed time, and the disembodied spirit, finding that its earthly habitation had disappeared, was compelled, rather than suffer extinction, to enter the carcase of a beggar which lay by the road-
side, and ill this guise Tieh Kwai passed the remainder of his existence.
Clairvoyance is largely practiced, and on the principle that accumulatctl evidence proves the truth of a theory, it is difficult not to accept many of" the facts " stated by native eye-witnesses. Like our own pro- fessors of the art Chinese clairvoyants read the secret thoughts of their audiences, de- scribe absent persons with minute accuracy, and by "crystal-gazing," and other means, are often said to be instrumental in detecting criminals, and in discovering the whereabouts of lost persons and things. The use of the planchette is very common, and though the Chinese, from their phlegmatic nature, are not easily subjected to magnetic influences, the effects produced are certainly remarkable.
Expert Gymnasts.
As gymnasts they are in no way inferior to the best performers among ourselves, and it is not nece;:snry to believe the wonderful stories told by early European travellers in China of the proficiency of native acrobats to credit them with noteworthy skill and agility. Even women possess unwonted power of strength and balance.
But, above and beyond all the other amusements of the Chinese, gambling holds a conspicuous place. Although it is strictly forbidden by law, it is winked at, and even encouraged by the authorities. It not un- frequently happens that magistrates even convert the outer rooms of their yamuns into gambling-houses, and share in the profits derived from the business. In every city these dens of corruption abound, and, as a rule, consist of two apartments. In the outer one the stakes are laid in copper cash, and in the inner room silver only is risked.
Not content with the ordinary games of chance, such as those afforded by card^
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CHINA: FAST AND I'RIvSENT.
roulette iiiul other tables, the iiij;eiuiity of the people is exercised in inveiitinjj new means of K)sin^ their money. When there are no cx;'.n:inatii;ns to be decide I and waj^ered on, the propiielor of a yanibIinL;-housc will some- times take a sheet < f paper on Avhich are inscribed ei;^dity cliaracters, and havinjj marked twenty, will deposit it in a box.
ACTOR OF COCHIN-CHINA.
Copies of the sheet bearing the same eighty characters are distributed among gamblers whose supieme object is to mark the same twenty characters as those on the sheet in the box.
When all the papers have been received, the box which contains the overseer's paper, and which stands conspicuously on the table.
IS unlocked. If a gambler has marked only four of the characters selected by the over- seer, he receives nothing. If he has marked five of them, he receives .seven cash ; if .six, .seventy cash ; if eight, seven dollars ; and if ten, fifteen dollars.
In the streets the same spirit of specu- lation flourislies, and every itinerant vendor of eatables, whether of fried locusts, sweets, or the more satisfying rice with fish or vegetables, keeps a set of dice for the use of those customers who prefer to run the risk of winning their meals for nothing, or of losing both their money and their food, to paying the ordinary price for their viands. In dwelling-houses cards are everywhere played, and to the ladies they supply an inexhaustible source of amusement. The cards are smaller and more numerous than in our packs, and lend themselves to an endless variety of games.
Only One Coin.
The coinage of China, like every other institution of the Flowery Land, has two aspects — the one that which it pro- fesses to be, and the other that which it really is. Strange as it may seem, the Chinese have only one coin, which is known to them as chicn, and to us as cash. In value a cash professes to be about one-tenth of a half-penny, but as a matter of fact it varies in almost every district, and it is even not at all uncommon to find two kinds of cash current in one neighborhood. In some parts of the country people go to market with two entirely distinct sets of cash, one of which is the ordinary mixture of good and bad, and the other is composed exclusively of counterfeit pieces. Certain articles are paid for with the spuri-
FOOD. I)Ri:SS AND aml'si;mh\ts.
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ouscash only. Rut in rc^'ard ti other com- modities this is a matter of special liargain, and accordingly there is lor these articles a double market price. Independently, again, of the confusion arising from the use of genuine and counterfeit coins side by side, is added the uncertainty due to the .system of counting. A hundred cash means varying numbers, other than a hundred, which are determined by the usage of each locality.
A stranger, therefore, is liable to suffer loss at the hands of tradespeople, who still further complicate matters by almost invaria- bly naming a higher price for cacli article than that which they are prepared to accept. The weight of any considerable sum in cash is an additional objection to these most in- convenient coin.s. A dollar's worth of cash weighs about eight pounds, and the transpor- tation of any large sum in specie is, there- fore, a serious matter. For the purpose of carriage the cash arc made with square holes in the centre, by means of which they arc .strung in nominal hundreds and thousands.
Lumps of Silver.
It is obvious, of course, that for the pur- chase of anything commanding more than a very low value some other currency must be employed, and this is supplied by lumps of silver, the values of which are in every case tested by the scales. In common parlance the price of goods is reckoned at so many taeis wclgiit, a tael being, roughly speaking, the equivalent of an ounce, and for the sake of general convenience silver is cast into "shoes," as they are called from their shape, weighing a specified number of taels or ounces.
For smaller amounts than are contained in a "shoe," broken pieces of silver are used, but in every case the value is reckoned, not by the piece, but by the weight. In .strict
accuracy c\xii the cash is muleserving the name of c lin, since instead of being moulded it is roughl)' cist, :nul both in dosi^;n and manufacture doe-i litt'c credit to a nation which is unquestionaijly [: s-.es:cd of a large share of artistic taste. Of l.itc tlie Governor- general of Canton has established a mint at that city, at which he coins both gold and silver tokens.
The Oldest Bank Note.
The.se, lujwever, pass current only in the locality, and so far the Imperial (iovernment has shown no inclination to follow the excel- lent example set by this .satrap. l''or many centuries bank bills and notes ha\e lieen issued at the well-established b.mks in the principal centres of commerce, and during the Mongol dynasty the central Government introduced the practice of issuing Imperi.i.! notes to the people. A note which wis passed into currency during the reign of an emperor of the succeeding Ming dynasty, who reigned from i 368 to I 399, is exhibited in a show-case in the King's Library in the British Museum, and is a specimen of the oldest note which is known to exist.
Its date carries us back long before the general adoption of bank-notes in luirope, and three hundred years before the establish- ment of the Stockholm bank, which was the first bank in Europe to issue notes. At the present time notes are largely used at Pckin, but the very uncertain .state of the currency renders a large depreciation inevitable, and makes tradespeople sometimes unwilling to accept them.
Imperfect and undeveloped though it is, the coinage of China has a very long ances- try, antl can trace its descent from about 2000 B. C. One of the earliest shapes which the coins took was ihat of a knife, no doubt in imitation of the real weapon, which was
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CIIINyV: PAST ANM) I'RICSiCXT.
early used as a medium of exchange. These knife coins originally consisted of the blade and handle, the last of which was teniiinatcd in a round end which was pierced in iniita tion of the article which they were intended to represent, liy degrees the blade became shortened, imtil it entirely disappeared. The handle next suffered diminution, and eventu- ally the round end with a hole in the centre was all tha^ was left, and it is that which is perpetuated at the present day in the modern cash.
The prominence which the artists v'. Japan have of late acquired, and the very inferi(jr specimens of Chinese work which now coni- mon'v reach our shores, have blinded people to the real merits of the pictorial art of China. Wc are not now .speaking of the common brightly colored paintings (ju rice-paper which arc brought from Canton by travellers, but of the works of men who paint, and have l)aintcd, for the love of the art, and not only lor the taels they can earn by their brushes.
Superb Paintings.
A few years ago a magnificent collection of Japanese paintings was exhicited at the British Museum, and was arranged in such a manner as to show that tlie art of China and Japan is one. Vov this jiurpose the paintings were arranged chronologically, be- ginning with some early specimens of Chi- nese ait, and leading up to the time when the Japanese learned the use of the brush from their more cultivated neighbors.
A coMipcuison of the pictures thus dis- played was enough to pro\'e to demonstra- tion that the artistii: flame which i\-'.: Ijurned s.) brightl)- in Japan was lit b)- the genius of Ciiinese masters. The same marked
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leprihcnling with fidelity bird-
fishcs, and flowers is remarkable, and an excpiisite skill in harmonizing colors, and of gi\'ing life and vigor to forms, distinguishes the works of arti.sts on both shores of the Yellow Sea.
In like manner the same faults are observ- able in both schools. Perspective is com- monly defective, the anatomy of the human f(jrm is entirely misunderstood, and the larger animals, such as horses and cattle, suffer disiortion at the han''., of the artists. One noticeable feature in the technicalities of the art is the absence of shadow, the effect of which is produced by such skilful drawing tha, the omission is scarcely ob- served.
Ideal Landscapes.
As in the case of every fine art in China, the most precise rules are laid down to guide t le painter, and the effect is observable in a ce'tain uniformity in pictures of land- scape.'' and in the groupings of figures. The ideal landscape of the guide-books consists of a cloud-capped mountain, in tlie bosom of which a temple nestles surrounded by- trees, one of which must be a weeping wil- low. On a rocky eminence should stand a gaimt and bowed pine-tree. Near this must be a waterfall crossed by a rustic bridge, forming a link in a winding path which leads up to the temple, while in the far distance should be seen .sailing-boats wending their wa)'S on the much-winding river whiili (lows round the foot of the mountain. 'I'lie addi- tion of a couple of aged chess-players sealed under a willow tri'e (Hi a proiiiimnt jilateau on thi; side of the hill is recommended as being likely to give life to the scene.
Ill tui iiranches of their art Chinese
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ccpt b}- the Japanese, and in tlie be.iuty of their miniature paintinj^ they have lew equals. The skilful use of his brush which every schoolbL_^ has to ^ain in copying the heir- oglyphic characters of the language accus- toms him to sketch forms with accuracy, and gives him an assured confidence in the draw- ing of his outlines.
Skillful Draughtsmen.
As, in addition, he is habituated to the use of Indian ink instead of lead pencils, he is aware that a false line must always remain against him as evidence of his want of skill. The mastery thus acquired gives him that wonderful power of unfalteringly expressing on paj)er the scenes he wishes to delineate which so often excites the astonishment f)f foreign draughtsmen.
This ]iractice with the brush stands the miniature painter in equally good stead, and enables liijii to lay on his colors with such certainty, and with so unfailing a steadiness of li.md and eye, that he is able to represent with clearness, and often with exquisite beauty, j)atterns of microscopic minuteness. No better .specimen of this last phase of the art can be instanced than the best examples of painting on porcelain. For delicacy of tf)uch and richness of coloring these are often masterpieces, and possess a beauty whirh must charm every tutored eye.
According to tradition the first beginnings of art in China are to be traced back many centuries before Christ, and were devoted, as in all ])rimitive societies, to the adornment of the palaces of kings and the houses of the great nobles If historians are to be trusted, the rude efforts of these early artists bore traces of the characteristics vihich have marked so distinctly the later developments of the art.
The introduction of Buddhism, with its
religious mysteries, its .sacred biographies and its miraculous legends, supplied a fresh motive to the artists of China, who at once caught the inspiration, although they treated the subjects after the marked national man- ner. In the troublous period which suc- ceeded the fall of the Han dynasty (A. D. 220), art, like all the other accomplishments which flourish best in time of peace, fell into decay, and it was not until the establishment of the Tang dyna.sty (A. D. 618) — the golden age of literature and culture — that art occupied again its true prominence in the estimation of the people.
Scenes in Nature.
It is at this period that we find the objects of nature represented with the fidelity and skill with which we are familiar in Chinese work. Throwing aside the martial notions of the earliest masters and the religious ideas imported from It na, the native artists .sought their subjects in the fields and woods, on the mountain side and by the river's bank. They transferred to their canvasses the land- scapes which met their eyes, the fiowers which grew around them, the birds as they flew or perched, and the fishes as they darted and swam in the clear w; of the streams.
These tlu;y depicted with the minuteness common to their craft, and rivalled in life- like rendering the work of the celebrated Tsao (A. D. 240), of whom it is said that, " having painted a .screen for his sovereign, he carelessly added the representation of a fly to the picture, and that so perfect was the illusion that on receiving the .screen Sun Kuan raised his hand to brush the insect awa}'."
As time advanced the lamp of art again grew dim, and it requireil the fresh impetus of a new dynasty to revive its brilliancy. The Sung dynasty (A. D. 960-1278) ',■ is
FOOD, DRKSS AND AMUSEMENTS.
253
rich ill philosophers, poets, and painters, and while Chu Hi wrote metaphysical treatises, and the brothers Su sung of wine and the beauties of natuic. Ma Yuen, Muh Ki, Li Lungyen, and a host of others painted birds and flowers, landscapes and figures, dragons and monkeys, together with all kinds of other beasts which walk on the face of the earth, or are supposed to do so.
With the rise to power of the Mongol dynasty in the 13th century the taste for the religious art of India revived, but did not erlipse the expression on canvas of that love of nature for which both the Chinese and Japanese are so conspicuous. But still paint- j ing did not rcitch the high level to which it liad attained in tii-^ earlier periods, and as of ^ every other institution of China, we are i obliged to .say of the pictorial art, "the old is better."
During the last dynasty, however, there were artists whose power of coloring was as great or even greater than that of any of their predecessors, so far as we arc | able to judge. With infinite skill and minute realism they painted figures in a way which commands just admiration. In the British Museum there are exhibited some specimens
of this branch of the art which undoubtedly display great power of composition and infi- nite .skill in the art of coloring.
As a rule however, the c<iloring of Chi- nese pictures, though always harmonious, is somewhat arbitrary and leaves on the e)e an unpleasant feeling of flatness. In sense of humor the Chinese are certainly inferior to the Japanese. There is not in tlieir work the .same fertility of invention or happy choice of ideas as are to be found on the other side of the Yellow Sea. But Chinamen are nc^t by any means devoid of this quality, and in many of their albums we find comic sketches reminding one irresistibl)-, though at a dis- tance, of the masterpieces of our most suc- ccs.sful comic artists. Tlie absence of the use of profile lines deprives the Chinese por- trait-painter of the full power of presenting life-like representations of his models, as he almost invariably draws full-face portraits. When by chance, however, he strikes off a side face the effect is often good and the like- ness accurate. Jiut in any circumstances the artistic feeling is there, and it needs but the touch of a torch from a higher civilization to make this and other branches of the art glow into more perfect life.
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CHAPTER XIV. THE RELIGIONS OF CHINA.
RELIGIOUS .sentiment is not a char- acteristic of the Chinese. Their views on the subject of faith are wanting in definitiveness, and are so indistinct and blurred that it might surpass the wit of man to determine what is the pre- vailing religion of the country. The multi- tude of Buddhist temples which cover the face of the land might naturally suggest that the majority of the people profess the religion of Buddha ; while conversations with native scholars would unquestionably lead one to believe that the educated classes were to a man Confucianists.
Taoism, the third religion which holds sway in China, does not make the same pre- tension to popularity as do the other two faiths. As a matter of fact, however, it would probably be difficult to find many Chinamen who are Confucianists pure and simple, or many who rest contented with the worship provided in Buddhist temples.
A combination of the two — an amalgam in which the materialism of Confucius and the religious faith of Sakyamuni mutually supplement one another — enters into the life of the people at large; while Taoism supplies a certain amount of superstitious lore which these lack. It is necessary to remark by way of caution that the term '• religion " ap- plied to Confucianism is rather a popular than an e.xact form of expression. Religion implies tlie dependence of man on a Deity, and if woapply tlii^ definition lotlic doctrines of Confucius, wc fin;! tli.it it in no w.iy re])rc- sents the te.u-iiir: ' eft!; it pliilosoplicr. Ilis
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v/hole system is devoted to inculcating the duty which each man owes to his fellow- men, and stops short with the obligations undjr which every one rests in his relation to society.
Of tliese three .systems Confucianism is the only one which took its rise on the soil of China. The other two faiths came, as have most of those influences which have modified the institutions of China, from be- yond the western frontiers of the Empire. Confucianism, however, was formulated by one man, who was essentially a typical Chinaman both in the strength and weak- ness of his character.
Story of Confucius.
In the year 551 B. C, Confucius was born in what is now the department of Yenchow, in the province of Shantimg. Legend sur- rounds his birth with many of J\e signs and wonders which arc commonly saiJ to herald the appearance of Eastern sages. We are told that the future uncrowned king first saw the light in a cavern on Mount Ni, and that while two goddesses breathed fragrant odors on the infant, a couple of dragons kept watch during the auspicious night at the foot of the mountain.
Hi'^ .appeal iiice was not prepossessing. He had the li[)s of an ox. the back of a dragon, while on his iiead grew a formation which earned for him the name of Chiu, "a mound." As the lad grew up lie developed that taste for ritual which was the marked characteristic of his whole career. Like
THE RELIGIONS OF CHINA.
255
Saint AthaiiLsius on the shores of the Medi- terranean Sea, he amused himself in early boyhood by rehearsing the sacrificial rites, and by practising the postures of ceremony prescribed by the older rituals.
At the age of fifteen he tells us that he "bent his mind to learning," and four years later he married a lady who, like the wives of many other celebrated men, was a thorn in the flesh to her husband. Confucius ■endured the burden without complaint until his wife had borne him a son, when he sought release from his bondage at the hands of the very complaisant marital laws of the country.
History and Ballads.
The literature of China at this time was limited in extent, and consisted mainly of the historical records and popular ballads which were to be found in the royal archives. To a study of these Confucius devoted such time as he could spare from his official duties as keeper of the royal stores, and from the hours which he devoted to the instruction of a faithful band of students who, even at this time, had gathered round him.
When he was twenty -nine " he stood firm," and certainly neither at this time nor at any subsequent period did his faith in his own convictions show the least sign of falteriui;. His circumstances were not affluent. An official life was, therefore, necessary to his existence, and he had no sooner equipped himself with a full panoply of ritualistic knowledge than he cast about to find a ruling sovereign who would be willing to guide the policy of the kingdom by his counsel.
He was essentially a man of peace, and his opinions were such as required a period of undisturbed calm for their full develop- ment. The times, however, were against him. It was an age of war, when the hand
of every one was against his neighbor, and when the strength of the right arm comman- ded more respect than wisdom in council. Sovereign after sovereign, attracted by the novelty of his teachings and the repute which was already beginning to attach itself to him, invited him to their courts, and for a time gave heed to the words of wisdom which fell from his lips. But their hearts were not with him, and more material attractions were apt to prevail over the sayings of the sage.
On one occasion the present of a number of beautiful singing girls so captivated the attention of the Duke of Lu that the advice of Confucius was neither sought nor regar- ded. Disgusted by this affront, the sage shook the dust of the state from his feet and transferred his services to a rival ruler. On another occasion he was driven from the Court of Wei, where he had established him- self, by the undue preference shown by the duke for the society of the duchess to that of himself
A Fabulous Animal.
As he advanced in years his political influ- ence declined, and his stay at the regal courts became shorter and less satisfactory than formerly. At the age of si.vty-nine his health failed, and the capture of a Lin — a fabulous animal which is .said to appear as a forerunner of the death of illustrious person- ages— was effected at the same time. In the dearth of notable personages which had over- taken the land the appearance of these ani- mals was of such rare occurrence that the huntsmer^ were ignorant of its identity.
The sage, however, at once recognized the creature, and, with that full a[)prcciation of himself which never failed him, he at once came to the conclusion that his own end w.ns near. " The course of my doctrine is run," he said, as tears coursed down his cheeks.
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All intcrviil, however, elapsed between llu; omen and its fulfilment, antl the two j'ears whieh \-et remained to him he de\'oted to the compilation of the " Sprinij antl Autumn Annals" — the only work which i-; attribu- table to his pen. His end now approached, and one niornin;^ he was heard to mutter, as he paced up and down in front of his door, "The great mountain nr.;st crumble, the
man}' of the great leaders of mankind, the fame and repute which were denied to Con- fucius during his lifetime have been fully and generously recognized b\' posterit}-, who liavc attached to ever)' word he uttered, and to every act of his life, an im[)ortance and meaning to which, it must be allowed, they arc not always entitled,
Confucius was not c^a original thinker.
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strong beam must break, and the wise man wither away like a jilant."
In th^'se words his disciples recognized the foreshadowing of his death, and the sage, disappointed in c\-ery one hut himself, and filled with unavailing regrets that there should have been no intelligent monarch who would have made him his guide, phil- osopher, and friend, shortly took to his bed and died (479 B. C). As in the case of
lie uttered nn new thoughts and enunciated no new doctrines. He himself said that he was " a transmitter," and the one object of his life was, as he professed, to induce the rulers of the land to revert to the ideal sys- tem which guided the councils of the semi- mythical sovereigns Yao and Shun (B. C. 2356-2205). In the adulatory State Rec- ords, to which Confucius had access, the good that these monarchs did was embalmed
-ys- pini- 1. C. lec- Ithe lied
THH RKLIGIONS OF CHINA.
257
for the admiration of posterity, but the evil, if tliere were such, was interred with their bones.
The stilted .sayings and highly moral re- flections which are attributed to them in the Book of History and other Records, appeared to Confucius to be the acme of wisdom, and he sought a remedy for all the political ills which surrounded him in the reproduction of the condition of things which prevailed at the earlier period. His leading dogma was the comfortable doctrine that man is born good, and that it is only by contamina- tion with the world and the things of the world that he is Ictl to depart from the strict paths of rectitude and virtue. It was only necessary, therefore, for a sovereign to give full \ent to his natural .'itrivings after good to enable him to emulate the glowing exam- ples of Yao and Shun.
How to Gain Wisdom.
He made no allowance for the evil pas- sions and moral turpitudes which disgrace mankind, and he entirely failed to recognize that " there is a power that shapes our ends, rough-hew them as we may." On the con- trary, he held that man was alone arbiter of his own fate, and that by a strict regard to conventionalities, and by the careful ob- servance of the rites proper between man and man, it was possible to attain such a height of wisdom and righteousness as to constitutf; an equality with Heaven itself
His s>'stem, therefore, began with the cul- tivation of the individual, and this was to be perfected by a strict observance of the min- utest tictails of conduct. In his own person he set an illu.strious example of how a great and good man should demean himself. He cultivated dignity of manner and scrupulous respect to those to whom respect was due. When he entered the palace of his sovereign
he walked with a bent head and humble mien, and towards parents he inculcated through- out his career the duty of paying minute obedience and the most affectionate atten- tion to their every wish ami command.
In the manner in which he took his food, in the way in which he dressed, even in the attitude in which he lay in bed, he set him- self up as an example for all men to follow. People, he believed, were as grass i^efore the wind, and that, if they were bent by the in- fluence of a superior in a ciM'tain liirection, they would naturally follow that inclination. That the example of the sovereign was as the wind, and that he had but to allow his virtue to shine forth to ensure the reforma- tion of the whole state. Such a man "would plant tile peojile, anil forthwith they would be established ; he would leail them on, and forthwith they would follov,- him ; he would make them happy, and forthwith multitudes would resort o his dominions ; he would .stimulate them, and forthwith they would be harmonious. While he lived, he would be glorious. W'hen he died, he would be bit- terly lamented."
Incapable Rulers.
Such a sovereign need but to exi.st and an age of peace and prosperity would settle on the land. When, therefore, a .state was dis- turbed and rebellious, the main fault was not to be attributed to the people, but to the sovereign who ruled them ; anil hence it fol- lowed that the duties of ruler and people were reciprocal, and that while the people owed respect and obedience to virtuous sov- ereigns, they were exempt from the duty of loyalty to rulers who had departed from the paths of virtue.
According to his theory; it was an easy matter for a sovereign to rule his people righteously. "Self-adjustment and purifica-
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tion, witli careful regulation of his dress and the not making a move., .i.t contrary to the rules of propriety — this is tlic way for the ruler to cultivate his person." Having cul- ti\atcd his own person, he is able to rule the Empire, and Confucius could find no e.Kcu.se, therefore, for a sovereign who failed to fulfil these very easy conditions.
Skeptical Views.
In such a system there is no room for a personal Deity, and Confucius withheld all sanction to the idea of the existence of such a Being. He refused to lift his eyes above the earth or to trouble himself about the future beyond the grave. "When we know so little about life, was his reply to an inqui- .siti\e disciple, "how can we know anything about death?" and the best advice he could give his followers with regard to spiritual be- ings was to keep them at a distance.
But while ignoring all direct supernatural interference in the concerns of man, he ad- vocated the highest morality among his fol- lowers. Truth and Sincerit)-, Rigliteousncss and Virtue were the main Jiemes of his dis- courses, and though he himself failed on many occasions to observe the truth, he yet pro- fessed and felt the greatest respect and re- gard for that \ irtue. He was a plain, un- imaginative man, but used the mundane weapons at his command with mighty and far-reaching effect.
Once only he reached to the high level of perfect Christianity, and in the enunciation of the command "to do unto others as you would they .should do unto you," he sur- passed himself. From his limited stand- point he had no future bliss to offer to his followers as a reward for virtue, nor any pun- ishments after death with which to awe those who were inclined to depart from the paths of rectitude. His teaching was of the earth,
earthy, and as such was exactly suited to the conmionplace, matter-of-fact tone of the Chi- nese mind. And thus it has come about that, though, during his lifetime, his influence was confined to a small knot of faithful disci- ples, his .system has since been accepted as the guiding star of the national policy and conduct.
Confucius was not the only teacher of note who appeared about this time to warn the people of the probable consequences of the violence and misrule which was spread- ing over the Empire like a flood. For many centuries men calling themselves Taoists, who were plainly imbued with the philoso- phical mysticism of Brahminical India, had preached the vanity of attempting to stem the tide of disorder, and had, like the Mani- chaeans, withdrawn as far as possible from the crowd of men into selfish retirement.
Disagreed With Confucius.
The views of these men ^ ere vague and shadowy, and it was not until the appearance of Laotzu, who was a contemporary of but senior to Confucius, that their aspirations found expression in a formulated system. In almost every respect Laotzu, or the old philosopher, was poles asunder from Con- fucius. Of his childhood and youth we know nothing, and, unlike Confucius, whose every act of daily life is faithfully recorded, we are left in complete ignorance of his per- sanal history until we meet him as an old man, holding the office of keeper of the records at the Court of Chow.
We are told that his surname was Li, and that his personal name was Urh, which is, being interpreted, "an ear" — a sobri-juct which is said to have been given him on ac- count of the unusually large size of those organs.
His birth, we are told, took place in the
THK RELIGIONS OF CHINA.
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Indian Philosophy.
His surname, Li, also reminds one of the large and important tribe of that name which was dispossessed by the invading Chinese, and was driven to seek refuge in what is now Southwestern China. But, however, that may be, it is impossible to overlook the fact that he imported into his teachings a decided flavor of Indian philosophy.
His main object was to explain to his fol- lowers the relations between the universe and that which he called Tao. The first mean- ing of this word is, "The way," but in the teachings of Laotzu it was much more than that. " It was the way and the waygocr. It was an eternal road ; along it all beings and all things wal'ed, but no being made it, for it is being itself; it was everything and noth- ing, and the cause and effect of all. All things originated from Tao, conformed to Tao, and to Tao they at last returned."
Like Confucius, Laotzu held that the nature of man was originally good, but from that point their systems diverged. In place of the formalities and ceremonies which were the corner-stones of the Confucian cult, Laotzu desired tc bring his followers back
to the state of simplicity before the absence of th»' virtues which Confucius lauded had forced on the minds of men the conscious- ness of their existence. He would have them revert to a halcyon period when filial piety, virtue and righteousness belonged to the nature of the people, and before the re- cognition of their opposites made it neces- sary to designate them.
Instead of asserting themselves, he urged his disciples to strive after self-emptiness. His favorite illustration was that of water, which seeks the lowliest spots, but which at the same time permeates everything, and by its constant dropping pierces even the hard- est substances. By practising modesty, humility and gentleness, men may, he taught, hope to walk safely on the path which leads to Tao, and protected by those virtues they need fear no evil.
The Mother of All Things.
To such men it requires no more effort to keep themselves pure and uncontaminated than it does to the pigeon to preserve un- tarnished the whiteness of its feathers, or to the crow to maintain the sable hue of its pinions.
Tao was the negation of effort. It was inactive, and yet left nothing undone. It was formless, and yet the cause of form. It was still and void. It changed not, and yet it circulated everywhere. It was impalpable and invisible. It was the origin of heaven and earth, and it was the mother of all things. To such a prophet as Laotzu war was hateful, and he inculcated the duty of turning the other cheek to the smitcr, and of retreating before all forms of violence. Unlike Confucius, he advocated the duty of recompensing evil with good, and injury with kindness ; but he joined hands with that sage in ignoring the existence of a personal
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subtle for words, is the origin of heaven a.ul earth, including God Him.ielf; and, when capable of being expressed by name, is the mother of all things. It was a mighty pro- tector who guarded its faithful sons against
impracticable. If the Chinese state and the surrounding nations could have been con- verted bodily to it, an ideal such as Laotzu sketched out may have found a place in existence. But in camps and amid the clash
THE ri:ligions ok china.
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of arms its adoption was plainly incompatible with the existence of a nation, and Laotzu, finding that his preaching fell on deaf ears, resigned his missionary effort, and, leaving China behind him, started in a westerly direc- tion— whither wc know not.
No record has come down to us of his iast uay^, h(jr nave we any more knowledge of where death overtook him than we have of his origin. As a meteor he flashed across the meridian of China, and then disappeared into darkness.
A comparison of the doctrines advocated by Laotzu with the Brahminic philosophy, proves to demonstration that he drew his inspiration from India. The Tao of Laotzu as expounded in the Taoteching, a work which is popularly attributed to him, was the Brahma of the Brahmins, from which everything emanates and to which every- thing returns ; " which is both the fountain from which the stream of life breaks forth and the ocean into which it hastens to lose itself"
A Crop of Heresies.
The whole conception of the system was foreign to the Chinese mind, and his personal influence was no sooner withdrawn from his disciples than heresies cropped up and de- based views took the place of the singular!}' pure and subtle metaphysical thoughts of the teacher. The doctrine that life and death were mere phases in the existence of man encouraged the growth of an epicurean longing to enjoy the good things of life in oblivion of the hereafter. This tendency led to an inordinate desire to prolong life, and there were not wanting among the followers of Laotzu those who professed to have gained the secret of immortality.
Several of the reigning sovereigns, at- tracted by these heterodox views, professed
themselves Taoists ; and even Chi Hwangti, the builder of the Great Wall, fell a victim to the prevailing superstition. More than once lie sent expeditions to the Eastern Isles to procure the plant of immortality, which was .said to flourish in those favored spots. Death and poverty have always been states abhorrent to common humanity, and to the eli.xir of immortality, Taoist priests, in the interests of the cause, added a further con- quest over nature, and professed to have fathomed the secret of being able to trans- mute common metals into gold.
Believers in Magic.
These are superstitions which die hard, and even at the present day alchemists are to be found poring over crucibles in the vain hope of being able to secure to themselves boundless wealth ; and seekers after magic herbs, though hesitating to promise by their use an endless life, yet attribute to them the virtue of prolonging youth and of delaying the approach of the time when " the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cea-se because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened."
Coupled with these corruptions came a desire for visible objects of worship, and, fol- lowing the example of the Buddhists, the Taoists deified Laotzu, and associated two other gods with him to form a trinity. The establishment of these deities gave rise to a demand for new gods to personify the various personal wants and wishes of the people.
At the present day a Taoist temple is a veritable Pantheon, and it is scarcely pos- sible to imagine a craving on the part of either man or woman for which there is not a particular god or godtiess whose province it is to listen to their cries. Thus the whole tonticnc\- of modern Taoism has been towards ihc practice of magic and the most debased
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superstitions and it has found multitudes cf willing adherents.
If a man desires that his horoscope should be cast, or that the demon of disease should be expelled from the body of his wife or child, or that a spirit should be called from the other world, or that the perpetrator of a theft or murder should be discovered, a Taoist priest is invariably sent for, who, by the exercise of his arts, succeeds in so far mystifying the inquirer as to satisfy his demands. These preyers on the follies of their fdlow-men reap so rich a harvest from the practice of their rites and incantation, that the calling is one that is eagerly sought after.
A Pompous High Priest.
Being thus largely supported, the Taoist hierarchy has grown into a large and power- ful body, and is presided over by a high pnest, who is chosen for the office by divine selection from a certain family bearing the name of Chang, among whom the spiritual afflatus is supposed to rest. This ecclesiastic lives surrounded by wealth and dignity, and at stated intervals presents himself at Pekin to offer his allegiance to the Emperor.
As agreeable supplements to their monas- teries, the Taoist priests encourage the estab- lishment of nunneries, into which young girls retreat, either at the bidding of their parents or of their own free choice as a means of escape from the uncertainties of marriage or from the miseries of their homes. Such retreats are not always the abodes of purity and peace, and, as occasionally has hap- pened, the occurence of disorders and impro- prieties has compelled the law to interfere for their suppression.
The descent from the lofty aspirations of Laotzu to the magic, jugglery, and supersti- tion of the modem-day Taoists is probably
as great a fall as has ever been recorded in the history of religions. Laotzu attempted to lead his disciples beyond the attractions of self and the seductions of the world. Mis so-called followers devote their energies to encouraging the debased superstitions of their fellow-men, and so fatten on theic follies.
Cravings of Human Nature.
But there are instinctive longings in the minds of men, even in those of Chinamen, which neither Confucianism, nor Taoism in its earlier phase, could supply. Deep down in the hearts of civilized ar.d uncivilized peoples is a desire to peer into the future,. and seek for verities beyond the limited circl^^ of pains and miseries which bounds the pres- ent life. To Chinamen this want was supplied by Buddhism, which was introduced into the Flowery Land by native missionaries from India. So early as 219 B. C. the first fore- runners of the faith of Sakyamuni reached the Chinese capital of Loyang. But the time was not ripe for their venture. The stoical followers of Confucius and Laotzu presented a determined and successful oppo- sition to them, and, after a chequered experi- ence of Chinese prisons and courts, they disappeared from the scene, leaving no traces of their faith behind them.
In A. D. 61 a second mission arrived in China, whose members met with a far more favorable reception. A settled government had followed the time of disorder which had previously prevailed, and, though the Con- fucianists raged and persecuted, the mission- aries held their own, and succeeded in la>- ing the solid foundation of a faith which was destined in later ages, to overspread the whole Empire.
Even at this early period a schism had rent the Church in India, where the Hinai*
THE RELIGIONS OF CHINA.
263
yana and Mahayana schools had already divided the allegiance of the followers of Buddha. The Hinayana school, which held more closely to the moral asceticism and self-denying, self-sacrificing charity which were preached by the founder of the faith, established iiself more especially among tiic natives of Southern India and of Ceylon.
The Mahayana school, on the other hand, whicii may be described as a philosophical system, which found expression in an elab- orate ritual, an idolatrous symbolism, and in ecstatic meditation, gained its main support- ers among the more hardy races of North- em India, Nepal, and Tibet.
Gained Many Converts.
It was this last form of the faith which found acceptance in China. It supplied ex- actly that which Confucianism and Taoism lacked, and, notwithstanding the opposition of the stalwarts of the Confucian doctrine, it spread rapidly and gained the ready adhe- sion of the people. And though the mis- sionaries sanctioned the deification of Huddha and the worship of gods, they still main- tained the main features of the faith.
The doctrine of Metempsychosis, the necessity of gaining perfect emancipation from all passions, all mental phenomena, and, greatest of all, from self, were preached in season and out of season, and gained a firm hold among their proselytes. It is the fate of all religions to degenerate in course of ages from the purity of their origins, and Buddhism in China affords an illustrious ex- ample of this phenomenon. Not content with the liberal share of superstition which was santioned by the Mahayana system, the people turned aside to the later Tantra school in search of a sanction for still more fanatical practices.
Like the Taoists, the Buddhist monks pro-
fessed to be adepts in the arts of magic, and claimed to themselves the power of being able to banish famine, remove pestilence, and drive away evil spirits, by their incanta- tions. They posed as astrologers and exor- cists, and made dupes of the people from the highest to the lowest.
Governed by the Senses.
With the choice before them of a holy life, from which desire and self are wholly eradicated, and a religious profession which ministers to the senses and to the ordinary intelligence, the modern Chinese have had no hesitation in throwing in their lot with the more mundane school. With the five com- mandments of Buddha, "thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not steal ; thou shalt not commit any unchaste act ; thou shalt not lie ; thou shalt not drink any intoxicating liquor," the ordinary Chinese Buddhist does not much , concern himself. He clings, however, to the doctrine of the transmigration of souls, and though he not uncommonly lapses into the sin of eating meat and fish, yet his diet for the most part is, to his credit it must be said, confined to the Lenten fare of vegetables and grain.
In all religious works this dogma is strenuously insisted on, and even in popular literature authors not infrequently picture the position of men who, by the mercy of Buddha, have narrowly escaped from the sin of devouring their best friends in the guise of a carp or a ragout. The plain ami un- disguised adoption of idolatry by the Chinese made the existence of temples a first neces- sity, and at the present time these sacred edifices are to be found wherever men meet and congregate whether in the streets of cities or in village lanes.
Among the countless idols which adorn their halls the first places are invariably
264
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
given to the trinity of Buddhas — the past Buddha, the present Buddha and the Buddha which is to come. These three figures dominate the principal hall of every temple. In rear of this is commonly a dagoba in which is concealed a relic of Buddha — it may be the paring of a nail, a tear-drop or a lock of hair — and at the back of that again are the deities which are supposed to preside over all the ills that flesh is heir to.
As is the case everywhere, women are the most constant devotees, and on the pedestals of the favorite deities are commonly to be seen scores of votive offerings expressing the gratitude of these worshippers for mercies vouchsafed to them. But there is a reverse side to the shield from the gods' point of view. It not unfrequently happens that deities who, either from forgetfulness or malevolence, have turned a deaf ear to the prayers of suppliants, are violently assaulted and defaced.
Rebellion Against an Idol.
At Foochow, where a long drought had wrought havoc among the neighboring farms, the people rose against the god of sickness, who was supposed to be the cause of the plague, and having made a paper junk bearing a paper effigy of the offending deity, they launched him on the river at the same moment that they set fire to the vessel. This emblematized banishment was supposed to do away with the evil influences which had prevailed, and the showers which subse- quently fell were held fully to justify the ex- emplary rite.
Strictly speaking, the term " priest " does not apply to Buddhists. They offer no sacri- fice to the gods, but are merely monks who perform services and pronounce incantations for the benefit of their followers. The prac- tice of contemplative meditation, which is
one of the features of the Mahayana school, has multiplied these social drones by directly encouraging the establishment of monasteries and their allied nunneries.
Each monastery is governed by an abbot, who has the power of inflicting punishment on offending brothers, and the discipline commonly preserved is in direct ratio to the vigilance and conscientiousness of that func- tionary. If the popular belief is to be accepted, neither the discipline nor the morality of the monasteries is above sus- picion, and in popular farces and tales the character who appears in the most compro- mising positions, and is discovered in the perpetration of the most disgraceful acts, is commonly a Buddhist priest.
How Vacanies are Filled.
Outwardly, however, an air of peace and decorum is preser\ed, and there is jcldom a lack of aspirants for the sacred office when vacancies occur. Commonly the neophytes join as mere boys, having been devoted to the service of Buddha by their parents. At other times a less innocent cause supplies candidates for the cowl. Like sanctuary of old, Buddhist monasteries are held to be places of refuge for malefactors, and of this very raw and unpromising material a large proportion of the monks are made.
But from whatever motive he may join, the neophyte, on entering, having discarded his secular garments, and donned the gown and cowl of the monkhood, marks his sepa- ration from the world by submitting to the loss of his queue and to the shaving of his head. The duties of the monks are not labrious, and they enjoy in the refectory good though plain food. In the nunneries, which are almost as numerous as monas- teries, much the same routine is followed as is practiced by the monks. The evil of the
THE RKLIGIONS OF CHINA.
266
system is, however, more apparent in the sisterhoods than in the monasteries, and a bad reputation for all kinds of improprieties clings to them.
It must not, however, be supposed that there is no such thing as religious zeal among Buddhist monks. Mendicant friars often endure hardships, practice au.sterities, and undergo self-inflicted tortures in the cause of their religion. Others banish them- selves to mountain caves, or condemn them- selves to perpetual silence to acquire that virtue which ensures to them an eternal life in the blissful regions of the west. But such cases are the exceptions, and to the majority of both monks and nuns the old saying applies, " The nearer the church the further from God."
Superstitious Observances.
Such is, stated briefly, the position of the three principal religions in China. Both Mahommedanism and Christianity have their foUowings ; but the numbers of their adher- ents are so comparatively small that, at present, they cannot be said to influence in any way the life of the nation. Mean- while, the people, disregarding the distinc- tive features of the three creeds — Confu- cianism, Taoism, and Buddhism — take from each such tenets and rites as suit their immediate views and necessities, and super- adding numerous superstitious observances which have existed from before the time when Confucius and Laotzu were, have established a religious medley which, hap- pily, satisfies all the needs of which they are conscious.
Many of the forms employed to coii- nieniorate the annual festivals have in them that touch of nature-worship which makes the whole primitive world kin. In the seventh month, for example, a festival in
honor of a star-goddess, famous for her skill in embroider)', is held, at which young girls display specimens of needlework, and offer up supplications before the altar of the god- dess, praying that a share of her skill may be bestowed upon them.
At the same time, to show that they are worthy disciples of the deity, they attempt on their knees to thread their needles, held above their heads, to the accompaniment of music discoursed by blind musicians. The moon is worshipped in the eighth month, and moon-cakes, especially prepared for the occasion, are offered by the light of her beams in adoiation <-!f the goddess. The sun also comes in for his share of adoration. To these and similar celebrations Buddhism lends its countenance, and on the eighth of the fourth month the saint himself submits to be bathed in efiigy for the edification of the faithful, who testify their zeal by pouring handfuls of cash on his brazen forehead.
Religious Edifices.
Incidentally, we have brought to our atten- tion in this connection the construction of religious edifices or temples, and Chinese dwelling-houses. We are all familiar with drawings of the quaint roofs with their up- turned corners, which characterize the archi- tecture of the country. The form at once suggests thiit, as is probably the case, this dominant .style of building is a survival of the tent-dwellings of the Tartar peoples. It is said that when Jen'jhiz Khan, the founder of the Mongol dynasty, invaded China, in the thirteenth century, his followers, on i)os- sessing themselves of a city, reduced the houses to a still more exact counterpart of their origins by pulling down the walls, and leaving the roofs supported by the wooden pillars which conmionly bear the entire weight of those burdens.
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
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What at once strikes the eye in the appearance of a Chinese city, even of the capital itself, is the invariable sameness in the style of building. Palaces and temples, public offices and dwelling-houses, are built on one constant model. No spire, no dome, no tower, rises to relieve the monotony of
INTERIOR OF A CHINESE TE.NU'Lli, SHOWING
the scene, which is varied only, so far as the buildings, are concerned, by the different colored tiles — green, yellow, and brown — which indicate roughly the various uses which the buildings they cover are designed to serve, and by occasional pagodas, remind- ing us of the faith of the people.
In his " History of Indian and Eastern
Architecture," the late Mr. Fergusson sug- gested, as a reason for this absence of variety the fact that " the Chinese never had either a dominant priesthood or an hereditary no- bility. The absence of the former class is important, because it is to sacred art that architecture has owed its highest inspiration, and sacred art is never so strongly developed as under the influence of a powerful and splendid hierarchy. In the same manner the want of an hereditary nobility is equally unfavorable to do- mestic architecture of a dura- ble description. Private feuds and private wars were till lately unknown, and hence there are no fortalices, or fortified mansions, which by their mass and solidity give such a marked character to a certain class of domestic edifices in the West."
There are, however, other factors which have operated eveti more powerfully than these two in producing this monotonous conformity to one model, and that is the sterility of the imaginative powers of the Chinese people, and the steadfast
conservatism of the race. THEIR IIX)I>. j^jgj jj^ j|,g ^,.jj. .j„^j y^i_
! ences, which in the dim past they accjuired from more cultured races in Western Asia, have remained crystallized in the stage in which they received them, and just as their written language has not, like that of Ancient Egypt and Assyria, advanced beyond a primi- tive phonetic stage, so their knowledge of architecture has been perpetuated without
THE RELIGIONS OF CHINA.
207
the smallest symptom of development or the least spark of genius. Even when they have an e.xample of better things before them, they deliberately avert their eyes, and go on repeating the same type of mean and paltry buildings.
Filthy Streets. •
At all the treaty ports, and notably at Shanghai, there have been reared on the foreign settlement houses in every kind of western architecture, bordering wide and well-made roads, and provided with every sanitary improvement, and yet, in the ad- joining native cities, houses are daily built on exactly the original model, the streets are left as narrow and filthy as ever, and no ef- fort is made to improve the healthiness of the areas. It might be supposed that in a nation where there exists such a profound veneration for everything that is old, the people would have striven to perpetuate the glories of past ages in great and noble monuments that Emperors would have raised palaces to themselves at records of their greatness, and that the magnates of the land would have built houses which should en- dure as homes; for generations of descend- ants.
But it would seem as though their no- madic origin haunted them in this also, and that, as in shape so in durability, " the re- collection of their old tcnt-liouses, which were pitched to-day and struck to-morrow, still dominates their ideas of what palaces and houses should be." Throughout the length and breadth of China there is not a single building, except it may be some few pagodas, which by any stretch of the imagin- ation can be called old.
A few generations suffice to see the state- liest of their palaces crumble into decay, and a few centuries are enough to obliterate all
traces even of royal cities. The Mongol conqueror, Kublai Khan, whose wealth, magnificence and splendor are recorded with admiration by travellers, built for himself a capital near the city o*" Pckin. If any his- torian should wish to trace out for himself the features of that Imperial city, he would be compelled to seek amid the earth-covered mounds which alone mark the spot where the conqueror held his court, for any relics which may perchance survive.
Above ground the city, with all its bar- baric splendors, has vanished as a dream .^ For this ephemeralness the style and nature of the buildings are responsible. A Chinese architect invites damp, and all the destruc- tive consequences which follow from it, by building his house on the surface of the soil; he ensures instability by basing it on the shal- lowest of foundations, and he makes certain of its overthrow by using materials which most readily decay.
The Roof Built First.
The structure consists of a roof supported by wooden pillars, with the intervals filled in with badly baked bricks. It is strictly in ac- cordance with the topsy-turvy Chinese methods that the framework of the roof should be constructed first, before even the pillars which are to support it arc placed in position. But, like most of the other con- tradict iry practices of the people, this one is- capable of rational explanation.
Strange as it may seem, the pillars are not sunk into the ground, but merely stand upon stone foundations. The weight of the roof is, therefore, necessary for their sup- port, and to its massive proportions is alone attributable the temporary substantialness of the building. To prevent an overthrow the summits of the pillars are bound together by beams, and much ingenuity and taste i»
II
468
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
shown in the adornment of the ends of these supports and cross-pieces, which ap- pear beneath the eaves of the upturned roof. For the most part the pillars are plain, and either square or round, and at the '.base are slightly cut in, after the manner of :the pillars in the temples of ancient Egypt.
Dragons and Serpents.
Occasionally, when especial honor, either •due to religious respect or ofBcial grandeur, attaches to a building, the pillars are carved into representations of dragons, serpents, or grinding foliage, as the taste of the designer ■may determine. But in a vast majority of ^buildings the roof is the only ornamented part, and a great amount of pains and skill is devoted to add beauty to this part of the structure.
A favorite method of giving an appear- ance of lightness to the covering of a house or temple which would otherwise look too heavy to be symmetrical, is to make a double roof, so as to break the long line necessitated by a single structure. The eflect produced by looking down on a city studded with temples and the palaces of nobles is, so far as color is concerned, brilliant and pictur- esque, and reminds the traveller of the view from the Kremlin over the glittering gilt- •domed churches of Moscow.
The damp from the soil which is so detri- mental to the stability of the building is made equally injurious to the inhabitants by the fact that all dwellings consist of the ground floor only. With very rare e.\ccp- tions such a thing as an upper story is unknown in China, one reason, no doubt, being that neither the foundations nor the n'.nterials are sufficiently trustworthy to sup- port anything higher than the ground floor. The common symbol for a house indicates tlie ground plan on which dwellings of the
better kind are designed. It is one which is compounded of parts meaning a square within a doorway.
On entering the front door the visitor passes into a courtyard, on either side of which arc dwelling-rooms, and at the end of which is a hall, with probably rooms at both extremities. " Doors at the back of this hall communicate with another courtyard, and in cases of wealthy families, a third courtyard succeeds, which is devoted to the ladies of the household. Beyond this is the garden, and, in the case of country houses, a park. The whole enclosure is surrounded with a blank wall, which is pierced only by the necessary doors. All the windows face inwards.
Monotony of Architecture.
To the wayfarer, therefore, the appearance of houses of the better sort is monotonous and drear, and suggests a want of life which is far from the actual fact, and a desire for privacy which, so far as the apartments devoted to the male inmates are concerned, is equally wide of the mark. In accordance with Chinese custom, the front courtyard may be considered to be open to any who may choose to wander in, and a desire to ex- clude all strangers would be held to argue that there was something wrong going on which the owner wished to conceal.
The courtyards are decorated with flowers and vases according to the taste of the in- habitants, and occasionally a forest tree arises in their midst, which gives a grateful shade from the heat of the day. The rooms, when well-furnished, are rather artistically pretty than comfortable. To begin with, the floors are either of pounded clay or of badly made bricks. No carpet, except in the north of the country, protects the feet from the damp foundation, and if it were not for the
THK RKLIGIONS OF CHINA.
269'
thick wadded soles c.i the sljocs worn, and ' the prevailing liabit of reclininij on divans, and of sitting cross-legged, the result to the health of the people would be \ery serious.
In the south, these divans are of wood, and in the north they take the shape of Kang, or stove bed-places. These last a;e com- monly built of brick, and occupy one side of the room. They are niatlc liollow, for the insertion of burning brushwood or coal, which affords warmth to the room generally, and especial!)' to the occupants of the Kang.
A Pillow of Wood.
Mats placed on the brickwork form the resting-place of the waddcil bcdclotiies, which supply all the furniture for the night whicli a Chinaman recpiircs, except the pillow. To us the idea of a pillow is some- thing soft and yielding, which gives rest, and an elastic support to the whole head. To a Chinaman it conveys quite a different notion. A hard, rounded cylinder of wood or lacquer-ware has, to him, a charm which lulls to sleep in an attitutle which would be intolerable to us. It supports only the neck, and leaves the head without anything on which to recline.
In some parts of the country, where women, by the use of bandoline, dress their hair in protrusive shapes, this kind of pillow has, at least, one advantage. After the longest night's rest they are able to rise without the slightest derangement of their coiffures, which thus remain for days, and sometimes for weeks, without renewal.
Unlike their Asiatic neighbors, the Chi- nese have been accustomed to the use of chairs for centuries. A record of the time when they were habituated to the common Oriental custom of sitting on the ground, is preserved in the word for "a feast," the pri- mary meaning of which is " a mat," suggest-
ing the usual Kastern practice of .spreading food on a mat or rug on the floor. Hut,, though they have ailvanced so far, they have by no means arrived at the knowledge of an easy chair. Angular in shape, .stiff and un- yielding in its materials, a Chinese chair is only welcome when rest is not an object.
Its very uncomfortable .structure and ma- terial suggest.s a foreign origin for it, and even at the present time, the use of chairs i.s not universal throughout the Kmiiire. When the Emperor lately received the foreign min- isters, he did so seated cross-legged on a cushion ; and on all native .state occasions in the north of the country this mode of sitting is commonly in vogue.
Choice Furniture.
In wealthy housciiolds the woods used for furniture are those brought from the Straits Settlements and Borneo, such as camagon, ebony, puru, redwood and rosewood; while less opulent people are content to use chairs, bedsteads, and tables made of bamboo and stained woods. But, whatever the material, considerable labor and artistic skill are used to give grace and beauty to the various arti- cles. As in the case of the roofs already spoken of, the ornaments in tables are chiefly centered in the space beneath the overlap- ping tops.
Ornamental work, bearing a strong resem-- blancc to Greek patterns, is commonly em- ployed with admirable effect, and though the general appearance of a well-furnished Chi- nese room is somewhat disfigured by the angular shape of the furniture, the skill with which the different articles are arranged makes up to a great extent for the want of rounded forms and soft materials.
Just as the Chinese show a genius for artistic landscape gardening, so in their rooms they display a taste- in decoration and<
270
CHINA: PAST AND I'RKSENT.
harmoniziiiti colors which imparts an air of comfort and clcyancc t > their dwellings. Car\od stands, on which arc placed diverse shaped vases containing flowering plants or siirubs, dwarfed into quaint and attractive forms, are varied and mingled with rockwork groups in miniature, while on the tables are dispensed strangely bound books, and orna- ments of every shape and kind.
ricli men is the wood-carving which adorns the cornices of tiie rooms and the borders of the doorwajs.
With that richness of ornament which be- longs to the Kast, fruits, flowers, creeping plants, and birds are represented by the artists in an endless variety of beauty, and through tills frctte'l embroidery a cool stream of air circulates in the apartments. In any
RF.I.ir.IOUS CEREMONY IN
The walls are commonly hung with scrolls, bearing drawings of landscapes by celebrated masters, in which mountain scenery, falling water, and pavilions shaded by queerly shaped trees, form conspicuous elements. On others are inscribed the choice words of wisdom which fell from the lips of the sages of ancient China, written in black, cursive characters on red or white grounds. But one of the chief glories of the houses of
A JOSS-HOUSE.
but a hot climate the absence of carpets, tablecloths, and cushions would give an ap- pearance of discomfort, but with the ther- mometer standing at the height which the neighborhood of the tropics gives to it, the aspect of a Chinese room suggests a grate- ful and refreshing coolness.
The studies of scholars have furniture peculiar to them. The table is supplied with the four requisites for writing, viz.;
THE RELIGIONS OK CHiNA.
271
paper, pencil-bruslies, ink, and ink-stone, while against the walls stand shelves on which, by a curious survival of the practice common in the libraries of Babylonia, the books are arranged on their side.,, their lower edj;cs, on which arc inscribed the titles of the works they contain, being alone apparent.
The following is a description of one of the I'oos, or ducal residences, in Pekin.
"A Foo has in front of it two large stone lions, with a house for musicians and for gatekeepers. Through a lofty gateway, on which are hung tablets inscribed with the owner's titles, the visitor enters a large square court with a paved terrace in the centre, which fronts the principal hall. Mere, on days of ceremony, the slaves and depend- ants may be ranged in reverential posture before the owner, who sits as the master of the household, in the hall. Behind the principal hall are two other halls, both facing, like it, the south.
Internal Arrangements.
" These buildings all have five or .seven compartments, divided b)- pillars which sup- port the roof, and the three or five in the centre are left open to form one large hall, while the sides are partitioned off to make rooms. Beyond the gable there is usually an extension called the Urfang, literally, the ear-house, from its resemblance in position to that organ. On each side of the large courts fronting the halls are side houses of one or two stories. The garden of a Foo is on the west side, and is usually arranged as an ornamental park, with a lake, wooded mounds, fantastic arbors, small Buddhist temples, covered passages, and a large open hall for drinking tea and entertaining guests, which is called Hwating.
" Garden and house art kept private, and
effectually guarded from intru.sion of strangers by a high wall, and at the doors by a numer- ous staff of messengers. The stables are usually on the east side, and contain stout Mongol ponies, large Hi horses, and a good supply of sleek, well-kept mules, such as North China furnishes in abundance. A prince or jjHncess has a retinue of about twenty, mounted on ponies or mules."
Facing Southward.
By something more than a sumptuary law, all houses of any pretension face south- ward, and their sites, far from being left to the mere choice of tiie proprietors, are deter- mined for them by the rules and regulations of Feng Shui. This Feng Shui is that which places a preliminary stumbling-block in the way of every Western improvement. If a railway is proposed, the objection is at once raised that it would destroy the I'eng Shui of the neighborhood by disturbing the .sepulchres of the dead. If a line of tele- graph is suggested, the promoters are promptly toKI tliat the shadows thrown by the wires on the houses they pass would out- rage the I'eng Shui of the neighborhood and bring disaster and death in their train.
In the minds of the people Feng Shui has a very positive existence, but with the mandarians, who are not all so grossly ignorant, it has been found that when state necessities require it, or when a sufficient sum of money is likely to be their reward, the terrors of Feng Shui disappear like the morning mists before the sun. The two words Feng Shui mean " Wind " and "Water," and are admittedly not very de- scriptive of the superstitution which they represent.
So far as it is possible to unravel the in- tricacies of subtle Oriental idea, Feng Shui appears to be a faint inkling of natural
372
CHINA: PAST AND I'RKSKNT.
science overlaid and infinitely disfigured by supcrstitution. As it is n»\v interpreted, its professors explain that what astrolojjy is to the star-tjazer, I'entj Shui is to the observer of the surface of our planet. The features of the globe are, we are told, but the reflex of the starry heaven, ami just as the con- junction of certain planets presage misfor- tune ti) mankind, so the juxtaposition of cer- tain physical features of the earth are fraught with like ciil consctjuenccs to those under their influence.
The Dragon and Tiger.
But, in addition to this, it is believed that through the surface of the earth there run two currents representing tlie male and female principles of Nature, the one known as the "Azure Dragon," and the other as the "White Tiger." The undulations of the earth's surface arc held to supply to the professors of Feng Sluii, aided as they always are by magnetic compasses, the whereabout of these occult forces.
To obtain a fortunate site these two cur- rents should be in conjunction, forming as it were a bent arm with their juncture at the elbow. Within the angle formed by this combination is the site which is calculated to bring wealth and happiness to those who are fortunate enough to secure it cither for build- ing purposes or for a graveyard. As it is obvious that it is often impossible to secure such a conjunction, the necessary formation has to be supplied by artificial means.
A semicircle of trees planted to cover the back of a house answers all the purposes of the " Azure Dragon " and " White Tiger," while in a level country, a bank of earth of the same shape, surrounding a tomb, is equally effective. Through the mist antl folly of this superstition there appears a small particle of reason, and it is beyond question that the
sites chosen by these professors are such as avoid many of the ill effects of the climate.
Many years ago, when we first settled at Hong Kong, the mortality among the soldiers who occupied the Murray ])arracks was ter- rible. By the advice of the colonial surgeon, a grove of bamboos was planted at the back of the buildings. The effect of this arrange- ment was largely tn diminish the sickness among the troops, and it was so .strictly in accordance with the rules of Feng Shui that the natives at once assumed that the surgeon was a past-master in the science.
Again, when we formed the new foreign settlement on the Shamien site at Canton, the Chinese prophesied that evil would befall the dwellings, and " when it was discovered that every house built on Shamien was overrun as soon as built with white ants, boldly defying coal-tar, carbolic acid, and all other foreign appliances ; when it was noticed that the English consul, though having a special residence built for him there, would rather live two miles cff under the protecting shadow of a pagoda, it was a clear triumph Feng Shui and of Chinese statesmanship."
Barring Out Evil.
In front of every house which is protected at the rear by the approved genial influences, there should be a pond, and the approach to the door should be winding, for tue double purpose of denying a direct mode of egress to the fortunate breath of nature secured by the conditions of the site, and of preventing the easy ingress of malign influences. For the same reason a movable screen is commonly placed in the open doorway of a house, which, while standing in the way of the admission of supernatural evil, effectually wards off the very actual discomfort of a draught.
With equal advantage a pair of stone
THK RELIGIONS OF CHINA.
273
lions placed at the doorway of u house which is unfortunate enough to be faced by a straight lane or street are said to overcome the noxious currents which niiglit be tempted by the direct access to attack the dwelling.
Temple architecture differs little from that of the houses, and varies in the same way from splendor to squalor, from gorgeous shrines built with the costly woods of Borneo and roofed in with resplendent glazed tiles to lath-and-plaster sheds covered in with mud roofing. In country districts, and more especially in hilly regions, Buddhists show a marked predilection for the most sheltered and beautiful spots provided by nature, and there rear monasteries which might well tempt men of less ascetic mould than that they profess to be made of to assume the cowl.
Sumptuous Temples of Budd>'.a.
The contemplative life which they arc in theory supposed to lead is held to tempt them to retire from the busy haunts of men and to seek in the deep ravines and sheltered valleys the repose and quiet which in more public positions would be denied them. It says much for the charity of the people that out of their poverty such sumptuous edifices can be raised to the glory of Buddha.
Many owe their existence to the benefi- cence of Emperors, and others to the super- stition of notables who, in the performance of vows, have reared stately temples to the beneficent avatars of Buddha \ ;j have listened to their prayers. The majority, however, are built from the doles secured by the priests from the wretched resources of the people. With indefatigable labor these religious beggars draw into their nets fisli great and small, and prey on the superstition of the people for the glorification of their faith. \.i
Sometimes, however, the self-denial is not confined to the donors. Devout priests arouse the zeal of their congregations by placing themselves in penitential positions until the builtling money is collecteil, and thus add to their claims on the people by appealing to their pity. Not long ago, a begging priest, zealous for the faith, erected f(3r himself a wooden case like a sentry-box in one of the public thoroughfares of I'ekin. Long and sharp nails were driven into the case on all sides from without, leaving their points projecting inwards.
A Sl./ewd Beggar.
In this case the priest took his stand, and declared his intention of remaining there until the sum required for building the temple for which he pleaded had been col- lected. The construction of the case made it impossible that he could either sit down or lean in any position which would secure him against the points of the nails.
For two years he stood, or professed tO' have stood, in this impossible position, whicli was mitigated as time went on by the with- drawal of the nails, one by one, as the sum of money which each was held to represent was collected from the passers-by.
For the most part the bridges of China are high wooden structures, such as those with which the willow-pattern plates have made us familiar, but occasionally, and espe- cially on the highways to the capital, sub- stantial stone bridges stretching in a series of arches across the streams are met with, care- fully wrought and adorned with all kinds of fantastic devices.
A noticeable instance of a bridge of this kind is one which crosses the river Hwen on the west of Pekin. Though upwards of six hundred years old, its neighborhood to the capital has secured its preservation.
■HI
CHAPXER XV. COUNTRY LIFE IN CHINA.
OF the four classes into which the people of China are traditionally divided, the first is that of lit- erati or scholars. These are those, who, having graduated at the Exami- nation Halls, are waiting in the often forlorn hope of obtaining official appointments. They have certain privileges attaching to their order, and are generally recognized by the mandarins as brevet members of their own rank. They have, under certain condi- tions, the right of entrii' into the presence of the local officials, and the law forbids that they should be punished or tortured until they have been stripped of their degrees by an Imperial edict.
As it would be beneath the dignity of a graduate to take to trade, and as there are many thousands more of them than there are places for them to fill, the country is burdened with an idle population who are too proud to work, but who are not ashamed to live the life of hangers-on to the skirts of those who are better off than themselves.
As a rule they are poor men, and the temptation to enrich themselves by means of illegal exactions is often too strong for the resistance of their feeble virtue. The glamour which surrounds their names as graduates, and the influence which they pos- sess with the mandarins, incline the people, who by long usage are accustomed to yield, to bow their necks unresistingly to their ex- actions. To the mandarins they are a con- stant source of annoyance. They arrogate to themselves the powers which belong by 274
right to the official class and absorb some of the illegal gains which, but for them, would naturally find their way into the exchequers of the yamuns. Being, however, no wiser than the rest of their race, they, though pos- sessed of all the learning and knowledge within their reach, show the same remarka- ble tendency towards superstitious follies as is observable in the most ignorant of their countrymen. It is difficult to read without a smile such memorials as one which was presented to the throne, at the instigation of some local scholars, with regard to the mi- raculous interpositions of the god of war in favor of the town of Kiehyang in Kwang- tung.
The Bandits Frightened.
"In 1844," runs this strange statement, "when the city was threatened with capture by the leader of a secret association, the banditti were affrighted and dispersed by means of a visible manifestation of the spirit of this deity ; and the efforts of the govern- ment troops in coping with the insurgents again in 1853, were similarly aided by the appearance of supernatural phenomena."
As depositories of the wisdom of the sages of antiquity, the literati pose as the protectors of the national life. In his sacred edict, Kanghsi (1662- 1723) warned the people against giving heed to strange doc- trines, and thus gave new expression to a celebrated dictum of Confucius, which has guided the conduct of his followers in all matters relating to foreign religions and cus-
COUNTRY LIFE IN CHINA.
275
toms. "The study of strange doctrines is injurious, indeed," said the sage ; and in the spirit of this saying the literati have at dif- ferent periods persecuted the religions of Buddha and Laotsze with the same acri- mony which is now characterizing their ac- tion towards Christianity.
To foreigners and all their ways they are implacable foes. The outrages on the Yang- tse-Kiang in 1891 were entirely their handi- work. Once only in the history of the Em- pire have they in their turn suffered persecu- tion. The same Emperor who built the .great wall, and established for himself an Empire, sought to confirm his power by de- :Stroying the national literature, and by be- heading all those scholars who still clung to the traditions of their fathers. It is said that persecution strengthens the character and improves the moral fibre of its victims.
A Race of Bigots.
This persecution in the third century B. C. may for a time have had such salutary ef- fects ; but, if so, all traces of these virtues have long been swept away, and China has 'become possessed of a race of scholars who for ignorance, bigotry, violence and corrup- tion are probably unsurpassed by educated men in any country calling itself civilized.
Under happier circumstances, the existence •of this large body of scholars might be of infinite advantage to the literature of the country. With time to work ond oppor- tunities for research they might add lustre to the writings of their countrymen and en- large the borders of their national knowl- edge. But the system of looking backwards fi>r models of excellence, rather than for- wards, has so contracted the field of their labors, that those who write only add com- mentary to commentary on works already annotated beyond recognition.
Instead of striking out for themselves new grounds of investigation, they have deliber- ately chosen the futile task of perpetually fixing their eyes on a particular object in a particular way, with the natural result that their vision has become contracted and their minds moulded on narrow and peJantic lines. The mental activity of these men, not having, therefore, any power to operate in a beneficent way, exerts itself with unpre- cedented \'igor and hardihood in local affairs.
Infamous Placards.
No dispute aiises, but one or more of these social pests thrusts himself forward be- tween the contending parties, and no fraud in the revenue or wholesale extortion is free from their sinister influence. The case of Chow Han, who instigated the anti-Christian crusade in Hunan, furnishes an instance of the overwhelming power which these men are occasionally able to exert. To him are due the infamous placards which were used to stimulate the outbreaks against foreigners at Wusueh and other places ; and when the crime was brought home to him, and the Chinese Cabinet, at the instance of the foreign ministers, ordered his arrest, not only did the viceroy of the province fail to comply with the command, but he actiiall\- released, at the bidding of the offender, a man charged with active participation in the riots.
It is true that a fiitile commission was sent into Hunan to investigate the charges against him, but instead of bringing him to justice, the commissioners pronounced him mad, and reconmiended that he should be left un- trammelled, (.xcept by a mild system of supervision.
In common estimation the workers of the soil stand next to the literati. From the e.irlie^t d,iwn of legendary history, agricul-
'I
276
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
ture has been regarded as a high and en- nobling calling. To Shennung, the divine
2727 years B. C, is ascribed the invention of the plough and the first introduction of the
A CHINESE PAGODA.
husbandman, one of the legenaary emperors of ancient China, who is said to have lived
art of husbandry. The connection thus established between the throne and the
COUNTRY LIFE IN CHINA.
277
plough has been kept up through all suc- ceeding ages, and at the present time the Emperor, in the early spring of each year, turns a furrow to inaugurate the beginning of the farming season ; an example which is followed in every province by the viceroy or governor, who follows suit in strict imitation of his Imperial master.
With the same desire to set an example to her sex, the l*3mprcss, so soon as the mul- berry-trees break into foliage, follows the gentler craft of pick- ing the leaves to sup- ply food for the palace 'silkworms. "Give chief place," wrote tlie Emperor K a n g h s i , " to husbandry and the cultivation of the mulberry tree, in order to procure adequate supplies of food and raiment ; " to which excellent advice his son added, "Suffer not a barren spot to remain in the wilds, or a lazy person to abide in the cities ; then a farmer will not lay aside his plough and hoe ; nor the
house-wife put away her silkworms or her weaving."
These commands have sunk deep into the national character, and the greatest devotion to their calling, sharpened, it is true, by a keen sense of self-interest, is everj'where shown by Chinese farmers. From these men it is impossible to withhold the highest praise for their untiring industry. With endless labor and inexhaustible resource they wrest from the soil the very utmost that it is capa-
ble of producing. Unhappily to them, as to other classes of the community, the law as it is administered is oppressivelj" unjust. It makes them poor and keeps them poor.
The principal imperial tax is derived from the land, and by the law of succession it is generally necessarj', on the decease of the head of the family, to subdivide his posses- sions, which thus become a diminishing quantity to each generation of successors to his wealth. Low grinding poverty is the re-
ff\
A CHINESE CURIOSITV SHOP.
suit, and it is remarkable, though not sur- prising, to observe the large number of crimes which arc attributable to disputes arising out of feuds in connection with the inheritance of the land and its products.
Probably there is no potentate on the earth who can say as truly as the Emperor of China can "The Empire is mine." Not only the lives and property of his subjects are at his disposal, but the land which they till is part of the heritage which belongs to him.
278
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
. <«
Just as he alone sacrifices to Heaven, and as he alone is the one Emperor over all the earth — in accordance with the dictum of an ancient sage, " There is one sun in the sky and one Emperor over the earth " — so he is the universal landlord of the soil of China. Although the Empire as a whole is thickly populated, there are always some districts which remain uncultivated.
CHINESE BABY IN ITS WINTER CRADLE.
To find a parallel to the agricultural con- dition of the country, we must look to colonial empires, where settlers apply for un- inhabited lands, and receive the rights over them in exchange for small annual payments. This is the principle on which lands have been appropriated in times past, and still are leased out to farmers. As a rule, the land so let is taken up by a clan, the members of
which cultivate it. Ten families constitute, as a rule, a village holding, each family farm- ing about ten acres. To such a community is allotted a common village plot, which is cultivated by each family in turn, and from which the tribute grain is collected and paid. The surplus, if any, is divided between the families.
Towards the end of the year a meeting is held, at which a division of the profits is made on one condition. Any farmer who is unable to produce the receipt for the income tax on his farm ceases to be entitled to any benefit arising from the village plot. The land is classified ac- cording to its position and productist— ness, and pays taxes in proportieMi to the advantages which it enjoys. Two dollars and a half per acre is an average rental for the best land. It was once complained, in a memorial to the throne, that by faulty administration the tax frequently amounted to six times its nominal assessment.
Five Harvests Free.
By way of a set-off against that exac- tion, a merciful provision in the law lays it down that a farmer who reclaims lands from a state of nature shall be allowed to reap five harvests before being visited by the tax-collector.
It often happens that an unjust gov- ernment, by timely concessions, gains for itself credit for wisdom and lenity when it is entitled to approval only for having had the wit to see exactly how far the people will en- dure the weight of its exactions. Such popularity is gained as easily as a spend- thrift acquires a reputation for generosity, and is enjoyed by the Chinese government by virtue of certain exemptions from the land-tax, which are granted when the country
COUNTRY LIFE IN CHINA.
279
labors under aggravated circumstances of distress.
When the Emperor passes through a dis- trict, it may be on a visit to the Imperial tombs, the people are required to contribute their labor, and the magnates their money, towards makinij smooth the way before him. The presence if llie -potentate disarran[.;es the course of f.\istciicc antl the prosecution of industries in the neighborhood. Fields are left unpioughcd and crops unsown until the tyranny is overpassed, and for the bene- fit of the sufferers the land-tax for the year is forgiven them.
The Grain Tax.
The same indulgence is granted to farmers in provinces which arc visited with long droughts, excessive floods, or plagues of locusts. The probability is that the govern- ment, recognizing that the attempt to enforce the tax in such districts would be futile, has the wisdom to make a virtue of necessity. The grain-tax is also levied from the lands classified as "good," and this, with the land- tax, the .salt-tax, and customs dues, form the main bulk of the revenue of the Empire. According to a recent calculation, these .sources of revenue produce $99,375,000.
In a country such as China, which is sub- ject to every variety of temperature, from tropical heat to almost arctic cold, the pro- ducts are necessarily as various as the .sys- tems of agriculture are different. In the southern provinces, where rice is the staple crop of the farmer, irrigation is an absolute necessity. The rice plants are put out in fields inundated with water, and the crops are gathered in when the ground is in the same condition. This need makes it impera- tive that the fields should be banked in, and that a constant supply of water should be obtainable.
For this last purpose the farmers exercise that particular ingenuity with which they are especially endowed. Wherever it is possible, streams from the hills are carried by aque- ducts to the different farms, and the water is distributed by minute channels in such a way as to carry the fertilizing current to the various fields and crops. When such sup- plies are wanting, water is raised from canals, rivers, and wells in several ways. By a sys- tem of buckets fastened to an endless chain, and passing over an axle, which is turned cither by the feet of men or by a connecting- wheel worked by oxen, the water is raised from the river or canal to the level of the fields, where it is discharged into troughs at the rate sometimes of three hundred tons a day. This is the stthj'c/i of the Egyptians ; and should any traveller from the banks of the Nile visit the plains of China, he might recognize in the method adopted for raising water from wells the shaduf of the land of the Pharaohs.
Irrigating Rice Fields.
A long horizontal pole, at one end of which is a bucket, and on the other end a certain weight, is fixed on an upright in such a position that on raising the loaded end the bucket descends into the well, and with the help of the counterbalancing weight can be raised full of water with ease and rapidity. If the level of the river or canal be only triflingly lower than the field to be irrigated, two men standing on the bank and holding a bucket between them by ropes draw water with great rapidity by dipping the bucket into the stream and by swinging it up to the bank, where its contents are emptied into the trough prepared to receive them.
In the north of the country wheat, millet and other grains are largely grown, the rain supply furnishing all the moisture needed.
CHAPTTER XVI. AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS AND EXPORTS.
WHETHKR in the north or in the south, the "greatest care and ingenuity are used in providing manure for the land. Nothing is wasted. The usual ani- mal and vegetable manures arc carcfullj- j collected and spread over the fields, while scraps of all kinds which contain any ferti- lizing matter, and which in most countries arc disregarded, are turned to account h\ these most frugal tillers of the soil. Accus- tomed as we are to large farms and ex- tended systems of agriculture, Chinese firms appear to partake more of the nature of mar- ket gardens than of agricultural holdings.
The implements used are primitive in the extreme, and are such as, we learn from the sculptures, were used in ancient Assyria. Two only may be said to be generally used, the plow and the hoe. The first of these is little more than a spade fastened to a single handle by bamboo bands. As a rule, it is drawn by a buffalo or bufifaloes, and some travellers even claim to have seen women harnessed in the same yoke with these beasts of burden.
I'rom the shape of the share the Chinese plow does little more than disturb the sur- face of the soil, and rarely penetrates more than four or five inches. In the compound •character which is used to express it on paper, the use of oxen as beasts of draught, .and the results which it is instrumental in Ibringing about, find expression in the three ■component parts — oxen, sickle and grain. The spade is seldom used, and the hoe is 280
made to take its place. Rakes and bill- hooks complete the farmer's stock-in-trade. The bamboo, which is made to serve almost every purpose, forms the material of each part of the rake; while the bill- hook has a treble debt to pay, serving as a pruning-knife in the spring, a scythe in the summer, and a sickle when the grain is ripe to harvest.
An Ancient Calendar.
One of the earliest works existing in the language is an agricultural calendar, which describes the various processes of nature and the industries of the agriculturist throughout the year. It warns the farmer when to look for the first movements of spring, and de- scribes for his benefit the signs of the differ- ent seasons. It tells him when to sow his seed, and when he may expect to reap his harvest; and it follows with the love of a naturalist the movements and habits of the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air.
This work was penned in about the eigh- teenth century B. C, and since that time the dignity which attaches by tradition to agri- culture has led to the publication, from time to time, of large and numerous works on the subject. Probably two of the best known of these books illustrate the two leading branches of the farmer's art, the cultivation of rice and the growth of the mulberry for the food of silkworms. Every process in both industries is minutely de- scribed and illustrated.
The glimpses which these pictures give us
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS AND EXPORTS.
281
of country life in China suggest a domes- preferred to the silken products of the looms ticity and brightness which form a strong j of China.
contrast to the fate of the poorer classes | For four hundred years the industrj- was whose lots are cast in the crowded lanes i neglected, and continued to exist only in the and streets of the cities.
Madame de Stael said in one of iier books that she had travelled all over Europe and had met with nothing but men and women. We may extend tl.o range to China, and may see in the pictures drawn in the above-mentioned work, of the f.irmyards, the dwellings, the kitch- ens, and the store-rooms of the silk producers of China, pleasing parallels to the brighter aspects of English agricultural life. The employment of women in arranging and managing the silkworm industry, gives an inter- est to their lives, and is a sure preventive against that languor which so often overtakes the un- employed women of the cities. The cultivation of silk can be traced back almost as far as the beginning of agri- culture, and up to the advent of the Mongol dynasty, in the thir- teenth century, it flour- ished exceedingly. With the arrival, how-
A NATIVE CHINESE MISSIONARY.
provinces of S/.echuan, Honan, Kwangtung ever, of the hordes of Jenghis Khan came and Chehkiang, where just enough stuff was
the introduction of Indian cotton, which,
manufactured to supp]\' the wants of the
from its cheapness and utility, was speedily government and the local consumers. With
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CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
the establishment of the present Manchii dynasty and the arrival of foreigners, the demand for the material which had given its name to China all over the ancient workl — serica — led to a revival of the industr)-, and at the present time silk is produced in
A MANDARIN RECEIVING A VISITOR.
every province in the Empire. In those northern districts where the cold forbids the growth of the mulberry tree the worms are fed on a kind of oak, while all over the central anrl southern firovinces the mulberry orchards bear evidence of the universality of
the industry. At Ning-po alone a hundred thousand bales of silken goods are turned out every year, and in most of the districts of Central China the people are as dependent for their livelihood on the trade as the peo- ple of England are on the production of coal and iron. The prefect of Soo- chow, desiring to take advan- tage of this widespread calling, proposed to levy a small tax on every loom. The result, however, proved that his power was not commensurate with his will. The people re- fused as one man to pay the assessment, and threatened to- stop their looms if the tax were insisted upon. The matter was referred to Pekin, and with the cautious wisdom which characterizes the action of the government towards the people, the proposal was left unenforced. A crop as general, or even more general than silk, is opium. In every province the poppy is grown in ever-increasing quantities, and in Yun-nan, one of the principal producing regions, the late Mr. Baber estimated, as a result of his personal experience, the poppy-fields constituted a third of the whole cultivation of the prov- ince. It is difficult to deter- mine when the poppy was first grown in China, but the references to it which are met with in the literature of the eleventh and twelfth centuries confirm the fact that it was then cultivated, and that the same kind of cakes were made from the seeds of the plant as are now commonly
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS AND KXIORT.S.
288
eaten in the province of Szechuan. The habit of smoking opium is of a far later date, and gave rise to a marked opposition to the drug by the government of the coun- try. But, Uke most Chinese enactments, the one forbidding the habit was only partially enforced, and it is certain that the practice of smoking opium had become confirmed among the people before the Indian drug was first imported. From that time until within the last few years the government showed a pronounced hostility to the trade, but stultified its professions by never effec- tually carrying out its own prohibitions against the growth of the poppy.
Lovers of Opium.
Several motives conduced to these results. The growth of the poppy not only brought large profits to the farmers, but filled the pockets of the mandarins, who, while pro- testing against the cultivation, accepted bribes to ignore the evidence of their eyes. Repeated Imperial edicts became dead let- ters in face of these opposing interests, and year by year the white patches widened and multiplied throughout the Empire. In a country like China, where the value of sta- tistics is unknown, it is difficult to arrive at any accurate idea as to the number of opium smokers in the country.
In Szechuan it is reckoned that seven- tenths of the adult male population smoke opium. On the shores of the rivers and canals the practice is universal, and affords the people the same relief from malarial fevers that the peasants in the fens of Lin- colnshire derive from eating morphia. By all such people the native opium is the only form obtainable, and at Tiensin it is esti- mated that nine chests of native opium are consumed to one chest of the foreign prepa- ration.
Since the legalizatinn of the opium trade (i860) even the nominal restrictions placed upon native growers h.ive been withdrawn, and the government has the advantage of deriving a large revenue from the crops. From the province of Kansuh, which is one of the poorest in the Empire, the tax on opium amounts to at least twenty thousand dollars a year, and this in face of the con- stant complaints published in the Pckin Gii' zcttc of the smuggling which prevails in that and other districts.
The small compass into which opium can be packed encourages illicit traffic in it. Candiiiates for examination going to their provincial cities, merchants travelling from province to province, and sailors trading between the coast ports, find it easy to' smuggle enough to supply their wants; while envoys from tributary states whose baggage by international courtesy is left unexamined, make full use of their oppor- tunities by importing as much of the drug as they can carry free of duty.
Wholesale Smuggling.
Some years ago, when an Imperial Com- missioner was entering the port of Canton, the custom-house authorities had notice given them that the commissioner's fol- lowers were bringing a large venture dis- guised as personal effects in their luggage. The question arose what was to be done^ and, with the timidity common to subordi- nate officials, the provincial authorities de- termined to ignore the information they had received rather than offend so potent a mag- nate as the commissioner. By this derelic- tion of duty the customs were the poorer by some twenty thousand taels.
So portable is the drug in its prepared state that in the provinces, where silver is not always obtainable, it is used as currency.
281
CHINA: PAST AND I'RKSKNT.
and travellers are commonly in the habit of paying their hotel bills with pieces of oj)ium of the value demanded by the landlord. This is not the place to discuss at length the effect of opium smoking on the people. The whole subject, however, is so sur- rounded with .'•entimental enthusiasm that a fact, however small, bearing on the ques- tion is worth recording. It is commonly said by the opponents of the trade that so
lieve their sufferings. By deprivation they are cured for the time being of the hab"*, and in no instance have fatal consequences resulted from this Spartan method.
Unmindful of the lesson thus taught, mis- sionaries are not unfrequently in the habit of attempting to cure opium smokers by ad- ministering morjjhia pills. That they effect cures by this means is very certain, but the doubt arises whether the remedy is not worse
A MOUNTED MILITAKV liOW
pernicious a hold does the habit of smoking acquire over those who indulge in it that only by the use of palliatives can a con- firmed smoker be weaned from the habit without endangering his life. One fact dis- poses of this assertion. In Hong Kong jail, where opium smokers of every degree of habituation are constantly imprisoned, no notice is taken of their craving for the drug, and no remedies are found necessary to re-
'MAN OF ANCIENT TIMES.
than the disease. The processes through which the opium has to go before it reaches the lungs of the smoker unquestionably de- prive it of some of its deleterious ingredients. When, however, opium is eaten in the shape of morphia, the safeguards provided by the pipe are absent, and the man who gives up his pipe for the pill finds that his last state is worse than his first.
Next to silk, however, the product which
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS AND l.X PORTS.
•J.S5
we most nearly associate with China is tea, which proclaims its nationality by the two names tea and ch'a, by which it is known all over the world. The Enjjlish who took their first cargoes from the neighborhood of Amoy, know it by the name, or rather our i grandmothers knew it by the name, by which ! it is known in that part of China. Te is the Amoy pronunciation of the word which is called ch'a in the central, western and north- ern provinces of the Empire. The Russians, therefore, who have al- ways drawn their supplies through Siberia, call the leaf <://'rt, while the French and ourselves know it by its southern name. There is rea- son to believe that the plant has been known and valued in China for some thousands of years, and in one of the Confucian classics mention is made of the habit of smoking a leaf which is popularly believed to have been that of the tea plant. But however this may be, it is certain that for many cen- turies the plant has been cultivated over a large part of Central and Southern China. At the present time the provinces of Hunan, Fuh- kien, Kwangtung and Ganhwuy produce the best varieties. From them we get our Souchong, Flow- ery Pekoe, Oolong, Orange Pekoe and green teas ; and it is in those provinces that the competition of the teas of India and Ceylon is most severely felt.
No doubt the farmers have themselves principally to blame in this matter. The long monopoly which they enjoyed tempted them to palm off on their customers teas of an inferior kind. Trees which had long passed the normal period of bearing were robbed of their leaves to fill the chests sent
to London ami Paris; pruning Wiis neg- lected, and weeds were left to grow apace. The inevitable nemesis followed, and now, when too late, the farmers are becoming conscious of the fully of their neglect.
In ordinary times great care is taken in selecting the seed, and when after careful tending the seetllings have reached a height of four or five inches, they are planted out in the plantations in rows, two or three feet
A CHINESK MERCH.ANT OK CANTON.
apart. For two years the plant is allowed to grow untouched, and it is only at the end of the third year that it is called upon to yield its first crop of leaves. After this the plant is subjected to three harvests : namely, in the third, fifth and eighth months.
The leaves when plucked are first dried in the sun, and the remaining moisture is then extracted from them by the action of nude- footed men and women, who trample on
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CHINA: PAST AND PRKSKNT.
them, as Spanish peasants trcud out the juice of the vine. They are then allowed to heat for some hours, and after liaving been rolled in the hand, are spread out in the sun, or, if the weather be cloudy, are slowly baked over charcoal fires.
Among the wealthier natives the infusion is not generally made as with us, in tea-pots, but each drinker puts a pinch of tea into his cup, and, having added boiling water, drinks the mixture as soon as tho full flavor of the
COURTYAKD OF A CHINESE HOSTELRY.
tea has been extracted, and before the tannin has been boiled out of the leaves. By high and low, rich and poor, the beverage is drunk, and the absence of nervous affections among the people is strong evidence of the innoxious effect of the infusion in this respect. Not only is it drunk in every household in the Empire, but tea-houses abound in the cit- ies, in the market-places and by the highways. Like the London coffee-shops in the time of
the places of meeting between mercliants for the transaction of business and between friends, who congregate to discuss local affairs and the latest official scandals. Women only are, by social regulations, excluded from these hospi- tableplacesofentertainment, which commonly occupy prominent positions in the principal streets of towns. But where such sites are not easily attainable, Buddhist priests, with a fine disregardof the holiness of their temples, very commonly let off a portion of the precincts to
enterprising tea-men.
The form in which tea is exported for general European and American use is not that which is suited for land trans- port. In carrying goods by road cubic space is a matter of vital importance. For centuries the Chinese have sup- plied the Tibetans with tea in so com- pressed a form as to be readily portable by carts, on beasts of burden, or on men's shoulders. In these ways it has long been customaiy to carry bricks of tea across the mountain ranges which mark the western frontier of China; and when a demand for tea sprang up in Russia, like circumstances suggested a like method.
The principal place for preparing the brick tea is Hankow, where si.\ or more factories are constantly engaged in the manufacture of it. Something has to be sacrificed to expediency, and it is incontestable that the
the Stuarts, the tea-houses i;i the cities form i Russians and other consumers of brick tea
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS AND KX PORTS.
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lose in flavor wliat they ^;iin by the sniallcr compass. The dust of tea, ami therefore a poor kind of tea, is best suited for forming bricks, and even the inferiority thus entailed is increased by the process employed to weld the masses together.
This is done by a method of steaming, which encourages an evaporation of both flavor and freshness, and when it has cffectctl its purpose by moistening the dust, the mi.\- ture is put into wooden molds and pressed into the shape of bricks. It is left to stand in the molds for a week, and the bricks are then wrapped up separately in paper and packed in bamboo baskets, sixty- four filling a basket. As a rule, tea-growers are rich and well-to- do men, whereas the ordinary agriculturist is raised above the rank of a peasant, and has little to congratulate himself upon be- yond the fact that his calling is held up to general approbation, and that it inherits a record which is as old as that of the race itself.
One of the largest products is straw braid from Northern China. This most useful class of goods found a place in the market after the opening of the port of Tientsin (i860), and rapidly commended itself to the foreign merchant. But just as in tea, so in this braid, the Chinese producers have grown careless of the quality which they present to their customers. The inevitable result of this course has followed, and at the pres- ent time the elasticity which characterized the earlier movements of the trade has ceased to be observable.
Wool from the plains of Mongolia and the table-lands of Thibet, and tobacco from tlie southern provinces of the Empire, form
considerable items in the list of exports, together amounting in value to 2,620,164 taels. Arsenic also is produced in consid- erable (|uantities in the country. ;inil al- though the home consumjjtion is larger than might be expected, there is jet a surplus left for the benefit of foreigners. The native farmers use it with a freedom which suggests the possibility of ilanger, in protecting growing plants, and especially rice plants, from the insects which infest them.
As an ingredient in the pastille which is used to smoke out mosquitoes, and in the
CHINESE .STUDENTS.
manufacture of the tobacco which is smoked in hubble-bubble pipes, it is largely employed. To the tobacco it is said to impart a pungent flavor and an invigorating tonic. Its prop- erty as a strengthening medicine is highly valued by doctors, who prescribe it largely for their patients. The absence of all legis- lation regulating the sale of drugs makes it easy for evil-minded persons to possess themselves of this and other poisons; and the gross ignorance of the Chinese, even the most highly educated, in all matters related to diagnoses secures a practical im- miuiitv to poisoners.
288
CHINA: PAST AND PRESENT.
It is true that occasionally cases of poi- soning by arsenic are reported in the Pckin Gazette, but almost invariably it is found that the murder is discovered, not by the recognition of the symptoms produced by the poison, but by the confession of the murder or his accomplices. When" the un- ravelling of a crime depends on these coin- cidences, it is fair to assume that, in a great majority of cases, the offence is never dis- covered at all.
The Luxuriant Bamboo.
Like silk, the bamboo is a universal prod- uct in China, and the multitude of uses to which the shrub is turned justifies '"ts eleva- tion to an equal rank of usefulness, so far as the natives are concerned, with that article of merchandise. Its use is incomparably more general than that of silk, and enters into the life of every being in the Empire, from the Son of Heaven to the scavenger in the streets. It f rows over the greater part of the country in great profusion and in a .1 .imber of varieties, and from the moment •t first shows itself above the ground it is forced into the service of man. The shoots come out of the ground nearly full-sized, four to six inches in diameter, and are cut like asparagus for the table. Sedentary Buddhist priests raise this Lenten fare for themselves or for sale, and extract the taba- sheer from the joints of the old culms, to sell as a precious medicine for almost any- thing that ails one. The roots are carved into fantastic and ingenious images and stands, cr divided into egg-shape divining- blocks to ascertain the will of the gods, or trimmed into lantern handles, canes and umbrella sticks.
The tapering culms are used for all pur- poses that poles can be applied to in carrying, propelling, supporting, and measuring, for
which their light, elastic, tubular structure, guarded by a coating of siliceous skin, and strengthened by a thick septum at each jointj most admirably fits them. The pillars and props of houses, the framework of awnings, the ribs of mat sails, and the handles of rakes are each furnished by these culms.
So, also, are fences and all kinds of frames, coops, and cages, the wattles of abatis, and the ribs of umbrellas and fans. The leaves- are sewn into rain-cloaks for farmers and sailors, and into thatches for covering their huts and boats ; they are pinned into linings for tea-boxes, plaited into immense umbrellas to screen the huckster and his stall from the sun and rain, or into coverings for theatres and sheds. The wood, cut into splints of proper sizes and forms, is woven into baskets- of every shape and fancy, sewn into win- dow-curtains and door-screens, plaited into awnings and coverings for tea-chests or sugar-cones, and twisted into cables.
Universally Used.
The shavings and curled shreds aid softer things in stuffing pillows ; while other parts supply the bed for sleeping, the chopsticks for eating, the pipe for smoking, and the broom for sweeping. The mattress to lie upon, the chair to sit upon, the table to eat on, the food to eat, and the fuel to cook it with, are also derivable from bamboo. The master makes his ferule from it, the carpen ter his foot measure, the farmer his water- pipes and straw-rakes, the grocer his gill and pint cups, and the mandarin his dreaded instrument of punishment.
When such are the uses to which the bamboo is put in the land of its growth, it is surprising that there should be any surplus for exportation. But the demand for it for ornamental and useful purposes in Europe is constant.
BOOK II.
Japan and the Japarpei^e.
CHAPTER XVII. EARLY HISTORY OF JAPAN.
r
HIE history of Japan commences with the conqueror who came from the isles of the south. According to the annals of the Empire, he was a native prince and lord of a small territory at the southern extremity of the island of Kiousiou. Obscure tradition attributes to him a distant origin : the birthplace of his ancestors, ii" not his own, is said to have been the little archipelago of the Liou-Kiou Islands, which forms the link between P""or- mosa, southern China, and Japan.
Si>f centuries before his time, an expedi- tion from Formosa and the Asiatic continent, headed by a certain Prince Ta'ipe orTaifak, had reached the shores of Kiousiou, having proceeded from island to island ; but it was in the year 660 B. C. that the first historical personage, Sannoo, whose memory is cele- brated under the name of Zinmou, makes his appearance. Although he was the youngest of four sons, his father had named him his successor from his fifteenth year. He ascended the throne at the age of forty- five years, without any opposition on the part of his brothers.
An old retainer, whose adventurous life had led him to the distant isles behind which the sun rises, loved to describe to him the 10
beauty of their shores, on which the gods themselves formerly .sought refuge. "Now," said he, " they are inhabited by barbarous tribes, always at war with one another. If the prince desires to profit by their di .'isions, their men of arms, however skilful they may be in the management of the lance, the bow, and the sword, being dressed only in coarse fabrics, or the skins of savage beasts, cannot resist a diciplined army protected by helmets and iron cuirasses."
A Fleet of War-Junks.
Zinmou lent a willing car to the sugges- tions of the old retainer ; collcctctl all his disposable forces, placed them under the orders of his elder brothers and his sons, embarked them upon a flotilla of war-junks perfectly equip[)cd, and, assuming command of the expedition, set .sail, after taking leave of his home, which neither he nor his broth- ers were e\cr to see again.
After he had doubled the southeast point of Kiousiou, he sailed along the eastern side of the island, keeping close t(j the shore after the fashion of the ancient Normans, making occasional descents, giving battle when he was resisted, and forming alliances when he found the nob'es or chiefs of clans
289
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290
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
disposed to assist him in his enterprise, thus showing a friendly spirit.
It was evident that all this coast had been the theatre of former invasions. The popu- lation was composed of the ruling class, and serfs attached to the land. In some of the chapels of the national Kamis, stone arms are exhited, which were used by the primi- tive populations at the epoch when, under certain unknown circumstances, they came in contact with a superior civilization.
Armed With Bows and Arrows.
When Zinmou made his appearance, walls and palisades protected the families of the soldiers and the masters of the country. The latter were armed with bows and long arrows ; a great sword with a carved hilt and a naked blade, worn in the folds of the girdle, completed their equipment.
Their richest adornments consisted of a chain of niagatamas, or cut gems, which they wore hanging on the side above the right hip. Among .these stones were rock crystal, ser- pentine, jasper, agates, amethysts, and to- pazes. Some were in the form of a ball or an egg, others cylindrical ; one a crescent, another a broken ring. The women had necklaces of a similar kind. It is said that the use of the magatamas has still some con- nection with certain religious solemnities in the islands of Liou-Kiou, and at Yeso, in the north of Japan ; and it is concluded thence that it must have been common to all the populations of the long chains of islands extending from Formosa to Kamtschatka.
If this custom has disappeared from the central region of the Japanese archipelago, the cause of the phenomenon must be sought in the superior culture which characterizes the inhabitants of these countries, and which has led them to renounce the display of the family wealth on their persons.
After a difficult voyage of ten months, interrui^ted by occasional brilliant feats of arms and by profitable negotiations, Zinmou reached the northeastern extremity of the island of Kiousiou. He was at a loss how to get further, when he discovered a fisher- man who was floating upon the waves, squatting upon the shell of a huge turtle. He hailed him immediately, and employed him as a pilot.
Thus Zinmou succeeded :n crossing the strait which separates Kiousiou from the land of Niphon, and coasted along in the direction of the cast, operating with prudent caution, and leaving behind him no important point without having secured its possession. Nevertheless, as the native tribes continu- ally opposed him at sea as well as on land, he disembarked and fortified himself upon the peninsula of Takasima, where he devoted three years to the construction and equip- ment of an auxiliary fleet.
Remarkable Conquests.
Then he set out again, and achieved the conquest of the coast and archipelago of the Inland Sea ; after which he disembarked the greater part of his army, and penetrating into Niphon, he established his rule over the rich countries, intersected by fertile valleys and wooded mountains, which extend from Osaka to the borders of the Gulf of Yeddo. From that time all the cultivated countries and all the civilized peoples in ancient Japan were under the power of Zinmou.
The conqueror inaugurated and established the preponr" . ance of the south over the des- tinies of the Japanese people. Whether the race which ruled before him over the native inhabitants had been of Turanian origin or not, it also submitted in its turn to this last and decisive invasion, to which the Empire of the Mikados owe its ancient glory and its
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EMPEROR OK JAPAN.
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JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
actual existence. It was the same old story of the strong subduing the weaker.
It does not follow, however, that Japanese civilization was a simple importation. Zin- mou appears to have been in certain respects, especially that of religion, a tributary of the people whom he had conquered. The diverse elements with which he had to deal — the native clans and the Tartar emigrants, with the invaders who had come from the islands of the south, the ancient nobles lately con- quered, and their new sovereign, who was won over to their favorite customs — were thus fused into one national body.
The tribes which remained aloof from the pacific constitution of the Empire were the Ainos, who had been driven further and fur- ther towards the north, and the Yebis, dispersed during the strife of the invasion, and who lived in the forests on the products of huntin.g and rapine.
Mixture of Races.
But it would be vain to attempt an analysis ot" the various elements which have con- tributed to the formation of the national character of the Japanese. The civilization of the country appears to be the result of a combination of the indigenous and the foreign elements. There has been a mixture of races without an absorption of native qualities, among the islanders of the extreme east, and, as was the case among the islanders of Great Britain, the alliance has produced a new and original type.
When the divine warrior Zinmou had accomplished his ambitious aims, seven years had elapsed since his departure from Kiou- siou, — seven years, accompanied with how much fatigue, suffering and trouble of every kind I His three brothers had perished under his eyes : the first pierced with an arrow =*t the siege of a fortress ; the two
others victims of their own devotion to him, for they had thrown themselves into the sea in order to appease a tempest which threat- ened the junk of the conqueror.
The sun had always shown itself favorable to his enterprises. To its divine protection it was due that he had not been lost in the dangerous defiles of Yamato. A raven, sent to him by the divinity at a critical moment; had guided him into safety. Thus he had added to his ancestral arms the image of the glittering goddess, such as she appeared to him each day when she arose above the horizon, and had it painted upon his banner, his cuirass, and his war fan.
Feast of Thanksgiving.
In the fourth year of his reign, when he had attained possession of uncontested power, he instituted a solemn feast of thanksgiving in honor of Ten-sjoo-dai-zin. The national Kamis had also their share in his homage. He ordained sacrifices in honor of the eight immortal spirits, protectors of countries and families, in order to celebrate the inaugura- tion of his royal residence, and to surround his throne with the prestige of that religion which was so dear to the peoples whom he had conquered.
These things happened in the country of Yamato, which occupies the centre of the great peninsula in the southeast of Niphon, whose coasts border the Inland Sea and the ocean. There Zinmou constructed a vast fortress on a great hill. He called this castle his " Miako," or the chief palace of his States, and there he installed his Court, or Dairi. These two names have ever since been re- tained by the sovereigns of the Japanese Empire to distinguish it from their other residences.
The sovereigns themselves bear the honor- giving title of "Mikados," or "august" and
EARLY HISTORY OF JAPAN.
293
"venerable," without prejudice to the glorious surnames under which they figure in the annals of the nation after death. The na- tive historians frequently employ the word " Miako " instead of the proper name of the city in which the Emperor resides, and that of " Dairi " in place of the title of Mikado.
They say, for example, such and such a thing has been done "by order of the Dairi," instead of "by order of the Mikado." This custom is, however, common to the language of all Courts.
The Emperor's Successor.
As Zinmou had been raised to the throne by the free choice of his father, it was enacted that for the future the reigning Mikado should designate one among his sons to succeed him, or, if he had no sons, one among the other princes of the blood, according to his own choice, and without regard to the order of primogeniture. If the throne became vacant during the minority of the elect prince, the widow of the Mikado was to assume the regency of the Empir" ^nd to exercise sov- ereign rights during the interregnum.
Zinmou terminated his glorious career in the sixty -seventh year of his age, 585 years before the birth of Christ. He has been placed among the number of the Kamis. His chapel, known in Japan by the name of Simoyasiro, is situated upon Mount Kamo, near Kioto, and he is still worshipped there as the founder and the first chief of the Em- pire. The hereditary right to the crown has subsisted in his family for more than two thousand five hundred years, and is still maintained.
The ancient race of the Mikados was strong and long-lived. Zinmou Hved one hundred and twenty years ; the fifth Mikado lived one hundred and fourteen years ; the sixth, one hundred and thirty-seven years;
the seventh, one hundred and twenty-eight years ; the eighth, one hundred and six years; the ninth, one hundred and eleven years ; the eleventh and twelfth, each one hundred and forty years ; the sixteenth, one hundred and eleven years ; and the seven- teenth, who died in the 388th year of our era, attained the age of three hundred and eight years, or three hundred and thirty years according to the version of some his- torians.
Seimou, the thirteenth Mikado, was ten feet high. The wives of the Mikados, who governed the Empire in the capacity of Regent, were equal in point of character to thf.ir venpiablo husbands. One of them, Zingou, A. D. 201, equipped a fleet, and, embarking at the head of a select army, crossed the Sea of Japan and conquered the Corea, from whence she returned just in time to give birth to a future Mikado.
Internal Improvements.
The progress of civilization kept pace with the aggrandizement of the Empire. From Corea came the camel, the ass, and the horse ; the latter animal is the only one which has been naturalized in Japan.
The establishment of tanks and canals for the irrigation of the rice-fields dates back to thirty-six years B.C. The tea-shrub was in- troduced from China. Tatsima Nori brought the orange from " the country of eternity." The culture of the mulberry and the fabri- cation of silk date from the fifth century of our era. Two centuries later the Japanese learned to distinguish " the earth which re- places oil and wood for burning," and to extract silver from the mines of Tsousima.
Several important inventions date from the third century : for example, the institu- tion of a horse post ; making beer from rice, known under the name of saki; and the art
Sir:
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JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
of sewing clothes, which was taught to the Japanese housewives by needlewomen who came from the kingdom of Petsi, in Corea. The Mikado, enchanted with the first attempt, and wishing to go to the fountain-head, sent an embassy to the chief of the Celestial Em- pire to ask him for needlewomen.
In the fourth century the Dairi built, in various parts of Japan, rice stores, intended to prevent the recurrence of the famines which had more than once ravaged the population. In 543, the Court of Petsi sent a precious instrument to the Mikado — it was "the wheel which indicates the south." The introduction of hydraulic clocks took place in 660, and ten years later that of wheels worked by water-power. At the end of the eighth century a system of writing, proper to Japan, was invented, but from the third century the use of Chinese signs had been introduced at Court.
Barbarous Customs.
The obscurity in which ancient national literature is enveloped does not permit us to estimate its influence on civilization. It is all the more interesting to trace the bene- ficent action which the fine arts exercised upon the people. Human victims were im- molated at the funerals of the Mikado or of his wife, the Kisaki, and these victims were usually servants of the Court.
In the year 3 B. C, Nomino Soukoune, a native sculptor, being informed of the death of the Kisaki, had the generous courage to present himself before his sovereign with clay images, which he proposed to him should be thrown into the tomb of his royal wife in place of the servants destined to the sacrifice. The Mikado accepted the offer of the humble modeller, and testified his satis- faction by changing his family name to that of Fasi, or "artist."
The laws remained as they still are, more barbarous and cruel than the customs. For example, the punishment of crucifixion was inflicted on noble women guilty of adultery.
A whole series of measures admirably adapted for the rapid development of the genius of the nation, and for imbuing it with a true sense of its .strength and individuality, is due to the political administration. In the year 86 B. C, the sovereign had census tables of the population made, and ship- building yards established. In the second century of our era he divided his States into eight administrative circles, and these circles into sixty-eight provinces.
Names of Families and Titles.
In the fifth century he sent an official into each province, charged with the collection and registration of the popular customs and traditions of every district. Thus the proper names of each family, and the titles and sur- names of the provincial dynasties, were fixed. An Imperial road was made between the principal cities, five in number, and the Mikado transported his Court successively into each. The most important, in the seventh century, was the city of Osako, on the eastern coast of the Inland Sea.
In order to confer political union, and also unity of language, letters and general civilization, upon the country, a capital was indispensable, and this great want was sup- plied in the eighth century by the founda- tion of Kioto, which became the favorite city of the Mikado, and was his permanent resi dence until the twelfth century.
The city of Hiogo, whose secure and spacious harbor has been for years the centre of the maritime commerce of the Japanese Empire, is built on the coast of the basin of Idsoumi, opposite to the northeastern point of the island of Awadsi. At Hiogo the
EMPRESS OF JAPAN.
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junks from Simonasaki discharge their cargoes from China, the Liou-Kiou Islands, from Nagasaki, and from the western coast of Niphon, and even of Corea and Yeso, for the supply of the interior and the east of Japan. From these, thousands of other junks transport the agricultural produce and objects of art and industry of the southern provinces of Niphon to the islands of the Inland Sea.
The Venice of Japan.
The great and ancient city of Osaka is only eight hours' journey from Hiogo. It is the Venice of Japan. The palaces of the nobility occupy the quays which stretch along the principal arm of the river. All the rest of the town is composed of houses and shops belonging to the trading classes. Only a few old temples, more or less dilapi- dated, are to be seen. One of them, at the far end of the eastern suburb, has been placed by the Government of the Tycoon at the disposal of the foreign Embassies. A citadel, a mile in circumference, overlooks the northeastern portion of the city, and commands the Imperial high road to Kioto.
From the year 744 to the year 1185 of our era the city of Osaka was the residence of the Mikados. They were well pleased to dwell amid its energetic, laborious and en- terprising population, to whom the empire chiefly owed the development of its com- merce and prosperity. But this was no longer the heroic epoch, when the Mikado, like the Doge of the Venetian Republic, em- barked upon his war-junk, and fulfilled in person the functions of High Admiral. He was no longer to be seen inspecting his troops, borne upon a litter upon the shoulders of four brave heralds, or com- manding the manoeuvres from the summit of a hill, sitting upon a stool, and holding in
his right hand his iron fan. Such had been the representation of him in former times.
At Osaka, the Mikado, who had reached the height of riches, power, and security, built a palace in the midst of a spacious park, which shut him out from the tumult of the city. His courtiers persuaded him that it was requisite for the dignity of the descend- ant of the sun that he should be invisible to the great body of his subjects, and should leave to princes and favorites the cares of government and the command of the army and the fleet.
The Sovereign Secluded.
The life of the Dairi was subject to cere- monial laws which regulated its smallest details OTd its least movements, and the sovereign dwelt within a circle inviolable by all except his courtiers. Imperial pomp henceforth rarely became visible to the people ; who, deceived in their dearest hopes, weary of the arbitrary rule of favorites, ven- tured at length to raise their voices, and their murmurs reached the ears of their sovereign. He did not convoke an assembly of notables, but he instituted certain bureaus, where the complaints of the people were registered.
The courtiers, convinced that the dynasty of the descendants of the sun was in danger, carried away themselves and their Emperor to Kioto, a small town in the interior, on the north of Osaka. They succeeded in making this the permanent residence of the Mikados, and the capital, or miako, of the Empire.
In abandoning the populous city, the great centre of commerce, of industry, and of in- tellectual activity, independent of the Dairi, they obtained the double advantage of cutting off all communications between the people and the sovereign and of moulding the new capital to their tastes, and for the convenience of their passions.
EARLY HISTORY OF JAPAN.
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Kioto is situated in a fertile plain, open to the south, and bounded to the northeast by a chain of green hills, behind which there is a great lake, called indifferently the lake of Oitz, or Oumi, the name of the two principal cities on its shores. It is said to offer some of the mostbeauliful views in Japan. The waters of a dozen rive/s flow into it, and give rise *o the Yodo-gawa, which runs to the south of Kioto, and into the Inland Sea below Osaka.
Canals in the Streets.
Two affluents of the Yodo-gawa rise on the north of the capital, and flow beneath its walls, one to the east and the other to the west. Thus Kioto is completely surrounded by a network of running water, which is utilized in irrigating the rice-fields, in the for- mation of canals in the streets of the city, and also in the tanks in the Imperial parks.
In the neighborhood of Kioto, rice, sar- rasin, wheat, tea, the mulberry-tree, the cotton-plant, and an immense variety of fruit- trees and vegetables are cultivated. Groves of bamboos and laurels, chestnuts, pines, and cypress crown the hills. Springs are abund- ant. Thousands of birds — the falcon, the pheasant, the peewit, ducks, geese, and hawks of all kinds — abound in the country. Kioto is famed for the salubrity of its climate. It is one of those portions of the Empire least exposed to hurricanes and earthquakes.
The successors of Zinmou could not have found a more propitious retreat in which to enjoy the fruits of the labors of their ances- tors ; to raise themselves to the rank of divinities upon the pedestal of the ancient traditions of their race, and to lose sight of the realities of human life. All these things they did so completely as to allow one of the greatest sceptres in the world to escape from their enervated hands.
The descendant of the Kamis of Japan naturally became the chief of the national religion, which had no clergy. The Mikados created a hierarchy of functionaries, endowed with the sacerdotal character, and charged to preside over all the details of public worship. All the high dignitaries were chosen from the immediate and collateral members of the Imperial family.
The same order of proceeding was ob- served generally in all that concerned the service of the palace and the important functionaries of the Dairi. The chiefs of the civil and military administrations were gradually more and more alienated from the Court properly so called, and the latter took an exclusively clerical stamp.
Rivalry in Building Temples.
So the capital of the Empire ended by presenting a strange spectacle. Nothing was to be seen there which had reference to the army, the navy, or the government of the country. All these were abandoned to the care of the functionaries employed in the various services, and scattered about in the provinces.
On the other hand, all the sects which recognized the supremacy of the Mikado assembled their own dignitaries within his city of residence, and all vied with each other in building temples for their respective religions. Thus, when Buddhism, imported by monks from China, had made sure of the protection of the Mikado by paying him homage under the title of spiritual chief of the Empire, it speedily surpassed all that had been done in the capital to the honor and glory of the Kami worship.
The Japanese Buddhists endowed Kioto with the largest bell in the world, and with a temple no less unique of its kind. It is called the Temple of the Thirty-three Thousand
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Three Hundred and Thirty-three, which is exactly the number of the idols which it
ones, placed upon the!** heads and knees and upon the palms of their hands.
VIEW OF KIOTO, JAPAN.
contains. In order to make such a prodigy intelligible, it must be explained that the great statues support a multitude of small
The temples or chapels of Kioto which belong to the ancient national religion still preserve to a certain extent the simplicity
EARLY HISTORY OF JAPAN.
299
which distinguishes them in the provinces. Some are consecrated to the seven celestial dynasties of the native mythology, others to the spirits of the earth, and others to the divinity of the Sun, Ten-sjoo-dai-zin, or to her descendants, the first Mikados.
The Kami worship towards the end of the seventeenth century had two thousand one hundred and twenty-seven mias in Kioto and its suburbs; but the Buddhist religion, in its different sects or ramifications, had no less than three thousand eight hundred and ninety-three temples, pagodas or chapels. There are no other monuments worthy of notice in this singular capital.
Palaces of the Mikados.
The palaces of the Da'iri are numbered among the sacred edifices, both by reason of the style of their architecture and their purpose. They are enclosed within a circuit of walls occupying the northeastern portion of the city. Long lines of trees, of great height, which show aoove the distant roofs, give a vague idea of the extent and tran- quillity of the parks, in whose recesses the Imperial dwellings hide themselves from profane eyes and the noise of the city.
As it frequently happens that the Mikado abdicates in favor of the hereditary prince, in order to end his days in absolute seclu- sion, a special palace is reserved for him, under such circumstances, in a solitary en- closure on the southeastern side of the Da'iri.
In the centre of the city there is a strong fort, whose ramparts are surmounted at inter- vals by square towers two or three stories high, intended to serve as a refuge for the Mikado in troublous times. The headquar- ters of the garrison of the Tycoon was established there in later days.
The high dignitaries and functionaries, and the persons employed in the various
residences of the Emperor and of his numerous family, may be counted by thou- sands. The number can never be exactly known, because the Court has the privilege of escaping the annual census.
At all times the Japanese Government ha; occupied itself carefully with national statis- tics. In the holy city of the Empire, every individual is officially classed in the .sect to which he declares himself to belong. In 1693 Kiu-mpfer reports that the permanent population of Kioto, exclusive of the Court, comprised 52,169 ecclesiastics, and 477,557 lay persons; both one and the other were divided into twenty recognized sects, the most numerous of which included 159,113 adherents, and the least numerous, which was a sort of Buddhist confraternit)', 289 members only.
A Continuous Carnival.
It must not be imagined that this enorm- ous development of sacerdotal life in the capital of Japan renders the city gloomy, or makes the public morals austere. Ex- actly the contrary is the case; the stories and pictures which exist in Kioto, and record what it was in the days of its prosperity, produce the impression of a never-ending carnival.
Let us suppose that we are reaching the holy city at sundown. Our ears will be assailed by a concert of instruments. On all the hills, which are covered with sacred groves, temples and convents, the bonzes and the monks are celebrating the evening office to the sound of drums and tambou- rines, copper gongs and brass bells. The faubourgs are illuminated with bright col- ored paper lanterns of all dimensions: the largest of cylindrical form, are suspended from the columns of the temples; the smaller, like globes, hang from the doors
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JAPAN AXD Tin: JAPANKSK.
of the inns and the galleries of the Iiouscs. The sacred edifices and profane establish- ments, which participate in this illumination, arc HO considerable in number, and so close together, that the whole quarter seems to be the scene of a Venetian /?/<•. In the heart of the city a compact crowtl of both sexes throngs the streets, which extend from the
GREAT BELL OF KIOTO.
north to the south, in the vicinity of the
Dairi.
The priest.-, are there in great num-
bers. Those of the Kami worship wear a little hat of black lacquered cardboard, sur- mounted with a sort of crest of the same color, and a small white cross.
This curious head-dress lias an appendage of very stiff ribbon which is tied behind the head and hangs down the back of the neck.
It is the ancient national liead-dress, which does not belong exclusively to the i)riests, but may be worn, with certain modifications prescribed by the sumptuary laws, by the nineteen officially titled classes of the popu- lation of Kioto. A wide simar, big trousers and great sword, which is probably only an ornamental weapon, completes the costume of the priests of the Kami temples.
AH the members of the Huddhist clergy, regular as .veil as secular, have the head shav'en and completely bare, with the ex- ception of certain orders who wear wide- btimmed hats. The habit is generally grey, but there arc some black, brown, yellcnv and red, occasionally diversified by a scarf and breastplate or a surplice.
A Curious Rock.
Kioto boasts of certain hermits, saints who have made choice of the capital to retire from the world. The grateful citizens transform the cells of these monks into little storehouses of abundance. The most mys- terious of them is cut out of the front of a rock, and inhabited no one knows by whom or how ; but baskets of provisions are lifted up by an ingenious pulley over a great tank, which separates the rock from the public road.
The annual /(Vii" instituted in honor of the principal Kamis of Japan ha\e no other sacred rites than, the ceremonies of puritici- tion, and were introduced about the end of the eighth century. On the day before the great solemnity the priests go in procession with lights to the temple, where the arms and other objects which belongs to the divine hero are kept in a precious reliquaiy called "Mikosi."
According to clerical fiction, the Mikosi represents the terrestrial dwelling of the Kami — a kind of throne still preserved to
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JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
him in hi., earthly country — and each year it undergoes a radical purification. The reliquary is emptied and brought to the river: while a certain nrmber of priests carefully wash it, others light great fires in order to keep away all evil genii ; and the Kagoura, or sacred choir, play softly in order to appease the spirit of the Kami, who is momentarily deprived of his earthly dwelling; nevertheless, they make no delay in restoring it to him, which is done by solemnly reinstating the relics in the reli- quary.
As, however, the temple itself equally re- quires purification, the Mikosi does not re- enter it until this operation has been per- formed ; and during the entire/iie, which is prolonged during several days, it is sheltered in a receptacle specially constructed for the purpose, and duly protected against evil spirits.
Showers of Hot Water.
Should those dread things endeavor to pass through the ropes of rice-straw which bound the sacred enclosure, they would ex- pose themselves to showers of boiling holy water, with which from time to time the dwelling of the Kami is sprinkled ; and woe to the evil spirits who should flutter in the air within reach of the Kami's guard of honor, for the priests who compose it are skilful horsemen and accomplished archers. The people applaud their evolutions, and fol- low with admiring eyes the arrows that they shoot into the clouds, and which fall within the enclosure of the holy place.
Such are the ceremonies which lend a de- votional character to the festival. The in- fluence which Kami worship has had upon the development of the dramatic taste of the nation has not been produced, I need hardly say, by these puerile juggleries. The annual
festivals have another and worthier side, and one educational in its character.
The historical cortege, a great procession of masked and costumed priests, represents various scenes taken from the lives of their heroes. These theatrical representations in the open air were accompanied by music, songs and pantomimic dances. Thus the fine arts and poetry are made interpreters of national traditions, and the people flock to receive the patriotic instruction with avidity.
Annual Festivals.
Sometimes an exhibition of trophies of arms, or groups of figures in clay, reproduc- ing the features and wearing the traditional costume of the principal Kamis, was added to the entertainment. They were placed on cars or on platforms of pyramidal form, rep- resenting the building, the bridge, the junk, or sacred place illustrated by the heroes whose memory was celebrated. Originally these annual festivals, which were called Matsouris, were limited to a small number of the most ancient cities in the Empire. Eight provinces only had the honor of pos- sessing Kamis.
But, from the tenth century, every province, every district, every place of any importance wished to have its hero or its celestial patron. Finally, the number of Kamis reached three thousand one hundred and thirty-two, among whom a great difference was made in favor of the most ancient. Four hundred and ninety-two were distinguished under the title of "great Kamis," and the others received the name of "inferior Kamis."
Thenceforth, Matsouris were held in all important places in Japan, and from one end to the other of the Empire a taste for heroic recitals and artistic enjoyments, allied to the love of country and manly qualities, was dif- fused.
CHAPTER XVIII. THE COUNTRY AND THE PEOPLE.
A COMPLETE and graphic description of Japan and the Japanese is fur- nished by M. Aime Humbert, Min- ister Plenipotentiary to Japan from the Swiss Republic. M. Humbert had pecu- liar advantages for studying the land of the Mikado and its people, and he records his facts and observations in a manner that at once interests and captivates the reader. Speaking of the country and its surround- ings, he says :
The Inland Sea of Japan is bounded by the southern coasts of Niphon, and the northern coasts of Kiousiou, and Sikoff It is, however, more like a canal than a real mediterranean sea, being a communication established, at the height of the thirty-fourth degree of north latitude, between the Chinese Sea, or, more strictly, of the strait of Corca, on the western coast of Japan, and the great ocean which washes the southern and eastern shores of the same archipelago. The whole of the Japanese Mediterranean is sometimes known as the Sea of Souwo.
Each of the provinces by which it is sur- rounded contains one or several "lordships," belonging to the feudal princes, who enjoy considerable independence, and generally derive large revenues from their estates.
The Japanese Mediterranean, like the European sea so called, is divided into sev- eral basins. They are five in number, and are named from the most important of the provinces which overlook them, so that the Inland Sea bears five different names through- out its longitudinal course from west to east.
In the midst of the natural wealth which surrounds them, the large, industrious, and intelligent population of the country parts of Japan have for their entire possessions only a humble shed, a few working implements, some pieces of cotton cloth, a few mats, a cloak of straw, a little store of tea, oil, rice, and salt ; for furniture, nothing but two or three cooking utensils ; in a word, only the strict necessaries of existence. All the remaining product of their labor belongs to the owners of the soil, the feudal lords.
Temples Everywhere.
The absence of a middle class gives a miserable aspect to the Japanese villages. Liberal civilization would have covered the borders of the Inland Sea with pretty ham- lets and elegant villas. The uniformity of the rustic dwellings is broken by temples, but they are to be distinguished at a distance only by the vast dimensions of their roofs, and by the imposing effect of the ancient trees which are almost always to be found in their vicinity. Buddhist pagodas, which are lofty towers with pointed roofs, adorned with galleries on each floor, are much less com- mon in Japan than in China.
On entering the basin of Hiago, we came in sight of a town of some importance, on the coast of Sikoff; it is called Imabari. A vast sandy beach, which is rarely to be found in Japan, stretched back to a kind of suburb, in which we could discern a busy concourse of people, apparently carrying on market busi- ness. Above the strand were fertile plains,
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JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
whose undulating lines were lost in the mist at the foot of a chain of mountains bathed in sunshine. The principal peaks of this ch^'m are from 3,000 to 4,800 feet in height
Fortifications, or rather mounds of ch, behind which shone several banners, pro- tected the batteries posted in front of the port. Some soldiers, standing in a group on the shore, followed our corvette with their eyes. There was nothing remarkable in the aspect of the town, except the sacred palaces, adorned by gigantic trees.
A Famous Prince.
Some time afterwards we passed, within rifle-range, a large Japanese steamer, which our pilot, whom we consulted, and who judged from the colors of the flag, informed us was the property of the Prince of Tosa. His estates are situated in the southern por- tion of the island of Sikoff, and they bring him in a very large annual revenue. Most probably he was returning from a conference of the feudal party held in the city of Kioto, at the court of the Hereditary Emperor of Jiipan, and had embarked at Hiogo, in order to regain his own province by the Boungo canal. What were his sentiments on be- holding a strange corvette cleaving the waters of the Inland Sea? Docs he flatter himself that he can repel the civilization of the West by the arms which it places at his disposal ? Docs he know whither steam will lead him ?
A little before sunset we saw, on the coast of Sikoff, a feudal castle, remarkable for its picturesque site upon the summit and the sides of a wooded hill, at whose feet a rustic hamlet seemed to shelter itself under the pro- tection of the ancient lordly towers. It is the Castle of Marougama, the residence of Prince Kiogoko Sanoke, whose revenues are valued at ;?!200,ooo.
The castles of the Daimios are generally at
a distance from the town and villages. They are composed, in most instances, of a vast quadrangular enclosure, within thick and lofty walls, surrounded by a moat, and flanked at the corners, or surmounted at intervals throughout their extent by small square towers with slightly sloping roofs. In the interior are the park, the gardens, and the actual residence of the Da'imio, com- prising a main dwelling and numerous de- pendencies. Sometimes a solitary tower, of a shape similar to the other buildings, rises in the middle of the feudal domain, and rears itself three or four stories higher than the external wall.
Imposing Edifices.
As in the case of the Chinese pagodas, each story is surrounded by a roof, which, however, but seldom supports a gallery. All the masonry is rough, and joined by cement; the woodwork is painted red and black, and picked out with copper orna- ments, which are sometimes polished, but sometimes laden with verdigris. The tiles of the roof are slate color. In general, richness of detail is less aimed at than the general effect resulting from the grandeur and harmony of the proportions of the buildings. In this respect, some of the seignorial residences of Japan deserve to figure among the remarkable architectural monuments of the peoples of Ivistern Asia.
We anchored in a bay of the island of Souyousima, at the southern point of the province of Bitsiou, and at the entrance of the basin of Arima. We were surrounded by mountains, at whose feet twinkled many lights shining in from houses. The stillness was unbroken, save by the distant barking of dogs. Next morning, very early, we were ploughing the peaceful waters of the Ari- manado. This basin is completely closed
THE COUNTRY AND THE PEOPLE.
305
on the east by a single island, which divides it from the Idsouminada by a length of thirty miles. It is in the form of a triangle, whose apex, turned towards the north, faces the province of Arima, on the island of Niphon.
This is the beautiful island of Awadsi, which was the dwelling-place of the gods, and the cradle of the national mythology of the Japanese. The low lands at its southern extremity are covered with a luxuriant vege- tation, and the soil rises gently into culti- vated or wooded hills until they touch the boundaries of a chain of mountains from 300 to 700 yards in height.
Awadsi belongs to the Prince of Awa, whose annual revenue amounts to $800,000. It is separated from the island of Sikoff on the west, by the passage of Naruto, and the island of Niphon on the east, by the Strait of Linschoten.
Dangerous Channel.
The greater number of the steamers which cross the Japanese Mediterranean from west to east, pass from the basin of Arima into that of Idsoumi, where they generally touch at the important commercial town of Hiogo ; and from thence they enter the great ocean by the Strait of Linschoten. That passage of Naruto which leads directly from the basin of Arima into the great ocean is shorter than the former ; it is, however, much less frequented, because it is consid- ered a dangerous channel for high-decked vessels.
We saw the coasts drawing nearer and nearer to us, as we descended, towards the south-west corner of this triangular piece of land. At the same time a promontory of the island of Sikoff rose above the horizon on our right, and seemed to stretch continu- ously onward in the direction of Awadsi. 20
Very soon we found ourselves m a passage from whence we could distinctly see the beautiful vegetation of the coast of Sikoff and the coast of Awadsi.
At length we saw the gates of the Strait : on the left, rocks surmounted by pines, forming the front of the island of Awadsi ; on the right, a solitary rock, or islet, also bearing a few pines, forming the front of the island of Sikoff. Between them the sea, like a bar of breakers, though the weather was calm: afar, the undulating ocean, with- out a speck of foam ; the tossing of the waves in the passage being solely the result of the violence of the current.
Myriads of Birds.
All around us, on the waves and at the foot of the rocks, were thousands of sea- birds, screaming, fluttering and diving for the prey which the sea, stirred to its depths by the current, was perpetually tossing up to them. Several fishing-boats were out, not on the canal — that would have been impossible — but behind the rocks, in the creeks of the little solitary islet and of Sikoff.
Below Awadsi, the united waters of the two straits of Naruto and Linschoten form the canal of Kino, which washes the shores of the province of Awa, on Sikoff, and of the province of Kisou, on Niphon. We sailed for some time yet in sight of the latter ; then the land disappeared from our eyes, and we soon perceived, by the wide-rolling motion of the waves, that we were on the outer sea, in the immense domain of the great ocean.
I occupied myself, during the whole eve- ning, in recalling the recollections of my journey; and I could find nothing out of Switzerland to compare with the effect of the beautiful Japanese scenery. Since then, several Japanese, travelling in Switzerland, have told me that no other country awakened
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JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
so vividly the remembrance of their own. Still more frequently I transported myself in fancy to one or other of the archipelagoes of the Souwonadii, earnestly desiring the advent of that hour when the breath of liberty will give them, in the I^r East, the ini[)ortance which formerly belonged, in pAirope, to the Archipelago of the Mediter- ranean.
They cannot be blended into a general impression. Nothing is less uniform than the scenery of the shores of the Inland Sea. It is a series of pictures which vary infinitely, according to the greater or less proximity of the coasts, or to the aspect of the islands on the horizon. There are grand marine scenes, where the lines of the sea blend with sandy beaches sleeping under the golden rays of the sun; while in the distance, the misty mountains form a dim background.
Japanese Scenery.
There are little landscapes, very clear, trim and modest: a village at the back of a peaceful bay, surrounded by green fields, over which towers a forest of pines; just as one may see by a lake in the Jura on a fine morning in June.
Sometimes, when the basins contracted, and the islands in front seemed to shut us in, I remembered the Rhine above Hoppart. The Japanese scenery is, however, more calm and bright than the romantic land- scapes t(j which I allude. The abrupt slopes, the great masses of shade, the shift- ing lilies, are replaced by horizontal levels; by a beach, a port and terraces; in the dis- tance are rounded islands, sloping hills, conical mountains. These pictures have their charms: the imagination, no less than the eye, rests in the contemplation of them; but it would seek in vain that melancholy attraction wliich, according to the notions of
liuropean taste, seems inseparable from the enjoyment.
Laying aside the question of the pictu- resque, which is not the essential element of our relations with the Far East, I hope that, sooner or later, a chain of Western colonies will be formed at Japan, peacefully developing the natural and commercial re- sources of that admirable country, along a line marked by Yokohama, Iliogo, Simono- saki and Nagasaki. It might liave a regular service of steamers.
Fine Summer Resorts.
The trading steamers of America, as well as tho.se of China, might maintain the rela- tions of the two worlds with the King of the Archipelagoes of the Great Ocean. Euro- peans, weary of the tropical climate or the burthen of business in China, might seek pure and strengthening air, and pass some weeks of repose on the shores of the Japa- nese Mediterranean. How many families settled in China, how many wives and chil- dren of luu'opeans, would be delighted to profit, during the trying summer months, by this refuge, as beautiful and .salubrious as Italy, and yet near their actual home!
But while imagination, forestallin'r the march of time and the triumphs of civiliza- tion, evokes the charms of a ICuropean society from the bosom of the isles of the Souwonada, I mu.st acknowledge that I privately congratulated myself on having seen the J ipanese Mediterranean in its primitive condition, while one may .still "discover" .something, and has to ask the pilots the names of the islands, the moun- tains and the villages, and to cast anchor for the night in some creek called "fair port" by the natives.
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tory of Idsoumo, situated at the southern extremity of the principality of Kisou, we sailed, during a whole day with the current which the Japanese call Kouro-Siwo, which Tom southwest to northeast, at the rate of from thirty-five to forty miles a day.
A Pleasant Sail.
The weather was fine, and the sea a shin- irsT emr. : J.J-green. I passed many hours o:\ J e p .;), n stillness and vague contem- platio ,. ,' " *he first time I enjoyed the pleasu.-e oi . ailiiig. The silence which reit nod on boa; ■ (I<led to the majestic effect of .'ii J -liip l.iden -o the summit of her
masts with her tr(}'' ,v c^ '"white. It was as though the fnos hati bccii extinguished, and the noise of the engines hushed, that we might present ourselves more respectfully at the gates of the residence of the Tycoons. But when night fell, the fires were lighted again, in case of accident; for the land-winds frequently cause much trouble to the ships in the Gulf of Yeddo. At daybreak, we came within sight of six small mountainous islands, which looked like signals set up at the entrance of this vast arm of the sea.
The sun rose, and presented, amid the salt mists of the horizon, that image of a scarlet globe which forms the national arms of Japan. His earliest rays lighted 'ip Cape Idsou, on the mainland of Niphon, whilst in the east we beheld the smoke of the two craters of the island of Ohosima. At the head of a bay in the promontory of Idsou is situated the town of Simoda, the first, but the least important of the commercial places to which we come when sailing up the Gulf of Yeddo. The Americans obtained an authorization to found an establishment there in 1854. Some time afterwards the harbor of Simoda was destroyed by an earthquake, and no mention was made of that place in the treaties of 1 858.
A number of fishing-boats are to be seen on the coast, and several three-masted vessels are going to the mainland of Niphon and the surrounding islands. The scene is full of life, and sparkling with brilliant and harmo- nious color; the wide sky is a splendid azure ; the pale green sea has no longer the sombre hues of the great deeps, but shines with the limpid brightness which character- izes it upon the rocky coasts of Japan. The isles are decked in the brilliant foliage of the spring; the harsh brown of the rocks is streaked with shades of ochre ; and the white sails of the native barques, the snow-crests of Myakesima, and the smoke from the craters of Ohosima, complete the beautiful marine scene.
The "Matchless Mountain."
Having reached the " Bay of the Missis- sippi," we made out, for the first time, the summit of Fousi-yanio- t'le " Matchless Mountain," an extinct volcano 12,450 feet abo\e the level of the sea. It is fifty nautical miles from the coast, on the west of the bay, and except for the chain of the Akoni hills at its base, completely isolated.
The effect of this immense solitary pyramid, covered with eternal snow, surpasses descrip- tion. It lends inexpressible solemnity to the scenery of the Bay of Yeddo, already more sombre than that of the gulf, by reason of the closer proximity of the shores, the somewhat sandy hue of the sea-water, and the immense quantity of cedars, pines, and other dark- foliaged trees which crown the crests of all the hills along the coast.
At length we double Point Treaty, a picturesque promontory where the conven- tion between Commodore Perry and the Commissioners of the Tycoon was signed; and all of a sudden, behind this promontory, we see the quays and the city of Yokohama
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stretching along a marshy beach, bounded on the south and west by a ring of wooded hills. A score of ships of war, and merchant vessels, English, Dutch, French, and Ameri- can, are lying out in the roads, almost oppo- site the " foreign quarter," which may easily be recognized by its white houses and con- sular flags. Native junks are lying at anchor at some distance from the jetties of the port and the store houses of the Custom House. We pass by these slowly, and steam at half speed in front of the Japanese city, in which all the houses, e.xcept a certain number of shops, are built of wood, and seem to have only one story above the ground floor.
Named From a Sea-Goddess.
When we had come opposite to the Benten quarter, situated at the extremity of the beach of Yokohama, and at the mouth of a wide river, our corvette anchored.
Tiiat portion of the Japanese city of Yoko- hama which is called Benten derives its name from a sea-goddess, who is worshipped in an island situated to the northwest cf our resi- dence. Before the arrival of the Europeans, this sacred place was surrounded only by a small town, in which dwelt fishermen and agriculturists, separated by a swamp from the not less modest little town of Yokohama. Now, quays, streets, modern buildings, have invaded the entire space which extends from the promontory of the " Treaty " to the river, from which we are divided only by a range of Japanese barracks and a guard- house.
Among the streets which extend to the sea-beach from Benten, there is one shaded by a plantation of firs ; and on passing through the municipal barrier which the police keep open during the day and shut at night, the stranger finds himself in front of a long avenue of fir trees, headed by a
sacred gate called a Tori. It is composed of two pillars slightly inclined towards each other ; so that they would meet at last at an acute angle, if at a certain elevation their pyramidal development were not checked; and joined by two horizontal transverse beams, of which the uppermost h the thicker, and is curved upwards at both ends.
The tori invariably announces the vicinity of a temple, a chapel, or a sacred place of some sort. A grotto, a waterfall, a gigantic tree, a fantastic rock, all things which we prosaically call natural curiosities, a Japanese regards with pious veneration or with super- stitious fear, according to whether he be more or less governed by the Buddhist demon- ology; and the bonzes of the country, priestly attendants of the temples, never fail to give tangible form to this popular tendency, by erecting a tori close to each remarkable place.
Avenue of Trees.
The pine trees in the Benten avenue are lofty, slender and for the most part bent by the continuous action of tiic sea-breezes. At regular distances long poles are nailed upon them crosswise, on which, on festival days, the bonzes hang inscriptions, wreaths and swinging banners.
The avenue ends in a second tori, which, with due regard to perspective, is not so lofty as the first. On approaching it, one is suqjrised to find that the avenue makes a sudden bend and prolongs itself on the right. Here all is mystery; a waste ground, cov- ered with rank grasses, bushes and slender pines with aerial foliage; on the left, the calm transparent water of a little gulf formed by an arm of the river; in front is a wooden bridge, built in a style of severe elegance, wide and excessively curved; behind this bridge is a third tori, thrown out against
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the tliick foliage of a grove of fine trees. The whole forms a strange picture, with something in it that excites a secret appre- hension.
This bridge, whose pillars are decorated with ornaments in copper, finally admits us to the sacred place. The third tori, bearing on its summit an inscription in gold letters on
kneel who come to worship before the altar of the goddess.
Should the temple be empty, one of the bonzes in attendance may be summoned by shaking a long strip of woolen stuff that hangs beside the entrance, with a bunch of pebbles attached to it. The bonze comes out of his retreat immediately, and proceeds,
VIEW OF YOKOHAMA.
a black ground
is entirely built of fine granite of remarkable whiteness ; and the tombs, which are tastefully disposed on the left side of the avenue, are constructed of the same material. The temple, almost en- tirely hidden by the branches of the cedars and pines which surround it, faces us ; but the mysterious gloom hardly permits us to discern the flight of steps on which the people
according to the requirements of the visitor, to give him advice, to distribute tapers or amulets, to undertake to recite prayers, in fact to perform any of the ceremonies of worship ; — of course for the consideration of a fee.
As a Japanese, before he presents himself at the sanctuary, must wash and dry his hands and face, in a small chapel, at some
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distance from the temple, on the right, is a basin containing the holy water intended for ablutions, and napkins of silk crape sus- pended on a roller, like the hand-towels in a sacristy. One of two chapels close by con- tains the big drum which serves the purpose of a bell for the temple, the other the volun- tary offerings of the faithful. The bonzes who serve the temple of Benton do not appear to live in opulence. Their attire is generally dirty and neglected ; and the ex- pression of their faces is stupid, sullen, and malevolent towards strangers, who are glad to keep at a respectful distance from these holy persons.
A Singular Orchestra.
I had only one opportunity of seeing them officiate ; it was on the occasion of a proces- sion on their local festival day. On ordinary days, it appears, that they merely give audiences ; and I have rarely seen men resort to their ministrations. Their habitual clients are peasant women, fishermen, and casual pilgrims. But I have frequently heard, at sunset, the beating of the tambourines, which, except at great solemnities, form the whole orchestra of the temple of Benten.
The bonzes perform interminable music on this monstrous instrument, always in the same rhythm ; four equal loud notes, followed by four equal deep notes, and so on, for hours together, probably the length of time required for driving away the evil influences. Nothing can exceed the melancholy impres- sion produced by this deep-sounding noise, when, in the silence of the night, it blends with the sighing of the great cedar-trees and the booming of the sea. It oppresses one like a nightmare. But indeed it may be said that the religion which finds expres- sion in such customs weighs on the mind of the people like a dream, full of uneasiness
and vague terror and destitute of every ele- ment of good cheer and hope.
Far from being natural religion, paganism is the enemy of human nature, the religion of denaturalized man ; and thence it is that, seen in action, it fills one with an indescrib-
JAP^NESE BONZE.
able pain, an instinctive repulsion which seems to me to come from that especial characteristic, rather than to be the effect of our Christian education.
The obligatory accompaniments of the Japanese temples are tea-houses or restau- rants, at which tea is principally supplied,
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but where saki, a fermented and highly in- toxicating drink, may be had. The eatables are fruits, fish, rice or wheaten cakes ; and everyone smokes. The pipes are metal ; the tobacco is very finely cut, and free from all narcotic admixture : opium-smoking is un- known in Japan. These establishments, where women are the attendants, and where external propriety is strictly observed, are, for the most part, immoral. This is espe- cially the case in respect to those which are situated in the vicinity of the toris at Ben- ten, a circumstance which probably dates from a period at which the little island dedi- cated to the patroness of the sea still at- tracted a considerable number of pilgrims.
Residences of Officials.
At present the altar of the goddess is singularly neglected ; but there is a great military station in the neighborhood, with which the rule of the Tycoon — that of the sword — has endowed the city of Yokohama. It occupies the entire space between the island of Benten and our dwelling.
The quarter of the "Yakounines" is com- posed of the residences of government officers employed in the Customs, of the harbor police and that of other public places, of the Military Instruction, of the guard of the Japanese city, and the superintendents of the "free quarter."
The Yakounines have no outward and visible sign of their functions except a large pointed hat of lacquered pasteboard, and two swords passed through the girdle on the left side: one of these is large and two-handled; the other, a kind of blade intended for single comb?t, is small. These are the only war- like po'Pts in the equipment of these func- tionaries. They number several hundreds, they are almost all married, each has his separate lodging, and all seem to be placed
on a footing of equality in this respect It is not uninteresting to study the means which the Government of the Tycoon ha.s adopted for organizing th'" army of func- tionaries into a kind of c Awhile retain- ing their domestic surrounuings. This has been effected to a certain extent by the ap- plication of the cellular system to family life.
Let the reader picture to himself a collec- tion of wooden buildings, forming a long square, a lofty wooden wall towards the street ; low doors at regular intervals, each giving access to a court, which contains a small garden, a water cistern, a kitchen and other offices. Across the yard, on the ground floor, lies a spacious cell, which may be .subdivided into two or three rooms by means of sliding partitior he court and the cell comprise the lo of a Yakou-
nine family.
Deserted Streets.
Each of the long blocks of which the streets in this quarter are composed encloses at least a dozen of these dwellings, six ranged side by side, and then six back to back with the others. The cells are all roofed with green tiles, and no roof is more lofty than another. The Yakounine quarter is a triumph of straight lines and uniformity. The streets are generally empty, because the men pass the greater part of the day at the Custom House or the guard-houses ; and during the absence of its head, every family keeps itself within its narrow enclosure. Even the door, which is so low that one must stoop to pass through, is generally shut during this time of seclusion.
This custom is, however, in one way, analogousto the precaution with which Turk- ish jealousy surrounds women. It arises from the position which Japanese habits as-
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aign to the fathers of families. In each, his wife beholds her lord and master. In his presence she attends to her domestic duties with perfect ease and simplicity, caring noth- ing for the presence of a stranger. In his absence she observes an extreme reserve, which we might be tempted to attribute to modesty, but which is more truthfully ex- plained by the dependence and intimidation imposed on her by marriage.
Custom of Giving Presents.
By degrees neighborly relations were established between our residences and the Yakounine quarter. In Japan, as elsewhere, small presents encourage friendship. We sent some white sugar an'' some Java coffee to certain families where we learned there were sick persons, or women in childbed, and these small offering were gratefully re- ceived.
One day, whe I was alone in the house, between four and five o'clock in the after- noon, the Mowban came to announce the arrival of a feminine deputation from .le Yakounine quarter, and to ask me whether he should send them away. These ladies had been authorized by their husbands to make their acknowledgments in person, but they had profited by the opportunity to ex- press their wish to examine our European furniture. I told the porter that I would gladly undertake to do the honors of the house to them.
Presently I heard the clicking of a number of wooden shoes on the gravel walk in the garden, and, looking towards the foot of the verandah staircase in front of the saloon, I saw a group of smiling faces, among which 1 distinguished four married women, two young girls, and several children of all ages. The former were remarkable for the plainness of their dress ; no ornament in the hair, no
light stuffs or bright colors in their garments, no paint on their faces, but their teeth painted as black as ebony, as is becoming to all married women, according to Japanese ideas.
The young girls, on the contrary, show off the natural whiteness of their teeth by a layer of carmine on their lips, put rouge on their cheeks, braid their thick hair with .strips of scarlet crape, and wear wide girdles of many colors. The children's dre^s is simply a plain garment and a striped sash ; they never wear any head-dress, and their heads are shaven, except a few locks, some hang- ing loose, others tied together and arranged as a chignon.
Removed Their Shoes.
After the customary salutations, the ora- tors of the deputation — for three or four always spoke simultaneously — said many pretty things to me in Japanese, to which I replied in French, while I made signs to the company to enter the drawing-room. It was quite clear that they had imderstood me ; I could not mistake the expression of thanks; and yet, instead of ascending the staircase, they sernied to be asking me for an explana- tion of some sort. At length my fair friends perceived my embarrassment, am', by add- ing gestures to language, asked me, " Ought we to take off our shoes in the ga\dcn, or will it sufifice if we take them oft' in the veranda?"
I pronounced in favor of the latter alter- native, and my guests immediately ascended the stairs, removed their shoes and placed them in a line upon the floor, and then glee- fully trod the carpets of the drawing-room — the children with bare feet, the grown-up persons in socks made of cotton-cloth, divided into two unequal compartments, one for the great toe, and the other for the rest
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of the foot. This is another peculiarity of Japanese dress.
Their first impression was innocent admira- tion, to which general laughter succeeded when they all found themselves reflected at full length and on all sides, in the long mirrors which came down to the floor. While the younger members of the prT^ty indulged themselves in unwearied contem- plation of a scene at once so novel and so
JAPANESE AT TEA.
attractive, the matrons asked me the mean- ing of the pictures which adorned the room. I explained that they represented the Tycoon of Holland and his wife, and also several great Daimois, or princes of the reigning family.
They bowed respectfully, but one of them, whose curiosity was not satisfied, said, timidly, that she supposed they had also taken the portrait of his Dutch Majesty's groom. I
took care not to undeceive her, because she would not have understood that it could be correct to represent a prince standing beside his saddle-horse and holding it by the bridle. Others, having attentively examined the vel- vet sofas and arm-chairs, told me how a dis- pute had arisen between them respecting the ace of those articles of furniture.
They agreed as to the ea.sy chairs; it was, no doubt, intended that they should be sat
upon — but the sofas? Surely one ought to squat on them with crossed legs, especi- ally when eating at the table in front of them. They sincere- ly pitied the gentle- men and ladies of the West, condemned to make such inconve- nient use of these ar_ tides, and actually to sit with their legs hanging down. My room, being open and on the same level, was speedily invaded, and almost everything in it was a subject of aston- ishment to my visi- tors, who were none the less daughters of Eve because they were born in Japan. They were particularly de- lighted with a set of uniform buttons bearing the Swiss federal cross, according to the military rule of my country. I had to give them some of these buttons, though I could not imagine to what use they could possibly apply them, since all Japanese garments, for the use of both sexes are simply fastened by silken strings.
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The gift of a few articles of Parisian per- fumery was highly appreciated, but I praised Eau de Cologne quite unsuccessfully. Cam- bric handkerchiefs are unknown in Japan. I showed them some specimens, very prettily embroidered by the gentlewomen of Appen- zell; but they explained to me that, though the gentility of Tokio might perhaps use them as cuffs for their wide and flowing night-robes, not the lowest woman of the people would hold in her hand or carry in her pocket a piece of stuff in which she had blown her nose. There is, therefore, no chance at present that the I'ttle squares of paper, made from vegetable substances, which they carry in a fold of the dress, in the breast, or in a pocket in the sleeve, and which are thrown away as each is success- ively used, will be supplanted by our bar- barous method. Eau de Cologne, however, might be used with advantage to counteract the briny flavor of the well-water which is drunk at Bcntcn.
Mode of Writing.
Another point on which my visitors seemed to regard the superiority of Japanese civiliza- tion as incontestable, is their «iethod of writ- ing. The Japanese uses a brush, a stick of Chinese ink, and a roll of paper made from mulberry leaves. He carries those things about with him everywhere : the roll of paper is placed in his breast; the brush and the inkstand hang in a case from his girdle, together with his pipe and his tobacco-bag.
In order to regain my advantage, I ex- hibited a case containing an assortment of sewing cotton, needles, and pins, and begged the lady Yakounines to use them. They unanimously acknowledged the imperfection of the working materials of their country, where the sewing-machine is unknown. Needlework does not occupy in Japan any
place like that which it takes in our middle- class households ; it is never produced dur- ing the long gossiping visits which the Japanese women interchange. As in Eu- rope men have recourse to the cigar, so in Japan they season their conversation with pipes.
The visit ended by my giving the children some prints representing Swiss landscapes and costumes, and showing their elders a photographic album containing likenesses of all the members of my family, which they examined with more than interest, with really touching emotion. It is within the domain of the natural affections that the unity, the identity of the human race in every clime and among every people, makes itself most sensibly felt,
"The Whole World Akin."
What signifies diversity of idiom in the presence of that universal language which translates itself by the expression of the eye, by a tear upon the eyelid, by sweet and touching intonations of the voice, lik ■ Men- delssohn's " Songs without Words?" The traveller is, in the sight of all primitive peoples, a being who deserves the deepest pity, for he is separated from all that consti- tutes the charm of life — the family, the paternal roof, the country of his ancestors.
Religious admiration would be mingled with the compassion he inspires if he had left his country to accomplish a piou« pil- grimage in a distant land, but that a man should cross the seas merely in the interest of terrestrial objects is a thing incomprehen- sible to the Japanese. They might admit the notion of my being a political e.xile, the victim of the severity of my Government; but when they learn that I am neither a pilgrim nor proscribed, astonishment min- gled with a kind of fright is added to their
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artless sympathy and they appear to consider me an object of pity.
All good people who compose the popu- lation of the beach accost me in the friendliest manner. The children bring me beautiful glistening shells, and the women do their best to make me understand the culinary properties of the hideous little marine mon- sters which they pile up in their baskets. This spontaneous kindliness and cordiality is a characteristic common to all the lower classes of Japanese society. More than once, when I have been going on foot about the suburbs of Nagasaki or Yoko- hama, the country people have invited me to step inside their little enclosures.
Japanese Hospitality.
Then they would show me their flowers, and cut the best among them to make up a bouquet for me. It was always in vain that I offered them money ; they never accepted it, and were not satisfied until I had crossed their threshold and partaken of tea and rice- cakes with them.
Spring is the most tempting season for exploring the coasts of the Bay of Yeddo. From the heights on its borders the inland scene, stretching away to the foot of Fousi- yama, presents an uninterrupted succession of wooded hills and cultivated valleys, diver- sified by rivers or gulfs, which at a distance look like lakes. The villages on their banks are half hidden in rich foliage, and large farms, approached by shady roads, may be traced out at various points of the land- scape.
The precocity of the vegetation in the rice- grounds and on the cultivated hills, the quan- tity of evergreen trees on every side, deprives the springtide of Japan of that fresh and bud- ding aspect which is one of its chief beauties elsewhere. And yet, where can be found a
more luxuriant spring vegetation, more rich in beautiful details ? All along the hedges, in the orchards, and about the villages, tufts of flowers and foliage of dazzling hue stand out against the dark tints of a background of pines, firs, cedars, cypress, laurels, green oak, and bamboos.
Here we find the great white flowers of the wild mulberry; there, camelias growing in the open country, as tall as our apple trees ; everywhere, cherry trees, plum trees, peach trees, generally laden with doable flowers, some quite white, others bright red, and sometimes wl^'i^e and red on the same branches; for many of the Japanese do not care at all for the fruit of these trees, but cultivate and graft them merely for the sake of the double flowers, and to vary or combine the species.
The Tufted Bamboo.
The bamboo, much employed in the ca- pacity of a support to these trees, frequently lends his elegant foliage to the branches of young fruit trees which have no other adorn- ment than their bunches of flowers. But I love the bamboo most when it grows in soli- tary groups, like a tuft of gigantic reeds. There is nothing more picturesque in the whole landscape than these tall green pol- ished stems, with their golden streaks and their tufted tops, and all around the chiefs the young slender offshoots with their feathered heads, and a multitude of long leaves streaming in the wind like thousands of fluttering pennons.
The bamboo groves are favorite subjects of study with the Japanese painters, whether they limit themselves to reproduce the grace- ful lines and harmonious effects, or enliven the picture by adding some of the live creatures which seek their verdant shelter — the little birds, the butterflies, and, in
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lonely places, the weasel, the ferret, the black squirrel, and the red-faced brown monkey.
All the waysides are bordered with violets, but they are scentless. The country pro- duces a very small number of odoriferous plants, and it is remarkable that the lark, the nightingale, and other singing birds arc very rare. Perhaps the lack of perfume and of song, in the midst of all the wealth of a luxuriant vegetation, helps to diminish the effect upon the imagination which it seems to me Japanese scenery ought to produce. It is certain that in contemplating it one does not experience that sense of dreamy exalta- tion and tenderness which is produced by the sight of a European landscape in the spring- time, when nature is waking up.
Without going into the question of the extent to which our sensibility is fed by the remembrance of childhood, and the tradi- tional ideas which find no application in the world of the Far East, I think the cooling of our enthusiasm may be accounted for by the fact that, in Japan, nature is over-cultivated.
Excess of Cultivation.
With the exception of the forests and other plantations of trees, which the govern- ment maintains with praisewortbv care, the entire soil is invaded by cultivation to an ex- tent which almost defies description. Early in April the fields outside the woods are covered with buckwheat in full flower. In four or five weeks' time, on the lower ground, they will be reaping the barley and wheat sown in November. In Japan they sow corn as we plant potatoes, that is in re- gular, perfectly straight rows, and between each of these there is an interval of free space in which is already sprouting a pecu- liar species of beans, which will spring up when the field shall have bjcn reaped. That
green surface which might be taken for sprouting corn is a field of millet, which was sown in March and will be ripe in Septem- ber. Millet is eaten by the natives in as large quantities as wheat ; they grind it into flour, and make cakes or porridge of it.
On an adjacent plain there is a laborer till- ing the ground by means of a small plough drawn by one horse. In the fertile soil he will sow the seed of the cotton-tree, and in September or October each seed will have produced a plant two or three feet high; laden with twenty capsules arrived at matur- ity. Several white birds of the stork or heron family seem to be working in concert with the agriculturist ; they follow him about gravely, and, by plunging their long beaks into the half-opened furrow, they destroy the larva which the plough has just turned up.
How Rice is Cultivated.
In the depth of the valley arc rice-grounds, which were laid under water about a month ago, by the opening of the sluice-gates of the irrigation canals. While in this state, the soil is broken up by the plough, and trodden by the feet of the buffaloes and the laborers ; the latter treading up to their calves in the clay, and breaking the stubborn clumps with picka.xcs. When the earth has been mashed into a kind of liquid paste, men and women go step by step along the dykes of the enclosure, and throw in hand- f lis of seed upon the square spaces destined to form the nursery ground.
Then these are turned over with a kind of rake, in order to distribute and bury the seed. Now the water has subsided, the nursery ground puts forth its thick, close crop, and the cultivators tear it up, roots and stems together, to transplant them carefully in the large squares of soft earth which have not yet been utilized, in tufts arranged in a
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chequered pattern at regular intervals. There the rice will grow and ripen, to be cut in the month of October.
Until then it has to dread the pretty little red and white breasted birds which fall like hail on the grain-laden stems, shake the ripe fruit to the ground, and set to their work of pillage with shrill notes of joy, dancing on their little feet after a fashion full of charm for the impartial observer, but which inspires
prevention, provided that it is kept in incess- ant motion. This is the task of a boy, who, when there is not sufficient wind to shake the net, pulls the cord attached to it, like a bell- rope, and thus keeps it going. The child sits in a lofty seat, perched on four bamboos, under a little roof formed of reeds.
Several kinds of rice are grown in Japan. That of the plains is the most highly esteemed : that of the hills does not require
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CASTLE AT MATSUYAMA, JAPAN.
the proprictur with far different feelings. The persecuted rice-growers resort to all kinds of scarcecrows, which they set up at the most seriously menaced points, but without much apparent effect upon the morals of the thriv- ing birds.
In one place, a complete network of cords of plaited straw, garnished with swinging appendages of the same material, is fi.xed on poles, and extended above the rice-field, forming a perfectly efficacious method of
to be so long submerged as the former, but I have seen it subjected, in the spring, to processes of irrigation which have cost much labor ; in the formation of reservoirs on the upper level of the hill, and the establishment of numerous canals, discharging themselves upon all the terraces prepared for rice culture. Each terrace thus converted into a rice- ground will bear, next autumn, wheat or millet. The Japanese may perhaps clear some mountain-land now and then, but they
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will never leave land capable of being tilled, fallow.
The tea-plant is not cultivated in our dis- trict. It is occasionally met with under certain favorable circumstances, but the real tea-districts are several days' journey north md west of the bay. We are much nearer :o the silk-growing districts, and there would be nothing to prevent the development of this industry in our immediate vicinity, if there were sufficient space for the cultivation of the mulberry-tree.
It strikes me, in shor' that the population by whom I am surrounded, and the inhabi- tants of the southern coasts of Niphon generally, leave to the natives of the interior the production of the most valuable articles of commerce, such as silk, tea, and even cotton, which is not very abundant on our coasts; while they devote themselves some to fishing and water-carriage, and others to agriculture in its strict sense — the production of cereals and leguminous and oleaginous plants ; also to horticulture, and the growth of flax, straw, reeds, and bamboos.
The "Mountain People."
Among the peasant population of the fer- tile valleys which border the Bay of Yeddo, one frequently meets men of a more vigorous race, whose aspect, though kindly, seems to denote a certain independence of character or of manner of life. These are the "mountain people," or the inhabitants of the chain of the Akoni, at the foot of Fousi-yama.
The business which brings them down to the plains is very various in its nature : for some, it is dealing in wood for ships and building ; for others, it is dealing in firewood. Some are carrying baggage on pack-horses from the provinces in the interior to such or such a port on the bay ; others are employed In hauling the canal-boats, and among them
recruits are made for a select tribe ol nunters, as well as for a portion of the Tycoon's troops of the line ; that is, the infantry com- panies, among whom European arms of precision have been introduced.
Unfortunately, the country inhabited by these passing guests is almost entirely inac- cessible to strangers. If certain native state- ments are to be believed, bridges, aqueducts, and dams of most marvellous construction exist there, which baffle the imagination when one thinks of the imperfection of the instruments with which they have been made. The reoources which the Japanese possess in raw material are not accorded to our climates. The bamboo, for instance, furnishes a natural conduit for hydraulic purposes, whose excel- lence yields to no product of modern in- dustry.
Variety of Bridges.
It is employed in the formation of sus- pension-bridges in the place of wire. In the mountains of Kiousiou there is a bridge, flung from one rock to another across a deep abyss, by means of a hanging staircase formed of huge pieces of bamboo laid in line, and fitted over one another longitudi- nally. The Japanese traverse great rivers on bridges made of casks, and managed by straw ropes. They cross terrific ravines by bridges of rope, and even by means of a single rope, along which slips a kind of aerial ferry-boat.
In a country like theirs, where the Gov- ernment maintains only one public highway — the great military road called the Toikado — the inhabitants, reduced to their own re- sources, strive to establish the communica- tions which they require at the least possible cost. Hence the infinite variety of their contrivances for transport by land and by water. A cu^ou's specimen of the latter is
i!
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820
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
the means devised to enable the women who are engaged in rice cultivation to cross the submerged lands. Four tubs, fastened to- gether between the angles of two crossed planks, are packed with as many persons and as large a quantity of provisions as this sigular equipage can accommodate, and two of the passengers propel it with poles. The same talent for utilizing the simplest means of action, the most primitive instruments, the most elementary processes, is equally to be traced in the arts and handicrafts in Japan. But there is a very important part of their social life which either escapes us or which it is very difficult for us to study.
We can only see the people at work in the fields and in some of the village sheds. The docks, the workshops and the factories in the industrial cities, the artistic conceptions, and the most original productions of their autonomic civilization, are carefully hidden from us by the police restrictions of a jealous government. Nevertheless, little by little the light is coming, and a day will soon dawn when, in this respect also, Japan shall be opened to the investigations of science.
The country around Yokohama is thor- oughly cultivated and covered with dwel- lings. The isolated houses are built near the roads, and even those which line the highway are usually entirely open, and free to light and air. In order to enjoy the fresh breezes, the inhabitants shove to the right and left the movable screens which enclose their dwellings, and thus completely e.xpose their domestic arrangements to the view cf those who pass.
It is therefore not difficult to observe their manner of living, as well as the distinctive characteristics of the different classes of so- ciety. The conventional separation of the latter does not seem to depend on any im- portant difference of blood or of habits. The families of the Yakounin live in the same manner, and with the same domestic cus- toms, as those of the peasants and me- chanics; and, with the exception of a greai<"r lu-xury in dress and meals, the households of the higher government of- ficials art very similar.
A Japanese lady's dress will often repre- sent a value of $200, without counting the ornaments for her hair, A woman of the smaller shop-keeping class may have on her, when she goes out holiday-making, some 1^40 or $50 worth. A gentleman will rarely spend on his clothes as much as he lets his wife spend on hers. Perhaps he may not have on more than ;g6o worth. Thence, through a gradual decline in price, we come to the coolie's poor trappings, which may represent as little as ;$5, or even $2, as he stands.
Children's dress is more or less a repeti- tion in miniature of that of their elders. Long swaddling-clothes are not in use. Young children have, however, a bib. They wear a little cap on their heads, and at their side hangs a charm-bag, made out of a bit of some bright-colored damask, containing a charm supposed to protect them from being run over, washed away, etc. A metal ticket is generally fastened about them as a precaution against getting lost.
CHAPTER XIX. DOMESTIC LIFE IN JAPAN.
THE country may be reached from Benten without passing through the Japanese city. Beyond the precincts of the holy place, a wide pathway supported on piles forms a road alongside the river. From this road, which leads to a suburb occupied by poor artisans, and terminated by a military guard-house and a Customs' station, we look down upon the low streets and the marsh of Yokohama. A handsome wooden bridge, built on piles sufficiently high to permit the passage of sailing-boats, crosses the river, and joins the footpath on the left bank.
By following this ftfotpath to the northeast, we reach the high road of Kanagawa ; and by taking the southeast direction, we come to the country roads leading to the Bay of the Mississippi.
The country is covered on every side with cultivated land, and the habitations are ex- ceedingly numerous. The isolated houses near the road, and those which border on the village streets, are generally open, and may, so to speak, be seen through. The inhabitants, in order to establish currents of air, slide the screens which form their walls into the grooves on the right and left, so that the interiors of their houses are freely exhibited to the sight of the passers-by.
Under such conditions it is not difficult to form a correct idea of household life, and to observe the distinctive characters of a national type, as well as the domestic manners of the native population. The con- ventional separation between classes in Japa- 21
nese society does not rest upon essential dif ference of race, or of modes of life.
From the height of the hill on which the residence of the Governors of Kanagawa is situated I have more than once had occasion to examine and observe, on one side, some buildings set apart for the dwellings of the Yakounines, and on the other groups of houses or cottages belonging to artisans and cultivators. In the courtyards, formed by divisions made of planks which separate the military caste from the others, I remarked exactly the same habits, the same modes of life, which I saw publicly in action in the courtyards of the plebeians.
Appearance of the Japanese.
My later observation of the houses of the high Government functionaries only confirms me in the belief that we may reduce the chief types and the domestic manners of the whole population of the centre of the Em- pire— that is to say, of the three great islands of Kiousiou, Sikofif, and Niphon — to certain general features.
The Japanese are of middling height, very inferior to the men of the Germanic race, but not without some resemblance to the in- habitants of the southwest of the Iberian peninsula.
There is more difference in height between the men and the women of Japan than in those of Europe and America. According to the observations of Dr. Mohnike, formerly physician to the Dutch Factory of Decima, the average height of the men is five feet one
321
322
inch, and that of the women from four feet one inch to four feet three inches.
The Japanese, without beinj^ precisely dis- proportioned, have generally large heads, rather sunk in the shoulders, wide chests, long bodies, narrow hips, short and thin legs, small feet, and slight and remarkably beauti- ful hands. Their retreating foreheads and large and prominent cheek-bones make their faces represent the geometrical figure of the trapeze rather than that of the oval.
Tile cavities of the eyes being very shallow, and the cartilage of the nose rather flattened, the eyes in almost every case are more on the surfcice than those of the European, and sometimes very narrow. But, nevertheless, the general effect is not that of the Chinese or Mongol type. The head of the Japanese is large, the face is long, and on the average more regular. Finally, the nose is more prominent, better formed, and sometimes even aquiline. According to Dr. Mohnike, the Japanese head is that of the Turanian race.
Complexion and Hair.
All the Japanese population, without ex- ception, have fine, thick, straight and lustrous black hair. The women's hair is shorter than in the European and Malay countries. The Japanese have thick beards, but they shave at least every second day. The color of their skin varies accordin:;; to the differ- ent classes of society, from the copper tints of the interior of Java to the sunburnt white of the natives of Southern Europe. The predominant shade is olive-brown, but it never resembles the yellow tint of the Chinese.
Unlike those of Europeans, the face and hands of the Japanese are generally less colored than the body ; little children and young persons of both sexes have rosy com- plexions, red cheeks, and the same indica-
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
tions of robust health which we like to see in persons of our own race.
The women have fairer complexions than the men : we saw several persons of rank, and e\en in the middle classes, who were perfectly white; the ladies of the aristocracy regard excessive paleness as a mark of dis- tinction. Nevertheless, both one and the other are separated from the European type by those two indelible marks of race — nar- row eyes, and the ungraceful depression of the chest which is always evident even in persons in the flower of their youth, and endowed with the greatest natural charms.
A Singular Custom.
Both men and women ha\e black eyes, white and perfect teeth, separated by regular interstices, and slightly projecting. It is the custom for married women to blacken their teeth. In this we trace a tradition of Java, where the women file their teeth down to the gums ; or of the Malay country in general, where everyone has black teeth, produced by the use of the betel.
The mobility of expression and the great variety of physiognomy, which we remark amongst the Japanese, seem to me to be the result ol an intellectual development more spontaneous, more original, and in short more free, than is to be met with amongst any other people in Asia.
The national garment of the Japanese is the "kirimon.' It is a kind of open dress- ing-gown, made a little longer and more ample for women than for men. It is crossed at the waist by means of a sash, which for men is made of a straight and narrow piece of silk — for women, of a large piece of stuff elegantly tied at the back.
The Japanese wear no linen, but they bathe every day. The women wear a chemise of red silk crape. In summer, the peasants, the
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fishermen, the artisans and tlie coolies do their work in a state of almost complete nudity, and the women merely wear a single petticoat. During the rains they wear large cloaks of straw or oil-paper, and hats of bamboo bark, made like those of Java, in the form of shields.
In winter the working-men wear a jacket and trousers of blue cotton under the kiri- mon, and the women one or several wadded mantles, but generally there is no difference between their costumes, excepting in the nature of the materials. Persons of the middle class and of the nobility never go out without jacket and trousers. The nobles alone have a ri;^'ht to wear silk, and only dress richly to go to Court, or to make visits of ceremony. The officers of the Government, and the Yakounines on duty wear wide trailing trousers ; and replace the kiriinon by an overcoat with large sleeves, which however only comes down to the hips, and is rather elegantly cut. Every one wears the same coverings for the feet, which consist of sandals of plaited straw, or wooden slippers fastened by a cord in which the great toe is caught.
Covering for the Feet.
When the roads are muddy, the people wear a simple wooden sole, resting upon two smaller pieces placed crosswise. During the greater portion of the year the working people merely use straw sandals. Each, on returning to his own house, or on presenting himself at that of a stranger, removes his socks or his sandals and leaves them at the door.
The floors of the Japanese houses are con- stantly covered with mats. As they are all of the same size, which is so invariable that the mat is used as a standard measure — it is never difficult to arrange them in an apart-
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
ment. They are uniformly six feet three
inches long, three feet two inches wide, and four inches thick.
They are made of rice-straw, very care- fully plaited ; by combining them with the grooves made in the floor and with the slid- ing screens which form the walls of the rooms, the Japanese divides his habitation into small or large rooms ; but the dimen- sions are always regular, and he n'r>f'''<n''s this distribution exactly as it pleases him, without trouble, and never departing from the exactly symmetrical lines.
Serves Many Uses.
The mat dispenses with all other furniture; it is the mattress on which the Japanese passes the night, wrapped up in an aniple dressing-gown, and under a large wadded counterpane, with his head resting on a little bolster made of strips of bamboo ; on it he sets out the utensils of lacquer and porcelain used at his meals ; on it the bare feet of his children tread ; it is the divan where, crouch- ing on his heels, surrounded by his friends and his guests, all crouching like him, he indulges in interminable talk, drinking a de- coction of tea uniningled with any other ingredient, and smoking tobacco out of microscopic pipes.
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DOMESTIC LIFE IN JAPAN.
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who live from day to day, forgetful of yes- terday, not caring for to-morrow.
One day when I had been listening to the recitation of half a dozen of the young boys in our neighborhood, who were squatting in front of their schoolmaster, I asked what was the name of the exercise that they were repeating in chorus. I was told that they were practising to recite the " Irova," a sort of alphabet in which not the vowels and con- sonants, but the fundamental signs of the Japanese language, are collected and grouped in four lines.
The Japanese Alphabet.
The number of those sounds is fixed at forty-eight, and instead of classifying them in grammatical elements according to the organs of speech, they have been mac " into a little piece of poetry, whose first word, " Irova," gives its name to the alphabet. As nearly as I can reproduce the sense of the rhyme, this is it : —
" Color and odor alike pass away. In our world nothing is permanent. The present day has disappeared in the profound
abyss of nothingness. It was but the pale image of a dream ; it causes us not the least regret."
This national alphabet told me more of the character of the Japanese people than I might have found in volumes. For centu- ries the generations who were departing re- peated to the generation who were coming, " There is nothing permanent in this world ; the present passes like a dream, and its flight causes not the slightest trouble." That this popular philosophy of nothing- ness does not give full satisfaction to the needs of the soul, is quite evident when we consider how largely the manifestations of religious sentiment have developed of late ; nevertheless, it is pr6bable that it acts inces-
santly as a latent force, and its influence is felt in all the details of life.
The children profit most by the way of life to which this gives rise. In the first place, it is granted by everyone that the child ought to have its own way. Fathers and mothers derive their pleasure from the observance of this natural law. Every means of enjoyment for children, every subject of their amusement, becomes a source of per- sonal satisfaction to the parents ; they give themselves up to it with all their hearts, and it suits the children admirably. Travellers who have said that Japanese children never cry, have stated with very little exaggeration of expression a perfectly real phenomenon. It is explained by circumstances to which I have alluded, as well as by certain external conditions.
Mother and Babe.
The Japanese is husband to only one wife, who passes almost without transition from her doll to her child, and preserves for a long time her natural infantile character. On the other hand, the national custom does not permit her to bring up her baby too care- fully. She is obliged to expose it to the atmospheric influences, carrj'ing it into the air every day, even at noon, with its head shaven, and perfectly naked. In order to carry the child about as long as possible without much fatigue, the woman places it upon her back, fastening it like a package betv\_en her chemise and the collar of her kirimon.
Thus the wives of the peasants may con- stantly be seen working in the fields with a little head wagging between their shoulders. In the house the children may be left to themselves without any uneasiness ; they can roll about among the mats, crawling on all- fours and trying to stand upright, because
V
326
there is no furniture against which they can hurt themselves, nor any object which they can knoclv down or break.
Their companions are the domestic ani- mals— little pug-dogs with short legs and tremendously fat bodies, and a particular species of cat with white fur marked with yellow and black stripes, which are exceed- ingly bad mousers, very idle and very affec-
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
there are cages made of bamboo bark, con-
I structed on the models of the most elegant i habitations, and containing large butterflies ' shut up there on a bed of flowers, or grass- , hoppers, in whose strident and monotonous
cry the natives take great delight. I Such are the surroundings amid which
the Japanese child grows up without any ' restraint in the paternal house, which is
A JAPANESE RESIDENCE.
tionatc. Like the cats of Java and the Isle of Man, these animals have no tails.
Every family in easy circumstances pos- sesses an aquarium, containing fish — red, silver, gold, transparent — some round as a ball, others ornamented with a long wide tail or fin, which performs the office of a rudder, and which floats about like a piece of extremely fine gauze. In ail the houses
I merely a sort of shady playground wherj pleasure is the chief pursuit.
His parents are prodigal of toys, and games, and entertainments, as much for thei;- own enjoyment as in the interest of his edu- cation. His lessons, properly speaking, con- sist in singing in chorus, at the top of his voice, the "Irova," and drawing with his brush and Chinese ink the first letters of the
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DOMESTIC LIFE IN JAPAN.
alphabet, then words, then phrases. There is no compulsion and no precipitation about these lessons, because they are certain things of undeniable utility that can only be ac- quired by long practice. No one ever thinks of depriving his child of the benefits of in- struction. There arc no scholastic rules, no measures of coercion for recalcitrant parents, and nevertheless the whole adult population can read, write and calculate. There is something estimable in the pedagogic regime of Japan.
This has been greatly improved during the latter half of our century and is to be attributed to the contact of the Japanese with western civilization. The people are awake t: new ideas and methods of educa- tion. Teachers from America and Europe have found positions in Japanese schools and the authorities have not been slow to adopt some features of the school systems of more enlightened countries.
Beautiful Fancy Work.
Japanese houses are furnished with evi- dences of taste and frequently with rare specimens of fancy work. Notwithstanding its bonzes, its astrologers and its academical poets, the ancient Japanese civilization wat, not without its popular period, which has left an indelible impression upon taste at Kioto. All works which come out of the workshops of the old capital are distinct from everything that one sees elsewhere.
But the admiration which they inspire is mingled with a feeling of regret, for by a singular contradiction they attain an aston- ishing perfection in the imitation of animal and vegetable nature, whilst on approaching the sphere of human life they present only tjypes without reality, and figures cut on conventional patterns. Evidently the noble faculties revealed in the conceptions and in
327
the handiwork of the national artists were arrested in their development by official rules, and hindered for want of a method superior to that suggested to them by the fashions of the Court.
Thus, art as well as literature became a conventional and hollow routine in its sub- servience to the Mikados. We may even add, that at the decline of the Mikados it remained exactly the same as it had been in the height of their power ; and it is a remark- able fact that it has not since degenerated or become corrupt.
Verdure and Flowers.
The working population of the ancient Imperial cities has not changed for centuries. Amid institutions which have fallen into de- crepitude it does not exhibit the slightest trace of the decadence and debility which are common to every class of Chinese society. China awakes in the mind at every moment the image of a worm-eaten, dusty edifice, inheibited by aged invalids. But in Japan there are really neither ruins nor dust, the fresh vegetation of its always green islands is matched by that appearance of un- alterable youth which transmits itself gener- ation after generation among the inhabitants of tiiio happy country, who ornament even their last dwellings with the emblems of eternal spring.
Their cemeteries abound with verdure and flowers in all seasons. Their tombs, simple commemorati\e tablets, perservc the recol- lection of all dead without any symbol of destruction. Every family has its separate enclosure and every dead person a stone in the common resting-place ; the tradition of those who arc no more is carried on from hill to hill among the gardens of the sacred groves, even to the extremities of the sub- urbs of their cities.
J 11
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328
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
At Nagasaki this picture seems perfect. The city stretches out at the foot of a chain of mountains, of little height, which have been cut out into terraces, forming an am- phitheatre of funeral ground in the eastern quarter of the city.
Here, one is in the presence of two cities : in the plain, the city of the living lies in the sun, with its long and wide streets bordered with fragile wooden houses and inhabited by an ephemeral crowd; on the mountain is the necropolis, with its walls and monuments of granite, its trees hundreds of years old, its solemn calm.
Festival for the Dead.
The inhabitants of Nagasaki, when they raise their eyes in the direction of the moun- tain, must think involuntarily of the innum- erable generations which have passed away before them from the face of the earth. That multitude of stones raised upon the terrace, standing up clear against the blue haze of the distance, keeps alive among them the idea that the spirits of their ancestors come back from their tombs, and that, mute, but attentive, they contemplate the life of the city.
One day of the year, towards the end of the month of August, the entire population invite these spirits to a solemn festival, which is prolonged during three consecutive nights. On the first evening the tombs of all persons who have died during he past year are lighted by lanterns, painter n different colors.
On the second and third nights, all the tombs without exception, the old as well as the new, participate in a similar illumination, and all the families of Nagasaki come out and install themselves in the cemeteries, where they give themselves up to drinking abundantly in honor of their ancestors.
But on the third night, about three o'clock
in the morning, long processions of lights come down from the heights and group themselves together on the borders of the bay. while the mountain gradually resumes its darkness and its silence. The souls of the dead men have embarked and disappeared before the dawn. Thousands of small straw boats have been fitted up for them, each provided with fruit and small pieces of money. These fragile barks are laden with all the painted paper lamps which had served for the illuminations of the cemeteries, their little sails of mat are spread, and the morning breeze disperses them over the water, where they are soon consumed. Thus the entire flotilla is burnt, and for a long time the traces of fire may be seen dancing over the waves. But the dead go quickly. Finally, the last ship disappears, the last light is ex- tinguished, the last soul has again bidden adieu to the earth. At the rising of the sun there is no trace of the dead or of the merry- makers.
The Ancient Religion.
In ancient times the Japanese had no other religion than that of the Kamis : the honors of a special sepulture were awarded only to persons of a certain importance, who were allowed a resting-place distinct from the cemeteries reserved for the common people.
The ceremonies of the burial of the dead had, in ancient times, a very solemn char- acter, but suggestive to the beholder rather of the triumph of a hero. Beside the dead man, in the tomb, was laid his coat of mail, his arms, all his most precious possessions : even his principal .servants followed him to the sepulchre, and his favorite horse was immolated to his manes. These ba*-barou3 customs were abolished in the fir^t century of our era. Lay figures repla«'<vi human
DOMESTIC LIFE IN JAPAN.
329
victims, and only the picture of a horse was sacrificed, A few strokes of a brush, boldly dashed upon a plank of wood, represented the image of the four-footed companion of the dead, and this plank was enclosed in the tomb.
Pictures of Horses.
The native painters display such skill in the execution of these designs, that these Yemas, or sketches of horses, have become artistic curiosities ; and numbers of them exist in various chapels in the towns ; nd country places, and are regarded as votive pictures. Amateurs search eagerly for Yemas upon the screens in the old houses and in the palaces of Tokio. A few of them may be found among the presents sent by the Tycoon to foreign Governments.
This kind of drawing was not regarded •with favor by the Court of the Mikado, where miniature painting was much in fashion. The works of the miniature painters of Kioto remind us of the mediaeval missals : they are painted on vellum, with the same profusion of color on a golden background ; the manu- script is ornamented by plates in the text, and rolled upon an ivory cylinder, or upon a stick of precious wood, with metal ornaments inserted in the ends.
Collections of poetry, almanacs, litanies, prayers, and romances are generally bound up into volumes. Ladies use microscopic prayer-books ; and they and the poets of Kioto employ no other almanacs than the calendar of flowers, in which the months and their subdivisions are represented by sym- bolical bouquets. There is also a calendar of the blind, and collections of prayers exist in characters of unknown origin.
The dress of the women of quality not only indicates their rank and condition, but is always in harmony, as to its color and the
subjects embroidered upon the garments, with the time and the seasons, the flowers, and the productions of the different months of the year. The months themselves are never tailed by their names, but by their attributes. The month Amiable draws the bonds of friendship closer by visits and pre- sents on the new year ; the month of " the awakening of nature " is the third month of the year ; the month of Missives, which is the seventh, has one day assigned to the exchange of letters of congratulation ; and the twelfth is that of " the business of the masters," because it obliges them to leave the house in order to attend to the regulation of their affairs.
Free Use of Symbols.
The architectural works of the Japanese, the products of their industry — everything that comes out of the hands of their copora- tions of arts and trades — indicate symbolical research mingled with great purity of taste in the imitation of nature. In all the temples and palaces we find ornaments in sculptured wood, which represent a bank of clouds, above which rises the front of the edifice. The grand entrance of the Dairi is decorated with a golden sun surrounded by the signs of the Zodiac ; the portals of the temples devoted to Buddhism are surmounted by two elephants' heads, whicli indicate that this religion came from India; the carpenters' tools all bear symbolical devices.
The favorite designs of their mosaics and their carvings in wood are borrowed from the lines described by the foaming waves of the sea and the basalt rocks cut by the waters ; bats and cranes are represented with ex- tended wings; the iris, the water-lily, and the lotus are always in full flower ; the bamboo, the cedar, the palm-tree, and the pear-tree, are either isolatec* or combined
I
330
JAPAN AXD THP: JAPANESE.
with the most j^raccful climbing plants. All natnrc is brought under tribute.
We observed numerous ornaments whose signification we could not discover. Within the precincts of the Dairi there is a bronze vase which coarsely represents a bird of some
THE COURT OF THE MIKADO.
unknown kind, of the height of a man. This is or.e of the most ancient monuments of native art. It is called the Tori-Kame ; its origin and use are unknown. Other vases of great antiquity, mounted on pedestals, and which serve as perfume-burners, are carved
with designs representing the head and scales of the crocodile, an animal unknown in Japan.
The tortoise and the heron, which figure frequently in the composition of perfume- vases and sacred candelabra, are emblems of immortality, or at least of longevity. The Foo, a mythological bird common to both China and Japan, is found upon the lintels of the door of the Dairi, as an emblem of eternal happi- ness. These same mytho- logical images, and others which it would take too long to enumerate, are re- produced in the designs of the rich stuffs worked in silk, gold, and silver, which form the glory and the pride of the weavers of Kioto; and also in the carvings and engravings on plates of gold, silver, red copper, and steel, with which the native jewelers decorate the handles and the scabbards of swords, portable inkstands, pipes, tobacco-boxes, and other ornaments ; in short, in all the innumerable utensils, pieces of plate, and lacquer and porcelain furniture, which constitute the wealth of Japanese households. It was pointed out to me one day, amongst a collection of curiosities from the work- shops of Kioto, that none of the objects had a perfectly quadrangular form. I verified this in examining a great number of cabinets, screens, covers, paper boxes, and other var-
DOMESTIC LIFE IN JAPAN.
031
nished objects, amongst which, in fact, I did not discover a single acute angle : all were softened and rounded. Supposing that this peculiarity is only one of the caprices of taste, and therefore not to be disputed, there is another fact which may perhaps have a symbolical significance : it is, that all Japa- nese mirrors, without exception, present the figure of a disk. Such uniformity seems to confirm the opinion of Siebold, that the mir- ror of the temples of the Kamis is an emblem of the sun's disk. It would be more embarrassing to divine the reasons of certain fashions among those of Kioto, if indeed fashions ever have a reason.
Fashions at Court.
The Court ladies pull out their eyebrows and replace them by two thick black patches painted half way up the forehead. Is this done because these beauties with prominent cheek-bones are aware that the oval of their faces is not quite so perfect as it might be; or do they endeavor to lengthen it by this little feminine trick, which tends to place the eyelids, which Nature has put too low, in a more suitable position ?
The amplitude of their rich brocade gar- ments leads us to think that at Kioto femi- nine lu.xury is measured b)' the quantity of silk that a Court lady can trail after her. But what can be the meaning of those two long tails which are seen on the right and left below the undulating drapery of the mantle? When the lady is walking, the\' obey each cadenced movement of her two little invisible feet ; and, looked at from a distance, she seems to he wearing, not a robe, but a pair of liuig trailin.;" trousers, which oblige her to advance on her knees. Such is in fact the effect which this costume is in-
Mikado are bound to appear as if they w ere approaching his Sacred Majesty (in their knees.
No noise is eve/ heard in the interior of the palace except the rustling of silk on the rich carpets with v.hich the mats p.rc covered. B.imboo blinds intercept the light of day. Screens coNcied with marvellous paintings, damask draperies, velvet hangings, orna- mented with knots of plaited silk in which artificial birds are framed, form the panels of the reception rooms. No article of furni- ture of any kind interferes with the elegant simplicity : in the corners there is, here, an aquarium of porcelain, with shrubs and natural flowers ; there, a cabinet encrusted with mother-of-pearl, or an elegant table laden with numerous poetical anthologies of the old Empire, printed upon leaves of gold.
Maids of Honor.
The scent of the precious wood, the fine mats, and rich stuffs, mi.xeswith the pure air which comes in on all sides from the open partitions. The young girls on duty in the palace bring tea from Oudsji and sweetmeats from the refectory of the Empress. This personage, called the Kisaki, who proudly rules over twelve other legitimate wives of tne Mikado imd a crovtl of his concubines, squats in proud isolation on the top ste[) of the vast dais which rises above the whole. The ladies of honor and the women in wait- ing squat or kneel behind her at a respectful distance, composing groups which have the effect of beds of flowers, because each group, according to its hierarchical position, has its especial costume and its color.
The folds of the garments of the Flmpress are arranged with such art that they sur- round her like a dazzling cloud of gauzy
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tended to produce. The ladies of the Court ; crape and brocade ; and three vertical rays who are admitted to the presence of the i of gold surmount her diadem like the insignia
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of a queen of flowers. Her appearance thus becomes strikinj^, not to say attractive.
The guests are ranged in concentric demi- circles in front of their sovereign. At a gesture from her hand the ladies-in-waiting on duty approach, and, prostrating themselves before her, receive her orders for the com- mencement of the anecdotical conversations or literary jousts, which form thf diversions of her Court.
The Court of the Kisaki is the academy of the floral games of Japan. On the third of the third month, all the wits of the Da'iri collect together in the gardens of the citadel, saki circulates, and challenges are exchanged between the gentlemen and the noble ladies, as to who shall find and paint, upon the classic fan of white cedar ornamented with ivy leaves, the most poetic stanzas in cele- bration of the revival of spring.
Instruments of Music.
The Court of the Empress, however, admitted other amusements than these liter- ary diversions. She had her chapel music, composed of stringed instruments, such as the violin with three strings ; the Japanese mandolin, called the samsin ; a sort of violincello, played without a bow, which is called a biwa ; and the gotto, a ten-stringed instrument, measuring, when laid flat, two yards long — the first was made in the year 300. Notwithstanding the difierence in dimensions, the gotto reminds us of the Tyrolese or Swiss zither.
Theatrical representations were added to music. A corps of young comedians played little operas or executed character dances, some grave and methodical, in whicli a long tailed mantle was worn; others lively and playful, full of fancy, and varied with dis- guises, the dancers coming out occasionally with the wings of birds or butterflies. In
addition to this, the ladies of the Dairi had their private boxes, not only at the imperial theatre, but at the circus of the wrestlers and boxers attached to the Court of the Mikado in virtue of privileges dating from the year 24 B. C.
They were also permitted to witness cock- fighting in the verandahs of their country- houses, in strict privacy. A certain class of the officers of the Empress's service were especially detailed to arrange these barbar- ous and ridiculous representations. They wore helmets and padded trousers, in which they looked like balls.
Old Customs Still Practical.
The manners and customs of the Court of Kioto are still kept up in our time, with this exception, that they no longer exhibit the least vestige of artistic or literary life. They are mechanically preserved in so far as the resources of the treasury permit; and are the last traces of the civilization of the old Empire. They are concentrated upon one single point in Japan, where they remain motionless as the old tombs themselves.
Meanwhile, modern life has invaded the cities and the country all around the antique Miako. The Tycoon developed civil and military institutions in his modern monarchy, and already the smoke of the steamers before the ports of the Inland Sea announce the approach of the Christian civilization of the West.
These circumstances lent a tragic interest to the actual situation of the ancient heredi- tary and theocratic Emperor of Japan, that invisible Mikado of whom one was not permitted to speak even while describing his Court. But he- also has come out of the mysterious darkness which surrounds him. The force of events has brought him to light upon the scene of contemporaneous history.
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CHAPTER XX. THE RESIDENCE OF THE SHOQUNS.
THE environs of Kamakoura are those of a great city ; but the great city itself exists no longer. Rich vege- tation covers the incqiiaUties of the soil which has evidently accumulated over ruins, overthrown walls, and canals now filled up. Antique avenues of trees stretch beyond waste groves overgrown with bram- bles. These avenues formerly led to palaces, of which there is now no trace. In Japan, i even palaces, being for the most part built of wood, leave no ruins after their fall, !
At Kamakoura the Shoguns had estab- lished their residence. Shogun was a title originally conferred by the Mikado, in other words the Emperor, on the military governor of the Eastern provinces. The Shoguns are known to foreigners by the Chinese name of Tycoons. The title was abolished in 1867. Under the name of Shoguns we recall the generals-in-chief, temporal lieutenants of the theocratic Emperor. They governed Japan, under the supremacy of the Mikado, from the end of the twelfth century to the com- mencement of the seventeenth, from Mina- moto Yoritomo, who was the founder of their power, to lyeyas, surnanied Gonghen- sama, the thirty-second Shogun who made Yeddo (now Tokio) the political capital of Japan, and created a new dynasty, whose last representatives adopted the title of Tycoon A.D. 1854.
Yoritomo, born of a princely family, was indebted to his education by an ambitious mother for the qualities which made him the ruler and real chief of the Empire. He was
brought up at the Court of Kioto, and early appreciated the condition of weakness into which the power of the Dairi had fallen. The Mikado, shut up in his seraglio, occupied himself with nothing but palace intrigues. The courtiers were given up to idleness, or plunged in dissipation. The old families, who were brought into communication with the Emperor either by kinship, alliance, or official rank, thought only of serving the interests of themselves and their children at court. They endeavored to procure high dignities for their eldest sons, and put the younger into holy orders.
Chosen From Eighty Ladies.
As for the girls, rather than .send them into convents, they applied for their admis- sion into the ranks of the lunpress's fifty ladies of honor, who were all obliged to take vows of chastity. The ambition of the matrons of high degree was perfectly satis- fied by the puerile ceremonies which accom- panied the birth of the heir-presumptive, and the nomination of its nurse, who was chosen among the eighty ladies of the old feudal nobility best qualified to fulfil this eminent function.
While things were going on thus at Kioto, the Daimios, that is, the old territorial gov- ernors, who lived in retirement in their pro- vinces, became by degrees less and less faithful in the maintenance of the obligations which they had contracted with the crown. Some . Trogated to themselves absolute power in the government of their Imperial
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fiefs ; otijcrs aggrandized their domains at the expense of their neighbors. Family wars, acts of vengeance and reprisal, stained the rustic fortresses of tlie principal dynasties of Japan with blood for many years: Anarchy was gaining gromul by di.',;iecs. Yoritomo, whose family had suffered inucii from these troubles, obtained a superior command from
the nation and its ruler. This matter was taken into serious account.
Yoritomo created a standing army, per- fected the art of encampment, utilized them to discipline his soldiers, and neglected noth- ing to make tliem discard the habits of domestic iik'. It is to him, for example, that Japan owes the official organization of
YORITOMO INVESTED WITH THE TITLE OF SHOGUN.
the Mikado after vicissitudes, and was in- ! vested with extensive power that he might establish order in the Empire. At this epoch the Mikado, as well as the armor-bearing nobleS; had no other troops than the terri- torial militia. At the close of an expedi- tion the men returned to their homes.
But the exigencies of the times w "^ such that a military force was the only safety of
the most shameful of occupations, which has been, ever since his time, a social institution regulated by the government.
Yoritomo succeeded in his designs. He subjugated the Da'imios, who had attempted to render themselves independent, and forced them to take an oath of fidelity and homage to him in his quality of lieutenant of the Mikado. Some of them refusing to recog-
THK RKSIDKNCK OK THI'. SHOGUNS.
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nize him uiuler this title, he cxtcrmiiiateci tlicm, with their entire families, aiul confis- cated the whole of their prop-.rty. More than once, when exasperated by the unex- pected resistance, he inflicted the most cruel tortures on his enemies.
On the other hand, he incessantly carried on intri;4ues, by means of agents, in the Dairi. Me had commenced his career under the seventy-sixth Mikado — he finished it under the ei;^hty-third. Each I'^mperor who opposed him had been obliged to abdicate : one of them took the tonsure and retired into a cloister.
A Divided Empire.
It was only under the eighty-second Mikado that Yoritonio was officiall)' invested with the title of Shogun. He had exercised his functions during twenty years. His son succeeded him. There were thenceforth two distinct Courts in the Empire of Japan ; that of the Mikado at Kioto, and that of the Shogun at Kamakoura,
In the beginning, the new power was not liereditary. It happened sometimes that the sons of the Mikados were invested with it. Far from taking umbrage at what was tak- ing place at Kamakoura, the sacerdotal and literary Court of Kioto found a subject of jest in it ; now amusing ihcmselves with the airs of the wife of the Shogun, the bad taste which the Secondary Courts showed in dress, the trivial performances )f the actor; the awkwardness of the dancers ; and again laughing at the gaudiness of the military uniforms, which Yoritonio had brought into fashion, or at the vulgarity of speech and manners of those new-blown grandees who gave themselves airs as restorers of the pontifical throne and saviours of the Empire.
An unforeseen circumstance arose which gave sudden importance to the Court of
Kamakoura, and concentrated upon it the attention and .sympathy of the nation.
In the twelfth month of the year 1268, a Mongol embassy landed at Japan. It came in the name of Koublai-Khan who, worthy descendent of the Tartar conquerors, was destined twelve years later to take possession of China ; he fixed his residence at I'ekin and founded the Yuen dynasty, under which the great canal was constructed. This i.s the same sovereign who kept at his Court the Venetian Marco Polo, the first traveller who furnished Europe with exact notions respect- ing China and Japan. His narratives, it is said, exercised so decided an influence upon Christopher Columbus, that the discovery of America is in a sense due to them.
Important Message.
Koublai-Khan wrote to the Emperor of Niphon : "I am the head of a state formerly without importance. Now the cities and countries which recognize my power are numberless. I am endeavoring to establish good relations with the princes my neigh- bors. I have put an end to the hostilities of which the land of Kaoli was the scene. The chief of that little kingdom has pre- sented himself at my Court to declare his gratitude. I have treated him as a father treats his child. I will not act otherwise towards the princes of Niphon. No embassy has, as yet, come from your Court to confer with me. I fear that in your country the true state of things is unknown. I therefore send you this letter by delegates, who will inform you of my intentions. The wise man has said that the world should consist only of one family. But if amicable relations be not kept up, how shall that principle be realized ? For my part, I have decided upon pursuing its execution, even should I be obliged to resort to arms. Now, it is the
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fluty of the sovereign of Niphon to consider what it will suit him to do."
The Mikado announced his intention of replying favorably to the overtures of Koublai-Klian. The Shogun, on the con- trary, declared himself hostile to an alliance
vainly proposed that a meeting of the dele- gates of the two Empires should take place on the island of Isousima, in the Straits of Corea. In 1271 a new missive on his part remained unanswered. In 1273 he sent two ambassadors to Kamakoura, and the Shogun
JAPANESE IDOL AND TEMPLE.
with the hordes of the Mongols. He con- hail them sent back. These efforts failed to voked an assembly of tlie Daimios at Kama- accomplish the desired result, koura, .submitted his objections to them, and A short time afterwards he was informed
enrolled them on his side. The embassy that two generals of Koubla'i-Klian were was dismissed with evasive words. : about to attack Japan at the head of an cx-
In the following year the Mongol chief pedition of three hundred large war-junks.
THE RESIDENCE OF THE SHOGUNS.
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three hundred swift sailing-ships, and three hundred transport-barks. The Mikado ordered public prayers and processions to the principle temples of the Kainis. The Shogun organized the national defence. At every point on the coasts of Isousinia and Kiousiou where the Mongols attempted to effect a descent, they were repulsed and beaten.
Their Khan endeavored vainly to renew the negotiations. Two ambassadors whom he sent to the Shogun in 1 275, were immedi- ately turned out. The tnird, having pre- sented himself in 1279, ^^^^ beheaded.
An Immense Fleet.
Then, if we are to believe the annals of Japan, that country was menaced by the most formidable expedition which had ever sailed upon the seas of the far East. The Mongol fleet numbt red four thousand sail, and carried an army of two hundred and forty thousand men. It was descending upon Firado towards the entrance of the inland sea when it was dispc "^ed by a typhoon and dashed upon the coast. All who did not perish in the waves fell under the swords of the Japanese, who spared only three prisoners, whom they sent back to the other side of th.e strait to carry the news.
After the occurrence of these events, it was no longer possible to regard the Shogiins as simple functionaries of the Crown, or even as the official protectors of the Mikado. The entire nation owed its safety to them. F'rom that moment the Court of Kioto had a rival in that of Kamakoura, which must speedily eclipse it and supplant it in the management of the affairs of the Empire.
At the present time we find at Kamakoura
the Pantheon of the glories of Japan. It is
ciimposcil of u majestic collection of sacred
buildings which have always been .spared by
22
the fury of civil war. The;. " nlaced under the invocation of Hatchiman, on^ of the great national Kamis. Hatchinian belongs to the heroic period of the Elmpire of the Mikados. His mother was the Empress Zingou, who effected the conquest of the three kingdoms of Corea, and to whom Divine honors are rendered.
Flach year, on the ninth day of the ninth month, a solemn procession to the tomb which is consecrated to her at F'ousimi, in the country of Yamasiro, commemorates her glorious deeds. Zingou herself surnamed her son Fatsnian, " the eight banners," in consequence of a sign which appeared in the heavens at the birth of a child. Thanks to the education which she gave him, she made him the bravest of her soldiers and the most skilful of her generals. When she had attained the age of one hundred years she transmitted the sceptre and crown of the Mikados to her son, in the year 270 of our era. He was then seven'iy-one years old.
Long and Brilliant Reign.
Under the name of Woozin he reigned gloriously for forty-three years, and was raised, after his death, to the rank of a protecting genius of the Empire. He is especially revered as the pat/on of soldiers. In the aimual fetes dedicated to him, Japan celebrates the memory of the heroes who have died for their country. The popular processions which take place on this occasion revive the ancient pomps of Kami worship. Even the horses formerly destined for sacri- fice are among the cortege ; but instead of being immolated, tliey are turned loose on the race-course.
Most of the great cities of Japan possess a Temple of 1 latchiman. That of Kamakoura is di.stinguished above all the others by the trophies which it contains. Two vast build-
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ings arc required for the display of this national wealth. There, it is said, are pre- served the spoils of the Corean and the Mongol invasions, also objects taken from the Portuguese Colonies and the Christian communities of Japan at the epoch when the Portugese were expelled, and the Japanese Christians were exterminated by order of the Shoguns.
No European has ever yet been permitted to view the trophies of Kamakoura. While all European states like to display the treas- ures which they have respectively seized or won in their frontier and dynastic wars, Japan hides all monuments of its military glory from foreigners. They are kept in rcser\e, like a family treasure, in venerable sanctuaries, to which no profane feet ever find access.
A Grand Avenue.
The Temples of llatchiman are approached by long lines of the those great cedar-trees whicli form the a\cnucs to all places of wor- ship in Ja[)an. As we advance along the avenue on the Kanasawa side, chapels multi- ply themselves along the road, and to the left, upon the sacred hills, we also come in sight of the oratories and commemorative .stones which mark the stations of tlie pro- cessions ; on the right the horizon is closeil b}- the mountain, with its grottos, its streams, and its pine groxes. After we ha\e crossed the river by a fine wooden bridge, we find ourselves suddenl}' at the entrance of anotiier allc}-, which leads fmrn the .sea-side, and occupies a large .street. This is the principal avenue, intersected by three gigantic toris, and k opens on the grand square in front of the chief staircase of the main buildings of the Temple.
The precinct of the sacred place extends into the street, and is surrounded on three
sides by a low wall of solid masonry, sur- mounted by a barrier of wood painted red and black. Two steps lead to the first level. There is nothing to be seen there but the houses of the bonzes, arranged like the side- scenes of a theatre, amid trees planted along the barrier-wall, with two great oval ponds occupying the centre of the square. They are connected with each other by a large canal crossed by two parallel bridges, each equally remarkable in its way.
Attractive Spectacle.
That on the right is of white granite, and it describes an almost perfect semicircle, so that when one sees it for the first time one supposes that it is intended for some sort of geometrical e.xerci.se ; but I suppose that it is in reality a bridge of honor, reserved for the gods and the good genii who come to visit the Temple.
The bridge on the left is quite flat, con- structed o*" .vood covered with red lacquer, with balusters and other ornaments in old polished copper. The p(jnd crossed by the stone bridge is covered with magnificent white lotus flowers, — the pond crossetl by the wooden bridge with red lotus flowers. Among the leaves of the flowers \se saw numbers of ' -h. some red and oliiers like mother of pearl, with glittering firis, swim- ming about in water of crystal clearness. The black tortoise glides among the great water-plants and clings to their stems.
After having thoroughly enjoyed this must attractive s[)ectacle, we go on towards liie second enclosure. It is raised a few steps higher than the first, and, as it is protected by an additional .sanctit)', it is only to be approached through the gate of the divine guardians of the sanctuary. This building, which .stands opposite the bridges, cv .itains two monstrous idols, placed side by sitie in
THE RKSIDKXCI': OF THE SMOGUNS.
339
the centre of tiic edifice. They are sculp- tured in woud, ;iml are covered from lierid to foot witli a tliick coating of vermilion. Their grinning f^iccs and their enorniou.s bust.s are spotted all I )\er with innumerable pieces of chewed p.iper, which the natixe visitors throw at them when passing, with- out any more formally than would be used by a number of schoolboys out for a holi- day.
Nevertheless, it is considered a \'ery serious act on the part of pilgrims. It is tlic means by which they make the prayer written on the slieet of chewed paper reacli its address, and when tliey wish to recommend anything to the gods very strongly, indeed, they bring as an offcing a pair of straw slippers plaited with regard to the size of the feet of tiie Colossus, and hang them on tlic iron rail- ings within whieii the statues are enclosed. Articles of this kind, suspended by thou- sands to the bars, remain there until the)' fall away in time, and it may be supposed that tiiis curious ornamentation is anything but beautiful.
He Shook His Head. Here a lay brother of the bonzes ap- proached us, and his interested \iews were easily enough detected by his bearing. We hastened to assure him that we recjuired nothing from his good offices, e.xcept acr(."~s to an encloseil building. With a shake of hi-^ head, so as to mak(.' us understand that we were asking for an impossibility, he simply set himself to folh'W us about with the me- chanical precision of a subaltern, lie was (juite superfluous, but we did not allciw his presence to interfere with f>ur admiration A high terrace, reached b)- a long stone sl.iii- case, surmounted the sei:oiid enclosure. It is sustained by a Cyclopeaii wall, and in its turn supports tin- piincip. 1 Temple as well
' as the habitations of the bonzes which are
i placed adjoining.
The grey roofs of all these different build- ings stand out against the sombre forest of cedars and pines. On our left arc the build- ings of the Treasury; one of them has a pyramidal roof surmounted by a turret of bronze most elegantly worked. At the foot of the great terrace is the Chajjel of the .\blutions. On our right .stands a tall pagod.i, constructed on the principle of the Chinese pagodas, but in a more sober and severe style.
Unique Building.
The fust stage, of a (juadrangular form, is supported by pillars ; the second stage con- sists of a N'ast circular g.iUery, which, though extremely massive, seems to rest simply upon a pivot. A painted roof, terminated by a tall .spire of cast bronze, embellished with pendants of the same metal, comjiletes the effect of this st:ange but exquisitely propor- tioned building.
All the doors of the buildings which I have enumerated are in good ta.ste. The fine pro- portions, the rich bi'own coloring of the wood, which is almost the only material em- ployed in their construction, is enhanced by a few touches nf red and dragon green, and the effcit of the whole is perfect ; — add to the pi. tiire a frame of arcient trees and the extreme brilliancy '•( the sky, for the atmos- l)here of Japan is the most transparent in the world
We went beyond the pagod.i to visit a bell-tower, where we were shown a large bell beautifully engra\ed, and in oiator\- on each siiie containing three golden image's, a l.irge one in the centre, antl two small ones at cither side. Ivich was siirrniiiuled by a uimhiis. This beautit'il Temple of Hatchi- maii i. e iiisecrated to a Kami; but it is
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quite evident that the rehgious oustoms of India have supplanted the ancient worship ; we had several proor;? of this tact.
When we we-e about to turn Lack we were solicited by the lay brother to go with him a little further. We complied, and he stopped us under a tree laden with oflerings at the foot of which stands a block of stone, surrounded by a barrier. This stone, which is probably indebted to the chisels of the bonzes for its peculiar form, is veneraf^d by the multitude, and largely endowed witii voluntary offerings. Like the peoples of the extreme East the Japanese are very super- stitious ; a fact of which we had abundant evidence on this and other occasions.
Image of the God of Wealth.
The Temple towards which we directed our steps on leaving the avenue of the Temple of Hatchiman, immediately diverted our thoughts from the grandeur of this picture. It is admirably situated on the summit of a promontory, whence we over- look the whole Bay of Kamakoura ; but it is always sad to come, in the midst of beau- tiful nature, upon a so-called holy place which inspires nothing but disgust. The principal sanctuary, at first sight, did not strike us as remarkable. Insignificant golden idols stand upon the high altar ; and in a side chapel there is an image of the God of Wealth, armed with a miner's hammer.
But when the bonzes who received us conducted us behind the high altar, and thence into a sort of cage as dark as a prison and as high as a tower, they lighted two lanterns, and stuck them at the end of a long pole. Then, by this glimmering light, which entirely failed to disperse the shades of the roof, we perceived that we were stand- ing in front of an enormous idol of gilt wood, about twelve yards high, holding in its right
hand a sceptre, in its left a lotus, and wearing a tiira composed of three rows of heads, representing the inferior divinities.
This gigantic idol belongs to the religion of the auxiliary gods of the Buddhist my- thology: the Amidas and the Quannons, intercessors who collect the prayers of men and transmit them to heaven. By means of similar religious conceptions, the bonzes .strike a superstitious terror into the imagina- tions of their followers, and succeed in keep- ing them in a state of perpetual fear and folly.
We then went to see the Daiboudhs, which is the wonder of Kamakoura. I'his building is dedicated to the Daiboudhs, that is to say, to the great Buddha, and may be regarded as the most finished work of Japa- nese genius, from the double points of view of art and religious sentiment. The Temple of Hatchiman had already given us a re- markable example of the use which native art makes of nature in producing that im- pression of religious majesty which in our northern climates is effected by Gothic archi- tecture.
Tempi.- of Buddha.
The Temple of Daiboudhs differs con- siderably from the first which we had seen. Instead of the great dimensions, instead of the illimitable space which seemed to stretch from portal to portal down to the sea, a soli- tary and mysterious retreat prepares the mind for some supernatural revelation. The road leads far away from every habitation ; in the direction o*" the mountain it winds about between hedges of tall ;hrubs. Finally, we see nothing before u- but the high road, going up and up in the midst cf foliage and flowers ; then it turns in a totally different direction, and all of a sudden, at the end of the alley, we perceive a gigantic
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brazen Divinity, squatting with joined hands, and the head slightly bent forward, in an attitude of contempIati\e ecstasy.
The involuntar)' amazement produced by the aspect of this great image soon gives place to admiration. There is an irresistible charm in the attitude of the Da'iboudhs, as well as in the harmony of its proportions. The noble simplicity of its garments and the calm purit)- of its features are in perfect accord with the sentiment of serenity in- spired by its presence. A grove, consisting of some beautiful groups of trees, forms the enclosure of the sacred place, whose silence and solitude are never disturbed. The small cell of the attendant priest can hardly be discerned amongst the foliage.
Beautiful Altar.
The altar, on which a little incense is burning at the feet of the Divinity, is com- posed of a small brass table ornamented by two lotus va.ses of the same metal, and beautifully wrought. The steps of the altar are composed of large slabs forming regular lines. The blue of the sk}', the deep shadow of the statue, the sombre color of the brass, the brilliancy of the flowers, the varied ver- dure of the hedges and the groves, fill this solemn retreat v.ith the richest effect of light and color. The idol of the Daiboudhs, with the platform which supports it, is twenty yards high; it is far from equal in elevation to the statue of .St. Charles Borromeo, -v'lich may be seen from Arona on the borders of Lake Maggiore, but v.bich affects the spec- tator no more than a trigometrical signal- post.
The interiors of these two colossal statues have been utilized. The European touri.>5ts seat them.selves in the no.se of the holy car- dinal. The Japanese descend by a secret staircase into the foundations of their Dai-
boudhs, and there they find a peaceful oratory, whose altar is lighted b}- a ray oi sunshine admitted through an opening in the folds of the mantle at the back of the idol's neck. It would be idle to discuss to what extent the Buddha of Kamakoura resembles the Buddha of history, but it is important to remark that he is conformable to the Buddha of tradition.
The Buddhists have made one authentic and .sacramental image of the founder of their religion, covered with characters carefully numbered, with thirty-two principal signs and eight}' secondary marks, so that it may be transmitted to future ages in all its in- tegrity'. The Japanese idol conforms in all essential respects to this established type oi the great Hindoo reformer. It scrupulously reproduces the meditative attitudes ; thus -it was that the sage joined his hands, the fingers straightened, and thumb resting again.st thumb; thus he squatted, the legs bf and gathered up one over the other, the right foot lying upon the left knee.
Features of the Idol.
The broad smooth brow is also to be recognized, and the hair forming a multitude of short curls. Even the singular protuber- ance of the skull, which slightly disfigures the to[) of the head, exists in the statue, and also a tuft of white hairs between the e}'c- brows, indicated by a little rounded excre- scence in the metal.
All these marks, however, do not consti- tute the physiognomy, the expression of the personage. In this respect the Daiboudhs of Kamakoura has nothing in common with the fantastic dolls which are worshipped in China under the name of Buddhas, and the fact appears worthy of notice, because Bud- dhism was introduced into Japan from China.
The first cffcd of Buddhist preaching in
:'.!TI
842
Japan must have been to arouse curiosity among the isl; '. irs, who are as inquisitive and restless as the Hindoos are taciturn and
JAPAN AND THK JAPANESE.
which are only mai\ing tlicir fust voyage of discovery in the regions of metaphysics ! As they did not feel any impatience to f lunge
BAPTISM OF HUDDHA.
contemplative, and wish to have a reason for for every thing.
What a vast field of exploration for minds
into Nirvvana, they were chiefly interested in finding out what was to come to pass be- tween the death and the final extinction.
nil-: RKSIDKNCE CF THK SIlUGUNS.
'S-i'i
Witli tile assistance of tiic bonzes, a certain number of accepted ideas about the soul, death, and the life to come, were put in cir- culation in the towns and in the villages, without prejudice, it must be understood, to ail that had been taught by ancestral wisdom concerning the ancient gods and the vener- able national Kaniis.
The soul of man, it was said, was like a floating vapor, indissoluble, having the form of a tiny worm, and a thin thread of blood which runs from the top of the head to the extremity of the tail. If it were closely observed it might be seen to escape from the house of death, at the moment when the dying person heaves his last sigh. At all times, the cracking of the panel may be heard as the soul passes through it.
The Wonderful Mirror.
Whither does it go? No one knows; but it cannot fail to be received by ihe minister- ing servants of the great judge of hell. They bring it before his tribunal, and the judge ',auses it to kneel before a mirror, in which it beholds all the evil of which it has been guilty. This is a phenomenon which is occasionally produced upon the earth : a comedian in Yeddo, who had committed a murder, could not look into his mirror with- out his gaze being met by the livid face of his victim.
Souls, laden with crime, wander in one or other of the eighteen concentric circles of hell, according to the gravity of their of- fences. Souls in process of purification sojourn in a jjurgatory whose lid they may lift up wlien they can do so without fear of falling, and resume the progressive course of their pilgrimage.
In the case of a woman who, being de- serted, drowned herself with her child, she is popularly believed to present herself before
all wayfarers by the side of the marsh, hold- ing up the infant, in protest against her be- trayers as the real author of her crime. Finally, there are souls who return t(j the places which they inhabited, or to the rest- nig-place of their mortal remains.
Ghosts and Demons.
Ghost stories, terrible tales, books illus- trated by pictures representing hell or apparitions of demons, have multiplied in Japan with such profusion, that the po[)ular imagination is completely possessed by them. The patron of literature of this kind, accord- ing to the national mythology, is Tengou, the god of dreams, a burlesque winged genius, whose head-dress is an extinguisher with a golden hand'.-;. He leads the noc- turnal revelry of all the objects, sacred (jr profane, which can fill the imagination of man. The refuge of death itself is not closed against him. The candelabra bend their heads, pierced with luminous holes, with a measured motion. The stone tortoises which bear the epitaphs move in a grim, orderly march, and grinning skeletons, clad in their shrouds, join the fantastic measure, waving about them the holy-water brush which drives away evil spirits.
In spite of some difference in style, and of its exceptional dimensions, the noble Japan- ese statue is the fellow of those of which great numbers are to be seen in the islands of Java and Ceylon ; those sacred refuges w hich were opened to Buddhism when it was expelled from India. There the type of the hero of Contemplation is preserved most religiously, and appears under its most exqui-site form, in marvellous images of basalt, granite, and clay, generally above the human stature.
This type, for the most part conventional, although perfectly authentic in the eyes of
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314
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
faith, is, especially for the Cingalese priests, who arc devoted to the art of statuary, the unique subject of the indefatigable- labor by which they strive to realize ideal perfection. They have in fact produced work of such j)urity as has hardly been surpassed by the Madonnas of Raphael.
Japan has inherited somewhat of the lofty tratiition of the Buddhist Isles. Apostles from those distant shores have probably visited it. On the other hand, it has suf- fered to an extreme degree, and under the influence of its nearest neighbors, all the fatal consequences of the doctrine of the master himse'f, and especially the monstrous vagaries of his disciples. It would be an unprofitable task to undertake to trace the pure and abstract doctrine of the founder of the "Good Tao " in Japanese Buddhism. The Proteus of Greek fable, he adds, is not less intangible than the Good Tao in its metamorphoses among the various peoples of Asia and the Far East.
Good Sense Recommended.
Every sort of modification and addition is justified beforehand by the following adage, which seems to have been the watchword of the missionaries of Buddhism : " Everything that agrees with good sense and circum- stances agrees with truth, and ought to serve as a rule." The Temples of Kama- koura furnish many examples in support of this observation.
The civil wars which brought about the ruin of Kamakoura had few points of interest in themselves. From the fourteenth to the sixteenth century, the Empire of Japan pre- sented a spectacle of increasing anarchy, which threatened the work of political cen- tralization which had been inaugurated by Yoritomo.
A domestic quarrel arose within the Dairi
itself, which forced the legitimate sovereign to yield Kioto to his competitor; and, during nearly ."^ixty years, six Mikados successively occupied the pontificial throne, by usurpa- tion, while the real descendents of the Sun had to submit to holding their Court at Yosimo, a small borough situated on the south of the capital, in the province of Yomato. At length a fimily arrangement put an end to this public scandal ; and the hundred and first Mikado, He of the South, resumed possession of his holy city, and solemnly revived the fiction of his theocratic sovereignty.
Scenes of Blood.
On the other hand, the power of the Sho- gun^ was the object of strenuous rivalries, which carried fire and sword through Kioto and Kamakoura by turns, and did not shrink even from fratricide. The feudal nobles took advantage of the general confusion to make one more attempt to break through their vassalage to the crown or its lieutenants.
When, in the year 1582, the Shogun Nobounanga was surprised and massacred, with his entire family, in his own palace, the Empire seemed to be on the brink of disso- lution. It was saved by an adventurer, the son of a peasant, who had begun life as a groom in the service of the Shogun. His grave and taciturn demeanor, matured by thevicissitudes ofa vagabond youth, atlracted the attention of his new master. He was frequently observed squatting in the attitude of persons of his class, near the stalls in which the horses in his charge stood, his arms stretched out on his knees, and his mind plunged in deep reverie.
Nobounanga offered him a military career. The ex-groom, become General Faxiba, dis- tinguished himself by brilliant deeds, for which he was raised to the raiik of Daimio.
TH1-: RHSIDKNCr: OF THE SHOGUNS.
845
On the death of his benefactor, he undertook to avenge him, and ho commanded, under the name of Fide-Yosi, the troops wliich were sent into the provinces of the great vassals wlio liad revolted Two years suf- ficed for the suppression of the rebellion. His return to Kioto was a genuine triumph. The Mikado solemnly invested him with the chief title of the Dairi — that of Quamboukou, .ind pvoclaimcd him his lieutenant-general.
Then Fide-Yosi carried his sword into another scene of strife. Every one of the thousand divinities of the Buddhist myth- ology had taken his place in Japan. There the>' had temples, statues, monastic frater- nities. Bonzes, monks, nuns, abounded throughout the Empire, and principally in the centre and south of Niphon. Each con- vent vied with its neighbors for the public favor.
Furious Conflicts.
By degrees the competition became so vehement, that jealousy, hatred, and envy embittered the mutual relations of certain powerful and ambitious orders. From in- vective thej' proceeded to violence. The Imperial police interfered in the earlier con- flicts of the tonsured foes, but they were soon powerless to oppose the torrent. Bands of furious men in soutanes and habits, armed with sticks, pikes and flails, came down in the night upon the territory of the fraternity with whom they were at variance; ravaged everything that came in their way ; ill- treated, killed or dispersed the victims of their surprise, and did not retire until they had set fire to the four quarters of the bonze- house.
But the aggressors, sooner or later, in their turn assailed unawares, underwent similar treatment. Six times, in the course of the twelfth century, the monks of the convent on
the Yeisan burned the bonze-house of Djon- sjoi ; twice the monks of Djensjosi burned the convent of Yei.san to aslies.
Similar scenes were enacted in various parts of Niphon. In order to protect their convents from a sudden attack, rich priors converted themseKes into fortresses. Their audacity increased with the incapacity of the Government. Inimical fraternities had armed encounters under the very walls of the tem- ples which they possessed in the capitals.
Damage by Fire.
A portion of the Dairi was sacked, in 1283, after one of these encounters. A temple in Kioto having been fired in 1536, the flames spread to an adjacent quarter, and immense damage was done. The efforts of the Shogun Nebounanga to reduce the in- surgent fraternity to submission were ren- dered fruitless by the entrenchments from behind which they opposed him.
Fide-Yosi resolved to make an end, once for all, of the quarrels of the monks. He surprised, captured and occupied the most militant bonze-houses, demolished their de- fences, transported all the monks who had broken the public peace to distant islands, and placed the whole of the Japanese clergy, without distinction, under the superinten- dence of an active, severe and inexorable police. He enacted that thenceforth the bonzes should enjoy only the usufruct of their lands, the property in them being trans- ferred to the Government, with full and free power of disposal of them.
Then he ordered all the dignitaries among the clergy, both regular and secular, to limit themselves strictly, together with their sub- ordinates, to their religious functions. From this law the Japanese priesthood has never since departed. They officiate at the altar in the interior of their bonze-houses, under
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the eyes of the people, in a sanctuary which is separated by a partition from the crowd ; but they never address the people otherwise than by preaching, and only on the holydays especially set apart for the purpose.
They were forbidden to orijanize proces- sions excqjt at certain periods of the year, and with the co-operation of the Govern- ment officials charged with the ordering of public ceremonies.
Their pastoral duties were restricted to the narrowest limits, and have never been enlarged. The bonzes are charged with the accomplishment of the sacramental cere- monies with which all sects in Japan sur- round the last moments of the dying. They conduct the funerals, and provide, according to the wishes of the relations of the de- ceased, for the burial or the burning of the corpse, and for the consecration and preser- vation of his tomb.
Barbarous Punishment.
But, in proportion as they reign over the domain of death, they are vigilantly watched and restrained in all their relations with so- ciety and the business of life. Most of the secular priests are married, and hold familiar intercourse with a small circle of friends and neighbors ; but they are all the more sternly dealt with if they give any offence in conse- quence.
I saw, in the chief market-place at Yoko- hama, an aged bonze, who had been exposed there for three consecutive days, on his knees, on an old mat, under the burning sun. The poor wretch endeavored occa- sionally to wipe the sweat from his bald head with a little crape handkerchief A placard, stuck in the ground in front of him, apprized the public that this man had prac- tised medicine clandestinely, and had crimin- ally assaulted one of his female patients, and
therefore the justice of the Tycoon had con- demned him to transportation for life after public exposure.
In 1856, a short time after Fide-Yosi had put an end to tiie monastic troubles of the Empire, strangj news caused public attention to fix itself upon the island of Kiousiou. At this time the trade of Japan with the Asiastic continent and archipelagoes was not in any way shackled. The Prince of Boungo, who, forty years previously, had received the Portuguese adventurers flung upon the coasts of his province by a tempest, had hastened to furnish them w ith the means of returning to Goa, and had begged th ni to send him every year a ship laden with mer- chandise suitable for the native markets.
First Jesuit Mission.
Thus relations between Portugal and Japan were founded and developed. On one of its first voyages, the Portuguese ship, at the moment of setting sail for Goa, secretly gavv, asylum to a Japanese gentleman named Hansiro, who had committed a homicide. The illustrious Jesuit, Francis Xavier, who had recently disembarked at Goa, undertook the religious instruction of the Japanese fugi- tive, and administered baptism to him. In 1549, the first Jesuit mission was established in the island of Kiousiou, under the direc- tion of Saint Francis Xavier himself, and with the assistance of Hansiro.
The missionaries were at first astonished and terrified at finding in Japan so many institutions, ceremonies, and objects of wor- ship closely resembling those which they had come thither to introduce. Taking no heed of the immense antiquity of Buddhism, they declared that the religion could be nothing less than a diabolical counterfeit of the true Church. Nevertheless, they were not slow to perceive that they might
THE RESIDENCE OF THE SHOGUNS.
.'547
turn that circumstance to the advantage of their propaganda. Nothing in the doctrine of Buddhism was opposed to the admission of Jesus among the number of the Buddhas who, in the course of ages, have appeared upon earth.
Nor was there any insurmountable diffi- culty in giving the Virgin pre-ePiinence over the queens of heaven in the ancient Pan- theon. In a word, the ruling creed at least furnii^hed certain useful points of contact, and all sorts of pretexts and good opportu- nities for introducing the matter. This first mission had a prodigious success, and there is ample room for believing that, thanks to the apostolic zeal and persuasive power of Saint Francis Xavier, numerous and sincere conversions to Christianity took place in all classes of Japanese society.
Power of the Triple Crown.
Several high dignitaries of Buddhism were filled with uneasiness about the future of their religion, and carried their complaints and remonstrances to the foot of the throne. " How many sects," asked the Mikado, "do you estimate as existing in my dominions?"
"Thirty-five," was the prompt reply.
" Very well, then, that will make the thirty- sixth," replied the jovial Emperor.
The Shogun Fide-Yosi regarded the ques- tion from another point of view. Struck by the fact that the foreign missionaries applied themselves not only to spread their doctrines among the people, but to gain the favor of the great vassals of the Empire, and that the anarchical tendencies of the latter were mys- teriously fostered by their relations with these priests, he discovered that they were com- missioned by a sovereign pontiff" who wore a triple crown, and who could, at his free will and pleasure, dispossess the greatest princes, distribute the kingdoms of Europe among
his favorites, and even dispose of newly-dis- covered continents.
He reflected that tiie emissaries of this redoubtable ruler u( the West had alpjady formed a party in the coast of the Mikado, and had founded a h >use in his capital; that the former Shogun Xobounanga had openly protected and befriendeil theni; and that there was reason to believe that he, the Shogun in place and power, was actually, surroundc'" in his own palace by dark in- trigues in the household of his young son and heir presumptive.
Severe Measures.
Fide-Yosi communicated his observations and his fears to an experienced servant whom he had already charged with several delicate mis.sions. The dark and subtle genius of this confidant, who became so famous in the history of Japan under the name of lyeyas, applied itself diligently to sounding the depth of the danger. An embassy of Japanese Christians, directed by Father Valignani, the superior of the Order of Jesuits, luid set out for Rome. lyeyas supplied his master with proofs that the princes of Boungo, Omoura, and Arima had written, on this occasion, to the Spiritual Emperor of the Christians (Pope Gregory XIII) letters in which they declared that they threw themselves at his feet and worshipped him as their supreme Loril, in his quality of sole representative of God on earth. The Shogun dissembleil his wrath, but only in order to render his vengeance more signal. He employed nearly a year in organizing, in concert with his favorite, the blow he meditated.
At length, in June, 1587, his troops were at their posts, in their su.spected provinces of Kiousiou and the southern coast of Niphon, in sufficient force to suppress any attempt at resistance. On one especial day, from on&
34.S
JAPAN AND THK JAPANKSK.
end of the Empire to llic other, an edict was published, by order of tlio Shoj^un, by which, in the name and as tlie lieutenant of the Mikado, he commanded the suppression of Christianity within six months; ordered that the foreij^n missionaries sh<iuld be banished in perpetuity, on pain of death; that their schools should be immediately closed, their cluirchcs demolished, crosses pulled down wherever they were found ; and that the nati\e converts should abjure the new doc- trine in the presence of the Government ofHcials.
At the same time, in order to make ihe agreement between the two potentates evi- dent, the Mikado paid a solemn visit to his lieutenant, while tiie latter, to reward the services of his faithful lyeyas, raised him to the rank of his prime minister, and made him governor of eight jirovinces.
Loyal to Their Faith.
All the measures provided by the edict of the Shogun were punctually accomplished, with the exception of one, which was pre- cisely that which the ex-groom expected to have given him the least trouble. To his profound amazement, the native Christians of both sexes, of all classes, and of every age absolutely refused to abjure. Those who possessed land he dispossessed, and enriched his officers with their spoils. Others were imprisoned or e.xiled. Tiicse rigorous ex- amples produced no effect whatever.
The recalcitrants were threatened with capital punishment. The)' bowed thci'- heads to the sword of the executioner with resignation hitherto unknown ; and in many instances the sympathies of the crowd were excited by the testimony which they ren- dered to their I'aitli. Then the most ingenious modes of torture were resorted to, and the native Christians were put to
death bj' fire and crucifixion. In a great number of cases the latter mode was .selected. The Japanese martyrs rivalled the first con- fessors of the Church in the constancy of their faith. For tliree consecutive years the fury of the Slioj^un's officers vainly ex- pended itself ill tile utmost refinements of barbarity and brutality, in ferocious, hideous, unspeakable inventions, practiced upon more than 20,500 victims, men and women, young men and maidens, old men and little children.
Great Battle in Corea.
Suddenly, tlic persecution was relaxed. Fidc-Yosi called the feudal nobles to arms, and threw 160,000 fighting men on the coasts of Corea, with which country Japan was at perfect peace (159J). His general summoned the Coreans to join them in attacking the dynasty of the Mings. The Chinese army marched to meet the invaders, but it suffered so decisive a defeat, that the limperor of China liastened to offer the Siiogun peace, with the title of King of Niphon and I'irst Vassal of the Celestial Flmpire.
Fide-Yosi proudly replied : " I am already King of Niphon ; I am so of myself, and I should know ii<iw, if I chose to do so, to make the Kniperor of China my vassal."
In 1597 he followcil up his threat by sending a second army of 130,000 men. Hut death surprised him, towards the close of the following year, before the issue of the new campaiy;n ; and the two l']mpires, equally weary of an unjustifiable war, has- tened to be reconciled, and recalled their armies. During his later j-cars, Fide-Yo.si was honored by his Court with the surname of the Great (Taikosama) which history has preserved.
The two Chinese expeditions which ended the career of Taikosama, and which one
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THE RKSIDENCK OF THE SHOGUNS.
849
might be tempted to regard as fuolish adven- tures, seem to have been, as well a ■. his edict of persecution, acts maturely premeditated with the view to attaining the double end of his ambitious dreams, the crushing of the feudal nobility and the foundation upon its ruins of a monarchical dynasty. Already the vassals of the Empire were exhausted in sterile internal strife : it was necessary to ruin them by distant and costly wars.
Under the pretext of protecting the wives and children of the Daimios who were called to military service, Taikosama obliged the families and the principal servants of the princes to come and live in houses which he had prepared for them within the enclosure of his fortresses. When the nobles them- selves returned from China, they could only regain possession of their lands on condition of residing on them henceforth alone, without their families, but with the power of tempo- rarily rejoining the latter at the Court of the Shogun, where they were still to remain as hostages.
Powerful Princes Overthrown.
Kxmpfer describes this as a unique and marvellous example of a great number of powerful princes subjugated by a simple soldier of low extraction. But this was not enough to keep the provinces under the domination of the new central power.
Hitherto the cities of residence had been united to one another by a military road. Taiko.sama profited by the absence of the nobles to make a road through their lands, extending to the extremities of the Empire, which was to be independent of all other ward, police, or jurisdiction than that of the Shogun. It was called the Tokatdo. Posts were established at twenty minutes' dis- tance one from the other — spaces still covered without rest by the Imperial run-
ners who form the postal service at the present time.
In each station runners were ready to relieve their comrades ; saddle-horses and pack-horses harnessed ; custom-house offi- cers, police, and a picket of soldiers, who have charge of a rock furnished with guns and lances for arming the reinforcements. Finally, a perfect network of day and night signals covered the heights, in order to spread alarm to the headquarters of the Government forces at the first indication of danger.
An Oath Signed With Blood.
It was the midst of these works, which by their results were to acquire all the import- ance of a permanent occupation of the feudal provinces, that Taikosama was surprised by death in the sixty-third year of his age and the twelfth of his reign. His last wishes were that measures might be taken for the consolidation of his dynasty. Although his son Fide-Yosi was yet a minor, he married him to the daughter of his first minister lyeyas, to whom he confided the regency of the Empire.
lyeyas bound himself by a solemn oath, signed with his blood, to relinquish his powers as soon as the presumptive heir should be old enough to ascend the throne. He closed the eyes of Taikosama, gave him a magniPwCnt funeral, and governed Japan for five _,'ears under the title of Regent, applying himself .systematically to keep the young Shogun out of the management of afiairs. But the latter had certain counsel- lors, who saw through the designs of lyeyas, and successfully raised all sort;j of obstacles to the realization of his ambitious plans, lyeyas summoned them to give up to him the fortress of Osaka, where they had estab- lished the residence of his son-in-law. On
350 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
their refusal, lie invested the jjlace. After noble families of the Empire. At that epoch, several months of heroic resistance, the t;ar- at the commencement of the seventeenth cen- rison was obliged to capitulate. Fide-Yosi tur\-, Ycddo was not equal in importance to set fire with his own hands to his palace, and , the pontifical Miako, norto Osaka, the centre flung himself with all his servants, into the of commerce, nor even to Nagasaki, fl-inies. Hut, like the last cily.it has the advan-
lyeyas, proclaimed Shogun, justified his tage of a strategical position, ea.sily defended perjury and the tragic end of Fide-Yosi, by I on the land side, and regarded as impregna-
A JAPANESE LADY
accusing that prince of having secretly con- spired with the Christians. The army took, the oath of fidelity to him. The Mikado sanctioned his usurpation. The people prostrated themselves before him with the docility of slaves.
To the usurper lyeyas is due the merit of having made Ycddo the political capital of Japan, and the ol-;l:^-;;tory re idence < f the
IN illiR PALANyUlS.
I ble on that of the sea. Kaimpfer, who on
I two occasions went with an embassy of the
I Dutch India Company to Kioto and to
Yeddo, reckons that in the line of the
Tokaido, or close to it, tiiere are thirty-three
great cities with fortresses and fifty-seven
' small towns unfortified, without mentioning
an infinite nimibcr of villages antl hamlets.
It takes no less than from twenty-five to
THK RKSIDKNCK OF TIIK SIIOGUNS.
3ol
thirty days to go from Na<^asaki to Yeddo, by the Tokaido, usiiij,' tlic means of trans- port customary amonjj the natives, wlio know no other than the horse or the palan- quin.
Tiiere are two sorts of palanquin, the norimon and the canjjo. The former, which requires four bearers for long journeys, is a large, heavy box, in which one may sit witli tolerable comfort. The sides are in lacquered wood, and contain two sliding doors. Al- though the norimon is, par excellence, the vehicle of the nobility, it admits of no (orna- ments, and is used by the ladies of the middle class. The cango is a light litter of bamboo, open on both sides ; it requires only two bearers, who always walk with a rapid and regular step. They rest for one minute out of twenty. When they go back, each carries in his turn the cango, suspended at the end of a pole, over his shoulder.
The Great Highway.
The pack-horses intended for the trans- port of merchandise and of travellers go slowly behind their drivers, the head bent, and attached by a strap which passes under the body to the cord which goes round the animal. The Japanese, instead of shoeing their horses, wrap their hoofs in a little mat, which only lasts one day. According as these mats wear out, they arc thrown aside, and immediately replaced, and large pro- visions of them alwajs make part of the baggage. Foot passengers do the same with their sandals of plaited straw ; so that all the roads of Japan are covered with these relics.
The Tokaido is crossed in several phices by arms of the sea and by rapid ri\crs. Large boats do duty as coaches, and cross the strait which separates the island of Kiousiou from Simonoseki, in two hours.
Most of the travellers, and even pilgrims, profit by the great merchant-junks of the inland sea to make the journey froni Simo- noseki to Hiogo. It is only half a day's journey from Miogo to Osaka, and one day from Osaka to Kioto. Iktween this city and Yeddo lie the most picturesque portions of the road.
Crossing the Rivera.
Travellers cross the rivers in flat boats, or on the shoulders of porters. These porters form a corporation, which indemnifies the traveller in case of personal accident or loss of baggage. With the exception of a girdle tattooing suffices f(jr their clothing, according to custom among the Coolies of Jajian. The subjects of this process are heroic, such as the Strife of Yamato with the Dragon, the Tribunal of Hell, and the image of that in- comparable soldier who, when his liead was falling under the sword, tore off his enemies' armor with his teeth.
The fare is always extremely moderate, and varies according to whether eight men are employed to carry the norimon, or four men with a litter, two men with a stretcher, or a simple porter. In the latter case, wh.ich is the most frccjuent, the traveller seats him- self astride the bearer's neck, and the latter takes him by both legs, and, telling him to sit .steadily, .steps into the water warily and firmly. Sometimes a sudden rise of the river intercepts the passage, and then the travellers install themselves in the tc.i-houses on the shore, from whence tliey watch the water until the porters come to tell tliem that tlie ford is practicable.
Three days' journey from YedcU), the Tokaido passes by the foot of l^'ousi-yama, from which it is only separated by the lake of Akoni. Thousands of pilgrims go annually in procession to the summit of the
352
JAPAN AND THE JAl'ANKSK.
marvellous mountain, where they are re- ecivcd by the monks of a convent built at the very edge of the crater, which opened for the first time 286 years before the birth of Christ and vomited its lava in 1707.
The hills of Akoni, covered with forests in which large game abound, give access to no other road than that of the Tokaido. All the roads of the provinces to the west and south of Yeddo are connected with this great artery, while this one ends in a narrow defile, provided with heavy barriers and fortified guard-houses. Here all travellers have to exhibit their passports, and submit their eflects to the inspection of the Government officers. Yeddo is now named Tokio.
Neither the rank of the Grand Daimios, nor their imposing suites, can exempt them from these formalities, whose special object is the prevention of the clandestine convey- ance of arms into the provinces, no less than attempts at evasion on the part of the noble ladies whose birth and the laws of Taikosama condemn them to reside at Tokio.
A Formidable Wall.
Not content with these precautions, which do not extend to the northern provinces, lyeyas and his successors thought it neces- sary to protect the approaches to their capi- tal on that side by a long wall, at whose gates an inspection is made by the custom- house and police officers.
Beyond the hills of Akoni, the Tokaido overlooks the gulf of Odawara, towards the bay of Yeddo, which it joins at the village of Kanagawa, opposite Yokohama. All these localities have been the scenes of assas- sinations, committed ' upon inoffensive for- eigners of different nations by men belonging to the class of the Samourais, or Japanese nobles having the privilege of carrying two swords.
Major Haldwin and Lieutenant Bird, English officers, were murdered not far from the statue of the Daiboudhs of Kamakoura. The corpse of Lieutenant Camus, a French officer, was found horribly mutilated at the entrance of the village of Odongaia. An English merchant, Mr. Lenox Richardson, was killed upon the threshold of the tea- house of Maneia, near Kanagawa. Two Russian officers, and, shortly afler, two Cap- tains of the Dutch merchant marine, M. Vo» and M. Decker, were cut to pieces in the High Street of the Japanese city of Yoko- hama. A Japanese interpreter to the English minister, and the Dutch interpreter of the American Legation, Mr. Keusken, perished in the streets of Tokio.
Narrow Escape.
The whole of the British Legation had a narrow escape from falling victims to a night attack, which was repelled with great blood- shed. Two English soldiers were killed at their posts in a second attack on the same legation. It is difficult to forget these things when one is residing in the country where they have happened, and above all when one has installed one's self at Tokio.
The Government of the Tycoon is always disposed to dwell upon the danger presented by a sojourn in the capital. That does not prevent their adding that the Tycoon is pro- foundly humilated that such a state of things should exist in his country. On the other hand, where he finds himself at a loss for expedients to escape the reception of an em- bassy, or when he has used eloquence in per- suading them to retire, he is particularly anxious to prove to his foreign guests that the fears he has thought it his duty to express are well founded.
Thus, when one goes to Tokio by land, one is obliged to accept the escort of a troop
THK RKSIDKNCE OF THE SHOGUNS.
3r.3
of mounted Yakouniiics. Ours joined us at the limit assif^ncd to tlie residents of Yoko- hama for tlieir exercise towards the north of the bay. We crossed the arm of the sea which separates Bcnten from Kanagawa in our sampan.
Our horses were awaiting us in the latter village, and we enjoyed our last hour of liberty by following the Tokaido, with its two interminable files of travellers on foot and on horseback, in norimons and in cangos; those who were going to the capital kept the road to the right ; those who were coming back keeping the left.
Typical Tea-House.
We halted at the Maneia tea-house, which was crowded with picturesque groups of guests. All along the front were stoves, smoking kettles, tables laden with provisions, active waitresses coming and going on the right and left, distributing lacquered trays with cups of tea, bowls of saki, fried fish, cakes, and fruits of the season. Before the threshold, seated on benches, were artisans and coolies fanning themselves, while their wives lit their pipes at the common brasero.
Suddenly a movement of horror mani- fested itself among the guests and the wait- resses; a detachment of police officers, escorting a criminal, came to take refresh- ment. With great haste, boiling tea and saki are offered to the two-sworded men, while the coolies, who carried the prisoner in a bamboo basket, without any opening, deposit their burden on the ground, and rub themselves dry with a long piece of crape. As for the unhappy criminal, who could be seen doubled up in his bamboo prison, a man with haggard eyes, dishevelled hair, and bushy beard, he was going to be tortured in the prisons of Tokio, as a punishment for the evil deeds set forth upon a placard which 23
hung from his ignominious basket. I le was object of pity and curiosity.
The beautiful little town of Kawasaki boasts of several temples, among which that of the Daisi-Gnawara-Heghensi seems to me to be one of the purest monuments of I^uddhist architecture in Japan. I had heard different versions of the worship to which it is consecrated; among others, the miraculous legend reputed of the Saint who was the special object of the veneration of the faithful in that place. To so high a degree did he possess the virtue of contem- plation, that he did not perceive that a coal fire placed near him in a brazier was ccn- suming his hands, while he was absorbed in meditation .
Shaded Footpaths.
Although the Tokaido is in general as fine a road as any of our great luiropean highways, and has the advantage over them of being bordereil over its whole extent by footpaths shaded with fine plantations of trees, it is, in the environs of the capital, strange to say, that it is worse kept. One day of rain tmns the streets of the numerous villages beyond Kanagawa into gullies. On this point, as upon many others, the Japanese display, at the same time, a remarkable intel- ligence in all their works of civilization, and, when they come to the application of them, a carelessness in detail no less extraordinary.
At length we reach the populous suburbs of Tokio. A short halt on the threshokl of one of the numerous tea-houses of the vil- lage of Omori introduces us to a merry com- pany of citizens, accompanied by their wives and children. Other groups, who were mak- ing no less noise, were besieging a great toy shop; an infinite variety of playthings for children, fancy straw hats, animals of plaited straw, painted and varnished, were placed in
3r.4
the front. I readily recojrnizcd the bear of Yeso, the monkey of Niphon, tlie domestic buffalo, the tortoise a hiuuired years old, dragging hke a lon^ tail great tufts of sea- weed growing fron) liis shell.
But time pressed, and, tlie sight of tlie ofting covered with white sails e.xciting our
JAPAN AND THK JAPANESE.
The (iovernnicnt has taken measures to provide forcigncis coming to Tokio, or re- sitting in that city, with a strong escort pass- ing tiirough Sinagawa, which tliey arc only allowed to do by daylight. The regular population of this neighborhood is inoffen- sive, being composed for tlie most part ol
impatience, we made our way to the sea- j boatmen, fishermen, and laljorers; but they
board. The road rests on strong stone foundations, but the waves which formerly came up to it are now lost among the reeds and .sea-plants. On our left is stretched a pine-wood, and some cypress groves, over which we noticed great flocks of crows were hovering; our guides informed us that this is the place of capital executions, Dzousou- kamori — or at least that of the southern quarter of the great city, for there is a second in the northern quarter.
Ghastly Symbols of Death.
The aspect of the place is exceedingly gloomy. If one is sufficiently fortunate as to escape the .sight of mutilated heads or bodies abandoned to the dogs and the birds, one cannot behold, without horror, the great extent of earth covering the last remains of criminals, a granite pillar, bearing I know not what funeral inscription, a platform ap- propriated to the use of the officers who have to preside at executions, and a gigantic statue of Buddha, a gloomy .symbol of im- placable expiation and death without conso- lation.
Immediately after passing the place where the justice of the Taikoun exhibits his exem- plary vengeance to the people, we enter the most ill-famed faubourg of Tokio, Sinagawa, which commences at two miles south of the city, and joins it at the gates of the Takanawa quarter.
inhabit the cabins which throng the beach, while the two sides of the Tokaido are lined almost unmterruptedly with tea-houses of the worst kind, which harbor the same scum of society as in the great cities in ICurope and America, and in addition a very dangerous class of men proper to the capital of Japan,
Two Swords to One Man.
The.se are the lonines; officers without employment, belonging to the caste of the Samourais, and con.sequcntly i)rescrving the right of wearing two swords. Some of them are men of good family, who have been turned out of their homes in consequence of the debauchery of their lives. Others have lost, through misconduct, their place in the service of the Taikoun, or in the mili- tary house of some Daimio, Others ha\ e been dismissed by a chief whom evil times has forced to restrict his expen.ses hy the re- duction of his personal following, and are now thrown upon their own resour<-es.
The lonine, deprived of the pay on which he lived, and knowing no other profession than that of arms, has generafly no other resource, while waiting for a new engage- ment, than to take refuge in thesr dens of vice, where he repays the hospitality which he receives by the vilest kind of industry. The cu.stomers whom he attracts add new elements of wickedness to those with which the faubourg abounds.
CHAPTER XXI. THE GREAT CITY OF TOKIO.
ABOVE all other jjrcat cities in the ' world, Tokio, formerly called Yed- - do, seems to be favored by nature in situation, climate, vegetable | wealth and abundance of running water. It is placed at the mouth of two rivers, of ' which one bathes the Ilondjo, a suburban district, on the east, and the other, passing from north to south through the most popu- lous quarters of the town, separates the Hondjo from the city, and from the two Asaksas, also suburban districts.
Two wide streams among seven or eight of less importance flow through the districts which surround the citadel ; they are the Tanorike and the Yeddo Gawa.
Basins, tanks, moats and a whole network of irrigating canals connect these natural water-courses, and carry commercial circul- ation, popular animation, and the movement and life of the immense capital, into the heart of the city, as well as to the centre and extremities of the Hondjo,
Among the number of canals on the .sea side of the citadel, that of Niphon-bassi holils the first rank ; the canal of Kio-bassi holds the second ; they arc both in the "^eart of the commercial city. The most pic- turesque view of Tokio is to be had from its Niphon-bassi, the most strongly fortified of the bridges.
On turning towards the north, we have on the horizon the white pyramid of Fousi- yama ; on the right, the city overlooked by terraces, the parks and the square towers of the residence of the Tycoon. In the same
direction, and, as far as its junction with the moats of the citadel, the canal of Niphon- bassi is bordered on both banks by innum- erable warehouses containing silk, cotton, rice and saki.
On our left, beyond the fish-market, lie canals and streets . hich go down to the Oi^'awa. Hundreds of long boats, laden with wood, coal, bamboo canes, mats, cov- ered baskets, bo.xes, barrels and enormous fish are crossing and recrossing through all the channels of navigation, while the streets seem to be exclusively given up to the people; Occasionally, a string of h(.rses or black buffaloes heavily laden may be distin- guished among the crowd of foot |)assen- gcrs, and sometimes we sec heavy wagons carrying four or five layers of skilfully packed bales. These two-wheeled vehicles are drawn by coolies. No other kind of carriage is to be seen.
Strange Noise and Confusion.
The sound of wooden shoes upon the pavements and upon the sonorous bridges, the bells on the harness of the beasts of burden, the gongs of the beggars, the ca- denced cries of the coolies, and the confused noises which come up from the canal, form a strange harmony, unlike the sounds of any other cities. All great cities have a voice of their own. In London and New York it is like the surge of the rising tide ; at Tokio, it is like the murmur of a stream.
As wave follows wave, so do generations succeed each other. That which I have
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356
under my eyes is passing away and disap- pearing, carrying with it all that its ancestors bequeathed to it ; objects of worship, ancient costumes, old arms, laws which dated from centuries; all these will soon be only a tradition to the new Japanese society which is forming itself in the school of the west.
The Ogawa is the principal artery of Tokio. The Junk Harbor at the mouth of the great river occupies the entire space be- tween the small islantl of Iskawa and the large triangular island which makes part of the district of Niphon-bassi. Above the canal of this name the bridge of Yetoi ex- tends from the regions of the northeast of the triangle to the western bank of the dis- trict of Foukagawa.
Motley Crowds.
On both sides the population is essentially plebeian. With the exception of some Yas- kis of the second and third class, the houses of fishermen, mariners, and small shopkeepers form these quarters. The bridge, the squares, a .d the neighboring streets are constantly crowded with people of the lower classes, who have apparently no other object than recreation. The chiklrcn play on the bridge and in the streets without any fear of being molested by the passers-by.
No less than four gigantic bridges span the banks of the Ogawa, with intervals between them of about twenty minutes' walk ; and the squares upon which they debouch, on the Hondjo side as well as on that of Tokio, are almost all equally spacious.
Ascending the river on the north of Tokio we come in the first place to the great bridge O-bassi, so named because it is the largest of the four ; the third and fourth bridges, Riogokou and Adsouma, are very nearly as spacious ; above the Adsouma-bassi the river takes the n ime of Sii:nida-gawa. These
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
limpid waters form the e.Ktreme limit of the quarters north of the citadel. A single bridge, with sixteen arches, called the Bridge of Oskio-kaido, or Northern Road, places the whole of this portion of the city in commu- nication with the fields, the villages, and the rustic tea-houses of the northern suburb, which abounds in fertile fields and charming views, and is the favorite scene of parties of pleasure.
A Magnificent Suburb.
If the inhabitant of Tokio is proud of his good city, he is additionally proud of the magnificent suburb called Inako, for he is susceptible alike to the charms of nature and the pleasures of society, and loves the cool retreats on the banks of the Oskio- Kaido as well as the crowded ijuays of the city. There are three things to which the Japanese refuses his sympathy. First, that perfidious clement the sea, which he aban- dons to the fishermen, the boatmen, and the garrison of the si.\ detached forts ; secondly, the cold solitude <if the bonze-houses ; and thirdly, the formidable enclosure of the cita- del and the Daimio-Kodzi.
He keeps as far away from all these as his business will permit, and such pleasure as he takes in the city itself he seeks for at a respectful distance from the seat of the Government. The Riogokou, or Liogokou- bassi, may be regarded as the centre of the nocturnal merry-makings of the citizens. This bridge, which is crir.pletel)' outside the commercial quarter of the city, places the Hondjo in communication with thcAsaksas: or two districts on the left bank, which con- tain the principal places of amusement in Tokio. The river is not deep enough to float merchant junks at this height, but its surface is covered with hundreds of light boats, which can move about freel\- in all
THE GREAT CITY OF TOKIO.
867
directions thus giving the waterway a very lively appearance.
During the fine nights in summer, rafts, laden with pyrotechnic devices, go up the stream and fling bouquets of stars towards tlie sky. Gondolas, ornamented with bril- liantly-colored lanterns, cross and recross from one bank to the other, while large barques, all decorated with lamps and ban- ners, are slowly propelled, or lie .still upon the water, while their joyous crews are play- ing the guitar or singing. A crowd of bystanders lines the bridges and the quays, delighting in the animated and picturesque spectacle which the river affords.
Tokio, at these times, presents an almost identical picture of a Venetian fete, without omitting the Syrens, who are not wanting on the waters of the Ogawa any more than on the Lagoons. But, on the other hand, wc must be careful not to compare the great family boats of the Riogokou-bassi to the flower-laden barques of China.
The Charm of Music.
Tile former generally belong to respectable tea-houses, and are let out by the hour, the proprietors of the tea-houses furnishing their customers with refreshments and guitar- players. They are only annexes of these tea-houses, and occasionally oi the little bamboo establishments which are built on the quays, and used by professional singers and musicians. The neighborhood of the bridges, far from injuring the effect of the productions of these humble artists, lends them an additional charm.
The intervals of silence are broken by the distant noise of comers and goers on the wooden bridge. No roll of carriages, none of the discordant clamor of our European cities breaks the charm of our impressions.
In Venice only, among European cities.
can this same movement of the people, this same concert of steps, voices, sounds of music be heard, without anything to trouble its peaceful cadence and its charming har- mony. The Ogawa reminds us of the Grand Canal, and the neighborhood of the bridges of Tokio is, like the public squares of Venice, the rendezvous of the citizen population. The multitiides who meet each other there every evening cause no inconvenience what- ever; for though Tokio is a city of great dimensions, the Japanese people .sponta- neously keep on the move.
Japanese Musical Instruments.
Musical entertainments in Tokio arc only appreciable by the natives ; for the Japanese melodies have something in them strange and incomprehensible to the ear of the ICuropean and American. The musical sys- tem upon which they rest is hardly known. Japanese music is very rich in semitones, and even in quarter-tones. M. V, J. Fetis observes that the melodies collected by Siebold seem to destroy the theory of analogy between Japanese ami Chinese music ; .so that there exists in the musical art, as in the native idiom of that countrj-, the double mystery of a .separate system, which has nothing in common with the Western world, or with that of the fir Ivist,
Japanese musical instruments are also re- markable for their originality. Stringed in- struments are made of light and sonorous wood, and the strings are fine cords of silk thinly coated with lacquer. The samsin and the guitar are, above all others, the popular instruments ; they are indispensable articles in the trousseau of a young bride.
The kokiou, a violincello played with a bow, is frequently used, and also the biwa, a violincello played with the plectrum of the samsin.
358 JAPAN AND THH JAPANESE.
The Japanese clarionet is made of bamboo, like a flute, and tliey liave also a sort of flayco- lette uitli ei^ht holes.
The Japanese u.se the trumpet and the marine conch exclusively in their relij^ious festivals.
They have two kinds of percussion instru- ments. One is made of copper or composite metal, and includes a great variety of gongs of various shapes, among them shields, bells, fish and tortoise, and the sound they produce varies between the grave and sonorous and the squeaky and shrill. Besides these they have an instrument formed of two rings fast- ened on a handle, and struck by a light metal rod.
Rattles and Drums.
The other instruments of percussion are wooden rattles, stone drums like bowls, which .stand on low frames; a musical drum made of leather; finally, the tom-tom, or portable tambourine, and the kettle drum.
The tambourines, which invariably accom- pany the character dances, are sometimes played two at a time, one being held under the arm and the other in the left hand.
The Sibaia, or national theatre of the Japanese, occasionally employs the whole of the musical resources of the city, in pieces which bear a distant resemblance to our great operas.
According to a Japanese sa>'ing, in order to be happ)' one must visit Tokio. T'.;e southern portion of the city, in which the foreign legations are established, includes eight districts, all essentially plebian. They contain a considerable agricultural popula- tion, devoted to tho culture of kitchen-gar- dens, rice-grounds, and all the arable lands not yet invaded by dwellings. These dis- tricts are compo.sed of a multitude of mean hniises tenanted by fishermen, laborers, sniall
arti.sans, rct.ii! shop-keepers, inferior officers, and lou-cla-is uating-house keepers. ^V few lordly mansions break the uniformity of these wooden builtlings by their long whitewashed walls. Bonze-houses and temples are scat- tered about everywhere, except in the two quarters built on the bay: Takanawa alone contains thirty.
The low streets and quays of Takanawa arc filled from morning to night with a great concourse of people. The staple population of this quarter seems to live on taxes levied on all comers. Here tobacco is chopped and sold; there rice is packed and made into cakes; along the whole line dried fi.sh, watermelons, aiul an infinite variety of fruits and other cheap eatables are displayed upon tables in the open air, or in innumerable res- taurants.
Everywhere there are coolies, porters, and boatmen offering their services. In the small side streets are stalls for the pack-horses and stabling for the buffaloes, who draw in the products of the surrounding country upmi the rustic carts which are the only wheeled vehicles in Tokio.
Dancers and Jugglers.
At the doors of the tea-houses of Tak- anawa, the singers, dancers and wandering jugglers, who come to try iheir luck in the cajMtal, make their first apjicarance. Among the former there e.xi.sts a pri\ ged class subject to police discipline, lucy may be recognized by their large flat hats pulled down on their foreheads ; they always go about two by two, or four by four — twc dancers accompanying the two musicians who play the .samsin and sing romantic songs.
The favorite tumblers of the Japanese streets are little boys, who, before they begin their tricks, hide their heads under a hood.
JAPANESE CUSTOM OF FREEING THE CAPTIVES.
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360 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE
surmounted by a tuft of cock's feathers, and wear a little scarlet mask which represents a dojf's muzzle. To the monotonous sound of their master's tambourine these poor children play their antics, representing the spectacle of a grotesque and really fantastic struggle between two animals with the heads of monsters and lumian limbs.
The con.stant sound of gongs, and of the bells of the mendicant monks mingle with the deafening noises of the streets almost as frequently as at Kioto. At Tokio I per- ceived for the first time that the monks were not shaven, and I inquired to what order thej' belonged. Our interpreter told me that they were laymen merely, people of Tokio who were making a trade or mer- chandise of devotion.
Grotesque Apparel.
Although they were all dressed in white, the sign of mourning and repentance, those who carried a long .stick with a bell, some books in a basket, and a large white hat dec- orated at one side with a drawing of Fousi- yama, had just returned from accomplishing a pil;^rimage to the iioly mountain at the cxp'jnse of public charity ; and the others, with a gong at the waist, a great black hat stii])ed with yellow, and a heavy sack upon their backs, were probr.bly ruined shop- keepers, who had nothing better to do than to hawk about idols on commission for a bonze-hou.se.
By following the great street which, be- ginning at the Tokaido, the great highway of Japan, cuts obliquely the chain of hills on which the legations are built, and crossing the southern part of Takanawa in a straight line from north to south, we pass succes- sively through three distinct zones of the social life of Tokio,
First, the southern zone, which I have ju.st
described, with its multitudes living in the open air and conducting all their business in the public street. Between the hills we find a sedentary population, devoted to various kinds of manual labor. Even their dwellings and their workshops may be distinguished from afar by their significant signs : here a board cut in the form of sandals or of a kirimon ; next an enormous umbrella of wax- paper hanging above the shop ; further on a quantity of .straw hats of all dimensions sus- pended from the top of the roof and reach- ing the shop-door.
Repairing Coats of Mail.
We look for a moment at the armorers and the burnishers engaged in repairing coats of mail, war fans, and sabres for the Samourais ; an old artisan perfectly naked squats upon a mat, blowing the bellows of the forge with the great toe of the left foot, and hammering with his right hand an iron bar which he holds in his left. His son, also squatting in a corner, is putting the bars into the fire with a pair of pincers, and passing them to his father when reddened. The chief of our escort bade us continue our march.
By degrees the road began to be deserted. We were entering into the vast solitude of an agglomeration of seignorial residences. On our right extended the magnificent shade of the park belonging to Prince Satsouma ; on our left the boundary-wall of the palace of the Prince of Arima. When we had turned the northeast corner we found ourselves before the principal front of the building ; it stretches out parallel to a plantation of trees forming the bank of a limpid river which divides the Takanawa quarter from that of Atakosta.
One of our party having made prepara- tions to photograph this beautiful scene, two officers belonging to the Prince's household
THE GREAT CITY OV TOKIO.
361
•came to him and begged liim to discontinue his operations. Our friend requested them to go and take tlie orders of their master upon the subject ; the\- went, but returned in a very few minutes, s.i\inLj tiiat the Prince absolutely forbade thit aii)' view should be taken of his palace, lie ito obeyed respect- fully, and ordered the koslceis to take away the machine ; and the officers retired per- fectly satisfied, without the slightest suspicion that during their temporary absence the operator had taken two negatives.
The yakounines of our escort, who had teen witnesses of this scene, unanimously applauded the success of our friend's trick, but when he told them that it was his inten- tion to take a photograph of the cemetery of the Tycoons, they in their turn opposed him, with a persistency that nothing could shake. We were e\en obliged to renounce the hope of entering the cemetery.
Cypress Groves.
We could perceive very distinctly the lofty red pagoda and the sombre groves of cypress, but we could only obtain leave to pass along the eastern side of the grove of Siba — the name given to the holy place, and which occurs again in the complete designa- tion of our own district Siba-Takanawa.
We pass the river on an arclicd bridge, and, leaving on our left a few houses of the Akabane suburb which a recent fire had spared, we crossed a square, bounded on one side by a matohan or archery garden, and on the other by walls, behind which rise the plantations and roofs of Soiosti — a group of temples belonging to the great bonze-house, which has the honor of receiving the Ty- coons into their last resting-places, there to abide under the combined protection of the two religions of the Empire.
Buddhism, it is true, is supreme in this
place, where it possesses seventy sacred buildings, but among this number the ancient gods, Hatchinian, Benten, and Inari, has each his own chapel ; aiul a temple dedicated to the worship of the Kamis adorns the eastern avenue of Siba on the side of Tokaido and the bay. In the same direction is the landing-place of the Tycoon, on the island of Amagoten at the mouth of the river Tamoriike, which supplies the moats of the citadel.
The Shaded River.
Amagoten forms a regular parallelogram, and is united by two bridges, which are closed to the public. I rowed almost all round it in our consular sampan. The walls, the staircases, and the pavil'-^ns of the land- ing-place, and the groves of trees which surround it, are admirable in their grandeur, their simplicity, and their elegance. The river is bordered on both sides with great trees, which droop over its deep, pure waters.
We left the enclosure of Siba, after we had reached its nortlieast limit. On that side is the palace of the High Priest, and beneath it we were shown the avenue and the door exclusively reserved for the use of the Tycoon ; he pa.sses through it but once a year, when he goes to make his obligatory devotions at the tombs of his ancestors. Every courtier, following his example, pays a ceremonious visit on one da)' of the year to his family burial-ground.
We pursued our route towards the north. The district of Atakosta, which extends on our right as far as Amagoten, is occupied by the residences of the Daimios, or territorial governors, and the great functionaries of the Empire. On our left, fourteen little contigu- ous temples present themselves. A wide stream separates them from the public wa}- ; each lias its .special bridge, door, and wall.
362
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
surrounded by the chapels and habitations of tlio bonzes. At the h;ick of the court is the Chapel of the Ablutions, the sacred grove, and the roof of the sanctuary.
The si.\th bonze-house is the exception. On crossing the threshold we saw a great flagged court, with a majestic tori or gateway of granite, and when we passed in at the sacred door we found ourselves in the pres-
JAPANESE LADY.
We ascended the staircase, which consists of one luindred steps very regularly laid, to the top of the hill. On the right is another road, which crosses the wooded slopes, and is composed of a series of staircases, with flat terraces provided with resting-places.
A dilapidated oratory with two insigni- ficant idols — one standing upon a lotus, the other seated upon a tortoise — with long covered galleries surrounding the tea- houses, occupies the summit of Ata- gosa-yama. The young waitresses of the house hasten to serve us with refreshments, and we take a few minutes' rest before we approach the pavilions at the two extremities of the terrace.
At length the moment has come when we shall get a complete view of the great city. We begin at the southern pavilion, and we are at first dazzled by the extent and brilliancy of the picture. The sun is going down to the horizon in a cloudless sky; the transparency of the atmo.sphere per- mits us to distinguish the forts on the luminous surface of the bay, but over the whole space which extends from the offing to the foot of the hill there is nothing to arrest one's gaze. It is an ocean of long streets, white walls and grey roofs. The monotony of this picture is unbroken except by a few groups of trees with dark foliage, or a spire rising above the undulating
ence < if two candelabra placed at the foot of ; lines of the innumerable hou.?es.
an esplanade reached by a flight of steps. Then comes a second court, bordered with fine trees, whose interlacing branches form aracades like that of a Gothic cathedral. Through their foliage we distinguished a wide stone staircase, the summit lost amid verdure.
In a neighboring quarter we observe a large hole cut through the streets, as if a bomb-shell had passed ; it is the scene of a recent fire. At a little distance a sombre group of hills, consecrated to the sepulture of the Tycoons, rises like a solitary island above a tumultuous sea.
THH GRKAT CITY OF TOKIO.
363
Tile panorama seen from the nortlierii pa- vilion is, if possible, more uniform. It in- cludes the quarters inhabited by the nobility, and its limit on the horizon is the ramparts of its citadel.
The Daimio-yaski, or scij^norial residences to which we iiipropcrly ^'ave the name of palace, do not differ except by their dimen- sions. The most opulent and the simplest present the same type of architecture, the same character of simplicity. They are composed of a fust ^.nclosure of buildings reserved for the Prince's servants and men- at-arms. These buildings have only one story above the ground lloor, and form a long square, always surrounded by a ditch , a single roof covers tiicm, a single wall pro- tects them, and most frequently they have no other issue on the public way than tliis one door. The windows are numerous, low, and wide, regularly placed on two parallel lines, and furnished with wooden shutters.
Residence of the Prince.
In the interior a more or less considerable number of houses divided into regular com- partments, like the barracks of the yakou- nines at Benten, are placed diagonally all round, or on two sides at least, of the centre building. These are the quarters of the Prince's troops. A wide space separates them from a secoml railed enclosure, which contains the Residence properly so called.
The dependencies of the palace face the military quarter. The principal building is surrounded by a verandah opening upon an interior court, and upon the garden with its tanks and its delicious shades. Such is the inviolable and silent asylum in which the proud Daimio shuts himself up in the bosom of his family, during the six months of each year which the custom of the Empire obliges him to pass in the capital.
We could form an idea of the dwellings of the Japanese nobility only from what might be discerned in a bird's-eye view of this cpiarter. No ICurojje.m has ever crossed the threshold of a Japanese Yaski. The Tycoon's ministers, following the e.\ample of the nobility, have never permitted the foreign ambassadors to visit their dwellings ; their personal rehitions are restricted to ceremonial audiences, which take place in certain build- ings which belong to the administratit)n, and correspond to the ministerial residences in our country. Among this number are the tw o Marine Schools on the shore of the bay, and the Gokandjo-bounit), the seat of the Finance Department, at the northwest ex- tremity of Atakosta.
Palaces of the Nobles.
Edifices of this kind have in general the same external appearance as the palaces of the Daimios.
The panorama seen from Atagosa-yama shows us only a fourth part of the great capital. On the north our view was bounded by the walls of the residences of the Tycoon. We resolved to devote another day to the quarter which, with the citadel, forms the central portion of Tokio.
The road we were about to follow resem- bled a mysterious labyrinth of stone, formed of the ramparts, the towers, and the palaces, behind which the power of the Tycoon has entrenched itself for two centuries and a half
It is an imposing spectacle, but it creates a painful impression. The political order of things instituted in Japan by the usurper lyeyas vaguely recalls the regime of the Venetian Republic under the rule of the Council of Ten. It has, if not all its gran- deur, at lea.st all its terrors — the sombre majesty of the chief of the State, the impene- trable mystery of his government, the latent
304
JAPAN AND THE JAPANKSK,
and continuous action of a system of espion- i archy, every functionary is assisted by a
aye officially organized tlinuigh all the branches of the administration, and brinj^inj,^ in its suite proscriptions, assassinations, and secret executions. We must not push the comparison further.
We vainly seek at Tokio, in the vast extent of the citadel, anj- monument which
controller ; the {^cnius of the employes is exercised in doiny nothintj and saying noth- ing which can furnish matter for compromis- ing reports.
As to their private life, it is hidden, like that of tiie Japanese nobles in general, behind the walls of their domestic fortresses. While
THE HERO YASHITZONE.
deserves mention beside the marvellous edifices of the Piazza of St. Mark ; artistic taste is completely wanting in the Court of the Tycoon. It has been relinquished to the people, with poetry, religion, social life, all those superfluous things which do but clog the wlieels of the governmental machine. From end to end of the administrative hier-
thc streets of the town, composed of houses standing wide open on the public way, are constantly enlivened b\' a crowd of comers and goers of all ages and of both sexes ; in the aristocratic quarters neither women nor children are to be seen, except indeed by stealth behind the window bars in the ser- vants' quarters. •
THE GREAT CITY OF TOKIO.
365
There arc two societies in Tokio — one, i Tlu' SakouraMa quarter, which forms the armed and privileged, lives in .i state of niaj^- j first great line of 'Ijfence uf the citadel on the
nificent imprisonment, in the vast citailel ; the other, disarmetl, and subject to the dominion of the t'lrst, seems to enjoy the advantages of liberty ; but, in reality, an iron yoke weighs upon the midtlle classes of the people of Tokio. Iniciuitf)us laws punish a whole family, a whole quarter, for the crime of one of its members. The properties, and even the lives, of the citizens, are secured by no legal guarantee. The extortions and the violence of the two-sworded men remain too frequently unpunished. The citizen finds compensation in the charms of the beautiful city.
Pastime of Shooting Peasants.
If the sway of the Tycoons is severe, he remembers that the Mikados were not always amiable, and that one of them delighted in exhibiting his skill as an archer by shooting down peasants who were forced to climb trees within easy reach of his arrows. The peoples of countries accustomed to despotism are puzzled to decide where their patience ought to stop.
A Japanese Emperor, born under the con- stellation of the Dog, commanded that dogs were to be respected as sacred animals, that they should never be killed, and that at their death they should recei\e the honors of sepulture. One of his subjects whose dog had died thought it right to inter the animal upon one of the funeral hills. As he was going along, fatigued with the weight of the four-footed corpse, he ventured to remark to a friend who was accompanying him, that the Emperor's decree appeared to him ridiculous. " Take care how you murmur," replied his comraile, " and recollect that our Emperor might just as well have been born under the sign of the Horse."
southern side, is surrounded by water at all parts, e.xcept the west, where it conununi- cates with the Hantsio (juarter by the arsenal belonging to the Tycoon. Ten britlges are thrown over the great ilitches. The southern bridges have fortified gates, behind which the road makes a bend, which exposes it to the fire from the ramparts, and from the gun* mounted in the interior.
Soldiers From the Mountains.
A strong detachment of the Tycoon's troops occupies the guard-house adjoining the gate through which we pass. The com- mon soldiers are men from the mountains of Akoni, who are discharged after two or three years' .service. Their uniform is made of blue cotton, and consists of tight trousers,. and a loose shirt, but crossetl by white bands on the slioulders. Tliey wear cotton socks, and leather soles fastened by sandals ; also a belt, from which hangs a large sabre with a lacquer scabbartl. A pointed hat of lac- quered cardboard completes their costume,, but they only wear it when mounting guard, or on paiade.
The guns of the Japanese army are all percussion, with varied calii^re and construc- tion. I saw f )ur different kinds in the racks of the barracks at Ik-nten, into which a yakounine took me. He first showed me a Dutch model, then an arm of inferior quality, made at Tokio ; then an American gun, and finally the Minie, uhose use was being taught by a young officer to a picket of soldiers in the courtyard. I remarked that this officer used the Dutch language. I asked him to come home with me, that I might show him my fowling-piece and a .Swiss car- bine. Half a dozen of his comrades also accepted my invitation.
3M
JAI'AN AND Till-: jAPANl-SK.
I have more than once been present at as- saults of arms by the Yakounines. The champions salute each other before attack- ing. The one who is on guard frequently kneels on the ground, to parry his adver- sary's blows more successfully. Each pass is accompanied by theatrical poses and ex- pressive gestures ; each blow provokes pas- sionate exclamations on the part of both. Then the judges intervene and dehvcr their verdict. In the intervals the combatants
iiiLT before the half-open court. My yakou- nines imuKdiately shut the door, assuring me l'i;it the customs of the country did not perniil ln-liolders.
The Japanese nobles display much luxury, and take great pride in their arms, especially in their swords, which are of unrivalled temper, and are generally adorned on the handle antl scabbard with ornaments in carved and w rought metal of extraordinary richness, liut the principal value of these
drink tea, after which they recommence with great spirit.
There is even a School of Fence for the use of the Japanese ladies. Their arm is a lance, with a bent blade, which may be com- pared to a Polish reaping-hook. They carry it with the point towards the ground, and manoeuvre regularly in a series of attitudes, poses and harmonious movements, which would look remarkably well in a ballet. I was not allowed to enjoy this pretty spectacle long. I only caught a glimpse of it in pass-
A JAPANESE COUCH.
arms consists in their antiquity and their celebrity. I^vcry sabre in the old families of
I lie Dai'mios has its tradition and its history, w hose iclat is measured by the blood which it lias shed.
A new sword must not remain intact in the hands of the man who has bought it j while waiting for an opportunity of dyeing it in the human blood, the Samourai who has become its happy possessor tries it on live animals, or, what is still better, upon the corpses of executed '"""minals. The exe-
THK GRKAT CITY OF TOKIO.
cutioner gives them up to liim upon being authorized so to do by the proper function- ary, and he fastens them to a cross in his courtyard, where he practises in cutting' and hacking until I>e has acquired sufficient strength and address to cut two corpses, tied together, through the middle.
When the son of a Samourai is too little to carry arms at his belt, lie is seen walk- ing, with an attendant, or even an elder sister, following him respectfully, and hold- ing in her right hand, by the middle of the scabbard, a sword suitable to the height of the diminutive personage. In another year or two fencing will become the principal oc- cupation of his life.
A Bloody Conflict.
The Tycoon selected a number of his young Yakounines, and sent them to Naga- saki, to learn the use of fire-arms, under the tuition of the Dutch officers. They were not very well received when they returned to the capital, and were quartered in the bar- racks for the purpose of instructing the new Japanese infantr)-. Their former comrades shouted "Treason! " and threw themselves on them with arms in their hands. There were victims on both sides.
Nevertheless, the decline of the sword is inevitable. Notwithstanding the traditional prestige with which the privileged caste still endeavor to surround it, notwith.standing the contempt in which it affects to hold the military innovations of the Government, that democratic arm the musket has been introduced into Japan, and with it an incal- culable social revolution has become a fact which the representatives of the feudal regime resent bitterly but vainly.
The conduct of their chiefs has precipi- tated the catastrophe. Conspiracies in the palace and political assassinations multiply
themselves at Yeddo with frightful rapidit)-. It is averred that several ministers of stitc have successively died violent deaths since the opening up of Japan.
On the 24th of March, i860, at eleven o'clock in the morning, the Regent, carried in his norimon or royal chair, and coming out of the citadel by the Sakourada bridge, with an escort of four or five hundred men, was assailed by a bantl of seventeen lonincs in the spacious public road, parallel with the ditch in the direction of his own palace. On both sides the fighting was severe.
Story of a Regent's Head.
Twenty soldiers of the escort fell at their post ; five conspirators perished with arms in their hands, two performed the " happy despatch," (cutting open their stomachs), four were made prisoners; the others escaped — among the chief of the expedition, who carried away the Regent's head under his cloak. Public rumor adds that tlu' head was exposed in the chief [jlace of the pro- vince, in which the Prince of Mito, the in- .stigatur of the conspiracy, resided, and then at Kioto, and finally that the Regent's people found it one day in the garden of the palace, into which it had been thrown over the wall in the night.
The portions of Tokio inhabited by the aristocracy aie almost entirely devoid of buildings consecrated to public worship. There is not one in the whole of the Daimio's quarter. Hantsio and Sourouga have each three temples, but they are of little import- ance. There are half a dozen in Sakourada, amongst which is a celebrated bonze-house under the invocation of Sanno, " the King of the Mountain." Its title is one of the sur- names of Zinmou ; nevertheless, the bonze- house belongs to the Buddhist religion, and contains an altar consecrated to Quannon.
868
JAPAN AND THK JAl'ANKSK.
The biiiUlings and the groves of tlic sacred place occupy a group of liills, which rise above tl>e southern enclosure of Sourouga, with its vast basins of limpid water sur- rounded by trees antl flowers, and its myriads of birds.
The political system of the Tycoons did not disdain clerical support for tiieir budding dj'iiasty. Hut as lyeyas anil his successors
residence at Tokio stand entirely aloof from what is being done around them, in matter.* of religion as well as in everything else. They would prefer to i)ay a cha])lain in the hou.se rather than contribute to the support of any public worship whatever. The only thing they will do for the ancient national religion is to authorize the K.imi priests to send their collectors once a year to the aristocn'tic
had nuthing to hope from the good will of quarters.
the Mikados, they conciliated the favor of the most influential sects of Huddh sm by endowing bonze-houses and temples which surpass the most sumptuous sacred edifices of Kioto. The munificence of the Tycoons with regard to Buddhism has, however, added nothing to the reverence professed at Tokio for the ministers of that religion. It appears to me that, in all the diverse classes of society in the capital, the position of the
The presents made on this occasion are voluntary. The persons charged with tliis office are the principal koskcis of the Kami ten.ples, each of whom is followeil by hi.s own special koskei. The leader is dressed after the fashion of the ancient priests of the Court of the Mikado, with a lacquered cap, a great .sword, and padded trousers, and lie holds in his right hand a classic fan of cedar- wood. His attendant, who is disguised as a
bon/cs is analogous to that of the Popes of koskei from Kioto, carries a small tambou- the Greek Church when the latter come into rine, and a bag, destined to receive the gifts, contact with the nobles, the traders, or the Dances, comic songs, and burlesque pan-
Muujiks. The priests of the Kami worship tomines form the oratorical artifices of the are in a still less enviable condition, because ; collectors. Thus the sacred collection is their existence is hardly noticed. It is true j taken from palace to palace in the midst of that the representatives of the Mikado at the the laughter and applause of the noble feudal Court of the Tycoon, and some provincial " families, whose political existence rests en- noblemen, honor them by their patronage, tire'y upon the very religion which they help but the generality of the feudal nobility in ; to bring into contempt.
CHAPXER XXII. SHOPS AND INDUSTRIES OF TOKIO.
THE long eastern portion of Tokio, which covers the left bank of the river Ojjawa, comprises three quar- ters. That of Suniida^awa, on tlie north, belongs to the suburbs, and presents an entirely rustic character. It is covered with rice-fields, kitchen gardens, vast horti- cultural establishments, and tea-houses, .spread along the river or scattered in the rear of great orchards of pear, plum, peach, and cherry trees. The other two quarters, between the former and the bay, contain a dense popula- tion, composed, for the most part of fishers, seamen, mechanics, and tradesmen.
Thus the Hondjo proper corresponds to the industrial quarters of our large cities. We find there manufacturers of tiles and coarse pottery, of cooking utensils of iron, paper-mills, establishments for cleaning and preparing cotton, domestic spinneries of cotton and silk, dyeing establishments and others for weaving mats, baskets, or cloth stuffs.
Japanese industry does not yet make much use of machinery. Nevertheless, in the iron- foundries one frequently sees bellows driven by water, which is carried to the wheel in bamboo pipes. Both charcoal and stone-coal are used for the furnaces. Women have their share in all the industrial professions, which are usually carried on at home.
There are no large manufactories in Japan : the members of the laboring class stay at home and carry on their occupations, which they interrupt in order to eat when they are hungry, and to rest whenever they please. 24
In a company of six workmen of both scxe-s, there are almost always to be seen two smoking pipes and enlivening the toil of their comrades by merry speeches.
Thus is dcvelopetJ, and transmitted from generation to generation that social instinct, that fund of good humor and spirit of repartee which characterize the lower classes of the capital.
The quarters of the Hondjo are con.structed on a plan of th(; nidst perfect regularity. They are bounded on the south by the bay, on the west by the (^gawa River, on the east by a smaller river, and on the north by a canal which separates them from the suburb of Sumidagawa. Two canals traverse them from north to south, and three from east to west. The squares, thus formed, inclose a world totally different from that upon the opposite bank of the river.
Places of Public Resort.
The Hondjo has no commercial life ; it has neither the imposing masses of residences of the Castle, nor the animation of the places reserved for the pleasure of the populace in the northern quarters ; nevertheless, we find there, existing under special conditions, com- merce and industry, temples, palaces, and places of public resort. Some of the most important merchants of Japan reside in the Hondjo, but they have their places of busi ness in the vicinity of the great bridges.
The comparative tranquillity of this region beyond the river and the facility with which concessions of large tracts of ground are
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370 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE
there obtained, seems to have favored the establishment of numerous monasteries, some of which possess laryc temples. There are forty of these sacred edifies, two of which are devoted to the an:icn'. nitimal worship, ^notiicr, more than two hundred feet in length, to the Buddhist f lith, and another •dedicated to the Five Hundred Genii.
One of the monasteries is celebrated for €nga<,MnL,\ twice a }'ear, all the chief wrestlers of Tokio, who give a series of public perform- ances— a pious speculation, which never fails to attract to the great lawn in front of the monastery an enormous crowd, made up of ail classes of society. Thus, each temple or -monastery has its own form of advertisement, and is distinguished by some singularity — such as the avenue of statues of pigs, each nobly installed on a pedestal of granite, which we find on approaching one of the temples. Public opinion appears to accept without difficulty whatever device may be pleasing to the bonzes, without regard to its character.
Picturesque Scene.
A certain number of families of the old nobility have made of the Hondjo a sort of retreat, where tlioy live in a profound retire- ment, far from the noises of the city antl protected from contact with the world of the court, and the officers of the government. There, the walls of the Castle no longer offend the eyes of the fierce Daimio. I-Vom the summits of the bridges arched over the canals, the grand alleys of trees seen over the innumerable roofs of the merchant cit)-, resemble the peaceful shades of some distant park.
There are many workshoi)s of sculpture in the Hondjo. I have never seen the art-
The pedestals of idols are made of granite, the candelabra of the sacred places, tombs, statuettes, liuddhist saints and holy foxes of a verj- sandstone.
The wood-carvers make domestic altars of rich network, elegant caskets, elephants' heads and monstrous chimeras for the roofs of temples, woodwork and mosaics repre- senting cranes, geese, bats, mythologic animals, the moon half veiled by a cloud, branches of cedars, pines, bamboos and palms. The idols, frequently of gigantic size, which are made in the workshops of Tokio, are generally surrounded by an aureole gilded and painted in lively colors : the guardians of heaven, for example, in vermilion, and others in indigo.
Brilliant Flowers.
Several interesting branches of industry are connected with that of the ebony- carvers. The frame-work of movable presses or screens is required to be ornamented with large drawings in India ink, executed by a few .strokes of the pencil, or groups of trees and flowers of brilliant colors, or paintings of birds .selected for the brilliance of their plumage. All this is done by hand in the workshops.
The embroidres.ses furnish for the fire- screens and curtains e-Kcjuisite works, where the silk, under the patient labor of the needle, reproduces, according to the choice of subjects, the lustrous texture of leaves, the \el\et down of birds, the tufted fur of animals, or the shining scales of fishes. Then the braiders of silk floss add to the luxury of the woodwork a decoration of garlands and knots of various colors, surmounted by groups of flowers and birds.
The obi, a girdle which is worn b\' all
ists working in marble, although there are adult Japanese women, married or single, c]uarriesof it in the mountains of the interior. ' with the e.\ce[)tion of the ladies of princely
SHOPS AND INDUSTRIES OF TOKIO.
371
families, is the article of feminine costume which presents the most variety, according to the taste or fancy of individuals. Some- times it is very simple, sometimes remark- able for the richness of the stuff or the splen- dor of the embroideries. It is generally broad enough to serve at the same time as girdle and corset.
It is wound around the body like a band- age, and fastened at the back by interlacing the ends so as to produce a large, flat fur-
paper. On the other hand, I have always found both the wholesale and retail shops accessible even to the rear chamber, where one should never icfuse to penetrate; for the Japanese merchant takes no trouble to display his stock. He prefei ; to keep his best goods in reserve, as if to give his pur- chasers the satisfaction of discovering them. In order to form a tolerable idea of the richness, the variety and the artistic merit of Japanese industry, we must not only traverse
JAP.\NE.SE SHOP.
below, falling on the hips, or floating with a graceful negligence. A widow, who has determined not to marry again, knots the
the commercial streets frequented by the natives, but also imitate the latter in return- ing day by day to the same merchant, until
obi in front, awd the same arrangement is wc have explored every corner of his shop,
adopted for fema'^ corpses. I This is the more necessary, since there is no
It is not an easy thing to penetrate into general bazaar, each magazine or shop hav-
the Japanese workshops, especially under ing its specialty.
the surveillance of a s(}uad of Yakounines. In spite of the promises of the latter, I was not able to sec either the process of coloring or the manufacture of rich silk .stuffs or of
Certain forms of industry are as yet but little developed, among others saddlery, which will be discouraged as long as a relig- ious prejudice exists against tanners and
372
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
curriers. Nevertheless, I noticed in Tokio a great variety of articles of leather, such as trunks and travelling satchels, portfolios, money bags, tobacco-pouches and hunting- gloves, all of native manufacture.
Whatever may be the variety of industrial products displayed in the shops of the com- mercial city there is one feature which char- acterizes all of ihem, one common stamp which denotes their phice among the works of the far East, and I venture to call it, with- out fear of contradiction, good taste.
The artisan of Tokio is a veritable artist. If we except the conventional style to which he still feels himself compelled to submit, in his representations of the human figure, if we overlook the insufficiency of his knowl- edge of the rules of perspective, we shall have only praise I'^ft for him in all other re- spects
Subjects for Art.
His \Vorks are distinguished from those of Miako by the simplicity of his forms, the severity of the lines, the sobriety of the de- corations and the exquisite feeling for nature which he exhibits in all subjects of ornamen- tation drawn from the vegetable or animal kingdom. These are his fiivorite subjects ; flowers and birds have the power of inspir- ing him with compositions which are charm- ing in their truth, grace and harmony. In regard to perfection of execution, the works produced in both capitals are equally ad- mirable.
Let us pause before a magazine of objects of art and industry, among the curious of both sexes and of all ages, who never cease to gather together under the covered gallery where the stores are displayed. They con- template with a naive admiration the great aquaria of blue or white porcelai:i, where red fish float in the limpid water over beds
of shells. These are objects of endless amusement and curiosity.
In the centre, three or four selected plants combine in a picturesque group the beauty of their colors and the graceful outlines of their leaves and flowers. Nothing of these combination is ever lefl to chance : every day the gardener's hand directs the work oi nature, keeps it within limits and governs the growth.
What is still more remarkable, the Japa- nese fancy never runs into those aberrations which in China and elsewhere, outrage Nature by cutting trees into geometrical figures, or training shrubs into the shapes of animals. The taste of the Japanese in their popular arts, remaining independent of the conventional influences of their two courts, has all the freshness of a naturally expand- ing civilization. Therefore, it is still char- acterized by a certain puerility : witness the truly childish passion of all classes of society for enormous flowers and dwarf trees. '
A Miniature Landscape.
I have seen aquaria, not much larger than ordinary, where they succeeded in uniting the features of a complete landscape — a lake, islands, rocks, a cabin on the shore, and hills with real woods on their summits, of living bamboos and cedars in miniature. They even sometimes add lilipu- tian figures, coming and going, by means of a spring which is wound up.
This sort of childishness is found in a multitude of the f' lils of Japanese life. Sometimes a porcelain junk is set before a dinner party : it is taken to pieces and proves to be a unique and complete tea-set. Often, part of the repast is served in cups so minute, and porcelain so fine, light, and trans- parent, that one hardly dares to touch it.
373
374
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
There are cups, called egg-shells, so delicate that they must be protected by a fine en- velope of bamboo netting;
The saloons are adorned with bird and butterfly cages, crowned with vase*? of flow- ers, whence depend climbing plants which cause the birds to appear as if nestling in verdure. Under the paper lanterns sus- pended from the ceilings of the verandas, there are often bells of colored glass, the long, slender clapper cf metal supported b)' a silk thread, or slip of colored or gilded paper. At the least movement of the breeze these bands of paper move, the metallic tongues swing and touch the glass bells, and their vibrations make a vague melody, like the sound of an .^olian harp.
Necklaces of Stone.
I saw at Tokio some attempts at painting on glat;3, and some works in enamel, which exhibited good intentions rather than skill. I might mention, however, among the native curiosities which are truly original, those little balls of stone, pierced, cut in facets and covered with enameled arabesques, which strangers buy for necklaces. The art of gilding is still but partially developed.
The narratives of the old Dutch embas- sies seem to have greatly exaggerated the richness of decoration of the 'palaces and furniture of the Mikado and the Tycoon. The luxury of the Japanese has an artistic rather than a sumptuous character. The pride of the old princes of the empire is in the antiquity of their arms or furniture. Nothing has more value in their eyes than an assorted service of old porcelain, natur- ally cracked, or vases of ancient bronze, heavy, black and polished as marble.
Tokio is the city where metals are worked to the greatest extent. The bronze estab- lishments of the city are among the most in-
teresting curiosities of native art. Some pre- sent the appearance of great bazaars, dis- playing all articles of saddlery and harness, as well as complete suits of armor, and cooking utensils of iron, copper, or tin, beside the bronze objects.
Altars for Periumes.
The latter contain many things belonging to Buddhist worship, such as richly-chased bells, drums, gongs, vases for the altar, crowns of lotus flowers, or vessels to hold bouqucLv of natural flowers. There are also altars for perfumes, resting on tripods, statues and statuettes of saints, and such sacred animals as the crane, stork, tortoise, and the fantastic Corean dog.
Next to the master-pieces of bronze and of porcelain, the triumph of Japanese indus- try is in the fabrication of furniture and utensils of lacquered wood. Such is the talent with which the native artisans utilize the incomparable Japan varnish, the produce of the shrub wh^ bears that name; such is their skill in combining its effects with the results of theix decorative art, that articles of furniture constructed of a material which is almost valueless, finally rival in beauty, and almost in durability, those which we make of marble and precious metals.
The ebony workers of Tokio imitate works in old lacquer so closely that only an expe- rienced eye can detect the difference. In the interior decoration of cabinets, boxes oi cas- kets of modern taste, they generally used lacquer of a brown color, sprinkled with flakes of gold. On the outside the lacquer is uniform, either red, brown or black, with ornamental drawing in two or three tints.
The principal large objects made ol lac- quered wood are the norimons (palanquins) and travelling trunks of nobles, wardrobes, toilet tables and the pedestals of mirrors for
SHOPS AND INDUSTRIES OF TOKIO.
375
ladies; receptacles for the books and scrolls of a library; and finally, different articles employed in public or private worship, such as pulpits, offering-tables, censer-stands, tri- pods for gongs and pedestals for various purposes.
Among the toilet articles there are several boxes, which vary in form and ornament according to their use, as for brushes, tooth- powder, rouge, rice-powder and other cos- metics; for combs, hair-pins, and, alas! for false braids of hair.
The other accessories of the feminine boudoir arc, a large oval watering-pot, covered with black lacquer, sown with golden flowers; then a long box for pipes and tobacco, and finally a casket for letters, prudently bound by two silk cords, knotted in a way of which the owner alone knows the secret. There are other boxes of an oblong form, which are usually taken in Europe for gloves; but the Japanese only employ them in order to send letters of con- gratulation, or thanks, in a more polite way.
The Comnion Drink.
The liquor saki, the serving of which is the most ceremonious part of a Japanese banquet, is solemnly brought to the guests in large lacquered pots, or long metal cans, on a bamboo tray. It is then heated in ves- sels of porcelain. The cups, large or small, are of fine red lacquer, ornamented with fancy designs. There are collections of these charming cups, each one of which represents a celebrated landscape of Japan, or one of the principal cities on the Tokaido connect- ing the two capitals. Some hosts, of a more sumptuous taste, invite the guests to drink from nautilus shells, mounted in silver fila- gree.
At the upper end of the street of Niphon- bassi we come upon a barber's shop, in wliich
two or three citizens, in the simplest apparel, are making their morning toilet. Seated upon a stool, they gravely hold in the left: hand a lacquered tray, destined to receive the soapsuds. The barbers, free from all clothing which could trammel the freedorr* of their movements, lean sometimes to the. right and sometimes to the left of their cus- tomers' heads, over which they pass both the hand and the razor, like antique sculp- tors modelling cariatides. I need hardly add that the illusion ceases when, holding be- tween their teeth a long silken cord, they roll it round and tie it at each end, leaving- the pudding-like ball which forms the Jap- anese headdress.
Woovien Soles and Sandals.
At a little distance we find a shoemaker's shop. It is adorned with innumerable wooden soles and numberless wooden san- dals, which hang from the roof by long ropes of the same material. The shoe- maker, squatting on his shelf, reminds me of the native idol to whom the beggais make presents of sandals. Many persons of both sexes stop before the shop-front, examining or trying on the merchandise, exchanging some amicable phrase with the shoemaker, and, without disturbing him from his quietude, lay the price at his feet.
Next to the shoemaker's came the shop of a dealer in edible seaweed, which forms one of the principal articles of export trade be- tween Japan ;ind China. This seaweed is called tang, and is found in great floating masses in all the bays of llic insular Empire, When the sea is calm, its li h golden purple and olive tints are distinctly seen through the still surface of the blue water. By means of a boatman's hook the fishermen draw it through the sea like an immense net, load their boats with it, and clean it carefully, col-
4^!
376
lecting the little shells which cling to it in immense numbers.
When the cargo has been landed, it is dried in the sun, and then formed into bun- dles tied with bands of straw, or in small parcels wrapped up in paper ; the former arc for exportation, and are sold b\' weight to the junks; the others are sold by th-j packet
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
class of radiates are sold in a dry state, They are eaten fried, and most frequently cut into pieces mingled with rice. One sort of fish, very thin, long, and narrow, is simply dried in the sun, and eaten without any further cooking. Oysters are abundant, but coarse. The Japanese liave no method of opening them except by breaking the upper valve
A JAPANESE NOBLE PASSING THROUGH THE STREETS OF TOKIO.
for a few szenis, and arc to be bought cither in the market or the eating-houses.
At Tokio there is an immense consump- tion of shell-fish : the dealer fills his tubs, into which he shakes and turns them about with long bamboo sticks, after which he sets forth, crying his wares. Sea-leeches, and all sorts of little molluscs, the trepang, and the whole
\\ itit a stone, yet such is their dexterity that this rude method answers the purpose.
Although the Japanese profess, from an ;i;sthctic point of view, a profound disgust lor shell-fish, they do not seem to disdain them when they are fried and laid out on herbs and colored paper. Delicacies of this sort have a great sale in the public markets.
SHOPS AND INDUSTRIES OF TOKIO.
The shops of the grain-dealers at Tokio are very interesting, from the immense quan- tity and the infinite variety of the products, the diversity of their forms and colors, and the art with which they are ranged upon the shelves. But surprise and admiration suc- ceed to curiosity when we perceive that on each of the parcels already done up in paper, on each of the bags ready to be delivered, is a colored drawing of the plants themselves, together with the name of the grain.
This drawing is often a little masterpiece, which might figure in an album of the flora of Japan. Presently we .sec the painter and the workshop. The painter is a young girl, vho lies at full length on mats covered with flowers and sheets of paper, and works in- cessantly in this singular attitude.
The Fish-Market.
As we approach the central bridge of the commercial city the crowd increases, and on both sides of the street shops give place to popular restaurants, and confectioners, where cakes, rice, and millet are sold, and where hot tea and saki may be purchased.
We are close to the great fish-market. The canal is covered with fishing-boats, either discharging their cargo of both sea and river fish — great fish of the ocean cur- rents which come down from the Pole, and those of the equatorial stream, tortoises and mussels from the gulfs of Niphon, hideous jelly-fish and fantastic crustacean. In this place have been reckoned seventy different kinds of fish, crabs, and mollusca, and twenty-six sorts of mussels and other shell- fish.
Fish-sheds, roughly put up near the land- ing-place, are besieged by buyers. In the middle of the tumultuous crowd we see strong arms lifting full baskets and emptying them into the lacquered cases of the coolies.
From time to time the crowd has to open, to give passage to two coolies laden with a dolphin, a shark, or a porpoise, suspended by ropes on a bamboo pole, which they carry on their shoulders. The Japanese boil the flesh of all these animals, and salt the whole blubber.
One of the strangest pictures in the en- virons of Niphon-bassi is a group of shark
HIGHLY FIGURED JAPANESE VASE.
and whale sellers, wholesale and retail. The stature, the dress, and the gestures of these personages, their fantastic equipment, the dimensions of the huge knives which they plunge into the sides of the sea monsters, suggest the prodigious exercise of human strength and employment of the resources of nature, which can alone suffice for the supply of the great city.
Wooden tubs and jars, filled with water
378
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
and ranged in pyramids, arc placed at inter- vals on the thresholds of the warehouses, and on the edge of the public pathways. These precautionary measures are taken in all the populous streets of Tokio, and gener- ally in all Japanese cities. Reservoirs of water occupy the upper galleries and roofs of the houses. Long and strong ladders are planted against the great wooden build- ings, such as temples and pagodas.
Precautions Against Fire.
Stores, known in the commercial language of the Far East under the name of godowns, are said to be fireproof.
They are multiplied as much as possible in the wooden quarters, so as to present numer- ous obstacles to the spread of fire. These square, high buildings are constructed of stone, and covered outside with a thick layer of whitewash. Their doors and shutters are of iron, and from the four walls great hooks stick out, from which wet mats and mat- tresses may be hung when there is imminent danger.
The godowns, the ladders, and the tubs do not contribute to the embellishment of the capital. In this, as in other details of Japa- nese life, the beautiful is sacrificed to the useful, and visitors must just make the best of the charming accidental views which occur in this city. Its religious buildings would render it exceedingly beautiful, were not its chief sites occupied by the endless lines of warehouses.
Pursuing our route from street to street, we look into the interior of the houses, with hardly any interruption from the sliding panels, and see the picturesque groups of men, women, and children squatting round their humble dinners. The straw table-cloth is laid on the mats which cover the floor ; in the centre is a large wooden bowl containing
rice, which forms the principal food of every class of Japanese society.
Each guest attacks the common dish, and takes out enough to pile up a great China cup, from which he eats without the aid of the little stick which serves him for a fork, except just for the last few mouthfuls, to which he adds a scrap of fish, crab, or fowl, taken from the numerous plates which sur- round the centre bowl.
These viands are seasoned with sea-salt, pepper, and soy — a very strong sauce made from black beans by a process of fermenta- tion ; eggs, soft and hard, fresh or preserved; boiled vegetables, such as turnips, carrots, and sweet potatoes, slices of young twigs of bamboo, or a salad of lotus bulbs, complete the bill of fare of a Japanese citizen's dinner.
Domestic Utensils.
The meal is invariably accompanied by tea and saki, and these two beverages are ordinarily drank hot, without any other liquid, and without sugar. The teapots which contain them stand upon a brasier shaped like a casket ; it is a little larger than another corresponding article of furniture called a tobacco-bon, on which coal, a pipe- rack, and a supply of tobacco are placed
I have never examined the pretty utensils used at a Japanese table — the bowls, cups, saucers, boxes, lacquered trays, vases of porcelain, jugs and teapots in glazed earthen- ware— nor have I ever contemplated the people while eating, seen the grace of their movements, and watched the dexterity of their delicate little hands, without fancying I was looking on at a number of grown-up children playing at housekeeping, and eating rather for their amusement than because they were hungry.
Maladies resulting from excess or from unwholesome diet, are generally unknown,
■
SHOPS AND INDUSTRIES OF TOKIO.
379
but the immoderate use of their national beverage sometimes produces grave results. I have seen more than one case of delirium tremens.
The ravages caused by dysentery and cholera in certain parts of Japan, especially at Tokio, will cause no surprise to the European resident, who has seen how greedily children and the lower classes of the people devour watermelons, limes, Siam oranges, and all sorts of fruits at the beginning of the autumn, before they are fully ripe.
Unwholesome Water.
Japanese houses are rarely supplied with really wholesome water, because, even at Tokio, where springs are abundant, they use only cisterns, though it would be easy to establish fountains in every quarter in the town. The incDnvenicnce and danger of this state of things are, however, reduced, by the fact that the Japanese are in the habit of using hot drinks in all seasons.
Their popular hy'ntne demands hot baths, which they take every day. This extreme cleanliness, the salubrity of their climate, and the excellent qualities of their diet, aid in making the Japane^^e one of the healthiest and one of the most robust of peoples. There are, however, very few of them who do not suffer from diseases of the skin, and from chronic and incurable maladies, which are not to be traced to their natural condi- tions. This great misfortune dates from the epoch at which the government of the Sho- guns authorized the foundation and officially protected the development of a disgraceful institution, whose fatal consequences sap the entire edifice of society.
There are a great number of riiysicians in Japan, principally at Tokio. The mem- bers of the medical body who are neither functionaries nor officers have generally been
educated at the University of Kioto or that of Tokio; but some of them, who belong to families where the medical profession has been followed from father to son, have received an education under the paternal roof.
As no examinations are required for the practice of medicine, each man enters the profession when he pleases, and practices according to his own fancy ; some healing by the routine of the native empirics, others treating their patients according to the rules of Chinese science, a third claiming to be adepts in Dutch medicine; but in reality they have actually neither method nor system. University studies in Japan are exceedingly superficial. It cannot be other- wise in a country where no one possesses the preparatory knowledge, which is taken for granted on entering upon a University course.
Passion to have Doctors.
This state of things can only be reformed by frequent contact with Europeans, and already is fast disappearing. The people, however, do not care about it. All they want is to have a number of doctors at their disposal ; to be treated and physicked rather upon these conjoint methods than upon the best, supposing it to exist ; in fact, to find in their physicians pleasant servants, who will not contradict the notions of their patients, and who scrupulously justify the confidence with which their profession is honored. This obliges them to adopt a certain demeanor which impresses the public, and sets them apart from the rest of society.
Japanese medical practitioners may be easily recognized by their dress, by their methodical demeanor, and some other pecu- liarities, which vary according to the fancy oi these grave personages. I have seen one
380
JAPAN AND THE JAPANKSE.
whose head was shaved like that of a bonze, or of an Imperial doctor, though he certainly belonged to a physician of the third class. I have seen others wearing their hair long and plaited, the ends coiled upon their neck, and others with a profuse beard.
Their middle class extraction not permit- ting them to wear two swords, they wear one, passed through the folds of their girdle ; but it is always a very small one, and gener- ally carefully wrapped up in crape or velvet. Certain members of the faculty take care never to show themselves in public un- attended by a koskei carrying their instru- ment case and medicines.
Not Paid in Money.
Many doctors command public esteem and enjoy uncontested respect. I have heard it said, that when they are sent for to aristo- cratic houses they are paid by those senti- ments rather than in money. It is well known that the greater number — even those who possess an extensive connection — can hardly live ; for the citizens' families gener- ally find at the end of the year, when they have met their indispensable expenses — housekeeping, annual fetes, the theatre, the baths, the bonzes, and the parties of pleasure — that they have very little left to give to the doctor.
The latter, on his side, accepts the situa- tion with philosophy, and it must be added to his credit, that he is generally a truly disinterested person. Many possess real scientific zeal, and a taste for the observation of nature which might produce remarkable results if these qualities rested upon a solid basis or suflRcient preparatory instruction. There is no doubt that the medical fraternity is one of the most energetic agents of pro- gress and civilization in Japan.
This fraternity is one of a Corporation of
arts and professions which enjoys an official constitution and certain privileges. It was placed by the Mikado under the inrvocation of a holy patron called Yakousi, and is evi- dently of great antiquity. We learn from the Imperial annals of Kioto that the first Japanese pharmacy was founded in 730, that in the year SoS medical science was enriched by a collection of recipes published in one hundred V(<hiines by Doctor Firo-Sada, and that the yen- 825 endowed the Empire with its first hospital.
For a long time Japan was tributary to China in all that concerns medical science, as well as in the other branches of human knowledge. The Celestial Empire supplied it with works on anatomy and botanical treatises, books and recipes, as well as pro- fessors, medical practitioners, and ready- made medicines for curing an infinity of ail- ments. In the .second half of the eleventh century, the Chinese merchant Wangman made a fortune by selling medicines and parrots in Japan.
Mysterious Signs.
At that time the resources of art were added to the secrets of magic. In the pres- ent day the successors of the early practi- tioners in this line carry about kirimons covered with cabalistic signs through the towns and villages. These kirimons, placed at an opportune moment upon the body of a patient, have the power of recalling a dead man to life. The monks, on their side, know prayers of a sacramental kind which stop bleeding, heal wounds, exorcise insects, cure burns and counteract the evil eye, in the case of men and animals. So it is supposed.
Two great events, of which one occurred at the beginning and the other at the end of the seventeenth centurj', prevented the scien- tific labors of *l^e medical fraternity from
SHOPS AND INDUSTRIES OF TOKIO.
381
being shrouded by degrees in the great darkness of Buddhist superstition. The first was the arrival of the Dutch, who re- ceived their letters of franchise and inaugu- rated their factory at Firado under the direction of the superintendent, Van Specx, in the year 1609; and the second was the foundation of the University of Tokio, which took place in 1690.
Thuuberg recounts that, towards the mid- dle of the following century, he, being at Tokio as attache to the biennial embassy from the Dutch superintendent of Decima, obtained permission from the Shogun to receive a visit from five physicians and two astronomers attached to the Court; he had long conversations with them, and convinced himself from the observations of the former that they had derived their knowledge of natural history, physics, medicine and sur- gery, not only from the traditional Chinese sources, but from Dutcii works.
At a later date, the physicians of the fac-
tory, having been authorized to take pupils, strove, with great zeal and devotion, to im- part to them the medical science of the West.
If the judgment of civilized peoples were not distorted by the manner in which tliey are taught history — if they had learned that science has its honors as well as war — they would look with admiration upon the peace- ful conquests which have been made in the Empire of Japan, to the advantage of the whole world, by the physicians of the fac- tory at Decima since the time of Kiempfer to the present day.
Hondjo, properly so called, answers in some respects to the industrial quarters of our great cities. It contains manufactories of tiles and of coarse pottery, kitchen utensils in iron, paper factories, and workshops for the cleaning and preparation of cotton, for the weaving of cotton and silk fabrics, dyeing vats, weavers' shops, basket makers and mat plaiters.
CHAPTER XXIII. POPULAR JAPANESE CUSTOMS.
CHINESE civilization possesses nothing which resembles the bcncficient institution of a clay of rest recurring rcguhirly after a certain series of working days. There are monthly fes' ivals, by which the working classes commonly profit very little, and an entire week, the first of the year, during which all labor is suspended, and the popu- lation give themselves up to the amusements within their reach, each person choosing them according to his social position and the resources at his disposal. This is true, in the main, of Japan.
The citizens of Tokio, the artisans, the manufacturers, the Japanese tradesmen in general, lived until the arrival of the Eu- ropeans, under the most exceptional economic conditions in the world. They worked only for the internal supply of a country highly favored by nature, sufficiently large and sufficiently cultivated to supply all its own needs; for centuries they had enjoyed the pleasures of an easy and simple life. This is no longer the case. I witnessed the last days of the age of innocence, in which, with the exception of some great merchants whom fortune had obstinately pursued with its favors, no one worked except to live, and no one lived except to enjoy existence.
Work itself had a place in the category of the purest and deepest enjoyments. The artisan had a passion for his work, and, far from counting the hours, the days, the weeks, which he gave to it, it was with reluctance that he drew himself away from it till he had 382
at length brought it — not to a certain .salable value, which was less the object of his care — but to that state of perfection which satisfied him. If he were tired, he left his workshop and rested himself for as long or as short a time as he pleased, either in his house, or in company with his friends at some place of amusement.
There was not a Japanese dwelling of the middle classes without its little garden, a sacred asylum for solitude, for the siesta, for amusing reading, for line fishing, or for long libations of tea and .saki.
Surroundings of Tokio.
The hills on the south, west, and north of the citadel, are rich in pretty valleys and grottos, springs and ponds, all utilized in the most ingenious manner by the small pro- prietors. If nature has not isolated the family residence by means of hedges or natural palisades of bamboo covered with climbing plants, industry supplies the defi- ciency. When the garden is approached from the street, a rustic bridge is thrown across the canal before the door, and hidden with tufts of trees and thick-leaved shrubs.
On crossing the threshold, the visitor might believe himself to be in a virgin forest far from all human habitations. Blocks of stone, negligently arranged as steps, help him to mount the hill, end suddenly, when he has reached the summit, a delightful spectacle lies at his feet. Below the flower- covered rocks is a gracefully formed pond, its banks adorned with lotus, iris, and water-
rui'UI.AR JAl'ANi:SK CUSTOMS.
lilies; a little wooden bridge crosst-s it. The p.ith descends through groves of tufted bam- boos, azaleas, dwarf palms, and camellias; then through beautiful groups of tiny pines which hide the ivy-covered rocks, and along hillsides enamelled with flowers, amid which the lily lifts its white crown above the dwarf shrubs, which are cut into fuitastic forms.
This scene, when beheld from the bottom of the valley, offers an equally harmonious combination of form and color. There is nothing to excite particular attention, but the whole landscape and all its details wrap the mind in calm, and leave it no other im- pression than the vague pleasure of perfect rest.
Although the Japanese delight on occa- sion to plunge themselves into a condition which closely approaches the physical insen- sibility and ideal annihilation recommended by Buddhism, they do not systematically indulge in it. The spirit of order presides ever their daily conduct, and regulates their hygienic practices.
383
the point of view of public morals, in the category of indifferent actions, neither more nor less than sleeping, walking out, and drinking. As the superior classes of society have dormitories and dining-rooms, so each house belonging to the nobility or the upper ranks of the citizens has one or two bath- rooms reserved for domestic use; and there is no small citizen's dwellinj; without some little room where a bath, v ith its heating apparatus, may be found.
Custom of Bathing.
Among the latter the bath holds the first place. In addition to their morning ablu- tions, the Japanese, of every age and of both sexes, take a hot bath every day. They re- main from five to thirty minutes in the water, sometimes plunged up to the shoulders, some- times only up to the waist, according as they lie down or squat; and during all the time they take the greatest care to avoid wetting the head. It not unfrequcntly happens that congestion of the brain, and even apoplexy, is the result of this unreasonable habit.
A custom which has become a daily need, and is practised by all classes of an enormous population, could not be in any sense private. A tacit agreement has therefore been estab- lished in Japan which places the bath, from
Rush for the Bath-I louses.
When the bath is reatly, the entire famil> profit by it in succession ; first the father, then the mother, then the children and all the household servants included. Nevertheless, the common bath is rarely used, because the expense of the fuel which it would involve would be much greater than the expense of a family subscription to the public baths. Accordingly, the majority of the population regularly use the latter. They are to be found in everj' street of a certain import- ance, and everywhere they are so crowded, especially during the two last hours of the day, that it has become absolutely necessary to allow the bathers to bathe in community.
There are generally two reservoirs, sejxa- rated by a low iron or wooden bridge, and sufficiently spacious to recci\'e from twelve to twenty bathers at a time. The women and children collect on one side, and the men on the other ; but without prejudice to the leading principle that every new-comer shall install him.self where he finds a place, no matter who may be the previous occu- pant. The proprietor squats upon a plat- form, from which he can ob.serve the persons who come in, and who pay in passing. Some- times the proprietor smokes, and sometimes he reads romances to amuse himself.
The national law which regulates the
384
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
public baths cvtends beyond the threshold of these establishments, — that is to say, if the bathers of cither sex wish to take the air on the pavement outside, they are respect- ively regarded as partaking of the benefit of the accepted fiction ; and more than that, it shelters them to their own dwelling, when it is their pleasure to proceed thither with the fine lobster-color which they have brought out of the hot water intact.
Crude Forms of Art.
However strange this custom may appear to us, no Japanese, before the arrival of the Europeans, supposed that it could have a reprehensible side. On the contrary, it was in perfect harmony with the rules of domestic life, and irreproachable from the moral point of view.
Many singularities find explanation in the fact that the Japanese have decidedly no pretension to plastic beauty. Nothing is more characteristic in this respect than the manner in which the native painters draw the heroes and heroines of their stories of love and war. In a little while, however, Japan wiil be under the influence of the Japanese who have visited Europe and America, and especially those who have made a prolonged sojourn in these coun- tries. If the comparison which they insti- tute between the two civilizations does not induce them to recommend the adoption of ours in its lesser details, we may be quite sure that they will reform all such national customs as have provoked the ridicule of foreigners.
Several of the great public baths of Tokio have added modern therapeutic inventions, such as douches of hot and cold water, to the ordinary resources of these establish- ments.
The physicians of the opulent classes of
society are always certain to win the good graces of their patients by recommending them to try a cure in one of the mountain districts famous for the efficacy of their waters. There are some particularly cele- brated in the island of Kiousiou, at the foot of the volcanoes of Aso and Wounsentake. The thermal springs which are found there are, generally speaking, sulphurous and very hot. They are used in rheumatic affections and skin diseases.
It has not yet occurred to the mind of the Japanese to enhance the charms of the bath- ing season Dy the attraction of pastimes. Games of chance are disdained by everyone in good society. Cards are left to servants and coolies, and these are not permitted to play for money.
The Medicine Case.
The small tradesman does not trouble himself to go to the thermal baths ; when doctors do not seem to be doing him any good, he prefers to undertake a pilgrimage. He is not, however, without his own notions about medicine. According to him the latent cause of all the disturbance of the human machine resides in the more or less ill-rcgulated action of the internal vapors y apparently those of which Sganarelle speaks, " the vapors formed of the exhalations of the influences which arise from the region of th.c malady." The daily baths, no doubt, con- tribute to disengage and to dissolve them.
If, however, some unexpected indisposi- tion arises during the hours of work or of recreation, it is good to have a little medi- cine case at hand, and, therefore, he wears it hanging from his girdle, on the same bunch of strings with his pipe and his tobacco bag. But if the noxious gas resists the powders and the pills in his little box, he must have recourse to cautery. This does not abso-
Cutely demand the intervention of the sur- geon. Every well-arranged household has its supply of the little cones of mugwort with which nioxas are applied, and every good housewife ought to know what are the por- tions of the body to burn according to the symptoms of the malady : as, for example, the shoulders in indigestion, stomach com- plaints, and loss of appetite ; the vertebrae in attacks of pleurisy, the muscles of the thumb in a case of toothache, and so on.
Puncturing With Needles.
Such is the reputation of the moxa among the Japanese people, that it is frequently used as a preventive, and e\ en at fixed times once or twice a year. A sovereign remedy against cholic consists in making six or nine deep incisions, by means of fine needles of gold or silver, in the abdominal region.
As in certain countries in Europe, there exists a class of quacks who add tecthdraw- ing to the barber's profession, and who put on leeches and blisters, so Japan possesses a whole host of subaltern surgeons specially devoted to the practice of cautery and other empirical remedies. They arc called Tcn- sasi, or "men who punish, " in reference to their preliminary operations. Whatever talent they may display in their various functions, they are never pcrniittcd to add shampooing — a kind of treatment much re- sorted to in Japan in cases of nervous irrita- tion or rheumatic affections.
The reason for this exclusion was told me by a shopkeeper, at whose house I witnessed a .spectacle which at first sight I could not understand. A woman, l)ing on her left side at full length upon the mats in the back shop, was patiently bearing the weight of a big fellow, who was kneading her shoulders with both hands. "Is that your wife?" said I to the shopkeeper. He made an 26
POPULAR JAPANESE CUSTOMS. 385
affirmative sign, and then placing his thumb and middle finger of his left hand upon his two eyelids, showed me that the opcator was blind, and went on to inform me that the laws of societ)' among the Japanese limited the office of shampooers to men deprived of sight.
I remembered to have met blind men in the street carefully feeling for the footway, a rough staff in their right hand, and in the left a reed cut into a whistle, from which they extracted a plaintive and prolonged sound at intervals. Thus they announce to the citizens that they are passing by, in case any one wants to be shampooed. The sham- pooers have the head shaven, and wear one garment, of gray or blue stuff.
Blind From Weeping.
I was told that they form a large fraternity, which is divided into two orders. The most ancient, that of Bou-Sctzoi.s, has a religious character and belongs t ) the Court, ft was instituted and endowed by the son of a Mikado, who became blind by dint of weep- ing for the death of his ICmprcss.
The rival order of more recent origin, but not le.ss chivalrous, is that of the I'ckis.
In the great battle wliich the Taigoun Yoritomo won, having put an eutl t<> the civil wars which rent the lunpire, Feki, tiie chief of the rebel party, was slain. His bra\ e general, nauieil Kakekigo, soon fell into the power of the cunqueror, who treated his prisoner with great consideration. WIilii he imagined he had gained him over by liis attentions, he called him into ills presence and propo.sed to him to all>- himself to the Imperial cause.
" I have been the faithful servant of a good ma.ster," replied the general, "and I have lo.st him; no other in the world shall succeed him in my esteem. As for you,
386
the author of his death, I could never look on you without longing to strike your head off at my feet, but you confound me b your magnanimity, therefore, accept the on' sacrifice by which I can render homage to it. So saying, the unfortunate man tore out his two eyes and offered them to his new master.
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
cians, but the greater number practice Sham- pooing. All the money which they collect
Dm city to city is deposited in a central .leasury, from which the associates receive a fixed sum, sufficient for their subsistence to the end of their lives.
The governor of the order resides at
ANCIENT JAPAN K.sli: WAKRIOKS.
Yoritomo set him at liberty, and gave him an estate in the province of Fiougo. The general founded the order for the blind under the authorization jf the Mikado, and the Fekis soon exceeded the Bou-Setzous in numbers and in wealth. All the mem- bers of this society must exercise a profes- sion. There are some who become musi-
Kioto. It is said that he exercises the right of life and death over the members, subject only to the Imperial supremacy.
It is not difficult for a foreigner sojourning in Japan to mingle with the people, and even to penetrate into the intimacy of the middle classes ; but I doubt whether he would ever succeed in gaining admission to family festi-
POPULAR JAPANESE CUSTOMS.
387
vals in any rank whatever of native society.
In all the countries of the far East, the marriage of a daughter is always celebrated with more or less prolonged rejoicings in the house of the husband. But, while the China- man is proud to invite foreign guests to the wedding of his son, in order that he may make a pompous parade before them, the Japanese, on the contrary, surrounds the ceremonies which belong to this solemn act with the discreetcst reserve. He regards it as much too serious an affair to be interfered with by the presence of any but the nearest relati\es and the confidential friends of the two principals.
Most Japanese marriages are the result of family arrangement made long beforehand, under tlie inspiration of the practical good sense which is one of the national character- istics
Qualifications for Marriage.
The bride brings no dowry, but she is given a trousseau which many a lady of higher rank might be proud of. She is required to have an unsullied reputation, a gentle and yielding disposition, the amount of education fitted for her se.x, and the ac- quirements of a good housekeeper.
Considerations of pecuniary interest hold only a secondary place, and they generally lead rather to business combinations than to mere money bargains. Thus, when a good citizen who has no -son, gives his only, or his eldest daughter in marriage, her husband receives the title of his father-in-law's adopted son, takes the name of his father-in-law, and succeeds him in the exercise of his industry, or the transaction of his commercial affairs.
Japanese weddings are preceded by a be- trothal ceremony, at which the principal members of both families are present; and it not unfrequently happens that it is on
this occasion the young people discover for the first time the projects which their respec- tive parents iiave formed for them. From that day forth they are given opportunities of meeting, ami of appreciating the wisdom of the choice which ha.'; been made on their behalf. Visits, invitations, presents, prepara- tions for their installation in their new home succeed each other so rapidly and so pleas- antly, that the young people arc rarely other- wise than delighted with their prospects.
Flowers and Offerings.
The marriage generally takes place when the bride-elect has attained her sixteenth, and the bridegro>m-elect his twentieth year, liarl)' in the morning the j'uun .;• gill's trous- .seau is brougiit to the bridegroo;n's dwelling, and laid out \ery tastefully in tlvj apartments in which tlic w cdding fca.st is to ho hckl. In the chief room a domestic altar is erected, adorned with flowers and Lulcn with offer- ings; and in front of this altar, images of the god
])atr )n saints of the two fami-
lies are hung.
The aquariums are supplied with various plants, grouped picLuresciue!)-, and with sym- bolical significance. On the lacijuer-work tables are phiced dwarf cedars and small figures re,)rcsenting the first couple, accom- panied l)y their venerable attributes, the hundred-years-old crane aiul tortoise. To complete the picture b\' a lesson in morals and patriotism, some p.ickets of edible sea- weed, of mussels and dried fish, are placed among the wedding presents, to remind the young couple of the primitive food, and the simple customs of the ancient inhabitants of Japan.
About noon a splendid procession enters the rooms thus prepared; the young bride, veiled and arrayed in white, advances, led by two female friends, and followed by a crowd
388
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
I
of relatives, friends, and neighbors, in robes of ceremony composed of splendid scarlet brocade, gauze, and embroideries.
The two friends do the honors, distribute the guests, see to the arrangements for the repast, and flit about from one group to another. They are called the male and female butterfly. The must personify, in the cut and decoration of their crape and gauze robes, the charming couple who, in popular story, set an example of conjugal felicity. May you, too, they seem to say to the betrothed pair, taste the flowers of life, hover in aerial flight over the earth, during your terrestrial career, always joyous, always united, until your happy existence exhales in common in a final embrace.
A Beautiful Vase.
With the exception of certain Buddhist sects, whose rites include a nuptial benedic- tion, the priest has no place in the celebra- tion of marriage in Japan. The decisive ceremony by which the Japanese replace our sacramental ordinance possesses an af- fecting symbolism. Amongst the objects displayed in the midst of the circi.^ of the guests is a metal vase, in the form of a pitcher with two mouths. This vase is beautifully ornamented.
At an appointed signal one of the bride's ladies fills it with saki ; the other takes it by the handle, raises it to the height of the mouths of the kncelinj.^ bride and bride- groom, and makes them drink alternately, each from the pitcher mouth placed opposite to their lips, until the vase is emptied. It is thus that, husband and wife, they must drink from the cup of conjugal life; he on his side, she on hers, but they must both taste the same ambrosia, or the same gall ; they must share equally the pains and sorrows as well as the joys of this new existence.
If the poetical charm of the symbolism of the natural affections sufficed to render people moral, the Japanese should be the best husbands in the world. Unhappily, the same man who has the right to kill his wife on the simplest suspicion — if, for example, he should see her in conversation with a stranger — no relation of the family — has no scruple about introducing a first concubine, ?.nd soon a second, then a third, and it may be even a fourth, under the conjugal roof.
Feels no Jealousy.
It is said that, in order to spare the dig- nity of the legitimate wife, and in deference to her rank as a mother and the mistress of the house, the husband deigns to consult her upon the choice of each of the pearls of beauty he thinks fit to add to the treasures of his domestic felicity. It is said that the proudest dame, the most tenacious of her rights and of her prerogatives, feels no jeal- ousy, and sees wi.li no displeasure an aug- mentation of her household which permits her to rule over a numerous suite of women, her humble servants, and little pages, slaves to the caprices of her own children.
But this picture is not true to life. There is, no doubt, a class in Japanese society in which the marriage tie is much relaxed ; that of the Daimios, formerly condemned by the inhuman poUcyofthe Shoguns to leave their wives and children as hostages at Tokio, during the prolonged absences lendcred im- perative by their feudal position and its ad- ministrative duties. But the licentious habits of the nobility never propagate themselves among the middle classes with impunity.
When the mother of the family forces her- self to suffer humiliation in silenr ?, thence- forward peace and domestic happiness are at an end. When the relaxation of the ties of esteem and mutual confidence leads to a
POPULAR japanrsp: customs.
389
breach of the community of interests, dis- order creeps into household affairs, the hus- band neglects the exercise of his profession, and endeavors to blind himself to his true moral condition by an ever increa^^ing con- sumption of saki. Finally, poverty, sick- ness, and frequently even some violent catas- trophe, bring about the dissolution or the ruin of the household, which had been founded under such fair auspices.
The middle classes, and the masses in general, are saved by their narrow means from the scourge I have just indicated. The great majority of households, those of shop- keepers, artisans, workmen, and cultivators, require the common toil of both father and mother for their maintenance; the constant combination of their efforts, not to secure ease, but merely to supply the commonest necessaries of life.
Struggle for a Livelihood.
The introduction of one single vice into such a state of things would bring about its immediate ruin. Many a young couple have to struggle bravely for years, in order to defray the expenses of their marriage. Others have had sufficient courage and good sense to resist the temptation of tiie national cus tom. The proceedings in the latter instances testify to the national talent for acting. An honest couple have a marriageable daughter, and the latter is acquainted with a fine young fellow, who would be a capital match, if only he possessed the necessary means of making his lady-love and her parents the indispensa- ble wedding presents, and of keeping open house for a week.
One fine evening, the father and mother, returning from the bath, find the house empty — the daughter is gone. They make inquiries in the neighborhood ; no one has seen her ; but the neighbors hasten to offer
their services in seeking her, together with her distracted parents. They accept the offer, and head a solemn procession, which goes from street to street, to the lover's door. In vain does he, liidden behind his panels, turn a deaf ear ; he is at length obliged to yield to the importunities of the besieging crowd ; he opens the door, and the young girl, drowned in tears, throws herself at the feet of her parents, who threaten to curse her.
A Social Comedy.
Then comes the intervention of charitable friends, deeply moved by this spectacle ; the softening of the mother, the proud and in- exorable attitude of the father, the combined eloquence of the multitude, employed to soften his heart ; the lover's endless protes- tations of his resolution to become the best of sons-in-law. At length the father yields, his resistance is overcome ; he raises his kneeling daughter, pardons her lover and calls him his son-in-law.
Then, almost as if by enchantment, cups of saki circulate through the assembly ; everybody sits down upon the mats ; the two culprits are placed in the centre of the circle, large bowls of saki are handed to them ; and when they arc emptied, the mar- riage is recognized, and declared to be validly contracted in the presence of a suf- ficient number of witnesses, and it is regis- tered next day by the proper officer, with- out any difficulty.
The fashion of wedding-trips is unknown in Japan. Far from leaving the young people to enjoy their happiness in peace, their friends resort to every sort of pretext for overwhelming them with invitations and visits, which are always accompanied by prolonged bouts of eating and drinking.
For two yeai-s at- '-"""^ ♦^he voung mother
390 JAPAN AND THE JAPANKSK
will nurse lier child, and accordinj^ to the rules of politeness wliich regulate the visits of Japanese ladies, she must extend her lacteal gifts to the chilihen <f Ivjr friend-;. Another deironslr.i''' :. ■,>f c airtusy is niatlc by tliL- yoi '.-i jjii. "f the neighborhood. They dispute for the privilege of carrying the
shall be given him after his death, and in- scribed upon his tomb ; that by which his memory shall be held sacred from generation to generation.
The ceremony, which corresponds to baf)- tism among us, is a simple presentation of the newly-born child in the temple of his new-born infant out for its air and e.xercise, j parents' gods. K.xcept in certain sects, it is not only as an act of neighborly kindness, ! not accompanied by sprinkling with water,
or any of tiie formalities of purification. The father hands a memorandum contain- ing three names, to the officiating bonze, who copies them on three separate sheets of paper, which he nii.\es together and shakes up at random, pronouncing a sacra- mental invocation in a loud voice. Then he throws them into the air, and the first which, in falling, touches the floor of the holy place, indicates the name most agreea- ble to the presiding divinity.
The bonze immediately inscribes it upon a sheet of blessed paper, and gi', cs it as a talisman to the child's father. Then, the religious act being complete, it remains onl)- to celebrate the event by visits ant! bamiuets proportionate to the social con- dition of the infant hero of the festival, who receives a number of presents on this occasion, among which two fans figure, in the case of a male, and a pot tif pomade in that of a female child. The fans are precursors of swords, and the pomade is the presage of feminine charms. In both but in order that thc\' may, cpiite seriously, cases, a packet of flax thread is added, serve an apprenticeship to the main duties of signifying good wishes for a long life, their future vocation. j The baptism of u child is always an occa-
Oii the thirtieth day after his birth, the sion for generosity on the pait of the parent new citizen of Niphon receives liis first name, j towards the priest of their religion. It is He will take a scldiu! on attaining his major- j understood that the priests shall not fail to ity, a third at his marriage, a fourth when he i inscribe the child's name on the list of their shall bo appoinled to any public function, a ] pupils, and shall follow all the phases of his fifth when he shall ascend in rank or in dig- \ life with solicitude. The registers in the nity, and so on until the last, the name which I bonze-houses are saiu to be most accurately
JAPANESE BRIDE AND ATTENDANTS.
POPULAR JAPANESE CUSTOMS.
;5!il
kept; they must always be at the disposal of I salary, until quite near the end of the term,
the police authorities.
At three years old, the boy begins to wear a sword belt, and at seven, if he be a Samourai (military class), the two swords, which form the insignia of his rank. These weapons are, of course, provisional, and adapted to his size. At fifteen, he exchanges them for the proven swords confided to him, as a glorious trust, by his family, during his lifetime.
Responsible Age of Fifteen.
In the middle class, the chivalrous cere- monies have no place, but the three before- mentioned dates, and chiefly the last, are kept with rejoicings which yield in import- ance only to marriage festivities. On the day which completes the boy's fifteenth year, he attains his majority, adopts the head-dress of grown men, and takes a part in the busi- ness of the paternal house. The day before he is addressed as a child ; all of a sudden everything around him is changed ; the cere- monious forms of national civility increase his importance in his own eyes, and he hastens, on his side, to respond to the congratulations which he receives, so as to prove that while he is proud of his new position, he is also awake to its responsibility.
This noble testimony does not, indeed, limit itself to vain declarations, antl among the most interesting traits of Japailcse society are the zeal, perseverance, and seriousness with which young people of fifteen forsake the pleasures of childhood, and enter the severe school of practical life, each i)rcparing himself to make his way honorably in the world.
Apprenticeship to any manual profession is equivalent to ten years' service. During this time the master feeds, clothes, and lodges the a])prentice, but he never gives him any
when the apprentice having become a work- man, receives sufficient pocket-money to b:y tobacco. Professional instruction, ncverthe- le-.s, does not suffer from this state of things.
Tile master is interested in teaching his apprentice as thoroughly as possible, be- cause it is lie who presents the workman, in his turn aspiring to the rank of master to the " tribe" or trade. This rank cannot be attained under the age of twenty-five j-ears. As soon as the workman has reached that time of life, his master gives him liis liberty, and presents him with the tools necessary for the setting up of a modest workshop. Then comes marriage to consecrate the new establishment.
It frequently liappens that the workman marries before he is set up in a workshop of his own ; but this takes place only when his parents' circumstances admit of his bringing his wife to live under their roof until he can make a home for her.
Funeral Expenses.
In all Japanese families death gives rise to a series of domestic solemnities, more or less sumptuous, according to the rank of the ileceascd, but in every case in a proportion very expensive to his nearest relatives. They ha\e to bear the cost of the religious cere- monies which are in the province of tile bonzes : they have to pay for the last sacra- ments ; the watching and the praying, wliich is kept up witiiout intermission in the house of the deceased until the funeral, the service which precedes the departure of tiic funeral procession, the funeral mass celebrated in the temple, and all the requisites for the burial or the burning of the corpse; such as the coffin, draperies, torches, flowers, com- bustibles, urn, tomb, collections and offerings given to the bonzes.
.302
JAPAN AND THK JAPANESE
Then comes the turn of the coolies who have washed the body, of those who have carried the coffin, and the convent servants whose duties he within the enclosure of the cemetery. But this is not ail; a pious cus- tom ordains that all persons of a certain station shall install a servant at the house door charged with the distribution of alms, in small coins, to all the poor, indiscrimi- nately, who come to seek them. And also, on the return of the funeral procession, all the party are expected to take leave of the head of the afflicted family, who testifies his gratitude by giving them a handsome repast.
Horror of Dead Bodies.
It is not, however, in these harrassing ex- penses only that we must seek for the source of the hardly disguised impatience with which the Japanese discharge the last offices towards their neighbors. The truth is, that though they are hardened to the sight of blood, and to scenes of homicide, they cannot overcome, even in the case of members of their own family, the instinctive repugnance, the profound horror which the presence or even the vicinity of a corpse causes them, when the death has been a natural one. There are, however, noble exceptions.
Among the Japanese women, we find wives and mothers, who, overcoming every super- stitious fear, know how to prove that love is stronger than death ; while the men of the household consider themselves acquitted of their task when they have sent for the bonzes to recite prayers, and for a barber and his coolie assistants, who lay out the corpse, and retire to smoke and drink at the greatest possible distance from the chamber of death, the mother of the family remains to the last beside the corpse of the husband or the son. During the first hours of mourning, it is she who receives the condolences of the friends
and neighbors. Humbly prostrated on the reversed mat, at the foot of a screen, also reversed, which hides the co psc from view, she mingles her sobs with the sighs and consoling words of her visitors.
But as soon as the undertakers (as we should call them) arrives, she rises and assists in all the preparations they have to make. The head of the deceased must be completely shaven, and his body carefully washed, which is done by plentiful douches of tepid water, showered into the bath-room in which he is placed sitting on a turned up tub. When the tuolies have dried the corpse, they lift it up respectfully, in order to place it in the coffin. The operation is not always an easy one. The rich Japanese like to rest in the earth, doubled up into enormous jars, which are masterpieces of native pottery. It requires a certain amount of energy and very strong wrists to squeeze a corpse that is at all broad-shouldered into the narrow neck of one of these jars.
Cheap Caskets.
The lower middle class and common people use, for coffins, simply barrels made of fir planks, with bands of bamboo bark. Whether the corpse is going to be buried or burned, it is squeezed into the same narrow compass. The head is bent, the legs are doubled up under the body, and the arms are crossed on the breast. It is not acci- dentally that the Japanese bury their dead in the attitude in which a child rests in the mother's womb. The practice enforces the dogma of a future life under an eloquent symbolism of which the concluding action of the final parting is a most significant feature,
At the moment when the coolies are about to place the cover on the jar, or the lid on the barrel, the mourning woman who has
POPULAR JAPAXKSE CUSTOMS.
03
■previously assisted in all the melancholy preliminaries, bends for the last time over the corpse, and places between its hands a viaticum, no doubt the strangest, but also the most remarkable in all the mythologies of antiquity. It is a little sheet of paper, folded in four, containing a small shred of tiie umbilical cord which united the dead person with his mother at the moment of his birth.
When maternal love, or that of his suc- cessor has confided this strange emblem of a future birth to the mysteries of the tomb, and made, under this curious form, its humble protest against the seeming triumph of death, the coffin is closed ; and the mo.st important of the national funeral ceremonies, the " domestic solemnity " is accomplished.
Superstitious Pomps.
The rest consists merely of superstitious practices, vain pomp, and pure formalities, in which exorcism alternates with the glori- fication of family pride. It does not suffice that the Mikosi should protect the coffin, at its exit from the house of death, it passes under an arch of blessed bamboo, which prevents evil influences from following it. The bonzes, carrying their rosaries, open the procession. The nearest relatives are dressed in white, or they wear common straw hats, which they do not remove until after the completion of the ceremonies of purification.
An inscription, carried before the Mikosi, proclaims the name which the deceased is to receive in his epitaph. The horses of a military chief figure in his funeral procession, caparisoned in white, and led by grooms in mourning. His swords, his armorial bear- ings, his banner, various precious things which recall the rank that he held in the world, are exhibited among the groups of his relations and followers.
The funeral procession of the poor man consists of a small number of friends and neighbors, who hurry, at sunset, to the sombre valley where the rite of cremation takes place under the auspices of some bonze of low station, sent from a neighboring con- vent.
Japanese Cremation.
The Yedas, who "re the outcasts of Japanese society, and deprived of the aids of religion, disdain every kind of ceremony. They simply lay the corpses of their brethren in abjectness on rude stretchers, and carry them away to a desert place. There, they pile up a heap of dead wood on which they .stretch the bodies, covered with straw mats ; and kindle with their own hands the fire that is to restore these miserable remains of humanity to the elements.
There is a class still lower than that of the Yedas, properly so called, that is to say, the artisans who practise unclean arts, such as skinners, tanners, leather dressers ; and one lower still, public executioners, pur- veyors of vice, lepers, cripples, registered beggars ; then comes a final category of in- dividuals held in the extreme degree of legal infamy, it is the class of " Christans," the tolerated descendants of such of the native Christian families as were not entirely de- stroyed in the great persecution of the sev- enteenth century.
Their condition is worse than that of the mere Yedas, who live among themselves in freedom, outside the city boundaries ; so utterly ignored by the law, that the space of ground occupied by their camp of thatched huts does not count in the measurement plans. The Christans, on the contrary, arc assigned a miserable crowded quarter in the city, like the ghetto of the Jews in the Mid- dle Ages, which is virtually a prison. The
;5i)4
police keep watch over tlicm until they have drawn their last breath, ami it is their busi- ness to remove their corpses, and dispose of them somehow — no one knows where or how ; but so that the name of the Crucified One shall not be pronounced over their ashes.
JAPAN AND TlIK JAl'ANKSK.
especially the practice of cremation intro- duced, in the >-ear 700, by the priest Joseo^ liave enabled the bonzes to make ;;n im- mense trade out of the lots of ground of which they dispose. A small enclosure is sufficient for a whole family throu|^'h a great number of generations. The commemora-
INTERIOR OF A JAPANESE THEATRE.
Respect for the dead and tomb-worship, which is one of the seemingly-estimable features of the Buddhist religion, does not exist, properly speaking, except among the privileged classes, and in proportion to the profit which the bonzes e.xtract from it. The method of burial, the form of the coffin, and
tive tabic, which stands over the spot in which the cinerary urn has been buried, oc- cupies no greater space than the urn itself.
The badlj'-kept condition of the burial- places of the common people contrasts strongly with the orderliness of the fine ter- races and great funereal ir.o!;'.; ; c;;'
tiicii:
POPULAR JAPAN I'Si: CUSTOMS.
?]!•"»
nci.^hb()rhoocI. Botli arc cntriistccl to llic care of the same bDiizc-IiDiisc ; but it is tlio same with tomljs as with inciiil;3funccs, the bonzes Iiave made each a question of t.iriff.
There is at Tokiu a N.itional Dramatic Institution. The performers are, properly speaking, juyj^Iers, equilibrists, and acrobats. Another corporation, infinitely more interest- ing, is that of the cnnjuring jugglers, the most .skilful among whom perform princi- pally at the fair of Yamasta, and in all the dependencies of the Grand Temijle of Quan- non at Asaksa. They also make i)rovincial tours, although we have not heard of their having quitted Japan.
But we may leave them aside, and even their superiors, and pass on to the bonze- houses which combine within their \ast space all the seductions and all the jugglerie-, every industry and every artifice, by which it is possible to contribute to liuman supersti- tions and human passions.
Vast Pleasure Grounds.
The great river which divides Tokio into two distinct cities, encloses in one vast circuit the districts to the north of the citadel. These are specially consecrated to the pleas- ures of the inhabitants of the capital. In those pleasures centres the industry of the district, and it excludes no class of society. It accommodates itself, on the contrarj-, to all tastes, responds to all caprices, and satis- fies all exigencies.
Hundreds of temples rival the tea-houses ; the circuses c-jinpete with the theatres ; the fairs with the groves, the lakes, and the canals — those refuges oftrancpiil jo}'; while towards the north the great square harbors, with the full sanction of the Government, countless dens of vice and debauchery.
On the right and left of the high road, and all along the avenues, on the bank of the
Ogawa, and in the side streets which diverge from, the high road, there are temples, tea- houses, public gardens, eating-houses, ora- tories, sln)ps, and resting-places, booths in which consecrated rosaries and profane curiosities are exhibited — in a word, every- thing that the most ingenious speculation can offer to the travellers, the pilgrims, the frequenters of theatres, and the idlers of all ages, who are coming and going by thou- .sands, by night as well as by day, throujjh these distant quarters of the capital.
Questionable Establishments.
There are, however, almost within the .same district, and generally throughout the meridional zone of the triangle formed by the Ogawa, establishments which only prosper at a certain distance fn^ii the great arteries of circulation, because their speciality consists in keeping thc-.iselves apart from the floating population, while permitting their frequenters to mingle for a few minutes, when they please, with the movements of the crowd. Among them are the aristocratic tea-houses. Thcj' can hardly be distinguished externally from those of the middle classes. Their entire superiority consists in the arrangement of the halls and of the furniture, o( the garden, and above all in the cerenion)' of the enter- tainments.
When the haughty Samoura'i enters one , of these establishments, the mistress of the house, and the j'oung waitresses who accom- pany her, prostrate themselves at his feet. The youngest of the girls rises, ami begs the favor of carrying the sword of the noble person, who presents it to her. .She ha.stens to unfold a silken handkerchief, with which she covers her right hand, in oriler to take hold of the sabre by the end of the scabbard, and she holds it in front of her breast until the Samoura'i has gone into the vestiary,
306
JAPAN AND THE JAPAXIlSi:.
when she places it upon a lac(iucrecl rack, ready to be retiirncd to its owner.
The gentleman tlicn proceeds, witii the aid of his female suite, to make tiie most hixurious and minute nocturnal toilet. The one lock of hair which constitutes his head- dress is twisted by means of a knot of crape into a sort of nii^htcap. On his neck and shoulders is laid a thick silken handkerchief, which serves him for a shawl. His cloak is replaced by a sumptuous dressing-gown, faiiteneJ by silken cords most gracefully disposed ; a pair of white socks, which serve as slippers, completes his costume, and after having washed his hands and face in per- fumed water, he majestically takes his way to the salon, where a collation is prepared.
Variety of Industries.
The streets in the vicinity of the harbor .are the centre of innumerable industries, "whose raw materials are furnished by the ocean. There we saw vast drying-houses for the fish, the molluscs, and the seaweed destined for exportation, and also the great stages on which the preparations of the aboura-kami, or oil-paper stuff used by the Japanese instead of our waterproof materials, are stretched.
The native artisans excel in the fabrication and imitation of the edible birds' nests of Java. They produce these forgeries by means of a glutinous exudation of certain marine herbs, and they are then exported to China, with every trick in their packing and labelling which can possibly deceive the ex- perts of the Celestial Empire ; and I am by no means sure that Europe has not also been extensively taken in.
Fish sausages are extensively made in this quarter. They are of various kinds, each having a special color. A great wliitc- washed oven is set up in the centre of a
spacious kitchen ; it contains bowls of iron, and a jar in which a certain cla.ss of fish is cooking. Others are chopiic very
small ; and, as soon as they are .ciently dried and reduced to a powder in mortars of hard wood, they are sorted, seasoned and rolled into jiaste, pressed and tied up in their envelopes, of which each receives its dip of color.
They are then packed in bales. Half a dozen persons generally work together on all these operations, which are performed to a monotonous song. The knives and the pestles are used in time to the rhyme. But when any noise comes from the street the men throw them down and go out and swell the gaping crowd.
Perhaps nothing more serious 'ng on
than the dance of the Lion of C- How
often everyone there has seen it I And, nevertheless, the discordant appeal of the fife and the tambourine which announce its approach is never resisted.
Wandering Actors.
Four actors come out of a neighboring street; three form the orchestra, and the fourth gives the representation. He is wrapped in a very large striped cloak sur- mounted by an enormous head. The monster can make himself longer or shorter at will, and suddenly raise himself up two yards above the people who are with him.
The children utter cries of mingled ad- miration and fear. Some, bolder than the rest, venture to lift up the skirts of his cloak, and even to pinch the legs of the my- sterious tumbler. He sometimes frightens them by turning his head towards them, opening his mouth and shaking the thick mane of scraps of white paper which sur- rounds his scarlet face ; then he will begin to dance to the sound of the instruments of
h
h tt
It
POPULAR JAPANRSK CUSTOMS.
397
his companions. He carries his tambourine himself, but as soon as he leaves off danciny he sets it clown, and, suddenly stooping;, transforms himself into a quadruped, exe- cutes some grotesque gambols, and finishes by stripping off his accoutrements.
Then the monster vanishes, but the juggler remains. He .seizes a drumstick and balances it on the thumb of the left hand ; he puts a second stick on the end of the fir.st, and a third crosswise above the other two ; finally, he threw them into the air, catch them in his hands, and spins them about more and more rapidly and uninterruptedly, adding one, two or three balls, which come from no one knows where.
End of the Performance.
The admiration of the spectators is at its height. One of the musicians pas.ses round a plate — that is to say, i fan. The repre- sentation is finished, and the juggler lights his pipe from that of some benevolent neigh- bor. It is not uncommon to see him neg- ligently putting on his costume again, and sitting calmly smoking, with his head cov- ered down to hi 5 no.se with the enormous and grotesque mask of the monster. The latter is the most picturesque part of the spectacle.
By degrees, as we penetrate into the streets and populous places of the suburbs, we discover a whole world of small trades and small pleasures.
Here and there we see the humble dwell- ings of various classes of wandering work- men who start for the city before the sun rises, and who will only return late at night. These are cobblers, who go about mending wooden sandals ; tinkers, coopers, traffickers in broken porcelain, vendors of old clothes and remnants of stuff for girdles and women's kirimons ; all these people are
trained to the excrci.se of great patience, and also to the calculation of fractions of frac- tions. It is a very curious sight to watch them counting on their frames of beads .strung on wires.
Hut we must not forget the rag-picker of Tokio who unconsciously contributed for many years to the maiuti-nance of the paper factories in Kngland. In the morning ami the evening he goes ferreting about in the public places, and in the populous streets of Hondjo and the merchant city, laden, not with a hod, but with a sort of paper basket which he carries in his left hand ; in his right hand is a pair of long canes, by means of which he picks up everything that appears worth the trouble, and throws it into the basket.
A Doll Show.
The professional tramps pay no attention to the curiosities they meet in their path. Nevertheless, at Tokio I have seen them c.\- r' .nge some amicable phrases, accompanied by two or three puffs of tobacco, with their natural friends the tumblers, with whom the good city abountl.5. These performers go about with v. Hat the English would call a Punch and Judy show, but it is really a doll with joints, arrajed in the co.siumc of the .sect of jumping priests. They exhibit, on a table, a model of the temple (jf Aniida, a white mouse runs up the steps, rings a hell at the door, and performs its devotions at the altar.
A third exhibitor goes about with birds trained to fire a bow, to pick rice, to draw water out of a well; and to pull a little car laden with balls of cotton. A street juggler balances himself upon two high planks, and turns somersaults, or spins over his liead three or four porcelain jugs or cups; he breaks an egg, and pulls twenty yards of
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JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
'
string out of it. He crumples a bit of paper in his hand, and immediately a cloud of arti- ficial flics fills the air.
The greater number of these schemers speculate less on the receipts of ti.eir repre- sentation than on the sale of certain small wares which the city shopkeepers let them
LION DANCE STREET PASTIME IN
sell on commission. Marionettes and mice exhibitors bring crowds of children round the box which they use as a stage, and these children know well that the box is full of sweetmeats. The mender of fans has a store of new ones. Other street actors bring specimens of the industry of the suburbs
into the aristocratic quarters, and get a small commission on all orders which they succeed in obtaining.
They also sell packets of the hard wood or bamboo canes which they use for forks ; also toothpicks of scented and savory wood, tooth-br!"!hes made of whitewood, with one of the ends beaten out iiito a little fringe. The Japanese have a peculiar tooth-powder; one of its ingredients is ivory dust. It is sold in small boxes, with vari- ously colored and deco- rated lids, which vary according to the quality of the merchandise. The powder with which mar- ried women dye their teeth black is sold in metal caskets.
Pretty Designs.
Workmen of the most humble appearance, cabi- net makers, joiners, tur- ners, and wood carvers, fabricate a multitude of pretty things, in elm- wood bark, bamboo, bone, ivory, deer-horn, yellow amber, sea-shells, tortoise-shell, and cocoa- nut.
The Chinese workmen who carve ivory excel in the execution of masterpieces of patience, such as little empty balls, three oi four in number, which turn one within the other. The Japanese artists do not build their fame on conquering difficulties ; a more noble ambition animates them ; they aim above all at the perfection of the imitation
of I thi
TOKIO.
POPULAR JAPANESE CUSTOMS.
399
of nature, and when they yield to the caprice of their imagination, it takes ordinarily a humor- ous direction, full of genuine mirth, and not the taste for burlesque and eccentricity which characterizes the Chinese workman.
The most exquisite things among the small figures in ivory to be found in Tokio are incontestably those representing animals, and more particularly the tiger, the buffalo, the bear, the monkey, and the mouse. These little art objects, which for us are only curious, are an integral part of the outfit of the native smokers of both sexes. In order to carry their pipe in its case and their tobacco-box, they fasten them to the end of a silken cord, whose either extremity is ornamented with one or two of these dainty little trifles, which keep down the cord and prevent it slipping when it has been [Kissed through the girdle. They do the same with their medicine-box.
All Sorts of Trades.
The weavers' trade is not only applied to silk and cotton, but to canvas, which the Japanese painters use very largely ; and to fla.x cloth, which cannot be of an inferior quality in a country like Japan, where the most precious of European and American textiles grows to two yards in height.
The workshops of the hosiers, mat- borderers, binders, and box-makers present a picturesque assemblage of workpeople of all ages and of both se.xes. The coopers work in spacious enclosures behind bamboo palings.
The shops of the box-makers contain an immense collection of coffers and caskets in wood of every kind, among which the cam- phor-wood of Kiousiou, which never loses its aromatic perfume, is particularly remark- able. An assortment of these boxes means Jialf a dozen, which can be placed one
within the other so as to be packed in a single parcel.
There is also an immense quantity of very strong boxes in lacquered paper ; an infinite variety of household utensils, and small articles of furniture, some lacquered, such as rice bowls, others in white wood or in bamboo.
The extreme scarcity of mechanical appli- ances at the disposal of the Japanese artisans strikes the American and European visitor forcibly.
Curious \Vorkshops.
Near the shops or warehouses of which I am speaking were four or fi\e booths, which were assigned to as many different trades. I am convinceil that all the tools of the five workshops put together were not worth twenty-five dollars.
In the first booth a man was making dolls of papier-mache, which are especial favorites in Japine-e houses. Tlicy consist of the lieai,! and the ficc only, wrapped in a scarlet mantle; and it is .-.aid liiat in this form they perpetuate from gLueration to generation the memory of a high jiriest of Buddha who had used up his legs completely in the practice of his devotions. These dolls can be turned inside out, and are of ail dimensions.
Further on were two workmen, each using a little hammer and chisel in carving metal pipes, and a third was preparing wooden stems ; here a lounger was holding wood before the flames of a fire of shavings, in order to give it the necessary bend, while his companion was putting together with a little cement and string the tufts of silk, horsehair or paper, which are hoisted at the ends of long pikes in order to indicate the rank or functions of a civil or military chief
In a neighboring workshop an old man was adjusting the hoops and hooks of a
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JAPAN AND Tl
of
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number of paper lanterns with a pair pincers.
At the entrance of a side street we see half a dozen workmen making wooden sandals. Here the work is divided ; everyone has his speciality. One cuts a piece of wood into equal lengths with a saw, and then s[jli'.s them into soles or cross planks. A third rounds the edges of the hea- y sandals, and a fourth makes holes in them, through which the straw cords are passed. Other workmen are employed in finishing sandals of a more luxurious kind, and packing them by dozens of pairs into the bales which are to be carried to the retail warehouse.
I had yet to see the most peculiar of the shops in this quarter, that of the clockmaker.
IE J A PAN Kb K.
He was making small dials and clocks, rival- ling the " Cuckoos " of the Black Forest, but with this difference, that they are on the system of moveable hours, which increase or decrease according to the seasons.
The artist, squatting before a little anvil fi.xed in the ground, is busy with the mecha- nism of 'lis chronometer, with the exception of the gong which strikes the hours. His tools, scattered round him on mats, consist of a hammer, two or three files, a couple of pincers, and some gimlets.
With the exterior of the small dials, which are portable instruments of the lorm and size of a big chestnut, he has nothing to do ; the cases are made by the copper-workers, and constitute a separate industry.
I!
A SHRINS OP THB GODDESS Of MBRCV.
CHAPTTER XXIV. SHINTOISM AND BUDDHISM IN JAPAN.
SHINTO, which means literally " the way of the gods," is the name given to the mythology and vague ancestor and nature-worship which preceded the introduction of Buddhism into Japan, and which survives to the present day in a somewhat modified form. We would here draw attention to the fact that Shinto, so often spoken of as a religion, is hardly entitled to that name. It has no set of dog- mas, no sacred book, no moral code.
The absence of a moral code is accounted for, in the writings of the modern native commentators, by the innate perfection of Japanese humanity, which obviates the neces- sity for such outward props. It is only out- casts, like the Chinese and Western nations, whose natural depravity renders the occa- sional appearance of sages and reformers necessary ; and even with this assistance, all foreign nations continue to wallow in a mire of ignorance, guilt and disobedience towards the heaven-descended monarch of the uni- verse— the Mikado of Japan.
It is necessary, however, to distinguish three periods in the existence of Shinto. During the first of these — roughly speaking, down to A. D. 550 — the Japanese had no notion of religion as a separate institution. To pay homage to the gods, that is, to the departed ancestors of the Imperial Family, and to the spirits of other great men, was a usage springing from the same mental soil as that which produced passive obedience to, and worship of, the living Mikado.
Besides this, there were prayers to the 2r
wind-gods, to the god of fire, to the god of pestilence, to the goddess of food, and to deities presiding over the saucepan, the cauldron, the grate and the kitchen. There were also purifications for wrong-doing, as there were for bodily defilement, such as, for instance, contact with a corpse.
The purifying element was water. But there was not even a shadowy idea of any code of morals, or any systematization of the simple notions of the people concerning things unseen. There was neither heaven nor hell — only a kind of neutral-tinted Hades. Some of the gods were good, some were bad ; nor was the line between men and gods at all clearly drawn. There was, however, a rude sort of priesthood, each priest being charged with the service of some particular local god, but not with preaching to the people.
A Virgin at the Shrine.
One of the virgin daughters of the Mikado always dwelt at the ancient shrine of Ise, keeping watch over the mirror, the sword and the jewel, which he had inherited from his ancestress, Ama-terasu, Goddess of the Sun. Shinto may be said, in this its first period, to have been a set of ceremonies as much political as religious.
By the introduction of Buddhism in the middle of the sixth century after Christ, the second period of the existence of Shinto was inaufrurated, and further growth in the direc- tion of a religion was stopped. The meta- physics of Buddhism were far too profound,
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JAPAN AND TIIR JAPANl'.SK.
its ritual far too gorgeous, its moral code far too exalted, for the puny fabric of Shinto to makx" any effective resistance. All that there was of religious feeling in the nation went over to the enem)-.
The Huddhist priesthood diplomatically received the native Shinto gods into their pantheon as avatars of ancient Huddhas, for which reason many of the Shinto ceremonies connected with the court were kept up, al- though Huildhist ceremonies took the first place even in the thoughts of the converted descendants of the sun. The Shinto rituals, pre\iously handed down by word of moutli, were then first put into written shape.
Priests Practicing Sorcery.
The term Shinto itself was also introduced in order to tlistinguish the old native way of thinking from the new doctrine imported from India ; for down to that time no one hatl hit on the notion of including the vari- ous fragmentary legends and local usages under one general designation. But view- ing the iiKitter broadly, we may say that the second period of Shinto, which lasted from about A. D. 550 to 1700, was one of darkness and decrepitude. The various petty sects into which it then divided itself, owed what little vitality they possessed to frag- ments of cabalistic lore filched from the baser sort of Buddhism and from Taoism. Their priests practised the arts of divination and sorcery.
Only at coiut and at a few great shrines, such as those of Isc and Izumo, was a knowledge of Shinto in its native simplicity Icept up ; and even there it is doubtful whether changes did not creep in with the lapse of ages. Most of the Shinto temples throughout the country were ser\ed by Buddhist priests, who introduced the archi- tectural ornaments and the ceremonial of
their own religion. They meant to establish the f lith in which they had been schooled.
Thus was formed a mixed religion founded on a compromise between the old creed and the new — and hence the tolerant ideas on theological subjects of most Japanese of the middle antl lower classes, who will worship indifferently at the shrines of either faith.
The third period in the history of Shinto began about the year 1700, and continues down to the present da\'. It has been termed "the period of the revival of pure Shinto." During the seventeenth and eigh- teenth centuries, under the peaceful govern- ment of the Tokugawa dynasty of Shoguns, the literati of Japan turned their eyes back- ward on their country's past. Old manu- scripts were disinterred, old histories and old poems were put into print, the old language was investigated and imitated.
A Gain for Shinto.
Soon the movement became religious and political — above all, patriotic, not to say chauvinistic. The Shogunate was frowned on, because it had supplanted the autocracy of the lieaven-descended Mikados. Budd- hism and Confucianism were sneered at be- cause of their foreign origin. Shinto gained by all this. The great scholars Mabuchi (1697- 1 769), Motoori (1730- 1 801), and Ilirata (1776- 1843) devoted themselves to a religious propaganda — if that can be called a religion which sets out from the principle that the only two things needful are to follow one's natural impulses and to obey the Mikado.
This order of ideas triumphed for a mo- ment in the revolution of 1868. Buddhism was disestablished and disendowed, and Shinto was installed as the only state religion — the Council for Spiritual Affairs being given equal rank with the Council of State,
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JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
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which latter controlled affairs temporal. At the same time thousands of temples, formerly Buddhist, were, as the phrase went, "purified," that is, stripped of their Buddhist ornaments, and handed over to Shinto keeping.
But as Shinto had no root in itself — being a thing too empty and barren to influence the hearts of men — Buddhism soon rallied. The Council for Spiritual Affairs was reduced to the rank of a department, the department to a bureau, the bureau to a sub-bureau. The whole thing is now a mere shadow, though Shinto is still in so far the official cult that certain temples are maintained out of public moneys, and that the attendance of certain officials is required from time to time at ceremonies of a half-religious half-courtly nature. Hard pressed to retain a little popu- larity, the priests have taken to selling cheap prints of religion.' subjects after the fashion of their Buddhist rivals, and to issuing short treatieses on morals taken bodily (but without acknowledgment) from Confucius.
Countless Gems Destroyed.
The lovers of Japanese art bear the Shinto revivalists ill-will for the ridiculous "purifi- cation " which has destroyed countless gems of Buddhist architecture and ornament — not for the sake of a grand moral ideal, as with the Puritans of Europe, but for an ideal immeasurably inferior to Buddhism itself On the other hand, the literary style of their writings outshines anything produced by the Buddhists ; and their energy in rescuing the old Japanese classic authors from neglect is worthy of all praise.
The Shinto temple preserves in a slightly elaborated form the type of the primeval Japanese hut, differing in this from the Budd- hist temple (Tera) which is of Chinese and more remotely of Indian origin. The out-
ward and visible sign of Shinto is a wand from which depend strips of white paper cut into little angular bunches (go/ui), intended to represent the offerings of cloth which were anciently tied to branches of the Cleyera tree at festival time. Another differ ence is that the Shinto temple is thatched whereas the Buddhist temple is tiled. Fur thermore the Shinto temple is plain and empty, while the Buddhist is highly decorated and filled with religious properties.
The Worship of Buddha.
Buddhism in Japan dates from the year 552 of our era. At that epoch, Kin-Mei, the thirteenth Mikado, received from King Petsi at Corea, a statue of Sakyamouni, to- gether with books, banners, a canopy for the altar, and other objects used in the worship of Buc'dha. With these presents came a letter to the following effect:
"Behold the best of all doctrines; coming from distant India, it reveals to us what was a mystery to Confucius himself, and trans- ports us into a final condition whose felicity cannot be surpassed. The King of Petsi communicated it to the Empire of the Mikado so that it may be spread about, and that thus may be accomplished that which is written in the books of Buddha, ' My doctrine shall extend itself towards the East.' " The Mikado immediately consulted his ministers upon the reception which was due to the statue of the great Kami of India. All the nations of the West replied, " Iname venerate the Buddha, why should Niphon turn its back upon him ! "
But, objected Wasoki, " If we render hom- age to the stranger Kami, is it not to be feared that we shall irritate the national Kamis?" Thereon the Mikado pronounced authoritatively this conciliatory sentence : "It is just and equitable to accord a man that
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SHINTOISM AND BUDDHISM IN JAPAN.
405
which his heart desires; let Inanie revere the image." Iname accordingly carried away the image, and constructed a chapel for it. Nevertheless, an epidemic having broken out, it was attributed to the new worship, the chapel was burnt and the statue thrown into the river. The family of Iname re- mained none the less secretly attached to the strange doctrine.
In the reign of Bidas, successor to Kin- Mei, the minister Sogano, son of Iname, presented to the Mikado a bonze who had come from Siura in Corea. Tue holy man, warned of the difficulties which must attend the introduction of Buddhism into a country where the national religion united the people and the sovereign so closely, conceived a means of procuring the favor of the Mikado. As soon as he saw the Mikado's grandson at the Court — a little boy, six years old, in whose birth there had been something ex- traordinary— he prostrated himself at the feet of the miraculous child and worshipped him, announcing that he recognized in him the incarnation of a disciple of Buddha, the new patron of the Empire, the future propa- gator of religious life.
Holy and Virtuous Prince. The Mikado allowed himself to be per- suaded to dedicate this child to the priest- hood, and confided his education to the Corean bonze. The rest is easily divined. This boy became the initiator and the first High Priest of Buddhism in the Empire of Japan, where he is now revered under the name of Sjo-Tak-Daise, the holy, hereditary, and virtuous Prince. Far from denying the foreign origin of their new worship, the Jap- anese considered it their duty to recall it by various symbols, such as the elephants' heads which I have already described among the architectural ornaments on Buddhist monu-
ments, and, in memory of India, by palm plants of a small species acclimatized in Japan, which are seen in the neighborhood of the Temples.
It was more easy for thcni to testify their respect for the birthplace of Buddha by cer- tain outward signs, than to preserve the essence of his religion — that is to say, the exact tradition of his life, his personality, and his teaching.
A Miraculous Child.
According to the Japanese legend, Buddha came into the world in a miraculous manner. Immediately on his birth he stood upright in the middle of the chamber, made seven steps in the direction of each of the four cardinal points, and, pointing with his right hand towards heaven and his left hand towards the ground, he said, "Above me on high, and below and around me, there is nothing which can compare with me, and no other being more worthy of veneration."
In this way is the infant Buddha repre- sented, and when his birthday is celebrated on the eighth day of the fourth month, the people go to his temple and bathe the statue in a decoction of aromatic herbs, which the bonzes have prepared, and placed at the feet of the image in a sort of holy-water font. The statue then receives the adoration of the faithful, and the more devout .sprinkle them- selves with this decoction and drink it. I'rom the ninth to the fifteenth day of the second month the remembrance of the meditations of Sakyamouni in the solitude of the forests is celebrated.
This is a week of retreat and of preaching, during which the bonzes teach the people that the awakening of supreme conscious- ness in the soul of Buddha was in correla- tion with the apparition of a brilliant star ; that the sage, having attained to the full pos-
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session of light, proclaimed during thirty- this occasion tiic cclcbr.ilcd picture of
seven days the first book of his Law ; Nehanzao, painted b)- Toodcnzoii is dis-
during twelve years the second ; during played in the Temple of Toofoukzi at Kioto,
thirty years the third; during eight years j In the centre of this great paindng
the fourth, and during one day and one night Buddha is represented, extended under saras
the last, which treats of the Nirwana, or j trees, jilimgcd in the repose of eternal noth-
final annihilation. They aiid, that during j ingncss. The solemn calm of his face re- forty-nine years of his ministry he turned the wheel of the law three hundred and sixty
veals that the emancipation of his intelli- gence is consummated ; that the sage has
JAPANESE I'E.STIVAI. STREET PROCESSION.
times, an image which signifies the complete exposition of his doctrines.
The seventh and last day of the festival is consecrated to the commemoration of the death of Buddha. In each of the places of worship dedicated to him a cenotaph is erected, and the faithful go from Temple to Temple, vicing with each other in their zeal for the ornamentation of the holy tomb. On
irrevocably entered into the Nirwana. His disciples stand around him, contemplating him with mingled expressions of regret and admiration. The poor and oppressed, the pariahs, weep for the charitable friend who has fed them by his alms, who has begged for them ; for the consoler, whose compassionate words open a pro.=pect of de- live»ance to their souls.
SHINTOISM AND BUDDHISM IX JAPAN.
407
The entire creation is moved at beholding j man ca;i escape fri)in the circle of perpetual
him, who constantly respected life under i re-births, by which he can definitely withdraw
every form which it wears in nature, reduced himself from the law of transmii^nition. to the condition of a corpse. The genii of I "This compound of body and of soul,
the earth, the waters, and the air approach [ which is called man, can be really delivered
him with respect, followed by the tenants of only by annihilation, because so long ;'s
their several domains; fish, birds, insects, ; there shall remain the least atom of his soul,
reptiles, quadrupeds of all sorts, even to the the soul may again be born under one of
white elephant, the supreme degree of the Brahminical metempsychosis.
A Strange Doctrine.
This composition, extravagant as it is, pro- duces nevertheless a powerful effect. It awakens I know not what mysterious sym- pathy, and it expres.ses an idea which is no stranger to Christianity ; that is to say, an idea of a certain solidarity established be- tween man and all the beings of the terres- trial creation. As for the principal subject of the picture, I believe that no decision has ever been arrived at as to the meaning to be attributed to it. Does it represent the Nir- wana, the supreme end of all Buddhist aspi- rations, as the absorption of the soul of the just into the divine essence of the Universal .Spirit, or does it actually make it the s)Mion)'m of annihilation ? The doctrine of Buddha is very obscure on this point.
Nevertheless, the best authority pro- nounces in favor of the latter alternative, as follows :
"The Buddhist takes an incontestable fact j destroying, in their last germ, the elements as the point of departure of his doctrine; it j of a new birth. Finally, he finds in this is the existence of human suffering in some ! negative victory, in his final annihilation, the form in all social conditions. Seeking out i means by which he renders himself superior the causes of this pain, he attributes it to to the gods. This is because the gotls
those innumerable appearances assumed b}- existence, and its pretended liberation would be only an illusion like the others. The only asylum and the only reality is nothing- ness, because from that one does not return."
I If the opinion which I have just quoted really express the thoughts of the Hindoo
I reformer, we must acknowledge that the Buddhist Nirwana surpasses in tragical horror every imagination of the ancients concerning the mystery of human destiny. This conception is the last wortl of despair and the highest exaltation of the Will. In proposing to abolish pain by the suppression of existence, Buddha plainly takes up the groiMid of atheism, because that entl cannot be attained by anything short of the abstrac-
i tion of the idea of the Su|)reine Being.
The Angel of Death.
At the same time that l?uddha welcomes
death as the angel of deliverance, he casts at
him a sovereign defiance, and places himself
for e\'er out of the reach of his power b\'
passions, to desire, to faults, to ignorance, even to existence itself. This being so, pain can have no other term than the cessation of existence. But in order that this end should be real, it must be Nothingness, or the Nir- wana. There is no other means by which
remain subject to the law of transmigration. It is difficult to realize that more than one- third of the entire human race has no other creed than that of Buddhism, that worship without God, that religion of Nothingness invented by despair. We would endeavor to
j: ,'' .' 1
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JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
persuade ourselves that the multitudes under tliis rule do not understand the doctrine which they profess, or that they refuse to admit its consequences. The idolatrous piactices which have grown out of the teach- ing of the book of the Good Law, would seem, indeed, to testify that that book could neither satisfy nor sentiments innate in among all peoples.
smother the religious man, and ever living
Life Considered Only a Dream.
On the other hand, we must not under- rate the influence of the philosophy of final annihilation in a great number of traits of Japanese manners. Children arc taught in the schools that life has no more consistency than a dream, and that no trace of it remains. When the Japanese has reached a mature age he will sacrifice his life, or that of his neighbor, with the most disdainful indiffer- ence, to the satisfaction of his pride, or to some trifling resentment. Murders and sui- cides are so frequent in Japan that there are few gentlemen who do not possess, and make it a point of honor to exhibit, at least one sword belonging to the family that has been steeped in blood.
Buddhism is, nevertheless, superior in many respects to the religion which it has displaced. Its relative superiority is shown in the justness of its point of departure, which is the acknowledgment of a need of deliver- ance, based upon the double fact of the existence of evil in man, as well as the universal condition of misery and suffering in the world.
The promise of the worship of the Kamis has reference to the present life. The rules of the purification were to preserve the faith- ful from five great evils — the fire of heaven, sickness, poverty, exile, and premature death. TliJ pomps of its religious festivals hatl for
their .sole aim tiie glorification of the heroes of the luiipire. But though patriotism may be idealized to the e.xtcnt of becoming the national worship, it is no less true that this natural .sentiment, precious and praiseworthy in itself, cannot suffice to fill up the mind and satisfy all its needs.
The human soul is greater than the world. It requires a religion which detaches it from the earth. Bud.-^hism, in a certain sen.se, re- sponds to aspirations of this kind previously misunderstood.
This circumstance in itself explains the success with which it is propagated in Japan and elsewhere, by the arms of persuasion alone; still, ne\'crtheless, we may believe that it is not in tiiis abstract and philosophi- cal form that it has become so popular, and nothing proves that more forcibly than its actual condition.
Curious Old Legend.
Japan, like India, has produced ascetics, mortified by abstinence and plunged in ab- straction, but their number is very small, and the most illustrious among them was a Hin- doo by origin. He is Buddhi-Dharma, the founder of the Sen-sjou sect. Me came to Japan iii A. D. ,613. The legend represents him as traversing the straits of Corea, stand- ing upon one of the large leaves of the tree called "aschi," or upon a simple reed. He had prepared himself for his mission by a re- treat of nine consecutive years in the Corean temple of Schao-lin, which he passed in .squat ting upon a mat with his face invariably turned to the side of the wall.
Buddha had recommended to his disciples the exercise of the Dhyana — that is to say. Contemplation. The bonzes, desiring to systematize this exercise, made of the Dhyana a sort of mystic ladder of two stages, each divided into four steps. In
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■order to climb iho first ladder, the ascetic must be detached from ever)' otiier desire than that of the Nirwana. In tliis state of soul he still judges and reasons; but he is sheltered from the seductions of evil, and the feeling that this first step opens to him the perspective of the Nirwana, places him in an ecstatic disposition which soon permits him to attain to the second de^jree.
At the second step the purity of the ascetic remains the same; but in addition to this purity he has laid aside judj^ment and reason- ing, so that his intelligence, which no longer tliinks of things, but fixes itself wholly upon the Nirwana, experiences only the pleasure of interior satisfaction, without judging it or even undestanding it.
A Progressive State.
At the third degree, the pleasure of interior satisfaction has disappeared; the sage has fallen into indifference with respect even to the happiness which he just now experienced through his intelligence. All the pleasure which remains to him is a vague sentiment ■of physical well-being diffused through his body. He has, however, not lost his memory of the conditions through which he has passed, and still retains a confused consciousness of himself, notwithstanding the almost absolute detachment which he has reached.
Finally, at the fourth degree, the ascetic no longer posseses this sentiment of physical well-being, all obscure as it is ; he has lost all memory. More than this, he has even lost the feeling of indifference, and, henceforth free from all pleasure and all grief, whatever may be their object, whether within or with- out, he has reached impassibility — he is as near to the Nirwana as he can be during this life.
Then it is that the ascetic is permitted to .approach the second stage of the Dhyana,
the four superposed regions of the world without forms. He first enters into the region of the infuiite in space. From this he climbs a new ste;), into the region of the infinite of intelligence. Having attained to this height, he enters upon a third region, that in which nothing exists. Hut, as in this vacuum and in this d.irkness an idea might remain, to represent to the ascetic the nothing- ness into which he is plunging, he requires a last and supreme effort to enter the fourti'. region of the world without forms, where there are no longer ideas, or even an idea of the absence of ideas.
Hiding Works and Showing Sins.
Such are the mystic exercises of Buddhist contemplation, of which the Buddhi-Dharma was the promoter in Japan. The other apostles, his successors, walk in the foot- steps of Buddha in the same manner — that is to say, by substituting, each after his fashion, exterior practices for the spontaneity of piety and the activity of intelligence. The master said to his disciples, "Go, all men ot piety, hide your good works and show your sins."
So the bonzes instituted processions of penitents. Gentleness was one of the prin- cipal traits of Sakyamouni's character. His compassion extended itself to ail created beings. When his doctrine spread amongst the Japanese, the latter had already made it a law that the flesh of no domestic animal should be eaten. This custom had, among other economical effects, the advantage: of preventing a rise in the price of the buffalo, which in the rice country is absolutely indis- pensable to the poorest cultivators.
Certain other Buddhist sects went so far as to proscribe every other nourishment than the vegetable. Sakyamouni recommended abstinence, not only from lying and evil-
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speaking, but also from cvciy idle word. ! Silence took its place amun^' other monastic vows. In the same way aijiicgation, purity of morals, patience, and perseverance, were erected into ordinances, reylllatin{,^ in the mo.st minute detail, the costume, food, and employment of the hours of the tiay and the night.
Because Buddha had shown himself inde-
lil". J.\rANi:SK.
the doctrine (>{ the Hindoo reformer, the latter virtue, in the opinion of the bonzes, dispensed with all other virtues. " With the exception of one sect," writes a Japanese author, "our bonzes tend to maintain the people, and above all, the peasants, in pro- found ignorance. They say that bliml faith is sufficient to lead to perfection."
Tlie High priest Fouda'isi, who came from
STATUES I-ROM THE TEMPLE OF 'IIIE FIVE IIUNDRF"
\ II
fatigable in soliciting the commiseration of the rich on behalf of all who were unfortu- nate, fraternities of mendicant monks were organized. Because he had declared him- self equally well-disposed towards men who were despised by society as towards those who were respected, and that he would ex- pound his law to the ignorant as well as the wi'^e, ignorance was made a cardinal virtue. While knowledge was allied with this faith in
China with his two si ousji" Fou >i,
invented a mechanical _ ocess for iic purjjo.se of relieving the bonzes from tui mg the wheel of the law. Then he construcli d the Rinzoo a sort of moveable chorister's desk turning upon a pivot, and spread out upon it the rolls of the sacred books. His adepts received from him, according to the degree of their devotion, authority to make a quarter of a turn, a half turn, or three-quarters of a
SHINTOISM AND BUDDHISM IN JAl'.W.
411
nun of tliu Rinzoo; tluy very rarely oh- t.iiiiLiI the favor of an entire turn, because tliat was an act as meritorious as if all the books of the law had been recited from end to end.
The bonzes Sinran, Nitzitcn, and thirty others, became famous as the founders of sects, in wiiich each was distinguished by some peculiarity more or less worthy to rival the ingenious invention of I'ouda'isi. Thus the monopoly of the great family rosary is conferred upon a certain confraternity. We must bear in mind that tlie Huddhist rosary has no virtue unless it be correctly told.
Correcting Errors.
Now there is no guarantee that, in a numerous family, some errors may not occur in the use of the rosarj- ; hence it is some- times reproachcti with uselessness. Instead of recriminating in the case, true wisdom consists in sending for a bonze of the great rosary to come to the house to put things in good order. Me comes there with his bead chaplct, which is sometiiing like a good- sized boa, and places it in the hands of the entire family, who are ranged in a circle, while he stands before the altar of the domes- tic idol, and directs the operations by means of a bell and a little hammer.
At a given signal the father, the mother, and the children, shout out their daily prayers at the top of their \oiccs. The small beads, the large beads, and the blows of the hanmier succeed each other with cadenced regularity. The exercise of the rosary becomes animated, the cries become passionate, hands and arms obey with the precision of a machine, till the body is worn out with fatigue. Finally, the termination of the ceremony leaves the whole family out of breath, exhausLed, but radiant with hippiness, because their intercessory LTods are now satisfied.
Huddhism is a flexible, insinuating and C(jnciliatory religion, acconmiodating itself to the genius and the habits of a widely diverse people. V.wy since its commence- ment in Japan, the bonzes have succeeded in getting hold of the little chapels ot the Kamis, and placing them within the precincts of their sanctuaries. They have addeil to their ceremonies several symbols borrowed from the ancient national worship ; and, in order to mi.x up the two religions more effec- tually, they have introduced into their temples the Kamis, to whom they give the title and attributes of the Hindoo divinities, and Hindoo divinities tnuisforiued into the Japanese Kamis. There was nothing inad- missible in such exc'ianges, which naturally explain themselves by the dogma of trans- migration. Thanks to the combination of the two worships, to which they have given the name of Riobo-Shinto, Buddhism has become the ruling religion of Ja[)an.
Colossal Temples.
When we look at it superPcially, it seems to do nothing more than add its sanction to the veneration of new olijects of worship in aildition to those already received by the masses. At first it was the great Indian Buddha to whom the.se colossal statues, of which the Da'iboudhs or temples of Kama- koura offer the finest tj'pe, were erected. The Japanese idea of a s'..preme Divinity was afterwards personified in t'" j fantastic image of Amida, represented under nine different forms symbolical of its incarnations and es- sential perfections, one of which is expressed by the emblem of a dog's head.
Buddhism has an image, the Queen of Heaven ; the guardians of heaven, of whom some are also the guardians of the temples, the Kings of Earth and the Kings of Hell, beneficent genii, avenging genii ; it has-
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412
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
: !
placed beside the ancient Japanese Divinity of the Sun, the gods of the moon, the planets, the signs of the Zodiac, the genii of the Rain, Wind and Thunder.
Finally, it has assigned celestial patrons to all classes and all social professions. Among this niultitude of images, grave and fan- tastic, it is not always easy to discern those which properly belong to Buddhism. Sev- eral were, no doubt, popular in Japan before its importation. Perhaps we ought to place in this category the god of the thunder, Raiden, and the gods of the winds, Futen. — Ra'iden, the god of thunder and lightning, is infinitely less majestic than the Olympian Jove. It is a grotesque demon, which beats ha'if-a-dozen cymbals, ranged in a circle round its head.
Adorned With Pictures and Statues.
In the mo.st zealous days of Buddhism, the seventh and eighth centuries, the bonzes themselves lent a hand in the building of the temples and adorning them with pictures and statues. But, though the native arts, especially sculpture and architecture, maybe indebted to .iiem for some portion of their progress, little good can be said of thebonzes or their literary productions. Let us try to imagine what the monastic lucubrations must be! They consist of thousands of volumes upon the Good Law, upon the twent}'-eight subdivisions of contemplation, upon the glories of Buddha, and the miracu- lous lives of the innumerable ascetics, saints and n;.ii tyrs of his religion. The true merit of such a literature is that it is absolutely il- legible outside that separate world composed by the inhabitants of the bonze-houses and the regular frequenters of those establish- ments.
Over one hundred bonze-houses, each rompofjed of a more or less considerable
number of buildings, such as monasteries, temples, pagodas, chapels, tea-houses and shops, form the central division of the quar- ter of Asaksa-Imato. The greatest and most famous is that of Quannon, a Budd- hist divinity, to whom is attributed the magical power of intercession between heaven and earth. The celebrity of this bonze-house completely eclipses all the other holy places of the neighborhood, so that in the language of the people the word Asaksa-Tera is never used to desig- nate any other temple than that of Quannon in the quarter of Asaksa.
Guardians of Heaven.
At the southern extremity of the square, in which there is a permanent market of shrubs and flowers, stands a heavy portal adorned with colossal lanterns. Two of the guardians of heaven, wooden giants painted in vermilion, are posted on the right hand and on the left of the principal entrance, defending the passage, and levy- ing upon each pilgrim the traditional tribute of a pair of enormous straw sandals. Under their eyes, on the eve of each new year, a gratuitous distribution of paper amulets is made to the populace.
The bonzes for the nio.st part visit their clients on this day, and for a small considera- tion bring to their houses bits of the brush with which they distribute holy water. These .scraps are fastened to the lintels of the door, and are believed to preserve their house from evil .spirits. The coolies, and laborers of all kinds, flock to Asaksa to have their share in the same privilege, because there they can obtain it without expense, though not without trouble. Two bonzes, perched at the risk of their lives upon a platform composed of planks suspended by hooks half way up the high columns of the door-
SHINTOISM AND BUDDHISM IN JAPAN.
413
way, are distributing an abundant provision of blessed papers. They take iiandfuls of them at intervals, and throw them into the air.
The koskeis standing on either side, pro- vided with large palm-leaf fans, make the amulets fly about and fall upon the people like snow-flakes. Let him catch them who can. Soon the entire space presents a spec- tacle of ordinary confusion ; people pushing, elbowing, pursuing each other — some stretch- ing out their arms in order to catch the mor- sels of paper in their flight, others bending, and even rolling themselves on the ground, in order to pick them up. Nevertheless, as the most fortunate and the most skilful retire when they have obtained their share, success becomes for their rivals a mere matter of patience, and no one is compelled to return empty-handed.
Sacred Objects on Sale.
Beyond this great gateway is a long, wide, paved street, which is called Kindjousan- Asaksa-Tera. It is intersected by cross-lanes, and occupied from one end to the other by booths for the sale of sacred objects, such as rosaries, wax candles, statues, perfumed vases, and domestic altars. Above and be- yond the middle-class houses are oratories, small temples, and various curio.sities, which warmly interest the pilgrims from the town and the country. Here is a mia, or chapel, consecrated to the Kami wor-hij). There, surrounded by a bamboo railir.L;, stands the venerable tn.iik of a cedar of unknown age,
Further on, in an oratory hung with ex- votos, is a miraculous image ; beyond that comes a small aristocratic temple approached by an avenue of banners planted in the ground, each bearing the ai ms and the family names of some one of the illustrious person- ages who have honored this place by their
visits. At the eastern extremity of tiic street, a hill surmounted by a temple rises above a little lake covered with water-lilies. The tea-houses stretch out their long wooden galleries amid tlio leaves and flowers of the splendid aquatic plants. On the other side of the public road, a small bonze-house is half hidden by a cedar grove.
At length we reach the second gateway, which stands in the great square, almost sur- rounded by shops and by the booths of strolling actors. On the right, two huge sitting statues of brass, the heads crowned by the Buddhist nimbus, overlook the crowds from the height of the granite terrace. Two enormous guardians of heaven defend the .second doorway, as their colleagues defend lue first. From the galleries which surround the upper story of this building we can see the whole square, the high road, and, on the north, the first enclosure of the principal temple, which has numerous dependencies.
Thirty-six Arms and a Hundred Hands.
Under the name of Asaksa-Tera is in reality comprehended an agj^lomeratioa of from forty to fifty sacred b.iiUiings, including the sanctuary of Quannon-s:i:n.i, the chief divinity and patron of tlu place, whose power of intercession is signified by an enor- mous statue, with thirty-six arms and one hundred hands, placed at the entrance of the temple. Under its protection are grouped the chapels of Sannoo, the ruler of men ; Da'ikok, the god of riches ; Bcnten, tlie god- dess of harmony ; Hatchiman, the patron of warriors : in a word, the entire national my- thology, not excepting the worship of the fox.
This diabolical animal is worshiped, as well as his companion Inari, the patron of cereals, on the summit of a wooded hill, within the enclosure of the bonze-house.
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His little chapel, thickly hun^; with offerings, is rcnchcd by an avcniu' in which we pass innumerable toris painted vermilion. From the one to the other the distance is only that of a fox's jump, and they arc hardly as tall as a man. The road is .steep, winding, and impeded by the loots cT the pines of the sacred grove. It is impossible to climb it,
FlfiURK FROM AN ANCIF.NT CALENDAR.
except with great care and by bending the head.
In that humble attitude wc reach the esplanade of the holy place. There we must pass between two granite images represent- ing the malicious divinity in a sitting posture, his tail turned up, his muzzle in the air, but his oblique eye watching every person who .approaches the sanctuary. The faiihfid bow
JAPANESE.
respectfully, make their ablutions, cast their pieces of money into the box, and kneel in prayer on the steps of the ch.i!)el.
Among the numerous buildings placed in the enclosure of Asaksa-Tera, a pagoda of five stories .symbolizes the supremac)- of Buddhism over other religions. The central building is an enormous quadrangular edifice — the boily painted red, and the colossal roof covered with gray tiles. The base- ment only is in stone, and supports a spacious gallery raised some j-ards abo\e the ground. In the interior of the temple, the ceiling rests upon colonnades of red pillars ; the walls of the nave are adorned with pictures on a golden ground. Framed images, statuettes, offerings, lacquered boards, with inscriptions in gold letters, are to be seen on all sides — on the col- umns, and on the panels (,f the side chapels. The choir of tfie temple, dark and smoked from the vapor of the incense, does not present any remarkable pecu- liarity, except that on the high altar is the idol Quannon, s\'mbolizing the mother of Buddha, behind a trellis of wirework, wearing a nimbus and seated upon the sacred lotus. This mysterious combina- tion excites little notice from the crowds of people who pass to and fro, and keep up a perpetual tumult in the nave, w hich is not spacious, antl is separated from the choir b\' a lofty barrier of carved wood. In the choir the bonzes, laden with their heavy sacredotal vestments, officiate to ;in accompaniment of gongs and tambourines. Some of the faitliful mcreK' throw iron money wrapped in a white paper at their feet from behind the barrier; others buy the candles which the .sacristan offers them. Before and after the hours t)f worship, a large covered I>()N which, in front of the railing, communi- c.ites with the underground portion of the
SHINTOISM AND BUDDHISM IN JAPAN.
415
temple, receives the t^nfts of the visitors, which are expected to be t^a'iicrous.
The solemn entry of the High Priest into the choir makes an immediate diversion in the monotony of the service. This majestic personage wears a red cloak, with a pointed hood and a green silk stole over his white robe. He is followed by a young novice, who might be taken at fust sight for a young girl, so effeminate are his face, complexion and dress.
His head-dress is an elegent edifice of plaited hair, he wears loose white trousers, a white sash tied in wide bows, a short vest of green silk, with long hanging sleeves lined with white satin • he accompanies his master, step by step, to offer him, at the first sign he makes, a cup of tea contained in a port- able vessel, the handle of which he holds in both hands.
Buddhist Commandments.
On beholding the present ministers of the religion of Buddha, we caimot refrain from thinking rather sadly of the pious reformer whose disciples they claim to be.
The Buddhist pentalogue is conceived in these terms :
1 . Thou shalt not kill.
2. Thou shalt not steal.
3. Thou shalt not commit fornication.
4. Thou shalt not lie.
5. Thou shalt abstain from ail intoxicat- ing liquor.
What has become of the ascetic purity of the " Good Law " in the hands of men who are plunged, for the most part, in the lowest degradation ? What ironical destiny pur- sues the precepts of the great Sakya-Mouni in the midst of this temple, where art glori- fies the corruption of morals, where incense burns before an idol who gives indulgences for every crime, where the industry of the
monks is exercised in making monc\' of the vices, as well as of the sanguinary passions, of the nobility, in imposing upon the credul- ity of tlie people and fostering their pro- fligacy ?
The bonze-house of Asaksa is distin- guished for the luxury and variety of the costumes of its priest, and for its immense personal staff; also for the theatrical pomp of its ceremonies. The most imposing is the general procession of the Annual Dedi- cation which follows the feasts of the purifi- cation of the temple and its dependencies.
Variety of Costumes.
The superiors of the convent have the head shaved, and conform in all its details to the rule of Buddhist sacerdotalism ; but their authority extends over .several frater- nities attached to the ancient national wor- ship; and each of these wears the hair ac- cording to the ordinances of the Dai'ri to which they belong. There is no less variety in the costumes and liveries of the masters of ceremonies, heralds-of-arms, cooks, grooms, porters and valets attached to the different sects of the bonze-houses.
The grooms of Quannon-sama have the care of a cmole of Albinos horses, called "the horses of the goddess." These sacred horses are fed with consecrateil beans, and enjoy the privilege of sleeping upright, sus- tained by a sort of hammock made of strong suspending bands. At morning, the priests lead them forth before the statute of Quan- non, and ask her if she docs not wish to go out riding.
Tlie heralds-at-arms have charge of a whole arsenal of casques and steel armor, and figure in the fetes and in the processions. The bonzes often give .spectacles in which artists play their parts either as dancers or as comedians. On these occasions there may
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416
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
be seen, on the fifteenth day of the sixth month, a very curious piece — a sword-dance, CT great military pantomime exclusively exe- cuted by the priests.
But the triumph of Asaksa-Tera is its Kermesse at the end of the year. Although there is a permanent fair which is frequented by crowds every day, and is the habitual resort or playground of its great bonze-house, it is from the eighteenth to the last day of the twelfth month that the sacred residence of Quannon-sama displays all its prestige and becomes the centre of circulation, not only for several hundreds of thousands, but for three or four millions of inhabitants of the city and surrounding provinces. The entire precinct is invaded by the multLude, whose waves form regular currents which pass backward and forward under the skilful and silent direction of the police.
Such perfect order in the midst of such a multitude is only possible in a city like Tokio, where not only there are no vehicles, but where one word from a magistrate suf- fices to prohibit the use of horses and palanquins for a fortnight throughout the vast space. Thus there is no crush at any point. Cords made of straw limit the space reserved to each industry. At certain speci- fied points there are resting places, and the exits and entrances are skilfully arranged. No fixed hour is named for closinfj ; the tide of humanity rises all day, attain.- Is height at sunset, and ebbs rapidly from midnight until dawn.
Buddhism has borrowed in more than one- instance from the national worship of the Kamis. It places the mirror of Izanami on its altars, and sometimes, on the threshold of its bonze-houses right and left ot the doorway, we find the mythological dog, carved in granite and mounted on a pedestal ornamented with Chinese characters. A proof that the above-mentioned objects were introduced late into Kami worship is fur- nished by the remarkable circumstance that that religion had originally no priesthood.
The mias were, in the beginning, no more than commemorative chapels erected in honor of the national heroes, like Tell's Chapel on the shore of the Lake of the Four Cantons. The lord of the favored country which boasted such a monument watched over its preservation ; but no priest: served at the altar of the Kami, no privi- leged caste interposed itself between the worshipper and the object of his pious homage. Besides, the act of adoration ac- complished before the mirror of Izanami did not stop at the Kami of the commemorative chapel, but went up to the gods of whom the Kami was the instrument. Thus the chapel was open to everybody, given up' freely to the use of the worshippers, and the worship was devoid of all ceremonial. This state of things is no longer main- tained in its integrity. Very slowly do any changes come in the old stereotyped countries of the Orient, yet time brings- them.
CHAPTER XXV. AMUSEMENTS OF THE JAPANESE.
EACH of the bonze-houses in the city of Tokio has its Matsouri, or an- nual popular fete; but among them there are several which cele- brate this festival only once in two years. The solemnities are generally interesting only to the quarter, the street, or the small group of faithful who contribute to the main- tenance of the bonze-house. To this rule there are, however, remarkable exceptions. Certain matsouris are in favor with one entire section of the city, such as Hondjo ; and others seem to enjoy an unlimited popularity with the whole of Tokio.
These matsouris, as we may easily con- ceive, are far from having preserved the patriotic elevation and the noble simplicity which distinguished them in the splendid days of the national Kami worship. The mythical sense of the solemnity is lost, its moral signification has fallen into oblivion. The fairs and rejoicings which in earlier times were only the accessories of the festival have now become its principal object, or rather its only interest. Thus in Europe we sec how the religious festivals of the Middle Ages have disappeared, leaving behind their kermesse, or popular fair, which was devel- oped year after year under their protection. So at Tokio certain feasts recall the names of the ancient national divinities ; the goddess of the sun ; the god of the moon ; the god of water ; the patron of rice ; the god of the sea ; the god of war, whose anniversary is celebrated on the first day of the Hare, which signifies the second month, corresponding to 27
our March, But the chief characteristic of these solemnities is the theatrical pomp dis- played in them, in the processions and the choirs of music — the dances and the panto- mimes of the priests on the one hand, and the masquerades and scenic representations in the open air on the other.
In addition to these attractions, there are illuminations, public games, archery, horse- racing, wrestling, public lotteries, and every- where a market of fruit and fish according to the season; pastry, sweetmeats, flowers, arti- cles in common use — such as fans, umbrellas, paper lanterns, and children's toys.
Popular Festivals.
The subject of the matsouris in a city like Tokio, where the temples are counted by hundreds, is one which it is impossible to treat in minute detail. We can only give a few rapid sketches of those festivals which e.Kcite general attention, and attract the entire population of the city to their scenes.
On the fifth day of the fifth month (June and July) the crowd repairs in the early morning to the woods of the suburb of Foutchiou, to gather herbs whose virtue is held to be sovereign in cases of contagious maladies. An improvised fair on the border of the forest enables the pilgrims to provide themselves with everything which they will require during the day. In the evening the priests in the neighborhood proceed to the annual purification of the holy place. While the temple is being cleaned, a solemn pro- cession marches through tiie woods during
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JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
the greater part of the night, carrying relics ' ately after the band, march the horses of the
belonging to the sanctuary.
Piles of resinous wood are prepared in the court of the sacred enclosure, at the foot of the tori in the avenue, and at the openings of the forest paths at their diverging points, and all along the road which the cortege is to take. At a given signal, all these are lighted at once, and the procession sets out.
Kami, led by the bridle by grooms attired in an antique national costume. They are fol- lowed by the High Priests and their acolytes and servants, carrying the sacred arms, trophies of the ancient heroes. Then pre- ceded by the gohei, or antique holy-water brush, come two personages, who wear masks rcprc^cntinij heads of Corean dogs.
J.\I'A.Ni:SE MUSICIANS
ha\in^ been p.DviJcd with abundant paper
lanterns of various colors, and accompanied by the music of fifes, gongs, and the big drums of the bonzcrie. From ever)- side a crowd accumulates upon the route of the procession, uttering cries, which arc echoed by thousands of .startled birds disturbed from their sleep by the .strange light and clamor.
At the head of the procession, immedi-
They are followed by the entire body of priests and their .servants, tlie eni[)loyes charged with the care of mikosis, the furni- ture and utensils of the temple and its de- pendencies. When the cortege has passed through all the exterior stations, it returns to the sacred place, and the flames arc extin- guished ; the crowd di.sperses to the restau- rants in the fair and on the road side, dark- ness and silence take possession of the forest.
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AMUSEMENTS OF THE JAPANESE.
419
On the twenty-fourth day of the eighth month (September or October), the fraternity of the temple of the Temmango, in Hondjo, which is purified on the twenty-fifth day of the second month, exhibits the image of its god, which is drawn through the principal streets of Tokio on a buffalo cart. The chief officers of the families who patronize this bonze house, and the priests who serve in the temple, precede and follow the car, ac- companied by coolies carrying coffers and baskets, which contain the utensils and sacred objects belonging to the temple
The Toheisan celebrates its annual pro- cession on the second day of the tenth month (December and January). The bonzes, on their return, read aloud to the people certain passages from the holy books ; they also give them tea prepared and consecrated by them, and permit them free entrance into the gardens and the sacred wood attached to the convent. The seventh day is consecrated to pantomimes, with subjects taken from the ancient history of Niphon.
An Imposing Procession.
In the great biennial procession of the temple of Kanda-Miodjin, which is placed under the invocation of Kantla the patron of Tokio, there is a whole cavalcade of his- torical personages, among whom Taikosama is especial!)' distinguished. In order to add to the effect of this procession the bonzes in- vite a certain number of courtesans, who arc carried in elegant palanquins. The car of the saint of Miodjin is drawn by two buffa- loes, and by an unlimited number of the faithful, voluntarily harnessed to the sacred vehicle by straw ropes.
A few feet behind it a hideous colossal head of the demon over whom the saint tri- umphed is carried on a platform. The peo- ple contemplate with horror the gigantic
horns and erect crest of this monster ; they point out to one another its bloody eyes, its scarlet skin and horrible jaws. To add to the effect of this spectacle, the bonzes blow through their conch shells, producing a ter- rible noise. A little further on an enormous axe, with which the victorious hero cut off the monster's head, is exhibited.
But all the united wonders of the proces- sion of Miodjin fade before the splendor of the festival given annually by the priests of the temple of Sannoo, which is sacred to the memory of Zinmou, the founder of the Em- pire of the great Niphon, or Japan. This is the most imposing of the matsouris of Tokio. It takes place on the fifteenth day of the six month.
The Celestial Herald.
Tcngou, the faithful porter and messenger of the gods, heads the procession, adorned in his brilliant costume as the celestial herald. He half unfolds a pair of iris colored wings. His smiling air, his cunning eyes, his crimson color, his nose of preposterous length, e.xcite merriment in the people, and secure the warmest welcome for the cortege. When the evil spirits find the image of Tengou at the door of the temples of the national religion, they hasten on. The procession has therefore nothing to dread from them.
The municipal police is charged with the maintenance of public order. More than a million of spectators preserve perfect disci- pline during the whole of this great day. In all the streets and all the squares through which the procession is to pass, platforms are erected for the women, old men and children. Places are reserved for those who choose to pay for them ; free space is assigned to the workmen, but everybod}- is bound to remain quietly in his place during the entire festival. Only the sellers of fruit, cakes, and saki, have
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permission to go beyond the boundary-rope which separates the crowd from the road kept for the procession.
The procession of Sannoo is a kind of national encyclopedia in action, in which we find all sorts of historical lessons, mythologi- cal symbols, traditions, aiid popular actions mixed up together, just as we see Bacchus, Silenus, Noah's Ark, Ceres, and Pomona, introduced indiscriminately in the old /cie of the vine dressers at Vevy. When art attains this democratic breadth, criticism must merely bow and be silent. I pass on to the most picturesque details of the ceremony.
The White Elephant.
Here comes the patron of the sacred dance of the Dairi. The image, dressed in the old theatrical garments of Kioto, is raised upon a huge drum, supported by figurantes in cos- tumes of festive form and crowns of flowers. This is followed by the procession of the white elephant. The animal is made of cardboard, and its bearers are skilfully hid- den in its capacious body ; their feet arc hardly seen moving under the legs of the colossus, which is preceeded by a band of music, composed of flutes, trumpets, h\<^ drums, cymbals, gongs, and tambourines.
The men of this group wear beards, a painted hat with an aigrette, boots, a lont,^ robe with a wide girdle, and some of them carry Chinese banners covered with images of dragons. A little further on a gigantic lobster is carried by a priest of tiie Kami worship, and surrounded by a troop of negroes. Then come a hundred cultivators who are harnessed to the chariot of the buffalo ; this king of domestic animals is placed upon the vehicle under the shade of a flowering peach-tree, and is accompanied by the demi-god who introduced him into Japan. Six other chariots are laden with
picturesque trophies formed of the imple- ments and products of rice culture.
A cortege of the priests of the Kami religion generally forms a guard of honor to a carriage made in the likeness of that of the Mikado, a splendid chariot, surmounted by the sacred gong and the cock of the Dairi. Antique banners, some ornamented by sketches of horses, precede a cavalcade of superior officers costumed according to the Court fashions of Kioto. Suddenly two terrible monsters appear ; they have the face of the tiger with the horns of a bull. Their great tails are elevated high above the hel- mets of the men-at-arms who surround them. Perhaps they recall under a fantastic form the memory of those tigers who gave so much trouble to the soldiers of the heroic mother of Hatchiman in the Corean fields.
Banners and Weapons.
To this group belongs the exhibition of the antique arms of the arsenal of the Sannoo ; lances and halberds, two-handed swords, bows, arrows, war-fans and insignia of command. By degrees the exhibition loses its warlike character ; in their turn appear priests and attendants carrying the vases of the sanctuary, and all the furniture of the temple and its dependencies under banners covered with hieroglyphic signs. Another troop of attendants carry paper lanterns at the end of long poles. This very effective group terminates the procession.
Then comes seven of the handsomest wo- men in this reserved portion of the capital, majestically attired in state costume ; each is accompanied by her waiting-woman and by a koskei who carries a wide and lofty para- sol, which shades her from the rays of the sun. Her head-dress is two or three stories high, and the edifice is supported by large pins of red tortoise-shell. Her face shines
LJL
AMUSEMENTS OF THE JAPANESE.
421
with cosmetics carefully applied, thus mak- ing her a picturesque figure.
We may count the number of her robes — thanks to five or six collars which hang over her shoulders. A wide kirimon envelops her and sweeps the ground ; its folds are slightly raised by means of an enormous girdle composed of an entire piece of silk or velvet ; and some inches arc added to her already noble stature by the curious manner in which she is shod with little planks of wood.
The Lady of the War-Fan.
These seven figurantes are well known to all the people. As they pass, their names are mentioned on all sides, and, indeed, these names are embroidered on their rich costume. The first is the lady of the War- fan, which she displays upon her wide velvet .sash ; iier robe is embroidered with four cocks of various plumage, two of which are white, worked upon the ample sleeves of her kirimon : the silken feathers of their tails wave gracefully in the air with each of her movements.
The second is the lady of the Golden Fish. She wears one on each side of her robe on a background of waves and foam in silver thread. The accessory embroideries rep- resent little children playing with ribbons of all sorts of colors, who sport on her kiri- mon. Need I speak of the lady of the Death's head ; the lady of the Candelabra, the lady of the Slaves, the lady of the Chry- santhemums ? No ! For where should I stop if I were to describe in all its details the public homage paid to the courtesans by the priests and by the people of Tokio ? In the presence of such customs we can only admire the appropriateness with which the great Sannoo admits to the rank of its idols and solemnly exhibits in the streets <if the
city, a monkej', witli a red face, wearing a sacerdotal mitre, and carrying a holy-water brush.
The mocking image mounted on a drum, with the ricli drapery, is lifted high above the crowd, an ironical caricature of the re- ligious exhibition which the crowd just wit- nes.sed.
The matsouris or kermesses of the tem- ples of Japan do the government of that country a service which will be strongly appreciated in Europe, by absolving it from the charge of amusing its subjects, who sup- ply all funds needful for the puqDose out of their own pockets. There are Japanese fes- tivals which do not consist of representations and amusements given by the bonzes to the people, but of real public rejoicings, in which the people themselves are the only actors and the real heroes of the day.
Congratulations and Presents.
These are the Go-Sekis, or five great an- nual Festivals. They had originally a re- ligious stamp, which did not actually militate against the gaiety of their exterior manifesta- tions, because the moral of the Kami worship is, that a joyous heart is integrally in a state of purity.
The Seki of the first day of the first month is naturally the chief festival of the new year. It is that of visits, of congratulations and presents, the latter consisting of at least two or three fans, which the visitor brings, ac- cording to custom, in a bo.x of lacquer tied with silken cords ; but, no matter what the nature or the value of the principal gift, it is always accompanied by a screw of paper containing a dried morsel of the flesh of the shell-fish named awabi, or of the siebi, an exceedingly common fish ; and this manifes- tation is a piece of homage paid to the fru- gality of the antique national customs.
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422
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
The family receiving tlic visit gives a little collation composed of saki, rice-bread, and mandarin oranges. The lobster plays an important part in the exchange of presents.
The second of the Go-Sekis, the Feast of Dolls, takes place on the third day of the third month. I witnessed it at Nagasaki on the 20th of April, 1863. It is consecrated
JAPANESE ACROBATS.
Every house religiously preserves one until the following year, unless it should be re- quired as a remedy against certain maladies, in which case it is ground to powder and eaten.
to feminine youth. The mother of the family adorns the guest chamber with branches of the flowering peach, and there la>-s out an exhibition of the dolls which her children
AMUSEMENTS OF
received at their birth. These arc very pretty and ciey[.intly dressed, representing the Mi- kado, the Kisaki, and otlicr personages of the Imperial Court. The offering is made complete by a feast, which is prepared by the young girls who are old enough to do so, and towards evening the viands are eaten by the company.
On the fifth day of the fifth month (June) a festival of a less domestic character, called that of the Banners, is celebrated in honor of the boys. Tokio is on this day a charming spectacle, especially when contemplated from a gallery looking upon one of the wide streets of the city, which is decked out from early morning with tall bamboos surmounted with plumes, or waving horse-tails, or balls of gilded paper, and with long floating banners of painted paper, fish made of lacquer or of plaited straw, and above all, with great ban- ners stretched on reed-frames, and adorned with armorial bearings, family names, patri- otic sentences or heroic figures.
Boys in Gay Costumes.
The bonze workshops exhibit casques, sets of complete armor, and gigantic halberds of fontastic forms. Groups of boys in full dress occupy the public roads, some wearing two small swords, similar to those of the Yakou- nines, at their girdle ; others with fine paper ribbons on their shoulders carry an immense wooden sabre ornamented with various colors, and others bear small flags, which reproduce the favorite subjects of the street banners. The people of Tokio take special delight in the picturesque figure of the brave Shyoki, the hero without fear and without reproach of the first Corean war.
The crowd delights in contemplating the austere face, always immoveable in the midst of danger. The wind blows about his beard and his long hair ; over his head float the
THE JAPANP:SE. 423
two classic feathers of the old helmet of the Dairi; his calm, large, and vigilant eyvs, his right hand armed with the sword, and the firmness of his attitude make him a finished type of bravery and prudence.
When the Mongols attempted to invade the island of Kiousiou, the Shogun not only opposed them with his best troops but displayed before them a great number of banners bearing the image of Shyoki, and this spectacle alone petrified them with terror.
Merry Singing Girls.
The fourth great annual feast, that of the seventh day of the seventh month, is know* under the name of the Feast of Lamps or Lanterns. Little girls parade the illuminated streets of the city of Tokio in great numbers, singing w^ith all their heart, and swinging paper lanterns. In certain cities of the south the population visit the hill cemeteries and pass the night amid the tombs.
The thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth are the days on which every one goes to the temples to pray for the dead and to burn candles for them ; the fifteenth being tiie day fixed for the regulation of accounts for the first half of the year. The public rejoicings which succeed the fulfilment of this trouble- some duty arc particularly varied and bril- liant. Masquerades, accompanied by national dances, take a high place among the popu- lar pleasures. All the masks have their sig- nification and traditional character.
There are the noble types ; fiist the placid faces of the gentlemen and ladies of the Dairi ; then the fierce physiognomies of the heroes of the civil wars. There are also masks with moveable jaws, in imitation of those worn by the Mikado's actors. Others represent the grotesque and divine Tengou, the good Okanie, the j oiliest of the Japa-
rj\
m.
424
JAPAN AND THK JAPANIvSI-.
nesc women mentioned in history, or the im- h ippy I liyotoko, the ideal of ujjlincss. These masks reproduce all the varieties of the race of demons — those with one eye, with two eyes, with three and four eyes, with horns and without horns, with two or even three horns, from the sprites to the giants, and even to the odious Ilangj^ia, the feminine devil.
The Famous Man-Frog.
The final category includes masks made in the likeness of Kistnc the fox, and Sarou the monkey, or the lion of Corea, or of Kappa, the man-frog who haunts the shores of Nip- hon. The dances are of every conceivable description ; the rice-dance alone numbers thirty figures, executed by men whose entire clothing consists of a girdle of rice-straw, a round hat of the same material brought down over their eyes, and a small cloak with large sleeves imitating the wings of noc- turnal moths.
The fifth of the Go-Sekis falls on the ninth day of the ninth month. This is the Feast of Chrysanthemums. In all family repasts leaves of these beautiful flowers are scat- tered on cups of tea or the bowls of saki. Libations prepared in this fashion are sup- posed to prolong life. The citizen of Tokio would believe that he had failed in his duty as a husband and father if he drank only moderately of this precious specific.
Among the festivals of the fourth month, the eighth day is sacred to the baptism of Buddha as he is represented at his birth, standing, pointing one hand to heaven and the other hand to the earth. Not only do his devotees bathe with consecrated tea the bronze image of the holy child in the places which serve for fonts in the Buddhist temples, but the attendants of the bonze-houses go through the streets carrying his statuette fixed in the centre of a tub, so that the same
ceremony may take place in private houses; such .solicitude brings them in a considerable reward.
On the twenty-eighth day the [)coplc are invited to plunge themselves in the contem- plation of Fousi-mi, and to make libations to the gods under bowers of the plant, which is very common in the public gardens.
The festivals of the sixth month are in honor of the cereal harvest — rice, millet, wheat, and paddy. The priests bless little squares of white paper fastenetl to sticks, which the cultivators buy and plant at the four corners of their fields, under the per- suasion that these rustic amulets are indis- pensable to the fruitfulncss of the soil. This season of the year is a time of rejoic- ing for the citizens of Tokio, who assemble in the shady groves on the shores of the Sumida-gawa, or in the gardens of Odji, under green arbors moistened with the foam o*" the cascades, or crowd the boats on the great river, until the last day of the month convokes them to solemn expiation and gen- eral purification.
The Water Divinity.
The god of the water, an ancient divinity of the Kami worship, is feted from one end to the other of the Empire during the whole of the seventh month, whicii represents the entire term of the rainy season. Bamboos, from whose upper branches glass bells and strips of blessed paper are suspended, are planted beside the springs, the wells and the irrigating channels ; and every morning and evening banners are waved inscribed with this sentence, " Respect and liomage to the God of the Water." In the houses of the coun- try people ofierings, consisting of rice, fish, and small money, are made on the domestic altar of the Kami.
The eighth month commences by a cere-
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SMMMS
AMUSKMKNTS OI< TUK JAPAXKSK.
425
monioiis exchange of civiltics l)ct\vi;cn clients and their patrons, employes and their cliiefs, .subalterns and their superiors. The fifteenth day is dedicated to the god of the moon. It is said to be the nidment of the year in which the orb of niyht emits its utmost bril- liancy. The rivers and canals are crowtled with gondolas, from which the citizens cnii- template the full moon. The stillness of the air and the warmth of the temperature dur- ing the evenings of the months of September and October arc favorable to these nocturnal parties of pleasure, also to those which take place in the public gardens of the ;ity and its suburbs.
Gifts of Cakes and Fish.
The tenth month is placed under tlie invocation of Yebis, who is at once the god of fishing and one of the favorite patrons of the shopkeepers, who make each other pres- ents on this occasion, among which are millet-cakes and a large red fish named Ta'i, much admired for its beauty and the delicacy of its flavor.
The ladies of Tokio are not less diligent in the performance of the duties imposed upon them by their social position. They pay each other neighborly visits, and do not neglect to burn candles before the image of Yebis for the prosperity of their husbands' commercial enterprises. Early in the morn- ing they may be seen going in groups to cer- tain bonze-houses, in whose sanctuaries there are altars privileged to receive the homage of the citizenesses. To perform this ceremony the pilgrim is attired in a head- dress, consisting of a cotton handkerchief of dazzling whiteness, artistically wound through the thick hair.
Towards the middle of the month every- one is bound to notice and to communicate to his friends the fact that the leaves of the
maple-palm are beginning to change color. At the conmiencement of the eleventh month the maple is in all the magnificence of its autumn dress. Crowds assemble in the gardens of the bonze-houses and the tea- houses. With the winter solstice come gen- eral congratulations.
This is the Festival of Matrons, No pres- sure of business, no journey to the city, no cause or pretext whatever, can on this occa- sion excuse the absence of the husbands from their homes. They come from all parts of the country, and in the evening the city is illuminated on all sides. The sounds of guitars and joj'ous voices fill the air on this universal festival.
The fifteenth da\' is called the passing of the river, by reason of a religious domestic solemnity ; it symbolizes the flight of time, and the transition to the new year.
Joyful Ceremonies.
The twelfth month is devoted to the set- tlement of affairs, the renewal of furniture, and the re-arrangement of the household; operations which involve such a succession of ceremonies, formalities, festivals, and re- joicings, that a whole volume might be written upon the four or five weeks at the end of January and the commencement of February in the cities and villages.
Although the great dramatic system of modern Japan, the Sibaia, is far from being an aristocratic institution, it is one of the most curious in the world. If it does not attain to the distinguished literary merit of the Chinese drama, or to the perfection of acting, it far exceeds both in poetic value, because it has more simplicity, nK)re passion, more individuality and a more purely human character. In China, the public look on at the piece and criticise the actors ; in Japan, the public take part in the piece in concert
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I
426
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
with the actors, exchange sentiments with them, and, in fact, are part of the spectacle. In this respect, the Sihaia reminds us of the httic day-theatres of Italy, but with all the difference which cxi.sts between an amusing and easy recreation and a great popular subject, confused, often unintelligi- ble, and whose gaiety is strange and fan- tastic. Although the Sibaia is implant* J in all the cities of Japan, it is at Tokio, and especially in the city and the northern departments, that it is most active and important. The theatres are exceedingly nurrterous, one group occupying three longi- tudinal and four cro.ss-streets.
Japanese Comedians.
The dramatic authors of Tokio write principally foi these theatres. From thence, new pieces are distributed throughout the Empire, and companies of comedians from the capital take, like the wrestlers, their holi- days in the provinces. The actors are all male. Only female dancers appear upon the boards, and then in the ballet of the Grand Opera only. Comedians form a separate class, who are regarded by the higher orders with contempt. The Sibaia is, properly speaking, the theatre of tl.c middle classes of the Japanese population. It at- tracts great nvmibers of coolies and laborers, when they can afford to go there, but all classes above the traders abstain from dram- atic representations, or, if they go, take care to sit in latticed boxes.
Among the crowds which frequent the theatrical district it is extremely rare to meet two-swordcd men, not but that the Samourais are sometimes mixed up with the people, but they take good care to disguise themselves on this and other compromising occasions. Just before sunset certain delegates from the company of actors appear on plat-
forms raised on the right and left of the doors of the theatres ; they are in ordinary dress, and harangue the multitude, explain- ing the subject of the pieces about to be performed, and the merit of the principal actors who perform in them.
After this exordium come familiar jokes, pleasant talking, the eloquence of mimicry, and the high art of managini' the fan. Pres- ently the lanterns are lit. " Come in, gen- tlemen ! come in, ladies ! " they cry ; " rake your places! now's the time! the piece is about to ! -gin." Nevertheless, nobody is in a hurry, for the spectacle in the street captivates general attention. The illumina- tions afford great pleasure to the people. The first row of red lanterns hangs all along the whole length of the roof. A little lower is a s cond range under the roof Between the t^vo hang balls of transparent paper, each containing a painted candle.
Gaudy Transparencies.
Near the doors enormous oblong lanterns light up the pictures and the inscriptions, illustrating the principal subjects and scenes of the pieces. Every theatre has its own arms aiul its own colors painted upon ban- ners and lanterns, along three sides of a sort belvedere or square tower which springs from the roof.
The buildings which adjoin those of the Sibaia are occupied by restauraiits, tind arc as gaily decorated as the exterior of the theatre, with designs and carvings wiiich Iiave some relation to tiie name of each of these establishments. One is the restaur.int of Fousi-Yama, and another of the Risiiij; SiMi ; f u'ther off we see those of the Tori, the Tai h'ish, the Merchant Junk, the Sl.irk, the Two Lovers, etc., etc. Ikit it is time to go into the theatre, and we ascend a wooden staircase leading to the scconil gallery. A
AMUSEMENTS OF Till-: JAPANESE
427
functionary opens a spacious box, and a ser- vant brings saki, tea, cakes, sweetmeats and pipes and tobacco.
The interior of the theatre forms a long square. Tiicre are two ranges of galleries, the upper containing the best places in the theatre. Numbers of ladies are to be seen there in full dress — ladies, that is to .say, covered up to their eyes in crape dresses and silk mantles. The whole of the remainder of the house is occupied exclusively by men. There is no orchestra. The floor of the house, as seen from a distance, resembles a draughtboard. It is divided into compart- ments, containing from eight to twelve places each, most of which are hired by the year by the citizens, who take their children regu- larly to the play.
Serving Refreshments.
There are no lobbies. Everyone walks to his place on the planks which enclose the compartiTients at the height of the spe '■a- tors' shoulders, who squat on their heels or crouch oil little stools. There is neither a ladder nor a staircase by which to get down into the midst of them. The men hold out their arms to the women and ciiildren. The settling of the audience in its place forms a very jjicturesque part in the preliminaries of the representation. Tobacco and refresh- ments are served duriiiL,^ the whole evening by koskeis and servants, by the same means of communication.
On two sides of the pit are two bridges of planks, wliich also coniiminicate with the boards of thi; stage ; tlie first is nearest to one of the doors ; the .second, which is four planks wide, forms an angle with the ex- tremity of the boxes. Dn this bridge certiin heroic or trai^i-coniic personages perform their parts, and the ballet is danced. Tlie house is lit by paper lanterns tied to . :e gal-
leries ; there is no chandelier from the roof, which is perfectly flat, the cupola being un- known in Japanese architecture. I have, however, seen large lanterns held up to the roof of a theatre at Yokohama in order to light up the performance of the acrobats, especially that of the flying men, who cross the theatre by means of cle\'erly contrived mechanism.
The curtain which hangs before the stage is ornamented by a gigantic inscription in Chinese characters, and surmounted by a target with an arrow in the centre. This symbolical sign is supposed to be a prog- nostic of the talent about to be displayed by the actors, and which will hit tlie bull's-eye in the hearts of their audience. The per- formance generally lasts until one o'clock in the morning. It consists of a comedy, a tragedy, an opera with a ballet, and two or three interludes of acrobats, wrestlers and jugglers.
Ominous Lightning.
The princifial parts are announced by a clicking noise, jiroduced by a small pieci; of wood against the floor of the stage. The appearance of infernal personages is always preceded by lightning. The actors worthy of particular notice are escorted by cue or two ushers, who carry a long stick, ai the end of which is a little candlestick v.'itii a liglitcd candle. The spectators have onl)' to follow the combined movement (jf the two liglits to know e.xactl)- wh.it they oii;.;ht to admire; sometimes it is the expression of the actor's face, sometimes Iiis attitude and gesture, and sometimes the details oC his costume ami head-dress.
The same custom prevails with regard to the dancers. Tiic ushers may lje seen dur- ing the ballet siiuatting upon the bridge which I have described, and profiting by the
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428
JAPAN AND THE JAPANRSK.
immediate nci<jhb()rhood oftlie spectators to i artists relate acts of ijencrosity, and record
get them to snuff the candles with their the name and address of their benefactors,
finj^ers, an office which they always perform We cannot yet form an appreciation of
with pleasure ; it would indeed be impossible ■ Japanese drama from a literary point of
to find anywliere a more gt)od-humored \ view. No piece has been translated into any
audience. j other language. Sir Rutherford Alcock
In homely comedies the spectators fre- ' gives a detailed analysis of a performance
quently interrupt the actors, and answer I which he witnessed at Osaka. In comparing
.1
A \VKi'.sri.iN(i ciKcrs.
them. Thus audience and actors contrihi'te iii\- Iiuuk; oljservations with his and those of
.ilike to the success of the evening and tln' M. Lavrle, I Iia\e come to the conclusion
.satisfaction of all concerned. The zeal and that dramatic art is still in its infancy in
contiiitment of the public are manifested b)' modern Japan. The political circumstances
their gifts, in addition to the price [Ku'd for of the countrj' render historical drama impos-
atlmission. sii)le. The nearest approach to it in the
Almost ever}- theatre tiisplays innumeral)le scraps of paper fastc". 'd to the vails by which
reportoire of the Sibaia is an incongruous mixture of history, mythology and bur-
AMUSEMENTS OF
lesquc in which disguised references are made to passing events.
Opera, less advanced even than drama, is very much inferior to tliat of the Celestial Em- pire, and imitates it only on its most fanciful side, the marvels of the Buddhist demonology. Comedy seems to me to promise well, be- cause it observes the conditions of tiie natu- ral and tlie real. It admits, no doubt, like opera, of scenes of incredible coarseness. Nevertheless, nothing appears more immoral to the Japanese than our drama. This ap- parent contradiction is easily explained. Japanese realism admits on the stage, as in romance, types and situations of which all licentious literature gives only a feeble idea.
Subjects That Are Excluded.
On the other hand, it absolutely excludes every intrigue by which the character of a married woman is compromised. Neither Pha;dra, nor Hamlet's mother, the husbands depicted by Moliere, nor Werther, nor Char- lotte, nor the infamous Madame Bovar)', could have offered the slightest attraction for the imagination of the Japanese. The green-rooms and the side-scenes of the thea- tres of the far Ivist are no less interesting to the foreign observer tli;ui the theatre, prop- erly so called, and tiie audience which crowds it.
In these places none but men are to be seen, excepting iVom time to time some ser- vants, or the artists' wi\es who bring refresh- ments to tiu'ir husbands, or come to give the last touch to their toilet before tiiey go on the stage in the costume of cither sex. In the midst of the general disorder we find some very cli.uacteristic groups. Hero are nnisicians occupied in refreshing themselves, and indifferent to everything chc until the signal to return to their posts j iiall reach them ; there two actors are rehearsing to-
THE JAPANESE. 429
gethe>- the attitude and gesture which in a few minutes are to delight the spectators ; and another, sitting on his heels before a looking-glass placed on the floor, is painting his face and adjusting his feminine head- dress.
A young devil h-.^' Ic him has thrown back his mask, with its horns and its mane, over his shoulders, and is faiming him.-iclf, while the chief of the wrestlers is tranquilly smoking his pipe in the midst of the acrobats. Among the crowd.s, carpenters are coming and going, carrying the screens and parti- tions destined for the change of scene; the machinist is working a trap thnnigh which a whirlwind of flame is about to escape; and the piece is going on outside t(.> the accom- paniment of drum beating, amid the conver- .sation of the public in the house and that of the disengaged actors.
All Sorts of Games.
In the restaurant there is ap|)areiit inex- tricable confusion. Everyone crouches on his mat, except the servants. All sorts of games are in progress, and saki is circulating freely. Sometimes a group of dancers install themselves round the domestic alt;ir imder the image of the god of contenlmeiit, and seldom fail liy their guitars and their voices to arouse the enthusiasm of some young dandy, who will forsake his party, advance towartls the pirformers, and execute under their fair eyes a \er\- elegant dance to the accompaniment < f tiie solenm motion of his fan.
The restaurant supplies all llu' deln iencies of the theatre in point of refreshment, and is frequentl)' crowded during tiie greater part of the piece, lAer\bo(l) knows all about it, and does nt)t mind saciificing a few scenes to the ])leasurcs of the table. The so-called spectators will eat and drink at the restaurant
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430
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
until the gong gives the signal for the great interlude of the jugglers. Then the restau- rant changes its aspect con.plete'y ; every- one hastens to his place in the theatre.
The Japanese are fond of physical con- tests, such as wrestling. The wrestling takes place in a sort of huge circus con- structed of bamboo framework, covered with matting, to keep out the gaze of the people who will not pay to go in. There is no roof, but the whole amphitheatre is covered with a kind of network of rice straw matting. Many Japanese entertainments, whether theatrical or otherwise, begin in the early morning and go on till eight or nine o'clock in the evening.
A Wrestling Match.
In giving a description of a wrestling match, a traveller says : The whole amphi- theatre is surrounded with these boxes, in tiers. They are only scaffolding, and cannot be reached except by ladders placed against the front of them. A few had a Red Indian's blanket thrown over the front, pr(5bably because the owner had brought it in his riksha and was afraid of its being stolen.
The price for one of these boxes is three dollars, and the Japanese generally squeeze about twenty people into them, though they would only hold four or five ICuropeans. Undcrncatli thebo.xes ran a sort of gangway, aiul tlie rest of the floor was taken up with a seething mass of humanity, sitting on their hams.
We arrived about two o'clock, when every- thing was in full swing, and passed through a sort of temple-yard, containing a few priests' tombs and or:mge and tea .stalls. There seemed no outv\'ard or visible way into wrestling, though elevated on .i platform sat some old men <•■( the large, fat brand they use in Japanese wrestling, reminding one of
the troupe • vho stand on the little gallery out- side boxing booths at country fairs in the old country — two or three boxers, the man with the hoarse voice, and the fat woman. While we were staring despondently at them we were overtaken by a man, who considers that he can speak En^'iisli on the strength of knowing " more ten sen."
We asked him to take a private box for us. He .said, " No bo.x ; pay ten sen." So we paid for three, generously deciding to frank him to the entertainment for his lin- guistic exploits. The tickets we received were of wood, ten inches long, by an inch an a half wide, and half an inch thick ; and then we dived through a door under the stage, about three feet high, and found ourselves confronted by plenty of unpleasant sights, but, to all appearances, absolutely no room. The boxes were not only all taken but crammed.
A Repulsive Crowd.
As for the pit, it was a herring shoal of coolies, into which one could not even see. Our guide was desperate ; h"^ flew to one pew opener after another to ask c bout a box, or even standing room, and finally !.jckoned us forward.
A passage was drilled through the slioal, and we were shot through it into the middle, and yelled at by the people behind us until we .squatted on our hams (for which my figure is unsuitable). Horrible, dirty, smell- ing people were all around us ; and the Ja])anesi. arcri.,'Uted to lie ilcjjlorably care- less about the minor infectious diseases, measles, mumps, and other childish maladies which it is ridiculous for adults to have.
However, we could see the show, and a very poor show it seemcil to be — two nearly naked Japs, crouching like cats to watch each other ; making a cat-like spring at each
AMUSEMENTS OF THE JAPANESE.
431
otl'Or ; meeting in mid-air, too alert to be caught by each other ; coming down again ; drinking a dram of water and putting it out again on a piece of paper, with which they proceeded to wash the sweat away from their armpits ; walking round a little, and then doing the cat business again.
Several times we were on the point of go- ing out, but our nerves were screwed up to the sticking-point by the arrival of two Americans — the Professor of Literature and Rhetoric at the new University here, and his v.ife. They were anxious to see the wrest- ling, and offered to share the expense of a box if one was procurable. One wasn't, and we moved on till we found ourselves oppo- site a part of the pit which seemed less crushed than the rest.
One of the Giants.
Within the enclosure stood a huge wrestler probably one of the defeated competitors in the earlier rounds. He was a good-humored- looking sort of a giant, and melted beneath the smile of woman. English grace in very smart European garments smiled upon him, and the giant cleared a space and snubbed the doorkeeper. We entered, and craned our necks. Presently an attendant brought a bench, and invited us to stand on it; but as soon as we were comfortly settled, and seeing things nicely, and therefore presuma- bly loath to leave, he demanded an extra fee for the use of the bench.
Japanese wrestling is conducted in a 12- foot ring, sanded, and on an elevated stage under a canon\', reminding one strikingly of the fountain canopies in the courts of temples, supported by four plain posts and with an overhanging roof but no walls. The posts are decked with parti-colored cloths, and immediately below the roof haii^^ blue tabs and a white silk festoon, ornamented
with a gold sun and stars and decidedly Japanese in appearance.
The umpire on this occasion wore a hand- some gray silk costume, with the great shoulder flaps which represented full dress in feudal time, projecting about a foot over each shoulder, and ornamented on collar, breast, and cuffs with his crest. He carried a peculiar lacquered fan, shaped like a blunt- edged double hatchet, and ornamented with a scarlet silk tassel suspended by a cord a yard long.
The Contestants Appear.
Holding this horizontally he gave out something in a loud voice, and two wrest- lers ascended the platform — stark naked, ex- cept for the double silk cross straps round their waist and between their legs, and with their hair combed in a peculiar fashion, very like the snood once worn by little girls in England, on the top of their heads. The ring had just been swept, and its heroes fig- ured about in the sand with their bare feet, after slapping their thighs and cocking up first one and then the other of their mighty legs — this being, perhaps, a recognized form of salutation to the audience, perhaps a muscle stretcher. Then they carefully wiped themselves, and commenced the crouching down like cats, watching each other for the spring.
Let us pause to look at them. These wrestlers are gigantic, tall fellows, some of them six feet high and more; vast of shoulder and arm and thigh and calf; ami mountains of nmscic, and some of tlic?n also mountains of fat. Whether shaved or natural, they have no hair on their b(idies except under the armprts ; and far from hav- ing faces of the brutal tj-pe usual among prize fighter'^, they h;i\e most of them good humored, .uid some of them (jiiite dignified,
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faces. They arc not very like tlie cirdinary had the better position if he could only la.st;
Japs, but I could not discover that they and he did last, and win, though both fell,
came from any particular locality. and his only advantage consisted in his fall-
Thc modus operandi is this : the opponents ing less on his back than his adversary. In
crouch down like wild beasts till they sec another instance, both fell on their backs,
an opportunity to spring, and both of course but one on the top of the other,
.spring at the same time, one to attack and The audience were enormously excited, the other to meet the attack. It is a case of
feint and parry. If the attack is parried they go to the side of the stage, take a sip of water to wash out their mouths and keep them fresh for a prolonged struggle when the grip is actually made.
Hurled From the Ring.
One wrestle was terminated by the cham- pion wrestler, an enormously fat and heavy man, being hurled clean off the ring by a slimmer but wirier antagonist. At the edge of the stage he was caught by an attendant, placed there for the purpose, who must now have an adequate conception of a thunder- bolt.
Ar her was lerminatctl by a wrestler 'leiiig >.t >ppc(l by the attendant in front of one ot lie pillars from hi'iii;.;^ hurled back wards uito it. This counted a fall, and cer- tainly would have been a \ery dangerous one, that probably would have crushed the skull. A third was terminated by one of the wrestlers, a man who weighed a good part of three hundred pounds, being caught round the waist and thrown a foot or two up in the air.
Sometimes the men gripped at arms' length, and the bout w ould then be a very long one. In one instance, there were two men thus gripped, nne with his head under the other's breast bune. It was hard for his opponent to keep his feet; but, on the other
and when a favorite won, ' is admirers' hats were showered upon him like bouquets at the opera. These were carefully picked up, and kept till the owners should come to re- deem them ; for a man flings his hat to show that he intends to make a present.
They watched every little point, and waxed almost as enthusiastic over a success- ful party and an artful feint as over a fall. The place was crammed from floor to ceil- ing, and mostly with a not very respectable- looking crowd ; but there w as no brutality or rowdiness or roughness ; and strangers, far from being unsafe, were treated with special kindness.
A Perpetual Chow, Chow.
One of the wrestlers presented the Pro- fe- or with his programme, and he was immensely pleased with my kodak camera, which he called " shashin," and showed it to all his comrades who came near, vhenever lie was not drinking saki or eating some strange compound.
What people the Japs are, to eat at enter- tainments ! It was one perpetual chow, chow ; a never-endii)^^ stream of hucksters, with steaming tea-pots, tea-cups, oranges, sweet- meats, villainous smelling niercato-vecchio- like pastry, hot saki and what not. The vendors climbed round the top tier of bo.xes •ilong the coping, on which many of the occupants deposited their boots. For the
hand, tue strain on the neck muscles was Japanese cannot get over the trick of taking terrific, antl so was the strain on his wind, off his boots when he enters a place, and if with his chin crushed into his chest. He , he is wearing sandals, or clogs, of course he
AMUSEMENTS OF
has to take them off to climb the ladder, which is the only way into the boxes.
At last the ladies thought they had seen enough of the human form divine, and we determined to go, but no guide was forth- coming. That worthy liad darted into the crowd, like a ferret after a rabbit, in his excitement to see the fun ; and though the tall wrestler called for him, still there was no guide. We waited half an hour for him (for which of course he charged us), and then started without him. But when we got out- side his mate was true to him, and entreated us not to go till he had been to look for him ; and just at that moment the guide came up, breathless. I forgave him for being such a sportsman.
We left about half-past three, but evidently 26
THE JAPANESE. 433
the fun was not nearly over, for dashing down the hill in front, holding up the horses' heads in the way usual in Japan, came a Japanese .swell with three girls in his car- riage ; and we met several other carriages evidently bound the same way, besides palan- quins innumerable. And what rows and rows of them there were already standing. Outside the gate, also evidently going away, we met three coolies, in typical coolie dresses, reeling along as jovially as three real "chap- pies " in London could have done. It was a good-humored crowd, and the police seemed to have nothing to do but to occupy the two very best boxes in the amphitheatre, specially hung with handsome black and white draper- ies in their honor, enjoying the entertainment to the utmost.
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CHAPTER XXVI. PECULIARITIES OF THE JAPANESE.
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THE high-class schools which com- pose the University of Tokio are, perhaps, the only neutral ground on which the sons of the Japanese nobility meet daily and live in common with the young people of the middle classes. The separation of ranks exists between them, nevertheless, in all its severity : their studies also differ in essential points. The young gentlemen receive only a certain classical culture based upon the books of the Chi- nese philosophers, while to the middle-class populace the career of liberal professions is open, such as the teaching of languages, and the practice of medicine ; they are also pre- pared to become interpreters and engineers in the service of the government.
The University of Tokio is not only placed under the invocation of Confucius, but it patronizes the doctrines of the Chin- ese philosophc", and spreads them over all the educated classes of Japanese society. This is done in the form of an aggressive propaganda openly hostile to the established worships. The University tolerates existing institutions, but it destroys the creeds which form their soul. I have heard it said by an int'^rpreter at Tokio, " The pupils in our University no longer believe in anything ; " and I knew a functionary of the citadel who stated at a diplomatic dinner that all the people of cultivation in his country were quite on a level with those of Western nations, from the point of view of religion.
The clergy, whose temporal position is not threatened, preserve a modest and pru- 434
dent attitude towards the literary class. The bonzes are not inclined to attack the popu- larity with which the memory of Confucius is regarded in Japan, where he is universally venerated under the name of Koo-ci, a cor- ruption of the Chinese name Khoung-Tseu. Nevertheless, he was never known there until the year 255 of our era. At that epoch Ozin, the sixteenth Mikado, enraged at see- ing the paternal intentions of his Govern- ment paralyzed by the ignorance of his sub- jects, begged the King of Petsi in Corea to teach him what he should do to instruct the people.
A Hero and Benefactor.
The King sent him the learned Wang-Jin, who made known to the Court the books of the great teacher to whom China was in- debted for more than six centuries for its wisdom and its prosperity. The services rendered by the learned Corean to the Em- pire of the Mikados had been so highly ap- preciated, that Wang-Jin, foreigner though he was, was admitted among the number of the national Kamis, together with the foun- ders of the monarchy and the heroes or benefactors of Japan.
When we endeavor to account for the in- fluence which the writings of Confucius have exercised upon Japanese society, we must acknowledge at the same time that they have contributed more than anything else to endow it, not indeed with civilization, but with the civilism in which it takes such pride. It is very diflficult to reduce the general prin-
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435
ciples from which he deducts his moral sen- tences to a scientific form.
Men, according to Confucius, are by nature the friends of each other ; it is only habit and education which separates them.
To perfect oneself is the basis of all moral development.
The means of obtaining this development consists in pursuing the enlightening princi- ple of reason which we receive from Heaven.
This reason teaches us perseverance of condu in a right line equally divided from extremes.
The perfecting of oneself is, however, only the first part of virtue ; the second and most important part consists of the perfect- ing of others.
The Golden Rule.
The supreme doctrine of humanity is that we should act towards others as we wish that they should act towards ourselves.
All social conditions are not equally proper to the development of good natural disposi- tions.
He who has the power or faculty of pur- suing his moral development, and he who at- tains to it, is distinguished from the crowd, and to him Heaven gives a mandate to gov- ern and to instruct the peoples.
Nevertheless, although the sovereign holds his power from Heaven, the sole guarantee whereby he preserves that power resides in the support which he derives from the affec- tion of his people. Finally, men who are supremely perfect have the faculty, not only of governing peoples, but of contributing to the development of beings, and of identifying themselves by their works with heaven and earth.
This is, so far as I can discern, the sub- stance of the doctrine of Khoung-Tseu ; and no doubt it leaves little to desire, if we re-
gard man merely as a reasonable being ; but if the human organization includes love, the life of the heart with its infinite aspirations and its mysterious intuitions of eternal things, the sage of the Celestial Empire de- ceived himself, his doctrine is insufficient ; it has only the appearance of life, it encloses men and states in a circle within which humanity degenerates. Great thoughts come from the heart and enthusiasm makes a great people.
A Stagnant Nation.
China, disciplined by Confucius, has be- come the type of stagnant nations. The Japanese people have escaped from the fate of their neighbors, but the government of Japan, formed in the school of Chinese phi- losophy, has been unable until lately to as- similate Christian civilization and has merely let its power slip into the hands of the old national Theocracy.
It is a fact worthy of remark, that Khoung- Tseu has never been the apostle of any of the aristocrotic classes of society. His real moral grandeur consists in having isolated himself, while in the midst of paganism, in the domain of reason, as it were in a fortress, and of never having pretended to elevate himself into the founder of a new religion. He expressly forbids innovations in anything whatsoever.
All his instructions are limited to recom- mending the study and the example of the old customs. The worship which is paid to him in China and Tokio in the temple of the University does not constitute, properly speaking, an act of adoration, but merely one of pious commemoration. It is unhap- pily true that this homage degenerates into a superstitious respect for the words of the master, strengthened by the difficulties pre- sented by the dry study of his works.
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In China, and in all countries subject to the preponderance of the classical Chinese literature, the attachment of the scholars to the texts of their favorite author, is stroni,' in proportion to the trouble which it gives them to fix them in their memory. The study of a Chinese book is a most arduous task, even for a Japanese; because the national idiom of the latter has neither analogy nor any point of contact -with the language of the Celestial Empire.
Style of Writing.
The primitive writing of the Japanese exists no longer, except as an archaeological curiosity ; it has given place to Chinese writ- ing, which on its side has undergone the most extraordinary transformation under the reed of the Japanese.
Kioto was formerly the literary centre of Japan. At present the ancient pontifical city possesses a speciality in albums contain- ing miniatures; almanacs of the Da'iri; re- ligious books ; romances and poems in- scribed upon vellum-paper spangled with gold stars. But the presses of Tokio arc far more important in the number, variet)-, popularity and immense sale of their publi- cations. The greater part of the literary novelties of the capital are produced by the Professors of the University or the principal pupils of the Interpreter's College.
They are almost all didactic, of a practical tendency, with an utilitarian aim. Thert, are among them certain works which we may entitle the Scientific Year, the Review of Inventions and Discoveries, Statistics of Europe and of North America, the Manual of Modem History, the Precis of Contem- porary Geography, the Annals of Physical and Natural .Sciences, of Medicine, of Navi- gation, of Mechanics and of Alilitary and Naval Engineering.
11-: JAPANESE.
The ancient Enc}'clopa:;dias, which consist of more than two hundred volumes, are re- placed by a sort of Dictionary of Conversa- tion published annually in a single volume adorned with a quantity of wood engrav- ings. The ethnographical portion of this work is the most interesting. All that which relates to the clerical and political institu- tions of the Empire reduces itself to a dry nomenclature. The chapters devoted to the description of foreign nations are extremely tame and uncritical. One of the most cate- gorical deals with the Spaniards and Portu- guese, of whom it says, in so many words, that they have an extremely bad religion.
Japanese Books.
The doctrine of Confucius excludes every kind of polemics, because, if men are beings naturally good, if several of them have dur- ing distant C(Mituries attained perfection, then there is really nothing more to di.spute about ; j^erfcctibility becomes nonsense, and progress consists in retrogression, as far as those lunperors of the ancient ages, who, according to Chinese philosophy, furnished humanity with its supreme and definitive type. We must, however, acknowledge that the time has not yet come for us to judge of Japanese literature. Those learned P^u- ropeans who arc by degrees making it known to us have only translated in the first place u ^jful books.
.Such arc the important works on the art of sericulture, and the manufacture of por- celain in China and Japan, which ha\e been published since 1848. As for the purely literar}' productions of Japanese writers, we ha\e \ery few of them, and the selections made by tiie translators have not been judi- cious. No doubt deeper research will give us more vakial^lc results, but they will only be rj.iily profitable when we shall have pene-
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trated into the private life of the middle classes, and shall have succeeded in getting hold of the repertory of their plays, their legends, their stories,-and their festival songs. The lower classes are passionately fond of listening to story-tellers and singers. Everj' day, at the cessation of labor and of trafHc, gr<: Mps of persons of both sexes may be seen abv^ut the workshops, or, at an angle of the cross roads, ranged in a semicircle around the professional reciter.
Musicians and Public Singers.
National romances and legends are aban- doned, by the common consent, to the women who live by the trade of singers and musicians. They form a very numerous class of the Japanese proletariat, but some of them are much less nomadic than the others, and of an evidently superior class. The most distinguished among the public singers go about accompanied by three or four mu- sicians, and do not themselves play on any in- strument.
The artistic productions of these feminine associations are at once dramatic and musi- cal, and the effect is very charming when they play in the open air, on a fine summer evening, within a frame-work lightly con- structed of bamboo, ornamented with climb- ing plants and with garlands of colored-paper lanterns. This is one of the popular specta- cles which delights strangers.
One evening when we had been present at a concert by these musicians, I said to our yakounines on our way home, that I re- gretted very much that I could not under- stand the words of their national romances. They assured me, laughing and shrugging their shoulders, that I lost nothing by my ignorance. One of them, however, had the politeness to add, that books containing the legends recited by the professional singers
were to be bought of the booksellers in the city.
I afterwards asked a carrier in Yokohama to purchase for me all the best productions of the kinri ; and I am sure he executed my commission very faithfully, for he brought me a complete library of moral tales, histori- cal anecdotes, and heroic or marvellous legends. As the greater number of this col- lection was illustrated, I had no difficulty in recognizing the most popular of their sub- jects, and, dipping by chance into the war- like series, I found poetical and artistic illus- trations of exploits which would put Ari- osto's heroes to shame.
Asahina-Sabro charges a troop of enemies and passes through them, lifting up with his right hand a soldier wearing a casque and cuirass, and spinning him round in the air, while with the left hand he kills two equally redoubtable warriors with one blow of his mace.
A Gigantic Monster.
Nitan-Nosiro, the dauntless hunter, astride on the back of a gigantic wild boar — which has flung down and trodden under its hoofs all the companions of the hero — holds the furious monster between his knees and plunges his cutlass into its shoulder.
Sousige, one of the horsemen of the Mikado, finds his comrades squatting round a draught-board ; he spurs his horse, and with one bound it stands in the centre of the board motionless, on its hind feet, while its master, who has not lost his stirrups for a moment, sits as firmly in this difficult posi- tion as the equestrian statue of Peter the Great on its granite pedestal on the banks of the Neva.
The bow of Ulysses, King of Ithaca, ha for a long time enjoyed unriyalled reputation, but I fear it is about to be eclipsed l)y the
PECULIARITIES OF THE JAPANESE.
439
bow of Tametomo ; with which that warrior conquered the Island of Fatsisio. He desired to avoid bloodshed, and to convince the islanders that all resistance on their part was useless : he therefore summoned the two strongest men of the race of Ainos, and, seated calmly upon a mass of rock, he pre- sented his bow to them, holding it by the wood, and ordered them to try and bend it.
A Skilful Bowman.
Each seized it by both hands, and, setting their heels against the wood of the bow, they leaned back with all their weight and pulled the string with all their strength. Every effort was in vain ; the bow yielded only when Tametomo took it delicately between the finger and thumb of his right hand and shot an arrow, which was immediately lost in the clouds.
Such is the nature of the heroic literature of Japan. It would be much more difficult to give an idea of their marvellous or fantas- tic legends. The merit of these productions, which are generally short poems, appears to consist essentially in the choice of expres- sions, in the structure of the verses ; in fact, in the elegance of the style without any reference to the subject, because most fre- quently we find, on translating them, that they have only a childish meaninjr, with no moral signification or any value in point of intelligence.
What, for instance, can be the point of the following anecdote? " The soul of a thiev- ing weasel having hidden itself in a bonze's kettle, the bonze saw it come out one day when he set the kettle on an unusually hot fire." This is ail ; and this absurdity is the subject of an exceedingly popular picture. There are, however, among these legends a few which, notwithstanding that good sense and good taste protest against them, to a
certain extent captivate the imagination, excite curiosity, and provoke reflection.
Several times I have asked myself what can possibly be the origin and the traditional cause of the almost religious importance attached by all the middle-class families to a picture which represents an old man armed with a bamboo rake, of the sort which is used for raking the ears of rice or small shell-fish ; and an old woman holding a broom, with which she seems to be about to sweep up dead leaves. They stand together side by side, or they sit at the foot of an ancient cedar, whose cavernous trunk seems to be their abode.
The Tortoise and Crane.
An interpreter told me that the people of his province regard these two personages as the Adam and Eve of their country. We often find the tortoise and the crane, two animals endowed with eternal pence and a very long life, frequently associated with them, and the good old man and old woman are exhibited at all wedding feasts, either in the form of a picture or as a table ornament. No doubt they symbolize to the young mar- ried couple domestic happiness, lasting to the extreme limit of old age, as the reward of a simple life and a faithful affection.
On the other hand, there is a tree called the P^noki, dedicated to unhappy households. It is said to have sprung up on the tomb of the first Japanese woman who was divorced. If a married couple no longer suit one another, they have only to go sccretl)-, each without the knowledge of the other, to the foot of the linoki, and there form the inten- tion of .separating. In a short time the separation is accomplished without any diffi- culty, and the grateful husband suspends a votive tablet on the trunk of the tree representing a man and a woman crouching
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440 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE
upon the ground, and turning their backs on one another.
Tree-worship, which has existed among all ancient races, is limited by the Japanese to very old trees. When the lord of Yamato wished to furnish his house completely from the trunk of the finest cedar in his park, the axes of the woodman bounded from the
tJTATUK FROM A JAl'ANESE TEMI'LE.
bark, and large drops of blood flowed from every stroke. This, says the legend, is be- cause ancient trees have a soul, like men and gods, granted to them on account of their great age. They are also capable of sympathy with the misfortunes of fugitives who place themselves under their protection. More than one unfortunate warrior on the
point of falling into the hands of implacable enemies has found a retreat in their branches or in some old trunk.
Japanese legend has its Genevieve de Bra- bant. A noble lady driven forth into the woods gave birth to a son, whom she nursed at her breast while she labored for their common support. When her innocence had been recognized she was brought back with great pomp to the Court of the Mikado, and her kirimon of leaves was exposed in a tem- ple for public veneration.
To the end of his life her son retained the weather-beaten complexion and the crisp hair, which he owed to his early mode of life. He was accustomed to combat with wild beasts, to tame bears and to resist the attacks of brigands ; he possessed prodigious strength and skill, and he has become one of the principal heroes of the Empire under the the name of Rouiko.
Pine and Bamboo Groves.
The forests, and the pine and bamboo groves shelter great numbers of wild boasts, among which the monkey, the polecat, the badger, and especially the fox, furnish inex- haustible subjects for fantastic stories and drawings. Animals who attain to a great age end, like trees, in becoming endowed with a human soul and supernatural virtues. The polecat, when it is old, calls the wind and the clouds from the mountain-tops. The hail and rain obey him. He allows himself to be carried away upon the wings of the hurricane.
The traveller caught in the open country may courageously brave the tempest, but he cannot protect his face from being cut as if by a knife. This is the effect of the claws of the polecat, who passes him in the storm. Old frogs upon the borders of the tanks bring down a damp fog into the eyes of the
PECULIARITIES OF THE JAPANESE.
441
belated passenger, wlio believes that he sees the roofs of his hamlet upon the horizon, but this is only an illusion which lures him still farther into the vast swamp.
The Yama-tori, or silver pheasant, makes a mirror of his plumage. He is an invul- nerable being. He does not fly from the sight of the sportsman ; but woe to the latter if he attempt to harm him, or to pursue him into the defiles of the mountains, for he will never return.
Old wolves have the gift of metamor- phosis. One especially large wolf suddenly disappeared from the country, in which he had long been the terror of travellers, but when they thought they might henceforth go their ways in .safety they met, at nightfall, just at the corner of the wood, a beautiful girl, who carried a lantern, painted like a bouquet of roses, in her hand.
A Beautiful Demon.
She is well known through all the coun- try-side under the name of " the Beauty with the Rose-lantern." Alas! every travel- ler who has followed her has fallen into the jaws of the wolf. There was another girl, who, as seen from afar, had all the graces of her SC.X, but a man who saw her face to face beheld a demon.
Tade-yama is a very high mountain, with a deep crater in its summit. On looking into the gulf, the horrified traveller beholds a basin filled with human blood, and this blood boils, heated by the volcano ; such a place, says the bonze, can only be one of the departments of hell.
All maladies which break out for the first time among the people have a diabolical origin. The demon of small-pox came to Japan by sea. He was dressed in a red tunic, and he bore a letter addressed, no one knows by whom, to the Divine patron of the
Empire. In the sanctuary of some of the old bonze houses, barbed arrow-heads of flint and ja.sper, lance-heads in the form of spits, knives and axes of basalt and of jade; are exhibited.
These instruments, according to the bonzes, are for the most part relics which have come down from the time of the ancient dynasties of the Gods of Heaven and Earth. In the southern part of Niphon there existg a kind of axe formed of thunderbolts; and stone arrows, which bear witness to the strife reigning among tlie .spirits of the tempest, .still fall in showers when the unchained ele- ments menace the habitations of men.
Strange Story of a Priest.
Great respect is due to printed books, re- spect in fact equal to that claimed for ances- tral monuments. The bonze Raigo, having in a moment of anger destroyed the library of his convent, was after his death changed into a rat, ami condemned to gnaw scraps of paper and old fragments of p.'irchment as his only food. The evil .spirits of the air haunt during the night all places were crimes, either detected or secret, have been com- mitted.
The souls of misers return to the earth, while their treasures, however skilfully they may have been concealed, are carried away, no one knows how or where. A woman who had great revenues refused to marry; her motive was pure avarice. When she was dead her sisters inherited her property. One of them, who loved to adorn herself with a dress which had belonged to the dead woman, and who hung it up every night on a nail at the back of her bedroom door, saw a long lank arm protruding from the dress and shaking it violently.
The souls of women who have been unhappyr wander about the scene of their misfortunes.
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442 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE
The souls of women who have committed suicide by drowning float in the air as if they were about to fall head formost. Women who have died in childbed appear to the pas- sers-by carrying the infant in their arms, and crying, in a supplicating voice, — *' Have mercy, and receive my child, that it may not remain in the tomb."
Driving Away Evil Spirits.
A woman having died in consequence of the ill-treatment of her husband, the latter sent for a bonze immediately after her inter- ment, and directed him to place a blessed paper, which has the property of dispelling evil spirits, upon the lintels of his doorway. When the soul of the dead woman came back from the cemetery, it could not pass the sacred barrier, and thenceforth she cries incessantly to all persons who approach the house : " All you who pass by take away that paper."
The historical anecdotes present a totally different character from the heroic and mar- vellous legends. They bear the modern impress of the critical studies of the Univer- sity of Tokio, and are marked by the cold reasoning which distinguishes the philoso- phical school of Confucius.
The American Missionary, Verbeck, has made us acquainted with one of the most remarkable specimens : " The Collection of Virtuous Actions accomplished in Japan and China," the work of a Japanese, a native of Tokio, and a pupil in the University. A short quotation will enable our readers to appreciate the book, and the school to which it belongs.
"All men," says the author, " invoke some deity to preserve them and their families from ill-fortune. Some address their prayers to the moon; others watch all night, in order that they may salute the rising sun by
their homage ; others invoke the gods of Heaven and Earth, and also Buddha. But to adore the sun, the moon, the gods, or Buddha, without doing that which is good, is to ask that rice-stems should come out of the earth before the grain has been planted. Learn then, that in that case, the moon, the sun, the gods, and Buddha may perhaps have a great deal of compassion for you, but they will never cause the rice to grow until you have sown the seed."
Confucius has said : " He who offends heaven has nobody whom he can invok;,- with profit;" and a Japanese sage has written : " If thou turn not away thine heart from truth and goodness, the gods will take care of thee without thine invocation. To be virtuous is to adore."
Foretelling a Great Calamity.
Under the reign of one of the ancient Mikados, an unknown star appeared in the sky. A celebrated astronomer having ob- served it, declared that it was the presage of a gt at calamity about to fall upon the family of ono of the generals-in-chief of the Empire. At this epoch Nakahira was the general-in- chief of the left, and Sanegori was general-in- chief of the right. On learning the prediction of the astrologer, Sanegori and his family fled to the temples of Buddha and of Sinto, in the neighborhood, and there worshipped without cessation, while the family of Naka- hira took no precaution of the kind.
A priest, remarking this, went to Nakahira and expressed his surprise. " Sanegori," said he, " visits all the holy places, and offers up prayers in order that he may escape from the misfortune presaged by the unknown, star; why do not you do the same?" Nakahira, who had attentively listened to the priest, replied : " You have seen what is going on, and you will know how to under-
PECULIARITIES OF THE JAPANESE.
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stand my justification. When I am told that the unknown star presages a misfortune to one of the generals-in-chief, it stands to reason that the predicted calamity must fall upon either Sanegori or upon me.
" Now when I come to reflect, I know that I am of very advanced age, and that I have no military talent ; Sanegori, on the contrary, is in the prime of life, and perfectly suited for the post he holds. Consequently, if I were to pray and were to be heard, so as to turn away from myself the calamity which threatens us both equally, it could only take place to the greater peril of Sanegori, and to the detriment of the Empire. I abstain therefore from prayer, in order to aid as far as I can in saving the precious life of this man."
A Child of Seven Years.
On hearing these words the priest could not restrain his emotion, and he exclaimed : " Certainly so noble a thought is the best act of worship you could make, and most un- doubtedly, if there be gods, and if there be a Buddha, it is neither upon you nor your family that the calamity will fall."
Whither goes that poorly-dressed woman, holding by the hand a young girl seven years of age, decked out in her best clothes? After having laid her offering before tlie altar of Quannon, she slowly traverses the road across the rice-fields, which turns to the east, and goes to Sin-Yosiwara. After an hour's walking, she reaches the external wall of the City of Vice, accessible only on one side — that of the nortli. She has met no woman upon her way. The elegant nori- mons of the ladies, whose coolies are carry- ing them in that direction, are closely shut. Individuals of every rank meet in the city, but without saluting each other, without ex- changing the smallest politeness.
Those who belong to the class of Samou- rais hide themselves in a complete disguise. The houses on both sides of the public way appear to be dependencies of the privileged quarter. The most miserable are tenanted by an immense population of coolies and norimon-bearers, bric-a-brac sellers, and mat- plaiters. The larger houses contain bathing establishments, provision sheds, stores of bad books, restaurants, lottery offices, and taverns, in which the apparent toleration of the police adroitly conceals the control which is in reality exercised over the dangerous classes of the capital.
Before the Chief.
A bridge crosses the canal through the rice-fields. Nothing which takes place in this neighborhood escapes the notice of a double post of Yakounines installed before the gates in two guard-rooms opposite one another. The gatekeeper on duty conducts the poor traveller with her child into the presence of his chief. After a few minutes, the mother and daughter come out of the guard-room, accompanied by a police agent, who leads them to one of the chief buildings in the street.
This is the residence of the functionary known as the chief of the great Gankiro. The mother returns alone, carrying in the sleeve of her kirimon a sum of muncy, amountit fj to about the value of twenty dollars. I'he bargain she has made is duly signed and sealed. She has sold her child, body and soul, for a term of seventeen years.
The countries of the far east whicii suffer from an excess of population are those in which the inhuman, fundamentally anti- social, unnatural character of Huddhist paganism is revealed in all its horrors. Its every form of pagan worship finds an ac- complice in the measures which the govem-
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ments of China and Japan have taken to preserve their cities from the invasion of Christian civilization. The opposition put in the way of native intercourse with for- eigners, the absolute prohibition imposed upon their desire to leave their native country, have been the true causes of the overcrowding of maritime cities.
Prevalent Vices.
In order to remedy this evil, Buddhism, which is its real origin, palliates and absolves everything which has been resorted to by perversity, in order to stop the progress of population. Thus Buddhism tolerates, in China, polygamy and infanticide ; in Japan, concubinage ; in both countries, prostitution organized under every form, brought within the reach of all classes of society, and fed without scruple by all the resources of specu- lation, not excepting traffic in children under age, or, indeed, in children of every age, be- cause majority is only ai. illusory right when brought into conflict with the will of parents.
In the greater number of cases these poor creatures are the victims of the ill-conduct of the father, who has fallen into dissolute habits, and who, in order that he may be perfectly without restraint, has turned his wife and children out of their home. Jap- anese wives have no security against a rup- ture of the conjugal bond, which may be broken by the husband with no greater for- mality than the procuring of a letter of divorce. The forsaken wife will never have an opportunity of contracting a second mar- riage. Society condemns her.
If she has no relations who will receive her, she is left: to utter solitude, and her only prospect is poverty. Under such con- ditions, to give up a child under age to the Gankiro is to save her from destitution, and to defer, at least for a time, her own penury.
If the girl be grown up, the bargain is still more advantageous, because the mother will derive from it an annual income during four or five years.
Within the quadrangular enclosure of Sin- Yosiwara nine distinct quarters exist, each in the form of a parallelogram stretching from east to west. On the left of the great gate there are five ; on the right there are four. The former are separated from the latter by a long and spacious avenue of trees, which forms a beautiful promenade. At one end is a watch-tower; and where three angles of the city meet is a chapel, built out from the wall of the enclosure. A wide cross avenue in the centre of the quarter on the right also looks like a public promenade ; but it is re- served for the inhabitants and visitors ot the first-class houses by which it is surrounded. There, either by day or by night, according to the .seasons, the feminine notabilities of the Gankiro are to be found walking up and down, all dressed in the invariable kirimon, loaded with embroidery, and in a marvellous head attire of tortoise-shell combs and pins. Each of these women are accompanied by two or three pupils attached to her personal service. These young followers wear the colors of their mistress, and an elegant head- dress of artificial flowers.
Seeking Amusement. The Gankiro properly so called is the casino of the fashionables of Sin-Yosiwara ; payment is made to the doorkeeper on enter- ing, and the visitor is introduced to the con- versation room. Admirable order is pre- .scrved. Pipes and refreshments, such as are ordinarily given at all Japanese enter- tainments, are to be had in profusion to sea- son the witty conversation of the ladies, one of whom undertakes to guide the visitor through the gardens and the various rooms.
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Every amusement has its tariff. In one of these rooms a vocal and instrumental concert will be going on ; in another, char- acter dances, both executed by women, pro- fessional artists residing at Tokio and who have nothing in common with the inhabitants of Sin-Yosiwara. These performances, even from our jioint of view, would be by no means unworthy of the best company.
Patterns of Fans.
A banqueting hall in the Gankiro is very curiously decorated ; the walls are hung with beautiful sketches, either in " genre " or in landscape, some in Chinese ink, others colors, but all painted on pieces of card- board cut after the pattern of the different sorts of fans used in the far East. But the greatest curiosity of the Gankiro is its chil- dren's theatre. All the actors are j'oung girls from seven to thirteen years of age, whose education consists of reading, writing, arithmetic, singing, music, dancing, acting and declamation. Operettas, little fairy pieces and costume ballets are executed by these children with infinite grace and dexterity.
It is doubtful whether these pieces are not superior in literary value to the vaudevilles, the comedies and the dramatic proverbs which are played in schools in Europe and America ; but the little theatre is certain!)- superior to such things among ourselves in talent, vivacity and charming childish poetry. Tlic spectacle is very pretty and very inter- esting, and yet, at the same time, what can be more sad tlian to see the young girls of the Gankiro .so carefully educated? The s'ght only supplies an additional protest against these horrible institutions.
Of a lower grade in the social hell of Sin- Yosiwara are the regions frequented by the small traders and the hattamotos. Suicide through 'ove is frequently committed. The
lover kills himself because he is not rich enough to purchase his sweetheart, and she kills herself because she has sworn to be faithful to him.
r have seen on the stage at Yokohama a play representing the tragical end of a woman, whose tender declarations had been interpreted by a young Samourai in another sense than that known in Yosiwara. De- ceived in his love, outraged in his honor, the furious lover strikes off the head of the faith- less woman with one blow of his sword. The Japanese theatre represents this scene, with full detail. The bloody sword flashes, and the victim falls under the eyes of the .specta- tors ; the orchestra breaks out into an ex- pression of horror by the combined effect of all its instruments.
A Ghastly Head.
Suddenly silence ensues, and the hero of the piece turns toward the public to give a pathetic explanation of his reasons. At the .same moment the machinist moves a trap in the front of the stage, and the bloody head apiKars within two paces of the murderer, as if it had rolled to his feet.
Nothing gives such an idea of the im- mense circumference of Tokio than follow- ing the outer zone of the quarters situated on the south, the west, and north of the citadel, for it extends from the faubourg of Sinagawa, opposite the six forts of the l).iy, and the country traversed by the northern road beyond Senjou-Obassi ; and einhiaix-s on the north of Ilondja those fertile fields which are watered on one side by the Sumidagawa, and on the other !))■ the small river which forms the eastern boundary of the three districts on the right bank.
But a description of the quarters com- prised in this suburb would be tiresome, be- cause they have all a uniform agglomerate
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character, and the curiosities which they con- tain are all of the same kiml : .sometimes rustic temples built upon the funeral hills, sometimes granite statues or commemorative tables raised upon the tomb of some cele- brated personage, and destined to perpetuate the remembrance of a remarkable event in the history of the ancient Shoguns. Here are tea-houses, great orchards, horticultural establishments ; there, are sacred trees, rest- ing places set up at the best points of view, and sometimes an isolated hill.
A Continuous Garden.
Inaka, in a word, seen from a birdseye view, looks like a park, or a continuous garden dotted with rural habitations ; or it resembles a garland of verdure and flowers, cast round the faubourgs of the south and the districts of the west, and uniting them to the artisan's quarters, in the heart of the city and to the villages which extend to the rice-fields.
When the orchards are in flower, the citi- zen, the painter, and the student, are seized with rural fancies; they fly from the labors and the pleasures of the capital, and hide themselves for a day, or for many days, if it be possible, among the rustic roofs of the tea-houses. These charming retreats, rich with the beauties of nature, are innumerable. Most of them can hardly be distinguished from the country houses in their neighbor- hood. Their vast roofs come down to the ground floor.
Domestic birds flutter, or plume them- selves in the sun, on the moss with which the roof is covered, and which rises to the sum- mit, where we see long lines of iris in full flower. When there is no gallery, arbors of vines, or other climbing plants, shelter the guests grouped negligently upon the thresh- old. A limpid spring murmurs and flows
along the path, which descends towards the plain across the gardens and vineyards, the poppy and bean-fields, or the great expanse of cereal and textile plants.
In February, in June, and in October, three times a year, certain societies accom- plish a rural pilgrimage into the villages at three or four miles distant from Tokio, merely to behold with their own eyes the vicissitudes of the seasons and the transfor- mations of nature.
In winter, if the snow should fall, it is con- sidered a duty as well as a pleasure that whole families should go and contemplate the strange aspect of the statues in the en- closure, the high pagoda of Asaksa ; but, above all, no one must fail to retire to cer- tain tea-houses in the faubourgs, to admire the spectacle of the bay and the country under the novel decoration. In summer, it is agreed that the concert of grasshoppers must be listened to, and a good family man would never fail to take his children, plenti- fully supplied with little wicker cages, in order to bring back some of these sweet songsters.
Charming Orchards.
Poets of the spring, choristers of the sum- mer, painters and artists who seek for new in- spirations, delight to abandon themselves from morning to evening to charming study and rev- erie among the orchards of cherry, plum, pear, and peach trees, among the groves of bam- boo, citrons, oranges, pines, and cypress, which surround the temples, the gardens of the tea-houses, and a multitude of cla.ssic retreats of the Mu.ses of Japan. When night has come they meet in excellent inns, and combine with the pleasures of the table the enjoyment of society, where conversation alternates with songs and music, and draw- ings are exhibited in exchange for pages of
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of
poctiy which have been written during the day.
Tlie pencil often intervenes in the capri- cious conversation, and tlie subject of a tale or a discussion is illustrated or travestied by the imagination of the painter amid the ap- plause of the company.
Blind Shampooers.
Japanese caricatures generally bear the impress of good nature. They are, for the most part, taken from middle-class life. A grave physician is studying the state of his patient's tongue, or examining with a vain expenditure of spectacles the ailing eyes — he is lifting up the corner of the eyelid with great care ; quacks are engaged in the opera- tion of shampooing or in the application of tnoxas ; a band of blind shampooers on their travels have gone astray at a ford, and are disputing in the midst of the water as to the direction which they should take on reach- ing the opposite bank .
Then we have types of the begging friars ; of fishing misadventures ; scenes of feminine jealousy and household quarrels pushed to violent measures. There are also very com- plete series of caricatures, such as the small troubles of life in the great world ; the household of the fat man, and the household of the thin man, and the different grimaces which can be formed by the human face. And the artists do not spare themselves ; for rapid painting, which is held in such esteem in Japan, is symbolized under the figure of an artist who is working with six brushes at once, two in each hand and one between each great toe.
The method which rendered Grandville so popular in his illustration of the fables of La Fontaine is not unknown to Japanese caricaturists. But their pencil is less spar- ing; they only exceptionally reach to the
dramatic energy of the human passions. Most frequently they limit themscKes to giving animals a costume, or an attitude which invests them with a certain symbolic character. Such, for example, is the per- .sonification of the twelve signs of the Zodiac — the mouse, the bear, the tiger, the hare, the dragon, the serpent, the horse, the ram, the monkey, the cock, the dog, and the wild boar— each adorned with vestments and at- tributes relating to their astronomical func- tions, or to the parts which they play in astrology.
A sketch, no less harmless, but more amusing, represents a rice-warehouse in which rats, the most dreaded enemies ot that precious cereal, form the warehouse- men. Nothing is mis.sing in this pretty scene, from the cashier making his calcula- tions with his bead frame, to the salesman turning over his books in orde*' to demon- strate to a purchaser that he cannot abate a farthing in price. The shopmen are carry- ing the bales, of which the purchaser is taking an invoice, on their shoulders.
Adepts at Comic Art.
The money is in little straw bags, which the coolies carry at the ends of their bam- boos. Everything is conducted with the order and regularity becoming to a great house. The smallest details are drawn with the care which would be bestowed upon a serious composition. It is in this kind of comic art, childish or heroic by turns, that the Japanese display most case and originality.
I frequently noticed a dash of satire of a political kind in the numerous and varied sketches whose subject is furnished by the " trains " of the Daimios, For instance, I have seen many in which the personages of the cortege, beginning with the prince
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448 JAPAN AND THE JAPANKSK.
himself, are represented as foxes or mon- which a hare has. prostrated himself, tremb*
keys.
The satirical intention is not less manifest in those pictures in which we see the supc-
ling, at the feet of a wild boar. The hare is a little hattanioto out of employment, and the wild boar is a high-class functionary in
INTERIOR OF THE TEMPLE OF QUANNON.
nor of a bonze-house with a wolf's head, and a group of nuns under the ima;^e of weasels. The most expressive picture I have seen of this kind represents an audience in
Court dress. TIic one is seeking the influ cnce and favor of his more fortunate superior, The taste for the fantastic goes along with that for caricature. In Japan, political insti*
TKCUMARITIKS OF THE JAl'ANKSK.
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tutions, religion, and nature, all concur to excite the imagination and to set it wander- ing to the region of chimeras. On the sea- shore, the basaltic rt)ck.s take forms now grotcsciuc and now frightful. The ocean itself is il world of mysteries. Sometimes, when it is very dark, a light may be seen under the water which resembles a dragon. Sailors have seen shells darting along among the waves. Under the waters of the Strait of Simonoseki is a grotto, or rather a temple, encrusted with pearls and mother-of-pearl. It is called the Riogoun. It is situated in the place where the young Mikado Antok was submerged with his suite, as he fled from the field of battle where his partisans were defeated by Yoritomo (i 185).
Court of Marine Monsters.
In this temple he reigns and ho'ds his Court, His men-at-arms carry long rods surmounted by sharks' fins; these are his banners. All the sea-gods, wearing diadems representing the heads of seals, little fishes, medusas, crabs, and dragon's jaws, come to pay him homage. This Court of marine monsters and drowned men-at-arms has in- spired the strangest artistic compositions ; equalled only by the revolting scenes in which we see the bloody and slaughtered victims aiding demons in the punishment of their murderers in the infernal regions.
The Japanese delight in the imitation of hideous realities. The wa.x-work -r 'scun: at Asaksa-tera possesses figures of executed criiiiinals, and corpses in a state of decom- position. They can also ally the burlesque to the horrible, but they do so only in sub- jects which are not tragical. For instance, they will change the vessels used in religious ceremonies, gongs, holy-water brushes, can- delabra, perfume vases, altars, images, statu- ettes, into so many animated monsters,
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jumping or crawling in an infernal dance, led by evil spirits.
The fantastic has its |)art in the f.iscina- tions of the tea-houses in the suburbs ol Tokio. Some arc erected in places propi- tious to the contemplation of Fousi-yania, and the sight of that extraordinary moun- tain, as it appears at sunrise or at sunset under the clear sky, or when swept by storms, is such as to satisfy the most exact- ing imagination.
The charm of the landscape and mysteri- ous cataracts forming cascades, is enhanced in other places by mineral springs and basins of thermal water, like certain watering-places in the Swiss mountains. People do not go there for the purpose of cure, properly so- called, but they go to pass a few tiays with their families in elegant cedar chalets shaded with magnificent trees, on the banks of the water-course, which may be compared to the finest Alpine rivers.
Bujring Harvest Rakes.
Other places of pleasure are specially de- voted to one or otlicr of the popular super- stitions. The people go from the temples to the tea-houses with the satisfaction which accompanies the accomplishment of a pious task. During the first days of the eleventh month the hotel-keepers and the b(jii/cs of Yousima-Tendjin receive thousands of pil- grims of both sexes, small traders, ami agri- culturists, in the faubourgs or the country immediately around the city ; they come to buy rakes at an isolated temple in a marsh on the north of the capital.
These rakes are of good augury for har- vest, and are simply pious playthings, which are held as talismans in the dwellings of the faithful. They suit all purses and the most varied tastes ; some, of colossal size, are de- corated with a picture, representing the junk
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of happiness ; others, of smaller dimensions, are ornamented with the sign of the god of riches ; the simplest have only pictures on paper or on papier-mache, such as the head of the god of rice, the mask of Okame, and all sorts of mythological emblems.
As fortune does not confer its favors among men in proportion to their stature, it frequently happens that, on their return from Yousima, the poorest pilgrims carry away the thinnest loads, while their companions, rich but feeble, stagger under the weight of the enormous instruments which their social position has obliged them to purchase.
Comical Costumes.
The comic effect of the procession is in- creased by the peculiarities of the costumes of the season. The men wear tight trousers of blue cotton and a wide mantle with large sleeves ; they are mostly bareheaded, but their noses are protected by crape handker- chiefs tied at the back of the neck ; others cover the head with an ample hood, which hides the whole face with the exception of the eyes. The women generally adopt this ugly hood, and, stuff their arms into the thick sleeves of their winter kirimon, so that they look as if they had none.
Amulets to be placed at the edges of the fields, in the form of squares of paper fixed on a wooden peg, are sold at the temple of Yousima ; and the bareheaded pilgrims stick them behind the one plait of hair which forms their head-dress, like hair-pins, so that they look as if they had come from an agri- cultural exhibition with the number under which they were exhibited stuck on their head.
On the right bank of the river, and on the shores of its principal affluents, the builders and master-carpenters of Tokio have their timber-yards, where the trunks of
trees brought from the forests of the interior are cut into beams, laths and planks. These forests are inexhaustibly rich in woods fit for building purposes, such as the oak, which attains an immense height in Japan ; the pine, of which some forty species exist ; the cedar of a native species ; the fir-tree, also remarkable f(ir its variety ; and the brown woods, and black employed in cabinet mak- ing or in small ornaments.
Delightful Retreats.
The Gardens of Odji-Inari, which stand high in the estimate of the city population, are situate at the opening of a mountain gorge on the northern side of Tokio. A small river forming several cascades winds gracefully through the valley. On the bank above its limpid waters, rises the long gal- leries and pavilions of the tea-house, which enjoys the coolness of the water and the shade of the great trees. The guest cham- bers, the verandas, the partitions, and the mats, are kept in a state of dazzling cleanli- ness. The whole establishment is distin- guished by elegance and simplicity. His- torical remembrances attach to many places in the neighborhood. A hunting-lodge of the Shoguns formerly occupied the summit of one of the hills, which commands an ex- tensive view of the plains watered by the Sumidagawa. In a narrow valley, at some distance, is pointed out a temple consecrated to lyeyas, who was its founder, also a mira- culous spring which falls from an elevated wall of rocks.
This spring is placed under the invocation of a stone idol, to which the frequenters of the gardens address their prayers. When heated by the fumes of saki, they place themselves under the falling water and enjoy the natural bath. In the little hamlets of the plain a quantity of shops or booths ofler
PECULIARITIES OF THE JAPANESE.
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all sorts of curiosities and trinkets to the choice of the visitors and their children. A lively trade is done by these traders, for no family ever returns from a party in the coun- trj' without bringing home some remem- brance of the village markets.
The real secret of the celebrity of the gardens of Odji is that they were placed in very ancient times under the patronage of Inari, the tutelary god of the rice-fields, and conjointly under the protection of the sacred animal which is his " attribute," that is to say, Kitsne, the fox, who deigns to honor the country with his particular favor. He is worshipped on the hill which bears the name of Odji-Inari. On the seventeeth day of the first month an innumerable crowd of citizens and country people flock to his temple. They hang up ex-votos, and de- posit their new year's tribute in the money- box. Then the crowd disperses, wandering in groups through the groves, and contem- plate from afar a great tree in the marsh, around which an annual sabbat of the foxes has been held on the previous night.
The Festival of Poxes.
Persons who pretend to have seen the assembly of the foxes preceded by a Will-o'- the-wisp and followed by the Spirits of the rice-fields, are eagerly interrogated, and bear their testimony gravely to the character of the festival, the number of the foxes, and the greater or less gaiety manifested on the occasion. These particulars having been ascertained, inferences are drawn from them respecting the year which is commencing, and the abundance and the quality of the harvest are prognosticated.
Then the visitors seat themselves around the " brasero " in the guest chambers of the tea-house, and talk in a low voice of the mysterious influence of Kitsne in the affairs
of this world. What is chance? what is hazard ? good or bad fortune ? — words devoid of sense. And, nevertheless, there is something behind these words, because every time that one uses them one is forced to it by circumstances. The fox has come that way. " I," says one of the guests, " have had the misfortune to lose a child ; the doctor could not even tell me the seat of his malady." While the mother was griev- ing, the lamps, which were placed beside the corpse, threw the shadow of the poor woman upon the opposite wall ; everyone in the chamber of mourning perceived at once that the shadow had taken the form of a fox.
Running Away With the Arrow.
" And travellers," continues a neighbor, " when they see their road prolonging itself indefinitely, although they have calculated the distance, is it not because they have omitted to count with the tail of the fo.x ? How many times have they not wandered about the rice-fields, misguided by the Will- o'-the-wisp, which Kitsne can make to flicker where he chooses. And the hunters, how many tricks has he not played upon them ? If a good sportsman was to dare to attempt to revenge himself, he would only have the mortification of seeing the fox bounding and jumping before him, and carrying away in his mouth the arrow which had been let fly at him."
The annals of Japan state that Kitnse is capable of metamorphosis. When the Mikado, who reigned in 1 1 50, found him- self under the painful necessity of dismiss- ing his favorite in order to save the finances of the Empire from complete ruin, the fair one escaped from her apartments in the form of a white fox adorned with six fan- shaped tails. On the oth. hand, cases no
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less extraordinary are quoted of the abduc- tion of young girls, some of whom have never returned, while others on their return have closed their parents' mouth by the word Kitsne ! Kitsne !
When it pleases the latter to disguise him- self as an old bonze, he is most dangerous. There is always one means of defeating him. Kitsne, whatever may be his disguise, never resists the suggestions of his nose. Let any- one place a rat newly roasted in the path of the false priest, and he will not fail to forget his personation, and fall upon the prey, for- getful of everything else.
Turned Into Madmen.
The yamabos or bonzes of the mountains generally succeed in keeping Kitsne at a dis- tance, because they know how to practice upon his weakness ; but they also must be particularly on their guard to avoid a sur- prise. If the fox succeeds in discovering their barrel of saki, woe to them who shall taste it afterwards! It is thus that some very respectable yamabos have become ob- jects of popular derision. A few cups suf- fice to turn their heads ; they throw off their clothing, utter cries, gesticulate like madmen, and execute the most eccentric dances ; also danced by two foxes in the same step, and who mark the time, one by blowing a sacred conch, the other by flourishing about the holy-water brush of the poor bewitched bonzes.
It is also said that the peasants, whenever they have slept in the rice-fields, are liable to be caught in the nooses of Kitsne, who de- prives them, according to his fancy, of the use of their limbs or of freedom of move- ment. The Japanese people have also their romance of the fox. They amuse themselves with their hero, though they are afraid of him.
Kitsne becomes in turn a sacred, amusing, perfidious, and diabolical personage. In the morning they pay him homage, m the even- ing they turn him into ridicule. But if he lends himself to jesting, it is only to take a more signal revenge. Let anyone try, for example, in family festivals or in social ban quets, to amuse himself at the expense of Kitsne, and to try his patience; when he shall have joined the party in earnest, he will then soon turn all their heads the wrong way, and the night will not pass without his strewing the ground with those who have given him provocation.
The game of the fox begins, very inno- cently in appearance, with a kind of song and clapping of hands. Three attitudes are taken alternately. The first consists in rais- ing the hands, and holding them half shut behind the ears ; the second, in doubling the fist and stretching out the fore-arm ; the third, of opening both hands and spreading them on the knees. This is called the game of the fox, the gun, and the yakounine.
Penalty of Losing.
The fox loses against the gun, because the gun kills ; the gun loses against the yakou- nine, because the yakounine can defend him- self; finally, the yakounine loses against the fox, because Kitsne is the most cunning animal in creation. The losing party is com- pelled to drink a cup oi aki.
It is easy to conceive that under the influ- ence of such a penalty the game becomes more and more animated. Some of the players find it too sedentary ; one of them rises, and, amid the acclamations of the com- pany, procures a long rope, makes a running knot, holds it by one end, and throws the other to a companion, who stretches the rope as tight as he can without spoiling the run- ning knot. Behind the latter is placed a
peculiaritip:s of the Japanese.
453
little stand, on which lies what is called the rat — it is a cap or cup, or any o.her object — which the fox must take away quickly, with- out letting himself be caught in the noose.
If the guardians of the rat pull the cord between their hands too quickly or too slowly, they pay the penalty. If the fox be caught, were it only by the end of the finger, he has to defray the expense of any amount of drinks so long as it pleases the guests of both sexes who enjoy the spectacle of his captivity. In such cases, the ordinary resources of the orchestra fail to express the delight of the company. The guests knock their glasses or porcelain cups together like bells ; the singers imitate the cries of all sorts of ani- mals ; the more active hop round the unfor- tunate fox, and mock him with every kind of grimace. Kitsne of the mountains, from his hiding place, contemplates all the details of this Bacchic scene, and thrills with pleasure when it attains its height.
Country Picnics.
Better than this foolish amusement are the quiet picnics which take place in the suburbs during the fine season. Two or three families arrange to pass an evening to- gether in the country, either on the shady hills which overlook the bay, or in the great orchards on the north side, whence a full view of Fousi-yama may be had. They are preceded by koskeis, who, on reaching the place agreed upon, trace out a reserved space by means of long pieces of stufi" stretched on poles. Within this they lay down mats. Stoves are prepared, with kettles for making tea, and pans for frying fish. The company arrive and install themselves, the ladies un- packing the provisions, and the festival be- gins. It lasts until sunset ; games, singing, and music, animate the scene.
Sometimes professional singers are sum-
moned to the festival, and occassionally even a couple of wandering dancers, whose spe- cialty consists of pantomime, posturing, and character figures. One of their prettiest per- formances is called the fan-dance; it is a kind of pantomime, generally executed by a young girl in the costume of a page. There are also some national dances kept up in the society of the town, and these naturally have a place among the diversions of the country parties.
Monotonous Dancing.
Generally, ladies dance alone ; they form a quadrille, and the dance consists princi- pally of gestures, without any change of po- sition, except in passing from one attitude to another. They stretch out their hands and arms; sometimes the right, and sometimes the left, not without grace or elegance, but the movement is exceedingly monotonous. A man never dances, except when, inspired by the fumes of saki, he imitates some choreographic feat which he has witnessed upon the stage.
But, as I have already said, it is not only pleasure which attracts the citizen to the groves of Inaka ; he loves the place for its own sake; he knows it under all aspects and in all seasons ; he knows its curiosities and peculiarties, its local kermesscs, its annual markets, at which he purchases a part of his household provisions. He goes to the public auctions of rice, vegetables, fruits, and coal, which take place at fixed periods in certain rural districts ; he also goes to see the antique cedar on which he has painted the initials of his name and the date of his first visit; and he knows one still more ancient which contains a natural reservoir of water celebrated for its efficacy against certain diseases. This tree was planted by a Kami.
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JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE
For a few pennies he is permitted to fish in the tanks of the bonze-housc, and to carry home the results of his sport. There is not a convent, or temple, or chapel in the neighborhood which is not distinguished by some more or less interesting peculiarity. Here a group of palm-trees, there bananas and bamboos, or evergreen oaks, or maples, or gigantic azaleas ; and the monastic orders to which the convents belong devote them- selves to the education of tortoises and man- darin ducks, or to making sweetmeats.
Many of the hills have a special reputa- tion; this one because it affords the best open-air view of the princely spectacle of hawking ; the.; one because it overlooks a famous battle-field. Several are covered with tombs, ranged in terraces like little gardens. The monuments present an infi- nite variety of style of ornamentation ac- cording to the social condition and sect of the deceased ; most frequently a tablet bear- ing an epitaph rests on the shell of a large stone tortoise, the symbol of Eternity.
A great number of tombs are formed of a socket surmounted by a statue of Buddha, or some auxiliary divinity of Buddhism, such as Quannon or Amida, standing on a
lotus flower. These images are cut in the granite, or the basalt, in extremely fine workmanship. The most ancient are moss- grown, or smothered in branches of ivy and other climbing plants. Gigantic pines, cy- press-trees, and laurels, lend a charm by their picturesque grouping to the burial places.
One of the most interesting cemeteries in the neighborhood of Tokio is that of tlie Schorin ; it is specially reserved for men il- lustrious in letters or sciences.
At the entrance of the villages, and some- times in the open country, we find stones erected to commemorate some historical event ; and frequently little chapels built in honor of some hero who fought in the wars which founded the dynasty of lyeyas. Budd- hism has affixed its stamp to every place worthy of dxciting the attention of travellers. There is no grotto without its idol and its .story; there is no lake which does not con- tain a little islet with its temple dedicated to Ben ten.
It is fortunate for the Japanese that their popular superstitions have developed in them a love of country life, and a proper regard for the vegetable wealth in which their coun- try abounds.
m
CHAPXER XXVII. THE NEW-YEAR FESTIVAL IN JAPAN.
THE Japanese have the capital habit of squaring all accounts by New Year's Day (except with foreigners). He who fails to do so, save with the consent of his creditor, is a dishonored man. Consequently, those who have been unsuc- cessful in business during the year, sell almost every article in their possession for anything it will fetch.
A million and a quarter Japanese — most of them poor — live in Tokio, and to give a last chance to the unfortunate debtor in a land where interest is perceptible enough to be reckoned by the day, there is a great fair held every New Year's Eve, extending about a couple of miles along the Ginza, — the main street, — with a flower market in the cross street leading from our hotel and the princi- pal gate of the castle to Tsukiji, the only quarter of Tokio in which foreigners are given the right to have a house.
Pretty nearly every poor Japanese is more or less a shopkeeper, because tiie front of his house is thrown open to the street during the day in fine weather, and he is willing to sell anything he possesses, if the price pays.
Imagine every one of these who has not saved enough money to settle his debts, next day bringing as much of his worldly goods as he can carry, in funny square boxes, slung over his shoulders at each end of a bamboo, to be displayed on the pavement, or rudely improvised stalls, at the fair. We had been told that New Year's Eve and New Year's Day were the days of all the
year in Japan, and that Tokio was the place to see them at their best. As soon as it was dusk we .sallied out into the Ginza to see the great fair.
Two miles of stalls — two rows on each side of the street — brilliantly lighted with flaring and fantastic lanterns, but them- selves the most ramshackle erections of dirty boards and flim.sy cloths ! At intervals fes- toons of crimson lanterns hanging slack from the street to the flagstaff of a two or three- story tea-house (as they call the native inns), and strings of lanterns over the saki kegs .sewn up in matting covered with scarlet and green fish, dragons, and other emblems, which are piled up like a wall in front of its bottom .'^tory.
Variety of Stalls.
From every tea-house came the tinkle of samisens, or the mouse like voices of' the geishas, the singing girls.
The stalls, as a rag and metal exhibition, eclipsed anytliing I ever saw in the Campo de I'iore at Rome. There wi're mat stalls, cushion .stalls, stalls where they sold the kimonos (wrappers) and the obis (sashes) worn by the natives, or their cjueer socks with divided toes — white for wearing with -sandals, blue, .studded underneath, for wear-- insr unshod. There were stalls for straw ami rope sandals and the high wooden clogs used in foul weather.
There were stalls where they sold the grass rope and fringe (nawa) used for hang- ing along the house front for the first week
455
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JAPAN AND 1
in the year, to keep evil spirits from passing under ; and the big grass tassels with the scarlet lobster and the gift bag; or the takara bune, the little plaited grass ship of wealth, with the seven gods of riches seated in it, one of which devices hangs over every portal during the same period.
Next to this might be a booth where they sold nothing but lantern boxes made of white card, painted in black with the owner's crest or device. These were really very pic- turesque, and I had several times longed to hang one up over a draught screen in our rooms, but had been deterred by the horrible suspicion that they were used for conveying the ashes of cremated corpses.
All Sorts of Wares.
An artist friend — Henry Savage Landor — •who had been several months in Japan and went a-fairing with us, set my mind at rest on this point, and I there and then purchased one, and carried it with me all the evening, filling it gradually with such odds and ends as inros (Japanese porte-medicines) ; net- sukes (ornamental buttons for stringing through one's sash); miniature temple orna- ments— censers, candlesticks, flower vessels ; the little pocket mirror and comb cases car- ried by musumes in their graceful hanging sleeves; the fantastic hair combs and hair pins, very old some of them, more or less battered, but of exquisite workmanship and materials; the queerest little china boxes, some of them only an inch across, holding the red or black pigment used for the seals which every Japanese carries to impress where we give a signature ; the seals them- selves, generally of brass ; exquisite little bronze and silver charms ; fine old brass or bronze ends for paper lanterns ; little ivory boxes, hardly bigger or thicker than a gen- tleman's visiting card, used for the vermilion
HE JAPANKSK.
with which they brighten their lips, and other contrivances both curious and artistic.
The old metal and general curiosity stalls were largely in the majority; for, besides metal proper, they dealt in inros, netsukes, second-hand pipe cases, hibachis (charcoal hand stoves), swords and small pieces of lacquer. "Ikura?"(how much?) I would ask, picking up some charming little bit of pottery or metal work — each with its little flaw, crack or dent, of course. " Rokuji sen" (sixty cents — half a crown) would, perhaps, be the answer. I would say, laugh- ing, " O Roku sen " (six cents).
Next time I passed they would call out, "Shijiu" (forty), and the next, "Nijiu" (twenty), and finally, as they saw my arms getting fuller and fuller of purchases, and feared that my purse would be running out, the proprietor and his wife, and any mem- bers of their family they had about, would commence kow-towing and smiling, hissing and calling out, " Yoroshi, yoroshi. Roku sen " (Good — all right ! Six cents), and I would find myself saddled with something I never thought of buying, but, of course, felt bound to buy when my ofier in fun was ac- cepted in earnest.
Quaint Beauty and Ingenuity. Now, when it is too late I wish I had bought a hundred dollars' worth of these fourpenny-halfpenny treasures to ship home. I had taken a hundred dollars out with me in case I saw avy fine piece being sacrificed, as I was told they sometimes were, at these fairs by an embarrassed trader who had put off selling till too late ; and I could easily have spent the money, and spent it well. For every one of these little articles — many of them in domestic use by quite humble people — had some quaint beauty of shape or decoration or ingenuity.
THK NFAV-YKAR FESTIVAL IX JAPAN.
457
and I have never seen one of thcni in Eng- land or America.
A pickpocket did his best to relieve me of my hundred dollars at one fell swoop, but his ignorance of European pockets saved me; the pocket he attempted to pick was one of the side pockets of my covert coat, in which I never carry anything except a pocket-handkerchief. While his hand was in my pocket I caught him. I rather ex- pected the populace, who were all of the humbler classes, to sympathize with him against a foreigner.
Thieves and Pickpockets.
But much as a Japanese hates foreigners, it is nothing to his dread and loathing of a thief The flimsy houses, constantly thrown wide open, are so at the mercy of thieves that a thief, or pickpocket, is regarded much in the same way as a horse thief is in the Far West. I thought they would have lynched him. I don't exactly know how he escaped.
But like some more enlightened nations, they are more lenient to thieving when it is done with the brains instead of the fingers.
It was a pleasing diversion to turn from pickpockets to watch a strolling samisen player or a masker. One could hardly be- lieve that one's surroundings were not a ■dream. Was it possible that one saw with eyes awake that queer old Japanese gentle- man in a wide sleeved, deep collared kimono of chocolate-colored leather, stamped in white with his device, two feet at least across ; and all these queer coolies, in hose and doublets and hoods?
And what of the crimson lanterns sway- ing in the wind, and the tinkle and tum tum of Oriental music falling from the lattice of a tea-house. We plunged into a tea-house from which came shouts of laughter that must mean something irresistibly queer to us.
Out at the back, one of the posture dancers who go about in little troupes at New Year's tide had a mask, and was going through a series of antics whicii were supposed to travesty a Chinaman. Nothing could have been more unlike, and the Tokio populace are familiar with Chinamen, for there are plenty of them in the Tsukiji quarter.
But they were just as much amused. The troupe received about sixpence for their per- formance, and were immediately succeeded by a troupe of boys with jolly, laughing faces, one of whom carried a banner the shape of a couple of canister lids, the smaller on the top, while the other two danced to the music of a flute — the flute and the drum constitute most of the music to street entertainments in Japan.
Tea in Tiny Cups.
Then we went back into the inn to listen to a samisen player — squatting down on the edge of the raised floor so that the mats should not be soiled by our boots. The natives always kick off their shoes or sandals on entering a house. We had hardly sat down before sweet little musumes (girls) brought us the pale straw-colored tea in tiny little cups, with metal saucers and without handles, and trays of queer little cakes.
But it was growing late, and we had still the flower fair to see before we returned to the hotel to spend the witching hour, at which the old year passess into the new, in thinking of home folks across the seas. The flower market was even more picturesque than the fair, with its rows and rows of blossoming plum trees, with blossoms single and double — white, pink, deep red, or even variegated. These were dwarfed to the size of geraniums, with every branch twisted into queer curves, and each in a blue or white porcelain pot.
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458 JAI'AX AND 1
Without the plum tree in the blue pot no Japanese house, even the very poorest, is complete at the New Year. Tiie educated fir-trees (niatsu-ji) were even more dvvarfeti and highly trained, and one could buy cither of these, or a beautiful fan palm, in an artis- tic pot, for fifty cents ; and for a crown or two one of the tiny artificial gardens, a couple of feet .square, with its trained trees, and its lake and its toy pagoda, and bridges and stone lanterns (ishidoro).
Display of Flowers.
The flower fair, like the other, was a glare of light ; and there was the same bargaining to be done, with the owner calculating on liis so-ro-ba, or counting board, every time there was a rise or fall of a halfpenny in the offer.
Suddenly I looked at my watch. It was just on twelve. A clock began to strike. I paused and shut my eyes on the fantastic Orient, while a prayer rose to the crisp, starlit sky, and thought flew quicker than telegrams to the old home.
I fancy I can picture you upon this Christmas
night, Just sitiing as you used to do, the laughter at its
height. And then a sudden silent pause intruding on your
glee, And kind eyes glistening because you chanced to
think of me.
And now good-night ; and I shall dream that I am
with you nil, Watching the ruddy embers gleam athwart the
panelled hall. Nor care I if I dream or not, though severed bj-
the foam — My heart is always in the spot which was my
childhood's home.
VVe did not get back from the fair till the small hours, but we were up betimes to see Tokio in its great transformation scene. — decorated for the New Year.
UK JAPANIvSK.
As every one who has the smallest knowl- edge of thini;s J.ipanese will remember, the Japanese have a minute and almost solemn etiquette for every operation in their exist- ence. It is to an article in "The Transac- tions of the Asiatic .Society of Japan," written by Mrs. Chaplain Ayrton.that I owe the precise composition of the decorations given below. She says the most striking feature of New Year's Day in Japan is the decoration placed, more or less complete, before each portal.
livery object in this has its symbolic meaning. If the spectator faces the green arch which this decoration forms, he will have on his right hand the me-matsu with. its reddish stem, and on his left the black trunk of the o-matsu. Though pines are genderlcss, fancy has ascribed to the black- trunkcd tree a masculine gender, and to the li;^htcr a feminine. Further, these hardy trees symbolize a stalwart age that has with- stood the storms and troubles of existence.
Symbol of Ripe Age.
Immediately behind rises on each side the graceful stem of the take-no-iki (bamboo); of which the most convenient kind is selected. Its erect growth and succession of knots, marking the increase during suc- ceeding seasons, make it a symbol of hale life and fulness of years.
There is a distance, usually of si.x feet, between the bamboos spanned by the grass rope (nawa), which though convenience obliges it to be high enough to pass under,, should, to accord with its symbolical mean- ing, debar all evil and unclean things from crossing the threshold.
In the centre of the arch thus formed of pines and bamboos and the grass rope is a group of several objects, most conspicuous among which is the scarlet yebi or lobster
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459
460
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
i;
(a crayfish, really), whose crooked body sym- bolizes the back of the aged bent with years. This is embowered in yusuri branches.
In the yusuri when the young leaves have budded the old are still unshed. So, many parents continue to flourish while children and grandchildren spring forth.
In the centre also are the graceful fronds of the shida, or urajiro. This fern symbo- lizes conjugal life, because the fronds spring in pairs from the stem. In Japan, fronds growing thus uniformly do not suggest equality of the sexes. Between the paired leaves nestle like offspring the little leaflets.
Here and there are gohci, the quaint scraps of paper offered to the Shinto gods ; according to some, a conventionalized repre- sentation of the human form, the offerer de- voting himself in effigy to the deities. Ac- cording to others these offerings of cut paper represent offerings of valuable cloth — this is the more usual explanation.
The Family Tree.
Almost as conspicuous as the yebi is the orange-colored dai dai. There is a pun im- plied here, like the play upon words in Eng- lish heraldry, for the second meaning of dai dai is generation — may the family tree flour- ish. The juice of the dai dai is prized as a specific against vomiting, as Europeans take lemons for a preventative against seasickness.
There is a pun, too, in the piece of char- coal beside the dai dai, for sumi (charcoal) has the second meaning of " homestead."
The honta wara, or zimbaso, a species of seaweed, is a memoral of good fortune. For about 200 A. D., when the Empress Jingo- Kobo reigned, she concealed her husband's death lest the people should be discouraged in the campaign against Corea. Her troops encamped on the seashore were in danger of defeat from want of fodder for their horses.
She ordered the honta wara to be gathered from the shore for the horses, and refreshed by this meal they were victorious in battle. At the end of the war she bore a son named Hachiinan, who from the circumstances of his birth became the Japanese Mars.
Another seaweed decoration is the kobu. Here also is a pun on the verb yoro-kobi — ■ to rejoice or gladden. The last decoration is the fukutso tsumi ; a square of white paper, held in by a red and white string which marks a present. This is to be con- sidered a lucky bag, for its contents are suitable to the season.
The Ship of Riches.
These decorations are cut down in Tokio on January 7th, in some places on January 3rd. There is another decoration sometimes used — a miniature ship of twisted straw, laden with representations of bales of grain, bits of green, aud little ornaments of every kind. The idea of the ship is an offering of first fruits.
To bring the sleeper lucky dreams it is the custom, on the night of January 2nd, to cover the pillow with a rude picture of the takara butie, or ship of riches, having the seven gods of wealth seated in it. This representation of the ship of wealth is a very favorite subject in Japanese art. There is a splendid specimen in the museum of arms at Tokio.
Now that I have given an idea of their composition and symbolism, I can go on to describe the New Year's decorations, and New Year's festivities, as we saw them with our own eyes.
To start with the lobster group, to use Mrs. Ayrton's expression, we found that she had made a most important omission in describing the composition — the great tassel, or knot of grass, which is the most noticeable
THE NKW-YEAR FESTIVAL IN JAPAN.
461
feature. This knot with tassel ends is a constantly recurring feature in Japanese ornamentation from the mortuary shrine of a Shogun downwards.
Mrs. Ayrton is careful to use the expres- sion, " more or less complete," of the decor- ations. She was wise. I had to walk a couple of miles along the Gmza, the main street of Tokio, to find a decent specimen of a lobster group to photograph. And when I found it, it needed no small general- ship to kodak it successfully. First of all I had to obtain the permission of its proud owner. I could not speak a word of Japa- nese, he could not speak a word of English. I went into his shop and bowed as if I were a nigger waiter expecting a handsome tip. He squatted down on his hams, and bowed until his forehead touched the beautiful white mats on which he knelt.
Photographing the Lobsters.
Then I entreated him, with a gesture, to rise, and led him to the front of his shop, pointing at his lobster group, and patting my faithful kodak. He didn't understand a bit till a jinrikisha boy (the sharpest-witted men in the coolie class) said hasheen (pro- nounced shasheen), which means photograph. The proprietor was forthwith wreathed in smiles at the honor about to be paid to his " honorable " lobster group.
Then a new difficulty arose. Most Japa- nese shops are only five or six feet high ; ihis was ten or eleven, and I, who am only five feet and a half, had to get my camera on a level with the object, and within two or three feet of it, to make the photograph suf- ficiently large. An idea struck me. I threw down my note-book and stick regardless of the fact that the strangeness of my behavior — from the Japanese standpoint, of course — had already attracted a crowd of a few hun-
dred people who wondered what fate was to befall the group of lobsters.
I had seen a stool, intendcil not for a human being — the Japanese don't know how to sit — but for a red lacquer lantern with paper sides, or slides, which stood on it. I put down the lantern, carefully carried offmy stool in triumph, mounted it just under the lobster group, lifted my kodak as high as I could over my head with both hands, and snapped a shot.
Eager for Something New.
The crowd were breathless with excite- ment, and had to be dispersed by a policeman, four feet and a half high, before we could get away. So like the Athenian of Biblical report is the Japanese in his thirst for some new thing.
Even the English residents in Japan sol- emnly hang the lobster group in the ever- green arch over their garden gate at this season of the year, partly perhaps to flatter Japanese sensibilities, a little perhaps for its supposed good luck, mainly as a kind of Christmas decoration. They put it up for Christmas Day, and not for New Year's Day, and so do some Japanese in Yoko- hama. In a few years' time they will proba- bly shift the whole festival to Christmas Day ; the Christmas-keeping people there, the Eng- lish and Germans, being paramount in the treaty ports. It is not very much to shift the festival from the Western New Year's Day to Christmas Day, when it has already been shifted from the Japanese New Year's Day to the Western.
"What shall I do ? " I asked of Abe San, the accomplished Japanese who manages the Tokio Hotel, " to see as much as possible of the New Year's decorations, games and holi- day makers ? " " You had better drive to Asakusa. It is far. You will have to drive
4<52
JAPAN AND
right across the city to yet to it, and will sec many people in their houses decorated, and in street playing. Ami at Asakusa very much people and wrestling at the temple — the temple of Kwannon." Jumping into rikshas, that is two-wheeled carriages, away to Asakusa we went,
I'or a wonder it was not one of those ideal days in which Japanese winters deal. But in spite of the grey London weather, what a fairyland diorama we enjoyed as we dashed through the Titanic gateway, over the broad moat, into the maze of narrow streets of wooden and paper houses, hardly higher than a tall American. The grass rope, nawa, was carried from end to end of each block, to keep out the evil spirits ; and every doorway had its New Year decorations in honor of the gods or the national custom, and its crossed flags in honor of the Mikado, a homage that is paid on all public holidays.
Evergreen Everywhere.
Every doorway had at least a patch of evergreen and these crossed banners, the red sun on the white ground — silk crlpe even for the poorest houses — mounted on lac- quered bamboo staves, with gilt balls to replace the spear head or the eagle of West- ern ensigns.
Every now and then there would be a house which enjoyed the dignity of a second story, with the typical decorations Most of the houses had nothing but the flags and a poor little lobster group. We only came across one showing the cut bamboo and red and black firs. It was a very typical little Japanese shop, with its shoji or inner shutters (as in many shops, made of glass, not paper), left up because it was a holiday. On busi- ness days, except in very bad weather, the shop is left open to the street.
We were in imminent danger of commit-
rilK J.M'ANKSK.
ting manslaughter the whole way, for the streets were simply packed with battledore players, mostly children, in the most brilliant costumes, wlm kept up the shuttlecock at distances ami for periods that appear impos- sible to foreigners.
Fortunately our rikshas were drawn by human horses, or there would inevitably have been shying; as one sliuttlccock whizzed past one at a low trajectory, like a volley at lawn tennis, and another ended a slow and lofty parabola within an inch of one's nose, where a bat would be ready to despatch it on its return flight.
Soaring Paper Falcon-
The children blocked the streets with their favorite pastime, while their parents perched on the roofs wherever they were high enough to woo the wind for kite flying ; a pastime of very uneven attractions. In the distance it is fascinating ; one sees the paper falcon at a dizzy height soaring amongst the eagles. Close to, whenever the kite is not winding its string round your neck, it will be found entangled in the legs of your riksha boy.
Just as we passed the castles ramparts we came to a yashiki, one of the great black wooden kraals with its four sides formed by the strongly barricaded outer walls of the barracks of the clansmen, and an open space in the centre surrounding the town mansion of the Daimio, or clan chief. Neither clan nor clan chief lives in them now; but the great Daimio under the Toku- gawa dynasty spent half the year in Tokio, garrisoned by a whole army of feudal re- tainers. These yashikis have mostly fallen from their high estate, and become barracks for Imperial troops or tenement houses for the poor.
When we were passing one of the latter,
THK NEW-YKAR FESTIVAL IN JAPAN.
463
outside the {^reat Tori-shaptd gateway of massive black timber, t\\ o sweet little mites were playing another of tlie great New Year's games, which to the unalle^'orising Anglo-Saxon is simply bouncing ball ; but it means no end to the Japanese. These balls are made, not of India-rubber, but of paper and wadding symmetrically wound round about with thread or silk of various colors. The children .sing all the time they keep up the bouncing.
Kite Flying and Battledore.
The boys seem to go in more for kite fly- ing, the girls for battledore or ball. The kites are made of Japanese paper, thin and strong, on very light bamboo frames. In this season of prevalent winds they fly very •easily, and a light humming noise is pro- duced by a piece of whalebone attached to the kite, and set in rapid vibration by the wind.
The girls introduce more of the solemn ceremony, which the Japanese delight to im- part into the "trivial round, the common task," in their games than the boys do.
In the middle of all this kite flying and ball playing and battledoring, we would come across a couple of Japanese of the hum- blest stations, say two small shopkeepers, whose whole stock in trade did not amount to ten dollars apiece, friends meeting for the first time in the New Year. They would be repeating the orthodox New Year greeting, probably: "Shin nen nogo shiogo, wo moshi agamas," and bowing to each other for about five minutes, accurately observing the etiquette of bowing to an equal, a superior, or an inferior as the case may be.
There are degrees even in penury, and I have seen a child of two years go through a lesson of the whole category of genuflexions An a humble curio shop where the profits
could not have exceeded twenty-five cents a day. With each bob of the head of tliese ceremonious friends, there woulil be the cnr- responding elevation of the Mother (iamp European umbrella, which every Japanese who has a dollar in the worKl hugs, "whene'er he takes his walks abroad."
New Year's Day is the universal visiting day. The Mikado receives the great officers of state, and his subjects receive and call upon their whole acquaintance. How they manage it puzzled me, but I suppose that the Japs mark upon their name-paper (visiting cards are actually made of paper unless the owner aflccts Europeanism; and they are used as universally as the ginghams) the hour at which they will be at home on New Year's Day, as our hostesses mark their day at home, unless it happens to be Sunday.
A Salmon for a Present.
With the visit they generally combine the presentation of the seibo, which ought to have been brought the day before, and was, until etiquette became trodden down nt the heel by the imitation of European slipshod- diness. Among the poorer classes the usual seibo seems to be a Hakodate salmon, squashed flat in the process of salting and packing, or a blue cotton towel such as the riksha boys twist round their heads. So prevalent are these particular forms of the seibo, that the stationers keep a line of gaily printed wrappers, something like our news- paper wrappers, for the specific puqiose.
The most fascinating part about the .seibo to me was the red and white twine, stiffened with rice paste, and tied with marvellous neatness into the inevitable tassel knot, with its little kite of red, white, or gold paper. I was very much amused with one great offi- cial on his way to call on the Mikado. His horse was shying, and he was only accus-
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III
464 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE,
tomed to human horses who never show any unpleasant antics.
As we drew nearer and nearer to Asakusa, the plot thickened, the streets becoming
eigners). Sometimes the duet would be a respectable old Jap and his wife, more often a geisha (sinyin;^ girl) with her chaperon or cavalier, the latter apt to be flushed with saki.
JAPANESE BARBERS.
crowded with Japanese riding in double riks- has (the more extravagant habit of having only one rider to each poor two-legged beast of burden being almost abandoned to for-
Thc crowds of geishas made the street very picturesque with their delicate rainbow- hued silks ; elaborately dressed, flower studded hair, whitened faces and vermilioned
thp: new-year festival in japan.
465
lips. And so did tlie Inns, with their fes- toons of crimson lanterns swinging in the breeze, and their piles of great saki kegs, each sewn up in matting garish with a scar- let or green fish or dragon.
Anon there would be a mighty shouting, or a joyous singing, as, drawn by the patient ox, or a score or two of impatient coolies, rolled past the triumphal car taking home the rice — the Japanese harvest homing. There was a great variety in the processions. All had their array of coolies in brand new head kerchiefs and dres.ses of dark blue cotton, stamped mostly on the broad of their backs with their master's crest in red or white, or both.
An Immense Car.
When the services of an ox were required, the car was generally an elaborate affair, re- minding one of the allegorical displays of the German brewers at an American Cen- tennial, I took a picture of one that was higher than the highest houses it passed, culminating in a huge sun a dozen feet in diameter, made of crimson velvet, with a heavy gold fringe festooned across it, and gilt rays at least another dozen feet long springing from it. Round its base was a tingle of draperies and fans and foliage, blended with the unerring felicity of taste possessed by even the humblest Japanese ; and on a kind of balcony in front, and on the piled-up rice bales behind, were a swarm of masqueraders, a bevy of girls, and a kind of king, most of them with some musical instrument.
More in the spirit of old Japan perhaps is the hand-car. I photographed a little one drawn by half a dozen coolies, and with no ornament on its rice bales but tall swaying bamboos, the tallest with a long white ban- ner streaming in the wind and a crimson 30
lantern firmly fixed on its head, the others with lanterns gracefully suspended, nodding like bluebells, and a plentiful supply of colored cloths, saki jars and bamboo branches. There was much music and much saki at work in all of them.
Haunts of Pleasure.
By this time we had crossed the fine iron bridge built by the Japanese themselves across the Sumida Gawa, the broad river- parent of innumerable canals and moats, which make Tokio, the Venice of the East, and were in the suburb of Asakusa ; more abandoned to the haunts of pleasure than any spot in the city.
Soon we crossed a broad street and found ourselves among thousands of rikshas at the end of a lane, densely packed with the fun- niest little Japanese women in their most brilliant dresses, and bordered on each side by rows of white wooden booths, and a per- fect avenue of gigantic cut bamboos with the foliage left on them. These were inter- spersed with endless banners, crossed over the gateways and drooped from the house fronts like pennons. At the entrance of the fair we were obliged to leave our rikshas.
We followed three sweet little girls, perfect pictures, with their soft grey kimonos and bare flower-brightened heatis, up the narrow lane between the booths, which wlmc filled with the ordinary gimcracks of a Japanese fair — toys, such as kites, battledores, shuttle- cocks, dragon heads for the kagura dance, firemen's hooks and standards, flags, and dolls ; female fripperies, such as lacquer combs, gay hair pins, ladies' satchels and pipe cases, mirrors, trumpery lacquer articles, cakes, and candies. The wares e.xposed were awful rubbish ; and we were glad to elbow our way through to the great temple, which is the heart of all this holiday making,
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466 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
casting .1 glimpse to our right at the five- story scarlet pagoda.
The open space outside was full of the Japanese Christmas trees, or perhaps I ought to say New Year's trees — a handful of long tapering brandies fastened together at their bottoms, and so tapering that the paper toys and sweetmeats hung on them made them bend and quiver like a fishing rod with a black bass attached.
A Showy Temple.
Space forbids my describing here in detail the vast scarlet temple and gateway. The latter was as high as the temple itself, with lanterns hanging in its arch as large as the ordinary Japanese house, and the inevitable "Two Kings" (Ni-0) in their wire rabbit boxes, stuck all over with pellets of chewed paper. As we passed from the great sam- mon to the temple, we noticed an elaborate washing-place, and a huge hoarding, with the little white wood notice boards, to remind the gods of the prayers or benefactions of the faithful.
On entering the temple it was not long before we recognized the fact that there were sacred chickens. There were also images in profusion, and not a few stalls where priests sold cheap prints and pictures of the special incarnation of Buddha worshipped here (Kwannon Saina, the Goddess of Mercy, is tutelary of the temple).
I contributed to the support of the institu- tion by spending two sen and a half — about two cents — and then turned my attention to the faithful, \\ho were endeavoring to insure attention from a different quarter by clapping their hands to siiow that they were going to begin to pray ; and, as a preliminary, throw- u.^ a few rin (decimal fractions of a cent) into the huge grated bath wliich is there to .swallow offerings. We were not the only
mere sight-seers, there were plenty of Japan- ese to keep us company ; for the country has a duality of religions, and a plurality of inhabitants who don't " take any stock " in either.
Taro, my riksha-boy, who could speak quite a good deal of English, and was prett}- well posted in the legends and superstitions, as well as the sights of Tokio, had left his riksha and his hat (a solar topee, though the thermometer was well down in the " forties"), and the Red Indian's blanket which every riksha-boy carries to cover the knees of his patrons, with his mates, and .skipped in after us to play his fivorite roU' of interpreter, and enjoy the holiday himself at the same time. On the strength of his erudition he always treats himself better than his mates. The e.xplanations he made to us were so ab- surd that he evidently knew nothing about it. This is a Buddhist temple : he must be a Shintoist. He is not high enough class to be a skeptic.
The Corean Tiger.
From the temple he led the way to the Zoological Gardens mixed up with it, in the centre of which stands the famous cock- tower. But the main feature is a Corean tiger. The Zoological Gardens consist to a great extent of tortured fir trees in porcelain pots. Zoological is not a wide enough scientific term to describe this precious col- lection. There are, however, two bears from the big northern island of the Japanese group, Yesso, and a number of the storks (alive) which pL'iv such an important part in the decoration of the trash exported from Japan, but which, so far, we had never seen in Japan.
I could not help thinking what a pretty ornament they would make to the botanical gardens at Melbourne, where the)' are very
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THE nf:w-ykar fe
fond of acclimatizinij water fowl, and where i these birds would thrive. 'Possums might be sent in return. Their fur would be valu- able here, and the Japanese would eat them — sharks and swordfish are quite a staple article of diet.
Would we go up to the cock-tower? Taro asks. " Must we take our shoes off? " Then we wouldn't, though the \iew is fine. We preferred to keep on our boots, and hastened past an artist, emulating in the dust of Tokio the men who pastel the pavements in London, to the montebank dentist.
Wonderful Pictures in Chalk.
Talking of the men who make those fear- ful and wonderful pictures with a few bold strokes of a stumpy chalk, and a few seconds' rubbing.with the fingers, one recalls inevitably that one who used to take up his position outside Sir John Rlillais's huge house in South Kensington, and underneath his pictures write : " My rich brother lives in there, while I have not enough to eat." He referred, I believe, to brotherhood in art.
Here in Asakusa there was also a woman who dashed off her pastels with equal skill on paper, choosing her subjects principally from the mythological characters connected with this temple. She retailed her works at rather less than three cents each. I bought five of them — a couple of disreputable look- ing demi-gods, and three landscapes. These last included a Japanese eagle sitting on a snowy tree, another flj-ing round a snowy mountain peak, and a picture of a gigantic red peony in a little straw case buried in the snow. The lady artist's genius had evidently had a wintry experience, not to say reception
" But are there not any jugglers ? " I asked disappointedly of Taro. "Jogler? Oh yes," he replied ; and led the way to a row of booths, surrounded by open-mouthed Japanese.
iSTIVAL IN JAPAN. 467
The first had five rin — a depreciated far- thing— printed outside in large figures. But when I came to pay I was told that tiie board only referred to children, which was a lie, and I knew it ; but I paid thrcc-farthings all the same for myself and my wife and the riksha man, who followed in uninvited and then said I must pay because he had no money. The juggling consisted only of a small electric machine ; and the simple switching of the current on and off elicited continuous applause.
However, we moved on past some wax works exhibiting Daimio (feudal barons) in their pre-revolution costumes, and Aiiio (aborigines of the northern islands) in their native dress, to a booth which had on its signboard a tremendous fire-breathing sea- scrijent, usurping a whole gulf, while a crowd of terrified Japanese stood on a cliff firing engines of war at it. This wormed another three-farthings apiece out of me, and we went in to see only a cub seal about a foot long, which went through a lot of tame-monkey tricks. This kind (jf thing, varied with an occasional theatre, went on to the cntl of the chapter.
Mimic Mountains.
At the end of the chapter came the piide of Asakusa, the miniature Fujij-ania, no feet high, constructed of lath and pasteboard and plaster — a tower in tlie shape of the conventionalized mountains of Japanese pic- tures, commanding a view of the whole f lir, and much of the great city behind. We walked up its shaky planks, anil didn't find it very much fun, though on a normal winter day we should have seen the real Fuji, the Parthenon of mountains, soaring fifty miles away. All we did see from the top was the queerest conglomeration of grown-up chil- dren, who sent up the tinkle and tum-tum of
H
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468 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE
Oriental music, and the shuffle of myriad clogs.
We were very much more amused by the fate of the man who attempted to pick my pocket, and was detected (wonderful to re- late) by a detective. He was a very ingeni- ously got-up crook, in the costume of a Japanese student — native breeches, a sad
THE PATRON' Or" HORSEMANSHIP.
colored kimono, octogenarian European shoes, and a gray " boxer " hat. He also wore spectacles.
The first intimation I had of his designs was to see what looked like an elderly arti- san, out for a holiday, rush at him, and begin boxing his ears so violently that his spec- tacles were knocked off, and his face was
whipped scarlet. Then he dragged him up to me and put his own hand half into my pocket to intimate what had happened. I made signs, after feeling my pocket, that I had lost nothing. But that did not seem to signify ; all the way to the police station he was shaking the poor thief by the collar, and boxing his ears. The Japanese are a nation of children, and their own authorities treat them like naughty children.
I lost sight of him as I turned round to listen to a Japanese street band ; one of the little groups who go round soliciting contri- butions for a great temple at Kioto — a man with a drum, a woman with a gong and a boy with a sort of flute. I brought my kodak to bear upon them, but quick as lightning the old man, who was terrified at the evil eye of the lens, covered his face with his drum sticks. So I photographed him with his eyes darkened by suspicion.
Dealers in Curios.
And then we passed from a whole street of performances to a whole street of shops and stalls. Tea-houses and saki shops were in abundance. They invade even the sacred precincts of the Zoological Gardens, which are as jealously guarded as any thief in Tokio. The cheap curio stalls principally devoted to pipe-cases, predominated ; .sur- rounded by worsted dealers, sellers of " serop," cotton-wool tortoises, Japanese Christmas trees, and a conjurer, from wl.ose tent was interpreted by Japanese musical in- struments an ancient melody. This brought us to the famous rope bridge over the lotu:; pond, quite a long bridge, constructed of planks and rope, like the swinging bridges of the Incas, made immortal in the pages of Prescott.
We made a poor .start for our return journey. Directly we were outside the
THE NEW-YEAR FESTIVAL IN JAPAN.
469
gates we found our riksha boy, the historical Taro, wringing his hands and yelling. His mate, his riksha, his blanket, and his hat had all disappeared. But at length the missing properties were found at a neighboring tea house, and the sun shone through the clouds again.
It was slow travelling, going as fast as we could, through the streets packed with sol- diers, wearing " holiday " on their counten- ances, children one mass of sores, the queer little Jap omnibuses, looking like miniature police vans, or the carts in which butchers take meat from the shambles, and rikshas carrying Japanese dudes in marvellously swell clothes, and silk hats, very seedy.
A Mountebank.
At one point in the road we were blocked by a crowd which had collected round a mountebank whose whole stock in trade was a battered silk hat. This and his gestures seemed to cause uncontrollable amusement to the Japs. He certainly was a merry- looking Andrew.
We drove home along the Thames Em- bankment of Tokio, that city of muddy creeks and canals. It was almost deserted, though we did meet an old man, that rara avis in Japan, where the old are quiet and stay at home. They seem to dread an exposure of their feebleness. On we dashed, past high stockades and gabled white houses, with the black monograms standing out on their gables even in this dusky light, and past a little street temple into leagues of streets which were a forest of bamboo leaves and flags ; looking, oh ! so picturesque in the gloaming.
Our noses were taken up with the disgust- ing smell of the sesame oil with which the evening meals were being cooked, and our «yes with the lantern lighting. One old
Japanese was climbing up a ladder to light a lamp which could not have been more than six feet from the ground, while a more intel- lectual neighbor was lighting his, twenty feet from the ground, with the aid of an ingenious pulley arrangement.
What glimpses of fairyland we had that evening ! First there came the newly lighted streets, with their rush candles glimmering through paper shoji (shutters) and fantastic swinging lanterns ; the queer, heavily gabled go-downs and yashiki looming through the deepening dusk. Then came the grim castle, with its Titanic walls and broad moats thrown into relief by the rising moon. How quaint the gnarled fir trees that grew on the ;'op of the walls looked ! We had paused a minute just outside, to meet our host, at a house with an evergreen arch of the European pattern picked out with camel- lia blossoms, and festooned with mandarin oranges.
Houses in Decay.
And now we wheeled suddenly across one of these moats, and found ourselves once more among the long low yashiki, like so many huge kraals built in mediaeval wood and plaster, enterable only by the heavy timber gates, shaped like the tori of the Shinto temples. Now, alas ! they are stripped of their glory. The king-making Daimio of the Warwick pattern, with his army of feudal retainers, is a thing of the past, converted into a noble with an English or French title, or a nobody stripped of everything, accord- ing to the side he took in the Revolution. Some of the yashiki have sunk so low as to be turned into tenement houses for the poor.
By this time the dusk had deepened into dark, and the riksha boys had lighted the little paper lanterns they grip against one of the shafts. The whole broad drill ground
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470
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
was a kaleidoscope of dancing lights, thrown on little wheels that looked like spiders' webs as they spun round in the glare. And as we neared Shiba, the rikshas made a regu- lar procession of fairy lights, winding through the avenues of tall cryptomerias that stood out like needles in the crisp winter moon- light.
At last we drew up at the Ko-yo-kwan, and disbooted before walking up the glossy maple stairs on to the spotless white mats of the banqueting floor. Here we had a Maple
decoration ; while beautiful women played the biwa, and koto, and samisen, and sang the story the others were setting forth in dumb show. At last the banquet, with its endless dishes and endless relays of tea and saki, came to an end ; and then the games with which the Japanese beguile an evening at the club were played for our benefit, that we might miss nothing.
For bad weather, or for people too old for active sport, there are games such as the jiu roku musashi — a board divided into squares
BRIDGE MAKING EXTRAORDINARY IN JAPAN.
Club banquet, with its endless unheard-of dishes, from live fish downwaids — offered to us, sitting like Turks on piles of cushions, by the sweetest little musumes, or waitresses, squatting on their hams, to the light of sorry candles on tall candlesticks, set, like our- selves, on the floor. So I must not more than mention the music and dancing which our host had ordered to enliven the banquet. The finest female dancers in Japan danced before us in exquisitely rich and beautiful robes, with the maple for the theme of their
and diagonals, on which move sixteen pieces for one player, and one large piece for the other. The point of the game is for the six- teen pieces to hedge in the large piece sO' that it cannot move, or for the large to take all tlie sixteen. A capture can only be made when the large piece finds a piece immedi- ately on each side of it and a blank point beyond.
Sugo roku is entirely a game of chance, a sheet of pictures. Educational pictures are the present fashion, but the oldest form is the
TlIK NKW-YKAR FESTIVAL IN JAPAN.
471
journey between Kiotu and Tokio. Players write names on slips of paper or some other suitable substance, throw a die in turn, and place on the pictures the number correspond- ing to the throw. In the next round, if the number you throw is written on the picture, you find directions as to which picture )'ou should move forward or back to. But you may throw a blank and have to stay in your place. Winning consists in reaching a cer- tain picture. Other games are : — Making verses (something like our own paper games) ; simple lotteries for various ob- jects ; card playing, etc.
Illustrated Books.
We had an equivalent for these games by bemg presented, each of us, with one of the choice books published by Hakubunsha (of which our host was the President) for the European market. All were e.\quisitely bound in delicate sandal-wood-coloicd silk. One had a book of flowers, another of birds, drawn and colored with the fidelity which only fails the Japanese wlien they depict beasts and foreigners, and I myself receive' ! a charming book, similarly illustrated, on children's .sports.
And then we booted, and were bowed out by our pretty waitresses, who, as on the previous occasion, handed each of us as we stepped into our rikshas a little pile of wooden boxes in which every scrap we had left of the dishes placed before us was scrupulously packed. When the Japanese orders a banquet, he carries away all he can- not eat on the spot to gormandize at his leisure.
Our host insisted on seeing us safe home to the hotel. The hour was late, but the procession of fairy lights passing us was not perceptibly smaller, and from every tea house came the tinkling twang of the toki-
wona, the strolling female samiscn player who was plying her trade.
The motchi are a little New Year pile of
I two or more, usually three, round rice flour
cakes, piled one on the top of the other and
placed in a most conspicuous position on a
lacquer stand. It is partly for ornament, in
ANCIENT JAPANESE AKCHER.
which capacity it .serves till January iith, when it is eaten.
At the close of the old year there are plenty in the shops. It is also made by little parties of three men who go about the streets for hire, carrying a bottomless tub, with matting to replace the bottom, slung on a pole between two of the men.
472
JAPAN AND THE JAPANKSE.
The third has the heavy wallet for the pro- longed striking of the paste with heavy thuds. To prevent rebound, the sticky mass is placed on the soft matting in the bottom of the tub. This man also carries the board used as the pastry board for mak- ing up the well-beaten cake.
Climbing a Ladder.
We called upon our late host in the morning, and had to clamber up the usual companion ladder without a hand rail, which takes the place of a staircase in the native houses. It was quite a large house, and we were shown into a delightfully sunny room without anything in it but the snowy mats on the floor; a few vases of flowers in the re- cesses of the guest chamber ; a very plain screen, some floor cushions and a charcoal stove to each. But near the window, in the sunniest spot, were three stately snow white motchi on a scarlet lacquer stand, with a vase of flowers in front of them, as if they were part of the ancestor worship which, combined with loyalty to the Mikado, forms the Shinto creed. These cakes do, I believe, have a solemn family significance.
We were offered pipes, such as our host kept filling and puffing through in two or three whiffs, and refilling, the pipless Japan- ese mandarin oranges, confectionery, candies, and the inevitable tea, which was handed in steaming relays about every five minutes. A veiy brief inspection of the motchi sufficed. But Japanese ceremoniousness did not allow our leaving the house till we were afraid we ihould miss either the fire parade or lunch. We had no difficulty in finding our firemen, the Ginza being their favorite rendezvous, and the great mattoi or paper standard con- spicuous a mile off.
The men rall\- at an appointed place to carry off their new standard, ladders, lan- terns, etc. This procession pauses at inter- vals, when the men steady the ladder (in a perpendicular position) with their long fire hooks, while an agile member of the band mounts it and performs gymnastics at the top. His performance concluded, he dis- mounts, and the march is continued, the men yelling at the highest pitch of their voices.
Agile Firemen.
As the said gymnastics consist mainly of standing on one's head at the top of the ladder, and stretching out stiff at right angles with it, we were forced, after seeing it, to the conclusion that either all Japanese firemen were Japanese acrobats such as we had seen performing at Barnum's, or that all the acrobats were firemen. It must be added that e\en when they go to a fire they take this black and white paper mattoi and their paper lanterns with them. But they gener- ally stand at a .safe distance.
As we were returning to our hotel, in one of the narrow streets between the Ginza and the moat, we came upon a little troupe per- forming the ancient kagura dance. They are often called in to amuse the spectators by the quaint animal-like movements of the draped figure, who wears a huge grotesque scarlet (or green — a sort of cross between a lion's head and a dragon's)mask on his head. At times he makes this monster appear to lengthen and retreat his neck, by an unseen change in the position of the mask from the head to the gradually extended and draped hand of the actor, the beat of a drum and the whistle of a bamboo flute forming the accompaniment to the dumb show acting and forming a part of the performance.
CHAPXKR XXVIII. JAPANESE WOMEN.
THE Japanese woman begins at about four years of age, when she assumes the maternal function of carrying the next baby but one, swaddled on her back. She does not, however, cease to be a child, for she plays at ball-bouncing, battledore, skipping rope, and other noisy, shaky games, with the baby sleeping peace- fully through it all, nodding its head like a pendulum. She begins dressing for society about the same time, in the most fantastic colors, and the richest fabrics that her parents can afford, with everything that a grown-up person would have, in miniature.
I have seen a little girl, destined for the profession of geisha, or singing girl, who might have been anything from seven to ten, with quantities of hair worked up with poma- tum into an elaborate coiffure that looked like a great ebony butterfly, stuck with flowers, and coral and tortoise-shell hairpins, and high gilt combs. Ilpr face was powdered, her lips carmined, her eyebrows shaved in the most approved mode. And she was dressed in flowered silk, with an obe of stiff and precious brocade. She was decked like this to be sold for a term of years. This dressing up was her mother's final attention.
The lower-class Japanese women always in- terested me most. They wear more Oriental- looking clothes. The higher-class women, who adhere to the native custom, dress in neutral colors — usually parson's-wife grays, but sometimes in exquisite fawns and doves. But this rather heightens the cf.sct of their delicate complexions, delicate figures, slender
necks, and thin, refined-looking faces, lending to these an additional charm.
The great ladies are generally foolish enough to dress like Europeans — Germans for preference. It is painful to think of the effect of an ill-made and totally unfitting gown, of a pattern obsolete in Dutchland, on a little pear-shaped Japanese. But the Em- press and one or two others look well in European dress. The Japanese have the charm of looking very young until they look very old. In connection with a woman's wearing of European dress, it must be re- membered that, if she does, she is accorded by her husband the respect paid to Western women ; whereas in native costume she is little better than a kindly-treated slave.
A Singular Head-Dress.
But the women of the people ! What jolly little things they are, whether in their work- ing dress of blue coolie cotton, with a pale blue towel folded round the head like a sun bonnet; or in holiday bravery, tripping through a fair Shiba ; or jogging compla- cently in a jinrikisha, with a male relative, to Asakusa. There the musumes (unmarried girls) are very resplendent in scarlet and fine hairpins. Japanese women never wear hats three sizes too large for them.
The two prettiest little musumes I ever saw were at the Toshogu festival at Shiba, the June day on which the adherents of the fallen Shoguns and the disestablished Budd- hist creed meet at Shiba, Ueno, and Nikko, to celebrate the festival which no longer
473
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appears in the calendars. They were peep- ing out of the covered gallery between the temple and the monastery, where the faithful were throwing offerings of a tenth part of a cent, screwed up in curl papers, at the pict- ures of their favorite saint. I was with an artist friend.
Our charmers were young — ten and four- teen ; but the Japanese grow up quickly as t'.iey grow old slowly, and in the presence of the white-robed young priest, who alleged that he was their uncle (though I could have sworn that the girls were no relation to each other), they were not more timid than fawns accustomed to eat bread out of their keeper's hands. We of course bought them tea and cakes and candies, and the little gewgaws they sell round a Japanese temple at fair time.
Beautiful Olive Complexions.
I never saw anything prettier than these little creatures, with their delicate beauty, and clear, damasked, olive complexions, in their fantastic, bright-colored. Oriental dresses, playing about with the lightness and grace of foxes, and munching candies and laugh- ing— a musical treble from a veritable rosebud of a mouth lined with pearly teeth.
Add that it was a fine June day, at sunset, in I semi-tropical country, and that we were in the most beautiful spot in Tokio, sur- rounded by exquisite trees and temples, and you have the picture.
The Japanese lower class abounds in women pleasing to the European eye. They are often no darker than Italians, and they have the coloring Giorgione loved — rich blood damasking a clear, sun-brown cheek. They have the true rosebud mouth, small and full, with beautifully white teeth, whose smallness is in keeping with the general fciiu- effect. Sometimes, in married women,
JAPANKSK.
the teeth are barbarously blackened to please a jealous husband. Their eyes are not so slit and beady as those of the upper class, and their magnificent brown-black hair is conspicuous.
The dressing of it is a work of art. They will sit the best i)art of a day in front of their fryingpan-shapcd, quick -silvered bronze mir- rors, while the peripatetic hairdresser poma- tums their hair to the consistency of potters' clay, and then molds it into fearful and won- derful shapes — a sort of cross between a butterfly and a hearse plume.
This, on gala days, is stuck all over with combs — gilt, scarlet, lacquer, ivory or pearl — and hairpins of flowers, tortoise-shell, coral, Venetian glass, ivory or mother-of- pearl. And then its fortunate possessor is set up for a week ; for a Japanese pillow is a little block, about the size of the blocks you put your feet on for the brigade boy to black your boots outside the railway stations, with a little hollow or cushion for the neck, and generally a drawer in the base for the hairpins.
Clogs and Sandals of Straw.
Even the lower classes have exquisite hands and feet. The Japanese do nothing roughly ; they move as gingerly as a cat in a china shop. On their lean, glossy, well kept feet they wear, in dry weather, sandals of fine straw; in wet weather, high kiri-wood clogs. These clogs, combined with the petti- coat that pinions their knees together, give the women a most ridiculous shuffling gait, something like a weak-minded girl's on roller skates for the first time. And this is never so conspicuous as in a railway station, for the Japanese always runs when entering or leaving a train.
There is another variety: the mission- educated, and presumably Christian girL
475
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Her badge is a pigtail. The Christianized Japs never do their hair in the national way. The Misses Asso, Sir Edwin Arnold's pupils, wore pigtail'j — pronounced specimens — and they added to this profanation the wearing of hideous pseudo-European boots, silk gloves and German sunshades. They v/ere very ugly though they had fresh cheeks, and as they seldom spoke more than a couple of sentences an hour, they must have had almost enough English for their requirements before his tuition began.
Nearly Always Charming.
I saw Japanese women under many aspects — the women of the people, who interested me — and I must say that they were never without charm except when they were dirty. The Japanese woman is such an impersonation of cleanliness that she seems divorced from herself when you see her, all dust-begrimed, dragging a truck up the hill at Kojimachi ; or covered with liquid malarious-looking black slush as she transplants the young rice plants root by root; or smothered in coal smut, as, in company with hundreds of her fel- lows, she passes baskets of coal sufficient to coal a three-thousand ton steamer in a day at Nagasaki. Then she seems a mere beast.
How different from the little, blue-filleted, scarlet-kirtled maids, carrying their provis- ions in the tasselled kyoto picnic baskets, and their wardrobes and worldly possessions in cardboard boxes about the size of a bis- cuit tin, tied up in oiled paper, going to pick the tea (it was May) in the famous gardens of Uji. Those chubby, stumpy, apple-cheeked little houris, would teach you Japanese or take you to your bath as glibly as they brought in the best country dinner you ever saw in Japan.
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
But the Jap;ttiesc grUctte never shows to such advantage as at a fair or a tea-house. She loves little merrymakings, and gets her- self up with such fascinating quaintness, in her very gayest kimono and obe and hairpins, under a circular parasol with all the colors of the rainbow and her favorite poem — Japanese poems have but thirty-one sylla- bles— upon it. She buys toys and candies with fractions of halfpence; sips watery- looking tea from ridiculous little cups whose saucers never match them ; gives you a pretty little simper; runs away as fast as her clogs will let her shuffle ; allows herself to be caught ; promptly enters into conversation ; will go with you to a tea-house, nnd acqui- esce in everything the foreigner proposes as a huge joke.
Thinks it a Strange Custom.
Siie thinks kissing the queerest custom ever invented, and learns to do it charm- ingly in a lesson or two — the Japanese them- selves never kiss. And she seems to have absolutely no dread of the apparition of a wrathful papa. But she loves best of all to be taken to a tea-house at night. Some of Pierre Loti's most inimitable passages tell us how Madame Chrysantheme loved it.
And elsewhere he says : "After business the women dress themselves, ornament their hair with their most extravagant pins, and set out, holding at the end of flexible sticks great painted lanterns. The streets are filled to overflowing with their little persons, ladies or musumes, walking slowly in sandals and exchanging charming courtesies.
"With an immense murmur of fluttering fans, of rustling silks, and of laughing chatter at dusk, by the light of the moon or beneath the starry night, they ascend to the pagoda, where gigantic gods with horrible masks await them, half hidden behind bars of gold
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in the incredible magnificence of their sanct- uaries. They throw pieces of money to tlie priests, they pr;iy prostrated, and clapping their han.Is with sharp blows, click clack as though their fiiv^ers were of wood. But most of the time they are chattering, thinking of something else, attempting to escape by laughter from the fear of the supernatural."
Guitar Players.
One naturally connects Japanese women with playing the samisen (guitar), an accom- plishment more common than piano playing with us. Any time after dark you hear the strolling eta (parish class) samisen player, tinkling as she goes along, on the chance of being called into a tea-house to earn a few sen. The Japanese are very fond of their music, and those who can afford it go to a tea-house and hire the regular geisha girls, who sing to the accompaniment of the samisen, and are not famous for prudish behavior. Many of them are very pretty, and they may be readily detected in the street by their gaudy dresses, whitened faces, and elaborate coiffures. One generally sees them riding in double rikshas, two together, or one and a chaperon.
The young European also thinks nothing so "chappie" as to take a friend to a famous tea-house, order some beautiful geishas, and stand them all a Japanese banquet, at which he smokes, and drinks foreign liquors.
The women smoke too — the funny little kiseru, or Japanese pipe, made of brass and containing half a hickory nutshell of tobacco. The Japanese women smoke perpetually. The pretty little musume opposite you in the railway carriage will pull out of her long hanging sleeve, or from her sash, her pipe case and tobacco case, the moment she has kicked off her sandals and tucked her feet under her on the seat.
The shopwoman while she is serving you will be tapping her pipe against the charcoal box to knock the ashes out. The coolie woman, when she rests fur her tiffin from the hard Labor which ought to be done bj men, loads, whiffs through in a twinkling, and loiids again the poor man's friend.
The tap tap of the kiseru against the box and the shuffle of the clogs on the paving flags, are as omnipresent in Japan as the rattle of the 'bus in our city streets.
The lower class women in the cities are apt to be worn out drudges or flighty liu'i but- terflies. But even a short way out the\ n in dignity of deportment, and labor \v\i losing their attractions. I was ha\ ing i drive out of Yokohama one day, and aboui .i couple of miles before we got home, Sada, my riksha boy — a very superior fellow, though, I suspect, long-winded as a socialist, and certainly a trifle short-winded as a runner — stopped outside a Japanese farm house, with a neatly railed garden and a cornfield in front of it, from which the harvest was being " carried " on men's backs.
A Model of Neatness.
"That my father's house," he said; and pointing to a little cabin by the garden gate^ "That my house." I dismountc<.I, attd, going up to it, flattered his vanity imiiHiiscly by taking off my boots. The whole thing would have gone into a van, and the bulk of it was taken up with his riksjia house. But it was as neat as a new pin, and in the midst of the one dwelling room sat his wife, with some dainty sewing on one side, and a large charcoal firebox on the other.
She was squatting on her heels when I entered, cooking rice and tea over a handful of embers ; but she rose to greet me — such an exquisite creature — erect, graceful, digni- fied, with a clear, sun-browned skin and
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dazzling teeth, her pretty hands and feet ■only browned, not spoiled by labor.
She showed me, with the ease and c/iic of a grisctte, her simple cooking utensils, her household gods, her two Jappy little chests of drawers, and her sewing, and then she invited me into the garden, and picked me her best roses, and brought to me her beau-
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
When I reached Yokohama I got the ladies of our party to put i;p a great bundle of European garments for her, which, with her beautiful sewing, I have no doubt she transformed into marvels that smote her rustic sisters' souls with awe.
Many Europeans marry Japanese women for the time being, Japanese marriage laws
A J.\PANESE WEDDING.
tiful children. Before I knew she was gone she was back with a little tray of tea, and, when I refused it, led nic through the house of her father-in-law (an old Jap who looked as if he had been dug out, and a mummy of the first dynast\') to the well, with its mossy stone arch, its little red shrine, and its scar- let wild camellia tree.
being somewhat elastic in the matters of divorce; but British subjects must remem- ber, if they do, that there is safety only in numbers. A Japanomaniac of my acquaint- ance, among his other tortuous ambitions, desired to marry a Japanese according to the Japanese rite, and to have his marriage recognized by English law.
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After caking the case through all the courts up to the House of Lords, British Justice sardonically decided that if the mar- riage were duly celebrated according to Japanese custom, and the happy husband only indulged in one wife at a time, he was duly married. This probably carries with it a recognition of the divorce laws, in which Japan discounts Chicago; for not so long ago a filial Japanese divorced a wife he fondly loved because she didn't get on well with his parents.
A Valuable Book.
The best book ever published in Japan is Chamberlain's " Things Japanese." It would be worth buying if it contained nothing but The Daigakti Onna {Greater Learning for JVomen). Every day I am more and more struck with the fact that Americans do not take the same view of Things Japanese as Mr. Chamberlain.
Mr. Chamberlain, an American, whose acquaintance with things Japanese is so marvellous that he is Professor of Japanese Literature in their own University of Tokio, ■says that "the treatment of their women might cause a pang to any generous Euro- pean heart." American men are said to be the best husbands in the world, and the least appreciated ; and yet in the face of this, one hears every now and then of an American lady marrying a Japanese. One may safely say that the Japanese view of the wife's .function differs from the American.
"A woman's lot is summed up in what are ■called ' tlie three obediences ' — obedience, while yet unmarried, to a father; obedience, when married, to a husband and that hus- band's parents; obedience, when widowed, to a son. At present the greatest duchess or marchioness in the land is her husband's ■drud;;e. She fetches and carries for him,
bows down humbly in the hall when my lord sallies forth on his walks abroad, waits upon him at meals, may be divorced at his good pleasure. Two grotesquely different influ- ences are now at work to undermine this state of slavery — one, European theories concerning the relation of the sexes; the other, European clothes.
The .same fellow who struts into a room before his wife when she is dressed in Japan- ese fashion, lets her go in first when she is dressed like Europeans. Probably such acts of courtesy do not extend to the home, where there is no one by to see, for most Japanese men make no secret of their disdain for the female sex. Still it is a first step that even on some occasions consideration for women should at least be simulated."
Whole Duty of Woman.
Such is the opinion deliberately expressed in his "Things Japanese," published in Japan by one who has lived among the Japanese for many years, and knows more of their language and literature than any foreigner living.
And it must be owned that what he says finds authority, or illustration, in The Greater Learning for Women, by the celebrated Japanese moralist, Kaibara, of which he gi\ es a translation, and which he suggests might more appropriately be called "The Whole Duty of Woman."
This remarkable document has a preamble that might justly fill the American woman and girl child with horror.
"Seeing that it is a girl's destiny, on reaching womanhood, to go to a new home and li\e in submission to her father-in-law and mother-in-law (the American girl would rather board in one room with a bed that folded up into an out of date piano), it is even more incumbent on her than it is on a
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480 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE
boy to receive with all reverence her parents' instructions.
"Should her parents, through excess of tenderness, allow her to grow up 5 led,
she will infallibly show herself ca^ ^us in her husband's house, and thus a; .. _ie his affections ; while if her father-in-law be a man of correct principles, the girl will find the yoke of these principles intolerable. She will hate and decry her father-in-law, and the end of these domestic dissensions will be her dismissal from her husband's house, and the covering of herself with ignominy.
Virtue a Jewel.
"More precious in woman is a virtuous heart than a face of beauty. The vicious woman's heart is ever excited. She glares wildly around her, she vents her anger on others, her words are harsh and her accents vulgar, when she speaks it is to set herself above others, to upbraid others, to envy others, to be puffed up with individual pride, to jeer at others, to outdo others — all things at variance with the ' way ' in which a woman should walk.
"The only qualities that befit a woman are gentle obedience, chastity, mercy and quietness."
The man who wrote this last paragraph was a Japanese Solomon. It reads like a lost chapter in the Book of Proverbs. In what follows, the foreigner from his own experience would imagine that some change must have taken place in Japanese notions of morality since The Greater Learning for Women was written.
"From her earliest youth a girl should observe the line of demarcation separating women from men, and never even for an instant should she be allowed to see or hear the least impropriety." The last might be pretty easy. The Japanese, to give them
credit, have no oaths or coarse words in their language. They have to fall back on Anglo-Saxon.
"The customs of antiquity did not allow men and women to sit in the same apart* ment, to keep their wearing apparel m the same place, to bathe in the same place, or to transmit to each other anything directly from hand to hand.
"A woman going abroad at night must in all cases carry a lighted lamp, and (not to speak of strangers) she must observe a certain distance in her relations with her husband and with her brethren. In our days the women of the lower classes, ignor- ing all rules of this nature, behave them- selves disorderly, they contaminate their reputation, bring reproach upon the head» of their parents and brethren, and spend their whole lives in an unprofitable manner."' What a low lot foreigners must meet I
A Risky Lottery.
Marriage must seem a hazardous experi- ment to the Japanese lady. If her husband turns out to be an adventurer she mustn't utter a word of complaint, but put it down to the credit of Heaven ; and if she is divorced " shame shall cover her till her latest hour" — a little hard considering the very elastic character of the Seven Reasons for Divorce, which include such natural little outbreaks on the female part as (i) disobedi ence to licr father-in-law and mother-in-law, (2) jealousy, and (3) disturbing the harmony of kinsmen, and bringing trouble on her household by talking over much and prat tling disrespectfully, and so on.
One would fancy that marriage must be rather a frightening prospect for a woman in Japan. She has to nurse every child till it is about three years old, and after marriage " her chief duty is to honor her father-in-law
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and mother-in-law — to honor them beyond her own father and mother."
T/ie Greater Learning for Women observes, sententiously : "While thou honorest thine own parents think not lightly of thy father- in-law! Never should a woman fail night and morning to pay her respects to her father-in-law and mother-in-law. Never should she be remiss in performing any tasks they may require of her. With all rever- ence must she carry out, and never rebel against, her father-in-law's commands. On every point must she inquire of her father- in-law and mother-in-law, and abandon her- self to their direction. Even if thy father- in-law and mother-in-law be pleased to hate and vilify thee, be not angry with them, and murmur not ! If thou carry piety towards them to its utmost limits, and minister to them in all sincerity, it cannot be but that they will end by becoming friendly to thee.
Supreme Duty of Obedience.
" The great, lifelong duty of a woman is obedience. In her dealings with her hus- band, both the expression of her counte- nance and the style of her address should be courteous, humble and conciliatory, never peevish and intractable, never rude and arro- gant— that should be a woman's first and chiefest care.
"When the husband issues his instruc- tions the wife must never disobey them. In doubtful cases she should inquire of her hus- band and obediently follow his commands. If ever her husband should inquire of her she should answer to the point — to answer in a careless fashion would be a mark of rudeness. Should her husband at any time be roused to anger she must obey him with fear and trembling, and not set herself up against him in anger and disputatiousness. A woman should look upon her husband 31
as if he were Heaven itself, and never weary of thinking how she may yield to her hus- band and thus escape celestial castigation.
"As brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law are the brothers and sisters of a woman's hus- band, they deserve all her reverence. Again, she should cherish and be intimate with the wife of her husband's elder brother. Yea, with special warmth should she reverence her husband's elder brother."
JAPANESE VASES.
This is the law of primogeniture with a vengeance, and what follows leaves the Divine right in the distance. Lay it to heart, daughters of the Mayflozucr, how Priscilla should comport herself when she become Mrs. John Alden :
" Let her never even dream of jealousy. If her husband be dissolute, she must ex- postulate with him, but neither nurse or vent her anger. If her jealousy be extreme it will render her countenance frightful and her
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accents repulsive, and can only result in completely alienating her husband from her, and making her intolerable in his eyes.
"Should her husband act ill and unrea- sonably, she must compose her countenance and soften her voice to remonstrate with him ; and if he be angry, and listen not to the remonstrance, she must wait over a season, and then expostulate with him again when his heart is softened. Never set thyself up against thy husband with harsh features and a boisterous voice.
Slander and Lying Condemned.
"A woman should be circumspect and sparing in her use of words, and never, even for a passing moment, should she slander others or be guilty of untruthfulness. Should she ever hear calumny, she should keep it to herself and repeat it to none ; for it is the retailing of calumny that disturbs the har- mony of kinsmen and ruins the peace of families.
"A woman must ever be on the alert, and keep a strict watch over her own conduct. In the morning she must rise early, and at night go late to rest. Instead of sleeping in the middle of the day, she must be intent on the duties of her household, and must not weary of weaving, sewing, and spinning.
" Of tea and wine she must not drink over much, nor must she feed her eyes and ears- with theatrical performances, ditties, and ballads. To temples (whether Shinto or Buddhist) and other like places, where there is a great concourse of people, she should go but sparingly till she has reached the age of forty. She must not let herself be led astray by mediums and divineresses, and enter into an irreverent familiarity with the gods, neither should she be constantly occupied in praying. If only she satisfactorily perform her duties as a human being, she may let prayer alone
without ceasing to enjoy the divine protec- tion.
"In her capacity of wife she must keep her husband's household in proper order. If the wife be evil and profligate the house is ruined. In everything she must avoid ex- travagance, and both with regard to food and raiment must act according to her station in life, and never give way to luxury and pride.
"While young she must avoid the inti- macy and familiarity of her husband's kins- men, comrades and retainers, ever strictly adhering to the rule of separation between the sexes, and on no account whatever should she enter into a correspondence with a young man. Her personal adornments and the color and pattern of her garments should be unobtrusive. It suffices for her to be neat and cleanly in her person and in her wearing apparel. It is wrong in her by an excess of care to obtrude herself on other people's notice. Only that which is suitable should be practiced."
Must Venerate Her Mother-in-Law.
The Japanese wife "must not selfishly think first of her own parents, and only secondly of her husband's relations.
"As a woman rears up posterity, not to her own parents, but to her father-in-law and mother-in-law, she must value the latter more than the former, and tend them with filial piety. Her visits also to the paternal house should be rare after marriage. Again, she must not be filled with pride at the recollection of the splendor of the paternal house, and must not make it the subject of her conversations."
The Greater Learning for Women is as full of wisdom as an egg is full of meat. The rules and regulations for her relations given above are not a whit more pithy than what a Westerner would call " the sizing up of the
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the
servant question," which may be very beau- tiful in theory, yet difficult in practice.
" However many servants she may have in her employ it is a woman's duty not to shirk the trouble of attending everything herself She must sew her father-in-law's and mother-in-law's garments, and make ready their food. Ever attentive to the wants of her husband, she must fold his clothes and dust his rug, rear his children, wash what is dirty, be constantly in the midst of her household, and never go abroad but of necessity.
" Her treatment of her handmaidens will require circumspection. These low and ag- gravating girls have had no proper education ; they are stupid, obstinate, and vulgar in their speech. When anything in the conduct of "their mistress' husband or parents-in-law ■crosses their wishes, they fill her ears with their invectives, thinking thereby to do her service.
Beware of Gossip.
" But any woman who should listen to this gossip must beware of the heartburnings it is sure to breed. Easy it is by reproaches and disobedience to lose the love of those who, like a woman's marriage connections, were all originally strangers ; and it were surely folly, by believing th« prattle of a servant girl, to diminish the affection of a precious father-in-law and mother-in-law.
" If a servant girl be altogether too loqua- cious and bad she should be speedily dis- missed, for it is by the gossip of such persons that occasion is given for troubling the har- mony of kinsmen and the disordering of a household.
"Again, in her dealings with these low people, a woman will find many things to disapprove of But if she be forever reprov- ing and scolding, and spend her time in
bustle and anger, her household will be in a continual state of disturbance. When there is a real wrongdoing, she should occasionally notice it and point out the path of amend- ment, while lesser faults should be quietly endured without anger. While in her heart she compassionates her subordinate's weak nesses, she must outwardly admonish them with all strictness to walk in the p;iths of propriety, and never allow them to fall into idleness.
" If any is to be succored, let her not be grudging of her money ; but she must not foolishly shower down her gifts on such as merely please her individual caprice, but are unprofitable servants."
The Five Worst Maladies.
The Greater Leartmig for Women must have been written by a Japanese Lord Chesterfield. It is a very gospel of expedi- ency, founded on very much his lordship's caustic view of human nature. What fol- lows is the climax of Woman according to Man.
"The five worst maladies that afflict the female mind are: — Indocility, discontent, slander, jealousy, and silliness. Without any doubt these five maladies infest seven or eight out of every ten women, and it is from these that arises the inferiority of women t > men. A woman should cure them by se'f- inspection and self-reproach. The worst of them all, and the parent of the other four, is silliness.
"Woman's nature is passive. This pas- siveness, being of the nature of the night, is dark. Hence, as viewed from the standard of man's nature, the foolishness of womav fails to understand the duties that lie before her very eyes, perceives not the actions that will bring down blame upon her own head, and comprehends not even the things tha'
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will bring down calamities on the heads of her husband and children. Neither when she blames and accuses and curses innocent persons, nor when in her jealousy of others sh'i (-'links to set up herself alone, does she ..c. t)iat she is her own enemy, estranging others and incurring their hatred. La- mentable errors !
"Again, in the education of her children her blind affection induces an erroneous •svRt'rr, Such is the stupidity of her char- Lcter ii',v. it h incumbent on her, in every partici. ti/, ../ distrust herself and obey her husband."
T''e peroratic .00 long to quote entire, but it is f 'T" -^ . ■>' of the occasion. It begins with rem.'.:! in^ v/c are told that it was the custom of the ancients, on the birth of a female child, to let it lie on the floor for the space of three days. Even in
this may be seen the likening of the man to heaven and the woman to earth."
" Parents, teach the foregoing maxims to your daughters from their tenderest years. Copy them out from time to time that they may read and never forget them. Better than the garments and divers vessels, which the fathers of the present day so lavishly bestow upon their daughters when giving them away in marriage, were it to teach them thoroughly these precepts, which would guard them as a precious jewel throughout their lives.
" How true is that ancient saying, 'A man knoweth how to spend a million pieces marrying his daughter, but knoweth not how to spend a hundred thousand bringing up his child.' Such as have daughters must lay this well to heart." These arc specimen ad- monitions, supposed to contain much wisdom.
CHAPTER XXIX. STRIKING FEATURES OF JAPANESE LIFE.
SIR EDWIN ARNOLD, the dis- tinguished journalist, author and traveller, has furnished a glowing description of Japan and the Japan- ese. The following fascinating account is written with the grace and brilliancy peculiar to all his productions :
Arriving at night in a strange country, one always wonders what the daytime will disclose. It dawned on a scene of singular charm and beauty. Far and near, over the placid surface of " Mississippi Bay," as the inlet is called upon which Yokohama stands, rode at anchor a whole fleet of merchant ships of large tonnage, steam and sailing, seven or eight powerful men-of-war of various nationalities interspersed among them, her Majesty's vessels Severn and Wanderer hang of the number.
Amidst, and around, and beyond these, scores of native fishing craft, with square sails of many hues, traversed the bay, while hundreds of " sampans " — light rowing boats, constructed of broad planks of pine — skimmed the quiet sea, propelled after the manner of Venetian gondolas, by two long stern oars, which are worked under water with a sculling movement by the lively little brown-skinned watermen. The white hulls of the men-of-war, the black mail steamers, the brown and yellow native craft with variously tinted sails, the fluttering ensigns of many nations — amid which the Japanese flag of red and white was everywhere con- spicuous— filled the fair marine picture with bright points of color, and beyond the thickly-
peopled water lay the picturesque town, planted on what was once a marsh, between two " bluffs," or ranges of hills, running inland.
Here was Japan at last, the country which surprises and fascinates everybody who visits it — the "Kingdome of Japonia," as the old authors styled it — and of which good Master Will Adams, its discoverer for English people, wrote — " This iland of lapon is a great land, and lyeth to the northwards, in the lattitude of eight and fortie degrees, and it lyeth east by north, and west by south or west south west, two hundred and twentie English leagues. The people of this iland of lapon are good of nature, curteus aboue measure, and valiant in warre; their iustice is seuerely executed without any partialitie vpon trangressors of the law. They are gouerned in great ciuilitie. I meane, not a land better gouerned in the world by ciuil policie. The people bo verie superstitious in their religion, and are of diuers opinions."
Passing Quarantine.
We could hardly have patience enough for breakfast on board the Bclgic, so much did the shore and the prospect of setting foot in the spacious city before our eyes excite the imagination. But the Japanese authori- ties are particular and punctilious. It was necessary to get a clean bill of health, and to fulfil all formalities, after which a steam- launch conveyed us, "bag and baggage," to the steps of the Custom House, which we passed with little or no trouble, and found
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i !
ourselves — with gait unsteadied by the cease- less movements of the Pacific waves — safe, sound, and well pleased on the soil of the "Land of Gentle Manners."
Everybody has read and heard so much of Japan, by this time, and seen so many photographs of its people and places, that it cannot seem quite so novel, so astonishing to the modern traveller, as it was to Will Adams and his weather-beaten crew, when they came to "Nangasaque" and saw those scenes which the old seaman describes so well — "Then wee steered north north-west, and soone after came foure great fisher-boats aboord, about fiue lunnes apeece in burthen, they sailed with one saile, which stood like a skiffe saile, and skuld with foure oares on a side, their oares resting vpon a pinne fastned on the toppe of the boats side, the head of which pinne wos so let into the middle part of the oare that the oare did hang in his iust poize, so that the labour of the rower is much lesse, then otherwise it must be; yet doc they make farre greater speed then our people with rowing, and performe their worke standing as ours doe sitting, so that they take the lesse roome."
The King's Musicians.
And again — " The king came aboord and brought foure chiefe women with him. They were attired in gownes of silke, clapt the one skirt ouer the other, and so girt to them, barelegged, only a paire of halfe buskins bound with silke reband about their instep; their haire very blacke, and very long, tyed vp in a knot vpon the crowne in a comely manner: their heads no where shauen as the mens were. They were well faced, handed and footed ; cleare skind and white, but wanting colour, which they amend by arte.
"Of stature low, but very fat; curteous in
behauiour, not ignorant of the respect to be given unto persons according to their fashion. The kings women seemed to be somewhat bashful, but he willed them to bee frolicke. They sung diuers songs, and played vpon certain instruments (whereof one did much resemble our lute) being bellyed like it, but longer in the necke, and fretted like ours, but had only foure gut strings. Their fin- gring with the left hand like ours, very nim- bly, but the right hand striketh with an iuory bone, as we vse to play vpon a cit- terne with a quill. They delighted much with their musicke, keeping time with their hands."
A Country That Never Changes.
People talk of Japan as already half-Euro- peanized, but within a couple of hours after our landing I had seen the quaint letters of the "Ancient Mariner" of Gillingham illus- trated in twenty particulars, and found that, like all the rest of Asia, Japan has caprices of fashion, but never really changes.
Even here, where the Old and New Worlds throng Yokohama Gulf with ship- ing, and you may hear nearly every known tongue spoken upon the Bund, a walk of half an hour takes you away to scenes and customs which are as old as the beginning of the Christian Era, and older still. Under the thickest lacquer of new ways, the antique manners and primitive Asiatic beliefs survive of this curious and delightful people, in whose veins Mongol and Malay blood has mingled to form an utterly special and unique race.
How is it possible to convey a tithe of those first impressions of strangeness and vivid interest with which the streets of even cosmopolitan Yokohama fill the observant newcomer? Look at these roadways, mois- tened with a recent shower! Nowhere else
STRIKING FEATURES OF JAI'ANKSi: LIFE.
487
in the world would you see the mud marked with such curious tracks — innumerable trans- verse lines, parallel and sharply impressed, as if a goffering roll had passed everywhere along. These are the footprints of therein, the wooden clogs which all Yokohama wears on wet days ; and that noise, like the voices of very loud crickets, is produced by the pit- a-pat of thousands of ^'I'/a, on the spots where the causeways are paved with stone or pebbles.
The Tiny Japanese Lady.
Plunge into the cheery, chattering, polite and friendly crowd going and coming along the Benten Dori, and it is as if you were liv- ing on a large painted and lacquered tea-tray, the figures of which, the little gilded houses, the dwarf trees, and the odd landscape, sud- denly jumped up from the dead plane into the living perpendicular, and started into busy being. Here, too, are all the pleasant little people you have known so long upon fans and screens. Take the first that comes along — this tiny Japanese lady, whom you left, as you thought, on the lid of the glove- box at home.
Tripping along upon her waraji, she wears that kimono of puce-colored silk with the white storks, which you so well remembered, the <7(5? of amber and blue satin, tied round her little body and swelling into enormous puffed bows behind —
" She's a little bit thick iti the waist, the waist ; But then she was never once laced, once laced ! "
Her snow-white socks, which only just cover the little foot, are divided into a private room for the great toe, and a parlor for the little toes, which gives her the air of being a little pigeon with white feet; and she waddles prettily, somewhat like a pigeon.
The kimono is folded demurely across her
little bosom, and her long sleeves hang down from the small brown wrists and arms to her knees. In these receptacles she keeps sheets of soft tough paper, with which she blows her small nose and wipes the dust from her dainty skirts, besides innumerable other arti- cles of constant use, such as her cards, her chop-sticks, perhaps her special porcelain cup for tea. She has the little clear-cut almond eyes which the artist so faithfully depicted, the funny little nose — "adpressus" — flattened into the little rosy, laughing face, which presents a lovely mouth with the whitest shining teeth, full curving lips, and dimpled chin, and amber-colored neck and throat losing themselves softly in the tender folds of the kimono.
Jet Black Hair.
Her hands are small and fine, the little nails veritable rose-leaves ; and in her glossy hair she wears a red camellia with ever so many little fantastic pins stuck up and down the smooth waves of it. But there is where the artist of the fan and glove-box failed. His palette had not any black pigments black enough to represent the night-dark depths of the tresses of the Japanese girl.
Those puffed and perfumed bandeaux of oiled coiffure, so carefully dressed and ar- ranged so that no single hair strays from the rigid splendor of toilette-room, would make a jetty spot on the heart of midnight. So black that the very highest lights of it are blue-black beyond inky blackness, black so that ebony would be grey beside it, the glit- tering tenebrosity of it makes her little visage and her little nape and throat emerge like dyed ivory from the contrast.
Then the Kunima-ya, t\\c jinrikisha men! Much as you have heard and read about them, you will almost die with laughter when you call one from the stand where the little
488 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE
machines are ranged like fairy hansom cabs, and start for your first ride.
With a hat on his shaggy head like a white washing-basin, with a red or blue blanket over his shoulders, his little legs tightly encased in black cloth drawers, his feet thrust into straw sandals, his name and number gaily painted on his back, "San-ju- ban," or whatever else his ticket proclaims him, starts off at a run with the ridiculous perambulator into which you have entered, and whisks you here, there, and everywhere for fifteen cents, his little hoofs twinkling between the slender shafts, bedecked with bands of tin-foil.
On all sides, as you walk about Yoko- hama, the cry will be heard from the Kuruma stands of "Sha, S/ia/" answering to the London "Keb, sir!" and should you have picked up a little of the language the polite phrases of the two-legged steed will be a good sample of " honorific Japanese." " If the honorable lord does not give himself the trouble of much illustrious delay, the fare will only be 20 sen. Condescend to make gracious use of this worthless servant!" Then the children.
Playful Children.
Japan is evidently a Paradise for babies and boys and girls. The babies are one and all slung upon the back in a deep fold of the kimono. There they sleep, eat, drink, and wobble their little shaven pates to and fro, with jolly little beaming visages, and fat brown hands and arms. The children are friends of everybody, and play ball and fly kites in the most crowded thoroughfares, never rebuked, never ill-treated, with grave happy ways, and long flowing robes, which give a certain quaint dignity to even the youngest.
Coolies go about carrying huge burthens
on balanced bamboo baskets; fishermen hawk odd-looking piscine specimens in white tubs ; the blind amma, or shampooer, wan- ders up and down tooting a plaintive note upon a double pipe of reed, to notify that he is ready to knead and pummel anybody troubled with rheumatism ; the isha, or phy- sician, passes with his drug-case hitched into his waistband by an ivory netskc ; the miller, standing naked behind the string-screen of his shop, grinds rice between two stones, his brown limbs powdered with the fine flour; the bath-man lifts the blue cloth cur- tain of his establishment, and begs you to " make honorable entrance."
Baths of Hot Water.
If you do you will see all sorts and con- ditions of men — and women, too — amicably tubbing together, and will be yourself invited to disrobe and sit in a tub, which will scald you, if not heedful, for the Japanese take their baths at nearly the temperature which boils an egg. And the little shops, and the little goods, and the little, funny, impossible articles bought and sold; and the little, placid, pleasant folk laughing and trotting about the ways; and the little trees growing in every nook, and the little absurd cakes and little morsels of food, and little cups and little bowls which they use. I know I abuse this adjective "little," but all in Japan is chisai, choito, except the shrimps- -which are colossal — and the sea, and the mountains.
But the word "mountains" reminds me of Fuji-San, and one ought to speak first of this prodigious and renowned eminence, which is clearly visible from many spots in Yokohama. So, for the present, I leave the ever- wonderful population of the Japanese towns and pay tribute of distant respect to sublime "Fuji." The highest mountain in Japan, it stands between the provinces of
STRIKING FEATURES OF JAPANESE LIFE.
489
Suruga and Kai. Its height is variously stated at 12,234 English feet, 12,365 feet, and 13,287 feet.
According to the ancient Japanese legend, Fuji arose in a single night, while the Biwa Lake, near Kioto, was formed simultaneously. Eruptions are mentioned as having taken place in the years 799, 864, 936, 1082, I*' 49, and 1707. The last began December 16, 1707, and continued till January 22, 1708. On this occasion the hump called Ho-yei-zan, on the upper slope of the south side of the mountain, was formed.
Mount Fuji stands by itself, rising with one majestic sweep from a plain which is almost surrounded by ranges of mountains. The southern side curves down to the sea, its graceful line being only broken on the south-east by the rugged peaks of Ashidaka- yama. The ascent can be made from five different points, viz., Murayama, Suyama, Subashiri, Yoshida, and Shito-ana. The slope of the mountain is richly cultivated with rice, tea, tobacco, millet, and various vegetables, and higher up the paper plant abounds.
A Fine Mountain Peak.
Although in the present day it is not necessary to obtain permission before making the ascent, still a certain amount of etiquette attaches itself to the formal ceremony of opening the mountain on the first day of the eighth moon. Our earliest glimpse of this famous volcano, the finest peak of its kind in the world, was obtained from the " lOi steps." At the top of these steps, beyond the Creek of Yokohama, is a Tea House, known to all, called "Fujiya" or the "Abode of the Wis- teria." We had repaired thither to drink the little cups of pale yellow beverage for vhich the Japanese have so refined a passion, and to nibble the little yellow and red cakes.
and smoke the little brass pipes, while chat- ting with O Take San, the agreeable Lady of the Establishment.
We had finished a repast, calculated to stay the appetite, perhaps, of a butterfly, or a Japanese; had heard the music of the "samisen," and some less abstru.se melodies, among them a song composed to a Yoko- hama belle by an American officer, of which here are two verses —
" I strive to make love, but in vain, in vain. My language, I know, is not plain, not plain,
Whenever I try,
She says, ' Go men nastii Watakshi wakarimasen-masen.'
" She plays on the soft ' samisen, ' ' samisen,' She sings nie a song now and then— and then, And when I go away She sweetly will say, ' Sayonara ' ' ' Do please come again— again.' "
Silvered With Snow.
Our "afternoon tea" was concluded, the shoji (a screen of frame and paper) was drawn back, we resumed our shoes, and with many a "O yasumi nasai! " and " Sayonara! " pro- ceeded to descend the " loi steps." It was nearly sunset, and lo ! half-way down in the rosy we.st, suddenly we spied the glorious hill raising its sharply pointed cone, all brilliant with snow, above the belt of light grey and rosy clouds which lay along the horizon. Although si.xty or seventy miles di.stant, the giant peak stood forth plain as a silhouette of silver upon the golden back- ground of the western heavens.
It was good to behold Fuji-San — the " Lady of Mountains" — .so soon after arrival, and no wonder could be felt, even from that dim and remote vision, that the Japanese revere their beautiful and isolated volcano. Innumerable are the legends attaching to it. On the summit dwells a deity — the guardian God of the Crater — who is styled " 0-ana-
4!M)
JAPAN AND THE 'Protector of the
I !
Mochi no Mikoto," the Great Hole."
The sand brought down during the day- time by the feet of many pilgrims reascends of itself during the night. On the fifteenth day of the sixth moon the snow all disappears from the summit for twelve hours, to make the visit of the goddess "Fuji-Sen-Gen" perfectly convenient ; and reappears the fol- lowing day quite punctually.
A Theme for Poets.
The smoke of Fuji, her snows, her green girdle of canes and vines, her feet sandalled with flowers, her bosom from which issue streams fertilizing the plains, her perfect con- tour, her majestic beauty, fill Japanese poetry with passionate themes of eulogy and adora- tion. One native bard exclaims —
"What words can tell, what accents sing Thine awful grandeur ? 'Tis thy breast Whence Fuzugawa's wavelets spring, Where Narusana's waters rest."
Divine, truly, in majesty and grace rose the tall peak, about the precise height of which in feet and metres it seems almost impious to dispute, when the living lovely vision of this mountain once comes in sight. For days and weeks together the clouds often shroud that splendid cone, and you can only know where Fuji-San stands by the masses of cumuli and cumulo-strati gathered about her from the Pacific Ocean at her foot.
All the more happy did we feel to catch a gla-.ice of the Goddess on the third day of our sojourn in Japan. The omen was good, and we mounted our jinrikishas and trundled home through the twinkling paper lanterns and busy little streets, with the resolve to see Fuji presently close at hand, even though the season should forbid the ascent of its sublime slopes.
We are on English soil again, for a time,
JAPANKSK.
being the happy guests of the British Minis- ter and Mrs. Frascr, at her Britannic .M.i- jesty's Legation in Tokio, the capital city of Japan, formerly k' as Yeddo. The
run by railway from iiama is short but
interesting. The carriages are of the Eng- lish pattern ; the names of the stations are painted up in English as well as in Japanese, and the eighteen miles of flat coimtry are traversed in about three-quarters of an hour. In (luittin;^' Yokohama you pass under a large Shinto Temple, and skirt the fishing town of Kanagawa ("The Metal River"), where for- eigners were first settled.
Tobacco and Rice Fields.
Then you come to Tsurumi (" Place to See Storks"), surroum'^d by extensive rice- fields, in which the ; ^ were reaping the ripe stalks and har hem in circular- shaped sheaves upon the stems of the trees, so that every hedge-row presented a most curious appearance with these lines of swathed trunks. Tobacco grew green and plentiful everywhere, with patches of onions and of those gigantic radishes which the Japanese so much affect. Kawasaki (" River- Bend") is ne.xt passed, where numberless cargo-boats thatched with mats, and gliding sampans, driven by big-handled oars, testify to a lively water traflflc.
The boat women work and row with their babies tied upon their backs, the little black round heads and doll-like eyes wagging and winking behind the totally unconcerned mother. Omori ("The Great Forest") suc- ceeds, but its trees have mainly disappeared, though Kamada, close by, is famous for its plum-blossoms in April.
The love of the people for flowers is one of their, many charming traits. We are too late or too early, for the red and white lotuses, the tree-peonys and the golden
STRIKING I'EATURKS OK JAPANKSK LIFK.
491
iding
IS one e too white olden
lilies, which, with the jasmines anil roses, embellish the spring and .lutunin lakes and fields ; but it is the cream of the season for the chief blossom of Japan, her Imperial symbol — the chrysanthemum; and truly splendid are the displays seen of this many- hued and multiform flower.
Exhibitions of the National Flower.
Half the women wear a purple or amber pompone in their hair or bosom, and one of our objects in coming at once to Tokio is to be present at the annual exhibition of chry- santhemums, held in the Emperor's gardens. Passing Ikegami ("The Upper Lake"), we next see a famous temple, dedicated to the ancient Buddhist saint, Nichircn, and another sacred to Daikoku, the God of Wealth and Good Fortune, w hose highly comic picture — sitting upon bags of rice which rats are busily gnawing — fi{.":re3 on all the one and five yen bank-notes current in Japan.
The jocund spirit of the people manifests itself even in these grave matters of finance. They will not and cannot take either lite or religion seriously. Another ornamental shrine hereabouts, rich with lacquer and carvings, is -aised in honor of Mioken, the Pole-Star. And thus our train ccmes to Shinagawa ("River of Merchandise"), at the head of the Gulf — a place mainly popu- lated by fishermen, who catch and sell extraordinary quantities of odd-looking fish, and of those gigantic blue shrimps already observed.
The line now curves round, through sub- urbs of the metropolis, styled respectively, Mita ("The Three Fields") and Shimbashi ("The New Bridge"); and then we are in the station of Tokio, a really vast city, nine miles long and eight miles wide, containing over a million of inhabitants, the seat of Government, as well as of the Shiro, or
Castle, wherein resides his Imperial Majesty the Mikado. This Shiro, with its huge ram- parts of Cyclopean masonry and wide moats full of wild fowl, banked by lofty slopes of grass and rows of ancient trees, is one of the perpetually striking features of Tokio.
While driving or riding in a jinrikisha you are always entering or leaving its massive gateways, guarded by neat little soldiers, and capped with Chinese-looking gate- houses. The broad moats swarm with fish, as well as with teal, widgeon and duck, but nobody is permitted to angle or shoot there.
Picturesque Scenes.
Tokio gives the impression of being mainly a bigger Yokohama, without the beautiful sea view, albeit it possesses its own maritime quarter, and is washed there by the head of the Gulf, into which runs the River Sumida. Yet the interminable thorough- fares present a far fuller stream of life, and even more surprising novelties than the sea- port. Nothing but an instantaneous photo- graph, carefully colored, could impart even an idea of the picturesque population of the Nakadori or of Ginza Street.
The trundling jinrikishas ; the little shock- headed Japanese in dark blue coats and tight trousers; the tiny womenkind with hair banded and brushed into fantastic, glossy, immovable coiffures; the mothers with the slit-eyed babies lashed upon their backs — so like to dolls that you almost look for the wire wherewith to make them wink and .squeak ; the .smart little soldiers in brick-red breeches; the immaculately gloved police- men; the postmen in soup-plate hats run- ning along with letter-bags; the endless clatter of the innumerable wooden pattens; the shuffling of the countless loaraji; the slow, shaggy oxen dragging the bamboo wagons ; the pretty, grave, delightful, happy
492
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
children, racing along the public way, with flowing sleeves, like those of a Master of Arts, and flowers in their hair, or flying kites of astonishing devices, or clambering ibout the stone gods and demons of some Buddhist temple, or broadly and blandly itaring at the foreigner with languid almond yes and little painted mouths wide open .tc
keepers; the cakeman with his tinkling bell; the blind amma or shampooer; the small black and white houses, ranged in endless rows as if out of a wooden toy-box, with paper fronts and sliding s/iojt; the <^ootling of the tramcar horns; the spick and span musumes tripping, with shining tresses and pijpon-feet, to dance or to dinner; the start-
JAPANESE BUDDHIST PRIESTS.
:onspicuous and form a part of this novel ' ling things in toyshop md attractive spectacle.
The fishermen, with specimens of piscine latural history which make mermaids com- monplace, and sea-serpents appetizing; the gigantic radishes; the absurd English in- scriptions on the sign-boards; the funny small shops, with their hanging screens of blue cloth and reeds; the squatting shop-
and restaurants, and "butcheries" where badgers, wild boars and silver pheasants are hanging up at the poul- terers', beside ducks, and snipe and hares; the great kites and noisy crows sweeping round and round above the traffic of the bazaar, and at the four-cross way, where a long vista opens westward, Fuji's grand and perfect peak sixty miles off", towering above
STRIKING FEATURES OF JAPANESE LIFE.
493
the rosy clouds of sunset, lifting itself to our far-off gaze in such majesty of form and color as no other mountain in the world possesses — a sight that puts on the other sights, as it were, the Creator's own mark when He made this wonderful, delightful, unique and mysterious Japan.
Dark blue, dark grey, puce, purple, and black embroidered with white, are the lead- ing colors of the autumn dresses of the Japanese out of doors, so that the general aspect of the moving crowd is not so varie- gated as the throng of an Indian town pre- sents.
A Merry Crowd.
But a happier looking population can no- where be studied ; they go chattering and laughing along, the porters singing between their balanced burdens, the air all full, far or near, of pretty salutations — "O hayo! O hayo gozainias!" or"Sayonara! sayonara!" and at evening, " O yasumi nasai ! " (" Con- descend to take honorable repose! ")
The deep reverences these little people make to each other in the street are charm- ing for grace and apparent goodwill — the commonest coolie bends with the air of a finished teacher of deportment when he meets a friend or accepts an engagement. Indoors the obeisances are more lowly still. The little foreheads touch the earth or the spot- lessly clean mats, and the little hands, almost always exquisitely formed — are spread out, while the kneeling musume prostrates her- self and musically utters the irrashai !
The children in the streets are for ever breaking into a dancing run for pure glee of existence, clattering along in merry groups upon their wooden clogs. Or else they gather at street corners and play softly bois- terous games with each other, singing songs and beating hands to the tune. I secured the
words of one of these, where the little brown- eyed, black-pated, Japanese babies stood in a ring, and swung their hands first outward; and then inwards, simultaneously.
It seems they were thus alternately imita ting the opening and the closing of flowers expanding the circle at the word " hiraita ' (" opened "), and contracting it at " tzubonda' ("closed"). This joyous little street song in the vernacular, was —
" Hiraitu ; biraitn ! Nan no hana hiraita ? Renge no hana hiraita, Hiraita to omottara, inata tsubonda.
" Tsubonda ; tsubonda Nauno hana tsubonda ? Renge no hana tsubonda Tsubonda to omottara, matta hiraita."
Which is, being interpreted —
' ' Opened ; opened ! Which is the flower has opened ? The lotus-flower has opened. You thought so, but now it is shut.
"Shut! Close shut! Which is the flower that's shut ? 'Tis the lotus blossom that's folded. You thought so, but now it expands ! "
There is another graceful nursery rhyme that the dark-eyed Japanese babies sing in the streets, which goes —
"Chocho! Chocho! Na no ha ni toniarc Na no ha ni akitara Yoshi no ha ni tomare."
And this, again, in English as simple, is—
" Butterfly, butterfly !
Light on the rape and feed ; If you are tired of honey there,
Fly to the flower of the reed."
But the place of places in Tokio to see tht Japanese small folk is Asakusa, a quartet
h
■
494
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE
where a kind of permanent fair is established round the eminently popular temple of Kin Ria Zan. In this large and striking edifice is preserved a small image of the Goddess
A JAPANESE PAGODA.
Kwannon Sama, made of pure gold, which was hauled up in a net from the Sumida River, and is too sacred ever to be publicly exhibited.
! The shrine is naturally a favorite one with j fishermen, but all classes frequent it, and j curious it is to stand withm the sanctuary I and watch the naivete of the worshippers, They go first to a little hut, and pay an infini- tesimal coin for leave to wash their hands and mouths with water from a wooden ladle, for it would not be right to go unpurificd to pray.
Then they pick out the partic .ar incarnation in the great fane which suits their need, for one image is good at curing stomach- aches, another at brmging fish into the net, a third in making fair weather at sea, and a fourth figure in wood which will accord a becoming complexion if you stroke its face, has that countenance now completely rubbed flat and featureless by the innu- merable palms of women and girls coming thither to benefit by the goddess.
With hands and lips washed, the votary pulls a bell-rope which is to awaken the attention of the deity. Then he throws a coin or two into a grated receptacle, joins his fingers together, breathes the supplication or whis- pers the wish, and afterwards claps his hands to l6t the divinity know that the affair is terminated, and that others can take their turn.
STRIKING FEATURES OF JAPANESE LIFE.
40."
a
.is
IS
le
There is a pagoda near the temple, which is approached by a stone-paved walk. On both sides of this stand bright little shops for the sale of toys, ornaments, etc. The huge red building at the entrance contains •:wo gods of colossal size, in large niches, protected by iron screens. They are the tutelary guardians of the gate, and are called "Ni-0" ("Two Kings"). One stands ready to welcome those who repent of their sins and determine to lead new lives; the other is the special god of chil- dren. The tame pigeons flying about arc held sacred; and to give pious people an opportunity to feed them, women sell peas or rice in little earthenware pots.
A Cluster of Pleasure Resorts.
The Japanese do not visit Asakusa for pious motives only, but for pleasure also. Hence, within the temple grounds are thea- tres, archery galleries, tea booths, and a variety exhibition of birds, beasts and dwarfed trees. A white lath and plaster model of Fuji-San rises near, about I lo feet in height and looo feet in circumfer- ence. Large numbers ascend to the top daily, some days as many as 6000. All the paved way leading to the vast painted temple is full of toyshops, and all the small people of Tokio seem to repair thither on foot, or rocking about upon the maternal back.
The clattering of the wooden clogs, the blast of tin trumpets, the flutter of flags and toy balloons, the laughter, the chat':cr, the gossip of brown matrons comparing their brown babies and their home experiences, the good temper and pleasant recreation of Asakusa in the afternoon, are things to re- member.
Here, too, as in other quarters at the present season, there are chrysanthemum
shows, and the natives will spend all spring and summer in training the vines and grow- ing the flowers for the exhibition, to which the visitor is charged about one cent. Each show contains two or three booths, fitted up with figures to illustrate some historical or traditional theme, and the chrysanthemum blossoms have been attached so as to con- stitute natural robes and scenic accessories. Sometimes a whole fable will be thus illus- trated by means of several distinct floral tableaux.
Curious Little Trees.
The skill displayed by these Japanese florists is abundantly entertaining; but the most striking objects are always those dwarfed and twisted trees which they know how to produce, so that, like the Chinese, they can carry about a fir or thuja, or plum tree, sixty or eighty years old, in a small flower-pot. This is obtained with infinite patience by pinching off the rootlets week by week, and nipping and training the ends of the branchlets till the tree is stunted into the exact likeness of a giant of the forest, while it will not measure, perhaps, more than twenty-four inches high.
Then they dot these pigmy timber trees all about a tiny artificial hill, and plant all over it miniature rocks and crags, and dig out fairy-like lakes, and lead hither and thither absurdly pretentious little rivers, which, for their bridges, cataracts and rapids, might be the Nile, the Missouri, or the Orinoco; and near at hand they rear a delicious little tea-house, and sit there sipping ridiculously small doses of sake, from thimble-like cups, nibbling such tiny biscuits as might satisfy the appetite of a butterfly, and smoking microscopic pipes of brass and bamboo, which hold about three whiffs.
y 1
11
CHAPTER XXX. STREET SCENES IN YOKOHAMA.
JAPAN is, after all, Japanese. What- ever its woods in spring and the lacquer of its temples may be, Jap- anese streets are neutral-tinted. One does not get the glorious reds and greens of the old tiled roofs and broad plantain leaves of Colombo, nor even the bright blues of China. One of the first things which struck me was the resemblance between life in Japan and life in Italy. The Japanese are the Italians, as the Chinese are the Germans of the East, and the masses present the same curious contrast of penurious economy with shiftlessness.
They, too, are a laughing, light-hearted people, feeling life of so little worth or pros- pect that death has no terrors. They, too, to the very lowest, are Nature's gentlemen in their manners, bu*- treacherous, revenge- ful and shifty in their bargains. They, too, are born artists, and have all the indolence of the artistic temperament so strongly that, without feudal influences, they produce noth- ing great as they did in the old days. The poor rather remind one of the Italian poor in appearance — clothes apart.
And though their languages have no con- nection whatever, philologically, the same liquid note belongs to the genius of both. Such words as Tokio, Kioto, Yokohama, Nara, Hakodate, would sound as natural under the blue winter sky of windy Tuscany as under the clear December skies of blus- terous Japan.
The Japanese, to the very lowest, have charming manners — a polish like their in- 496
comparable lacquer, and said by old foreign residents to be no deeper, though as difficult to chip through. Those who have had business dealings with both nations infinitely prefer the Chinese to the Japanese. The Chinese nibble, but they never repudiate. It is hard to pin a Japanese down in a bar- gain. He will never commit himself, and woe be to you if you go on trust, so say the oldest residents.
Postmen in Bicycle Costumes.
There are odd sights at every corner in Japan. His Majesty's mail is carried by postmen in blue serge bicycle club cos- tumes, with knee breeches and white cotton gloves, but frequently no shoes or stockings. To make up for this, they invariably wear solar topees on their heads. But the queer- est crew I have seen for many a day are parading about in green togas and limpet- shaped hats that look like extinguishers. I ask my jinrikisha man, who prides himself upon his English, who they are. He ans- wers in his terse way, for he deals in only one part of speech — nouns — "church peo- ple," and I have to be contented.
The mention of church people and temples reminds me that it is Sunday. The Jap even keeps Sunday in a way. There are more people idle than on other days, and the uppei class Japanese make a holiday of it. So do many of the Chinese, who go up to Tokio by rail (second class, not third), gorgeously attired in apple-green and sky-blue brocades and white silk stockings, smoking cigars oi
STREET SCENES IN YOKOHAMA.
497
oi
the largest size. The Japs observe Sunday as they wear a European hat, because it stamps them as a superior class.
It isn't due to the missionaries, for whom they have the most undisguised contempt. The well-bred Japanese shudder to think of missionaries, while the poorer class do not keep the Christian Sunday at all, but go on trading as usual, though they may possibly feel grateful for a day on which Christian shops are shut, and Christian buyers driven to the counter of the unbeliever.
Curious Cabinets.
Even odder than the postman is the key smith, with a beautiful brass-bound cabinet containing his tools, fringed with a regular pawn-shop of old keys. His cabinet has delightful little drawers. Every specimen of the Japanese cabinet-maker's work has these drawers in all sorts of out-of-the-way places, which fly open and close in the most unex- pected manner. These tool cabinets, especi- ally those which are made by workers for their own use, are veritable works of art, and seldom obtainable by foreigners.
The Benten Dori, though a fair street to shop in, is not a very interesting one for native life. It is desperately anxious to be European in its style, though owned exclu- sively by Japanese. So it has a Pigeon- English signboard over every door, and asks Chri.'-tians an exorbitant rate of profit. But, to-day, ai. ancient native, quite a Japanese Seneca, with shaven head and wrinkled cheek, and a neglige Roman senatorial dress, has strayed in, and is jesting gravely with a friend. We say to the jinrikisha man : " You go better street; viore Japanee."
He rattles us off at a hand gallop (and
there is a good deal of rattle in a galloping
riksha) to the street where most of the native
theatres are. This street is fuller of native
33
life than any other, for here they do their lounging. All along the street, carrying funny little Jap babies in hoods upon their backs, are big sisters or young mothers — one can never be very sure which, in Japan — for the Japanese mature like rabbits, and don't look grown up until they are grandparents.
One hardly ever sees a gray-headed man in Japan. It is such a queer, contradictory, upside down sort of country, that very likely producing a moustache is a mark of middle age, and a full beard a sign that one is approaching the term of man.
Jealous Husbands.
I notice a woman washing the steps of her dwelling, and that dwelling only the humblest type of Japanese shop, with its tiny open front, and its almost total absence of stock, veiled by paper slides and banners of dark blue ship's canvas, ornamented in white with cabalistic designs which may be letters of the alphabet. If she were to turn round I should probably be confronted with a row of jet black teeth; for the Japanese husband,, who is jealous, considers it his only safeguard to render his wife repulsive to other men by making her mouth a Gehenna.
Close by they are building a house (which will presumably be ".somebody's" house) of black mud, on a very airy frame-work. The beaver makes a better job of it ; but, on the one hand, he does not expect his handiwork to be upset by an earthquake any day, and, on the other, he does expect it to keep out the elements. Besides, it must be necessary to build things cheaply in Japan.
I can't form the wildest guess as to what the poor Japanese lives on. There are forty millions, and one can gauge the rate of wages by the fact that one can go half a mile in a riksha for three cents, and buy a cabinet three feet high with half a dozen
498
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
drawers and two sets of folding doors, for fifty cents. Yet every one is dressed well, and cv ery one seems able to afford to pass a whole da>' at the theatre when he chooses, and to spend four cents on doing it, too.
Which I am free to
ORNAMENTED JAPANESE BRONZE
And all the business done is in the pettiest sums, and not too often at that.
I give it up as to how they make their living, but the old resident growls out: " Make their living, and a jolly good living, too, the scoundrels! You've no idea how
well off they are." admit.
For vegetables, the poorer classes hover between the sea-weed stall and the radish- hawker. Other forms of green grocery are included in the busi- ness, but quite under a bushel compared to this mammoth radish — the daiku. The Japanese are very fond of it, but the Europeans of course pronounce it rank, as they would anything that was at once large and cheap, and relish- ed by the natives.
The loads these poor people will carry on their shoulders are as- tonishing. I bought a palm tree when I got back to the hotel, four or five feet high, in a pot of earth a foot and a half square, which the hotel porters could hardly carry upstairs. The flower seller was carrying two of these, and a camellia, and half a dozen other large flowers to boot. For one of these enormous shrubs, in quite a hand- some fancy wooden pot, I only gave him sixty cents; but twelve for the camellia. And I suspect that the hotel guide made him pay a pretty good brokerage out of this.
The odd Jap lanterns are a great industry in the streets. The boys who paint them are hardly bigger than our babies ; but then,
VASE.
STREET SCENES IN YOKOHAMA.
499
ind
stry lem i\cn,
infants are very precocious in Japan. Every five minutes you meet some queer little slip of mortality, with its little arms tucked, in characteristic Japanese fashion, each up its own sleeve, and with its thoughts devoted o the nation (or perhaps marriage).
How unwilling we arc to turn our human horses' heads towards home. We feel as if we could stay out all night in this new earth (which has a very hazy idea, if any, of any heaven, new or otherwise). It looks even more like a willow pattern plate than it did from the deck of the sL.p.
Borrowing Almost Everything.
The Japanese seem to have borrowed •iverythii.g. We know that they borrowed one kind of pottery from Corea and another from China; that they borrow every con- ceivable article from the civilization of the West; that they borrowed their very alpha- bet from China. It seems as if they had borrowed their scenery, too, from China. The very fish-hawkers carry out the national idea, by borrowing a couple of yen (dollars) one morning to buy a load of fish, which they have to pay back the next with the inconsiderable interest of twenty-five sen (cents) — about 5000 per cent, per annum.
However, the coolies at any rate are very Japanese, with their crested tunics. Noth- ing could be more Japanese than one I met, with his queer thatched stall balanced on his shoulder, and the innate brightness of this people, high and low, shining in his expres- sion. His mate was carrying a couple of piles of boxes and baskets slung from his shoulder staff, as milkmen used to carry their pails in New York.
We hurry home past the Cricket Ground, which the English, as irrepressible as their own sparrows, have engrafted on the Land of the Rising Sun; past the headquarters of
the Ken or District, and the General Post Office (every public building with a gilt Rising Sun proclaiming its Imperial connec- tion); past the huge Consulate, over which waves the flag on which the sun never sets; past the Custom House Wharf, and along the bund to the Hotel.
Dinner over, the younger and more frivo- lous members of our party went off to kill time in a way so. regardless of its being the Sabbath, as to remind me of a fellow-pas- senger I had when I went round the Cape of Good Hope to Australia. He was a Hebrew and Saturday was his Sunday. I met him one Sunday afternoon going down the com- panion stairs. "Where are you off to," I inquired, for the afternoon was lovely. "I am just going to 'ave a game of poker with two or three Christians." I didn't feel like "seeing" him after this.
An American Vessel.
When they went off with malice prepense, as the law hath it, I came up into our sitting- room overlooking the bay, to muse and ask myself if it were really possible that I was in the land of marvels, the most artistic in its heaven-sent way since Greece lost the art.
It was nearly nine o'clock when I came up, and from the beautiful Omaha, the United States corvette, which reminds me of an old-fashioned frigate with her graceful fiddle-bow, and of a faded belle with her rctentit)n of graces out of date in the present .severe tailor-made fashion in ships, came the musical American bugle call. As I am writing, I hear the tinkle of "two bells," and the discharging of tlie nine o'clock gun. Looking out from the window I see, crisp and black in the moonlight, the lofty spars of the beautiful sliip. How lovely is the pure, clear Japanese night following the shining Jnoanese day. I can see every ship in the
li
600 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE
harbor, and so still is the water that the reflection of the steamer lights seems to bridge the whole space from the ships to the shore.
Yokohama was a good place to land ; for nearly every one who goes to Japan from America does land here — chiefly, perhaps, from its vicinity to Tokio, the capital of the country. Besides, it is the principal foreign colony, and one can get excellent accommo- dation to recruit after the voyage, and a good many wrinkles about travelling in the interior. It was a great relief, after the close quarters on board the old chartered boats which run from Vancouver to Yokohama, to find one's self in the Club Hotel, with its fine hall and great, airy rooms, which had once been the quarters of the Yokohama Club.
Very novel and strange it was to sit down to a regular French lunch of many courses, served by a crowd of spindle-legged Japanese, in their picturesque dark blue tunics and hose, who (most of them) could not speak a word of English, and took their orders by the numbers on the menu.
In the Harbor.
"Boy, bring me some No. i." Very funny we thought the shuffling noise they made as they ran about the floor, dragging their straw sandals by their big toes.
Landing in Japan is most entertaining. The moment a ship drops anchor she is sur- rounded by a flotilla of the queer little native boats, propelled with one oar by half-naked Japs, who swarm up on the ship's deck, sucking in their breath and bowing to the ground as soon as they are on board. No- body patronizes them but the Asiatic pas- sengers. Saloon passengers go off in the hotel launches, which in a few minutes, threading their way through the swarming native craft, land you close by the Custom
House and prepare for your reception at the hands of officials.
Your luggage is carried up by a swarm of coolies. How quaint they looked the first time one saw them, in their tight hose and tunics, made of the universal dark blue cotton, ornamented in the back with some brilliant device in white or red. The coolie who carried up our hand parcels looked like a walking advertisement of the Waterbury watch. Most of them were barefooted, all of them were bare-headed, perspiring and smiling. Japanese smile from the day they begin riding on their sisters' backs to the day on which, to use a fine Buddhist phrase, they "condescend to die."
Houses of Foreigners.
There is a division between the native and European cities. The spacious mansion of the English Consul, a typical Eastern house, is on one side of the road, and on the other is the Kencho, where the business of the ken, or prefecture, is transacted. Just beyond this is the Post Office, a large brick building in the American style, ornamented with the golden emblem of Japanese nationality. (The Japanese themselves can't, for the life of them, tell you whether it was originally the rising sun or a chrysanthemum.) This road is planted on both sides with flowering trees, blossoming the day we landed, in the middle of winter.
Immediately after this, to our delight, we made our escape from the Lic-Europcan town, as the Chinaman would call it, and struck the ordinary Japanese town in the Benten Dori (Venus Street). The houses here were, many of them, thoroughly Jap- anese— little one-story affairs, built of wood, with their fronts removed all day, replaced, if it was sunny enough, with dark blue or chocolate-colored curtains, like the door of
STREET SCENES IN YOKOHAMA.
601
a tent, ornamented with the owner's name or device in liuge white characters.
Most of them in this street were shops for the benefit of foreigners — photograph shops, porcelain shops, basket shops, silk mer- chants', haberdashers', or curio shops of the third order. The second order are in the Honcho Dori — the next street — which em- blematizes its superiority by having the shop fronts glazed instead of open.
White Straw Mats.
Even some of the Benten Dori shops were un-Japanese enough to have counters. The true Japanese shop has a floor, raised about a foot above the street, covered with fine white straw mats an inch thick. On this the proprietor squats, the customer never stepping upon it without removing his shoes. The stock is partly spread out on the floor, partly on shelves, and partly hung from the ceiling. At the rear is a wooden ladder, like a ship's companion, leading to the attic, if there is one, and there is generally a pas- sage on one side.
In the first shop a little boy was finishing off, with a hammer and agate burnisher, the gilt on one of the great "satsuma" jars which they make in Yokohama. We bought some note paper, ornamented with storks, temples, torii and Fujiyama, which we fondly believed to be what the Japanese used, until, a little lower down, we came to a genuine Japanese stationer, where we saw the hun- dred-feet rolls of porous wrapping paper, upon which the natives indite their billets doux, and saw them making the great white- covered account books, with knotted rope backs, so familiar to us now that we have been in Japan a whole week.
The "church people," whom we saw last week in the bright green cloaks and limpet- shaped hats, turn out to be mendicants
licensed by some temple in Kioto. After leaving the Benten Dori we crossed the canal near the police station, and were happy at last, for we found ourselves in the "theatre-street" — a genuine bit of Japan. At the very entrance was a theatre where you could sit all day for about eight cents, and smoke your pipe and eat your dinner. It was ornamented outside with huge sign- boards, covered with the most blood- curd- ling pictures of dragons, as big as ships, breathing the traditional fire; of women being cut up like beefsteaks; of blood- splashing murders, and hair-breadth es- capes, painted in all the colors of the rain- bow, the hue of blood showing up nobly.
A Medley of Sounds.
Most Japanese plays are really exceed- ingly clever in simulating wounds ; the mur- derer makes a savage cut, and blood spurts from his victim. A "tum-tumming" noise is kept up all the time the performance goes on, possibly to draw the attention of folks outside to the fact that the performance is going on.
Outside the theatre was a row of little girls, seemingly about four years old, carry- ing the next baby but one in the haori on their backs, and discussing affairs with the gravity of matrons, or skipping about to get out of the way of the passers-by. Whether they were standing still, or he was having his head shaken off, seemed a matter of pure indifference to the baby.
Close by stood the pipe-mender, with a rack full of second-hand pipes, ranging down to a penny in price; but most of his custo- mers preferred to economize, and have their own dilapidated pipes mended. Then we drove on and passed an Ameya, or maker of dough toys, which he blows out in glass- blower's fashion in the shape of gourds,
602
cupids, cocks, etc.; street stoves, where, by paying a penny, children can have a little dough and sauce, and spend the whole afternoon in cooking. We go nearly every day to this queer street, with its theatres and bath houses, and
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE, and one of the little i street, picking up queer little articles of daily
domestic use among the humbler Japanese, as artistic as a Greek temple in their obser- vance of the science of shape and ornament, and each with its little bit of allegory or famous legend hinted at. Tlicro were brass
AMERICANS MEETING THE EMPEROR OF JAPAN.
bazaars where they sell semi-European trash, and the inevitable pipe cases and hairpins. It has one most fascinating by-street leading off it, where the cabinet-makers and fourth- class curio sellers congregate.
I have spent hours and hours in this
bowls and plaques; pipe case clasps ; wooden and bone netsukes; metal inkpots for the belt, hardly differing from the Turkish; bronze mirrors, and miniature temple orna- ments ; inros of rare lacquer, chipped out of all value, but interesting as specimens; the
stre:kt scenes in Yokohama.
503
comb and mirror pouches used by singing girls, and what not.
It was in this street that I bought at a cabinet maker's a couple of old temple ban- ners, twenty feet long, made of heavy cotton something like ship's canvass, painted one with the famous battle on the briugc between Yoshitsune and Ben-Kei, and the other with the great old General Toyotomi Hidcyoshi, the Warwick of Japan. They are splendid pictures, full of life and color, though, of course, with the absurd Japanese disregard for perspective. I have seen forty dollars asked for one not to be compared with them in a shop in New York.
The Famous "Bluff." And every day when we get to the end of Theatre Street, the riksha boys, who, being paid by the hour (twelve cents), naturally want to spin things out as much as possible, suggest that we shall return by way of the bluff. "You see where English gentleman live, very rich."
Yokohama consists of at least five different quarters. The well-to-do foreigners all live up on " The Bluff," as the queer, flat-topped hill, of the orthodox Japanese pattern, at the entrance of the harbor, is called. Their places of business and the hotels are in the Settlement, separated from the Bluff by a creek, and mostly near the sea-front or Bund. At the back of this is " Chinatown " — Yoko- hama has a population of two or three thousand Chinese — and separated from the Settlement and Chinatown by the road to the cricket ground is the native town, faced in the front, mostly, by buildings in the Euro- pean style. Beyond this, again, is the Kanagawa Bluff, where the wealthy Japanese live, almost overhanging the railway station. The houses of the wealthy foreigners on the Bluff are some of them delightful. The
unevenness of tho ground gives a wonderful opportunity for landscape gardening, and with a bamboo brake, a few palms, a lotus pond, and one or two of the great stone votive lanterns they call ishi doro, one can be as oriental as Aladdin.
The houses themselves are great, roomy bungalows, full of the artistic things which can be picked up so easily in this land of recently decayed feudalism, and which will make the owner's fortune, or remind him for ever of the quaint Eastern land in which he was a pilgrim and a sojourner after he has returned home, as the American or English- man in the East alwiiys means to do. The houses are full of picturesque, smiling, oblig- ing servants, and really their owners have as much quiet luxury as any reasonable man could desire.
Beautiful Scenerj'.
Away beyond the Bluff are the cemetery and the race-course, which seem to have a sort of affinity in the Anglo-East, and, be- yond them again, a scene of enchanting beauty, the Gulf of Tokio stretching away down to Yokosuka, with a long procession of crumpled headlands and islands; and right at one's feet a deUcious litt'c bay, with the sweet little village of Negishi nestling under the cliffs in its embrace.
Negishi, with its microscopic farms and tiny village houses with steep thatched roofs of marvellously picturesque shape, and its dear little graveyartl scooped out t)f the cliff, with rows of pitiful stone Buddhas at the heads of the sleeping dead, is an idyl.
P'roni the Bluff down to the Settlement the slope is so steep that riksha boys won't draw you down :*■ unless they ha\ c a second man to act as brake, and won't draw you up it unless they have an assistint behind to act as propeller. It is bordered by rather nice
I
■i
i
S04 JAPAN AND THE JAPANESK
little curio shops, which have very pretty little things at quite moderate prices. They have to tempt residents, who know the value of things. Visitors don't trouble the Bluff much, except when they are asked out to dinner by the people to whom they brought letters of introduction, and this is of course
ANCIENT WARRIOR AND WEAPONS.
at night. Then tlie people who entertain .are prepared to receive their friends.
Tiffin, as they call lunch in the East, is at twelve, and so we had been able to drive all iround the native town, the Bluff and the Settlement, and back in time to see some performances by daylight of the street
tumblers and acrobats and monkey-train- ers, who had collected round the Club Motel on observing that a new ship had come in. The conjurer's principal tricks consist in lying on his back with his feet in the air, supporting tiers of human beings, or .spinning an impossible number of large wooden tubs at the same time, or eating flaming charcoal. In Japan his sleight- of-hand is not, as a rule, remarKaole. I soon got tired of the conjurer, and persuaded the monkey-trainer to begin. The "monkey-business" was very funny in this particular troupe. There were two men, and a very pretty and pictur- esque young woman — a regular gipsy, as black as a Malay — who jid every- thing with an up-tossed head and a haughty look in her eyes, as if she "couldn't be bothered."
A Useful Attendant.
Her duties were multifarious. She had to twang the samisen, beat the drum, and keep the monkeys' wardrobes sorted, so that the performers could dress up the animals without delay. If the Japanese only knew how exactly the monkeys counterfeit them in the eyes of strangers, they would execute every monkey in
litation of
Samurai;
jai. mendicant
gw .1 stick; now
1 scolding a servant
rnvelling his forehead
too lifelike. We live
Japan. Now it "
a swaggi'ing
now '
woma L)blui^
the hai l>ty mas
kowtowing and in the dust — alwaj luxuriously at the Club Hotel. We ha- a fine sitting-room with five windows K than a stone's throw from the sea, a pr' entrance to the street, and bed-rooms en sn *, for almost half what it would cost us to 1 o in the same style at quite a second-cLiss
STREKT SCKNKS IN YOKOHAMA.
r)!).")
tl-SS
London or New York hotel, and our first dinner will give you an idea of how wc are fed.
Our bill of fare that night included oyster and turtle soup, and fish better cooked than one ever gets it in an American hotel, and various kinds of meat, and poultry, and game, and entries, and three or four kinds of pudding with fruit, and nuts, and ices to wind up with.
This is the "roughing it" which we had pictured to ourselves, and we often have a quiet laugh over it. After dessert I spend a delightful hour in the snug library of the Yokohama United Club, one of the cosiest clubs I know, and then I come back to our sitting-room to join the others, ensconced in easy chairs, with the feeling of content one has when one has had a thoroughly good dinner as a climax to a tiring day on shore, after the enforced idleness of that tiring fort- night on a stormy sea.
Quiet Enjoyment.
We sit with the dreamy happiness of lotus eaters, listening to all sorts of unfamiliar sounds; the shrill ho-he-to whistle on the double bamboo, followed by the clop-clop of a blind man's staff proclaiming the wan- dering momu (massage operator — a task performed almost exclusively by the blind in Japan) ; the clattering of the riksha boys, whose vehicles we can count by the glim- mering lanterns of brightly painted paper; and at nine o'clock the bugling on the war- ships which summons to bed. The day we arrived, for once in my life, I obeyed the summons. I generally like to see the day duly finished before I turn in.
The kind of curio-shopping I enjoy most is rambling about among the street curio sellers, who from sundown to nearly mid- night throng the Ginza in Tokio, or the
Hasha Michi in Yokohama. They crouch at the vcr)' bottom of the ladder among curio sellers. There are many rungs be- tween them and a place like the ]"ine Art Gallery. There are whole streets of curio, silk, fan and porcelain shops in the Iloncho Dori — a continuation of the main street of the settlement — and the Benten Dori, which runs parallel with, and ne.\t to it. But the properly constituted curio hunter, who has less money than time on his hands, ferrets for curios as bookworms ferret for second- hand books. Even the Benten Don, which is distinctly humbler than the Honcho Dori, is tame and e-xtravagant. For even here there is some pretence of style and arrange- ment.
Proud of his Boots.
Personally I mistrust a curio shop which contains no second-hand European boots ; for it shows that the proprietor understands Europeans, and aims at business with Eu- ropeans only, at a corresponding increase of prices, and contempt for the little domestic curios, which show more than anything else how thoroughly art enters into the life of the Japanese. The lower class dandy in Japan values nothing so much as European boots, or boots which he considers to be a successful imitation of tiie European. Consequently, genuine Japanese bric-a-brac shops, with a native as well as a European clientele, are pretty sure to contain some of those down- trodden knick-knacks.
Even the most modest of them have never quite the charm of a street stall to me. There is something so primitive, so simple, so humble, so childlike, so cheerful about the street curio seller. His whole stock-in-trade he can carry in two funny little piles of flat square boxes, which he hitches to the ends of his shoulder bamboo.
CHAPTER XXXI. THE NEW JAPAN.
A GRAPHIC account of what may he properly called the new Japan is furnished by the brilliant pen of one of the members of the Japanese Legation at Washington. This account is authorized and endorsed by the Japanese Minister to our Government, as will be seen from the following note:
" The interest which the American public has taken in Japan is a source of profound satisfaction to my countrymen and to the government which I have the honor to rep- resent in the United States. It is with pleasure, therefore, that in response to inquiries, Mr. Stevens of our Legation staff, has sketched the characteristics, resources and aspirations of Japan.
"Shinichikd Kukino."
Mr. Stevens's account is as follows: J .;,ust confess to some temcrit}' in pre- senting a sketch of Japan, wherein so.ne- thing of erudition may be expected. But one thing, I trust, I may be able to impress upon the minds of American readers, and that is th;,t the problems which Japan pre- sents are worthy of ihe study of the most learned, and that the events which have formed her national life during the past three decades will one day rank among the marvels of history.
The Empire of Japan consists of a group, or, to speak more precisely, of several groups of islands lying off the east coast of the Con- tinent of Asia. These islands, irregular in shape, and even more irregularly distributed, 506
consist of a main group of four islands, and of several smaller groups .scattered in differ- ent directions, with here and there solitary islands and islets posted like sentries about the Island Empire of the Orient.
The mairi [>;roup consists of four islands. The northernmost is Hokkaido, once known as Yczo. Then comes the principal island, which, curiously enough, is leally withor.t a name, although it is sometimes called Hon- shin, and sometimes Niphon. This lattei, with the prefix Dai, is the name of the whole Empire — "Great Japan" — but not distinctively of the central island. TI)c explanation is that the Japancise looked upon that island as the mainland, which necessarily needed no other separate desig- nation than tlic name of the whole countiy. The southernmost island is Xiushiu, or "The Nine Provinces;" the one to the east and north of that, Sikoku, or " The Four Provinces.''
Beautiful Sea and Islands.
Between Kiushiu and Sikoku, on the one side, and the mainland on the otlier, almost conipletel)' landlocked, lies that beautiful body of water known as the Inland Sea, itself studded with islands and islets. The islands scattered here and there in irregular array form naturally the most unique and attractive feature. How many there are of these islands no one seems to know exactly — the Japanese themselves say some thou- sands.
Many of them are inhabited and in a state
THE NEW JAPAN.
507
>u-
ite
of high cultivation, while others, ranging in size from mere rocks to mountainous and precipitous cliffs, have upon them no human habitations. In many cases fantastically shaped and curiously marked, with those that are inhabited, where picturesque villages cluster upon the shores, and the terraced hill sides are tinted with the varied hues and colors of the growing crops, they combine to form a scene of novel and impressive beauty. The sea itself, although occasion- ally disturbed by storms, possesses at most times all the charms of a quiet lake. It is a.; if the land had snatched away a part of tl-.c stormy ocean, roaring in surly discon- tent upon its outer coasts, and decking it with these gems, torn from its own bosom, had wrapped it in a soft embrace and lulled it into a gentle sleep.
Land Well Cultivated.
Owing to the mountainous nature of the country there are but few large plains in Japan. But wherever irrigation is possible, and rice and other crops can be grown, every foot of soil is cultivated. In central and northern Japan you may see many thou- sands of acres of land under cultivation, but on the fertile plains and uplands near the seacoast the same land has been in use for centuries, and still yields abundant crops under a system of diligent and skilful hus- bandry tliat apparently is capable of little, if any, improvement. The land is subdivided in the great majority of cases into very small holdings, and it seems wonderful, especiall}- to Americans, whose ideas of land are very naturally comprehensive, to discover that a Japanese farmer can live and prosper upon a "farm " little larger than a good sized house lawn.
Japan has a population of 41 ,089,940. Tlu; distribution of this population is very uneven.
The main island has more than 3 1 ,000,00a inhabitants, the Hokkaido less than 400,000. The same differences e.xist to almost as great a degree between the provinces of the main island itself. Those in the north and in the mountainous central region are very sparsely inhabited, while in the south, and wherever a plain or a valley affords an opportunity for the irrigation, every available foot of ground is utilized. Japan is not a densely populated country in the sense that it is overcrowded, or that its resources are severely ta.\ed to- supply the needs of its inhabitants.
Not Fond of Mutton.
There are thousands of acres of fertile land lying fallow which will one day be cultivated, no doubt. The utilization of such lands depends to some extent upon the adoption of new methods uf agriculture and the growth of new products, and somewhat upon the greater spread among Japanese of fondness f )r a meat diet. The govern- ment once made experiments in sheep farm- ing, with a view 1 1 utilizing the great tracts of pasture land now lying waste. The ex- periment was ill one sense a failure, not because the shee|) tlicl not thrive sufficiently well, but simply because the Japanese peo- l^le did not care to e;it mutton.
This condition of affairs is, hovvcver, changing. The raising of cattle and the cultivation of crop,; hitherto neglected arc furnishing profitable use for waste lands, so that in time v/e may expect to find the popu- lation of Japan somewhat more evenly dis tributed than it is at present.
Cities, towns and villages are numerous in Japan, as is natur.il where the population crowds together in a favored district. For the purposes of this paper, however, it is suffi- cient to refer to only three of the larger cities — Tokio, Osaka and Kioto.
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JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
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These three cities are Fu — that is to say, they have local governments of their own, while the rest of the Empire is divided into Ken, or prefectures, the form and mode of government being in both cases substantially identical.
Osaka is the ancient commercial metropolis of Japan, and serves as the centre of distribu- tion for one of the richest and most populous regions of the Empire. It is a quaint, old- fashioned city, wealthy and conservative, and solid and substantial type, and yet not with- out many signs of the growth and spread of modern ideas. Its citizens are like itself — solid and substantial, and not too eager to adopt the new simply for the sake of its novelty, but very persistenc and persevering in carrying out any project that may meet with their approval.
Ancient Seat of Learning.
They are the merchant princes of Japan, and in all the changes incident to the pro- gress of the Empire within the past three decades they have retained for their city much of its ancient importance. The re- moval of the capital from Kioto to Tokio has deprived it of the political pre-eminence ■which it once enjoyed, but if business and politics have been divorced, the former has not suffered much by the process.
Kioto, only an hour's ride from Osaka, presents an entirely different aspect. If Osaka is the home of commerce and of industry, Kioto— at least in the days of old Japan — was the chosen abode of the muses, of learning and of the arts. During the time when a temporal ruler, nominally de- pendent, but in reality master, held sway at Yeddo, now Tokio; when the Shogunate had succeeded in usurping most of the real power, leaving only its shadow to tlie true sovereign, Kioto was the home of a vene-
rated but impoverished Court, the members of which, debarred from the excitements of political life, turned their attention, whether from choice or necessity, to the cultivation of gentler pursuits. Here literature and let- ters flourished, and here many of the manual arts, which have made Japan famous, reached their highest stage of development.
Tokio is an attractive city, but cannot compare with Kioto in natural beauty, nor with Osaka in commercial importance. It was selected as his capital by lyeyas, the great founder of the family of Tokugawa Shoguns, about three hundred years ago. For centuries it was a military capital, an immense armed camp, within which, for at least six months during the year, each terri- torial noble was obliged to take up his resi- dence, accompanied by a goodly number of retainers. The presence of these large boilies of armed men gave the city a peculiar char- acter, some memory of which lingers about it still.
A Flourishing Capital.
At the time of the Restoration, when the Tokugawa dynasty passed away, the city fell into decadence, and for a time wore a forlorn and deserted appearance. Its population decreased nearly fifty fold, and it seemed destined to pass into forgetfulness with the fortunes of its rulers. But when the Em- peror chose it as his capital its ancient im- portance was revived, although in a very different form, and since then it has steadily gained both in population and in wealth.
Among the material products of Japan the agricultural naturally take the lead. The country is rich in minerals, and manufac- tures have increased in importance wonder- fully within the past few years, but agricul- ture still retains its ancient pre-eminence.
Rice is the most important product. In
THE NEW JAPAN.
oOJ)
older times it was a unit of value, the in- comes of nobles and others being calculated by the "koku" of rice, the koku being 133 pounds. As rice farmers the Japanese have nothing to learn from their Western brethren. Their implements may seem primitive and their mode of cultivation awkward, but the results they achieve are of the best.
They use the same land year after year, without intermission, and their children's children continue to use it after them. It never lies fallow, but in many cases, perhaps in the majority, is used for another crop as soon as the rice has been harvested, and always yields abundantly. Experience has taught the Japanese the secret of maintain- ing this uninterrupted cultivation, and, as to their methods of planting and harvesting, I give it, not as my own but as the opinion of experts who have carefully examined into the subject, that labor-saving machinery could not be introduced with profit for the improvement of either process.
An Important Industry.
The silk industry of Japan has received a wonderful impetus within the past few years, and the export of raw silk has grown mar- vellously. Each year the acreage devoted to the mulberry tree has been enlarged, and the number of those who occupy the whole or a part of their time in raising silk worms has been increased. This is an industry for which his patient and methodical habits especially fit the Japanese agriculturist. It is alr.o an occupation in which the women and children of his family can engage with profit and without exhausting toil.
It has always been an important industry, but of late years it has spread to districts where it was not before known, wherever, in fact, the mulberry tree can be grown, until to-day there is hardly a hamlet or a solitary
farm house in Central Japan where it is not carried on to a constantly increasing extent. In porcelain clay the Japanese have a pro- duct which they have for centuries put to artistic uses with which the world is familiar. If signs of decadence have at any time ap- peared in the excellence of these products effective steps have been taken to prevent its spread.
Masterpieces of Bronze.
The same may be said of the lacquers and bronzes for which Japan is so renowned. In the old days a fine piece of bronze or of lacquer was a work of loving and thoughtful care, in which no element of personal gain entered — other than the hope of fame. The workmen — if they can be called workmen who were in the truest sense artists — were in most cases under the patronage of some rich man or noble, for whom they wrought slowly and carefully those masterpieces which have gained such fame for them and for their country. Such work as that is hardly to be expected in the hurry and bustle of a com- mercial age, but the art is not lost, and the artists of Japan still produce masterpieces in l.icnuer and bronze.
But no account of Japan would be even partially adequate which did not contain some mention of the uses to which these resources have been put during Japan's transition from the old to the new order of things. The manner in which a nation manages its ma- terial resources may be taken as a fair index of the stage of development to which it has attained, and of its capacity for progress in other directions.
The restoration of 1868 found Japan in a disordered and impoverished condition. Japan had been closed to the world for cen- turies, but no people can be shut out com- pletely from knowledge of the rest of mankind
510
or from contact with the ideas of a progressive age. Strangel)- enough, the death blow to the ancient system was that event of which Americans are so justly proud, the conclu- sion of the Perry treaty.
It was this dawn of daylight from the outer world which showed intelligent Japan- ese how thoroughly out of touch their country and, above all, their form of govern- ment was with the spirit of the age. It was then that the little band of reformers, who were chiefly instrumental in bringing about the great change, began their work.
One of the first acts of the Emperor was to issue an edict abolishing the laws against foreign religions and their propagation among the Japanese.
New System of Government.
The daimios, or feudal chiefs, surrendered their fiefs to the crown, and accepted in lieu the bonds of the government, at amounts, it should be added, much less than the value of their original holdings. This, it must not be forgotten, was an entirely voluntary act of self abnegation.
The samurai, or military class, whose privileges, rigorously secured and jealously guarded, made them the real masters of Japan, especially in times of domestic dis- order, like their chiefs, the daimios, accepted capitalized pensions, instead of the regular support to which their fe-ilty and their service had entitled them.
The reorganization of the whole fabric of the public administration was naturally the first care of the Imperial Government. The departments were all established upon a new and an effective basis. Foreign advisers were employed to sssist in the work, and no effort or expense was spared to create a system which would be at once modern, practical and economical.
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
The government recognized the import- ance of education to themselves and to the masses. A complete system of educational institutions was established in every part of the Empire, beginning with primary schools in every hamlet, through middle, normal and other more advanced institutions up to the University in Tokio. Hospitals were en- dowed, and special attention was paid to education in medicine and surgery.
Schools for Women.
Nor was any distinction made between the sexes, but schools wer-i established for the education of women as well as of men. This system has been steadily followed throughout, with only those changes which experience has shown to be advisable and beneficial. In all public works the govern- ment has taken an active and an earnest interest. The establishment of railway and steamship lines, of telegraph and post roads, and, in short, of all those facilities which increase the comfort and convenience of the nation have been their constant care. The telegraph and postal systems are equal to those of most countries, while as to railways, an increase from eighteen miles, in 1873, to almost two thousand miles, in 1894, may fairly be regarded as a good result even in this country of phenomenal railway develop- ment.
Nor should it be forgotten that a great deal of the progress which Japan has made in every direction has been due as much to private enterprise as to government direction. The railway and steamship lines, for ex- ample, are exclusively under the control of private corporations. The government has, of necessity, taken the initiative in many things, but oftentimes it has been merely to set an example which has been readily and aptl)' followed.
THE NEW JAPAN.
511
There is another phase of Japanese dc- velopment which is well worthy of notice. I refer now to the newspaper press. The Japanese, like the ancient Athenians, and — may I add? — like modern Americans, are a people who delight in hearing new things. It need hardly be added that the press came to them, as it comes so often to us, to supply " a long felt want." Its development has been little short of marvellous, and now it flourishes like the green bay tree, from the scholarly periodical, the didactic weekly, the political daily, down to the "penny dreadful," for whose columns nothing short of murder and sudden death are fit matter.
Influence of the Press.
Many able, intelligent and patriotic men are enlisted in the ranks of the press in Japan, and they already exerci.se a potent influence upon public opinion and the conduct of public affairs. The government has deemed it necessary to establish regulations for the •control of the press — a system more alien to American than to European ideas — ^but one which experience has shown is necessary to tlie public welfare. The heaviest penalty of all, the total suspension and confiscation of the paper, has never been inflicted.
In attempting to describe the changes throuL^h which Japan has passed and the effect which they have had upon the develop- ment of the country's resources and the increase of national wealth, it has not been possible to omit some mention of the political transformation which has been so notable a feature of her recent history. The one stands to the other in the relation of cau.se to effect, and what the future may have in store for Japan depends not a little upon the harmonious development of the govern- mental system which was adopted when the Empire emerged from its seclusion.
The present executive .system was adopted in 1885. It consists of a Cabinet and a Privy Council. The former, presided over by the Prime Minister, is composed of the Ministers in charge of the executive depart- ments, who are directly responsible to the Emperor for the management of their offices. The functions of the Privy Council are purely advisory.
The different Prefectures into which the Empire is divided are under the charge of Governors appointed by the Emperor upon the recommendation of the Minister of ^lome Affairs, In each Prefecture there is, as I have already stated, a local Assembly which co-operates with the Governor in the manage- ment of local affairs.
The Governing Houses.
The Imperial Diet is composed of two Houses, a House of Peers and a House of Representatives. The former body consi-sts of members who hold office as a hereditary right, of a certain number who are elected by the different orders of nobility which are not entitled to seats in the House, and of a certain number appointed by the Emperor.
The members of the House of Represen- tatives are elected directly by the people. A property qualification governs the e.xercise of the electoral franchise.
This, in brief, is the executive and legisla- tive system now in force in Japan. When everything is taken into account it may be said to have worked smoothly and efficiently. Since the adoption of the constitution and the establishment of the Diet there has at times been a great deal of political excite- ment, but throughout every storm of this kind there has been no attack upon the privileges of the people, no thought of an assault upon the fundamental law. The constitution has been scrupulously observed,
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512
JAPAN AND THE JAPANESE.
and each struggle between the executive and the legislative branches of the government has been carried on within the lines defined by that instrument.
Such contests are inevitable where men strive for political supremacy. In Japan they afford a useful vent for political pas- sions, and when, in time, party principles are more clearly enunciated and party lines more sharply drawn, there is no reason to believe that parliamentary government in Japan will not achieve all that was hoped for it. The fact that in Japan, even from ancient times, a system of local self-govern- ment in town and village, and rural district, was conceded by the government and jeal- ously retained by the people, affords perhaps the brightest augury for the success of self- government in Japan.
Competitive Examinations.
The systematization and codification of the laws of Japan was one of the first cares of the government after the restoration. In the year 1884 a system of competitive exami- nation for appointment to judgeships was introduced and has ever since been in suc- cessful operation.
The constitution itself provides that juris- diction shall be exercised by the courts of law according to law ; that the organization of the courts shall be determined by law; that the judges shall be appointed from among those who possess the proper quali- fications according to law, and that no judge shall be deprived of his office except for misconduct and by due process of law. A statute passed for carrying these constitu- tional guarantees into effect, and providing for comprehensive and complete reorganiza-
tion of the courts of justice, has been ir> operation for several years.
If wc judge the future of Japan b> the past — by what she has accomplished for tlie intellectual, the moral and the material im- provement of her people — our forecast must be most sanguine. Admitting that accom- plishment is justly a measure of reward, she cannot now be far from the goal of her ambition — recognition as a member of the family of nations fully entitled to the enjoy- ment of all those rights and privileges which independent commonwealths regard as in- alienable prerogatives of national sover- eignity.
America in the East.
Her continued prosperity and successful progress depend upon the attainment of this end, for she has reached the point where the harmonious development of her national life demands another and an even greater change than any that has gone before. The only obstacle which stands in the way is senti- mental rather than practical. Some believe because no Asiatic nation has ever, at least in modern times, cared for those things and striven for those things for which Japan cares and which she seeks to make her own, that therefore no Asiatic nation is fitted to enjoy them. Such reasoning is as faulty as its premises are incorrect.
When, in the not distant future, Japan attains the goal of her ambition, it must always be a gratifying reflection to every American that it was his country which firs>, brought her into touch with the world, and which first displayed a cordial, a helpful and a practical sympathy with the aspiration? and efforts of the Land of the Rising Sun.
BOOK III.
Corea apd bi)e War Hcb^sreei) Lr)ir)a
ar)a lapar).
Ijapan must
I every
|h firsi 1, and il and
titions Sun.
CHAPTTBR XXXII. LIFE AND TRAVEL IN COREA.
AN interesting account of Corea is furnished by the Hon. George N. Curzon, whose travels and obser- vations in this country have given him high distinction. His graphic descrip- tions are eagerly read, and afford an accurate idea of a nation which has, through recent events, been brought into the thought and notice of America and Europe.
The name of Corea has been for ages wrapped in mystery. It is an old country contemporaneous, as alleged, with Thebes and Babylon, but owning no ruins. It boasts a separate, if not an independent, national existence for centuries, yet is de- void of all external signs of strength. It contains beautiful natural scenery, still virgin to the traveller's foot.
Corea claims to have given to Japan her letters, her science, her religion, and her art, yet is bereft of almost all vestiges of these herself. Her people are endowed with physi- cal vigor, but are sluggish in mind and morals. Such a spectacle is one which has no counterpart even in Asia, the continent of contrasts. A bridge between Japan and 33
China, Corea is, nevertheless, profoundly un- like either. It has lacked the virile training of the Feudal System in Japan, and the in- centives to industry supplied by the crowded existence of China. Its indifference to re- ligion has left it without the splendid temples that adorn the former country, without the stubborn self-sufficiency of character devel- oped by Confucianism in the latter.
Corea Suddenly Aroused.
Japan swept it clear of all that was beau- tiful or ancient in the famous invasion of Hideyoshi three centuries ago — an affliction from which it has never recovered. China's policy has been to keep it in a .state of tutel- age ever since. Placed in an unfortunate geographical position midway between the two nations, Corea has been, like Issachar, couching between two burdens. Suddenly, at the end of the nineteenth century, it wakes up from its long sleep to find the alarum of the nations sounding at its gates ; the pleni- potentiaries of great Powers appear in its ports to solicit or to demand reciprocal treaties; it enters the comity of civilized
513
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514
COREA AND THK WAR,
peoples; and, still half stupefied by its long repose, relaxes but slowly beneath the doubt- ful rays of Western civilization.
The first glimpse of the Corean coast, which is mountainous, but little wooded, and relatively bare, gives no idea of the timbered heights and smiling valleys which may be encountered in the interior; 'jut the first sight of its white-robed people, whose figures, if stationary, might be mistaken at a distance for vhite mileposts or tombstones, if moving, for a colony of swans, acquaints us with a national type and dress that are quite unique.
j Peculiarities of Dress.
A dirty people who insist upon dressing in whitp is a first peculiarity ; a people inhabit- ing a northern, and in winter a very rigorous latitude who yet insist upon wearing cotton (even though it be wadded in winter) all the year round, is a second ; a people who always wear hats, and have a headpiece accommo- dated to every situation and almost every incident in life, is a third. But all these combine to make the wearers picturesque ; while as to Corean standards of comfort we have nothing to do but to wonder.
As to their physique, the men are stalwart, well-built, and bear themselves with a manly air, though of docile and sometimes timid expression. The hair is worn long, but is twisted into a topknot, protected by the :;rown of the afore-mentioned hat. The women, of whom, those belonging to the upper classes are not visible, but the poorer among whom may be seen by hundreds engaged in manual labor in the houses, streets, and fields, cannot be described as beautiful. They have a peculiar arrange- ment of dress by which a short white bodice covers the shoulders, but leaves the breasts entirely exposed; while voluminous petti- coats, very full at the hips, depend from a
waist just below the armpits, and all but conceal coarse white or brown pantaloons below. Their hair is black, and is wound in a big coil round the temples, supplying a welcome contrast to the greasy though fascinating coiffure of the females of Japan.
Indeed, if the men of the two nations are unlike — the tall, robust, good-looking, idle Corean, and the diminutive, ugly, nimble, indomitable Japanese — still more so are the women — the hard-visaged, strong-limbed, masterful housewife of Corea, and the shuffling, knock-kneed, laughing, bewitching Japanese damsel. The Corean boy, indeed, might more easily be taken to represent the gentler sex, since, until he is engaged to be married, he wears his hair parted in the middle and hanging in a long plait down his back.
Fatal Epidemics.
Of this people, the males among whom exceed the females, there are believed to be about 11,000,000 in Corea, an area very similar in extent to Great Britain. Marrying at an early age, prone to large families, and undiminished for many years by war or famine, the Corean population ought to be on the increase were it not that the infant mortality is enormous, and that the death- rate from epidemics, against which no precautions are taken, and which sweep over the country every third or fourth year, is certainly high. On the other hand, the large tracts of uncultivated and almost uninhabited country that still await the ploughshare and the peasant will accomo- date a much larger population.
The Coreans belong unmistakably to the Mongolian stock, occupying a sort of inter- mediate stage between the Mongolian Tar- tar and the Japanese. It is impossible to confound them either with the latter or with
LIFE AND TRAVEL IN COREA.
516
the Chinese ; and a Corean would, to any- one who has travelled in the country, be a known man in any city in the world. It has been supposed by some writers, who have observed a different variety with blue eyes and fair hair in Corea itself, that there is ilso a Caucasian element in the stock ; but I am not aware that this hypothesis has found any scientific confirmation.
Their language is of the Turanian family, with the addition of many Chinese words.
If one does not either speak or under- stand Corean oneself, it is always possible to communicate with a Corean by using the Chinese symbols, which he equally employs. On the other hand, among the upper and let- tered classes, Chinese itself is the invariable vehicle both of speech and correspondence, just as it is also the official language em- ployed in government publications, proclam- ations, examinations and decrees.
Poverty Everywhere.
Of the people so constituted there appears to be but one opinion as to the national char- acter and physique. While an invigorating climate has made them naturally long-lived and strong, their habits of life and morals have rendered them subject to many forms of ailment and disease ; while their want of contact with the world and their servitude to a form of government which has never either encouraged or admitted of individual enterprise, but which has reduced all except the privileged class to a dead level of un- complaining poverty, have left them inert, listless and apathetic.
As individuals they possess many attrac- tive characteristics — the upper classes being polite, cultivated, friendly to foreigners and priding themselves on correct deportment; while the lower orders are good-tempered, though very excitable, cheerful and talkative.
Beyond a certain point, however, both classes relapse into a similar indifference, which takes the form of an indolent protest against action of any kind. The politician in Soul remains civil, but is wholly deaf to persuasion. The coolie works one day and dawdles away his wages upon the two next. The inapti, or ostler, takes his own time about his own and his pack-pony's meal, and no reasoning or compulsion in the world would disturb him from his complacent lan- guor.
Corea's Vast Resources.
These idiosyncrasies may only be interest- ing to the unconcerned student of national character, but they are of capital importance in their bearing upon national Ufe. When, further, they are crystallized into hardness and are inflamed by the habits of an upper and official class — which subsists by extor- tion and prohibits, outside its own limits, either the exercise of surplus activity or the accumulation of wealth — they explain how it is that the Corean people remain poor amid stores of unprobed wealth, lethargic where there should otherwise be a hundred incen ■ tives to diligence, nerveless in the face either of competition or of peril.
I have seen a Corean coolie carrying a weight that would make the stoutest ox stagger, and yet I have seen three Coreans lazily employed in turning up the soil with a single shovel, b\' an arran<];ement of ropes that wasted the labor of three men without augmenting the strength of one.
So it is in every department of the national existence. An immense reserve of masculine force is diverted from the field of labor and is lost to the nation by being absorbed into the yamens, or offices of the local magistrates and prefects, where their function, instead of invigorating the blood of the country, is to
516
COREA AND THE WAR.
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suck that of their fellow-countrymen. ' The population of Corea may, indeed, be roughly divided into two classes — the upper or official, entitled yangban, whose position or gen- tility is a bar to work, and who, therefore, must subsist on others ; and the great re- siduum, whose business it is to be subsisted upon, and to filch from the produce of their labor the slender necessities of existence for themselves. Poverty in the sense of desti- tution their is not ; but poverty in the sense of having no surplus beyond the bare means of livelihood and of the paralysis of all en- terprise is almost universal.
An Official Burned Alive.
Any less indolent people might be ex- pected tr rebel ; and occasional magisterial encroachments beyond the limits of practice or endurance result in short-lived spasms of mutiny, in the course of which an offending official is seized and, perhaps (as happened once in 1891), is burned alive. But ordi- narily this implies too great an exertion ; the people are unarmed and very helpless, and the system is mutely acquiesced in, unless pushed to intolerable extremes.
Travel in the heart of a country brings the stranger into contact with a type of humanity more primitive, but also more representative of the national character, than that encountered in the capital or in large cities, whilst it also discloses features of natural scenery of which the residents in towns or the frequenters of high routes alone may remain permanently ignorant. Both these advantages were derivable from the circuitous journey which I took from Gensan to the capital. The familiar route between these places, with the exception of one splendid mountain-crossing, traverses a land- scape never without interest, though lacking in the higher elements of grandeur or romance.
A divergence, however, of a few days from the track brought me into a region which less than half a dozen foreigners have yet visited, and which contains some of the most renowned scenery in Corea, as well as the picturesque and venerable relics of the dis- established Buddhist religion, which for 1000 years before the foundation of the present dynasty, in about 1400 A. D., was the official and popular cult of the country.
Gilded Images and Idols.
This region is known as the Keum Kang San, or Diamond Mountains; and there — amid mountain valleys and recesses whose superb forest mantle rivals in amplit.icie, while it excels in autumnal tints of maple and chestnut the garniture of California can- yons, where rushing, crystal-clear torrents dance through every glen, and far skywards bare splintered crags lift their horns above the foliage — are scattered a number of mon- asteries, whose buildings are in some cases many centuries old, and whose dwindling congregation of inmates perform in these secluded retreats, secure from any intrusion save that of the itinerant pilgrim, the stereo- typed devotions before gilded images of Buddha and his disciples, in which they themselves, in common with the mass of their countrymen, have long ceased to be- lieve.
By lovers of the picturesque nothing more enchanting than these monastic retreats can anywhere be found; nor will the discovery that, while every prospect pleases, man alone is vile — even though his depravity assume, as is credibly alleged of the Corean bonzes, the most profligate expression, or, as it did in my own experience, the more mode.st form of larceny of one's personal effects — deter the traveller from keen appreciation of surround- ings so romantic.
LIFE AND TRAVEL IN COREA.
517
Surprise may be felt that in a country where the cloister is so generally and not unjustly despised, it should yet succeed, in spite of popular scepticism and official neglect, in attracting to itself a sufficient number of recruits. The answer lies in the incurable laziness of the people.
The Corean form of Buddhism is closely akin to the Chinese, and is widely divorced from that which found favor in the more artistic atmo.sphere of Japan. Its hideously bedaubed temples, which only become toler- able with age, and its multiform, grotesque, and barbarous images have little in common with the beauty of Ikegami or the glories of Nikko, or even with the less aesthetic attrac- tions of Asakusa. Essentially Chinese, too, is the manner in which the original faith has been overlaid with superstitions, and has had grafted on to it an entire pantheon of semi- deified heroes.
Singular Superstitions.
Nevertheless, it is a welcome relief to alight upon the shrines even of a dishonored and moribund faith in a country where no popular cult appears to e.xist save that of spirits, dictated in most cases by nervous apprehension of the forces of nature, and where, as the old Dutch navigator put it, "as for Religion, the Coresians have scarcely any."
To these superstitions is the Corean peas- ant peculiarly prone. Outside his villages are seen wooden distance-posts carved into the hideous and grinning likeness of a human head, in order to propitiate the evil spirits. Of similar application are the bronze figures of monsters that appear upon the roofs of palaces and city gates, the rags a.nd ropes that are tied to the boughs of trees (supposed, in Corean demonology, to be the particular abode of spirits), and the stones that are heaped together a.i the summits of hill-roads.
in passing which our native camp-followers would invariably bow and expectorate.
Female sorceresses and soothsayers, to cast horoscopes, and to determine the propi- tious moment for any important action, are also in great request. In Soul I heard a story of a sick man who was supposed to be possessed by U devil, but was successfully cured by an English mission doctor, who affected to drive out the evil spirit, which was forthwith pursued down the street by a large crowd and " run to ground " in the mission compound.
Worship of Ancestors.
Among the upper classes the only vital form of religion is ancestor worship, devel- oped by familiarity with Confuci.mism and by long connection with the Chinese. A man has no higher ambition than to leave male descendants who may worship his ghost and offer sacrifice at his grave. An outcome of the same ethical system is the sense of filial piety, which would have ren- dered /Eneas a typical Chinaman, of unques- tioning obedience to the sovereign, and of duty to the aged and to friends.
No Buddhist monks are allowed inside the cities — a prohibition which is said to have originated in the Japanese invasion 300 years ago, when the invaders crept into some of the towns in monastic disguise — although the King, in the neighborhood of the capital, has one or more secure mountain retreats, whither, in time of danger, he flees to the protection of a monkish garrison.
Travelling in Corea is best undertaken in the autumn months of the year. The climate is then perfect — a warm sun by day and refreshing coolness at night. In the winter deep snow falls and the cold is exces- sive. The summer heats are equally un- pleasant. There are no made roads in the
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CORKA. ANU THK WAR.
country, and the tracks arc mere bridlc-patlis, of greater or less width, according to the extent to which tlicy are trodden.
In a country that is as plentifully .sprinkled with mountains as a ploughed field is with ridges, these are frequently steep and stony in the extreme, and in the out-of-the-way parts which I visited the track was not unfrequently the precipitous and boulder- strewn bed of a mountain torrent, amid and over the jagged rocks of which none but a Corcan pony could pick his way.
Tough and Wiry.
A wonderful little animal indeed is the latter. With the exception of the ox, which is the beast of heavy burden, and the donkey, which is tnuch affected by the im- pecunious gentry, no other pack or riding animal is known. Rarely more than eleven hands high, combative and vicious, always kicking or fighting when he can, he will yet, with a burden of 150 lbs. or 200 lbs. upon his back, cover a distance of some thirty miles a day ; and provided he has his slush of beans and chopped straw, boiled in water, three times a day, before starting, at noon, and in the evening, he emerges very little the worse at the end of a lengthy journey.
Each pony is attended by its own mapu, or driver, and the humors of these indi- viduals, who sing and smoke and crack jokes and quarrel all day long, are among the alleviations of travel. T*" the destination be not reached before nightfall the bearers of official passports have the right to torch- bearers from each village. Long before reaching the latter, tremendous shouts of *Usa, usa!' (torch), are raised by the mapus or yamcn-x\xnxvQxs ; and if upon arrival the Government linkmen are not forthcoming with their torches — made of a lopped pine- '■ig or a truss of straw — they are roused
from their slumbers or hiding with cuffs and violent imprecations. In a few moments half a dozen torches are ignited, and, amid waving banners of flame, the cavalcade dis- appears into the night.
Sport is a further and agreeable conco- mitant of journeying, although, as in every country in the world, not much game can be seen except by divergence from the hurried track of travel. Pheasants abound in the undergrowth on the mountains. In the winter months every variety of wild-fowl, from wild geese and swans to wild duck, teal, water hen, plover, and snipe, swarm along the coast and rivers or in the soaking rice-plots.
Shouts of Delight.
The natives either snare them or shoot them sitting ; and the spectacle of a rocket- ing mallard brought down from a great height in the air is greeted by them with frantic shouts of admiration and delight. Turkey bustards, cranes, herons, pink and white ibis are also encountered, and there is a large eagle, whose tail-feathers are much prized by the Chinese for fans.
But the richness of the Corean covert lies rather in fur and skin than in feather. Hares, foxes, badgers, wild cat, wild boar, safes, ermin, and otter in the far north, and different kinds of deer (which are hunted for the medicinal properties supposed in China to belong to the horns of the young buck) are to be found in the scrub on the mountains. Leopards are quite common, and in the winter months sometimes venture even inside the walls of Soul.
But the tiger is the king of Corean quar- ries. He is of great size ; and I saw, while in Corea, .some .splendid skins. His haunt is the wooded mountain-slopes near the east coast, and the entire belt of country north-
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COREA AND THE WAR.
wards as far as the forests on the Yalu, where man-eaters are not uncommon. In winter-time tigers have more than once come down into the settlement at Gensan and carried off a victim ; I even heard there of a European who, going out to dine, met a tiger walking dow n the middle of the road ; and when ■ was at Chang An Sa (the Hall of Eternal Peace), the principal of the Keum Kang San monasteries, one vs said to patrol the quadrangle every night, and we came across their spoor and droppings.
Royal Tigar-Hunters.
The King maintains a body of royal tiger- hunters, who capture them by means of pits and traps, the commonest of these being a sort of big wooden cage constructed of timbers and stones, rather like a gigantic mouse-trap. A pig is tied up in.side, and the entrance of the tiger releases the door and confines the beast, who is then despatched with spears. The natives, however, regard the animal with an overpowering apprehen- sion, and there is an old Chinese saying that "the Coreans hunt the tiger during one-half of the year, while the tiger hunts the Coreans during the other half." They will not travel singly at night, but go abroad in company, brandishing torches and striking gongs.
They are also most reluctant to act as beaters ; whence, perhaps, it arises that, common as the tiger is in Corea, I have rarely heard of a European who has bagged one to his own rifle. I am sometimes asked by sportsmen as to the charms or chances of a Corean expedition. As regards wild fowl shooting, the great nuisance is that there is no means of disposing of the slain, and after a time mere slaughter palls ; while, as regards big game, the difficulties anc the hardships of trav'cl, accommodation, food, and following, will probably send back the
.sportsman with a much worse appetite than when he started.
Thus wayfiring through the country one sees much of peasant life and agriculture. The villages are collections of mud-huts, thatched with straw (over which, as a rule, runs a climbing gourd), warmed by flues running ben^iath the floors, and surrounded for protection or seclusion by a wattled fence of branches or rced^,.
On the clay floor outside are usually seen drying a matful of red chillies, or of millet and rice grains fresh threshed by the flail ; loi. strings of tobacco leaves, suspended in festoons, have been picked from the garden plot hard by, from which also a few castor- oil plants are rarely absent. A small sty of black and abominable little pigs usually fronts the road, on which the children are disporting themselves in a stace of compara- tive nudity.
Wide Wastes of Country.
Inside, the sour-visaged females are per- forming the work of the household, or are grinding, threshing, or winnowing the grain on the open threshold. The men are away in the rice-fields or among the crops of millet, beans, and buckwheat, which are the staple cereal produce of the country. Cul- tivation is assiduous, but not close. Hun- dreds of acres of cultivable, but uncleared soil, alternate with the tilled patches, and coarse grasses wave where the yellow grain should be ripening for the garner.
I saw no carts or wagons on my journeys, although they are used in the north, near Ham-heung, and in a few other places. The ox, which is the familiar beast of burden, sometimes drags after him a rude wooden sled. More commonly a sort of rack is fitted on to his back, and is packed with firewood for fuel. Men do not, as in japau
LIFE AND TRAVEL IN COREA.
521
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and China, carry burdens on bamboo poles, but in wooded racks, called chi-kai, upon their backs.
They rest themselves by sitting down, in which position the rack, having a wooden T)eg or leg, stands upright upon the ground. The long, thin pipe of the country, between cwo and three feet in length, when not be- tween the lips of its owner, is stuck in his collar at the back of his neck, and protrudes sideways into the air. When a pony is shod it is thrown down upon its back, and its legs tied together at the fetlock by a rope.
Tablets of Stone.
Outside towns of any size may commonly be seen a number of stones, or tablets (some- times of iron or copper), bearing inscriptions in Chinese characters. These are erected either in connection with some historical event, or more frequently in honor of a local governor, who has earned the gratitude of the people, not for justice or ■ "imency, which aie not expected, but for wielding with no more than ordinary severity his pre- rogative of spoil ; or of a successful local candidate at the literary examinations, or of .some public benefactor, or of a virtuous wife who h;is found in suicide the sole consola- Hon for the loss of her spouse.
Chinese influence is visible everywhere, notabl}' in the disposition of the dead. The Royal Tombs are at a distance of ten miles from the east gate of Soul ; but they are on a modest scale compared with the mauso- leums of Peking and Hue. Mandarins' graves are frequently marked by a stone table or altar for offerings, and a stele or pillar, bearing the epitaph of the deceased.
Sometimes, after the Chinese fashion, stone effigies of warriors or animals are added, or a saddled stone horse, in case •'•'c spirit of the defunct should care to take a ride, or a
small column in case it should have been metamorphosed into a bird and should re- quite a perch. The commonest form of grave, however, is a large, circular, grassy mound, usually placed upon the side of a hill or summit of a little knoll, and sur- rounded v/ith Scotch firs. The site is selected after consultation with a soothsayer, is visited every year on fixed days, and is ever after A'ards kept inviolate from the spade or plough. The environs of Soul are sprinkled with thousands of such graves.
Officialism, which is the curse of the coun- try, is not without its effect even upon the fortunes of travel. Such an incubus is the travelling mandarin, who quarters himself where he pleases and exacts rations for which he never pays, that the villagers flee from an official passport as from the pest. Though I paid for everything, chickens and eggs were constantly refused me, on the plea that none were forthcoming, Lut really, I sup- pose, from fear that, on tlie strength of the kuati-chow, I should appropriate without payment whatever was produced.
A Motley Crowd.
Under these circumstances, it is necessary to carry almost everything with one, in the form of tinned provisions. In the out-of-the-way ports few wayfarers are encountered ; but near the capital the road will be crowded with officials, tucked up in small and com- fortless sedans, with candidates going up to or returning from the e.xaminations, with pil- grims, traders, professional players or mountebanks, beggars, picnicers, antl impe- cunious vagabonds of every quality and style.
These are the picturesque sides and spec- tacles of Corean travel. There are some who would find in the Corean inn, which is the unavoidable resting-place at night, a
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more than compensating pain. There are no good inns in the country, because there is no class to patronize them. The officials and yangbaiis, as I have shown, quarter them- selves on the magistracies. The peasant accepts the rude hospitality of his kind, and the village inn is only the compulsory resort of the residuum.
Surrounding a small and filthy courtyard, to which access is gained by a gateway from the street, is on one side a long shed with a wooden trough, from which the ponies suck their sodden food; on another side is the earthenware vat, and the furnace by which it is cooked; opening off in a single, small, low-roofed room, usually eight feet square, unadorned by any furniture save one or two dilapidated straw mats and some wooden blocks to serve as pillows.
There the traveller must eat, undress, dress, wash, and sleep as well as he can. He is fortunate if the surrounding filth is not the parent of even more vexatious ene- mies to slumber. Nevertheless, I have wooed and won a royal sleep in the Corean inn ; wherefore let me not unduly abuse it.
The government of Corea is a hereditary and absolute monarchy, and carried on through three ministers, besides whom are ministers of six departments. Caste is very powerful, and no office of even only local importance is held by otiier than a noble.
The earliest records of Corca carry us back to 1 122 B.C., when Ki-tze with 5000
Chinese colonists brought to Corca Chinese arts and politics. Down to modern times Corea has remained pccfcctly secluded. .Al- most the first knowledge of Corea obtained by luiropc was through the shipwreck of some Dutchmen on the coast in 1653. The missionary Dc Cespcdes had, however, en- tered Corea at the end of the si.Mteenth cen- tury, and from 1777 other mis.sionaries fol lowed. Ill 1835 M. Maubant gained a footing in Corea, but in 1866, after thousands of converts had been put to death, the only three Catholic missionaries left had to flee for their lives. To avenge the death of the Catliolics the French sent an expedition, which was, however, repulsed, while a stranded American schooner was burned with her crew in sight of Phyong-yang.
In 1 87 1 the United States was baffled in the attempt to obtain redress. Japan wa.s the finst t 1 effect a footing in Corea in 1876, when a treaty was concluded between the two countries. Corea followed this up with treaties with China and the United States in 1882; with Germany and Great Britian, 1883; with Italy and Ru.ssia, 1884; and with France in 1886. The three ports opened to ^ reign trade are Chemulpo, Fusan, and Gensan. The new policy led to discontent; and there was an insurrection in 1884. A rumor that Russia was about to establish a protectorate over Corea in 1888 was officially denied, although it is Isnown she has long had her eye on that country.
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baffled in ipan was in 1876, Aveen the ; up with States in
Britian, 584; and ree ports ;hemulpo, icy led to rcction in
about to ti in 1888 is known ;ountiy.
CHAPTBR XXXIII. OUTBREAK OF THE WAR BETWEEN CHINA AND JAPAN,
ON the twenty-second of July, 1894, the startling news came from Shanghai that war between China and Japan was considered inevit- able. It was known that there was a feud of long standing between the two countries concerning Corea.
Corea is a peninsula extending down from the mainland ond is in close proximity to Japan. In area it is nearly twice as large as the State of Pennsylvania. The average width of Corea is 135 miles and the whole length is about 600 miles. There arc eight provinces, each with a Governor. The King's revenues, which are considerable, are obtained chiefly by the letting of lands and from a tithe of all the produce. The King owns nearly all the land property.
The people are great sufferers through this .system of land grabbing and tax farm- ing. Grinding poverty holds them in a relentless grasp.
The capital proper is Seoul, a walled town of 250,000 inhabitants, about twenty-five miles inland and joined to its seaport by a badly made road. Seoul is in the heart of Corea and it is the one aim and object of every Corean to live there, for in the city ever>' pleasure and vice is more easy of altauiment and the chances of getting favor- ite posts by judicious flattering and canvass- ing of superiors are nuiltiplied.
The King is a puppet in the hands of his Court, and the country only preserves its independence .through the jeaiousy of the Chinese, Japanese and Russians, all of whom
covet the land. Corea is claimed by Japan- ese and Chinese, and it is difficult to .say which race the inhabitants hate most. They are, however, more afraid of the Chinese, who always assume superior airs as belong- ing to the dominant power.
A telegraph has penetrated Corea and a wire runs from Wan-San, a seaport town on the east side, to the capital and Chemulpo on the west coast.
It is the fate of weak Eastern kingdoms to be the prey of their powerful neighbors. Corea has not only to endure the rivalries of China and Japan, but is threatened with the dangerous assistance of Russia.
Civil War in Corea.
The Russians have long wanted an open Asiatic port to replace Vladivostock, which is icebound in winter time. Port Lazareff, or Gen-San, as the natives call it, about the middle of the ea.st coast of Corea, would exactl\' suit them, but a Russian harbor there could hardly be accepted by Great Britain, considering that she gave up Port Hamilton on tiie condition of no Russian port being established in the Japanese Sea.
In 1891 civil war broke out in Corea. Ground down by official tx'ranny and extor- tion, the people ro'^e in despair. A " national party," — the "T<ing Hak " — took the lead and succeeded in securing a whole province. Then Japan appeared upon the scene, send- ing troops to suppress the insurrection on the plea of protecting her subjects. The Mikado's Government next proposed to
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China jointly to recognize the weak Corean administration after a more moderr. fashion, but China as suzerain of Corea, would brook no interference. Then, therefore, the ques- tic>n resolved itself into a trial of military force between the rival empires.
Li Houi, King of Corea, is the twenty- eighth sovereign of the dynasty of Han. He ascended the throne in 1864, when he Avas thirteen years old.
He has a variety of titles such as " Son of Heaven " and " King of Ten Thousand Isles," yet this hereditary claim and all his grandeur did not save him the humiliation of being obliged to ask China's permission to assume rulership or pay heavy annual dues. The Chinese Emperor regards him as a vas- sal, but the King of Corea is so holy a personage in his own country that it is a sacrilege to even mention his name. He literally has no name to speak of until he dies. Then his successor allows him one.
An Act of High Treason.
To touch him with an iron weapon is high treason. One of his predecessors, Tieng- tseng-tsi-oung, died from an abscess in the neck in 1 800 rather than have it lanced. His present Majesty, presumably, shaves himself On the other hand, any subject touched by the King's hand has to always wear a brass plate to commemorate the fact.
The King is now the Mikado's prisoner in his own capital, Seoul, July 23, 1894, though his subjects may not have knou n it, for thi^ ruler of the Hermit Kingdom is a veritab.c hermit to the outside world, as invisible to his people as the Chinese Emperor.
His Queen, who belongs to the noble Min family, is nearly 1 year older than he. Their son, Li Tchok, the hereditary or crown prince, was born February 4, 1873.
Li Houi has a few ideas of modern ways,
sui h as introducing the electric light into his palace. His time is largely occupied in re- ligious ceremonies.
The Coreans are tall, well-formed men, very like the Chinese of the better class. Indeed, Coiea in many ways is a kind of duplicate of China.
A Corcan's great weakness is hats. His imagination runs wild on hats, and he wears a vast variety of them. The ordinary rain hat, made of oiled paper, looks like a folded fan. The common hat is so made of bam- boo and hair cloth as to let in the rain in winter and the sun in summer. The upper classes always wear overcoats ; the poor only wear them by way of evening dress.
Love for Children.
The principal moral virtue of the Corean is that he loves his children so dearly that he neither slays nor exposes them. In re- turn, if a son meets his father in the street, he makes obeisance, and, if his father is im- prisoned, it is a sacred duty to hang the whole time about the prison door.
There is no division of labor to speak of; each peasant makes everything he wants. Paper is the one manuta-:ture. The national shoe is made of straw, wit!^ an aperture for the great toe to peep out of.
The Corean money, called " cash," is made of the basest and cheapest composi- tion. It takes three thousand "cash" to equal seventy-five cents of our money. It is all a Corean pony can do to carry ;^ i 5 in "cash." In the country districts coins of greater value than " ca>h " are uf iio use; one cannot get change for them.
The causes of the trouble respecting Corea may be summed up as follows :
First of all comes a permanent ill-feeling between Chinese and Japanese, who have a rooted dislike for one another.
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OUTBREAK OF THE WAR BETWEEN CHINA AND JAPAN.
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•feeling
Second, their mutual jealousy as the two great Far Eastern Powers.
Third, there were Japan's vastly prepon- derant interests — population, shipping, trade — in Corea, against China's ancient suzerainty and her modern political control of Corean affairs.
Fourth, the rebellion in Corea, threatening all foreigners, including Japanese, stands for something, but not so much as has been made out, for Corean rebellions are not very serious affairs.
Fifth, Japan was exasperated by the de- coying of the pro-Japanese Corean rebel, Kim-Ok-Kiun, from his refuge in Tokio, and his brutal murder in Shanghai, winked at by the Chinese Government.
Russia Seeking a Port.
Sixth, Japan was afraid, not without rea- son, that China was about to settle her dif- ficulties with Russia by allowing the latter to occupy a port on the east coast of Corea. Finally, both countries believed themselves to possess powerful forces of the P^uropean kind, and were not sorry to have an oppor- tunity of showing what they could do with them. This was much truer of Japan than of China.
A high opinion was entertained of the Japanese army. Up to the time of the Franco-German war the instructors of this army were Frenchmen. The result of the war was sufficient, in Japanese opinion, to ::iake a change desirable, and the P'rcnch in- structors were changed for English, Ger- man and Italian. F'ew of these remain, as the Japanese now think they know enough about the art of war to prosecute it without foreign assist;ince.
The Japanese army is equipped according to the most modern ideas, and is of consider- able si/c, while the number of troops that
China can put into the field is known to none outside of the " Flowery Kingdom," and to few within the realm. Their equipment, too, is a good deal of a mystery. The Japanese are not only well drilled and well armed, but they are brave and competent.
Regarding the suzerainty of China over Japan it amounts to very little. The " Son of Heaven," as the Emperor of China is styled at home, considers himself the suze- rain of the world. He was suzerain of Lower and Upper Burmah, and lost them both. Thibet is the only country the " Son of Heaven " would fight desperately for.
The Crown Prince.
Of the King and Crown Prince of Corea few entertain a flattering opinion. The Crown Prince is described as little better than a " self-opinionated idiot." The King is a slight improvement upon this. Corea alone is never in a position to make a fight. The country is impoverished, and under its present ruler is of no use to the Coreans or to anybody else. There are only a few hun- dred Corean soldiers at the capital, and they are of the opera bouffe order.
The assassination of Kim-Ok-Kiun, if not the prime cause of the trouble between Japan and China, has had much to do with precipi- tating long-standing national enmities into active preparations for war. On March 2^ , 1894, three men arri\cd at Shanghai from Japan. They took up quarters in a Japanese hotel in the foreign sf.'ttlemcnt.
One of the three was Kim-Ok-Kiun, an instigator if not the instigator, of the Corean massacre of December, i>Sy4. For nine years Kim had been a refugee in Japan. Unsuccessful demands inr Ins surrender had several times been maile 1)\- the King of Corea to the Japanese authorities. As the P";mper'r f China is the acknowledged
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suzerain of Corca, much surprise was felt tliat Kim should have dared to set foot on Chinese soil.
An I'2n<jlish journalist .set out to probe the mystery, but before he found his way to the Japanese lujtel the Corean was lyin;^ dead ivith three revolver bullets in his body. On the body of the murdered man was found a card, bcarint,r the name, " Kim-Ok-Kiun," printed in Roman characters.
The murderer proveil to be one Hong Sjyong-Ou, a Corean of good position, re- cently a somewhat prominent figure in Par- isian society. He had, he said, assassinated Kim by order of the King of Corea. He was accjuitted and set free. On Hong's re- turn to Corea after the murder he was re- ceived with lionors, while his victim's body was subjected to mutilation and public ex- posure.
Accused of Intrigue.
It is alleged in justification of his assassi- nation by order of the King of Corea, that he had been intriguing not only with Japan, but with Russia, fur thr overthrow ot the Chinese suzerainty.
At Yokohama, July 22, it was reported that the war feeling was running high and the whole nation was much impiessed with the refusal of the Goveriiment to keep out of tlic Corean treat)' ports at the request of China. Corea was also reported to have executed the prt)posed reforms, but it was said that the acccjUance b\' Corea of the re- forms proposetl by Japan was conditional upon the withdrawal of '.lie Japanese troops .'rom Corea.
The Ja.f*anese Government was sui'pnsed at this rirni stand, which was supposed to prove tliat Chinese influence was paramount in Corea. In the tiirect negotiations between Tokio and Pekin, China ignored the Japanese
counter-|)roposaIs, and was not willing to yield her prerogatives.
Advices from Shanghai, July 23, stated that while war had not jet been actually de- clared, the outlook was not all encouraging. It was reported that Japanese gunboats, with a large force of troops are now bom- barding Corean ; orts. There was consider- able excitement in the city, and it was an- nounced that the Government was already organizing regiments to reinforce the regular army of the Empire. The greatest loyalty to the Government was felt at the emergency.
Twelve thousand troops inmiediately left Taku with a fleet of gunboats, it was sup- posed for Seoul, with orders to fight the Japanese if the\' opposed China's occupation of any point in Corea. If \var should be declared the gove"nment at Pekin would make a levy of 20,( 00 men from each Chi- nese province and send a fleet to attack Japanese ports.
Distrust of Japan.
It was generally believed that Japan did not desire a pacific settlement of the Corean dispute. As evidence of this, attention was called to the fact that as soon as one diffi- cult)- was overcome, pan immediately rai ( d another. The latest attitude of the King of Corea in the crisis was supposed to be due to China's decided measures to up- hold her claim to sovereignit)' over the Coil in peninsula.
The Chinese Government officially an- nounced that it was preparing to block the Yang-Tse-Kiang River and the bar near Woosung at any moment in case of need.
In this connection it will be of interest to the reader to have a detailed statement con- cerning the strength of the Japanese army.
Immediately after the civil war the Em- peror of Japan, who had decided to " Eu-
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ropeanize" his o — "try and his court, saw- first the immediate necessity of organizing the army. Young men were sent to study in the military schools of France and Eng- land, wliile French and English instructors were engaged to come to Japan. It was in 1 868 when the French Empire seemed to be leading Europe, and had covered itself with glory in Algeria, Italy and the Crimea.
Grotesque Helmets.
The Japanese did not hesitate in copying the French army as much and as well as they could. French instructors were called to Japan, and the old huge, grotesque iron mask helmets — which were supposed to frighten the enemy — chain and lacquer armor, were replaced by modern uniforms copied from the French.
The Japanese of all times have always been great warriors, fearless, full of courage and energy, nearly the whole of the male population being accustomed to the use of arms. They arc able to stand any amount of fatigue. After the war of 1870, the in- fluence of France in the Japanese army yielded before that of Germany.
Prussian oificers were called to Japan, and the Frencli "kepi" was replaced by the Ger- man flat and round military cap. But of late the French have come to the front again, and many of the best Japanese officers are graduated from St, Cyr, the Polytech- nique and Saumur.
The army uniforms and equipments of the modern Japanese officer are exactly like those of the French. I have seen in Tokio many a young officer who, had he been walking or riding in the Champs Elysees, would have been undoubtedly taken for an officer of the French artillery. The Em- peror's uniform is that of a commander of artillery in France, the red band on the trou-
sers being replaced by a gold one, and a similar uniform is worn by the male mem- bers of the Ini[)crial family. As for the soldiers, they still wear the German cap, the rest of the uniform, however, being made like that of the French.
Since 1874 conscription is law in Japan, and every male inhabitant in the country is subject to military service from seventeen to forty years of age. The Japanese land forces are divided into :
First — Standing army — three years' ser- vice.
Second — Standing army reserve — four years' service.
Third — Reserves — five years' service.
Fourth — Territorial army — eleven years' liability to serve.
Size of the Army.
The standing army reserves are required to serve sixty days each year, but the terri- torial army is called out only in case of war or grave emergency. A sweeping sys- tem of e.^emptions exists, but, as it is, the standing army comprises about 50.000 soldiers. In a few days the number can easily be raised to 210,000, comprising only men who have served for the most part, three years.
The proportions of the different arms are :
Infantry 102,382
Cavalry 1,459
Artillery 7,881
Enjjiiieers 3i522
Transports 55.006
Gemlarmes 1.436
Military schools 2,910
Central stafF 2,014
Imperial Guard 5.59'
There are 450 staff" officers, '3,3 60 com- missioned officers and 10,391 non-commis- sioned officers.
The infantry is armed with an eight-mil-
OUTHRKAK OF THE WAR BETWEEN CHINA AND JAPAN. r,20
li.Tictrc-rcpeating rifle, designed from F2u- ropcan models by a Japanese colonel, and is considered superior to those of Germany and France. It much resembles the Lebel system. The magazine, when fully loaded, contains eight cartridges ; it has a ninth one in the breech and a tenth in the cham- ber, and it can be used as a non-repeater. The powder used is smokeless and produces very little noise. The bullet is of hardened lead, covered with copper.
Quick-Firing Guns.
The artillery is magnificently equipped with field quick firing i.uns, and they are drilled with a coolness, smartness and rapid- ity that would hardly be excelled. It is, ho\vo\er, to be feared that the Japanese artillery will not .see much active .service in Corea, the country being exceedingly moun- tainous and having no roads over which the guns might be transported.
The Japanese cavalry, on the other hand, whose number is altogether out of propor- tion with the remainder of the army, is ex- tremely defective. There are but few horses in Japan, and they are not worth much. In spite of the greatest efforts, the Government has been unable to find a race of horses that could be acclimated. Nearly all the cavalry officers are graduated from Saumur, and can be relied upon as knowing their business thoroughly.
The Japanese navy has been copied from that of England, though of late nearly all the cruisers and torpedo boats not built in Japan have been ordered in France. The dockyard at Yokosuka and the arsenal at Koishikawa are thoroughly equipped, and first-rate torpedo boats and the most elabo- rate ordnance are turned out there. The cruisers and gunboats are among tiic finest vessels of their class afloat, and tliey are 34
manned and officered entirely by Japanese who make competent commanders.
Some years ago Japan gave up building or buying large ironclads, of which she his only five. On the other hand, they have thirty-two cruisers and f)rty-two torpedo boats. The Itsukusima and Matsusima, of French build, are of 4277 tons. The Chi yoda steams over nineteen knots, the Naniwa (English built, of 3650 tons) has about the same speed, while the Yoshino lias made over twenty-three knots, and is considered the fastest vessel of her class in the world, the United States cruisers excepted. Most of these Japanese cruisers are not sufficiently protected, many not at all, and could not possibly engage the heavy armored Chinese ironclads at close range.
Modern Inventions.
All branches of the two services are ad- mirably organized, as well as in any Euro- pean country. The coasts are defended by modern forts, well armed with quick firing guns, and are provided with electric search lights, strategical railroad lines, telephones, telegraphs, etc.
A well informed correspondent wrote to the London Times in the highest terms of the equipment and admirable military temper of the Japanese army. " The Chinese," he says, have sent an army to the Corea. But it would be as reasonable to match brave men armed with pitchforks against brave men armed with rifles as to pit, man for man, the Chinese in their present condition against the Japanese.
" The Japanese are armed with the Murat magazine rifle, and there is no better rifle in l^urope. It is manufactured at the arsenal at Tokio ; 1 200 men are employed, and 1 20 rifles turned out a day in times of peace. It carries ten rounds in the magazine or the
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Remington principle; tlic bullet is le;ul, coated with copper, tliat metal bein^r plenti- ful in Japan ; the Geneva Convention has no jurisdiction here, so the copper bullet is not tabotjed.
" The Japanese cavalry are well equipped, though, to our ideas, badly mounted, but they are thoroughly aware of their short- comings, and are taking steps to remedy them b\- degrees. The horse they arc mounted on is, after all, the horse of the country, and no animal could be better adapted for service in Japan or in Corca. The same applies to the artillery horses, which are simply 14-iiand ponies, but .strong and hardy to a marvellous degree. Their field guns are 7-pounders, made at Osaca on a patent of their own, I forget its name, but its action is simple and rapid and resembles Krupp's; they liave also l2-pounder Krupps, and heavy Armstrong guns for the defence of forts.
The German Drill.
" Their drill is thnt of the German army twenty years ago. Tliey aie precise and steady, and the officers know their work and how to teach it. In the cavalry swords were carried on the saddle until the Emperor one day remarked it, and said that only gentle- men wore swords and the cavalryman was not a gentleman, so swords are not now worn on the body.
"One great feature in all the barracks is the gymnasium. The men are tiioroughly trained in this department, and some of the feats I saw performed by cax'alrs' recruits of the guard at their general inspection would have done credit to any circus.
"Their wontlcrful neatness, completeness and regularity is what struck me most. Everything was tidy, everything was ready, everything was there. Their only trouble
was the wearing of European boots. Men who had all their lives been accustomed to .straw sandals having to thrust their feet into hard leather bo.\cs, so to s[)eak, very soon went lame. But this is the only thing I noticed that required alterations after a very careful inspection of the three arms, both guards and line.
Fine Soldiers.
"The troops they remind me most of are Indian Goorkhas, and of all native and colonial troops that I have seen — ami I have seen most of them — I would, next to Goorkhas, prefer a regiment of Japanese. They are brave, temperate, patient and ener- getic, and though the Chinese might be made, under luu'opean officers, as fine soldiers as they are, at this moment they are about two hundred years behind them ; and although the victory is not alwaj's to the strong, as was found out in the Boer campaign, from every data that a soldier can judge by, the Japanese should beat the Chinese in Corea with the greatest ease."
To proceed with the narrative of events, it was reported from Yokohama, Japan, on August 1st, that although war had not been declared, several naval engagements had been fought. The most important of these was on July 25th, in th ; neighborhood of Japan, and was claimed b> the Japanese as a ".signal victory." This is not the view of the English press of Japan, from which the following account is taken :
Three Japanese men-of-war, the Akitsu- shima, Takachiho and Naniwa, met at sea the Chinese cruiser Tsi Yuen, with a small despatch boat, the Kootsii, and the transport Kow Shing, and after an engagement lasting an hour and twenty minutes captured the despatch boat and sank the transport, while the cruisers escaped.
OUTBREAK OK T1I1<: WAR BETWEEN CHINA AND JAPAN. 531
To fully appreciate the action the relative streiif^th of the combatants imist be consid- ered. On the Japanese side were the Akitu- siishima, of 3 I 50 tons, and with a speed of nineteen knots ; the Takaschiho, of 3700 tons, and with a speed of eighteen and a half knots, and the Naniwa, fidly as large, power- ful and swift as either of her companions. The armament of these three included one 42-ton gun, four 28-ton guns, twenty rapid firing and thirty-two'machine guns. On the other side was the Tsi Yuen, of 2355 tons, 2800 horse-power, a speed of but fifteen knots, and carrying two 8^4 -inch guns, one 5-inch and nine machine guns. The despatch boat was entirely unarmed, and being a wooden ship not steaming more than eight knots, her power of resisting capture was as small as her capacity to evade it.
Immediately Opened Fire.
The Japanese war ships were proceeding toward Jinsen (Chemulpo), when the Chinese trio were met. The Chinese war ships, on seeing the Japanese flagship, immediately opened their ports, instead of observing the usual courtesies, and began fighting, appar- ently to cover the retreat of the transport steamer, which left, promptly pursued by the Naniwa. At this juncture the transport was flying a white flag, as well as the English colors.
What happened to her was not seen by the combatants, but was reported by the Naniwa. Her officers' account is that the flag of sur- render Avas no sooner displayed than the Chinese on board prepared to attack the boat ding parties from the Naniwa, and, in fact, did fire on them as they came alongside. The boats then returned to the cruiser and the transport was sunk with one well directed shot.
In the meantime, the Takachiho and
Akitusushima engaged the Tsi Yuen and Kootsu. The former, after fighting stub- bornly for over an hour, dis[)layed flags of surrender, and the Japanese men-of-war were approaching lier, when she suddenly dis- charged torpedoes, which, however, the Japanese were able to dispose of The engagement was then renewed more hotly than ever, until, finally, the Tsi Yuen turned and made off at full spcxl toward Jinsen, being pursued for one hundred miles by the Japanese, but was not overtaken.
An Easy Capture.
The Kootsu got aground in shallow water while seeking sheltered anchorage, and thus fell an easy captive to the Japanese. The Chinese fought their guns much more rapidly than their opponents, antl had they not been so greatly outnumbered would undoubtedly have achieved victory. As it was, it is a strong testimony to the skill of the Tsi Yuen's commander that he fought two of Japan's best ships for a full hour and then escaped.
From another account we learn that although the fighting, though of short dura- ation, was very severe. One of the Japa- nese warships got within a comparatively short distance of the traiisport Kow Shing and discharged a torpedo at her. The mis- sile was well directed and .struck the trans- port fairly. A terrific explosion followed and the Kow Shing began at once to fill.
Prior to the discharge of the torpedo the crev.' of the transport, which was armed, and the military force on board of her, made a hard fight against the attacking force. Many of those on board of her were shot dead on her deck.
When the vessel began to sink there was great excitement on board. In the dire con- fusion that prevailed n*^ attempt was made to
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lower the small boats. But even had such an attempt been made the boats could only have carried a small percentage of those on board.
Every foreigner on board the transport, which had been chartered by the Chinese Government from an English company, was either killed in the fighting or went down with the vessel when she foundered.
The loss of life was very great. Of nearly 2000 Chinese troops on board of her only forty were saved. They were picked up by the Fiench gunboat Lion that was cruising in the vicinity.
Only a short time elapsed between the ex- plosion of the torpedo and the foundering of the transport. The vessel went down sud- denly near Shopoint Island, at which place her commander made an attempt to beach her.
The Tsao Kian, which was captured by the Japanese, was an old man-of-war that had been impressed into use as a transport. Many men were killed on board of her before she fell into the hands of the Japanese.
The Kow Shing was the fastest vessel in Eastern waters, and the Japanese were glad of the chance of depriving China of her services. The presence on board of General Von Hanneken would also give an incentive to an attack upon the ship, as that officer
was supposed to be on his way to take com* mand of the Chinese army in Corea.
Another spirited battle between the Chinese and Japanese fleets was fought July 30th. After a fierce fight the Chinese ironclad man-of-war Chen Yuen, the largest and most recently built ship in the Chinese navy, was sunk, and two Chinese cruisers were captured by the Japanese.
The two Chinese cruisers were the Chih Yuen and Ching Yuen. It was reported that another cruiser, the Foo Tshing, was also destroyed. The Chinese fleet carried about one thousand men, most of whom were drowned. Among the killed were two German officers attached to the Chen Yuen.
The Chen Yuen was a battle ship of 7400 tons displacement, carrying 14^ inches compound armor at the water line. Her battery included four 1 2-inch guns protected by an armored breastwork, and two smaller Krupps, eleven Hotchkiss cannon, two S}{- inch and 6-inch Krupps in her main battery and a secondary battery of Hotchkiss re- volving cannon. She also had tubes for Whitehead torpedoes.
The Chen Yuen was a sister ship of the Ting Yuen and was the most powerful war- ship in the Chinese navy with the exception of the Ting Yuen. Its loss was a serious blow to the Chinese navy.
CHAPTICR XXXIV. THE BATTLE OF PINQ-YANQ.
DURING the month of August re- ports were frequently received of the advance of the Japanese army into the Kingdom of Corea. War had been formerly declared by Japan, vast preparations had been made for carrying it on, troops had been landed upon the Corean coast, and it was evident that the Japanese had resolved to assume the aggressive and strike a powerful blow before China could prepare herself for the onset.
It is doubtless true that Japan had been anticipating the contest for at least ten years. She believed the time would come when she would have to maintain her claims in Corea by the force of arms. There is nothing to show that China expected an immediate war with her eastern neighbor. Her army, such as it was, could not compare with that of Japan in discipline, in modern equipments and especially in patriotic feeling and en- thusiasm, the loyal spirit that can turn one man, as it were, into a thousand.
It may therefore be .said that in all coun- tries this side of the Orient there was a quite universal e.\pectation that in the early stages of the conflict Japan would be victorious. Nearly all the reports of skirmishes and minor battles showed such to be the case. From point to point the various divisions of the Japanese army advanced, meeting but little opposition. At Ping- Yang, however, a place strongly fortified, the Chinese troops were massed and here an important battle was fought on the 15th and i6th of Sep-
tember, the result of which was a victory for the Japanese army.
Some account of this town v.ill be of interest to the reader.
Ping-Yang, or, as it is more correctly spelt, Ping-An, is the capital of the Corean province called Ping-An Do, is situate upon the Da-Tong (Ta-Tong), or Ping-An River, about fifty miles from its mouth. Its loca- tion makes it a natural stronghold. The river is, next to the Yalu River, on the north, which separates Corea from China, the most important waterway of tiie country, and a number of considerable towns and villages are situated within its basin. It has been de.scribed as the Rubicon of Corean history, and at .several periods anciently was the boundary river between China and Corea, or of the rival kingdoms into which, in olden times, the Corea of to-day was divided.
A Historic Town.
For a f>eriod of ten centuries, dating from about the commencement of the Christian era. Ping- Yang was a royal seat. In the remote past it has many times been besieged by both Japanese and Chinese armies, and many decisive battles have been fought in its vicinity.
The murder of the crew of the General Sherman, an American schooner, in 1866, took place on the Da-Tong River, not far from Ping- Yang. This occasioned the de- spatch, in 187 1, of the United States naval expedition, under Admiral Rodgers, which ended ignominiously. The Gamsa, or Gov-
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COREA AND THE WAR.
!
ernor, of Ping-An Do resides at Ping- Yang. The province was shown by the last census to contain 293,400 houses, and to have 174,538 men capable of bearing arms.
The people of this province are more aggressive and turbulent in character than those of the southern provinces. They are said to be not very loyal to the reigning dynasty, and the government is constantly apprehensive of revolutionary outbreaks among them. While this is especially true of the Ping- Yang province it equally applies to the people of the adjoining province on the south, Whang-Hai Do.
Ping- Yang is reported to be very rich in the precious metals and in minerals, but the mining of gold and silver is prohibited by the general government.
The Yalu River.
Another very important city of this prov- ince is Ai-Chin, or Ai-Chow (also written Yi-Chow, Wi-Chow, and A-San). It is the nearest Corean town to the Chinese frontier, and the gateway of the kingdom. It is situated on a hill overlooking the noble Yalu, or Ap Nok River, which is easily navigable for junks as far up as Chan-Son, a noted trading place, sixty miles from the mouth of the river. Yalu means "dragon's windings," and refers to the sinuous course of the river; Ap Nok describes its deep green color.
What was until a few years ago a " No Man's Land " stretched along the further bank of the Yalu, in Chinese territory. It was known as the Neutral Territory, and, though highly fertile, was laid waste by the Corean Government two or three centuries ago, and its cities razed to the ground to prevent its further occupation by Chinese outlaws and bandits, with which it was long infested. It is now Chinese territory. Fifty
miles beyond the Corean frontier is Pien- Mun, "the Border Gate," where a great in- ternational fair was wont to be held three or four times a year.
The first despatch announcing the battle of Ping- Yang was dated at Shanghai, Septem- ber 17th, and was as follows :
The Japanese attacked and carried Ping- Yang (Ping-An) on Saturday and Sunday after a stubborn resistance. The Japanese lost eight hundred killed and wounded. Twenty thousand Chinese surrendered.
The Battle Begins.
On Thursday, September 1 3th, a Japanese column from Pong-San made a reconnois- sance in force, drawing the fire of the Chinese forts and thus ascertained their position. The column then fell back in good order with little loss. By Friday night all the Japanese were in position for a combined attack upon the enemy. The Gensan column threatened the left flank of the Chinese, the Pong-San column menaced the Chinese centre, while the Hwang Hai column operated against the right, which had been reinforced the day be- fore by a detachment of marines from the fleet at the mouth of the Ta-tong River. The Chinese had utilized the old defences at Ping- Yang and thrown up new works, mak- ing the position an exceptionally strong one.
The battle was opened on Saturday at daybreak by a Japanese cannonade of the Chinese works, which was continued with- out cessation until afternoon, the Chinese responding. The work with the heavy guns showed good practice.
At about two o'clock a body of infantry was thrown forward by the Japanese, and maintained a rifle fire upon the enemy until dusk. Throughout the day only the Pong- San column was engaged. The Chinese defence had suffered greatly, but the losses
THK HATTLK OK PING-YANG.
636
se es
on either side were small, both the Chinese and Japanese having taken advantage of all the shelter available.
The Japanese troops, however, had gained some advanced positions. The firing con- tinued at intervals during the night, and in the meantime two Japanese flanking columns had formed a cordon around the Chine.se.
At three o'clock on Sunday morning an attack was made by the Japanese columns simultaneously and with admirable precision. The Chinese lines, which were so strong in front, were found to be weak in the rear, and here the attack was a perfect success. The Chinese were completely taken by surprise, and were thrown into a panic. Hundreds were cut down, and those who escaped death, finding themselves surrounded <it every point, broke and fled. Some of Viceroy Li Hung Chang's European drilled troops .stood their ground to the eastward, and were cut down to a man.
Capture of Immense Stores.
The Pong-San column, swarming over the defences in front, completed the rout. Half an hour after the attack was opened the posi- tions at Ping- Yang (Ping-An) were in pos- session of the Japanese.
It was estimated that 20,000 Chinese soldiers were engaged in the battle. The Japanese captured immen.se stores of provi- sions and munitions of war and hundreds of colors. The Chinese loss was estimated at 16,000 killed, wounded and taken prisoners. Among those captured by the Japanese were several of the Chinese commanding officers, including General Tso-Fung, commander-in- chief of the Manchurian army, who was sev- erely wounded. The number of the Chinese who were killed was estimated at 2,300.
The Japanese loss was only 30 killed and 270 wounded, including 1 1 officers. Most
of the casualties among the Japanese oc- curred during the first day's fighting, and very few were the result of the night attack. Within ten hours after the conclusion of the battle the military engineers had com- pleted a field telegraph line from Seoul, the capital of Corea, to Ping- Yang (Ping-An). A large number of prisoners were brought into the Japanese camp from houses in which they had hidden themselves during the final assault. Several thousand Chinese fled toward a valley to the northward and, upon finding their retreat in this direction cut off, surrendered in a body. Ping- Yang (Ping-An) was searched in tlie belief that a number of important Chinese officers were hiding in the city under the protection of friendly Coreans.
Congratulations from the Emperor.
The walls of Ping- Yang (Ping-An) were badly shattered by the cannonade which was poured upon them by the guns of the Japan- ese, but the city itself was only slightly damaged. The Japanese Emperor tele- graphed from Hiroshima, where the head- quarters of the army are located, congratu- lating Marshal Count Yamagata upon the success of the arms.
Marshal Yamagata issv'ed a general order commending the valor of his troops, which they demonstrated on the battlefield. The order concluded with an expression of pride on the part of Marshal Yamagata at being in command of so brave an army.
A flying column of the Japanese army pushed northward with the object of taking possession of the mountain passes. Tlu Japanese force pursued the fugitives, who threw away their arms and readily yielded themselves prisoners.
A proclamation was issued promising full protection to the Coreans if they would re-
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frain from acts of hostility toward the Japan- ese. On the other hand, they were informed that if they gave shelter to or engaged in traffic with the Chinese, they would be sum- marily dealt with by process of martial law. It was reported that four Chinese generals, Tso Paokwoi, Wei Jinkwoi, Ma Yukowong and Sei Kinlin, together with 14,500 other officers and men, were taken prisoners by the Japanese at Ping- Yang. The Japanese outnumbered the Chinese three to one.
Excited by the News.
The Chinese were fearfully exicted over the news of the defeat and great slaughter of the Chinese army at Ping- Yang (Ping-An). The Sltangltai Mercury printed a special edition containing despatches from the front, and in its editorial comments on the result of the battle expressed full appreciation of the crushing defeat and great slaughter of the picked troops composing the Chinese army engaged. The paper dilated upon the consequences of the disaster to the Chinese arms and expressed well-grounded fear of a speedy Japanese invasion.
Advices received at the Japanese Legation in London officially confirmed the report of the absolute and crushing defeat of the Chinese in the engagement at Ping- Yang.
Artillery salutes were fired at Tokio in celebration of the victory of the Japanese army.
Public opinion concerning the Japanese victory v;as freely expressed through our leading journals. One called the battle "The Chinese Sedan," and affirmed that the Japanese managed their campaign with a grasp of military science and soldierly abil- ity deserving of the utmost credit.
Another journal said: "It is difficult to see how China can recover from the blow which reveals the essential weakness of her
military equipment and administration. The Powers will probably be content to accept the fails accomplis if the Japanese are wise enough to show moderation and a just sense of their position. The moment is favorable for the neutral powers to renew their over- tures for peace. China might easily grant the virtual independence of Corea, which Japan is probably willing to accept."
Another journal commented as follows : " The Japanese have every reason to pride them.'^elves upon the excellence of their mili- tary arrangements, but it is not safe to assume that the victory of the Japanese will incline the Chinese to sue for peace. Defeat in the past has only nerved the Chinese to more strenuous efforts. It is much more probable that the Ping- Yang fight will have the effect to embitter and prolong the struggle than that it will result in China's involuntary self-effacement in Corea."
Brave and Brilliant Work.
Says another journal : " The Japanese army ha. done its work bravely and brilliantly, but their navy will now have a tough task. If they can defeat the Chinese Pei-Yang squadron, the Japanese forces will certainly land in China and reduce Port Arthur and Wei- Wei from the land side, and possibly attempt to advance upon Pekin. When this happens the end w'.U not be far off. The Mongolian colossus has feet of clay, which are crumbling. If the Powers, especially England, were to intervene promptly with friendly counsels, the conflict might be ended."
The Chinese army of the north, consist- ing of Manchus and Chi Li-men, at Ping- Yang (Ping-An), numbered, according to report, 50.000 men. The Chinese troops at Heijo and its vicinity numbered nearly 15,000, while there were with them 200 or
THE BATTLK OF PING-YANG.
037
300 Coreans. There were also 2,000 more marching from Kasesan upon Heijo, and over 1,000 defeated troops from Seikwan and Gazan were also making for Heijo.
These figures were from Chinese official sources, and there is no doubt that .she had, at least, 20,000 troops concentrated at Ping Yang, including some of the best trained and bravest soldiers.
On August 1 8 there were 10,000 Japanese troops at Chemulpo, and about the same time 6,000 more were reported as having landed at the Taitun;^ River.
An Advance Northward.
It might be assumed that the armies of Japan and China now in Corea numbered each 35,000 to 40,000 men. The Japanese landed their troops at Gensan, on the east coast, at Chemulpo, and at the mouth of the Ta-tong.
The main body of the army went from Chemulpo to th^ Corean capital, Seoul, and then advanced northward to meet the Chinese forces, which crossed the northeastern boun- dary of Corea in the latter part of July. Japan prevented the Chinese from sending reinforcements by sea direct to Corea by the admirable use she made of her fleet, one por- tion of which kept the Ciiinese warships oc- cupied in the Gulf of Pechili, while another protected the transports carrying troops to Chemulpo, the Yalu River and other points.
In arms, drill and morale the Japanese troops in Corea were undoubtedly superior to the Chinese, the latter briing for the most part the levies from Manchuria, though there was a goodly proportion of soldiers from Li Hung Chang's province who had been drilled in the European fashion by European officers.
It was believed that the first result of the crushing defeat inflicted on the Chinese at
Ping- Yang (Ping- An) would be the complete occupation of Corea by Japan. Whatever might be the reorganization of the govern- ment and the reforms elaborated by the Corean Council, they would be in reality dictated by Japan and to her ultimate ad- vantage.
Says a well-informed writer upon the problem of Corea : " Just outside the walls of Seoul is an archway of wood and stone about thirty feet high. This is called by the Coreans the Arch of Subjugation, but offi- cially it is known as the Arch of Amity. It was under this arch, erected to commemo- rate her acceptance of the suzerainty of China, that Corea annually paid her tribute to China. It is now more than probable that she will not pay this tribute, and that the Arch of Subjugation will shortly be de- molished or left as a memento.
May Throw Off the Yoke.
" It appears to be now established that the King has definitely resolved, under the influence of his Japanese advisers, to assert the independence of his kingdom and throw off the suzerainty claimed over it by China. This suzerainty has been for centuries more nominal than real. For unnumbered years Corea has derived from that country all that makes up her civilization. Her mental at- titude has \ een and is Chinese. Her cus- toms, the vitten characters in which her language is expressed, her culture, her art, her religion, have all come from her great neighbor. Her literature and education are formed on Chinese models.
"China's influence has, in fact, moulded her national life, and the control has been exercised in a peculiarly Celestial way — dis- claiming all responsibility for Corea's acts when she has embroiled herself with West- ern Powers, and then rushing wildly to her
538
COREA AND THE WAR.
capital with troops and ships whenever Japan has made any forward move in the political game.
" Corea has been the buffer between China and Japan for a thousand years, and has paid tribute at intervals to either country or to both at the same time as far back as the third century, though for two centuries past the claims of Japan have been somewhat rc- la.xed, thus giving China freer sway.
"Thus, when in 1876, the former suc- ceeded, after some trouble, in negotiating with Corea an independent treaty, whereby she secured substantial trade advantages, rights of residence and property and the opening of three ports to her commerce, it took China several years to wake up to the fact that a new danger threatened her hold on the Hermit Kingdom, and putting forth freshly her claim of vassalage, she advised Corea to listen to the overtures of the United States, then knocking at her doors.
Treaties with Foreign Powers.
" On this advice a treaty was made with us in 1882, followed in the same year by conventions with Great Britain, France and Germany. The ancient tribute was more tenaciously exacted and a brilliant young Chinese army officer — then twenty-two years of age and a captain of infantry — was sent to Seoul as resident. This was Yuen, and he was commissioned to protect Chinese interests."
A second account of the decisive battle already described is as follows : Full details are now to hand respecting the great Japan- ese victory at Ping- Yang. The city of Ping- Yang, situated on the banks of the Tai Don;4 River, has been long regarded by China as the most invulnerable of all her strongholds. Ordinarily the city and sur- rounding forts are garrisoned with 20,000
Chinese troops, but shortly before Japan's attack upon the place these had been re-en- forced by the refugee soldiers from Seikwan, where Japan's first victory in Corea had been achieved. Roughly estimated the Chinese forces in and around Ping- Yang must have numbered not less than 25,000 men.
Japan's attack upon this formidable stronghold had been carefully planned, and armies had been sent out by four different roads with orders to he in readiness for a , combined attack on the city by dawn of September 1 5th.
The Troops Advance.
The western army started from Matsu- Bashi on September 13th, a town some fifty miles from Ping-Yang, and continued a forced march, till on the evening of Septem- ber 14th it camped before the Chinese earth- works of the stronghold.
The northern army had kft Tai-Cheng on the 1 3th and after camping for the night at a small town advanced on Ping- Yang from the north and occupied a position not far distant from that of the western army. The central army, in two divisions, had adopted similar tactics from the south, and both di- visions advanced on a line with each other.
Finally the eastern, or so-called " mixed "■ army — it being composed of several divi- sions— boldly marched on the Chinese en- trenchments from the east, as though chal- lenging them from this quarter. It was these columns that were expected to draw the attention of the enemy from the advance of the Japanese troops from the north, west and south, or, in fact, from five different points for the central army had been divided into right and left wings.
Concerning the strength of Chinese posi- tions it need only be said that Ping- Yang,
THE BATTLE OF PING-YANG.
530
besides being a natural strorti^hold, was man- ned by China's finest troops. In the main fort or castle, close to the city gates, there were three Krupp field pieces and several Gatling guns, while all the soldiers carried Spencer or Mosler rifles, and there was no lack of ammunition. There were one or more field pieces and several Gatling guns in each of the Chinese earthworks and masked forts.
Altogether the Chinese troops were en- trenched at twenty-five different points, and apart from the main castle there were five other large and well-armed forts — two to the south and one to the north of the city and main stronghold and two on the opposite side of the river. The masked fort built in front of the castle was undoubtedly the best piece of military engineering ever accom- plished by the Chinese.
Formidable Defences.
The Northern and Eastern Japanese armies found themselves confronted by seven forts and earthworks, all well armed and manned, while behind each fort large num- bers of Chinese troops could been seen to be encamped. To the south of these were other camps, toward which Major Okuzama marched his troops. All these camps were fired during the day of the battle, and the flames added to the horrors of the conflict.
There were two earthworks on the banks of the Tai Dong, opposite to the city, and two forts on the hillside among the pine trees. It was at these points that the Chin- ese forces, confidently expecting an attack from the east, had gathered in greatest strength, and it was Major-General Oshima who had been detailed to attack the enemy here.
Tile Chinese evidently had every confi- dence in the security of their position, and
huge flags, upon which were inscribed the names of the various commanding generals, were flaunted proudly in every direction.
The " mixed " or Eastern army, under command of Major-General Oshima, had been rc-enforccd by another detachment from the south, and was the first to begin the battle. All attention was at once cen- tred upon this point, as liad been expected, and the northern, western and central forces at once advanced on the Chinese forts from the rear. Major Okugama separated from the mixed column and advanced on the forts to the south.
Hand-to-Hand Conflict.
The Chinese troops, in the meanwhile, were entirely ignorant of any advance of the Japanese forces from either the rear or flanks until the actual engagement had begun, and the Japanese armies were within one hundred yards of their various strong- holds.
Now the Japanese charged upon the hill- side forts, but the Chinese used their Krupps and Gatling guns with great effectiveness, and Major Tatemi quickly divided his de- tachment which had undertaken the charges into two swings. As they neared the fort, the Chinese fire ceased, but when the Japan- ese troops had reached the walls the Chinese stormed out upon them with a desperation born of despair, and a terrible hand-to-hand encounter ensued, the Japanese killing over fifty Chinese with their bayonets at one spot alone, while the rest of the garrison fled. The Japanese then took possession ot the fort.
This was their first step toward victory, and occurred at seven o'clock in the morn- ing. In the meantime a cold, drizzling rain, which later in tiie day changed to a steady downpour, increased the discomforts of the
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attacking army but did not damp the ardor of its enthusiasm.
By this time the .second wing of the northern army had placed their field pieces on the crest of the newly-gained hill and opened fire upon the Chine.se in the earth- works and forts below, throwing them into a panic and causing them to retreat toward the castle and city in confusion. At eight A. M. the Japanese found themselves in pos- session of a second fort.
The western column, in the meantime, had been engaged in several skirmishes with the enemy and had captured .several Chinese officers. They began to advance on the Chinese earthworks and forts to the east at five A. M. The troops of this division were divided into two wings, and by nine A. M. the Japanese were in possession of all the forts outside of Ping- Yang, with the excep- tion of the c;istle and the masked forts on the hill beyond the city and castle. The opposition of the Chinese at these points, however, was most desperate.
The Chinese Cavalty.
Several attempts were made to storm the gate of the castle, but it was now two P. M., and the attacking forces of the eastern and northern divisions were well nigh exhausted by the continued fighting, and so the ad- vance was stopped for a time.
Shortly after midnight on the morning of the 1 5th the central division advanced on the Chinese earthworks from the south, and were charged upon by a detachment of Chinese cavalry, who came out of the city gates, and hid themselves in a wheat field, the rain and darkness aiding their almost noiseless advance. But the Japanese, with fixed bayonets, were also in the wheat field, and after a sharp encounter the entire com- pany of cavalry were killed, with the excep-
tion of eight that were taken prisoners and sent to the rear.
The Japanese officers of this division for the first time learned approximately what the other divisions had been doing, and how so many of the Chinese position were in jeopardy. Later in the day the central di- vision captured several small bands of fleeing Chinese, and from them learned of their armies' victory. This division then fired the dismantled forts and deserted houses outside of the city, and continued the advance, meet- ing soldiers fleeing in ail directions.
Desperate Fighting.
The mixed division in the meanwhile had formed into three wings — a right, left and central. They had hastily thrown up earth- works, but abandoned these to advance on the Chinese positions. The fighting was des- perate ; those killed and wounded among the enemy seemed innumerable, while every of- ficer of the second and fourth detachments of the Japanese forces of this division were killed.
The earthworks of the Chinese were strongly manned and armed with rapid firing guns, which they used with terrible affectiveness. The fighting continued uninter- ruptedly for some time, when the ammuni- tion of the Japanese gave out, and the divi- sion was on the verge of a retreat.
A more extended account of the battle of Ping- Yang was furnished by the correspon- dent of one of our leading journals, who was with the army in Corea :
" The first battle of magnitude or import- ance in the Corean campaign was fought September 15 th and i6th, and ended with a sweeping victory for the Japanese side.
" I have just returned to headquarters, at the south of Phyongyang (the Japanese name for Ping-Yang), after a hasty circuit of
THK BATTLK OF IMNC.-YANG.
r.41
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those parts of the captured city to which civilians are admitted, and a short excursion along the line of retreat by which the great body of the Chinese fugitives escap-^d. Therefore, I am prepared to present an out- line sketch of the operations whicli have left us masters of the chief stronghold on the peninsula.
" My opportunities of observation have been greater than those most of my com- rades enjoyed, as from the beginning of the month I have been allowed the same free- dom of action as an officer on staff duty. During the past two weeks I have travelled over most of the territory occupied by Lieu- tenant-General Nodsu's forces.
Rapid Progress Impossible.
" It has been plainer to me than to others that the impatience with which the army movements were regarded in Japan was not at all justified. The circumstances in which we were placed made it impossible to pro- ceed with rapidity unless we were prepared at the same time to sacrifice all considerations of prudence.
" The condition of the country is inde- scribable. What Coreans call roads are un- worthy of the name. There is little to choose between the open fields in the valleys and the wretched courses of slime and di- luted clay which connect the towns in the northern provinces. Often the routes re- sembled rather a series of half-choked canals than proper lines of communication.
"To transport artillery and ammunition over districts flooded at intervals to a depth of from one to two feet is a task that tries the endurance of officers and men alike. It is a constant surprise that their cheerfulness and energy continue unabated day after day.
" To overcome difficulties by hard fighting, to push their way through the opposing
bodies of tile enemy, is a service in wliich my countrymen delight, as they proved si.x weeks ago at Songhwan. Rut the slow and wearing labor of dragging supplies and en- gines of destruction through almost im|)assa- bie regions strains them in their weakest point.
" There have been many days when with their utmost strength they were unable to advance more than four or five miles. I doubt if the average progress of the main division has e.\cectled an average of six miles since the march from Seoul began in the early part of August.
" As was to be expected, plans of our gen- erals were held in dark secrecy at the begin- ning of the campaign. It was not until our near approach to Phyongyang (I'ing-Yang) that the scheme of operations in which we were engaged became clear to the troops in general. The privilege of moving in various directions enabled me to grasp the situation at a comparatively early date, and to form conjectures which it was my fortune to see realized in due course.
Strong Positions Chosen.
" It is now apparent that the sharp and ef- fective engagements at Songhwan and Asan were not included in the original project of our leaders, but were mere incidents of the contest caused by the selection of the Xaipo districts by the Chinese as a landing place for their troops.
" From the outset it was recognized that the scene of the principal conflict would be the Valley of the Taitong (or Daido) River, in which many good defensive positions could be chosen by our foe and from which, in case of a success to their arms, they could descend by more than one avenue and menace our ports around Seoul from several points.
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CORFA AND THE WAR.
" The Japanese design was to seize the large towns alon^j tlie Taitong and make the iiDrthcm p;'rt of the peninsula nnten.ible, while preparing for more extensive feats which are still to be essayed.
" As a prelimin.iry measure, the intrenched Chinese at and near Asan had to be dis- lodged, and this ent<;q)rise was brilliantly carried through by Major-General Oshima, with u small force, which, after performing its allotted task, hastened to rejoin the body led northward by Major-General Tatsumi.
Active Night and Day.
" I was with a regiment which fought at Songhwan and did not get back to the main column until it had arrived at Kaisong, .some distance north of Seoul. There I changed my limited range of duties for a more exacting duty I was called upon to per- form, and for nearly a month lived in con- .stant activity day and night, accustoming my.self to look upon the details of food and sleep as mere trifles, scarcely to be con- sidered beside the imperative requirements of my new .service.
"The united army, which directed its course northward, consisted of from fifteen to eighteen thousand men. General Oshima conducted the left, General Tatsumi the right, and the chief command was assumed by Lieutenant-Gcncral Nodsu, whose quarters were in the centre ar.d for a considerable time at the rear.
"The left moved upon the town of Hwangju under orders to cross the Taitong River, near that place. The right proceeded towards Songhwan, where another crossing would be made, and the centre bore directly along the main road (or mud ditch so desig- nated) to Changhwa.
" To any one knowing these three lines of march it was plain that the object aimed
at was the ancient fortified city of Phyong- Yang (I'ing-Yang), once a capital of Corea, and a place of much greater natural strength than Seoul, the modern seat of government. Probably our destination was made public in Japan long before the army heard of it, but by the end of August there was little doubt on the subject, even among the lowest ranks. " When the soldiers had satisfied them- selves as to the precise object of attack the feeling of exhaustion and weariness which few had been able to resist vanished as sud- denly as if the painful toil of the past three weeks were nothing but a dream. The spirit of Taniato Damouhi was rekindled in all its vigor, and t'l? order of assault was awaited with feverish eagerness on all sides.
Eager for Battle.
" Perfect discipline is the controlling rule in the Japanese service, but it was evident to every beholder that from the moment the Taitong came in view of the foremost skir- mishers each hour of restraint was a vexa- tion and a grief to the whole mass of troops. Yet it was at just this time that they were called upon to curb their impetuosity and to lie idly on their arms, awaiting the develop- ment of events in other quarters.
" The machinery set at work to .rush the Chinese in their chosen stronghold was not confined to the force commanded by General Nodsu. Experience had shown at Asan and elsewhere that the faculty of flight is one in which our enemies exhibit greater capacity than in any other, and it was assumed that if threatened by a determined onset in their front, they would sooner or later seek to es- cape, and would scatter themselves over the country in small and disconnected groups, pursuit of which would be futile.
" Precisely as before, they would probably be a terror to the peasantry', and would, per-
THK BATTLK OF PING-YANG.
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)-
111 ity lat leir
ps,
ler-
haps, indulge in the same excesses as tliosc of General Yeh's ilisbandet! soldiery, who not only pilla^cil far and wide, but put to death all who presumed to resist their de- mands. Among other atrocities they were accused of having murdered a much-re- spected French priest in the neighborhood of Asan.
" To prevent a repetition of these dis- orders, and also to provide against the rc- gathering of the dispersed remnants at the Yalu River or any other place of retreat, the War Department organized a co-operative force, to be transported from Japan to Gen- san, a port on the cast coast of Corea, and to move thence across the peninsula upon the rear of Ping-Yang, thus enclosing the Chinese between two columns. Every effort was made to hide the details of this strategic •combination. Beyond the bare fact that it ■was in progress, nothing was known about it to the mass of the combatants. But we were aware that Gcnsan i.s considerably to the north of Ping- Yang, and about one hun- dred and ten miles away.
Difficult Passes.
"A few years ago I was detailed to make an examination of the territory around that port, and for some distance into the interior, I then learned that the roadways were, if pos.sible, worse than those in the neighbor- hood of Seoul, though the hilly char.i-'^'r of the country renders them less liable to inun- dation. The passes over broken ranges be- tween the eastern coast and the Taitong Valley are narrow, in many places blocked by heaps of fallen stones, and can hardly be less difficult to surmount than the bogs and morasses -of the western provinces are to wallow through.
" From what I was permitted to learn, the troops landed at Gensan numbered four or
five thousand, and were commanded by Major-General Oseko. They did not begin to penetrate .soutlnvestward until about Sep- tember 1st, when the bulk of (leneral Nodsu's Southern army was almost on the edge of the broad valley on the other side of which lies Ping-Yang.
"The reason why the attack from the south was delayed is now obvious. But to the troops enforced inactivity was most gall- ing. The men who had come fresh from victory at Soughwan were burning to renew their triumphs, ami those who had not yet shared in conflict were longing to rival the exploits of their more favored comrades. All were under peculiar influences, which greatly inflamed their desire to meet the ad- versary.
Daring Exploits.
" The whole region was full of brave asso- ciations, dear to the heart of every Japanese who cherished the menjory of his country's glories in the past. It w.is in the valley of the Taitong that the warriors of Hidrioshi, the great Taiko, performed their most daring exploits during the invasion of the sixteenth century.
"Within the walls of Ping-Yang they matle their heroic stand against the Tartar iiordes, maintaining a despirate defence in the face of overwhelming numbers, subsist- ing towards the end upon the horses and other animals of their camp, and defying starvation itself, until the orJi^r from Kioto came directing them to give o\er the strug- gle, the fiery spirit that had sent them forth being conquered at last by death.
" However reckless the ambition of Hidrioshi may have been, the valor of his soldiers was incontestable, and the plains that encircled the ancient capital of Corea still bear testimony to many a deed of
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COREA AND THK WAR.
chivalry whicli the decendants of the rriL'- diaeval heroes would rejoice to emulate.
" How anxiously and ardently the signal to resume the march was looked for, no one could bear witness to more surely than I, for in the first two weeks of this month I several times traversed the camp that lay crouching, I might say, along the southern border of the Taitong and through the valley below, and heard on all sides impa- tient murmurs of restlessness and agitation, which would have risen to complaining cries but for the loyal faith of the soldiers in the resolution and saga-ity of their leaders.
" During the first ten days of September several changes were made in the disposition of the troops, and various small commands were transferred to increase the effectiveness of the onset to come. But the general plan underwent no alteration.
Supplies Cut Off.
"General Nodsu advanced to the front and assumed the direct management of af- fairs. Reconnoitring parties made frequent examinations of the belt of land between our van and Ping- Yang, which was found com- pletely devastated by the ravages of the Chi- nese. The supplies which should have been provided the Chinese from Chefoo had been cut off for some time by the Japanese ships and the Coreans were compelled to give up everything that could contribute to the sus- tenance of the hungry multitude.
" Prisoners were occasionally brought in by scouts, and strange tales were recited for our amusement concerning the blood-thirsty characteristics attributed to our soldiers by both the Chinese and the Coreans. Most of the captives were at first speechless with terror and could make no reply when ques- tioned by our commanders. They could hardly be prevailed upon to eat or drink.
and at each word addressed to them they would fall prostrate, trembling and moaning as if expectinj^ instant death. By gentle treatment they were generally reassured, though some seemed never to recover from their paralyzing fright.
" None could give much information as to the number or organization of their army. It appeared that General Tsopaokwei, an officer of higher grade than any in our corps and ordiii irily at the head of the Moukden garrison, was in chief command and under him wc were told were ' many tens of mighty generals,' each leading countless myriads of invincible braves.
Living on Promises.
" Their stories with regard to their per- . sonal associations were more easily credited. They and their companions had suffered from want of sufficient food ever since they entered the peninsula and had been in the habit of foraging for themselves at every opportunity. Raw vegetables, dug from the fields, were welcome additions to their regular diet. For weeks previous to starting on this campaign they had received no pay, though brilliant promises of rich spoils had been held out to them.
" Their intelligence, except in one or two instances, certainly was not of a high order. Some could not tell the names of the officers under whom they immediately served. But they might have been mere camp followers and not fighting men. Stolid as they mostly were, they could not conceal their satisfac- tion at the indulgence they received, and, from their own account, their daily fare with us must have been absolute luxury compared with their habitual lot.
" Their gratitude, however, took no higher form than the expression ot a moody regret for the awful fate in store for us. That we
THE BATTLE OF PING- YANG.
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were all destined to annihilation as soon as wc should come in contact with their irre- sistable warriors was a conviction which nothing could shake.
" The second week of September brought some relief to the stagnation which oppressed us. After all, the idle term was not so long as it seemed to our over-wrought senses, and all discontent vanished as soon as the troops were called upon to march again.
"The central body passed Chung Hwa on the loth of the month. The left reached Taitong on the 1 1 th and was ready for crossing at Tetsudo Island on the I2th. On the same day the right passed Choldo and also prepared to pass over to the north bank.
Cheering News. "On the 13th a singular thing happened. In the morning the news came that the head of a detachment from General Oseko's Gen- san column had made its way to Songchon, only thirty miles from Chyong-Yang, and that the entire eastern force naturally would presently be in a position to participate in the joint attack.
" This intelligence, of course, was delivered privately at headquarters, and was communi- cated to only the subordinate generals and a few of their staffs. There was no possible way in which it could become public prop- erty. Yet on that very afternoon it was noticed that an extraordinary stimulus spread over the whole of the army, approaching from the south, and that even the most dis- tant regiments appeared animated by some exhilarating impulse.
" I was a witness to several exhibitions of this feeling in front of General Tatsumi's wing. Sub-officers gathered in knots to inquire of one another if any event of un-
! usual promise had occurred, and private
I 35
soldiers not on duty ran about from tent to tent in search of information which no one could give, and of the existence of which no one outside of the highest circle had any positive knowledge.
" I have since heard that the same phe- nomenon, if it may be called so, was every- where perceptible. All along the banks of the Taitong, from Kangdon to Hwangju, an inexplicable e.xcitement prevailed, which lasted until the time came for striking the great, decisive blow.
" On the 14th the report was circulated that a squadron of warships had been sighted at the mouth of the river, directing its course towards our outposts. No an.xiety was felt on this score, for enough was now known to make it understood that the Japanese Navy would not be behindhand in lending support to our movement, while the death-like silence of the Chinese fleet since the engagement near Asan warranted the belief that inter- ference from that arm of the enemy's service was the last thing to be feared.
Investing the City.
" The clouds of smoke arising below Hwangju were hailed as a token that busy work was at hand, and, sure enough before nightfall the welcome order was sent forth.
" Early on the following day the troops were in motion from every side, converging towards the city, which the Chinese had selected as their main station of defence in Corea. From Sangchon the Gcnsan party rapidly descended, uniting with the advance force of our left near Kangdon, and then stretching across the river north of Ping- Yang, to close the avenues of escape in that direction.
"The central body, coming from the south, marched for the Taitong bnjge and the gate through which the high road from
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COREA AND THE WAR.
Seoul to the old capital passes. The left wing .skirted the northern bank opposite Hvvangju, until it reached Kangso, when it was divided, one part proceeding straight to the object of attack and the other ascend- ing towards Shunnen, and blocking the line of retreat to Wiju, on the frontier.
The Chinese in the Toils.
" Before evening the Chinese were believed to be almo.st completely enveloped. Of what occurred while the investment was going on at the north I have heard no coherent details, but it was a surprise to those who conducted the onset from the south that the defence was not more obstinate and effective.
"Of the advantages possessed by the Chi- nese there could be no question. The city stands on a steep slope, and is surrounded by a wall which, though out of repair in many places, could easily have been made formida- ble in the long time since the army estab- lished itself there. Except at one gate, there was no bridge fit to aid the passage of troops over the Taitong, and it certainly seems that a resolute resistance on the north bank might have made the crossing a much more serious undertaking than it proved. Between the wall and the river the ground was most un- comfortable to the assailants, being largely cut up into swampy rice lots.
" Better fighting on the Chinese side was expected, even by those who had tested their incapacity at Songhwan.for here the chances were much more in their favor, and their behavior in some of the skirmishes along the route hpd indicated a determination to do at least a little towards retrieving their shattered reputation. But from the time when they were driven within their rough fortifications they appeared to lose all spirit, and allowed themselves to be chased from post to post with scarcely an effort to maintain order.
" The first troops sent forward by General Oshima were, according to present accounts, more vigorously met than any others, but this may have been due to the circum.stance that there was a scarcity of ammunition in one brigade, necessitating a brief suspension of the advance on the afternoon of the 15th. There is nothing to show that General Oshima's wing was obliged to use extraor- dinary exertions in reaching its goal after his order. The regiments which pushed northward from Kangso are said to have been the most strongly confronted.
Confused Accounts.
" It is difficult, however, to collect reports that can be thoroughly trusted, so soon after the battle. Rumors are altogether too abun- dant to be safely relied upon when matters of minute detail come into question. I heard an officer of high position say, on the day after the affair was concluded, when the greater part of the army was resting and trying to remember what had happened, that it would be at least a fortnight before the Government at Tokio could receive a really full and accurate account of the event, and you may imagine the obstacles that stand in the way of a single observer who tries to present even a glimpse of the mighty scene ill which, perhaps, thirty thousand comba- tants struggled for life and cjeath through a good part of two fierct nd furious days.
" Little more than forty-eight hours has passed since the last shot was fired, and the last flag lowered. It seems as if the echoes of the vast tumult and confusion were still ringing through the air, forbidding the mind to dwell upon anything but the colos.sal features of the conflict, or to gather together the multitude of incidents which must be brought into orderly array before the true character and import of this great achieve-
THE BATTLE OF PING-YANG.
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ment of history can be rij^htly estimated. What we now know beyond all coubt is that the strate<jic combination for the overthrow of the first Chinese army in the field has wholly and brilliantly succeeded.
" The campaign was carefully laid out in Tokio, and was executed with admirable dexterity by four of the best generals in the Japanese service, not one of whom, it may be mentioned, is of the highest rank. The single full general in Corea did not arrive in time to take any part in the proceedings, and even the lieutenant-general in command was not despatched from Japan until opera- tions were in active progress.
Organizing Victory.
" But when he came he threw himself heart and soul into the work and set an ex- ample of energy and fervor which roused to emulation all who were brought into con- tact with him. To him and to the three major-generals belong the credit of having carried the enterprise through triumphantly. To the organizer of victory, who may be an approved tactician, or an unknown adviser of the War Department, the honor of the conception is due, and will, let us hope, be righteously awarded.
" A great blow has been struck, and with such force as to forever destroy the prestige of China in Corea. An army computed at not less than 12,000, and it may be 20,000 — and which may prove to be still larger, for the looseness and negligence of the Chinese system is such that the exact num- ber actually under arms is not known to themselves — has been defeated, and is now held captive, with the exception of the fugi- tives and the slain.
" Four generals of renown from the mili- tary standpoint of their country have sur- rendered— not with sufficient dignity, it is
said, to entitle them to respect in their down- fall.
"All the material results of the victory that could be expected ha\c been secured. The entire store of weapons and annnuni- tion is in our hands. A quantity of treasure, roughly calculated to be worth from $70,000 to $100,000, was siezed in the houses occu- pied by the commanding generals, together with dozens of bags filled with copi)cr and iron "cash" of the country.
"Not a single condition of success appears to be lacking. And I can say with pride that the discipline, which it is so often diffi- cult to preserve after great conquests has not been relaxed in the slightest degree. The districts I have visited in the last two days have been as free from violent disturbance as any part of my own capital in a time of pro- foundest peace. Soldiers roam about sing- ing lively songs and occasionally shouting 'Teikoku banzai,' but perfect good humor is the rule, and not an angry voice is heard.
Spared the Horrors of War.
"The earliest order sent out on the i6th was for the firm enforcement of order and the protection of the inhabitants of Ping- Yang. The few citizens who are willing to communicate freely, which they can do in symbolic writing, though utterly ignorant of our language, are earnest in assurances of thankfulness at having been spared the hor- rors they had been led to anticipate in case of falling under Japanese control. But they are far from confident as to what the future may bring forth. That the security which now prevails can last is more than they dare hope for.
"Unless the Chinese who endeavored to escape by the Gate of the Seven Stars, at the northeastern comer of the city, fought harder than those who made a show of
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COREA AND THE WAR.
standing to their posts it is not probable that the number of deaths will prove very great. But there is still a good deal to be learned about what took place in that locality and along the line of pursuit which followed.
"As I walked out yesterday on the west- ern avenues leading from the city I saw heaps of weapons hedging the wayside as far as my sight could reach. Rifles, mostly of an old pattern, spears of the middle ages and swords of every conceivable manufacture were lying just as they had been thrown away, undisturbed as yet by the populace, who probably have not awakened to the fact that the late owners of the property have gone with no intent to return. Clothing enough to satisfy the winter necessities of
the poor was also waiting to be picked up by the first comers.
" Until the cavalry detachments sent to overtake the runaways return to give an ac- count of their adventures the lists of losses cannot be made up. At present it looks as if great results had been obtained without anything like the amount of bloodshed that usually accompanies a decisive battle. If, however, I attempted to verify this opinion, I should either be compelled to rely upon insufficient data or run the risk of overstep- ping the time allowed me.
" I close in the hope that when all the particulars are known it will be found that the rejoicings over our victory need not be too darkly shaded by lamentations over the sacrifice of human life."
CHAPXBR XXXV. JAPAN'S GREAT NAVAL VICTORY.
THE Yalu River is the boundary be- tween China and Corea. Off the mouth of the Yalu a decisive naval engagement occurred, September 17th, between the Chinese and Japanese navies. At noon on September 17th nine Japanese war ships, convoying two armed transports, sighted twelve Chinese war ships and six gun-boats. The fighting began by an attack upon three of the Chinese war ships, which were sunk. As the fighting progressed another Chinese war ship was set on fire and destroyed, but the remaining eight, only one of which was uninjured to- gether with the six gun boats, succeeded in getting away. The Japanese war ships Matsushima and Hi-Yei were .slightly dam- aged and one of the armed transports was seriously crippled, but none of the Japanese ships were lost. The Japanese loss was twenty men known to have been killed and forty-six wounded.
When the Japanese sighted the Chinese fleet the latter ships were steaming towards the Yalu River, in which direction they pro- ceeded, appearing indisposed to fight. The Japanese chased them for an hour, when the Chiyoda, getting within range, drew the fire of the Chinese flagship. A running fight of two hours' duration preceded the main en- gagement in the bay, during which the trans- ports entered the Yalu River in safety.
The work of transferring the troops and stores from the Chinese transports to the shore was proceeding rapidly when the Japa- nese fleet was sighted. Admiral Ting of the
Chinese fleet signaled to his ships to weigh anchor and form in line of battle. In obedi- ence to this order the fleet was formed in a single line, with the exception of the cruisers Kwang-Kai and Kwang-Ting and four tor- pedo boats, which were formed in a second line at the mouth of the river.
The Japanese fleet advanced at full .speed while the Chinese columns were forming in line, until they came within range, when the war ships formed in line of battle, nine of them in the first column and three gunboats and five torpedo boats in the second column. The firing at the outset of the engagement was of an indifferent order, but the Japanese were creeping gradually closer to the Chinese ships and their gunners were improving their aim by practice.
A Bursting Shell.
The Chinese barbette .ship Ting-Yuen was the first to suffer any severe injury, a Japa- nese shell bursting in her battery. A cease- less cannonade was kept up on both sides for an hour and a half, when the Japanese ship Saikio was rendered helpless, and, ac- cording to the assertion of a Chinese officer, sank soon afterward. Two of the big guns of the battle ship Chen-Yuen were disabled, but she continued to use her smaller guns. The vessels of both fleets worked very easily under steam, and the Japanese were con- stantly manoeuvering, but the Chinese held their original position.
Suddenly two Japanese cruisers, believed to have been the Akitsushima and the Yo-
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COREA AND THE WAR.
shino, endeavored to break the Chinese line. They were followed by three torpedo boats. As the Japanese ships advanced at full speed, the Chinese ships Chin-Yuen and Choa- Yung backed full speed astern to avoid dis- aster. The Japanese torpedo boats fired, but their projectiles were stopped by nets. The guns of the other Chinese ships were quickly trained on the two Japanese cruisers, and they retired after a short time, almost helpless. The Chinese declared they were sunk.
A Ship on Fire.
The Ching-Yuen was several times pierced by shells. The Chao-Yung ran ashore while retreating, and became a target for the Japa- ne.se guns until she was set on fire. The King-Yuen was in a terrible plight. A shell burst through her decks and she slowly foundered, while flames burst from all parts of her. The Tsi-Yuen withdrew from the first into the second column.
The Chinese torpedo boats vainly at- tempted to put the Japanese on the defen- sive, but the Japanese remained the aggres- sors throughout, although two or three at- tempts to break the Chinese line were re- pulsed. The cruiser Yang- Wei went ashore stern foremost and met a fate similar to that of the Chao-Yung.
After the first three hours of the engage- ment the firing was intermittent. The cap- tain of the cruiser Chin-Yuen fought bravely when his ship was little better than a wal- lowing wreck, until the cruiser was sunk by a torpedo and her crew engulfed. The scene at this point is described as appalling. Many guns on both sides were disabled, the bat- tered ships rolled heavily, and their steam pumps were kept constantly at work to keep them afloat. During the last hour of the battle some of the Chinese ships ran out of
ammunition, and some of the Japanese ships threatened to founder. At dusk the Japa- nese ships moved slowly southward in double line. Another account of the battle is as follows :
Long before the rejoicings over the capture of Ping- Yang had begun to subside, Japan was excited by fresh enthusiasm by the news of another victory of even greater significance in the Northeastern inlet of the Yalu River. The 1 6th of September Admiral Ito, com- manding the squadron, stationed at the mouth of the Taing, or Daido River was notified that a large Chinese fleet had arrived at the Yalu River, which divides Corea and China, in charge of transports, conveying reinforcements to the army on the frontier. He set sail the following morning with all the men-of-war that coi.ld be immediately sum- moned, viz : The Matsushima, flagship ;. Hashidate, Itsukushima, Yoshino, Taka- chiho, Akitsushima, Naniwa, Chyoda, Fuso, Akagi and Hi-Yei. Accompanying these eleven was the Saiko, a merchant steamer, taken into the national service since the war began, of no strength and not intended for heavy work in action.
Commenced Firing.
She would not have joined the expedition, but for the desire of Admiral Viscount Kaba- yama, the naval chief of the staff", who being on a visit of inspection at the North, could not resist the temptation to witness the ex- pected engagement. Between 12 and i o'clock, fourteen Chinese ships and six tor- pedo boats were discovered a little south ot' a harbor, called Taikosan, in Japanese pro- nunciation, the East of Kaiyoto Island.
Contrary to expectation they advanced unhesitatingly and cornmenced firing when 4000 yards distant from the Japanese, who reserved their first discharge until another
JAPAN'S GREAT NAVAL VICTORY.
il
looo yards had been covered. The serious fighting began between the vessels at the Chinese right and the Japanese left, the flag- ships of both sides leading the onslaught. By I o'clock the contest was general. Both lines maintained their positions steadily for an hour when the Chinese showed signs of wavering.
Ships and Crews go Down.
Three of their ships, either by accident or design, had for sonietimc been made special objects, and although they contended vigor- ously to the last, they were sunk, one after another, the crew climbing into the rigging and signalled wildly for help to their com- panions and assailants. These were the Lai-Yuen, Chih-Yuen and Chao-Puen. As soon as they were disposed of, the foremost Japanese ships directed their assault against the immense German-built vessels at the head of the Chinese column, for a long time without effect on the heavy steel plates which protected them.
At last, however, a lucky shell struck the Ting- Yuen a little above the water — and seemed to the Japanese observers to pierce the armor through and through. Their belief that this feat had been accomplished was increased when a thick body of smoke was seen rising from the flagship, and although no diminution of activity aboard was perceptible, they were convinced that she had been set on fire and remained burn- ing up to the hour of her hasty departure.
Whatever the condition was, she succeeded in inflicting heavy punishment upon her chief adversary. The Matsushima was struck by two twelve-inch shells. The first upset and battered out of shape one of her guns, while the second exploded an ammu- nition box, dealing havoc among the crew and starting a fire, which was subsequently.
with great difficulty, put out. In conse- quence of the mishap, the Matsushima with- drew from the scene and moved toward Tai-Tong, Admiral Ito transferring his flag to the Hashidate.
Meanwhile three otiicr Japanese vessels had undergone extremely rough treatment. The Saiko, which Viscount Kabayama per- sisted in keeping in the thickest part of the fight, notwithstanding her obvious unsuita- bility for such duty, lost control of her rudder and found herself in much closer proximity than was desirable to the Ting- Yuen and Chen-Yuen. As she could not avoid them, she made directly for them, it is supposed, in the belief that she was about to ram them.
A Shower of Missiles.
The Japanese are of the opinion that it was under this illusion that the two huge ships separated, allowing the Saiko a passage about forty fathoms wide through which to escape. Torpedoes were discharged at her as she went by, but without avail. The Hiyei having been unable by reason of her slowness to keep pace with the rest of the fleet, became a conspicuous object to the Chinese, and was so deluged with missiles that she was set on fire before the afternoon was half over.
Her small crew was greatly reduced, and as the surgeon was among the wounded, the sufferers could not be properly cared for. When she had lost twenty killed and three wounded, she fell out of line and returned to Tai-Tong, but meeting a transport on the way, she obtained assistance in quenching the flames, and handed over the wounded, and returned with all the speed she could make, not waiting for a doctor, to take up her work where she h;i 1 left off. In this hope she was disappointed, for the enemy
r
552
CORKA AND THK WAR.
11 I.
!
had flown and the battle was over. Still .she was cxpo.sed to the enemy's fire.
It is reported that when she steamed away in flames she was thrice in great danger from torpedoes, but skillfully escaped by employing a device described in a recent magazine account of an imaginary fight in South America. To most readers of that sketch, the expediency of stopping a projec- tile by turning upon it a converging fire of shot and shell seemed purely fiction, yet this is precisely what the Hi-Yei is said to have done in, at least, one in.stance.
The Akagi, a small gunboat, was badly overmatched from the outset, accident hav- ing brought her under the fire of not less than six of the enemy's boats. Her com- mander was struck down and killed while she was thus hotly engaged, yet she would still have kept up a determined resistance, but for the loss of a mast, which rendered her unmanagable. She also found it neces- sary to return to the Tai-Tong.
The Flagship Retreats.
About the time that Admiral Ito left the Matsushima the disorder in the Chinese fleet plainly indicated that the contest could not be prolonged on either side. Three ships had been sunk, and a fourth, the Yang-Wei, had been half destroyed and abandoned. Beside the Ting-Yuen was on fire, and the entire force was thoroughly demoralized. A little later, after five o'clock, the flagship took the lead in retreat toward the home stations.
Four fast steaming Japanese cruisers were detailed to follow, and, if possible, to cut off their escape. Hut the toqjedocs had to be reckoned with, and the possibility of being struck with one of them in the night made it imperative that the Japanese should exer- cise caution. Morning found them at the
mouth of the Gulf of Pechili, with no ship of the enemy in sight. They steamed back to Kayioto Island, keeping a keen overlook on the way, but the Chinese had evidently reached a place of refuge.
The greater part of the Japanese squad- ron and reconvened near Takai.san Harbor, on the chance of getting another fight, bringing this time torpedo boats to co- operate. The need of them was so greatly felt on the previous day that it is safe to say ' no large number of Japanese ships will ever again sail without these essential adjuncts.
Loss of Life.
One of them was now put to a practical, if somewhat inglorious use, in breaking up the Yang-Wei, deserted and unfit for further service. Examinations show that none of the Japanese vessels received damages that could not be repaired with slight cost and labor. All but the four referred to were so free from injury that they could have gone into action the following day. The loss of life was the largest on the Matsushima. Her complement was 335. Four officers and thirty-nine men were killed and .seventy officers and men wounded. The total loss was ten officers and sixty-nine men killed and one hundred and sixty officers and men wounded.
Further particulars of the great battle were learned from the following despatch from Tien-Tsin, dated September 21st: Wounded officers of the Chinese fleet con- firm the original report of the engagement on the 17th inst. They .say that the Chinese fleet arrived at Yalu River on the afternoon of the i6th and remained ten miles outside of the mouth of the river while the tran.sports were unloading. At eleven o'clock on the morning of the 17th they sighted the smoke of the Japanese fleet,
JAPANS GRKAT NAVAL VICTORY
553
which was approaching in two columns. The Chinese vessels steamed out to meet them in two columns, converging on the flagship. The Japanese fleet consisted of twelve ships, while the Chinese had ten ships.
The Chinese Admiral opened fire at a dis- tance of si.K thou.sand yards, but the firing on both sides fell short until the opposing vessels came within fi\e thousand yards. The Chinese endeavored to come to close quarters, but were prevented from accom- plishing their purpose by tiie superior .speed of the Japanese ships, which, keeping for the most part two miles off, manceuvred ad- mirably and made splendid practice with the long range quick firing guns.
Went Down with all Hands.
The Chinese crui.scr Chih-Yuen, Captain Tang Chi Chang, early in the day closed with one of the enemy's ships at full speed, intending to ram her.
Four Japanese vessels then closed round the Chih-Yuen, and she was ripped up by shots under the water line, and went down with all hands, including the engineer. Meanwhile the battle raged furiously round the flagship Ting-Yuen and her consort, the Chen-Yuen. A gunnery officer on the Ting-Yuen, was killed. The Japanese ships were difficult to identify, but it is known that the cruiser Yoshino received some damaging shots at close quarters, which enveloped her in smoke and made her invisible.
Some of the Chinese gunners devoted their attention especially to the Japanese cruiser Naniwa, and succeeded in setting her on fire, but none of the Chinese officers saw her sink.
An account received three days later says :
If naval supremacy of the future is to be decided by battleships, the crucial test of
modern conditions for fighting at sea ha.'j still to be made. Of the twenty-seven ves- sels engaged in tiie fight at the mouth of the Yalu River only two had any pretensions to be called battleships. These were the Chinese vessels Ting-Yuen and Chen-Yuen. All the rest were of the protected or un- protecteil cruiser class.
All through the war the Japanese have shown that their intelligence department is excellently worked. There can be no doubt that they received accurate information about the destination of four thousand troops and large quantities of rice and mili- tary stores which left Taku about September 14th in the Chinese steamers Ilsinyu-Tsonan, Chintung, Lee-Vuen and Haeting. These \essels picked up their convoy and maile for Tatung Kou under the escort of si.x cruisers and four torpedo boats.
Approach of the Fleet.
When off Talienwan Bay they were joined by larger vessels of the Chinese fleet, and made their destination on Sunday, Septem- ber 1 6th. The debarkation began under cover of torpedo vessels and two of the lesser draught ships, and was successfully accomplished, while the other nine vessels of the fleet remained in twenty-five fathoms, from ten to twelve miles south by east, from Tatung Kou.
The Japanese, with that provision which precludes the element of luck, had carefully surveyed the coast two or three years ago. The harbor master of Port Arthur had re- peatedly urged the Chinese to follow their example, but without success. Steam was kept up, when at noon on Monday, Septem- ber I", a cloud of that obtrusive black smoke which the Japanese coal gives off showed the approach of their fleet from the south.
654
CORK A AND THK WAR.
ll t<
Tlic Admiral at once wciglicd anchor, drew up his squadron, in formation like an obtuse angle, with two armored ships at tlic apex, and advanced to give battle. The Japanese came on in line and carried out a series of evolutions with beautiful precision. The tactics of both sides are too highly technical for the layman, but in common speech they may be resolved thus:
Moving in a Circle.
The Japanese, having speed, kept circling around the Chinese, enlarging their radius as they came within range of the big guns of the armored Ting-Yuen and the Chen- Yuen, and coming closer in as they came opposite the unarmored ships and guns of less calibre.
The Chinese kept their wedge formation, but as all the halyards were shot away on the admiral's ship early in the action, they had simply to watch leaders and exact dis- cretion.
The first evolution of the Japanese de- tached three Chinese ships. One was the fine Elswick cruiser Chih-Yuen (2300 tons, 18 knots, three 8-inch 12-ton guns, two 6- inch 4-ton and 17 rapid firers). Captain Tang handled his ship with great coolness. Hii* vessel was badly hulled very early in the fight, and took a strong list to starboard. Seeing she was sinking he went full speed ahead at a Japanese ship which was sticking to him like a limpet, and making free prac- tice with the intention of ramming her, but he foundered with all hands, 250, just before the ship got home. One account of it is that he did sink the Jap, but the weight of evidence is that he only disabled her by his return fire.
The King-Yuen, 2850 tons, 16-12 knots, two 8-inch ten ton guns, two 6-inch four tons and seven machine guns, took fire soon
I after this, but her captain, while subduing the I flames, still fought his ship. Seeing a dis- abled Japanese near him, most probably the same vessel that the Chih-Yuen had tried to ram, he came up, intending to capture or sink her, but w as incautious enough to cross the line of her torpedo tube at a short dis- tance.
The Japanese thereupon shot her only bolt, and sure enouj^h blew the Kin^ Yuen up. Out of a complement of two hundred and seventy odd, some seven only are known to have escaped. One occount says that this fine vessel perished from fire, but subse- quent information from Port Arthur gives the foregoing as the more accurate version of her end. With regard to the disabled Japa- nese vessel not one informant will deliberately .say " I myself saw her founder," but without exception they all maintain that she sank soon after the destruction of the King-Yuen.
A Cowardly Captain.
The notorious Fong, the reinstated cap- tain of the Tsi-Yuen, again distinguished himself by his devotion to the white feather. All the foreign survivors are very silent on this subject, but there is no doubt whatever that this poor creature signalled early in the day that his ship was badly struck and that he then promptly took her out of action. In doing so he ran precipitately into the shal- lows where the Elswick built cruiser, the Yang- Wei (1350 tons, sixteen knots, two ten-inch five ton guns, four four tons and ten machine guns) was in difficulties, struggling hard to get off.
Pong's navigation and pilotage were about equal to his courage. Finding his surround- ings suddenly changed, he altered his helm and fairly rammed his unhappy colleague, escaping himself, however, with a damaged bow. The Yang-Wei's crew of 250 were
JAPAN'S GRKAT NAVAL VICTORY.
labout lound-
helm fague,
laged were
nearly all lost, and that vessel herself went down in about four ami a half fathoms on a strai<;ht keel, with her tops and lighter guns out of the water ami her turret or barbette just awash. She was .sctn in that position four days after by the returning transports.
The Tsi-Yuen ran at full .speed for Port Arthur. There the foreign engineer came ashore and flatly refused to serve further with such a captain. News has since ar- rived in Tien-Tsin that he will be unc'cr no necessity of doing so, as Fong's head was promptly sheared off by an imperative order from Ticn-T.sin. This poltroon had been recently court martialed for his conduct on the day of the Kow-Shing disaster and then, to the great indignation of the fleet, rein- stated to his command.
An Eye to the Main Chance.
His villanous example was followed by the commander of the wooden corvette, the Kuang-Chia, i lOO tons, three twelve-inch rapid firing guns, eight machine guns. It is a moot point whether his ship was injured in action or not. He shows the woodwork of the latrines as a proof. At any rate, he bolted, and kept so keen an eye to the main chance after that, that at ii P. M. he ran his vessel on a reef, some twenty miles east of Talienwan Bay, and for all that is known she is there still, although there is a rumor that the Japanese afterward put a torpedo into her.
The desertion of these two ships would have reduced the Chinese to seven had they not been reinforced by vessels from in shore, ind later on by torpedo vessels, four in number. One of the two ships, the Yang- Wei, was, as stated, rammed by the Tsi- Yuen, the other, the Choayung, a sister ship, soon took fire, and also got into shoal water, where sne burned completely out. More
than one hundred men were taken off b\- a torpedo vessel, but some of her crew were killed. The vessel reinaimd visible, a useless shell, just above the wash of sea at low water. This completes the list of Chinese casualties and losses.
The torpedo boats found some difficulties in joining tlie fray. The loss of halyards and in some cases of colors maile it difficult to distinguish friend from foe, but the young officers in charge did well and acted fully up to their instructions to keep well under the lee of the big ships during fire and then to dart out under the bank of smoke. Unfortu- nately for them, these little vessels had been scouting for three weeks and had been (n er- worked. The result was lamentable. When they opened out their possible twenty knots sank to something between fourteen antl fif- teen. The smoke rose rapidly, and long before the Schwarzkopf range was reached they were seen and fired at. Oddly enough they were not hit once by anything worthy of notice.
Torpedoes of Little Account.
But, on the other hand, they elTected noth- ing. The dreaded torpedo only scored once in the action, and that was in the case of the King-Yuen, an issue entirely due to over- confidence and rashness. In the meantime, the two armored vcs.sels, the Ting-Yuen and the Chen-Yuen, were the recipients of the continued and persistent firing of the Japanese.
The Chen-Yuen, under the command of Commodore Lin, assisted by two foreigners, made grand practice and kept admirable dis- cipline. Her frequent fires were e.xtinguished promptly, and the ship was admirably han- dled throughout the action. The foreign officers on board are both severely wounded, one in the arm, while the other, through an inadvertence, in the too prompt fire of one of
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CORK A AND THE WAR.
the Iieavy {^iins, got his scalp and face badly burned and was subsequently wounded in tile arm.
St) persistent was the fire of this vessel that the magazine was all but depleted, and she arrived at Port Arthur with only twenty rounds of heavy shell left. She fired one hundred and forty-eight six-inch shells, and tjuite exhausted her smaller ammunition. Her fire was as effective as it was sustained, owing to the skill and coolness of the foreign experts. This ship's superstructure was almost completel}' destroyed, and a shell struck the .spindle of the hydraulic gear of the port gun, putting it out of action.
Little Damage.
With this exception it is amazing to find how little damage the heavy fire did to the guns and machinery. Only three guns were dismounted in the whole Chinese fleet, and in no case were the engines, boilers or hydraulic machinery (the Chen-Yuen's ex- cepted) injured. No casualties were reported from the engine rooms, where the behavior was excellent.
The Lai-Yuen, a sister ship to the King- Yuen in build and armament, had her super- structure damaged by fire and shell more than any other ship in the fleet, and was an appalling sight in Port Arthur. Foreigners who saw her deemed it a marvel that she could ever have been brought into port, so completely wrecked was all her deck gear. She was essentially sound in hull, armament and engines, however.
The Ting-Yuen (flag ship, 7,430 tons, fourteen and one-half knots, four thirty-seven ton Krupp guns, two four ton Krupps, eight niacliine guns) was the scene of some striking episoded. A heavy shell, supposed but not known to be on the ricochet, struck the fighting top, killing instantly seven men in
it and knocking the entire gear into the .sea. Another shot in its vagaries bent but did not break the steam pipe. A third killed poor NichoUs, an ex-petty officer of the British navy, who, seeing another foreigner bleeding from a wound in the groin, volunteered to take his place for a few minutes while he went below.
The Admiral and the third engineer, who had volunteered from the customs service, were violently thrown off the bridge by con- cussion and rendered senseless for some time. It is supposed that iieavy guns were simul- taneously fired from the barbette. On recovering the Admiral was foind to have sustaineil injury to his foot, while an attend- ant, in bearing help to his master, was literally blown into the air and sea in infini- tesimal i^ieces by a shell — an accident which profoundly affected the brave old fighter.
The Engagement Renewed.
About three o'clock the Japanese hauled off for consultation, but ci.me on again and renewed the battle. About five they took their final leave, the Ting-Yuen and Chen- Yuen following them up. This was probably a bit of .strategy on the part of the Japs, for after running ten or twelve miles five of them turned round and fired. This was apparently the last kick, for to the unmitigated delight of the Chinese officers they finally hauled off and departed to the southward.
The Admiral then sent on a verbal mess- age for the transports to come along. But they had gone far up stream when they knew what was going on, and did not dare to move without more special orders. It was sup- posed tiiat they had fallen victims to the Japs, who returned the next da)". But on Saturday they all arrived safely at Taku. They had left Tatung Kou on Friday, four days after the battle. They saw the shell of
JAPANS GRKAT NAVAL VICTORY.
r)r)7
the Chao-Yun^; and the tups of the Yon^- Wei in tl)c water on the scene of action. They called in at I'ort Arthur, where they saw si.\ Cliinese vessels, and crossed the Gulf of Pechili in j)crfect safety.
The following account ts valuable as com- ing from an experienced naval officer, who was present. The account is mainly a re- petition of previou.s reports, but adds that the concussion of the first discharge of the guns of the Ting-Yuen threw everybody off the bridge of the ship. The Japanese ships approached in column of divisions, the line ahead of the divisions being disposed abeam.
At Close Quarters.
Coming closer, they tried to form a line abreast. The Chinese ships started in a sec- tional line abreast, at a rate of speed of seven knots an hour. As they came nearer the Japanese appeared to form in quarter line, to which the Chinese replied by turning two points to the starboard, thus keeping their bows toward the enemy.
Approaching within forty-four hundred yards the whole Japanese fleet seemed to turn eight points to port, thereby forming a single line ahead, and steaming across the Chinese line turned its starboard wing.
The Chinese were unable to keep pace with the enemy, and endeavored to follow their movements by keeping bow on them as the Japanese ships circled around, maintain- ing the while a heavy bombardment. The Japanese fleet that kept in the thick of the f\ght consisted of six ships of the " Yuen " class.
The Japanese ships, having completed one circle, hauled off" to a distance of eight thou- sand yards, and went thiough an evolution with the object of separating into two divi- sions, the first consisting of seven of their best-known and the swiftest cruisers, and the
.second of five inferior ships, which stund ofT some distance. Theb.ittle thus arranged itself into two groups, four Chinese cruisers hecom- ing engaged with the second ilivisiun, while twoironclads,the Chen-Yuen and Ting-Yuen, attacked the first division. The fighting of the second division was irregular and iliffi- cult to follow.
It ended in the Japanese disappearing in the direction of Hai-Yung-Tao.
The first Japanese division carried on the fight with the ironclads by circling round at a, distance of forty-five hundred yards. The Chen-Yuen and Ting- Yuen, keeping to- gether, followed the enemy's movements in a smaller circle, the whole evolution taking a spiral form. Occasionally the distance be- tween the opposing shi|)s was reduced to two thousand yards, and once to twelve hundred yards.
Keeping at a Distance.
The Japanese aimed at keeping a long di.stance away, so as to avail themselves of their superior speed, and make the most of their quick-firing guns, which vastly excelled those of the Chinese. The object of the Chinese was to come to close quarters, so as to use their slow-firing guns of large calibre with full effect.
The firing continued between the Chinese ironclads and the Japanese first division until nearly five o'clock in the afternnon. The quick-firing guns gave the latter an immense advantage, scattering showers of splinters, occasionally setting the Chinese ships on fire and riddling everything that was not pro- tected by armor. During the action one of the smaller Japanese ships was seen with her propellers out of the water and her bow nearly under. Another was seen to be on fire, enveloped in flames and apparently sinking.
i;
5^8
COREA AND THE WAR.
The Yoshino and Matsusima were burn- ing fiercely. The former, after receiving two shots each from the Ting-Yuen and Chen- Yuen, was enveloped in a cloud of white smoke, which lay heavily on the water and completely co\ered the ships. The Chinese vessels waited for the cloud to clear, and got their port guns ready, but before the Yoshino became visible their fire was diverted by a Japanese vessel of the Matsusima type, which came on at a distance of two thousand two hundred yards on the port quarter. The guns that were laid for the Yoshino were fired at the newcomer, with the result that she began to burn. Whether these three Japanese ships received mortal injuries is uncertain.
In the latter part of the battle the Chinese ironclads ran short of common shells and continued the action with steel shot. This was ineffective, as the Japanese vessels have no armor. The two ironclads fired 197 rounds with 12-inch guns, and 268 rounds with 6-inch guns. About four o'clock the Ting-Yuun was badly on fire forward, the smoke impeding the working of the fore- turret. Before five o'clock the Japanese had ceased firing, and the distance between the fleets was rapidly increasing.
Effective Armor.
In regard to the conclusions to be drawn from the battle it may be said that the Chinese battleships proved formidable. The Chinese ironclads stood the battering of the heavy quick-firing guns admirably. Their upper structures were severely damaged, but not a shot penetrated a vital part. The bar- bette protection of the 12-inch guns was most effective, very few men being wounded within the barbettes. Two barbette turrets were as intact after the action as before.
This fact, however, coupled with the fact
that the 6-inch guns at both ends of the ships, which are only slightly protected, were also undamaged, .seems to indicate that the destructive effect was due to the enor- mous number of projectiles from the quick- firing guns, rather than to the skilled direc- tion of the shots. The manceuvering of the Japanese first division e.xcited great admira- tion. Taking advantage of their speed and the long range of their guns, they always kept at the distance that suited them, main- taining perfect order throughout the fight, attempting nothing sensational and never coming within destructive range of the heaviest guns.
The Mast Cut Away.
Captain Sakamoto, of the Akagi, was aloft watching for torpedoes and signalling to the other vessels of the fleet their loca- tion, when the mast was cut away by a shot from the enemy and he was killed. The Yoshino 's forward barbette was slightly damaged. All the ships of the Japanese squadron carried new guns, and these did ex- cellent service. They used no torpedoes, all the damage sustained by the Chinese vessels being inflicted by shot. In view of this fact, the sinking of double bottomed vessels like the Lai-Yuen is considered remarkable, and it is the generally expressed opinion among nautical authorities that the work of the Japanese was the most successful thing since the time of Nelson.
Toward the close of the fight great confu- sion was observed on board the Ting-Yuen, King-Yuen and Ping-Yuen. These ships appeared to be on fire.
At sundown the Chinese fleet were in full retreat. They were pursued by the Japanese ships, which laid their course parallel to that taken by the enemy. The night being very dark, the pursuers kept at some distance
JAPAN'S GREAT NAVAL VICTORY.
550
le
from the Chinese, fearinjj that should they follow the enemy too closely they might be damaged by the latter's torpedo boats. Owing to this fact and the extreme darkness the Chinese succeeded in getting away and reaching a safe shelter.
At daylight the Japanese vessels endeav- ored to find the enemy, but were unable to do so. They then returned to the scene of the previous day's action, where they found the Yang-Wei ashore and deserted, and destroyed her with a fish torpedo. None of the Japanese vessels were lost in the engage- ment and only three of them were seriously injured. All of them, with the exception of the Matsusima, remained on the station.
All the official reports of the battle were very laconic and greatly wanting in scientific and useful details, but from the foregoing statements the reader will be able to obtain a true account of the battle.
Literal Gifts.
The ex-Daimio of Mito, one of the great Tokugawa family of the Shogunatow, com- memorated the victory of Ping- Yang by a donation of $8000 to the war fund. His younger brother gave at the same time 52300. Large contributions to the same object continued to be received from various sources, the theatre managers being especi- ally conspicuous for their liberality, but the native journals complained that the promi- nent merchants and bankers, and especially the contractors, who were receiving enor- mous sums from the public treasury, offered no similar donations.
I5y command of the Empress, the pecuni- ary circumstances of the families of soldiers and sailors who died in the war, were ascer- tained for her Majesty's immediate consider- ation. Subscriptions to the war aggregated on September 25, ^ 5 5, 000,000, $10,000 be-
ing applied for at the rate above par. The call was for only §25,000,000.
Warnings of punishment in store for Li Hung Chang in consequence of the repeated defeats suffered by flie Chinese Army and Navy were sent from Pekin, but the text of the decree proclaimed on the 17th of Sep- tember, after the battle of Ping-Yang, was as follows:
Li Hung Chang Degraded.
" The P2mojen (Japanese pigmies), having broken faith with Corea and forcibly occu- pied that country, the throne .sympathized with its tributary kingdom in her distress and so raised an army to attack the common enemy. Upon Li Hung Chang, Imperial High Commander of Peyang, having chief control of the forces there, rested the entire burden of being prepared for emergencies, but, instead, he has been unable to act with .speed and promptness in his military prepara- tions, so that much time has elapsed without any important results. He has indeed failed in the trust reposed in him by us. We, therefore, command that his decoration of the Three- Eyed Peacock Feather be plucked off" from his hat and that he be stripped of the yellow riding jiicket as a slight punish- ment. It is necessary then that the said Im- perial High Commander exert himself to the utmost and decide upon what should be done ; that he direct and hasten the various armies from the various provinces to the front in order that all may put forth their best strength to chase and root out tlu: enemy. In this way Li Hung Chang may hope to redeem former errors."
The position of foreigners in the interior of China, especially at the north, was regarded as extremely critical. Even residents of Shanghai felt it necessary to remind com- manders of European fleets of dangers that
I
1
660
COREA AND THE WAR.
would threaten them in case the government suffered further reverses, and the few aliens who remained in Pekin had far more serious cause for apprehension.
The authority of Li Hung Chang, which would ordinarily be exercised on behalf of strangers was now so weakened that his promises of protection could no longer be trusted. No immediate movement from the capital could be safely attempted, as the roads were thronged with disorderly bodies of troops and a peasant population, famished and desperate. The presence of marines to guard legations and restrain the lawlessness of mobs, which seemed waiting only for a pretext to rise upon Europeans and Ameri- cans, was imperatively demanded.
A New Commander.
The call of Prince Kung to power was interpreted as another sign of Li Hung Chang's decline. This half-forgotten states- man, seventy years of age, controlled the diplomacy of the Empire some thirty years before, until he was set aside by one of the palace conspiracies which in those days frequently threw the government into confu- sion. His appointment was quickly followed by the nomination of General Sung to the chief command of the Northern armies.
This was understood as equivalent to a definite denial to Li's position io be entrusted with the direct management of the military and naval forces. The statement previously published that the Chinese fleet putposely carried no boats was corroborated. The crews of all the lost vessels perished, with scarcely an exception. The number of drowned was roughly estimated at nearly seven hundred. Every deck officer engaged was injured. On the ships which returned to Port Arthur about one hundred were killed and two hundred and fifty were wounded.
The engagement was severe throughout, and the casualties were unavoidable.
An extraordinary Imperial edict was issued calling for a true report of the battle of Ping- Yang. The Emperor announced that the defeat was owing to dissensions amongst the defenders and rivalry of generals in charge of the several brigades and stated that the guilty parties would be severely punished.
A proclamation was issued warning British troops against accepting any engagements that might be offered. The Merchants' Steam Navigation Company continued the transfer of its ships from Chinese to German control.
One of the Imperial decrees announced that the sovereign had consented to the Empress Dowager's request to omit or post- pone the celebration of that lady's sixtieth birthday and devote the immense sums of money collected for the ceremonies to the prosecution of the war. Reports of mutinies among Chinese troops in Manchuria gained strength and caused great agitation in Pekin and Tien Tsin.
Prompt Contributions.
" Ever since the war began," wrote a Japanese correspondent, " the enthusiasm of the Japanese has known no bounds. Con- tributions for the comfort of the soldiers in Corea flow in from all sides. Every imagin- able article was piled up in the Armj' Depart- ment as gifts to those fighting for the country. Contributions from ten cents up to tens of thousands of dollars were daily reported. Mr. Fukuzaw 'he famous educationalist and journalist, contributed ^10,000 to the relief fund.
" Ladies, high and low, were sending money, as well as lint bandages for the wounded. Towns and villages were busying themselves in organizing militia companies to
JAPAN'S GREAT NAVAL VICTORY.
561
offer their services to the Mikado. The Mikado, however, addressed the people, ex- hortinjj them that it was their duty to stay at home, to follow their own vocations, as there is a regular army sufficient for the occasion, although he rejoiced in their patri- otism. This must have been a great disap- pointment to the brave and warlike Samurai class.
" To prepare for a prolonged war Japan issued this large five per cent, government loan of $25,000,000. The Minister of the Treasury consulted with financiers and bank- ers as to the advisability of the measure. The Minister was of the opinion that the bonds ought to btar si.K per cent, interest, but the bankers' enthusiasm was such that they assured him that the greater part of the loan would be taken by themselves at five per cent, and they felt sure that there would be no difficulty in raising the entire amount. The feeling of the whole country is at such a pitch that they cannot rest until they realize the long cherished hope of humiliating China."
Japan's Field Marshal.
The Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese army in Corea, Field Marshal Count A. Yamagata, who brought the Ping -Yang campaign to a brilliant close, may well be said to be a born .soldier. He was called the Von Moltke of Japan, and his brilliant strategy at Ping- Yang would indicate that he deserved the title. In stature, he is tall and slender.
The reader will be interested in the follow- ing sketch : " Socially he is very quiet and silent, and here his resemblance to the great
3(i
German f^cneral is brought out in bold relief. His influence and popularity are immense, especially in the army. He comes of very humble origin, his father being one of the Ashigaru caste, the lowest of all the .Samurai classes, who, in feudal times, could not under ordinary circumstances be promoted to a higher rank.
" When still in h's teens he was the head of the Chosin cavalry forces, and led them against the army of 20,000 men sent in 1 8C4 by the Shogun, then the reigning power, for the chastisement of the feudal lord of the Chosin province. With the insignificant force of scarcely 2000 men he checked the advance of the enemy and completely de- feated them before they could invade the Chosin territory. His strategy and tactics on that occasion were masterpieces in skill and precision. There has scarcely been any fighting since the war of restoration in which he was not actively engaged.
Japan's Greatest Marshal.
" It is the general opinion of Japanese that Marshal Yamagata is the ablest general that Japan now has. There are four field mar- shals in the Japanese army, and Count Yama- gata is the only one who is not of princely birth. The other three are Prince Arisugawa and other high personages of royal blood.
" Marshal Yamagata has in his staff in Corea, Lieutenant General Nodsu, as vice commander, who has had as brilliant a mili- tary career as the Marshal himself They have been together in previous battles, and know each other well. It is not likely that there will be any disagreement between then' as to m.ilitary operations."
' 'J
CHAPTBR XXXVI. STIRRING INCIDENTS OF THE CAMPAIGN.
AFTER the great naval battle which resulted so disastrously to the Chi- nese navy, the Japanese army made preparations for a bold advance, having in view especially the towns and for- tified places occupied by the enemy. A number of minor battles were fought, which although not decisive, or fraught with great results, yet served to show the superiority of the Japanese arms.
A strong patriotic feeling in support of the war manifested itself in Japan, and the popu- lace were elated over recent victories and 'A^ere enthusiastic in their support of the government. On all sides there was rejoic- ing and congratulations. By this time the conviction not only pervaded Japan, but other nations likewise, that the military power of China was only a mere shell and would easily be crushed in the conflict. As a result it began to be rumored that China was ready to propose terms of peace, and although this was denied by officials of high position the statement was again and again renewed and found a ready relief
The fact also became known that England was e.xtremely nervous on account of the events in the Orient which threatened her commercial relations with China. There was talk of interference by the European powers and it was only after mature delibera- tion that the decision was reached to allow the war to proceed and take its own course. The powers most frequently named were England and Russia, and it became an inter- esting question as to what part each would 562
play in the sanguinary conflict. Reports flew from continent to continent with light- ning rapidity, rumors and contradictions of rumors filled the air, and public interest with the dawn of each day inquired what new move had been made upon the chess-board of the Orient where nations were playing the great drama of Empire.
Meanwhile let us turn our attention to the military movements and incidents of the campaign following the battle of the Yalu.
Death of China's Commander.
After the battle of Ping- Yang, while the Japanese soldiers were engaged in burying those who had fallen in the fight, they found, surrounded by a heap of dead bodies, the remains of an officer very richly clad. On the body was found a letter from the Chinese government addressed to General Yeh, Com- mander-in-Chief of the Chinese forces in Corea. This letter, together with others, from the wife of General Yeh, and various documents, which were also found on the body, fi.xed beyond doubt the identity of the remains as those of General Yeh, who was supposed to have succeeded in making his escape after the complete rout of his forces by the Japanese. The body was interred with the honor due the rank of the deceased officer.
At this juncture of aflairs it was reported that Japan was endeavoring to negotiate a treaty with the United States. The treaty was one which the Mikado's government regarded as more important than any ever
STIRRING INCIDENTS OF THE CAMPAIGN.
503
made by it before with any country. It pro- vided for the abolition of that feature of the present treaty which is known as " extra-ter- ritorial" jurisdiction, which is equivalent to placing the affairs of foreigners in Japan under the control of courts composed of consuls representing the commercial powers. Japan has made such progress in civiliza- tion during the past two decades that her national pride revolts at a continuation of such authority, which is only demanded in our treaty negotiations with semi-barbarous nations. This was the real bone of conten- tion in the proposed new treaty, and it was one from which Japan emphatically declined to recede.
Concerning Immigration.
Another important clause was thtit which relates to immigration. This, however, it was believed, could be satisfactorily adjusted, inasmuch as the policy of the Tokio govern- ment is to discourage emigration, and, more- over, it is claimed, the Japanese are not a migratory people, and there is no probability that this country would ever be threatened with a "Japanese invasion," as has been the case with the subjects of China.
The proposed new treaty was drawn on practically the lines of the treaty agreed to by Great Britain. It specifically enumerated the respective rates of dut)'- which would be levied on importations from the United States, and it provided for the abolition of the export duty on silks and teas, both of which articles are principally exported to the United States, and which yield to the Japanese gov- ernment a revenue amounting to more than $1,000,000 annually. As the consumer in this case " pays the tax " the pecuniary sacri- fice made by Japan will be a benefit to the American people, and will furnish an addi- tional proof on the part of the Japanese
government for an expansion of their trade with the United States. The treaty also contained other provisions of an economic nature, which, it was bclitncd, would tend further to increase our trade relations with that country.
Public interest was further awakened ii: the affairs of the Orient by reliable news of a proposition to partition China among the European Powers. The following despatch from St. Petersburg indicated what was going on in diplomatic circles :
Partition of China Proposed.
"In a long and ren:;<rkable article on the China-Japanese war the N^ovosti, a leading journal, strongly advoc-.tes European inter- vention, and advises Great Britian, France and Russia to come to an understanding, with a view to the partition of China by a joint occupation. The conquest of China by the.se three Powers, it is contended, would be an easy undertaking and would render vast service to civilization at large. It would be of benefit to the Chinese people themselves, in saving them from certain de- cay and in freeing them from an arbitrary round of routine in order to bring them into the common sphere of civilization.
"The .i\'irA-fj// draws a glowing picture of the enormous economic advantages which would result from the transformation of China into a vast market, which would be the receptacle of the superabundant pro- ducts, natural and industrial, of Europe.
" Commenting on the situation in Corea, the Nmuh' Vrciiiya sayi : — ' Russia is entitled to more preponderating influence than Great Britian in the settlement of the Corean ques- tion, in view of the fact that the geographical position of Corca places that country within Russia's sphere ( f influence.' "
The obstacles in the way of carving China
664
COREA AND THE WAR.
■mM
up for an all round distribution, such as the Russian Novosti suggested, would be very- great. But these obstacles would not for the most part be furnished by China herself. It is true that she has a population of many millions, and she possesses arsenals where cannons, rifles and ammunition of the most modern type are turned out in considerable quantities. But there is no country in the world where scientific warfare is less intelli- gently studied or understood. "The Chi- nese army," says a highly qualified English observer, " under Chinese officers, even with muskets in its hands and cartridges in its pouches, is an undisciplined rabble of tramps, about as well qualified to withstand a European force as a body of Hyde Park pro- cessionists would be to repel a charge of the Life Guard."
Great, but Weak.
All history goes to show the facility with which China, notwithstanding her over- whelming numbers, may be worsted by a de- termined invader. Two and a half centuries ago she yielded to a few hundred thousand Tartars, who founded the present dynasty. Four centuries before that she had bowed before the Mongols. In recent times many territorial losses have borne testimony to her weakness. Tonquin, Annam and Cochin China have been taken by France; Siam no longer owes her allegiance ; Burmah has be- come a British possession ; the Loo-Chow Islands have passed under the dominion of Japan; and now finally Corea has been wrested from her uncertain grasp.
There is yet another reason why China could not hope to resist a partition should the Powers decide upon making it. The Chinese are not one people — not a single community, but a congeries of communities. There is among them no national unity or
cohesion. The Thibetans and Mongolians, the Turki and Mussulmans are not united in a real band. The inhabitants of the north- ern portions of the Empire cannot so much as understand the speech of their southern fellow subjects. The provinces are all inde- pendent, with their own armies and their own government, strung loosely together by the same submission to the reigning house. This nexus removed, internal disruption would inevitably result.
Anarchy would Result.
Were the capital occupied by an enemy the Emperor expelled and the dynasty over- turned, it is doubtful whether China would persevere in any protracted resistance, or initiate a policy of revenge. The various elements of disorder scattered through the Empire would each find its local focus, and a reign of lawless anarchy and universal dis- location might be expected to ensue. It is clear that this crumbling of the Empire upon the removal of its Emperor would enormously assist the division of its terri- tories among a number of greedy and pow- erful foreign states.
The effect of the war news upon the Japa- nese was electric and was the occasion of some striking scenes in the large cities. At Yokohama a large number of flags taken from the Chinese were exhibited in front of the Shokonsha shrine, which is dedicated to the spirits of the soldiers that have fallen in battle since the days of the restoration. Thousands of people daily gathered round the place, their countenances beaming with delight at this tangible proof of the superi • ority of the Japanese arms. The pride of those in the crowd who had soldier relatives was freely expressed, and such phrases as " my brother " or " my cousin " did this or that were frequently to be heard. The ex-
golians, nited in 2 north- o much louthern all indc- r\d their ether by T house, isruption
in enemy isty over- na would itance, or e various rough the bcus, and versal dis- ;ue. It is (e Empire or would its terri- and pow-
the Japa- ccasion of :ities. At lags taken in front of ;dicated to |e fallen in esto ration. |red round ^ming with :he superi ■ pride of :r relatives ihrases as lid this or The ex-
565
50(3
COREA AND THE WAR.
hibition of flags was of itself well worth seeing, but the exhibition of family pride and loyalty was more touching.
It is estimated that more than fifty thou- sand soldiers were in Tokio, the majority composed of the first-class reserves. The barracks were full to overflowing, and the houses of wealthy private citizens were ap- propriated, as many as fifty men being bil- leted on one house.
The calling out of the first-class reserves resulted in sorrow to many households. The metropolitan journals reported one case of peculiar interest, which revealed the crime of infanticide. The young wife of a time- expired soldier died, leaving the widower with an infant daughter. On being called to go to Corea he made strenuous efforts to get some one to take his baby, but, being very poor, was unable to procure a home for the little one. As there was apparently nothing else to do he killed the child and then joined his regiment. The crime was not discovered until after his departure for Corea. He left word with a friend that he was resolved to die on the field of battle.
Fears for Missionaries.
As a result of the outbreak of the war the gravest solicitude was felt for the missionaries located in China. After a Cabinet Council instructions were cabled to the British Min- ister at Pekin, and to the British Consuls at all the treaty ports to send to the mission stations in the interior, imperative directions for the withdrawal of all the missionaries to the protected coast districts. The Consuls were empowered by their instructions to call for assistance upon Vice Admiral Free- mantle, commanding the British fleet in Chinese waters, who was authorized to send gunboats to any possible distance up the Chinese rivers, if such action was deemed
necessary, to cover the withdrawal of the missionaries.
The instructions also directed that all missionaries, without regard to nationality, should be protected. The few and meagre telegrams received by the Minister and Con- suls from the nearest mission stations, indi- cated that the missionaries there were determined not to desert their posts, but to continue their work in the face of all risks. The largest Protestant inland mission in China is engaged in the provinces of Se-Chuen and Hu-Pei, in which provinces anti-foreign riots have most often occurred.
Remained at their Posts.
The managers of this station, instead of withdrawing the workers under their super- vision, sent fresh drafts of missionaries to the various sub-stations in their district, they having received advices that there was r.) more cause for fear of ill-treatment tlia > usually existed. The society which operaii. ■- this station, also, has four stations in tlu province of Pe-Chi-Li, in which province Pekin is situated, and these four stations employ 614 missionaries, no one of \vh<-;n, so far as is known, was preparing to retreat. The same may be said of the Catholic nii-;- sionaries, whose numbers are largely in excess of the Protestants.
In Nieu-Chang and Moukdcn, which are near the centre of the district where the war was being carried on, there were stationed twenty-three Catholic and seventeen Protes- tant missionaries. The mail advices received from those points stated that the churches and houses of native converts had been pil- laged and burned, but that the foreign resi- dents had meanwhile remained unharmed. The position of affairs debarred the Admir- alty from sending explicit orders as to how to dispose of the vessels covering the ports.
STIRRING INCIDP:NTS OF THK CAMPAIGN.
mi
but Vice Admiral Freemantle was advised to station gunboats at the Chc-Foo, Ichang and Hankow, and also at the furthest inland port, Chun-King. At Shanghai the Indo- European police force was increased on representations made by British shippers there.
Taking Shelter in Pekin.
The London Missionary Society received a cablegram from the missionaries under its charge located in Tientsin and vicinity, stating that they were well, but that their families were leaving for Pekin, fearing the result of the anti-foreign feeling which had made itself manifest on the part of the natives.
China, with her teeming millions, has always been regarded as an important field for missionary labor since the Nestorians in the seventh century first carried the standard of the Cross into that country. The Jesuit missionaries that went to China about the time when the present Manchu dynasty came into power were well received by the Chinese government. Many of them suc- ceeded even in obtaining high official posts through their scientific attiinments.
Protestant missionaries ,Tiade no attempt to enter China till the beginning of the present century. The opening of the five ports in 1842 gave an impetus to missionary labor as well as to trade. The field was gradually widened by the subsequent open- ing of other ports. At first the missionaries naturally confined their operations to these places. Not content with this limited sphere of action they soon established themselves in other parts of the country. Now the differ- ent missionary societies in this country and in Europe have mission stations in every province of the Empire.
The American Board has .our principal
missions in China, called, respectively, the South China, the Foo-chow, the North China and the Sliansi. The China Inland Mission has appropriated to itself the interior parts of China as its special field. Those examples are sufficient to show how ubicjui- tous the missionaries in China are. In fact, one may come across these self-sacrificing men and women in any out-of-the-way corner of the Empire. Their isolation in this fashion in remote districts renders it practically impossible to afford them ade- quate protection.
Execution of Japanese Students.
On October 1 1 th it was reported that two Japanese students who were surrendered to the Chinese authorities by the American Consul at Shanghai had been barbarously executed at Nonkin by order of the Vice- roy. They died bravely. The arrest of these Japanese was the cause of a spirited controversy, the question involved being that of territorial jurisdiction. The two Japanese were students in Shanghai, who, it was alleged, at the outbreak of hostilities be- tween China and Japan, gathered information concerning China's weakness for the use of their government. It was not known whether they succeeded in sending any of this information to Japan. The Chinese au- thorities claimed that they detected them in their alleged unlawful work and attempted to place thcin under arrest.
The Japanese fled to the French Consu- late in Shanghai, but remained there only a short time, the French Consul General turn- ing them over to the United States Consu- late. Some days after their arrival at the United States Consulate the Chinese authori- ties demanded that they be turned over to them, and not having jurisdiction over them, our Consul General Jernegan had to accede
668
COREA AND THE WAR.
to their request. This action was considered in the United States Senate December 5 th.
Tlie next advices from the seat of war stated that on October loth a detachment of Japanese cavalry and infantry made an attack upon and routed a force of 2,000 Chinese at Wi-Ju, and that the place re- mained in the hands of the Japanese. The Japanese force had been greatly delayed in its advance by the badness of the roads. The heavy guns could be brought forward but slowly, and the troops were compelled often to wait for supplies. Pioneer troops had to be used repeatedly to make the roads passable. The main Japanese column reached Yung-Chen, a short distance to the south of Wi-Ju, on October 4. There was no sign of the enemy. Four days later the scouts who had been sent out towards "Wi-Ju reported that a small Chinese force still occupied the city.
The Town Captured.
The strength of the enemy was estimated at about 2,000. A strong body of infantry and cavalry, supported by light artillery, was thrown forward at once. The Chinese offered little resistance. They retired before the first attacking party, and eventually broke and fled across the Yalu. The Chi- nese loss was hardly more than a hundred killed and wounded. The Japanese line of communications was now complete through- out Corea.
The Japanese Parliament, convoked to consider war measures, was opened at Hiroshima, October i8th, by the Emperor in person. A bill was submitted providing for increased expenditures for the army and navy. The war expenses were estimated at $150,000,000, of which amount $26,- 000,000 was to be taken from the Govern- ment reserve fund. Another bill introduced
provided for raising a further internal loan of $100,000,000, payable in instalments, with interest not to exceed six per cent.
A resolution was submitted by the radicals under the terms of which the increase of the navy proposed at the fourth session should now be accepted and executed as rapidly as possible. Under the resolution work upon the ships in course of con.struc- tion would be pushed to completion, the ad- ditional defences heretofore proposed be rapidly constructed, and the necessary sup- ply of arms and munitions of war be se- cured with the least possible delay.
The Emperor's Speech.
The following was the speech of the Em- peror to the extraordinary session of the Imperial Diet at Hiroshima :
" Nobles and Gentlemen :
" We have convened an extraordinary session of the Imperial Diet at this time, and have specially commanded our Ministers whose departments are concerned to lay before you a number of measures of great urgency. These are the bills relating to the naval and military expenditure.
" We have again to repeat that China, in disregard to her duty, declined to co-operate with Japan for the preservation of peace in the East. The present conflict is the re- sult. But the sword once drawn, hostilities must not be permitted to cease until the ob- ject of the war is attained.
" It is our earnest desire that our loyal subjects shall in perfect union and harmony devote themselves to the promotion of the interests of the Empire, and to the securing of the complete and final triumph of our arms, and thereby bring about a speedy re- storation of peace to the Orient. It is for you, nobles and gentlemen, to exert your
STIRRING INCIDENTS OF THE CAMPAIGN.
569
selves to obtain the complete realization of this object."
An address in reply to the speech from the throne was presented by the Presidents of the two Chambers of the Diet, thanking the Mikado for advancing the standard of Japan by personally assuming direction of the war, the natural results of which direc- tion by His Majesty have been the Japanese victories on land and sea. The address of the Presidents concluded as follows :
" Your Majesty rightly considers China an enemy to civilization, and we comply with the Imperial desire to destroy the bar- barous obstinacy of that race." The patri- otic tone of the speeches in the Japanese Lower House strengthened the Govern- ment.
In Favor of Peace.
The deep-seated repugnance of war on the part of many of the American people found expression at Washington on October 19th. The members of the American branch of the International Peace Bureau issued an appeal to the Emperors of Japan and China to arbi- trate their difficulties. Some of the success- ful arbitrations that have been achieved by these International Peace Associations were mentioned in the appeal, the more prominent of which were the treaty of London, which gave to Belgium her neutrality; the treaty of Washington, which resulted in the settle- ment of the Alabama claims, and the Behring Sea Arbitration, known as the treaty of Paris.
The appeal stated that further loss of life and property could be avoided, without any reflection upon either country, by submitting their pending disputes to arbitration with the same results and without loss of prestige, as were secured by the contending nations which were parties to the foregoing arbitra- tions. It recommended as arbitrators the
Pope of Rome, the Emperor of Austria, Queen Victoria, the King of Denmark, and the Queen Regent of tlie Netherlands. Pending the negotiation of such submission to arbitration all hostilities to cea.se and the usual international forms of truce to be strictly observed by both the contending parties. The appeal, in conclusion, pledged that the International Peace Bureau would do all in its power to have this armistice strictly observed.
Across the Yalu River.
Meanwhile, military operations went for- ward. Count Yamagata, commander-in- chief of the Japanese forces in Corea, re- ported to the government at Tokio tlK.t a detachment of 1600 Japanese infantry crossed the Yalu River on the morning of October 24th, at Sukochin, above Wi-Ju. Shortly after crossing the river the troops met a body of Chinese, composed of 600 cavalry and 1 00 infantry, with two cannon.
The Japanese at once made an attack upon the enemy and the latter fled, leaving behind them the two guns and a large number of muskets. The Chinese lost twenty killed or wounded, but there was not a single fatality among the Japanese. The latter also .seized a fort near the scene of the engagement. A detachment of the Japane.se forces advanced upon Lishiycn and the main body crossed the Yalu River.
The force of Japanese that crossed the river and defeated the Chinese was composed entirely of riflemen. Earthworks had been thrown up at Sukochin by the Chinese, but a slight deviation enabled the attacking forces to cross the river without hindrance. The Chinese position was garrisoned with a small force of artillery and infantry, and these fled aft:er two or three rounds of shots had been fired.
'4
in
I
I
;)7< >
CORHA AND rill'. WAR.
Count Yamaj,Mt;i aildcd : " W'c c.ipturctl the works uilli a rush. A regiment of Manchuriau cavalry cairn; up as tlic ciicuiy were driven from the eartliworks and cov- ered their retre.it. The retiriii;,' force took 'efuye within Chinese batteries furtlier down the river, throwing away tiieir muskets in their fli-,dit.
" Our advanced detachment now holds the fortifications erected at Sukochin ferry •")y the Chinese, and is prepared to guard the ^assaj^o across tlic river of tiie main body, whicli will probably be made at dawn «jf the 25th inst. Pontoons liave already been placed in position at Nodzu, and all the men and materials are ready for a rapid advance. There are still many Chinese troops in the batteries opposite Wi-Ju, but their number has not been increasing during the past week. The opposing forces liave both been making reconnoissances since the Chinese were driven out of Wi-Ju, but no fighting had taken j)lace until the morning of the 24th.
The Chinese Force.
" Scouts have made their way to a con- siderable distance down the river, and have also pushed into the interior, but none has met any armed Chinese. A report is cur- rent th.it the entire effective Chinese force is intrenched close to the Yalu River on tlie Moukden road. The main attack on the Chinese will be made before Sunday."
A startling incident of the war was the murder of a high Corean official. " Ct)r- rupt and treacherous though China's official circles may be, says the Jiji Shiinpo, of Tokio, of September 22, we never liave given credence to the report that the late Chinese Minister to Corea, Yuen-Si-K\vci, was killed by poison. But a recent despatch from a trustworthy source says that this I
dreadful trailed)- of C liiiie>e treachery was enacted in tik: \cr\' capital of China itself, ill iVkin. At the outbrt ak of tiie war Li- ilung-Chan,^^ w.is accused of ha\iiig liro'.i^-ht oil the i)reiiiature rupture of peace between China and Japan.
"Matters were getting too hoi for the Viceroy, and he sougiit means to extricate himself from the ch.irges made against him, and to protect his own safety by transferring the whole blame upon Minister Yuen. He answered the impeachment of the I'ekin court with the arraignment of poor Yuen, w hom he charged with acting in the Corean question without his order and without his knowledge, thus bringing about the present conflict.
A Piece of Treachery.
"At this juncture Yuen returned to China from Corea. No sooner had he toucheil the soil of Tien-Tsin than Li took possession of him, and, apprehensive of Yuen's exposure of his share in the Corean complications, in- duced liim to conceal his whereabouts. Li kept him literally in a state of confinement, while he was using his every effort in Pekin to bring him into disgrace. Yuen's indigna- tion was great when he finally learned of this piece of treachery on the part of the old Viceroy. Determined to protect himself from danger by giving facts and evidence be- fore the high officials of the I'ekin court, Yuen escaped to the capital.
"The dread of Li-Hung-Chang in conse- cjuence of the disappearance of Yuen can well be imagined. He was quite at a loss at first what to do, but he determined to take ;,oine extreme measure for his own safety. Yuen arri\-ed at the capital, where he was happy at tiie prospect of being able to appeal to the court, and of establishing his inno- cence In- exposing the whole affair before
r II
consc- cn can a loss to take safety, le was ippeal inno- before
i'feit
t •
572
COREA AND THE WAR.
the high oflr.jials. On the night of his ar- rival he was invited to dine with a friend from whom he had been separated since he went to Corea as Minister. He returned home and retired, feeling unusually comforta- ble for the first time after his arrival in his native land. But next morning Yuen was no more. He was dead."
Field Marshal Count Yamagata reported to the Emperor that at daybreak on October 25 the Japanese army under his command completed its crossing of the Yalu River, and in the forenoon attacked and defeated the Chinese near Fu-Shang, also capturing a fortress on the right bank of the River Ai. According to the statement of a Chinese officer who was made prisoner the enemy were eighteen battalions strong. The Chi- nese lost two hundred killed and a large number wounded, though it was not know)i how many. The number of Japanese killed or wounded was five officers and ninety men.
A Forward Movement. Advices received from Nodzu stated that the Japanese began to transport the main body of their army across the Yalu on the evening of October 24. The work of cross- ing continued throughout the night, and at day-break on October 25 all the guns, horses and men had crossed without mishap and formed an intrenched camp. In the mean- time Colonel Sato, who had taken a flying column on the morning of October 25 for the purpose of reconnoitring, came upon the enemy, who occupied a fortified position near the village of Fu-Shang, on the right bank of the Ai River. Colonel Sato at- tacked the Chinese at ten o'clock in the morning, the fight continuing until past noon. The Chinese oflTered a stubborn resistance, but were ultimately driven out of their forti- fications and retired in disorder to Kiu-Lien-
Chen. The Japanese then destroyed the foi'- tress and rejoined the main army.
Count Yamagata 's report to the Emperor added that the Chinese engaged in the fight greatly exceeded the Japanese in number. He further said that his plans for the coming fight were completed. These contemplated the movement of several columns in a con- certed and concurrent attack upon the Chinese from all sides. Already, he said, a network was being drawn around the Chinamen, and it was expected that the attack would take place at daybreak on October 27, though it possibly might be made earlier.
Precipitate Flight.
Subsequently the Marshal reported that on October 26th, at daylight, he had arranged to attack the enemy at Kiu-Lien-Cheng, but found that this pLce had been evacuated by the Chinese, who, apparently frightened, had fled at the approach of the Japanese. The number of men in the Chinese force he was not certain of, but it was reported that there were 16,000. During the last three days, the Field Marshal reported the Japanese captured thirty guns, a large quantity of ammunition, rice and fodder and 300 tents.
After the capture of Kiu-Lien-Cheng on the 26th, the Japanese headquarters were moved from Wi-ju to this point. Two columns chased the Chinese in various directions. The Chinese fled without fight- ing, throwing away arms and drums in their flight. The capture of Wi-Ju was a victory of great value to the Japanese, it seems, as it is a place of considerable strategic import- ance. Whoever controls this city controls the mountain passes and roads around it that lead into Corea on the one hand and into Manchuria on the other. The Yalu river at this point is very wide and deep. Its
STIRRING INCIDENTS OF THE CAMPAIGN.
573
banks are moderately high and slope upward with a gradual ascent till they meet the hill on which the city stands.
Wi-Ju is described as being the hand- somest and cleanest place in either Corea or China. This means a great deal, because most of the places in those two lands, and especially in the Celestial Empire, arc monu- ments of filth and disease. It is a walled city of the first class, and occupies a site whose natural advantages cannot be sur- passed. The hill on which Wi-Ju stands is about a mile wide and more than a mile and a half long. On its summit is the city, which is surrounded by a long, high and strong wall of cut granite, which ages of exposure have bleached to a dead white. At intervals are watch towers with windows, from which the sentry can spy out in every direction. It is high and pierced with open- ings to allow the archers to shoot down upon invading armies.
A Historic City.
Before the invention of artillery the place was considered almost impregnable. The walls of the city are so high that but little can be seen of the city within. Here and there are glimpses of red roofs and porcelain copings, the top of Buddhist temples, and the upper stories of official buildings. Trees and towers are half concealed by tree tops and running vines. To the northwest, west and southwest the city looks upon a fertile rolling plain divided into farms and fields, water courses and woodlands. The city has been besieged, sacked and conquered at least twenty times.
Centuries ago it was the outpost of the old kingdom of Liaotong, and long before that — in the third century of the Christian era — it was the capital of one of the so-called Sushun kingdoms. It is the distributing
centre and the chief market of this part of Corea and Northeastern China. Its ware- houses contain large amounts of rice, grain and other foods, and its wells and streams supply an inexhaustible amount of good water.
Complaints against Chinese Soldiers.
General Tatsumi started for Fens-Huang on the 27th and arrived there on the 31st. The garrison made no show of fight, but fled toward the main body as soon as the Japan- ese approached. The principal generals were proceeding with their troops toward Mouk- den. The inhabitants of Haichao and Taku- shan complained bitterly of the violence of the Chinese soldiers, from whom they suf- fered constantly during the occupation. They were very friendly toward the Japanese. Three hundred Chinese bodies were found after the capture of Kiu-Lien-Cheng, many of them having died of wounds received in previous battles.
By the capture of Feng-Huang-Cheng and two more abandoned places, the Japanese came into possession of 55 cannon, 20,000 rounds of ammunition, 1 500 muskets and 2,000,000 cartridges, besides an enornu)us quantity of miscellaneous supplies. Marshal Yamagata ordered that all labor and sup- plies be paid for as soon as obtained by the Japanese, consequently the inhabitants of the country volunteered their services and gladly provided the commissariat with any needed provisions. Marshal Yamagata then estab- lished an office of civil administration in A^ntong, and placed in charge Colonel Ko- mura, secretary of the Japanese Legation in Corea. He issued a proclamation promising protection to the people and ordering them to pay taxes to Colonel Komura.
It was reported on November 5th that the English government was attempting to put
574
C()K1:A and Till-. WAR.
m
an end to tlie war. This was a renewal of tlie attempt made a month prcviou.sly, whicli Avas unsuccessful. The ICnjjlish pres.s, ^
for the commercial interests of tie i ii, advocated an alliance with other Poweio,i,iid the adoption of such measures as would bring hostilities to a close. It was rumored that China had already .submitted to tlie I'owers the terms upon which she was willing to make peace.
Anti-War Sentiment.
The public sentiment was expressed as follows by one of the journals: "No Euro- pean government can desire to see this disastrous conflict prolonged. ICven the United States, despite the Monroe doctrine, must be concerned by the regularity and security of their trade with Japan. Sooner or later — and better sooner than later — there must be an international settlement. It will be difficult to contend that interferences will be premature now.
"There is reason to believe that Chip i has resolved to formally ask the Powers who ha\'e immediate commercial interests ;it stake to stop the war. The Chinese Minister is said to have communicated the request to the Foreign office in London. According to a telegram from Pekin, China is disposed to conclude peace upon the basis of the ac- knowledgment of Corea's independence and the payment of an indemnity to be fi.\ed by the Powers. The Powers who are willing to support this arrangement are requested to inter\'ene.
" The conquerors will for the first time display a lack of sagacity if they decline to accept reasonable overtures for peace. Thc\' are no longer despised by the Chinese, but, more than ever, are hated, and could not hope t<i govern a single province of China proper, if it should lie formal!)' ceiled to
them. Meanwhile the Powers have a com- mon interest in averting the disintegration of the Celestial I'.mpirc. Humanity peremp- torily forbids the thouglit of allowing a giv- ernmcnt under which hundreds of niii!ions live, to be destroyed. Japan may lose tl'.e whole fruits of her \ictory by clutching for too much."
On No\ember 7th it was reported that Ta-Lien-Wan, on the north of Port Arthur, on the northeastern shore of the Regent's Sword, had been taken. The Emperor of China was desirous of consulting personally with all the foreign Ministers on the situa- tion. A provisional local government ever the conquered territory had been established by the Japanese, with its headquarters at Antong. One year's taxes were remitted by the Japanese authorities to the natives.
Battle Ships off Port Arthur.
Tlie Chinese reported that the Japanese were rapidly advancing in the rear of Port Arthur, antl that a strong Japanese fleet, in- cluding thirty torpedo boats, was outside the h.ubor. It was expected that Port Arthur and the Chinese fleet would fall into the hands of tiie enemy.
Japanese reports from Nin-Chwang stated that deserters from the Chinese army were arriving there by fifties, and that a great panic existed among tlie Chinese, lumdreds of whom were leaving by every steamer. The Japanese flying squadron was reported to be a hundred miles off Niu-Chwang, and the Chinese there were reshipping their goods, considering it unsafe to remain there during the winter.
An incident of the campaign was the ar- rest of several American:; by the Japanese authorities. The two who were arrested on the steamer Sydney, at Kobe, were named Hope and Brown. The name of a China-
STIRRING INCIDENTS OK THI-. CAMPAIGN.
575
man who was taken intf) custody at tlic same time was Cliani Fani Moore. He was believed to l)e tlic interpreter of the Chinese Legation at Washington. The Japanese au- thorities informed the capta.in of tiie Sytiney before attempting to make tiic arrests that if he would surrender these passengers he would be allowed to proceed for his destina- tion. The offer, however, the captain re- fused to avail himself of, whereupon an armed force boarded the Sydney, and, de- .spite the protests of the French Consul and the steamer's captain, seized the three men and removed them from the vessel.
A despatch from Tokio stated that the two Americans and the Chinaman arrested by the Japanese authorities appeared to be under contract with the Chinese government to attempt to destroy the Japanese fleet.
Story of the Captives.
The arrest was explained to some extent by the following statement, made by a Washington newspaper correspondent: "A story is told of the China-Japan war which is full of dramatic interest. Abcnit six weeks ago the report was circulated in diplomatic circles here that Mr. Moore, one of the attaches of the Chinese Legation, had been recalled to Pekin by the home government. It was iiaid that he had been ordered back in disgrace, and his friends were profuse in their expressions of sympathy. It was noticeable, however, that Mr. Moore bore his ill fortune philosophically, but by many it was fearetl that his return to his native country would be followed by his .speeily decapitation. It now appears that the supi)osed recall was not in any sense a recall, but that Mr. Moore was returning to China in pursuance of a clever scheme, which had for its purjjose the de- struction by dynamite and torpedoes of the Japanc-e fleet now in Chinese waters.
" Mr. Moore is tlie Chinaman referred to as ]ia\ing been arnsted, ;ind his associates are Mr. John Wild, an inventor, of Provi- dence, R. I., and a Mr. Cameron, a .Scotch- man, wh(3 was emplojed for a time as a workman in a torpedo manufactory at Provi- dence. Messrs. Wild and Cameron had, it appears, satisfied the Chinese government of their ability successfully to destroy the Jap- anese vessels, and Mr. Moore was instructed by the Pekin government to conduct them to .Shanghai. They travelled to San l-'rancisco and thence to Yokohama under assumed names, Mr. Wild being known as Howie and Mr. Cameron as Courtney.
The P?ot Discovered.
" The Japanese government, through sources which they decline to reveal, learned of the plot, and when the trio sailed from Yokohama they were arrested en route at Kobe, a Japanese seaport city. The particu- lars of their arrest are contained in a dispatch dated at Hiroshima, the headquarters of the Japanese army and navy. The dispatch is as follows :
" 'A Chinese official, with two foreigners, an Englishman and an American, arrived at Yokohama a few days since on the steamer Gaelic. All were imder assumed names. The foreigners were suspected of entering into an agreement through Chinese officials, with the Chinese government, for the purpose of engaging in the war against Japan. They landed at Yokohama and took passage on board the steamship Sydney, for China. The captain of the Japanese war vessel Tsukuba, under orders from headquarters, exercised the right of visit and search on boaril the Sydney when she was in the harbor of Kobe, and found in their possession an agreement with the Chinese government to destroy tl" entire navy of Japan within eight weeks by
1 ■ !
576
COREA AND THE WAR.
the use of torpedoes. Other official docu- ments on the same subject were also found. In consequence, the three were arrested and taken ashore, and the ship released from de- tention.' It is understood that none of the trio will be punished by the Japanese govern- ment, but will probably be held as prisoners
THE KI.IG OF COREA ANO HIS SON.
of war indefinitely." This would effectually prevent any damage that otherwise might be inflicted upon Japanese war-ships, which have acted an important part in the war.
Wild's scheme of destruction was offered the United States government some two years before. He claimed that at the ex- pense of a few thousand dollars he could
annihilate any foreign fleet which he attacked. His plan was to throw from a torpedo boat shells filled with chemicals, which, on strik- ing, would explode, creating an impenetrable and suffocating smoke, and to follow this up by attacking with torpedoes. The Navy Department was not convinced of the merits of Wild's plan, and he left. When the Eastern war broke out Wild came to Washington and offered his plan to the Japanese Legation. It was not favor- ably considered, and he went straight to the Chinese Legation. There his scheme fell on fallow ground. Under pretence of leaving for a vacation, In- terpreter Moore went to New York, and thence to Providence, R. I., where he met Wild and his associate, Cameron, and arranged the details for the destruc- tion of the Japanese fleet. But the Jap- anese Legation had lost sight of neither Wild nor Moore. Their movements were shadowed, and they were allowed to proceed across the country and across the Pacific to Japan, where they were arrested at the latest possible moment.
Offered No Protest.
Secretary Gresham was officially noti- fied of the arrest by the Japanese Minis- ter, receiving from that ofiicial a copy of the despatch wired to the legation by the Japanese authorities. It was decided by the State Department offi- cials that this government could offer no protest against the arrest of the Ameri- can. All it could do was to prevent any unnecessary cruelty being practiced on him. Intervention on this score, it was not believed, would be requisite, in view of the lenient man- ner in which the Japanese had hitherto treated all prisoners and were disposed to treat them in the future.
STIRRING INCIDENTS OF THE CAMPAIGN.
577
Immediately upon the receipt of the in- formation of the arrest of the American, the State Department authorities began looking up precedents in this matter. An important one was found in the Formosa expedition in 1874. Speaking on this point, a State De- partment official said: — "No action can be taken in the case of the American held by the Japanese for conspiring against them. If criminating evidence had not been found on his person, as was stated in the despatch transmitted to the department from the Japa- nese Legation, the department might have entered a protest, and some trouble might have followed, as a result. One of the best precedents found which bears upon this case is the Formosa trouble, in which three Americans participated. All we can do is to see that the American is not maltreated. The Japanese government has a perfect right to hold him as a prisoner of war in view of the fact that he was at the time of his arrest in the service of China, hired to destroy Japan's navy."
The King's Appeal.
A correspondent who obtained an inter- view with the King of Corea gave his im- pressions as follows: In the midst of the perils that overwhelm his kingdom and threaten his life, the King of Corea received the correspondent and made a direct appeal to the people of the United States for help. He recognizes our government as the first to treat with Corea as an independent power and claims to have a .special right to look for some practical proofs of friendship from America, at a time when war and private conspiracy are infringing upon the autonomy of the "hermit nation." The king no longer speaks of Corea as a sealed kingdom. He sees plainly that this country must surrender
to civilization at last. 37
It was a strange experience to return from a bloody battlefield and see this gentle monarch standing among sinister courtiers like a frightened woman and to hear him say that his one desire was to entrust his person to a guard of American soldiers. When the correspondent saw the King, the unhappy monarch was surrounded by police officials. On the right .stood the crown prince, a half- witted, open-mouthed youth, attired after the fashion of his father, save that purple took the place of crimson. Three slow bows and a pause. The interpreter folded his hands across the embroidered storks on his bosom, bent his head reverently and advanced.
Seeking Protection.
" I am glad to receive a representative of the American press," said the King. " I take this opportunity of saying that it is the wish of my people as well as of myself that Corea should be absolutely free and independent. 1 appeal now and shall continue to appeal to the civilized nations of the world, to use their influence in preserving the integrity of this kingdom. I especially rely upon the friendship of the United States in this mo- ment of difficulty and danger. Your Gov- ernment made the first treaty with Corea, and has always promised to befriend us. I now look to America for a fulfillment of these promises. My faith in the United States is unshaken. I am waiting patiently."
The correspondent asked His Majesty how the United States could help Corea, assuring him that the American Govern nient had already shown its disposition to resent any attempt to interfere with the au- tonomy of the nation. The King looked embarrassed and his voice dropped almost to a whisper. It was plain that he felt con- strained in the presence of his courtiers. He hesitated, looked about him nervously, then
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COREA AND THE WAR.
said : " If a few American soldiers were sent to the palace to protect my person, it would change the situation.
" I have already told the American Min- ister. Mr. Sill, »vhat I ask the United States 1- Jo," continued the King. " I hope for a fiivorable reply. The United States Govern- ment has from the very beginning of our re- lations repeated its assurances of a very special interest in this kingdom. We gave your country the first treaty, because we were o.i.inced that your Government had a .'^inc or " Ji.sint(.re.stcd friendship for
Corca. 1 h ^p'^ I shall receive some prac- t,'';i1 proofs c" ' - ! friendship now. I ask t'c iicsj'entar. .iplstohelp in protect- ing the iiiaependr;!i'.;e f 'i.. kingdom."
Ready to Open Corea.
Tai Won Kun, the supposed regent of the country, added : " We are ready to open Corea to the world. The country can be no longer kept sealed to foreigners. But this change is too sudden. It has thrown everything into disorder. The people are in a state of great excitement. Corea is a pe- culiar country. For thousands of years our people have clung to certain usages. The customs of ages cannot be surrendered to the world in a day. The change must be gradual. Our first duty is to quiet the peo- ple and restore order and the reign of law."
The Japanese issued proclamations to the various Manchurian cities through which they passed. In these they declared that they were waging war against the Manchu Government only, and promised safe protec- tion to all people remaining quiet and fol- lowing their ordinary occupations. The Chinese troops were deserting in large num- bers and passing themselves off as farmers. The garrisons of Ta- Lien-Wan and Kinchow, on the neck of Regent's Sword Promontory,
both of which places were captured by the Japanese, numbered respectively three thou- sand and one thousand. They fled after making a feeble defence. The Japanese loss amounted to fourteen.
On November nth, a special steamer ar- rived at Hwang Chu, with despatches as to the course of the war in Corea. Kinchow, on the Regent's Sword Promontory, was taken by the Japanese on November 4th. The garrison consisted of some 1,200 infan- try and artillery. The batteries were very badly served during the defence. The first division of the Japanese army advanced to the attack with spirit on the morning of the 4th. The resistance of the Chinese was feeble. The fire from their guns was weak and ill-directed, and the outlying fortworks were cleared quickly.
Fled in Confusion.
A panic then took possession of the troops in the interior works. They aban- doned their guns, standards and stores, and fled in disorder, the infantry even casting aside their small arms in their haste. The defence was so weak that only a few Japa- nese were wounded, and but twenty or thirty Chinese were killed and wounded. It is believed that many of the garrison had deserted on the 3d, when they became con- vinced that the battle was at hand.
After the victory the first division joined the second division in investing T.i-Licn-\Vaii. In the evening of the next day (November 5) fire was opened on the Chinese po.sition. O'.i the 6th the works were carried with a rusli. The garrison of 3,000 men hardly waited to resist the attack. They fired a few shots and then fled toward Port Arthur, strewini,' the road witii their firearms, swords, drums and standards. In the confusion of their flight the Chinese lost some fifty men, killed
STIRRING INCIDENTS OF THE CAMPAIGN.
579
and wounded. The Japanese loss was two killed and ten wounded. The Japanese fleet, cleared for action, steamed into the bay at Ta- Lien- Wan on the afternoon of the 6th, but it was too late to assist the land force, which was then celebrating its victory.
From Ta-Lien-Wan the first and second divisions started for Port Arthur, which they were confident of capturiug within a week. Admiral Ito's despatch to the Mikado con- cerning the fleet's part in the operations at Ta-Lien-Wan confirmed the account sent by the land commander.
General Oyama made the attack from the rear. Nineteen war ships and six torpedo boats were prepared to assist him, but the Chinese, who had expected the main assault from the sea, did not wait. They hardly resisted the Japanese. They abandoned everything and retreated in disorder.
Sketch of General Oyama.
" Count Oyama, the commander of the forces," says an authentic account of recent date, " is a field marshal in the Japanese army, and is a brilliant soldier. He took a promi- nent part in the War of the Restoration, in the sixties, and in the Satsuma Rebellion in 1877, in which he fought side by side with Marshal Yamagata, the victor of Ping- Yang, against the rebel Takamori Saigo. Some years ago he was sent to Europe by his government to study military science as practiced in the West, and he witnessed the Franco-German war.
" Later on he served in the Tonquin cam- paign, fighting with the Chinese against the French. On returning from Europe he passed through the United States, and stayed for some days in New York. For several years he held the post of Minister of War, which he relinquished a few weeks ago in order to command the present expedition.
Personally the Count is strong, muscular build and tall, with an imposing figure. His fellow countrymen have every confidence in his military genius and experience."
Another startling incident of the war was the suicide of the Empress of China, which was reported on October 31st, and further disclosed the critical state of affairs at Pekin. A brief sketch of the Empress will be of interest.
A Very Young Empress.
Yo-Ho-Na-La was a little Manchu maiden of thirteen when she was married to the boy Emperor against her will and against his. He was but eighteen at the time, but he had a will of his own, and he resented bitterly this thrusting of a child-consort upon him by the imperious Empress Dowager. Hav- ing been forced into union with Yo-Ho-Na- La, who was the daughter of General Kuoi-Hsiang, the Empress Dowager's younger brother, the Brother of the Moon never became reconciled to her, and the life of the young couple was most unhappy. There were many quarrels between them, and then the end came. The girl Empress, completely broken in spirit by tiie humiliation to which she found herself constantly sub- jected, chose to face death rather than try to bear the burden of her unhappiness any longer.
It was in February, 1889, that the wed- ding was solemnized. On the 31st of December, of tiie previous year, the State Department had been informed by the United States Minister at Pekin of the edict of the Empress Dowager, published in the Pei'tn Gazette of November 9th, reading as follows :
"The Emperor, having reverently suc- ceeded to his exalted inheritance, and in- creasing day by day in maturity, it is
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COREA AND THE WAR.
becoming that he should select a virtuous consort to assist in the administration of the palace, to control the me'nbers of his house- hold, and to encourage the Emperor himself in upright conduct.
" Let, therefore, Yo-Ho-Na-La, daughter of Deputy Lieutenant-General Kuei-Hsiang, whom we have selected for her dignified and virtuous character, become Empress."
By a further edict of the same date : " Let Ja-Ta-La, aged fifteen years, daughter of Chang Hsii, formerly Vice-President of the Board, become secondary consort of the first rank, and let Ta-Ta-La, aged thirteen, also daughter of Chang Hsii, formerly Presi- dent of the Board, become an Imperial concubine of the second rank. Respect this."
Many Chinese Beauties.
The selection of the bride was goverened by the rules laid down in the Book of Rites, and is a tedious and elaborate process. The dynasty is Manchu and the Emperor must marry one of his own race. For a year before the marriage was celebrated hundreds of fair competitors, all daughters of Manchu mandarins of not less than the third rank, competed for the honor of sharing the Imperial throne. After several inspections, in which the beauty, family influence, and intellectual attainments of the young ladies were taken into grave consideration, the list of aspirants was reduced to thirty.
The Emperor himself was deeply smitten with the charms of the daughter of a high Manchu military officer, and he expressed his intention to share his throne with her. He also selected another fair damsel whose beauty struck his youthful heart with admira- tion, for his second wife. But the old lady who had so long and so nobly wielded the sceptre during his minority had no intention
of allowing the young Emperor to follow his bent in this matter, and had already decided on a match for him by which the throne would be shared by one of her own family. Accordingly, the lady selected was her niece, who was anything but a beauty, from a Chinese or Manchu point of view, and after a great many "scenes" and violent alterca- tions, the Empress Dowager proved her authority by having the marriage with her niece celebrated.
Family Quarrels.
The young Emperor was urged by liis tutor, the great Ung Tung-ho— the most powerful man at the present moment in China, and the one who really governs the Emperor's acts — to marry the lady whom the Empress Dowager flouted, and the old lady, afterwards learning of Ung's part in the business, gave him a warm piece of her royal mind. She had already enlisted on her side Prince Chung. After the marriage there prevailed the most bitter acrimony be- tween these august personages, and in the struggle the youthful ruler, assisted by his crafty tutor, for the moment gained the up- per hand. But it was a dangerous game to fight the Empress Dowager, who was a determined and subtle antagonist to tackle, and in the end young Kwangtsu might have fallen a victim to the necessities of the moment, as his predecessor Tung-Chi did, had he not come to terms with the old wo- man.
Nor would the Gorgon of the Dragor. Throne allow its youthful occupant to con- sole himself by bringing the fair object of his choice into his harem, but selected two strong-minded damsels, also of the Imperial clan, to form the nucleus of the seraglio, which Chinese custom prescribes shall be limited to seven, but which is unlimited.
CHAF»T"ER XXXVII. THE FALL OF PORT ARTHUR.
CCORDING to accounts in the Chi-
nese press, a party of Japanese
sailors, some three or four hun- dred in number, landed, at the end of August, in Victoria Bay, some miles to the northward of Port Arthur, and made a reconnaissance with a view to discovering if the landward defences were as strong as re- ported. Apparently the reconnoitrers came to the conclusion that there was no chance of a coup at that time, for they left the neighborhood in a hurry, as a torpedo boat sent to look for them found their surveying instruments on the beach.
The following is a description of the great arsenal before its capture by the Japanese : Port Arthur itself lies at the head of, or perhaps it would be more correct to say around, a large inlet. The entrance is by a channel not more than 200 yards wide, and although there is no large space for anchor- ing vessels, there is a tidal basin in which as many as a dozen ships can be accommodated. There are also a dry dock, machinery shops, and coal stores, and for the repairs of a small squadron like that of Admiral Ting that is fairly adequate.
The fortifications consist of thirteen bat- teries distributed on either side of the channel, and covering about four miles of seaboard. They are well placed, and fitted w'th all laodcrn implements and material of artillerist's profession. The armament of the forts consists of about fifty 6-inch and 9-inch Krupp guns, several rifled mortars or howitzers, and a number of quick-firing
guns. The entrance to the port is also pio- vided with an elaborate submarine mine field, and there is a small flotilla of torpedo boats attached to this port.
On its landward side to the east, hills of from three hundred to six hundred feet arc crowned with small forts, entrenchments and earthworks. To the west a shoa! harbor and more mine defenses, covered by quick firing guns, afford all the needed protection.
Strong Japanese Force.
The garrison of Port Arthur was variously .stated at from four thousand to ten thousand men, but whatever the number, there could be no question that tiic reconnaissance of August put them on their guard, and from fifteen thousand to twenty thousand men would be wanted to capture it. There were, however, at least twenty thousand Japanese on the promontory. They constituted the second Japanese division, which left Hiro- shima at the end of September, under the command of Count Oyama. Their destina- tion was then unknown, but after they effected a landing on the Regent's Sword Promontory, it was easy to understand why their important mission was kept .secret as long as possible.
The mouth of the Gulf of Pechili, at the head of which lie Taku, Tien-Tsin and the short route to Pekin, narrows to about one hundred and ten miles between Port Arthu, and Wci-Hai-Wci. These ports seem thus marked by nature as the strategic outposts of the northeastern coast line of China. The
• 581
ill
582
CORKA AND Till-: WAR.
former, which is the chief naval arsenal of nortiicrn Cliina, lies at the head of a large inlet. The port affords no room for the anchoratje of a considerable squadron; but a fine tidal basin has been constructed capa- ble of accommodating about fourteen l:irgc vessels. It is, apparently, a comfortable place in which to lay up a squadron, but somewhat ill adapted to the needs of a force which desires to be able to get quickly to sea. It is here that the Chinese vessels damaged in the great sea fight off the Yalu River were docked for repairs, and were sat- i.sfactorily prepared again for sea.
The coast defences are spread over more than four miles of seaboard, and consist of about twelve batteries equally distributed on either side of the entrance of the port.
Redoubts and Fortifications.
In addition there is a torpedo boat sta- tion, and an elaborate system of submarine mines has been provided. Altogether the coast defences of Port Arthur, so far as mere material is concerned, seem to rise fully to modern standards of fortification. On the land front the shoaling of the harbor gives protection on the western side. On the east encircling hills rise to heights of 350 feet to 650 feet, and small fortified camps, redoubts and miniature Chinese walls affect to guard this important arsenal.
The rear of the place appears to be rela- tively weak, although in accordance with all the teaching of history, this would neces- sarily be the way of approach selected by an enemy. The garrison, however, has been considerably reinforced from Taku, and it is estimated that an expeditionary force of at least 15,000 men would be needed to achieve success.
The population of Port Arthur is about 6,000, exclusive of the garrison, which
numbers probably 7,000 more. There arc two large temples, two theatres and several banks in the town. The prosperity of the place — it was formerly a small village, con- sisting of sixty or eighty mud houses and a few inns — began with the tietcrmination of the authorities in 1 88 1 to establish a naval dock yard at the port. The work was at first intrusted to native contractors, but they proved altogether incompetent, and in 1 887 the contract was taken up by a French com- pany, who, in three years' time, brought it to completion.
The Army Welcomed.
In the early part of November the stam- pede of the Chinese throughout Manchuria continued. After the advance of General Nodsu's force to Feng-Huang-Cheng and the di.spersal of the Chinese there, the Japa- nese troops searched in vain for an organ- ized body of the enemy. They marched westward and southward unopposed. They were everywhere welcomed with enthusiasm by the entire population (excepting the of- ficials) who found themselves relieved from the oppression of the mandarins, under whom they had suffered patiently so long.
Likewise in the province of Chi-Li, it was ascertained that no stand would be made by the Chinese against the Japanese until Pekin was reached, which Colonel Hanneken, a German commander, was fortifying with all haste. At a meeting of the Mmpcror, Prince Kung and the Grand Council, it was determined that the court and the personnel of the government should leave the capital before it fell into the hands of the Japanese.
It was believed that an entente existed between Viceroy Li-Hung-Chang and Japan. It was even said that he had gone to Port Arthur to watch the operations theie, in- stead of following the command of the Em-
THE FALL OF PORT ARTHUR.
r^M
peror to proceed to Pekin. Many (if his re- latives vanished tjuietly, taking with them their valutibles and personal effects. The humanity of the Japanese, which caused the people of Manchuria to welcome them as friends and deliverers, and the une.vpectod display they made of .splendid statecraft created consternation in Pekin.
The Chinese army of the North were reported to be in a terrible plijjht, sufferin^j from starvation and exposure to the e.x- tremely cold weather. They retreated ' to the mountains, far removed from their base of supplies, while the Japanese army was encamped at Feng-Huang-Cheng. Fifteen thousand Chinese, mostly raw recruits were pursued by the Japanese.
Hundreds of Chinese arrived at Che-Foo from Manchuria, whence they were fleeing, frightened at the approach of the Japanese. The Chinese troops and such vessels of the Chinese fleet as were not cooped up at Port Arthur were ordered to attack the Japanese wherever they met them.
The Troops Landed.
The second Japanese army, under Field Marshal Count Oyama, landed on the morn- ing of October 26th, on the Chinese coast, at a place called Hon-En-Ku, fifteen miles north of the islands known as the Elliot group, and about eighty-five miles north of Port Arthur. With the exception of the Talien Bay, close to Port Arthur, there was not a decent land- ing place along the coast. It was impossible to land at Talien Bay, the Chinese having fortified the coast, and planted torpedoes. This place was chosen, not that it was better than any other, but because the road from Wi-Ju to Port Arthur passes here nearer the coast than anywhere el.se.
The landing, however, was most difficult, the water being so shallow that the steamers
had to anchor four to five miles from the shore. It was absolutely impossible to land when the tide was low, as a mile anil a half of thick mud was left uncovered by the sea, jind one could well imagiin' the difficulties of landing 25.000 men, .soldiers and coolies, horses, artillery, ammunition, wagons, pro- visions, tents, ambulances, etc., under such ■"oiiditions. Four hundred barges and flat- boats and one hundred steam launches were hard at work, but in spite of all the efforts and of an admirable organization, they pro- gres.sed very slowly.
The Fleet Sails.
The transports and the fleet met at the mouth of the Pei-Yang, or Tatong River, on the 23d of October, at night. Twenty- five men-of-war, thirty-eight transports and six- teen torpedo boats were anchored together. On the following morning the fleet sailed, followed by twelve transports. The remain- der, among which was the Nagota Maru, on board of which were the Field Marshal and staff, proceeded at night, no lights of any kind, being shown on board, and the follow- ing morning arrived opposite the Chinese coast.
General Yamaji had already landed with part of the infantry. He had encountered no resistance at all. There was not one Chinese soldier in sight. There are here four villages, each composed of half a dozen large stone houses, well and strongly built, but very dirty, yet much cleaner than those in Corea. At the approach of the fleet the people fled without losing a minute.
A Chinese prisoner was .sent out in the country to say that no harm would be done to the people, and that they could return to the villages in all safety. A few came back and sold their provisions to the Japanese at very high figures.
584
CORKA AND THK WAR.
These people were absolutely ignorant of ' Arthur. Their ticstination was unknown,
the fact that war wa.s going on between China and Japan. They fled without knowing what "barbarian devils " were landing, but .supposing they were luiglish or French. The Japanese posted large bills everywhere announcing that they were not fighting
but two-thirds of the Japanese fleet im?n''di- ately left to hunt them ' '\ few Chinese
i'ttacked the advanced s of General
Yaniaji. They were either killed or made prisoners. None escaped.
An officer of the British warship I'or-
FISIIERS OF FUSAN.
the people, but the armed forces of the ' poise gives the following account of the cap government, in a ju.st cause, and that the , ture of Port Arthur by the Japanese: people had nothing to fear. i The Porpoise was standing out to sea a
While the main body of the arm)- was landing, Gener.il Yamaji, commanding the advance, was rapidly ijushiiig on in the directiv)n of Port Arthur. .Six Chinese men- c.f-VT.r and • ix toipt\!o boats left Port
few miles on the afternoon of the 20th of November, when we saw dark masses d men in solid columns, whom we afterward recognized as Japanese infantry, deploj'ing before the outlying forts of Port Arthur
THE FALL nv I'ORT ARTIIIM<.
r,Hry
The artillery was ahead, cnjjaf^in^^ the Chi- nese, whom the Japanese had steadily driven inward. Tho Chinese line was falling back and abandoninji position after position, after feeble resistance. This was several miles east of the fortress proper. Tlie Japanese fleet was niovin^f in line ahead, the three flagships leaiiinj; each division and co-operat- ing with the land forces. The ships were the following:
First Division. — The Matsushima, the Itsukushima, the Chiyoda and the lla.shi- date.
Second Division. — The Fii.so, the Iliyei, the Takao and the Yayeyama.
Third Division. — The Yoshini), the Nani- wa, the Akitsu.shima and the Takachiiio.
The small gunboats were shelling the Chi- nese lines and were close in shore. The naval and military forces were "loving beautifully together.
Terrific Fire of Artillery.
The ne.xt day the advance continued. The Chinese outposts were all driven in, and the outlying forts occupied. The Japanese kept up a terrific fire with their field artillery, machine guns and infantry, the big guns of the forts answering occasional!}', and there was a hot fire for some time from the smaller guns. The fleet was moving coiitinuall}-, but kept out of range of the forts. The movements were now quite visible.
The Japanese army was ui three divisions and was moving as if on parade. The regu- lar volleys were sharp and unbroken. The maniEuvring of the cavalry was done in dashing style, and they cut off the retreat- ing bodies that were escaping from the forts. The artillery was .splendidly placed and was doing deadly practice upon the forts. The Chinese were replying in an unspirited and desultory wa}-, and evidently without any
one directing them. The two northerly and easterly forts were occupied at noon.
The Chiyoda and another cruiser then steamed around to Pigeon Hay, on the other side of the i)eninsula and began t(; dro|) shells among the forts, which could not see the two ships. But a|)parently this was done more with the object of making a di version than of doing material injury to «^he enemy.
Torpedo Boats Engaged.
On a signal from the General on shore, Admiral Ito's cnn'sers all steamed pa^t the forts just outside of range, when ten torpedo boats, covered by two cruisers sfjccially de- tailed for the duty, divitled into two .s([uad- rons of four each, dashed inside the fire line of the 50 ton guns and bi;g,;n plying their machine and rapid fire guns with deadly effect on the Chinese, who had been driven in an easterly direction from the water side forts "jy the Japanese army.
.lie other torpedo boats tore into the mouth of the harbor and cut off the r(;tre,it of two small Chinese .steamers whicli were stealing away :uong the .shore. The first steamer reached the extreme jioint of the Kind to the east, landing some one in a skiff, which afterward carried him aixiard a steamer lying some miles outside. Tlie torpetlo boats, iiowe\er, afterwaid dro\e {he two small .steamers ashore, pepperiii ,' lliein terribly under the very noses of the small forts, which fired /-poun;! shells at the torpedo boats without hitting them. One steamer was sunk and the other was beached.
The forts, meantime, were blindly blazing away at the Jajjanese fleet. The line aim of the gunners was good, but the shots fell short from lack of elevation. The Porpoise found the fire so hot that she had U) steam outside at full speed. The torped(j boats
586
COREA AND THE WAR.
were dashing about in all directions, wher- ever they could get a shot at the Chinese, but were obeying the signals of the convoy- ing cruisers, which again followed the orders conveyed by Field Marshal Oyama's field telegraph.
The Chinese big guns fired fifteen ronnvls at the Japanese fleet. The latter did not reply, however, only drawing the fire off the torpedo boats, which did all the work. The British officer speaks enthusiastically of the latter, which, he says, would be a credit to any navy, for their dash, skill and precision, which will make them a valuable adjunct in future militaiy operations.
Gradually the firing of the Chinese guns on the land side was silenced, the gunners deserting their posts before the hailstorm from the machine guns, the rapid firing guns and the infantry. All night the Japanese gunboats and three of the larger vessels were throwing .shells among the flying Chinese troops, who were escaping eastward, a mere rabble.
A Brilliant Victory.
All the naval and military experts consider the achievement of the Japanese as marvel- lous. They astonished every one. They are equal to any European army and navy. The Japanese generals and officers spoke of the matter with quiet dignity and without boasting. The men were held in splendid restraint throughout the engagement, and there was no unnecessary bloodshed. It was an honestly won victory, of which any nation might be proud.
The Porpoise left for Chefoo, returning with the British fleet, which visited the place. The British officers were perfectly astonished at the order introduced by the newcomers in two days after the capture of the port. Some of the Japanese vessels had
gone into dock, and were being overhauled and painted as calmly as if they had been there for years.
Port Arthur was simply abandoned. The Chinese behaved disgracefully. When the final attack was made by the Japanese the p'.p-e had a garrison of 9,000 men, of whom one-third were destroyed. The per- son who escaped to the steamer was Kung, the Taoti in charge of the whole fortress. The British officers think that the taking of Wei-Hai-Wei will be a simple affair for the Japanese after this victory.
Masters of Warfare.
Asked his opinion of the Japanese as al- lies, the British officer replied: "They would make very bad enemies. We could smash them at sea probably, but we could do nothing against Japan on land. We can teach them nothing in military science. They are masters of modern scientific war- fare. The capture of Port Arthur was a perfect revelation."
The British officer fully confirms the re- ported atrocities committed by the Chinese upon Japanese prisoners, who were found with their heads and dismembered limbs stuck on stakes along the roadsides.
In connection with the above description of the capture of Port Arthur by an Eng- lish naval officer, we publish the story cabled by a special correspondent from Hiroshima, Japan. The two accounts taken together give a complete story of the brilliant work done by the Japanese, ending with the cap- ture of the port at five o'clock of the after- noon of the 2 1st of November :
Port Arthur was captured on the 21st. On the 1 8th the cavalry advance guard met 2,000 Chinese eight miles from Port Arthur, and fell back on the first brigade, leavini;^ several wounded behind. They returned
THE FALL OF PORT ARTHUR.
587
with one battalion of infantry and defeated the Chinese. The wounded Japanese were found with their heads, hands and feet cut off, and their bodies awfully mutilated. On the 19th all the army had passed before these victims, and the men were much moved at the sight.
At night the army was about four miles from the enemy, who held nine sea forts and eleven land forts. On the 20th, while the Japanese were looking for field artillery posi- tions, 6,000 Chinese made a sortie in three columns — on the left, the right and the centre. All the forts were firing at us, and we were in great danger. A part of the army and artillery behind the advance guard and two battalions of General Yamaji's division repulsed the Chinese after five hours' fighting.
Fine Marksmanship.
On the 2 1st the Japanese fleet made a demonstration at six in the morning, but did no fighting. At half-past six A. M. the Japanese artillery, which had taken position during the night, opened fire on the three forts on the right, and displayed magnifi- cent marksmanship. The Chinese forts on a hill five hundred feet high answered strongly.
At eight o'clock the forts were taken by assault by the infantry, who showed mag- nificent courage. Lieutenant O'Brien, of the United States Army, was present. At nine o'clock our left brigade, commanded by General Sascgawa, advanced upon the re- maining eight forts. Fifty Chinese guns poured shell and shot upon them, but noth- ing stopped them. It was great fighting. At one o'clock all the forts were taken by assault and the army advanced upon the city. The inhabitants, who had been armed with express rifles and explosive cartridges.
resisted in the city, and the houses had to be taken by storm. Many Chinese were killed. The sea forts fell without fighting, and all was finished at five o'clock. The Chinese generals fled after the first fort was taken. Mad they surrendered many Chinese lives would have been saved. Many Chinese were killed during the battle, but the Japan- ese, however, treated kindly those remaining in the city. Some eighteen thousand men were engaged on each side. There were 250 Japanese killed and wounded. The Chinese killed numbered 1500. The dead were buried or cremated.
Prowess of Japan.
When war between Japan and China was declared a few believed the former would be simply overwhelmed by the vast hordes which the latter could put in the field, as it seemed incredible that a nation of 40,000,000 could overcome one of400,ooo,ooo. But the general sentiment was otherwise. Japan for twenty- five years has been making rapid strides in civ- ilization; she has welcomed modern educa- tion and manners, and has organized and equipped her army and navy according to the latest and most approved methods of warfare. China on the other hand has made little or no progress. A few bright minds secured good naval vessels, erected magnificent coast defences and armed some thousands of soldiers with effective weapons, but the results of their work were practically nullified by the prejudices and hatred of the masses against modern civilization, and by the deep corruption e.\isting among almost all those in authority, great and small.
It was the existence of these conditions which gave rise to the conviction of the sagacious few that the advantage would be with Japan ; but it is doubtful whether any- one looked for the brilliant and rapitl sue-
588
COREA AND THE WAR.
cesses attending the arms of that country. In every engagement the Chinese were out- manoeuvred in all branches of warfare. Their armies were outgeneralled, their navy ren- dered ineffectual, and Japan's successes culminated in the brilliant capture of Port Arthur, which, on account of its position
COKE AN CHILDREN.
and admirable defences, was not inaptly termed the "Gibraltar of the East."
Says a leading journal: "That the cap- ture of this great stronghold virtually decides the war there is little reason to doubt. Without it China is practically helpless as far as the present contest is concerned. There appears to be absolutely nothing that
can prevent General Oyama marching his victorious army to the walls of Pekin, while Marshal Yamagata, with his command in Manchuria, effectually prevents the Imperial court taking refuge in that quarter. The fall of Port Arthur is the Appomattox of the struggle ; the Waterloo of the hopes of China. Whatever fighting shall be done from this time on will be in no wise likely to change the result, and it would be wisdom on the part of China to treat for peace as speedily as possible, since every day's delay simply means a heavier indemnity for it to pay, and possibly harder terms to comply with in other directions.
Successful Strategy.
"By the capture of Port Arthur, Japan has accomplished a feat which must take its place among the phe- nomenal military and naval events of history. It was one of the feu- strongholds of China which was given over to Europeans in order that the tremendous natural strength of the place might be reinforced by the best and latest engineering skill. It was mounted with powerful guns and encompassed by an elaborate system of mines on land and torpedoes at sea. Nothing but the most briliiaiit strategy and almost reckless bravery accomplished its downfall.
" The war which Japan has suc- cessfully waged against China may be re- garded as one of the most important of the century, on account of its far-reaching conse- quences. It creates a new first-cla.^s jjuuer among the nations of the earth, from one which only a quarter of a century ago was considered liarliaroiis, and over which extra- territorial jurisdiction was insisted i n by
THE FALL OF PORT ARTHUR.
58{»
civilized countries, and from which only now it is about to be emancipated by the United States and Great Britain. It makes Japan, in a measure, supreme in the Yellow Sea, and a fighting power which will have to be considered by England, Russia and other nations interested in Eastern questions. It opens up for it, besides, a great future as a maritime, commercial and progressive na- tion, with important interests to be looked after over the whole world.
An Enterprising Nation.
"Japan's eagerness to adopt civilizing in- fluences, and its conduct during the present war, render it easy to regard with some complacency its defeat of ignorant and bar- barous China, and less difficult for the other great nations to receive it with some degree of cordiality as one of their class."
Some ghastly accounts of atrocities on the part of both the Chinese and Japanese armies, showed the barbarous spirit by which some of the soldiers were actuated. For example, the correspondent of the London Times tele- graphed as follows from Hiroshima, Japan :
" I have just returned from the seat of war, and had a conversation with Viscount Mutsu Munemitzu, the Foreign Minister, in regard to the misconduct of the Japanese at Port Arthur. I informed him that I had watched the Japanese army enter the town. The Chinese resisted to the last. I saw Chinese in plain clothes with firearms con- cealed on their persons. I also found explo- sive bullets. The Japanese reported thit civilians fired upon them from the houses, and they therefore deemed it necessary to exterminate them.
The Japanese were further excited by finding the mutilated remains of Japanese prisoners. Some of these prisoners had been burned alive. I saw no resistance in
the town. During the next four days tlie Japanese pillaged the whole town and killed almost every man. Very few women or children were killed. I saw scores of Chi- nese prisoners pinioned, stripped and shot, hacked with knives and disemboweled. Many bodies were partly burned.
The Foreign Minister expressed himself as intensely surprised and grieved. Hitherto, he added, the Japanese army had been ad- mired for its humanity and discipline. He was unwilling to believe it possible that they had acted as reported or to express an opin- ion on the subject until a detailed official re- port arrived. Meanwhile he authorized me to say that he was certain the Government was determined to act on principles of hu- manity and civilization."
Rumors of Mediation.
In the early part of November it was re- ported that the United States Government had been asked to interfere between China and Japan, or at least to exercise its influence in securing peace.
As a result of negotiations then pending it was confidently believed that the United States would very soon be asked to mediate between Japan and China, with a view to permanent peace on a basis satisfactory to both countries.
It was stated positively that the United States had declined to join with European powers in any arbitrary intervention to force a settlement. But while unwilling to act in any arbitrary manner, cither individually or jointly with European nations, the representa- tives of the parties to the war were given to understand that the good offices of this Government would be gladly exercised to secure peace in case such was their ex- pressed wish. Naturally Japan insisted that China should take the initiative in any ne^o-
•\\
690
CORE A AND THE WAR.
tiations looking to a restoration of peace, but that she was entirely willing to accede to any reasonable proposition is not doubted.
At the outset Great Britain sought to luve the United States and the great powers of Europe intervene. The facts as to these ne- gotiations at Washington were now known. Cable directions from the London foreign offices first came to Mr. Goschen, the British resident Minister in the absence of Sir Julian Paunccforte.
Mr. Goschen saw Secretary Gresham in person and presented Great Britain's propo- sition that the United States co-operate with other powers toward peace. A reply was duly given that this country would not co- operate on the ground, it was said, that the policy of the United States was to avoid en- tangling foreign alliances on questions in which it had no immediate concern. After that time no efforts on the part of Great Britain to urge the negotiations were made.
Peace Proposals.
Under these circumstances the proposed negotiations did not involve foreign inter- vention, but a mutual arrangement between China and Japan, to which foreign powers would give their moral support. To what extent the Chinese Minister at Washington directed the negotiations was not exactly known, as the Legation officials were very secretive. It was known, however, that the Chinese Minister had long conferences with Secretary Gresham. But the main proposi- tion on the part of China came direct from United States Minister Denby, at Pekin.
From the very beginning of hostilities the Chinese were anxious to have the United States arbitrate the differences between themselves and the Japanese, which led to the war, but, of course, there could be no arbitration except upon the request of both
parties, and that was lacking. Thus the matter stood.
But after the battle of Kiu-Lien-Chcng. on October 25th last, when the Chinese suf- fered their severe defeat at the hands of the Japanese troops who had crossed the Yalu River, and were obliged to retreat toward Moukden, they became thoroughly alarmed and convinced that something must be done to terminate the war. They could not, however, so humble their pride as to sue for peace directly to Japan, but casting about for some means of opening peace negotia- tions, hit upon the treaty with the United States of 1848.
An Old Treaty.
The very first article of this treaty pledges the United States in case China is oppres- sively or unjustly treated by another power, to use its good offices to arrange the difficulty. It is similar in scope to the first article in our treaty with Corea, which led Secretary Gresham at the beginning of the trouble to write a note to the United States Minister at Tokio, relative to the Japanese occupation of Corea, which excited much comment.
Encouraged by the attitude of the United States at that time the Chinese Government appealed to United States Minister Denby, at Pekin, to cause his Government to inter- vene and Mr. Denby transmitted the appli- cation to Washington, where it was laid before the President, who had it under con- sideration for a week or more. As our rep- resentations in the ca.se c)f the occupation of Corea had little effect, there was no reason to suppose that a different result would fol- low an attempt to use our good offices in favor of China. As already indicted, our Government was indispo.sed to co-operate directly with European nations in any effort to coerce either party to the war and for
THE FALL OF PORT ARTHUR.
591
this very reason we were in a better place than any other power to act as an indepen- dent intermediary in bringing about peace.
Both China and Japan were assured that we were free from any suspicion of a desire to secure accessions of territory in Asia, which hung over the great European powers, and their confidence in our fairness and impartiality was strikingly manifested by the selection of the United States by both nations to care for their subjects in the other's terri- tory. So the United States was placed in a position where she would naturally be looked to by both China and Japan to serve as an arbitrator in case of a difficulty in arranging terms for peace.
Concessions by China.
China no longer concealed her inability to prosecute a war. She recognized that she was caught unprepared, and that it was the part of wisdom for her to make the most of a bad situation by getting peace on the best terms possible. She did this with the ex- pectation and assurance that Japan would come half way. Japan began the war for the purpose, as she said, of .securing Corea's complete sovereignty. This China would fully concede. It also seemed probable that China would pay a fair indemnity. This, however, would be in cash and not in Chinese territory.
The capture of Port Arthur monopolized discussion at Washington. In all circles nothing but praise was heard at this victory of the Japanese. It was not unexpected, but it was a brilliant victory, and the hardy little fighters received credit for the masterly way in which they conducted their several cam- paigns, and especially this last important affair. The belief was strong that the Jap-
anese would devote themselves to the cap- ture of Wei-Hai-Wei, and that this was to be the destination of the third army, which, it was reported, had just left Japanese shores.
Loss of Life.
Further reports received by the Navy Department from the intelligence officers of the Asiatic squadron in relation to the battle of the Yalu River stated that the shells fired during the fight contained nothing but gun- cotton, and that the great damage wrought was due to its action on the woodwork of the ships. The reports stated that the wood- work was set on fire by the explosions, and splinters flew in every direction, killing and maiming a large portion of the crews of the vessels engaged.
This information confirmed the belief of the ordnance officials that ordinary gun- cotton is all that can be desired in the way of an explosive for shells, and, while e.xperi- ments would be conducted with any new chemical that might be brought in, the probabilities were that the Ordnance Bureau would return to gun-cotton as its chief explo- sive. The energies of the ordnance officials would be directed toward finding a detonator for the gun-cotton, and not to find a new ex- plosive.
That the Japanese government purposed pushing their past and present advantages with a view to the capture of Pckin was not doubted. The capture of Port Arthur made easy the progress of the Japanese troops to the Chinese capital. Competent military authorities who were thoroughly familiar with the physical conditions of China, said that a Japanese army could march from the coast of the Gulf of Pechili to Pckin in ten days.
CHAPTER XXXVIII. A JAPANESE ACCOUNT OF THE WAR.
A CAREFUL review of the military operations in the Orient is fur- nished by a well-informed Jap- anese, Julius Kampei Matumato, a graduate of one of our colleges, who fol- lowed closely the progress of events, and whose concise summary is as follows :
Up to a very short time ago, Japan, by the pen and tongue of facts and artists who have visited the land of the Rising Sun, has been thought to be merely a country of poetry, fragrant flowers and picturesqueness.
The Western nations hardly imagined Japan as a nation enlightened by a modern educational system, and developed in naval and military art to that pitch of excellence which lifted her into the position of a first- class power, and would enable her to gain an unbroken succession of victories against the largest empire on the globe.
The war in the East is certainly interest- ing from more than one point of view. View- ing it from the humane standpoint, Japan is the true standard-bearer of civilization and progress in the far East. Her mission is to enlighten the millions of souls in the Celes- tial Empire darkened for generations. Politi- cally, Japan has lifted herself into the rank of the most powerful nations of the earth. Com- mercially, she has demonstrated herself the mistress of the Pacific and Asiatic seas.
From the outbreak of the war, all the civilized nations, except England, have sym- pathized with Japan, especially the people of the United States. America has given a strong moral support toward Japan. It is 5J>2
not because this country is the warmest friend of Japan, whose wonderful progress in civilization is largely due to America, but because Japan is the propagandist of civiliza- tion and humanity in the far East.
At the beginning of the hostilities a majority of the people had an idea that the overwhelming population and resources of China would soon be able to crush Japan, but they overlooked the fact that in our day it is science, brains and courage, together with perfected ammunitions of war that grasp the palm of victory. Thousands of sheep could do nothing against a ferocious wolf. So the numerical comparison has but little weight.
The Military Spirit.
Some sagacious writer compared Japan to a lively sword-fish and China to a jelly-fish, being punctured at every point. Truly Japan has proved it so. More than once the world has seen t/at that artistic nation could fight. The Greeks demonstrated this long ago and France in later times has seen a shining example. Japan was reckoned as one of the most artistic nations in the world, as the producer of fancy goods, as the lover of fine arts and natural beauties. But the world knew it not as a warlike country.
"In no country," as Mr. Rogers says, "has the military instinct been more pro- nounced in the best blood of the people. Far back in the past, beyond that shadowx- line where legend and history blend, thcit story has been one of almost continual war,
A JAPANP:SE account of the vvAR.
593
and the straightest path to distinction and honor has, from the earliest times, led across the battle-field. The statesmen of Japan saw, as did Cavour, that the surest way to win the respect of nations was by success in war."
Corea was a worthy diplomatic problem when on June last the Mikado ordered a Corean expedition. A brigade composed of infantry, artillery, cavalry, engineers and commissariat, with a contingent of nurses, clerks and artificers, in all about 5000 men, left Hiroshima. China then had 3000 troops at Asan, forty miles south of Seo... In the meantime China hurried forward reinforce- ments. July 25th the Naniwa, the Japanese war-ship sank the chartered transport Kow Shing, one of the fastest vessels engaged in the Chinese seas, off the island of Phun-do, in Corea.
Work of the Navy.
The first collision of the two navies re- sulted in the complete victory of the Jap- anese, in their capture of the Tshao-Kiong, a gunboat of 900 tons; in the destruction of another war-ship, the Kuan-Yi of 1 100 tons, and in the sinking of the Kow-Shing. The Chi-Yen escaped, but was badly injured. The Yoshino, Naniwa and Akitsu, which effected this destructive work, proved the superiority of the Japanese Navy.
The battle of Asan which followed four days later was the first victory of the Jap- anese on land. The fortresses of Asan were situated on a hill at Seikan, an important position. In front of the hill are rice pad- dies and marshes crossed in the middle by a little stream which runs into the Asan Bay, and a narrow path leads up to the hill. It was a position easy to defend and hard to attack. Three thousand Chinese soldiers of Li-Hung-Chang's famous Black Flag Army,
38
the flower of the Chinese Army, defended this position.
At dawn the Japanese army began to move. Lieutenant Matsuzaki led his troops across the river under a deadly fire from some 500 Chinese troops who were in am- bush. As the fight took place in the dark and the river was swollen by rain the diffi- culty of crossing was great. In spite of all ob.stacles Lieutenant Matsuzaki got his men across with comparatively little loss, but soon after he had reached the opposite bank a bullet struck him in the chest and he fell dead on the field.
Carried by Storm.
The second part of the battle began at 6 o'clock in the morning. The Japanese .stormed the entrenchments again and again and eventually dislodged the enemy from its position. The Chinese broke and fled in all directions, leaving behind a large quantity of ammunition, which fell into the hands of the victors. The Japanese pursued the fugitives to Yashan, where they expected a stand to be made, but to their surprise found that the Chinese, evidently demoralized by their de- feat, had abandoned the position together with .several hundred thousand cartridges, four cannon, 700 bales of rice and a large supply of clothing. Some important official documents were also found.
Early in August an engagement between China's strongest ironclad, the Chen- Yuen, and the Japanese composite armored cruiser, the Hi-Yei, took place. The Japanese war- ship was handled admirably and showed desperate courage. After this fight the Japanese terrorized the Chinese navy and enjoyed complete sway on the sea. The Chinese fleet as soon as they saw the Japan- ese squadron fled into well fortified ports. Li-Hung Chang and Admiral Ting recog-
504
CORKA AND TUK WAR.
nizcd the fact that if the fleet was destroyed there was not much to hinder the Japanese from niarchin<j upon Pekin.
In f.ict, the Japanese became so bold that, on August nth, they attacked Wei-Hai- Wei, which is one of tlie strongest naval ports in Northern China. The Japanese fleet, consisting of twenty-one vessels, found the Chinese warships hiding in port. They took advantage of the darkness of night and crept
A COREAN PORTER.
into the harbor of Wei-Hai-Wei unknown to t..e Chinese in the forts and vessels. Six torpedo boats were sent out with the pur- pose of blowing up the Chinese warships anchored within. When midway a British man-of-war which was anchored there fired salutes for the Japanese vessels, it is alleged to warn the slumbering Chinese. Such an unfriendly act spoiled the plan to take the Chinese navy by surprise, and the Japanese retired. But for this warning important re- sults might have transpired.
At the end cf August the Japanese fleet bombarded Port Arthur for the second time, and took possession of some islands in Society Bay without the slighest molestation as a basis of action.
On land, as at sea, the Chinese were flying from Corea, so little confidence had they in their own army. Both Seoul and Chemulpo and Kan-Hon were abandoned, and the Chinese retired to" the North. Meanwhile Japan had strengthened her military position in Corea, The Chinese force at Asan had been completely annihilated. Japanese rein- force nents were landed at Fusan and Gensan converging upon Phynonyan, some distance to the north of Seoul, in readiness to meet the Chinese army which was then concen- trating and fortifying the strong defences at Ping- Yang to made a stubborn resistance.
A March Northward.
The battle of Ping- Yang had strategical importance. The Japanese force in Seoul, about 17,000, then commanded by Lieu- tenant-General Nodzu, started on a north- ward march, August 7th, toward Pongsan through a country exceedingly rough and unfitted for military movements. To rein- force this army and to guard against an attack on the right flank 8000 men, under Major-General Sato, were sent by sea from Japan to Gensan, a port on the east coast of Corea. On September 1 5th these armies were able to make combined attack upon the enemy at Ping- Yang. The Gensan column threatened the left flank of the Chi- nese, the Pongsan column menaced the Chinese centers, while the Hwang-Hoi col- umn, which had been reinforced the day before by a detachment from the moutli df the Taitong River, operated against tlic right. The defences of Ping- Yang were strong. Ping- Yang is situated on the noitl)
A JAPANESE ACCOUNT OF THE WAR.
595
bank of the Taitong River, which is naviga- ble up to the city. It lies on the only road to the northward by which the Japanese army could advance into Manchuria and Pekin.
The walls of the city were strengthened by earthworks by the defenders. There were in it three Krupp field pieces and several Gatling guns, while the garrisons were equipped with Spencer or Mosler rifles and had plenty of ammunition. In front of the castle was a masked fort, which is described as being the best piece of military engineering ever accomplished by the Chi- nese. The Chinese considered the fortress to be absolutely impregnable. The popula- tion of the city is about 40,000, and it and its surrounding country were strongly in sympathy with China. It was, therefore, plain that the first Japanese movement must be to destroy the force there intrenched.
Fighting Under Cover.
The battle was begun Saturday, August 1 6th, at daybreak, by a Japanese cannonade of the Chinese works, which was continued without cessation until afternoon, the Chinese responding. Early in the afternoon a body of infantry was sent forward by the Japanese and maintained a rifle fire upon the enemy until dusk. Throughout the day only the Pong-San column was engaged. The Chi- nese defence suffered greatly, but losses on either side were small, both the Chinese and Japanese having taken advantage of all the shelter available.
The Japanese troops, however, gained some advanced positions. All other forts were captured by the Japanese on the first of the two days of fighting. Although repeated attempts wer e made to storm the gate of the castle the desperate courage displayed by the garrison rendered that futile.
In the meantime two Japanese flanking columns, the one from Gen-San, the other from Wang-Hai, had formed a cordon around the Chinese. On the ne.\t day early in the morning an attack was made by the Japanese columns with admirable precision. The Chinese lines, which were so strong in front, were found to be weak in the rear, and here the attack was a complete success. The main body of the enemy was attacked in front and rear.
Thrown Into a Panic.
The Chinese were completely taken by surprise and were thrown into a panic. Hundreds were cut down and those who escaped death, finding themselves surroun- ded at every point, broke and fled. Some of Viceroy Li-Hung-Chang's European- drilled troops stood their ground and were cut down to a man. Half an hour after the attack the Chinese army was flying toward the Yalu River.
At last the white flag was raised on the walls and the Chinese general promised to surrender at sunrise next day. General Nodzu, commander-in-chief of the army, consented, on this understanding, to a cessa- tion of hostilities. At evening the Chinese army made a sortie, but were driven back by the Japanese left flank, and at the same time a squadron of the Manchu cavalry, charged the Japanese right flank, but when at 200 yards the magazine rifles suddenly opened on them, they became utterly demor- alized and scattered off the field without killing a single foe. Inside the ramparts in many places it came to a matter of cold steel, and here the Japanese soldiers did terrible work with the bayonet.
The weakest point of the Chinese army is the lack of harmony. There is no supreme commander in the Chinese army, for no one
596
COREA AND THE WAR.
could willingly take such a responsible posi- tion as commander-in-chief. The Chinese generals, Yeh, Tso, Neih and Wei, were all in equal command of corps and jealous of each other. It is told that General Yeh proposed to evacuate Ping-Yang and retire before the stubborn defense should be taken. Tso, a more conscientious conmander, turned on him in a rage:
" Retire, never ! Give me your brevet, and then go if you like ! "
At this Yeh looked shame-faced. " Oh ! I only said it to test your courage ; we all really know that Tso is a brave man."
Pell on the Ramparts.
And Tso proved so. Early in the battle he set an example of courage by mounting a rampart very much exposed to fire. He fell in battle. After his death no general had courage enough to stand his ground, and the forces fled.
The victorious Japanese then entered the city, which was a heap of ruins. The streets were littered with the dead bodies of Chinese, Coreans, oxen and horses. The only living things remaining were a few dogs and pigs. The palace of the Governor was occupied as the headquarters of the Japanese army. Thus the Japanese brought the Ping- Yang campoign to a brilliant close.
In this battle 192 Japanese were killed and 487 wounded, and the Chinese loss is estimated at about 2000 killed and wounded and 700 prisoners. The Chinese soldiers wore the blue uniforms. When Chinamen heard that the terrible Jap was coming, they immediately cut off their hair and took the white clothing of the Coreans. The spoils captured by the Japanese in the battle con- sisted of thirty-four guns of modem artillery, several thousands of rifles, ammunition, innu- merable battle flags and much treasure.
China .sent five transports conveying sol- diers to re-enforce the Chinese army in Ping- Yang. These t'-.insports left Tau September 14th. They were convoyed by the powerful Chinese Navy. At this time the Japanese squadron was searching for the Chinese fleet in the Yellow Sea. On September 14th the Jap- anese squadron steamed toward the mouth of the Yalu River, expecting to sight part of the Chinese fleet, but failed to find a single Chinese \.ar-ship. On September i6th, the Japanese ships moved toward the island of Kaiwo. The squadron consisted of twelve men-of-war, namely, the Yoshino, Takachiho, Akitsushima, Naniwa, Matsushima, Chiyoda, Ikutsushima, Hashidate, Hiyei, Fuso, Akagi and the transport Saikiyo Maru, the latter under the command of Admiral Kabayama, who was making a tour of inspection.
Ships in Sight.
Soon after passing Kaiyo Island, on the morning of September 17th, the watchers in the turrets signalled " smoke in the dis- tance!" and soon after eleven formidable ships of the enemy were seen on the horizon. The eager -ry of "the enemy, the enemy!" went from mouth to mouth. It was now 11.30, and orders were given from the flag- ship Matsushima for dinner to be served on all the ships, for men cannot fight with empty stomachs.
The enemy was now in plain view and rapidly approaching. The Chinese fleet con- sisted of the Yang-Wei, Chao-Yang, Ching- Yuen, Lai-Yuen, Chen-Yuen, Ting-Yuen, King-Yuen, Chin-Yuen, Kuang-Ti, Tsi- Yuen, Kuang-Ting, Ping-Yuen and six tor- pedo boats. They were almost the whole strength of the Chinese Navy. They steamed out of the mouth of the river in battle forma- tion and at the distance of 4000 metres opened fire. The Jap.incse, fearing that
A JAPANESE ACCOUNT OE THE WAR.
51)7
their fire would do little execution at such a distance, waited until within 30CXD metres of the Chinese ships, and then brought their guns into play.
The Japanese ships, possessing higher speed and maneuvring powers, circled about the enemy, coming in closer when engaging the smaller vessels, and increasing the radius when they came within the range of the heavy guns of the Chinese battle ships.
The Japanese marineis showed great skill with the long range quick-firing guns. They maintained their line of battle, but the Chi- nese, after a short time, broke their formation.
A Target for Shot.
The action was extremely hot at times. The Lai-Yuen sank first, stern foremost, and her bows rising, stood for a minute and a half out of water. The Chih-Yuen was the next vessel to go down. She made a des- perate charge against the Japanese. She is said to have been struck 200 times, mostly by machine guns. The Yang-Wei was next disabled. The steering gear of the Haikio- Maru, the Japanese transport, on which boat was Admiral Kabayanca, the head of the Naval Command Bureau, was disabled by the explosion of one of the enemy's shells, and that vessel was obliged to drop out of the line.
She was pursued by the Chinese, and was forced to pass between the powerful Ting- Yuen and Chen-Yuen, within a distance of eighty metres. The commanders of these vessels, thinking it was her intention to ram them, steered cif, leaving the packet room to escape. The Chinese discharged two fish torpedoes at her, but they were aimed too low and passed beneath her, doing no damage.
Shortly after the mishap to the Haikio- Maru, the flagship Matsushima's forward
quick-firing gun was struck by a shell and many casualities resulted. The ship w.is so badly damaged as to necessitate her with- drawing from the lino i)f hatt'e, and Admiral Ito shifted his fl.ig to th,- Haskidatc. .An- other Chinese siicll exploded in the Hi/Li, killing and wounding many persons, iiclud- ing the surgeons, and .setting the shi > on fire. She left the line of b.ittle to extinguish the flames and transfer the wounded, after which she returned and again took part in the fight.
Captain Sokamoto, of the Akagi, the smallest gunboat, was aloft watching for torpedoes and signalling to the other vessels of the fleet their location, especially that of the Chin-Yuen, when the ma.st was cutaway by a shot from the enemy and ho was killed, upon which a .sailor of the Akagi jumped into the .sea and rescued the dead body of the Captain.
Trying to Escape.
Wliile the Japanese were fighting like lions the Chinese fled like sheep. The King- Yuen went down. The Yang-Wai got aground and was rammed and sunk by the Tsi-Yuen, which her cowardly captain was taking out of action. The Tshuo-Yung caught fire and was beached. The Kuang- Ping went ashore north of Port Arthur, where here commander was fleeing from the scene of the action and was lost. The Chen- Yuen caught fire and she turned and steamed awa}'. When she passed it was noticed by the Japanese that not a single member of her crew was in sight.
At sundown the Chinese fleet was in full retreat. They were pursued by the Japanese ships. Owing to the extreme darkness the Chinese succeeded in getting away and reaching a safe shelter. The Chen-Yuen and the Ting-Yuen, the two largest ships in
698
CORE A AND THE WAR.
the Chinese navy, were both greatly injured. When the Ting- Yuen arrived at Port Arthur she was three feet down by tlie liead. The Chen-Yuen had 1 30 sliot holes in her sides.
All the Japanese ships fought splendidly throughout. The maneuvring was excel- lent. All signals were exchanged by flag and were promptly answered throughout the battle. None of the Japanese vessels were lost in the engagement and only three were injured. All of them, with the exception of the Matsushima, remained on the station.
At daylight the Japanese vessels endeav- ored to find the enemy, but were unable to do so. They then returned to the scene of the previous day's action, where they found the Yang-Wei ashore and deserted, and destroyed her with a fish torpedo and quan- tities of wreckage. Thus ended Japan's glorious victory on the Yalu. Since the battle of the Yalu the Chinese warships which survived have never came out of for- tified harbors.
The Japanese aimy had crossed the Yalu and entered Manchuria. It is now about time (November 251!)). that the Japanese troops are in the sight of Moukden, the sacred home of the reigning Chinese dynastj-.
It is now reported that the Japanese have captured Port Arthur, which is the great naval stronghold of China and is known as the Gibraltar of Asia. The second Japanese army under Marshal Oyama is now moving toward Pekin.
According to a despatch from Tokio the third Japanese corps has sailed from Mjina, Hiroshima. It is affirmed that the objective point of the corps is the Yan-tsu-King River, the heart of the Chinese Empire. Now we see Japan attacking China in three different directions. Soon China's hunniiation will he completed and the civilizin;^ mission of Japan will be done. When the banner of the rising sun is placed on the walls of Pekin it will signify the beginning of a better era for benighted China and darkened Asia.
CHAPTER XXXTX. . THE CAPITAL OF CHINA.
THE crowning ambition of Japanese patriotism after war was declared against the Celestial ICmpire was to emulate the prowess of the French and English and march to Pckin. The .mcient and gigantic Chinese capital, there- fore, occupied the attention of the onlooking world.
Its sights have often been depicted by travelers who have had the good fortune to visit it in its normal, workaday state in the piping times of peace, but by none more ^graphically, more picturesquely than M. Pierre Loti, French naval officer, litterateur. Academician, who is idolized by the feminine readers of France for his poetical romances, replete with the love, color and mystery of the East,
Subjoined is a translation of M. Loti's experiences :
En route for Pekin ! Clic ! Clac ! "Ta, ta, ta, ta ! " cries our pigtailed coachman, and our two thin mules start off with a trot. Our vehicle is mounted upon two enormous wheels, and covered with a blue awning to protect us from the dusty north wind. Our mules are imbued with unshakable princi- ples, which preclude them from going over forty lis an hour (about three and one-half miles).
The landscape which meets our eyes con- sists of a cloud of dust, come expressly from Mongolia to vex us. It envelopes every- thing. Do not take the trouble to look outside, for you will see nothing. Do not speak, for in opening your mouth you will 599
swallow pounds of dust. Just keep (juiet for this is the best thing you can tlo.
However, our little trip will only last three days, ami we shall have for distraction the view of our muleteer, a frightful little Chinese jackanapes, tlirty from head to foot, and as round as a barrel under his seven or eight goatskin mantles. Toward the even- ing of the second day we ])erceive in the horizon an old, gray crenellated wall, with bastions .situated at intervals of an arrow's flight from each other.
The Mysterious Palace.
At full trot, with a loud jingling of bells, our cortege enters Pekin and wends its way through the small, tortuous .streets, reeking with filth, animal and vegetable detritus, dogs dead and alive. Behind us is the huge palace of the Son of Heaven ; one percei\es the top of its mysterious walls, within which no European has ever been. It still .slum- bers in its inconceivable splendor, and at its feet the Lotus Lake lies tarnished and dead under the January ice.
One experiences a sort of indefinable uneasiness at the thought of the immensity of this city, awaking in the bright morning; one feels oppressed, as it were, by this cramped, confused, inextricable dedalus one makes out around one, covering a greater extent than any capital of Europe.
The dogs bark furiously at us and make menacing charges at the legs of our animals, whose movements are becoming restless and irregular. These dogs issue from a!l the
GOO
COREA AND THE WAR.
alleys, and the troop pursues us, showing their sharp fangs, eager to bite.
The countenances of a few young Tartar ■girls, who have just got up, already appear at the doors of the little, low, gray-brick houses. Their broad, full-moon-like faces, befarded with white and vermillion, peep curiously after us, like a lot of kittens' heads ; they have little airs of timidity ; blankness ?nd astonishment at the sight of this Western carnival passing by. Their large casaques and bulging pantaloons stand out in bright, raw colors against the gray walls of the houses ; they poise themselves awkwardly on feet that are too small, in the pretty poses of little firescreen figures.
Old Yellow Town.
These images defile rapidly on each side of us ; they disappear, and we again en- counter an interminable series of deserted streets. We are in the Yellow, or imperial town, and all these old, dead districts bear an aristocratic character. Walls, walls with- out end ; walls all crooked with age, all carpeted with moss and ferns. Behind them are immense parks, where a nature artificial diid whimsically Chinese has been fashioned at great expense.
Occasionally entrances are opened, en- trances with heavy oaken doors worn by time, and enormous pilasters. They have extravagant roofs, these entrances, yellow roofs whose extreme angles are raised sky- ward in capricious crooks, in grimacing forms of dragons and monsters. All are guarded by two marble beasts, half lions, half chimeras, which, with one clawed paw posed on a ball, regard the passer-by with a mysterious air.
And over all this the neighboring desert has placed its mark : a layer of gray dust, effacing the ancient colors and gilt, the
strange medleys painted upon these Yamen by the artists of long ago.
In the direction of Sitchemen, the West- ern gate, which will give us access to the country, we now follow a great, straight artery, entirely bordered by palaces. As we advance, the lines of monumental and im- posing constructions emerge from the whirl- winds of dust, and the semi-obscurity of the luminous mist ; a double row of hoar-frost, covered trees stretches before us in endless perspective ; and on either hand there are always the same great walls, the same grand entrances with their pent-houses bristling with chimeras and monsters, the same marble lions squatting on the ground and grinding their teeth at the people who pass. These Yamen are academies, ministries, law- courts, temples, bonzeries, convents of lamas.
A Lively Scene.
As the hour advances, the boulevard becomes animated ; we meet wagons, bour- geois on donkeys, cavaliers mounted on little Mongolian steeds, with large heads, and the ruse, knavish airs of learned horses.
Now the boulevard begins to fill with peo- ple ; it is becoming a perfect tumult. Riders come and go, preceded by Mafoos in livery. They are all of a heap in their long gowns, and look as though squatting on their high saddles. They are attired in garmenis of silk trimmed with precious furs, and black velvet boots turned up at the tips, with thick immaculately white soles, made of layers of paper. Among them are phisiog- nomics that, while very Chinese, are stamped with a kind of distinction peculiar to the upper classes.
They eye us as we pass with a certain expression of astonishment, with an imper- ceptible shade of irony, though in their de-
THE CAPITAL OF CHINA.
001
portment there is nothing but benevolence and courtesy: but the Asiatic expression is always there, even in the kind and dis- tinguished physiognomies of the upper classes. There is an impassable abyss be- tween this antique Asia, which still lives in spite of all, and us, who, born yesterday, have changed everything.
A cloud of dust : children scampering about and uttering cries as piercing as a steam whistle; dirty looking men beating gongs; people out of breath, carrying lan- terns, in broad daylight, at the end of long staves with red pendants; halberdies; lie- tors dressed in black puffed-out doublets and breeches, and lofty hats bedecked with plumes, shaking, with frantic gesticulation, whips, weighted cat-o'-nine-tails, chains, and instruments of torture ; and then, advancing in the same headlong manner, people carry- ing green dragons, red screens, chimeras and monsters stuck on the end of long poles.
The Famous Viceroy.
Finally the great personage thus escorted appears on a splendidly caparisoned horse. He is Li-i lung-Chang, the Viceroy of Pctchili, who is going in state to visit Kong, the Prince-Regent. He is tall and thin. His bony face, with goatee and long mustache, has a sanctimonious expression. The pea- cock feather of China's great men floats be- hind the rose-colored ball which surmounts his high official coiffure.
All this flies past very quickly; the people afoot run; the riders trot, a jogtrot which makes all their bells jingle, shakes the long, disheveled manes of the horses and makes the men's pigtails dance. The gold badge of the Order of the Pheasant bobs up and down on the breast of the powerful .seignior ; the cloaks of the niandaritiS flap in the wind like wings. They have passed. The
suite comes along at full speed, like the advance guard; secretaries and scribes on horseback, all in official caps, with comical importance, their rolls of papers and docu- ments slung over their shoulders. Then the valets, a .sinister-looking rabble, dressed in queer rags, running with all their might. And that is all. We can continue our jour- ney.
We arrive at a triumphal arch with three arcades, painted blood red, and surmounted by the inevitable roofing turned up with monsters' heads : it is the gate of the Red Town. Here everything changes; one would imagine it to be the entrance to one of those huge cities of by-gone ages. The boulevard continues through this Red Town and loses itself in the distance.
Beasts of Burden.
We advance slowly and painfully through the maze of wagons and riders, while try- ing not to lose sight of our Mafoo, who is clearing the way for us. Now and then at crossings formed by other large boulevards, which cut ours at right angles, we are forced to stop to allow interminable files of camels to pass, enormous beasts with dusky muz- zles and long rough hair, which amble along on their comically jointed legs like machines out of gear.
The follows leading them are Mongols from the Northern desert. Their large, flat faces have ^ ''mething jovial and hardy about them, which contrasts agreebly with the perpetual Chinese grimace. They are dressed in long blood-colored robes, with waist belts bristling with poignards, and are coiffed with a kind of curtained capelin of fur, surmounted by a red cone, ornamented with a tuft.
We trot along on a sort of high embank ment, reserved for horses and \ehiclcs.
li
m
602
COREA AND THE WAR.
while on each side, on a lower level, is a road reserved for pedestrians. Around us still are rich cavaliers, befurred and be- gowned ; blue carts without number ; .udies of quality in black sedan chairs, shaped like street lamps, and bourgeois of placid mien, mounted on hired donkeys and followed by donkey boys, who flog the animals with sticks and shout : " Ta, ta, ta ta !"
On the roads below are groups of people, simple folk, standing open-mouthed before a dancing bear, funambulists performing tricks, mountebanks who go through hideous con- tortions. And shops upon shops, always gilded and splendid, wherein are sold Mon- golian furs, gold and silver brocades, price- less stuffs embroidered with fantastic things in dreamy shades, enamels and beautiful pottery, all the relics of an inconceivable past, extravagant in richness and color.
A Strange Cavern.
Then there are fortune-tellers grouping the people, acupuncturist doctors operating upon dummies laid on trestles. There are also banking-houses swarming with a whole population of sheep-faced employes, fever- ishly manoeuvring the strings of balls on the calculating machines with the tips of their long, sharp, Chinese claws.
At last, at last, we come to a large don- jon, perched on a high gray wall, and a black gulf It is a Sitchemen, the direct Western gate. Let us penetrate slowly and prudently into this cavern, so as not to break our horses' legs between the old, dis- jointed flagstones, dating from the time of Khali-bai-Khan, grandson of Gengiz-Khan and founder of the Youen dynasty.
Let us traverse this hideous tunnel, then an inner court, then a second tunnel cut under a second donjon, whose four white walls rise above us, pierced with black em-
brasures, like the portholes of a ship. Let us hasten through a cloud of human Hce, beggars sinister and terrible ; let us escape their somewhat alarming attentions and issue at length from this Dantesque cave.
More camels, more tumbledown houses of an old sordid faubourg, and a great plair. opens before us. We are in the open country.
Concerning the Emperor.
From another account by one well in- formed concerning court customs in China we learn that the Chinese idea of the Em- peror is that he is second only to Almight)- God, and is the connecting link between or- dinary humanity and the Almighty. He is held to be the legal monarch of the whole earth, of which China is merely the " Middle Kingdom," all other nations being therefore his tributaries and subjects. The practical outcome of this dual theory of the sacred- ness and universality of the Emperor's sov- ereign claim has been to exact from foreign- ers admitted to audience certain conditions which other States have with good reason never been willing to concede.
These requirements had reference, first, to the character of the obeisance made by the foreigner admitted to the interview, and, second, to the building in which the audience took place. As regards the former, the for- eigner was formerly expected to perform the kotoiu — in other words, to kneel thrice and knock his forehead nine times on the ground. As regards the site of audience, the humble- ness of the stranger received by the Son of Heaven was emphasized by receiving him not in the Imperial palace, but in a building of an inferior kind, involving the idea of po- litical independence.
Upon these extravagant pretentions and their negation by other States, the whole audience question in China has turned.
THE CAPITAL OF CHINA.
003
As already stated the first English ambas- sador to have audience of a Chinese Em- peror was Lord Macartney, in 1793. Lord Macartney offered to kotmv to the Emperor if a Chinese nobleman did as much before a picture of George III, which he had brought for the purpose. The offer was re- fused. Lord Macartney knelt on one knee when presenting his credentials in the inter- view that was eventually granted, but the Chinese always declared afterward that he had kotowed. They further illustrated their Emperor's claims by exhibiting before His Lordship, who was innocent of any knowl- edge of Chinese, a flag with the inscription : — "Ambassador bearing tribute from the country of England."
Receiving the Envoys.
When the war between England and China came to an end, in i860, article 3 of the treaty concluded by the conquerors stip- ulating that Britain's representative "shall not be called upon to perform any ceremony derogatory to him as representing the sover- eign of an independent nation on a footing of equality with China." For some yeans — during the exile of Hsien-Feng and the mi- nority of Tung-Chih — it was not possible to act upon the right of audience implied in this clause of the treaty.
As soon, however, as Tung-Chih assumed the reins of government, in 1873, the foreign Ministers at Pekin collectively requested permission to present their congratulations to him in person. The request could not be denied, but, just as the Chinese had in Lord Macartney's case saved their armor proper by means of a flag, so now they achieved the same result by receiving the envoys in the Tsu-Kuang-Ko, a building on the outskirts of the palace enclosure, which, being inferior to the palace proper, carried with it, to the
Chinese mind, the tributary idea, and was therefore the less objectionable.
Tung-Chih dictl in 1875, and was suc- ceeded by the present Emperor, then a minor. The audience question accordingly slumbered again for a time, but when the new ruler assumed the control of the gov- ernment it came to the front once more. Kuangsu, howr^ver, did not wait for any representations to be made to him on the subject, but on December 12, 1890, he is- sued the following proclamation, the first in- timation that the outside world received of the progressive spirit actuating the present Emperor :
" I have now been in charge of the gov- ernment for two years. The Ministers of foreign Powers ought to be received by me at audience ; and I hereby decree that the audience to be held be in accordance with that of the twelfth year of Tung-Chih ( i "^"Jl). It is also hereby decreed that a day be fixed every year for an audience in order to show my desire to treat with honor all the Minis- ters of the foreign Powers resident in Pekin."
The Dragon Pillar.
This voluntary action on the lunperor's part maik^d a distinct step in advance, but it will be seen that he adhered to the jirece- dent set by Tung-Chih of holding the reception in the Tzu-Kuang-Ko. A good deal of dissatisfaction was expressed (in this point, but the audience, nevertheless, took place on March 5, 1891. The Emperor .sat on a dais behind a table covered with yellow silk. Each of the six Ministers received, bowed at stated intervals, as he walked up the hall, and then pausing at what was called the Dragon Pillar, road his letter of credence, which was translated by the inter- preter and finally handed to the President of the Tsungli Yamen, or Foreign Council, by
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COREA AND THE WAR.
whom it was placed on the yellow table. The President then received on his knees the Emperor's reply, which was written in Manchii, and which, after descending from the dais, he communicated in Chinese to the Minister by means of an interpreter.
The members of the Diplomatic Corps, however, were not satisfied with the arrange- ments, and a request was made to the Tsungli Yamen in the Imperial Palace itself A compromise was eventually arrived at by which it was arranged that future audiences should be granted in the CIiang-Kuang-Tien, an ancient building on the eastern side of the marble bridge, which spans the lake in the Palace grounds.
The Palace Closed.
This structure is not part of the Palace proper, but the use involves no reflection upon the status of persons received, and in it the representatives of Austro-Hungarj', Great Britain and Germany have been ac- corded an audience. France and Russia, however, still maintain a determined attitude on the question and refuse to permit their Ambassadors to be received anywhere but in the Palace itself. It is thus that the matter stands at present. Audience is granted by the Emperor without any ques- tion of the "Wowtow," but the diplomats have not yet been accorded the privilege of approaching the throne in one of the great audience halls in the t . 'y of the Palace.
The Palace grounds ni Pekin occupy the entire space within the third and innermost walled ei^closure of the city, called Tze-Kin- Cheng, or the Puiple Forbidden City. Tliis enclosure is nearly a square in shape, with its sides facing the four points of the com- pass. Two walls running from north to south divide the space into three portions ; the one in the middle contains the principal
edifices. The main entrance to this part of the grounds is the " Wu Mun," or Meridian Gate.
On passing through this gate one enters a large court, with porticos and corridors on the right side and on the left, and an arti- ficial .stream, spanned by five ornamental bridges of sculptured marble, running from east to west across the middle of it. The gateway in front leads to another court, at the head of which stands a magnificent structure, called Tai-ho-tien, or the Palace of Supreme Peace, which is the principal hall of audience. It rests on a terrace twenty-three and a half feet high, and rises to the height of 130 feet. Five flights of nine steps each lead from the pavement be- low to the principal audience hall above.
On His Throne.
The landmg that crowns the first flight of steps is, in fact, a raised platform, paved with purple tiles. There the high dignitaries of the Empire assemble on all State occa- sions and perform the required ceremonies before the Emperor, who is seated on a throne above. The remaining four flights of steps are divided into five approaches, each by balustrades of white marble.
In the centre of the audience hall is placed a throne, upon which the Emperor mounts New Year's Day, winter solstice, or his birthday, to receive the congratulations of the assembled officials.
Some time ago portions of the Palace grounds were accessible to the foreigner, but for several years a policy of the strictest ex- clusion has prevailed. Everything is closed and nothing can be seen from the outside but the yellow roofs of the great halls and the pavilions crowning the higher elevations. To the innermost Palace no man is admitted. It is here that the Emperor resides, witli his
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harem surrounded by an army of from eight to ten thousand eunuchs.
There seems little ground for surprise at the Imperial attitude toward the envoys of foreign States when the isolation of the Em- peror from his own subjects is borne in mind. When he visits any of the temples or a neighboring palace no one is allowed to be abroad in the streets. All stalls and booths are removed, and the houses are bar- ricaded with mats. It is only in the coun- try, where such precautions are physically impossible, that glimpses of the Emperor may be had as he passes swiftly along in his magnificent sedan.
The Royal Emblem.
So vast, indeed, has been the gulf of sepa- ration between the sovereign and his people that many articles have been exclusively associated with the former, and therefore for- bidden to the latter, as, for instance, the color yellow, which is exclusively the Impe- rial emblem.
The kotozu, or form of worship, is ren- dered not merely to the person of the sover- eign in Pekin, but to every form in which he delegates his authority to others. It is well known that the Imperial edict is always received with the nine prostrations and the burning of incense. But it is not so gener- ally understood that an official of even superior rank has to perform the kotoiv on meeting another official who has recently ([iiittcd the Imperial presence. Similar obei- sances arc paid during the week containing his birthday to the Emperor in the Imperial temple to be found in every provincial capital.
The fact that the Emperor's proper name is never mentioned, and that to pronounce it is a criminal offence, shows how exclusive the dynastic policy of the Chinese has always been. On ascending the throne the ruler
takes what is called a"kwoh hao," and by that name he becomes known to his people and to history.
An extraordinary sensation was occasioned some time ago when, during his annual pil- grimage to the Eastern tombs of his ances- tors tile Emperor not only permitted himself to be seen by the people, but actually stopped and spoke to some abnormally audacious persons who ventured forward to present a petition. Naturally there arc Mandarins who look upon such departure from the estab- lished order of things with horror. But the young lunperor seemed to be bent according to his lights on ruling in a more liberal .spirit than his predecessors, and his former determination to take a direct personal share in the conduct of the war was an indication of his purpose to govern his huge Empire in a fashion more comfortable to modern ideas.
Threatened Uprising.
Despatches from the F^ast in November indicated the probability of an early move- ment in China against the reigning dynasty. The provinces were described as being in an excited and troubled condition, while the dissatisfaction among the official classes had become acute.
For the first time since the Taeping rebel- lion, "expulsion of the Manchus " was openly talked of in the tea shops and other resorts of the capital. In ordinary times the average Chinaman would not dare tohrca;iic such things to his nearest friends, but muv the topic had become so hackneyetl that people everywhere discussed the prospects of upsetting the existing order ami driving the Emperor and his court to their original home at Moukden.
The account continues : " A prophecy, moreover, with regard to the speedy down- fall of the dynasty, was being secretl)- circu-
f'!l
606
COREA AND THE WAR.
lated throughout the country, and formed part of a general scheme for preparing the people for a change of rulers. The mis- fortunes which have befallen China since the war broke out, have helped forward the plans of these conspirators by increasing the general discontent, and the prospects of a dynastic change are accordingly still more obvious than they were in May. In these circumstances it is of interest to recall in brief the history of the house which at present rules the teeming millions of the Celestial Empire,
A Mixed Race.
"The present occupant of the Chinese throne comes of a race different from those over whom he rules, though allied to it. For two centuries and a half the Manchu dynasty of Tsing has swayed the rod of Empire in China. This long period has not yet brought about the amalgamation of the con- querors and the conquered into one homo- geneous people. To-day China presents a spectacle somewhat similar to that which England presented in the twelfth century, when the inhabitants of the island had not yet learned to regard themselves as English- men, but as either Normans or Saxons.
"A dual administration of public affairs is the outcome of this anomalous state of things. Thus, all the departments of the Chinese government have at least two heads, one Manchu and one Chinese. The Manchus naturally get the lion's share of the impor- tant offices."
The reigning House traces its origin to the Kin Tartars, who wrested the northern part of China in the eleventh century from the House of Sung, but had to flee in the begin- ning of the ne.xt centuiy from the victorious advance of Genghis Khan, and take refuge in the wilds of the Amur. The foimder of
the Imperial family, Aisin Ghioro, is said to have been the chief of a nomadic tribe at Otole, a place situated in a wild ( cjion about ninety miles southwest of Ninguti. But little is known about his descendant, for several generations, until they migrated southward and established themselves at Hingking, about eighty miles to the east of Moukden. There the ancestors of the pres- ent Chinese rulers dwelt for four generations and waxed strong and great.
It was toward the latter part of the six- teenth century that they, under the leader- ship of Tien-ming, started on their career of conquest.
This warrior became the head of the tribe when he was only twenty-five years old. He was a born leader, able, daring and fertile in expedients. His land was hemmed in on all sides by hostile tribes, but he succeeded in the course of a few years in reducing them all to subjection, and in extending his terri- tory from the Amur on the north to tlie Yellow Sea on the south, and from the desert of Mongolia on the west to the Pacific Ocean on the east.
Picked a Quarrel.
At that time a weak scion of the House of Ming was on the throne of China. The Li;io River divided the territories of the Chinese Emperor and the Manchu chieftain. The ambitious Tien-ming found no difficulty i:i picking a quarrel with his neighbor, and accordingly made repeated incursions into Chinese territory. Shinyang and Liaoyang fell into his hands, after a .stubborn defence. Then he removed his capital from Hingking to Shinyang, and changed its name to Mouk- den. Distracted by internal dissensions the House of Ming was not in a position to offer an effective resistance to the invasions of the Manchus. Inch by inch the Chinese forces
THE CAI'ITAL (W CHINA.
607
were driven back toward the Great Wall. That barrier only served to check the advance of the Manchus for a time.
At the eastern terminus of the Great Wall is an important pas.s, called Shan-hai-kwan. As long as the Chinese held that pass the Manchus found it impossible to retain an inch of territory within the Great Wall. But a favorable opportunity presented itself to the Manchus in an unexpected manner. Revolts against the central government in different parts of China at that time assumed such proportions as to defy the authorities to put them down. The insurgents made a bold advance upon Pekin, and succeeded in cap- turing the city.
Suicide in the Palace.
The last Ming Emperor committed suicide. The Chinese general who commanded the Imperial forces at Shan-hai-kwan refused to submit to the rebel leader, and in an evil hour invited the Manchus to enter China and put down the insurrection. The invitation was, of course, gladly accepted. The insur- rection was speedily crushed, and then, hav- ing made themselves masters of the country, the Manchus refused to retire. Thus for a second time China passed under a foreign yoke.
The alien rulers of China increased the extent of the Empire by adding their own possessions to the eighteen provinces of China. No sooner had the process of sub- jugation been completed than the tide of conquest began to turn. The conquered in war soon proved their superiority in the arts of peace. Instead of the Chinese becoming Manchus, the Manchus gradually assimilated with the Chinese.
A recent event of importance was the agreement between China and our Govern- ment by which intercourse between the two
nations was regulated. Ratifications of the new immigration convention between the United States and China were exchanged at the State Department December 7th, 1894, by Secretary Grcsham and Minister Yang Yu. The convention will remain in force ten years, and, unless six months before that time notice of its final termination shall be given by either party, it continues for a simi- lar period.
Article i stipulates that except under con- ditions subsequently specified the immigra- tion of Chinese laborers to the United States shall be absolutely prohibited.
Article 2 excepts from the provisions of the preceding article the return to the United States of every registered Chinese laborer who has a lawful wife, child or parent in the United States, or property to the value of a thousand dollars, or debts of like amount pending settlement.
Chinese Laborers.
Article 3 accepts the right at present en- joyed of Chinese subjects being officials, teachers, students, merchants or travellers for curiosity or pleasure, but not laborers, of coming to or residing in the United States. This class, however, is admitif^d only upon a certificate approved by the ciiploi:?atic or con- sular representative of this country at the port whence such Chinese depart. The privilege of transit of Chinese laborers across the United States in journeying to or from other countries is continued.
By Article 4 it is agreed that Chinese of the laboring or any other class, either per- manently or temporarily in the United States shall have all the protection to their persons and property that is gi\ en to citizens of the most favored nations, except the right to be- come naturalized citizens. .Article 5 recog- nizes the ri-iht of China to enact and enforce
608
COREA AND THE WAR.
similar laws and regulations to our Chinese registration act, providing for the registra- tion of all American skilled and unskilled laborers residing in China, and binds this gover»iment to report to the government of China the full, name, age, occupation and place of residence of all citizens of the United States, including missionaries, within and without the treaty ports of China.
The Coming Nation.
We may appropriately close this chapter by an extract from a leading American jour- nal respecting the rapid progress and increas- ing influence of the Land of the Rising Sun:
The recent progress of Japan is the marvel of the world. History records nothing like the advance she has made within the last quarter of a century. Coming up from paganism and semi-barbarism, she now boasts police and educational systems equal to those of the United States. She has es- tablished a national system of customs, po.st- offices, telegraphs, telephones and railways. She has a national mint and a decimal cur- rency. Her recent victories arise from the fact that she has her own arsenals and ship- yards, with a well-disciplined, finely-officered army and a steel-clad navy with all the modern appliances of warfare.
A Sabbath of one day's rest in seven has been ordained, and is kept as a general holi- day. Every dweller of Japan is free to wor- .-.hip God according to the dictates of his own conscience. With the birth of religious ■iberty began the era of Japanese progress. No other so-called pagan land gives so warm a welcome to missionaries of the Christian i
faith. Its people have been quick to recog- nize the fact that wherever the faith pre- vails, there the elevating and refining arts of life have their highest development. In reckoning the agencies which have brought about this peaceful yet radical revolution in Japan the work of the Christian missions must be given a very high place.
These Yankees of the Orient have been eager to assimilate all Western culture and to exchange for it the traditions, prejudices and superstitions of an effete past. They have sent many of their brightest young men and women to study in European and American halls of learning ; the)- have sum- moned to Japan as teachers in all arts, sciences and professions representatives of the best occidental talent and learning. This hospitality to new ideas has brought about the entire transformation of a whole people.
Modern Ideas.
It is to be regretted that Japan signalizes her new birth of freedom, education and all progressive arts by making war upon a neighboring nation. But war is a wicked- ness which even the most advanced Christian nations have not yet outgrown. It seems to be ordained that in this way Japan should teach to her benighted neighbor the value of modern ideas ; the utter worthlessness of a civilization which draws its whole sustenance from the past, and obstinately hugging old traditions, shuts its eyes to the fact that the world moves, and that the nation which does not move with it must eventually be crushed under the wheels of its car of progress and hasten to its own downfall.
c
CHAF»T^ER XIv. CAPTURE OF WEI-HAI-WEI AND END OF THE WAR.
THERE was only a brief lull in the activity of the Japanese army after the capture of Port Arthur. The victors, proud of their achieve- ments, were eager for new deeds of valor.
On December II, 1894, it was reported that they had landed a force and captured Kinchow, the second city of Manchuria. Kinchovv is a city in the Manchurian pro- vince of Shingking. It is situated between the Ta- Ling and the Siao-Ling River, a short distance from the northern shore of the Gulf of Liao-Tung. The imperial highway between Pekin and Moukden passes through this city. Its occupation by the Japanese practically cut off all communication between the central government at Pekin and the Manchurian provinces. The force which took Kinchow was part of the army under Marshal Oyama, which captured Port Arthur.
Two days after the capture of Kinchow it was announced that the Japanese garrison at Feng-Huung had defeated a strong force under General I. In accordance with Gen- eral Nodzu's instructions, the Feng-Huang garrison, which was confronted on December 1 2th by 4000 Chinese, began the attack on the enemy at daybreak. The garrison was 1400 strong. The main battle took place at Yih-Min-Shan, five miles from Feng-Huang. The Japanese attacked with spirit and defeated the Chinese, driving them to Tse- Mat-Sie. The Japanese loss was three officers killed and seventy privates killed and wounded; the Chinese, 250 killed and
wounded and thirty prisoners. The Japan- ese captured four field guns.
Despatches of December 17th reported that the first and second Japanese armies- were marching direct on Tien-Tsin. They were north of Niuchwang, which place had been captured. Several other cities were also taken, all without any serious fighting. The force of the two armies combined amounted to about .seventy-two thousand men.
The Shanghai officials of the native cit)^ removed their wives and families to the foreign settlement for safety in anticipation of an outbreak, which was feared in consequence of the imposition of the war tax.
Flight of Chinese Soldiers.
General Yamaji's division of the Second^ Japanese army advanced northward steadily for a month, and on December i8th occu- pied Kai-Ping. No defence was made. On December 17th scouts reported to Lieutenant- General Katsura, then near Laio-Yang, that a large force of Chinese had been seen moving in the direction of Laio-Yang. This force proved to be the defeated garrison of Hai-Cheng, under the comman d of GeneraE Sung. The Chinese had fled with all possi- ble speed ever since the 1 3th, when their position was captured by the enemy. They were then in a rather demoralized condition and were making for Moukden.
Katsura decided to intercept them. He left camp on the night of the 18th with his whole force, and the next morning overtook
609
«;io
CORKA AND THIC WAR.
the Chinese at the village of Kuny-VVasai, where tlicy made an obstinate stand. Although in poor condition, they were nearly ten thousand strong and were able to force some fierce fighting upon the Japanese. In the midst of the battle Oshima's brigade from Hai-Cheiig came up and gave Katsura active suppoit. The Chinese held out with sur- prising bravery. They faced the well directed fire from five Japanese batteries and fought desperately, although without effective organization.
At the Point of the Bayonet.
The Japanese uifantry charged twice through the scattered lines, but the enemy rallied. Three bayonet charges eventually won the day for Katsura, after five hours of the hottest fighting yet experienced by the Second army. The Chinese faltered as the third advance began, and they fled in dis- order toward Ying-Kow. The losses were not known, but the Chinese were reported to have left five hundred men on the battle field.
It was reported from Washington that arrangements were in progress for peace negotiations between the contending powers. The attempt of China to have Secretary Gresham pull her chestnuts out of the fire signally failed, and Japan maintained her dig- nified position in favor of peace, but placed China in the attitude of suing for it. Japan's firm and dignified attitude apparently brought China to her senses, for an official despatch received at the State Department at Wash- ington from Minister Denby announced the appointment of Chang Yin-Hoon and Shao as Peace Commissioners and their immediate departure for Tokio to arrange terms for peace.
Chang Yin-Hoon, who was appointed by the Emperor of China to negotiate peace with Japan, was at the time of his appoint-
ment the senior vice-president of the Board of Revenue. From 1 886 to 1890 he held tile office of Chinese Minister to the United States, Spain and Peru. It was he who signed, in 1888, a treaty with the United States absolutelj- prohibiting the coming of Chinese laborers into this country, which the Chmese government refused to ratify.
On returning from Iiis diplomatic mission abroad he was honored by the Emperor witl. promotion after promotion, until he reached a high position. He was also made a member of the Tsung Yamen, or Depart- ment of I'oreign Affairs, shortly after his return from abroad. Before he was appointed Minister he had filled thepost of Taotai, first at Wuhu and afterward at Chefoo, and also served at one time in a subordinate capacity in the Tsungli Yamen.
Commissioners Sent Back.
Shao Yiu-lien, Chang Yin-Hoon's col- league on the commission, was also a diplo- mat by training. For some years he repre- .scnted the Chinese government at the Rus- sian Court as Charge d'Affairs.
The Japanese Government refused to receive the commissioners, for the reason that they were not possessed of full power to con- clude terms of peace, but were evidently sent either to cause delay, or to learn, if jjossible, upon what terms Japan was willing to end the conflict.
Under date of Washington, December 27, came the following announcement : — "Cliina is evidently preparing for a strong diploniatic fight before yieldmg to the demands of Jap.in. This is the one important deduction to be made from the announcement to-night tliiit e.\-Secretary of State John W. Foster lias been appointed and has accepted the position of legal adviser to the two Chinese peace plenipotentiaries. Mr. Foster has hail an
CAPTURK OF WKI-IIAI-WKI.
GU
extended diplomatic career, havinjj, in addi- tion to beiny Secretary of State in President Harrison's Cabinet, represented the United States at the Court of Spain, and more recently one of counsel of the United States in the Behring Sea arbitration at Paris. He is not only one of the best international law- yers in the country, but he has wide experi- ence in Chinese affairs, and will therefore doubtless be able to rer Jer vali>able service to the Chinese government.
Meaning of the Appointment.
' In diplomatic circles his appointment is taken to mean that China will fight step by step every effort made by Japan to secure Chinese territory as a part of the indemnity to be demanded. It has been admitted by the Chinese Minister here that liis govern- ment is willing to pay an indemnity, but his government is not prepared, as far as he is advised, to relinquish any of its territory. I am told that Mr. Foster has already been doing some missionary work in this country in the direction of preparing the ground for the negotiations of a loan for the purpose of meeting.the war indemnity. This is consid- ered another evidence that his services have not been engaged for the purpose of fighting the payment of an indemnity, but to stave off Japan's demands for Chinese territory."
The following announcement was made by Mr. Foster him.sclf: — " Mr. John W. Fo.stcr has been requested by the Chinese govern- ment to go to Japan and meet the plenipo- tentiaries of the former government, to aid them in their negotiations for peace. He has accepted the invitation, and expects to leave Washington within a day or two, sailing from Vancouver for Yokohama on January 7, unless informed of a delay in the departure of the plenipotentiaries. The Japanese gov- ernment has been advised of the appointment.
and its Minister in this city has expressed his satisfaction with it. Mr. Foster desires to have it understood that he goes to Japan purely in a private capacity, as an adviser of the Chinese jjlenipotentiaries. He has no authority to represent or speak for the gov- ernment of the United States."
Independence of Corea.
The following important despatch was sent out from the capital of Corea, January 8, 1895:
" The King of Corea yesterday jjroceeded to the ancestral temple and there formally declared the independence of Corea. He was accompanied by the members of the Cabinet and the other high functionaries of the Government. The royal party was escorted by a body of soldiers armed and equipped in modern style. Ministers Boku- yeiko and Jokohan were specially guariled by Japanese policemen and the streets were kept clear by the new Corean police.
"Lio-Hun-Yon, grand.son ofTai-Won-Kun, the King's father and ex-Regent of Corea, has been appointed Corean Minister to Japan and will leave Corea for Japan in a few days.
" This proves once more that the Japanese are keeping the promise which they made to the foreign representatives at the beginning of the war to the effect that the)- would not try to annex Corea, but simply do their best to make it a strong and independent country.
" The .state of anarchy and oppression into which Corea had fallen at the time had first to be dealt with, but the Japanese, in order not to be accused of forcing the reforms against the will of the Coreans themselves, simply advi.sed the King to appoint a com- mission, composed of eighteen Coreans, to be chosen from the most enlightened and liberal men in the country. This commission is also advised by a number of foreigners,
612
CORKA AND TIM': WAR.
the k'tjal adviser to the Crown and tlic Council bcin^f an American, Mr. Greathouse, late United States Consul General at Yoka- yama.
" The Commission has been meeting every day for the last few months, and has already done much to impr(wc the dreadful condition of things in Corea. One of the very first steps was to reform the Department of Jus- tice and to create a police force. By the convention of Tien-Tsin, signed by Count Ito and Li-Hung-Chang, both Japan and China had agreed to request the King of Corea to keep up a sufficient force of soldiers, armed and equipped in the modern style, to insure his own safety and that of Seoul. Both had agreed that the officers commanding these men should be neither Japanese nor Chinese. The Japanese are still keeping their part of the agreement, and the troops in Seoul are under command of two American officers — General Oyer and Colonel Vienstead. These arc the soldiers who escorted the King to the ancestral hall.
The People in Ignorance.
" Japan had recognized the independence of Corea in 1878, when both countries signed a treaty on the footing of perfect equality. A similar treaty was soon after passed between Corea, the United States, France, England and other Powers, but so far these had remained unknown to the great bulk of the Corean people. Thou- sands of those were still ignorant of the facts. Most of them had read the big bills posted by the Chinese generals before the battles of Assan and Ping Yang, stating that the Chinese soldiers had been sent by the suzerain State, China, to protect the vassal, Corea. Few of them knew what stand the King and the Corean government had taken on the matter.
" The Kin^' lias now publicly declared the independence of Corea, and the news will he known in every city as quickly as the govern- ment messengers can reach them. The Coreans will now understand that their King has definitely repudiated China's suzerainty, and, what is more, that the Japanese have no intention of annexing Corea, but that their aim is, as they stated from the beginning, to assure its independence.
Sent to the Court of Japan.
"The news that the Tai-VVan-Kun's grandson has been appointed Ministei to Japan proves that Count Inouye must hive been successful in bringing about a settle- ment of the quarrels which for months have divided the different court factions. The King's father had been accused of trying to pave the way for his grandson to become King of Corea. His depaiture from tiiat country will leave the Crown Prince to breathe easier.
" Certain papers had reported that while smiling to the Japanese, the Tai-Wan-Kun and his family were working against them. It is useless to say that the Japanese would never have accepted his grandson as Corcaii Minister had they any ground to believe that he is anti-Japanese. The new Minister is considered as one of the most intelligent and liberal men in Corea.
" Count Inouye, who is now advising the King of Corea in the name of Jjipan, but who does not interfere with the commission nor with the foreign advisers, is one of the greatest Japanese statesmen. For many years he has been Minister of State for the Interior and was still holding this high i)osi- tion when, in October last, the Emperor relieved him of his functions to send him as a special ambassador to Corea. He speaks English with great fluency and is undoubt-
CAPTURE OK WKI-HAI-WKI.
613
€dly one of the foremost figures in tlie far East, His successful efforts toward brinyiny the King to declare Corea's independence is tl e best answer which he could give to those who accuse Japan of being anxious to make conquests."
During the early part of January, 1895, the military operations on the part of Japan were continued. A portion of the Japanese army left the Talien Gulf on January 19th, and reached Yun-Chin, near Wei-Hai-Wei, where a landing was easily effected, the Chi- nese force at that point making only a feeble resistance. A second detachment of trans- ports arrived subsequently, and the troops on board were also landed.
Great Battle at Wei-Hai-Wei.
The meaning of this operation was evi- dently that the Japanese intended to capture Wei-Hai-Wei, the only naval station then remaining in Northern China, which, with Port Arthur, would furnish them with two important bases for supplies and reinforce- ments when the time came for the advance on Pekin.
The following graphic account of the great naval battle at Wei-Hai-Wei is furnished by one of the war correspondents who was at the scene of the conflict. Under date of February 20, 1895, he writes :
The past fortnight has been full of tragic incident, all tending toward the complete subjugation of China and the shattering of her absurd pretences to naval and military prowess at the hands of the all conquering Japanese, who have now carried the war into the heart of the leviathan's territory. This was the situation as I began to write it two weeks ago : — The reduction of Wci-Hai-Wai is almost complete. The shattered remnants of the Chinese fleet, now numbering one crippled ironclad, the Chenyuen, which
Admiral Ting uses as his flagship since the destruction of the Tingyuen ; the two very second rate cruisers, I'ingyuen and King- yuen ; an unarmed training ship, the King- yuen, or Kungping, and five or six small gunboats.
This sad relic of the once proud Pelyang squadron lies huddled together in a cluster, as if for mutual protection and to infuse each other with courage in its final hours, l-'or it is evident that the old Chinese Admiral has made up his mind at the eleventh hour to vindicate his lost reputation for courage and to die with his flag at the fore. There is something almost pathetic in the closing days of Admiral Ting, who looks upon his force constantly diminishing, and yet refuses to surrender to a foe who would treat him with the consideration due to an enemy, fighting a losing battle, against great odds, with the blind ferocity of despair.
A Masterly Defence.
We are all astonished at the suddenly de- veloped fighting spirit evinced by Ting and his handful of officers. His defence of the island of Lukuntao has been quite masterly, and though every other day he loses a ship or two without inflicting any loss upon the enemy, he is fighting with astonishing gal- lantry.
First of all, he locked himself up in a splendid harbor, behind several lines of tor- pedoes and a heavy boom, under t'.-.e fire of two blocks of forts at the eastern and west- ern ends, which he allowed to be captured almost without a struggle. These forts are in the hands of the Japanese. True, when the garrison of 3,000 men ran away from the western forts as the Sendai division of the Japanese army approached. Admiral Ting landed a party of artillerists from his ships, blew up the forts and destroyed all the heavy
(514
CORI'lA AND Till': WAR.
guns in that place so that tlic Japanese vic- tors should not turn tliein again:jt their hite Chinese owners.
But he omitted to take a similar precaution at the eastern forts, where the Japanese occu- pants now ply two dozen Krupps of from 12 to 28 centimetres upon the island forts and Chinesi fleet. Perhaps he had no', time to act in this point as ho had in the west, as the attack by the Kumomto division, , ider Gen- eral Kuraki, was terribly sudden and irresis- tible, and the explosion of the large magazine, entailing a terrible loss of life, may have de- moralized the Chinese, if a people always at such a low moral and physical temperature are capable of suffering any more demorali- zation by a sudden access of misfortune, or by the infliction of any unexpected blow.
A Sudden Dash.
During an unusually vigorous bombard- ment by the Japanese gunners, who kept up a constant stream of iron into the neighbor- hood of Koto, :i sudden fit of insanity or desperation seemed to seize the Chinese tor- pedo flotilla. Whether it was preconcerted or the result of example of one or two, I know not, but at about half-past nine the whole thirteen boats, accompanied by a good- sized steam tug, suddenly made a dash for the western channel and passed safely over the boom and through the line of explosive obstructions. At first they hugged close to the nearest end of the island. They had not seen what we saw.
T'^ve of the Japanese ships, the Yoshino, the Takachiho, the Akitsu, the Chiyoda and the Naniwa, at once appeared, as if by magic, just outside the western channel. Upon seeing them the Chinese torpedo Ijoats seemed to be stricken by terror and indecis- ion. They broke from two lines into a con- fused and scattcrcil mass, spread out over a
large surface, each steaming at top speed in tlifferent directions around and across eacii other, until their lines of white smoke wove a regular spider's web upon the smooth f ice of the sea.
The five great Japanese war ships formed a circle round the torpedo vessels and closcil them in. In a few moments the quick firing guns of the V'oshino and the other four ships commenced to spit fire, and the water all round the dying Ciinese craft was cut up Ijy a storm of Hotchkiss shot, which knocked up pillars of water .uid spray on every side of the panic-stricken torpedo craft. The tug- bo..: which accompanied the torpedo vessels in the dash across the boom was quickly struck as she tried to make for a small bay on my left h ind side, about half a mile off, and I saw her give a lurch to starboard and then settle down, sinking in a few minutes, with her crew, which must have numbered a dozen hands at least.
Destruction of Torpedo Vessels.
Through the storm of small shot several of the torpedo vessels contrived to break away, and made a dash for liberty toward the north- west, in the direction of Chefoo. Four or five of them were sunk under my eyes, about a mile from the shore, by the Japanese cruisers' quick firing guns. A Hotchkiss shot from the Naniwa struck tiie beach beyond one of the torpedo boats, and, after ricochetting, came unpleasantly close to your corres- pondent, who is using it for a paper wcii^dit while writing this despatch. A few of the torpedo boats were driven by the severity o\ the fire to run for shelter into the small cove; at the foot of the hill from which T watcluil the engagement, and after stranding the ho.ii^ the officers and crows ran ashore and endeav- ored to escape by hiding themselves iii caxc^ in the rocks. I'ourtcen of them were captured
CAPTURE OF WKI-MAl-Wia.
(115
subsequently by the Japanese soldiers sta- tioned alon^ the shore.
The rest of the boats — that is, those which had not been sunk outright — put out to sea. The Yoshino pursued them at full speed, and either captured or sunk every one. Not a single boat escaped. The entire thirteen were either sunk or captured. The pursuit lasted till the Uluff at Chefoo was almost reached.
The Japanese fleet kept up a furious bom- bardment on the forts of the island, and at least one of the forts at the iar end was silenced. On the 9th the bombardment was renewed by the Japanese in the eastern forts. The Chinese replied spiritedly, but the Chinese fleet made only a faint resistance in the morning. They were all driven to the eastern end of the harbor. The Kingjuen, Pingyuen and Chiyuen, attended by a couple of gunboats each time, wen sent by Admiral Ting to reply to the eastern forts.
Struck by a Shell.
During one of these engagements the -""hi- yuen was struck by a shell from one ot the big guns at Rokkakushi. She had just fired her big gun and was going about, when the shell struck her. She gave a rapid heel to port on her beam end, her starboard side and stern rising out of the water. She was so close that I could hear the whirr of her twin propellers as they revolved or raced in the air. It was evident that she had been hit on the port side, forward the engines, from the angle at which she keeled over. After ten minutes, or perhaps a (quarter of an hour, she began to settle down more evenly. Her stern sunk until it was on a lino with her bows, from which we on shore inferred that her bulkheads gave way and the water became more evenly tlistributed throughout ail her compartnunts.
At about eleven A. M. the firing, .'•s if In-
general consent, ceased from both the Chinese and Japanese forts and ships. The Chinese fleet .seemed sadly dispirited by the fate of the Chyuen, which was their best cruiser at the time. They gathered together at the western end of the harbor like a flock of frighteneil wild fowl, and seemed glad enough to let tl.e Japanese gunners fire the last shot.
A Day of Spirited Fighting.
The western forts did not fire at all in the morning. Tlio Japanese plan was merely, then, to try to silence the Chinese forts on the island, not to destroy the Chinese fleet, the remnant of which they seem to wish to capture intact, liut equally determineii do the Chinese seem to sacrifice their few re- maining vessels and their men, though I learn that Admiral Ting is anxious to save those of his officers who have distinguished themselves to train the nucleus o'.'the Chinese navy of the future.
At iialf-past one o'clock P. VI. of the 9th the Japanese fleet and forts resumed the bombardment. Again the eastern fort guns were played upon the far forts on the island almost without intermission, ami tlie Chinese fleet, which had obviously counted upon a respite, and had returned to the midtile reach of the harbor, was driven back to the western section. The Chinese continued to reply .spiritedly. Great consternation was visible in their lines when the Japanese unexpect- edly open(;d fire from the western forts, or rather close above them. A hail of shrapnel could be seen bursting o\ir the fort at Koto anil over the Chinese fleet.
One shot from Koto or the ClienyucMi's great guns would have blown the extempor- ized Japanese battery of popguns into frag- ments, but the Japanese had concealed their puny pieces with consummate skill. Their firing, too, was marvellously accurate, con-
616
CORFvV AND TIIIC WAR.
sidcrin^ tlic nature of tlicir artillery, and by tlircc o'clock the heavy ^^uns at Koto ceased to reply. The Chinese field pieces on the lace of the island continued to fire intermit- tinoiy.
At half-past three the Chcnyucn, after having stood the fire of the mortars for two hours, got into position to reply. She opened with her bow 30-centimetre gun and followed with a similar jiiece from her stern. The mortars continued to hurl their bursting shrapnel at the ironclad, and I saw three or four so well aimed that they burst in the air ■directly over her masts. After each of the.se doses of iron rain the Chenyuen seemed to be silenced for a time, as if her decks were cleared by the shrapnel, but she got her heavy guns to bear again and poured in an almost incessant fire until dark. But her shooting was again wretched, only one of her shots going anywhere near the mortar bat- tery, wounding three men.
Small Loss of Life.
What the Chinese losses were we have as yet no means of knowing. The J.ipanese losses during the two days' bombardment were almost incredibly slight. A few men only wounded in the western forts, none in the ea.stern, about a dozen killed and wounded •on the fleet — this was the {)ricc of the de- struction of the formidable Chinese torpedo flotilla, the sinking of tiie Chiyuen and one ■of two tugboats, tlic dismantling of the Chinese forts on Lito Island, and the silenc- ing of several guns at Koto, and the far end of I ukuntao.
It w.is e.vpected by us on shore that the bombardment would be renewed on the 1 2th, but as the day wore on it became evident that a change of some important character had taken pl.icc in the situation, though the Chinese ships ami the llagstaff surmounting
the highest point of the island .still (lew the Celestial ensign. Later, we found out that some negotiations were in progress, and ne.\t morning — i 3th — it was definitely known th.il an armistice was on, and that it was now only a (juestion of arranging the final details for the surrender of what was left of the Chinese fleet, and the forts on the islands. Full ex- planations were soon forthcoming clearly showing that the rival admirals were in com- munication with each other, and that there was at last an end to the fighting.
Flags at Half Mast.
About eight o'clock A. M. on the 1 3th we noticed that the flags on the Chinese ships were half ma.sted, but we on the shore could not then divine the reason. In a little time the reason became known, but the first re- ports were received with incredulity. The Chinese Admiral had followed the most honorable co irse, a la Chinois, for a defeated commander, and sealed his defeat by his own voluntary death. Even no»v we liere know but little of that tragic ending to a checkered career beyond the mere fact that, after having arranged the terms of the surrender. Ting retired to his chamber and took opium. His two chief offic r:i also ended their lives in a similar mannc.
When Admiral Ito heard the tragic news he was greatly moved ami actually burst into tears. The two Atlmirals knew each other well, and Admiral Ito, whatever the Japanese fun-lovnig journals may say, actually enter- tained a high regard and respect for his vanciuished rival. Admiral Ito had sunk, cai)tured or otherwise disposed of three- fourths of poor old Ting's fleet and all his torpedo flotilla, but the gallant Japanese Admiral felt the sad ending to his inij iitaiit rival's career acutely.
It should be stated here that subseiiuent
nirTTa
CAITURI': C)l<' Wia-HAI-VVKI.
or
reports c.'ist doubt upon tlic actual suicide of tlic Admiral. It was believed upon what appeared ^ooil authority that he esca[)cd with the soldiers that fled from the town, and that the body supposed to be his was that of a dead soldier that had been substi- tuted. Whether there was truth in these reports or not could not be determined.
The report of Admiral Ting's suicide will be more easily accounted for when it is remembered that he commanded the Chinese fleet which was so badly defeated in the battle of the Yalu. At that time he was accused of cowardice md incompetence. Me was by education not a .^ailor, but a soldier. When the war broke out he was first given the command of the army which had its headquarters at Tien-Tsin, from which post he was transferred to the navy and placed in command of the northern .squadron, v/hich came to grief at the Yalu. lie is described as being a tall man of commanding presence, between fifty and si.\ty years of age. He was reputed to be a good soldier and a dash- ing cavalry commander. His worst vice was that of gambling, and it was said that he did not hesitate to indulge in it even at the expcn.sc of discii)line aboard shi[).
A Powerful Stronghold.
The capture of Wei-IIai-Woi was one mon; clinching proof of the inestimable value of the commanil of the sea. l'"roin the opening day of the war Chinese engineers were striving hand and foot to make Wei- 1 lai-Wei imi)regnable. The forts were scien- tifically constructed and powerfully armetl ; the ch.mnels that lead east and west into the harbor around the island of Liu-Kung \^ere sown thick- with submarine mines ami torpe- does. And the very strength of the place was its ruiu. The Chinese fleet might ha\e attackeil Admiral Ito ; il might have put
itself in a position to act freely against Mar- shal Oyama; it might at least have dashed out and tried to save itself t<j southwaril.
But its own e.vcellently arranged mines and torpedoes were far more fatal to it than to the enemy, and the last ships of the Chinese efficii;nt navy were bottled up in the harbor to be taken at leisure. If the Chiriese fleet had held the .sea neither Wei- llai-Wei nor Port Arthur would ever have been taken from the weak landward side — Japan could never even have landed her army in Shantung. If by an accident she had, the force would have been cut off and ruined in theory and in a short while in fact, also. Iwen if she had taken the naval ports by a sudden and despenite uii.ict from inland, they could never have been held except they rested on a conmianding squadron at sea. The value of sea power could not have received a more complete or more striking demonstration.
A Novel Scheme.
Among the foreigners at Wei-Hai-Wei at the time of the surrender were several Americans, including John Wilde, who, under the assumed name of William Howie, went to Japan in November, 1894. Wilde, who was accomi)anied by a Scotchman named Cameron, travelling under the p.seu- tlonym of "Courtney," ami Iv I"'. Moore, formerly translator at the Ciiinese Legation ;it Washington, had a scheme for destroying the Ja[)anese fleet. He claimed that at the t'.xpeiise (if a few thous.uid tloliars he coidd annihilate any fleet wliii. ii he attacked.
His plan was to throw from a lorfjedo boat shells filled with chemicals, which, on striking, would explode, creating a siiff )eat- ing smoke, and to follow this up by attacking with tor|)<'(!()es. ( )n their airi\'al at Kobe the jiart)- were airestetl b\' the J.ipanese
I
618
CORKA AND THE WAR.
authorities, who had been kept iiiformccl of their movements and intentions. Subse- quently the prisoner.- were rclea.sed on giving a written guarantee that they would give no assistance to the enemy — a guarantee which apparently Wilde, or " Howie," did not respect.
The reader will be interested in the follow- ing additional account of the capture of the great Chinese stronghold :
The surrender of the Chinese fleet and o*" the remaining forces of Wci-Hai-W^ci con- stituted the most striking scene in the drama of the war. Several days before the event Vice-Admiral Ito, Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese naval squadron, had addressed a letter to Admiral Ting, who held a corre- sponding position on the Chinese side. The two men were intimate friends, as they had often come together before the breaking out of the war, and each had been attached to the other by mutually similar qualities of bonhomie and professional zeal.
The Admiral's Letter.
Admiral Ito, therefore, in addressing Admiral Ting by letter, while the fleets com- manded by the two admirals were waiting to destroy each other, divested himself entirely of his public capacity, and spoke simply as a friend. The gist of the letter was to advise Admiral Ting to abandon the doomed cause and to take refuge in Japan until the termina- tion of the war. Naturally the question of Admiral Ting's personal safety was kept out of sight. Admiral Ito based his advice solely on patriotic motives. China's disasters, he said, were due to inherent weakness ; they were the outcome of defective systems, corrupt government and blind conservatism.
"You know well," he wrote, "what troubles Japan had to encounter thirty years ago, what points she had to surmount, but
she owes L.-r preservation and her integrity wholly to the fact that she then broke away from the old and attached herself to the new. In the case of your country, also, that must be the cardinal course at present. If you adopt it, I venture to say that you are safe; if you reject it, you cannot escape destruc- tion in the contest with Japan. I vow that I believe that your wisest course is to come 'o Japan and wait there till tho fortunes of your country are rigain in the ascendant, and until the time arrives when your services will be again needed."
Thought to be Impregnable.
The Chinese Admiral when he received the letter had a fine fleet undc-r his command — a powerful ironclad, .several cruisers, seven gunboats and eleven torpedo boats. The land defences at Wei-Hai-Wei were also intact. Garrisoned by a strong body of troops and excellently planned, they appear- ed impregnable. Admiral Ting believed that Wei-Hai-Wei might defy the Japanese attacks and prove the turning point of the war. Even though all the mainland defences fell there would rcmpl" the island forts, capable of long and stubbori. resistance.
Three things were essential to the success of his plan. First, that every fort evacuated by the Chinese should ho previously dis- mantled, otherwi.se its guns might be used against Chinese ships. Second, that in tiic event of the capture of the eastern forts, the garrison of the western should still hold their ground and trust to the fleet to defend the ajifiroachcs to their position. Third, that Japan should not obtain destructive acciv^s to ships inside the bay.
All these contingencies were basetl nu false assumptions, the two first on lli< hypothesis that the Chinese troops at Wii- Hai-Wei would fight with courage and co<il-
s
CAPTURK OF WKI-HAI-WEI.
019
ness such as they liad never previously displayed ; third, on the supposition that Japanese pluck and darintj would fall short of the standard hitherto attained by them.
Admiral Ting's projects were therefore doomed from the outset to disappointment. The defenders of the eastern forts lacked courage to hold them until the process of dismantlement had been carried within the reach of certain success. Their plan was to blow up the powder magazines before evacua- ting the forts. For that purpose they em- ployed a somewhat primitive device — a joss stick fastened to a fuse. All joss sticks are of corresponding dimensions, and every Chinaman knows pretty accurately how many minutes are absorbed in the burning of a given number of inches of joss sticks.
Burning Joss Sticks.
But to use these things as a means of conducting fire to a magazine at a given moment coolness and deliberation are re- quired, and the Chinese are neither cool nor deliberate under fire. It is true that in one case their project was disturbed by the accu- racy of the Japanese artillery, which blew up a magazine before the garrison of a fort had begun to fi.K the joss sticks in position.
It is also true that in another case only an inch of joss stick remained to burn when the Japanese infantry stormed the fort and ex- tinguished the fatal cylinder of incense. But in a third fort there was plenty of time to remove the explosives. Dynamite bombs are really dangerous only in the hands of men prepared to die witli those they kill — anxiety to save one's self disturbs the effec- tiveness of the act of destruction. Thus it resulted that after the rout of their garrisons there remained in the eastern forts eleven serviceable pieces of artillery.
Admiral Ting, ignoring this failure of pro-
gramme, ran his ships close in shore toward the forts the Japanese had taken. Mean- while General Tai, commander-in-chief of the land forces, effected his escape to Liu Kung Island.
Admiral Ting was a bluff man. Origi- nally a pirate, he possessed the faculty of conveying his meaning forcibly. What he said to Tai restored that fugitive's concep- tion of manhood. With the Admiral's re- proaches ringing in his ears, he resorted to the Chinaman's final retreat from trouble or disgrace — a fatal dose of opium. Admiral Ting's projects were gradually undergoing defeat. Mainland forts were all lost, those on the east with their armament virtually intact ; the fleet was therefore condemned to confine itself chiefly to the west of the bay. Remnants of a large co-operative programme that looked so promising at the outset were now reduced to a .squadron and island for thii-.
Steel Wire Hawser.
It might still be possible to hope that the Japanese sailors would refrain from the des- perate adventure of entering the bay to attack the Chinese vessels, but the ob.stacle to the western channel was now purely passive — a boom consisting of three lines of steel wire hawser, with heavy blocks of timber lashed vertically at short intervals. Had it been possible for one or two ships to lie in the vincinity of this boom, bringing it under the range of their quick firing guns, the opera- tion of breaking a passage through it would have been almost hopeless.
But the eastern forts, armeil as they were, held the Chinese shir)s at bay, so that Japan- ese torpedo boats were able to find their way in and sink three of the best Chinese ships and a gunboat. The eastern ft)rts sunk another. Then ensued the destruction or
<i20
CORFA AND THE WAR.
capture of the whole Chinese flotilla — eleven boats — chased by Jai^aiiese cruisers, beached, shattered or taken before they could effect their project of fleeing to Chefoo.
Admiral Ting's case was now desperate. He was jield in a vise by the Japanese. Escape or effective resistance was alike im- possible. On I'ebruary I2th he despatched to Admiral Ito the following letter:
" I have received a letter of suggestions adtlresscd to me by the officer commanding the united Japanese squadrons, but I did not reply because our countries were at war. Now, however, having fought resolutely, having liad my ships sunk and my men decimated, I am ready to give up the contest and ask for a cessation of hostilities in order to save the lives of my people. I will sur- render to the Japanese ships of war now in Wei-Hai-VVei harbor, together with Liu- Kung Island forts and arr lanent, provided my request is complied with — namely, that tl»e lives of all persons connected with the army and navy, Chinese and foreign, be uninjured, and that they be allowed to return to their homes. If this is .icredcd to, the commander-in-chief of the British naval squadron will become guarantor. I submit this proposal and shall be glad to have a speedy reply."
The Surrender.
Admiral Ito accepted the proposed terms. He dispensed, however, with the foreign guarantee offered by Admiral Ting.
" I place implicit reliance," he wrote, " on your assurance as an officer."
Admiral Ito kn,.vv his man. There was no preccijicnt ju.stifying such trustfulness. Time and again the Chinese had used the white flag dishonorably. Even on an occa- sion so recent as the assault on the Wei-Hai- Wei forts a dcccptixe Hag for surrender had
been hung out by a Chinese garrison to lure their as.sailants within point-blank range. But Ting's method'; f warfare did not belong to that class.
In acknowledging the despatch of sur- render Ito sent to his old friend a few cases of champagne, claret, etc. But Tmg would accept nothing, ilis mind was .set on other things. Once again he wrote Ito :
" Your answer just received. It gives me much .satisfaction on account of the lives of my men. I have also to express my grati- tude for the things you have .sent me, but as a state of war is existing between our coun- tries it makes it difficult for me to receive them. I beg to return them herewith, though I thank you for the thought.
Request for Delay.
" Your letter stat is that arms, forts and ships must be handed over to-morrow, but that leaves us a very brief interval at our dis- posal. Some time is needed for military and naval folk to exchange their uniforms for travelling garments and make up their bag- gige. It would be difficult to conform with the date named by you. I therefore beg that you will extend the period to enter the harbor from the 22d da" of this month, according to the Chinese calendar (i6th February), appointing a day for taking o\cr the Liu-Kung forts, the armament and ships now remaining. I pledge my good faith in the matter."
Immediately after writing this the stout old sailor retired to his cabin and poisoned him.self with opium. His example was fol- lowed by the second officer in command, Commodore Liu, and by the officer com- manding the Liu Kung garrison, Cieneral Chang. These three men had done their duty bravel)', but knew that nothing excuses failure when Chinese judges are on the
CAPTURi' OK \vi:miai-\vi:i.
GJl
bench. To liavc returned lionic would li.ivc been to court certain dis<;racc and decapita- tion and to involve their families in their fate. By dying as they did they saved their wives and children and their own honor.
Admiral Ito restored one of the captured men-of-war in order that the bodies of the three officers might be carried home in due state, and as the vessel steamed out of Wei- Hai-Wei every Japanese ship manned its yards and fired a salute to the memory of China's bravest .soldiers.
Immediately after tlie fall of Wei-Hai-Wei there were rumors of a renewal of effort on the part of China to obtain peace. Viceroy Li-Hung-Chang, after several audiences with the emperor, was commissioned to go to Japan with full power to conduct and con- clude negotiations. He proceeded at once to Shimonoseki, the place agreed upon for meeting the representatives of the Japanese Government.
Li-Hung-Chang Wounded.
Upon the day after liis arrival the startling report was sent abroad of a distardly attempt upon his life. The following was the despatch :
"March 24, 1895. — At the close of the peace conference yesterday Li-IIung-Cliang, when returning home, was shot at by a young Japanese and wounded in the cheek.
" The imperial doctor was immediately summoned to attend the Viceroy, whose wound, it is hoped, will not prove serious.
" Much regret at this unfortunali' event is felt both by the Japanese government and by the people generally.
" Li was ruiLirning from the peace confer- ence in which he conducts negotiations in behalf of the Chme.se mission, and was acconip.mied b)- several of his suite. When he was a short distance from his apartments
a young Japanese ran up to him and fired a pistol in liis face. The young man was seized and di.sarmcd at once by the police. At the station house he gave his name as Koyama and liis age as twenty-one years. According to the short report received in Tokio, Li's wound is not dangerous.
" The author of the murderous attempt on Li-Mung-Chang is probably one of those cranks or f.matics from whom Japan is not exempt any more than the countries of the western world, where not long ago a Presi- dent of a republic met his death at an assas- .sin's hands.
A Dangerous Class.
" Unfortunately Japan has more than her share of the.se cranks, who arc mostly desperate young students. They ae always found in the .set of students ami young men called ' Soshi,' who, disappointed in their fortune or crazed by European socialistic writings, are a constant trouble to the gov- ernment, and menace to the peace of the nation.
" These Soshi are most conspicuous on the occasion of Parliamentary elections, when they use threats, and sometimes violence, in order to get the most votes for their own favored candidates. In the years following the War of the Restoration of 1867, Ja[)an suffered greatly from their doings, and among Japan's illu.strious statesmen who were their victims was that great statesman Toshimichi Okubo, Prime Minister in the early seventies, who was stabbed while riding in his carriage by a young fanatic, because he had favored and adopted a peace policy toward China, contrary to the wish of the war part}'.
" .Since this occurrence tlure liave been a dozen instances of similar attacks. In one of these the life of the present Russian Czar was aimed at, but he was fortunate enough to
ii'22
CORKA AND TIIK WAR.
escape witli a 'ijlht sword wound on his forehead."
Further particulars of the bold attempt to take tlic hfe of the Viceroy are given by a war correspondent, and are as follows :
"The shoolingof Li-Hung-Cliang, Chinese Viceroy and Peace Ambassador, has caused an immense sensation in Japan. I was called thither from Hiroshima on the night of the attempted assassination, and liave secured the facts at first hand. The shooting took place at about four o'clock on the afternoon of March 24. Li-1 lung-Chang, borne in a sedan chair by four servants, was within a hundred yards of the temple assigned to him as a residence, on his way home from a meeting of the Japanese peace negotiators. He had raised the curtains on each side and in front and was looking ahead over the rims of a pair of gold mounted spectacles, which had slipped down on his no.se.
A Bullet in His Cheek.
" Suddenly a young Japanese, who stood in the crowd lining the way, with a cocked revolver in his sleeve, sprang forward to the front of the palanquin and, from a distance of si> feet, fired directly at the Viceroy's face. Ihe bullet struck the left cyegla.ss and lodged in the aged statesman's cheek. The sedan bearers ])aused for a moment and then trotted off.
"The assassin turned and ran into a shop, where he was speedily arrested. He laughed aloud as the police hurried him away. To- day, at his preliminary hearing, he boasted of his deed, and said he was sorry the bullet did not kill the Viceroy. The assassin had passed the night in the streets near l.i's resi- dence, and, it appears, came to Shimonoseki in order to shoot Li-Hung-Chang.
" Li's behavior was admirable. He pressed a handkerchief to the wound and called to
his bearers to luirry on. By the time he reached home the handkerchief and uphols- tery of the chair were soaked with blood. He walked unassisted to his bedroom. The day after the shooting I saw the Viceroy at his luncheon, his face swathed in bandages. He was using ciioi> sticks ;i.s though unhurt. A few days later I had a personal interview with him.
Li-Hung Asks Questions.
" He lay on a lounge, with one foot on a chair. His dress was a jacket of thick fur and a brocaded skirt. His face was still bangaged, but he seemed free from pain. The Viceroy chose to do the interviewing himself. 1 told him I had been to I'ort Arthur, Tallenwan antl Wei-IIai-Wei. He began to get interested, and, with a quick gesture, put another question through the interpreter.
'"How many soldiers had Japan at VVei- Hai-Wei?'
" I answered, 'Twenty thousand.'
" ' Ah,' he replied, ' our troops were greatly outnumbered. They were only si.K thousand."
" Then the Viceroy put question after question as to the behavior of the Chinese troops at Wei-IIai-Wei, and the garrison left there. At my request his botly servant brought in the garments wluVh Li wore at the time of the shooting. I saw the spec- tacle shattered by the bullet, and the long yellow robe, lined with squirrel fur, streaked with blood on the front and the sleeve, and also the under jacket of blue cloth, and the outer jacket of otter fur, both blood .stained. These relics are to be taken back to China before being cleansed.
'"The Viceroy would like to ask," .said the interpreter, ' if you know any instance where an ambassador has been shot in a country to which he was accredited?' This is a query
' ■■■ "■ '^^
CAPTURl-: OJ' WEI-IIAI-WEI.
(i2.'i
rvant re at spec- long :aked and the lined. China
id the where try to query
which Li puts to all visitors. Me asked if the people of the United States would sympa- thize with him in his misfortune. ' I have many friends there,' he said, ' though my best friend. General Grant, is dead. Mrs. Grant is living, I think. She was very kind while at Tientsin to Lady Li.'
"The viceroy has behaved throughout with the utmost coolness and courage."
After protracted negotiations, the treaty of peace between China and Japan was signed at Sliimonoseki April i6, 1895. The terms ot ihe treaty, as reported, were as follows:
h'irst — The independence of Corca. Second — Japan's retention of the contjuercd places. Third — Japan's retention of the territory east of the Liao river. Fourth — Permanent ces- sion of Formosa. Fifth — Indemnity of 5100,000,000. Sixth — Japan to have com- mercial privileges in China.
The Progress of Events.
The following is a summary of the events of the war : The first act of war occurred on July 25, 1894, off Phungdo, when three Japanese cruisers met three Chinese war vessels conveying troops to Corea. One of the Chinese vessels, a despatch boat, was captured ; one, a gunboat, made a desperate resistance, but was driven on shore and destroyed ; the third, a protected cruiser, ran away. Of the three transports, two got into port safely ; the third, the Kow Shing, was sunk.
July 30 — Capture of Asan. The first blow struck by Japan at sea was speedily followed up by others on land.
September 1 5 — Battle of Ping Yang. — Outside the town every commanding position was strongly intrenched, sheltering breast- works being thrown up to cover tiie infantry with Krupp and Gatling guns, mounted behind regular parapets. Altogether the
place was defended by about sixteen thou- sand men. After two days' intermittent fighting all the outlying forts on the east and southeast were captured and the Japanese summoned the defenders of the city to sur- render.
September 17 — Battle of the Yalu. — About the middle of September the Chinese authorities, becoming anxious about the position at Ping Yang, despatched a number of transports with troops from Talien Hay, near Port Arthur, to the Yalu. The trans- ports were sent up the river, the main body of the fleet remaining at anchor some ten miles to the westward. About ten o'clock in the morning of September 17 the Japanese fleet, under Admiral Ito, was seen approach- ing. It consisted of four very fast cruisers in line ahead, followed by a second squadron of three coast defenders, a belted crui.ser and a belt and battery protected armor clad. There were also three other vessels — a slow armored corvette, a gun vessel and an armed merchantman.
Chinese Fleet Disabled.
The Chinese fleet, which consisted of ten vessels, fought bravely, w ilh the exception of the Tsi Yuen and the Kwaiig Ki, both of which made off as fast as their engines would carry them, but were out manceuvred and beaten on every hand. The Chili Yuen was sunk and the Lai Yuen and King Yuen were set on fire.
November 2 1 — Fall of Port Arthur. — The capture of Port Arthur on the Regent's .Sword jjroniontory was the ne.xt great event in the war. It was effected in the careful and deliberate style which had distinguished the Jajjanese campaign throughout. For a whole fortnight the invaders drew their net slowly around, two divisions marching so as to command both sides of the peninsula on
<i21
COREA AND Till': WAR.
which Port Arthur stands and to keep in toucli with the fleet. One after another the defences succumbed, the Chinese fighting phickily for once, and contesting the ground so that tlie Japanese advanced almost foot by foot for two days.
Finally a flotilla of Japanese torpedo boats entered the port and distracted attention sea- ward, while a smart assault on the remaining works carried the day, leaving the Japanese masters of the most important arsenal and dockyard in China and in command of the Gulf of Pechili. Fifteen thousand Japanese were engaged against thirteen thousand Chinese, and i.vo thousand of the latter suc- cumbed. The rest vanished.
February 13, 1895 — Capitulation of Wei- Hai-VVei. — Port Arthur having fallen, the victorious Japanese turned their attention to China's other great naval stronghold, on the Gulf of Pechili, and toward the end of January a landing in force was effected near Wei-Hai-Wei. Two circumstances combined to make the capture of this place a more protracted operation than that of Port Arthur. The Chinese fleet in harbor, although indif- ferently handled, showed, as in the battle of the Yalu, that it was possessed of creditable fighting powers. On the other hand, the
island of Liu-kung-tao constituted an inde- pendent fortress entailing further operations on the part of the Japanese. On January 30 the invaders practically obtained com mand of the whole of the inland defences. It was not until the 1 3th that Admiral Ting proposed the surrender of the fleet.
March 21 — Fisher Island occupied. — Having firmly established themselves in Northern China the Japanese now opened their campaign against Formosa, and took their last active .steps before the conclusion of the armistice. On March 21, 1895, they occupied Fisher Island.
Meanwhile Li-Mung-Chang had reached Japan in the character of China's plenipoten- tiary to treat for peace. China had maiie two ineffectual attempts to secure an armis- tice 'oy despatching, first. Commissioner Detring and then two Chinese officials to discuss terms with Japan. As soon, how- ever, as it was found that these commission- ers were not clothed with full powers they were informed that no negotiations could be entered into, and so at last China was forced to send her greatest statesman, armed with the necessary credentials, to bring about the cessation of hostilities. This was effected as already stated.
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